Legal Definitions - manure

Historically, the verb manure referred to the act of working on something directly with one's hands, or performing manual labor upon it. It emphasizes physical effort and direct human intervention, often without the aid of complex machinery.

• Agricultural Context: In a historical land agreement, a clause might state that a tenant was obligated to "manure" the fields. This would mean the tenant was required to physically work the soil, perhaps by tilling it with hand tools or by spreading natural fertilizers manually, to prepare it for planting.

  This example illustrates the historical meaning of performing direct manual labor on the land to cultivate or improve it.

• Craftsmanship or Construction Context: A contract from centuries past for building a stone structure might specify that the masons must "manure" the raw stones. This implies they were expected to manually shape, lift, and place each stone using only their physical strength and basic hand tools like hammers and chisels, rather than relying on mechanical assistance.

  Here, "manure" demonstrates the application of direct manual effort and physical manipulation to raw materials in a construction or crafting process.

• Maintenance or Preparation Context: An old town ordinance might have required villagers to "manure" the common pathways. This would mean they were responsible for manually clearing debris, leveling uneven surfaces, or repairing small sections by hand to ensure the paths were safe and passable for everyone.

  This example shows the historical sense of performing manual tasks for the upkeep, preparation, or maintenance of public areas.