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RURAL ECONOMY,

IN ITS RELATIONS WITH

CHEmStRY. physics, AM) METEOROLOGY

OB,

CHEMISTRY APPLIED TO AGRICULTURE.

J. B. BOUSSINGAULT,

USHBSK OF THK INSTITUTE OF FRAltCK, XTO., KTO.

TRANSLATED, WITH AN INTRODUCTION AND NOTES,

BT

GEORGE LAW, Agbiculturibt.

NEW-YORK:

ORANGE JUDD & COMPANY

245 BROADWAY.

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THE

AUTHOR'S PREFACE.

In the work now published, I present the results of the inquiries
in which I have been engaged for many years, and which were un-
dertaken in the hope of throwing light upon various points of prac-
tical agriculture. My first idea was, to confine myself to the mere
re-impression of the several papers which I had communicated from
time to time to different periodicals, with the addition of a quantity
of inedited matter which I had by me. But upon more mature con-
sideration, I was led to believe that I should be doing a useful thing
did I fill up the numerous gaps which must necessarily occur be-
tween papers published isolatedly, at dates more or less remote from
one another, and treating of the most dissimilar subjects. I have
thus been led, in addition to my own observations, to give those of
numerous writers on almost every branch of agricultural science,
being only careful to confine myself in each instance to the most
authentic practical conclusions ; for it is certain, that practical data
have the most direct interest for rural economy, both in itself and
in its bearings upon the general science of political economy.

I have a further reason for the plan which I have adopted, which
[ am the less disposed to pass by in silence, inasmuch as it may
plead in excuse with those who might be disposed to criticize the
tone, perhaps somewhat too didactic, of my work.

I was invited, in conjunction with several other professors attached
to a great educational institution, to give a course embracing my
views upon the science of agriculture. I consented to this, and
prepared my lectures ^ but motives, to which I was entirely a
stranger, having prevented the project from being carried out, 1
made up my mind to publish, not the lectures such as I should have

IV AUTHOR S PREFACE.

delivered them, but the documents which would have formed the
basis of my teaching.

The first part of this work treats in succession of the physical
and chemical phenomena of vegetation ; of the composition of vege-
tables and their immediate principles ; of fermentation ; and of soils.
The second comprises a summary of all that has yet been done on
the subject of manures, organic and mineral ; a discussion of the
subject of rotations ; general views of the maintenance and economy
of live-stock ; finally, some considerations on meteorology and cli-
mate, and on the relations between organized beings and the atmo-
sphere.

I have endeavored, therefore, to give a summary view of all the
questions of rural economy that admit of scientific treatment. It
may be found, perhaps, that the number of these questions is still ex-
tremely small. Nevertheless, in regarding the multitude of inquiries
that have been instituted within a very few years only, in viewing
especially the ever-increasing interest attached to researches bear-
ing upon practical agriculture, we are bound to anticipate progress,
and to hope for conclusions important as regards science, profitable
to practice, and useful to humanity.

EDITOR'S INTRODUCTION

The following work is submitted to the agritnltural public in the
fullest confidence that it stands in need of no recommendatory
strictures on the part of those who have undertaken to present it in
its present form to the English agriculturist. In the person of its
distinguished author the man of science is happily associated with
the practical farmer — the accomplished naturalist, the profound
chemist and natural philosopher. The friend and fellow-laborer of
Arago, Biot, Dumas, and all the leading minds of his age and coun-
try— M. Boussingault's title to consideration is recognised wher-
ever letters and civilization have extended their influeuce.

Surely the collected and carefully recorded experience of such a
man, experience by which the conclusions of the member of the In-
stitute have been tested and weighed by the results of the farmer
of Bechelbronn, must have value in the estimation of every educated
mind, and cannot fail to be especially welcome to that class of
readers who are professionally engaged in the practical application
of that noble science which his labors have contributed to illustrate
and advance.

When the following pages were confided to the editor, it was the
impression both of the publisher and himself, that in the course of the
work many points would necessarily arise demanding elucidation,
others calculated to provoke controversy or challenge investigation,
and others again which could be rendered available or instructive
to the British agriculturist only by means of copious explanation,
showing with what modification and under what circumstances the
views advanced might be applicable to the art as exercised in the
climate and soil of this country. But the minute and analytical
perusal indispensable in the operation of investing the Author's
thoughts and expressions with an English garb, has demonstrated
the fallacy of this impression, and if possible has augmented the
admiration of the untiring patience, the vast experience, and the as-
tute, circumstantial, and elaborate accuracy of the accomplished
Author, in whose researches the reader will find the profoundest
sagacity, combined with a childlike simplicity which communicates
to his work a charm not necessarily inherent in the subject.

This is not iD*<^nded to imply an unqualified approval of the illus-
trious philosopher's manner of dealing with his own facts and obser

1

2 INTRODUCTION.

vations ; still less of nis style of writing, which is often wanJe ing
and diffuse, and which, in order to render it presentable to the Eng-
lish reader, has required much compression and retrenchment. Still,
however, instead of having, as was expected, to pause at each step
of the Author's progress, and dissert upon his views upon this or
that particular branch of his subject, the observations of the com-
mentator must of necessity be restricted in a great degree to an in-
dication of such parts of the work as in his judgment are the most
valuable and instructive, together with such incidental objections aa
appear to be of sufficient importance to require stating at length.

The chemical portion of the work is of inestimable value and con-
ducted with consummate skill and knowledge ; and with a minute-
ness and accuracy perfectly unexampled. At the same time the
results of the writer's researches, as well as the means and process-
es by which these results were obtained, are displayed with such
absolute perspicuity as to be intelligible and instructive to every
agricultural inquirer, however superficial his previous acquaintance
may be with the details of chemical science.

Nothing from the pen of tlie Editor could throw additional light
upon the Author's brilliant and most interesting elucidation of vege-
table physiology : his exposition is at once masterly and complete,
and contains much that is both valuable and new. And even when
the novelty of the facts which he adduces, or the originality of the
inferences deduced and unfoldea may admit of question, they are
still -deserving of the most respectful attention from the new and
striking lights in which he places them, and presents them to the
agricultural reader, and the clear and convincing way in which he
demonstrates their inter-dependency and their most intimate con-
nection with many of the most important pecuniary and professional
interests of the cultivator. Every intelligent farmer will find his
account not merely in a repeated perusal of this portion of the work,
but in regarding it as a text-book and manual to be kept by him for
permanent reference and consultation.

The arrangement of the subject, naturally and judiciously adopted
by the writer, presents the consideration of soils as the first topic
for the observations of the agricultural commentator ; but on this
head the distinguished author is so thoroughly explanatory and judi-
cious, that nothing is left for the Editor but to approve, to acquiesce,
and to recommend him with admiring confidence to the patient con-
sideration and study of the intelligent inquirer.

At page 237 the subject of manures is taken up, and discussed
with characteristic minuteness through many succeeding pages.

It may perhaps be objected, that the various theories respecting
the origin, nature, efficacy, and relative nature of the difl^erent ma-
nures in use, as well as the various modes of their produttion, con-
coction, and application, which M. Boussingault has here collated
and elucidated, contain nothing new ; that they have, in fact, under
one form or other, been long familiar to practical men ; but without
impugning the justness of this opinion, the Editor has long been
eonvinced that the subject has received, generally, far less care and

INTRODUCTION. 3

attention than it so eminently deserves ; and, in short, that it is
much neglected by many who are accounted not merely intelligent,
but scientific agriculturists ; and while admitting that much valuable
information has been frequently given to the agricultural world by
the repeated experiments of several enterprising individuals both in
Scotland and England, he still most urgently recommends a careful
study of this part of the work, which will probably lead the reader
to the conclusion that the methods and practice recommended by the
Author are, upon the whole, those best worthy of adoption. In
page 260 will be found some very urgent warnings against what
he (M. Boussingault) regards as the prevalent and pernicious cus-
tom of turning dung-heaps " frequently." If, however, by the term
" frequently," a course not exceeding three complete turnings of the
heap be comprehended, the Editor can by no means coincide with
this opinion ; a long experience having convinced him that there
are many circumstances under which the Author's recommendations
would be found not merely over-cautious, but positively injurious.
For drill crops, for instance, when it happens that the farm-dung is
somewhat rough, which must generally be the case towards the
close of every season, when the animal dejections are scanty and
the great bulk of the already ripened manure has been carried out
upon the land, and the fresh additions have not had the advantage
of being compounded with matter already concocted, an extra turn-
ing is very advantageous.

Every farmer will, of course, turn his heap once, for the purpose
of thoroughly mixing the various ingredients and different qualities
of manure which it contains ; the extra turning, even admitting that
it may to a certain extent promote the over-decomposition of the
manure, and dissipate the ammoniacal principles which it is impor-
tant to preserve, is not attended with so great a loss in this respect
as that which is inevitable from keeping open the drill by the appli-
cation of coarse dung, which cannot fail to be attended with a most
serious loss of the more volatile principles, sometimes even laying
the manure quite bare, and in the case of turnips, materially ob-
structing the operation of sowing.

Our Author brings forward the authority of several eminent inqui-
rers in support of his own favorite view of the use of fresh or un-
fermented manure ; but however plausible their theories may appear,
and however just may be their views in the abstract, there are many
intermitting circumstances connected with the general economy of
a farm, which must govern and determine their adoption, and in
which the practical cultivator must be guided by his own judgment
alone.

To the Author's 6th chapter the reader may be advantageously
referred, as containing a very full and valuable description and dis-
cussion, under the head of mineral manures, of the different varieties
of the class usually denominated stimulants, and concluding with a
brief but lucid and interesting account of Water, considered as an
agent of vegetation, and of its importance for manuring purposes.

The composition and preparation of liquid manures, as well asth«

• INTRODUCTION.

various means of procuring and preserving them, will be founc to
have engaged much of the Author's attention ; and he justly points
to the rapidity of their ameliorating action as a peculiar excellence,
not otherwise attainable ; at the same time admitting that in the
great majority of cases, the great and unavoidable expense at-
tending their application, however moderate may be the prime-coit
of the material, has always operated as an insuperable obstacle lo
their general adoption. In the justice of this vital objection, most
practical agriculturists who have used them to any extent, will read-
ily concur ; and it will not be uninteresting to the reader to learn
that there is reason to believe that it will henceforth be eflfectually
obviated by the use of a very simple and convenient apparatus, de-
vised by Mr. Smith of Deanston, a zealous and able friend of agri-
culture, who at the Highland Society's meeting at Glasgow in
autumn last, explained the details of his contrivance ; and the Edi-
tor has reason to suppose that the particulars will be given in a report
of the proceedings of the meeting, in the forthcoming January publi-
cation of the Highland Society's Transactions.

The Editor is anxious to direct especial attention to the Author's
7th chapter, wherein he treats of the organic and inorganic manures,
and of crops — of the elements of manures and of crops with their
relations inter se^ &c. — a section of the work which presents, in
synopsis, a more copious and complete body of new, interesting, and
important facts, of a nature more valuable to the practical farmer,
than has ever been collected in any previous treatise on agricultural
science. The great mass of this invaluable information is condensed,
as it were, for practical reference, and displayed in copious and
elaborate tabular data— 3. form which, though not attractive, has
enabled the writer to comprise within succinct and manageable limits,
a quantity of instruction which, in a more discursive shape, must
have distended the work to double its actual size. The tables ad-
verted to, present not merely the results of multifarious experiments
in illustration of the important subject of rotation-cropping, but also
these results as especially aflfected by the application of the various
manures to which the several experimenters had recourse. The
rotations reported may appear strange and curious, and sometimes,
perhaps, even amusing to the farmers of England and Scotland ;
but not more so, in all probability, than those which are A))1owed in
many parts of our Island would appear to the cultivators of that
part of Europe where our Author's agricultural speculations have
been carried on, and where the bulk of his analyses have been ob-
tained : indeed, locality and climate, and their inseparable concomi-
tants, will in every country be found to prescribe and control the
sorts of crops which may be rendered the most subservient to the
permanent advantage both pecuniary and economical of the hus-
bandman. Thus, with regard to the Author's more didactic obser-
vations and positive directions on the subject of rotations, there is no
reason to doubt that, in relation to the soil, climate, and geographical
position of the east of France, where his experimental course of
rotations has been conducted, they are highly judicious, and hare

INTRODUCTION. 5

not been prescribed and required without mature consideration.
Moi'eover, they are marked, like the deductions and inferences upon
which they are founded, by his unusual acumen, patience, and saga-
city ; but in their application to the more circumscribed range of
culture to which the agriculturist is limited in the ruder and more
fickle climates of north and of south Britain, the practice of the cul-
tivator must be governed mainly by his own judgment and experi-
ence in the circumstances by which he finds himself surrounded.

The interesting and ample instruction conveyed in the observa-
tions of this acute and profound observer upon the food and alimen-
tary treatment of cattle of every species, accompanied as they are
by minute details of the results obtained in the shape of organic and
inorganic elements, cannot be too urgently recommended to the at-
tentive consideration of every one interested in that important branch
of rural economy to which they more particularly relate.

The Author's strictures comprehend the economy of the domestic
animals with the exception of sheep, a subject from which he pro-
fessedly abstains, for the very sufficient reason, that in his opinion,
his opportunities of obtaining accurate information thereupon have
not been sufficiently ample to enable him to discuss it with confidence
and advantage. His theory in favor of the superior fattening quali-
ty of hay and the grasses in general above that which is found in
tubers and roots, (though apparently supported by his usual convin-
cing appeal to experiment,) will be received with considerable al-
lowance by the practical farmer.

We have many instances, in the present day, of theories ably,
plausibly, nay even satisfactorily established, which are nevertheless
met by opposite results in practice ; and the hesitation which the
Editor ventures to intimate upon the particular point in question,
will, he doubts not, be readily concurred in by many experienced
feeders. It will be generally admitted that the boiled or steamed
potato possesses a much higher nutritive value than belongs to it
when in the raw state. In the former case, however, it requires to
De mixed with some of the other roots which are not characterized
oy the same property, such as beet, turnips, &c. ; the Swede, (Ruta-
baga,) or any of the harder sorts are best adapted for this purpose,
and form a complete counteractive to the dangerous constipating
tendency of the boiled potato when given alone.

There are many different substitutes or equivalents in the shape
of mashes, containing leguminous ingredients which are admitted to
be fully as nutritious as the potato, still there are circumstances
connected with market value which render it a most valuable re-
source in farm alimentation. The popular notion that (when used
ae the feed of horses) the boiled or steamed potato is what is vul-
garly called " soft meat," tending to unfit them for active work, is
daily losing ground ; for not only is it rapidly getting into more gen-
eral use among the farmers of England and Scotland, but even post-
masters are adopting it for horses employed in road work.

The meteorological section of the volume will be found no less
instructive to the agriculturist than fascinating to the general reader ^

1*

6 INTRODUCTION.

no eqaally complete and extensive body of new and interesting fact*
has ever before been presented in a collected form to the agricultural
world.

It will be observed that the capital, the all-important subject of
Draining, as the great master-engine of agricultural improvement,
is merely touched upon by our Author in a cursory way ; shojld
this incite a feeling of disappointment, it must be borne in mind that
he has accomplished all, and more than all, that he nroposed to him-
self, which was not to write a complete work on practical tillage,
but rather, as his title implies, on " Rural Economy," i. e., the eco-
nomic production and application of the produce of the soil under
the guidance of chemistry.

Among the faults of execution for which the Translator ventures
to solicit the agricultural reader's indulgence, is the occasional adop-
tion of terms which are rather French than English. Many of
these words are, in the original, not merely technical, but local and
provincial, and are not inserted in any of the dictionaries. More-
over, in the description of certain processes and operations, the
Author has occasionally employed terms for which there is no Eng-
lish equivalent ; and the Translator had frequently no other choice
than that of either leaving the sense of the passage obscure and
defective, or, on the other hand, of adopting the barbarisms in ques-
tion, which not only deform the English of the construction, but
cannot fail to be offensive to the taste and professional preposses-
sions of the agricultural reader.

With reference to the weights and measures made use of in the
oiiginal, it may be proper to state, that (against strong temptation
to let them stand as in the French, merely adding a table of equiva-
lents) they have, at the instance of the Publisher, been reduced into
their corresponding quantities in the English standard. Grammes.,
in the more delicate experiments, have been reduced into grains
troy, assuming the gramme as equal to 15.438 grains ; in less deli-
cate experiments, grammes have been converted into pennyweights
(dwts.) and ounces troy. Kitogrammes are given in lbs. avoir-
dupois ; and where the quantity was large, they are often brought
into tons, cwts., qrs., &c., taking the French kilogramme at 2.2
lbs. avoirdupois. The Litre^ or present French measure of liquids,
has been reduced into pints, calculating the French measure at 1.76
pints English imperial measure. The Hectolitre employed in mea-
suring grain, is rendered into bushels, estimating it at 22 gallons
English dry measure. The old French Quintal is also sometimes
employed : this measure of weight has been either reduced to its
proper corresponding quantity, 1 cwt. 3 qrs. 24 lbs. English, or
where odd numbers might be disregarded, it has been called 2 cwts.
The Are., or French superficial measure of quantity, has been cal-
culated throughout at 120 square yards English : the Hectare at
2.4 acres English.

The labor of reducing these measures into their English equiva-
lents has been immense ; and errors, in spite of the best care which
could be exerted, have doubtless in various instances crept into tha

INTRODUCTlOrf. 7

reductions. Slight discrepancies between aggregate sums and their
component quantities will also be apparent here and there, an inex-
actness which arises from the number of decimal places not having
always been carried out far enough.

Our Author often quotes English agricultural writers, whose
weights, &c., he has always been at the pains to reduce into their
corresponding French equivalents. Not having at all times the
works referred to at command, the Editor was compelled to bring
back the French weight or measure into the corresponding English
one by calculation. Thus from not knowing the precise equiralents
adopted by M. Boussingault, some trivial discrepancy between the
computed and the original weights, &c., may have resulted ; but as
the quantities that have been treated in this way are especially im-
portant as relative, scarcely ever as absolute quantities, the error
where it occurs can be of no real consequence. Metres, centime-
tres, and millimetres have been reduced into English feet and inches,
assuming the metre as equal to 39.370 inches. Finally, and to
conclude our list of reductions, (would that it had been shorter !)
the degrees of the centigmde thermometer have been brought into
degrees of the only scale in familiar use among us, viz. Fahren-
heit's.

In the translation the Editor has endeavored (not always with
perfect success) to be as little technical as possible, with a view to
the convenience of the general reader. In a very few places he
has even ventured slightly to condense the style of the original in
order to keep the volume within moderate dimensions, occasionally
throwing the information contained in a table into the text or nar-
rative ; and where the Author appeared to him to be forgetting the
rural economist in the mere chemist, as where for example he de-
scribes the special modes of preparing and purifying indigo, &c. he
has made bold to retrench details, and give the results or conclusions
only. All analyses bearing on the practical subject, whether it was
the soil that produced, the crop that was grown, or the animal which
fed on that crop, have been scrupulously retained. In conclusion,
the reader is earnestly recommended to read an admirable little
work, the joint production of Messrs. Dumas and Boussingault, en-
titled in the original, " Essai de Statique Chiraique des Etres orga-
nises," which has been presented in a clear English translation, under
the title of, " An Essay on the Chemical and Physiological Balance
of Organic Nature," and may be regarded as a most valuable intro-
ductory aid to the perfect comprehension of Boussingault's Philoso-
phy of Agriculture, and as a key to the more scientific and technical
portions of the work now submitted to the public.

CONTENTS

CHAPTER I.

^2

PHTMCAt PHENOMENA OF VEGETATION.— VEGETABLE PBTSIOLOOT

^ n. — Chemical phenomena of Tegetation 25

Germination 26

Germination of wheat 29

Continued germination of peas 30

Continued germination of wheat 31

^ III.— Evolution and growth of plants 33

Experiment I.— Growth of Red Clover daring three months 44

Experiment II.— Growth of peas 45

Experiment III.— Growth of wheat 46

Experiment IV. — Growth of clover •• 47

Experiment v.— Vegetation of oats 48

^ IV. — Of the inorganic matters contained in plants— their origin — of the chemical

nature of sap 52

Quantity of ashes contained in the different parts of vegetables, according

to M. de Saussure 53

Composition of the substances found by M. de Saussure 55

Alkaline salts and insoluble substances contained in ashes 56

Alkaline salts and insoluble substances of ashes, according to M. Berthier. • 57

Composition of the ashes of several plants analyzed by M. Berthier 59

Sap of the Bambusa Ouaduas 68

Sap of the banana plant (Musa Paradisica) 68

Milky saps 69

Sap of the papaw-tree (Carica Papaya) 69

Sap of the cow-tree 69

Milky sap of the Hura Crepitans (Ajuapar) 71

Milky sap of the poppy (Opium) 71

Milk of the Plumeria Americana 72

Sap of the caoutchouc-tree 72

Gummy and resinous saps 73

Saccharine saps 74

CHAPTER n.

Or THE CHEMICAL CONSTITTTTION OF VEGETABLE SUBSTANCES 75

% I. — Quarternary azotized principles of vegetables 76

Composition of legumine obtained from diffep^nt seeds 78

% II. — Proximate principles with a ternary composition : of starch 80

Innline 87

Of woody matter and cellular tissue 87

Density of different kinds of wood, according to Brisson 90

Of sugar 114

Beet-root sugar 121

Palm sugar 126

Grape sugar 126

Saccharine principles not fermentai)le 128

Gum 129

Vegetable jelly : pectine and pectic acid 129

10 CONTENTS.

Put

Of vegetable acids 131

Of the vegetable alkalies 131

Of fatty substances 134

Of essential oils • 141

Of resin 142

Caoutchouc 143

Vegetable wax 143

Chlorophylle 145

Of coloring matters 145

( ilL — Composition of the different parts of plants 154

Roots and tubers 154

Barks 161

Leaves 164

Seeds 168

Fleshy or pulpy fruits 189

CHAPTER III.

Or THX SACCHARINE rRUITS, JUICES, AND INrUSIONS USED IN THE PREPARATION

or FERKENTED AND SPIRITUODS LIQUORS •• • 193

CHAPTER IV.

Or SOILS 200

Classification of soils 223

CHAPTER V.

Or MANURES 237

Excretions of the horse 267

Excretions of the cow 268

Excretions of the pig 268

Animal excrements 285

Table of the comparative value of manures, deduced frjm analyses made
by Messrs. Payen and Boussingault • 297

CHAPTER VI.

Or MINERAL MANURES OR STIMULANTS • 303

Calcareous manures 303

Of alkaline salts 316

Growth of sainfoin upon soils gypsed and ungypsed in 1792, 1793, and 1794. 321

Comparative growths of white clover, g>'psed and ungypsed, by Mr. Smith. 322
Experinjent with field-beet or mangel-wurzel, opening ine rotation with

manured soil, 1842 327

Mineral substances contained in the crop 32C

Of ammoniacal salts 33i.

Of water 336

CHAPTER VII.

Ur THE ROTATION or CROPS 341

( I.— Of the organic matter of mauOre and of crops 341

Potatoes 348

Wheat 349

Wheat-straw 349

Red clover 349

Turnips 350

Oats 350

Oat-straw 351

Field -beet or mangel-wurzel 351

Rye 351

Rye-straw 351

White peas 358

Feastraw - • 35t

CONTENTS. II

Page

Jerasalem potato or artichoke 3.52

Dried stems of Jerusalem artichokes 352

Table of the proportions of water contained in different substances 353

Composition (»f the same substances dried in vacuo at 230° F 353

Relation of manures to crops 354

Desiccation of half-made or half-decayed manure 354

Experiment I 354

Experiment II 354

Experiment HI 354

Analyses of half-made manures 354

Composition of the manures analyzed 355

Rotation course, No. 1 357

Rotation course, No. 2 357

Rotation course, No. 3 358

Rotation course, No. 4 358

Continuous Jerusalem potato crop. No. 5 358

Quatrennial rotation, adopted by M. Crud, No. 6 358

Summary 359

J ^l -Of the residues of different crops 360

Potato tops or hauni 361

Leaves of field-beet or mangel-wurzel 361

Composition of dry leaves 361

Wheat stubble 362

Clover roots 362

Composition of the roots 362

Oat stubble 362

Summary of the foregoing results 363

§ 111. — Of the inoi^anic substances of manures and crops 364

Composition of the ashes proceeding from the plants grown at Bechelbronn 366
Mineral substances taken up from the soil by the various crops grown at

Bechelbronn upon one acre 366

Table of the mineral matters of the crops and manures in the course of a

rotation 369

CHAPTER VIII.

Or THE VeKDINO of the animals BELONOING to ▲ FARM ; AND OP THE IMME-
DIATE PRINCIPLES OF ANIMAL ORIGIN 375

41. — Origin of animal principles ., 375

Of the food of animals and feeding 38(?

Experiments on the maintenance of horses 400

Experiment 1 400

Experiment II. — Introduction of Jerusalem potatoes into the ration 401

Experiment III. — Ration of hay and potatoes 401

Experiment IV. — Substitution of oats and straw for a portion of the hay 402

Experj,ment V. — Potatoes substituted for a portion of the hay 403

Experiment VI. — Jerusalem potato for a portion of the hay 403

Experiment VII. — Introduction of field-beet or mangel-wurzel into the ration 403
Experiment VIII. — Introduction of the Swedish turnip into the ration and

replacing a portion of the hay 404

Experiment IX.— Introduction of carrots into the ration 405

Experiment X. — Boiled rye as a substitute for oats 405

Table of the nutritive equivalents of difierent kinds of forage 407

^ n.— Of the inorganic constituents of food 410

^ m. — Of the fatty constituents of forage ; considerations on fattening 416

CHAPTER IX.

Or the economy of the animals attached to a FARM. — OF STOCK IN GENERAL,

AND ITS RELATIONS WITH THE PRODUCTION OF MANURE 428

$ I —Homed cattle 430

Table of milch-kine three years of age and upwards 440

12 CONTENTS.

$U.--Milch-kine .^48

Experiment I. — Two hundred days after calving 447

Experiment II.— Two hundred and seven days after calving 448

Experiment III. — Tw^o hundred and fifteen days after calving 448

Experiment IV. — Two hundred and twenty-nine days after calving 448

Experiment V. — Two hundred and forty days after calving 449

Experiment VI. Two hundred and seventy days after calving 449

Experiment VII. — Two hundred and ninety days after calving 449

Experiment Vin 449

Experiment IX. — Thirty-five days after calving 450

Second Series. Experiment I. — Begun one hundred and seventy-six days

after the calving 450

Experiment II. — One hundred aid eighty-two days after the calving 450

Experiment III. — One hundred and ninety-three days after the calving 450

Experiment IV. — Two hundred and four days after the calving 451

$ HI.— Fattening of cattle 452

$ IV.— Of horses 460

$V.— Of hogs 464

$ VI. — Of the production of manure 471

CHAPTER X.

Mbtcorolooical considerations 475

$ I.— Temperature 475

$ II. — Decrease of temperature in the superior strata of the atmosphere 478

$ in. — Meteorological circumstances under which certain plants grow in different

climates 481

Cultivation of wheat, Alsace *. 482

Cultivation of wheat in America 483

Intertropical region 483

Cultivation of barley 483

Cultivation of maize or Indian com 484

Cultivation of the potato 484

Cultivation of the indigo plant ■.... 485

^ IV. — Cooling through the night; dew, rain 486

I V. — On the influence of agricultural labors on the climate of a country in lessen-
ing streams, &c < 495

RURAL ECONOMY,

CHAPTER I.

PHYSICAL PHENOMENA OF VEGETATION. VEGETABLE PHYSIOLOGY.

The operations of agriculture having- for their object the produc-
tion of plants which are either essential as food, or useful in the arts
and industrial processes of man, it is well to begin with a summary
view of the principal organs of which vegetables are composed ; and
by the instrumentality of which, under certain influences which we
shall seek to appreciate, all the phenomena of their existence are
manifested.

Plants fixed in the soil by their roots, live in the atmosphere by
the concurrence of their green parts under the combined actions of
light, heat, and moisture. We shall by and by ascertain at the cost
of what elements, and under what conditions, their growth and com-
plete development are accomplished.

The seed, which is the final result of vegetable life, and of which
the aim is the reproduction and multiplication of the species, should
first receive our attention. The seed is, if we may so speak, the
starting point of all husbandry ; it is with very few exceptions the
first point on which the industry of the farmer exerts itself.

Nature, to ensure the preservation of seeds, has had recourse to
infinite care and foresight, which are in some measure an assurance
of their importance. The seed is often placed in the middle of an
abundant fleshy pulp, which serves to afford it nourishment or ma-
nure at the time of its future development. Sometimes, as in legu-
minous plants, it is lodged between thick and tough membranes, or
is covered with hard but flexible scales, as in the gramineous plants ;
or again it is enveloped in a woody substance of extreme hardness,
as in stone fruits.

Nature does not show herself less provident in furnishing means
for scattering seeds, and propagating vegetable species at great dis-
tances. There are, indeed, seeds which, furnished with light silky
plumes or wings, flutter in the air, and are transported afar by the
winds. Others, by means of a viscous, hard, impermeable envelope,
float on rivers, and descend their courses without suffering the slight-
est change, or losing their germinating power. There are seeds
again of a sufficiently coherent texture to resist the digestive action

2

14 , VEGETABLE PHYSIOLOGY.

of the Stomachs of animals that feed on the fruits which contain
them, and which are consequently often found deposited at great
distances from the plant which produced them ; they are thus fre-
quently dropped to germinate and flourish at the tops of the steepest
mountains. By these admirable provisions of nature, then, the air,
the water, and even animals themselves become the vehicles by
which the migration of various vegetable species over the surface
of the globe is effected.

We distinguish in seeds the kernel, and the integument which
covers or encloses it. In the kernel, the embryo exists, which, as
its name indicate^, is destined to reproduce the plant of which the
seed is the issue. The embryo is formed of several essential parts :
— 1st. of the radicle ; 2d. of the gemmule, plumule, or rudiment of
the stem, which by its extension engenders the organs that are to
vegetate above the ground ; 3d. of cotyledons, which form the great-
est portion of the kernel, aad which are destined to support the plant
during the first periods of its existence.

In most cases, the cotylejjons are formed of two lobes which sepa-
rate during the act of germination. The plumule presents itself
under the form of a little white point which penetrates into the in-
terior of botn cotyledons. The radicle is of a slightly conical shape,
and is first seen when it projects externally from the seed.

The seeds of gramineous plants do not separate into two parts at the
commencement of their independent existence. They are, in fact,
seeds which have but a single cotyledon. As plants which spring from
seeds of one or of more cotyledons present capital differences in
their organization at large, and mode of development, botanists have
established two grand divisions among them — into monocotyledonous
vegetables, and dicotyledonous or polycotyledonous vegetables.

When the seed is gathered in its state of perfect maturity it is
•completely inert, its vital functions are wholly suspended, and it may
be kept often for a very long time without being made to grow.

The length of time during which seeds may be kept, however,
varies extremely, according to the species. There are plants, for
instance, the seeds of which preserve for an indefinite period 'heir
germinative power ; there are others, on the contrary, which lose it
very speedily.

From various observations which appear to deserve every con
fidence, the seeds —

Of Tobacco have germinated after having been

keptfor 10 yean.

"Stramonium 25 " (DuhameL)

" the Sensitive plant 60 "

"Wheat 100 " (Pliny.)

"Wheat 10 " (Duhimel.)

"Melons 41 " (Frievi^ald.)

"Cucumbers 17 " (Roger Galen.)

"Haricots 33 "

"Idem.... 100 " (Gerardin.)

"Rape 17 " (Leftbure.)

"Rye 140 " (Home.)

The seeds of the coffee plant arc perhaps those which lose the

SEEDS. . 15

property of geiwiinating most speedily ; planters are well aware that
they must be sown almost immediately after they ate taken from
the bush. Oleaginous seeds are generally preserved with great dit-,
ficulty ; so also are those of rubiaceous plants, of the- laurels, myr-
tles, &c.* '

In practical agriculture there is always much advantage, and
additional security, in sowing the most recent seed, even of kinds
wbitjh are known to be the longest lived. It frequently happens,
even after a very short time, that a certain proportion of these seeds
die : they have, perhaps, not been gathered under circumstances
favorable to their complete preservation. It is, therefore, only when
he is compelled to do so, that the farmer trusts wheat to the ground
which has been gathered in former years ; and experience has
proved that in using such seed, it is necessary to increase very con-
siderably the quantity sown.

The inactivity of the seed ceases so soon as it is brought into
contact with water and the air under the influence of a sufficient
temperature. Sown in moist jsarth, a seedtabsorbs water, and swells
considerably ; the pellicle which covers it becomes distended, and
ends by bursting ; the radicle and the plumule appear, and become
more and more distinct ; the root penetrates the ground ; the plu-
mule by and by grows into a stalk which gets greener and greener,
increases rapidly, and augments the number of its leaves, so that
the young plant acquires vigor every day. At a certain period,
flowers appear ; and these are succeeded by fruit, the final term of
which is the maturity of the seed. The phenomena of vegetation
then cease. The whole of the organs of annual plants now wither
and die ; the work of reproduction, of multiplication, is accomplished.
Thus begins and ends the existence of the plants which are the
usual subjects of our husbandry.

With regard to biennial plants and trees, which possess more than
this ephemeral existence, things pass differently. The plant vege-
tates so long as the temperature of the atmosphere and moisture of
the soil are favorable to it : during the cold season the leaves fall,
and the growth is suspended ; but the plant revives anew on the
return of spring. Those vegetables, the stem of which is generally
ligneous, and whose roots penetrate deeply into the ground, have a
power of resisting cold, and brave the rigors of the winter. In
these latitudes, the renewal of the vegetation of trees in the spring
presents an obvious analogy to the process of germination : the evo-
lution of the buds represents this process very closely ; and the phe-
nomena at large, which we observe in annual plants, are for the
major part reproduced • — there is increase of size in the stem and
root, sprouting of leaves, inflorescence, ripening of fruits, production
of seeds, and then suspension of function.

In the tropics, where the temperature is nearly uniform through-
out the year, vegetation goes on without interruption ; it only varies
in its vigor, and this is determined by the abundance or the paucity

♦ DecandoUe, Physiology, page 622

18 VEGETABLE PHYSIOLOGY.

of rains and dews. The leaves which have conciirred in the pro
duction of the fruit, and in perfecting the seed, fall as it were ex-
hausted ; but they are soon replaced, and their fall is only perceived
by their presence on the surface of the ground.

The perfect plant, therefore, whether it be studied among annuals,
or among trees that endure for a century, has analogous organs,
destined to fulfil the same functions, to conduce to the same end —
the reproduction of the seed. These organs, which we shall study
in succession, are, 1st. The roots ; 2d. The stem ; 3d. The leaves ;
4th. The appendages of the fructification.

When we follow the progress of a seed set in a proper soil, we
observe that from their very first appearance the roots seek or tend
towards the interior of the earth ; the plumule, or young stem, on the
contrary, takes a direction diametrically opposite ; it grows verti-
cally and seeks the air.

The lateral shoots in herbaceous plants, and the young branches
of shrubs, form various angles with the principal stem or trunk. The
first tendency of the branches is to rise vertically ; but as they gain
length and weight, they bend more or less downward, yielding to the
power of gravitation. Mr. Knight showed, by a series of ingenious
experiments, that the direction taken by the roots and branches is
mainly due to this force.

This able observer arranged a wheel of wood in such a way that
he could make it turn with different velocities in planes variously
inclined to the horizon. The wheel, which was kept in motion by
a stream of water, could be made to revolve vertically or horizon-
tally at will.

A number of beans were planted upon the circumference of the
wheel, in circumstances known to be indispensable to their germi-
nation and growth. By giving the wheel a sufficient -velocity, it
was easy to make the centrifugal force greater than the centripetal
force. In Mr. Knight's apparatus, this happened when the wheel
in the vertical plane performed one hundred and fifty revolutions in
a minute. The whole of the radicles were then seen to turn theii
suckers beyond the circumference in lines which were prolonga-
tions of the radii of the wheel, and their growth took place in planes
perpendicular to its axis.

The stems took a completely opposite direction, and after a time
their summits attained the centre or axis of the wheel.

In causing the wheel to revolve in a horizontal plane, the same
effects were still observed, when the rapidity of rotation was suffi-
cient to annul the action of terrestrial gravitation. But when the
motion was so far diminished, as merely to modify or to lessen the force
of attraction, without entirely annulling it, the plant took a course
comprised in a plane which formed a certain angle with the circum-
ference of the wheel. With a certain velocity, the roots were in-
clined 10° below the horizontal plane in which the wheel moved, and
the stems then formed an angle of the same magnitude above the same
plane. The angle of deviation formed in this position of the wheel waa
always smaller in proportion as the raj»idity of rotation was greater.

STEMS. 17

fow^ since gravitation influences the position which vegetables
present, as these beautiful experiments of Mr. Knight demonstrate,
a practical conclusion which seems to follow from the fact is this,
that the number of plants which may be placed upon a certain ex-
tent of soil, does not depend solely on the extent of surface ; and
that the power of production of a field which is very much sloped,
does not exceed its horizontal projection. With regard to creeping
plants, and with reference to meadows, it is clear that this principle
is not rigorously exact : but in so far as plants with isolated stems
are concerned, many agricultural philosophers, and among the num-
ber Davy,* have admitted it as perfectly indisputable. This opinion,
as M. Corrardf has judiciously observed, is founded on the geome-
trical jrinciple, which in itself is perfectly true, that an inclined
plane cannot be cut by a greater number of vertical perpendiculars
of a determinate thickness, than the horizontal plane which serves it
for a base. Thus, says Corrard, as buildings which rest on an in-
clined plane are raised perpendicularly to the horizon, it has been
concluded that an inclined plane can hold no larger an extent of
building than would the horizontal plane which it covers ; so that
inclinations of surface do not actually add to the extent of towns. It
is further a matter of absolute certainty, that as rain falls vertically,
the quantity of water collected upon the eaves of a house is precisely
the same as that which would be gauged in the same place upon a
horizontal surface, equal to that of the building. But we should
very much deceive ourselves, adds Corrard, if upon the same prin-
ciple we inferred that on the surface of an inclined plane we could
not have a tree more than upon the much smaller horizontal plane
which serves as its base.

For although plants grow perpendicularly to the horizon, and may
in this respect be considered as so many vertical perpendiculars or
laminae, still, from circumstances which are peculiar to them, we
cannot here apply with propriety the geometrical principle in ques-
tion. Because, to make the application exact, it were necessary to
suppose that plants required no space around them to thrive, and that
the whole surface of the ground might be covered with their stems
without any space being left between them, and without this prox-
imity interfering with their growth and vigor.

But such a supposition is impossible, inasmuch as it is absolutely
necessary that plants should have a certain amount of space, both in
the ground and in the atmosphere, in which to extend their roots
and stretch forth their branches. Supposing, therefore, the inclined
plane to be of considerably greater extent than the horizontal plane
which supports it, it will necessarily aflford to a larger number of
plants, the spaces which their roots require for their growth and
nourishment. In other words, upon the inclined surface there will
be a larger quantity of vegetable earth, and more of the nutritious
iuices favorable to vegetation ; and for these reasons the space which

♦ Agricultural Chemistry, vol. i.

t B. Corrard, Verhandel. von der Maatsch. te Haarlem, vol. xv. p. 308.

2*

18 VEGETABLE PHYSIOLOGY.

must always exist between plants may be less than on the horizontal
plane. Consequently, all the conditions necessary to fertility being
assumed as equal, the inclined plane will be capable of supporting
a larger number of vegetables having vertical stems than the hori-
zontal plane.

The organization of different parts of plants, so worthy in all
respects of exercising the sagacity of physiologists, need not be
made a subject of minu ;e research in this place. Generalities suf-
fice in our agricultural science. This organization, however com-
plex it is in appearance, is probably much more simple than is
usually believed : we might perchance find the proof of this sim-
plicity in the readiness with which organs, the most dissimilar in
their external forms and so different in their functions, undergo
modification and transformation one into another, it might almost be
said at the will of the observer. Thus tubers, those fleshy amyla-
ceous bodies, which accumulate on the subterranean stems of cer-
tain vegetables, such as the potato, give birth to a plant which differs
in nothing from that which would arise from the seed of the same
vegetable. Certain leaves, — those of the orange, of the ficus elas-
tica, &c., will do the same. Woody stems, branches severed from
the tree and planted in the ground, produce roots and become inde-
pendent plants. If the branches of certain shrubs be buried, and
their roots be exposed to the air, these last are soon seen covered
with buds and leaves ; while the buried branches acquire a fibrous
capillary structure, and in no great length of time they both present
the appearance and exercise the functions of roots. This singular
mutation readily succeeds with the willow, and it was upon this plant
that the English vegetable physiologist, Woodward, effected it for
the first time.*

The intimate structure of the roots, trunk, and branches, present
considerable similarity. Divided perpendicularly to their longitudinal
axis, three different zones, so dissimilar that it is impossible to con-
found them, are discovered in the different concentric layers which
make up their mass ; these are the bark, the wood, and the pith.
A more careful examination shows that each of these zones may be
further subdivided.

The exterior of the bark is covered by an extremely thin, nearly
transparent and porous pellicle, formed by an assemblage of little
adherent scales ; this is the cuticle, or epidermis, which encloses the
entire vegetable. As it is extensible within certain narrow limits
only, it gives way and cracks in proportion as the body of the tree
increases in size. The pores of the epidermis are minute openings
or mouths which communicate with the exterior by an oval orifice,
surrounded by a kind of contractile margin. It has been remarked
ihat moisture tends to close these pores, and that drought and the
action of solar light tend on the contrary to make them open. The
chemical nature of the cuticle which covers the bark appears to in-
dicate that it is destined to defend the plant agaiast the too direct

* DaTy'f AKricoltoral Chemiitry

BARK. 1^

action of external influences. In certain trees, the cuticle is covered
with wax or resin. The most remarkable example of this kind
which can be quoted, is that of the wax-tree (ceroxilon andicola)
which grows abundantly upon the slopes of the Andes. This tree,
(a palm,) which attains a height of between 130 and 164 English
feet, is covered over the whole surface of its trunk with a mixture
of wax and resin.* In gramineous plants, the epidermis is almost
entirely formed of silica. The bark of the birch-tree is covered
with a pellicle of an unctuous nature, capable under the agency of
nitric acid of yielding a peculiar suberic (the) acid.f

After the epidermis, in going from the circumference towards the
centre, a layer of cellular tissue appears, which is designated by
many physiologists under the name of the herbaceous envelope. In
the cork oak, the cork represents the tissue by which the liber or
true bark is covered, an organ formed of a vascular tissue, which
with care can be separated into numerous very thin flakes or layers,
which have been aptly compared to the leaves of a book.

The origin of the liber, or bark, is found in the most central part
of the trunk ; it is the result of the exudation of the woody parts, as
Duhamel, with the same wonderful sagacity which characterizes all
his works, has proved. Having cut away a portion of the bark of
a tree in full vigor, and taken care to preserve the incision from
contact with the air, he perceived that from the surface of the wood
laid bare, and the edges of the bark adhering to it, a viscous mat-
ter exudes, which accumulates, acquires consistency, and ends by
becoming cellular, thus regenerating the liber which had been taken
away. Grew called this viscous secretion cambium, a title which it
still retains. It is now generally admitted that cambium proceeds
from the descending sap.

The liber is a very important organ in vegetables ; we know
for instance that it is necessary for the success of a graft that its
liber penetrate or be penetrated by that of the tree on which it is
grafted.

The woody layers are situated under the liber. Those which are
at the greatest distance from the axis of the trunk, although they
present the fibrous structure, and the principal characteristics of the
woody tissue, still differ from it in being less hard and less tena-
cious ; this zone, which at the first glance is easily distinguished
from the wood properly so called, is the alburnum, the soft or false
wood. Its fibres are much looser, and its color paler than that of
the wood beneath it, the difference of shade being particularly ap-
parent in the dye and deeply colored woods.

The alburnum becomes harder and tougher with age, and passes
into the woody tissue, the duramen or hard wood, properly so called.
The wood begins where the alburnum terminates, and reaches to
the centre, to the pith or medullary canal.

In dicotyledonous trees, a certain quantity of wood is formed

•_ Boussingault, sur le Palmier a cire. Annales ^ Climie et de FhysiquA 3* iitie^
the observations of M. Chevreul.

t 59, p. 19.

t ftOBt

80 VEGETABLE PHYSIOLOGY.

during vegetation at the expense of the alburnum ; while on the
opposite side towards the bark, the alburnum increases in about an
equal proportion : so that in our climates, the alburnum grows each
year from a new concentric layer ; but in tropical countries, where
the dicotyledonous trees vegetate without interruption, the annual
concentric layers are scarcely perceptible. To prove the conver-
sion of alburnum into woody tissue, Duhamel inserted a metallic
wire into it in several places. At the end of a few years he found
that the wire had become engaged in the proper woody layers.

The most central zone of the trunk or stem is traversed by the
medullary canal or sheath, which is usually filled with the pith, a
diaphanous spongy matter, consisting almost entirely of cellular
tissue.

The pith sends ramifications towards the external parts of the
trunk. Its use is not exactly determined ; and notwithstanding the
high purposes ascribed to it by some physiologists, we have many
reasons for believing that its functions are not of great importance.
Experiment proves, in fact, that the pith may be removed from
young trees without killing them, without even stopping their
growth. One of the least unquestionable offices assigned to the
pith, is that of its being a reservoir for moisture with which it sup-
plies the plant in times of drought, and when the ground does not
furnish a sufficient quantity of water.

The internal structure and progressive development of the stem
of monocotyledonous plants differ essentially from those which
we have just been describing in connection with dicotyledonous
plants.

If a perpendicular transverse section of the trunk of a palm-tree
be examined, the same arrangement of zones which is observed in
the dicotyledonous plants of our climates will not be perceived.
The regions of the outer bark, of the liber or true bark, of the al-
burnum, and of the wood, forming so many concentric circles round
a canal which is their common centre, are no longer distinguishable.
The trunk of the palm-tree presents a more homogeneous appearance.
The pith is disposed through the whole substance of the stem, and
the woody tissue, presenting a fibrous texture disposed longitudinal-
ly, is found intimately mixed, or felted, as it were, with the medul-
lary substance. The bark, if there be any, is always very indis-
tinct ; sometimes reduced to a simple epidermis, it is with difficulty
distinguished from other parts of the trunk. In the beginning, and
when it first appears above the ground, a palm-tree puts forth a sys-
tem of leaves, the adhering extremities of which are attached in the
same plane, and usually surround the neck of the root. At the
second shoot, a system similar to the preceding one appears, which
throws off the outside leaves, and interrupts their power of vege-
tating. These leaves wither, bend towards the earth and fall off,
leaving a projecting circular ring on the stem, the only vestige of
their existence. The same phenomenon takes place periodically.
In the centre of the crown of leaves or branches, which terminates
tlie palm-tree plant, a bud appears which is at first small and blanciv

FALMS. 9X

ed ;* but soon displays the most vigorous powers of vegetation. Its
growth, inflorescence, and progress towards maturity are indicated
by the decay and fall of the leaves which had hitherto protected it.
The age of a palnn-tree, or rather the number of times that it has
fructified, or become crowned with fresh leaves, is calculated by the
number of woody circles which are found marked on the stem. Its
power of lasting seems to have no other limits than the resistance
which the base offers to the weight it supports. In these colossal
trees, a sensible diminution in the diameter of the stem is often per-
ceptible towards the top, and in most of the species ^t 's a fact
equally well proved, that the fruit decreases in quantity when they
have attained a certain epoch of their existence. In the cocoa-nut
tree {lodicen. cncus nucifera) the period of this decrease sh'jws itself
at about the age of thirty years, although this tree continues to bear
for nearly a century. f

The leaves, the forms of which are so various, present however
the greatest analogy in their organization : the green membranous
substance of which they are almost entirely composed, is an exten-
sion of the parenchyma ; the envelope which covers them answers
to the epidermis.

It is in the leaves that the sap is subjected to the action of the
atmosphere ; it is there concentrated and peculiarly modified. Ac-
cording to the position of leaves upon the plant, their under sides,
or those turned towards the ground, are distinguished from their
upper sides which meet the light from above.

The upper side of the leaf is covered with a thick and frequently
shining epidermis; this epidermis is sometimes endued with a sub-
stance rich in silicious matter, as in rushes. In the Steppes of
South America I observed a tree, called Chapparal, the leaves of
which are S(» highly silicious, that they are used for polishing metals.
Generally speaking, the covering of the upfier surface of leaves is a
matter which is something of the nature of wax or resin. The
epidermis which covers the lower surface is formed in most cases
r>f a very thin, rough membrane, full of cavities and frequently cov-
ered with hairs or down.

The appearance and position of the leaves are not the same du-
ring the day and night. In the dark, simple leaves incline to fold
up; in compound leaves, as in those of the acacia and sensitive
plant, the same thing is still more marked ; the effect can even be
produced at will. If during the day a sensitive plant is placed in a
dark room, the leaves immediately close ; on lighting the room even
with candles, they open again as if under the influence of the solar
light ;| Linnaeus, who first paid attention to this class of phenome-
na, admits that plants in the absence of light experience a sort of
sleep.

* This bvid, in certain species of palm-trees, is sought after as food, and is often
spoken of as the cabbage of the pHJni-tree.

t Information communicated by Mr. Codazzi. The trunic of certain species of palm-
trees shows an enlargement towards the middle of its height, as in the podma Hrrigout
vfChoco.

X Observation of M. de CandoUe.

22 VEGETABLE PHYSIOLOGY.

The fiower is the forerunner of the fruit, the fruit is the medium
in the heart of which the seed is developed. The organs which
constitute the flower are the calyx and the corolla, destined to sup-
port, nourish, and protect the pistil and the stamina, which are the
essential parts ; the calyx is a green membrane which surrounds the
corolla, and in certain flowers replaces it.

1 he corolla is monopetalous or poly petalous according as it is com-
posed of one or of several pieces. The stamens occupy the interioi
of the corolla ; they aie terminated by summits of a vascular tex-
ture ; these are the anthers ; the powder which covers and sticks
slightly to them is designated under the name of pollen.

The pistil placed in the middle of the flower is composed of the
ovary, the style, and the stigma.

Tiie ovary encloses the germ, the embryo of the seed ; but this
embryo is only developed by the action of the pollen. The style is
in some sort the tubular prolongation of the ovary ; it supports the
stigma, which is the glandular part that receives the fecundating
influence of the pollen.

From what has now been said, the pistil may be considered as the
female organ of the flower, the stamens as the male organs.

Many flowers combine the organs of the two sexes. These flow-
ers are hermaphrodites ; those which only contain one organ, are
called unisexual. Both male and female flowers are produced to-
gether on certain plants ; in others, the flowers are all only of one
sex, male or female. Polygamous plants are those which show a
union of male and female flowers, or which have hermaphrodite
flowers on the same stem.

In some flowers, the sexual organs at the period of fecundation
acquire the property of motion, so as to facilitate this grand act
The stamens, for example, are seen in certain plants to approach
the stigma, to deposite their pollen on it, and then to withdraw. It
occasionally happens again that stamens, which are at first naturally
in a position inclined with reference to the pistil, become suddenly
straightened in such a A-ay as to cast their pollen on the female or-
gan, after which they resume their original position. In certain
flowers a very consideiable evolution of caloric has been perceived
on the approach of the period of fecundation. In some arums, for
example, the temperature has been observed to rise to 40° and even
50° cent. (104° to 122° Fahr.) It is probable that this phenomenon
is quite general, and that it only varies in point of intensity.

Fecundation accomplished, the office of the flower is at an end.
It collapses, withers, and dies. But the impregnated ovary enlarges
by degrees, until it has attained maturity, when it presents two dis-
tinct parts, which by their union con»pose the fruit : these parts are
the pericarp, and the seed — the husk or shell and the grain. The
pericarp always surrounds the seed ; but it sometimes happens that
it is so thin and delicate that it blends with the seed.

The germination of seeds, the evolution of new plants, is only
accomplished under certain physical conditions which demand oair
consideration.

ROOTS, SAP. 28

We have already said incidentally, that in order that a seed may
germinate, it must be in contact with moisture, have communication
with the air, and be under the influence of a certain temperature.
The same conditions continue to be indispensable after the seed has
sprung, and the plant has been organized ; and in addition the access
of light is now imperative.

Roots seek in the soil the moisture which is requisite to vivify
the whole vegetable. These organs are terminated by hair-like
fibres of extreme delicacy, and having sprngioles at their extremities :
it is by these spongioit-s that absorption is effected. Tlie following
experiment is sufficient to prove that this is l[ie case : let such a
plant as a turnip be p Aced with ilie hair-like extremities of its root
plunged in water, and the plant will continue to live, although almost
the whole body of the root is in the air ; let things be now so ar-
ranged that the hair-like filaments of the root are not in the water,
but that the bulb or body of the plant is so : the leaves will soon
droop and wither.

The force which brings into play the suction power of the roots,
resides in almost every part of the plant : thus a root deprived of
its spongioles, a stem, a branch, and a leaf, exert this suction power
when plunged in water. But the absorption eflfected in this way
has a limit, and we soon discover the necessity of making fresh
sections of the extremities, which have no power of renovation like
the filaments furnished with spongioles, which terminate a root.

We are still ignorant of the cause which produces the ascent of
liquids in vegetables, and which carries them to the remotest leaves
in spite as it were of the laws of hydrostatics. We readily conceive
how the spongioles of the roots, surrounded by earth abundantly
charged with moisture, should imbibe by the simple effect of poro-
sity. We can also understand how, after having been modified by
the spongioles, the water and the principles contained in it should
be transformed into sap ; but the porosity of the extremities of the
roots, and the chemical modification effected by the spongioles upon
the fluid imbibed, give no kind of explanation of the rapid ascent of
the sap. The force which occasions this rise is very considerable,
as was demonstrated by Dr. Stephen Hales in a series of ingenious
experiments more than a century ago.

Hales adapted a tube bent at a right angle and filled with water,
to the extremity of the root of a pear-tree, the point of which had
been cut off; the extremity of the tube opposite to that which was
connected with the root dipped into a bath -of mercury. In a few
minutes a portion of the water contained in the tube was absorbed,
and the mercury rose above the surface of the bath to the extent of
eight inches. In the beginning of April, Hales cut oflf a vine stem
at the distance of thirty-three inches from the ground. The stem
had no lateral branches, and its cut surface, which was nearly cir-
cular, had a diameter of ^ths of an inch. To this section, he adapt-
ed a reversed syphon : and things being so disposed, he poured in a
quantity of mercury, which after a time, and from the effect of the
pressure exerted by the sap as it escaped, rose in one of the armi

24 VEGETABLE PHYSIOLOGY.

of the syphon, and remained stationary at the height of thirty-eigUt
inches above its original level. This column of mercury, it is
obvious, represents a pressure very much greater than that of oar
atmosphere.

The ascent of the sap in trees takes place by the woody layers.
It is easy to obtain conviction of this by making a plant absorb a
watery solution of cochineal. By making sections in the stem at
different heights, we can readily trace the colored liquid in its pro-
gress; it is undoubtedly the course which the natural sap would
nave taken. We see no indication of the coloring matter in the pith
nor in the bark, the woody tissue alone is colored, sometimes en-
tirely, but more generally in its younger parts only. The dyeing
which results from this injection of the wood is in lines, and parallel
with the axis of the trunk, like the woody fibres themselves ; but
in some cases the sap may deviate from the rectilinear course.
Hales showed this by the following experiment : upon a tree he
made four notches, one above the other ; each notch occupied one
quarter of the trunk and reached to its centre. In this way the
whole of the woody fibres were cut through at different heights, so
that to continue its ascent the sap must necessarily experience a
series of lateral deviation, which in fact took place.

The ascending sap of vegetables, as it has hitherto been procured
for examination, is an extremely watery fluid, holding in solution
very small quantities of divers saline and organic substances.
Having attained the leaves, the sap there undergoes modification,
and becomes concentrated by losing water. It at the same time
experiences, through the agency of the atmospheric air, under the
influence of light, a great modification in its constitution. Thus
elaborated, the sap takes a descending course ; following the liher^
it retrogrades towards the soil, and therefore performs a kind of cir-
culation in its passage through the plant. The descending course
of the sap is demonstrated by throwing a ligature round the trunk
of a tree ; after a time there is formed, above the part that is tied,
an enlargement which is owing to the accumulation of the principles
of the sap ; but below it the tree experiences no increase. The
descending course of the elaborated sap is no effect of simple gravi-
ty ; because, if the ligature be thrown around a pendent branch, the
enlargement still forms between the ligature and the free extremity
of the branch. The descending sap passing through the cortical
layers must necessarily contribute to their formation ; and it is
almost certain, as appears from the capital experiment of Duhamel,
that it is the cambium which is changed into liber, and so concurs in
the growth of trees. The concentration of the ascending sap, which
occurs during its passage through the leaves, by the simple effect
of evaporation, is the phenomenon which is spoken of under the
name of the exhalation of plants : this exhalation of plants, it is
easily understood, is favored by a high temperature, dryness, and
motion of the air. In favorable circumstances, the water escapes
in the state of vapor. Hales compared the watery exhalation of
Dlants to the perspiration of animals, and made many experiments

EXHALATION. 25

to ascertain the quantity of watery vapor which they usually throw
off.

Hales planted a sun-flower in an air-tight vessel, the top of which
was sealed hermetically by a leaden cover. This cover was pierced
by two holes : one for the passage of the stem of the plant, the other
for the introduction of the water necessary to its growth. For a
fortnight the apparatus was regularly wei.'rhed, and our ingenious
experimenter found that the green parts of the sun-flower threw off
on an average about twenty ounces of water in twelve hours of Ihc
day. The evaporation was always increased during dry and warm
weather ; moist air lessened it ; during the night season, the evapo-
ration was sometimes no more than three ounces, and it occasional-
ly happened that it was nil.

Vegetable life appears to be intimately connected with the pheno-
menon of evaporation. From the inquiries which I have myself
undertaken on this subject, so well deserving the attention of obser-
vers, it would appear that a plant grows only when it transpires, and
that in hindering this transpiration, we in fact arrest vegetation.

We now associate with the phenomenon of exhalation the source
or accumulation of certain substances which are met with in con-
siderable quantity in the organization of plants, although scarcely a
trace of them can be detected in the water with which they are sup-
plied. The water evaporating, leaves these substances behind ; and
as the mass of liquid imbibed by the roots and exhaled by the green
parts is very considerable, it is easy to conceive how they should
finally come to be present in rather large quantity.

A portion of the water which a plant in full v\gor absorbs, must
necessarily enter into its constitution ; the water exhaled by the
leaves, therefore, cannot equal the whole of that which has been
absorbed by the roots. Sennebier endeavored to ascertain the rela-
tion which exists between the absorption and the exhalation, and ho
found in the particular case which he observed, that about ^ of the
water absorbed was fixed, and became a constituent part of the
vegetable.

§ II.— CHEMICAL PHENOMENA OF VEGETATION.

The chemical phenomena of vegetation are accomplished by the
concurrence of the elements of the atmosphere, of water, and of
certain organic substances which exist as constituents of the soil.

The action of the atmosphere upon plants presents two phases
perfectly distinct from one another; germination, and vegeta'ion
properly so called, which last comprises the development, the grov/th|
and the multiplication of species.

3

26 CHEMICAL PHENOMENA OF VEGETATION.

GERMINATION.

We have ascertained that a seed, considered with reference to its
organization, consists, 1st. of an embryo which includes the germs
of the root and of the stem; and 2d. of the cotyledon, or cotyledons.
Considered with reference to their chemical compositions, seeds ex-
hibit a certain similarity of constitution. They contain : 1st. starch
and gum ; 2d. a highly azotized matter analogous to the caseum of
milk and animal albumen ; this is the matter which is commonly and
very improperly designated under the name of gluten, and of vegeta-
ble albumen ; 3d. a fatty or oily matter, rich in carbon and hydrogen.
Seeds contain either fixed oils, such as hemp-seed, rape-seed, &c.,
or volatile oils, as aniseed, cmnmin-seed, &c. The different prin-
ciples which are associated in the seeds vary considerably in their
relative proportions : they also vary slightly in their nature. One
seed, that of the colewort, for example, will contain more than forty
per cent, of its weight of oily matter, while another, such as wheat,
will only contain a few hundredths. Oats may contain ten or twelve
per cent, of caseum or gluten ; in certain varieties of wheat,
analysis indicates a much larger quantity. The proportions of starch,
gum, sugar, or mucilage do not vary less. It almost always hap-
pens that these different substances are found associated in the same
seed ; sometimes one predominates and the others only enter in very
small proportion.

After burning, the ashes of seeds are always found composed of
phosphates, sulphates, and alkaline and earthy chlorides. These
ashes also contain silica, and certain carbonates produced by the
destruction of salts formed by organic acids.

If some seeds, sufficiently moistened, are placed under a bell-
glass containing atmospheric air confined over quicksilver, all the
signs of germination will soon be perceived. In the course of a few
days, provided the temperature has been sufficiently high, germina-
tion will have made a certain progress. Supposing that the tem-
perature of the bell-glass has not varied, and that the atmospheric
pressure remains the same, we generally find that the air, in which
germination has been proceeding, has not changed its original vol-
ume ; but it has been modified in its composition : a notable quantity
of carbonic acid has been formed, and a portion of oxygen has dis-
appeared. The volume of carbonic acid produced, represents for the
most part the volume of oxygen which has disappeared. Now we
know that carbon being burnt in a certain volume of oxygen gas,
produces sensibly an equal volume of carbonic acid gas. It was the
knowledge of this fact that induced M. de Saussure to say, that in
germination, carbonic acid is produced by the combustion of a por-
tion of the carbon which enters into the composition of the seed.

Germination and the appearance of carbonic acid, (which is al-
ways its consequence,) take place as readily in pure oxygen gas, as
in atmospheric air; but if placed in an atmosphere deprived of oxy-
gen, seeds cease to germinate. Consequently, germination is out of
the question in azote, in hydrogen, or in carbonic acid, however fa-

GERMINATION. 27

vorable they may be in reference to humidity and temperature.
Some formation of carbonic acid is indeed to be observed under
such circumstances, but then this gas is the result of the decompo-
sition and putrid fermentation of the seed. It is therefore by means
of the oxygen which it contains, that atmospheric air concurs in the
germination of seeds.

Rollo was the first who ascertained the production of carbonic acid,
during the germination of seeds in an atmosphere of oxygen ; but it
was M. Theodore de Saussure, who by delicate eudiometrical ex-
periments, demonstrated the phenomena in all their nicety, by prov-
ing thai the oxygen consumed was replaced by a corresponding
volume of carbonic acid.*

There are some seeds, for instance, peas, and the seeds of aquatic
plants, which have the property of germinating under water. Some
observers have, from this fact, come to the premature conclusion that
atmospheric air, and consequently oxygen, were by no means neces-
sary to germination. Saussure has explained this anomaly by re-
ferring to the constant presence of air in a state of solution in water.
In fact, having placed some seeds of the polygonum amphibium under
water, deprived of its air by long boiling, Saussure proved that ger
mination could not take place. f

Under like circumstances, the quantity of carbonic acid generated
in a given time, is by so much greater, the larger the quantity of
oxygen in the atmosphere which immediately surrounds the ger
minating seed. Carbonic acid gas is, of all the gases which have
been tried, that which is most unfavorable to germination ; and one
way of hastening the process is to place under the receivers which
cover the seed, some substance capable of absorbing it as fast as it is
formorl — quick-lime, for example. By this arrangement the radic-
ular increase is sensibly accelerated, J

The quantity of oxygen gas necessary to germination, is not the
same in reference to all seeds ; lettuce, the french-bean, and the
field-bean require about yg^th part of their respective weights ; while
J^th less is sufficient for wheat, barley, purslane, &c. Saussure
moreover came to the conclusion that the carbonic acid generated
by these diflferent seeds in germinating is proportioned to their mass,
and altogether independent of their number.^

Inasmuch as seeds during germination yield carbonic acid to the
atmosphere, it is quite obvious that they must lose some part of their
original weight. And this they do in fact ; but the loss experienced
by seeds which have germinated is always greater than that which
would have resulted from the destruction of carbon that takes place.
Saussure attributed this excess of loss to the volatilization of a por-
tion of the water which entered into the composition of the seed.jj
According to Saussure, therefore, the phenomena of germination
resolve themselves into the diminution of carbon and of the elements
of water. It is, nevertheless, doubtful whether the chemical actions

* Saussure, Recherches chimiques sur la V6g6tation, p. 10.

t Idem, p. 3. t Mem, p. 26. $ Idem, p. 13. ^| Idem, p. ao.

28 CHEMICAL PHENOMENA, ETC.

are so simple as this ; we know, for example, that M. Becquerel
considered the organic acid which appears during germination as
acetic acid, whereas it is much more likely tiiat it should be the
lactic acid. There is certainty of the formation of an acid during
germination ; to prove its development it is sufficient to make a fev/
moist seeds sprout on blue litmus paper, which speedily acquires
the permanent red tint indicating the presence of an acid.

The volume of the air in which seeds germinate is not absolutely
invariable. On examining, with renewed attention, the action of
germinating seeds on a limited volume of air, M. de Saussure as-
certained that certain seeds have the property of diminishing the
bulk of this atmosphere, while others perceptibly augment it. It
must be admitted, therefore, that during germination, tlie volume of
carbonic acid produced is now greater, now less, than the volume of
oxygen gas that is consumed. The nature of the results obtained
appears, however, to vary in regard to the same class according to
the stage of the germination.

Elementary analysis appeared to me the most satisfactory means
of investigating the subject of germination. I shall here recapitu-
late a few attempts that have been made in this direction, less how-
ever with a view to the final settlement of the question, than to point
out the general method of procedure to those who would enter far-
ther upon this interesting portion of physiology. The experiments
I allude to were made upon the seed of trefoil and on wheat.

The seed, on being dried at a heat of 110° cent. (230° Fahr.,) lost
0.120 of water. Duly moistened, it was placed to sprout on a por-
celain plate. As soon as the radicle had attained a length of from
^•gth to 2\th of an inch, each seed was placed in a stove, the temera-
ture of which was sufficiently high to check the growth immediately.
The complete desiccation was then terminated over an oil bath at a
temperature of 110° cent. (230° Fahr.)

The seed put to germinate weighed 2.474 grammes, (38.193 grains
troy;) perfectly dry, its weight would have been 2.405 grms. (37.128
grains troy.) When germinated, the seed, also quite dry, weighed
2.241 grms. (34.596 grains troy.)

Analysis gives us the composition of

THK SEED BEFORE OERMtNATION. THE SEED AFTER OERMINATIOH.

Carbon 51.5 ."id.S

Hydrogen 6.0 O.Ii

Azote 7.2 8.0

Oxygen .♦■ 36.0 34.2

100.0 100.0

RESULTS OF EXPERI.MENT.

(jrains troy. Carbon. Hydrogen. Oxyycn. Ai.-'.e.

Seed placed to gemiinrite 37.12S containing 18.865 2.22.3 13.360 2.670

Seed alter gerniinatio:i 34.5% " 17.815 2.176 11.840 2.7f]3

Difference • — 2.-532 '■ — 1.050 — .047 — 1.520 + .093

The total loss then during germination was 0164 grm., (2.531 grs.)
while the loss due to the carbon, only amounts to 0.068 grm. (1.C49

GERMINATION. 29'

grs. :) the analysis shows besides that in this particular rase, the
excess of the loss in the present case over and above that which is
ascribed to the carbon, is not altogether due to the elenaents of water,
inasmuch as it is partly ascribable to carbonic oxide ; for

1.049 grs. of carbon,
1.404 " of oxygen,

Represent 2.453 " of oxide of carbon.

Supposing this to be so, and the first period of the germination of
the trefoil to have been conducted in a close vessel, the volume of
atmospheric air would have been increased ; because 1 volume of
carbonic oxide-(-i volume of oxygen— 1 volume of carbonic acid gas.
It is consequently evident that for each volume of carbonic oxide
produced from the seed, there is one half of this volume added to
the total volume of the atmosphere.

It will not, perhaps, be useless to advert to the circumstance that
the increase of volume, which in the experiment I have just related
must have amounted to about twenty-five cubic inches, would cer-
tainly have passed undetected, if the experiment had been conducted
in a close vessel. For inasmuch as several quarts of atmospheric
air must have been used to place 38.193 grs. of seed in conditions
favorable for germination, it may readily be imagined that the in-
crease of volume must have been too small a fraction of the total
mass of air to be appreciated with any certainty.

GERMINATION OF WHEAT.

The wheat employed, on being dried, lost 0.652 grain of moisture.
Thirty-one grains were arranged for germination, which process
was suspended immediately after the appearance of the radicles.
The young stalks were hardly visible. The germinated grain looked
slightly shrivelled : on being crushed, after having been dried, it
scarcely differed in appearance from ordinary wheat reduced to
powder, a considerable quantity of starch being still recognisable.

The wheat, before germinating, taken as dry, and free from ashes,
weighed 2.439 grms., or 37.653 grs. troy.

The seed when germinated and gathered, under the same condi-
tion, weighed 2.365 grms., or 36.510 grs. troy.

Elementary analysis gives for the composition of —

WHEAT NOT GERMINATED. GERMINATED WHEAT.

Carlwn 46.6 47.0

Hydrogen 5-8 5-9

Azote 3.45 3.7

Oxygen ..-44.15 43.4

100.0 100.0

RESULTS OF EXPERIMENT.

Grains troy. Carbon. Hydrogen. Oxyg'en. Azote.

Wheat placed to genninate 37.653 containing 17-47 2-176 16-56 1-281

Wheat when germinated 36.510 " 17.15 2.145 15.83 1.343^

Diflference —1.143 " —0.032 — 0031 —0-073 +0.063

3*

30 CHEMICAL PHENOMENA, ETC.

0.324 of a grain of carbon -fO.432 of a grain of oxygen represent
0.756 of a grain of carbonic oxide ; 0.030 of a grain of hydro^ajn
would require 0.247 of a grain of oxygen to form water. Now, the
oxygen remaining, abstraction made of that which enters into the
formation of the carbonic oxide is 0.282 of a grain.

In the first period of its germination, therefore wheat, like trefoil
seed, experiences a loss which may in great part be referred to
elimination of the carbonic oxide. The chemical composition of
these two kinds of seed at more advanced periods of their germina-
tion, no longer presents relations so simple. We easily discover
that carbon continues to be eliminated ; but the loss no longer cor-
responds with that which the oxygen of the seed ought to suffer, in
order that the total loss should be represented by a definite compound
of carbon. The phenomenon, in fact, becomes extremely complex ;
and we can even perceive that it must be so, when we reflect that
in proportion as the green parts are evolved, a new chemical action
is set up entirely different from that which takes place in the earliest
periods of the germination : the green matter of vegetables having,
as we shall find, the singular faculty of decomposing carbonic acid
gas, and assimilating its carbon under the agency of light.

This action of the green matter begins to be manifested long be-
fore the first phases of germination have entirely ceased ; so that
during a certain time two opposite forces are at work simultaneously.
One of these, as we have seen, tends to discharge carbon from the
seed ; the other tends to accumulate this element within it. So long
as the first of these forces predominates, the seed loses carbon ; but
with the appearance of the green matter the young plant recovers
a portion of this principle ; finally, when by the progress of the vege-
tation, the second force surpasses the first in energy, the plant grows,
increases, and advances to maturity.

The presence of light is indispensable to the manifestation of the
chemical force by which the green parts of plants appropriate the
gaseous elements of the atmosphere. Germination, on the contra-
ry, may take place in absolute darkness ; and it would be curious to
inquire into the issues of vegetation begiin and ended under such cir-
cumstances, in which the organs produced by the seed would have
no power to fix any of the principles of the atmosphere to repair the
loss of carbon which the seed suffers. It is evident that this loss of
carbon must have a limit, which is probably that of germination.

