30 
Magazine  of  the  School  of  Agriculture. 
on  lines  of  this  kind  that  the  foundation  of 
any  new  scheme  of  technical  education  for 
the  people  of  this  country  will  be  laid. 
( To  be  Continued.) 
SUBSTITUTE  FOR  CATTLE  MANURE. 
Dear  Sib, — It  has  afforded  me  much  gratifica- 
tion to  read  your  favourable  opinion  on  the  compost 
I suggested  to  take  the  place  of  cattle  manure. 
Please  allow  me  to  offer  a few  remarks  on  your 
article  on  the  above  subject. 
As  you  observe,  the  supply  of  blood  is  too 
limited  to  permit  of  its  use  in  any  extensive  scale, 
and  gas  liquor  has  too  much  water  in  it  to  render 
its  use  economical.  But  what  about  sulphate  of 
ammonia,  the  crystallised  product  of  gas  liquor? 
Is  it  manufactured  at  our  gas  works,  and  what 
becomes  of  the  gas  liquor  ? Sulphate  of  ammonia 
is  described  as  the  most  highly  nitrogenous 
manure  the  farmer  can  use,  and  is  said  to  contain 
20  per  cent,  of  ammonia.  Has  the  comparatively 
new  manure,  powdered  slag,  been  imported  into 
Ceylon  as  a substitute  for  the  old  phosphatic 
fertilisers  ? 
You  suggest  the  dessication  of  fibre  dust  as 
more  economical  than  depriving  it  of  moisture  by 
pressing,  llow  do  you  propose  doing  this?  If 
drying  in  the  sun,  large  barba'cue  space  will  be 
necessary  and  the  period  of  settled  dry  weather 
chosen  for  the  purpose,  otherwise  our  passing 
shower  will  undo  the  work  of  days.  1 did  not  in- 
tend that  the  fibre  dust  should  be  perfectly  dry,  in- 
deed I think  a certain  amount  of  moisture  an 
advantage,  only  that  the  super-abundant  water 
should  be  expelled  from  it.  A stout  door  frame 
with  a screw  or  l»ver  through  the  lintel,  having 
a stout  plank  or  sheet  of  iron  fixed  at  its  lower 
end,  something  like  a copying  pre  ss,  will  give 
us  a cheap  and  economically  worked  press.  A 
box  of  stout  boards  or  sheet  iron,  pe-rforated  and 
with  collapsible  sides,  placed  under  the  board  or 
sheet  of  iron  attached  to  the  lower  end  of  the  screw 
or  lever,  can  be  used  as  the  receptacle  for  the 
coir  dust.  Slight  pressure  will  drive  out  the  water 
from  it  through  the  perforations,  when  after  the 
sides  of  the  box  are  made  to  collapse,  the  coir 
dust  can  be  taken  away.  This  is  but  a curde  idea 
and  something  better  will  occur  to  an  engineer- 
ing mind. 
Will  not  the  slow  decay  of  the  coir  dust  be 
an  advantage  if  worked  into  the  generally 
stiff  soil  of  our  hill  region?  It  will  extend  the 
period  of  the  soil  being  ferated  by  preventing  the 
particles  of  the  soil  coming  together. 
It  will  no  doubt  be  interesting  to  have  a com- 
parison of  the  cost  of  manuring  with  cattle  dung 
and  a compost  composed  of  coir  dust  and  guano. 
Cuttle  manure  is  an  article  of  varying  quality  and 
price.  For  a comparison  to  be  complet  e it  will  1 
submit  be  necessary  to  calculate  the  cont  of  apply- 
ing stall-prepared  cattle  manure  and  of  the  coir 
dust-guano  compost  and  to  compare  results  both  • 
immediate  and  subsequent.  The  comparison  of  the 
cost  of  application  alone  will  not  do.  You  will 
pardon  me,  sir,  if  1 respectfully  submit  that  it 
will  be  very  much  more  advantageous  and  authori- 
tative if  the  experiment  be  conducted  at  the  School 
of  Agriculture  and  under  your  skilled  direction. 
