On Lime, 



1 have seen very great crops of barley got by sowing 

 the land with pigeon's dang, as thin as we sow rye, 

 and harrowing it in along with the seed barley ; where- 

 as had it been put upon the land as thick, or half as 

 thick as we would put stable or barn-yard dung, it 

 would as effectually destroy all vegetation as hot lime 

 used to excess. The same remarks will apply to the 

 dung of all kinds of domestic fowls, also to human 

 dung and urine, so much valued in China. Common 

 salt has often been recommended as a great assistant to 

 the growth of vegetables when used in small quanti- 

 ties, whereas it is well known that the excessive use of 

 it will render land totally barren. 



It will be admitted on all hands that all animal and 

 vegetable matters contained in the soil, must undergo 

 a decomposition by some means or other, so that be- 

 ing thereby reduced to such a state as to be easily so- 

 luble in water, they may be readily absorbed by the 

 tender roots, by some termed the mouths of plants. 

 That the roots of plants naturally possess to a consider- 

 able degree the power of producing this decomposition, 

 I have had occasion more than once to observe, in the 

 case of planting potatoes with woollen rags instead of 

 dung. I have seen fine crops of potatoes raised by 

 dropping a small piece of woollen rag,* not larger than 



^ Before the revolution war, I collected many cart loads 

 of taylor's rags, chiefly woollen. Some I had cut in small 

 pieces ; others were ploughed in, as they came from the 

 shops ; after having been scattered by hand so as barely to 

 cover the surface of about three acres of loamy land, much 

 worn. I had a remai^kably fine crop of potatots^ succeeded 