CONTINUED GERMINATION OP PEAS

Ten peas, weighing together 2.237 grms. or 34.534 grs. troy,
taken as quite dry, were put to germinate in a dusky room, the tem-
perature of which was maintained between 12° and 17° cent. (54*
and G3° Fahr.) The experiment, begun the 5th of May, was ended
on the 1st of July.

The germinated peas, when dried, weighed 1.075 grm. or 16.595
I IS. troy.

GERMINATION. 81

Composition of the peas :

BEFORE GERMINATION. AFTER OERMTNATIOM-

Carbon 46.5 44.0

Hydrogen 6.1 6.0

Azote 4.2 6.7

Oxygen 40.1 36.9

Ashes 3.1 6.4

100.0 ^ 100.0

SUMMARY OF THE EXPERIMENT.

Graing troy. Carbon. Hvdro^en. Oxy»en. Azote. Balti, Earth*

Peas set to germinate... 34.534 cont'ng 16.055 "2.115 13.843 1.447 1.064
Peas which had germi-
nated 16.595 _ " 7.292 1.003 6.128 1.111 1064__

Difference — 17.939~" —8.763—1.112 —7.715 —0.336 0.000

Peas, during their germination, pushed to this extreme term,
therefore, suffered a loss of about 52 per cent., the loss being refer-
able to each of their constituent elements, which are summed up in
carbon, water, and ammonia.

7.719 of oxygen taking 0.972 of hydrogen to form water ;
0.339 of azote requiring- 0.077 of hydrogen to form ammonia ;

1.049 which represents as nearly as possible the quantity of
hydrogen eliminated.

In this experiment, therefore, we see that a seed weighing 3.453
grs. troy, suffered a daily loss of about 0.077 of a grain troy of
carbon.

CONTINUED GERMINATION OF WHEAT.

On the 5th of May, 46 corns or grains of wheat, supposed to be
quite dry, and weighing 1.665 grm. or 25.704 grs. troy, were set to
germinate in the dark.

On the 25th of June, the germinated wheat, when dried, weighed
0.713 grm. or 11.007 grs. troy.

Composition :

BEFORE GERMINATION. AFTER GERMINATION.

Carbon 45.5 41.1

Hydrogen 5.7 6.0

Azote 3.4 8.0 supposed.

Oxygen 43.1 39.5

Ashes 2.3 5.4 calculated.

mo iooio

^ SUMMARY OF THE EXPERIMENT.

Grains troy. Carbon. Hydrogen. Oxyg^en. Azote. Salti, Earth*.

. Wheat placed to

germinate 25.704 containing 11.704 1.466 11.086 0.879 0.588

Wheat germina-
ted 11-007 " 4.523 0.343 4.373 0-879 0.588

Difference —14-697 " —7.181—0-803 -6-713 0.000 0-000

Diyjing the germination, continued for fifty-one days, consequently
thin wheat lost 57 per cent., and the loss may be wholly referred to

82 CHEMICAL PHENOMENA, ETC.

the elements of carbonic acid and water, i. e. to carbon, hydrogen,
and oxygen.*

These results of the elementary analysis of seeds of different
kinds, before and after germination, tend, therefore, to show that the
chemical phenomena which take place in the earliest periods of ger-
mination, continue to go on even after the organic matter of the
seed has been changed into a proper vegetable, imperfect, undoubt-
edly, but still possessing the essential organs of plants, — roots, a
stem, and leaves. Deprived of light, the blanched vegetable may be
said to vegetate in a negative manner, expending, exhaling the ele-
mentary principles contained in the seed whence it sprung.

The general practice of sowing seeds at some depth in the ground,
led to the belief, for a long time, that light was prejudicial to germi-
nation. Sennebier had even inferred so much from his experiments,
which appeared to derive confirmation from those of Ingenhousz,
and which were instituted for the express purpose of discovering the
comparative influences of sun-light and darkness on the germination
and growth of vegetables.! But M. de Saussure showed that the
prejudicial influence attributed to the light was connected with the
drying of the seed, in consequence of its exposure to a higher tem-
perature. M. de Saussure caused seeds to germinate at the same
time under two bell-glasses of equal capacity. One of these shades
was opaque, the other was transparent, and so placed as to re-
ceive the diffused light of day. The temperature was the same in
either. The seeds sprung simultaneously under both glasses. J
Within a few days, the vegetation under the transparent shade was
most advanced; which is exactly what we should have expecteci
from all that has already been said of the functions of the organized
parts subjected to the action of light.

We are indebted to M. de Humboldt for a number of very curious
observations on the property which chlorine possesses of stimulating
or favoring germination. This action of chlorine is so decided, that
it is apparent even upon old seeds which will not germinate when
placed under ordinary circumstances. The experiments of M. de
Humboldt were made, in the first instance, on the common cress,
{lepidium sativum.) The seeds were placed in two test tubes of
glass, one of which contained a weik solution of chlorine, the other
common water. The tubes were placed in the dark, the tempera-
ture being maintained at about 15° cent. (59° Fahr.) In the chlo
rine solution, germination took place in six or seven hours ; from
thirty-six to thirty-eight were required before it was manifest in the
seeds in the water. In the chlorine, the radicles had attained the
length of .0585 Eng. inch, after the lapse of fifteen hours, wlvile
they were scarcely visible at the end of twenty hours in the seeds
submerged in vvater.^

• The small quantity operated on prevented any estimates being made of the azote
lost. Its projwrtion was supposed not to have varied. It is extr?nieiy prolrjiile, how
ever, that there was some slight disengagement of azote, as in the preceding experi
menu

t Saussure, Rech. Chimiques, p. 23. J De Saussiue, op. clt p. 28^

^ Humboldt, Flora fribergensis subteoanea, p. 126.

EVOLUTION AND GROWTH. 33

In the botanical gardens of Berlin, Potsdam, and Vienna, this pro-
perty of chlorine lias been made available to excellent ends; by its
means many old seeds, upon which a great variety of trials had
already been made in vain to make them sprout, were brought to
germinate. At Schoenbrunn, for instance, they had never succeeded
in raising the clusea rosea from the seed ; but M. de Humboldt suc-
ceeded at once, by forming a paste of peroxide of manganese, with
water and hydrochloric acid, in which he set the seeds of the clusea,
and then placed them in a temperature of from 62° to 75° cent.
(143° to 167° Fahr.) It seems very likely that this discovery of M.
de Humboldt may yet be taken advantage of in our every-day hus-
bandry. It is quite certain that the whole of the seed which we
commit to the ground, does not spring up, especially when we are
forced to have recourse to seed that is two or three years old ; the
loss is then frequently very considerable. But a solution of chlo-
rine, or a mixture which would evolve it, could not cost much, its
use would add little or nothing to the very trifling expense which is
generally incurred in pickling the wheat that is employed as seed.

§ III.— EVOLUTION AND GROWTH OF PLANTS.

As germination advances, we see those organs acquiring shape
and size which had appeared at first in the rudimentary state. The
roots extend in length, and increase in number, and their extremities
become covered with capillary fibres. The stem as it rises puts
forth branches in all directions, which become covered with leaves.
The cotyledons which had nourished the young plant during the
first days of its existence, wither and fall. Under the influence of
the solar light, the vegetation progresses amain, and the organic
matter, which finally constitutes the plant when it has attained matu-
rity, weighs vastly more than the same matter which existed pre-
viously in the seed. To quote a single instance from the family of
annual plants, a seed of field beet of the weight of ,06175 of a crrain,
may by the end of the autumn give birth to a root which with its
leaves shall weigh 162099grs. or upwards of 281bs.*

This immense and rapid assimilation can have no other source
than the soil, the air, and water. Without, at this time, pausing to
consider the useful influence which the soil, and the substances it
contains, exert upon the entire development of vegetables, we shall
here assume it as a general principle that water and the air of the
atmosphere alone, are capable of furnishing them with all the ele-
ments which enter into their composition, to wit — carbon, hydrogen,
oxygen, and azote. In other words, a seed may germinate, vegetate,
give birth to a plant which shall attain to complete maturity, by the

* Actual weight of a beet-root grown at Bechelbronn in 1841

34 EVOLUTION AND GllOWTH.

mere concurrence of water and the gases, or vapors which are dlf
fused through the atmosphere. This fact is demonstrated by the
following experiment : —

In a sufficient quantity of properly moistened roughly pounded
brick-dust, (which had been heated to redness in order to destroy
every trace of organic matter,) a few peas were sown on the 9th
of May, and the pot was transferred to a green-house in order to
protect the plants from the dust and impurities which always fiy
about in the open air.

On the 16th of July, the peas, which looked extremely well and
healthy, were in flower. Each seed had sent forth one stem, and
each stem, abundantly covered with leaves, bore a flower.

On the 15th of August the pods were ripe ; no more water was
given, and by the end of the month the plants were dry.

The length of the stalks varied from about three feet three inches
to five feet ; but they were extremely slender, and the leaves not
more than one third the ordinary size. The pods were 1.3 inch,
by from 0.3 to 0.4 of an inch broad. They generally contained two
peas each ; one contained a single pea only, hut this was almost
twice the size of any of the others.

In the course of three months, therefore, these peas came to per-
fect maturity — ripe seeds were gathered. The analysis of the crop
which I shall give by and by, in connection with another question
which we shall have to discuss, showed that the harvest obtained
under the conditions indicated, contained a considerably larger pro-
portion of each of the elements found than was originally contained
in the seed from which it sprung.

Carbon being the predominating principle in plants, it is our first
duty to inquire into the origin of so much of this element as is as-
similated in the course of vegetation.

Carbon is met with in very small quantity in the atmosphere in
the state of carbonic acid, and as this is one of the most soluble of
the gases which enter into the constitution of the air, water always
contains a considerable quantity of it in solution. Carbonic acid
may therefore be in relation with plants by the medium of the air
amidst which they live, and of the water which is no less indispen-
sable to their existence. We have now to ascertain in what way
thit gas evolves and sets free its carbon in favor of living vegetables.

Bonnet, having put some fresh leaves at the bottom of a jar con-
taining spring water, observed that when exposed to the rays of •
the sun, they gave off bubbles of air. He sought to ascertain
whether this disengagement of gas was due to the leaves, or to
the liquid in which they were contained. For the spring water, he
therefore substituted water deprived of its air by boiling, and he
found that the leaves exposed to the sun's light in this water, no
longer gave oflT any bubbles of air. Bonnet, therefore, concluded
that the gas which he collected in his first experiment, proceeded
from the water.

In 1771, Priestley discovered, that by emitting oxygen, plants had
the property of ameliorating atmospherical air, which had been

ASSIMILATION OF CARBON. 35

ritiated by the respiration of animals or by combustion.* This un-
expected discovery immediately arrested the attention of vegetable
physiologists. Nevertheless, Priestley was not yet master, so to
speak, of the capital experiment which he had announced to the
world of science. He had not seized all the circumstances which
assure its success. Occasionally the leaves which were the subjects
of experiment did not cause the disengagement of any gas ; occa-
sionally, too, the air disengaged, far from being oxygen — far from
ameliorating the atmosphere, was found to be carbonic acid gas. It
was Ingenhousz who made out the influence of the solar light upon
the phenomenon in question. He proved, by a vast number of dis-
tinct experiments, that leaves exhale oxygen when they are exposed
to the light of the sun. He perceived, moreover, that in the dark
they vitiate the air, rendering it improper for respiration and com-
bustion, f

But the origin of the oxygen disengaged from water by leaves
exposed to the light of the sun still remained to be discovered. It
was Sennebier who took this important step, by showing that it was
to the carbonic acid generally contained in water that leaves ex-
posed to the sun's light owed their faculty of evolving oxygen gas.
With this interesting fact, it was easy to render an account of all
the anomalies that had been successively announced : boiled water,
as Bonnet had observed, could not afford any air, and spring water
should usually give more than river water, as Ingenhousz had no-
ticed, for the simple reason that boiled water neither contains
carbonic, acid gas nor any other kind of air ; and that well water
generally contains a larger quantity of carbonic acid in solution than
river water.

In giving the grand features in the history of this brilliant discov-
ery of the eighteenth century, it may be said that Bonnet was the
first who observed the phenomenon of the gaseous evolution effected
by the leaves of vegetables :| that Priestley announced that the gas
disengaged was oxygen ; that Ingenhousz demonstrated the neces-
sity of the solar light to the production of the phenomenon : finally,
that it was Seimebier, to whom was reserved the honor of showing
that the oxygen gas obtained under these circumstances is the pro-
duct of the decomposition of carbonic acid.

It was, however, matter of supreme interest to study this decom-
position of carbonic acid in its last details. It was imperative, for
instance, to ascertain what relation existed between the volume of
the oxygen disengaged and the volume of the carbonic acid decom-
posed. This was admirably accomplished by M. Theodore de Saus-
sure in a long series of remarkable experiments, of which I shall here
endeavor briefly to state the main results.

The conclusion which follows naturally from the discovery of
Sennebier, was that carbonic acid exercised a favorable influence on
vegetation by supplying plants with the carbon which enters into

* Experiments and Observations, vol. ii.

t Experiments on Vegetables.

i Sur I'usage des feuilles dans tea plantes, p. 3!

86 EVOLUTION AND GROWTH.

their constitution. Percival ascertaini^d by direct experiment thi
accuracy of this inference by placintj plants in a current of atmo
spheric air, mixed with a pretty large proportion of this gas. By
means of a comparative experiment, he saw that a plant in such
circumstances made much greater progress than one subjected to a
current of ordinary air.* The researches of Saussure, in confirm-
ing in all respects those of his predecessors, added this farther very
important fact : that to act beneficially upon vegetables the carbonic
acid must be mixed with oxygen.

Under a bell glass of the capacity of 398 cubic inches, placed over
mercury, with a delicate film of water swimming on its surface, he
introduced three young peas, which displaced about y^y of the in-
cluded air. The atmosphere was composed of common air and
carbonic acid gas in different proportions.

The experiments were conducted successively in the sunshine and
in the shade. In the sun, the apparatus received daily the direct
action of the light during five or six hours : v^hen the light was loo
vivid it was somewhat lessened by shading. In the sunlight the
plants lived for several days in an atmosphere composed of equal
parts of air and carbonic acid ; they then faded. But they died
much more speedily in atmospheres which contained two-thirds, or
three-fourths, or a fortiori which consisted entirely of carbonic acid.
The young plants throve decidedly when the atmosphere contained
about —^th of carbonic acid ; their growth was evidently more vigor-
ous here than it was in simple air ; and at the conclusion of one ex-
periment which extended over ten days, almost the whole of the
carbonic acid was found replaced by, or changed into oxygen : the
peas had assimilated the carbon.

The smallest quantity of carbonic acid added to the air, was
found injurious to the plants when they were kept in the shade.
Young peas lived only six days under such circumstances, when
the atmosphere around them consisted of a quarter of its volume of
carbonic acid. They lived ten days when the proportion of this
gas did not exceed a twelfth ; but then they scarcely grew at all in
the mixture ; they certainly made much less progress than they
would have done in common air. Saussure concluded, from these
experiments, that carbonic acid was useful to growing vegetables
only when present along with oxygen, and that it ceases to be
so when the atmosphere contains more than ^^\h of its volume of
the gas.

To determine the proportion of oxygen set at liberty during the
decomposition of carbonic acid by plants, Saussure composed an
atmosphere nf common air and carbonic acid, the latter in the pro-
portion of 0.075; the mixture was confined under a bell-glass of
the capacity of 5.746 litres or 10.112 pints, standing over mercurj
as in the former experiments. Seven plants of the periwinkle were
introduced into the apparatus, their roots dipping into 15 cub. centim.
or 5.895 cub. in. of water — the water was limited as much as possible^

* Maacbcster Mcmcirs, vol. U

DECOMPOSITION OF CARBONIC ACID. 37

in order that the absorption of carbonic acid, which must, of course,
take place, might be thrown out of ihe reckoning. The experiment
was continued for six days, during which the plants received the
direct rays of the sun from five to eleven o'clock in the morning.
On the seventh day, the plants were withdrawn. They had pre-
served their freshness. All the corrections made for temperature
and pressure, the volume of the atmosphere in which they had lived
was not found changed by more than about 20 cubic centimetres,
7.8 c. in., a quantity which is within the possible errors of compu-
tation ; but the composition of the air had undergone very notable
changes : the carbonic acid had disappeared, and the eudiometer
proclaimed 0.24 of oxygen instead of the 0.21 which it contained
originally.*

RESULTS OF THE EXPERIMENTS.

c. inches. Azote. Oxygen. Garb. acid.

Pe/ore : Volume of atmosphere 2257 containing 1650 438-5 169-3

^fter: " " 2257 " 1704 553 0_^

0 +54 +14-8 —169-3

The periwinkles, consequently, had caused 169.3 cubic inches of
carbonic acid to disappear, and given off upwards of one hundred
and fourteen cubic inches of oxygen. Had the whole oxygen of the
carbonic acid been set at liberty, this volume would have been pre-
cisely equal to that of the acid gas decomposed ; but as no more
than one hundred and fourteen cubic inches of oxygen were obtained,
it must be inferred that the periwinkles had fixed 54.6 cubic inches
of this gas.

This is the conclusion, indeed, to which M. de Saussure came,
and subsequent experiments have confirmed its accuracy. The
following table contains a summary of five experiments that were
instituted :

C. inches. c. inches.

Exp.l. Carbonic acid disappearing. ••169.3 Oxygen disengaged.. • 114-7

Azote disengaged- •• • • 54-6
169-3

Exp. 2. " " " •••121.4 Oxygen disengaged. . . 88

Azote disengaged • • • • 33
121

Exp. 3. " " " ....58-5 Oxygen disengaged — 47.5

Azote disengaged 8-2

55.7

Exp. 4. " " " ...120-2 Oxygen disengaged — 96-6

Azote disengaged . . ... 7-8

104.4
Exp.5. u u u ....72.3 Oxygen disengaged.... 49.5

Azote disengaged 22.4

There is one remark which it is impossible to avoid making in sur-
veying this table ; it is to the effect, that the azote disengaged rep-

* Saussure, Kccherches chimiques, p 40
4

88 EVOLUTION AND GROWTH.

resents almost exactly the volume of oxygen which it would be
necessary to add, in order that the oxygen collected should represent
the whole of that which entered into the constitution of the carbonic
acid decomposed. It is probable that the excess of azote wliich ap-
peared in all these experiments was present in principal part in the
air contained and condensed within the interstices of the plants, or
held in solution in the water which bathed their roots. It would be
difficult to assign it any other origin ; such, for instance, as that
from changes in the azotized principles of the plants that were the
subject of experiment. In his first experiment, in fact, M. de Saus-
sure fixes the weight of the dry matter of the seven periwinkle
plants at 41.6 grains. Now, from numerous determinations of azote
which I have had occasion to make in regard to plants of very dif-
ferent ages and species, I think I can say that these periwinkles,
taken as dry, did not contain more than .385 of azote ; this, in ref-
erence to the weight assumed by M. de Saussure, would be 1.042
grs. or 20.8 cubic inches of azote; and the volume of azote disen-
gaged in this first experiment was 54.6 cubic inches. It is proper
further to observe, that the state of health which the plants pre-
sented on the conclusion of the experiment does not allow us to sup-
pose a total decomposition of the azotized matters which entered
into their constitution. These various considerations lead us to in-
fer that the excess of azote collected must have been displaced by
oxygen. We are, therefore, at liberty to presume, from the experi-
ments now referred to, that the volume of oxygen produced probably
represents the volume of carbonic acid decomposed.

The necessity of oxygen gas in the decompounding action which
plants exposed to the light exert so energetically upon carbonic acid,
leads us to study particularly the phenomena which oxygen exhibits
in connection with growing plants. When a number of freshly
gathered and healthy leaves are placed during the night under a bell-
glass of atmospheric air, they condense a portion of the oxygen ;
the volume of the air diminishes, and there is a quantity of free car-
bonic acid formed, generally less than the volume of oxygen which
l.is disappeared. If the leaves which have absorbed this oxygen
during their stay in the dark, be now exposed to the sun's light, they
restore it nearly in equal quantity, so that, all corrections made, the
atmosphere of the bell-glass returns to its original composition and
"volume.

Leaves in general have the same effect when they are placed alter-
nately in the dark and in the light; there is, however, a very obvious
difference in the intensity with which the phenomenon is produced,
according to the nature of the leaves. The quantity of carbonic
acid formed during the night is by so much the less, as the leaves
are more fleshy, thicker, and therefore more watery. The green
matter of fleshy leaved plants, of the cactus opuntia, to quote a par-
ticular instance, does not produce any sensible quantity of carbonic
acid in the dark : but these leaves condense oxygen, and exhale it
again like those which are less fleshy, when they are brought into
he sun, after having been kept for some time in the dark.

DECOMPOSITION OF CARBONIC ACID. 89

Saussure applied the names of inspiration and expiration of plants
to these alternate effects, led by the analogfv — somewhat remote, it
must be confessed — which the phenomenon presents with the respi-
ration of animals.

The inspiration of leaves has certain limits ; in prolonging their
stay in the dark, the absorption becomes less and less : it ceases
entirely when the leaves have condensed about their own volume of
oxygen gas. And let it not be supposed that the nocturnal inspira-
tion of leaves is the consequence of a merely mechanical action,
comparable, for example, to that exerted by porous substances gen-
erally upon gases. The proof that it is not so is supplied by the
fact that the same effects do not follow when leaves are immersed in
carbonic acid, hydrogen, or azote. In such circumstances there is
no appreciable diminution of the atmosphere that surrounds the
plant. The primary cause of the inspiration of oxygen by the
leaves of living plants is, therefore, obviously of a chemical nature.

With the facts which have just been announced before us, it seems
very probable that during the nocturnal inspiration, the carbonic acid
which appears is formed at the cost of carbon contained in the leaves,
and that this acid is retained either wholly or in part, in proportion
as the parenchyma of the leaf is more or less plentifully provided
with water. A plant that remains permanentl}; in a dark place,
exposed to the open air, loses carbon incessantly : the oxygen of the
atmosphere then exerts an action that only terminates with the life
of the plant : a result which is apparently in opposition to what takes
place in an atmosphere of limited extent. But it is so, because in
the free air the green parts of vegetables can never become entirely
saturated with carbonic acid, inasmuch as there is a ceaseless
interchange going on between this gas, and the mass of the surround-
ing atmosphere ; there is, then, incessant penetration of the gases,
as it is called. There is a kind of slow combustion of the carbon
of a plant which is abstracted from the reparative influence of the
light.

The oxygen of the air also acts, but much less energetically, upon
the organs of plants that do not possess a green color.

The roots buried in the ground are still subjected to the action of
this gas. It is indeed well known, that to do their office properly,
the soil must be soft and permeable, whence the repeated hoeings
and turnings of the soil, and the pains that are taken to give access
to the air into the ground in so many of the operations of agricul-
ture. The roots that penetrate to a great depth, such as those of
many trees, are no less dependent on the same thing ; the moisture
that reaches them from without brings them the oxygen in solution,
which they require for their development. It is long since Dr.
Stephen Hales showed that the interstices of vegetable earth still
contained air mingled with a very considerable proportion of oxygen.
The roots of vegetables, moreover, appear generally to be stronger
and more numerous as they are nearer the surface. In tropical
countries various plants have creeping roots which often acquira
dimensions little short of those of the trunk they feed.

40 EVOLUTIOiS AND GROWTH.

If a root detached from the stern be introduced under a bell-glasa
full of oxygen gas, the volume of the gas diminishes, carbonic acid
is formed, of which a portion only mingles with the gas of the
receiver, a certain quantity being retained hy the moisture of the
root. The volume of the gas thus retained is always less than that
of the root itself, however long the experiment may be cortinued.
In these circumstances, whether in the shade oi the sun, roots act
precisely as leaves do when kept in the dark. Roots still connected
with their stems, give somewhat different results.

When the experiment is made with the stem and the leaves in the
free air, while the roots are in a limited atmosphere of oxygen, they
then absorb several times their own volume of this gas. This is be-
cause the carbonic acid formed and absorbed is carried into the general
system of the plant, where it is elaborated by the leaves, if exposed to
the same light, or simply exhaled if the plant be kept in the dark.

The presence of oxygen in the air which has access to the roots
is not merely favorable ; it is absolutely indispensable to the exer-
cise of their functions. A plant, the stem and leaves of which are
in the air, soon dies if its roots are in contact with pure carbonic
acid, with hydrogen gas, or azote. The use of oxygen in the growth
of the subterraneous parts of plants, explains wherefore our annual
plants, which have largely developed roots, require a friaWe and
loose soil for their advantageous cultivation. This also enables us
to understand wherefore trees die, when their roots are submerged
in stagnant water, and wherefore the effect of submersion in general
is less injurious when the water is running, such water always con-
taining more air in solution than that which is .stagnant.

The woody parts, the fruit, and those organs of plants in general
which have not a green color, stand in the same relations to oxygen
as the roots : they merely change this gas into carbonic acid, which
is then transported to the plant at large, to suffer decomposition by
the green parts. In this action we observe a displacement, a kind
of translation of the carbon of the lower to the upper parts of
plants.

The decomposition of carbonic acid by plants admitted, we have
still to examine whether, in the phenomena of vegetation, the leaves
decompose the carbonic acid of the atmosphere directly, or the acid
gas, previously dissolved in the water, which moistens the ground,
be conducted by the way of absorption into the tissues of vegetables,
there to suffer decomposition. The quantity of carbonic acid con-
tained in the air is so small, and the growth of plants, on the con-
trary, is often so rapid, that it might reasonably be suspected that
the carbon which they require was introduced in great part by this
way of absorptitm. In that series of beautiful experiments in '.vlijcii
M. Saussure exposed plants to the influence of atmosphere.s more
or less charged with carbonic acid, the water in which their routs
were plunged was in contact with the mixed atmospheres. It was
therefore possible that the carbonic acid gas entered the vegeiablos
in the solution by the roots.

Sennebier made an experiment to show that leaves decompose

DECOMPOSITION OF CARBONIC ACID. 41

both the carbonic acid which is in contact with them externally, and
that wliich is dissolved in the water absorbed by their woody tissue.
He took' two branches of a peach-tree, and introduced them into a
couple of bell-glasses filled with water from the same spring.* The
lower snd of each branch dipped into a flask. One of the flasks
was filled with water charged with carbonic acid ; the other con-
tained air : the two bell-glasses were exposed to the light. Tiie
leaves of the branch whose extremity dipped into the solution of
carbonic acid, disengaged 99.4 cubic inchi t of oxygen gas undei
the bell which covered it : the leaves of ihu uiher branch only pro-
duced 52.2 cubic inches in the same lime.

This experiment does not perhaps afford all the sufficient evi-
dence of the decomposition of gaseous carbonic acid as it occurs in
the atmosphere, and mixed with a great mass of air. It appears,
however, that the leaves of plants have the power of decomposing
the gaseous carbonic acid which is mixed with the air, and that
even with surprising rapidity.

In the summer of 1840, 1 introduced into a balloon of the capacity
of about twelve quarts and a half, and furnished with three tubulures
or openings, the branch of a vine in full growth and bearing twenty
leaves. The woody part of the branch was fixed by means of a collar
of caoutchouc to the lower orifice of the balloon ; a fine tube, intend-
ed to establish a communication between the interior of the vessel
and the outer air, was introduced into the superior tubulure ; the
lateral opening communicated by means of a tube with an apparatus
which measured with great accuracy the quantity of carbonic acid
contained in the atmosphere.

In this experiment the air, before reaching the apparatus for
measuring the carbonic acid, passed through the great balloon con-
taining the vine branch. The rate with which the air passed through
the apparatus was regulated by the flow of an aspirator, and was at
the rate of about twelve quarts per hour.

The apparatus was exposed to the sun ; the experiment beginning
at eleven and finishing at three o'clock.

Ir one experiment it was found, all corrections made, that the at-
mospheric air, after having passed through the balloon, contained in
volume 0.0002 of carbonic acid gas ; the air of the adjoining court
contained at the same moment 0.00045 of carbonic acid.

In another experiment, the air, after having passed over the leaves,
contained but 0.0001 of carbonic acid ; the air of the court contsin-
ing 0.0004 of the same gas. In traversing the space in which the
vine branch, exposed to the light of the sun, was included, therefore
the air was deprived of three fourths of the whole quantity of car-
bonic acid which it contained.

In operating with the same apparatus during the night, opposite
results were obtained ; the air in traversing the balloon generally
acquired a quantity of carbonic acid, the double of that which the
atmosphere contained at the same moment.

• This was common water containing carbonic acid

4*

42 EVOLUTION AND GROWTH.

I conceive that it is by such a method as this, that the genera,
phenomena of vegetable respiration in plants still connected with the
soil ought to be studied.

The experiments which I have now related must satisfy every
one, that the leaves of living plants actually assimilate the carbon
which occurs in our atmosphere in the state of carbonic acid ; they
also explain the well-known fact that plants thrive better in air that
is in motion, and frequently renewed, than in a perfect calm.

From all we have seen up to this time, then, w^e feel authorized
to conclude that the greater proportion if not the whole of the carbon
which enters into the constitution of vegetables is derived from the
carbonic acid of the atmosphere. The experiments cited, show-
how the vital force acts at first on the oxygen of the air during ger-
mination, and next upon its carbonic acid during vegetation properly
so called. But in none of the experiments which have been quoted,
have we seen any thing which could lead us to suspect that the
azote of the atmosphere was absorbed in sensible quantity.

It is true, indeed, that at one time Priestley, and after him, Tn-
genhousz, thought that they had observed an absorption of azote
during the growth of plants in confined atmospheres. But the ex-
periments which have been since performed by Saussure have not
confirmed their conclusions upon this point. Saussure even thought
that he had perceived a slight exhalation of azote.

Nevertheless, the presence of azote in vegetables being incon-
testable, and the assimilation of this principle during their growth
being in some sort demonstrated by the fact that seeds are multiplied,
physiologists were led to imagine that the azote was derived from
ihe soil. And in nature, indeed, the growth of a plant does not take
place at the sole c«)st of water and the atmosphere. The roots
w^hich attach it to the earth there also find elements of nutrition.
In ordinary circumstances the growth of a plant takes place by the
simultaneous concurrence of the food which the roots encounter in
the ground, and that which the leaves abstract from the gaseous
elements of the air. As it is further acknowledged that the food
which is supplied by the soil is for the most part azotized, manures
have therefore been regarded as the principal and even as the ex-
clusive source of the azote which is met with in vegetables. The
observations of Hermbstadt, in showing that the grain which was
grown under the influence of the most highly azotized manures
contained the largest quantity of gluten, gave a certain force to this
view. Nevertheless, there are facts well established in agriculture
which induce us to think that in many cases vegetables find in the
atmosphere a part of the azote which is necessary to their con-
stitution.

The majority of crops exhaust the soil ; but there are still some
n'hich render it more fertile. We shall see, by and by, when treat-
ing of the rotation of crops, that if, after having cut a field of trefoil
once, the second crop be ploughed down, new fertility is communicated
to the ground, in spite of the considerable mass of forage which had
previously been taken from it. It appears therefore evident, that

ASSIMILATION OF AZOTE. > 43

in ploughing down this second crop we restore such a quantity of
organic or organizable matter, that, all things taken into account,
the ground actually receives more from the atmosphere than was
taken away from it in the first cutting.

The latest experiments of physiologists would seem to show that
plants merely take carbon from the air, and appropriate the elements
of water. But the ideas which are now generally adopted in regard to
the active principle of manures make it difficult to conceive that the
soil, by receiving nou-azotized matters only, could acquire the degree
of fertility whic'h is certainly obtained from The cultivation of •hose
crops that are called ameliorating^ a fertility which enables us to
follow these crops with others, rich in azotized principles.

There is therefore reason for believing that the ploughing in of
certain green crops, and fallowing, are not effectual merely by in-
troducing carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen, but azote also into the
soil. And it is absolutely necessary that this should be so, in order
that the fertility of those lands may be maintained which, from theii
position, can receive no manures from without. Let us take, for
example, a farm laid out for the growth of white crops, and the
rearing of cattle. Every year there is an exportation of grain, of
flesh, and of the produce of the dairy ; that is to say, there is inces-
sant exportation without any perceptible importation of azotized
matter. Nevertheless, the soil maintains its fertility ; its losses are
repaired by the principles which, in a good system of cultivation,
pass from the atmosphere into the earth ; and among the number of
these fertilizing principles it is beyond all question that azote must
be present, in order that so much of this element as has been ex-
ported may be replaced.

The best established facts in agriculture, therefore, concurred in
showing that azote is among the number of the elements that are
fixed by plants during their growth. Still, as this truth had not been
proved by the experiments of physiologists, the question had to be
considered as yet undecided. It was with the hope of clearing up
every thing in connection with it that I undertook the series of ex-
periments, the chief features of which I shall now detail.*

I had necessarily to follow a method of inquiry different from any
which had yet been taken ; I had no chance of arriving at more de-
finite results than those which had been already come to, had I cho-
sen the old line of investigation. I therefore called in the aid of
elementary analysis, with a view of romparing the composition of
the seed with the composition of the harvest produced from it, at the
sole cost of water and the air. By proceeding in this way I believed
that the problem was capable of solution : without flattering my-
self that I have completely resolved it, I conceive that something
has been done in the right direction. The subject is one of the most
delicate imaginable, and he who enters it requires indulgence.

For soil, I made use of burned clay or silicious sand freed from
all organic matter by proper calcination. In this soil, moistened

♦ Boussi- garolt, Annates de chimie et tie physique, f Ixvii. p. 5, 2* 86rie, aan6e 1838

44 EVOLUTION AND GKOWTH.

with distilled water, were sown the seeds whose weig^ht was known
By a number of preliminary trials, the quantity of moisture which
seed of t!te same kind, of the same growth, and taken at the same
moment, lost hy drying, commenced in the stove and finished in an
oil-hath, ?-t 110" C. (230' Fahr.) was ascertained. The porcelain
vessels, in which the experiment was conducted, were placed in a
glass houpe at the end of a large garden. During the whole term,
the windows were kept closed ; but the sun shone on the house all
day. To remove the produce, the vessels were dried by a gentle
heat. The roots of the plants then came out readily ; to free them
completely from any adhering sand, they were moved about in a little
distilled water, but never rubbed or bruised, for fear of loss ; it seem-
ed even preferable to leave a little sand adhering. The harvest was
then drieii in the stove, so that it might be powdered ; and the com-
plete desiccation was effected in the oil-bath in vacuo.

In ascertaining previously by muneration the weight cf the ashes
contained in the seed, that of the produce, freed from all saline and
earthy matter, became exactly known.

Elementary analysis then proclaimed the composition of the pro-
duce ; and it was only necessary now to compare it with the com-
position of the seed, to have ascertained the proportion and the
nature of the elements which had been assimilated during the vege-
tation.

FIRST EXPERIMENT.

CULTURE OF RED CLOVER DURING THREE MONTHS.

In the beginning of August a quantity of seed was sown, which,
being dry and free from ashes, would have weighed 1.586 gramme,
or 24.48 grs. troy. The crop presented a very good appearance ;
the clover was from three to three and a half inches in height. The
largest leaves could be included in a circle of about two inches in
diameter. The length of the roots varied between two and four
inches. Dried and bruised, the color of the produce was a deep
green.

The plant gathered quite dry, and supposed free from ash, weighed
4.106 grammes, or 63.38 grs. troy ; analysis showed it to consist of—

In the Seed. In the Produce

Carbon. 50.8 50.7

Hydrogen 6.0 6.6

Azote 7.2 3.8

Oxygen .36.0 _38.9

100.0 100.0

RESULTS.

Carbon. Hvi1ro?cn. Oxr^en. Azote.

5M.48 grs. ircy containing after the analysis 12.44 1.466 8.81"> 1.759
63.38 " " " .... 32.141 4.183 24.ir>5 2.408

38.90 = grs'. during cultivation .... +19.70 +2.717 +15.840 +0.049

Thus, in the course of three months, the elementary matter of the
4eed had nearly doubled, and the azote of the plants gathered shows

ASSIMILATION OF ELEMENTS. 4S

an excess of 0.042 gramme, or 0.649 grs. troy, above the azote of the
seed sown.

SECOND EXPERIMENT.

GROWTH OF PEAS.

Five peas, very nearly of the same weight, and together weighing
1.211 gramme, or 18.69 grs. troy, were planted on the 9th of May, in
a soil of recently burned clay in rough powder. On the 16th of July,
the plants began to bloom, each pea having furnished a stem bearing
a single flower.

On the 15th of August the pods were quite ripe ; the stems were
then from 39 to 40 inches in height. The leaves were smaller than
those of the same peas grown in manured earth. The length of the
pods was about 1.27 inch, by a breadth of about 0.43 inch. Four
of these pods each contained two seeds ; the fifth had only one, but
it was much longer than any of the others.

The nine peas gathered and dried in the sun, weighed 1.674 gram.,
or 25.84 grs. ; after desiccation in vacuo, at 110° C, (230'" F.,) they
weighed 1.507 gram., or 23.26 grs. troy ; on combustion they yielded
0.9 per cent, of residue.

The roots, the stems, the pods, and the leaves, dried at 230° F.,
weighed 3.314 gram., or 51.16 grs. troy; and by combu.*tion gave
10 3 per cent, of ashes.

As the result of several experiments, it was ascertained that peas,
exactly in the condition of those which had been planted, contained
91.4 per cent, of dry matter, and left by incineration 3.14 per cent.
t^ residue. The five peas planted, taken as dry and free from ashes,
V >uld therefore have weighed 1.072 gram., or 16.54 grs. troy.

A-naiysis showed in the

Pea* town. Peat collected. Straw and rootfc

Carbon 48.0 54.9 52.8

Hydrogen 6.4 6.8 6.2

Azote 4.3 3.6 1.6

Oxygen 41.3 34.7 39.4

100.0 100.0 100.0

RESULTS.

Carbon. Hydrog^en. Oxygen. Axote.

Seeds 16..549, containing 7.950 1.065 6.523 0.710

Crop 68.560, " * 3G.680 4.384 25.930 1.559

52.02 grs. by cultivation +28.73 +3.319 +19.11 +0.849

From this experiment it appears that 16.549 grs. of seed found in
the air, and obtained from the water with which they had b*^en sup-
plied during their growth, 52.02 grs of elementary matter io the
course of riinety-nine days' growth, during the warmest months of
the year ; and that the quantity of azote originally contained in th§
»eed was more than doubled in the produce arrived at inatprity.

* Peas 45.89

Straw and shells 22.66

"^otal weight of the crop

46 EVOLUTION AND GROWTH.

THIRD EXPERIMENT.

GROWTH OF WHEAT.

Forty-six wheat corns were sown in burnt sand at the beginning
of the month of August. At the end of September, the stalks were
from fourteen to fifteen inches in height. The greater number of
the lower leaves were yellow. The roots were of very considerable
length, and formed a kind of mat, which made it difficult to wash
and free them from sand.

RESULTS OF THE ANALYSIS.

Seeds. Crop.

Carbon 46.6 48.2

Hydrogen 5.8 5.8

Azote 3.45 2.0

Oxygen 44.15 44.0

100.00 100.0

RESULTS.

Grs. Carbon. Hydfo«^en. Oxyg-en. Aiofo

The seed dried 25.38 containing 11.84 1.46 11.19 0.87

The seed dried 46.65 " 22.47 2.67 20.57 0.92

Gainbycultnre 21.27 +10.63 +1.21 +9.38 +0.05

In the course of three months' growth, therefore, the weight of
the seed had, so to speak, doubled ; but the grain azote was scarcely
appreciable. Nevertheless, this experiment upon the wheat had
been conducted under precisely the same circumstances as that
made upon the clover. The two crops grew in the same apparatus ;
they were watered with the same water, which they received very
nearly in the same quantity ; the seed was even sown in vessels
having exactly the same extent of surface, in order that either crop
might be exposed to the same chances of error arising from the ac-
cidental presence of dust in the atmosphere.

The plants produced under the circumstances indicated T-ere far
from presenting the vigor which they would have shown had they
been grown in the open field. After three months of growth, the
clover was much less forward than some which had been sown, for
comparison, in a manured and gypsumed soil at the same time. The
whea* showed the same weakness ; and after the second month, I
observed that each new leaf which was developed upward in the
stem, caused one of those at the lower part to droop and grow yel-
low. The peas, although they reached maturity, had much smaller
leaves, and both fewer and smaller seeds than similar plants grown
at large.

It is well known that it is in great part due to the fertility of the
soil in which seeds are grown that the health and vigor of young
plants must be ascribed. A celebrated agriculturist, Schwartz, as-
certained, for example, that young col^worts or cabbage plants ex-
hausted in a remarkable manner the soil in which they were raised
fpjr transplantation. The good efiects of the first nourishment ob-

ASSIMILATION OF ELEMENTS. 47

tained in a well-manured soil must extend subsequently to every
part of the vegetable ; and it is easily understood that a plant which
has languished in its earliest periods of existence can never acquire
a good constitution afterwards.

It therefore becamr interesting to carry out experiments of the
nature of those already related, in connection with plants vigorously
organized, and which had been raised in the first instance in a fer-
tile soil.

FOURTH EXPERIMENT.

GROWTH OF CLOVER.

In a field of clover sown in the spring of the preceding year,
several plants as like one another as possible were chosen. The
earth adhering to the roots was removed by careful washing under
a small stream of water ; the plants were then made dry between
leaves of blotting paper, and exposed for a few hours in the air.
Three of these plants preserved for analysis weighed when green
5.750 grammes, or 104.20 grs. troy.

Three other plants, weighing 6.820 gram, or 105.28 grs. troy,
were set in sand recently calcined and moistened with distilled
water. The transplanting took place on the 28th of May, and the
plants were forthwith protected from dust.

For some days they seemed to languish, but by and by they be-
came remarkably vigorous. In a month the clover had grown to
twice its original height, and the leaves were of the most beautiful
green : the plants had in all respects as fine an appearance as the
clover of the same age which had been left growing in the field.
The flowers showed themselves upon the 8th of July, and by the
15th the flowering was complete : an end was put to the experiment
on the 1st of August.

RESULTS OF THE ANALYSIS.
BEFORE CULTURE. AFTER CULTURE.

Carbon 43.42 53.00

Hydrogen 5.40 6.51

Azote 3.75 2.45

Oxygen ..47.43 38.14

100.00 100.00

RESULTS.

Tlie trefoil transplanted, weighed when dry and freed from ashes 13.64

After sixty-tiiree days' culture on iiarren soil, it weighed 34.96

Gained during culture 21.32

Carbon. Hydrogen. Oxyg-en. Azote

The plant contained : before culture 5.92 0.74 6.4G O.r>0

afterculture 1?.52 2.23 13.32 0.SG4

Difference.. + 12.60 +1.49 +6.86 +0.35

Thus in two months' growth at the cost of the air and water, the
clover had, so to say, tripled its quantity of organic matter; and the
weight of azote contained in it was very nearly doubled.

48 EVOLUTION AND GKOWTH. -

FIFTH EXPERIMENT.

VEGETATION OF OATS.

I always failed in my attempts to transfer wheat plants from the
ordinary soil in which the grain had been sown to barren sand ; they
never survived the transplantation. It was not different with oat
plants ; they also always died. It was at first supposed that the
delicate radicles of these plants had been injured in the process of
taking them up and freeing their roots from adhering vegetable soil ;
but I soon saw that this could not have been the case, for the same
plants, treated precisely in the same manner, took very promptly
when transplanted to garden mould, and even when they were put
with their roots in pure water. It was with water, therefore, that
the following experiment was conducted.

June 20th, several oat plants were taken up from a field, and their
roots were washed and cleansed.

Three plants preserved for analysis, weighed 159.011 grs.

Four plants, the subjects of experiment, weighed 221.844 grs.
troy. They were protected from dust, their roots dipping into a
vessel containing distilled water, which was regularly kept up to
the same level. By the middle of July the stalks of these plants
had grown to twice their former length ; and at this time it would
have been difficult to have distinguished them from those growing
in the open field. By the end of July the clusters had formed ; and
on the 10th of August the grain seemed ripe. It was, therefore,
taken np and dried in the stove, and reduced to powder to complete
the desiccation at 110° cent. (230° Fahr.)

ANALYSIS OF THE CROP.

Transplanted. Gathtred from the Held.

Carbon 53.0 48.0

Hydrogen 6.8 6.2

Oxygen 36.4 44.0

Azote 3.8 1.7

100.0 100.0

SUMMARY.

Carbon. Ujrdre^a. Oxjrgta. Axott.
The oats when transplanted

contained 12.967 1.636 8.770 0.910

AAer 48 days of growth in dis-
tilled water they contained • • 23.157 2.979 21.180 0.818

+10.190 +1.343 +12.410 —0.099

The analysis, therefore, indicates a trifling loss of azote.

In recapitulating the conclusions obtained from these experiments,
we find :

First. That trefoil and peas grown in a soil absolutely without
manure, acquired a very appreciable quantity of azote, in addition to
a large quantity of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen.

ASSIMILATION OF ELEMENTS. 49

Second. That wheat and oats grown in the same circumstances,
took carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen from the air and water around
them ; but that analysis showed no increase of azote in these plants
after their maturity.

The mode of experimenting followed had it in view simply to
determine the assimilation of azote by certain vegetables, without
entering into the question of the means by which this was effected ;
and, indeed, in reference to the point, I can only offer conjectures.

Azote may enter the living frame of plants directly, or, as M.
Piobert has maintained, in the state of solution in the water, always
aerated, which is taken up by their roots.* The observations of
vegetable physiologists are nj)t generaly favorable to this view. It
is farther possible that the element in question may be derived from
ammoniacal vxpors, which, according to some philosophers, exist in
infinitely small proportion in our atmosphere. These vapors, dis-
solved by rains and dews, would readily make their way into plants,
and might there undergo elaboration.

It is long since Saussure alluded to the probable influence of am-
moniacal vapors upon vegetation. Prof. Liebig has more recently
maintained the same opinion, and has taken particular pains to prove
that rain-water always contains a very minute quantity of carbonate
of ammonia.

To this cause, which must have the effect of infusing an azotized
principle into the tissues of plants, must be added another, which is
perhaps not thp least energetic. It is this, that under certain elec-
trical influences, of which M. Becquerel has made a particular study,
hydrogen in the nascent state, in contact with azote, may actually
give rise to ammonia. By means of this view, it becomes easy to
conceive how non-azotized organic substances, under the mere in-
fluence of the putrid fermentation, might give origin to ammoniacal
salts, which would then exercise a fertilizing action on the soil.

During the growth of plants, a portion of the water absorbed by
the roots is evidently assimilated ; and this circumstance enables us
to conceive the formation of many of the immediate principles of
vegetables, the chemical composition of which is precisely repre-
sented by carbon and the elements of water ; such as starch, sugar,
etc. We can also understand the presence of those principles,
which have further a certain proportion of oxygen in excess, inas-
much as we have ascertained that during the decomposition of car-
bonic acid by the green parts of vegetables, the whole of the oxygen
is not eliminated. But there are substances elaborated by plants
which, with reference to oxygen, contain a quantity of hydrogen
much greater than is requisite to form water ; such are the resins
and other carburets of hydrogen in the cone-bearing trees, and the
fat oils in the oleaginous seeds. This excess of hydrogen led severai
physiologists to conclude that water was decomposed in the course
of vegetation, — that there was fixation of its hydrogen and disen-
gagement of its oxygen gas.

• Piobert, M6m. de rAcad6mle de Metz, 1837, - - — 'i

■5 ^M^

69 EVOLTTTION AND GROWTH.

Nevertheless, the presence of hydrogen in excess in certain im-
mediate vegetable principles is no decisive proof of the disjunction
of the elements of water ; and if no definitive conclusion lias been
come to on the point, up to the present moment, it is because these
hydrogenized principles are produced in plants which live under the
influence of certain organic substances that are met with in the soil,
where they act as manures, their composition being always complex,
and often highly hydrogenized.

The experiments of M. de Saussure do not lead us to suspect
the decomposition of water ; inasmuch as by keeping plants for a
whole month, under receivers filled with atmospheric air freed from
carbonic acid, no apparent evolution of oxygen was observed.
Operating in the same manner with air containing a certain propor-
tion of carbonic acid, the quantity of oxygen disengaged was always
less than that which entered into the constitution of the acid de-
composed.

This is the place to observe, and in connection with these very
experiments of M. de Saussure, how little satisfactory this partial
decomposition of carbonic acid, which corresponds to no definite
proportion, appears. We already feel the difficulty of conceiving
that this acid should be completely reduced by a living plant ; that
is to say, that the whole of its carbon should become assimilated.
The entire separation of a body so greedy of oxygen as carbon from
its most highly oxygenated compound, must needs excite the greatest
astonishment.

The readiest conception suggested by the facts is this ; that by
the agency of the solar light, and under the influence of the green
matter, carbonic acid is turned into carbonic oxide by losing a por-
tion of its oxygen. This modification appears more in conformity
with the ascertained principles of chemical and physiological
science. Still it must be allowed, that facts agree as little with
this mode of viewing the question as with that which assumes the
entire decomposition of the carbonic acid. On the first assumption,
the proportion of oxygen set at liberty is too small ; in the second,
it is too great.

The negative results of M. de Saussure, in relation to the separa-
tion of the elements of water during vegetation, were obtained in
the absence of carbonic acid, whilst the experiments which estab-
lished the decomposition of this latter body, were necessarily made
under the influence of moisture. It is possible, therefore, that the
water and the carbonic acid underwent simultaneous decomposition ;
and it becomes interesting, taking this view, to inquire whether the
hypothesis according to which carbonic acid undergoes transforma-
tion into carbonic oxide does not acquire a certain degree of proba-
bility by calling in the effect of the decomposition of water in the
phenomena observed.

One volume of the gaseous oxide of carbon takes half a volume
of oxygen gas to form one volume of carbonic acid. Reciprocally,
©ne volume of carbonic acid gas, in undergoing transformation inta

ASSIMILATION OF ELEMENTS. 51

the oxide of carbon, will give one volume of the oxide, -f | a volume
of oxygen gas.

Thus, in the hypothesis which we now discuss, for each volume
of carbonic acid that is modified by the vegetation, there will he half
a volume of oxygen gas disengaged. Any oxygen more th.-».n tbi<i
half volume which appears, must he regarded as proceeding froi'*
the decomposition of water, the hydrogen of which will have beev
assimilated by the plant at the same time as the carbonic oxido de-
rived from the carbonic acid ; and this view would perhaps enabh
us to conceive how the volume of oxygen which is disengaged du-
ring the process of vegetation, may exceed the volume which ought
to be produced, if the carbonic acid decomposed really passed into
the state of carbonic oxide.

We may perchance obtain a more convincing proof of the separa-
tion of the elements of water, in analyzing plants grown in a soil
absolutely without any organic matter capable of aflfording them hy-
drogenous elements.

In fact, if a plant, which is grown under such circumstances, con-
tains hydrogen in any larger proportion than that which were neces-
sary to transform its oxygen into water, we might conclude, with
some certainty, that the elements of water had been separated ; the
objection made on the score of the presence of manure would then
be got rid of entirely. The analyses which have already been laid
before the reader supply data for this investigation ; it has only to
be ascertained whether, in the elements gained in the course of
vegetation, the hydrogen is in excess with reference to the oxygen
or not. The following table presents a summary view of our ex-
periments :

Oxyfren Hydrogfen Hydrogen Hydrogen

assimilated. as«imilaied. forming water, in excess.

Experiment 1. Trefoil 18.926 2.717 2.362 0.355

Experiment 2. Peas 19.096 3.319 2.392 0.926

Experiments. Wheat 9.386 1.204 1.173 0.030

Experiment 4. Transplanted Trefoil . . 6.854 1.495 0.849 0.646

Experiment 5. Oats 12.410 1.343 1.343

In the four first experiments, the hydrogen gained evidently ex-
ceeds very sensibly the quantity required by the oxygen to form
water. The experiment with the oats, indeed, presents an excep-
tion ; but it must be remembered that here a loss of azote was ascer-
tained. These analyses, therefore, appear to indicate an assimilation
of hydrogen in the course of vegetation, in consequence of a decom-
position of water analogous to that of carbonic acid, and very proba-
bly effected by the same means.

52 INORGANIC CONSTITUENTS.

§ III.— OF THE INORGANIC MATTERS CONTAINED IN
PLANTS— THEIR ORIGIN— OF THE CHEMICAL
NATURE OF SAP.

When a plant is burned, there always remains a residue, which is
commonly designated as the ash. Every part of a plant gives a
residue of the same essential kind ; but it varies in its quantity
and somewhat also in its composition. Equal weights of dry
herbaceous plants leave more ashes than woody plants.* In a
tree, the trunk gives more ash than the branches, and these give
less than the leaves. f The residue left by the combustion is com-
monly composed of salts — alkaline chlorides, with bases of potash
and soda, earthy and metallic phosphates, caustic or carbonated lime
and magnesia, silica, and oxides of iron and of manganese. Seve-
ral other substances are also met with there, but in quantities so
small that they may be neglected.

The principles usually met with in the ashes of vegetables are
always found in the soil which exercises the greatest influence upon
the nature and quantity of the saline and earthy matters which re-
main after the combustion of plants. Those which grow in a soil
derived from silicious rocks, yield ashes that are richer in silica than
those that are produced in a calcareous soil. But, according to M.
de Saussure, the quality of the manure has a still more decided in-
fluence on the nature of the ash than the geological constitution of
the soil ; according to this observer, plants of the same species,
which have grown upon a calcareous sand, and upon a granitic sand,
contain the same kind of ashes, if they have been manured with the
same dung ; and different species, although growing in the same
earth, do not contain the saline and earthy constituents of their
ashes in the same proportions.!

♦ Kirwan, Memoirs of the Royal Irish Academy, voL T.
t Pertuis, Annales de Chiraie, l^e s6rie, t. xix.
i Saussure, Sechercbes chimiques, p. 283.

ASHSS.

58

QUANTITY or ASHES CONTAINED IN THE DIFFERENT PARTS OF
VEGETABLES, ACCORDING TO M. DE SAUSSURE.*

NAMK OK THB PLANT.

Times when taken
for analysis.

Ashes.

Oak leaves

10 May

0,053

Ditto do. . . .

27 September

0,055

1 Oak branches barked

10 May

0,004

Bark of tliese branches .

.

0,060

Oak wood distinct from alburnum .

0,002

Alburnum from same wood .

0,004

Bark of same tree ....

.

0,000

Liber of the preceding bark .

...

0,073

Leaves of poplar ....

May

0,066

Ditto ditto ....

September

0,093

Trunk of ditto ....

...

0,008

Bark of trunk of ditto .

,

0,072

Spanish mulberry-tree wood . •

,

0,007

Alburnum of mulberry .

,

0,013

Bark of ditto

,

0,089

Liber of ditto ....

,

0,088

Chestnut-tree leaves . . ,

10 May

0,072

Ditto ditto ....

23 July

0,084

Flowers of chestnut-tree

10 May

0,071

Ripe chestnuts ....

5 October

0,034

Peas flowering ....

. ,

0,095

Peas in pod

.

0,081

Beans in flower ....

0,122

Ditto in pod ...

0,066

Bean straw

0,115

Beans

0,033

Jerusalem artichoke in flower

0,137

Ditto in seed . .

0,093

Wheat straw . ...

0,043

Wheat ...

0,013

Bran

0,052

Indian corn straw ....

0,084

Indian corn . .

0,010

Barlev straw . . . .

0,042

Barley

0,018

Oats

0,031

Pine-tree leaves (Jura) .

20 June

0,029

Ditto ditto (Brocken) .

20 June

0,029

Pine-tree branches without leaves .

20 June

0,015

All these estimates of ashes refer to plants dried during sevei tl
weeks in a stove heated to 25° cent. {IT Fahr.) By such drying,
however, vegetable substances are very far from losing the whole

Saussure, Recherches chimiquos, p. 233,
5*

54

INORGANIC CONSTITUENTS.

of the water which they contain. The quantities of ashes, there-
fore, mentioned by M. de Saussure, if they be referred to vegetables
absolutely dry, are somewhat too small.

I present a few estimates of ashes from analyses which I have had
occasion to make of some of those plants which are the usual sub-
jects of cultivation with us. The drying here was always performed
with care in an oil-bath heated to 110" cent. (230° Fahr.)*

Substance dried at S30" Fahr. Ashec.

Wheat Straw 0,070

Wheat 0.024

Rye straw 0,036

Rye 0,023

Oat straw 0.051

Oats 0.040

Potatoes 0,040

Beet-root 0,063

Substance dried at 830' Fahr. Ashes.

Turnip 0,076

Jerusalem artichoke 0,060

Stems of ditto 0,028

White peas 0,031

Pea straw 0,113

Clover hay 0,077

^Meadow hay 0,090

' After grass (meadow) 0,100

We owe to M. Berthierf the following results of the incineration
of different kinds of wood burned in the state in which they are gen-
erally used.

Kinu of wood. Ashes.

Fir 0,0083

Birch 0,0100

False ebony 0,0125

Hazel 0.0157

White mulberry. 0.0160

Saint Lucia wood 0,0160

Elder 0.0164

Judea-trec 0,0170

Oak (branches) 0.0250

Oak bsirk 0,0600

Lime-tree 0,0500

Kind of wood. Ashes.

Poplar bark 0,0020

Box wood 0,0036

Oak barked, ash, pine, birch, &c. 0.0040

Thorn 0,0050

Aspintree 0,0060

Oakbark 0,0120

Black wood 0,0149

Mahogany 0,0160

Ebony O.O'fiO

Oak (fagot) 0.0220

Fearns 0,0450

We possess several analyses of ashes from different parts of the
same plants in the researches of MM. de Saussure and Berthier.
As the knowledge of these saline substances may prove highly im-
portant m our agricultural applications, and as it further completes,
in some sort the facts that bear ujwn the chemical phenomena of
vegetation, 1 here add a table of the results obtained by the skilful
analys's just quoted :

♦ Ann. de Chimie, t. i. page 234. 3e. s6rie.
T Traits des Essais, t i, page 259

ASHES.

55

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Menyanthes trifoliata in flower

(buckbean)
The same cleared of seed
Beans ....
Wheat straw
Selected wheat .
Wheat bran
Indian corn straw
Indian corn
Barley straw .
Barley in the husk : ■ , ■

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r^a «-«<«« o t* 00 o o j-j

66

INORGANIC CONSTITUENTS.

In his researches upon the same subject, M. Berthier determineJ
the relation of the insoluble to the soluble matters in each species
of ash examined ; and the two kinds of salts were then analyzed
separately.

TS a

s s

rruginous.
s, calcareous

careous.

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Id.

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Oak

Oak bark

Lime tree

Wood of St. Lucia

Elder .

Judea-tree

Hazel

Chinese mulberry

White mulberry

Oitto ditto .

Orange or lance-w*

White oak

Birch

False ebony .

Fir . / .

Wheat straw .

Potato stems .

ASHES.

57

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58

INORGANIC CONSTITUENTS.

COMPOSITION OF THE ASHES OF SEVERAL PLANTS ANALYZED
BY M. BERTHIER.

Fern.

Wheal
straw.

Horse-tail
grass.

Heath.

Tansy.

Observations.

Sulphate of potash- . •
Chloride of potassium
Carbonate of potash. •

Silicate of potash

Silica^

0,007

0,730
0,248

0,010
0,005

0,004
0,032

0,130
0,715
0,096

0,083

0,120
0,114

0,505
0,062
0.144
0,022
0,030

0,050
0,012
0,068

0,375
0,280

0,130
0,010
0,014
0,061

0,033
0,090
0,167

0,i65
0,434

o.]'oo

0,002
0.007
0.002

The wheat
straw was from
a strong calca-
reous 80ll.

The tansy wa«
from a sandy gar-
den soil.

Carbonate of lime

Sulphate of lime

Phosphate of lime . . .

Oxide of iron

1 Oxide of manganese..

A remark made by Berthier, and arising out of the preceding
analyses, is the absence of alumina in the constituent principles of
the ashes examined. The results previously obtained by M. de
Saussure fully confirm this remark ; and if in some cases traces of
alumina were detected, the circumstance was attributed to the clay
which might accidentally have adhered to the plants. According to
M. Berthier the absence of alumina is probably owing to its insolu-
bility in water, and its weak affinity for the organic acids. The solu-
ble salts of alumina with mineral acids are, it is well known, unfa-
vorable to vegetation, and in an arable soil they could not exist along
with calcareous or alkaline carbonates : they would be immediately
decomposed.

However, alumina appears actually to have been observed in the
state of salt in the juices of certain plants : li/copodium arniplanatum^
an infusion of which is employed as a mordant in dyeing, contains
tartrate of alumina ;* the same salt has been detected in verjuice ; and
as we shall see presently, Vauquelin found acetate of alumina in the
sap of the birch-tree. 1 may add, that in a considerable numb({r of
analyses of ashes, produced from plants and seeds of my own grow-
ing, I always obtained traces of alumina : but I would not venture
to affirm that the earth here was not accidental.

Silica is met with in only very small quantity in the ashes of wood.
It is found, on the contrary, in considerable proportion in the ashes
of several annual and biennial plants, and more especially in those
of the cereals. Sir Humphrey Davy found silica in the epidermis
of the Indian rush.

If we compare the ashes of the same species of wood grown in
soils of different kinds, we see, says M. Berthier, that they may dif-
fer very perceptibly ; which seems to establish the fact that the soil
exercises a certain degree of influence on their constitution. Thus
oak-wood from Roque des Arcs, grown in a decidedly calcareous
soil, yielded ashes almost entirely ODnsisting of carbonate of lime,

Berzelios, TraiU de Chimin, t. r. p. 130, French translation.

ABSORPTION OF SALTS. 59

while those left by an oak from the department of la Somme, contain-
ed much magnesia and phosphate of lime,* Tlie ashes from a white
mulberry of Nemours contained mOre than 0.10 of phosphoric acid,
while scarcely any traces of it were ftmnd in those of a similar mul-
berry from the calcareous soil of Provence. The most remarkable
inference deducible from the analyses of M. Berlhier, is that which
is connected with the composition of the ashes yielded by trees
growing in the same soil. It is observed that, for analogous species,
the ashes also bear the closest analogy ; and on the contrary, it is
found that trees of very distinct genera yield ashes of quite a dif-
ferent quality ; results which lead to this important conclusion, that
plants possess the faculty of selecting in the soil the substances
which are best suited to their special organizations. This is a point
which we shall have an opportunity of discussing, when we come
to treat of rotations of crops.

The substances composing the ashes of vegetables, are not all in
the state in which they existed in the vegetable tissue. In plants
there constantly exist organic acids, which, in general, are combined
with mineral bases. During the incineration of plants these organic
acids are destroyed, and the result of their destruction is an alkaline
carbonate, if the pre-existing acid was united with soda or potash ;
a calcareous vegetable salt, again, yields carbonate of lime ; and a
magnesian salt gives magnesia, from the well-known inability of this
earth to retain carbonic acid at a high temperature. Thus, the
greater part of the carbonates which enter into the composition of
vegetable ashes, are formed by the mere fact of incineration. The
Baits which resist the action of a strong heat, as the phosphates, sul-
phates, and chlorides, are the only ones which in the ashes retain
the state in which they existed in the living plant.

Water being the vehicle which must convey the mineral salts from
the soil into the vegetable, we do not always perceive how they can
penetrate. To explain the presence in plants of a salt so insoluble
as the neutral phosphate of lime, M. de Saussure admits, from satis-
factory experiments, that vegetable juices contain the double phos-
phate of potash and lime, and of potash and magnesia.f Besides,
several bodies considered in chemistry as insoluble, are not so abso-
lutely. Silica seems to possess a certain degree of solubility, — at
least, M. Payen has met with it in considerable quantity in the wa-
ter of the Artesian well of Crenelle, and in the water of the Seine.
We know, moreover, that several insoluble earthy salts are dissolv-
ed in virtue of the carbonic acid always contained in the waters
with which the soil is soaked. Lastly, it is not improbable that
certain insoluble salts have their origin in the plant itself, engender-
ed there by the successive arrival and reciprocal action of soluble
Baits.

It now remains for us to examine by what means saline substances
are introduced into the tissues of vegetables, and within what limits

* These ashes were from the carbon of the oak ; the insoluble part gave 0.14 ol
phosphate of lime, and 0.08 of magnesia.
t Saussiue, Recherches chimiques, &c. p. 321.

60 INORGANIC CONSTITUENTS.

the water, which is essential to living plants, may be charged with
them ; for it is within what may be called common experience, that
saline solutions of certain degrees of concentration, oftentimes act
injuriously on vegetation.

The spongioles which terminate roots have too close a tissue to
allow any thing but fluids to pass through them. All attempts to
make them absorb solid bodies in a stale of minute division, and held
in suspension in water, have been ineffectual. In these attempts the
spongioles have acted precisely like perfect filters, with which those
that we employ in our laboratories cannot be compared. Further,
the weakest solutions are not entirely absorbed by certain roots ; a
kind of separation takes place ; a portion of the dissolved salt ap-
pears to abandon the water at the moment of its penetrating the
spongiole. This follows from the researches of M. de Saussure,
instituted with a view to ascertain, 1st. If plants absorb substances
dissolved in water in the same proportion as they absorb water ;*
2dl.y. If plants make a selection among diflferent substances held in
solution in the same liquid. t

In solutions severally containing eight ten-thousandths (0.0008)
of each of the following substances — chloride of potassium, chloride
of sodium, nitrate of lime, sulphate of soda, hydrochlorate of ammo-
nia, acetate of lime, sulphate of copper, sugar-candy, gum arabic,
and extract of humus,J — several entire plants with their roots, of
the polygonum persicaria^ (lakeweed or redshanks,) which had lived
for some time in distilled water, until their roots had commenced
growing, were immersed.

The plants lived in the shade during five weeks, throwing out roots
in one of the solutions mentioned. They languished, without show-
ing any appearance of growth in the solution of hydrochlorate of
ammonia, and could only be kept alive in the sugared water, which
soon became changed, by renewing it frequently. They died at the
end of from eight to ten days, in gum water, and in the solution of
acetate of lime. They held out but for two or three days in the
water which contained sulphate of copper.

Observations precisely similar made on the bidens cannabina pre-
sented the same results, with the sole difference, that this plant lived
for much shorter times than the redshanks.

To estimate in what proportion the substances dissolved were ab-
sorbed, relatively to the water, M. de Saussure made use of the
solutions previously employed ; but he brought the experiment to a
close when the plants had taken up precisely half the liquid which
was feeding them. Each solution fed a suflfieient number of plants
to allow of this condition being fulfilled in two days. Half of the
liquid remaining after each experiment was analyzed, and the quan-
tity of salt found therein, showed, by the difference between this
and the quantity originally contained, the amount which had pene-
trated the vegetable. Representing by one hundred parts the whole

* Siuspure, Rocherches chimiques, &.c. p. 247. t Ihid. rage 253.

i This entered into the solutions only in the proportion of t\\ o ten-thousai^dtht
0.0002.)

ABSORPTION OF SALTS. 61

of the substance originally dissolved, it is evident that fifty of those
parts must enter the plant, if the absorption of the saline substances
be in proportion to that of the solvent. But the experiment proved,
that in taking up half the volume of the liquid, the polygonum had
absorbed but —

15 parts of chloride of potassium,

13

((

chloride of sodium,

4

t(

nitrate of lime,

14

i(

sulphate of soda,

12

((

hydrochlorate of ammonia,

8

u

acetate of lime,

29

((

sugar,

9

((

gum.

5

((

extract of humus,

47

((

sulphate of copper.

Under the same

circumstances the bident took —

16 parts

of chloride of potassium,

15

((

chloride of sodium,

8

«

nitrate of lime.

10

((

sulphate of soda.

17

((

hydrochlorate of ammonia,

8

{(

acetate of lime.

32

((

sugar.

8

((

gum.

6

((

extract of humus.

48

((

sulphate of copper.

It follows from these experiments that the plants absorbed some
part of the different substances presented to them ; but without ex-
ception, they took up the water in greater proportion than the mat-
ters dissolved.

On multiplying and varying these experiments, M. de Saussure
always arrived at the same general results. The plants uniformly
took up more of the alkaline than of the calcareous salts, and more
sugar than gum, though the quantities of the different substances
absorbed varied considerably.

The sulphate of copper presented, in the course of these re-
searches, an anomaly which is readily explained. We see that this
salt, evidently injurious to vegetation, was taken up in a large dose.
This arises from its corrosive action on the roots : sulphate of cop-
per disorganizes the spongioles ; and these organs once destroyed,
absorption takes place with more rapidity and in greater abundance.
A root deprived of spongioles is in the condition of a stalk, or
branch, the fresh section of which is immersed in a liquid. Obser-
vation proves, in fact, that substances in a state of solution, which
by reason of their viscidity are incapable of making their way into
a healthy root, are, on the contrary, readily taken up by a cut .stalk
or branch, in quantity sufficient to dye it deeply, if it was a coloring
matter that was presented for absorption.

a

62

INORGANIC CONSTITUENTS.

In the preceding experiments, the solution contained only a single
substance. In those which follow, M. de Saussure dissolved in the
water two or three salts, a mixture of sugar and gum, &c., in order
to ascertain whether the plants would make any selection from mixed
solutions.

In 25 fluid ounces of water two or three species of salt were dis-
solved, the weight of each species being nearly 10 grains troy.
Each ounce of water would therefore contain either iths or '^ths of
a grain of saline or soluble matter. As in the preceding experi-
ments, the plants were made to absorb precisely one half of the so-
lutions. Analysis pointed out the quantity and the nature of the
substances which remained in the liquid not absorbed, and conse-
quently the salts which had penetrated the vegetable.

In reducing this table, which exhibits the results obtained, the
weight of each particular salt in the solution is represented by lOO
parts.

Substances in the solution
with which the experiment was made.

Weight of the several sub-
stances ti'-eu up by the
Polygcnun in imbibing
one half of the solution.

Weight of the several sub-
stances taken up by the
Bident in imbibing one
half the solution.

100 parts 1,7 weight.

Sulphate of soda efflores-ed .
Chloride of sodium

12

22

7
20

Sulphate of soda effloresced .
Chloride of potassium .

12
17

10
17

Acetate of lime
Chloride oi potassium

8
33

5
16

Nitrate of lime
Hydrochlorate of ammonia .

4
16

2
15

Acetate of lime .
Sulphate of copper

31
34

35
39

Nitrate of lime
Sulphate of copper

17
34

9
56

Sulphate of soda .
Chloride of sodium
Acetate of lime

6

10

traces

13

16

traces

Gum

Sugar

26
34

21
46

M. de Saussure confirmed these results in experimenting on the
common peppermint, {mentha piperita,) Scotch pine, and common
luniper. The substances absorbed in greatest proportion by the
polygonum and bident were also those that were taken up in largest
quantities by these plants.

ABSORPTION OF SALTS. 63

The section of the roots, even their destruction, favors, as we
^ave already said, the introduction of the matters dissolved. Plants
whose roots had been removed, no longer selected the substances
dissolvsd in so striking a manner as they did previously ; after muti-
latiort they absorbed them almost indifferently, in larger doses, and
perceptibly in the same proportion as the water which held them
in solution.

Roots with their spongioles entire, therefore, suffer one substance
in solution to penetrate the plant in preference to another. The
chlorides of potassium and of sodium, for instance, find entrance
more readily than the acetate and nitrate of lime : sugar more readily
than gum ; and precisely as when isolated, are these substances,
when combined, absorbed in much less proportion than the menstruum
or water of solution.

M. de Saussure is not disposed to admit that the preference which
plants evince for certain salts, for certain dissolved substances, results
from any particular faculty, from any special affinity. He rather
inclines to believe that it should be attributed to the degree of
fluidity, or of viscidity communicated to the water by the different
substances dissolved ; thus the acetate and nitrate of lime, with the
same proportion of liquid, form more viscid solutions, which pass
with more difficulty through a filter, than the alkaline sulphates and
chlorides ; and these latter salts in solution were absorbed by vege-
tables in greater abundance than the calcareous salts. Gum, which
imparts more viscidity to water than sugar, is also less capable of
being absorbed. Finally, pure water, more fluid than any of the
solutions tried, was also that which vegetables preferred to any
other.

