DEODORISING AND UTILISING EXCREMENTITIOUS MATTER.

Southland Times, Volume 2, Issue 89, 11 September 1863, Page 6 (Supplement)

DEODORISING AND UTILISING EXCREMENTITIOUS MATTER.

A discovery has been Bade by MrF. Taylor, of Romsey. Tfle Hampshire Advertiser County Newspcmr state's : — "Mr Taylor, in his introi uctory observations said he hardly k'ri >w how to go into the matter before tljem that day,as it was a hurried meetirig, and he had a good many facts which he desired to lay before-' them, although some of them had been already published by him in a pamphlet, which, however, had not been extensively circulated from their issue having been stopped by him. At the time that pamphlet was published he considered that afte? twelve years of experience, expense, and trouble, he had overcome every difficulty, but such was not the case. It was almost impossible for him to tell them how great the difficulties had been ; and, although he had succeeded in his object, yet he found there were many points in his scheme for the sanitary improvement of the town defective. Ihose points were entirely of a practical nature; one | especially, he might mention —his ignor- I ance of the habits of cottagers, which he described a3 peculiarly their own. His way was to .erect a plan entirely different to the water-closets at present in common use. Several of the obstacles which presented themselves he could not have anticipated; but when he found, that he had gone wrong, he altered his arrangements accordingly : and he was now happy to say that he had got over all the difficulties, and the whole of his arrangements were proceeding with the greatest success. After stating that by means of his plan an excellent substitute for guano would be produced and at a much less expense, Mr Taylor proceeded to say that the excrement collected by means of the simple apparatus which he collected was perfectly inodorous, and of unequalled fertilising powers; and, he should be happy to show to any gentlemen who wished it his arrangements in working order; after which he produced a model showing the construction,of the chamber, &c, a great recommendation to it being the fact that there is no complicated machinery of any kind, the whole being constructed of durable and simple materials. Mr Taylor went on to say that for a comparatively trifling outlay a large return —doubtless thirty-eight per cent. — might be realised, if a company were formed for the collection and sale of the excrement; and then briefly discussed his plan, of which he gave the following outline : —His scheme was to place a large turn-table beneath the floor of the pi'ivy, upon a lower floor, so constructed that the liquid excrement might run to one place, either to be wasted in a sewer, or retained in a tank or moveable vessel for purposes of irrigation ; the turn-table to revolve on a centre pivot, and so arranged with numerous small notches at its outer edge or otherwise, as to admit of its being turned a small distance alter each time of use. These notches were to be caught by a spring, or a movement termed the " lazy tongs, 1' connected with the bed of the door of the privy, or otherwise acted upon, so that each time the door is opened (this opening of the door being made a necessity") the turn-table should move one notch. The seat of the privy was placed over the outer part of the turn-table, so that the salid excrement should be safely deposited on to it, the liquid running off to the water floor below. By the action of the spring on the door, the table moved one notch, and the deposit of excrement was thus passed on singly and the next deposit made in a fresh place. A thorough draught of air is to be allowed between the turntable and the floor of the privy, the latter being made sufficiently high above the turn-table to allow of a considerble accumulation of excrement. By this process the matter is dried by natural means in the same manner as guano ; and it then becomes hard and inoffen sive, though retaining all its fertilizing properties, in consequence of not having had any oppotunities of fermenting and decomposing. He had several of those mechanical arrangements already in use ; and he felt proud of their success. The turn-table might be made of any size, and placed in any existing privy — theircost beingabout£2each —and they were not at all liable to get out of order. The quantity of manure which could in this manner be obtained would be exceedingly large —amounting in Romsey to from ninety to one hundred tons per annum —so that a good deal might be exported, and thus form a considerable source of national wealth ; and he was of opinion that in that manure was contained all that the earth required to fertilise it. He remembered that many years { ago the Royal Society offered a prize of 1000 guineas to any one who would undertake to supply, in unlimited quantities, a manure equal to guano, at L 5 a ton, and if that offer holds good, he considers he should be able

io claim it. There was no practical limit to the quantity of manure obtainable by his plan, and he was confident that it could be supplied, for less than £5 a ton. It was* however, necessary that a company should be formed for that purpose; in connection with which he might mention that the sum of £2,000 would be amply sufficient to start one in Romsey. JBy adopting this plan, which he had patented, a stop would be put to the defilement of wells, rivers, and springs ; many sources of disease, both animal and atmospheric, would be destroyed; towns would be made much more pure and cleanly ; and there would be given back to the yearning earth that supply of nutriment which it actually needs to enable it to give to every man its varied and valuable crops of land. Every acre of poor common land might then be made to yield, by a rich supply of this cheap and most valuable manure, a bounteous

return,; and that whitfh is at present allowed to poison the home, of the poor man and his family might be made to? feed him and them, and assist to pay the house rent into the bargain. In order to show its valuable properties, Mr. Taylor exhibited a specimen of rye-grass-which had "been grown by its means, and which had reached a height of four inches — much higher than that grass which had not been thus manured A mass of matter collected by Mr. Taylor's plan was also 'produced in .a perfectly dry and inodorous state, in proof of which he might mention that it had been kept in an inhabited room for a period of several months,,, and during the whole. of that time no offensive odour was at all perceptible.