the issues is.....If it still smells like that then it is still full of bacteria. This is a place where they treated people with T.B., Malaria, Etc. the worst of the worst. Is it still a live contagion? Will It cause a massive outbreak of some old long gone illness? IMO its a pretty scary thought.
Nice finds, though the payloads of century-old urine don't do much to sweeten the deal in my book. The thought of contagious disease being preserved in the bottles is unsettling, so hopefully all possible pathogens are dead and you guys won't be responsible for the reappearance of the Spanish Flu or the like. [8D]
I agree that the best way to take care of any possible bacterial contamination is to pour the bottles into a bucket of bleach. That will also take care of the smell almost immediately. You can then flush the contents.
This is something that all privy diggers run into, it is much more common in TOC pits because the rubber stoppers last much longer than cork. My own take on this is it was much easier to to pee in a bottle and close it than doing it in a chamber pot which you would have to take to the outhouse without spilling it in the house and then you would have to clean the chamber pot. I think that weather had alot to do with because we humans can be quite lazy and then add in the cold winter weather, the bottle seems like a good idea. And as far as any diseases coming from old urine I can tell you point blank it is impossible ........first of all urine is sterile....... secondly none of those illnesses are transferred in the urine and finally virus's and bacteria are pretty fragile so the chance of anything surviving over 100 yrs are nil...............Greg It is always fun having a newbie open one for the first time..........If you really don't like them tell them to do it in their house........