42 ' ON MANURES, AND THEIR 



this article. It is believed that it has never been ex- 

 tensively used in Massachusetts, nor till within a few 

 years past. It seems clear that it acts as an antiseptic 

 when applied to certain substances ; for instance, to 

 posts in a fence, to board fence, to the roofs of houses 

 covered with shingles, to the sides of barns, &c. &c. 

 All these applications have been made on the principle 

 that lime is an antiseptic, and tended to preserve the 

 timber to which it was applied. 



Wood-ashes, too, have been applied to the surface of 

 the earth about posts set in the ground, and experience 

 shows the benefit of this application. 



Now does lime promote the decomposition of vege- 

 table matter ? Wood-ashes surely do, when applied to 

 the soil filled with it. If lime operates the reverse of 

 this, it should no longer be ranked, as a manure, with 

 ashes. Lime is a constituent portion of wheat : it en- 

 ters into the composition of the plant, and, where lime 

 is naturally deficient, it seems reasonable that it should 

 be procured and mixed with the deficient sod. All 

 soils are found to have some portion of lime in them. 

 Now fifteen or twenty bushels of wheat, a high average 

 crop on an acre, will not contain more than one or two 

 bushels of lime, at most. If, then, we apply that 

 quantity, it would seem sufficient for the wheat crop, 

 even if the soil before was totally destitute. 



But the Enghsh apply one hundred bushels to the 

 acre, — often fifty to sixty. They cannot do this on 

 the principle of thus furnishing to the soil a component 

 part of the future crop. They use it thus freely for 

 different reasons : they seem to think it ameliorates the 

 hard, clayey soils, by rendering them less adhesive. 

 They also contend that lime is beneficial on a sandy 

 soil, rendering it more retentive of moisture ! Lime 

 thus works as great wonders as the breath of the trav- 

 eller, in a cold morning : it was used to warm his 

 hands, and to cool his porridge. 



Are we yet prepared earnestly to recommend a boun- 



