34 
MANURES. 
she, no milk is given during this period, for a cow, in 
milk, fats not. 
The dung, then, of fattening animals contains more 
of all the elements of food for plants, than at any 
other period, and is peculiarly rich in nitrogen. I 
•trust, reader, it is not so long since you have met the 
word ammonia, that you have forgotten that its source 
and origin are due*to this nitrogen. Now, the source 
of this nitrogen is in the food, and as, during fatten¬ 
ing, grain is supplied for its starch, &c., to make fat, 
and very little waste of the body taking place, the 
extra nitrogen of the blood-forming materials of grain 
is nearly all voided in dung. 
5th. The mode of employment. Your working 
beasts suffer great wear and tear of flesh and blood, 
bone and muscle, thews and sinews. Hence, theii 
daily food supplies only this daily waste; the food is 
very thoroughly .exhausted, and of course, the dung 
is weak. It derives its chief value from the excre¬ 
tions of those parts of the body which are voided as 
waste materials among the excrements. There is a 
distinction to be noted here: excretions are the worn- 
out flesh and blood elements, excrements the undi¬ 
gested and unused food; dung includes both excre¬ 
tions and excrements. Now, the chief value of the 
dung of working cattle depends upon the excretions. 
6th. The nature of the beast. If his coat is wool, 
he requires more sulphur and phosphorus, the natural 
yolk, or sweat of his wool, more lime and ammonia 
than does the hairy-coated animal. Hence, sheep pro¬ 
duce manure less rich in many of the elements of 
plants than cattle; but as at the same time it contains 
a larger portion of nitrogen, and is very finely chewed, 
it runs quicker into fermentation. It is a hotter ma¬ 
nure, quick to eat, quick to work, and is soon done 
7th. The kind of food. We have already spoken 
of this as affecting the quantity of dung. Its effects 
are no less marked on its quality. Now, all that re- 
