Wilmington journal. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1844-1895, 1858-08-27


and principal station for Atlantic steamers
Trinity Bay and Bulls Arm Bay, on the eastern
coast of the island of New Foundand about lat. Al
n, and lon. 50 w.
The History Manures.
The history of manures cannot date far back the
origin of agriculture which coeva with the founda
ton of society itself In the earlier periods of the world
when the face of the ground was but thny inhabited
and virgin soil exhibited abundant fertility the wants
ground at his command he had only remove to anoh
er spot, when land under cultivation for time
longer Welded the same increase The fact of diminish
ed productiveness by prolonged cultivation was, no
doubt carly observed but the of this did not,
probably give rise to much speculation so long as the
remedy was at hand in the fresh soil around But
population increased and the habits of became less
nOmadc the necessity of restoring to the exhausted soil
its fertility, would become question of serious consdera-
ton. The mode of doing this in the simplest way would
suggest itself by the observation Of what passed around
them The refuse materials elected from their haba-
tons, the odure of and animals, the decaying car
cases of the latter allowed to accumulate and rot on the
surface of the ground gave rise to uXurlant Vegeta
ton these spots far surprising that OF the adjacent
soil The repeated observation OF such facts cannot la
to have arrested attention. and to have led reflection
to correct cause and effect 1t thus early seen that
organic structures in state OF eremacausls, the filth
from crowded habtatiOns and other matters which
offensive to the organs when allowed to decay on expo
and thus to effect at the removal Of pollution from
the air that brcathCd and to restore the lost er
y of the soil Hence the earliest form of nature, and
that which has remained unchanged through succeeding
ages and at the present day still forms the standard OF
comparison for other nllnureS mixture OF the
cremcnt and urine of animals with other decayng animal
and vegetable matter In the writings of the Greeks
and Romans found many notices OF the attention they
paid to agriculture and manures.
COlumela who Ourshed during the early part of the
al,
divided into twelve books agriculture. In The second
of these he speaks of the breaking up and preparation Of
the ground and gives account OF the different kinds
of grain, pulse, and artificial grasses with the tiage
appropriate for EACH He gives directions for carefully
collecting the excrement of cattle for ering them with
straw which was to be removed when soed to the dung
hill and also advises the collection of all kinds of ashes
and the burning of weeds shrubs trees and sUbblc, In
fields and the application Of the incinerated matter as
The writing of this and other authors prove
that the ancens not only paid attention to the manage
ment OF farmyard manure, but that they were well
quanted with the mode of preparing artificial and all
ordinary composs. Columela says he is not ignorant
that there some farms in the country in which Meth
the dung of cattle nor of birds is to be obtained
However, he is sothful husbandman who has no ma
nure He may, states the same authority, collect any
kind of leaves the cutting Of brars and raking of high
ways he may cut FERNS and mix these with the ceanings
of his courtyard he may dig hollow place. such as was
directed for Tie dungh and throw into tashes the dirt Of
swept from the house Indeed the various processes
followed by agricuturasts to render the soil fertile were
known by the Romans. They incorporated the light
with heavy soils, and rendered them porous and
although unacquanted with the theory of the operation
they may be said to have originated the principle of the
modern process of subsolploaghng for in some dis
trics it the custom every fifth seventh year to
dig deep the rain penetrated and turn up the bot
tom of the mould, by which the fields said to
be renewed the particles of earth proper to the nour
Of no holm to no
wards along with the rain The practice of economi-
sing and employing farmyard manure and composts in
general may be said to have been transmitted from the
Romans with little change to the beginning of the pres
ent century, varied only by the and incorporation
into cOmpOsts of such articles particular districts a
fordcd. Thus chalk was employed in some places as
great adjunct to tarmyard manure for turnps and all
kinds of grain in Others mari superseded lime and
long the coasts, calcareous seasand and seweeds
were in high repute In other districts, where manuac-
lures established the refuse materials such soap
waste, under the of soap ASH woollen rags, &c.
were IN common Later STILL animal matters, such
fish and bone aud other dressings, were in demand
Although by the foregoing one sees what knowledge
even the Romans possessed of manures still they were
tar behind the Chinese in their system of agriculture
The basis of their mode is, so often reiterated by
Liebeg, to return to the soil ererg ingredient hGt has
been removed by CROP The result has been that in
stead of the land becoming impoverished it has aug
mentcd in fertility with a continually increasing popula-
ton, since the time of Abraham of the Egyptian
pyramids. All those means, says Liebeg, which the
German agrcuturSt considers perfectly indispensable
for the increase of his produce not only quite IN
necessary for the Chinese, but eooH them he produces
crops than double those of his Teutonc brother
No doubt other conditions exist in China different to
Germany some Of them are Buddhists and eat no
meat while here meat partaken of for which fodder
required but that not the question-here principles
are involved which must guide practice. The agricu-
ura preceptors do not teach the planting of fodder with
the view to obtain meat, but in order to have dung ;
and by this they prove that they do not understand
scientific law In fixing scientific principle the first
question is not whether it is advantageous but whether
it be true? In scientific agriculture dung no longer
exists. All the ideas conveyed by this word are now
exploded. Like the word phlogiston, which became OBJ
soete at the end of the last century, long was
not known what phlogison was, served as an aggre
gate term to bind together number of unknown causes
to render them comprehensive, After it was ascertain
ed what phogston represented the right ideas were sub
sttuted and the explanation of phenomena became true
and reliable. Wood does not burn otherwise than for
mery air is what it was, water moistens as before but
what immense progress the human race has made since
the right conception of air. oxygen and the process of
combustion took the place of the word phlogston? A
similar but greater and more blessed advancement must
follow from the right knowledge or perception of the
nutritive process in plants and animals and it is as
ri (O,o b