40 



18:.!. J 



THE AGRICULTURAL GAZETTE. 



<,;;/ 



ifen is easiiv 



iz of the kiud ; asid tbe loa» *>n desU'ea- certain state of i-nnsuliilutiou it 



. »* 



eertainable. 



7 



example 



|g ClBlill V SSStXTtTM—mc. u»c avo vaa uvsauiiiuu J utriucu , uui mat, uu .iumhuw I XCU0|Q B 1 01 BllV Wr, ITOm . -' - -*-• - " "« "ir rnmun- «»i in 



,fc verV much on the method that is used ; for the several appl! b which m formation of a ! J" „»*!«{£. X*1*J " ,1 ' 



■la, in the common way of roasting coffee, there is perl st manure heap, I should be rat inclined to wind* mi . L amount* t?i 



A lots of 3 lbs. in 14 lbs, raw. By the improved machinery 

 the loss is only 9 lbs. in •! 2 lbs. — 



only i^ lbs. in #T21bs. 



At 14:3:: 1 00 



As 113 :9t: loo 



«l.4 



8, 



think an agricultural chemist woi L obieet t 



detrimen 1 to their 



P.S. Since the preceding notes were written, the whole 

 of the crop of Chicory has been dug out. The season 

 was so dry and unpropitious after sowing, that fears 

 were entertained of the seeds not growing ; there has 

 been, nevertheless, a very fair crop. Several roots 

 brought in weighed 1.5 oz. each. In agricultural pro- 

 ducts the possible and the probable are to be considered • 

 and weighed. Roots in 3 drills to the yard and 5 roots 

 in each drill, might attain 1 lb. each, that is 15 lbs. to 



And calling desiccation 5 raw to 1 



the square yard. 9 



kiln dried— which is a full allowance — there would be 

 3 lbs. of kiln dried from the square yard, and 



lbs. lbt. rwt. qrs. lbs. 



3 = 14.520 -T- 112 = 129 2 16 : 



iq.ydi. 



4840 X 



at 30*. 



which, at 30*. per cwt., will come to 104Z. 9s. Zd., a 

 possible produce from 1 acre. My gardener is of 

 opinion that the finest roots are produced in strung stiff; even 

 ground— that is in the comparatively stiff ground which 

 we have here — very different, however, from the stiff 

 clays of England ; and as the larger, heavier roots go 

 very deep into the ground, of course it must be impor- 

 tant to have the ground well prepared. The leaves 

 from the crop just taken up were in fine full vigour to 

 the last, and very abundant. IK, Raveimcdl. 



Manufacture of Manure. — In this bijsy time of 

 harvest, in our late northern climate, and at our high 

 elevation, 1 have not till now had time to advert to a 

 discussion which took place recently at the Yorkshire 

 Agricultural Society, on the management and applica- 

 tion of home-made manure — H. S. Thompson, Esq., 

 being the principal speaker. It is certainly to be re- 

 gretted that Mr. Thompson publicly reiterates his 

 objections to roofed receptacles for the preservation of 

 farm yard manure from the vicissitudes of the weather ; 

 alternately drenched by heavy falls of rain and snow 



decomposition, so cssent liy 

 deemed necessary, both by theorists and practical meu. 

 Mr. Thompson is, doubtless, a great authority, and as 

 he appears desirous of imparting his agricultural know 

 ledge to the cultivators of the soil, it is the more to be 

 deplored, if he be a medium in leading them to wrong 

 conclusions, and addressing them in language which, in 

 the present low scale of education pervading our 

 farmers, ninety-nine <ut of a hundred of them do not 

 understand. If Mr. Thompson, in place of learnedly 

 speaking to them of the merits of hydrated sesqui- 

 carbonate of ammonia, and such other techni 1 phrases, 

 advised them, in plain homely English, to endeavour t 

 persuade their landlords to erect roofs over their 

 manure heaps and stack-yards, and also to sink tank 

 : w the preservation of the liquid manure, to be pumped 

 as occasion required over the general mass, and to erect 

 other necessary appurtenances now much wanted, for 

 the proper management of a farm, the farmer payin 



10 per cent, on the outlay, and the landlords 

 keeping them in repair, he would, it is submitted, 

 be doing a much more essential service, not onlv to both 



1 



tha: which ih» StwOety h.«* |(««rintiss] x^ I>r. Anderson; 

 the queiti \ It, whether, in *uch a stat* of matter* we » 



