SEWAGE OF TOWNS, 
677 
to see each of those societies in the same district producing 
a successful operation, so great will be my satisfaction in that 
result, that I shall not hesitate to give <£100 to the one, and 
another £100 to the other/’ 
SEWAGE OE TOWNS. 
The select committee on the sewage of towns has just 
concluded its inquiries, and the report may be soon expected. 
The following is a summarised analysis of the evidence. As 
regards the value of town sewage, in reference to its ingre¬ 
dients, as compared with other manures, liquid and solid, 
the evidence proves that it contains the elements of every 
crop that is grown ; it does not lose anything by evapora¬ 
tion ; it conies into immediate action on the crop, and 
possesses an amount of heat which stimulates vegetation, 
and even its water is of great benefit for agricultural pur¬ 
poses. T he Belgians consider the excretion of each person 
worth more than TT per ton. The sewage permanently improves 
the land, and has been applied, most economically by hose 
and jet, with great advantage to common grass, Italian rye 
grass roots, and grain crops. The grass so stimulated is 
grateful to cattle, improves their constitution, and increases 
the quantity and richness of the milk of cows, as the earth 
not only absorbs, but also deodorises it, if it be not applied in 
too large quantities. Indeed, to be profitably used, it must 
be applied in slight dressings and so employed it will super¬ 
cede the guano and artificial manures. It may be applied at 
any time of the year, except during hard frosts, to every de¬ 
scription of soil which is naturally or artificially drained; 
and the most profitable returns, as in the case of all other 
manures, will be obtained when it is applied to the best soil. 
There are in it matters of themselves injurious to vegetation, 
but they bear so small a proportion to the entire bulk as to 
be perfectly harmless. If applied as recommended— i.e., in 
slight dressings—no nuisance would be created by its use, 
the earth, as has been said, deodorising it; but it cannot 
with profit be manufactured into a solid manure. 
The Chancellor of the Exchequer lately asserted that u The 
whole subject of the application of manure to the soil, the 
whole theory of what is termed utilizing those vast materials 
which are annually wasted, and of making them available for 
the fertilising of the soil, has yet to be carried out to per¬ 
fection. Many useful discoveries I admit have been made, 
but many more remain to be made. It may possibly seem 