I would  also  suggest  that  it  be  tried  on  some 
other  product  rather  than  coconut,  for  with  this 
product  the  material  results  of  manuring  will  show 
them  themselves  in  the  second  or  third  year.  By 
that  time  all  interest  that  may  be  awakened  in  the 
compost  I suggest  will  be  allayed.  You  might 
arraoge  for  the  comparison  of  cost  and  results  to 
be  made  on  a small  scale  on  Cacao  and  Tea  outside 
your  grounds. 
I am  afraid  your  informant  of  the  composition 
of  Perindorge’s compost  relied  too  much  on  his  me- 
mory. I shall  compress  the  instructions  for  its 
manufacture  from  the  Prize  Essay  on  manuring  of 
Mr.  E.  S.  Grigson,  presently  of  Colombo,  and  you 
will  see  what  an  elaborate  and  costlv  mode  of 
preparation  it  involves  : — 
First  place  a layer  18  inches  thick  of  fresh 
weeds,  grasses,  leaves  and  succulent  branches 
and  any  kind  of  green  vegetable  matter,  on  that 
a layer  of  cattle  manure  not  less  than  6 inches 
thick.  Pour  over  the  heap  a “ Pickle  ” composed  of 
two  (pounds?)  of  bone  dust,  one  of  ashes  and  a 
quart  of  lime  previously  prepared  and  thrown  into 
a “ lerment  composed  of  molusses  and  water  in 
certain  proportions  and  well  mixed  with  a large 
quantity  of  water  and  lime.  Repeat  the  process  till 
the  required  quantity  of  manure  wanted  be  made. 
After  a week  make  funnel-shaped  holes  one  foot 
apart  through  the  heap  and  to  within  18  inches 
of  the  bottom,  and  pour  into  them  “ Pickle  No.  2 ” 
composed  of  sal  ammoniac,  common  salt,  some 
“ Ferment  ” and  water  mixed  with  some  saltpetre 
or  fresh  cattle  manure  (of  course  all  these  are  in 
fixed  proportions).  The  next  day  make  similar 
holes  between  those  previously  made  and  to  with- 
in 3 feet  of  the  bottom  and  pour  in  “ Pickle 
No.  2.”  The  next  day  make  holes  (where  is  not 
stated)  to  within  5 ft.  of  the  bottom  and  pour  in 
some  more  “ Pickle.’-  Cover  with  manure  or  soil, 
and  in  10  days  the  compost  will  be  fit  for  use. 
There  ! Can  the  one  expensively  and  elaborately 
made  compost  with  its  “Pickles,”  and  “Ferments” 
be  compared  with  the  other  whose  composition 
and  manufacture  is  simplicity  itself  ? No  wonder 
vour  informant  said  it  did  not  pay ; but  Mr. 
Grigson  bears  different  testimony.  He  says  he 
manured  30  acres  of  coffee  with  this  compost  at 
the  rate  of  half  a basket  of  it  and  1 lb.  of  castor 
cake  to  a tree.  The  coffee  was  25  years  old  and 
growing  on  very  poor  soil  and  much  shaken  by  re- 
peated attacks  of  leaf  disease.  The  result  was 
9 cwt.  per  acre  ! I will  not  comment  on  this,  ex- 
cept to  say  the  cost  of  the  application  would  have 
been  very  interesting.  B. 
“SALT”  AS  AN  ARTICLE  OF  MANURE 
FOR  FERTILISATION. 
It  seems  to  me  that  the  value  of  “ Salt  ” for 
agricultural  purposes  is  much  underrated,  and 
those  who  have  opportunities  of  employing  it 
for  manure  in  fields  and  gardens  care  not  to  un- 
dergo the  trouble  (certainly  not  expense)  of 
putting  it  into  the  ground  or  applying  it  in 
a proper  and  sensible  manner. 
Of  course  “ opinions  vary”  and  cultivators  who 
are  clever  in  “ generalities  ” and  neglectful  in 
“ particulars  ” pay  little  heed  to  the  improvement 
or  manuring  of  their  fields  and  gardens : so  time 
flies  on,  and  a deaf  ear  is  turned  to  the  teachings 
of  Science. 
I will  now  tell  you  what  I have  observed  in 
my  goings  to  and  fro.  Let  those  who  read 
