76 



A DISCOURSE 



strong salts, vinous liquors, urine, ashes, dust, shovellings of the kennels 

 and streets, &:c. kept dry and covered for three or four years, will be 

 converted into petre without half this trouble, especially if you mingle it 

 with the dung of pigeons, poultry, and other salacious fowl which feed 

 on corn : or, those who would not be at the charge of distilling for these 

 advantages, may make experiment of the so famous muck-water, not 

 long since cried up for the doing wonders in the field : throw off the 

 shortest and best marl into your cistern, exceedingly comminute and bro- 

 ken, which you may do with an iron rake, or like instrument, till the 

 liquor become very thick ; cast on this the dung of fowl, conies, sheep, 

 &c. frequently stirring it ; to this add the soil of horses and cows, grains, 

 lees of wine, ale, beer, any sort of beverage, broths, brine, fat and 

 greasy stuff of the kitchen ; then cast in a quantity of lime, or melting 

 chalk, of which there is a sort very unctuous ; also blood, urine, &c. 

 mixed with the water, and with this sprinkle your ground at seasonable 

 times ; and when you have almost exhausted the cistern of the liquid, 

 mingle the residue with the grosser compost of your stable and cow- 

 house, and layers of earth, sand, lime, S. S. S. frequently moistened 

 with uncrude water ; the taking up of which you may much facihtate, 

 by sinking a tub or vessel near the corner of the cistern, and piercing it 

 with large holes at the bottom and sides, by which means you may take 

 it out so clean as to make use of it through a great syringe or watering 

 engine ; such as is used to extinguish fire, will exalt and let it fall by 

 showers on the ground, and is by much the more natural way of irriga- 

 tion ; it also despatches the work. 



This liquor has the reputation, also, for insuccation of corn and other 

 grain, to which, some add a fine sifting of lime-dust on it, and when that 

 is dry, to repeat it with new infusions and siftings : but, 



There is yet a shorter process, namely, the watering with fishmonger's 

 wash, impregnated with the sweepings of ships and vessels trading for 

 salt, adding to it the blood of the slaughter-house, with lime, as above ; 

 but this is also much too fierce for any present use till it be perfectly 

 diluted ; which is a caution indispensably necessary whenever you would 

 apply such powerful affusions, lest it destroy and burn up, instead of 

 curing and enriching. Another is as follows ; 



