AMERICAN INSTITUTE. 351 



mentioned a locality, where the number of farms might be counted 

 by the number of rills of this nature across the road through the 

 country. 



Dr. Waterbury observed upon the peculiarity of American 

 winters. Very little chemical cliange took place upon lieaps of 

 manure in the open air during winter. Where land is cheap, it is 

 better to tali;e a longer course, say, fur instance, to put manure 

 under the Indian corn, and let it compost itself. The length of 

 time required for the decomj^osition of organic materials in the 

 soil, depends much upon the question whether there be at the 

 time a growing crop above such materials. The roots that are 

 above rapidly remove the carbonic acid. In a wide system, com- 

 posting is not so profitable, and with two hundred or three hun- 

 dred acres, a man can do little more than get out his manure. 



Professor Mapes said there was no winter inside of a compost 

 heap; the thermometer proved, that if there were any depth of 

 manure, decomposition did go on, even in the open air. The 

 yield will be twenty per cent, greater where short manure is used 

 instead of long manure. That has been demonstrated. On clay 

 soils, long manure, rendered pulverulent by the frost, is econo- 

 mical. The mechanical effect is, that the straw renders the soil 

 accessible to air, but that is a question of mere mechanical treat- 

 ment. The method of leaving a heap to become short of itself, 

 will not prove economical. As to the labor of composting, 

 it is not increased. You have got to have some place Lr it. 

 You handle it but once, and have not to touch it again. It is a 

 positive saving of labor. 



Mr. Bergen, of Gowanus, said, that in his locality, both long 

 and short manures w^re used. Long manure put immediately 

 under the corn, would not answer. The soil was a sandy loam. 

 That, perhaps, made some difference. Something had l)een said 

 about clover. We could not depend the first year upon our timo- 

 thy crop. Clover is a very troublesome feed, especially fur horses. 

 It grows very strong on the ground, and is not so easily cured as 

 timothy. 



The Chairman said he had a farm of about forty acres; he had 

 kept fifteen cows on it, had hay to sell, l)esides other crops. He 

 described his manure heap. He had done all he could to in'eveut 



