The herald and mail. [volume] (Columbia, Tenn.) 1873-188?, 1874-03-27
What is the True Value of Manure {?

This is a very important question, be-
cause upon the answer given to 1t Will
depend the degree of appreciation in
which farmer holds manure, and the
pains he takes to accumulate end apply
1t. In countries long cultivated, ma
nures become absolutely essential for
the profitable growth of any crop at all;
and thus late English writer defines
the chief business of farming to be
''the bringing of manure on to the
land, and the carrying of cattle and
produce off it., connecting together the
manure and produce as cause and ef-
feet.
What is manure? The question re-
solves itself into the stating Of great
fact The farmer creates nothing he
only changes the form of what already
exists. Cotton, corn, wool, beef, cheese
and butter, are nothing else than earth,
air and water, in another shape. But
the earth is composed of some ten or
twelve substances and that portion OF
it capable of being converted into
plant, at any one time, is comparatively
small-about half per cent. of the
whole-while air and water constitute
the least valuable part. These three
substances are the farmers raw mate
rial, and out of them he must manufac-
ture his crop. If his soil contains a
very small quantity of matter, capable
of conversion into vegetable, he re-
ceives a small crop at harvest time. A
baker can make but little bread out OF
a nearly empty barrel of flour, but fill
the barrel and he will make much
bread. Let the farmer fill the earth
with substances capable of changing
1 1, in
Nothing can be more simple, and yet
more true, than that whatever we re-
ceive off our farms is but portion OF
the soil. with some air and water, In a
new form.
When we sell crop of cotton, we do
not sell something that we have crea-
ted. but we sell so much lime, salt,
phosphorus, potash, ETC. which last year
heIped to constitute the soil. Through
out all nature, "Out of nothing moth
ing is made" Now, then, we can an
swer the question, "What is manure ?"
It is the stuff out of which plants are
made: lust as truly as the fleece on
sheep's back is the stuff out of which
your best coat is made. There are many
substance utterly worthless in their
present shape-nay, worse, for they are
offensive, as if to teach us to bury them,
which are composed Of the very things
that compose corn. Such are dung of
all kinds, bloods, ashes, old wooden
rags, offa!, urine, dead animals, etc,
Still further, unlike the greater portion
of the soil, they are in fit condition
to undergo change and we have only
to put them in the right way 10 the
ground beside a seed-that ysterious
fragment of accumulative life-for them
to turn into whatever kind of vegeta-
BILE we wish them. We cannot eat wool
en- rags or ashes, but we can eat wheat,
what they are in another shape. What
the chrvsalis is to the butterfly, manure
is to grain. Who knows but what this
very rag was once before an ear of
wheat?
Now you perceive the true value of
manure, when it is iu2iciously ap-
piled. 1t either preven,s our land from
becoming worthless or it gives us this
year as many, bushels to the acre as we
had half a dozen years since; or it in
creases the fertility of the land, and
gives us yearly larger return on the
same area.
Suppose you make, save carefully
from the wet, and apply twenty-five
loads of barn-yard manure to an acre of
land. From first to last, it has actu-
ally cost you $40 TO do SO. You are 80 |
poorer than if you applied no manure ;
and if it gives you no return II is SO
lost. But this acre of land cost youS10, |
AMI you do not consider that lost. No; |
It is invested. It is an investment pay
ing'interes' and not only o, but actually |
preventing loss. With the educated |
scientific farmer there is neither chance
nor guesswork about it.
One ton $1,000 pounds avoirdupois) |
of gold or silver contains %, 1913 troy |
ounces, and, therefore, the value of
ton of pure gold is 1902, 1893 81, and of |
ton of silver, $37, 7O4 81. A cubic
foot of pure gold weighs l ,2l9, IS pounds |
avoirdupois a cubic foot of pure silver |
weighs $50 25 pounds avoirdupois. One
million dollars gold coin weighs 1858 s |
pounds avoirdupois One million dol
lars silver coin weighs So, 925 pounds !
avoirdupois. If there is one per cent. |
of gold or silver in one ton of ore, it |
contains 291 So ounces troy, of either of
these metals The average fneness of |
the Colorado gold is 781 in 1000 and |
the natural alloy gold ISL. silver 200, |
copper 10; total 1000 The calcula-
tions at the mint are made on the basis
that 43 ounces of standard gold, or 900
fine, (coin) is worth $3.50.