Sewage- Farming. 
393 
in any way to tlie disposal of town sewajje. With proper 
manajjement it may no doubt be so adapted to the wants of 
private dwellings and small communities as to be a fertile 
source of increased production and of health. If the whole of 
our means are to be made the most of, Mr. Moule's system 
should find its way to general application in our hamlets, and 
the water system in our more populous villages and towns. 
The question of midden and water-closet sewage in towns has 
been thoroughly discussed by the Rivers Pollution Commissioners. 
They give the result of 37 analyses of the former, and of 54 of the 
latter, with the following result : — midden sewage contained on 
the average 5'435 parts in 100,000 of ammonia, against 6"703 
in water-closet sewage. It also contained 6"451 of combined 
nitrogen against 7'728 in closet sewage, but of chlorine the 
proportions were reversed, and midden sewage was found to 
yield 11"54 to 10"66 parts in water-closet sewage. "It is, 
therefore, a fallacy," say they, " to suppose that by merely 
keeping solid excrement out of our rivers the sewage pollution 
of the latter is prevented. There exists a remarkable similarity 
of composition in the sewage of each description of town. The 
proportion of putrescible organic matter in solution in the sewage 
of midden towns is but slightly less than in water-closet towns, 
whilst the organic matter in suspension is somewhat greater in 
the form.er than the latter. For agricultural purposes 10 tons 
of water-closet sewage may be taken to be equal to about 12 of 
midden sewage. The retention of the solid excrements in 
the midden is not, therefore, attended with any considerable 
diminution in the strength of the sewage, although its volume 
is somewhat reduced. Neither is the case substantially different 
where earth-closets are substituted for middens; for the sewage 
from Broadmoor Lunatic Asylum, in which these closets are 
partially used, exhibits no degree of exceptional weakness. It 
seems hopeless, therefore, to expect any substantial reduction of 
sewage pollution by dealing with solid excrementitious matters 
only-" 
I pass on now to some notice of the various precipitation 
systems. Some of these have been announced with much parade, 
and we have been again and again assured that the desideratum 
we were anxiously looking for had indeed at last been attained ; 
that the discovery how to retain the valuable substances and 
•discharge the worthless was made ; and that the nitrogenous 
constituents of sewage were available to the farmer in a conve- 
nient and handy form. The fact still remains that nearly all the 
ammonia escapes with the water, which looks so clear and is so 
foul, and that the dregs are hardly worth the trouble taken with 
them. No doubt if the promises held out by the advocates of 
VOL, VII. — S. S. 2d 