. r „ cannot bei*biv;i to n tha .tur«t>,»a, i U ev bad lived CJ) 



The loss on desiccation I denied ; but that the absolute xclusAon of anv air, from 4r * n '• u ' aa * f - n '*»« middi* of the VJC totun Th*t, 



bean st. *«i Th 



sum B)u< than 



ae 



.... we arc t*> 



troouexp • ;hit turn «»m ol the fund* f the S 



larj;e Uttti a* regards tha finances of th ►cietv, ! a sum 

 which I take le«v© to nay is far fom adeq«sa*e \ pay the 

 salarv of Dr. Aadrrtoo at he oug-ht to hi- paid! I would there- 

 i >re srgt eu tha srop.ieUarj of Sootland who do nut n ribs 

 to thil deoartm the ^reat Importance ..t" dome to. The 

 I recti -rt, af'er the fullest eousideratto | t&«. matter hare 

 come to the foliowisnr ra aol s ion, w cli 1 hav* now «.<> piopoas 

 t » the roasting : -" That it is necessary t«» adopt measures for 

 obtaining increased nod more adequi'e meat., in support of 



tin "in ii Tj*j f%fmli II flsjunsass*. ssil ilui for this ] pose, 

 an apultoatios should be addret*ed by the treaturvr a henl 



orary secret ar* to ihOM landed proprietor* who have j r jet 

 fttibtcribcd."— Dr. \ndmson aaid he had, at th^ general meet. 

