96 A TREATISE ON THE CONNECTION OF 



dung may be obtained than by the other pradice of 

 keeping a less number of cattle, and littering them with 

 straw. 



When peat cannot be had, the richest and blackest 

 mould should be procured, that the volatile alkali of 

 the urine may a£l upon and dissolve, into a mucilagi- 

 nous gummy liquor, the oxygenated inert vegetable 

 matter contained in such mould. Peat, however, is to be 

 preferred, because it contains a more abundant propor- 

 tion of oxygenated vegetable matter for the volatile al- 

 kali to ail upon. 



These are not to be considered as theoretical state- 

 ments, but the result of acSlual experiments, attentively 

 made in Scotland. The quantity of manure made in the 

 same given time was much greater than if litter had been 

 used ; and the manure procured was infinitely more rich 

 xind valuable. These experiments were not confined to 

 the dung and urine of cattle, but the chamber-lye of the 

 family was carefully preserved, and mixed also with a 

 due proportion of oxygenated peat, which was found to 

 produce a greater effe<5l in dissolving the peat than the 



uri ne from the cattle. 



The 