In the results of the incinerations which we have mentioned, it is
obvious that in many plants salts are met vt^ith in very small propor-
tion. This circumstance has induced several physiologists to con-
sider the mineral substances found in vegetables as purely accidental,
and consequently unnecessary to their existence. M. de Saussure,
however, observes that this scantiness is no true indication of their
inutility, and he mentions that the phosphate of lime, which forms
an element in the organization of an animal, does not probably
amount to one five-hundredth part of the entire mass. We shall add,
that as the phosphate of lime was met with by M. de Saussure in
the ashes of all vegetables which he examined, and as all the analyses
performed since the original labors of this celebrated chemist have
tended to confirm the accuracy of his general conclusions, we have
no ground for supposing that plants could exist without the interven-
tion of saline matter. There are annual plants which, when burned,
leave more than 10 per cent, of residue ; and vegetables cultivated
in soils free from saline or alkaline matter, and watered with dis-
tilled water, though they will live and ripen their seeds in some
instances, still they never acquire the vigor which they possess when
grown in a fertile soil.

Duhamel ascertained that marine plants languish in soils destitute
of chloride of sodium ; and this is so much the more readily oon-

64 INORGANie CONSTITUENTS,

celved, as those plants which furnish ashes abounding ki carbonate
of soda, always contain organic acids combined with «he alkaline
base. Borage, the nettle, &c., thrive only in places where they
meet with nitrates ; and it is easy to discover that plants when dried
contain a notable quantity of either nitrate of potash or of lime.
The vine more especially requires alkaline dressings, in order that
the large quantities of potash taken from the soil in the tartrate of
potash of the grape may be replaced.

The organic acids, so different in their composition and in their
properties, which are met wHh in the different vegetable families,
are always found combined in the state of neutral or acid salts. The
proportion of base combined in a plant with a vegetable acid may be
readily ascertained from the ashes ; for by the effect of incineration
the base passes into the state of an alkaline or earthy carbonate.
The vegetable acids undoubtedly perform important functions in the
organism of vegetables, and their formation probably depends on the
nfluence of the bases with which they form salts. The nature of
he oxide or base itself appears to be of little importance ; it is
enough that it be present in the plant. It is known that certain bases
may mutually replace each other, equivalent for equivalent.

These principles assumed, Prof. Liebig draws a remarkable in-
ference from the composition of the ashes of different kinds of wood ;
namely, that for each vegetable family the sum of the oxygen of the
bases combined with the organic acids will be a constant number ;
or, in other words, the species of one and the same family will con-
tain the same number of basic equivalents combined with vegetable
acids.

Thus, 100 parts of the ashes of a Breven pine-tree, analyzed by
Saussure, contain :

Carbonate of potash 3.60 Oxygen of the potash 0.41 i

lime 46.34 " lirae 7.33V9.01ox.

" magnesia 6.77 " magnesia 1.27)

Carbonates 77.56.71

The ashes of a pine from Mount La Salle yielded :

Carbonate of potash 7.36 Oxygen of the potash 0'85)ooic«-

lime 51.Gd " lime 8.10|^'^*°^

" magnesia 0-00

58.55

M. Berthier found in the ashes of a fir-tree from Allevard the
following bases :

Potash and Soda 16.8 Oxygen 3.42

Lime 29-5 " 8.20

Magnesia 3-2 " 1.20

V12.J

One part of the alkalies containing 1.20 of oxygen was combinea
with mineral acids, forming sulphates, phosphates, and a chloride
The oxygen of the bases combined with the carbonic acid is cpn$e«
quently reduced to 11 62.

The ashes of a Norway fir, according to the same analyst, con.
taining :

sa?. 66

.2.40")
.1.69 J

Potash 14.10 Oxygen

iSii:'::::::::::::::::: T^]^ - ::::::::::::::::3:^^^-^^s^

Magne'iia 14.35 "

51.45

In this ash the bases belonging to the inorganic salts contain 1.37
of oxygen. The oxygen of the bases of the carbonates, or in other
words of the bases which formed organic salts in the tree, therefore,
becomes 11.47. The numbers 9.01 and 8.95 on the one hand, and
11,62 and 11.47 on the other, which represent the quantity of oxy-
gen of the whole of the bases in the ashes obtained from plants of
the same species, differ so little, that they may be considered as
identical.

Accurate analyses of ashes of plants of the same species grown
in soils of different kinds, will determine, says Prof. Liebig, whether
the fact, deduced from the composition of the ashes of the pine and
fir-tree, constitutes a definitive law.*

Be this as it may, the utility of alkalies in vegetation cannot be
a matter of doubt ; many usages in agriculture prove it in the
clearest manner; and, according to M. Liebig, the fact of the forma-
tion of the organic alkaloides in plants affords an additional proof
of it. M. Liebig thinks that the organic alkalies have a particular
tendency to form in the absence of mineral bases ; thus potatoes
which germinate in cellars, under conditions where the soil cannot
supply them with potash, soda, or lime, develop an organic alkali,
solanine, which is not found in the tubers of this vegetable as usually
cultivated.! In the cinchonas, quinine and cinchonine are combined
with quinic acid ; but there is frequently found quinate of lime also.
According to the same chemist, the latter base holds the place of a
vegetable alkali in the organism ; the more prevalent it is in the soil,
the less rich will the cinchona plant be in quinine and cinchonine.^
These ingenious views certainly deserve the careful attention of
physiologists ; they are calculated to add new interest to the study
of the chemical constitution of the ashes of vegetables.

The inorganic substances contained in vegetables evidently come
from the soil. By growing seeds, as M. Lassaigne did, in flowers
of sulphur, moistened with distilled water, the plant produced con-
tained neither more nor less saline and earthy matter than was origi-
nally present in the seed.

The water absorbed by the roots, then, becomes charged during
Its stay in the ground with the various soluble substances which
may be met with there, and which generally contribute to its fer-
tility ; suck especially are the salts derived from decomposed organic
substances. Water charged with small quantities of the soluble
substances diffused through the soil, constitutes the ascending sap.
When it ha 3 penetrated the plant, immediately after its passage by
the spongi.les of the roots, perhaps even while traversing these

* Liebig, Chimie Organiqiie, Introduction, p. cxL
t Liebig, idem. p. cxiv.

t Liebig, idem. ^ '

6*

66 TEANSITION OF INORGANIC INTO ORGANIC MATTER.

parts, the organic matters dissolved in the fluid appear to undergo
important modifications; for in the sap substances are detected
which could not have existed in the water which moistened the soil.
During its ascent the sap increases in density, as was ascertained
by Mr. Knight, according to whom, the sap of an acer platanoides^
taken at the level of the ground, has a density of 1.004 ; at 67 feet
above it this density becomes 1.008, and at 13 feet, 1.012. From
this Mr. Knight concluded that the sap took up nutritive matter
deposited in the vegetable tissues which it traversed in its ascent.*
We have already seen that the sap, after being elaborated in the
green parts of trees, takes a route the reverse of that which it fol-
lowed at first, and we therefore spoke of this modified sap as the
descending sap. It is very possible that in Knight's observations
the liquid examined was a mixture of the two saps.

We should not be over hasty in concluding that the action of the
two species of sap was exerted separately in promoting the develop-
ment of the plant ; it is very probable, as Dutrochet thinks, that the
modified sap, by insinuating itself into the permeable tissue of the
vegetable, is continually mixed with the ascending sap, in order to
concur in promoting the growth of the buds.f The difficulty of
obtaining each particular sap separately, if such a separation is reallv
possible, prevents the analytical conclusions we have from possess-
ing all the accuracy that seems desirable.

Vauquelin has studied the sap of the birch- tree, of the hornbeam,
of the beech, of the chestnut, and of the elm.

The sap of the hornbeam {Carpinus sylvestris) was obtained in
the months of April and May. At this period it is colorless and
clear as water ; its taste is slightly saccharine ; its odor resembles
that of whey ; it reddens turnsole paper. The sap of this tree
contains water in very large quantity, sugar, extractive matter,^
and free acetic acid, acetate of lime and acetate of potash, in very
small quantity.

This sap left to itself presents in succession all the phenomena of
the vinous and then of the acetous fermentation.^

The sap of the birch-tree reddens turnsole intensely ; it is color-
less, and has a sweet taste. The water which forms the greater
part of it, holds in solution sugar, extractive matter, acetate of
lime, acetate of alumina, and acetate of potash.

Whea properly concentrated by evaporation, it ferments on the
addition of yeast, and then yields alcohol on distillation. The pre-
sence of the acetate of alumina may appear extraordinary in this
sap, for this reason, that alumina has not yet been discovered in the
ashes of the birch-tree.

Sap of the beech, {Fagus sylvestris ) The analysis was made in
Marcli and April. Tlie color of the sap was a tawny red : it had
the taste of an infusion of tanner's bark : it reddened turnsole slignt-

* Decandolle, Physiologic, t. i. p. 204.

t Dutrochet, sur la Structure, &c. p. 36

t Probably azotized.

^ Vauquelin, Annales de Chunie, t. xxxi. p. 90, lire wMm.

SAP 67

\y. Il contained, in very small quantity, acetate of lime, acetate
of potash, acetate of alumina, extractive matter, tannin acetic acid,
ind gallic acid.

The sap of the chestnut-tree, according to Vauquelin, who, foi
want of a sufficient quantity of the fluid., was able to study it hut
very superficially, contains mucilage, nitrate of potash, and the
acetates of potash and lime.

The sap of the elm was examined at three periods ; first, at the
commencement of April, then some days after, and lastly, a month
later. At the beginning of April its color was yellow, its taste
sweet and mucilaginous ; it was scarcely acid. Analysis indicated :
water 1027.90, acetate of potash 9.23, organic matter 1.06, carbo-
nate of lime 0.80.

At the second period it contained a little more extractive organic
matter, and a little less carbonate of lime and acetate of potash.
The last examination showed that these two salts had still further
diminished in quantity. When exposed to the air, the sap of the
elm undergoes decomposition, and becomes alkaline : the acetate of
potash passes into the state of carbonate.

M. Regimbeau found in the sap of the vine* bitartrate of potash,
tartrate of lime, mucilage, and free carbonic acid.

The sap of the maple-tree contains a very considerable quantity
of sugar. In Canada, this sap, properly treated, yields sugar which
is identical with that of the cane. The nature of the sap is subject
to variations ; and Duhamel siates, that at a certain season it loses
its saccharine taste, and acquires an herbaceous flavor.f

Liebig and Will detected the presence of ammoniacal salts in the
sap of the maple and birch-tree, and in the tears of the vine. M.
Blot examined the sap of a considerable number of trees, and ascer-
tained that the sugar in them often exists in two different states ; in
that of cane-sugar, properly so called, and in that of grape-sugar,
which, as chemists admit, diflfers from the former only in the pos-
session of an additional equivalent of water. The saps which M.
Biot examined, contained besides some animal matter (albumine)
and a gummy matter ; he found no free carbonic acid. The object
which he had in view, namely, to study the changes which occur m
the nature of sugar, did not lead M. Biot to notice the minute quan-
titiv3s of salts with organic acids which Vauquelin met with in saps.

The trunk of a walnut-tree, tapped on the 11th of February,
fielded a sap containing some cane sugar. The saps of the syca-
more, of the acer negundo and of the lilac-tree, contained the same
species of sugar; but that of the birch-tree held in solution some
grape-sugar. In the sycamore and birch-tree, M. Biot observed
an extremely interesting fact. He ascertained, on felling these trees,
that the greater portion of the descending sap was accumulated to-
wards the middle of the trunk. That of the birch-tree was acid
and saccharine ; the sap of that portion of the trunk which waa

* Journal de Pharmacie, t. xviii; p. 36.

i Annales de 1' Agriculture, Franjaise, t. v. 2eme s6rie, p. 339.

B8 TRANSITION OF INORGANIC INTO ORGANIC MATTER.

buried in the ground, contained no sugar, but a substance possessing
the principal characters of gum.* It was probably an effect of the
season ; for Knight states, that he never could discover the least
trace of saccharine matter during winter in the alburnum either of
the stem or of the roots of the sycamore. f

SAP OF THE BAMBUSA GUADUAS.

The guaduas grow-s in the hot and marshy countries of the tropi-
cal regions : this grass frequently attains the enormous height of
from 65 to 100 feet. Its stem, which is hollow, is divided through
its entire length into joints spaced rather regularly at distances of
from 11 to 12 inches. Each joint indicates ihe presence of a woody
partition, which seems to divide the stem of the guaduas into so
many super-imposed tubes. On perforating it immediately above a
knot, a clear limpid fluid flows out, which cannot be distinguished
from the purest water. This indeed is a store of water of which
travellers have frequently availed themselves. This sap, as I have
been assured by the inhabitants of the countries where I observed
the guaduas, never completely fills the hollow space included be-
tween two joints. Analysis satisfied me that the sap of the guaduas
is almost pure water. Re-agents detected merely traces of sulphates
and chlorides. On evaporating a considerable quantity of it, I was
able to discover, independently of these traces of soluble salts, a
very small proportion of organic matter and of silica ; the latter sub-
stance is probably the element which predominates in the sap of the
guaduas.

SAP OF THE BANANA PLANT, (mUSA PARADISICA.)

The sap of the banana possesses a well-marked astringent taste :
It reddens tincture of litmus. Immediately after escaping from the
plant, it is limpid and colorless, like water ; nevertheless, it possesses
the property of imparting a yellow color to stuffs immersed in it.
Exposed to the air it becomes turbid, and throws down flocculi of a
dirty rose color. It is to the action of oxygen that this deposite is
owing ; for it takes place only in contact with the air. After the
formation of this deposite, the sap no longer colors stuffs immersed
in it. From a chemical examination which I instituted of the sap
of the banana, during my sojourn on the banks of the Magdalena, I
think I may state that it contains gallic acid, acetic acid, chloride
of sodium, salts of lime and potash, and silica.

The sap of vegetables, elaborated during its passage through the
leaves, acquires additional consistence. It generally contains pecu-
liar principles, which are the result of this elaboration, and these
now constitute the liquid which is usually designated by the name of
ihe particular juice of the plant from which it is procured. Thia

• Annales du Mus6um d'Histoire Naturalle, t. il.

^ Knight, quoted in Annales de rAgriculttue Franf aise, t ▼. 3e t^rie, p. 338

SAP. 69

proper juice or sap is generally obtained by making an incision which
penetrates a little below the bark.

The characters and properties of the elaborated or descendingrsap.
are extremely various. It may, however, be divided into milky sap^
saccharine sap, gummy sap, and resinous sap, according to the na-
ture of the juices dissolved or .suspended in the liquid. As several
of the peculiar juices of vegetables contain principles employed in
the arts or in medicine, they have been more carefully studied, and
their history is more complete than that of the ascending saps. I do
not propose to give a monograph of these juices ; in this place I
shall only mention those which have been examined with some care.

MILKY SA.PS.

The milky saps, as their name indicates, have the appearance of
milk ; they owe this milky appearance to globules of insoluble mat-
ter, minutely divided, and suspended in a liquid.

SAP OF THE PAPAW-TREE, (CARICA PAPAYA.)

The carica papaya grows in tropical regions. The sap, which is
extracted from the fruit by incision, is white, and excessively vis-
cous. In a specimen of this sap, which came from the Isle of France,
Vauquelin found water in large quantity, and also a matter having
the chemical properties of animal albumen,* and lastly fatty matter.

I took occasion to verify the correctness of the results obtained by
Vauquelin, on the milk of the fruit of the carica papaya, during my
sojourn at Caraccas, where I examined the sap which flowed from
the trunk of the tree itself. This sap is less milky, and much more
fluid than that which flows from the fruit ; it had the appearance of
milk-and-water. Its odor is rather nauseating, even when coming
from the plant ; its taste slightly sour. When exposed to the air it
soon coagulates. It contains a considerable portion of matter, which
may be compared to animal fibrine, and sugar, wax, and resin, in
small quantities.

Evaporated and burnt, it leaves a saline residue. This juice is
employed by the inhabitants for medical purposes.

SAP OF THE COW-TREE.

Among the number of astonishing vegetable productions observed
in the equinoctial regions, is a tree which yields a milky juice in
abundance, similar in its properties to the milk of animals. At the
time I left Europe, M. de Humboldt expressly recommended me to di-
rect my attention to the milk of the cow-tree. A short time after my
arrival in the Cordilleras, on the shore of Caraccas, M- Rivero and
myself were able to comply with the wishes of the distinguished
traveller.!

The milk we examined came from the Palo de Lechc, the milk-
tree, which is extremely common in the environs of Maracaibc.

* Vauquelin, Annales de Chiinie, t. xlix. p. 219, Ire s*rie.

t Bivero and Boussingault, Annales de Chim. et de Phys. t. zzxUi. p. 229, 2e uixit

70 FRANSITION OF INORGANIC INTO ORGANIC MATTER.

Vegetable milk possesses the same physical characters as that of
the cow, with this sole difference, that it is, in a slight degree, vis-
cous ; its flavor is agreeable, slightly balsamic. With respect to
chemical properties, these differ perceptibly from those which are
peculiar to animal milk. Acids do not curdle it ; alcohol scarcely
coagulates it.

Under the action of gentle heat, light pellicles are seen to form
on the surface of vegetable milk. On evaporating it over a water
bath, an extract is obtained resembling fritters ; and if the action of
the fire be continued for a certain time, oily drops are observed,
which increase in proportion as the water is dissipated, and ulti-
mately form a liquid of an oily appearance, in which a fibrinous
substance floats, which dries and becomes tough in proportion as the
temperature increases. An odor is then diffused, exactly like that
of meat frying in fat.

By the mere action of heat, then, the milk of the Palo de Leche
is separated into two distinct portions : the one fusible, of a fatty
nature, the other fibrinous, and presenting all the characters of ani-
mal substances.

If the evaporation of vegetable milk is not carried too far, i«e
fatty matter may be obtained unchanged ; it then possesses the fol-
lowing properties ; — it is white, translucent, sufficiently solid to
resist the impression of the finger ; it fuses at 140° (Fahr. ;) boiling
alcohol dissolves it completely ; it is equally soluble in potash.

The fibrinous matter presents all the characters of fibrine, obtained
from the blood of animals ; for this reason we have called it fibrine.
In fact, when put on a hot iron, it swells up, fuses, and becomes
carbonized, exhaling the odor of grilled meat. Treated with weak
nitric acid, it gives out nitrogen gas ; by distillation, it disengages
ammoniacal vapors in abundance.

The presence and nature of this animalized matter in the milk
of the cow-tree, explains how this milk acquires the odor of old
cheese on becoming changed. We considered the fatty matter of
the milk as analogous to beeswax ; I may even say that we made
wax-candles of it. However, the property of being completely dis-
solved in hot alcohol, combined with its ready solubility in potash,
establish a well-marked difference between it and the wax of insects.
This is a question which can only be completely cleared up by ele-
mentary analysis, and we were altogether without the means of
making any minute examination of the wax of vegetable milk.

In the water which holds the wax and animal matter in suspension,
we met with some saline substances and a free acid, the nature of
which we were unable to determine. We did not succeed in detect-
ing the presence of caoutchouc in vegetable milk. According to
our researches this milk should contain :

1. A fatty substance similar to beeswax ;

2. An animal substance, similar to animal fibrine ;

3. Water, salts, a free acid, and a little sugar.

SAP. 7

By incineration, we obtained ashes from the milk in which wer*
found phosphate of lime, lime, magnesia, and silica.

During their excursions in the Cordilleras, the inhabitants fre
quently drink the milk of the cow-tree. M. de Rivero and mysell
also used it during our sojourn at Maracaibo.

The tree which produces the milk which we examined, is, accord
ing to M. de Humboldt, the galactodendron dulce, of the family of
the verticas, or fig-trees. But several trees are known in tht
mountains along the coast, which yield a milky juice, and which
are often confounded with that just described. For instance, in the
environs of Maracaibo, according to M. Desvaux,* the clusia galac-
todendron yields an abundance of very pleasant vegetable milk ;
this milk, however, does not seem to contain much animalized matter;
at least it does not putrefy perceptibly, and instead of the waxy
matter, a substance much less fusible and of a resinous character is
procured from it.

MILKY SAP OP THE HURA CREPITANS, (aJUAPAR.)

The sap of the hura crepitans is dreaded, and not without good
reason ; it is enough to be exposed to the emanations of this milky
juice, when recently extracted, to be seriously affected by it.
The use which is made of it, to poison the water of rivers, in
order to obtain the fish, is a suflUcient indication of its pernicious
qualities.!

This vegetable sap would perfectly resemble that of the cow-tree,
if it were not slightly yellowish. It has no smell ; its taste, which
is very little marked at first, soon causes very violent irritation. It
reddens the color of turmeric ; mineral acids produce in it a white
and viscous curd ; the surrounding fluid is clear and of a yellow
color. Left to itself, the milky sap of the hura crepitans yields all
the products of the putrefaction of caseum. It contains: 1. An
azotized substance similar to gluten, or caseum. 2. A vesicating
oil, 3. A crystallized substance, having an alkaline reaction. 4.
Malate of potash. 5. Nitrate of potash. 6. A salt of lime, (the
malate ?) 7. An odorous azotized principle.

MILKY SAP OF THE POPPY, (oPIUM.)

The milky sap which, by concreting, furnishes the opium of com-
merce, is obtained by making longitudinal incisions in the capsules
of the poppy. The operation takes place before the fruit is ripe,
and after the fall of the flower.

* Benseignements communiques par M. Adolphe Brongniart.

t Bivero et BoiHsinguult, Aimales de Chim. et de Phys. t. xviii. p. 430, 2e s6rie.

What 1 shall no.v state may give an idea of the energy with which this milky juice
acts on the animal economy : when M. Bivero and myself examined the milk of the
hura crepitant, we became affected with er>-sipela8 ; the afiection continued for sev-
eral days. The milk had l>een sent to us in guaduas by Dr. Boulin ; the messenger
who brought it was seriously affected byit ; and along the road the inhabitants of tb«
kouses where he lodged felt the same effects.

72 TRANSITION OF INORGANIC INTO ORGANIC MATTER.

The concrete sap is brown, firm, of an acrid and bitter taste, and
of a peculiar sickening odor. Opium contains a number of principles
the study of which has exercised for a considerable time the inge-
nuity of the most skilful chemists. It was in this substance that
Sertuerner found the first vegetable alkali which was discovered,
morphine. After numerous trials made on opium, it was found to
contain : — 1. Morphine, (vegetable alkali.) 2. Codeine, (the same.)
3. Narceine. 4. Meconine. 5. Para-morphine. 6. Pseudo-mor-
phine. 7. Meconic acid. 8. Resin. 9. Fatty matters. 10. Caout-
chouc. 11. Gum. 12. Bassorine. 13. Ulmine. 14. Woody sub-
stance. 15. Mineral salts with bases of lime, magnesia, and potash.

MILK OF THE PLUMERIA AMERICANA.

The plumeria, 'when one of its branches is broken, yields a con-
siderable quantity of milky juice. At the time when I examined
this juice, the tree was entirely destitute of leaves. The milk of the
plumeria is perfectly white ; it is very fluid when it flows from the
plant, but soon after deposites a crystalline sediment. The taste is
slightly bitter, and it has an acid reaction. The milk of the plumeria
appears to contain no animalized matter. I was only able to detect
a very large proportion of resinous matter held in solution or sus-
pended in water ; and indications of potash, lime, and magnesia,
combined with an organic acid.

SAP OF THE CAOUTCHOUC TREE.

Caoutchouc is found in the sap of many trees, and in that of a
great number of herbaceous plants ; but it is the havea caoutchouc,
the jatropha elastica, peculiar to South America; the ftcus Indica,
and the artocarpus integrifolia, which grow in the East Indies, that
yield the caoutchouc so well known in commerce, and which has
been converted to so many useful purposes in the arts.

The caoutchouc tree is particularly common in Choco and forests
near the equator. To obtain the elastic gum, the Indians incise the
tree below the bark, when there issues a copious discharge of milky
sap, which will remain fluid for a considerable lime, if it be kept
from contact with the air. I have seen it carried to great distances,
in wooden vessels hermetically closed. When spread out in thinnish
layers, it soon coagulates, and acquires the singular elasticity which
characterizes caoutchouc. The action of the oxygen of the air may
possibly have some influence in producing this coagulation, un-
less what I am about to state be the effect of a prompt evaporation
of the water of the sap. I have often made a small incision in the
trunk of an hcEvea from which milk immediately flowed, and by rea-
son of its viscidity, trickled down the tree in a stream of a certain
thickness ; this milk was at first extremely fluid, but after from one
to two minutes' exposure to the air, it suddenly coagulated, so that
on raising the drop from the lower end, I obtained a long string or
riband of perfectly elastic caoutchouc.

SA?. 73

In Guiana the Indians fashion the caoutchouc into the bottles
which are so common in trade : they make a clay mould, and this
they cover by immersing it in the milk freshly drawn from the tree ;
they allow it to coagulate, which it does very speedily, especially if
it be exposed to the smoke of a wood fire. This first layer being
coagulated, they c(mtinue the same process until the desired thick-
ness is attained. The mould is then broken and taken out piece meal
from the interior of the caoutchouc bottle which has been formed.

The workmen of Quito, who are very dexterous in manufacturing
caoutchouc, make shoes and buskins of it, by applying it in the
milky state over moulds of the proper fashion. They also render
tissues impervious by spreading it in the same state between two
pieces of stuff or cloth; the interposed milk becomes coagulated, and
forms a thin elastic lamina, very preferable to the caoutchouc applied
by the aid of solvents.

The Indians of Choco sometimes procure this substance by felling
the tree, and receiving the milk, which then flows in a stream, into
large wooden moulds, generally formed from a hollow stem of the
guaduas. By keeping the mould open, the milky mass coagulates
after some time. Several of these masses of caoutchouc, which
were brought to me by the Indians of the Chami nation, were but
slightly elastic ; their color also was extremely deep. It is probable,
that by proceeding' in this way, the milky juice is mixed with large
quantities of the internal sap which is much less milky.

Several trees in the valley of the Magdalena which bear the name
of caoutchouc, which, however, are neither the hoevea, nor the ja-
tropha, also yield a coagulable juice, which may be confounded with
the elastic gum ; it is, I believe, caoutchouc combined with a large
quantity of wax, and probably also of resin; this caoutchouc pos-
sesses but little elasticity.

M. Faraday found in the milk of the hcevea, in 100 parts :

Water 56

Caoutchouc 32

Bitter azotized matter soluble in water and alcohol 7

A substance soluble in water and alcohol (sugar) « 3

100
As this milk will remain fluid for a considerable time, provided it
ne protected from the air, advantage has been taken of this property
to convey it to Europe. It is sent in well-filled, hermetically-sealed
bottles.

GUMMY AND RESINOUS SAPS.

I place under this head the saps of those trees which yield gum
from incisions in their trunk, as the acacia vera and acacia Arabica^
which grow in Arabia, and from w^hich gum-arabic is obtained ;
acacia Senegal, which also furnishes a species of gum. In general,
in very warm countries, the mimosas produce gummy matters in
abundance.

The elaborated sap of the coniferae and terebinthaceae consists
ihiofly of resinous matter, dissolved in an essential oil cbmposed of

7

74 TRANSITION OF INORGANIC INffO ORGANIC MfLTTER.

carbon and hydrogen, similar to the essence of turpentine. The
balsams of Peru and Tolu are obtained by incising the bark of the
trees which produce them. In Choco, where I have seen numerous
incisions made in the lower part of the trunk of the Tolu trees, the
balsam flows slowly, on account of its thickness ; it does not, ap-
parently, contain any water.

SACCHARINE SAPS.

The sap of the fraxinus amu*, and that of the fraxinus rotundu
folia, yield manna on drying or becoming thick. The sap of several
palms contains a considerable quantity of saccharine matter. At
Java, for instance, crystalline sugar is extracted from the arenga
saccharifera. In several places, the sap of palm-trees is subjected
to fermentation in order to prepare vinous liquors.

The Cocos butyracea {palma de vino) is very common in the valley
of the Rio-Grande de la Magdalena. From a superficial examina-
tion which I made of it, its sap contains sugar, an azotized matter,
and some soluble salts.

By fermentation, it produces a vinous liquor sufficiently alcoholic
to produce intoxication. In order to procure it, the natives of
Benadillo first fell the tree, taking care, when it is down, to give the
trunk a slight inclination from the summit towards the lower extremity
or foot. They then make a hole towards the base of the trunk suf-
ficiently large to hold from fifteen to eighteen pints, the orifice of
which they plug up with leaves. The woody tissue, to all outward
appearance, contains but little moisture ; but in ten or twelve hours
after the operation, the cavity is found full of a liquid, of a well-
marked vinous odor, and of a sourish taste, owing probably to the
carbonic acid which is disengaged in large quantity. The wine thus
obtained is rather agreeable. A palm-tree of from 50 to 60 feet in
height, and of which the trunk towards the base is from 20 to 24
inches in diameter, will yield from twenty to thirty pints of wine in
twenty-four hours during ten or twelve days. The wine must not
be allowed to remain too long after it has collected, otherwise it
becomes sour.

Sugar is far from being the only useful substance afforded by
palms. There are several of these trees which are truly astonishing
by reason of the many important uses to which they may be applie- ;
and it is not without reason that the missionaries have styled the
palm, the tree of Providence, the bread of life. Such more espe-
cially is the Cocos maurilia, which grows in the plains of the Apure
and Oronoko ; its young shoots serve as aliment ; from its fruit,
while still green, a farinaceous food may be obtained ; and when
perfectly ripe, it yields oil in abundance. Hammocks and various
kinds of cloth are made of the fibrous portion of the bark of this
tree ; the young leaves serve to make hats, mats, and sails for ships ;
the tissue which surrounds the fruit furnishes the Indians with
clothing ; the sap ferments and yields wine ; the trunk before fruc-
tification contains an amylaceous marrow, of which bread is made ;
tki» marrow, on becoming putrid, produces a vast multitude of larg«

CHEMICAL CONSTITUTION OF VEGETABLES. 75

white worms which the Indians value as a most delicate dish ; finally,
the woody part of the mauritia aflfords excellent timber for building.
It is not necessary to enumerate farther the principles produced
by vegetables ; we must now study them in reference to their ele-
mentary composition.

CHAPTER II.

OF THE CHEMICAL CONSTITUTION OF VEGETABLE SUBSTANCES

From the very first period of vegetable life, during germination,
the immediate principles which constitute the seed are destroyed or
changed. The young plant, in developing its organs, creates new
substances, which are added to the tissues already existing, so as to
complete or extend them. In order to account for the productions
or changes which take place in the organism of vegetables, it is ex-
pedient first to study the intimate nature and general characters of
the materials which compose them. Unfortunately, in the present
state of science, this study is as yet but little advanced ; and, not-
withstanding the eflTorts which chemical physiology has made in
recent times, there still remain numerous and important questions
to be solved.

Carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, azote, combined in some cases with
minute quantities of sulphur or phosphorus, are the only elements
required by nature to give rise to that almost endless variety of
vegetable substances, so different in their properties, as well as in
their uses. In the food which sustains the life of animals, as in the
virulent poison which destroys it, these same elementary bodies are
always found combined in various and dissimilar proportions.

The immediate principles of the vegetable kingdom may be
divided into three groups, if we look to the number of the elements
which constitute these principles as they exist in the several bodies :

1°. Quartcrnari/, containing carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, azote.

2°. Ternary, containing carbon, hydrogen, oxygen.

3°. Binary, containing carbon and hydrogen, or carbon and oxy-
gen, or carbon and azote.

It is by the examination of the immediate principles which exist
m the seed, that we should approach the study of the composition
of vegetables ; and this the more, as we shall find these principles
diffused throughout the organs of plants. Once we shall have fully
considered their properties and their elementary composition, it will
be sufficient merely to indicate where they are to )e met with in
the organism.

76 CHEMICAL CONSTITUTION OF VEGETABLES.

§ 1. QUARTERNARY AZOTIZED PRINCIPLES OF
VEGETABLES.

It has now for some considerable time been ascertained that
several seeds contain azote, inasmuch as azotized matters, nearly
similar to those obtained from the tissues of animals, can be extract-
ed from them. M. Gay-Lussac expressed this fact in the most
general manner, by laying it down "as a law that every seed contains
a principle abounding in azote.*

Azotized animal matters, when heated in close vessels, yield an
ammoniacal product ; and to satisfy ourselves of the generality of
the law laid down by Gay-Lussac, all that is necessary is to subject
any seed whatever to dry distillation.

We do not always, indeed, obtain an ammoniacal liquor hnmedi-
ately in this way ; rice, for instance, when heated in a retort, yields
a product having an acid reaction ; but it is easy to demonstrate in
the acid liquor, the presence of ammonia by the addition of lime,
which at once sets it free. Peas, kidney-beans, in a word all the
legutnens hitherto experimented on, yield a liquor directly, having a
highly alkaline reaction. These differences, in the products of the
dry distillation of seeds, are explained in a very natural way.
Throwing the husk out of the question, we may consider a seed a?
formed of two parts ; one, non-azotized, possessing a ternary com-
position, and yielding by the action of heat a liquid with an acid re-
action ; the other having a quarternary composition, consequently
azotized, and yielding an ammoniacal liquor, so that the acid or alka-
line reaction of the product, really depends on the predominance of
one or other of these two distinct ingredients.

M. Gay-Lussac subjected every kind of seed he could procure to
distillation, and all yielded ammonia either directly or indirectly. I
shall add, that the numerous analyses which I have had occasion to
make for several years back support the generality of the principles
laid down by the above celebrated chemist. M. Payen has come to
the same conclusion, and has further shown that at the period of
germination the azotized matter of seeds is determined towards the
parts that are most recently organized. Thus the spongioles situ-
ated at the extremities of the radicles constantly produce ammoniacal
vapors during their destructive distillation by heat, even though pro-
ceeding from seeds which, when distilled, yield an acid liquor where-
in ammonia only becomes sensible on the addition of lime. f

The animalized or azotized substance is extracted readily enough
from certain seeds, and has consequently been known to exist in
them for a very long time. It is found in wheat, for example, in dif-
ferent states, and is obtained with great ease by simply kneading a
mass of dough under a small stream of water by which the starch is
carried off, and by and by there remains in the hand a grayish highly

• Gay-Lussac, Annales de Chimie et de Physique, t liii. p. 110, 3e s6rie
t Payen, M^moire sur la cooipoaitioa chimique des v6g6taui, p- 7.

AZOTIZED PRINCIPL5S. 77

elastic substance of a peculiar heavy odor; this is the gluten of
chemists. By this simple process of analysis, however, we are en-
abled in many cases to estimate the quality of a sample of flour with
reference to its richness in gluten, a substance which is rightly
considered as the most essential among the nutritive elements of the
cereals.

The washings collected and allowed to stand, soon become clear:
the starch which was suspended in the liquid subsides, accompanied
by flakes of an animalized matter. If the clear liquor be decanted
and boiled, a white froth appears upon its surface, which, skimmed
off, is found to have the appearance of coagulated white of egg, and
which, in fact, has all the characters of animal albumen. The water
from which the albumen is solidified, necessarily contains all the
soluble substances of the flour. On evaporation, it leaves substances
similar to gum and sugar, and traces of saline matters.

With the exception of the starch, which contains very little for-
eign matter, the different substances obtained by this process of
washing are far from being in a state of purity. I have said that all
seeds contain fatty substances, but in the products of the operation
just described, no oily matter was detected. As it cannot be discov-
ered in perceptible quantity in starch, nor in the substances soluble
in water, it must remain attached to the gluten ; and this is actually
the case. The gluten, the coagulated albumen then, are not pure
proximate principles ; fiit or oil may be obtained from them ; and
further, by examining common gluten carefully, we learn that it con-
tains several azotized substances, which differ from one another. By
boiling crude gluten with alcohol we ultimately obtain a fibrous gray-
ish residue, called by M. Dumas vegetable fibrine. On cooling, the
alcoholic liquor lets fall a substance which in its properties resembles
the caseum or curd of milk. Lastly, if the cold alcoholic solution
be concentrated, a pultaceous substance separates from it, called by
Messrs. Dumas and Cahours glutine.

Analysis, accordingly, indicates the presence of four azotized sub-
stances in wheat ; and when these are all combined in the mass of
gluten obtained by washing a lump of dough, they retain fatty mat-
ters, from which they may be freed by means of alcohol and ether.
The following, according to MM. Dumas and Cahours, is the com-
position of the azotized principles of wheat, dried at 140 centig.
(284" F.)*

Carbon. Hydrogen. Azote. Oxygen, Uulph. awt
fho^piiorus.

Fibrine 53.2 7.0 16.4 23.4

Albumen 53.7 7.1 15.7 20.5

C iseine (caseum) 53.5 7.1 16.0 2:^.4

Glutine 53.3 7.2 15.9 23.6

Legumine. Some vegetables, particularly some seeds, contain a
substance different from any of those just described. This M. Bra
oonnjt was the first to notice in the seeds of the family of the I^e
guminosae, and it has been since detected by Dumas and Cahours ia

Dumas et Cahours, Annales de Chimie el 1e Physique, p. 390, 3e s6rl».

T8

CHEMICAL CONSTITUTION OF VEGETABLES.

many different seeds. Legumine, which plays an important part in
the nutrition of animals, is obtained by digesting a quantity of pea
or bean meal, 3x crushed peas or beans in tepid water for two or
three hours ; the pulp is then pounded in a mortar, and afterwards
mixed with its own weight of cold water ; after one hour's macera-
tion it is pressed through a cloth. On standing, the liquid throws
down some fecula. Filtration is employed to have the liquor per-
fectly clear ; upon which a quantity of acetic acid diluted with from
eight to ten times its weight of water is gradually added, when a
snowy flocculent precipitate^ of legumine falls. This is collected in
a filter and washed with water ; the legumine is then treated with
alcohol, dried, and pulverized, preparatory to digestion in ether, in
order to free it from fatty matters.

Legumine thus prepared has a pearly or lustrous appearance. It
is insoluble in alcohol and ether. Cold water dissolves it in large
quantity. On boiling the watery solution, legumine is coagulated
and falls in flocculi analogous to those formed by albumen under the
same circumstances. Weak hydrochloric acid throws down legu-
mine from its watery solution like the acetic acid ; the concentrated
acid, again, dissolves it, acquiring a violet tint, a character which
also belongs to albumen ; but that legumine is actually distinct from
albumen is proved by the circumstance of its being precipitated by
phosphoric acid with three atoms of water, which albumen is not.
The alkalies dissolve legumine at common temperatures.

COMPOSITION OF LEGUMINE, OBTAINED FROM DIFFERENT SEEDS.*

Carbon....

^<

II

Is

M

1

S?2

.-si

50.9

5n.!>

50.7

50.8

50.7

50.5

50.5

.50.7

Hydrogen..

6.7

6.7

6.7

6.7

6.7

6.9

6.7

6.8

Azote ....

18.8

18.6

18.8

18.6

18.8

18.2

18.2

17. 6

Oxygen....

23.6

23.8

23.8

23.9

23.8

24.4

24.6

24.9

100.0

100.0

J 00.0

100.0

100.0

100.0

100.0

100.0

The'W same azotized compounds, or substances differing but little
from theri, are very probably those that are now recognised as dis-
tributed through the whole body of every vegetable. M. Payen,
alter having ascertained the presence of these substances in the
radicles and spongioles, proved it in nearly all the organs. The
examination was extended to a great number of species of different
families. The ascending sap of a fig-tree, {Jicus carica,) that of the
lime-tree, of the black poplar, of the vine, have all yielded ammoniacal
vapors under the influence of fire ; so also do the buds, the young
leaves, the stigmas, the anthers, &c.t Thus, according to M. Payen,
the nutritious juices which ascend from the extremities of the radi-
cles to the terminal points of the leaves, carry an azotized principle

• Dumas et Cahours, Annaies de Chimie et de Physique, t vL, p. 423, 3c s^rl*.
t F&yeot M^imoire mr les d^veloppemens des v^taux, p. 3&

QUARTERNARY OR AZOTIZED PRINCIPLES. 79

which accumulates in all the growing organs, at the same time ib.at
it is deposited within the entire extent of the canals which the sap
traverses. It might, therefore, be supposed that in the latter situa
tion the azotized substance was associated with matters of ternary
constitution, so as to form membranes and tissues. But from the
various organs of the many species studied, M. Payen succeeded in
dissolving out, by means of alkalies, and entirely eliminating the
animalized substances, without causing the slightest rent or erosion
in the tissues perceptible with the microscope ; whence it may
fairly be concluded, that if these substances everywhere and always
accompany the young tissues of plants, they still form no integral
part of them.* The animalized matter seems consequently to pre-
serve a kind of independence with reference to the organs which
secrete, which convey, and which contain it ; it preserves a sort of
mobility which allows of its displacement. And it was in fact neces-
sary that this should be so ; for as the period of maturity approaches
we see the azotized substance carried more particularly towards the
generative organs, and finally become fixed, as it were, and accumu-
lated in the seeds. I have had frequent occasion to satisfy myself
that the trefoil, the red beet, the turnip, &c., contain much less
azote after ripening their seeds than they did previously ; and all
husbandmen know that the straw or refuse of plants that have run
to seed, forms very indifferent fodder for cattle.

The cambium^ that peculiar globulo-cellular matter which is con-
stantly found accumulated where the vegetable is forming woody
tissue, contains, according to MM. Mirbel and Payen, the same
azotiaed principle of an animal nature, in conjunction with ternary
substances, whose composition, as we shall presently see, is repre-
sented nearly by carbon and water.f As the cellular tissue is
evolved at the expense of the cambium, the animalized matters show
a tendency t6 quit the consolidated organ. The departure of these
matters at the epoch of the growth of the cells, explains satisfactorily
wherefore the interiors of old trees contain but a few thousandths of
azote, while all the organs of recent formation always contain
several hundredths. With the assistance of chemical analysis it is
possible to follow the appearance and the removal of the azotized
matter ; thus in the alburnum and wood it is observed to diminish in
quantity from the circumference to the centre ; this diminution is
also observed in the branches, proceeding from their extremities ta
their point of junction with the trunk.

* Payen, M6inoire sur les d6veloppemens des viS'g^taux, p. 42.

f De Mirbel et Payen, Comptes rendus de TAcad^uiie des Science.s, t Kri. p. 98L

f

CHEMICAL CONSTITXTTION OF VEGETABLES.

§ II.— PROXIMATE PRINl iPLES WITH A TERNARY COM.
POSITION.

OF STARCH.

Starch is contained in the cells of vegetables under the form of
small white granules which have no crystalline structure.

In the year 1716, Leuwenhoeck ascertained that these granules
were globular bodies more or less regular in their contours. He
believed that he could perceive each globule enclosed in an envelope,
a kind of sac different in its nature from the matter which it con-
tained. M. Raspail, a few years ago, confirmed by his own re-
searches the observations of Leuwenhoeck ; he further attempted
to measure the diameter of the globules in different kinds of starch,
and came to the conclusion that their capsule is insoluble, and that
it is the internal part alone which is soluble in hot water.* Since
then MM. Payen and Persoz have ascertained that if the globules
of starch be really surrounded by a capsule, it must he present in a
quantity scarcely appreciable — a quantity not exceeding joVo^h of
the weight of the starch. Tiiese first researches were followed
by the subsequent observations of M. Payen, who has devoted him-
self to the study of the amylaceous principle with a zeal and perse-
verance which must secure him the gratitude of chemists and physi-
ologists.

M. Payen has examined a vast number of fceculae microscopi-
cally ; the largest granules he observed were obtained from one of
the varieties of potato, from the menispermum palmatum, and the
carina gigantea.

The globules of starch frequently exhibit a polyhedral appearance,
a figure which evidently results from their mutual pressure as they
have lain in the cells of the vegetable. Notwithstanding a great
general analogy of form, the granules of the starch of different
species of vegetables sfill present peculiar physiognomies, so that
they can be distinguished in many instances by the practised eye.
A character common to the majority of foeculae, however, is round-
ness of contour, when their panicles have not been compressed by
their contact in contiguous cells.

Microscopical and chemical researches alike show that starch is
homogeneous in properties, as in composition ; that its globules are
composed of concentric layers, the external of which have exactly
the same characters as the internal layers. f In the natural state,
starch is insoluble in water and in alcohol ; it is very ductile, and
under the influence of certain agents it exhibits a great degree of
contractility.

Feculas retain water with considerable force ; the quantity re-

In 1812, Villars, in a paper on the structure of the potato, had already eitiinated
the volume of the globules of different kinds of starch,
t Frit2xhe, Aaniles de Poggendoif; t. ti^^. p. jsa.

I

TEBNARY PRINCll'LES STARCH. 81

tained varies with the temperature at which the drying was accom-
plished. Thus the feeuhi of the potato, which is moist and porous,
even when subjected to strong pressure, still retains 45 per cent, of
water. This is the green or raw starch of manufacturers. Dry
starch is very hygrometric. If after being dried it is placed in an
atmosphere saturated with moisture, at 20° centig. (68° Fahr.) it
will absorb nearly 36 per cent, of water, and its hulk increases in
the ratio of one to one and a half; in this state starch is brilliantly
white, and its grains adhere so closely that they foim a mass of
sufficient firmness to take the impress of a seal ; starch in this state,
however, pressed upon paper yields no perceptible trace of moisture ;
it is too hard and adherent to pass through a sieve ; and when
thrown on a metal plate heated to 125° (257° Fahr.) its particles im-
mediately unite and form a cake. The starch of commerce, in the
state in which it is usually found in shops, contains 18 per cent, of
water ; it is either pulverulent or readily reducible to powder,
though by slight pressure in the hand, it may be formed into a mass
or ball. After drying in vacuo at the ordinary temperature, starch
retains no more than 10 per cent, of moisture ; a temperature not
less than 140" (284° Fahr) is required to dry it completely ; the
water which it retains at this temperature belongs to its constitu-
tion, and cannot be taken from itexcept by combining it with bases.*

MM. Collin and Gaultier de Claubry discovered the important
character of starch, that of yielding a fine blue or violet color on
combining with iodine. f According to M. Payen, the color is more
intense, nearer to blue and more lasting, in proportion as the starch
is more strongly compressed ; the effect of separation is to turn the
blue to shades of violet which approach redness as the substance is
looser. The same fecula, according to the degree of its aggregation
in plants, is seen to assume shades, which are first reddish, then
violet, and eventually of a more decided blue color, under the action
of iodine. J

M. Lassaigne has noticed a very curious property of the combina-
tion of iodine and starch : if an amylaceous fluid, having the decided
blue color, be heated to 89° or 90=" C. (193° or 194° Fahr.) the solu-
tion becomes completely blanched ; but it resumes its former tint as
the liquid cools.^

This property which starch possesses of striking a blue color with
iodine, renders one of these bodies an excellent test for the other.
However, as the iodine must exist in the free state to produce its
effect, it is necessary, when the blue color does not show itself at
once, in a solution in which iodine is suspected, and to which starch
has been added, to add a few drops of sulphuric acid, so as to decom-
pose the hydriodic acid in cases where it may exist.

It is familiarly known that if raw starch be mixed with boiling
water, the result will be a thick, paste-made starch. According to

• Payen, W6moire citt, p. 88.

t Collin et GaiUhier de Claubry, Annales de Chimie, t. xc. p. S8

i Payen, M6moire cite, p. 105.

i Lassaigne, JoiiraaKde Chimie M^dicale, t ix. p. 51Q.

82 CHEMICAL CONSTITUTION OF VEGETABLES.

M. Payen, the change tliat takes place in the state of the fecula it
owing to a swelling, a rupture, or disgregation of its granules. By
heating a drachm cf starch, mixed with about a couple of ounces of
water, to about 00° cent. (140° Fahr.) the microscope shows us that
the smallest or youngest gVains — those possessed of the least cohe-
sion— have absorbed a considerable quantity of water, and that the
expansion of the contents has caused a certain number of the glo-
oulds to burst ; at this temperature, however, some grains of fecula
are observed, which do not appear to have yet attained their maxi-
mum of enlargement, and whose contents consequently are not yet
diffused -through the liquid ; it is only between 72° and 100° cent.
(161.6° and 212° Fahr.) that the maximum of expansion becomes
general, and that the solution acquires its greatest consistency.*

The remarkable property possessed by starch of making a gluti-
nous solution or thick paste with water under the influence of heat,
led M. Payen to conjecture that a contrary effect would be produced
by lowering the temperature — that the starch might be recovered in
its original state of distinct globules by suitable management : and
this he in fact accomplished by an ingenious procedure. Starch
appears to suffer no actual change when diffused in water by exposure
to a temperature of 212° Fahr. ; the granules have only swollen to
about thirty times their original dimensions by the imbibition of a
large quantity of water.

We have already seen how starch may be extracted from wheat-
en flour ; this method, however, is not the one that is usually
followed to procure this useful substance, so large a quantity of
which is consumed in the arts. Formerly, starch was universally
obtained from grain, — wheat ; at present the potato furnishes a still
larger quantity than grain. In the equatorial regions of South
America, starch is aoundantly prepared from the YucOy (Jatropha
manihot,) and from several species of palm.

To obtain starch from wheat, the grain is either coarsely ground
and mixed with water in large tubs ; or it is put to steep in sacks
until it is so soft that a process of kneading sufiices to set the starch
at liberty.

Starch from potatoes. The potatoes are grated after having been
well washed, and the palp being thrown on a sieve, the starch is
carried off by the water and deposited in suitable vessels. The
washings in the manufacture of potato starch soon become putrid
by reason of the azotized matter which they contain, and until lately
occasioned much annoyance, until M. Dailly conceived the happy
idea of turning them to account as liquid manure.

Starch of the Yvca, or Jatropha manihot. The manihot yields
very large foots, rich in starch. These are taken tip a little after
the flowering, when the fecula is most abundant. To extract the
starch, precisely the same process is employed as in the case of the
potato. In South America the manioc is distinguished into yuca
duke (mild) and yuca brava, (malignant ;) the latter epithet applying

• Payen, M^r.oire cit p 96.

TKRNARY PRINCIPLES STARCH. 88

to the jatropha containing poisonous juice. The two yucas are,
however, but one and the same species ; at least a skilful botanist,
M. Goudot, who resided for several years in America, could not
perceive any specific differences between them. The poisonous
principle of the yuca brava must be very volatile, or readily destroy-
ed by heat, for the root may be eaten with impunity after it has
Deen roasted, while the animals who eat it in the raw state soon ex-
perience the most distressing effects.

The Indians seldom prepare starch from the jatropha ; but the
root frequently constitutes the staple of their food. It is from the
yvca brava that they obtain the cassava,, which supplies the place of
bread with them. Among the Indians in the country near the river
Malta, one of the principal tributaries of the Oronoko, I have seen
the cassava prepared in the following manner : the roots of the
manioc were scraped on a sort of rasp formed of small fragments of
flint stuck into a plank ; the pulp was then put to drain in a long
strainer made of the entire bark of a species of fig ; the juice having
drained away, water was added to finish the washing ; the liquid
came out nearly clear and without bringing away any perceptible
quantity of starch. To form the pulp into cakes of cassava, it was
spread out on an earthen dish placed over the fire ; the process was
complete when the cassava was dry, and slightly toasted on the out-
side. Cassava bread is not very palatable, but it possesses the pro-
perty of keeping for a long time in spite of heat and moisture, and is
frequently an indispensable article of provision with the South Amer-
ican traveller. The Indians say that they cannot obtain cassava
from the yuca dulce.

Starch from pabns. In the Moluccas and Philippine Islands,
and in the plains of Apure, there are certain palms which yield a
species of fecula. This fecula is found in a soft substance, general-
ly situated in the centre of these trees. The marrow of these palms
is dried, and when sifted presents itself in the form of grains, which
in commerce bear the name of sago.

None of the amylaceous principles or feculas obtained by the
processes which I have mentioned are absolutely pure ; even sup-
posing all the soluble substances to have been removed by washing,
they still retain fatty matters, azotized principles, and coloring
substances. Starch is purified by following up the water washings
by the action of alcohol, of acetic acid, and of ammonia. Starch in
its state of greatest purity, and dried at 100° cent. (212" Fahr.)
contains, according to the analysis of M. Jacquelain :

Carbon 44.9

Hydrogen 6'3

Oxygen • 48.8

100.0*

By slight roasting, amylaceous feculas undergo considerable
changes ; they become soluble in water, and then present the pro-
perties of gura.f Starch thus roasted, supplies the place of gtra ia

• Jacquelain, Annales de Chimie et de Physique, t. Ixiiii. p. 181, 2e »6rie.
f Vaoquelin and Booillun Lagrange, Bulletin de Phnrmacio, t. ill. p. 54.

84 CHEMICAL CONSTITUTION OF VEGETABLES.

various manufacturing processes ; still it si juld not be confounded
with gum in a cliemical point of view. The acids act with more or
less energy on starch, and give rise to different products. Nitrie
acid, when it is diluted with water, merely dissolves fecula; but at
a certain degree of concentration it exerts a destructive action. In
this reaction several acids are formed, among others oxalic acid
By employing very dilute sulphuric acid, Kirchhoff succeeded i&
changing starch into a saccharine substance similar to the sugar of
the grape. The operation may be performed in a leaden or silvei
pan, or, what is preferable, especially when the process is carried
on upon the great scale, in wooden vessels, in which the liquid mass
is heated by steam. According to M. Couverchel, several organic
acids are capable of changing fecula into sugar in a similar manner ;
such are oxalic, tartaric, and malic acids.

The artificial conversion of starch into grape-sugar has not yel
been satisfactorily accounted for. The acid employed does not seero
to undergo any change : it is found in its original state and quantity
after the operation. M. de Saussure thinks that the effect of the
reaction is the fixation of water ; thus 100 parts of fecula yielded
him 110.40 parts of sugar.*

M. Couverchel and M. Guerin, on the contrary, state that the
quantity of sugar obtained was less than that of the starch they
employed.

Ghnen exerts a reaction on starch similar to that produced by
acids ; Kirchhoff discovered, that under the influence of the azotized
matters which are met with in flour, the fecula is converted into
sugar. t Two parts of starch being mixed with four parts of cold
water, on adding twenty parts of boiling water, a thick paste is pro-
duced ; if into this one part of dry powdered gluten be introduced,
and the mixture be kept at the temperature of 60° cent. (140° Fahr.)
the paste becomes more and more liquid, so that the mixture may
be filtered at the end of from six to eight hours. By concentration
a sirup is obtained, in which small crystals of sugar are perceived.
It is well known that during the act of germination, fermentable
saccharine matter is produced. Kirchhoff concluded, from his ex-
periments, that this production of sugar in germination is attributa-
ble to the reaction of the gluten on the starch. Germinating grain,
barley-malt, for instance, reacts rapidly and powerfully on any fe-
cula with which it is brought into contact ; a fact well known to,
and constantly taken advantage of, by manufacturers of spirits from
potatoes and raw grain, large mashes of which are rapidly converted
into sweet fermentable liquids under the action of a little malt.

These facts, it is evident, cannot be explained by Kirchhoff's ex-
periment ; in the fermentation of the potato, the mass of fecula to be
converted into sugar is too great compared with the quantity of glu-
ten which exists in the malted barley. Further, the gluten in grain
which has not germinated, scarcely exerts any appreciable action.

• Sausiure, Bibliothequc britannique, t. Ivi. p. 333.
t Kirchhoff, JQUTna! du Pharinacie, t. ii. p. 2ja

DIASTASE. 85

The principle which, in the preceding operations, converts the starch
into sugar, must therefore become developed daring germination.
This important point in the art of the distiller has been investigated
with great ingenuity by M. Dubrunfaut ;* and MM. Persoz and
Payen succeeded in separating the peculiar matter in barley-malt
which possesses the property of converting starch into sugar. This
matter has been called diastase.

Diastase exists in the seeds of all the cereals which have germi-
nated ; it is met with more especially near the germs, it seems even
that the radicles contain none of it. Nor is diastase observed in the
shoots or roots of the potato ; it is to be met with only in the tubers,
around the eyes or points where the young sprouts are developed,
precisely as M. Payen has remarked, in the place where we should
conceive its presence to be necessary for effecting the solution of
the fecula. It is also found to exist in the bark and beneath the
buds of trees, always in contact with starch. f Diastase is gene-
rally obtained from malt, and when carefully prepared, its peculiar
power is such, that one part by weight is sufficient completely to
liquefy two thousand parts of starch. Diastase is solid, white, amor-
phous, insoluble in pure alcohol, soluble in water and weak alcohol
The solution very readily undergoes change ; it becomes acid, and
then no longer exerts any action on fecula. When dried, it keeps
much better ; still, at the end of two years, it seems to have lost its
distinguishing properties. Diastase has no action on vegetable tinc-
tures, on albumen, gluten, cane-sugar, gum-arabic, or the woody
fibre. That which more especially characterizes it, is its powerful
action on fecula ; it may be advantageously used to separate and
purify the preceding substances, when they are- mixed with starch.
The presence of diastase in malt explains the phenomenon of the
liquefaction of starch effected by the action of a small quantity of
that substance. This solution is not effected by gluten, nor by hor-
deine, as M. Dubrunfaut had imagined.

By the action of diastase, or of malted barley, the starch on being
liquefied is not entirely converted into sugar ; there are other dis-
tinct products to be considered in this change. The sirup ob-
tained by concentrating the liquefied starch, contains sugar capable
of undergoing the vinous fermentation, and a gummy matter, dextrine.
These two substances may be separated by means of dilute alcohol,
which dissolves the sugar and leaves the gum untouched. The
relative quantities of dextrine and sugar produced by the action of
diastase are variable, and depend both on the temperature at which
the process is conducted, and on the continuance of the reaction
In tlie first period of the process, the dextrine predominates ; but it
becomes less and less by degrees, and finally gives place to sugar.

M. Guerin ascertained a curious fact, which shows how the dias-
tase developed in plants may act on their starch : reaction takes
place even at ordinary temperatures. In one of M. Guerin's experi-

* Dubrunfaut, M6moires de la Soci6t6 Royale d' Agriculture, annee 1823, p. ^40.
t Payen and Persoz, Annales de Chiinie et de Physique, t. liii. p. Ti ' t. Ivi. p. 337
9e sirie.

8

BO f'HEMlCAL CONSTITUTION OF VEGETABLES.

ments, at a temperature no higher than 20° cent. (68° Fahr.) a quan-
tity of starch, at the end of twenty-four hours, was converted into
sirup, which yielded 77 per cent, of saccharine matter.*

Pure dextrine. M. Payen freed dextrine from the sugar which
usually accompanies it by precipitating a sirup of fecula previously
dissolved in dilute alcohol, by means of alcohol nearly free from wa-
ter. Dextrine well dried, and reduced to powder, has a specific
gravity of 1.51. The specific gravity of pure starch is 1.51, that ol
the sugar of starch 1.61.t

M. Payen found dextrine dried at a temperature of 212° Fahr. to
consist of —

Carbon 44.3

H y d rogen 6.0

Oxygen 49.7

100.0t

a composition identical with that of starch.

We have seen that water, acidulated with sulphuric acid, trans-
forms starch into sugar ; and that in this respect, the acid acts pre-
cisely in the same way as malted barley, like which, the acid first
causes the fecula to pass into the state of dextrine : by checking the
reaction at the proper moment, this substance may thus be obtained,
as was shown by Messrs. Biot and Persoz.^ When starch, for in-
stance, is triturated with concentrated sulphuric acid, if the mixture
be diluted with half its volume of water, and be left at rest for an
hour, alcohol will throw down almost the whole of the starch employ-
ed in the state of dextrine.

M. Payen has remarked that starch is never met with in the vege-
table tissues while in the rudimentary state ; the spongioles, the radi-
cles, the foliaceous buds, the interior of the ovules, contain none of it.
Nor is starch found in the epidermis, nor in the primary cells of the
subjacent tissues. This proximate principle seems to be exclu-
ded from those parts of vegetables that are more directly exposed to
atmospheric influences : it is only met at a certain depth ; and the
globules which constitute starch increase in number and in size in
the cells most remote from the surface. The subterraneous organs
of plants, — certain bulbs, most tubers, abound in amylaceous matter.
It might be maintained that light modified this substance, at the very
moment that it was subjected to the vital influence, and that it was
only preserved in the dark.

On the globules of some species of fcEcula there is found a point
or hilum, which, according to some observers, serves to fix them to
the parietes of the cells which enclose them. It often happens,
nowever, that no hilum can be distinguished, even by the help of the
most powerful microscopes; to render it apparent, recourse must be
had to desiccation, which, by causing the globular mass to shrink,
allows the part carrying the hilum to project, by reason of its

• Gu^rin, Annates de Chlmle, t. Ix. p. 42, 3e 86rie.

i Payen, M6moires cit6s, p. 169. % Idem, p. 157

Biot and Tersoz, Annates de Chimie et de Physique, t. lii. p. 73, ~

INULINB. 87

•tronger cohesion. M. Payen does not regard the hilum as a point
of permanent attachment, connecting the grain of starch to the in-
terior wall of the cell. He considers it as the orifice of the duct by
wiiich growth is effected by intersusception. In support of this
view, M. Payen observes, that in a great number of vegetable cells,
especially in those of the potato, and of the rhizomas, the globules
of starch are developed in such quantity, that it is actually impossi-
ble that each of these should be united directly to the inner wall of
the cell.*

INULINE.

This substance, discovered by Rose in the Inula helenium, pre-
sents certain analogies with starch. It forms the greater part of
the solid matter of the tubers of the Jerusalem Artichoke and
Dahlia, which do not contain starch. Inuline is dissolved in boiling
water ; on cooling it is deposited in globules, which, under the
microscope, appear diaphanous, adhering to one another like strings
of beads ; exposed to a temperature of 367° Fahr. it melts com-
pletely and acquires new properties, becoming soluble in cold water
and in alcohol. Inuline is transformed into dextrine and sugar by
the mineral acids ; but it possesses certain properties which show
it distinct from true starch. In the first place, it is not colored by
iodine ; and then acetic acid, which is without action on starch,
produces with inuline precisely the same effects as the sulphuric,
phosphoric, and hydrochloric acids ; finally, diastase, whose reaction
upon starch is so peculiar, so prompt, and so powerful, does not
cause any change in inuline. It is therefore easy to separate these
two substances when they are mingled, by treating the mixture
either with acetic acid, which dissolves the inuline, or with diastase,
which liquefies the starch. Inuline has been analyzed by M. Payen,
after having been dried at 253° Fahr. and having been melted at
367° Fahr. In both cases it has the same composition.

Carbon 46.6

Hydrogen 6.1

Oxygen 493

100.0

The composition here is obviously the same as that of starch and
dextrine.

OF WOODY MATTER AND CELLULAR TISSUE.

The most solid part of plants, thai which forms in some sort theb
skeleton, is the wood in trees, the woody fibre in herbaceous plants.
Woody fibre, as it used to be prepared and considered, viz. by the
reaction of certain agents which have the property of dissolving the
gummy, resinous, and saline substances which are commonly asso-
ciated vi'ith it, consists, in fact, of two substances, one the cellular
substance, constituting the tissue of wood and of all the organs of

♦ Payen, M6molres cit6s, p. 183.

88

CHEMICAL COXSTmrriON OF VEGETABLES.

plants, the other the woody substance, properly so called, filling,
and in some sort consolidating the cells. This distinction between
these two elements of wood was first made by M. Mohl ; but M.
Payen was the first who fixed the opinion of chemists and of vege-
table physiologists upon the true nature of these immediate princi-
ples.* By treating the vegetable tissue in its nascent and stili
gelatinous state — the unimpregnated kernel of the almond, of the
apricot tree, &c., the membranous matter of the cambium of the
cucumber, the spongioles of radicles, leaves, wood, &c. — with differ-
ent menstrua, M. Payen obtained the cellular tissue in the state of
purity, and having an elementary composition almost identical, from
whatever source derired ; a fact which may be seen from the fol-
lowing table, which gives the composition of cellular tissue from
different sources after having been dried at 352° Fahr.

Carbon.

Hydrogen.

Oxygen.

Ovules of the almond-tree .

43.6

6.1

50.3

'* of the apple and pear

44.7

6.1

49.2

" of the helianthus annuus .

44.1

6.2

49.7

Pith of the elder

43.4

6.0

50.6

Cotton

44.4

6.1

49.5

Endive

43.4

6.1

50.5

Banana ... . .

43.2

6.5

50.3

Leaves of the asrave ....

44.7

6.4

48.9

Cotton of the Virginian poplar

44.1

6.5

49.4

Heart of oak

44.5

6.0

49.5

Pine-tree

44.4

7.0

48.6

Peri sperm of the phytelaphas

44.1

6.3

49.6

Mushroom

44.5

6.7

48.8

The primary tissue, consequently, which constitutes the skeleton
of wood, is still isomeric or identical in elementary composition with
starch. With mineral acids the cellular tissue further undergoes
changes which assimilate it with starch ; for on treating it with sul-
phuric, acid it is changed into dextrine and sugar.

The composition of the cellular tissue differs considerably from
that of the woody fibre as it has hitherto been obtained after the
action of solvents, and been examined by preceding chemists.
Pure wood or woody tissue consists of the following proportions of
eie.nients :

* Dtunas, Compte* rendos, vol. viii. p. 53.

WOOD.

89

1
1

X

c

Authorities.

\Vo:,dy tissue of the oak

41.8

5.7

52.5

Gay-Lussac and Thenard.

" of the beech

42.1

5.8

51.5

<« «

" of the box

44.4

5.6

50.0

Prout.

« of the willow

44.6

5.6

49.8

((

" of the oak

49.7

6.0

44.3

((

" of the beech

44.3

6.0

49.7

Payen.

" of the aspen

44.5

6.1

49.4

<t

Wood in the natural state :

45.6

6.4

48.0

((

" of the oak

39.4

6.2

54.4

K

" of the beech

39.3

6.3

54.4

((

" of the herminiera

46.9

5.3

47.2

{(

From these analyses it appears that wood in the natural state
contains more carbon than woody tissue obtained in the way of puri-
fication, and that this latter substance is also richer in carbon than
the cellular tissue which necessarily forms part of it. In the
purified woody tissue, therefore, the cellular tissue is associated with
the principle which fills its cells, or which incrusls it, and it is
to this matter that M. Payen has applied the name of incrusting
matter ; it is wood properly so called ; it is that which gives to
wood its hardness, its tenacity ; it predominates in hard wood and in
knots ; it corresponds with the duramen of physiologists ; it consti-
tutes almost the whole of the hard particles which are met with in
woody pears and in cork, and which are hard enough to blunt well-
tempered steel instruments. As this incrusting matter is friable, in
many instances it may be pulverized and separated from the tissue
which surrounds it, this last tearing or yielding in shreds under the
pestle. By means of the sieve the incrusting matter may in this
simple way be obtained nearly in a state of purity. The analysis
of M. Payen shows it to consist of : —

Carbon 53.8

Hydrogen 6.0

Oxygen 40.2

100.0

Deducting resinous matters susceptible of solution in alcohol or
ether, and of gummy and other substances which are soluble in water,
the tissues of vegetables must consequently possess an elemeiitary
composition which varies between that of the cellular tissue and
that of the incrusting matter ; these are the extreme terms, and the
entire composition of the mixed tissues will be by so much the richer-
in carbon as they contain less cellular tissue. The incrusting mut-
ter being soluble in alkaline leys, it was by treating wood with solu-
tions of soda and potash that M. Payen succeeded in obtaining the
cellular tissue, which is much less susceptible of the action of thesa

8»

90 CHEMICAL CONSTITUTION OF VEGETABLES.

agents. But treatment of different kinds, which it is not necessary
to enter upon in this place, is required to procure the substance in a
state of perfect purity.*

The facts which have just been exposed, in regard to the chemi-
cal composition of wood, corroborate the observations of physiolo-
gists. We now understand much better than we did formerly the
changes which the cells of vegetables experience as they grow and
become aged : it is by the appearance of the incrusting woody mat-
ter that their walls, thin, transparent, and colorless at first, get thick,
become opaque, and acquire consistence. By means of the dissec-
tions effected by M. Payen with the aid of purely chemical means,
we may obtain assurance that the tissues of all vegetables, whether
phoenogamous or cryptogamous, may be reduced to a single substance,
cellular tissue, having an invariable composition, and forming the
vesicles or bladders of the cellular mass of plants.

This matter exists nearly in an isolated state in the thick walls of
the cells of the perisperms of various seeds, those of the date for
example. From the microscopic researches of M. Payen and A.
Brongniart, it appears that the matter which is added to the young
cells is not deposited upon the inner surface of their walls, but that
it penetrates and insinuates itself into their tissue. The relation of
the cellular to the woody matter in the development of the walls of
cells varies very much, some perisperms containing nothing but pure
cellular tissue, while the stony concretions of the pear and of cork
consist almost entirely of incrusting woody matter.

Wood, in the general acceptation of the word, is the solid part of
the trunk and branches ; the properties and aptitudes of the substance
vary greatly, according to the plant which has produced it. Wood
is of higher density than water, and if it floats in this fluid it is only
because of the air with which its pores are filled. Saw-dust, chips,
and larger pieces of wood sink when the air which they contain is
expelled and replaced by water. The specific gravity of the white
woods, such as those of the willow and pine, is about 1.46, that of
the heaviest woods, such as those of the oak and the beech, 1.53.

DENSITY or DIFFERENT KINDS OF WOOD ACCORDINO TO BRI8S0N.

Pomegranate 1.35

Guaiac, Ebony 1.33

Box 1.32

Oak of 60 years old, the heart. .. 1.17

Medlar 0.94

Olive 0.92

Spanish Mulberry . 0.89

Orange 0.70

Quince 0.70

Elm, the trunk 0.67

Walnut 0.67

Pear 0.66

Spanish Cypress 0.64

Lime 0.60

Beech 0.85 i Hazel 0.60

Ash 0.84 Willow 0-53

Hornbeam 0.80 Thuya 0..56

Yew 0.80 I Pine 0-55

Apple 0-79 1 Spanish white poplai 0.52

Plum o.:

Maple 0.75

Cherry 0.75

Pine 0.49

Poplar 0.38

Cork 0.24

* For an account of these, see Payen in proceedings of the Academy of Science^
voL viL p. 1055.

WOOD. 01

It must not be forgotten, however, that age, climate, and soil ex-
ert a marked influence upon the specific gravity of the same species
of wood.

Wood, according to the use for which it is intended, is distinguished
into fire-wood, building timber, and dye-wood. When first cut down,
all timber contains a considerable quantity of water ; 100 parts of
walnut-tree dried at 212" Fahr. lost 37.5 parts by weight ; of white
oak, 41 parts ; of maple, 48. On an average, the quantity of water
contained in green wood may be estimated at about 40 per cent. ;
and drying or seasoning for eight or ten months >ill not cause the
loss of more than about 25 per cent of water. The wood which is
used for burning almost always contains about a quarter of its weight
of moisture, which not only does not assist in producing heat, but
actually dissipates a great deal during its conversion into vapor. It
is, therefore, highly advantageous in all operations where wood is
the fuel, only to employ that which is thoroughly dry. So well is
this fact ascertained, that in some manufactories the wood is previ-
ously dried in stoves before being consumed in the furnace.

The composition of woody matter may be represented by carbon
and water : of carbon the mean may be stated at 52, of hydrogen
and oxygen, in the proportions which form water, at 48. The defi-
nitive products of its combustion ought consequently to be carbonic
acid and water. The heat disengaged during this combustion, neces-
sarily proceeds from the union of the combustible elements of the
wood with the oxygen of the atmosphere. But in this particular
case, the hydrogen being already present with the proportion of oxy-
gen required for its combustion, it may be regarded as already
burned, the state of condensation in which the oxygen exists being
considered. The heat produced by the wood, tl>«refore, depends
solely on the quantity of carbon which it contains.