 U>C of the - . ty in JiifjiiHrj, reporit d no fully as to the state 

 of »tu- laborato. \ that perhaps a thurt r rt would serve tike 

 purpote at m<-« . bince January the laboratory had gone 



or •im 



■ 



and the scorching heats of the noon-day sun. It is true 

 that Mr. Thompson advocates its cartage into the fields, 

 and to be there coated over with soil, until required for 

 use ; but we may ask, What protection for preserving 

 its essence from the pernicious effects of the weather 

 had it experienced before bein^ so carted out ? and even 

 when deposited in heaps in the fields, how often hag 

 Mr. Thompson seen the operation of coating with soil 

 effectually executed ? has he not, on the contrary, more 

 frequently observed what is, or rather ought to* be, the 

 farmer's main-stay for producing remunerating crops, 

 recklessly permitted to 



u Waste its fragrance on the desert air V 9 



as mentioned above, its ammonia and other fertilising 

 properties evaporated in turns by the heat of the sun, 

 and neutralised by pelting rains, the precious liquid 

 finding its way to the next running stream or stagnant 

 uncovered pond ; and if carted out, in this almost 

 worthless state, as recommended by Mr. Thompson, 

 how can the fertilising qualities be restored to i t, by 

 undergoing the tedious and expensive operation of 

 coating over with soil, even allowing that this is 

 properly done ? This would, indeed, be locking 

 the stable door after the steed is stolen. It is, 

 however, difficult to imagine what Mr. Thompson 

 exactly means by expressing himself so decidedly op- 

 posed to protecting manure by a roof, when he in the 

 same discussion strongly advocates the propriety of 



landlords and tenants, but to the nation at large, 

 these sugg< ions were fully carried out in all their de- 

 tails, farming might then be found more remunerating 

 than it is, during the low prices of the present time ; and 



cultivators whether chemists or not. would find out tha 



hydrated sesqui-carlnmat- of anmionia,and other chemical 

 combinations, generated by manure so prepared, would 

 unconsciously, whilst they slept— poor innocent souls! — 1 

 doing duty to their crops, an that their corn-stacks were 

 secured from the destructive ravages of weather and 

 vermin. I can myself most truly assert, that from, a 

 strict adherence to the processes \l strongly urge on 

 the attention of the farming community, I have been 

 enabled, for a series of years, to produce such crops from 

 ; an ungeniai and proverbially sterile soil, uate, some 

 *, of it, at a no less elevat u from the sea than 70 



00 feet, 

 and none of it less than (JO0 feet, as hav< much surprised 



all those best acquainted with the locality. I repeat. I 

 am far from thinking that a certain consolidation is no 

 necessary for the retention of the fertilising substances 

 in farm-yard manure ; but I would wish to i un r- 

 stood in saying, that the daily wheeling of it on \h> 

 roofed heap, from the stables, cow houses, piggeries, Dot 

 boxed, together with the sundry ingredients, such as the 



scouring of ditches, clippings and dressings of hedges, 

 saw-dust, &c, and regularly str ified on its surface, as 



it accumulates, will in practice be found sufficient im- 

 pression, admitting just so much air as is necessary to 

 encourage decomposition, but no more. Salt has also 

 been applied for a long time to the manure heaps at 

 Gilgarran, and the contents of the liquid manure tanks 

 regularly pumped over them ; these tanks being in c\ :,- 

 ence long before their use was publicly advocated by 

 the press. Mr. Thompson, in r< mimending covered 



farm-yards, shrewdly predicts, " that those who live 



ten years longer will see buildings of this kind more 

 numerous thau is now thought profitable." Should 

 Mr. Thompson ever honour this part of the country 

 with a visit, I could show him such a building: which has 



on in the ordi v waj ; an 1 i bin* new or of great import- 

 ance had occur red to report to the 8 :«ry. During that period 

 of time the ordiaatT amount of analrtet genera! subjecta 

 had been made. They had al'o been engaged auh ertain 

 inv. vti-atioriA. at the lOttattOt of the S iy t and tome of 

 the** ha i advanced to a very c msiderable ext< : One them 

 —that oi the i:o estimation of Turnipa— had been partially 

 punished in the -loij'a Transactions ; and a largtr portion 

 would have bsto \ ibiUfced iu the July number bad ih*ie been 

 ap.icr f«»r that j urnots ; but, nl course, what was not inserted 

 uould tie reserve.) for another number. Hi bad also pi i»hcd 

 in the Trunin l<mt of the Soejr v, eereral oi iMtfeteatU 



gsUont un \ h< *ht moat lot. that the < mmlttor had under 



consideration an additional series of investigations, namely, In 

 reference to the hay crop under differs Brswiti • and 

 also hi rofcrti:'-c to th« Clover crop. The analytical part of 

 these inv Rations had rot , yet been i ■nnnetsoed, e.thejeft) 

 the preliminary stent iu conuet > »n with them had l>' taken 

 of Kroninft < s in tha proper qtitntitiet, and with the proper 

 in ore.. Another lovettlfetlon in progress, had refi-n-nce to 

 the feeding vahie of different kinds of food lor cat: fit 



investigation wat advanced to some extent, but he bad not at 

 yet published any part of it, at he oon-id* red it preferable to 

 wait until a sufficient number of analysis had been accouiu- 

 Leted, to make each determination the average of several by 

 do ng «1 h th. t.«hle of feeding values would obtain a uonh 

 Sroater value, than if it were founded only on tingle antljtia 

 ot the ditlereut torti of food. 



existed nearly since he was ten years younger ; and I 

 could also show him covered sheds in grazing fields, 

 affording shelter to outlying cattle in summer from Hies 

 and the heat of the sun, in winter from the inckmencv 

 of the weather, which, being regularly littered, afford 

 roofing over the whoteT farm-yard. In this discussion,! abundance of rich tro ten manure, and which would 





Air. Thompson, in addition to what he asserted on 

 former occasions on the same subject, is reported to have 

 said, " No man can be more alive than I am to the great 

 loss arising from manure being wasted by rain ; but I 

 am, nevertheless, opposed to covered manure pits, under 

 ordinary circumstances, because I am persuaded that great 



8olidityis indispensable to the preservation of manure ;" 

 and a little below he adds, "In very moist climates, 

 such as hilly districts of the west of England, where two 

 or three times as much rain falls as with us, it becomes 

 a choice of difficulties, and the only way of escaping them 

 appears to me by having fold-yards entirely roofed over. 

