238 
EXPERIMENTS WITH FRESH AND COMPOST MANURES. 
struction a few months ago, one of the oldest 
and most beautiful spreading trees that ever 
lent its cooling shade to a lovely nook by the 
seaside, because, as the owner said, “ a down- 
east chap offered $15 for the confounded old 
thing, and I thought ’twould give us a better 
view, and so I let him cut it.” 
’Twas a noble old oak spreading wide by the sea, 
Where the breezes came cooling and fresh o’er the lea, 
While the dark waving foliage gave strength to the shade, 
Where a thousand deep vows Indian lovers have made ; 
For the noble old oak spreading wide to the breeze, 
Like a vet’ran hath wintered long ages ’mong trees, 
And hath witnessed the fading and passing away, 
Of a nation of people God doomed to decay, 
While destroying the oaks that o’ershaded the lawn 
Comes a nation more ruthless than the red one that’s gone. 
Ruthless indeed—a perfect barbarian—who 
for the value of $15, would cut down such a 
wide-spreading and delightful shade tree, that 
might have stood another century, and during 
these hot July days, would afford such a delight¬ 
ful retreat from the brick walls that sear and 
scorch me as I write this denunciation of the 
Goths and Vandals of America. Solon. 
-- 
EXPERIMENTS WITH FRESH AND COMPOST 
MANURES. 
Last year, I applied to two pieces 6f land 
compost and fresh manures from the sheep yards 
in proportion of six of the former to seven of 
the latter, and planted each with Indian corn. 
The culture of both was similar, and that to 
which the compost manure was applied, pro¬ 
duced full one fourth the most to the acre. The 
piece which gave the smallest return, before 
manuring, was considered to be in a higher state 
of cultivation. [What was the compost?— Eds.] 
After placing the increased quantity of ma¬ 
nures with the evident increase of the crop, 
against the expense of composting, I concluded 
to make another trial of composting this season, 
and have again applied it to the corn crop. The 
query now is, Which will produce the most 
lasting effect, the fresh or the compost manure? 
The produce of future years may turn the scale. 
Salem , N. Y., June, 1851. S. R. Gray. 
CHEMISTRY OF MILK—No. 2. 
I have shown in my first number what the 
normal composition of milk is, and how it differs 
in different animals. It will be observed that 
there are considerable differences in the pro¬ 
portions of its elements in different species of 
animals ; still, the elements are the same. The 
milk of carnivorous animals, or the flesh eaters, 
is the richest, and that of the ass the poorest, 
or rather most watery. That of the human fe¬ 
male is also poor, both as to casein and butter. 
but is rich in sugar. The milk of the goat does 
not differ essentially from that of the human 
female. Milk, it will be seen, contains three im¬ 
portant elements—butter, cheese, or casein, and 
sugar. But these elements differ in their pro¬ 
portions as well as in the amount of milk given 
in different individuals, even while in health, 
and while fed upon the same kind of food; 
which is agreeable to experience. This, how¬ 
ever, is not only true, but it is found to be true 
also, that the same individual gives more or less 
milk according to the state of her health and 
the character of the food with which she is sup¬ 
plied. 
To determine the extent of these variations, I 
fed a small Dutch cow with different kinds of 
food during two or three months of the fall and 
winter of 1850. She was five years old, and 
her live weight, in November, while feeding 
upon grass, was 890 pounds. Her calf, which 
was then seven months old, weighed 348 pounds. 
The cow, on being put up to hay, ate from 21 to 
27 pounds per day, of good hay. The average 
amount of hay per day, for one week, in Decem¬ 
ber, was about 22 pounds, she having con¬ 
sumed 155 pounds. The water drank during 
the sams period, amounted to 238 pounds, 12 
ounces, or a little over 42 pounds per day. The 
solid excrements weighed 399 pounds, 8 ounces, 
or a little over 44 pounds per day. Her calf was 
supplied with the same kind of rations and ate> 
during the same period, 85 pounds of hay, or 
about 12 pounds per day, and drank 120 pounds, 
12 ounces of water, or about 17 pounds per day, 
and made 144 pounds, 12 ounces of solid excre¬ 
ment, which is equivalent to 20 pounds per day. 
A large horse consumes 31 pounds of hay per 
day. The weighed solid excrement amounts to 
82 pounds, 8 ounces for the same period. A large 
proportion is water of course, and it seems to 
follow that an animal fed upon dry hay re¬ 
quires sufficient water to supply what the grass 
has lost in drying, in being changed from grass 
to hay. 
To prosecute successfully a series of experi¬ 
ments upon the value of different kinds of food 
for the production of milk, it is necessary that 
the cow should be gentle and composed. One 
which is restless and of a nervous temperament 
will be impatient under confinement and give 
uncertain and unsteady results; or one which 
is naturally wild will be a bad subject, and her 
milk will vary not only in amount but in qual¬ 
ity, also; trivial circumstances will cause re¬ 
sults which will vitiate our conclusions. It is 
well known to physicians that the quality of the 