Natural philosophers in France agree in designating as unity, in
reference to caloric, the quantity of heat necessary to raise a kilo-
gramme, or 2.2 lbs. avoirdupois of water, one degree of the centi-
grade thermometer, (r.8 F.) The following table, by Rumford.
is intended to show the different calorific or heating powers of dif-
ferent kinds of wood, and its interpretation is this : since 1 kilo-
gramme or 2.2 lbs. avoird. of lime-tree gave out 3460 units of heat,
it follows that this quantity of the combustible would suffice to raise
by 1 degree centigrade, (T.SF.,) for example, from 10° to IT cent.
3460 kilogrammes, or 7612 lbs. avoirdupois of water.

•2

CHEMICAL CONSTITUTION OF VEGETABLES.

Kinds of wood.

Units of heat
evolved.

Lime-tree, dry

3460

The same, thoroughly stove dried

3960

Beech, dry, four years seasoned

3375

The same, well dried in a stove

3630

Elm, from four to five years seasoned .

3037

Oalc, fire-wood

3550

Ash, dry ......

3075

Wild cherry . .

3375

Fir, dry . . ...

3037

The same, well dried in a stove .

3750

Poplar, seasoned

3450

The same, well dried in a stove

3712

Hornbeam

3187

Oak, dry

3300

From the experiments of Clement, it appears that the heating
power of charcoal is equal to 7050 units. Dry wood containing, as
we have seen, 52 per cent, of charcoal, its heating power has been
deduced theoretically, as equal to 3666. Mr. Marcus Bull in Amer-
ica, made a series of experiments to determine the relative quantities
of heat given out by different kinds of wood, from which M. Peclet
has been led to conclude that the same weight of dry wood of every
kind has the same heating power, and that this for a kilogramme,
or 2.2 lbs. avoird. of wood dried by artificial means, is equal to 3500
units, while the same quantity of the same wood having been cut
and seasoned during from ten to twelve months, and containing from
20 to 25 percent, of water, is no higher than about 260 units.

By way of comparison, I shall here add the heating power of the
several combustibles in general use, in contrast with that of wood :

1 kilogrm. or 2.2 lbs. avoird. of wood-charcoal produces 7226 units of heat.

" coal 6000 "

" " peat 3005 "

" " peat charcoal 6400 "

Although the same quantities of wood, brought to the same degree
of dryness, appear to have the same absolute calorific power, all are
not alike adapted to the same purposes. Hard woods burn slowly,
and give out less heat in a certain time than the less compact kinds
of wood. This is the reason why fir is preferred to oak in furnaces
where the object is to obtain the most intense heats. It were for-
eign to our object to enter upon any consideration of the various
qualities, or of the adaptation to particular uses, of different species
of limber. I may, however, add a table of the ordinary dimensions
of well-grown trees of different kinda, such as are cojuixionly found
iu these countries .

TREES.

93

Trees.

Usual height of

Usual

Trunk.

Diameter.

Feet.

Inches.

The spruce fir

Larch

26 to 100

>

47.1
39.3

Poplar

19 " 65

31.8

Pine . ...

16 « 65

34.1

Plane . .

36.1

Oak, Elm . ...

31.4

Birch . ....

29.4

Beech

- 16 « 48

28.2

Lime .....

25.9

Ash

23.5

Willow

11.7

Chestnut ... . .

13 " 48

36.1

Chestnut (another variety)

28.2

Maple

10 « 48

28.2

Service

13 " 39

17.6

Acacia

13 « 26

19.2

Hornbeam .

i

21.2

Mulberry ....

• 10 « 23

16.5

Wild Pear

S

14.1

Crab . . . .

6 " 20

12.9

Walnut

6 " 16

36.1

These may be taken as the measurement of trees at their full
growth, and fit for felling. The soil being of the same quality, the
dimensions of trees depend especially upon their age ; individual
trees of the same species, however, occasionally acquire extraor-
dinary dimensions.

Every one must have noticed the rapidity with which young trees
grow ; but is the growth the same for every period of the existence
of trees, or do they attain a certain determinate size like animals,
and then cease from further increase ? We have found that in
those climates where vegetation is suspended for a portion of the
year, the increase in the diameter of trees takes place periodically
by the addition of a concentric layer of woody tissue ; so that it is
possible to determine the age of a dicotyledonous tree by the number
of its concentric rings, counted at the bottom of the trunk. With a
view to ascertain the amount of increase in the woody layers at dif-
ferent periods of vegetable life, De Candolle measured their thick-
ness, and found that if the annual increase presented a certain re-
gularity, it was still very far from being absolute even in the case
of a single species. The oak especially offered striking anomalies ;
thus a trunk which had grown slowly in diameter was found to have
increased more rapidly as it got older. He found young trees ol
the same species, the growth of which, very slow at first, by and
Dy became accelerated, and then fell off in a third period of their
existence. From the whole of his observations, De Candolle 900-

04 TREES— TIMBER.

eludes that the growth of our common European trees having gone
on with a certain rapidity to the age of from about fifty to seventy
years, then became slower, but continued regular to extreme age.
The inequalities of growth, conspicuous in the different thicknesses
of different rings, he thinks are mainly due to the kind of soil which
the mass of the roots encountered in their progress, or to the re-
moval of other trees which grew in the vicinity. The diminished
thickness of the rings, after trees have passed a certain age, he
ascribes to the depth to which the roots have now penetrated, and
their consequent remoteness from the air ; and further, to the resist-
ance opposed to the expansion of the trunk by the bark, which has
now become thick, hard, and unyielding. Mr. Knight found that
old pear-trees, relieved of their outer bark, formed more wood in a
couple of summers afterwards, than they had made in the twenty
years that preceded the operation.*

The forests of intertropical countries produce a vast number of
gigantic trees, many of which might doubtless be turned to excellent
use ; but the information we have on the trees of these latitudes is
very imperfect. In New Granada, the wood which is known undei
the name of wood of St. Martha, {astroneum graveolens ?) is fre
quently employed for building purposes as well as for making furni-
ture. It is very hard, and more beautiful than mahogany, its color
being deeper. M. Goudot measured a tree of this kind, which was
1.6 metre or nearly 4^ feet in diameter, including the alburnum, and
had 32 centimetres or upwards of 18 inches of heart- wood. Belfries
having supports of this wood are met with, which have stood for
more than a century exposed to all the inclemencies of the weather.
This tree grows in the dry soils of the hottest regions of South
America, and seldom at an elevation of more than about fifteen hun-
dred feet above the level of the sea.

Cedar {cedrela odorata) is never attacked by insects, doubtless
because of its aromatic odor ; this valuable property makes it in-
valuable as building timber. The tree attains to large dimensions.
M. Goudot measured one in the forest of Quindiu in South America,
which was upwards of 150 feet in height by more than Q\ feet in
diameter. It grows freely through a zone of considerable "breadth,
from a height of about 3280 to 6560 feet above the level of the sea,
a circumstance which, according to my own observations, would in-
dicate the extreme temperature of the district which it inhabits to
be between 66° and 76° Fahr.

There are several other beautiful and useful timber trees of the
Cordilleras — the Nogal {juglans . . .?) which grows between 0500
and 9800 feeta?bove the sea line ; the escoho, the pino {taxus montana
Willd.) whose region lies between the 2.800 and 11.400 feet of eW-
vation ; the arayan and the guayacan, — all are serviceable in one
direction or another. The caracoli {anacardium caracoli) and the
fig {Ignerones) are trees which attain to extraordinary sizes, and
ftffoid light woods that prove useful in various circumstances. Uc«

• D« CandoUe, Veuetablc Physiology, p. 975.

TREES ^TIMBEX. 05

let the tropics, indeed, the trees generally exhibit a luxuriance of
vegetation which strikes European travellers with amazement ; M.
Goudot, for example, measured a bomhax (B pentandrum) no more
than sixty years old, the trunk of which was 8 metres or 26} feet
in circumference, and whose boughs covered a circular area of 39
metres or 120 feet in diameter.

There is a beautiful tree which grows in the valleys of Arragua
in Venezuela, the Zamang, a species of mimosa, according to Hum-
boldt, one of whicb, in particular, is greatly celebrated, and under
the shade of which I rested on the 24th of January, 1823. This
magnificent tree is to be distinguished at the distance of a league ;
its branches form a hemispherical crown of 187 metres or 613 feet
in circumference, extending like a vast umbrella, the points ap-
proaching to within from 10 to 16 or 18 feet of the ground. The
trunk of this extraordinary tree is nearly 65 feet in height and up-
wards of 9^ feet in diameter. This tree is an object of veneration
with the Indians. It does not seem to have altered in its appear-
ance since it was first particularly noticed ; the earliest conquerors
of Venezuela seem to have met with it in the same state as it is at
the present time. When Himiboldt measured the Zamang de Tur-
mero, its branches on one side were entirely stripped of their leaves.
Twenty years afterwards 1 found it green in every part; but the
leaves and branches with the southern aspect were not so numerous
nor so vigorous as the others.

The dragon-tree of Orotava in the Island of Teneriffe is one of
the oldest vegetable monuments of the present world. Humboldt
gives it a diameter of 17 feet, and its height, as stated by M. Ledru,
is upwards of 65 feet. When Teneriffe was discovered in 1402,
this tree appears to have had the same dimensions which it presents
at the present time.

The mahogany {cedrela mahogani) is a very long-lived tree. In
J..\maica it sometimes acquires a diameter of upwards of 6 feet, and
Sir W. J. Hooker has calculated that two centuries at least are re-
quired to supply timber of the large scantling which we constantly
see in the yards of our timber merchants and cabinet-makers.

The Hi/mencea cnurbaril, one of the largest trees of the Antilles,
yields, like mahogany, a timber that is hard and in great request
among cabinet-makers and inlayers. It sometimes grows to 19 feet
in diameter.

The Baobab {Adansonia digitata) lives for centuries, and acquires
extraordinary dimensions. Adanson saw one in the Cape de Verdes,
in the trunk of which an inscription was found, which was covered
by three hundred layers of wood ; it had been cut by two English
travellers three centuries before. From positive observations col-
lected by Adanson, a table has been constructed to show the pro-
gress and probable age of the baobab :

96 SIZE AND LONGEVITY OP TREES.

Age of the Baobab.

Diameter of the Trunk.

Height.

1 year,

0.10 feet

5.25 feet

20

1.04

16.40

30

2.41

23.30

100

a.84

30.84

1000

14.76

61.68

2400

19.03

68.24

5150

31.99

76.76

De Candolle has remarked that this longevity of the baobab ia
made the more surprising by the softness and liability of its wood to
decay. But again, it must be considered that the great diameter of
the trunk, in relation to the height, gives the tree a stability which
is possessed by no other — by enabling it to resist violent gales of
wind.

It strikes me that there may very well be some mistake in Adan-
son's estimates of the age of the baobab. When we see such irregu-
larity in the growth of trees of the same species planted in the same
soil, little reliance can be placed on any deductions drawn from the
size of the trunk when the concentric rings cannot be counted. In
proof of this I here give the measurements of two baobabs planted in
1821 in the Botanical Garden of French Guiana. In 1842 these
trees were found : —

feet. feet.

No. 1. Length of stem from ground Diameter of the base 5.41

to first branches 7.70 Do. at origin of branches 4.23

«„ o Tv> QQR Diameter of base 2.63

"°-'*'^^ • ^'^ Do. at origin of branches 1.48

In the tree No. 2 the branches were puny and nowise in relation
with the size of the trunk.

The bald cypress {taxodium distichum) is a tree that is very
abundant in Mexico, and in the southern parts of the United States.
At Chapultepec there is one of these trees called the cypress of Mon-
tezuma, which tradition says flourished in the reign of that prince.
In 1831 the tree was still vigorous, and its trunk was 41 feet in cir-
cumference. There is another cypress near Oaxaca, under the
shade of which Fernando Cortez is still reported to have rested ; the
trunk of this tree is upwards of 39 feet in circumference, and it is
105 feet in heiglit. Michaux measured several taxodiums in the
Floridas which approached these two in their dimensions.

We have only uncertain data in regard to the age which palms
may attain to ; their sizes, however, are well known. In Egypt,
according to M. Delille, the date-trees are generally about 65 feet in
height. In the Andes of Quindiu several ceroxylons were measured,
the trunks of which were from 195 to 230 feet in height ! Martius
assigns the following as the extreme dimensions of the palms of the
Brazil-s : from 75 to 127 or 128 feet in height, by a diameter of from
6 to about 12^ inches.

Among several palms {arica oleacera) planted in the Botanical
Garden of Cayenne in 1821, the tallest twenty years afterwards was

SIZE AND LONGEVITY OF TREES. 97

i8 feet from the ground to the bottom of the crown, and 3 feet 6^
inches in circumference at the base ; at 6;^ feet from the surface of
the ground the circumference was only 2 feet 1 inch, and a small
fraction. As the palms and baobabs will be carefully protected in the
Botanical Garden of Cayenne, an opportunity wiL je afforded future
observers of following these plants in their growth, with a perfect
assurance of being correct as to their age.

Particular trees of different kinds have occasionally acquired re-
markable dimensions and lived to great ages in Europe. An elm is
mentioned which grew on the promenade of Morges, the age of which,
reckoned from the number of concentric layers, must have been
three hundred and thirty-five years ; its trunk was above 18 feet in
diameter. The lime is another tree which in temperate countries
sometimes grows to a great size. The one planted at Freiburg to
commemorate the victory of Morat in 1476, in 1831 was 14i feet in
diameter. Near the same place there is another tree of the same
kind which must be older than the last, inasmuch as it was already
celebrated for its size a century ago ; in 1831 this tree was upwards
of 36 feet in circumference, and about 72 feet in height. The
lime-tree of Neustadt is scarcely less curious for its size and the
immense spread of its branches than for the historical circumstances
connected with it. Looking back to old documents, this tree must
already have been of great size in 1229 ; in a poem written in 1408
we are told that this tree was then supported by sixty-seven props ;
in 1654 it had eighty-two stone pillars to support its branches, and
in 1831 the number had increased to one hundred and six. The cir-
cumference of the trunk at 6^ feet from the ground measured very
nearly 39 feet. An old measurement made one hundred and fifty
years before corresponds very nearly with this, a fact which shows
that in the course of a century and a half the trunk of the lime-tree
of Neustadt had not grown perceptibly. It is said to be from seven
to eight hundred years old. The old lime-tree of Chaille in 1801
was upwards of 49 feet in circumference.

The beech grows rapidly while young ; but in more advanced age
with extreme slowness. In 1818 Deluc saw several beeches near
Geneva, the trunk of which was from 14 to 16 feet in diameter.

De Candolle measured a larch two hundred and fifty-five years
old, the trunk of which was upwards of 5f feet (5.84 ft.) in diame-
ter ; and a larch of no move than fifty-four years growth has been
measured which was more than 3| feet in diameter.

The celebrated chestnut-tree of Mount Etna has been stated to be
upwards of 206^ feet in girth, (about 68 feet in diameter,) an-i must
therefore be the largest tree described up to the present time ; but
the tree has been supposed to be formed by several trunks springing
from a common root which have grown together. Other remarka-
ble chestnut-trees are mentioned.

The plane is one of the largest growing trees of temperate coun-
tries. A traveller, who visited the valley of Bujukdere, near Con-
stantinople, met with a plane upwards of 95 feet in height, and the
trunk of which, hollow internally down to the levpl of the ground,

9

98 SIZE AND LONGEVITY OF TREES.

«ras more than 154 feet in circumference. A plaae-tree, which
grew in Norfolk, and was of the age of thirty-one years, was T{
feet in circumference, according to Hunter. Cypress-trees often
attain to a very great age. In the garden of the palace of Grenada
there is one which has stood for more than three centuries. iVt La
Somma, near Milan, a cypress is shown which in 1794 was 17 feet
in circumference,*

Tradition has it that an orange-tree of the convent of St. Sabina
at Rome, was planted by St. Dominic in the year 1200 ; this tree
still exists. The orange-tree of Versailles, known under the name of
the Francis /., is rather more than three hundred years old. In 1804,
orange-trees were shown in the green-houses of Bonn three centu-
ries old, and of which the trunks were more than 30 inches in cir-
cumference.! In South America I had myself occasion to observe
citron-trees of great age and of very considerable dimensions ; the
trunks of several of these trees were nearly 27| inches in diameter.

A sycamore-tree of the village of Trons, in the Grisons, more
than five hundred years old, is at this time between 8 and 9 feet in
diameter.

Many oaks have been described which had survived from eight
hundred to one thousand years. Hunter saw one of these trees still
extremely vigorous which was IH feet in diameter. Evelyn, who,
in his delightful work entitled Sylva, has given a list of the largest
oaks known in his day in England, speaks of one growing in Wel-
beck Lane which must have been eight hundred and sixty years old
at least, and the diameter of whose trunk at the base was upwards
of 12| feet.

The olive is one of the trees that reaches a great age ; Picconi
describes one of about seven centuries, and a circumference of about
25 feet.

The cedar of Lebanon grows vigorously and long, especially in
soils that are sufficiently loose and permeable. According to M.
Paul Vibray, of Sologne, the growth of this tree is more rapid than
that of the coniferi in general. The cedars which grew on Mount
Lebanon, and were measured by Nauwolff in 1574, and again by
Labillardiere in 1787, are generally allowed to be about the age of
one thousand years. De Candolle, however, thinks that this age is
exaggerated, and in contradiction with observations made on troes,
the age of which is positively known. The following are a few of
the measurements which have been reported by different observers

An. feet circiimrer. Obwrrtrs.

CedRr of Chelsea 83 12

" olPHris 40 7 Thou.n.

" nl'ditio 83 9.4 Loiseletf

" Environs of London 200 16 Hunter

" Ditto 113 14 Ditto.

*♦ of Mount l^sbanun 600 36.4 MaundreL

" ofSologne 30 5 ofVit«y

Tbe yew, as is well known, produces a very hard, close, and e»

• De C&ndoUe, Physiolosie, p. 9M. t Ibid. p. SOB.

AGE FOR FELLING. 90

during wood, qualities which contribute greatly to the longevity of
trees. Some of the oldest trees known have been yews. Here are
a few that have been particularly described :

Where they ^ow. Probable tige. Circumference. Observeri.

County of York 1220 28.25 Pennant

Ditto 1220 13.85 Ditto.

County of Surrey 1287 30.12 Evelyn.

Fotheringal (Scotland) 2580 62-34 Pennant,

CountyofKent 2800 62.60 Evelyn.

According to Duhamel it is extremely difficult to fix upon any age
as the best in a general way for felling trees, with a view to ob-
taining the largest quantity of sound available timber. When the
tree is too young, the timber has not all the excellence which it
would have gained with greater age ; when too old, the pores are
obstructed, and it has begun to decay in the parts of oldest forma-
tion, so that it is not uncommon to find wood in the centre of the
trunk which is lighter than that of the circumference. In trees
which have already fallen into a certain state of decay, the worst
timber in them is decidedly that which is taken from the centre at
the base of the trunk ; and, indeed, the wood of the centre generally
is then of inferior quality to that of more recent formation. Very
aged timber always perishes first in those parts which have formed
the most internal layers of the tree. It is, therefore, an obvious and
grave error to suffer any tree to stand that has given the slightest
indications of decay, inasmuch as that which is ordinarily the most
valuable limber is likely to be altogether lost. Neither the age nor
the dimensions are always the indications of the proper period for
felling trees ; exposure, soil, situation, have immense influence upon
their growth, vigor, and general qualities. Trees ought to be cut
just when they are on the turn ; the proper moment is that which
precedes immediately the alteration of the heart; and although the
destructive eflfects of age are principally felt in the interior, this in-
testine disorder is nevertheless proclaimed externally ; the whole
tree suffers when it has taken place.*

Duhamel has given the following characters, as indicating in-
cipient decay, or decline of vigor in trees :t

1. A tree, the top of which forms one uniform rounded mass, is
not strong ; a vigorous tree always throws out certain branches
which surpass the others in luxuriance of growth,

2. When a tree comes into leaf prematurely in the spring, and
particularly when the leaves turn, and fall prematurely in the autumn,
it is a certain sign of weakness.

3. When several of the top or leading branches of a tree die,
even at their mere extremities, the wood in the centre is beginning
to undergo alteration.

4. When the bark quits the trunk, or becomes cracked here and
there, we may be satisfied that the tree is far gone internally.

5. Mosses, lichens, and funguses growing upon the bark, and red

* Duhamel, Exploit, des bois, t. i. p. 126. t Idem, 1. 1, p. 133^

idO SEASON FOR FELLING.

or black spots appearing upon it, always lead to a suspicion of change
in thf; wood.

6. When the sap is observed to flow from crevices in the bark,
the death of the tree is at hand.

In I'rance, the cutting dowr of the smaller wood, such as is used
for firing, takes place at from twenty to thirty years ; in the forests,
the trees are commonly felled at from one hundred to one hundred
and thirty years old, and a few trees are generally left as reserves,
and for special purposes, till they have attained the age of from two
hundred to two hundred and fifty years.

The prevalent opinion among foresters, with regard to the proper
season for felling, is, thLt it should be done when the sap is in the
state of greatest repose, or when it is present in least quantity in the
trees. The season fixed by the old law of France (1669) was from
October to March inclusive. But the experiments of Duhamel tend
to show that this is not actually the season when trees contain the
smallest proportion of sap, and that fellings made at other times of
the year have had very satisfactory results. All things well weighed,
says the illustrious cultivator, our only safe guide in such matters is
observation ; and from numerous experiments he concluded that
there was actually as much sap in trees in winter as in summer, and
that the spring and summer were the seasons most favorable for the
speedy drying of the timber. Trees felled in summer were even
found by Duhamel to yield timber which stood better and lasted
longer than those that were cut down in winter ; while he found the
wood of equal strength in either case. He concluded, therefore,
that the season of the year at which timber was felled, had no in-
fluence upon its quality or durability.*

There is, in fact, no general rule observed in different countries
as to the period at which timber is felled. The French still go on
cutting from October to March ; the English fell in the winter.
Convenience of different descriptions appears often to decide the
question as to season. In order to procure bark for the tanneries,
an act was passed by the English Parliament in 1603, prohibiting
all felling of oak timber during the dead season, the penalty for in-
fringement of the act being confiscation of the timber felled, or fine
to the amount of twice its value. An exception, however, was still
made in regard to timber destined for the public service in ship-
building, &c. The price of bark afterwards rose to such a height,
that it was found most profitable to cut in the spring ; and the prac-
tice then became so general, that it by and by became necessary to
offer premiums to induce proprietors of oak forests to fell timber in
the winter season, for the sake of the British navy. The inhabitants
of the county of Stafford appear at a somewhat early period to have
sought to combine the advantages of the bark trade, with a fulfil-
ment of the conditions that entitled them to the premium on winter-
felled timber : they stripped the trees of their bark in the spring,
and felled them the following winter. And Buffbn and Duhame.

♦ Dnhamel, op. cit., t, i. p. 400

INFLUENCE OF SOIL ON TIMBER. 101

ihowed subsequently, that by barking trees two or even three years
before cutting them down, the white external wood could be render-
ed nearly as hard and durable as the heart- wood of the tree. The
iccommendation of this procedure by these two distinguished men
has not been followed in France ; but ever since 1770 the Dutch
have adopted it, and it is now practised in many parts of England,
particularly in the royal forests.

It is quite certain that the nature of the soil exerts a considerable
influence on the rapidity of growth and quality of the timber. The
oak, the elm, &c., which have been grown in a damp soil, will not
be so hard and compact as the same trees reared on a dry plot.
Duhamel found, that although the trees which came in swampy bot-
toms were very sappy and wet, they were still lighter than others
of the same kind which had grown on a dry bank. Their white
wood is thick in comparison with their hard wood ; they are brittle,
and do not readily take or keep the shapes into which they are bent
for ship-bu'lding or for staves ; and then their pores being large and
open, and the whole wood being without that kind of varnish which
impregnates good timber, they are readily permeable and unfit for
the manufacture of vats, &c. — to say nothing of their being much
more perishable. Such soft and porous timber is altogether im-
proper for out-of-door constructions and for ship-building ; but it
answers extremely well for indoor and cabinet work ; for the latter
it has even certain advantages, it is easily wrought ; and once fairly
seasoned, it is neither so apt to warp nor to crack as harder wood.
It was very probably to guard against any excess of sap in trees, so
prejudicial in a general way to the timber they yield, that the Ro-
mans, according to Vitruvius, surrounded those that were destined to
be cut down with a trench six months beforehand.*

Trees which have grown in a good soil sufficiently drained have
a fine bark, and their white wood is moderate or small in quantity.
Their woody layers, indeed, are apt to be thinner generally, than
those of trees that have grown in a wet soil ; but they are much
harder and tougher, their grain is more even and close, and their
pores are filled with an incrusting matter. They are consequently
very heavy, even when thoroughly dry, and with time and due
seasoning they become extremely hard, and in the same degree
acquire durability. Duhamel was led by his experiments to conclude
that the difference in point of density of timber grown in a marshy
soil, and in one that was well drained and dry, was occasionally in
the ratio of five to seven.

The denser, dry-grown timber supports a relatively much greater
weight without breaking than the marsh-grown timber ; and when
it does yield, it gives way by a large and splintering surface, while
the softer, less dense wood snaps off short. In brief, there is na
question as to which kind of timber is the most valuable ; and meas-
ures ought to be taken by landed proprietors and timber-growers at
all times, not merely to grow trees, but to grow them under such cir-

* Duhamel, Expl. de-^ bois t. i. p 46.
9*

102 SEASONINO.

cumstances as shall ensure their yielding good available timber when
they have come to maturity.

If wet soils then be uniavorable to the growth of timber of the
highest value, in ship-building especially, what has been said must
be taken as of application to those trees only which will grow in a
great variety of soils. Damp and even marshy lands are well known
to be favorable and even indispensable to certain trees, which, by
their nature, delight in the neighborhood of water ; but these are
generally kinds which are rather sought after for their height and
lightness, than for their strength and durability.*

Excessively dry soils, on the other hand, have also their disad-
vantages for forest cultivation. In such ground, trees seldom ac-
quire a sufficient growth to admit of their being applied to any im-
portant purpose. It is certain, however, that absolute uniformity is
never encountered in any piece of timber. The woody layers that
have been formed in a wet or a dry year, in a warm or a cold year,
feel and manifest the effects of the varying meteorological influences.
They are of different thicknesses and densities, and, when carefully
examined, are found to present the characters of the timber grown in
soils of the most opposite description in point of wetness and dry-
ness.f

The treatment of trees after they are felled, the drying and sea-
soning of the timber, are points of the highest importance. Standing
trees contain a large quantity of water in their composition. After
being cut down the moisture is dissipated, rapidly at first, much
more slowly afterwards. This drying process is, of course, favored
or retarded by the varying states of heat and moistness of the atmo-
sphere. At length there comes a time when the wood no longer
suffers any sensible change by longer exposure to the air ; or if it
does, the change is now on the one side, now on the other, and
merely in harmony with the hygrometric state of the atmosphere.
Timber has then lost the whole of the moisture which it can get rid
of by this mode of drying ; it is now fit for use ; it is seasoned, to
use the technical expression.

Timber is sometimes seasoned by previous total immersion in
water. It has been held that this process favored the thorough dry-
ing, by dissolving out certain deliquescent salts which are found in
the sap, and prevented after-shrinking. However this may be, ii is
quite certain that in warm countries especially, it is advantageous to
sink fresh-cut timber in water, with a view to prevent it from split-
ting, apparently in consequence of drying too quickly. The old
Venetians sank for a season in the sea, the oak timber which was
destined for the construction of their galleys. Elm and beech, in
particular, are said to improve greatly by the process of submersion
in salt water, and to dry afterwards perfectly by simple exposure to
the air ;|:

* We believe, however, that the live-oak, of which the American navy Is con-
structed, and which supplies one of the most imperishable kinds of timber kuown
frow.s exclusively in swamps.— Eno. Ed

t Duhamel, t. i., p. 57.

i Knowlos, Maritime and ColooialAnnaU, 1885.

DECAY. 103

Mr. John Knowles, who made a particular study of the means
most generally employed in seasoning timber, has given an account
of a series of experiments undertaken in the arsenals of Deptford
and Woolwich, to determine the rate of drying and ultimate degree
of dryness attained by timber variousty treated — unprepared and
prepared by previous submersion in water. The pieces of timber
were placed vertically, now in the position they had occupied in
growing, now in that opposed to this ; and it was found that, circum-
stances the same, they dried more quickly in the former than .n the
latter. The general results of these experiments were as follows :
1st. That the pieces of timber were best seasoned by being kept
about thirty months in the air, but in the shade and protected from
wet. 2d. That they lost more of their original weight after six
months' alternate immersions and dryings, than by being kept under
water for six months and then dried. Ship-builders are generally
agreed that it is not expedient to make use of timber until three
years after it is cut.*

Duhamel advises strongly, that in ship-building all timber from
trees already on the decline should be rigorously rejected ; and this
the rather, that the most careful examination often fails at first to
perceive any alteration in the heart-wood of such trees, although it
never fails to show itself by and by at a sufficient interval after the
felling. This is undoubtedly a precept which it would be well to
bear constantly in mind ; but timber does not always carry within
itself the germs of its speedy decay ; and that which has been sea-
soned with the most scrupulous care, and was originally of the best
quality, does not escape the rot when it is placed under unfavorable
circumstances, any more than that which was of inferior worth and
less carefully treated.

Wood appears to perish or decay through three principal a d ap-
preciable causes, which all require similar conditions to con i into
play, viz., stagnant air, sufficient warmth, and moisture. Like the
generality of organic substances, wood, when moistened in contact
with the oxygen of the air, and under the influence of a sufficiently
high temperature, undergoes decomposition of a kind which has been
compared to a slow combustion, upon which we shall find occasion
to say more by and by. It is with a view to escape this kind of de-
cay as much as possible that timber is never, or ought never, to be
employed in the construction of ships and buildings until it has been
thoroughly seasoned.

Besides this first cause of decay, which may be prevented in a
great measure by using certain precautions, wood has still two re-
doubtable enemies, insects and certain plants of the family of the
cryptogamiae. In one case, the wood perishes because it is fed upon
by certain animals which live and grow at its expense ; in the other
it decays because it serves as the soil to one crop of fungus after
another which luxuriate on its surface, while their roots penetrate
deeply into its interior. There is nothing in either accident which

• Dapln, Ann. de CaUmie, t xvii. p^ S77.

104 DRY-ROT.

excites astonishment, now that we know the intimate coi.stitution
of wood. We know, in fact, that amon^ the number of sohible
principles which impregnate the woody tissue, there is an azotized
matter analogous in its composition to those that exist so abundantly
in all the ordinary esculent vegetables. There is, therefore, in wood
ample nourishment for the insects which we find living on it ; and
if I state now (reserving to myself the opportunity of demonstrating
the fact) that all organic azotized matter becomes an active manure
by decaying, we shall understand how it happens that plants, which
have the power of living in dark, warm, and damp places, wax and
multiply in the joistings of houses, and in the ribs and planks ol
hips, causing a dry rot, which separates the integral layers of the
wood, and reduces the strongest beams to dust.

The rapidity with which wood is, in some circumstances, devour-
ed by insects is almost incredible. Some years ago the thermites,
or white ants, spread in such strength through the docks and ar-
senals of Roehelle and Rochefort, that in a very short space of time
serious damage was done. A learned entomologist, M. Audouin,
commissioned by the ministry to take information on the subject,
reported that the ravages committed by these insects had been very
considerable. But it is principally in warmer climates, where the tem-
perature is steady throughout the year, and where there is no winter,
that the thermites occasion the most alarming injury. At Popayau,
for example, it is difficult to meet in a building, even of recent con«
struction, with a piece of wood which is not gnawed and ant-eaten.
The hardest and most compact woods do not always resist the at-
tacks of these insects, which, further, do not spare every kind of
odorous wood, cedar for instance. In such countries it is altogether
imp. ssible to preserve books and papers. I remember, in connec-
tion vith this matter, that having received instructions to examine
the archives of Anserma, one of the oldest towns in Popayan, in
1830, I found nothing but books illegible and in pieces ; neverthe-
less, the date of the documents, which it was my business to con^ult,
could not have been older than the year 1600.

The dry rot, which results from the development and growth of
cryptogamic plants upon wood, is the curse of navies. Mr. Knowles
is of opinion that this disease of timber has been known from the
most remote antiquity ; he believes that he can even recognise dry-
rot in the sore called house-leprosy, mentioned in the 14th chapter
of Leviticus. A ship attacked by dry-rot, becomes in a very short
space of time unfit for sea. The Foudroyant of 80 guns is often
quoted as an instance of its destructive powers : launched in 1798,
she had to be taken into dock and almost rebuilt so soon as 1802.*

The fungi which induce dry-rot have been studied by Sowerby.
Mr. Knowles signalizes two species in particular ; one of which he
describes under the name of Xylostroma giganteum, the other under
that of Boletus lacrymans. The Xylostroma does not extend beyond
the part where it is developed ; but the Boletus, on the coalrary, it

* Pupia, Ann. de Chimle, t. xvii. p. 290i

PRESERVATION OF TIMBER. 105

piDpagated with frightful rapidity, and disorganizes deeply and to a
great distance around the texture of the wood where it once appears
These fungi are generally found on board ship, between the planking
and the ribs, in damp situations, and where the air is scarcely, if
ever, changed.*

The temperature most favorable to the development of dry-rot has
been found to lie between T and 32" cent, or 45° and 90° F. These
are the extreme limits : below the minimum vegetation languishes ;
above the maximum, the fungi droop. With this piece of informa-
tion it was hoped that vessels might be freed from dry-rot by raising
the temperature sufficiently. The trials were made in winter in the
" Queen Charlotte," the air in the lower part of the ship being raised
as high as 55° cent, or 130° F. But the general result did not an-
swer expectations ; for although the fungi were destroyed in the low-
er part of the vessel, it was found that their growth was rather fa-
vored in places at a certain elevation above the kelson. The warm
air, in fact, as it rose through the timbers became robbed in its course,
and deposited the greater portion of the moisture which it had taken
up at a lower level. Above the orlop deck, consequently, there was
just about the temperature and the quantity of moisture most favora-
ble to the development of the fungi. The evil was therefore only
transplanted, not destroyed. It was now proposed to heat the
"'tween decks" at the same time as the hold, making use of due
ventilation ; but this method of p'-oceeding has not been put intp prac-
tice.

The extreme slowness of the growth of trees stands in strong con-
trast with the rapidity of their decay when they are reduced to the
shape of timber and employed in constructions of almost every kind.
In countries well advanced in civilization, every description of in-
dustry tends to consume timber, at the same time that an increas-
ing population is every day contracting the extent of forest land,
and diminishing the number of trees grown. In some countries, in-
deed, it is certain that the production of wood for all purposes, firing,
&c., &c., is no longer in relation with its consumption. The price
of the article, necessarily high, is therefore tending continually to
rise ; and it is not surprising that various measures have been sug-
gested and essayed of giving this perishable material greater dura-
bility.

The well-known great durability of certain trees, the teak, ebony,
lignum-vitae, &c., naturally led to the conclusion that the fatty or
resinous matters which they contain have the property of preserving
the wood against the greater number of the ordinary causes of de-
cay ; and unctuous and resinous matters appear in fact to have been
•he means most anciently employed to preserve wood from the air,
from moisture, and from the attacks of insects. But it is scarcely
necessary, at the present time, to say that these varnishes only ac-
complish the object proposed in their application in a very imperfect
wa^ ; paint and varnishes crack, rub, or scale off with the slightest

• Dupin, Ann. de Chimie et de Physique^ t. xvii. p. 291, tie »*ne.

106 PRESERV^ATION OF TLMBER.

friction ; nor do they always remove the causes of internal decay
on the contrary, by preventing- more complete dryness, they some-
times even provoke or favor them, when applied to tender, that is,
imperfectly seasoned wood. Merely laid on the surface, indeed, it
his always been seen that varnishes of any kind were but indifferen*
protectors ; that a really good preserver ought to penetrate the sub-
stance of ti..v3 wood, and unite with the tissue itself. But herein lay
the whole difficulty ; how was the needful penetration to be effected 1
for the number of chemical substances, from which good effects
might reasonably be anticipated, is pretty considerable, — unless in-
deed we find ourselves prevented from using them by the considera-
tion of the price ; for it is imperative that any preservative proposed
be extremely cheap.

For a long time the only process for effecting the penetration of
timber by substances proposed for its preservation was to macerate
them for a longer or shorter time in a solution of the substance.
But this means was found as tardy of accomplishment as it was or-
dinarily imperfectly effected ; to have got to the heart of logs of
large scantling, years would have been required. Any delay, how-
ever, in such circumstances, is of itself a cause of enhanced price
of the article. By and by a variety of processes, the element in one
being pressure, in another exhaustion, were put in practice, and very
satisfactory results obtained. M. Breant showed, that by means of
strong pressure he could fill the largest logs from one end to the
other with any unctuous or resinous substance proposed, in the course
of a few minutes. M. Moll, a learned German, proposed creosote
introduced in the state of vapor by forcing, as an effectual means of
preserving timber, which it probably would be found ; but the high
price of the antiseptic, were there no other objections, would neces-
sarily be an obstacle to its general employment. The same objection
applies to the bichloride of mercury, (Kyan's patent;) and arsenic is
inadvisable from its deleterious effects upon the animal economy.
Some workmen are said to have lost their lives in consequence of
working timber which had been impregnated with a solution of whit(»
oxide of arsenic.

It had been observed that vessels engaged in the lime-trade lasted
long ; and then it was naturally thought that by impregnating the
wood to be used for ship-building with lime it would be rendered
more durable. But the result did not answer expectation ; the tim-
ber treated with lime did not even seem to last the usual time.*

Such was the state of the question when Dr. Boucherie made a
highly important communication to the Royal Academy of Sciences
on the preservation of timber. f Some estimate of its nature may
be formed from the list of subjects discussed in this remarkable
paper.

1. To protect timber against dry-rot and the ordinary wet-rot

2. To increase its hardness and strength.

3. To ppjserve its flexibility and elasticity.

• Dupin, Ann. de Chlmle, t. xvil. p.28S
t Idem, t. Ixxiv. p. 113.

PRESERVATION OF TIMBER. 107

4. To counteract its alternate contraction and expansion in conse-
quence of the varying state of moisiness and temperature of the
atmosphere.

5. To diminish its inflammability and combustibility.

6. To give it a variety of permanent colors and odors.

In the whole of his experiments M. Boucherie set out from this
proposition, the truth of vv^hich appears indisputable and to require
no comment, viz : That all the changes which wood undergoes pro-
ceed or depend upon the soluble matters which it contains. In confor-
mity with this idea, the first step towards giving durability to timber
was, either to render these matters insoluble and inert, or to remove
them entirely. M. Boucherie, therefore, in his first trials sought to
render the matters insoluble by charging the wood with a substance
capable of combining chemically and forming a precipitate with the
soluble matter left by the sap. To resolve this problem, M. Boucherie
investigated the reactions between the soluble matter of wood, which
it was his object to precipitate, and a variety of low-priced chemical
agents. He found that the pyrolignite of iron combined the greatest
number of desirable properties : it is very cheap, the oxide of iron
forms stable compounds with the greatest number of the organic
substances which are found in the sap of vegetables, and, to conclude,
the crude pyrolignite contains a notable quantity of creosote.

The facts upon which M. Boucherie relies as proving the preser-
vative powers of the pyrolignite of iron flow from numerous experi-
ments performed either on vegetable substances which in themselves
readily and rapidly undergo changes ; or upon billets of wood of
diflferent kinds. A quantity of flour, the pulp of carrots, beet-roots,
&c., impregnated with the pyrolignite resist decomposition in a very
remarkable manner in contrast with the same substances when they
have not been prepared in any way.

The wood which was selected for trial, was generally of the most
perishable kind. In December, 1838, several empty hogsheads and
barrels made of the best timber unimpregnated and impregnated with
the pyrolignite were placed together in the dampest parts of the great
cellars of Bordeaux. In August, 1839, it was easy to see that the
unimpregnated tubs were already deeply stricken, and after from
two to three years they fell to pieces with the slightest force ; the
casks made of the prepared wood, however, were as sound as on
the first day of the experiment.*

M. Boucherie concluded from his experiments instituted with a
view to the settlement of the question, that about ^^'^th of the weight
of the wood in its green state of the pyrolignite was adequate to
precipitate and render insoluble all the principles obnoxious to change,
which were contained in the woody tissue.

M. Boucherie, while he regards the pyrolignite of iron as at once
the most powerful, and one of the cheapest preservatives of timber,
nevertheless indicates several soluble salts, which are readily avail-
able in consequence of their low price, and also very effectual when

* Comptes Resdas, t. ii. p. 8[«&

108 PRESERVATION OF TIMBER.

the wood, which they are to preserve, is not kept constantly wet.
Solutions of common salt, of chloride of lime, the mother-water ol
salt-marshes, &c., were all tried and found useful : casks, the wood
of which had been prepared with the chlorides, after having been
long kept in very damp cellars, came out as fresh as those which
had been impregnated with the pyrolignite of iron ; the flexibility of
the wood preserved with these alkaline and earthy salts was further
as CTreat as at the beginning of the experiment.

Having now come to a conchision in regard to the substances
most effectual in preserving wood, the next business was to make
them penetrate its tissue most intimately. Maceration, M. Bouche-
rie soon found, like his predecessors in the same path, to be insuf-
ficient, the substances in solution only penetrating a very little way.
He then tried various processes of injection ; but all inferior to that
imagined by M. Breant^ and therefore less effectual. He then be-
thought him of effecting the needful penetration of the wood in the
green state, and before it had been sensibly altered by drying and
seasoning ; he asked himself if the force which determines the
ascent of the sap might not be taken advantage of after the tree was
cut down, as a means of determining the entrance of a solution of
pyrolignite of iron 1 And all his trials in this direction answered his
expectations fully. M. Boucherie had, in fact, discovered a means
of securing the penetration of the minutest pores of the largest log
by a substance capable of rendering it incorruptible. No one before
M. Boucherie thought of taking advantage of an admitted physiolo-
gical fact for such a purpose. He announces the principle upon
which he proceeds in these terms : " If a tall tree be cut down at
the proper season, and the bottom of the trunk be then immersed in
a saline solution, weak or strong, the liquid is powerfully drawn up
into the tree, penetrates its most intimate tissues, rises to its small-
est branches, and even to its terminal leaves."*

In the month of September, a poplar, upwards of 90 feet high and
nearly 16 inches in diameter, was cut, and the bottom of its bole
plunged in a vessel containing a solution of pyrolignite of iron mark-
ing 8° of the areoQfieter of Beaume ; in the course of six days it had
absorbed upwards of 66 gallons of the fluid.

In his first experiments, M. Boucherie procured the needful
absorption by placing the bottoms of his trees in vessels containing
the solution ; but this mode of proceeding was obviously full of dif-
ficulties and open to many objections : the weight of a green tree of
large size, with the whole of its top and branches, is often enormous,
and to raise a mass of the kind once down again into the perpen-
dicular was no easy task ; it implied recurrence to certain mechani-
cal means which are not always £t hand, and necessarily expensive.
M. Boucherie, therefore, tried ether modes of making the trees
absorb ; he adapted a sac of imp.jrmeable material to the bottom of
the trunk laid on the ground, and into this sac he poured his solution,
«.nd this method answered very well. He next took advantage of

♦Ami. de Chuuic, U !x.\iv. y. 132<

TRESERVATION OF TIMBER. 109

one or more of the roots to effect the imbibition. He next bored a
hole into the bottom of the trunk, still erect ; and having brought
the cavity thus made to communicate with a reservoir, he still suc-
ceeded. This last plan was still further simplified in proceeding as
follows : the trunk of the tree is pierced by an auger through nearly
the whole diameter. Into the auger-hole thus made, a narrow saw
is passed, by working which on either side, the trunk is divided in-
ternally to a very considerable extent, and the majority of its sap-
vessels are thus cut across and made accessible. An impervious
cloth is then tied round the trunk, below the opening, and this is
made to communicate with the reservoir of liquid.*

M Boucherie was almost necessarily led, in the course of his ex-
periments, to inquire whether the absorbing power of trees differed
at different seasons or not. lie ascertained by trials made in the
months of December and February, that though in the oak, the horn-
beam, and the plane, the solution of pyrolignite of iron always rises
several feet, and even several yards, yet that in the colder season of
the year, it never rises so high as it does in summer, in spring, and
especially in autumn, the season in which the power of ascent is
most remarkable. This conclusion is obviously of interest physio-
logically. It proves that if winter be a season of repose for the sap,
it is not so absolutely. There is one remarkable exception to the
general fact now announced, and this occurs among the resinous
trees that keep their leaves till the spring. It has been ascertained,
by direct experiment, that the ascent of the sap continues through
the whole course of the winter in the cone-bearing trees, and this to
such an extent, that it is always possible to impregnate every part
of their trunk by the way of simple absorption at any period of the
year. As M. Boucherie remarks, this fact might even have been
foreseen from the fresh and green state of the leaves of these trees.

It now became important, in connection with the practical appli-
cation of M. Boucherie's views, to ascertain whether or not the
penetration was energetic in the ratio of the vigor of the tree itself,
in proportion as it was more numerously provided with branches,
more thickly covered with leaves. Experiment showed that the
penetration still takes place after the removal of the greater number
of branches, provided only the leading bough or terminal crown be
left. A stem furnished with a number of leafy branches continues,
as has been said, to imbibe, though separated from the roots ; but
for how long a time will it continue to do so ] This was a capital
point to determine. At the end of September, the bottom of a pine-
tree, about 14 inches in diameter, was first put into the solution 48
hours after it had been felled ; nevertheless the imbibition was com-
plete. In June the same success attended the experiment made on
a plane that had been cut for thirty-six hours. Still it is certain
that the penetration takes place with so much the more energy as it
is arranged close upon the time of the felling. The power by which
it is determined declines rapidly after the first day is passed, and by

* Boucherie, Ann. de Chimie, t. Ixxiv. p. 134. 2e s6rie
10

110 PRESERVATION OF TIMBER.

the tenth day it is almost entirely gone. In favorable circumstances
these ten days suffice to effect the complete impregnat4nn of the
largest stem. In one of his experiments upon a poplar, M. Boucherie
saw the absorbed liquid reach the height of about 95 feet in seven
days.

In the white woods it is found that there is an axis of variable
diameter in different cases which escapes or rather which resists
impregnation. In hard woods the parts which are not penetrated
are the inner or undermost circles of the heart. M. Boucherie, after
having ascertained these facts, explains them thus : in the white
woods, according to the testimony of the workmen, the central part
which resists the penetration is at once the weakest and the most
perishable portion of the log ; there is no longer any circulation, any
life there ; it is dead wood interred in the midst of the living woody
layers. This absence of penetration of the woody tissue appears,
on some occasions, elsewhere than in the centre of the trunk and
branches ; it presents itself under the most various forms and in
different parts of the trunk : it appears to depend, as has been said,
on the presence of wood abstracted from the influence of vital phe-
nomena, and which, impenetrable itself, presents a barrier or an ob-
stacle to the passage of the solution to other parts ; it is thus that a
knot, or a piece of rotten wood, is generally found as the starting
point of the zones that have escaped imbibition. As to the non-
penetration of the most central parts of the heart of oak, elm, &c.,
M. Boucherie views it as affording unquestionable proof of the fact
that there the living juices of the tree had long ceased to circulate.

The distinction generally drawn between the white or soft, and
the perfect or hard wood, rests on the differences of color presented
by a transverse section of the trunk. In the oak, for example, the
external and nearly white concentric layers are held as the soft and
valueless portion of the log, and are commonly hewn away in squar-
ing it ; the darker, more central portions constitute the heart-wood,
the valuable timber. But, according to M. Boucherie, the distinc-
tion is different when the fact of penetrability is taken as the guide,
and all that portion of the trunk which imbibes is considered as
alburnum, or soft wood, and all that does not imbibe is regarded as
hard wood. The alburnum in this way is so much extended that it
may be found constituting three-fourths of the whole mass of the
trunk. Once introduced, the pyrolignite of iron, according to M.
Boucherie, is not only useful in preserving the wood, it also in-
creases the density of the timber. Impregnated with this salt of
iron, wood becomes so hard as powerfully to resist the tools of the
oarpenter and joiner, who even complain of the increased difficulty
with which it is worked. -

Flexibility and elasticity in timber are qualities in request for cer-
tain purposes, particularly for ship-building. The fir timber of the
north of Europe is much more prized than that of the south, espe-
cially for masting, on account of its greater flexibility and elasticity,
qualities which appear to depend in a great measure en the quantity
of noisture retained ; to increase these qualities M. Boucherie has

PRESERVATION OF TIMBER. Ill

eT«'i> intioduced bv imbibition a deliquescent salt, such as the muri-
avit 'jf li.iJv, whioh retains moisture powerfully, as is well known,
anl seems to have tna power of giving a remarkable degree of sup-
pleness to wood. The experiments, contrived to show the effects
of dehquescent silts, were made upon deal, which is allowed to be
oncsof the most brittle woods. After having impregnated it with
concentrated solutions it was sawed into very thin veneers, some of
which I have seen in the possession of M. Boueherie, which after
being strongly twisted and bent in various senses, immediately re-
gained their original flatnesa and evenness when they were left
free.

Warping, or shrinking, is occasioned by alternate shrinking and
swelling in consequence of varying hygrometric states of the atmo-
sphere. When timber is worked before it is thoroughly seasoned, —
and this is apt to happen in regard to pieces of large scantling es-
pecially— the shrinking is of course extremely conspicuous when the
time necessary to complete desiccation has elapsed. It is this in-
convenience which makes it imperative on builders of all kinds, ship-
builders more especially, to keep stocks which necessarily absorb
a considerable amount of capital. It has long been a question with
engineers to find a remedy for this state of things. Seasoning, in-
deed, is now effected somewhat more quickly by squaring the logs
at the time the trees are cut down ; but the loss of time is still very
considerable. The mode of seasoning by the stove or vapor has
been abandoned as too costly.

After having found that the shrinking and separation of pieces of
carpentry did not begin to take place until the timber was upon the
point of losing the last third of the moisture- which it contained at
the time of being cut, M. Boueherie thought that to prevent all
warping and shrinking it would be enough to retain this quantity of
water in combination with the woody tissue ; in other words, to pre-
vent complete desiccation. Facts have proved the correctness of
this view. Pieces of vv^ood kept at a certain unchanging degree of
moistness by means of a deliquescent salt infused into their pores,
do not change their bulk or form, in spite of extreme variations in
the hygrometric state of the air. Such pieces of wood, however,
exhibit great differences in point of weight under the influence of
different circumstances.

Several planks of great breadth and extremely thin were prepared
with chloride of lime and joined together ; some of them were left
unpainted, others were painted on one side, or on both sides ; after
the lapse of a year these planks were found not to have shrunk or
warped, while similar planks of the same thickness and kind of
wood, but unprepared, were found to have cast in an extraordinary
way.*

M. Boueherie has done more than this ; he has not only had it in
view to preserve wood and to prevent it from warping, qualities so
desirable, — he has made use of the same faculty of imbibition to im-

* Boueherie, op. cit. p. 151.

112 PRESERVATION OF TIMBER.

pregnate the wood with a variety of beautiful colors, and thus to
give even the most common kinds tints that will admit of their being
used in the construction of costly furniture. The pyrolignite of
iron alone gives an agreeable brown tint that harmonizes excellently
with the natural color of the harder parts of so many trees which
usually resist penetration. By following up the pyrolignite with an
infusion of nutgalls or oak-bark, the mass of the wood is penetrated
with ink, which presents a black, blue, or gray color, according to
circumstances; a solution of another salt of iron succeeded by one
of prussiate of potash will cause a precipitate of prussian blue in the
wood, &c. ; in short, by the numerous reactions of this kind with
which chemistry is familiar, a great variety of colors may be ob-
tained.

Among the number of useful properties communicated to wood by
impregnation with saline solutions, that of being rendered little apt
for combustion ought not to be omitted. M. Gay-Lussac was the
first who thought of rendering vegetable tissues incombustible by
means of saline impregnations.* By incombustible, we are not to
understand unalterable by a red heat ; for every one must see that
the protecting power of no salt can extend so far as this ; but tissues
which take fire very readily, and burn with great rapidity, cease
from giving any flame, and merely smoulder, after they have been
impregnated with certain salts ; they take fire with difficulty, go
out of themselves, become charred, and are incapable of propagating
fire. And this is exactly what happens with wood which has been
properly charged : it burns, and is reduced to ashes with extreme
slowness, so that two huts exactly alike, built one of charged wood,
and the other of ordinary wood, having been set fire to at the same
moment, the latter was already burned to the ground, when the in-
terior of the former was scarcely charred. f

The ingenious process of impregnating wood by the way of vital
inspiration is not without certain objections. In the first place, it
can only be performed at those periods of the year when the sap is
in motion, and the trees are covered with their leaves. This time,
however, is limited to a few months of the year, and the usual prac-
tice being to fell timber in the winter, wont and usage are opposed
to cutting down trees in the spring and autumn. To meet these
objections, M. Boucherie engaged in new experiments, which led
him to a means of impregnating timber at all seasons, in winter as
well as spring and autumn, and in a very short space of time ; this
second method is applicable to wood that has already been squared
as well as to the round trunk, provided it has been recently felled.

To impregnate timber by this process, the logs are placed verti-
cally, and the upper extremities are fitted with an impermeable sack
for the reception of the saline solution destined to charge them ; the
fluid enters from above, and almost at the same moment the sap is
Been to begin running out below. There are some woods which

♦ Ann. de Chimie, t. xviii. p. 21], 2e sirie.
t Idem, t. l^xiv. p. 1.52, 3e s6rie.

PRESERVATION OF TIMBER. 113

include a large quantity of air in their tissues ; in this case the flow
does not go on until this air has heen expelled ; once begun, it goes
on without interruption. The operation is terminated when the
fluid, which drips from the lower part, is of the same nature as that
which is entering above. In my opinion this method must be pre-
ferable to that by aspiration. In the second mode of proceeding, in
fact, we accomplish our object by a true displacement ; almost the
whole of the sap is expelled, and the saline solution introduced has
only to subdue or neutralfze the very small quantity of soluble
organic matter which may remain adhering to the woody tissue.
By accomplishing such a displacement by means of simple water w«
should undoubtedly obtain results favorable to the preservation of
timber, inasmuch as we should have freed it from almost the whole
of those matters which are regarded as the most alterable them-
selves, and the first cause of rotting in timber. The rapidity with
which the fluid introduced is substituted for the sap which it dis-
places, and the quantity of this expelled sap which may be readily
collected, exceeds any thing that could have been imagined before
making the experiment ; thus the trunk of a beech-tree about 52^
feet in length by 33^ inches in diameter, and consequently forming
a cube of somewhat more than 29 feet and a half, gave in the course
of twenty-five hours upwards of 330 gallons of sap, which were re-
placed by about 350 gallons of pyroligneous acid. The liquid which
penetrates in this way acts so effectually in displacing the sap, that
M. Boucherie says we can readily procure or extract by its means
the saccharine, mucilaginous, resinous, and colored juices contained
in trees. It would, perhaps, be possible, and I beg to suggest this
idea to colonial planters, to apply the method of displacement to the
extraction of the coloring matters of dye-woods. The trade in dye-
woods does not extend beyond localities favorably situated for ex-
portation, so that at a certain distance from the shores of the ocean,
or the banks of rivers, it is found absolutely impossible to carry on
a trade, the material of which is so heavy and bulky as timber.
The greater number of the coloring matters found in wood^ being
soluble, it is possible to export them in the state of extract. Various
attempts of this kind have already been made, and if they have not
been successful, the obvious cause of this lies in the method which
has been followed, and which has hitherto consisted in treating the
wood reduced to chips by means of boiling water, and then reducing
the colored solution obtained ; but it is obvious that in the remote
forests of America, or of Africa, where all mechanical means are
wanting, nothing but failure could attend upon such a procedure.
By the method of M. Boucherie, the main difficulties appear to be
got over ; there is nothing more to be done, in fact, than to get the
trees into the state of logs, and these are generally readily trans-
portable, after which one or more evaporating pans seem all that
are further necessary.

Dye-woods. — The greater number of these woods belong to the
family of leguminosaj ; the principal kinds met with in trade are :

I. Mahogany wood, {hmnatoxylon campechianum,) of a reddish
10*

114 SUGAR.

yellow, which becomes brown with age ; this wood, besides a variety
of alkaline and earthy salts, of volatile oil and unazotized matter,
contains a particular coloring principle, called hematine, discovered
by M. Ciievreul*

The mahogany grows in the hot intertropical regions of America ;
Mexico and some of the West India islands export considerable
quantities.

Pernambuco or Brazil-wood is the name given in trade to the
trunks of several trees of the genus Ccesalpinia. The Casalpinia
crista of Jamaica, the C. sappan of Japan, the C. echinata of Santa
Martha, afford kinds that are very much prized. In point of chemi-
cal composition Brazil-wood agrees with Campechy wood ; the col-
oring matter which characterizes it has been named Braziline by M.
Chevreul ; it is obtained in small crystals of an orange color.

This wood comes to Europe in fagots of about 39 inches in
length. Red Saunders-wood is furnished by the Plarocarpus san-
talinus ; it contains a peculiar dye-stuff, santaline, observed by M.
Peltier.f

To conclude., the yellow dye-woods of commerce are Fustic, i?/m*
cotinus, of the family of turpentine trees, a native of the south of
Europe, and the Cuba and Tampico woods, which are probably va-
rieties of the Morus tinctoria.

OF SUGAR.

Sugar is met with in almost every part of vegetables ; it has been
found in flowers, in leaves, in stems, and in roots. It is less abun-
dant in seeds ; and it may even be said that the quantity of saccha-
rine matter contained in vegetables in general is invariably diminished
at the period of formation of the seed. Sugar, consequently, as well
as starch, appears to contribute to the production of the seed.

The very characteristic taste of sugar generally suffices to pro-
claim its presence ; nevertheless, it would be a great mistake did
we rely upon this character alone for discovering the presence of
sugar ; several substances possess a very decided sweet taste, with-
out being on that account sugar, in the sense which chemists attach
Ixi the name. True sugars, according to chemists, have one properi)
which distinguishes them from all substances with which they maj
have, in other respects, the greatest analogy ; this characte;isti»
property is that of becoming changed, under the influence of wato
a suitable temperature, and contact with yeast, into alcohol and cai
bonic acid. It is certain, nevertheless, that certain bodies which d
not belong to the chemical genus, sugar, may, under the influence o
fermentation, yield alcohol. I have already quoted starch as coming
under this head ; but it has been distinctly ascertained, as 1 have als«
said, that such substances, under the influence of the ferment itsell
are first chnnged into sugar, which subsequently undergoes the vi
nous fermentation.

* Chimie appliqu^e a la teinture, 30e le^on, p. 88.

t Chevreol, Cheoiistry applied to dyioe, 30tb Uctor*, p. WL

SUGAR. It5

It is admitted at the present time that fermentable su^rs must be
divided into two principal species, in harmony with characters which
are most easily appreciated. One of these presents itself in the
shape of hard, transparent crystals, and is met with in sufficient
quantity to be profitably extracted from the juice of the cane and the
beet, the sap of the maple and of certain palms ; the other is obtained
with some difficulty in the solid state, being most frequently and
readily procured in the form of sirup ; the taste of this is less sweet,
less decided ; it exists in the grape and the greater number of
fruits. The chemical characters of these two kinds of sugar, which
are designated cane-sugar and grape-sugar, are somewhat different;
and the elegant researches of M. Biot have shown, that from some
of their physical properties, particularly the action of their solutions
upon polarized light, they cannot be regarded as constituting one and
the same species. In the vegetable kingdom, these two kinds of
sugar are frequently met with mixed ; and there are certain chemi-
cal means which enable us readily to transform cane-sugar into
grape-sugar. The inverse transformation has not yet been accom-
plished ; but there is nothing which leads us to conclude that it is
impossible ; and the time, perhaps, is not very remote when the
sugar which is manufactured from potato- starch may be changed
into crystallized sugar, similar to that which is obtained from the
cane.

Crystallized sugar. Cane-sugar is readily obtained in large
transparent crystals, which are known under the name of sugar-
candy. Sugar is fusible : under the action of a regulated tempera-
ture, it acquires a dark-red color, and passes into the state of cara-
mel ; a higher temperature effects its decomposition. It is much
less soluble in alcohol than in water ; highly concentrated alcohol,
indeed, only dissolves an extremely small quantity of sugar.

M. Peligot's analysis of cane-sugar shows it to be composed of—

Carbon 42.1

Hydrogen 6.4

Oxygen 51.5

100.0*

Such is the composition of sugar dried at the temperature ol boil-
ing water ; but the substance, like the majority of organic matters,
still contains a certain proportion of constitutional water, which it
abandons when it combines with certain bases. Thus sugar com-
bines with oxide of lead, and forms a true saccharate, in which the
sugar, deprived of its Avater of constitution, plays the part of an acid ;
this combination, which presents itself to us under the form of white
niammillated crystals, analyzed by M. Peligot, would indicate the
following as the composition of anhydrous sugar —

Carbon 47-1

Hydrogen 5.9

Oxygen 47.0

100.0

* Annales de Chimie, vol. Ixvili. p. 134, 3e t^ii*.

116 SUGAR.

Ordinary sugar, deprived of its water of composition in any othei
way, has the same elementary composition ; thus caramel obtained
hy heating sugar to 180° cent., (356" Fahr.,) until it no longer loses
watery vapor, has, according to M. Peligot, the composition of an-
hydrous sugar, such as it is found in combination with oxide of lead.

Setting aside all theoretical considerations, it is obvious that to
have anhydrous sugar reconstituted ordinary hydrated sugar, it were
necessary to add to 100 parts 11.76 of water, containing 1.3 hydro-
gen and 10.46 oxygen ; the 111.76 parts then contain, in element •

Carbon 47.1 percent. 42.1 common sugar

Hydrogen 7.2 " 6.4 *'

Oxygen 57.46 " 51.5 "

111.76 100.0

Common sugar may therefore be viewed as composed of 100 anhy-
drous sugar, and 11.8 water.

The whole of the sugar which comes from South America and
the West Indies, and a large proportion of that which comes from
the East Indies, is extracted from the juice of the sugar-cane.

In America three principal varieties of sugar-cane are cultivated,
the Creole, the Batavian, and the Otaheitan. The Creole cane has
the leaf of a deep green, the stem slender, the knots very close to-
gether. This species, a native of India, reached the new world
after having passed through Sicily, the Canaries, and the West In-
dia islands. The Batavian cane is indigenous in the island of Java ;
its foliage is very broad, and has a purple tint ; the sap of this vari-
ety is much employed in making rum. The Otaheite cane is that
which is most extensively grown at the present time ; it was intro-
duced into the West India islands and neighboring continent by Bou
gainville. Cook, and Bligh, in their several voyages, and is certainly
one of the most important acquisitions which the agriculture of trop-
ical countries owes to the voyages of naturalists. This variety of
cane grows with extraordinary vigor : its stem is taller, thicker, and
richer in juice than that of the other species. I observed it along
the whole coast of Venezuela, of New Grenada, and of Peru ; far
from having degenerated by its transplantation to the American con-
tinent, it appears to have preserved all its original qualities without
alteration.

The sugar-cane is propagated by cuttings. Pieces of the stem
about 18 or 20 inches long, and having several buds or eyes, are
placed two or three together in holes a few inches in depth, and are
covered with loose moist earth. From a fortnight to three weeks
are required for the shoots to show themselves above ground. The
space to be left between each clump of plants depends much on the
fertility of the soil ; in the most fertile soils the distance may be
about a yard, or a little more ; and along the rows the spaces may
be about 18 inches. Where land is of no great value it is found
more advantageous to give greater space, and so to favor the access
of the air and the light. It is not uncommon to see plantations where
the canes are spaced at distances of between 4 and 5 feet. The

SXTGAR-CANE. 117

time at which the setting of the slips takes place cannot be defini-
tively indicated ; it depends entirely upon the epoch at\Ajich the
periodical rains are anticipated. But in places where irrigation is
possible, the setting goes on through all the months of the year.
The holes for the reception of the slips are usually dug with a hoe,
and a negro will make from sixty to eighty holes in the course of a
day. When the ground has been previously ploughed, as it is in
some of the West India islands, he will make twice as many. Loose
rich soils, when they have a certain moisture, are the best adapted
to the sugar-cane ; it does not thrive in an argillaceous soil, which
drains with difficulty. In these moist soils the slips are not laid
horizontally and covered, bu-t with one end projecting a little way
out of the ground. When the young shoots are covered with nar-
row and opposed leaves, watering is particularly advantageous, and
the plants are repeatedly hoed until they have acquired sufficient
vigor to choke noxious weeds. About the 9th month after the plan-
tation of the slips, the shaft of the sugar-cane begins to lose its
leaves, the most inferior falling first, the others in succession, so
that when arrived at maturity, it only presents a tuft of terminal
leaves. The flowering generally takes place with the conclusion
of the year ; and the cane is held sufficiently ripe in from two to
three months after this epoch, when the stem has acquired a yellow
or straw color. The planters, however, are by no means agreed as
to the proper period of the sugar-cane harvest, — some even insist
upon cutting before the flowering, believing that the quantity of su-
gar diminishes on the appearance of the flower. It is unquestiona-
ble, however, that the period that elapses between the planting and
the harvest, must vary with the nature of the soil, and especially
with that of the climate ; while in some places the cane may be cut
when it is a year old, doubtless there are others where it requires to
stand from fifteen to sixteen months. In Venezuela, where the Ota-
heite cane is grown at the level of the sea, and where the mean tem-
perature of the year is between 81° and 82° Fahr., the cane ripens,
according i\, Dolonel Codazzi, in eleven months. In districts at
greater elevations under the same parallels of latitude, where the
climate is of course not so hot, the cane requires a longer time to
come to maturity ; where the mean temperature is about 78" Fahr.,
twelve months are required ; where it is about 74° Fahr., fourteen
months become necessary ; and where it is no more than about 67°
Fahr., sixteen months are requisite.* The Otaheite cane grows to
very different heights ; in very favorable circumstances it will reach
a height of 16 feet and upw^ards, but its general height may be stated
at from 9h to 10^ feet. Great cane, plantations are divided into
squares of from 100 to 120 yards on the side, each of which coming
to maturity in succession, the labor is easily performed, both in re-
gard to field-work and the manufacture of the sugar.

The cane is cut close to the root, and before being carried to the
mill, the tey rainal tuft of leaves is struck oflf. The.^^e h-^ads in the

* Codazzi, Geography of Venezuela, p. 141.

118 SUGAR-CANE.

green state afford excellent food for horses and cattle ; when dry
they are used for thatching- houses. After the first cuting, fresh
sprouts arise, which require no other attention than hoeing. In good
soils one planting will yield five or six harvests by successive
shoots ; but I have heard planters affirm, that the produce in sugar
diminishes from year to year. In Venezuela, cane-pieces are re-
planted every five or six years.

The cane with its top struck off is carried to the mill, where the
juice is expressed, and the stems, which are spoken of under the
name of trash, are dried and used as fuel.

The expressed juice contains crystallizable sugar, an azotized
substance analogous to albumen, and some saline matters dissolved
in a large quantity of water, which is dissipated by boiling, and the
sugar finally won by crystallization. The manufacturing process is
conducted with very different degrees of perfection in different
places. In some the produce is obtained almost without admixture
of molasses, in others the quantity of this article which drains away
from the sugar is very large. It is now generally agreed that mo-
lasses proceeds in great part from imperfections in the manufacturing
processes employed, especially to changes which the sugar under-
goes in the course of its concentration by boiling at a high tempera-
ture. By the employment of what are called vacuum pans of vari-
ous construction — pans from which the pressure of the atmosphere
is removed either by the air-pump, or the condensation of the vapor
as fast as it is formed, rapid evaporation is effected at a temperature
much below that of boiling water, by which it is found that the rela-
tive quantity of sugar to that of molasses is greatly increased. I
was long believed, indeed, and that on the authority of the first
chemists, that there were two kinds of sugar contained in the sugar-
cane, one crystallizable, the other uncrystallizable, and constituting
the molasses or treacle. The researches of M. Peligot* have
shown definitively that this conclusion is erroneous, that the cane con-
tains no sugar that is not crystallizable, and that the pre-existence
of uncrystallizable sugar or molasses is entirely chimerical. M.
Plague had indeed come to the same conclusion some considerable
time ago — as far back as 1826 ; but his labors were not made known
by publication till 1840. M. Casaseca, professor of chemistry at
Havana, has very lately confirmed these conclusions, so important
for the sugar husbandry of the world. f The composition of the
juice of the sugar-cane is therefore less complex than it was once
believed to be ; making abstraction of very minute quantities of an
albuminous azotized substance, of several salts and a little silica,
substances which altogether do not amount to more than two or
three hundredths, cane juice may be said to consist of water and of
crystallizable sugar in the proportion of from 17 to 20 per cent |
The Otaheite cane analyzed by M. Peligot actually yielded :

■^ Ann. Mdiivimcs et Coloniales, Aug. 1842.

I Vide Comptes Rendus, 1844. % Peligot, op tit

SUGAR-CANE. 119

Water 72.1

Woody matter 9.9

Soluble matter (sugar) 18.0

mo"

Ti is conclusion was verified by M. Dupuy at Guadaloupe in 1841,
who, operating on the spot, found the composition to be as follows •

Water 72.0

Woody matter 9.8

Soluble matter (sugar) 17.8

Salts 0.4

100.0

The analyses of the Creole cane made by M. Casaseca at Havana
appear to indicate a larger quantity of woody fibre :

Water. 65.9

Wood 16.14

Sugar 17.7

100.0

The quantity of sugar yielded by the cane, differs considerably.
M. Codazzi assigns 6 and 15 per cent, as the extremes, and 7^ per
cent, as the mean. M. Dupuy gives 7.1 per cent, as the average.
The quantity is, of course, first and most intimately connected with
the quantity of juice obtained. But the produce of juice is extremely
variable. In Guadaloupe, the juice varies between 56 and 62 per
cent, of the cane subjected to pressure. The generality of mills do
not, in fact, enable us to obtain more than about 56 per cent. At
New Orleans the usual quantity obtained is said to be 50, and in
Cayenne only 36 per cent. At Havana, according to M. Casa-
seca, the riband cane yields 45, the crystalline 35, and the Otaheitan
56 per cent, of juice.

The Otaheite cane was examined by M. Peligot, under a variety
of circumstances of age, growth, part of plant, &c. &c. The fol-
lowing table contains the condensed results of his experiments :

First shoots ■

Second do. from original sprouts •
Third do. from second do.
Fourth do. from third do.

Inferiorpart of cane

Middle part of do

Superior part of do.

Knots

Cane of eight months

Cane of ten months

Water.

Soluble mat-
ters (suffar.)

Woody fibre.