 I feel persuaded that those who live 10 years longer will 

 see buildings of tills kind more numerous than is now 

 bought profitable," Here is a palpable blowing hot and 

 ^d in the same breath. Mr. Thompson recommends 

 the non-roofing of manure heaps, and the next moment 

 advocates the propriety of adopting the opposite plan 

 ^admitting that rain, or too much of it, is prejudicial 

 •o manure, does it not occur to Mr. Thompson that ex 

 posure to the rays of the sun is injurious I In my 

 °pmiou they are more so than rain. In the one case, 



j re< iundant liquid can be arrested by the tank ; but 

 w here does the valuable exhalations caused by the sun 

 P^ M^ Thompson speaks favourably of the system of 

 pox-feeding, as a means of producing excellent manure ; 

 , w hich opinion I must cordially join him. What is 

 * which is called a box but a roofed receptacle, 

 f? *ar as manure is concerned, which Mr. Thompson 



miself admits is so conducive to the formation of good 



True, Mr. Thompson attributes this excel- 

 to the treading of the cattle confined in them ; 

 f^d this to a certain extent maybe correct; but when 

 ae adds " that great soliditv is indispensable for the 

 Preservation of m; 



* trodden as much as possible," I must beg leave to 

 r? mur » though no chemist, to this doctrine, particularly 



*«en the manure is but in an incipient state. That a 



otherwise in a great measure be lost. In conclusion, I 

 beg to take the liberty of recommending Mr. Thompson to 

 call the attention of his agricultural friends to the gener. 

 adoption of such sheds. Jos. Robertson Walker, Gilyarran, 

 Cumberland, Sept. 27. 



octettes. 



manure, 

 lence 



a« & 



, and that a manure heap must 



Highland and Agricultural, July 9 : The Chemical 

 Department. — Mr. Maconocuie said : 



I am iure that every gentleman that has been in tho direc- 

 tion—every geocieinau th<t hue had occasion to employ a 

 practical chemist-— every gentleman that hat witnessed the 

 extreme diligence and activity with welch Dr. Anderann has 

 performed the duties entrusted 1 1 him, matt be pati&fied that, 

 perhaps am<>n* the whole li-*t of practical chemists in this 

 country, the directors and the Soci I >uld i >t have selected 

 a gentleman more completely fitted for hit situation. I am 

 qutte sure of this, that there is not a person that has availed 

 himself of the opporuinity that has been afforded him for 

 having auaUses of the soils of his lands, and of (he manures 

 which he employs in tlirjir cultivation, that has not been com- 

 pletely sati>ned. That these have been of infinite importance 

 to himself in a pecuniary p »int of view, I speak on that subject 

 with very inadequate means of informal i, so far as my own 

 experience is concerned. I still, however, hive had some expe- 

 rience on the subject, and from thac experience, as well as from 

 my general knowledge, I am quite 6ure» that if the farmers of 

 the country, and tha lauded proprietor*, would avail them 



selves of the Opportunity which has been thus aiforded them. 

