480 [Assembly 



of weight and size, in given quantities of soil, without diminish- 

 ing the weight or quantity of the latter. Our marshes as you 

 can see at a glance, all came down from our hills, bringing along 

 with them abundance of tannin, among other matters, so that 

 until the tannin be taken out it is worthless as manure. Take 

 raw hide and add to it tannin, and you have sole leather. Take 

 out the tannin, and you have the raw hide again. The muck of 

 these meadows 18 of a light spongy character, so that liquid 

 manures filter through it, and leave alf but the pure water in it. 

 The carbonaceous matters in soils is formed by combustion as 

 perfect as fire, but it is that slow combustion called eranacausis. 

 The particles of good soil are observed (by powerful microscope) 

 to be all coated with the carbon which gives soil the dark color 

 we see in good soil. Cleanse the particles from their coat of 

 carbon and you will behold the color and sterility of the sandy 

 desert. Tie volatile portions of manures are retained by organic 

 matter and alumina. The compost manure I make is twice more 

 durable than guano. Plants provide excretia good for others, 

 but not always good for themselves. Take a cabbage out by the 

 roots and wa.sh it in a tub of water, and the flocculent matter 

 left in the water, if poured on another cabbage, will kill it, while 

 it is pabulum for other plants. The onion gives off no excre- 

 mentitious matter, and therefore thrives year after year on the 

 same spot. 



Our farmers make up their manures in layers of various ma- 

 terial, and after a time fork all up together. Away flies the 

 ammonia! A far better plan is to have a cistern under a shed, 

 into wliich all the fluid matters may go; and, if wanted add 

 water. About once a week pump this on the compost heap, and 

 there will be no fire fanging. Put into the cistern spent lye of 

 the soap-boilers, to give the soluble silicates to your soil to form 

 the coat of tlie grain and corn stalks. All the waste of the house 

 and form should be added to the heap ; dissolve bones in dilute 

 sulphuric acid and add that. Make holes in the top of tlie heap 

 with a crowbar or something else j fork it so as to make it retain 

 the fluids a little. Cubical nitre, saltpetre, are very important 

 to some plants. Fill two barrels with Rockaway beach sand, in 

 one of which put the sand thorougly mixed with one per cent of 