73.4

17.2

8.9

71.7

17.8

10.5

71.6

16.4

12-0

73.0

16.8

10.2

73.7

15.. 5

10.8

72.6

16.5

10-9

72.8

15.5

11.7

70.8

12.0

17.2

73.9

18.2

7.9

72.3

18.5

9.2

It would therefore appear, making exception always of the knots
which occur in the course of a cane, that the composition of the
plant in its various states and conditions, is almost identical. M.
Peligot's important paper, while it informs us of the average com-
position of the Otaheite cane, satisfies us that the gummy and mu

120 SUGAR-CANK.

cilaginous substances and the uncrystallizable sugar, tie existence
of which was held as demonstrated, are, in fact, nowise constituents
of the sugar-cane. Whence we may conclude, with M. Peligot, that
every drop of molasses which drains from the sugar is the produce
of the manufacture ; an opinion to which I assent the more readily
from having myself seen oftener than once the juice of the cane
yield nothing but crystallizable sugar These analyses further de-
monstrate, more powerfully than could any discussion, the imperfec-
tion of the processes usually followed in manufacturing sugar. They
prove, in fact, that in the mill rather more than a third of the whole
juice contained in the cane is left in the trash. This loss might be
considerably diminished were more perfect pressure employed in
extracting the juice. But it appears that the planters are indisposed
to crush the trash too much, as by this it is rendered less fit for fuel,
a considerable quantity of which, by the present mode of manufac-
ture, is indispensable. M. Dupree, however, says that by insisting
on obtaining from 65 to 66 per cent, of juice in all cases, the trash is
still left with all its value as a combustible. The trash on coming
from the mill appears quite dry. I have seen some which, after
having been pressed twice consecutively, looked as if it were im-
possible by any further amount of pressure to express more liquid.
Nevertheless, it was enough to taste this pressed cane, to be satis-
fied that it still contained a considerable quantity of sugar. To
procure this without using more powerful machinery, M. Peligot
proposed to steep the trash in water, and to press it a second time.
By this means a weak juice is obtained, which, added to the first
pressings, raises the produce of sugar from 7 to 10 per cent, upon
the whole amount of cane employed. By following this process,
suggested by theory, upon the great scale, M. Dupree has succeeded
in obtaining |th more than the usual quantity of sugar without ma-
king any change in his apparatus, and without finding the trash too
much shaken to be burned under his coppers.* In some circum-
stances the increase in the quantity of juice which this procedure
implies, might be found an objection on account of the larger quan-
tity of fuel required for its evaporation ; but wherever a supply of
wood is to be had, M. Peligot's method ought undoubtedly to be ap-
plied.

The very dissimilar quantities of crystallizable sugar obtained from
canes, which as we have seen all contain very nearly the same quan-
tity of this substance, prove that the processes of concentration and
purification of the sap also contribute to the loss which has been in-
dicated. M. Peligot has pointed out several causes which concur to
deteriorate sugar ; among the number: 1. A viscous fermentation
which renders the sap thi(;k and stringy, like mucilage, by which
the boiling becomes diflicult and the crystallization of the sugar
which has escaped change, is rendered imperfect. 2. An acidity
which takes place when the juice is not run at once into the coppers
and boiled, an acidity which requires the addition of lime to destroy

* Peligot, Maritime and Colonial Annals, August, 1848.

SUGAR-CANE. 121

to prevent it. The alkaline iarth, as I have had occasion tc say,
• by no means indispensable ; its utility under ordinary circunistan-
ces is probably confined to assisting the defecation by forming an in-
soluble precipitate with some of the organic substances which are
always met with in small quantities in cane juice ; perhaps also to
making an earthy soap with the fatty matters which adhere to the
cane and are expressed in the crushing. When lime is added, to
correct acidity, it forms an acetate or a lactate, salts which are pe-
culiarly soluble, uncrystallizable, and which necessarily retain a
quantity of sugar in the sirupy state. 3. The presence of certain
mineral salts in the cane. Common salt, for instance, in combining
with sugar forms a deliquescent compound, in which one part of salt
is united with six parts of sugar ; such a compound as this of course
renders a large quantity of sirup indisposed to crystallize. It is
therefore impossible to be too cautious, according to M. Peligot, in
the choice of manure for a cane-field ; that which contains any com-
mon salt must needs be injurious in one way, however advantageous
it may be in another. The entire absence of this salt in the soil of
plantations which are very remote from the sea shore is perhaps one
of the causes which increases the quantity of sugar obtained from
the crop, and makes it more easily manufactured in such districts.

M. Codazzi reckons the quantity of white sugar produced by a
hectare of land, (2.473 acres,) planted with the Otaheite cane in the
province of Caraccas, at 1875 kilogrammes, or 36 cwt. 3 qrs. 9 lbs.
avoir. ; which is at the rate of 15 cwt. 1 or. 10 lbs. per acre.
Taking 7| per cent, as the average quantity jf sugar obtained, the
weight of cane brought to the mill must obviously have amounted to
19134 kilog. or 18 tons, 15 cwt. 3 qrs. 10 lbs. ; or 7 tons, 11 cwt.
3 qrs. 25 lbs. per acre. Assuming the average composition of the
plant to be —

Wood (dry) 11.0

Sugar (minimum) 15.5

Water .73.5

100.0

One acre of land will consequently yield a crop of —

Tons. Cwt. Qrs. Lb*

Wood (dry) 0 16 2 24

Sugar 1 3 2 6

Water -5 i^ ^ I?

7 11 3 25

The trash of the sugar-cane undergoes rapid fermentation : it soon
exhales a distinct smell of vinegar, and almost the whole of the
sugar which is left in it is destroyed.

BEET-ROOT SUGAR.

The presence of sugar in the beet was observed by Margraff; and
Achard of Berlin by and by attempted the extraction of this sugar
on the large scale ; but it was only during the period of the conti-
nental system that the manufacture of sugar from the beet acquired

11

122 BEET ANJ> BEET-SUGAR.

such perfection in France as made it profitable. The beet so geii'
eraliy cultivated at the present time is derived, according to Thaer,
from the Beta vulgaris. The two principal varieties of this root are
the red beet, which has been grown for a very long time in kitchen
gardens, and the white beet. Between these two extremes there
are numerous varieties having a flesh color of various intensity, a
yellow tint, &c. The seeds of the same plant in fact frequently
produce varieties of decidedly diiferent shades of color ; the red and
the white beet, however, appear to be the most constant ; and Thaer has
said that the intermediate varieties are crosses between them.

The field beet has a large root which grows in great part above
the ground ; it is a very hardy plant, which has been cultivated for
a very long time in various parts of the continent as food for cattle,
and is now also very common in England. The root, which has
hitherto been preferred for the manufacture of sugar, is conical, of a
rose color without, and its concentric external layers are also color-
ed ; but it appears that the white beet of Silesia is the more pro-
ductive. The beet thrives in almost all kinds of soil, provided only
they be sufficiently manured. In Alsace it succeeds in light, and in
strong argillaceous soils indifferently. Another precious quality which
this root possesses is that of succeeding in the most dissimilar cli-
mates ; it is grown to purpose both in the north and in the south of
France.

The beet is sown at once in the field, or in a bed and transplanted ;
the latter method appears now to obtain a decided preference, inasmuch
as it leaves plenty of time for the preparation of the soil, and espe-
cially for accumulating and carrying out manure.

In a piece of ground well broken up by delving or ploughing, and
highly manured, which need not be of greater extent than {-'jyth of
the entire surface to be planted, the seed is sown in lines or drills
as soon as the spring frosts are no longer to be apprehended. The
transplanting in the east of France takes place about the middle of
May, and even in the beginning of June. The plants are generally
set about 15 inches apart. In the north the beet harvest does not
begin before the end of September, and generally ends in the course
of the month of October. The gathering is delayed as long as
possible, inasmuch as the roots increase visibly to the very end of
the season. But gathering the beet at a very late period in those
countries where the winter seed has to follow this crop, is attended
with more than one disadvantage. Without speaking of the difficul-
ties that are incidental to wet seasons, a late seed-time is generally
unfavorable for wheat. To meet this difficulty, I have been accuS'
tomed for some time to take up my crop of beet at the period when
it became necessary to prepare the land for winter seed, that is to
say, more than a month before the general harvest of the root. In
doing so I relied upon the interesting fact ascertained by M. Peligot
in the course of his chemical inquiries, viz : that the composition of
the beet is identical at every age. In this premature or anticipated
beet harvest, a less weight of root is of course gathered than would
have been obtained at a later period ; but the nutritious powers of

BEET AND BEET-SUGAR. / 123

these beet roots are the same as they would ever have been. The
grand questions to be determined were, whether the roots would
keep or not, and whether the cattle would eat them from the pile as
freely as from the field. All this was ascertained in the course of
the winter : the beet kept perfectly, the cattle ate it as freely as ever.
The procedure to be adopted therefore to secure a crop of beet of
average weight, storing nevertheless some considerable time before
the usual period, is simply to transplant somewhat more closely, and
to put less space between the drills. If experience decides in favor
of this method, the sole inconvenience which attends the cultivation
of the beet in a freshly manured soil, and as the first crop in the
rotation, that, namely, of causing a late and unfavorable seed-time for
winter corn, will be completely got over.

The beet which grows above the ground is best gathered with the
hand ; kinds that grow under ground require to be loosened by run-
ning a plough along the drill, &c. In Alsace it is the custom to take
away the leaves, and to trim the roots upon the ground ; the refuse
thus obtained constitutes a considerable mass of manure, which it is
well to plough in immediately.

To extract the sugar of the beet the plant is washed and rasped,
and the pulp is then subjected to the action of a powerful press.
Like the juice of the cane, the juice of the beet speedily undergoes
a change ; it is therefore immediately heated to 70° cent, or 158°Fahr ,
and a little lime is mixed with it to neutralize acid and favor the clarifi-
cation, by combining with albumen. The liquor is skimmed, and in the
course of an hour becomes quite limpid, and of a pale yellow color.
The liquor is then run upon a filter containing animal charcoal, and
from that is transferred to a boiler where it is properly reduced, the
process being in all respects the same as in the manufacture of cane
sugar. ''

In France, the produce of each 110 lbs. weight of beet is estimated
at 4.5(5, or somewhat more than 4j lbs. of white sugar. The amount
of loss in the manufacture may be conceived from the actual compo-
sition of the beet, which, by the process followed by M. Peligot,*
and which consists essentially in drying a certain weight of the root,
cut into thin slices, and then exhausting the matter with boiling
alcohol of moderate density, appears to contain from 4 or 5, up to 9,
10, 11, and even nearly 12 per cent, of sugar. This analysis of M.
Peligot has been confirmed by the experiments of M. Braconnot,t
who found the white beet of Silesia to have a very complex compo-
sition, comprising as many as twenty-one different ingredients, among
the number crystallizable sugar, albumen, woody matter, phos-
phate of magnesia, phosphate of lime, oxalate of potash, and oxalate
of lime, oxide of iron, an ammoniacal salt in small ({uantity, &c.
On an average, the analysis of M. Peligot would lead us to conclude
tnat the beet ^,ontained in one hundred parts —

* Recherches sur I'analyse de la betterave a sucre.
t Annales de Chimie, vol. Ixxii. p. 442, 2d. series.

124 BEET AND BEET- SUGAR.

Water 87

Matter soluble in water (sugar) 8

Insoluble substances, (woody tissue) 5

"loo

from which it appears that no more than about fths of the sugaf
contained in the heet-root is extracted. As in crushing the cane, so
in squeezing the rasped pulp of the beet, a part of the loss is owing
to a certain quantity of sugar being left in the expressed pulp. In
fact, with the presses generally in use, while from 60 to 70 per cent,
of juice is obtained, the root actually contains 95 per cent. The
loss here, however, is of less consequence than it is in the cane-, the
trash of which is used for fuel, while the pulp of the beet serves as
food for cattle. The pulp, indeed, is found to possess very nearly
the same amount of nutritive power as the root which produced it.

One of the considerations which is perhaps of highest importance
in connection with the production of sugar from the beet, is inherent
in lh(5 difficulty of preserving the root after it is full-grown. Gather-
ed at the end of autumn the root suffers no less from severe frost,
than it does from mild open weather : frost destroys its organiza-
tion, and in mild winters vegetation continues at the expense of the
sugary principle, which had been formed during the growth. If the
beet actually contains at every period of its existence the same
quantity of sugar with reference to its weight, there would probably
be a great advantage in not waiting for the period of complete ma-
turity, by sowing somewhat thicker than wont ; any difference of
weight would probably be made up, and then there would be no risk
of loss from keeping.

The quantity of beet gathered from a given extent of land neces-
sarily varies with the soil, the pains bestowed upon the crop, and
the quantity of manure that has been used ; the following are a few
particulars from official documents :

PRODUCE PER ACRE.
Ton. Cwt. Qra. Lba.

PasdeCalais 12 9 1 19

Department of the North 12 10 2 25

Department of Cher 15 1 39

but in other departments the produce is considerably smaller, so that
the average for the whole country has been estimated at not more
that 10 tons 9 cwt. 1 qr. 13 lbs. per acre; an average which ap-
proaches very closely to that which I have obtained from my own
farm at Bechelbronn, calculated during a period of seven years.

Assuming 4~7fths lbs. of sugar to be obtained from every 110 lbs.
of beet, the produce in sugar from an English acre in the course of
seven months will amount in the present state of things to 9 cwt. 2
qrs. and 7 lbs. By way of comparison I shall here remind the
reader that an English acre of land laid out in Otaheite sugar-cane
yields in the course of about fourteen months, 15 cwt. 1 qr. 10 lbs.
I find from my accounts for 1841, that to manage an English acre
of land under beet-root in Alsace, 45.6 days ojf a man, and 14.1

BEET AND BEET-STTGAR. 125

days of a horse was the amount of labor expended. In a document
upon the sugar plantations of Guadaloupe which I have seen, it is
stated that a domain of 150 hectares, or 370 acres, is worked by 150
negroes, which, reckoning the time that the crop is on the ground
at fourteen months, would bring the number of days labor by a man,,
to 171.8 per English acre. Such an expenditure of labor must in
the nature of things absorb the greater part of the profits ; and,
indeed, in a commission of inquiry into the laws connected with the
sugar trade, it was shown in reference to the plantation in ques-
tion, that the cost of cultivation and manufacture was equal to the
value of the produce. Still the cane presents one considerable
advantage over the beet, that, namely, of furnishing the fuel
necessary to the boiling, an advantage which will be better under-
stood, when it is known that in the manufacture of every 110 lbs.
weight of beet sugar, the consumption of coal amounts to 22 lbs.

In countries where sugar is cheap, it becomes an ordinary article
of diet; in the public market-places of the great towns of South
America, one of the rations commonly exposed for sale consists of
brown sugar and cheese. M. Codazzi estimates the quantity of
sugar consumed by each inhabitant of Venezuela at 110 lbs. In
England it amounts to about 22 lbs. ; in Ireland, to no more than
4 lbs. and ^ths ; in Holland it is 15yV lbs. ; in France it is 8-^^ lbs. ;
in Italy, 2^ lbs. ; and in Russia, but ly^j^ lb. per head.

Maple sugar. (Acer saccharinum.) The maple is very common
in the east of the United States of America. The tree is occa-
sionally met with in clumps of several acres in extent, but it is
more commonly found dispersed in the forest, growing among pines,
poplars, ashes, &c. The tree grows particularly in rich soils, and
attains the height of the oak ; the trunk being often more than three
feet in diameter. The maple becomes covered with flowers in the
spring before the appearance of the leaves. It is supposed to be in
its prime at the age of about twenty years. The sap of the maple
is obtained by piercing the trunk to the depth of from six to ten
inches. A piece of wood to serve as a gutter is placed in the hole,
and the sap is received in a vessel placed underneath. It is usual
to pierce the tree first on the side that is towards the south ; when
the flow of sap begins to lessen, it is tapped upon the north side.
The best season for making maple sugar is the beginning of spring,
February, March, and April ; the sap continues to flow during five
or six weeks. The quantity of sap obtained is found to be largest
when the days are hot and the nights cold ; the quantity collected
in the course of twenty-four hours will vary from about half a pint
to thirty pints and more ; the temperature of the air has the most
marked influence upon the flow of the sap ; it ceases completely,
for instance, in those nights when it freezes after a very hot day.

The maple does not appear to s'iffer from reiterated perforation ;
trees are mentioned which were still flourishing after having yielded
sugar for forty-two consecutive years. In certain cases, which,
however, must be held as exceptions to the rule, as many as 183
pints of sap have been tapped from a maple ia the course of twenty

126 PALM-SFGAR.

four hours, which j^ielded 4j\ lbs. of crystallized sugar. A maple
of ordinary dimensions, in a good year, will yield, on an average,
about 198 pints of sap, producing 5^ lbs. of sugar. The sap of the
maple must therefore contain about 2.2 per cent, of its weight of
marketable sugar. It has been found, that with care and attention
the maple becomes more productive ; maples around which other
forest trees have been felled, or which have been transplanted into
gardens, yield a sap which is not only more abundant, but also
richer in sugar, which, in fact, contains about three per cent, of
sugar.

The manufacture of maple sugar presents no peculiarity ; pre
cisely the same process is followed as in the case of the cane and
beet. Unless very speedily boiled down, the sap ferments, and
undergoes change ; in some parts of the United States, indeed, a
vinous liquor is made of the sap, by allowing it to run into sponta-
neous fermentation.

PALM SUGAR.

The palm which in the southern parts of India furnishes crystal-
lized sugar in large quantity, is the cleophora of Gaertner, and
reaches a height of about 100 feet. Its fruit hangs in clusters up-
wards of a yard in length. The natives procure the sap by cutting
short one of the shoots that is about to flower and carry fruit, and
hanging under the cut part of a calabash or other vessel, into which
the fluid distils ; in a large plantation such an apparatus is seen
connected with each palm-tree ; the sap is removed every morning,
and it is enough to reduce it by evaporation to obtain the sugar,
which diflfers^ in no respect from the finest sugar of the cane ; in the
unrefined state it is known over the whole of the East under the
name of jaggery,* and is then a kind of moist and sticky muscovado
sugar. The sap of the palm-tree obtained in the way above indica-
ted, is often turned into a vinous liquor, which is much prized in
many places. The pith of the tree yields sago. The palm-trees
cultivated in India consequently yinld three most useful products —
sugar, oil, and the farinaceous article of diet called sago. In rear-
ing the cocoa-nut palm, those nuts are selected for seed which fall
naturally, and they are dried in their husk. The ground which is
to be sown is dug to a depth of eighteen or twenty inches, and it is
left *o settle for three or four days. Some portion of the surface is
then taken away, and the fresh soil is covered, to the depth of about
six inches, with sand. The nuts are then placed upon the ground
80 prepared, and covered over with a little sand and a light stratum
of vegetable mould ; they are then watered for three days consecu-
tively. In the course of three months the young palms are fit to be
transplanted, and they are set at the distance of about twenty feet
every way from one another. For their reception in the permanent

♦ This is the generic name for sugar, and is obviously cither the Latin word sac-
charum, or from the same root as the Lntin word. The cocoa-nut tree treated in llie
tame way as the cleophora yields abundance of sugar, which is also known under the
Baoie of j-dggery. — Eiio. Ed.

GRAPE-SUG^R, OR GLUCOSE.. 127

plantation, holes are dn^ of about two feet in depth, in which a
layer of sand, about six inches in depth, is put, upon which the young
plants, still adherif)>T to the fruit, are placed ; the hole is then filled
with sand, and the surface is covered with a little earth. The young
trees require watering every day during about three years.' The
palm begins to be productive at the age of seven or eight years, and
it continues to yield fruit, or sap for the manufacture of sugar, during
a very considerable period, without causing any further cost l')r cul-
tivation.* The sap of the greater number of the palms appears to
be rich in saccharine matter ; it is obvious, indeed, that every sap
that is capable of supplying a vinous liquor by fermentation, may
also furnish sugar ; and if the palms have not generally been grown
with a view to this product, it is because the fruit must then be
given up, and, both in India and South America, the produce in the
shape of oil from the nuts of the palm, is almost always more valu-
able than that which can be had in the shape of sugar.f

GRAPE SUGAR.

We have already said that starch acted upon by acids, and by
malted barley, is changed into a saccharine fermentable substance,
which, both in regard to flavor and physical properties, differs in
many respects from the sugar which we have hitherto been engaged
in studying. As this substance exists naturally in the grape, it has
been called grape sugar, a name for which the generic term glucose
has been lately substituted in France, this term being used to include
all the sugars that are analogous to grape sugar. Grape sugar oc-
curs in the form of small white and very soft crystals, grouped in
tubercular masses; it softens at 60°, (140° Fahr.,) and becomes
quite sirupy at 90°, (194° Fahr.) Alcohol free from water dissolves
none of it ; but diluted alcohol takes up a considerable quantity.

In the grape this sugar is associated w^ith cream of tartar, tartrate
of lime, and several other saline matters. It is easily extracted
from the fruit ; but the grape sugar of commerce is now universally
prepared from starch ; large quantities, indeed, are manufactured on
the continent for the preparation of spirit, and for the amelioration
of wine, beer, cider, &c., in short, to supply sugar wherever it is
defective in the natural or artificial musts that are subjected to fer-
mentation. In England considerable quantities are also manufac-
tured ; but here the law does not allow it to be used in the same ad-
vantageous direction as in France and Germany ; all that is made is
employed for mixing with adulterating cane sugar, which is an arti-
cle of higher price.

The sugar that is made from starch, and that is obtained from the
grape are identical in composition, as is that also which is found in
the urine of persons laboring under diabetes.

* Buchanan. A Journey from Madras, &c., vol. i. p. 155.

t In British India the cocoa-nut palm is beginning to be extensively cultivated as a
means of producing sugar. A considerable portion of the East India sugar now brought
to market, is manufactured from the palm-tree. It is not improbable, indeed, that the
paLm of one spcies or another will one day supersede the sugar-cane and the beetoa
tlw source of all Uxe sngar consumed in Eorope.— Eico. Ei>.

138 MAMNA.

Grape Sitp&r Sugar ( f Starch. Diabetic Surar

(Saussufe.) (Gutrin.) (Pelig-oi.J

Carbon 36.7 36.1 36.4

Hydrogen 6.8 7.6 7.0

Ozygen .56.5 56.9 56.6

100.0 100.0 100.0

Like cane su^r, grape sugar in combining with certain bases
ibandons a portion of its constitutional water. In the state in which
it is combined with the oxide of lead it contains —

Carbon 43.3

Hydrogen 6.3

Oxygen 50.4

iooio

From these analyses it appears that crystallized grape sugar con-
sists of —

Anhydrous glucose 100

Water 19

On comparing the two kinds of sugar in the crystallized state, it
becomes evident that glucose or grape sugar does not differ from
cane sugar, except in containing a larger quantity of water. In fact
the composition of grape sugar may be represented in this way :

Carbon 42.2 i

Hydrogen 6.2 > 100 of cane sugar.

Oxygen 51.6)

115.8 of grape sugar.

The cane, the beet, the palm, the maple, the vine, and starch,
turned into glucose, are the sources from whence all the sugar of
commerce is obtained at the present day, although attempts more or
less successful have also been made to extract sugar from the pine-
apple, from the chestnut, from the sweet orange, and from the stem
of the maize or Indian corn. It appears that before the conquest
the Mexicans prepared a sirup from the stem of the Indian corn,
which was sold in the market-places. Pallas could not obtain more
than about 3 per cent, of crystallized sugar from maize, but in "xn
experiment which I made in South America along with M. RouL.i,
the quantity of raw sugar obtained from this plant was 6 per cent.

SACCHARINE PRINCIPLES NOT FERMENTABLE.

Manna ; mannite. This saccharine principle is met with in dif-
ferent plants ; it has been found in the expressed juice of onions,
and in that of asparagus, in the alburnum of several species of pine-
trees, and in different mushrooms. Manna, which is an exudation
from the fraxinus omus and larch, contains nearly ^ths of its weight
of mannite, and it is therefore from this substance that mannite is
usually obtained, although it can also be had from the juice of the
beet and the onion ; but then it is necessary to destroy the cane or
grape sugar which they contain by pre^ jous vinous fermentation,

PECTINE. lt?9

and M. Pelouze has even maintained that the mannite thus prepared
is a product of fermentation.*

Mainite crystallizes in very white semi-transparent needles ; it
has a slightly sweet taste, and is soluble in water. According to
Tiiebig and Opperman it contains :

Carbon 39.6

Hydrogen 7.7

Oxygen ..52.7

100.0

Liquorice, This substance, which is obtained from the root of
the Glycirrhiza glabra, is too well known to require particular con-
sideration ; it is soluble both in water and in alcohol.

GUM.

Gum is a substance very extensively diffused in the vegetable
kingdom ; there is, perhaps, no plant which does not contain some.
Gum is divided into two kinds ; gum, properly so called, the type
of which we have in gum-arabic, and vegetable mucilage, such as
we meet in gum-tragacanth.

Gum in dissolving in water produces a thick and adhesive fluid.
It is insoluble in alcohol. Some plants contain such a quantity that
upon infusion they seem to give, as it were, nothing else : such are
the althea, the malva officinalis, &c.

Gum does not crystallize, it is met with in concrete masses which
result from the solidification of the drops which flow spontaneously
from the trees that yield it : by long boiling with dilute sulphuric
acid it is changed into glucose. Nitric acid alters it, and several
new products are the result, among the number of which is mucic
acid. Gum-arabic, according to the analysis of M. Gay-Lussac and
Thenard, consists of :

Carbon 42.3

Hydrogen 6-9

Oxygen - 50.8

100.0

To obtain vegetable mucilage, a quantity of linseed is treated with
water and expressed. It is also obtained by steeping gum traga-
canth in about 1000 parts of water and pouring oflf the solution which
covers the mucilaginous mass. The mucilage then forms a jelly
more or less consistent, which diluted with a large quantity of water
forms a ropy viscid fluid. Dried again, this mucilage becomes hard
and translucid ; in water it regains its former state. f

VEGETABLE JELLY PECTINE AND PECTIC ACID.

It is well known that the juice of all fruits contains a gelatinous
substance to which many of them owe the property of forming jellies.

* Annales dc Chimie, vol. xlvii. p. 419, 2d series.— The refuse wash of the distiller,
appreciated by the taste, appears to contain a consideraMe quantity « f saccharine
matter, which is probably mannite.— Eng. Ed.

t Berzelius, Chemistry, vol. v.

130 PECTINE, PE.nC ACID.

This matter may be obtained by means of alcohol. If into a quantity
of currant juice lately'' expressed, a portion of alcohol be poured, a
gelatinous precipitate is formed after a certain time ; this jelly, sub-
jected to graduated pressure and washed with diluted alcohol, gives
the gelatinous principle in a state of.tolerable purity : this is pectine,
discovered by M. Braconnot.

Pectine dried is in membranous semi-transparent pieces resem-
bling isinglass. Thrown into about one hundred times its weight ot
water it swells considerably and at length dissolves completely,
giving rise to a stiff jelly. By increasing the quantity of water, a
mucilaginous solution, having a slightly milky aspect, is obtained.

Pure pectine is quite insipid ; it does not affect the color of litmus,
the weaker acids have no effect upon it ; a slight excess of potash or
of soda does not change it obviously, and nevertheless pectine is
singularly modified under the influence of these alkalies, being chang-
ed into a particular body, having acid reaction ; for on saturating
the alkali employed, it immediately coagulates into a transparent
gelatinous mass — pectic acid. As pectine acted upon by the fixed
alkalies undergoes so remarkable a change, we may be allowed to
conclude, w-ith M. Braconnot, that the pectic acid which is found
ready formed in plants, has a similar origin ; a view moreover which
tends to confirm that formerly announced by A^'auquelin, when he
ascribed the development of the acids of vegetables to the presence
of alkalies.*

Gelatinous pectic acid immediately becomes defluent upon the
addition of a few drops of solution of ammonia. By evaporating
this solution in a porcelain dish we obtain an acid pectate of am-
monia, which swells in distilled water, dissolves in it, and thickens
a large quantity of the fluid. As ammonia has no reaction upon
pectine, M. Braconnot has taken advantage of this negative property
to determine if pectic acid exists or not, ready formed, in certain
plants. Thus in treating carrots with cold water, rendered slightly
ammoniacal, a liquid is obtained, from which an acid immediately
throws down a precipitate of pectic acid.f Pectine and pectic acid,
therefore, may exist together in vegetables, and M. Jacquelain has
proved that the acid there is often in a state of combination as an
alkaline or earthy pectate. Tt is to these pectates that M. Payen
ascribes the origin of the carbonates of the same bases, which are
met with in the ashes of plants, the organic acid having of course
beon destroyed by the combustion. J

M. Braconnot has described an easy process for obtaining pectic
acid in large quantity from carrots.^

M. Fremy has published analyses of pectine and pectic acid, which
present this remarkable peculiarity, that the cne has exactly the
fiame elementary composition as the other.

* Braconnot, Annals of Chemistry, vol. xlvii. p. 274, Si icries
t Braconnot, op. cit. vol. xxx. p. 99.

i Payen, Proceedings of the Academy of Sciences, vol. XV.p.90T
i Op. cit. VOL XXX. p. 97. "^

I

VEGETABLE ACIDS. 181

Pectine. reetl9«ci4.

Carbon 42.9 42.8

Hydrogen 5.1 5.2

Oxygen 52.0 52.0

100.0 100.0

I have thought it right to speak at some length of these two prin-
ciples, as they appear to play an important part ii the phenomena of
vegetable life. A careful study of pectine and pectic acid will very
probaMy aid in throwing light upon the metamorphoses which organic
substances undergo in the act of vegetation. Pectic acid has been
found in every plant in which it has been sought for ; M. Braconnot
discovered it in the turnip, carrot, beet, peony, in all bulbs, in the
stalks and leaves of herbaceous plants, in the wood and bark of all the
trees examined, in all kinds of fruit, apples, pears, plums, cucumbers,
&c, M. Braconnot is even very much inclined to think that pectic
acid may constitute the essential principle in the cambium or organ-
izable matter of Grew and Duhamel.*

OP VEGETABLE ACIDS.

w

In the series of bodies which we have now considered, one only,
sugar, possesses the property of crystallizing. All the others are
amorphous, and their globular disposition and gelatinous qualities
have led to the presuniption that they form in some sort the line of
demarcation between things without and things endowed with life.
It was also imagined that these amorphous matters, that these pro-
ducts of the vegetable organization, almost organized themselves,
would alone suffice for the nourishment of animals. This idea,
however, is not well founded ; for if it be true that albumen, caseine,
legumine, starch, and gum, are powerful elements of nutrition, it is
equally so that sugar may perform an important part in this process,
by acting in the same manner as starch, the oils, and other principles
of ternary composition, in becoming like them a useful, often an in-
dispensable auxiliary of azotized alimentary matters.

This disposition to consider the amorphous state of the more im-
portant immediate principles of vegetables as a special and distinctive
character, cannot be maintained beside the recent observations of
Mitscherlich. This illustrious chemist has found, that if the mineral
precipitates which are deposited in liquids, are in many cases form-
ed of crystals more or less regular, they are also sometimes compos-
ed of small spheres or aggregated masses, the particles of which do
not unite in a regular way as crystals, but remain separated by a
thin layer of fluid. Examined under the microscope these masses
present themselves under the form of flocks and of shreds, having a
granular or gelatinous appearance, and which xcmain soft and flexi-
ble like fresh vegetable or animal substances, so long as they are
kept under water ; it is only in drying that they become pulverulent
or acquire the vitreous aspect. f

* Braconnot, op. cit. vol. xxviii. p. 171.
1 Berzelius, Ann. Report, ISil, p. 20.

132 VEGETABLE ACIDS.

The substances, the chemical constitution of which we have still
te examine, may in general be obtained in the crystallized state ;
their individuality seems more decided ; they are more stable, better
characterized, and their specific properties often assimilate them to
inorganic bodies. Such, for example, are the acids formed in the
course of vegetable existence.

Vegetable acids present all the general characters of mineral
acids, while they participate in the properties inherent in organic
substances. Thus they form salts by uniting with bases ; with
potash, soda, ammonia, they form salts soluble in water ; the other
bases produce compounds that are soluble or insoluble, according to
the nature of the acid. These acids, free or uncombined, are very
frequently met with in fruit, sometimes in the leaves, more rarely
in the seeds and roots ; but in combination with bases they are met
with in almost all parts of plants. Already very numerous, they are
increasing rapidly with the progress of discovery ; with the excep-
tion of a very few employed in the arts, their study forms a subject
of no great interest. I shall therefore confine myself to a few of the
most extensively distributed of these acids.

Oxalic acid. This acid exists free in the hairs of the cicer or
chick-pea, and united with potash constituting an acid salt, the bin-
oxolate of potash in the wood sorrel and the common or garden sor-
rel. It is from the former of these plants that the salt called salt
of lemons, but which is, in fact, the binoxolate of potash, is still ex-
tracted in some countries. The juiceof the wood sorrel is expressed
and yields about 0.003 of its weight of the salt, from which, by or-
dinary chemical manipulation, the oxalic acid is readily obtained.
At the present time this acid is prepared artificially by the action of
nitric acid upon starch ; it is a powerful acid, and its affinity for lime
is such that it takes this base even from its union with sulphuric
acid.

Tartaric acid is met with above all in the grape in the state of
bitartrate of potash, a salt which is deposited upon the sides of the
casks in which the wine is kept. After having been properly puri-
fied, it is known in commerce under the name of cream of tartar,
from which the tartaric acid can readily be obtained. Another par-
ticular acid, the racemic acid, the composition of which is identical
with that of the tartaric acid, has been discovered in the tartar of
the wines grown on the Upper Rhine.

Citric acid. This acid is found in the juice of many plants, and
abundantly in the juice of lemons, oranges, currants, &c. It is from
the lemon and the lime that the citric acid employed in the arts 19
generally obtained.

Tannic acid. A certain substance which is met with in the bark
of particular trees, and which has the valuable property of renderings
the hides of animals with which it is combined insusceptible of pu-
trefaction, is familiarly known under the name of tannin. The art
of the tanner is founded upon this property of tannin. A solution
cf gelatine being poured into an infusion of tannic acid, an insoluble
precipitate, torm.ed by the uiiiun ot the acid with the animal matter,

VEGETABLE ALKALIES.

133

IS immediately produced. By macerating a piece of raw hide in a
solution of tannin, the same combination takes place even into the
very interior of the tissue ; the whole of the tannin quits the solu-
tion by degrees to combine with the gelatine of the skin.

It is not in the bark only that tannin is encountered, it has been
found in different organs of plants. Sir Humphrey Davy has stated
these quantities of tannin as constituents of 100 parts of the follow^
ing substances :

Nutgalls .

27.4

Oak bark

, ,

6.3

Chestnut bark

.

4.3

Elm bark

.

2.7

Willow bark .

2.2

Inner white bark of an

aged oak

15.0

The same of young oaks"

16.0

The same of the Indian

chestnut

15.2

The inner colored bark of the oak

4.0

Sicilian sumac

16.2

Malaga sumac

10.4

Souchong tea

10.0

Green tea

8.5

Bombay catechu

54.3

Bengal catechu

48.1

Gallic acid. This acid is found united with tannin in the greater
number of barks, or along with the astringent principles of plants.
Gallic acid appears to be the product of a kind of fermentation un-
dergone by tannin, as the process by which it is prepared seems to
indicate, and which consists essentially in exposing for about a
month a quantity of nutgalls reduced to powder and kept constantly
moistened. The solution of gallic acid does not precipitate gela-
tine.

I have added in a table the composition of the principal vegetable
acids. I shall speak of the composition of fat acids when I come to
treat of fatty substances.

The different vegetable acids do not vary essentially in composi-
tion, save in a single instance. With one exception they consist of
definite proportions of carbon, hydrogen, and oxygen. The excep-
tion alluded to is the hydrocyanic acid, which contains no oxygen,
but a large quantity, nearly 52 per cent., of azote.

OF THE VEGETABLE ALKALIES.

The alkaline bases which are formed in the course of vegetation,
always contain a certain proportion of azote. Their general prop-
erties are those of alkalies ; their watery or alcoholic solutions re-
store the blue color of the reddenea tincture of turnsole, and they
constitute salts by combining with acids. In their manner of be-
having they bear a certain analogy to ammonia. Like ammonia,
the organic alkalies combine with the hydrates of the oxacids, and
when they are deprived of their water of crystallization, they fix the
hydracids without losing weight.

12

134 FATTY SUBSTANCES.

The discovery of the vegetable bases is due to Sertuerner, wh(.»,
in 1804, indicated the existence of morphine in opium. The ma-
jority of the vegetable alkalies are insoluble, or little soluble in
water ; all are soluble in alcohol ; some of them are sutRciently
volatile to be susceptible of distillation.

In elementary composition they are all very much alike, consist-
ing of various, but, in each instance, definite proportions of carbon,
hydrogen, oxygen, and azote, the carbon varying from about 50 to
75, the hydrogen from 6 to 12, the oxygen from 8 or 9 to 27 and
even 37, and the azote from 1.6 to 12, 28, and even 35 per cent.

OF FATTY SUBSTANCES.

Under this title I comprise all the oily substances, liquid or solid,
and those that are analogous to wax, which are found disseminated
in different organs of plants. A character common to almost all
fatty substances, is insolubility in water. They dissolve in sensible
quantity in alcohol, and especially in ether. Fatty substances may
be divided into two classes : one including those which are easily
modified by the action of alkalies, and which form soaps ; the other
not susceptible of this action, not susceptible of saponification, or, at
all events, that are only attacked by alkalies in very particular cir-
cumstances.

When a mixture of fat oil and a solution of caustic alkali are
heated, the oil is soon observed to incorporate with the alkaline
liquid. After boiling for some time, if the alkali is in excess, clots
or flocks appear, and in removing the excess of liquid a white mass
is obtained which is soluble in water — the oil is saponified ; and the
product of the saponification is combined with a portion of the alkali
which has been employed. If into a hot solution of this soap a
quantity of hydrochloric acid be poured, the acid seizes upon the pot-
ash or the soda, setting at liberty the fatty body which had been
combined with the alkali, and which collects on the liquid. It is
easy to discover that the fatty matter thus collected is no longer the
same as that which had been originally employed ; for example, it is
completely soluble in boiling alcohol, which, on cooling, deposites
brilliant pearly crystals of a fatty substance possessing acid proper-
ties. By evaporating the alcohol from which these crystals are
formed, an additiona quantity is obtained, and, when the alcohol is
entirely dissipated, another unctuous body is obtained, having also
acid properties. Three acids having distinguishing characters are,
in fact, obtained by the action of alkalies upon fatty substances : the
stearic, margaric, and oleic acids. The alkalies consequently trans-
form neutral oily bodies into acid substances, as first shown by the
admirable researches of M. Chevreul, before whose time it was al-
ways assumed that soap was the result f f a direct union of fatty
matters with alkalies. The fatty acids arc not the only products of
saponification, there are several others, particularly glycerine, which,
however, need not occupy us particularly here.

The experiments of M. Chevreul would lead us to view all fatty

FATTY SUBSTANCES. 185

matters as combinations of glycerine playing the part of a uase with
particular acids ; these combinations, analogous to salts if their con-
stitution be merely considered, are generally mixed together us oils
and fats ; thus the union of stearic acid and glycerine forms stearine,
which is fusible at the temperature of about 62° cent, (144° Fahr.)
Stearic acid melts at 72° cent., (162° Fahr.,) oleine remains fluid at
4° cent., (24° Fahr.,) and oleic acid is liquid. An oil is, therefore,
by so much the more consistent as a larger quantity of solid fatty
acid enters into its composition, and it is, on the contrary, by so
much the softer and more liquid as this acid is itself more fluid. The
wax of the Myrica cerifera, for example, is sufficiently hard to be
reduced to powder, and is almost entirely formed of stearine. In
the fluid vegetable oils oleine always predominates. It is easy to
separate these different fatty compounds from one another.

Besides the solid and litjuid acids which are obtained from fatty
substances, there are others known which are volatile.

Fatty bodies absorb oxygen from the air. This absorption is at
first extremely slow, scarcely appreciable ; but once begun, it goes
on with great rapidity ; so rapidly, indeed, that if a large surface be
exposed to the air, if, for example, a quantity of rags or tow be im-
pregnated with oil, the mass may take fire. The consequence of
this oxidation is always a thickening of oil, and there are some which
become completely solid in its course ; these are designated by the
title of drying oils, and are in particular request for the manufacture
of varnishes. Nut oil which has remained long exposed to the air
acquires the consistence of jelly, and its unctuous properties have sc
entirely disappeared that it no longer stains paper.

The alteration which fatty substances undergo in contact with air
and moisture is still more remarkable. The oils which are inodorous
and without taste soon acquire under these circumstances a strong
smell and a disagreeable flavor. Fleshy fruits which contain a large
quantity of oil, such as the olive and the oleaginous seeds, when
moistened suffer true fermentation, the result of which is the sepa-
ration of the fatty acids from the glycerine.

Oils subjected to the action of a high temperature are alsb greatly
modified. The glycerine which they contain is decomposed, and
gives rise to various pyrogenous products : stearic acid is changed
into margaric acid, and oleic acid into sebacic acid, a crystallizable
volatile acid which is soluble in hot water.

The fatty substances of plants are principally accumulated in the
fruit, and particularly in the seed. In the herbaceous parts they are
less abundant, less perfectly elaborated. Oils appear to be included
in the vegetable tissue under the form of globules, or minute drops.
In such an oily seed as the common almond, when it is growing, we
perceive that the cellular tissue is in the first instance full of a col-
orless and transparent fluid ; but as the seed advances, each cell is
seen to become filled with numbers of little oil globules which in-
crease continually in size and number until the kernel is ripe ; there
is at the same time a quantity of azotized matter deposited in the
midst of the liquid, which disturbs its transparency ; it is this depos-

136 FATTY SUBSTANCES.

ite which thickens the walls of the cells.* The capillary force
which retains fatty principles combined with the tissue of certain
seeds must be very considerable, for havings boiled some rape-seed,
wiiich contained 50 per cent, of oil, in water, there was not a trace
of oily matter perceptible upon the surface of the liquid. Butter
appears to be kept diffused in milk by something of a similar force,
for milk when boiled yields but a very small quantity of this sub-
stance M. Dumas and I maintain that the oil of seeds is intended
for the production of heat by undergoing combustion at the period
of germination ; a series of experiments performed in my laboratory
by M. Letellier supports this opinion.

Having ascertained by a preliminary trial the quantity of oily
substance contained in a certain weight of seed, some of the same
kind was put to germinate, and the quantity of oil which it contained
was tested at two periods of the germination ; it was found that in
the course of this process a considerable proportion of the fatty sub-
stance had disappeared ; one gramme or 15.438 grains of rape-seed
before germination contained 0.50 of oil ; after the first period of
germination, namely, when the cotyledons had begun to turn green,
the quantity of oil was found reduced to 0.43, and at the end of the
second period, when the cotyledons had become quite green and the
radicles were from 3.9 to 4.6 inches long, the oil was reduced to 0.28.

It would be extremely interesting to ascertain the extreme loss
which the oily principles of seeds sustained in the course of the
commencement of vegetation, and to follow the return of the same
principles in proportion as the plant advanced towards maturity.
M. Letellier is going on with these experiments.

The numberless uses to which oil is put, make its manufacture an
object of the highest importance. Vegetable oils are generally ob-
tained from olives, from oleaginous seeds, and from the nut of cer-
tain palms. Oil is separated by pressure ; it may often be extracted
from the seed in the natural state, in which case the produce is of
fine quality, but seldom abundant. The castor-oil bean, for example,
yields its oil under the simple action of the press. In America,
however, to obtain this oil, the seeds are first roasted slightly, and
being bruised they are then boiled in water ; the oil readily sepa-
rates from the roasted seed. A similar process is sometimes follow-
ed in procuring cacao butter.

In the extraction of oil from the common oleaginous seeds, they
are first ground or bruised in a proper apparatus ; the paste or pow-
der which they now form is generally heated, and being put into
woollen sacks, and these enclosed in hair bags, they are subjected to
the operation of the press ; after one pressure, the magma which
remains in the bags is crushed anew, heated, and pressed again.
The oil obtained by the second pressing is never so pure as that
procured by the first.

The oil-cake is taken out of the bags, completely dry in appear-
BOe» but it still contains a large proportion of oil — iron 8 to 15 per

* Domas, Chemistrj', vol. v.

OIL.

137

cent, of its weight. It is used in fattening cattle and as manure
Oil, when newly expressed, is always turbid and very mucilaginous;
it becomes clear by standing ; but it always retains certain 8ub«
stances which lessen its quality, particularly when it is intended
for burning in lamps.

Greater obstacles are encountered in extracting the &i\ from some
of the pulpy fruits than from seeds. In extracting olive-oil, the
olives are crushed under millstones ; and the paste which results be-
ing put into flat baskets of wicker-work, is subjected to the press.
The first pressing yields virgin oil, which is used for the table.
Having removed the baskets from the press, their contents are mix-
ed with a little boiling water, replaced, and pressed again, by which
a new quantity of oil is obtained. But the pulp is not yet exhausted ,
by special treatment it still yields a quantity of oil of inferior quality,
which is employed in the manufacture of soap.

The fruit of the palm yields the oil which it contains with great
readiness. I have extracted a butter of excellent quality and very
agreeable taste by simply boiling the nuts or. berries of the Palma
real in water. The cocoa-nut yields two qualities of oil, according
to the mode of extraction. To prepare the best kind, the fleshy
part of the fruit is grated, and the pulp being pressed, a milky fluid
is obtained, which yields the oil by boiling. An inferior quality of
oil is obtained by causing the cocoa-nuts to putrefy ; when the putre-
faction has advanced to a certain stage, the oily pulp is thrown into
copper vessels and exposed to the sun, and the oil which then rises
to the surface is skimmed off. This oil is brown, and has a strong
smell ; it contains fatty acids which have probably been set at lib-
erty by the putrid fermentation.

The value of the produce in oleaginous seeds of a given extent
of land, and the quantity of oil which these seeds will yield, depend,
as may readily he conceived, on a variety of causes which it is not al-
ways easy to appreciate with precision ; such as climate, the nature
of the soil, the system of husbandry followed, &c. The observations
of M. Gaujac of Dagny on the various plants usually cultivated for
the sake of their oleaginous seeds, will however suffice to give a
notion of their comparative productiveness in oil and cake :

Crop.

Seed produced

per acre in

Cwts. qrs, lbs.

Whole quantity

of Oil obtained

per Acre in lbs.

avoird.

Oil
obtained
per cent.

Cake

per cent.

WINTER CROPS.

Colewort

19 0 15

15 1 3

16 2 18

15 1 25

16 2 18
13 3 19

17 1 16
15 3 14
15 1 25

10 1 18
7 3 21

11 3 17

875.4
320.8
641.6
595.8
641.6
565.4

545.8
275.0
385.0
560.8
229.0
412.5

40
18
33
33
33
33

27
15
22
46
25

54
73

62
62
62
61

72
80
69
52
70

Rape

Swedish turnip..
Curled colewort. .
Turnip cabbage..

SPRING CROPS.

Gold of Pleasure

Sunflower

Flax . . •

White poppy

Summer rape —

30

1 65

13*

138 OIL.

M. Matthew de Dombasle made some comparsiive experiments a.
Roville on the cultivation of oleaginous plants. The results obtain-
ed by this skilful agriculturist are much less favorable than those of
M. Gaujac. Instead of 19 cwt. and 15 lbs. of colewort seed yield-
ing 875.4 lbs. of oi; per acre, M. de Dombasle only obtained 11 cwt.
2 qrs. 21 \h§. yielding 392.3 lbs. of oil ; and the other kinds of seed
in proportion. But as I have said already, the fertility of the soil,
and the labor and pains bestowed upon it, may have contributed to
the differences observed, because here the influence of climate may
be overlooked. There is one circumstance, however, which may
explain the great differences in the quantity of oil obtained, which
is the perfection of the press employed to extract it. In a general
way oil-presses are so imperfect that they all leave a quantity of oil
more or less in the cake.

Here are two examples : from 2765 lbs. avoird. of fine colewort
seed, gathered in 1842, and weighing 52^ lbs. per bushel, I obtained :

lb«.

Of oil 1130.5

Of cake 1384.9

Loss 249.6

2765.0

In Other terms, per cent. :

Oil 40.81

Cake 50.12

Loss 9.07

iooioo

but by a careful analysis of the same seed in the laboratory, 50 per
Dent, of oil was obtained.

2d. In 1840 and 1841, I made some experiments on the cultiva-
tion of the madia sativa, intermixed with carrots in a fertile soil,
well manured with farm dung. The crop of the year 1840 was ex-
cellent ; it required one hundred and twenty-seven days to come to

maturity.

ibi.

Seed, husks deducted 2424

Dried leaves employed as litter 7700

Carrots without their leaves 31966

The seed gave :

Of oil 635.8

Of cake 17067.6

100 of seed gave :

Oil 26.24

Cake 70.72

Loss 33.4

100.00

These results agree pretty nearly with those which have been
published by ether agriculturis s ; but the seed of this madia, which
in the press gave 26.24 of oil per cent., actually yielded 41 per cent,
by analysis in the laboratory ; this difference between practical re-
suits and those of the laboratory, shows us how large a quantity of
oil is generally left in the ;ake. When the cake is used for feeding

OIL. 139

cattle, the loss is perhaps less to be regretted, inasmuch as the oily
matter evidently assists in the fattening ; but when the cake is used
as manure, \he oil which it contains is almost entirely lost.

It is often ot importance to the agriculturist to ascertain precisely
the quantity of fatty principles contained in oleaginous seeds. For
this purpose, it is enough to bruise a given quantity of the seed and
to digest it in successive portions of sulphuric ether. After a first
digestion, the seed is bruised or pul-verized anew, and the bruising
is now accomplished without difficulty. The process may be con-
cluded by boiling with a mixture of equal parts of ether and alcohol.
The ethereal solutions are decanted from the seed into a porcelain
dish, the weight of which is known. The ether evaporates sponta-
neously and the oil remains, the weight of which is then taken.

The following sums may be taken as a pretty accurate estimate
of the average quantity of oil yielded by the different oleaginous
seeds : colewort, winter rape, and other species of cruciferous plants,
from 30 to 36 and 40 per cent. ; sunflower about 15 per cent. ; lin-
seed from 11 to 22 ; poppy from 34 to 63; hempseed from 14 to
26 ; olives from 9 to 11 ; walnuts 40 to 70 ; brazil nuts 60 ; castor-
oil beans 62 ; sweet almonds 40 to 54 ; bitter almonds 28 to 46 ;
madia sativa 26 to 28 per cent.

The quantity of oil yielded by any seed subjected to the press is
always considerably less than that which it contains, and the oil re-
tained in the cake appears to be in larger proportion as the starch,
the woody tissue, and the albuminous matters are more abundant.
Thus maize, or Indian corn, which contains from 8 to 10 per cent
of fluid oil, gives mere traces of its presence under the press.

The oily and fleshy fruits, such as those of the olive and the palm,
yield a considerable quantity of oil. In the southern countries of
Europe, particularly those which are so well protected that their
olive-trees escaped the severe winter of 1789, as many as about
816 J lbs. of oil per acre are obtained, with proper care. The trees
which were killed during this memorable winter sprouted again
from the roots, and at the present day yield from about one quarter
to one half the above quantity, according to the spaces left between
them, which vary considerably. Under similar circumstances in
regard to climate, it will readily be understood, that the quantity of
produce will be influenced by the quantity of manure put into the
ground. In some countries the olive is never manured, save indi-
rectly ; that is to say, the ground between the trees is only manured
with a view to another crop, which is grown between them ; in other
countries, again, in the neighborhood of Marseilles, for instance, it
is the practice to manure the olive plantations, directly, every three
or fonr years.

The olive enjoys remarkable longevity ; I have mentioned one
more than seven centuries old, and the term of the tree's existence
appears only to be limited by the severe winters which cause it to
die, from time to time. The produce must of course depend upon
the age of the trees which compose a plantation. Up to eleven
years, M. Gasparin shows that an olive-tree still remains all but un-

140 OIL.

prodQctive ; and that the capital, and the interest upon the capital
expended in this husbandry, must necessarily exceed the value of
the produce up to the thirtieth year. Yet there are soils which are
favorable to the olive, and which are useful for nothing else ; a hole
in a rock suffices it, if the climate be favorable and it receive a
praper dose of manure. But the grand cause of the disadvantages
attending the cultivation of the olive, in France, is connected with
the periodical occurrence of severe winters, which kill it ; in an
interval of one hundred and twelve years, from 1709 to 1821, the
olive plantations have suffered three great mortalities, which give a
mean duration of about forty years to each planting.

The cocoa-nut-tree is one of those which yields the largest quan-
tity of oil with the least labor. The tree grows vigorously in all hot
countries, at no great distance from the sea-shore ; wherever the tem-
perature is from 78° to 82° Fahr., there the cocoa-nut thrives. It is
also found on the banks of great rivers ; and the common practice in
planting the cocoa-nut is to put a little salt in the hole. When trans-
planted far from the banks of rivers, it thrives best in the neighborhood
of human habitations, which has led the Indians to say that the
cocoa-nut-tree loves to hear men talking under its shade. It is a
tree which requires a soil impregnated with saline substances, and
these are never wanting near the habitations of man. The tree
bears its first flowers at the age.of four years ; it produces fruit the
following year, and continues to fructify until it is eighty years old.
The spikes generally bear about twelve cocoa-nuts, and the number
of nuts yielded by a tree in the course of a year may be taken at
about fifty, which will yield about four litres, or rather more than
seven pints of oil. Somewhere about ninety trees are generally
found upon the acre of land, and these are capable of yielding about
825 lbs. of oil annually*

The cocoa-nut-tree must, therefore, be regarded as among the
most productive in oil, and also as the plant which requires the least
outlay in its cultivation. Many species of palm yield oils of a very
agreeable flavor for the table, and the produce of all answers admira-
bly for the manufacture of soap. In the same proportion as agri-
cultural industry extends in the equatorial regions of the globe, will
the production of palm-oils increase, and this must necessarily in-
fluence the cultivation of the olive in a very serious way. The cul-
tivation of the tree being already threatened in Europe by that of
the mulberry, and the prodigious extension in the trade in palm-oil
upon the coasts of Africa in the course of the last few years, justify
this conclusion. In 1817, palm-oil was considered as among the
list of mere medicinal substances. At this period a London perfumer
thought of making it into a soap for the toilet-table. From this time
it became the staple of a bartering trade, which has been by so much
the more profitable to the nations engaged in it, as the purchase is
always effected by manufactured articles, such as cotton and wool
len goods, hardware and crockery, arms, powder, &c. The future

* Codazzi. Remmen de la Geografia de la Venezuela, p. 133.

ESSENTIAL OILS. 141

extent of this traffic may be imagined when it is known that in 1817
the importation of palm-oil into England did not much exceed
140,000 lbs., and that in 1836 it exceeded 70,000,000 lbs ! In tak-
ing an acre of surface for unity, I find that on an average the

Spring oleaginous plants yield 3201bs. of oil.

Winter oleaginous plants 534 "

The olive (south of Europe) 534 "

The Palm (America) 801 "

OF ESSENTIAL OILS.

Aromatic plants owe the odors which characterize them to
certain volatile principles, which by reason of certain properties
which they have in common with fat oils, such as insolubility in
water, solubility in ether and alcohol, inflammability, &c., are gen-
erally designated as essential oils. They are met with in all parts
of plants ; but in one plant the oil is principally found in the flower,
in another in the leaves, in another in the bark,, <fec. It sometimes
happens that diflferent parts of the same plant contain oils of different
kinds. From the orange-tree, for instance, three distinct oils are
obtained, as the flower, the leaf, or the rind of the fruit is treated.
In some cases the volatile principle is so thoroughly imprisoned in
the vegetable cells, that drying does 'not dissipate it; in others, as
in the greater number of flowers, the oil is formed on the surface,
and is volatilized immediately after its formation.

Essential oils are less volatile than water ; nevertheless they rise
with the vapor of water, and it is by distillation that they are gen-
erally extracted. The plant is put into a still or alembic containing
water, and heat is applied : the vapor formed is condensed in the
receiver, and the essence, by reason of its less density, is found
swimming on the surface of the water which has been distilled.
Some volatile oils are obtained by pressure, those of the citron and
bergamotte, for example.

The volatile principles of plants present somewhat varied physical
properties. They are generally limpid and lighter than water ; yet
there are some which are more dense, and some, such as camphor,
which are solid. With reference to their composition, volatile oils
may be divided into three classes ; 1st. Oils composed entirely of
carbon and hydrogen. 2d. Oils composed of carbon, hydrogen
and oxygen. 3d. Essential oils containing sulphur ; in addition to
which, the essential oil of mustard seed contains azote.

The essential oils undergo a change by long contact with the air :
they absorb oxygen, an i many of them become acidified ; under the
influence of this gas, the oil of bitter almonds is changed into ben-
zoic acid, the oil of cinnamon into cinn-amic acid ; in a general
way, acetic acid is produced. The volatile oil obtained from any
plant almost always contains two distinct principles, which may be
separated by careful distillation ; one of these principles is a car-
buret of hydrogen, the other an oxygenated oil. Camphor is com-
bined vyith essential oils in many plants of the labiate family. It

142 RESINS.

exudes from certain laurels ; it is from the Laurus camphora that
all the camphor of commerce is extracted in the East, the extraction
being effected precisely by the same process as other essential oils.
The chips of tiie Laurus cam-phora are put into iron stills, surmount-
ed by earthenware capitals, in the inside of which a number of
ropes made of rice-straw are stretched ; the camphor rises and ia
condensed on the surface of these cords in the state of a gray pow
der ; it is refined by sublimation.
According to M. Dumas, camphor contains :

Carbon ... 79.2

Hydrogen 10.4

Oxygen 10.4

100.0

OF RESIN.

Essential oils almost always hold certain substances in solution
which make them viscid or sticky. The balsams which exude from
the bark of certain trees are nothing more than solutions of resin in
essential oils. When the volatile oil has been dissipated by evapo-
ration, the resin remains in the solid state. There is further a nat-
ural relation in point of constitution between essential oils and resins.
The greater number of essences absorb, as we have said, oxygen
from the atmosphere, and by this absorption they become thick, and
are changed into resins ; so that in one case the resin may be a
product of the oxidation of an essential oil, in another it may merely
be set at liberty by the dissipation of the essence which held it in
solution.

The resins constitute friable, or soft solids. They are fusible,
extremely inflammable, and fixed. The resins are inodorous when
pure : any odor which particular resins possess is generally attrib-
uted to the essential oil which they still retain. The resins are in-
soluble, or very sparingly soluble in water ; some of them dissolve
readily in alcohol and in ether, and there are some also, such as
copal, which are only soluble in very small quantity. Some resins
show acid reaction ; they combine with bases, neutralizing them.
The greater number of resinous matters obtained from plants are
regarded by chemists as mixtures of several particular resins, the
study of which is not ye*, much advanced. Some resins are much
employed in the arts, such as colophony and copal, &c. Several
balsams are also in familiar use, particularly as medicines, such as
the balsam of tolu, balsam of copaiba, &c.

Colophony, or rosin, is extracted from different kinds of the genus
Pinus. In the Landes, or sandy plains of Bordeaux, it is the mari-
time pine which yields it. When the tree is from thirty to forty
years of age, incisions are made in the trunk, beginning at the lower
part, two or three times a week, ,and these are continued to the
height of from 6 to 10 feet from the ground ; the last notch general..
ly reaches this height about four years after the tree has been notch-
ed for the first time. After this a new series of notches is be^un
pa the opposite side, setting out from the ground as before, and in

VEGETABLE WAX. 143

this way the whole circumference of the tree finally presents a series
of notches, so that a tree will continue to yield turpentine during a
period of sixty years. The turpentine which exudes from the
notches is collected in a hole dug in the ground.

Crude turpentine always contains a quantity of intermixed foreign
matters, earth, stones, leaves, &c. It is purified by being melted, and
filtered hot through a bed of straw. By distillation it is separated into
essential oil, which is condensed in the receiver, and colophony, or
rosin, which remains in the still. From 250 lbs. of turpentine 30 lbs.
of essence and 220 lbs. of rosin are generally obtained.

Copal is the produce of a tree which is somewhat common in
Madagascar, and which M. Perrotet has determined to be the Hy-
menaa verrucosa. The balsam or sap which exudes from the bark
solidifies by contact with the air, and the resin is gathered in the
state in which it is met with in commerce.

CAOUTCHOUC.

The caoutchouc which we have mentioned as forming a constituent
in the sap of certain trees possesses some properties which assimi-
late it with the resins. Thus pure ether, free from alcohol, dis-
solves it. The greater number of the essential oils also dissolve it,
particularly when hot. It is a solution of Indian rubber in rectified
coal-tar oil or naphtha, which is now used so extensively for making
stuflfs water-proof. According to Faraday pure caoutchouc is
composed of :

Carbon 87.2

Hydrogen 12.8

■ 100

VEGETABLE WAX.

Some plants produce a considerable quantity of a substance which
bears a great resemblance to beeswax, and which in some of its
properties approaches fatty bodies. Proust discovered that vegeta-
ble wax formed part of the green fecula of a great number of vege-
tables. In the common cabbage it occurs in large quantity. It is
often met with forming a varnish on the surface of leaves, fruit, and
barks ; the substance, however, is far from being identical ; it al-
most always results from the combination of several distinct princi-
ples which have not yet been sufficiently studied, but among which
there are obviously some true fatty substances, that is to say, bodies
capable of saponification, and matters analogous to the resins. I
shall here mention a few of the vegetable waxes which are best
known.

Wax of the palm. This is the product of the Ceroxylon andicola,
which is very abundant on the central Cordillera of New Grenada.
I believe that I met with the Lower limit of the ceroxylon upon the
holders of the torrent of Tochecito, at the height of 7500 feet above
the level of the sea, and I followed it to an absolute elevation of
about 8500 feet. The extreme mean temperatures comprised be-

144 VEGETABLE WAX.

tween these two limits may be valued at from IP to 18" cent. ,
51.8° to 64.4° Fahr. Towards the superior limit, the ceroxylon is
exposed to a cold during tiie night, which approaches the freezing
point of water ; it is therelbre frequently met with in company with
the great oak of America, whose climate it stands very well.

The Indians obtain the wax by scraping the bark of the palm :
the scrapings are then boiled in water ; the wax swims — without,
however, melting ; it is merely softened, and the impurities which it
contains are deposited. The matter thus purified is formed into
balls and set to dry in the sun. It is with this substance, to which,
however, a small quantity of fat is often added to render it less brit-
tle, that the loaves of wax and the candles of the country are form-
ed. After it has been melted, the cera de palma is of a deep yellow
color, slightly translucid, as brittle as resin, and presenting a waxy
fracture well characterized. Its melting point is a little above that
of boiling water. Boiling alcohol dissolves it readily ; in cooling,
the solution sets into a gelatinous mass. Ether dissolves it, as do
the alkalies also.

The wax of the palm consists of two principles ; one, fusible
above the temperature of the boiling point of water, has all the
physical properties of beeswax ; the other has the properties of
resin. The composition of these substances upon analysis appears
to be:

Wax. Resin.

Carbon 81.6 83.7

Hydrogen 13.3 11.5

Oxygen 5.1 4.8

100 100

Wax of the Myrica cerifera. This wax is procured by boiling
the fruit of several species of myrica in water. The tree is ex-
tremely common in Louisiana and the temperate regions of the
Andes. The fruit yields as much as 25 per cent, of wax, and a
single shrub will yield from 24 to 30 lbs. of berries per annum. The
crude wax is green, brittle, and, to be made into candles, requires
the addition of a certain quantity of grease. According to M. Che-
vreul the wax of the myrica is saponifiable.

Wax of the sugar-cane. The sugar-cane, particularly the violet
variety, is covered with a powder or bloom of a waxy nature, which
melts at the temperature of 82" cent. (180' Fahr.) This wax is so
hard that it can be pulverized ; it may be made into candles, which,
for the brilliancy of their light, are not inferior to those of sperma-
ceti. M. Avequin, who directed attention to this subject, found by
his experiments that a hectare (nearly 2j acres English) of the
violet cane would furnish nearly 200 lbs. of wax. This wax is
entirely soluble in boiling alcohol ; ether does not dissolve it in the
cold. It appears to constitute a perfectly defined immediate vege-
table principle, the composition of which, according to M. Dumas
U the following :

Carbon 81.4

Hydrogen 14.1

Oxygen 4.5

100

COLORING PRINCIPLES. 145

CHLOROPHYLLE.

The green matter which colors the leaves of vegetables is so
designated. The attempts which have been made to isolate this
matter, render it probable that it is somewhat of the nature of the
vegetable waxes. Pelletier and Caventou endeavored to procure it
by treating with cold alcohol, the pulp remaining after expressing
all the juices from the leaves of various herbaceous plants. By
evaporation of the alcoholic liquor, a substance of a deep-green color
was obtained, which is chlorophylle, a matter soluble in ether, in al-
cohol, the oils, and the alkalies. Heated, it softens and is decom-
posed before it melts. Acetic acid dissolves it in very appreciable
quantities, so do the sulphuric and hydrochloric acids ; w^ater precipi-
tates it from these acid solutions. Berzelius says that chlorophylle
exists only in very small quantity in plants, the leaves of a large tree
will not perhaps contain more than about 100 grains.

OF COLORING MATTERS.

The matters which color the different parts of plants are extreme-
ly numerous ; they present great varieties of shade, but are in gen-
eral derived from red, yellow, and green. It is seldom that the col-
oring matter of a plant exists isolatedly ; it is almost always allied
with one or several immediate principles, which are themselves fre-
quently colored. Thus red coloring matters are generally combined
with yellow principles, which having nearly the same properties, one
is with great difficulty separated from another.

Coloring matters are solid, inodorous, and have little taste. Some
are soluble in water, others only dissolve in alcohol or in ether.
All combine with the alkalies, and several of them unite intimately
with acids ; the greater number are powerfully affected, undergo a
true destruction, on exposure to the sun's rays, especially when in
contact with moist air. It is familiarly known that vegetable tissues
of all kinds, beeswax, &c., are bleached by exposure to the sun and
air ; a high temperature acts like light : some vegetable colors are
altered, bleached, when they remain exposed for a time to a tem-
perature of from 334° to 424° Fahr. The oxygen of the air, which
so quickly destroys certain colors, develops others under particular
circumstances.

Alkalies and acids, by uniting with vegetable colors, almost al-
ways modify their tints and often change them entirely. Many blues,
for instance, become reds, under the agency of acids, greens or
yellows under that of alkalies. By neutralizing the acid or the al-
kali, the color generally resumes its original tint.

Several substances, which are colorless in the state in which they
are formed in vegetables, become colored by the united action of
oxygen and an alkali, such as orceine, which is oxidated and be-
comes blue under the simultaneous contact of air and ammonia.
The greater number of vegetable coloring matters are destroyed

13

146 INDlttO.

and bleached by chlorine. Many of the same matters unite inti-
mately with alumina and oxide of tin to form lakes, insoluble com-
pounds in which the colors remain fixed ; thus a colored liquid often
becomes colorless when it is shaken with a hydrate of alumina.
Charcoal, in a state of extreme subdivision, acts like alumina, and
is a powerful discharger of colors in every-day use in the arts.
Coloring matters are generally ternary compounds, though some of
them also contain azote ; and several of them exhihit the remarka-
ble phenomenon, that in undergoing oxidation in contact with am-
monia they assimilate the azote of this alkali. I shall now indicate
the origin and the mode of preparing a few of the more important of
these coloring matters.

Indigo. This substance, so essential in the art of dyeing, has been
one of the great staples of trade with Asia from the most remote
times. For a long while indigo was regarded in Europe as a min-
eral substance found in India : it used to be designated Indian or In-
dia stone, whence the name of indigo. It was not until after the dis-
covery of America that the true nature of this dye-stuff was known,
although before this period indigo had been made in Arabia, Egypt,
and even in the Island of Malta.

Indigo is volatile, so that to obtain it pure, it is enough to put a
small quantity into a platinum capsule, to cover it with a lid and to
expose it to heat. Indigo is volatilized in the state of violet-colored
vapor, and collects in crystals upon the middle part of the sides of
the capsule. Indigo gives nothing to water or to ether. Alcohol
takes up a very small quantity of it ; concentrated sulphuric acid
dissolves and modifies it.

All bodies greedy of oxygen appear to reduce or deoxidize this
coloring principle ; it changes to a yellow, and becomes soluble in
water in contact with alkalies ; by exposing the alkaline liquor charg-
ed with the uncolored indigo to the air, it absorbs oxygen rapidly,
and the indigo becomes insoluble and is precipitated with its original
blue color. It is most easy, as said, to disoxidize indigo ; it is suf-
ficient t'j bring it into contact with hydrogen gas in the nascent state,
a condition which is readily secured by throwing iron or zinc filings
into water containing the coloring matter previously dissolved in
sulphuric acid. The disengagement of the hydrogen has scarcely
commenced before the deep-blue color of the solution declines in
intensity, and by and by it becomes of a very pale gray. When the
discharge of color is completed, and no more hydrogen is disengaged,
the colorless indigo begins to react upon the air, it absorbs oxygen,
becomes again oxidized, and by and by the liquid has resumed its
deep blue. This property of indigo of becoming soluble in alkaline
solutions under the influence of disoxidizing bodies, is taken advan-
tage of in our laboratories to obtain indigo in a state of purity, and
in the arts to prepare a dyeing liquid. If a mixture be made of 15
parts of the indigo of commerce reduced to fine powder, 10 parts of
the sulphate of the protoxide of iron, 15 parts of lime, and 60 parts
of water, and it be left for several days in a closed vessel, a color
less liquid is obtained. The liquid decanted and exposed to the air

INDIGO. 147

deposites the whole of its indigo after a time. It is with similar in-
gredients that the dyer prepares his bath for blue colors. It is into
the alkaline liquor so prepared that the stuff to be dyed is dipped ; it
is then hung up in the air, where it soon becomes blue ; it is re-
dlpped :ind re-exposed again and again, until it has acquired the
depth of tint required, after which it is washed. The indigo, re-
generated bj the action of the air, remains fixed in the stuff, and
proves, as all the world knows, one of the most solid of colors.

Chemists are not agreed as to the true nature of colorless indigo
which may be obtained in the solid state. Some regard it as indigo
disoxidized, others as indigo hydrogenized. On the latter supposi-
tion, the hydrogen fixed would be derived from the water decom-
posed, the oxygen of which would be transferred to the bodies greedy
of this element, which are brought into play. The latter of these
views appears to have the ascendant at the present time. However
this may be, the following is the composition of indigo in each of
its states, as determined by M. Dumas :

Blue Indi|ro. White Indiro.

Carbon 73.1 73.0

Hydrogen 4.0 445

Azote 10.8 10.6

Oxygen 12.1 11.9

100.0 100.0

The plants which have hitherto been cultivated for the production of
indigo with any profit are not numerous ; they belong to the genera
Indigo/era, Isatis et Nerivm ; it is the genus Indigo/era which is most
generally cultivated, and the species designated argentea is found
to be the most profitable. M. Chevreul has ascertained that in the
living plant the indigo is not colored, and that it is consequently
during its extraction that it becomes blue. The experiments of M.
Pelletier upon the Polygonum tinctorium have confirmed the old re-
searches of M. Chevreul. After having dried a leaf, Pelletier di-
gested it with ether in a closed flask. The whole of the chlorophylh
was dissolved, and the leaf became completely blanched ; by expo
sing it afterwards to the air, it turned blue if it contained indigo.

In the republic of Venezuela, where I had an opportunity of study
ing the cultivation of the indigo-bearing plants, I saw that those soil;-
were preferred which were light and susceptible of irrigation, a
condition indeed which seems to me all but indispensable to the pro-
fitable exercise of agriculture within the tropics. Indigo requires a
warm climate ; at an elevation of about 3250 feet English above
the level of the sea, where the mean temperature is not more than
from 72° to 75° Fahr., the indigo husbandry cannot be carried on with
advantage. Nevertheless, the Indigofera sylvestris is met with at an
elevation of about 4900 feet above the level of the sea; but the at-
tempts that have been made to obtain coloring matter from the plant
have proved fruitless. In the valley d'Aragua, where the best plan-
tations are met with, the plant is sowed in lines, the holes destined
to receive the seed being about If inch in depth, and somewhat
more than 25 inches apart. A pinch of seed is dropped into each

148 INDIGO.

hole, and is covered with a little earth. The sowing takes place in
soils that are moist but well drained, or in situations generally which
have no system of irrigation at the period of the first rains. The
seeds shoot in the course of the first week ; hoeing is performed in
the course of the month. The first cutting takes place when the
plant is coming into flower ; from fifiy to sixty days generally inter-
vene between the sowing and this cutting ; but the time necessary
for the development of the leaves depends of course upon the cli-
mate. In the neighborhood of Maracaibo, where the mean tempera-
ture is about 78° Fahr., the gathering does not take place before the
third month. The second cutting is performed from 45 to 50 days
after the first ; and in this way several successive crops are obtained,
until it is seen that the plant begins to degenerate. In good soils
the indigo will last for two years ; in soils of inferior quality the
crop is generally annual.