 and at so cheap a rate, of obtaining anah*es of their soils, and 

 their various uses, they woud secure a hundred time* more 

 mouey in their pockets than wh*t they expend in procuring 

 such analyses. But it doef not aopetr rhat the proprietary o 

 ~Cotland are yet thoroughly aware of thi>, because, from a list 

 in my hand, "i can state that the total number of subscribers 

 throughout Scotland to the chemical <i partoient of the Society 

 is ouJy 217. I urn not exactly right in this staement, (or I 

 jierceive that 37 of them are not eveu proprietors; so that ol 

 the whole landowners of Scotland thtre are only 180 who 

 subscribe to this most important branch of the S vV opera- 



tions. That i> the condition of matters tbroachoat the length 

 and breadth of Scotland, as regards the landed proprietors. I 

 believe it is a fact, that many of the gentlemen who are in the 

 habit of practising agriculture are, to a great extent, as igno- 

 rant of the nature of the s jii they cultivate, and of the manures 



Bla ' C mu PaOwlurjy. Fifth] tion. 

 Tin: author of the v i k before us has 1>« justly 

 irded as the father of canine medicine. Educated, 

 in the first instanc . as a surgeon, and a sportsman from 



taste and opportunity, lis wit peculiarly fitted for tha 



study of the «!iseascs of the canine race, and thus he 

 was enabled, after a while, to add the treatnn t of tin- 

 diseases of dogs to his general practice as a veterinary 

 surgeon. It may, perhaps, be thought that a man of 

 Scion* and education, like Mr. Maine, s what 

 reduced his status by thus directing his attention to the 

 p*tholo-i ! study of an inferior race of animals. We 

 wholly dissent from such an opinion ; for, independent 

 of the Striking analogy which exists between many of 

 the diseases ( the d< and those of the human suhj r, 

 there was one malady more particularly, \ iz., " Hydro- 

 phobia, or R. ies," the inv ^tigation of which" was 

 demanded by the interests of humanity and if no other 



effects had attended the labours of Delabere Blaine and 

 Ins partner and sue ssor, William Youatt, that the 

 light they had succeeded in throwing on this dreadful 

 malady, the description of the early symptoms I which 

 it may be known, and the best means for obviating its 

 justly dreaded horrors, these results would have, titled 

 their exertions to the utmost consideration. It was in 

 the earlier editions of the work 1 e us that the 

 correct i iwa of the author on this IhmtH malady 

 were made public, and which succeeded not only m 

 saving from a dreadful death very many ind;\iduala 

 who might have been bitten by a rabid dog f but in 

 saving them likewise from those ordeals which it was 

 the custom to > hrough, under t he idea of prcveuiug 

 the supervei on of the disease. It was formerly the 

 custom for pari > to come long distances to the sea* 

 -ide, and there to undci » the practice of dipping, 

 which indeed was carried to the extent almost of drown- 

 ing the unfortunate individual, it was in great measure 

 owing to Blaine and Youatt that these vulgar errors 

 were exploded ; and to them, and the former more 

 particularly, not only the Veterinary but the i dical 

 profession and the public at large are greatly in- 

 debted for having thrown the mantle of science 

 around the previously neglected study of canine pat ho 

 logy, and rescued it from the clutches of ignorance 

 and prejudice. The respected author of the work has 

 been gathered to his fathers, hut his works will long 

 survive him ; and now that a new edition of the one 

 before us is demanded, Mr. Thomas Walton Mayer has 

 undertaken the task, and well has he acquitted' himself 

 of it. The editor is very favourably known to the 

 veterinary profession and the public, in conn* ion with 

 his late respected lather ; and he modestly states in his 

 Preface : " In d: urging the duty that "ha?- devolved 

 upon us in revising this edition, we have been d irous 

 of contributing our mite to the well-being of ti:e canine 

 race, regretting that our literary and professional 

 experience has not enabled us to do greater justice 

 to our subject. We have not, however, been so much 

 desirous of adding new, and poss hut at best 



crude ideas 



of our own, as we have 



been 



to g!ve 

 efi ct to the work of Mr. Blaine, by re-arranging his 

 matter, compressing his facts, with the addition of such 

 improved daasil ation and methods of treatment, as the 

 advanced state of veterinary science has enabled us to 

 supply." The plan here suggested has been very well 

 carried out, and we cordially recommend the work to 

 all interested in the subject. 



