SECRETARY'S REPORT. 79 



contain salts and phosphates, which the rain and melting 

 snows render soluble, while they wash thcni away ; they con- 

 tain a good deal of ammonia, and are rich in alkaline salts, 

 especially the more valuable salts of potash, and in desirable 

 organic matter. Manure depreciates very fast by being sufifered 

 to lie in the yard. Professor Voelcker found by accurate 

 experiments, that manure lying in the yard exposed to all 

 weathers, lost in value two-thirds ; only one-third remaining in 

 one year. Manure may be carted and spread directly on the 

 land, if there is any clay or loam in its composition, but the 

 worst possible method is to haul out manure and leave it in 

 small heaps on the field ; the opinion seems to be gaining 

 ground that the best application of manure is to spread it on 

 the land in the fall. 



The saving of both solid and liquid manure is a great 

 argument in favor of soiling cows, which ought to be practiced 

 on hundreds of farms in this Commonwealth, where now the 

 cows find but an insufficient pasture. If the pastures were 

 fed to sheep, or young stock, and the cows kept in the stable 

 all the time, and fed with green food daily cut, the pastures 

 would be better, the sheep and young stock would be good, 

 the cows would be in better condition, give more and better 

 milk, and an immense saving would be made of manure now 

 wasted. All the manure which is dropped in the pasture 

 would of course be saved ; and also the liquid manure with a 

 little care and labor, by keeping constantly behind the cows 

 muck, loam, or some other absorbant. Farmers generally are 

 not aware of the value of this last. Johnston and Sprengel, 

 learned agricultural chemists, say that a cow annually voids 

 about 16,800 pounds of urine, which contains 961 pounds of 

 solid matter quite equal in value to Peruvian guano at $60 per 

 ton, making the annual commercial value of the liquid manure 

 of the cow to be $28.83 ; no inconsiderable proportion of her 

 whole value ; a cord of loam saturated with urine, is equal to a 

 cord of the best rotted dung. The manure from the poultry, 

 if they are confined, is as good as guano, and should not be 

 wasted ; that from the house is the most valuable, and if mixed 

 with fresh loam is completely deodorized. 



There are many substances wasted whiSh would make rich 

 fertilizers. There is much from every factory and mill, and from 