The indigo harvest is immediately transported to tanks or large
rectangular reservoirs built of masonry, and disposed on different
levels, the superior reservoir or steeping tank being much larger
than the two others. In the valley d'Aragua, there are some which
are upwards of 20 feet long by 15 feet wide, and 20 inches in depth.

The second, or mashing tank, is narrower and deeper than the for-
mer. The third reservoir, or depositing tank, receives the liquor
from the mashing tank, and in it the indigo subsides. In some manu-
factories the third tank is not used, the deposition taking place in the
mashing tank itself.

The leaves, as the name implies, are thrown into the steeper,
covered with w^ater, and kept down by planks loaded with stones ;
fermentation soon begins, and is allowed to continue during about
eighteen hours ; and in the management of this first operation lies
much of the art of the indigo-maker. By continuing it too long
some portion of the coloring matter is destroyed ; by stopping it
prematurely, a quantity of indigo is left in the leaves. The fermen-
tation judged to be sufficiently advanced, the liquor is run off" into
the battery, and vigorously stirred until the grain is deposited. The
fluid is then either let into the subsider, or left in the battery, and
the deposition is complete at the end of about twenty hours ; the
supernatent fluid is drawn off", and the indigo paste is scooped out
and placed upon cloths to drain. When sufficiently firm, it is divided
into lumps, and these are set in the shade to dry. In the valley
d'Aragua it is estimated that with a good soil and careful manage-
ment, each hectare of surface will yield 280 lbs. of marketable indi-
go,* which is at the rate of about 112^- lbs. per English acre.

In Carolina the cultivation of indigo appears to be much less pro-
ductive than in the equinoctial regions, and the produce is of inferior
quality. There they sow in drills in the commencement of the
rainy season which follows the vernal equinox, and the first crop is
gathered about the beginning of July ; the second is secured two
months afterwards, and when the autumn is mild, a third but insig*

• Cadozzi, Resumen de la Geografia de Venezuela, p. 144.

INDIGO. 149

nificant gathering takes place at the end of September. One negro
Is allowed to be able to work nearly two acres and a half of ground,
trom wiuch about 160 lbs. of indigo are obtained.

i\^ the East Indies, upon the Coromandel coast, the growth of in-
ligo tak<;s place upon sandy soils which are not irrigated, and in
which vegetation is only possible during the rainy season. The
loamy soils that admit of being irrigated are almost always reserved
for the growth of rice. Immediately after the rains have set in, in
December, the land receives two superficial ploughings ; the indigo
is sown broad-cast, and the seed is harrowed in by dragging a fagot
of bamboos over the surface, or by treading in by means of a flock
of sheep. The first and principal gathering takes place in March ;
any other crop that may be won is purely casual, and entirely de-
pendent on the rain that falls. The crop rarely fails to feel the
effects of the droughts which so frequently take place upon the
Coromandel coast. It is never abundant, and the plants have little
vigor. The harvest takes place after the flowering season. The
crop is dried in the sun ; the plant is then beaten with switches, by
which the leaves are detached from the stems, after which hey are
exposed anew to the sun to secure their being perfectly dry. They
are then reduced to coarse powder, and handed over to the indigo-
maker, for in India the planter is never himself the manufacturer
of the dye-stuff".

On the coast of Coromandel, indigo is always extracted from the
dried leaves, which, bruised and broken, are infused in three or four
times their bulk of cold water during two or three hours ; the infu-
sion is then filtered through a loose stuff made of goat's hair ; the
filtered liquor is beaten for two hours, and after this about five gal-
lons of lime-water are added for every 100 lbs. of dried leaves ; the
mixture is stirred, and then left to settle. When the deposite has
formed, the supernatent liquor is drawn off", the sediment is washed
with a little boiling water, and being thrown upon a cloth, the indigo
is drained and dried. It is then pressed, and the paste is cut into
cubical lumps which are thoroughly dried in the air, and of which
each weighs nearly 3 ounces.

In the Indian method of manufacturing indigo, all is accomplished,
as appears, without fermentation. This indigo is little esteemed in
commerce ; it is heavy, of a pale blue, without much of the coppery
aspect, rough on the broken surface, and presents here and there
white points and vegetable debris. An acre of land on the Coro-
mandel coast will produce from 48 to 49 lbs. of indigo annually.

In spite of the high price of indigo, so small a quantity would
scarcely cover the cost of production, were not the wages of the
Indian laborer exceedingly low. The whole expense of producing a
kilogramme, or S/^ ^^s. avoird. of indigo, according to M. Plague,
amounts to 3 francs, 20 cents, or about 2s. 8d.

The cultivation of the indigo plant has been attempted several
times-in the south of Europe, particularly in Spain and Italy.
There is no doubt but that indigo may be grown in Europe in those
situations where for three or four months of the year the tempera-

160 ORCHIL.

ture is tiuly tropical ; but it seems probable that indigo can never
be advantageously introduced into the agriculture of temperate coun-
tries.

Before indigo was so extensive an article of commerce as it is
now, the south of France used to furnish almost all the marketvS of
Europe with a blue dye, which was the best then known ; this was
woad or pastel, the produce of the Isatis tinctoria.

The isatis is sufficiently hardy to stand the cold of winter. In
the south it is sown in March, and the seed springs in from eight to
ten days. When the plant has five or six leaves, it is hoed with
care. The crop is gathered when the leaves have acquired their
greatest size, when they even begin to fade a little. The prepara-
tion of woad bears a certain resemblance to that of indigo, and need
not detain us here.

The Polygonum tinctorium has of late attracted the attention of
European cultivators. The plant is a native of China, where it has
been cultivated from time immemorial ; it was brought into France
and propagated under the care of M. de Lille. In the course of
three months the plant has thrown out all its leaves, and in the south
of France it never fails to ripen its seeds. From some experiments
that have been made, the leaves of the polygonum appear to contain
about the five-thousandth of their weight of indigo, and as the acre
of land will yield between 11,000 and 11,900 lbs. weight of leaves
the produce of coloring matter will come to upwards of 56^ lbs.

The indigo obtained from the polygonum by the methods generally
practised is not always of fine quality. It contains matters which,
having been dissolved in the water used for maceration, had subse-
quently been precipitated M. Vilmorin proposed to adopt on the
great scale and in the manufactory, the methods which are used for
purifying indigo in the laboratory, and which consists, as we have
seen, in reducing colored and insoluble indigo to the colorless and
insoluble state by means of a salt of the protoxide of iron in contact
with an alkali, and subsequently to restore its color, and effect its
precipitation by contact with the oxygen of the air. It is obvious
that this method is perfectly applicable to the treatment of the whole
of the indigoferous plants, and I believe that its adoption would be
a great improvement.

Orchil. This coloring matter, of a deep purple, is prepared from
certain lichens or lung-worts ; that which is most prized is the rocella
tinctoria, a native of the Canaries and Cape de Verd islands. The
variolaria dealbata, the var. aspergillia, and the lichen corallinus,
which grow upon the rocks of Auvergne, and on the Alps and Pyre-
nees, yield a produce of inferior quality.

To obtain the orchil, the lichens are steeped for several days in
their own weight of stale urine. Into the mixture about 5 per cent,
of slaked lime in powder, a small quantity of arsenious acid, and a
little alum, are introduced. Fermentation is by and by set up in the
mass, which soon acquires the characteristic color of the orchil, but
the tint is never complete until the expiration of about a month.

Orchil readily communicates its peculiar color to water and to al«

ORCHIL. 151

cohol ; the watery solution, which is of a fine, crimson, becomes
colorless in a fnw days when it is kept in a flask hermetically seal-
ed ; it regains its color by exposure to the air. The color which is
acquired during the manufacture of orchil indicates that the lichens
which yield it contain principles which are colorless in themselves,
but which possess the singular property of becoming tinted under
the influence of oxygen and ammonia ; for in the preparation of or-
chil, the addition of urine and of lime has no other purpose beyond
the introduction and development of this alkaline base. This view
is shown to be correct, moreover, by the facts brought to light by
MM. Heeren and Robiquet in their inquiries into the chemical con-
stitution of the lichens. These chemists, in fact, succeeded in ex-
tracting from several of the lichens which yield orchil a variety of
colorless crystalline principles, in particular orcine, a substance
which may be procured in very regular quadrangular prisms, and
which is soluble in water and in alcohol. The watery solution of
orcine mixed with ammonia and exposed to the air, becomes gradu-
ally of a deeper and deeper red until it has the color of blood. The
result of this oxidation of orcine under the action of ammonia is a
coloring principle, orceine, into the constitution of which azote en-
ters, an element which formed no part of orcine ; the analyses of
these two substances made by M. Dumas, show this fact very dis-
tinctly :

Dry orcine. Orceine.

Carbon 67.8 55.9

Hydrogen 6.5 5,2

Oxygen 25.7 31.0

Azote -J 7.9

100.0 100.0

The lichens furnish several other principles analogous to orcine in
their property of acquiring color under similar circumstances.

Turnsole. This coloring matter is met with in commerce in two
states, in mass and in thin cakes, and is procured from various
lichens which have not yet been accurately specified ; in any case
the substance is obtained by a process which differs little from that
used in the manufacture of orchil. According to Mr. Kane, the
coloring principles of turnsole are naturally red : they only become
blue by combining with a base. The coloring matters which pre-
dominate in turnsole are erythrolitmine and azolitmine, which are
united with lime, potash, and ammonia, and further mixed with a
considerable quantity of chalk and sand. The analyses of Kane
show these two substances to have the following composition : —

Erythrolitmine. Azolitmine.

Carbon 55.6 49.8

Hydi-ogen 8.4 5.4

Oxygen • 36.0 oxygen and azote 44.8

100.0 100.0

Turnsole occurs in trade in the shape of thin cakes, made up of
chips, which are colored by the juice of chroijophoria tincloiiaj a
plant of the euphorbiaceous family, and of which the dyeing pro-
perties appear to have been known to the eaiJiest natuialists.

152 MADDER.

Madder. The root of the madder plait, so commonly employed
in dyeing, contains more than one coloring matter ; but the most im
portant of these, and that which constitutes the most useful element
in the root, is alizarine, which was discovered by M. Robiquet.

This substance is scarcely soluble in boiling water, but it is soluble
in alcohol and still more so in ether, to which it imparts a golden
yellow color. Alkaline liquors dissolve it and acquire a violet shade
extremely agreeable to the eye. Alizarine is sublimed by the action
of heat in the form of brilliant red needles.

Madder, {rubia tinctorum.) is a native of the south ; but as i*.
stands the winter, it is now cultivated almost all over Europe ; the
plant is propagated by seeds, but there are certain advantages in
using the sprouts which it throws out in the spring, and which read-
ily take root. The plant requires a friable soil, sufficiently moist
and highly manured to receive it ; the soil must be previously
trenched or have had a very deep ploughing. In the east of France
the planting takes place in April or May. The sprouts which are
to be transplanted must be about 6 inches long. When the plant
has struck root, the ground is cleaned, and fifteen or twenty days
afterwards it is hoed ; in the course of the summer, several other
hoeings are required. In Alsace, madder is planted in rows and in
patches, a certain interval between each patch being left, the earth
of which, in the month of March of the following year, is thrown
over the ground that is planted.

In the neighborhood of Hagaenau, madder occupies the ground
during two years ; the crop is gathered about the middle of Novem-
ber. In some districts the plant remains in possession of the soil for
five or six years. It is generally allowed that the amount of produce
increases with time ; but in those countries, such as Alsace, where
the plant is liable to be attacked by frost, it is generally thougnt
prudent to gather it at the end of two years ; the harvest is then
profitable, and in the course of the third or fourth or any succeeding
winter, it might run the risk of such severe frost as w..ild destroy it
entirely. In southern countries the growers say that a crop of the
fourth year exceeds very considerably one of the third year ; but it
might be made a question whether the increase actually compensates
for the longer occupation of the soil. And then when the cultivation
is too much prolonged, a species of fungus is developed around the
root and kills it. The crop of madder is gathered with the hoe, a
laborious and costly process ; the roots are then dried in stoves and
sent to the mill, so that it is in the state of powder that madder is
met with in commerce.

In Alsace, where madder remains two years in the ground, the
mean produce per acre is estimated at about 3300 lbs. of dried roots,
which is equal to an annual crop of about 1650 lbs. In the south of
France, the mean animal produce amounts to something less thin
this, or to about 1560 lbs. ;* but the quantity has been estinated a a
considerably lower amount still.

• Db Gasparin, Agricultural Memoirs, vol. ii. p. 2*3.

SAFFRON. 153

Besides its roots, madder yields an abundance of leaves which are
excellent forage.

Reseda luleola, or dyers' weed, is a plant in common use, and owes
its properties as a dye-stuff to the presence of a yellow crystalline
principle, luteoline, discovered by M. Chevreul. This substance is
soluble in ether, alcohol, and alkaline solutions.

Dyers' weed is sown in autumn, stands through the winter, and
ripens in the month of August following. The plant is gathered
when it begins to turn yellow, and it is in a marketable state after it
is dried. An acre of land will produce about 1833 lbs. weight of
marketable dye-weed.

Saffron. This plant is cultivated in the south of France and
in Austria, but appears to be a native of Asia. Saffron requires a
light and yet fertile soil in order to produce abundantly, although it
may also be cultivated in soils of middling quality. The ground,
trenched one spit deep, is set out with bulbs from an old plantation.
In the south the transplanting takes place in the month of June.
The first flowers appear towards the middle of October ; they are
few during the first year." They are gathered, and the pistils removed ;
the gathering continues for about a fortnight. In the course of the
year which follows the planting, the ground receives a surface dress-
ing ; it is freed from weeds, and the withered leaves are removed.
The next gathering takes place at the same period as the former,
but the flowers are now much more abundant, and the same process
is continued until the roots are taken up, which they are in France
at the end of the second year ; but in Austria the culture is contin-
ued for a much longer period in the same piece of ground. The
extraction of the pistils is an occupation in which the whole family
of the saffron -grower take part, and employ their evenings ; in the
course of an evening of five hours, eight persons will generally
have drawn 250 grammes or about 8 ounces of saffron In some
places the pistils are dried in the sun, in others by being exposed in
a sieve over a fire of twigs ; the latter process appears to be the
better one.

M. de Gasparin estimates at about 110 lbs. the saffi-on which is
gathered in the course of two years from about 2j\ths acres of land ;
this would give a mean annual produce of about 43.7 lbs. per Eng-
lish acre, and the price of saffron being from 27 to 28 shillings per
pound, the value of the produce may easily be reckoned. In Aus-
tria, where the crop is allowed to occupy the ground for three years,
the produce has been estimated at about 19^ lbs. per acre per annum.

Roucou is a dye-stuff extracted from the fruit of the Bixa orel-
lana, a tree which is extremely common in the hot regions of South-
ern America.

Chica. This and the former dye-stuff are in use among the na-
tive Americans for staining the skin. It is obtained from the leaves
of the Bignonia chica, which are of a beautiful green when fresh,
but become red by drying.

Chica has the color of cinnabar : it is without taste and v ithout
tmell : a mass of this pigment may be compared to a mass of indigo

154 THE POTATO.

It only differs from this substance in its color. Like indigo, it ac«
quires the metallic polish when rubbed with a hard body. It dis-
solves in alcohol, and in alkaline solutions ; it mixes readily with
grease, and it is with such a mixture that the Indians paint their
bodies. Chica has been employed in cotton-dyeing, and the color is
found to stand the sun perfectly.

§ XL— COMPOSITION OF THE DIFFERENT PARTS OF
PLANTS

The immediate principles, the history of which has now been
sketched, are met with in greater or lesser quantities in different
parts of plants ; some of them are accumulated in the roots, others
in the seeds, the barks, the leaves, &c. To complete the study of
the chemical constitution of vegetables we have still to examine
with reference to their composition certain parts or organs which
present sufficient interest either from their extensive employment or
their importance in an agricultural point of view.

ROOTS AND TUBERS.

The Potato, {Solarium tuberosum.) This plant is a native of
South America. Two English travellers, Messrs. Caldcleugh and
Baldwin, were so fortunate as to meet with it lately in the vild state in
Chili, and not far from Monte A^ideo. It is probable that the culti-
vation of the potato spread from the mountains of Chili to the chain
of the Andes, proceeding northward and obtaining a footing suc-
cessively in Peru, at Quito, and upon the plateau of New Granada.
This, as Humboldt observes, is precisely the course which the Incas
took in their conquests. The potato does not appear to have been
introduced into Mexico until after the European invasion of that
country ; and it is well ascertained that it was not known there un-
der the reign of Montezuma, although there are not wanting some
who maintain that the potato was found in Virginia by the first colo-
nists sent thither by Sir Walter Raleigh. It is said that it was then
brought into England by Drake ; but it seems well established that
long before Drake's time, namely, in 1545, a slave merchant, John
Hawkins by name, had introduced tubers of the potato from the
soasts of New Granada into Ireland. From Ireland the new plant
passed into Belgium in 1590. Its cultivation was at this time neg-
lected in Great Britain, until it was introduced by Raleigh at the
beginning of the seventeenth century. When the potato came from
Virginia to England for the second time it was already disseminated
over Spain and Italy. It has been ascertained that the potato has
been cultivated on the great scale in Lancashire since 1684 ; in
Saxony since 1717 ; in Scotland since 1728 ; in Prussia since 1738,*

* Humboldt, Essai PoUtiqoo, t. ii. p. 46JI.

THE POTATO. 155

IV «ras about the year 1710 that the potato began to spiead in Ger-
many, and that it there became a plant in common use ; it had, in-
deed, before this time been cuhivated in gardens ; and had even
made its appearance at the tables of the rich some time previously.
The severe dearth of the years 1771 and 1772* seemed necessary
to lead the Germans to cultivate this useful plant upon the great
scale. From this time it was shown that it was a substitute for
bread ; and once fairly introduced, men were not long of perceiving
the many recommendations which it possesses as an article of food.
In fact, of all the useful plants which the migrations of communi-
ties and distant voyages have brought to light, says M. Humboldt,
there is none since the discovery of the cereals, that is to say, from
time immemorial, which has had so decided an influence upon the
well-being of mankind. In less than two centuries it may be said
literally to have overspread the earth, or to have been welcomed in
every country suited to its cultivation, so that at the present day it is
found growing from the Cape of Good Hope to Iceland and Lap-
land. " It is an interesting spectacle," adds the illustrious traveller
quoted, " to see a plant, a native of mountains situated under the
equator, advance towards the pole, and growing even more hardily
than the grasses which yield ns grain, brave the inclemencies of the
North, "I The potato, like all other tubers, is a collection, an exu-
berance which is evolved upon the subterraneous stems. Its varie-
ties, which are very numerous, present rather remarkable differences
in regard to size, form, color of the surface and of the interior, taste,
and the time which they require to come to maturity.

Next to water, fecula or starch is the principle which predominates
in the potato, but it also contains a certain quantity of azotized mat-
ter. Vauquelin has published a detailed account of the soluble mat-
ters which are met with in the potato, and which, strange to say,
have been neglected in the greater number of analyses of this useful
vegetable which have been published. In 100 parts of potatoes he
found : asparagine 0.1, albumen 0.7, azotized matter not defined 0.4,
citrate of lime 1.2, and undetermined quantities of citrate of potash,
free acetic acid, phosphate of potash, and phosphate of lime.

In examining forty-eight varieties of potato he found that they
contained in 100 parts : first, from 1 to U of pulp ; second, from 2
to 3 of soluble or extractive substances ; third, from 20 to 28 of
starch ; fourth, from 67 to 78 of water.|

In a variety grown in the neighborhood of Paris, Henry found the
following ingredients, viz : pulp 6.8, starch 13.3, albumen 0.9, un-
crystallizable sugar 3.3, acids and salts 1.4, fatty matter 0.1, and
water 74.2=100.0.

The proportion of starch varies considerably in the diflferent va-
rieties ; M. Payen has ascertained the extent of this diversity in a
certain number of varieties grown in the same soil and under the

* Thaer, Principes raisonn6s d'Agriculture I. iv. p lift,

i Humboldt, op. cit. t. ii. p. 463.
TWnard'a Chemistry, vol. v. p. 82.

156

THE POTATO.

same circumstances.

table :

The results are contained in the foJowins

VarieUes.

One of

seed
potatoes
pro-
duced.

Produce per Acre.

In 100 parU.

Starch.

I
Starch per Acre.

Dry
matter.

Water.

The Rohan

The great yellow .
The Scotch shaws
The late Iceland-.

TheSegonzac

The Siberian

TheDuvillers

58
37
32
56
32
40
40

tons. cwts. qrs. lbs.!

14 14 2 16 24.8
9 8 0 271 31.3
8 3 2 2 30.2

14 6 1 23 20.6
8 3 2 2 28.8

10 4 2 12 22.2

10 4 2 12 21.7

75.2
68.7
69.8
79.4
71.2
77.8
78.3

1G.6
23.3
22.0
12.3
20.5
14.0
13.6

tons. cwt. qrs. lbs.
2 9 0 12
2 3 3 4
1 16 0 1
1 15 1 2
1 14 0 5
1 8 2 16
1 8 0 12

In the particular circumstances under which this experiment wa?
made, therefore, it is obvious that the Rohan variety contained the
larjrest quantity of nutritive matter and starch.

Potatoes which have been exposed to a temperature a few degrees
below the freezing point of water, undergo so great a change in their
texture, that it becomes difficult afterwards to extract the starch
which they contain. They besides acquire so disagreeable a flavor,
as all the world knows, that cattle sometimes refuse to eat them.
After having ascertained that a potato has the same chemical com-
position before and after congelation, M. Payen examined the starchy
substance under the microscope, and found that the starch obtained
from a frozen tuber presented itself in compound granular masses,
four or five times the size of the largest natural grains of starch.
The pulp which remained upon the sieve in the preparation of this
starch, was formed by a collection of cells, for the most part full of
starch. It would therefore appear, that in consequence of the
changes of volume of the fluid successively congealed and liquefied,
the adhesion between the cells was destroyed : they become separa-
ble with the slightest force, and merely part one from another by
the action of the grater without being torn ; the larger number re-
main unbroken and still filled with starch. This fact enables us to
understand how potatoes, which have been frozen, will yield nearly
the whole of their starch if they be treated before they are thawed.
The cells then sealed up by the congealed water resist sufficiently
to be broken by the teeth of the grater. Potatoes which have been
i'rozen, are generally less farinaceous, at the same time that they have
a decidedly sweet taste, which, according to M. Payen, is owing to
vegetation having already made some progress in the tubers before
congelation ; and we know that during germination there is always
a formation of sugar at the expense of the fecula. Frosted potatoes
have always a disagreeable taste, and a most unpleasant smell, so
that in many places they are thrown upon the dunghill. The effect
of the frost, in fact, is to set the juices which are enclosed in the
tissue of the potato at liberty, and the higher temperature which ac-
Isoinpanies and follows i thaw , exposes these juices to be acted upon

THE POTATO. 157

immediately by the air of the atmosphere, the consequence of which
is, that they behave like all other vegetable juices left to themselves,
they become putrid. The putrid odor and the acrimony which are
developed in the frosted potato, are by so much the more remarkable
as a certain layer which exists immediately under the skin, and pre-
sents various shades of color, tawny red or violet, is more highly
develo})ed. The tissue of this layer, examined under the micro-
scope, was found by M. Payen to be totally without starch, but it
contains the greater part of the (strong-smelling) coloring principles.*
These principles, which give such unpleasant qualities to frosted
potatoes, appear to be soluble, or at least destructible by long expo-
sure to the open air. Thus, if frosted potatoes be spread upon the
ground and exposed to the weather, they dry spontaneously, become
hard, whitened, and they may then be preserved for a very long
time. This method of making use of frosted potatoes Jias been
several times employed in practice, and it might perhaps be recom-
mended for general adoption, were it only ascertained that by such
treatment the tubers did not lose a great proportion of their most
nutritive principle, viz. albumen. However this may be, it is by a
similar process that the natives of the Andes of Peru preserve and
render more transportable the tubers which form a principal element
in their food. In the steepest parts of the Peruvian Cordillera,
nearly at the superior limit of vegetation, where a miserable field of
barley and of Quinoa is only seen here and there, various tubers are
collected in the hollows of the surface, such as the Maca^ the Oca^
the Ulluco. To preserve these they are exposed for several days to
the alternate action of the frost and of the sun. At these great
elevations, which are upwards, of 13,120 feet above the level of the
sea, it always freezes in clear nights when the air is moderately
calm. During the day the rays of the sun, which strike with great
force, dry the tubers rapidly, the watery juices of which have been
shed into the amylaceous tissue by the effect of the preceding night's
frost. Thoroughly dry, they may be kept for more than a year by
being stored and protected from moisture. Various other modes of
preparation are practised in regard to the other kinds of tubers which
have been mentioned. By previously boiling the common potato,
pealing it, and exposing it alternately to the frost of the night and
the heat of the sun, until it is completely dry, the Indians prepare
one of their most agreeable and wholesome articles of subsistence.
The potato thrives in soils of very various kinds, provided it be
sufficiently fertile, and the climate is favorable. This crop, like the
beet, is generally planted in freshly manured ground, and is suc-
ceeded in the autumn by a winter crop of corn — wheat or rye. The
potato is set when apprehensions of frost are no longer entertained ..
in the east of France the setting is generally ended about the mid-
dle of May. In Alsace the cuttings of the potato are dropped at
the distancB of about a foot from each other in furrows made by the
plough, the furrows being from 18 inches to nearly 2 feet apart*

* Payen. Journril of Practical Agriculture, vol. i. p. 4S8,

14

158 THE POTATO.

When tlie plants are from 10 to 12 inches high, and the weather i«
dry, the furrows are lightly earthed up. In dry soils the earthing
plough must not be carried very deeply ; and I may say that in the
elevated table lands of America, where the natural drought of the
climate is often to be apprehended, I have seen very fine crops of
potatoes which had never been earthed up at all. The potato, like
all plants that are hoed, requires considerable care ; but this care,
as it is immediately profitable, is still more so remotely upon the
white crops which are to follow. M. Crud reckons at 58.3 the
number of days work that are required upon an acre of land which
has received between 19 and 20 tons of manure. This is very
nearly what we have found to be the truth at Bechelbronn, where for
the same extent of surface, manured in the same way, we reckon
fifty days labor of a man, and rather better than eleven davs of a
horse.

In Europe the potato harvest takes place at the end of autumn.
In the intertropical Cordillera, where the cultivation depends prin-
cipally upon the heat of a very steady climate, the potato remains
in the ground from four to seven months, as it is cultivated at a
greater or less height above the level of the sea ; it succeeds be=«
where the mean temperature ranges between 13° and 18° centigrade,
(56° and 65° Fahr.) In Venezuela, indeed, it is still cultivated in
places where the temperature is not far from 24° centigrade, (76.5°
Fahr.;) but I am doubtful that the culture is then advantageous. In
warm and moist regions the potato yields a large quantity of top,
and few tubers. I have gathered some very bad ones at Riosflcio
de Engurama, a village situate at the distance of about 5900 feet
above the level of the sea, where the mean and constant tempera-
ture is about 22° centigrade, (72° Fahr.)

The produce per acre, noted by different observers, is as follows :

Countries.

Tons.

Cwts.

Ors.

lbs.

Prussia ....

.

5

18

2

1

Palatinate, mean of ten years

5

7

1

14

Austria, mean of thirteen

years

9

11

3

10

Brabant

11

17

0

2

West Flanders

9

13

0

17

Pays de Waes

10

8

3

13

Pays de Tongres .

6

14

0

25

England

10

2

2

7

England

9

9

0

25

Ireland

9

9

3

14

Alsace

8

14

3

8

Alsace (Bechelbronn) .

5

8

1

12

Neighborhood of Paris .

11

2

2

13

Venezuela

9

16

1

20*

There is an obvious relation between the quantity of seed-potato
planted and the amount of the crop. In Alsace from 25 to 30
buehels per acre are usually planted. In some places too much seed

• This is the produce of two harvests, which they gather In the same year.

JERUSALEM ARTICHOKE. 159

is used, in others not enough. It were very desirable thai certain
experiments were undertaken which should fix the pre per quantity
of seed-potato to be used for each variety of soil and situation.

The Jerusalem Artichoke, {Helianthus tuherosus.) This plant is
generally believed to be a native of South America, but M. de Hum-
boldt never met with it there, and according to M. Correa, it does
not exist in Brazil. The property which the tubers of this plant
have of resisting the cold of our winters, and several botanico-geo-
a^raphical considerations, lead M. A. Brongniart to presume that the
plant belongs to the more northern parts of Mexico.

The Jerusalem artichoke rises to a height of from 9 to 10 feet;
it flowers late, and I have not yet seen it ripen its seeds. It is pro-
pagated by the tubers which it produces, and which are regarded^
for good reason, as most excellent food for cattle ; in times when
the potato was not very extensively known, it also entered pretty
largdy into the food of man ; when boiled, its taste brings to mind
that of the artichoke, whence the name.

The tuber of the Jerusalem artichoke, from an analysis of M.
Braconnot, appears to contain in 100 parts :

Uncrystallizable sugar . . . 14.80

Inuliue 3.00

Gum 1.22

Albumen 0.99

Fatty matter 0.09

Citrates of potash and lime . .... 1.15
Phosphates of potash and lime . 0.20

Sulphate of potash . . . 0.12

Chloride of potassium 0.08

Malates and tartrates of potash and lime . . 0.05

Woody fibre 1.22

Silica 0.03

Water 77.05

100.00
M. Payen found a larger proportion of sugar in this tuber than that
stated above, and he ascertained that the fatty matter consists chiefly
of stearine and elaine. In the Jerusalem artichoke I myself found :

Of dry matter 20.8

Water ■- 79.2

lOO.d

One trial for azote would lead me to conclude that M. Braconnct
had estimated the albumen too low in his analysis, or, as is more
probable, that several azotized principles had escaped him. The
dried tuber gave me 0.16 of azote, a number which would indicate
1.0 as the proportion of vegetable albumen. There are few plants
more hardy and so little nice about soil as the Jerusalem artichoke ;
it succeeds everywhere, with the single condition that the ground be
not wet. The tubers are planted exactly like those of the potato,
and nearly at the same time ; but this is a process that is performed
but rarely, inasmuch as the cultivation of the helianthus is incessant,

160 JERUSALEM ARTICHOKE.

being carried on for many years in the same piece ; and after th©
harvest, in spite of every disposition to take up all the tubers,
enough constantly escape detection to stock the land for the follow-
ing year, so that the surface appears literally covered with the young
plants on the return of spring, and it is necessary to thin them b}r
hoeing. The impossibility of taking away the whole of the tubers,
and their power of resisting the hardest frosts of winter, is an ob-
stacle almost insurmountable to the introduction of this plant, as one
element in a regular rotation. Experience more and more confirms
the propriety of setting aside a patch of land for the growth of this
productive and very valuable vegetable root.

Of all the plants that engage the husbandman, the Jerusalem
artichoke is that which produces the most at the least expense of
manure and c«f manual labor. Kade states that a square patch of
Jerusalem artichokes in a garden was still in full productive vigor
at the end of thirty-three years, throwing out stems from 7 to 10
feet in length, although for a very long time the plant had neither
received any care nor any manure.*

I could quote many examples of the great reproductive power of
the helianthus ; I can affirm, nevertheless, that in order to obtain
abundant crops, it is necessary to afford a little manure. I shall
show in another chapter, however, that this is manure well bestowed.

Like all vegetables having numerous and large leaves, the helian-
thus requires air and light ; it ought, therefore, to be properly spaced
The original planting of course takes place in lines, but in the suc-
ceeding crops, and those which are derived from small tubers acci-
dentally left in the ground, the order is of course lost ; it is only
necessary to destroy a sufficient number of the young sprouts which
show themselves in the spring, to leave those plants that are pre-
served with a sufficient space between them. When the plants are
somewhat advanced, the ground should receive one or two diggings
with the spade, and a hoeing or two to destroy weeds.

The leaves of the helianthus are used in many places as forage,
the stems being cut a few inches from the ground ; the gathering
takes place at different periods of the year, but probably to the detri
ment of the tubers ; it may be lucrative to destine the leaves for l\v
nutriment of cattle, but I believe we have to choose between th'
green crop and the crop of tubers. It is unquestionable that tht
premature removal of the green stems must prove injurious to thft
roots ; in my own farm the leaves are never removed, and my opir
ion is, that it is vastly more advantageous to depend upon the crop
of tubers alone. The tubers are gathered as they are wanted, fo. ,
not dreading the frost, they remain in the ground the whole of th**
winter ; they do not require, like the potato, to be collected and pit-
ted at a certain period ; they require no particular situation, no par
ticular care for their preservation ; the only disadvantage that ac
companies their being left in the ground, is that during very hard
frosts the labor required to get at them is very great. During win

• Schwertz Cultnrc of Fonee Plants.

THE CARROT. 161

ter the woody stsms of the plant die and dry up, tliey are then use-
ful as combustible matter ; but a better use of them perhaps is to
make them enter in certain proportions into the litter of the hog-
stye ; the pith there absorbs a large quantity of the liquid manure.
Schwertz estimates the mean quantity of dry leaves and stems at 3
tons, 1 cvvt. 1 qr. and 15 lbs. per acre. The following quantities
of tubers have actually been gathered in Alsace.

Tons. Cwts. Qjs. lbs.

Sandysoils 4 3 3 6

Soils of the best quality 10 8 3 13

At Bechelbronn Cmean) 10 16 0 8

Bechelbronn crops of 1839-40 15 16 1 16

The Carrot, {Daucus carota.) This root is frequently cultivated,
particularly by intercalation ; it is frequently grown along with the
poppy, where the seed is raised for the sake of its oil, occasionally also
being sown with white crops in the spring, it comes to maturity after
them in the autumn ; it is a plant that is much liked by animals, but
which by no means possesses the very high value as an article of food
which is generally ascribed to it by husbandmen. The carrot requires
a deep, somewhat loose and homogeneous soil, fresh manure, and
much care in the cultivation. Schwertz, taking the mean of three
years, estimates the produce per acre at 13 tons, 18 cwt. 1 qr. and
2 lbs. of roots, and about one-third the same quantity of green leaves,
which are valuable as fodder and as elements of manure. In a field
at Bechelbronn where this vegetable had been intercalated with the
madia sativa, we obtained upwards of 5| tons of roots in addition to
our principal crop of oleaginous seed. The carrot contains a large
quantity of water in its constitution — 87.6 percent., according to
some of my experiments.

The juice of the carrot contains sugar, albumen, a erystallizable
coloring principle, called carrotine, a volatile oil, fatty matters, pectic
acid, pectine, starch, malic acid and alkaline, and earthy phosphates.

The parsnip, {Pastinaca sativa.) This plant is not very exten-
sively cultivated, yet it has the advantage of standing the winter in
the open field. It has been recommended as very useful in fattening
cattle. In its composition it must assimilate with the carrot and
beet. Drappier obtained as much as 12 per cent, of cane-sugar
from the parsnip.*

BARKS.

Cinchona barks. The barks of cinchona, which are employed
with so much success in medicine, are the produce of different species
of a family of trees which grows in the mountains of South Ameri-
ca ; the active principle of all the varieties of bark resides in the
vegetable alkalies, quinine, cinchonine, and cinchovatine.

The medicinal properties of bark were made known to Europeans
in 1638, on the occasion of an obstinate fever from which the Coun-
tess of Chincon, vice-queen of Peru, suffered at Lima in that year.
A corregidore of Loxa, who had been cured by the Indians while

* Berzelius-, Chemistry, vol. ii. p. 199.
14*

162 CINCHONA BARKS.

affected in the same way, recommended the bark. The medicine
was completely successful ; and to show her gratitude, the vice-
queen had large quantities brought down from the mountains for
distribution among persons affected with fever. It was from this
circumstance that the bark was at first known under the name of
the Countess's powder. By and by, the members of the college of
Jesuits having been charged with its distribution, it of course be-
came the Jesuits' bark or powder. Lastly, the Cardinal de Lugo
having brought it to Rome, the new medicine was known under the
name of the cardinal's powder.

The cinchonas are met with principally in forests at a considerable
elevation above the level of the sea, in a temperate climate, and
growing in a stony soil. The proper period for gathering is known
by the circumstance of the inner surface of the bark, when detached
from a branch, acquiring in a few minutes a red, yellow, or orange
tint, according to the species.

The trees are cut down one or two days before the process of
barking begins, by which the operation is rendered more easy, and
the cuticle is no longer liable to be rubbed off. The bark of the
trunk and branches is removed by means of a large knife, in strips,
or bands, which are kept as broad as possible. I'he bark is placed
upon cloths and put to dry in the sun, each piece being kept isolated,
in order to facilitate the drying, and especially to favor the quilling
or rolling up ; when the bark is dried in a heap, and when the pieces
touch, it often acquires a most disagreeable odor in consequence of
incipient putrefaction, and the quilling does not take place.* The
bark, when thoroughly dry, is packed in bullocks' hides and sent to
Europe. From my own observations, and those that have been
supplied me by M. Goulot, the different species of bark appear to be
distributed upon the mountains of New Granada in the following
order :

Hei°^hts where
mosl abundant. Temperature.

Gray bark, C. lancifolia 6560 feet 19 " (66i F.)

White bark, C. ovalifolia 4264 " 21" (70 F.)

Red bark, C. oblongifolia 2296 " 24 ° (75i F.)

Yellow bark, C. cordifolia 1968 " 25° (77 F.)

Pelletier and Caventou discovered in the gray bark, 1st, cincho-
nine in combination with quinic acid ; 2d, a fatty substance ; 3d, red
and yellow coloring matters; 4th, tannin ; 5th, quinate of lime : 6th,
gum ; 7th, starch ; 8th, woody matter. In the yellow and red bark
these learned chemists found the same principles, and, moreover,
quinate of quinine.

Barks of the willow and poplar. Decoctions of these barks are
often employed with success in the treatment of intermittent fever.
In searching after the active principle of these medicines, M. Roux
discovered the particular substance, salicine, in the bark of the wil-
low, (salix helix,) the medicinal effect of which is analogous with
*hat of the febriluge principles of the true barks. M. Braconnot has

* Ruiz, Quinologia.

CORK. 163

further succeeded in obtaining another crystalline m%tter from the
leaves of the aspen (populus tremula) populine.

Cork. The oak which yields cork is known in Spain under the
name of the alcornoque It forms extensive forests upon the abrupt
slopes of the Pyrenees, where it is often seen growing upon arid and
stony soils, that seem doomed to eternal sterility. The cork-tree
has flexible and strong roots, which creep over the naked surface of
the granitic masses, turning round blocks, and searching everywhere
for fissuj-es and collections of sand and alluvium, into which they
penetrate deeply, in search of the nourishment necessary to the tree.
At maturity, the alcornoque rises to a height of sixty-five feet, and
its trunk may be three feet and a quarter in diameter.

In the Spanish Pyrenees, the superior limit of the cork-tree region,
is that of the vine, about 1640 feet above the level of the Mediter-
ranean. In France this tree grows luxuriantly in the communes of
Passa, Lauro, &c., the mean elevation of which is 1148 feet. In
Spain, as in France, the soils on which the cork forests grow are of
primitive origin ; and it is said, on good authority, that the cork-
tree only grows on soils derived from granite, gneiss, mica-slate, or
porphyry, and never on soils of calcareous origin.

The cork-tree is reproduced spontaneously on these silicious soils,
among cistuses and heaths ; but the reproduction in this way is so
slow, that art often interferes advantageously to aid it. There are
many varieties of cork oak; and as that which is covered with a
smooth and grayish cuticle, yields the article which is most prized
in commerce, the seeds of this variety ought to be selected for sow-
ing. The acorns of the cork-oak are tumid, of considerable size,
and a sweet taste ; the acorns ripen from October to December, and
are much employed as food for hogs. The Catalonians sow the
acorns in a cultivated soil at the same time that they plant the vine,
and for twenty or twenty-five years the produce of the vine compen-
sates the outlay upon the young cork-trees ; but the produce of the
vine diminishes as the cork-tree overshadows it, and finally there
comes a time when the vines die out completely. The cork-tree is
of slow growth, and at four years of age it may be from thirty-six to
forty inches in height, and requires incessant care until the trunk is
from seven to ten feet high, at which time it may be about twenty
years of age ; and its total height, including its branches, may be
about twenty-two feet.

The barking of the cork-tree begins about the middle of July, and
may be continued so long as the sap is in motion. When stripped
oflf, good cork is formed of from ten to twelve layers, each of which
indicates an annual deposition. The two outer layers constitute the
cuticle ; the others adhere closely together, and although of variable
thickness they present a homogeneous mass. The time for remov-
ing the cork is indicated by the interior acquiring a slightly rosy
tint, which happens about the tenth year. The barking is performed
by me»ns of an axe, with which a cut is made the whole length of
the t»--mk, care being taken not to wound the woody layers : two
otJ**' ':ross cuts are then made at the top and bottom of the trunk.

164 TOBACCO.

By moans of the handle of the axe, which is shaped like a wedje
forced into the vertical cut, the cork is then loosened and stripped
from the livinfrhark beneath it, the whole covering of the tree beinc
often taken away in a single piece, although it is more commonly re-
moved in two pieces. The process of barking is very easy when
the sap is abundant.

The cork-tree must be about forty years of age before its bark has
any commercial value ; that of a tree of twenty years is always
treated as rubbish. An oak a century old may furnish 200 lbs. of
marketable cork ; as many as 480 lbs. however have been taken
from a single tree ; the mean produce may be reckoned at about 106
lbs. per tree ; to fit it for the market, cork undergoes a variety of
preparations which need not detain us here.

LEAVES.

The herbaceous parts of vegetables have all a very similar com-
position, if they be regarded in the most general point of view. The
leaves and green stems, along with the woody fibre which forms in
some sort their skeleton, always contain albumen or an analogous
azotized principle, saccharine and gummy substances, chlorophylle,
wax, fatty and resinous substances, free or combined acids, and fre-
quently also essential oils. Such is the general constitution which
chemists agree in assigning to clover, hay, leaves, in a word to green
forage of all kinds ; nevertheless, to this constitution, which may be
regarded as standard, we have frequently other particular matters
added, some of which we have already studied, and which by their
medicinal properties, or the economic uses they possess, render the
plants that contain them of high importance in an agricultural point
of view. I shall here only speak of two of these plants, tobacco
and tea, the leaves of which, almost in universal use, are a source
of great commercial prosperity to the people who cultivate them.

Tobacco, {Nicotiana iabacum,) a native of America, appears to
have been introduced into Spain and Portugal about the middle of
the sixteenth century by Fernandez de Toledo. Its name is gen-
erally believed to be derived from that of the Island of Tobago, one
of the West India islands, at no very great distance from the coast
of Venezuela, whence the first importations were made. Nicot, the
French ambassador to Portugal, first made its use known in France,
whence the name nicotiana. At the present time, the cultivation of
tobacco appears to have spread almost over the whole surface of the
globe.

Tobacco requires a somewhat friable soil, rich in humus ; it con-
sequently succeeds in lands just broken in. In America the mode
of cultivation and of preparation are almost everywhere the same.

In Venezuela the seed is sown in a very ricli loam, and after from
forty to fifty days, the young plants are transplanted in rows, distant
a little more than three feet from one another, the plants being about
two feet apart ; the transplanted plant is generally covered with a
banana leaf <br a few days to preserve it from the burninjj rays of

TOBACCO. 165

tne sun. When the plant is about eighteen inches high, a bud is
formed at the superior extremity ; this bud and any others that may
appear are removed, as well as any sprouts which show themselves
on the stem. By this treatment the tobacco becomes bushy and
thick ; by and by the leaves acquire a decidedly blue tint, and the
time of gathering is indicated by the appearance of a slain of a deep-
blue color near the pedicle. The leaves do not all ripen simultane-
ously, so that the business of the planter, in gathering those that
appear ripe, is incessant for a certain time.

After they are gathered, the leaves are carried under sheds, where
they are disposed two and two upon hurdles arranged for their re-
ception. The tobacco soon becomes yellow and pliant, and the ribs
of the leaves having been removed, they are twisted into a rope
which is coiled up into a mass of the weight of from sixty to eighty
pounds. These coils are placed upon a bed made with damaged
leaves and the ribs which have been removed. The whole is cover-
ed, and left to ferment during forty eight hours, a little water being
supplied if the tobacco appears too dry ; during the fermentation the
temperature rises, and the process having been carried sufficiently
far, the coils are exposed separately to the air; they are then un-
rolled, and hung up under sheds to dry comj)letely.

The vertical zone in which the cultivation of tobacco within the
tropics is carried on, is extensive ; it reaches from the level of the
sea to an elevation of about 5,900 feet above it. The time during
which the crop remains on the ground varies according to the mean
temperature of the place ; according to M. Codazzi,*the leaves are
gathered one hundred and fifty days after the sowing in the hottest
regions of the coast of Venezuela. In more elevated situations,
where the thermometer ranges from 65° to 68° Fahr., the first leaves
are not fit to be gathered until after about seven months and a half
from the sowing.

In Ceylon, tobacco is cultivated almost precisely as in America.
There they also prevent the plant rising in height, and they limit the
number of leaves upon each stem according to the quality of the
tobacco which they desire to grow. By leaving the plant with no
more than from ten to twelve leaves, the most esteemed quality is
obtained ; if eighteen or twenty leaves be left, the tobacco is far
from having the same strength. Lastly, in leaving the plant to itself,
by suflfering the stem to run up and to flourish, a large crop is
obtained, but the produce is not esteemed. Tiie leaves gathered
from the plant in this state of maturity are often held fit for con-
sumption after being simply dried without further preparation. The
tobacco is then yellow, extremely mild, and'perfectly suited to the
immoderate use made of it by the Cingalese.

If the mode of cultivation enables the tobacco-grower to obtain a
superior quality at the cost of quantity, it is still indubitable that
climate exercises the chief influence on the quality of the article.
That which is grown in the temperate regions of the Andes, in
Virginia, and in Europe, can in no way be compared with the tobacco
of the Havana, of Varinas of Giron, of the valley of Cauca

166 TEA.

The cultivation of tobacco has appeared to me moie especially ad
vantageous in localities where the mean temperature does not fall
below 75° Fahr.

Tobacco is decidedly a plant of a hot climate ; there only does it
yield a produce of the best quaHty. In Venezuela, where its cultiva-
tion is followed with great skill, and in situations where the tempe-
rature of the dimate keeps from 77° to 80" Fahr., about five plants
are held necessary to produce 1 lb. of tobacco ; and as a mean, 11
cwt. 1 qr. 23 lbs. of the prepared article are produced from an acre
of unmanured land.

In Alsace, tobacco is sown about the middle of March ; the trans-
planting takes place in the beginning of June, and the harvest fol-
lows in autumn. The husbandry is very similar to that which has
been already described, each plant being left with eight or ten leaves.
Schwertz reckons the produce at about 15 quintals per hectare of
two and a half acres, which is equal to about 12 cwt. 1 qr. per Eng-
lish acre. Thaer estimates the produce in Prussia at 11 cwt. 1 qr.
23 lbs. per acre.

The consumption of tobacco has lately increased considerably
throughout the whole of Europe. In France, government sold to-
bacco in one form or another to the extent of 31,1 16,340 lbs. in the
course of the year 1837. Public documents show that in 1841 there
were in France 8,158 hectares, or 20,175 acres under tobacco,
which yielded 21,261,064 lbs. of the article; the difference between
the quantity produced and the quantity consumed is of course sup-
plied by importation.

The virtues of tobacco very probably reside in the volatile vege-
table alkali, nicotine, which it contains. The analyses of M. Pos-
selt and Kiemann show the leaf of tobacco to be composed as follows :
Nicotine 0.07, extractive matter 2.87, gum 1.74, a green resin 0.27,
albumen 0.26, gluten 1.05, malic acid 0.51,malate of ammonia 0.12,
sulphate of potash 0.05, chloride of potassium 0.06, nitrate and ma-
late of potash 0.21, phosphate of lime 0.17, malate of lime 0.73,
silica 0.09, woody matter 4.97, and water 86.84, — 100.00. During
the fermentation of the leaves, there is always a formation of am-
moniacal salts.

Te% the use of which is and has so long been universal in the
Chinese empire, began to be known in Europe in the seventeenth
century, when it was imported by the Dutch East India Company.
In 1669, the importation of tea into England did not exceed 1 cwt. ;
in 1833, the East India Company set aside for the consumption of
Great Britain alone nearly 24,200,000 of pounds !

The tea plant commonly attains a height of from three to about
five feet. In China it blossoms in the early part of the spring, and
ripens its seeds in December and January, Its branches are cover-
ad with short thick leaves of a deep-green color and elliptical form.
it is one of the most hardy plants, and thrives from the equator to
the forty-fifth parallel of north latitude ; but the districts best adapt-
ed to its growth appear to be comprised between the twenty-fifth

TEA. 167

and thirty-third decrees of latitude.* Tea requires a moist ilimate
and a light and sandy soil. No manure is given, and no attention
is paid to the nature of the soil where irrigation is practicable.

The shrub is propagated from seed. Several seeds are dropped
into holes at the distance of from three to six feet apart, and the
plant begins to produce from the third year : the gathering is done
by the hand, the leaves being picked off; but a few are always left
upon each branch. The number of gatherings made in the same
year varies from one to three, according to the age of the plant. It
is very seldom indeed that a fourth gathering is practised. In
China the tea harvest begins about the middle of April, a period at
which the leaf buds appear surrounded by a slight cottony down.
The first gathering is very small, but it constitutes the highest-
priced tea, the Shou-chun or tea of the first growth. The second
gathering takes place in June, when the branches are covered with
leaves of a pretty deep color; these leaves are very abundant, but
inferior in quality to the buds of the former gathering ; they con-
stitute the tea called Urh-chun, or tea of the second growth. The
third gathering is performed a month later, and the produce passes
by the name of the San-chun, or tea of the third growth. The
leaves are now of a deep-green color, tough, and are manufactured
into the most common kinds of tea.

Considerable plantations of tea are now established in Assam, in
British India, and in the Brazils, and it seems not improbable that
the plant may be cultivated at some future day in Europe.

According to Guillemin, who studied the cultivation and prepara-
tion of tea in the Brazils, the leaves are dried as soon as they are
gathered. From four to six pounds are thrown into an iron pot,
the interior of which is polished, and which may be somewhat more
than three feet in diameter, by about a foot in depth. The temper-
ature of the pot is maintained at about the boiling point of water; a
negro stirs the leaves in all directions with his hand, until they be-
come quite soft and pliant, so that they can be moulded into pellets
by movement between the hands. When the leaves are in this
state, they are thrown upon a tray made of bamboo, and strongly
kneaded for a quarter of an hour, so as to force out a green sap of a
disagreeable taste. The kneaded leaves are then returned to the
pot, and dried completely, being all the while stirred about with the
hand, being separated when they stick together, and being continual-
ly tossed up in order to prevent them adhering or getting scorched
by remaining too long in contact with the metal. During this pro-
cess, which lasts for some half hour, a large quantity of dust is
disengaged, which proceeds from the cottony down with which the
leaves are covered. By this rapid drying, the leaves crisp and curl
up of themselves, and acquire the appearance of the tea that is in
every-day use. On being taken from the drying pot, the tea is
thrown up )n a. sieve of a certain mesh, and the leaves which have
rolled themselves up into the smallest compass, and which are those

♦ Bobinson, a Descriptive Account of Assam, p. 13L

168 SEEDS.

which proceed from the buds, are separated from the others ; these
after having been winnowed, receive a new touch of the fire, when they
acquire a leaden-gray color, and constitute the lea of the best quali-
ty, which in the Brazils passes by the name of Imperial or Uchim
tea. The leaves which remain upon the sieve are heated, winnowed,
and sifted again, and the produce is fine Hyson tea ; and by the
same means other varieties are procured, until at length a kind re-
mains upon the sieve consisting of the leaves that have not become
rolled up, which being added to the broken particles derived from
the winnowing operations, is called family tea, because it is consum-
ed upon the spot.

During, and for some time after the drying, tea exhales an herba-
ceous and not very pleasant odor, which however becomes modified
in the course of time. The aroma of the Chinese teas is said to be
communicated to them by a highly odorous plant, which is believed
to be the Oleajiagrans. It is also said that the green tea is colored
by means of indigo ; but it is possible that the shades of color of the
different kinds of tea depend solely upon the degree of roasting
which they have undergone. Guillemin has said nothing of the
produce of the tea shrub in Brazil. In China, according to a man-
uscript of M. Carpena, a shrub with care will produce annually
during thirty or forty years from 2 lbs. to '2,\ lbs. of marketable tea.

From the analysis of M. Mulder, tea appears to contain : 1st. A
volatile oil. 2d. Chlorophylle. 3d. Wax and resin. 4th. Gum.
6th, An extractive matter. 6th. A coloring matter. 7th. Azo-
tized substances analogous to albumen. 8th. Woody fibre and inor-
ganic salts. 9th. A particular crystalline principle, — theine or cof-
feine, which is ranked among the vegetable alkalies, and which is
also met with, as implied by the name, in coffee : this new principle
crystallizes in colorless needles of a silky aspect and bitter taste.
It is little soluble in alcohol and in ether ; water dissolves about
^fjXh of its weight, and it sublimes without undergoing decomposi-
tion ; it is by sublimation, in fact, that Mr. Stenhouse proposes to
obtain it from tea.

This is undoubtedly the principle which communicates to tea its
bitter taste, and several of its properties ; experiment has shown,
that when administered even in considerable doses it produces no ill
eflfect on the animal economy ; different kinds of tea, as might have
been presumed, contain it in different proportions. Mr. Stenhouse
obtained from 100 parts of

Hyson 1.09 ofCoffeine

Congou 1.02 "

Assam 1.37 "

Twankay, green 0.98 "

SEEDS.

Wheat. This valuable grain is the produce of several kinds of
triticum — winter wheat, and spring wheat, T. hybernum^ and T
mstivum, spelter, T. Spella, and T. rnonocon.

Wheat is sown either upon a fallow or upon land that has carried

I

WHEAT. 169

some torage crop, or such a crop as beans and peas. It requires a
stiff rich soil, containing a certain proportion of calcareous earth,
and abounding in organic matter ; it does not thrive well in soils
where the sandy element predominates over the clayey. For seed
the best grain is selected ; but this and all other precautions do not
»:uffice to preserve the plant from many diseases, such as smut, rust,
mildew. Farmers are wont, before putting their seed wheat into
the ground, to prepare it in various ways with a view to destroying
the germs of certain parasites which are believed to adhere to it ex-
ternally. The process is generally called pickling, or liming, be-
cause milk of lime, in which the seeds are put to steep for twelve
or fifteen hours, is often employed in its course. Means that are
said to be more efficacious have also been recommended : some
make use of alum, others of sulphate of iron, sulphate of zinc, sul-
phate of copper, sulphate of soda, and even white oxide of arsenic.
All these means appear to conduce to the same result. We employ
sulphate of copper, which indeed is the custom in a considerable part
of Alsace, and I can assure the reader that our fields of wheat are
never infected. 100 grammes, or about 3| ounces troy, are allowed
to a hectolitre or sack of nearly 3 bushels of wheat ; the salt is dis-
solved in as much water as is held requisite for the submersion of
the grain, which is steeped in the solution during about three quar-
ters of an hour, after which it is thrown into baskets to drain, and
being then spread out on the floor it is dried before he'ng sown.

The season at which wheat is sown in autumn ought to vary with
the climate, and nothing can be more displaced than those precise
dates which are set down by the majority of writers. The great
point to be held in view is, that the young plant may have got a
certain length before the frost sets in, that the roots may have pene-
trated to a depth which shall protect them from the severe cold of
the winter. In each district, experience has already proclaimed the
proper time for sowing, and this can rarely or never be departed
from without detriment. In the east of France, in Alsace, the sow-
ing of winter wheat generally takes place in the first week in Octo-
ber ; in the southern hemisphere, in certain parts of Chili, for ex-
ample, the wheat is sown in April, and is exposed to the cold weather
of June, July, and August. The quantity of seed sown may vary
from about 7 pecks to 18 pecks and more per acre. Farmers gen-
erally agree, however, that we have seed enough when we employ
about 2 bushels to the acre ; this is the quantity which is used at
Bechelbronn ; but in the same district, and even on contiguous fields,
rve frequently see proportions of seed employed which vary in the
.•atio of from one half to twice the quantity specified, without, so far
*s I know, any sufficient reason being given for this parsimony or
jjrodigality. It is, however, a question of the very highest import-
mce to ascertain the proper quantity of seed. The question may
be considered in two ways : 1st. with reference to the produce of a
given extent of surface, and 2d. with reference to the produce from
ihe grain sown. It is quite certain that ir. sowing thick, a larger
produce per acre will be obtained than by sowing very thin ; but on

15

170 WHEAT.

the other hand, thin sowing yields a larger i umber of times the
quantity of seed put into the ground. The reasons which should
guide us in determining the dose of seed are numerous and extreme-
ly complex ; they must evidently be taken in connection with the
value of the ground and of cnhivation, the price of wheat and of
straw, the cost of labor and of manure. Thus in countries where
the rent of land is extremely low it may be a good practice to scat-
ter but a moderate quantity of seed over a large extent of surface.
I remember a field in the neighborhood of Pampeluna, where the
wheat was growing in isolated tufts, all extremely vigorous and very
heavy in the ear : the ground had had but very little preparation ;
nevertheless, they expected to gather from sixty to eiglity times the
seed. This, without doubt, was a profitable crop ; nevertheless, I
am satisfied that it could not have yielded more than from 6^ to 7|
bushels per acre.

For the same reasons the first settlers of the United States must
have followed a somewhat similar mode of cultivation. " An English
farmer," says Washington, in a letter addressed to Arthur Young,
" must have a very indifferent opinion of our soil when he hears that
with us an acre produces no more than from 8 to 10 bushels of wheat ;
but he must not forget that in all countries where land is cheap and
labor is dear, the people prefer cultivating much to cultivating well."

In Alsace we do not reckon any crop profitable which yields less
than from 19| to about 23 bushels per acre ; and in these circum-
stances we do not receive back more than from 9 to 10 times the seed.

Nevertheless, it must be allowed, even in these extreme cases in
which the value of ground is so different, inasmuch as ii may vary
in the ratio of from 1 to 1000, that there are certain limits with ref-
erence to the seed which must not be passed ; and there is without
doubt an opportunity of making a series of curious and useful exper-
iments, with the view of ascertaining the true ratios which exist
between the produce and the seed. I am well aware that the results
of experiments of this kind have already been made public ; but I
know also that these data have not been deduced from a sufficient
number of facts perfectly comparable with one another, and noted
under a varirty of climatic influences ; in a word, that they are not
such as they ought to be, to put an end to the uncertainty which still
exists in the minds of the best-informed farmers and rural economists
upon the subject.

In Europe, the wheat that is sown in autumn generally stands
upon the ground for from nine to ten months. The time, however,
varies considerably with the climate ; in the Andes, it is in propor-
tion to the proper temperature of each place.

Wheat, which is now an important article of agricultural produce
in America, was introduced from Europe very shortly after the Con-
quest The first particles of wheat sown in Mexico before 1530, are
said to have been found by a negro belonging to Fernando Cortez
among the rice destined for provision to the army.* Wheat

• Hamboldt's Essay on New Spain, vol. lU

WHEAT.

171

was brought into Quito by a Fleming, Father Jose Rixi, a monk
of the order of St. Francis. I was shown in the Convent of St.
Francis, the vessel in which the first seed is said to liave come from
Europe.

In Mexico, where the ground can be irrigated, and this, all things
else being the same, always yields the best crops, wheat is watered
at two different periods — when it has sprung and when it is shooting
into ear. According to M. de Humboldt, who has collected so much
that is interesting upon the agriculture of New Spain, the richness
of the harvest is truly surprising; irrigated soils often yield from
40 to 60 times the seed ; 16 for 1 is reckoned a middling crop, and,
taking the whole of Mexico, the mean produce may be estimated at
from 22 to 25 for 1.

The cultivation of wheat is especially lucrative in districts which
enjoy a mean temperature of from 18° to 19" C, (65" to 67" F. :) yet
it may be pursued amid plantations of coffee-trees and sugar-canes,
although I doubt whether it can there be extremely productive. The
extreme limits of the growth of wheat in the Cordilleras, according
to my own observations, correspond with tlie mean temperatures of
from 12" to 23.5° C. (54 to 75° F.) M. Codazzi estimates at 37 for
1 the mean produce of vVheat in Venezuela.

The hectolitre of wheat in France (22.009 gallons, something less
than a sack of three bushels English) is held to weigh, on an ave-
rage, 169.4 lbs., or 61.6, say 6U lbs. per bushel; but this weight
varies according to the quality of the grain between 56 and 64 lbs.
the bushel.

The following is a table of the mean produce of the wheat crop
in different countries, from documents that may be relied on :

Localities.

Germany: Moeglin

Lavanthal

Saaifelden

Lombardy : irrigated lands

" non-irrigated lands

Average of Venetian Lombardy....

England : the best soils ■

" average

Brabant and Flanders

Prance: Alsac«^ (after tobacco)

" " Bechelbronn •

Environs of Paris

" Oise

America r (East of the AUeghanics)

" rich lands

" middling ditto

Mississippi: rich lands

" middling ditto

Venezuela (Valley of Aragua)

" temperate regions

Produce per

acre (seed

Authorities.

deducted.)

Bushels.

26.7

Thaer.

22.0

Burger.

18.0

Lurzer.

25.6

Burger.

1.5.9

Dandolo.

11.0

Verra.

15.9

Burger.

34.0

Arthur Young.

23.0

Arthur Young.

25.0

Schwertz.

29.0

Schwertz.

22.3

Lebel and Boussing.

25.2

Daillv.

2L5

Official statistics.

^ 35.0

N

i 9.0
r 44.2

VBlodget.

27.0

44.0

Humboldt.

14.0

Codazzi.

172 WHEAT.

The cereals, besides their principal produce, their farinaceous
seeds, yield another, which is of great importance in rural economy;
this is straw, which no European agricultural establishment could
do without. After having been used as food and as litter for cattle,
it is returned to the ground as manure, and contributes powerfully
in preventing the exhaustion of the soil, which the cultivation of
wheat always produces. The quantity of straw which can be recl^-
oned on in a farm, is, of course, in proportion to the soil under white
crops. The relative weight of grain and straw, however, varies
considerably according to circumstances ; in a wet year, for instance,
the wheat crop contains a relatively large proportion of straw, and
a small proportion of grain; in dry years the contrary relation ob-
tains. Lands recently and abundantly manured, yield a larger
quantity of straw than clover breaks. Thick sowing always yields
a large quantity in contrast with the grain ; lastly, climate exerts
the most marked influence upon the two kinds of produce which we
are considering. The differences which are observed between one
year and another, in the same districts, in consequence of very dif-
ferent meteorological conditions, are not less remarkable. I shall
quote a single instance. The years 1840, 1841, and 1842 gave us
crops of grain at Bechelbronn which were" far from excellent ; in
the first the rains were too abundant, and in the second the drought
was too long continued. In these opposite circumstances, the weight
of the straw to that of the grain was —

In 1840-41 : : 100 : 24
In 1841-42 : : 100 : 90

The latter harvest, in fact, occasioned a complete dearth of litter in
cur establishment. In ordinary years we procure about 38 of grain
for 100 of straw, a relation which agrees with those that have been
reported by different observers, who vary in their calculations from 33
and 35 to 41, 44, and 50 of grain to 100 parts of straw.

In the cereals the amylaceous matter, which constitutes the princi-
pal part of the seed, is surrounded by a flexible perisperm,of the nature
of woody tissue. The object of grinding is to break this case and to
reduce the interior of the grain to powder. In France, the grinding
of wheat is performed by a succession of operations ; in England it is
completod at once. The French mode, however, appears to yield
the largest quantity of fine flour.

English. French.

Fine flour ^('70 66),.

Secondflour 14 j'-* 8\'*

Bran 26 23

Loss 2 3

The proportion of flour furnished by the cereals does not, however,
depend alone upon the mode of grinding, but also upon the nature of
the grain. Wheat, for instance, of different kinds, yields 78, 83, and
85 J per cent, of flour.

Speller. This grain is so firmly enclosed in the husk that it can-
not be freed by threshing ; so that, in the countries where this grain
is grown, the mills are provided with an apparatus for husking it

WHEAT. 173

Schwertz made many experiments in Wurtemberg to determine the
quantity of flour yielded by spelter, and he found that from 100 of grain
he obtained 90 of husked grain, and 8.7 of bran ; there was a loss of
1.3. The quality of the flour always varies according to the wheal
from which it is procured : it contains moisture in variable propor-
tions, gluten in variable proportions, and, finally, various quantities
of woody matter. The wheat of the south is harder and tougher than
that of the north, and appears richer in azotized principles ; as it con-
tains less moisture, it also keeps better ; it is, undoubtedly, in conse-
quence of the large quantity of water which our northern wheats
contain, that we meet with such indifferent success when we attempt
to keep them for any length of time in our granaries. The wheat of
Alsace, for example, frequently contains from 16 to 20 per cent, of
moisture ; a"d I have ascertained, by various experiments, that it is
almost impossible to keep it without change, in vessels hermetically
sealed. To secure its keeping, the proportion of water must be re-
duced to from 8 to 10 per cent., and this is nearly the quantity of
moisture contained in the hard and horny wheat of warm countries
I am therefore of opinion that we shall never succeed, in these coun
tries, in keeping wheat for any length of time — in the magazines of
fortified towns, for example — whatever care be taken.

The flour of the cereals, particularly that of wheat, absorbs a largo
quantity of water, and forms a paste, which is by so much the firmer
and more elastic, as the flour contains a larger proportion of gluten ;
the azotized principle of wheat has, in fact, the remarkable property
of being extensible like a membrane, when it is moist, and this prop-
erty it communicates to the whole of the paste or dough. In order
to be brought into the state of dough fit for making bread, flour will
absorb from 55 to 70 per cent, of water. The quantity of bread ob-
tained necessarily depends upon the heat and length of exposure in
the oven ; but, in a general way, from 100 of flour, 130 of the best
white bread of Paris is procured. In the country, the bread is
generally less baked than in Paris or London, and therefore retains
more water ; so that from 100 of flour, 140, 145, and 146 of bread are
made : thus, admitting 16 per cent, of moisture as existing in wheat
originally, we have of absolute dry matter 64|, 57, and 56 in different
kinds of bread.

Bread is by so much the more nutritious as it is made from flour
containing a larger proportion of gluten ; to add any starch therefore
is to prejudice the interests of the consumer; nevertheless it is the
practice to do so almost openly ; when potato starch is at a low
price, the adulteration frequently begins with the miller and is ex-
tended under the baker. The quantity of gluten contained in differ-
ent kinds of wheat varies greatly. Vauquelin found in the —

Gluten

Flour of French wheat 11.0

Flour from hard Odessa wheat 14.6
Flour from soft Odessa wheat 12.0
Fiour from the baker's 10.2

The method of analysis employed by Vauquelin, whose resultt

15*

Starch.

Sugar.

Gum
or dextrine.

Water.

Bran.

71.5

4.7

3.3

10.9

.56.5

8.5

4.9

12.0

2.3

62.0

7.6

5.8

10.0

1.2

72.8

4.2

2.8

10.0

174 WHEAT.

are given above, by means of washing, is how^ever far from being
very accurate ; it is impossible to prevent the loss of some gluten
which passes with the starch, and the vegetable albumen is entirely
lost by reason of its solubility in water : and then to dry gluten is a
very long and delicate process ; and if we would pretend to any de-
gree of accuracy, we must ascertain the quantity of fatty matter
contained in the samples. I therefore thought that with reference
to the azotized principles particularly, the better way would be by
proceeding to ascertain these by immediate ultimate analysis.

The four azotized principles which we have already admitted
have very nearly the same elementary composition ; the mean propor-
tion of azote in each is 0.16. With this datum, it is evident that if a
particular sample of flour is found to contain 0.04 of azote, it may be
inferred that this azote represents 0.25 of gluten, albumen, fibrine,
and caseine, dried at 140° C. (284° F.,) and as these are the most
valuable elements in flour, I took the pains to ascertain their pro-
portion in a considerable number of vaHeties of wheat, the whole of
which were grown in the same year, in the same soil, which was
well manured, and under climatic influences that were identical ; nor
did I restrict myself to the azotized matters of these samples ; I also
endeavored to ascertain the precise relative quantities of bran and
of flour. The following table contains the results of my experi-
ments.

WHEAT.

175

1

grayish, coarse.

soft.

very coarse.

yellow, coarse.

very coarse.

yellowish, soft.

coarse.

very white, soft.

yellowish, rough.

somewhat coarse.

white, very soft.

yellowish, soft.

white, very soft.

yellowish,

white, very soft.

white, rather rough.

soft, white.

white, extremely fine. :

yellow, very coarse.

white, very soft.

yellowish, very soft.

yellow, coarse.

ditto.

white, very soft.

1

i

s

ill

s

05(Ma5G^C0r-Off0^tOTj*O«^C0-H.-lTtO5O000it--HO

es V

^00-^00t-«Ot-<X>-tCOOl-'<*0S05<X>r^iCC^-Hcy:oo

i

1

i-^(?»^oooi«ooooomooiooinio»npoir5o>o
00 05 e»5 oc3 to r^ CO co'iryirj ^t od co* os ^* p4 o6 to irj ^ <ri o o oj

l^t^t>-COQ0<X>J>'Q0000000t^t»t-00Q0t^l^t>'a000CX)t'l^

05QOCioojooooooiftOim«oiflt«»nppirtpif5
r^c>co"c^'«odcoTtir5irjco'rH-rj5oodoi.-HrtTfaiQdaJioo

I

.S

small, thin.

middling.

very large.

horny, long.

small, brown.

middling.

reddish.

yellow, fine.

small, hard.

hard.

reddish.

large.

soft.

pretty hard.

soft.

white, hard.

ditto.

small.

gray, hard.

yellow, large.

wrinkled.

small, red.

hard, very large.

well-formed.

t

1

Triticum spelta rufa mutica
Small spelter, T. monococon

Great spelter

Mecca wheat

Bearded wheat

Winter wheat, T. hybernum .
Common wheat (mouret) .
Reyel wheat ....
Red Egyptian wheat ....
A large wheat growing in 4 ranks
Fine red wheat of Roussillon .

Red Marcel wheat

Dantzic wheat

Wheat from the North . . .
Fine red wheat (pays de Foix)

Smyrna wheat

Bengal wheat

Tangarok wheat

Hard African wheat ....

Cape wheat

Russian wheat

Sicilian wheat

Giant St. Helena wheat . . .
Subernac wheat (Pyrenees) . .

176 WHEAT.

The quantity of gluten ind albumen contained in these samples of
flour is much larger than that usually indicated ; I have given rea-
sons which explain, to a certain extent, this difference. I ought to
add, however, that the varieties of wheat, the flour of which was
analyzed, were all grown in the rich soil of the garden, a circum-
stance which, as Hermbstadt has shown, exerts the most powerfu.
influence in increasing the quantity of gluten in wheat.

It was already known, from the experiments of Tessier, that the
proportion of gluten in the same species of wheat might vary in the
ratio of from 12 to 36 per cent, of the weight of the flour, according
to the nature of the soil and the quantity of manure. But it was
Hermbstadt who first made truly comparative observations on the
action of the excrements of diflferent animals on the culture of the
cereals.

The excrements made use of by this able cultivator in his inquiries
w^ere always dried in the air at a temperature of 12|° C. (54^° F.,)
and equal areas of the same soil were sown with equal weights of
winter wheat, and had a similar dose of manure of one kind or an-
other spread over them. One hundred parts of the flour obtained
from wheat thus grown yielded :

Bran, soluble mai-

- Gluten. Starch, ter and moiiture.

