300 A WORD ABOUT MANURES. 



only is this amount saved, but in addition the nitrogen that 

 is in it, by chemical affinity, creates a large amount of am- 

 monia, that is fixed and amounts in a year to 677 pounds. 

 To the nitrogen is due much of the excellence of this stim- 

 ulant, and without the animal matter or nitrogen, it would 

 be nothing more than decayed wood and salts. It is a com- 

 mon idea that the activity of stable manure is due entirely 

 to the animal excrements. It is due rather to the happy 

 combination of ammonia, geine and salts, such as no chemist 

 can manufacture from the food of the cow. Were this pos- 

 sible, a pile of rotted hay and turnips would supply all 

 these united elements. But effort has demonstrated that it 

 cannot be done. Nor does the food of a cow affect, but 

 little, the elements of dung. A cow fed on rich nitrogen- 

 ous food, such as corn or oats, will give some more nitro- 

 gen in the dung, and form more ammonia, but the salts 

 and geine will be but little changed. 



Horse dung is much richer in manures than cow dung. 

 But horse dung very quickly ferments, and, by fermenta- 

 tion, it will lose one- third its value in one month. It is 

 therefore very necessary to remove, as often as possible, the 

 horse dung from the stable, and place it in the compost 

 heap, with the cattle dung, or with alternate layers of soil 

 and sprinkled with lime or plaster. These salts will catch 

 and fix the escaping ammonia and prevent much loss. 

 After horse dung has fermented, if alone, it is of far less 

 value than cow dung, but before it ferments, it is much 

 more valuable. When that process is completed fully, 

 nine-tenths of its value, according to our. best writers, is 

 lost. These are statements based on, not only experience 

 and observation, but also on absolute chemical analysis. 

 How much it stands the farmer in hand then to observe a 

 systematic saving and storing of these treasures of agricultu- 

 ral wealth ! A compost heap, under a good shelter, is to the 

 uninformed, a heap, reeking with filth, repulsive to the eye 

 and offensive to the olfactories. But, to the scientific far- 



