ry_ hen-manure would
usually be richer in nitrogen than 100 lbs. of _dry_ pig-manure. But
feed pigs on peas, and hens on corn, and the dry pig-manure would be
much richer in nitrogen than the dry hen-manure. The value of the
manure, other things being equal, depends on the food and not on the
animal.

Let no man think he is going to make his farm any richer by keeping
hens, ducks, and geese, than he will by keeping sheep, pigs, and horses.

"Why is it, then," asked the Deacon, "that hen-dung proves such a
valuable manure. I would rather have a hundred lbs. of hen-dung than
half a ton of barnyard-manure?"

"And I presume you are right," said I, "but you must recollect that your
hen-manure is kept until it is almost chemically dry. Let us figure up
what the half ton of manure and the 100 lbs. of hen-manure would
contain. Here are the figures, side by side:

--------------------------+---------------+-------------
| _100 lbs. dry | _Half ton
| Hen-Manure._ | Cow-Dung
| | with straw._
--------------------------+---------------+-------------
Water (estimated) | 12 lbs. | 775 lbs.
Organic Matter | 51 " | 203 "
Ash | 37 " | 22 "
+---------------+-------------
Nitrogen | 3-1/4 " | 3-2/5 "
Potash | 1-3/4 " | 4 "
Lime | 4-3/4 " | 3 "
Phosphoric acid | 3 " | 1-1/2 "
--------------------------+---------------+-------------

I would, myself, far rather have 100 lbs. of your dry hen-manure than
half a ton of your farmyard-manure. Your hens are fed on richer food
than your cows. The 100 lbs. of hen-manure, too, would act much more
rapidly than the half ton of cow-manure. It would probably do twice as
much good--possibly three or four times as much good, on the first crop,
as the cow-manure. The nitrogen, being obtained from richer and more
digestible food, is in a much more active and available condition than
the nitrogen in the cow-dung.

"If you go on," said the Deacon, "I think you will prove that I am
right."

"I have never doubted," said I, "the great value of hen-dung, as
compared with barnyard-manure. And all I wish to show is, that,
notwithstanding its acknowledged value, the fact remain