With human urine 35.1 39.3 25.6

" bullock's blood 34-2 41-3 25.5

" human excrement 33.1 41.4 25.5

" sheep's dung 22-9 42.8 34-3

" goat's ditto 32.9 42.4 24.7

" horse ditto 13.7 61-6 24-7

" pigeon's ditto 12.2 63-2 24-6

" cow's ditto 12.0 62.3 25.7

Soil not manured 9-2 66.7 24-1

It is apparent, therefore, that in general, for the exception onl
refers to the pigeon's and the horse dung, the wheat grown in groun
manured with the most highly azotized matters yields the target
quantity of gluten.

By way of adding to and confirming these conclusions of Hermb
stadt, I shall give the results of an experiment of my own, made i<
1836, in which the same variety of wheat was grown in the opev
field, and in garden ground very highly manured. The grain wjm
analyzed after having been dried at 110° C, (230" F.,) and gave :

From the open field. From the garilen gnuad.

Carbon 46-10 45.51

Hydrogen 5.80 5.67

Oxygen 43.40 43.00

Azote 2.29 3.51

Ashes 2.41 2.31

100.00 100.00

In the produce of the garden there were 21.94 — very nearly 22
per cent, of gluten and albumen ; in that of the open field no more
than 14.31 per cent, of the same principles.

Davy was of opinion that the wheat of warm climates was richer
in azoti'/ed principles than that of temperate lands. Southern coun-
tries are known to produce harder, tougher grain, the flour of whicb

RYE. 171

contains more gluten than the soft and more friable wheat of the
north ; and the inquiries of M. Payen appear to bear out the conclu-
sion of the illustrious English chemist. M. Payen, in fact, found in
the hard wheat of Africa 3.00 of azote, equivalent to 18.7 ; and in
that of Venezuela 3.50 of azote, equivalent to 21.9 of gluten and
albumen. The experiments quoted above, however, prove that we
may have wheat grown in Europe fully as rich in azotized elements
as any that is grown between the tropics ; the influence of the soil
in this direction is probably more than the influence of climate.

In all the analyses of wheaten and other flour published up to the
present time, we find no mention made of the fatty matters which
they contain ; and late views in regard to the special part which
ihese matters play in nutrition make it very necessary to supply the
omission. A ong with MM. Dumas and Payen, I therefore deter-
mined the quantity of fatty matter contained in a considerable num-
ber of the vegetables and vegetable substances used as food, from
which it appears that grain of diflferent kinds contains from 2 to 10
per cent, of oil. One hundred parts of winter wheat gathered at
Bechelbronn lost 14.5 of water by drying at 110' C, (230° F.,) and
therefore contained 85.5 of dry matter. 100 of this dry wheat gave
13.7 of bran and 86.3 of flour.

Various analyses showed the composition of this wheat and its
parts to be as follows :

Dry matter. Gluten and Starch.

Albumen.

Bran 20.0

Flour 13.4 73.2 5.6 4.2 2.1 1.5

Wheat 14.3 63.2

Rye, {Secale cereale.) Rye is an important article ot food, par-
ticularly in the north of Europe, where the people live upon it almost
entirely. It is a very hardy plant, and will thrive in soils which are
altogether unfit to grow wheat. In the husbandry of the north this
grain occupies the place of wheat in the south : it requires much
the same treatment, and stands upon the ground for nearly the same
length of time. The bushel of rye weighs on an average about 60 lbs.
avoird. The usual quantity of seed sown is from 10 to 11 pecks
per acre, and the produce per acre, the seed being deducted, has
been stated as follows :

Bushels.

Brabant 23.0

Flanders 32.4

Austria 206

England 22.0

France 19.0

The German agriculturists say, that the weight of the straw to
the weight of the rye produced is in general as 100 is to 47 ; others
say as 100 is to 50, and some have taken it even as high as 100 to
33. The relation seems to differ extremely in different years. At
Bechelbronn, for example, in 1840-41 we had 63 of grain to 100 of
straw; in 1841-42 we had but 25 of grain to 100 of straw.

Rye yields flour that is not so white nor so fine as that of wheat,

Glucose.
(Su^ar.)

Gum.

Fatty
matter.

Woody
tissue.

5.6

28.8
4.2
12.i

55
2.1
1.6

45.7
7.5

178 BARLEY OATS.

which is in consequence of the woody covering of the ofraih getting
ground, in great part, in the mill. If but from 50 to 65 purts per
cent, of flour be taken from rye, it is white and looks well. The
dough made with rye flour is not very adhesive ; it contains little
vegetable fibrine, the azotized principle which gives gluten its elas-
tic properties. It is this want of vegetable fibrine which renders it
more difficult to make good light bread of rye than of wheaten flour,
although experiment shows that rye flour of the first quality will form
as large a proportion of bread as wheaten flour ; 100 of rye flour
have given 145 of bread.

Rye bread is more hygrometric than that of wheat, and conse-
quently remains for a longer time soft and fresh. Rye generally
contains 24 of bran to 76 of flour ; by drj^ng at 230 F. it loses about
17 per cent, of water. Analyses of a dried sample grown at Bechel-
bronn yielded :

Gluten and albumen (azotized principles united) 10.5

Starch 64.0

Fatty matters 3.5

Sugar (glucose 7) 3.0

Gum ]1.0

Woody matter and salts (phosphates) 6.0

Loss 2.0

looTo

Barley, {Hordeum vulgare.) The usual produce of barley varies
much from 15 or 20 to 50, 60, and even 70 bushels per acre ; the
average for France is stated at about 43| bushels ; and the weight
of the bushel may be taken on an average at about 504 lbs. The
ratio of the straw to the grain varies very much, but may be taken
generally at that of 100 to 50. Barley contains :

Of flour 68.6

Bran 18.4

Water .13.0

100.0

Dried, this grain gave 0.0214 of azote, which represents 13.4 per
cent, of gluten and other azotized principles.

Oats, {Avena sativa.) When oats yield 43 or 44 bushels per acre,
the crop is a fair one. At Bechelbronn we have frequently had up-
wards of 45 bushels per acre.* Schwertz states the relation between
the straw and the grain as 100 is to 60.

Some oats gathered in 1841-42 yielded 78 of meal and 22 of
husk per cent.

One hundred parts of these oats lost by drying at 230° F. , 20.8
of water ; thus dried, analysis showed that they contained :

Of starch 46.1

" gluten, albumen, to 13.7

" fatty matter 6.7

" sugar (glucose) 6.0

" gum 3.8

" woody matter, ashes, and loss « 21.7

100.0

♦ This would be reckoned a poor croo in the North of England and Scotland, whrf»
10^ tW, and even 100 bushels of oate pet \cn are frequently grown*— Eko. Ed

MAIZE. 17&

Maize, {Zea mais.) This is the true wheat of the Americans,
and it is now generally avowed that the plant is a native of the
New World. It is also well known that maize was introduced into
Spain long before potatoes. Oviedo states in his work, printed in
1525, that he had seen it growing in Andalusia and the neighbor-
hood of Madrid. The cultivation of this useful plant was observed
everywhere on the discovery of America by Europeans, from the
most southern parts of Chili to Pennsylvania in the north ; and in
the neighborhood of the equator, from the level of the sea to the
high table-lands of the Andes. Garcilasso gives a particular de-
scription of the procedure followed by the Incas in the cultivation
of this plant, the kind of manure, &c. At Cusco the Indians ma-
nured with human excrement dried and reduced to powder. On the
coasts they employed in one place guano ; in others, as the dusty and
sterile soils of Attica, Atiquiba, &c., they made use of the ofFal of fish.

The uses of maize are very numerous. In America it is made
into cakes, which are a substitute for bread ; by fermentation a
vinous liquor is prepared from it called chicha. Before the conquest,
the Mexicans manufactured a sirup from the expressed juice of the
stems. In describing to Charles V. the various articles of provision
that were.met with in the march to Tlatclolclo, Cortez says, " They
sold us the honey of bees, wax, and honey from the stems of the
maize plant." Maize when ground and boiled makes a kind of
pudding in universal use, and the ear, when nearly ripe, whether
boiled in water or roasted in the ashes, is held a luxury by all class-
es. In the tropical Cordillera maize is advantageously cultivated
from the level of the sea to the height of 9186 feet above it ; that is to
say, it thrives in temperatures which vary between 14° and 27.5° C.
(57.5° and 81.5° F. ;) this circumstance explains its very general
introduction into Europe.

Maize succeeds on all soils when they are properly manured ;
I have seen beautiful crops upon the most sandy soils and upon the
stifFest clays ; it requires much the same management as our ordi-
nary grain crops ; the climate alone should decide as to whether its
introduction into a particular district is opportune or not ; a certain
degree of heat is necessary to ripen it, and above all, the cold to
which it is exposed must not be too severe. It is for this reason,
that in the east of Europe the maize is sown in spring, when there is
no longer any apprehension of frost ; there would be a real advan-
tage in sowing late, were it not for fear of the frosts of autumn at
the season of ripening. The susceptibility of maize to frost and
climate generally, appears to me very analogous to that of the vine ;
and I doubt whether it would be wise to attempt its cultivation on the
great scale where the grape does not ripen in ordinary years.

Maize is sown either with the dibble or with the hand, following
a furrow opened by the plough ; I believe that it ought never to be
sown broadcast, for it is a plant that requires room ; it is only in the
hottest countries that the drill system is less necessary. In Alsace the
drills are about 2^ feet apart, and the seeds are sown at the distance
of abou'- & foot from each other. This very considerable spaco left be*

180 MAIZE.

tween the maize plants appears to authorize the general custom that
prevails of interposing som3 other crop in the fields under Indian
corn ; that which is most generally interposed is either the dwarf
haricot or the potato. I observed the same custom in the more tem-
perate valleys of the Andes, where it is almost as necessary as in
Europe to leave free spaces between the plants to give them air and
sun ; but the plant is cultivated alone in the hotter regions. Soon
after maize has sprung it receives a first hoeing, and after it has got
to a certain height, a second ; in Alsace, for instance, it is custom-
ary to hoe towards the end of June ; but I never saw any operation
of the kind performed between the tropics : the only care they
seemed to take of their fields of Indian corn, was to pull up foul weeds
In Europe it is usual to take away the sprouts which rise beside the
principal stem ; this precaution is also unnecessary in equatorial
countries where the ground is fertile ; the more lateral stems that
rise, the better, as they all become richly laden with grain. I may
also say as much for the system of topping which prevails among us,
tiiat system which consists in removing the extremity of the stem
which bears the male flowers after the fecundation has been efifected.
The leaves and heads of stems which are obtained by this operation,
compose a forage by no means to be despised.

The time during which the crop of maize remains on the ground,
is greatly influenced by the mean temperature of the climate ; in hot
intertropical countries, the grain ripens in less than three months,
and there are even farms upon which four considerable crops are
gathered in the course of the year. On the temperate plateau or
table-land of Bogota, the plant ripens in six months ; in Alsace about
the same length of time is required, although at Bechelbronn, in 1836,
the maize which was sown on the 1st of June was gathered ripe on
the 1st of October. Maize is dried either in exposing the spikes
stripped of their covering upon the floor of a well-ventilated gra-
nary, or by hanging them up in bunches or sheaves under sheds, or
under the eaves of the house. In warm countries the drying is
accomplished by one or two days' exposure to the sun, after which
the spikes are stored. The maize is freed from the stem with the hand
in small farms, with the flail in larger establishments. In America
the operation is never done until the moment when the grain is want-
ed, as it is said that the grain is less subject to be attacked by
insects v/hen it is kept in the ear. When animals are fed on maize,
hey are accustomed to separate it for themselves.

The produce in Indian corn varies greatly, as appears by the fol*
lowing table, in different countries :

Countriei. Produce in butbeli

per acr«.

Lavanthal 81

Carinthia 55

Austria and Moravia 24

Hungary and Croatia 42

Tuscany %

France (climate of PiVs) 29

Alsace 43

Venezuela 147

MAIZE. 181

By far the finest crops of Indian corn in America are obtained upon
breaks of virgin seil. I do not hesitate to say that the husbandman
gains from six hundred to seven hundred times his seed under such
circumstances. The mode of proceeding upon these breaks, which
I have frequently witnessed, deserves to fix attention for a moment.

The planter chooses the end of the rainy season for cutting down
the trees and the brushwood : every thing remains where it falls
until it is sufficiently dry ; fire is then set to the heap, and the burn-
ing extends and lasts even for weeks; all the smaller branches are
completely consumed, nothing but the charred trunks of the larger
trees remain. As the rainy season is about to return, a man, with
a pointed stick in his hand, goes over the burnt surface, making a
hole of no great depth at intervals, into which he throws two or
three particles of Indian corn, over which he draws a little earth, or
rather ashes, by a slight motion of his foot. This primitive mode
of sowing terminated, the planter takes no further heed of the crop ;
his habitation is often so remote, that he never visits it until harvest
time : the rain and the climate do all the work. It is unnecessary
to hoe, the burning having destroyed all the plants that were indi-
genous to the soil ; nothing rises but the grain which has been sown.
In such fields, stems of Indian corn are frequently seen of the height
of from twelve to fourteen feet. It rarely happens that more than
three consecutive crops are taken from the burnt soil ; and the last,
though still very superior to any thing which we can obtain by our
regular husbandry, is not to compare with the first. As there is no
want of forest, it is held preferable to make a fresh break.

Taking the seed as unity, it is found, from documents now pos-
sessed, that 1 of seed will yield — in Mexico (an indifferent harvest)
150 ; in New California (beyond the tropics) 80 ; Alsace (the plants
very far apart) 190 ; Venezuela (an ordinary crop) 238. Besides
the grain and the straw, the husks and the cores of Indian corn are
all extremely valuable upon the farm as forage, and as affording
manure.

Maize has been analyzed by M. Payen, and found to contain i
starch 71.2; gluten, albumen, &c., 12.3 ; fat, oil, 9.0; dextrine and
glucose 0.4; woody tissue 5.9; and salts 1.2; 100.0. T found
0.02 of azote in a sample of dry maize, which I analyzed, a quantity
which indicates 12.5 of gluten and albumen, a result that coincides
exactly with M. Payen's analysis.

Rice, {Oriza saliva.) Rice is an aquatic plant which can only
be grown in low moist lands that are easily inundated. The ground
is ploughed or stirred superficially, and divided into squares of from
twenty to thirty yards in the sides, separated from each other by
dikes of earth, about two feet in height, and sufficiently broad for a
man to walk upon. These dikes are for retaining the water when
it is required, and to permit of its being drawn off" when the inunda-
tion is no longer necessary. The ground prepared, the water is let
on, and kept at a certain height in the several compartments of the
rice-field, and the seedsman goes to work. The rice that is to be
used as seed must have been kept in the husk ; it is put into a sack,

16

182 COFFEE.

which is immersed in water, until the grain swells and shows signs
of germination ; the seedsman walking through the inundated fisld,
scatters the seed with his iiand as '.'sual, the rice immediately sink*
to the bottom, and may even pencorate to a certain depth into the
mud. In Piedmont, where the sowing takes place at the beginning
of April, they generally use about fifty-five pounds of seed per acre.
The rice begins to show itself above the surface of the water at the
end of a fortnight ; as the plant grows, the depth of the water is in-
creased, so that the stalks may not bend with their own weight.
About the middle of June this disposition is no longer to be appre-
hended ; the rice is no longer so flexible as it was, so that the water
can be drawn off for a few days to permit hoeing, after which the
water is let on and maintained to the height of the plant ; in July it
is usual to top the stalks, an operation which renders the flowering
almost simultaneous. Rice generally flowers in the beginning of the
month of August, and a fortnight later the grain begins to form.
It is at this period especially that the stalks require to be supported,
and this is eflfectually done by keeping the water at about half their
height. The rice-field is emptied when the straw turns yellow.
The harvest generally takes place at the end of September. In the
Isle of France, rice is cultivated in very damp soils, upon which a
great deal of rain falls, but which are not flooded artificially, I
have seen the same process followed in other tropical countries
which I have visited, but I do not think that the produce is so great,
or the crop so certain, as where inundation is employed. In Pied-
mont, the usual return from a rice-field is reckoned at about 50 for 1
of seed. At Muzo, in New Granada, the paddy fields, which are
not inundated, under the influence of a mean temperature of 26° cent.
(79° Fahr.) yield 100 for 1.

Thrqp kinds of rice yielded, on analysis, the following quantities
of—

Carolina. Piedmont. Rice.

Starch 89.5 90.1 86.9

Gluten, albumen, &c 3.8 3.9 7.5

Fattymatters 0.2 0.3 0.8

Sugar (glucose ?) 0.3 0.1 > «.

Gum 0.7 O.U •*

Woody tissue 5.1 5.1 3.4

Phosphate of lime 0.4 0.4; ««

Chloride of potassium, phosphate of ditto, &c. J '_

100.0 100 U 100.0

M. Payen's analysis indicates a proportion of azote, the double of
that found by M. Braconnot. In a trial for azote, which I made
myself, I found 1.2 of this element per cent., which would show the
amount of albumen and gluten to be 7.5, a quantity that corresponds
exactly with M. Payen's valuation.

Coffee, {Coffea Arahica.) The habit of using the infusion of
coffee appears to have been introduced into Europe about the middle
of the sixteenth century. The first public estabiisfhments for the sale
of the drink were opened in Constantinople, in the year 1554. The
use of coffee remained for a long time coniiaed to the East ; but b

COFFEE. 183

degrees it spread, and at the present day the consumption of the article
in Europe exceeds 660,000,000 of pounds annually. The greater
portion of coffee consumed in Europe is the produce of America, and
yet it is not more than a century since it was first grown in the New
W(.rld.

The oofFee-plant thrives between the tropics in situations where the
mean and nearly constant temperature is between 22° and 26° C,
(71.5° and 80° F.)

Coffee is rarely sown in a nursery : the seeds are made to germinate
still surrounded by their natural pulp, and wrapped up in leaves of the
banana. The young plants, after seven or eight days of germina-
tion, are put into the ground. In the valley d'Aragua an acre of
ground of good quality is generally laid out with about 1040 plants.
The coffee-plant flourishes in the course of the second year ; when
left to grow unimpeded it will attain a height of from 23 to 26 feet,
but it is seldom allowed to grow so high, its upward progress being
checked by pruning ; the planters of Venezuela generally keep it at
a height of from five to six feet. The shrub receives the care of
the planter during the first two years ; the ground must be kept free
from vk^eeds, and the growth of parasites must above all be prevented.
To thrive, the coffee-plant requires frequent rains up to the time of
flowering. The fruit bears a strong resemblance to a small cherry,
and is ripe when it becomes of a red color, and the pulp is soft and
very sweet. As the berries never ripen simultaneously, the coffee
harvest takes place at different times, each requiring at least three
visits made at intervals of from five to six days. A negro will
gather from ten to twelve gallons of fruit in the course of a day.

Two beans are found in the interior of each berry ; in order to
free these from the pulp which surrounds them, they are passed
hrough a kind of mill, and the coffee is steeped in water for twenty-
four hours in order to free it from the mucilaginous matter which
adheres to it; it is then dried by being spread out upon a floor under
a shed. In the coffee plantations of Venezuela which I visited, I
saw them proceed in another way. The berries were exposed to
the sun upon a piece of ground somewhat inclined, and spread out
to about three inches in thickness ; the pulp soon enters into fer-
mentation, and a very distinct vinous odor is exhaled, and the juice
altered either flows away or dries up ; at the end of a fortnight or
three weeks the berries are all dry and shrivelled, and they then
undergo two triturations, one to obtain the seeds or beans, the
other to detach a thin pellicle which surrounds them. Three bush-
els of berries will yield from 85 to 90 lbs. of marketable coffee.

During the destruction of the sugary matter contained in the pulp
of the berry, a considerable quantity of spirit is produced and dissi-
pated. M. Humboldt, struck with the readiness with which the
berry of the coffee-plant runs into fermentation, expresses his sur-
prise that no one ever thought of obtaining alcohol from it. In an
old work, however, I find the following passage : " The inhabitants
of Arabia take the skin which surrounds the coffee bean and prepare
it as we do raisins ; they form a drink with it for refreshment during

184 COCOA.

the summer."* This vinous liquor appears to enjoy all the exciting
properties which are esteemed in the infusion of coffee.

The coffee-plant continues to produce to the age of forty to forty-
five years ; it bears to a co. siderable extent even in the third year.
Some siirubs yield from 17 :o 22 lbs. of dry coffee beans ; but thia
is a very large quantity. An acre of land in the valley d'Aragua,
planted with about 1040 shrubs, will yield about 940 or 950 lbs.,
which is at the rate of somewhat less than 1 lb. per shrub.

Coffee contains the same active principle as tea, coffeine, but in
less proportion ; the researches of different chemists have also
shown the presence of a particular acid called coffeic acid, of fatty
matters, a volatile oil, a coloring matter, albumen, tannin, and alka-
line and earthy salts.

Cocoa, {Theobroma cacao.) The ancient Mexicans cultivated the
cocoa-tree, and with its seeds prepared tablets similar to the choco-
late of modern times. The use of cocoa appears to have been in-
troduced after the conquest into the other parts of the continent ;
nevertheless, the cocoa-tree is indigenous in the hot and humid
forests of South America. M. Goudot discovered several species in
New Granada ; among others, that which is known at Muso under
the name of the Cacao montaraz : this cocoa-tree, which attains a
height of from 25 to 30 feet, yields a considerable quantity of fruit ;
the natives prepare a chocolate from its beans, which is extremely
bitter, and which they regard as an excellent febrifuge. The wild
Indians still appear to be ignorant of the profit that may be made of
the seeds of the cocoa-tree ; they only eat the pulp of fruit which
surrounds them. Cocoa was introduced into Europe by the Span-
iards, and in no long space of time this production of the New
World became the object of a very considerable traffic.

It is a fact well known to the husbandmen of tropical countries,
that a virgin soil is quite indispensable to the success of a cocoa
plantation ; nothing but failure has followed attempts to replace the
sugar-cane, indigo, maize, &c., with cocoa, a plant which to succeed
requires a rich, deep, and moist soil, heat and shade ; nothing suits
it better than a forest brake, the surface of which is susceptible of
irrigation.

AU the important cocoa plantations which I visited had a common
physiognomy : they were all situated in the hottest regions, at a
short distance from the sea, near torrents, or on the banks of great
rivers. The cocoa husbandry ceases to be profitable in localities
which have not a mean temperature of at least 24° C, (75.2° Fahr.,)
and I have had occasion to take part in attempts that were as fruit-
less as expensive to cultivate the cocoa-tree in a brake where the
heat of the climate from my own observations did not exceed 22.8"
C. (73° Fahr.) Under the influence of this temperature, the trees
presented a very good appearance ; in the course of a few years
liiey flowered, but the fruit, which was always small, rarely came to
uiaturity. When a piece of land has been selected for a cocoa

• Mem. of the Academy of Ii-,9;Tiptions, vol. xxiii p. 214.

COCOA. 185

plantation, they begin by establishing a good system of shade. Oc-
casionally a certain number of trees, with large and leafy crowns,
are left standing ; but in general certain plants, which grow rapidly,
are had recourse to as a means of procuring shade. In the neigh-
borhood of Caraccas they shade with the erylhrina umbrosa ; and
in some plantations they take advantage of the shade of the ba-
nana ; finally, the two modes of procuring shade are frequently con-
ioined.

In the province of Guayaquil they plant the beans of the cocoa
directly. In Venezuela they prefer raising the plant in a nursery,
which is always selected of the most fertile soil, and deeply trenched.
The seeds are sown immediately before the setting in of the rains,
and germination takes place in from eight to ten days. In a good
soil, at two years of age the cocoa-plant will have attained a height
of nearly 3 feet ; it is then pruned hy having two of its upper branch-
es removed, and is transplanted. In the upper valley of the Rio
Magdalena, where there are many valuable cocoa-groves, the sow-
ing is performed in ground well prepared and protected by screens
made with palm leaves ; here the young cocoas are transplan!«3d
when they are six months old. During the whole of the time that
the plants remain in this nursery they continue to be well shaded ;
and they are watered once a week by water poured upon the
screens.

The tree seldom comes into flower under thirty months old. I
have known planters who always destroyed these first flowers, and
who never suffered any fruit to ripen before the fourth year, and
that too under the most favorable circumstances in regard to climate,
in situations where the mean temperature was 27 5° C., between 81°
and 82° Fahr. In less favorable situations it is necessary to wait
six or seven years before gathering the first fruits of a cocoa planta-
tion. There are few arborescent plants which have so small a flower,
and especially a flower so disproportionate to the size of its fruit, as
the cocoa-tree. The diameter of a bud, measured at the moment of
its expansion, does not exceed 4 millimetres — -0.157 of an English
inch. The flowers appear principally upon the trunk of the tree
itself; they rarely show themselves beyond the middle of the larger
branches ; occasionally they appear upon the roots which happen to
be above the ground.

To receive the young plants grown in the nursery, the ground
properly shaded is first freed from weeds. Trenches are then cut,
either to season the ground or to irrigate it when requisite. The
young plants are set in rows at regular and considerable distances,
which vary, however, with the quality of the soil ; and the general
opinion is, that the better the soil the greater should be the space
from tree to tree. Thus in the valley of del Tuy, in the neighbor-
hood of Puerto Cabello, the cocoa-trees are set at the distance of
about 16 feet apart in the best soils, and at the distance of about 13
feet only in soils of inferior quality. In the windward islands, where
the soil is generally less fertile th'an on the continent, the trees
Btand at the distance of from 6 or 7 to 9 or 10 feet apart. A reasoo

16*

186 COCOA.

for this practice may be readily assigned ; in the more fertile soils
the trees grow more vigorously, the branches spread further, and
consequently require a larger space.

Once the cocoa-tree is in the plantation, it is regularly pruned to
prevent its branches becoming too numerous. It sometimes happens
that the branches show a tendency to bend down towards the ground,
in which case they are fastened up around the trunk, until they
acquire strength and a better direction. The soil around the trunk
is hoed from lime to time to the extent of about a yard in circum-
ference, and the capillary roots, which spring from the base of the
trunk, are removed in the course of the operation.

From the fall of the flower to the complete ripeness of the fruit
there elapses an interval of four months. The fruit is of an elon-
gated form, slightly bent, and terminated in a point ; its length is
about 9 inches, and its greatest diameter, which is near the point of
attachment, is from 6 to 7 inches. Externally, the cocoa-nut pod
is furrowed longitudinally. Its color varies from a greenish white
to a reddish violet, the latter being the more common tint. Internal-
ly the flesh of the fruit is generally white, although it has sometimes
a rose-color ; it is sweet and acid, and of a very agreeable flavor.
The seeds are generally twenty-five in number in each fruit, and at
first are white ; they are oleaginous and slightly bitter ; in drying
they acquire a brown tint. The fruit is known to be ripe by its
color, and particularly by the ease with which it is gathered from
the tree. There are two grand cocoa harvests in the course of the
year, at six months' interval ; still, in old and large plantations the
harvest is almost incessant, as it is not uncommon to observe, on the
same cocoa-tree, ripe fruits and fresh flowers. To obtain the seeds
the fruit is opened with a piece of wood, having a rounded extremity.
The produce is classed according to its quality, care being taken to
throw out all the beans that are not sufficiently ripe or that are
damaged ; they are then exposed in the sun. Every evening the
day's gathering is collected into a heap under a shed, and a brisk
fermentation is soon set up, which would become destructive were it
suffered to continue. Next day the heap is scattered, and the drying
goes on in the sun, several days' exposure being required before the
drying is complete. Occasionally the drying is retarded and ren-
dered difficult by the occurrence of rain, and there would certainly
be many advantages in effecting it by the stove. It has been found
that 100 lbs. of fresh beans give from 45 to 50 lbs. of dry and mar-
ketable cocoa. In Venezuela, a cocoa-tree which is over seven or
eight years old, will yield annually for more than forty years over
1| lb. (1.65 lb.) of dry and marketable cocoa. An acre of ground,
which in good plantations will be set with about two hundred and
thirty-three trees, produces in a middling year about 383 lbs. weight
The cocoa-tree appears to yield most abundantly when it is abou
twelve years of age, and its produce in the fertile lands of Upper
Magdalena, according to M. Goudot, is greatly superior to what it
is in Venezuela. A.t Gigante, for example, each adult tree yieldi

PEAS, BEANS, ETC.

187

4.4 lbs. of dry cocoa annually, and the produce of an acre there may
be estimated at 733 lbs. 'w

Cocoa beans contain albumen, a particular principle, tbeobroxnine,
analogous to coffeine, a coloring matter, and a large quantity of oil or
fat, which, from experiments made in my laboratory, appears to
amount to 43 per cent. The presence of a large quantity of albu-
men and fatty matter in cocoa explains its highly nutritious qualities.
It is indeed one of the most wholesome and restorative articies of
sustenance known. Nevertheless, very opposite statements have
been made upon the virtues of cocoa or chocolate, of which the bean
forms the basis. Benzoni, in his History ot the New World, de-
clared chocolate to be a drink that was fitter for hogs than men ;
and Father Acosta declares the taste for cocoa to be unreasonable.
On the other hand, Fernando Cortez and one of his gentlemen fol-
lowers are perhaps guilty of exaggeration when they say, " that he
who has taken a cup of chocolate may march the rest of the day
without other aliment I"* Without going the whole of this length
with Cortez, 1 still allow that chocolate is one of the best articles
for travelling upon, especially in the uninhabited forests of South
America, where it is a matter of the highest moment to have the
bulk and the weight of necessary rations as small as possible.

Seeds of leguminous plants. The leguminous plants that are cul-
tivated as food for man are beans, peas, haricots, and lentils; vetches
are grown exclusively for the use of cattle.

Leguminous plants scarcely ever open rotations ; but they very
often wind them up. Speaking generally, however, they may follow
any crop. In speaking of the Indian corn, I have said that haricots
and beans might be advantageously intercalated.

The meteorological observations I have made in different coun-
tries lead me to conclude that to succeed, leguminous plants require
a temperature which in the mean does not fall below from 14° to 15°
C, (57° to 59° F.) Hot climates agree with them perfectly ; I have
followed them from the sea-board of the equatorial Andes to a height
of from 8-200 to 9800 feet above the level of the sea. Schwertz has
given the following statement of the produce of the different legu-
minous plants generally cultivated :

Plants.

Weight per

Produce per acre

Weight of dry straw

bushel in lbs.

in bushels.

or haulm per acre.

Tons. Cvvts. qrs. lbs.

Haricots . .

47.5

66.7

Beans . . .

65.5

66.2

2 2 2 17

Peas . . .

57.9

38.5

2 4 2 11

Lentils . . .

62.3

39.8

Vetches . . .

62.3

41.2

2 4 2 11

The analyses we have of leguminous vegetables show the follow
ing proportic n of elements :

* Humboldt, Travels, vol. v. p.

iS8

THE HOP.

«

Haricots

Peas.

Lentils.

Legumine

22.0

20.4

22.0

Starch ....

41.0

47.0

40.0

Fatty matters

3.0

2.0

2.5

Sugar (glucose ?) .

0.3

2.0

1.5

Gum ....

4.0

5.0

7.0

Woody fibre, pectic acid

8.0

11.0

12.0

Salts, phosphates, &c.

3.2

3.0

2.5

Water and loss

17.5

9.6

12.5

100.0

100.0

100.0

Besides these principles, a quantity of tannin has always been
found in the skin of the seed of all leguminous plants.

The Hop, {Humulus lupulus.) From its very general use in
making beer, the hop has become an object of great importance,
both in an agricultural and commercial point of view.

The hop may be cultivated in any soil that is of sufficient depth
and fertility ; it thrives especially in rich and turfy loams, such as
those of Haguenau, where there are many beautiful, hop-gardens.
The plant is propagated in the spring by setting the sprouts or radicu-
lar buds in ground trenched to the depth of 18 inches at least, at in-
tervals of about a couple of yards from one another. Within a few
weeks the young hop-plant is growing lustily; and as it is a climber,
it is trained upon a pole of from 12 to 20 feet in height. The ground
is usually hoed towards the end of June. The first crop from a new
plantation is always trifling in amount ; the ground is then manured.
The following spring all the eyes or buds that have become devel-
oped near the root are removed, except six or seven, which are left
to slw»ot. The hop harvest generally occurs about the middle of
September : the poles are pulled up, the stems are cut, and the
strobiles are picked off into baskets by hand, and immediately car-
ried to the stove or kiln, where they are dried with a very gentle
heat, in order not to dissipate their fine aromatic particles.

A hop-garden produces very variously in different countries and
districts, and in different years. The produce of an acre in hopf
has been stated to be :

In Flanders, 13 cwt

Germany (mean of 10 years,) . . 10 "

France (near Paris,) . . . 10 "

" (Roville, mean of 10 years,) 1\ "

[England, from 9 to 10, and from 12 to 14 cwt.]

The strobiles of the hop are covered with a yellow pulverulen*
substance, which has been held to furnish in principal part the ex
tractive matter that is so valuable in brewing. To procure this sub
stance it is enough to sift a quantity of hops after they have beer
dried by a gentle heat. This yellow powder, which appears to b«
the useful principU; in the hop, and consequently gives it its value

BANANA.

189

is not found in the same proportion in the produce of all hop-gardens.
This clearly appears from the inquiries of Messrs. Payen and Cheva-
lier. They found, for example, that while 100 parts of thd hops of
Belgium contained 18 of yellow substance and 70 of mere leaf,
those of England contained no more than 10 of yellow ir.atler and
87 of leaf, and those of Germany the still smaller quantity of 8 of
yellow matter to 88 of leaf. This yellow pulverulent matter con-
tains wax, resin, gum, a bitter principle, certain azotized principles,
a volatile oil, and salts, among others acetate of ammonia.

FLESHY OR PULPY FRUITS.

The fleshy fruits almost all contain the same principles, but in
very different proportions. It is consequently the predominating
piinciple which in some sort characterizes each variety, that gives
it its flavor, odor, &c. : sugar, albumen, gum, starch, acids, fixed
oils, essential oils, woody fibre, are almost invariably found secreted
in their pulps, with a larger or smaller quantity of water. An in-
genious classification of fruits has been formed on the basis of the
predominance of the different substances which have just been enu-
merated : thus those fruits in which the starchy principle predomi-
nates are feculent or amylaceous fruits ; those in which the sugar
predominates are saccharine fruits, and so on.

M. Berard has analyzed a great number of fruits in the course of
his researches on their ripening.* It is proper to say, however, that
some of the principles brought to light by modern analysis do not
figure in M. Berard's list of elements ; among the number, pectic
acid, gallic acid, small quantities of volatile oils, and of salts of
potash formed by vegetable acids.

.

i

1

s

h

.«

t

i:

s

a 0

i

V

0)

Albumen and gluten

<

Pk

^

o

o

Pu.

0.2

0.9

0.9

0.6

0.3

0.2

Coloring matter

0.1

0.1

Vegetable tissue

1.9

1.2

8.0

1.1

1.1

2.2

Cum

5.1

4.9

0.8

3.2

2.1

2.1

Sugar

16.5

li.6

6.0

18.1

24.8

11.5

Malic acid

1.80

1.1

2.4

2.0

0.6

0.1

Citric acid

((

0.3

Lime

0.1

0.3

0.1

Water .

J4.4

80.2

81.3

74.9

71-0

83.9

100.00

100.0

100.0

lOU.O

100.0

100.0

Banana. Of all the pulpy fruits, the banana is that perhaps whicli
IB most extensively used as food by man. It is the usual nourish

♦ Ann. de Chimie, t. xvi. p. 225, 2d series

190 BANANA.

ment of the inhabitants of most of the countries between the tropics,
where its cultivation is as important as that of the cereals and fari-
naceous roots in the temperate zone. The ease with which it is cul-
tivated, the small space of ground it occupies, the certainty, the
abundance, and the continuance of its produce, the diversity of food
it yields according to the degree of maturity, make the banana an
object of admiration to the European traveller. In climates where
man scarcely feels the necessity of clothing himself, or of raising a
shed for his protection, he is seen gathering almost without labor
supplies of food as abundant as they are wholesome and varied from
the banana-tree. It is the banana which has given rise to that prov-
erb so consoling and so true, which is frequently heard between the
tropics, viz. " No one dies of hunger in America;" he who is hun-
gry will be welcomed and fed in the very poorest cabin. Botanists
distinguish three principal- varieties of the banana: 1st. the Musa
paradisica; 2d. the Musa sapientium ; 3d. the Musa regia.

The American origin of the banana has been called in question.
Oviedo in his natural history of the Indies affirms that it was brought
from the Canary Isles to St. Domingo by a monk. Foster adopted
this opinion, which is corroborated, says M. de Humboldt, by the
complete silence of the first travellers who visited the New World
in regard to it. Nevertheless, the testimony of the Inca Garcilasso de
la Vega proves obviously that the banana flourished in America be-
fore the arrival of the Spaniards ; in his royal commentaries he
speaks of the banana as constituting the chief food of the Indians in
the warmest parts of Peru.

The banana is everywhere cultivated in the neighborhood of the
equator, in situations at no great height above the level of the sea.
The cultivation is most profitable, the crop is most abundant, and at-
tains maturity in the shortest space of time in low lying districts
where the mean temperature is from 24° to 27.5° C, (75.5° to 82*
F.) Some estimate may be formed of this from the low price of the
banana in such districts ; upon the borders of the great river de la
Magdalena, I gave one franc or about lOd. for about 220 lbs. weight
of the fruit. The day's wages of a man being generally about Is. 8d.,
it is beyond all doubt the cheapest food that can be had in the world.

In looking at the cultivation of the banana at different heights in
the equatorial Cordilleras, I arrived at the following conclusions :

Temperature 28° C. (between 82° and 83° F.) the cultivation ex-
tremely advantageous ; at 24° C. (between 75° and 76° F.) the cul-
tivation advantageous ; at 22° (71° and 72° F.) the cultivation mid-
dling ; at 19° C. (or between 66° and 67° F.) the cultivation disad-
vantageous.

The banana is propagated by means of suckers or offsets. It re-
quires a rich and humid but well-drained soil, the plantation^ being
arranged a little before the setimg m ot the rains. The earth is
freed from weeds, and dug either entirely or more generally only at
regular distances here and there, where it is proposed to set the new
plant, a space of 6 feet at least being left between each. The plant
lbr9W8 up several shoots, generally 6 or 7, each of which will be dji-

I

BANANA. 101

iowed to grow and to carry fruit ; when a greater number make theit
appearance, some of them are cut away. The time which passes be-
tween planting the slip and gathering the fruit varies according to
the situation ; in the hottest districts near the level of the sea ihe
banana comes into flower about nine months after it has been plant-
ed ; and in three months more the fruit has formed and become ripe.
In cold situations an interval of four months will elapse between the
flowering and the ripening of the fruit. The care required by a ba-
nana plantation is not very great, the principal duty being to hoe
around the young plants. As the banana is renewed by stems which
arise continually from the neck of the root, it is easily understood
that the plant will go on yielding fruit for an indefinite length of
time ; when the fructification is complete in one stem, the leaves,
&c., wither and fall, and give place to a new stem. It is thus that
the gatherings from the banana go on successively at short intervals,
and that the same plant presents at one and the same moment fruit
that is ripe, fruit that is half ripe, fruit that is beginning to be formed
flowers, and finally young stems, which are rising as preparations for
the future. Thus no crop is more assuring to the planter than the
banana. Climatic circumstances may sometimes delay, but can never
destroy the hopes of the husbandman. The extraordinary droughts
which under the burning climates of the equator so frequently interrupt
or destroy ordinary herbaceous plants, rarely exert any pernicious
influence upon the banana plantation, the thick shade of which pre-
sents a constant obstacle to the evaporation of moisture. During
the dry season, when for whole months the heavens preserve their
purity, and no drop of rain falls to refresh the earth, the soil which
surrounds the banana still continues moist. It looks every morning
as it it had been watered during the night; this salutary effe t is
produced by the nocturnal radiation of the leaves into the clear sky.
These leaves, whose extent of surface is considerable, always fall
several degrees below the temperature of the surrounding air, and
hus condense the watery vapor contained in the atmosphere, which
drips down to the foot of the plant.

The produce of a banana plantation depends first upon the dis-
tance at which the bananas are placed, and next upon the climate.
It is generally estimated in the very warm climates, that a crop of
bananas will weigh about 44 lbs., and that from an adult plant three
crops will be obtained in the course of a year. In temperate coun-
tries, and towards the superior limits of the banana plant, they do
not reckon on more than two crops. According to M. de Humboldt,
the produce per acre, in hot countries where the mean temperature
is about 82° Fahr., will amount to 75 tons, 8 cwt. 1 qr. 17 lbs. ; at
Cauca, where the temperature is about 79" Fahr., the produce amounts
to ei'tons, 8 cwt. 0 qr, 2 lbs. ; at Ibague, where the temperature is
not higher than about 72°, the produce, according to M. Goudot's es-
timate, is 26 tons, 17 cwt. 3 qrs. 2 lbs. The pulp of the banana is
surrounded by a pod or husk of some thickness, which is easily de-
tached, and of which account must be taken if we would estimate
the actual weight of the truly alimentary matter afforded. In a

192 BANANA.

general way, and when the banana is ripe, the shell may be estimated
at about 36.8, the edible banana at 73.2 per cent.

The Musa paradisica is the variety of banana generally culti-
vated, and it also yields the heaviest crops. The fruit of the other
two varieties mentioned is much smaller ; but it is of a much more
delicate flavor. The ripe fruit of the banana is of the consistence
of a pear ; it is very sweet, and slightly acid. In the common va-
riety, 1 found crystallizable sugar, gum, an acid, (probably the rnalic,)
gallic acid, albumen, pectic acid, woody fibre, and alkaline and earthy
salts. Dried in the sun, 1000 parts of ripe banana were reduced to
439 parts ; so that they contained 561 parts of water. The green
or unripe banana has a white and almost insipid flesh. In this state
it scarcely contaias any sugar ; it is starch that predominates. In
this state, therefore, it is made a substitute for bread, for the potato,
or Indian corn ; it may be considered a farinaceous vegetable.
After having removed the rind, the banana is dressed by being
roasted under the ashes until the outer part is slightly brown ; it is
then served up at table, and constitutes a kind of soft bread, very
agreeable to the palate, and greatly preferable, in my opinion, to the
produce so much vaunted of the bread-fruit tree. In the expeditions
which are undertaken into the forest, and when the habitations of
man are to be quitted for some considerable time, the green banana
is always made a principal part of the provision ; but then it is pre-
viously dried, first to lessen its weight, and then to destroy its vi-
tality so far as to prevent its ripening. This drying is performed in a
baker's oven, into which the green bananas, stripped of their husks,
are introduced, and where they are kept for about eight hours. On
being taken out, the bananas are hard, brittle, translucent, and pre-
sent the appearance of horn ; 100 lbs. of the green fruit give but 40
of dry substance. The banana thus prepared is called^, and will
keep for a great length of time without change. To prepare it for
food, it is put to steep in water, and then boiled ; by adding a little
salted meat, a very substantial and nutritious meal is prepared. I
once made a voyage on the Pacific, in a vessel which was princi-
pally victualled with dried bananas, which were served out to the
company like biscuit.

When ripe,, the banana is no longer farinaceous ; as it ripens, its
starch is changed into gum and sugar, and an acid is developed.
But between the farinaceous and the sugary or perfectly ripe state,
there is one intermediate, in which it is generally eaten. Roasted in
the ashes, the banana has then a taste which brings to mind that of
.he chestnut ; it is also eaten as a vegetable, boiled in the usual way
m water. Completely ripe, the fruit is eaten raw or dressed, it is
then extremely sweet ; a very common practice is to fry it, cut in
slices, in grease.

I have no data upon which to estimate the nutritive value of the
banana, still I have reasons for believing that it is more nutritious
than the potato. I have seen men do a great deal of hard labor upon
an allowance of about 6^ pounds of half-ripe bananas, and two ounces
of salted meated per diem

193

CHAPTER III.

or THE SACCHARINE FRUITS, JUICES, AND INFUSIONS USED IN THB
PREPARATION OF FERMENTED AND SPIRITUOUS LIQUORS.

The juice of all the sweet fruits when expressed and left to
itself under the influence of a suitable temperature, presents the re-
markable phenomenon of fermentation, in the course of which the
sugar disappears completely, and is replaced by alcohol, the change
from first to last being accompanied by the disengagement of car-
bonic acid gas.

Sugar alone does not suffice to cause the vegetable juices, which
contain it, to ferment : for example, a solution of pure sugar in dis-
tilled water will remain for a very great length of time without suf-
fering the least change ; exposed to the open air it would evaporate,
and the saccharine matter would be found in the same state as it
was before solution If, however, a small quantity of that azotized
principle which we have called albumen, gluten, &c., be introduced
into the solution, fermentation will speedily be set up, and will run
through its usual course ; it would, therefore, appear to be upon this
principle that the commencement and continuance of fermentation
depends Fermentation is not set up immediately in the juice of
fruits ; a certain time longer or shorter always elapses before it is
manifested ; the reason of this is, that the albumen or gluten which
always enters into the constitution of these juices, must itself have
undergone a certain change in order to act as a ferment. The proof
of this is comprised in the fact that all vinous liquors contain a very
small but constant quantity of carbonate of ammonia, as was shown
by M. Doebereiner. These azotized principles, which in the fresh
state remain without action upon sweet juices, act immediately as
powerful ferments when they are employed after having been ex-
posed for some days to the contact of air and moisture ; after, in a
word, they have themselves begun to suffer change. The quantity
of ferment used up or consumed in exciting and maintaining the fer-
mentation of saccharine juices is so small, that we are led to believe
that it really acts by its presence or contact alone. This view ap-
pears the more likely, when we know that, after having added an
azotized substance to induce fermentation rapidly in a liquid which,
besides sugar, contains albumen, we find from six to eight times the
quantity of ferment after the phenomena have ceased, which had
been added in the first instance ; that is to say, we find the whole,
or almost the whole, of the original ferment, and, in addition, that
which has been produced by the azotized principles pre-existing in
the matter subjected to fermentation ; this fact is seen every day in
the process of making beer.

The ferment or yeast thus produced is but little soluble in water,
and in composition bears a remarkable affinity to the azotized mat-

17

194 THE VINOUS FERMENTATION.

lers from whicl is derived ; M. Dumas has in fact found it tot«
composed of:

Carbon 50.6

Hydrogen 7.3

Azote 15.0

Oxygen )

Sulphur V 27.1

Phosphorus )

100.0

Under the influence of ferment, sugar becomes entirely cimnged
into alcohol and carbonic acid. The composition of grape-sugar—
■^^hich appears to be the only one that is susceptible of fermentation,
for cane-sugar before undergoing this process passes into the state
of grape-sugar, as was demonstrated by M. Henry Rose — the com-
position of grape-sugar is as follows :

Carbon 36.4

Hydrogen 7.0

Oxygen .56.6

100.0

and the constitution of the substances which are produced in the
process of fermentation, viz. alcohol and carbonic acid, being as
under :

Anhydrous alcohol. Carbonic acid. Water.

Carbon 52.19 27.27

Hydrogen 13.02 " 11.1

Oxygen .34.79 72.73 88.9

100.0 100.0 100.0

It appears that the composition of 100 parts of grape-sugar may be
expressed by :

Carbon. Hydrogen. Oxygen,

Alcohol 46.16 containing 24.24 6.05 16.17

Carbonic acid 44.45 " 11.12 " 32.33

Water 9.09 " " 1.01 8.08

100.00 36.36 7M 58!58

oy which it would appear that during the transformation of hydrated
grape-sugar into alcohol and carbonic acid, the combined water is
set at liberty.

The first fermented vegetable juice of which I shall speak is
cane-wine^ or guarapo of the South Americans, a drink which is m
common use wherever the sugar-cane is cultivated. It is prepared
from the juice of the sugar-cane suffered to run into fermentation.

The chicha of South America is a fermented liquor prepared from
Indian corn, and constitutes the wine of the Cordilleras. The grain
is steeped for six or eight hours in water, bruised upon a stone and
boiled ; the pulp which results is then diffused through 4| times its
volume of water, and the temperature being from 60° to' 65° F., a
violent fermentation is §oon set up in the fluid, which begins to sub-
side after a period of twenty-four hours, when the chicha is potable
and now constitutes a liquor of an agreeable and decidedly vinous
flavor, in high repute with those who have acquired a taste for it
although its muddy appearance and the sediment which it alware

CIDER AND PERRY WINES. 195

fits fall in the vessel into which it is received, render it somewhat
unpleasant at first to European eyes. The Indians, however, always
drink it in the muddy state, and even shake the cask before turning-
the tap. The truth is, that chicha is at once a drink and a very nu-
tritious fqod.

Guarazo is another vinous liquor which the Indians. prepare with
rice much in the same manner as they proceed with Indian corn.

Cider and Perry. In countries where the vine is not cultivated,
a substitute for wine is found in the fermented juice of a variety of
sweet pulpy fruits, more particularly of apples arid pears. Of the
numerous varieties of apples which are grown in cider countries, the
preference is generally given to one which has a rough and some-
what bitter taste. The fruit is gathered by shaking or beating the
trees, and the few that remain are taken off by the hand ; the fruit
is piled up in large backs placed in cellars. It is crushed about two
months after it is gathered, and the pulp is left for ten or twelve
hours to macerate in the juice, in order to give the rusty or yellow
color which is esteemed in cider. The pulp is pressed and the juice
is run into large vats or tuns, in which it undergoes fermentation,
which having gone on for about a month, the temperature being
from 55° to 58° F., the liquor is racked off into smaller vessels, in
which the fermentation goes on slowly, and the cider is preserved.
The fermentation of cider is, or always ought to be, slow ; still, with
time, the whole of the sugar is transformed into alcohol, if the pro-
cess be not interfered with.

Wine. Grape-juice contains — 1st. grape-sugar ; 2d. albumen and
gluten ; 3d. pectine ; 4th. a gummy matter; 5th. a coloring matter ;
6th. tannin ; 7th. bitartrate of potash ; 8th. a fragrant volatile oil,
or cream of tartar ; 9th. water. It is obvious, therefore, that grape-
juice contains within itself the elements necessary for the produc
tion of the vinous fermentation. The relative proportions of these
different elements, however, are singularly modified according to the
nature of the vine, the quality of the soil, and especially the heat
of the climate. There are indeed few crops that are so much at
the mercy of the atmosphere as that of the vine ; even in the vine-
yards that are most favorably situated, it is rare that wines of equal
quality and flavor are produced in two consecutive years ; and in
districts upon the verge of the productive limits of the vine, under
what may be called extreme climates, where the vine only exists in
virtue of hot summers, its produce is still more variable, more in-
constant. The limits to the culture of the vine in Europe are
generally fixed where the mean temperature is from 10° to 11° C,
(50° to 52° F. ;) under a colder climate no drinkable wine is pro-
duced. To this meteorological datum must be added the further
fact that the mean heat of the cycle of vegetation of the vine must
be at least 15° C. (59° F.,) and that of the summer from 18° to 19"
C, (from 65° to 67° F.) Any country which has not these climatic
conditions cannot have other than indifferent vineyards, even when
its mean annual temperature is above what I have indicated. It
is impossible, for instance, to cultivate the vine upon the temperate

196 WINE.

table-lands of South America, where they neverthelejo enjoy a
mean temperature of from 17° to 19° C, (about 62.6° to 66.2° F.,)
because that which characterizes the climate of these elevated
equinoxial countries is the constancy of the temperature ; the vine
grows, flourishes, but the grapes never become thoroughly ripe. In
these equatorial countries good wine cannot be made where the con-
stant temperature is not at least 20° C, (or 68° F.)

In France the vine begins to sprout towards the end of March,
and the vintage generally occurs in the course of October. As the
quality of wine depends mainly on the ripeness of the grapes, of
course the vintage does not take place until this is complete, or until
there is no longer any prospect of improvement.

The must of the grape is procured by treading and pressing the
fruit ; the juice is run into vats, and the fermentation takes place in
cellars ; different procedures, however, are foUowed in different
places. The fermentation having subsided in the larger vessels, the
wine is drawn off into smaller casks, which are carefully filled up
from time to time, and in which it is preserved.

Wine may be defective, especially by wanting strength and being
too acid. Sharp wine contains an excess of cream of tartar and
free vegetable acids, and is always the produce of grapes which
have not been completely ripe. The deficiency of strength is due
to the same cause ; for it is well known that as the grape ripens its
acids disappear and are replaced by sugar. This deficiency of sac-
charine matter in the must, is now habitually supplied by the addition
of a quantity of artificial grape-sugar, prepared from starch. In
warm countries, where the grape always ripens, the quantity of tar-
tar is small ; the sugar then predominates greatly, sometimes to such
an extent that the azotized substance of the must is insufficient as a
ferment, and it is then that we have wines of too sweet a flavor,
such as those of Lunel and of Frontignac. When these musts,
which are so rich in sugar, contain the proper quantity of ferment
they produce very strong wines, in which, of course, the sweet
flavor no longer predominates; such are the dry wines of southern
vineyards, of which that of Madeira may be taken as the type.
There are some wines which participate at once in the properties
that distinguish the two varieties thafti have mentioned, or that show
one of them in excess according to circumstances ; such are the
wines of Xeres, Alicant, Malaga, &c. Some of these wines are
what are called boiled wines, that is to say, a portion of the must, as
it flows from the press, is concentrated to a fourth or a fifth of its
original bulk by boiling, and this being added to the rest, the strength
of ilie resulting wine is increased. Sometimes the concentration
of the juice is effected by drying the grapes partially. It is in this
way that the celebrated Hungarian wine, called Tokay, is prepared ;
the clusters are left upon the vines after they are ripo, and alternate-
ly exposed to the cold of the night, which probably decomposes to a
certain extent the texture of the grapes, and to the ; eat of the sun.
They shrivel and become partially dry. In this state the grapes are
subjected to pressure, and a very sweet must, as may be conceived,

WINE.

19t

flows from hem. In less favorable climates, where the rains of au-
tumn prevent the drying of the clusters upon the vine stocks, the
same thing is effected by laying the bunches upon straw in open or
well-aired granaries or sheds. It is with the must procured from
grapes so treated, that the sweet and often strong wines, which are
called vins de paille, or straw wines, are obtained. Wines when
stored in the cask always deposite with time a copious sediment, the
lees. This sediment, in which tartar^ predominates, appears to be
the consequence of an increase in the proportion of alcohol in the
liquor. The alcohol may increase from two causes : first, by the
fermentation which, though nearly insensible, goes on in most winea
so long as there is any sugar left unchanged; and next from mere
keeping. It is well known, in fact, that wine put into the best
casks, and kept in a well-ventilated cellar, loses a very perceptible
quantity by evaporation ; it is found necessary to fill up the casks
from time to time : the loss has taken place through the pores of
the wood, in virtue of an attraction exerted between the substance
of the wood and the included liquid ; and as this attraction is much
greater between the organic matter and water, than between organic
fibre and alcohol, it is easy to conceive how wine kept in wood
should improve. The very same thing, in fact, appears to go on in
regard to wine in corked bottles : the cork does not oppose all
evaporation, and it seems probable that it is not merely upon some
new and little known change of a chemical nature in the constitu-
tion of the wine that its improvement and mellowing in bottle de-
pend, but also upon the loss of a certain quantity of its water through
the pores of the cork.

Throwing quality, flavor, &c., out of the question, it is well known
that a vineyard, culivated in the same way, year after year, receiv-
ing the same quantity of the same kind of manure, of which the
vintage is managed in the same manner, the wine made by the same
method, &c., yields a produce which diflfers greatly in regard to the
quantity of alcohol it contains in different years. The vineyard of
Schmalzberg, for example, near Lampertsloch, which has been
under my management for several years, yields wines of the most
dissimilar characters from one year to another. Some idea of this
may be formed from the different quantities of alcohol which the
wine of different years contains :

Tciri.

Mean temperature.

Wine
per acre
in gallona.

Pure alco-
hol
per cent.

Pure al-
cohol
per acre,
in gaUons.

Of the whole term of
the growtli of the

Of the summer.

Of the beginning of
autumn.

1833
1834
1835
1836
1837

deg. deg.

14.7C. 58.4F.
17.3 63.1
15.8 60.2
15.8 60.2
15.2 59.5

deg. deg.

17.3C. 63.1F.
20.3 68.i
19.5 67
21.5 71
18,7 66

deg. deg.

11.4C. 51.5F.
17.0 63
12.3 54
12.2 54
11.9 54

311
314

621
544
184

5.0
11.2
8.1
7.1

7.7

11.4
46.3
50.0
38.6
14.0

17*

198 wiifE.

If we now inquire how the meteorologica. circumstances of each
of these five years influenced the production of our wine, we see at
once that the mean temperature of the days which make up the
period of the cultivation of the wine has a perceptible influence.
The temperature of the summer was 17.3° C. (63.1° Fahr.) of the
year which yielded the strongest wine, and only 14.7° C. (58.4°
Fahr.) in 1833, the wine of which was scarcely drinkable.

A hot summer is naturally /avorable to the vine : the mean heat
of 1833 did not exceed 17|° C. (63|° Fahr. ;) with the exception o*
this year, which must be regarded as one of the very worst, thi>
three favorable summers, 1834, 35, and 36, show a mean tempera-
ture of about 20° C. (68° Fahr.) It is not, however, with the warm-
est summer that we find the strongest wine to correspond. Besides
the sustained heat, which is necessary during the whole year's
growth of the vine, it would appear that a mild autumn was a con-
dition necessary to the perfect ripening of the grapes : this is one of
the essential conditions. We see, in fact, that in 1834, the months
of September and October presented the extraordinary temperature
of 17° C, (62.6° Fahr.,) while in 1833, the temperature of the same
months did not rise higher than 11.4° C. (51.5° Fahr.) I shall
here add, that the year 1811, so remarkable over Europe for the
quantity and the excellence of its wines, was distinguished by the
high temperature of the early part of its autumn ; we find, in fact,
from the excellent series of observations with which M. Herren-
schneider has presented Alsace, that in this year, after a summer the
mean temperature of which was 19.6° C. (67.8° Fahr.,) the heat of
the months of September and October was maintained at 15° C, (59°
Fahr.,) the usual temperature of the months of September and
October not being higher than about 11.5° C. (52.7° Fahr.)

If we deduct from these observations the years 1833 and 1837,
which were decidedly bad, it seems that we must conclude that me-
teorological influences have a greater eflfect upon the quality of
wines, than upon the whole quantity of alcohol formed ; thus, al-
though the wine of 1836 was very inferior to that of 1834, it actual-
ly yielded a larger proportion of alcohol from the acre.

In Alsace, in order that a year may be favorable to the vine, the
temperature of those months during which the plant is alive must
be sensibly superior to the mean : a fact which appears from M.
Herrenschneider's long series of observations. In a climate where
the vine requires such a condition to succeed, it is obvious that its
cultivation can never be advantageous ; and this, in fact, is the case •
the cultivation of the wine would, indeed, be altogether ruinous, were
it not for the circumstance that ti e value of wine increased in a
much greater ratio than its quality, so that one good year often in-
demnifies the grower for many bad years. Another consideration
is this, that the vine, like the olive, grows and thrives in situations
where it would be difficuU to put any thing else.

The produce of a vineyard also depends upon its age ; and it
would be curious to examine the progressive increase of the quanti-
ty of wiRe yielded. This information I am abJe to give in connec-

WINE.

190

tion with a vineyard established in Flanders; I only regret that I
have no means of presenting parallel observations from a countiy
more favorable to the vine. The vineyard of Schmalzberg was
planted in 1822, with new cuttings from France, and from the
borders of the Rhine. The vines are trained as espaliers, and are
now rather more than four feet in height. The vineyard began to
yield wine in 1825, and the following table shows the results in the
successive years up to 1837 :

Years.

Wine per Acre in
Gallons.

Years.

Wine per Acre la
Gallons.

1825

68.75

1832

209.9

1826

192.0

1833

311.6

1827

0.0

1834

413.4

1828

115.0

1835

620.0

1829

55.9

1836

544.5

1830

. 0.0

1837

184.4

1831

153.0

The mean quantity of wine furnished by this vineyard from the
date of its plantation, is 224^ gallons per acre. M. Villeneuve
reckons the mean produce of many vineyards in the southwest of
France at from about 146 to 192 gallons per acre, considerably less
consequently than our vineyard at Schmalzberg ; and official docu-
ments, while they give the mean produce of the vine for the whole
of France as 170.9 gallons per acre, state the whole of the wine
produced over the country at 976,906,414 gallons.

From documents recently published, the whole produce of the
vineyards of the German States brought to market appears to be
59,180,000 gallons.

Pulque. This is a vinous liquor, indigenous to Mexico and some
parts of Peru, and is prepared from the sap of the Agave Americana.
When this plant is about to flower, a hole is made into the upper
part of its stem, which by and by becomes filled with juice, and is
removed two or three times in the course of the twenty-four hours ;
this sap is very sweet, runs quickly into fermentation, and yields the
liquor called pulque. The flow of sap continues for two or three
moB :hs, and a single plant will yield from six to eight quarts per
day. In the neighborhood of a large town, which ensures a ready
sale for the produce, a plantation of Agave is one of the most pro-
fitable possessions ; in the neighborhood of Cholula there are singia
plantations which are worth from jG8,000 to jCl2,000.

200 SOIL.

CHAPTER ;V.

OF SOILS.

The solid mass of our earth does not everywhere present the
same physical characters, or the same chemical composition. In
traversing a mountainous country of any extent, we seldom fail to
observe a notable difference in the nature and relative position of the
rocks which compose it ; the idea which forces itself upon the mind
in such circumstances is, that these mineral masses have not had
the same origin, that they have been formed and placed in their
several situations at distinct and often distant epochs.

In examining attentively the inequalities whicn mark the surface
of the globe, we soon perceive that those rocks which generally
form the most elevated points, the axis or skeleton of mountain
chains, result from the agglomeration or intimate mixture of different
mineral substances which may be isolated and separately studied.

These crystalline masses are frequently covered to a certain
depth, and even completely concealed by rocks of more recent for-
mation, the fragmentary elements of which proclaim their origin
from the attrition or breaking down of the strata which support
them. The regular stratification of these superimposed rocks, the
configuration of their minute particles, the remains of organized beings
which are found in them, proclaim them to be deposites which have
taken place successively, and from the ocean. The formation of the
crystalline rocks probably dates from the period at which the crust
of the globe became solid. These elements, intimately mingled by
fusion, combined as they cooled, according to the laws of affinity, to
constitute the mineral species which we encounter ; just as it hap-
pens that mineral species, identical with those which we observe in
nature, are produced and crystallize during the consolidation of cer-
tain scoriae from our furnaces.

The various circumstances which have accompanied the cooling
o'' the crust of the globe, have doubtless occasioned the differences
wnich we observe in the distribution of the minerals that enter into
the composition of rocks. Thus granite and mica schist, which pre-
sent so dissimilar a structure, are nevertheless, and very certainly,
varieties of the same species, and contain quartz, felspar, and mica.
In sienite,the mica is replaced by amphibolite, and in protogenite by
talc. In trachite, a volcanic rock, both of older and more recent
date, quartz is almost entirely wanting ; the amphibolite is replaced
by pyroxenite, and the felspar which is encountered, is no longer
identical in its chemical composition with that which enters into the
constitution of granite. The limestone rock, which belongs to the
same Plutonic epoch, is granular or saccharoid ; occasionally the
intervention of magnesia makes it pass into iolomite.

The sedimentary strata do not vary less io their composition. Ths

OIL. 201

causes which segregated the rocks of igneous origin, appear to have
destroyed or removed one or several of their elements before their
new consolidation ; one of the most common deposites, sandstone or
grit, is almost wholly composed of grains of quartz, amidst which
particles of mica are frequently encountered ; but felspar is ex-
tremely rare. In the oldest sedimentary strata of the series, as in
the greywackes, the igneous elements are met with more complete,
and less altered. The structure of the calcareous rocks of this
epoch is often compact, clayey ; it becomes porous and friable in
deposites of more recent date.

The stratified rocks must have been deposited in parallel superim-
posed layers, and these strata, horizontal in the beginning, have been
forced into the inclined and perpendicular positions which they now
occupy by the tumefaction or rising of the masses upon which they
rest. The organic remains which they present, frequently in such
quantity, proclaim that in the period when the revolutions of the
globe took place that gave them birth, there were already animated
beings and plants growing upon the surface of the earth. The pro-
duction of sedimentary strata, is an obvious proof that the igneous
rocks of which they are the product, must have been segregated, so
as to form beds of gravel, and sand, and clay. The elements of all
stratified rocks must necessarily have passed through these different
stages before the powerful causes which consolidated them, of the
nature of which we cannot now form an estimate, came into play.
The disintegration of the crystalline igneous rocks proceeds under
our eyes, as it were, from the combined actions of water and the at-
mosphere.

Water, by reason of its fluidity, penetrates the masses of rocks
that are at all porous ; it filters into their fissures. If the tempera-
ture now fall, and the water comes to congeal, it separates by its
dilatation the molecules of the mineral from one another, destroys
their cohesion, and produces clefts which slowly reduce the hardest
rocks to fragments, and then to powder. During the frozen state^
the ice may serve as a cement, and connect the disintegrated parti-
cles ; but with the thaw, the slightest force, currents of water, the
mere effect of weight, suffices to carry the fragments to the bottom
of the valley, and the rubbing and motion to which these fragments
of rocks are exposed in torrents, tend to break them still smaller, and
to reduce them to sand.

The quantity of earthy matter brought down by streams and rivers,
is coripiderable : an idea may be formed of it from the thickness of
the slime or mud deposited by a river which has overflowed its banks
In many situations, the arable soil is either formed entirely, or is
powerfully ameliorated by such alluvial deposites. The fertilizing
powers of the mud of the Nile are well known ; according to Shaw,
the waters of this river carry with them about the 132d part of their vol-
ume ; those of the Rhine, at the periods of its great increase, bring down
more than the 100th part ; and Dr. Barrow, from observations made
in China, estimates at the 200th part of the volume of the mass of
iiuidi the mud and slime which are cariied towards the sea by tho

202 SOIL.

Yellow river. These fluviatile deposites accumulate £t vhe mouths
of great rivers, and gradually encroach upon the ocean ; ihis is very
conspicuous, for example, at the mouths of the Elbe, where, at the
turn of the tide,' when there is an interval of calm, the earthy mat-
ters which are held in suspension are precipitated, and a sediment
results, which is thrown up by the next waves upon the beach. By
these successive deposites, the beach rises gradually, and an extensive
alluvium is formed which remains dry at neap and ordinary tides.
These new lands, the fertility of which is truly surprising, constitute
the polders of whicl ihe Dutch make so much. During spring
tides, and storms from particular quarters, these polders would of
course be all submerged, had not the active industry of the inhabit-
ants raised dykes, which successfully oppose the waters of the
ocean.

Besides the mechanical causes of the destruction of rocks al-
ready quoted, there is a chemical action depending upon meteoro-
logical influences, which exerts a powerful influence upon the con-
stituent elements of crystalline rocks. Felspar, amphibolite, mica,
and the protoxide of iron suffer decomposition in certain circum-
stances with surprising rapidity, without our being able to foresee,
and still less to explain, this singular tendency to destruction. In
granite, for example, the felspar and the mica lose their vitreous
and crystalline state, they become friable, earthy, and are trans-
formed into an argillaceous substance, which is known in the arts
under the name of kaoline, and which is extensively used m the
manufacture of porcelain ; amphibolite, and pyroxenite, undergo an
alteration of the same kind. In these minerals the protoxide of iron
passes to the state of the maximum of oxidation. The air and
moisture appear to exert a great influence upon this alteration, which
frequently extends to a great depth, as we see in the beds of porce-
lain earth, which are worked in various granite districts, and as I
have myself ascertained, in a bed of decomposed syenitic porphyry
where there are very extensive subterraneous works. In these
works, which are carried on in auriferous strata, the alteration in
the felspar and amphibolite can be followed to a depth of nearly 330
feet. In the midst of the rocks so changed, we every here and there
meet with masses which have resisted the decomposing action, and
still possess all their original hardness and freshness. Historical
monuments also show us unalterable granites ; such is that, for in-
stance, which now forms the obelisk ir/ the square of San Giovanni
di I^aterano at Rome, and which was cut at Siena, under the reign
of a king of Thebes, thirteen hundred years before the Christian era.
Such is further the obelisk of the Place of St. Peter, which was
consecrated to the sun by a son of Sesostris more than three thou-
sand years ago.

The schists, by reason of their structure, wear away with much
greater facility. Calcareous rocks resist atmcvpherical agencies
somewhat better ; but their softness in general suffers them to be
readily attacked by mechanical causes, and water even acts upon
hem as a sdveat through the medium of the carbonic acid which

SOIL. 203

it always contains. The resistance of the gre}Wackes, and of the
sandstones depends in a great measure ou the nature and cohesion
of the cement which unites their particles; their power of resisting,
however, is generally inconsiderable, and these rocks fall down
pretty rapidly into sandy soils.

The modifications experienced hy the constituent minerals of
rocky masses, do not happen solely from changes in the molecular
state of their elements ; their chemical nature is further deeply
changed, and some of their original principles disappear. The fel-
spars, for example, into the constitution of which potash and soda
enter, abandon almost the whole of these alkalies, in passing into
the state of kaoline. This is made manifest by a comparison of the
analyses of the mineral in its two states. Besides the alkali which
is lost, we also perceive that in kaoline, the proportion of alumen
relatively to that of silica, is much greater than in the undecomposed
felspar, a fact which, according to M. Berthier, demonstrates that
the alkali is removed in the state of silicate.

The final result of the disintegration of rocks, and of the decom-
position of the minerals which enter into their constitution, is the
formation of those alluviums which occupy the slopes of mountains
that are not too steep, the bottoms of valleys, and the most extensive
plains. These deposites, however formed, whether of stones, peb-
bles, gravel, sand, or clay, may become the basis of a vegetable soil,
if they are only sufficiently loose and moist. Vegetation of any kind
succeeds upon them at first with difficulty. Plants which by their
nature live in a great measure at the expense of the atmosphere, and
whick ask from the earth little or nothing more than a support, fix
themselves there when the climate permits. Cactuses and fleshy
plants take root in sands ; mimosas, the broom, the furze, &c., show
themselves upon gravels. These plants grow, and after their death,
either in part or wholly, leave a debris which becomes profitable to
succeeding generations of vegetables. Organic matter accumulates
in the course of ages, even in the most ungrateful soils in this way,
and by these repeated additions they become less and less sterile.
It is probable that the virgin forests of the new world have thus
supplied the wonderful quantity of vegetable mould, in which the
present generation of trees is rooted. At Lavega de Supia, in South
America, the slipping of a porphyritic mountain covered completely
with its debris, to the extent of nearly half a league, the rich plan-
tations of sugar-cane which were there established. Ten years af-
terwards I saw the blocks of porphyry shadowed by thick groves of
mimosas ; and the time perchance is not very remote when this new
forest will be cleared away, and the stony soil, enriched with its
spoils, will be restored to the husbandman.

The chemical composition of the earth, adapted for vegetation,
must of course participate in the nature of the rocks and substrata
from which it is derived ; and the elements which enter into the
constitution of mineral species ought to be found in the soils, which,
•y the effect of time or human industry, may serve for the repro-
duction of regetables. It is on this account that it becomes inter*

204

SOIL.

esting to know the composition of the minerals which are the most
abundantly dispersed in the solid mass of the globe.

The solid part of our planet, as is well known, occupies but one
third of its whole surface. The ocean occupies two-thirds, and the
majority of the rocks of sedimentary formation must have been pri-
marily deposited at the bottom of the sea. These rocks will there-
fore be apt to contain the saline substances which are met with in
sea-water, and it is a fact that many of the secondary sandstones
show unequivocal traces of these substances. Deltas and low downs,
left by the ocean, are constantly being brought under tillage, and the
fierce winds of the sea frequently carry saline matters to vast dis-
tances, even to the centre of great continents; lastly, .as we shall
see by and by, the ocean supplies agriculture with powerful manures.
Analysis shows that sea-water contains, besides chloride of sodium
or common salt, hydrochlorate of magnesia, sulphate of snd^ sul-
phate of magnesia, sulphate of lime, carbonate of lime, caroonate of
magnesia, and a quantity of carbonic acid, to which must be added
the substances discovered in the mother waters of salt marshes, and
which occur with reference to the others in quantities so small as to
escape direct analyses of any moderate portions of sea-water : these
substances are iodides, bromides, and certain ammoniacal salts.

The minerals most generally found in rocks are quartz, felspar,
mica, amphibolite, pyroxenite, talc, serpentine, and diallage.

Quartz is frequently composed of silica nearly in a state of purity ;
but I may save time by presenting in a single table the composition
of the principal mineral species such as we find it indicated by the
best chemical analysts :

Minerals.

COMPOSITION.

1
1

Alu-
mina.

Lime.

Mag-
nesia.

1

1

1

5^

III
5^'

•U

i^

■^

i

Felspar of Lomnitz ....

Ditto Domite

Ditto Albite of Finland
Ditto Albite of Arendul

66.8
61.0
08.0
68.7
42 0
48.5
45.7
54.6
54.9
42.3
43.1
47.2
58.2
62.0

17.5
19.2
19.6
199
16.1
33.9
12.2

0.2

0.3

3.7

traces

1.3
0.7

13.8
24.9
23.6

0.5
13.1

1.6

traces
26.0

18.8
18.0
16.5
44.2
40.4
24.4
33.2
30.5

12.0
11.5

7.6
11.3

2.8

11.1
9.1

0.8
4.2
0.2
0.3
4.9

7.3

1.8
4.4
0.2
1.2
7.4
4.6
2.5

0.5
traces

1.3
0.2
2.0
0.4

0.7
1.5

2.0

3.0

1.3.3
12.5
3.2
3.5
0.5

Mica from the U. States
Amphibolite of Pargas .
White Pyroxenite

Ditto, another kind ....

Spezian Diallage

Talc from St. Bernard. .
Ditto from St Gothard. .

If we now compare the analyses of the ashes of vegetables which
we have already given with those just indicated, we see that the
mineral substances which meet us in plants ilsc exist in the soil in
dependenlly of any addition from manure. We nay therefore lay jl

SOIL. 205

down as a principle that the mineral substances encountered in vege-
tables are obtained in the- soil, and that tlie whole of these substan'ces
come from rocks which form the solid crust of our planet. I ought,
however, to observe in this place that the phosphates, which are so
constantly present in plants that it is to be presumed they are essen-
tial to their orijanization, do not figure among the elements of crys-
talline rocks ; we only meet with phosphoric acid in the strata of a
more recent geological epoch, — strata the formation of which has in-
deed followed the appearance of organized beings ; so that it would
be quite fair to mamtam that this acid had been introduced intc
those new strata by the animated beings which are buried in them.
Still the phosphatfes are by no means wanting in the rocks of igne-
ous origin. In metalliferous strata, to quote those of more common
occurrence only, we find phosphate of lead, of copper, of manganese,
and of lime ; it is even difficult to discover a ferruginous mineral
which does not contain a larger or smaller dose of phosphoric acid.
And I must here add, that if phosphoric acid has been rarely indi-
cated as a constituent of mineral substances, this is by no means
from its uniform absence there, but because it escaped the researches
of the analyst, in the same way as iodine and bromine for a long time
escaped notice in all the analyses that were made of sea-water.
Chemists, in fact, only discover those bodies readily which exist in
some very appreciable quantity in the compounds they examine.
The substances whose presence is not foreseen, those which only
enter in extremely small quantity into a mineral, are apt to pass the
eyes of even the most skilful and conscientious unperceived.

The ashes of every vegetable examined up to the present time
show us phosphates, and yet these salts have never been detected
in any of the analyses of saps (not very numerous it is true) which
we possess ; it is, nevertheless, all but certain that the sap must
contain phosphoric acid in some state of combination or another.

Thaer compares the soil in husbandry to the raw material upon
which the industry of the manufacturer is exercised ; the comparison
would, perhaps, be more exact were the soil likened to the mechani-
cal agents he uses ; and, in fact, even as the prosperity of manufac-
tures and the perfection of their produce depend upon the perfection
of the machinery employed, so are the quality and the quantity of
crops connected in the most intimate manner with the quality of the
soil. The highest skill of the husbandman, even under a favorable
climate, and otherwise in the most advantageous circumstances, may
all be made nugatory by the incessantly renewed difficulties which
meet him in a barren soil.

To be truly fit for agriculture the earth ought to present several
essential qualities ; a soil, for instance, must be sufficiently open,
sufficiently loose, to permit the roots of plants to penetrate it, and to
prevent the water from stagnating upon it. The matter of which it
is composed must, further, be of such a kind that the air may insinu-
ate itself into it and be renewed, without, however, too rapid a des-
iccation following.

A great deal has been written since Bergman's time upon th«

18

206 SOIL SAND AND CLAY.

chemical composition of soils Chemists of great talent have made
mafny complete analyses of soil ; noted for their fertility ; still practical
agriculture has hitherto deriv^id very slender benefits from labors of
this kind. The reason of this is very simple ; the qualities which we
esteem in a workable soil depend almost exclusively upon the me-
chanical mixture of its elements ; we are much less interested in its
chemical composition than in this; so that simple washing, which
shows the relations between the sand and the clay, tells, of itself, much
more that is important to us than an elaborate chemical analysis.
The quality of an arable soil depends essentially on the association
of these two matters. Sand, whether it be silicious, calcareous, or
felspathic, always renders a soil friable, permeable, loose ; it facili-
tates the access of the air and the drainage of the water, and its in-
fluence is more or less favorable as it exists in the state of minute
subdivision, or in the state of coarse sand or of gravel.

Clay possesses physical properties entirely opposed to those of
sand ; united with water it forms an adhesive plastic paste, which,
once moistened, becomes almost impermeable. With such charac-
ters, it will easily be conceived how it is impossible to work to ad-
vantage a soil that is entirely argillaceous. The proper character,
or, if you will, the quality of a soil, depends, then, essentially on
the element which predominates in the mixture of sand and clay that
composes it ; and between the two extremes, which are alike un-
favorable to vegetation, viz., the completely sandy soil and the un-
mixed clay, all the other varieties, all the intermediate shades can
be placed. It is rare, indeed, that arable soils are formed solely of
sand and clay : not to mention certain saline substances which are
generally encountered, although in small quantity, we always find
the remains of organic matters, remains which constitute that part
of a soil which has been designated under the somewhat vague name
of humus. Although a soil which is entirely without humus may be
cultivated by calling in the aid of manure, and as humus, consequent-
ly, need not be regarded as indispensable, still this matter generally
enters, in certain proportions, into the constitution of soils. The
soils of forest lands contain a large quantity of it, and some soils are
mentioned which are very rich in this substance, and which yield
abundant irops of grain for ages, and with very little attention.

In examining a soil, attention ought to be directed, 1st, to the
sand, 2d, to the clay, 3d, to the humus which it contains. It would,
further, be useful to inquire particularly in regard to certain other
principles which exert an unquestionable influence upon vegetation,
such as certain alkaline and earthy salts.

Vegetable earth dried in the air until it becomes quite friable
may, nevertheless, still retain a considerable quantity of water, and
which can only be dissipated by the assistance of a somewhat high
temperature. It is therefore proper, in the first instance, to bring
all the soils which it is proposed to examine comparatively, to one
constant degree of dryness. The best and quickest way ff drying
such a substance as a portion of soil, is to make use of the oil-bath ;
a qiantity of oil contained in a copper vessel is readily kept at ai

SOIL ITS ANALYSIS. 207

almost uniform temperature by means of a lamp. A thermometer
plunged in the bath shows the degree to which it is heated ; the
substance to be dried is put into a glass tube of no great depth, and
sufficiently wide ; or into a porcelain or silver capsule, if the quantity
to be operated upon be somewhat considerable : these tubes, or ves-
sels, are placed in the oil so as to be immersed in it to about two-
thirds of their height. For the desiccation of soils, the temperature
may be carried to 150" or 160° C, (334° or 352° F.) The weight
of the vessel is first accurately taken, and a given weight of the
matter to be dried is then thrown into it, after which it is exposed to
the action of the bath. If we operate upon from 600 to 700 grains,
the drying must be continued during two or three hours; the weight
of the capsule with its contents, after having been wiped thoroughly
clean, is then taken. It is placed anew in the bath, and its weight is
taken a second time after an interval of fifteen or twenty minutes ;
if the weight has not diminished, it is a proof that the drying was
complete at the time of the first trial. In the contrary case, the
operation must be continued, and no drying must be held terminated,
until two consecutive weighings* made at an interval of from fifteen
to twenty minutes, show any thing more than a very trifling differ-
ence. Davy points out another and much more simple method,
which, although far from accurate, may, nevertheless, suffice Id
many general trials. The soil to be dried is put into a porcelain
capsule heated by a lamp, and a thermometer, with which the mass
may be stirred, is placed in its middle, and shows the temperature at
each moment. Lastly, in many circumstances the marine bath may
suffice. In drying, the main point is to do so at a known tem-
perature, and one which may be reproduced; for the absolute desic
cation of a quantity of soil could not be accomplished except at
a heat close upon redness, and this would, of course, alter or destroy
the organic matters it contains.

The organic matters contained in ordinary soils consist, in part,
of pieces of straw and of roots, which are usually separated by
sifting the earth through a hair sieve ; the gravel and stones which
the soil contains are separated in the same way.

The earth sifted is now washed. To accomplish this, it is intro
duced into a matrass, w hh three or four times its bulk of hot distilled
water, the whole is shaken well for a. time, the matrass is left to
stand for a moment, and then the liquid is decanted into a wide
porcelain capsule. The washing is continued, fresh quantities of
water being added each time, until the whole of the clay has been re-
moved, which is known by the fluid becoming clear very speedily ;
the sand which remains, is then washed out into another capsule.
The argillaceous particles, or the clay and all the matters held
in suspension in the water, are thrown upon a filter and dried ;
the desiccation is completed by the same process, and under the
same circumstances as that of the soil had been. The sand is,
in like manner, dried with the same care.

If we would ascertain the nature and quantity of the soluble salts^
the whole of the water used in the washing must be put togcthei

208 SOIL ITS ANALYSIS.

and evaporated, which may be dona upon a sand-bath. The evapo*
ration is pushed to dryness, and thi salts that remain, having been
previously weighed, are thrown into a small platinum capsule, in
which they are heated to a dull red by means of a spirit-lamp, in
order to burn out the organic salts, and thus distinguish, by means
of a subsequent weighing, between them and the inorganic salts.

The sand may be silicious or calcareous. The presence of car-
bonate of lime is readily ascertained by treating it with an acid which
will form a soluble salt with lime, such as hydrochloric, nitric, or
acetic acid. Effervescence shows the presence of a carbonate ; the
quantity of which may be estimated by weighing the sand dry before
and after its treatment with the acid, particular care being of course
taken to wash the remaining sand well before setting it to dry.
This, however, is an operation of little use, the great object is to as-
certain the quantity of sandy matter. Had we a particular interest
in ascertaining the presence and estimating the quantity of the earthy
carbonates contained in a sample of soil, it would be advisable to
make a special inquiry, inasmuch as the finely divided calcareous
earth being carried off along with the clay in the course of the wash-
ing, the sand obtained never contains the whole of the carbonate of
lime.

The argillaceous matter procured by the washing is far from being
pure clay : it contains a quantity of extremely fine sand, particles
of calcareous earth, and if the soil contain humus, the more delicate
particles of this substance will also be included.

To determine the quantity of humus, recourse is generally had to
its destruction by heat. A known weight of dried earth is heated
to redness in a capsule, and constantly stirred for a time, and when
no more of those brilliant points or sparks, which are indications of
the combustion of carbon, are observed, it is set to cool and then
weighed. This is the method which has been generally followed by
Davy and others. It would be difficult to find a method more con-
venient than this, but it is unfortunntely very inaccurate. Soils
dried at a temperature at which organic matter, such as humus, &c.,
begins to change, still retain a considerable quantity of water in union
with the clay. This water is disengaged at the red heat required
for the combustion of the organic matters ; and as their quantity is
estimated by the loss of weight on the subsequent weighing, it is ob-
vious that the loss from the dissipation of water is added to that
which proceeds from the destruction of the humus. It is undoubted-
ly to this cause of error that we must ascribe the large proportions
of humus mentioned in the soils examined by Thaer and Einhoff ; it
is therefore better to restrict the examination to the determination
of the presence or absence of humus than to attempt to ascertain its
quantity by so imperfect a method.

Priestley and Arthur Young were already aware that a more deli-
cate operation was required to determine the quantity of humus.
They recommend calcination of the soil in a close vessel, and that
the gaseous products should be collected. This mode of proceeding,
however, would have but slight advantages over that which I hava

SOIL ITS ANALYSIS. 209

just criticised, inasmuch as the volume of gas collected varies with
every difference of heat employed.

The only method in my opinion which we have of learning the
quantity of humus, of organic debris, which is contained in a soil,
is that of an elementary analysis. It is by burning a known quanti-
ty of earth thoroughly dried by means of the oxide of copper, aided
by a current of oxygen, that the carbon and hydrogen may be de-
termined. But the most important point of all is to ascertain the
amount of azote included in the organic remains of the soil ; and we
have happily precise means in our elementary analysis of ascertain-
ing the quantity of azote, from which the amount of azotized organic
matter may be accurately inferred.

It may be very useful to determine the presence or absence of
carbonate of lime in a so 1 ; this knowledge would of course guide
us in our applications of lime, marl, &c. Two modes may be em-
ployed for this purpose ; 1st. the soil may be treated by nitric acid
slightly diluted with water. Any effervescence will denote the
presence, in all probability, of carbonate of lime. I say in all proba-
bility, because the disengagement of carbonic acid gas under such
circumstances generally indicates the presence of carbonate of lime ;
it is not, however, a special character, because the disengagement
may be due to the presence of any other carbonate. It is well to
boil the acid solution upon the sample of soil that is analyzed ; the
part which is not dissolved is thrown upon a filter and washed with
distilled or rain-water boiling hot. Into the clear filtered liquor
which results from all the portions of water used in the washing, a
little ammonia is added ; if any precipitate falls, it is collected upon
a filter and washed : to the new liquors obtained by this washing, a
solution of oxalate of ammonia is added. If there be any lime pres-
ent, it is thrown down in the state of oxalate, and the liquor, having
been left at rest for five or six hours, becomes completely clear ; the
addition of a few drops of the solution of oxalate of ammonia to this
clear fluid satisfies us whether the whole of the lime has been pre-
cipitated or not. The oxalate of lime is received upon a filter, wash-
ed, and dried ; it is then thrown into a platinum capsule along with
the piece of filtering paper upon which it was collected, and is heat-
ed to a dull red, until the paper of the filter is completely consumed
and no further trace of carbon appears ; the capsule is then taken
from the fire or from over the spirit lamp, and cooled ; when cold,
the matter which it contains is moistened with a concentrated solu-
tion of carbonate of ammonia.

The matter is then dried, great care being taken that nothing is
lost by particles flying out, and the capsule is again heated to a dull
red ; when cold, it is weighed accurately, and the quantity of matter
contained then becomes known. This matter is carbonate of lime,
100 of which represent 56.3 of lime and 43.7 of carbonic acid. I
have said that in arable soil other carbonates may be met with be-
sides that of lime ; calcareous soils, for example, very commonly
contain carbonate of magnesia. If we would ascertain the quantity
of this earth, the mode of proceeding which I have just particularly

18*

210 SOIL ITS ANALYSIS.

indicated enables us to do so ; we have but to evaporate the liquit'.
from which the oxalate of lime was deposited, and then to calcine
the product of the evaporation in a platinum capsule. Any nitrate
of magnesia which may exist there will be decomposed at a dull red
heat, as well as any oxalate of ammonia which may have resulted
from ammonia added in excess. By treating the residue of the cal-
cination with water we obtain the magnesia, which being washed.
has only to be calcined and its weight ascertained by weighing.

2d. If we would be ;ontent with a simple approximation, we may
judge of the quantity oi calcareous carbonate contained in a vegeta-
ble soil by measuring the quantity of carbonic acid which we obtain
from it. We counterpoise upon the scale of a balance a phial con-
taining some diluted nitric acid ; we weigh a certain quantity of the
earth to be analyzed, and this is added by degrees to the acid. If
the earth contains carbonates, effervescence ensues. The liquid is
shaken with care, and having waited a few minutes in order to let
the carbonic acid which is mixed with the air of the phial escape,
the phial with its contents is again put into the balance. If there
has been no disengagement of carbonic acid, it is clear that to restore
the equilibrium it will be sufficient to add to the opposite scale the
weight of the earth which was put into the phial ; whatever is want-
ing of this weight represents precisely the weight of carbonic acid
which has been disengaged. Presuming this acid to have been com-
bined with lime, the weight of the calcareous carbonate can be cal-
culated exactly.

Sulphate of lime is an occasional constituent of soils ; to ascertain
its presence and quantity, the following is the method of procedure :

The earth well pulverized is first roasted for a considerable time
in a crucible or platinum capsule, until all the organic matter is com-
pletely destroyed ; it is advisable to operate on about 100 grammes,
or about 3.2 ounces troy of soil. After this operation the matter is
boiled in 4 or 5 times its weight of distilled water for some time ;
water being added to replace that which is dissipated by evaporation ;
we then filter, re-wash, and having added all the liquors, we evapor-
ate in a capsule until the volume of the liquid is reduced to a few
drachms. To the liquid thus concentrated we add its own bulk of
alcohol. If the solution contains sulphate of lime it will be deposit-
ed, and the deposite being received upon a filter and washed with
weak alcohol, its weight is taken after having been dried and calcined.
This salt is frequently seen deposited in the form of fine colorless
needles on the cooling of the sufficiently concentrated solution ; but
the addition of alcohol is always useful, because the sulphate of
lime, which is not very soluble in water, is altogether insoluble in
weak spirit, which on the contrary dissolves certain alkaline and
earthy salts whose presence would interfere with the accuracy of
the result.

It may be matter of great moment to determine the existence and
the quantity of phosphates contained in a soil destined for cultiva-
tion. Although the search for phosphoric acid may perhaps require
a certain familiarity with chemical analysis, I shall neverthelest

SOIL — ITS ANALYSIS. 211

indicate the method of procedure. It is much to be desired that en-
ligfhtened agriculturists should not remain strangers to manipulations
of this kind.

The soil to be analyzed must be first deprived of all organic mat-
ters by calcination. After having reduced it to a very fine powder
it is to be boiled for about an hour with three or four times its weight
of nitric or hydrochloric acid. The solution is then diluted with
distilled water, and filtered ; the matter which remains upon the
filter is generally silica or alumina which has escaped the action
of the acid. After having reduced the washings by evaporation,
and added them to the acid liquor, ammonia in solution is poured
in. Taking the simplest instance, the precipitate which falls upon
the addition of this alkali may contain, 1st, phosphoric acid in union
with the peroxide of iron and lime ; 2d. oxide of iron and of man-
ganese ; 3d. silica. This precipitate, which is usually of a gelatin-
ous appearance, is received upon a filter, well washed and dried,
when the precipitate is readily detached from the filter. Tt is thrown
into a platinum capsule which is raised to a white heat, after vi'hich
the weight of the residue is taken. The precipitate after calcina-
tion is thrown into a small glass matrass, and dissolved by hot hy-
drochloric acid. If there is any silica undissolved, its quantity is
merely estimated, if it be very small ; if it be a larger quantity, it is
to be collected upon a filter and weighed. To the new acid solution,
about three times its weight of alcohol is added : the mixture is
shaken, and pure sulphuric acid is then instilled drop by drop until
there is no longer any precipitate. The precipitate is sulphate of
lime, which is thrown upon a filter, where it is washed with diluted
alcohol ; it is then dried, calcined, and the weight of the sulphate of
lime obtained, permits us to calculate that of the lime which formed
part of the precipitate throv^'n down by the ammonia in the first in-
stance. 100 of sulphate of lime are equivalent to 41.5 of pure lime.

The alcoholic liquor is concentrated in order to expel the spirit ;
as it is acid, it is saturated with ammonia until a slight precipitate
begins to be formed, which is not redissolved upon shaking the
mixture. A few drops of the hydrosulphate of ammonia are then
added, upon which the iron and the manganese fall in the state of
sulphurets. As a part of the metals has been precipitated in the
state of oxide by the ammonia added in the hydrosulphate, it is well
to digest for eight or ten hours, because the hydrosulphate of am-
monia always ends by changing the metals present into sulphurets,
which being washed, dried, and reduced to the state of oxides by
calcination in a platinum capsule, are weighed.

If the first ammoniacal precipitate did not contain phosphoric acid,
its weight ought to be reproduced by adding that of the lime to that
of the metallic oxides proceeding from the calcination of the sul-
phurets. Any loss which is noted after this, is due, if the process
has been well conducted, to phosphoric acid, which had not been
collected, but which has remained in the state of phosphate of am-
monia in the liquid treated by the hydrosulphate. To determine
with precision the presence of phosphoric acid, the liquid in questioj*

212 SOIL ITS ANALYSIS.

must be evaporated to dryness, and the residue heated strongly in a
platinum capsule. After the dissipation and decomposition of the
ammoniacal salts, there remains watery phosphoric acid, distinguish-
able by its powerful acid reaction, its sirupy consistence, and its
fixity.

By way of example, I shall give the results obtained in an analysis
of this kind :

From the acid Hquor, ammonia threw down of : grs. troy.

Ph:)sphates and metaliic oxides .... 8.012

These gave of sulphate of Ume .... 8.768

Equivalent to Ume . . . . . . . 3.612

Hydrosiilphate of ammonia caused a precipitate,

which, calcined, gave of metallic oxides . . 1.620

Lime and metallic oxides together . . 5.233

Difference due to phosphoric acid . . 2.789

The analysis for phosphoric acid may be simplified by employing
a process conceived by M. Berthier, and which is founded upon the
strong affinity of this acid for the peroxide of iron and the insolu-
bility of the phosphate of the peroxide of iron in dilute acetic acid.
If to a fluid containing at once phosphoric acid, lime, peroxide of
iron, alumina, and magnesia in solution, ammonia be added, the pre-
cipitate will contain the whole of the phosphoric acid. The acid
will be in great part combined in the state of phosphate of iron, if the
peroxide of iron be in quantity more than sufficient to neutralize it,
a condition which must be frequently expected in an arable soil ;
however, to make sure of this point it is well to add a certain quantity
of the peroxide of iron to the soil which is to be analyzed. Besides
the phosphate of iron, the precipitate may contain phosphate of lime,
phosphate of alumina, and certainly ammoniacal magnesian phos-
phate. Finally, with these phosphates will be found associated
alumina and oxide of iron, the latter especially if it has been intro-
duced in excess. The precipitate collected upon a filter and wash-
ed, must then be treated with dilute acetic acid, which will dissolve
the lime, the magnesia, and the excess of the oxides of iron and
alumina, and there will remain phosphate of iron or phosphate of
alumina, because the latter salt is as insoluble as the former in acetic
acid. Whenever the precipitate in question, therefore, leaves a
residue which is insoluble in vinegar, the presence of phosphoric
acid may be inferred ; this residue may consist of basic phosphates
of iron or alumina, or of a mixture of the two salts, and no great
error will be committed if one hundred parts of this residue, calcined,
be assumed as representing fifty of phosphoric acid.

The presence of silica in the precipitate insoluble in acetic acid
may, however, lead to error. To make sure that the precipitate is
formed by a phosphate it must be redissolved in hydrochloric acid,
and the acid solution evaporated to dryness, so as to render the silica,
which may exist in it, insoluble. By treating the residue with hy
drochloric acid again, the phosphates alone will be dissolved. Th«

SOIL — ITS ANALYSIS. 21$

presence of phosphoric acid may otherwise be determined by treat-
ing the phosphate of iron in solution in the way which I have already
indicated.

From what precedes, it must be obvious that the most carefully
conducted chemical analysis of a soil, only leads us to the discovery
of certain principles which exist in very small quantity, althoug:i
their action is unquestionably useful to vegetation. As to the de-
termination of the relative quantities of sand and loam, this rests upon
simple washing ; and a chemist would spend his time to very little
purpose, in seeking by means of elementary analyses to determine
the precise composition of these substances. The finest part car-
ried off by the water will always show properties analogous to those
of clay ; the sand, which is generally silicious, will exhibit the char-
acters of quartz ; and the calcareous fragments, which are mixed
with it, will exhibit those that belong to carbonate of lime. It will
be sufficient then in connection with the mineral constitution of ara-
ble soils, to expose very briefly the general properties of day or
loam, of quartz, and of carbonate of lime, substances in fact which
form the bases of all arable lands. Pure clay composed of silica,
alumina, and water, does not contain these substances in the state
of simple mixture. The inquiries of M. Berthierhave satisfactorily
shown that clay is an hydrated silicate of alumina. When we re-
move a portion of the alumina from clay, for example, by treating it
with a strong acid, the silica which is set at liberty will dissolve in
an alkaline solution, which would not be the case were the silica
present in the state of quartzy sand, however fine.

Pure clays are white, unctuous to the touch, stick to the tongue
when dry, and when breathed upon give out an odor which is well
known, and is commonly spoken of as the argillaceous odor. This
property of dry clay to adhere to the tongue is owing to its avidity
for water. It is known, in fact, that dry clay brought into contact
with water, first swells, and finally mixes with it completely. Duly
moistened it forms a tough and eminently plastic mass. Exposed
to the air, moist clay, as it dries, shrinks considerably ; and if the
drying be rapid, the mass cracks in all directions. It is to an action
of this kind that we must ascribe the cracks and deep fissures which
traverse our clayey soils in all directions during the continuance of
great droughts.

The constitutional water of clays is retained by a very powerful
affinity, and does not separate under a red heat ; pure clay has a
specific gravity of about 2.5; but the weight is frequently modified
by the presence of foreign matter, for it contains sand, met»Hic
oxides, carbonate of lime, carbonate of magnesia, and frequently
even combustible substances from bitumen to plumbago, all of which
admixtures of course modify the properties which are most highly
esteemed in clays, such as fineness, whiteness, infusibility, &c.

Quartz is abundantly distributed throughout nature, and is met
with in very difl^erent states in the form of transparent colorless
crysiais constituting rock crystals, as sand of different fineness;
finally, in masses constituting true rocks. Quartz is the silica of

214 SOIL ITS ANALYSIS.

chemists, and a compound, according to them, of oxygen and siliconi
in the proportion, Berzelius says, of 100 of the radical to 108 of
oxygen.

Silica in a state of purity occurs in the form of a white powder,
and having a density of 2.7. It is infusible in the most violent fur-
nace, but it not only melts in the intense heat which results from the
combustion of a mixture of hydrogen and oxygen gas, but it is even
dissipated in vapor. As generally obtained, silica is held insoluble
in water; still, when in a state of extreme subdivision, it is s«)luble ;
and then its insolubility is probably not so absolute as is generally
supposed, for M, Payen has found notable quantities in the water of
the Artesian well of Grenelle, and in that of the Seine. Silica ex-
ists especially in very appreciable quantity in certain hot springs
where the presence of an alkaline substance favors its solution ;
the water of the hot springs of Reikum in Iceland contain about
Y75^oth parts of its weight of silica ; and the thermal spring of Las
Trincheras, near Puerto Cabello, deposites abundant silicious concre-
tions. The water of this latter spring, which is at the temperature
of 210° F., besides silica contains a quantity of sulphurated hydro-
gen gas, and traces of nitrogen gas. Rock crystal when colorless
and transparent may be regarded as pure silica ; in the varieties of
quartz which mineralogists designate as chalcedony, agate, opal, &c.,
the silica is combined with different mineral substances, particularly
oxide of iron and of manganese, alumina, lime, and water.

Carbonate of lime, considered as rock, belongs to every epoch in
the geological series, and frequently constitutes extensive masses.
When pure it is composed of lime 56.3, carbonic acid 43.7 ; and its
density is then from 2.7 to 2.9. It dissolves with etfervescence
without leaving any residue in hydrochloric or nitric acid. Exposed
to a red heat its acid is disengaged, and quick-lime remains. Car-
bonate of lime is insoluble in water, but it dissolves in very consid-
erable quantity under the influence of carbonic acid gas. When
such a solution is exposed to the air the acid escapes by degrees,
and the carbonate is deposited, by which means those numerous
deposites of carbonate of lime are produced, which we see constitu-
ting tufas and stalactites. The solubility of carbonate of lime in
water acidulated with carbonic acid, enables us to understand how
plants should meet with this salt in the soil, inasmuch as rain-water
always contains a little carbonic acid.

The mineral substances which we have now studied, taken iso-
latedly, would form an almost barren soil ; but by mixing them witii
discretion a soil would be obtained, presenting all the essential con-
ditions of fertility, which depend as it would seem much less on the
chemical constitution of the elements of the soil than on their physi-
cal properties, such as their faculty of imbibition, their density, their
power of conducting heat, &c. It is unquestionably by studying
these various properties that we come to form a precise idea of the
causes which secure or exclude the qualities we require in arable
poiis. This has been done very ably by M. Schiibler, and his admj-

SPECIFIC GRAVITY OF SOIL. 215

rable paper will remain a model of one application of the sciences
to agriculture.*

The researches of M. Schiibler were directed to the mineral sub-
stances vvhich are generally found in soils, viz : 1st. silicious sand;
2d. calcareous sand ; 3d. a sanely clay containing about y^^ths of
sand ; 4th. a strong clay containing no more than about f^nl'hs of
sand ; 5th. a still stronger clay containing no more than about ,-\^th
of sand ; 6th. nearly pure clay ; 7th. chalk, or carbonate of lime in
the pulverulent state ; 8th. humus ; 9th. gypsum ; 10th. light gar-
den earth, black, friable, and fertile, and containing, in 100 parts,
clay 52.4, quartzy sand 36.5, calcareous sand 1.8, calcareous earth
2.0, humus 7.3 ; Uth. an arable soil composed of clay 51.2, silicious
sand 42.7, calcareous sand 0.4, calcareous earth 2.3, humus 3.4 ;
and 12th. an arable soil taken from a valley near the Jura, contain-
ing clay 33.3, silicious sand 63.0, calcareous sand 1.2, calcareous
earth and humus 1.2, loss 1.3.

The object of these inquiries was to ascertain, 1st. the specific
gravity of soils ; 2d. their power of retaining water ; 3d. their
consistency ; 4th. their aptitude to dry ; 5th, their disposition to
contract while drying ; 6th. their hygrometric force ; 7th. their
power of absorbing oxygen ; 8th. their faculty of retaining heat ;
and 9th. their capacity to acquire temperature when exposed to the
sun's rays.

Specific gravity of soils. The weight of soils may be compared
in the dry and pulverulent state, or in the humid state, or the spe-
cific gravity of the particles which enter into their composition may
be determined. This last information is easily obtained by the fol-
lowing method : take a common ground stopper bottle, weigh it
stoppered and full of distilled water ; let it then be emptied, in order
that a known quantity of the soil, in the state of powder and quite
dry, may be introduced into it. A quantity of water is now poured
in, and the phial is shaken to secure the disengagement of all air
bubbles ; the phial is then filled with distilled water, and when the
upper part has become clear the stopper is replaced ; the phial is
then wiped dry and weighed again. The difference between the
weight of the phial full of water plus that of the matter, and the
weight of the phial containing the matter and the water mixed, gives
the weight of the water displaced by this matter. Thus :

Weight of the phial full of water 60.0

Weight of the matter ••24.0

84.0

Weight of the phial containing the mingled earth and water — 74.4
Difference of water displaced 9.6

which is the weight of the volume of water equal to that of the
matter introduced into the phial ; we have consequently for the spe-
cific gravity of the earth ^-:|=2.5, the weight of the water having
)}een taken as 1.

• SIchiibler, Annals of French Agriculture, vol. xl. p. 122, 2d sories.

216 IMBIBING POWERS OF SOIL.

ThU number represents the mean specific gravity of the isolatea
particles of the powder which has been examined. J3ut we must
not from this density pretend to deduce the weight of a particular
volume of soil, a cubic foot or a cubic yard, for instance ; we should
come to far too high a number. The weight of a given volume of
earth must be determined immediately by ramming it into a mould
or measure of a known capacity.

From M. Schiibler's experiments it appears, 1st. that silicious
and calcareous sandy soils are the heaviest of any ; 2d. that clayey
soils are of least density ; 3d. that humus or mould is of much
lower density than cl^y ; 4th. that a compound soil being generally
by so much the heavier as it contains a larger proportion of sand,
and so much the lighter as it contains a larger quantity of clay, of
calcareous earth, and of humus, it is possible from the density of a
soil to infer the nature of the principles which prevail in it. In the
course of his experiments M. Schiibler found that artificial mixtures
always gave higher densities than those that ought to have resulted
from the- several densities of each of the sorts of substance which
formed the mixture.

Imbibition of water. The power which soils possess of retaining
water or of resisting the too rapid dissipation of their moisture, is
highly important in its influence upon their fertility. This faculty
is measured comparatively in the following manner : a given quan-
tity of soil is taken, say from 3 to 400 grains ; it is dried until it
ceases to lose weight ; it is then made into a thin paste and thrown
upon a moistened filter ; when it has ceased to drop it is weighed.
The increase of weight is plainly due to the quantity of water re-
tained by the soil, thus :

Weight of the dry soil 300.0

Weight of the moistened filter • • 75.0

375.0

Weight of the filter and moistened earth ••525

Water absorbed 150

In the experiment quoted, 100 of dry earth absorbed or imbibed
60 of water. The following table contains the result of experi-
ments made on the imbibing power of diflferent soils.

Water absorbed by
' Kind of earth. 100 parts of the earth.

Silicious sand • 25

Gypsum 27

Calcareous sand 29

Sandy clay 40

Strong clay 50

Sandy clay 70

Fine calcareous earth 85 ^

Humus 190

Garden earth 89

An arable soil 5£

Another arable soil 48

It appears, therefore, that the silicious and calcareous soils and
the gypsum have the least affinity for water ; the clayey soil re-
tained by so much the more as it contained a smaller quantity of
sand ; the fine calcareous earth retained 15 per cent, more than the

I

CONSISTENCY OF SOIL. 217

pure clay ; while the calcareous sand retained 41 per cent. less.
This fact proves how much the state of suhdivision must influence
the physical properties of soils; and it is easily to be understood
that in noting the presence of calcareous matter in an arable soil
■we are carefully to indicate the form and degree of subdivision in
which it occurs ; humus, however, is the substance which shows
itself most greedy of moisture, and we perceive from this fact where-
fore soils rich in this principle have so strong an affinity for water.

Consistence, tenacity, friability of soils. The consistence or
tenacity of soils is an important property which agriculturists indi-
cate when they speak of soils being strong or stiff, and light, the
amount of power expended in ploughing being taken as a measure
of these qualities. To compare different soils under the point of
view of their tenacity in the dry state, M. Schiibler moulded various
kinds, duly moistened, into equal and similar parallelopipeds.
When these solids were completely dry, he placed either extremity
upon a fixed support, and by means of the scale of a balance hung
exactly from the middle of the prisms, he added weights gradually
until they gave way ; the weight, supported by each parallel opiped
immediately before it broke, expressed its tenacity.

In working x damp soil we have not only to overcome its force of
cohesion, but further and principally to get the better of its adhesion
to our implements. This consideration led M. Schiibler to estimate,
always comparatively, the power which it is necessary to expend in
working soils of different descriptions. As the material which
enters into the construction of agricultural instruments is in general
iron and wood, he did no more than ascertain the disposition of the
soil to adhere to these two substances. In the experiments, the
results of which we shall immediately detail, two discs were employ-
ed, one of iron, the other of beech-wood, having equal surfaces.
The disc was connected with the extremity of the arm of a very
delicate balance ; it was then brought into perfect contact with the
moist soil, and when it adhered, the opposite scale of the balance was
loaded until the adhesion was overcome. In experiments of this
kind it is obviously indispensable that the soil in each instance should
have the same degree of humidity; they were tried, consequently,
at the point of saturation with water.

Pure dry clay possessed the greatest tenacity, and its power was
expressed by the number 100 ; the tenacity possessed by other mat-
ters was then compared to that of pure clay. The following table
exhibits the results of the two series of experiments, viz. those
having reference to the tenacity and those having reference to the
farce of cohesion.

10

218

TENACITY OF SOIL.

Kind of ••il.

TiMCity of «oiI,

that of pure clay

bein^ 100.

Tenacity express-
ed iu weight.

Ccfie«ion in the
mcisi stale.

Verticil adhecioB

to iran and to

wood en a aurfa»«

ofS.93r8quar«

inches.

Silicious sand

Calcareous sand

Fine calcareous earths
Gypsum

0
0.
5.0
7.3
8.7
57.3
68.8
83.3
100.0
7.6
33.0
22.0

kil.
0.
0.

0.55
0.81
0.97
6.36
7.64
9.25
11.10
0.84
3.66
2.44

kil.
0.17
0.19
0.65
0.49
0.40
0.35
0.48
0.78
1.22
0.29
0.26

kil.«
0.19
0.20
0.71
0.53
0.42
0.40
0.52
0.86
1.32
0.34
0.28
0.27

Stiff clayey soil

Garden earth

Earth from Hoffwyll . .
Earth from the Jura . .

M. Schiibler finds, from his experiments, that a dry soil is very
easily worked vi^hen its tenacity does not exceed 10, that of pure
clay being 100 in the moist state. Soils are further worked with
ease when their adherence to a surface 3.937 inches square is re-
presented by a weight of from 0.15 to 0.30 kil. ; i. e. from 0.380 to
0.760, or nearly ^d to |ths of a lb. avoird. ; the latter term passed,
the difliculty of working increases rapidly, and a very considerable
force is required when the adherence to the same surface amounts
to 0.70 kil. or 1 840 lbs. avoird.

The tenacity of a wet soil is not, however, in the direct ratio of
its faculty of imbibition. Loams and loose calcareous soils, which
absorb much more water than clay, are nevertheless much less tena-
cious ; and then water actually makes sandy soils stiffer than they
are when dry.

Every practical farmer knows how much more friable stiff wet
soils become from the effects of frost. The water in expanding as
it becomes solid pushes apart the molecules of the soil, and it is to
this action that the advantages of autumn ploughing are with justice
ascribed. M. Schiibler found that the cohesion of a stiff clay which
was equal to 68 fell to 45, when before it was tried the clay was
exposed to the frost.

Disposition of the soil to become dry. The faculty of throwing
off by evaporation any excess of water with which it may be charg-
ed, is as essential to constitute a good soil as is that of retaining
moisture in due proportions. Those soils which throw off too slow
ly the excess of moisture they have acquired during the winter
occasion much trouble to the husbandman. They are perfect]y un-
workable in the spring, and consequently can only be sown veiy
4ate. M. Schiibler tried the retentive powers of the soil by the
following method. A metallic disc, furnished with a narrow rim.
was suspended to the «m of a balance. Over this disc, the soil tc

* The abbreviate kil. In the above table signifies killogramme, a weight equal to 2.S
lbs. avoirdupois. As the weights are principally interesting in their relations lo 90*
aootber, it has not been thought necessary to reduce them to English weights.

SHRINKING OF SOILS. 219

be tried and previously brought to the point of saturation with moist-
ure, was spread as evenly as possible. The weight of the disc
thus charged was noted, and it was weighed anew, after having
been kept for four hours in a temperature of 18.75° cent. (65.75^
Fahr.) The weight of the water lost by evaporation was obtained
by a second weighing; the complete desiccation of the soil was then
completed in the stove. The following is the detail of one opera-
tion :

Weight of the moist earth 310

Weight after four hours' exposure to the air 260

Water evaporated 50

Weight of the moist earth 310

Weight after complete desiccation 200

Whole quantity of water contained in the soil tried ... 110

Thus 100 of water of imbibition lost 45.5 during exposure to the
air for 4 hours at a temperature of about 66° Fahr. A more se-
verely accurate method might readily be contrived, but that employ-
ed by M. Schiibler appears sufficient for ordinary purposes. His
results, in regard to the different kinds of soil he tried, are these :

100 parts of (he water
contained in the soil lose
Kinds of soil. in the course of 4 hours

at 66 deor. Fahr.

Silicioussand 88.4

Calcareous sand 75.9

Gypsum 71.7

Sandy clay 52.0

Stiffish clay 45.7

Stitfclay •. 34.9

P'ueclay 31.9

Calcareous soil 28.0

Humus 20.5

Garden earth 24.3

Arable soil of Hoffwyll 32.0

Arable soil of the Jura 40.1

Of all the substances examined, sand and gypsum are obviously
those which allow the water to pass off most rapidly by evaporation.
The calcareous or chalky soil again has a high retentive power ;
but it varies much in different instances, apparently in consequence
of different degrees of fineness ; it is however surpassed by humus,
and the garden soil which was tried. Humus is therefore at the
head of the list of substances in reference to retentive properties.

All soils shrink more or less in drying, and form cracks, in the
way already indicated ; the shrinking has been estimated by means
of prisms of soils measured in the moist state, and after being dried
in the shade :

Kinds of soil. 100 parts cube

shrink to.

Carbonate of lime in fine powder 950

Sandy clay 940

Stiffish clay 911

Stiff clay 886

Pure clay 817

Humus 846

Garden earth 851

Arable soil of Hoffwyll 880

Arable soil of Jura 90S

220

UYGROMETRIC POWER OF SOILS.

Gypsum, silicions, and calcareous siiid do not appeal in this table,
because they do not shrink in drying The humus appears to have
shrunk the most ; and dry humus is liable to swell in the same pro-
portion when it is moistened. This property explains the obvious
elevation of certain turfy or mossy soils at the period of the rains.

Hygromelric property of soils. Agriculturists allow, that those
soils which have the property of attracting moisture from the atmo-
sphere are generally among the most fertile. This hygiometric
property must not be confounded with that in virtue of which moist-
ure is retained. It appears to depend especially on the porousness
of a soil, and, probably, also, in soi le degree, on the deliquescent
salts which it contains, even in veiy small quantity. Davy was
disposed to regard the hygrometric property of soils as a certain
index of their good quality ; and the experiments of M. Schiibler
upon the point, all tend to confirm the accuracy of this view. In
M. Schiibler's experiments, the increase of weight of dry soils was
ascertained by exposing them for a certain time in an atmosphere
kept at the point of saturation with moisture, and at the same tem-
perature, between 60° and 65° Fahr.

Kind of soil.

500 centigrammes, or 77.165 grains troy, of soil, spread

upon a surface of 36,000 millimetres, or 141.48 square

inches, absorbed in—

12 hours.

24 hours.

48 hours.

72 hours.

Grains.

0
.154

0.077
1.617
1.925
2.310
2.849
2.002
6.160
2.695
1.232
1.078

Grains.

0

.231
0.077
2.002
2.310
2.772
3.234
2.387
7.469
3.465
1.771
1.463

Grains.

0

.231
0.077
2.156
2.618
3.080
3.696
2.695
8.470
3.850
1.771
1.540

Graius.

0

.231
0.077
2.156
2.695
3.157
3.773
2.695
9.240
4.004
1.771
1.540

Gypsum •

I.iorht rliv.....». .

Chalky soil in fine powdei

Arable soil of Hoffwyll . . .
Arable soil of Jura

From the results comprised in the preceding table, we may con-
clude, first, that the faculty of absorbing lessens as soils acquire
moisture; second, that humus is the most hygrometric of all the
substances examined ; third, that the clays which. absorb the largest
quantity of moisture are those which contain the smallest proportion
of .sand ; and fourth, that silicious sand and gypsum do not absorb
moisture in any appreciable quantity.

Ahsorptum of oxygen gas hy arable soils. Humboldt had already
observed, before the year 1793, that argillaceous soils, the lydian
stone, certain schists, and humus, deprived the air of its oxygen.
He had also observed that the sides of the large cavities dug in the
salt mines of Saltzburg, absorbed this gas, and thus rendered the
stagnant atmosphere of the virorkings irrespirable and incapable of
supporting combustion. Finally, this illustrious observer had satis

ABSORPTION OF OXYGEN BY SOILS. 221

factorily ascertained, at the same period, that earth taken from the
galleries of these mines, only became fertile after having been ex-
posed to the atmosphere for a considerable length of time. I have
quoted these curious observations because they are, so far as I know,
the first udiich established the necessity of the presence of oxygen
in the interstices of the soil, or, as M. Humboldt then said and, in-
deed, as may still be maintained, the utility of a previous oxidation
of the soil.

All our agricultural facts, indeed, confirm this view of the necessity
of air in the interstices of the soil that is destined for the growth of
vegetables. When, by ploughing very deeply, for example, we
bring up a portion of the subsoil into the arable layer, in order to in-
crease its thickness, we always lessen the fertility of the ground for
a time ; in spite of the action of manures, and of any treatment we
may adopt, a certain time must elapse before the subsoil can pro-
duce an advantageous effect ; it is absolutely necessary that it have
been exposed to the atmospheric influences, and it is then only that
deep ploughing, which gives the arable layer a greater thickness,
pays completely for the expense it has occasioned.

I am disposed to ascribe the absorption of oxygen gas by clayey
soils, to the oxide of iron, which they almost always contain, and
which is in the minimum state of oxidation, when the clay lies at a
certain depth. In the performance of some soundings in a tertiary
soil of the department of the lower Rhine, which I performed in
1822, I had occasion to observe that the clays brought up white by
the borer, very speedily became blue by exposure to the air; and
that in gaining color they condensed oxygen. I propose returning
upon this fact to shovi^ the important part which this simple super-
oxidation probably plays in the amelioration of soils.*

M. Schiibler, again, has studied the action of oxygen gas upon the
component parts of arable soils, and, according to him, the absorp-
tion of this gas cannot be doubted ; it is very trifling in connection
with sand and gypsum, very decided as regards clay, loam, and
humus. As M. de Humboldt and M. de Saussure had already done,
M. Schiibler observed humus to change a portion of the oxygen
which it fixed, into carbonic acid ; but, in general, the other sub-
stances, or soils, or elements of soils, upon which he experimented,
appeared to absorb the oxygen by the intermedium of the protoxide
of iron, from which they are never altogether free. Besides this
cause, due to the superoxidation of a metal, M. Schiibler thinks that
a certain portion of the oxygen disappears by condensation within
the pores of some soils ; and in support of his opinion he appeals to
the admirable observations of M. de Saussure, on the condensation
of the gases by porous bodies. Starting from the fact that the roots
of plants require the presence of oxygen in order to thrive, he

* Austin proved, that during the oxidation of metallic iron under water, there is a
constant production of ammonia. Certain experiments commenced some time ago, and
wliich I still continue, will establish in the most precise manner, as I hope, the fact
liiat this formation of ammonia likewise takes place during the passage of the protox-
ide of iron to the state of hydrated peroxide. The theoretical conclusions deducibl«
from this fact, and the economic applications which may tlow from it, mXist be obvious.

19*

£23

CAPACITY OF SOILS FOR HEAT.

ascribes a greater power to the gases compressed or condensed
within the interstices of the soil. But the action of the air upon ihe
roots of vegetables is readily conceivable in soils of a h)ose nature,
especially if ihcy have been sufficiently worked, without the necessity
of having recourse to such an explanation.

Capacity of soUs for heat. The quantity of heat which a soil will
receive, retain, or throw off in a given time, depends upon the con-
ducting power which it possesses. M. Schiibler endeavored to
measure this power comparatively by measuring the rates of cooling.
In a vessel of the capacity of 595 cubic centimetres, or 234.2 cubic
inches, filled with the substance to be tried, a thermometer was
placed, with its bulb in the centre. The temperature having been
brought up to 62.5° C, (144.5° Fahr.,) the time was noted which
each substance required to fall to 21.2° C, or about 70° Fahr., the
temperature of the surrounding air being 16.2° C, or about 61' Fahr.

Kindofsofl.

Power of retaining heat,
that of calcareous sand
beinff 100.

Time which 234.2 cubic
inches of soil required
to cool from 141= to 70 =
Fahr., the temperature
of the surroundin' air
being about 61 o jPahr.

r!»lrarpnn«i «sinH

100.0
95.6
73.2
76.9
71.1
68.4
6C.7
61.8
49.0
64.8
70.1
74.3

h. ra.
3.30
3.27
2.34
2.41
2.30
2.24
2.19
2.10
1.43
2.16
2.27
0.36

Rnnilv" rlav

Rtiffish rlav

ArAblesoilofHoffwyil...
Arable soil of the Jura. •• •

The general observations which these experiments suggest, are
that, for equal volumes, calcareous or silicious sand possesses greater
powers of retaining heat than any of the other substances tried.
This fact explains the high temperature and the dryness which
sandy soils maintain even during the night in summer. Humus is
obviously the substance which possesses the highest conducting
powers.

Degrees in which soils become heated under exposure to the sun.
There is no one who has not had occasion to observe the high tem-
perature which bodies acquire when exposed to the rays of the
bright sun. There are some, such as dry sand, slates, and certain
colored rocks, which become burning hot. It is by the heat of the
sun that the soil, before it is shaded by the leaves and stems of plants,
rises in temperature, and throws off the excess of moisture which it
had imbibed in the winter. Agriculturists all know how different
the degree in which this heating takes place, even in soils that are
close to one another. A light-colored, moist, clayey soil will heat
giucb less thaa a dajk-colored, calcareous, or sandy soil. The dif

CLASSIFICATION OF SOILS.

lercnces in the heat acquired in various soils depend, 1st, on the
state of their surface ; 2d, on iheir composition ; 3d, on the quantity
of water which they contain ; and, 4th, on the anjrle of incidence of
the sun's rays. M. Schiibler, by a method which is far from being
unobjectionable, but which may be excused, considering the diffi-
cuhies of the subject, measured the temperature acquired by different
soils exposed to the sun for the same length of time, and in circum-
stances as nearly alike as possible ; the numbers obtained are given
in the following table :

Soils

Silicious sand, yellowish gray • • •

Calcareous sand, whitish gray

Bright gypsum, whitish gray

Poorcliy, yellowish .... •

Stiff clay

Argillaceous earth, yellowish gray

Pure clay, bluish gray

Calcareous earth, white

Humus, blackish gray

Garden earth, blackish gray

Arable earth of Hoffwyll,gray....
Arable earth of the Jura, gray

Highest temperature acquired by the upper
layer, the mean tempernture of tbe atmo-
sphere being 25° C. (77= F.)

The soil moist, de-

The soil dry, de-

grees centigrade.

grees centigrade.

37.25 (99° F.)

44.75 (112 = . 5 F.)

37.38

44.. 50

3G.25

43.62

36.75

44.12

.37.25

44.50

37.38

44.62

37.50

45.00

35.63 (96°. IF.)

43.00 (109».4F.)

39.75 (103».5F.)

47.37

37.50

45.25

36.88

44.25

36.50

43.75

In comparing the circumstances which concur in assisting the
action of the sun's rays in raising the temperature of the soil, it
appears that the color and moistness of the soil and the angle of
incidence of the sun's rays are the most influential ; they may occa-
sion differences in the temperature acquired of from 14° to 15° C,
(25° to 27° F.) The nature of the surface and the composition of
the soil are far from producing such marked difTerences ; although,
according to M. Schiibler, the effect of inclination is very decided,
dnd may occasion a difference to the amount of 25° C, (45° F.)

CLASSIFICATION OF SOILS.

Agriculturists class soils according to their fertility, and the
cropping which they will stand to advantage. In practice two grand
divisions have been adopted : strong soils, and light soils ; every
soil belongs wholly or in part to one or other of these divisions.

In strong soils clay is tue predominating element ; in light soils it
is sand which prevails. The first are stiff, little permeable, and
slow in drying ; the second are loose, dry speedily and readily, are
permeable, and less difficult to labor. Humus always adds to the
qualities of these two kinds of soil, though possessed of properties
eo opposite ; but its utility is especially remarkable in argillac^nif
w clayey soils, the extreme stiffness of which it diminishes.

224 SOILS.

Stiff or strong soils share in the advantages and disadvantage*
peculiar to clay ; they absorb a great deal of moisture, and they do
not dry readily, retaining obstinately a considerable quantity of wa-
ter. The humus which they contain, and the manures which are
spread upon them in the course of cultivation, remain with them for
a long time, preserved as it were from the too active agency of at-
mospheric influences ; the fertilizing power of these substances is
further rarely interfered with by too great a degree >f dryness in the
soil. Nevertheless, in very wet seasons, and in years of extraordi-
nary drought, the advantages which I have enumerated disappear.
In wet seasons clay lands become immoderately humid, sometimes
they approach the state of mere puddle ; and on the contrary, under
severe and long-continued drought, they become so hard that the
roots of vegetables can no longer penetrate them, and then they
crack in all directions, and the roots perish for want of being prop-
erly covered. I might add that severe frost is the cause of effects
disadvantageous in the same degree; so that very stiff Ciays are
liable to the same bad effects under the influsnce of two causes dia-
metrically opposed : the great heat of summer and the severe cold
of winter.

In such soils all agricultural operations are often impracticable ;
changed into a liquid mud, neither horse nor plough can be put i;pon
them, or baked into a mass having the hardness of stone, the share
will not penetrate them.

Light soils rarely accumulate an excess of moisture in their inter-
stices, so that they are liable to suffer under want of rain of even
short continuance. They are worked with infinitely greater ease,
and at much less expense ; vegetation upon them is quicker, and
harvests earlier ; but manure is less profitable than in clayey soils,
because the rains dissolve and carry it away.

The defects of these two kinds of soils are precisely of a nature
to compensate one another, and it is in fact by a mixture, or that
which is equivalent to a mixture of these two extreme kinds of soil,
that those lands are formed which are admitted to be the best adapted
to cultivation, and the most fertile of all. Messrs. Thaer and Einhoff,
in submitting to mechanical analysis an immense number of arable
soils, and in studying at the same time the system of culture best
adapted to these soils, and to their relative fertilities, have given us
results of great importance, and which may be made the basis of a
practical classification of arable soils.*

An argillaceous or clayey soil properly so called, generally con-
tains about 40 per cent, of sand. If the quantity of sand be less
than this, the crop from such a soil will be more or less precarious,
and the tenacity will be sv ch, that tonsiderable difficulty will be ex-
perienced and necessary expense incurred in working it ; such a
clayey soil, (having at least 40 per cent, of sand,) when it contains
a sufficient quantity of humus and is properly treated, may be regard-
ed as favorable for wheat. Barley succeeds better than wheat, when

* Thaer's Rational Principles of Agricaltiue, <in French,) vol. ii. p. 11&

CLASSIFICATION. 225

the quantity of sand is as low as 30 per cent. With less than 30
per cent, oats will thrive. Wheat may still be advantageously cul
tivated upon lands that contain from 40 to 50 per cent, of sand ;
beyond this term, when the soil contains from 50 to 60 per cent, of
sand, it is more advantageous to grow barley. Such a soil will not
be completely pulverized by reiterated ploughing, as will that which
contains a larger proportion of silicious matter, and it does not be-
come hard and cracked under drought like lands that are more
essentially clayey, because it retains a sufficiency of moisture ; it is
equally well adapted for trefoil of all kinds, for tubers, for plants
with tap roots, and for many other crops of great marketable value,
such as cabbage, flax, tobacco, &c. It is almost always accessible,
a circumstance which allows of the greatest care being bestowed
upon the crops which are raised upon it. In soils which yield on
washing from 60 to 80 per cent, of sand, we cannot reckon securely
on the success of wheat. At 70 of sand, it ceases to be well adapted
to the cultivation oi this grain, except with especial precautions ; but
it is still well adapted to barley, and it is in such a soil especially
that rye succeeds best.

Land with such a dose of sand is always easily labored, but it is
more apt to be overrun by foul weeds than a soil that is decidedly
argillaceous. Manures are speedily consumed in it for the reason
already given ; it is, therefore, advantageous to manure such land
frequently, laying on less dung at a time. A soil having 75 per cent,
of sand, is qualified by Thaer as an oat soil, and even up to 85 per
cent, of sand it may be regarded as suitable to this grain ; this term
passed, nothing but rye or buckwheat ought to be sown upon it,
and that only after it has had a sufficient dose of manure. The re-
iterated ploughings which some of these sandy soils require to get
rid of the foul v eeds which rush up in such quantities upon them,
sometimes rendt them so open that rye will not succeed. The best
course is then to 'ay them down in grass, and allow them to become
consolidated by -st.

It is extremely diff.cult, at least in this climate of ours, to make
any thing of soils that contain 90 per cent, of sand ; in times of
drought they become true moving sands. As we have already shown,
calcareous matter may replace silicious sand in the part which it
plays in an arable soil ; like sand, calcareous matter tends to de-
stroy the strong cohesion of the particles of clay : but it appears that
chalk or lime, especially when it is in a state of minute subdivision,
besides this effect, really contributes to the amelioration of wheat
lands.

The feiUowing table comprises the results obtained by Thaer and
Einhoif. I must observe, however, and from causes which have
been already explained as influencing the determination of the humus,
that this substance is evidently estimated at much too high a figure
in several of these analyses, which deserve to be made anew under
the precautions that are now familiarly known.

226

SOIL.

Soils according to com-
position.

Clay with humus

ditto

ditto

Marly soil

Light soil, with humus.

Sandy soil, humus

Argillaceous land

Marly soil

Ai^illaceous land. ....
suffer argillaceous land

Clay

Stiff argillaceous land. .

ditto

Sandy clay

ditto

Clayey sand

ditto

Sandy soil

ditto

ditto

Usually designated.

Rich wheat land

ditto

ditto

ditto

Meadow land

Rich barley land

Good wheat land

Wheatland

ditto

ditto

ditto

Barley land of the 1st class |
ditto 2d class

ditto ditto

Oat land

ditto

Rye land

ditto

ditto

ditto

i

ji

1

aS

rs

5

i

3

s

74

10

4

11.5

81

6

4

8.5

79

10

4

6.5

40

22

36

4

14

49

10

27

20

67

3

10

58

36

2

4

56

30

12

2

60

38

2

48

50

2

68

30

2

38

60

2

33

()5

2

28

70

2

23.5

75

1.5

18.5

80

1.5

14

85

1

9

90

1

4

95

0.75

2

97.5

0.5

Schwertz has given a summary of the opinions of Thaer upon the
value of different soils from an eminently practical point of view.
Agreeing with this distinguished agriculturist, that it is well to judge
of the soil by its produce, he also forms a scale of comparison after
the different kinds of grain, taking as extreme terms wheat and bar-
ley, the first succeeding in bad argillaceous soils, the second still
growing in sandy soils of the poorest description. In these extreme
or boundary soils, wheat and barley succeed very indifferently in-
deed ; but between the two extremes are comprised every variety of
soil which results from the fusion of the strongest or stifTest with the
lightest soils, from the most tenacious clay up to loose sand. In
these mixed soils of intermediate qualities, v;heat and barley gradu-
ally approach one another, taking the place successively of barley,
oats, and buckwheat, until they meet in the middle of the scale in
a kind of neutral soil, upon which every variety of grain may be
grown.

Schwertz arranged his scale in the following manner :*

0. Moving sand 0. Stiff clay,

1. Rye land 1. Wheat land.

2. Rye and buckwheat land 2. Wheat and oat land.

3. Rye, buckwheat, and oat land 3. Wheat, oat, and barley land.

4. Rye, oat, and small barley land 4 Wheat and large barley land.

5. Wheat, rye, barley, »;< oat land.

The species of soil which suit these different crops are :

1. Light dry sand 1. Cold stiff clay. -,

8. Moist, very slightly argillaceous sand- • .2. A lighter moist clay. *'

3. Argillaceous sand 3. A warm dry clay <

4, Sandy clay 4. Rich clay.

5. Clay.

• precepts of Practical Agricuituro, (in French,) p. 40.

CLASSIFICATION. 227

The preceding considerations are more than sufficient to give a
precise idea of what is to be understood in regard to the composition
of arable soils. Nevertheless, with a view to making the subject
more complete, I shall quote a few of the analyses of arable soils,
published by different chemists at a time when a certain importance
was attached to researches of this kind. I may remark generally,
that from the whole of the analyses of good wheat lands which have
hitherto been made, it appears that carbonate of lime enters in con-
siderable quantity into their composition ; and theory, in harmony
with practice, tends to show that it is advantageous to have this
earthy salt as a constituent in the manures which are put upon soils
that contain little or no lime.

Analysis of a soil under the variety of rape called colza, by M.
Berthier :

Silica 78.2

Alumina 7.1

Peroxide of iron 4.4

Lime 1.9

Magnesia 0.8

Carbonic acid t 1.4

Water 5.8

This soil was dried in the air, after having been reduced to pov/-
der ; it lost 34 per cent, by drying. It is remarkable that it con-
tains no trace of organic matter, the rather as it was held favorable
for colewort. M. Berthier believes that this soil would gain in fer-
tility by the addition of a certain quantity of calcareous matter, and
M. Cordier* explains its inability to grow grain to advantage from
the deficiency in lime. The stalk of the grain gniwn in this soil is
weak, especially in wet seasons, and the seed is particularly apt to
shake out when it is ripe.

If the presence of lime in a wheat soil is a guaranty against loss
by shaking in harvest, M. Berthier's analysis is still far from proving
that the presence of lime in a soil is indispensable, inasmuch as
beautiful wheat crops are grown in the neighborhood of Lisle without
lime. In proof of this fact, I shall here cite the analysis of one of
the most fertile soils in the world, the black soil of Tchornoizem,
which Mr. Murohison informs us constitutes the superficies of the
arable lands comprised betvt^een the 54th and 57th degrees of north
latitude, along the left bank of the Volga as far as Tcheboksar, from
Nijni to Kasan, and stretching over a still more extensive district
upon the Asiatic side of the Ural mountains. Mr. Murchison is of
opinion that this land is a submarine deposite formed by the accumu-
lation of sands rich in organic matters. The Tchornoizem is com-
posed of black particles mixed with grains of sand ; it is the best
soil in Russia for wheat and pasturage ; a year or two of fallow will
suffice to restore it to its former fertility after it has been exhausted
by cropping ; it is never manured.

M. Payen found in this black and fertile soil :

♦ On the Agriculture of French Flanders, p. SCKJ, <in French.)

838 SOIL.

Silica 71.56

i\luniina • 11.40

Oxide of iron 5.62

Lime 0.80

Magnesia 1.22

Alkaline chlorides 1.21

Phosphoric acid a trace.

Loss 1.24

100.00

Bergman gives the following as the composition of a fertDe soil v

Sweden :

Carbonate of lime 30

Gravel 30i

Silicious sand 26 v Clay

Alumina 14j

100.0

Several fertile soils of Senegal, examined by M. Laugier, con-
ained :

K.awei.

Silicious sand and silica 87.0

Alumina 3.6

Oxide of iron 3.4

Carbonate of lime trace

Orga ni c matter and water 4.4

Loss 1.6

100.0 100.0 100.0 100.0 I00.0

M. Plagne, who has studied the agriculture of the Coromandel
coast, divides the soils he met with there into argillaceous, or clayey,
sandy, and mixed, and gives their several compositions as follows :

Ar^illaceoui. Sandy. Mixed.

Silica 22.0 82.0 64.0

Alumina 59.0 6.5 19.5

Carbonate of lime 3.5 3.5 2.5

Oxide of iron 2.5 4.0 iA

Phosphate of magnesia " ) an t«oo

Sulphate of lime "S ^^

Azotized organic matter 5.0 " 7.0

Water and loss 8.0 2.0 3.0

100.0 100.0 100.0

The soils in which the tea-plant is grown in Assam and China,
have been examined by Mr. Piddington ;* they contain respectively :

Chinese soil. Assam soil.

Silica and sand 76.0 84.8

Alumina 9,0 4.5

Oxideoflron 9.9 7.0

Phosphate and sulphate of lime 1 .0 traces

Organic matter 1.0 1.5

Water • 3^ 2.3

99.9 100.1

Sir Humphrey Davy found the various soils most generally culti-
fated in England, to have the following composition :

• Roi>iaiKMi, .\ccouat of A.vsam, p. 130.

LOCALITIES.

oukitt.

Diajue.

Roso.

N'Dick.

72.0

89.0

78.0

91.0

10.0

3.0

7.0

1.8

8.0

3.6

5.2

3.0

trace

0.5

trace

0.5

10.0

3.6

9.0

3.0

OJ

0.8

0.7

CLASSIFICATION.

229

Districts.

1^

2

i
1

i

—

1

"3 .

£

i
<3

if

}

i
1

J

Remark*.

County of Kent

Norfolk

Middlesex

Worcestershire
Vale of the Teviot
Salisbury

66.3

88.9

60.0

60.0
83.3
91

5.2

1.7

12.8

16.4
7.0
12.7

3.3

1.2

11.6

14.0
6.8
6.4

4.8

7.0

11.2

5.6

0.7

57.3

0.8

1..

0.3

1.2
0.8

1.8

8.0

0.6

4.4

2.8

1.4

12.7

05

4.9
0.3

.0

{ Rich soil,
} under hops,
j Ditto under
( turnips.
\ Ver^- good
\ soil, vvheat.
\ Very lertUe
} soil.

Good soil.
\ Excellent
} grazing soil

M. Gasparin has published analyses of the soils of the south of
France. Instead of destroying the humus and organic matter by-
calcination, as Davy and the generality of analysts did, M. Gasparin
dissolved out the humus by means of a strong alkaline solution.
This method of procedure is. however, at least as liable to objection
as the other.

Districts

Humus.

Calca-
reous
matter.

Clay.

Sand.

Remarks.

From Thor (Vaucluse)

Alluvium of the Rhone

From Palus, near Orange

Old deposite of the Rhone

From the plains near Orange
Neighborhood of Auch

7.5

3.4

2.5

5.0

4.0
1.5

92.5

2.3

555

32.5

50.0
3.5

6.0

53.5

43.5

56.0

48.0
73.0

1.5

42.7

1.0

11.5

2.0
23.0

Middling wheat soil.
< Well adapted for mad-
( der, wheat & lucern.

Bad wheat land. ->.^
i Good wheat land, vgy^
( indifferent for madder.

Ditto, bad for njadder.

There is an important element which must always be taken into
the account in estimating the value of soils, no matter what their
special composition ; this element is their depth, or thickness. In
running a deepish furrow in a cultivated field, we generally distin-
guish at a glance the depth of the superficial layer, which is com-
monly designated as the mould or vegetable earth ; this is a layer
generally impregnated with humus, and looser and more friable than
the subsoil upon which it rests. The thickness of this superficial
layer is extremely variable ; it is frequently no more than about 3
inches ; but it is also encountered of every depth from 3 or 4 lo 12
or 13 inches. It must be held an exceptional and unusual case when
it has a depth of 3 feet or more. Nevertheless we do meet with
collections of vegetable soil of great depth, deposited by rivers,
washed down into the bottoms of valleys, or accumulated on the
surface, as in the virgin forests or vast prairies of America. Depth
of mould, or vegetable soil, is always advantageous ; it is one of th»

20

230 DEPTH OP SOIL.

best conditions to successful agriculture. If we nave depth of soil,
and the routs of our plants do not penetrate sufficiently to derive
benefit froui the fertility that lies below, we can always, by working
a little deeper, bring up the inferior layers to the surface, and so
make them concur in fertilizing the soil. And, independently of
this great advantage, a deep soil suffers less either from excess or
deficiency of moisture ; the rain that falls has more to moisten, and
is therefore absorbed in greater quantity than by thin soils,, and,
once imbibed, it remains in store against drought.

The layer upon which the vegetable earth rests, is the subsoil,
which it is of importance to examine, inasmuch as the qualities, and,
consequently, the value of an arable soil, have always a certain rela-
tion with the nature and properties of this subjacent stratum. Fre-
quently, and especially in hilly countries, the mineral constitution of
the subsoil is the same as that of the soil, and any difference that
the former may present is owing especially to the presence of humus,
and to the looser condition which results from the growth of vege-
tables, from ploughing, &c., and not from atmospheric influences.
By deep ploughing done cautiously, the thickness of the layer of
arable land may be increased at the expense of the subsoil, and,
when plenty of manure can be commanded, the operation will go on
with considerable rapidity. Still it is maintained, and indeed in
many cases it is unquestionable, that the soil loses temporarily some
portion of its fertility by the introduction of a certain quantity of the
subsoil, and that, under ordinary circumstances, several years elaps»
before any amelioration becomes perceptible.

In plains, in high table-lands, the analogy, in point of constitution,
between the soil and subsoil is not so constant. In such situations
the arable land is frequently an alluvial deposite proceeding from the
d_es*ruction or disintegration of rocks situated at a great distance.
When the superior strata possess properties that are entirely differ-
ent from the subsoils, it may be understood how the vegetable earth
may be improved by the addition of a certain dose of the subsoil, and
this is the case in which the amelioration is the least expensive.
The impermeability of the subsoil is one grand cause of the too great
humidity of a cultivated soil. A strong soil, very tenacious through
the excess of clay which it contains, has its disadvantageous proper-
ties considerably lessened, if the subsoil upon which it rests is sandy,
1st, from the evident amelioration which must result from an ad-
mixture of the two layers, and, next, because it is always a positive
advantage in having a soil which has a strong affinity for water
superposed upon a subsoil which is extremely permeable. The in-
verse situation is scarcely less desirable ; a light friable soil will have
greater value if it lies upon a bottom of a certain consistency, and
capable of retaining moisture ; wil i this condition, however, that the
clayey layer shall not be too uneven in its surface, that it shall not
present great hollows in which water may collect and stagnate ; an
impermeable subsoil, to act beneficially in such circumstances, must
have a suflScient inclination to admit of its draining itself. The most
essential distinction, then, in regard to the nature of subsoils is, int»

SOILS IN REFERENCE TO CLIMATE. 231 .

permeable and impermeable. Acquainted with the nature of vege-
table earth, it is easy to judge of the advantages or disadvantages
which will be presented by subsoil having the faculty of retaining or
of permitting the escape of moisture.

In some situations, particularly upon the slopes of hills, the layer
of arable land is of very limited thickness, and it is not uncommon
to see it lying upon rocks of the most dense description, such as
granite, porphyry, basalt, &c. ; in such circumstances the substrata
are unavailable, and there is nothing for it then in the way of ame-
lioration except to transport directly vegetable earth from other
situations. Mica schist is perhaps the least intractable rocky sub-
soil ; the plough often penetrates it, and in the long run it becomes
mingled with the arable layer. It is generally agreed that limestone
rocks form a less unfavorable substrate. There are in fact some
calcareous rocks which absorb water, and crumble away, and the
roots of various plants, such as cinquefoin, penetrate them deeply ;
but there are many limestone rocks so hard that they resist all de-
composing action for a very long period of time.

The qualities which we have thus far sought to determine in soils,
do not depend solely on their mineral constitution or their physical
properties, nor yet on those of the subsoils which support them.
These qualities to become obvious require that the soils shall be
placed in certain conditions which must not be left out of the reck-
oning. Such are those of the climate enjoyed and of the position
more or less inclined to the horizon in one direction or another.
The precepts which we have laid down are especially applicable to
the arable lands of Germany, England, and France. But in gener-
alizing it would be proper to say that clayey lands answer better in
dry climates, and light sandy soils in countries where rains are fre-
quent. Kirwan made this remark long ago in connection with nu-
merous analyses of wheat lands. The conclusion to which this
celebrated chemist came was this, that the soil best adapted for wheat
in a rainy country must be viewed in a very different way with refer
ence to a country where the rains are less frequent. The fertility
of light sandy soils is notoriously in intimate relationship with the
frequent fall of rain. At Turin, for example, where a great deal of
rain falls, a soil which contains from 77 to 80 per cent, of sand is
still held fertile, while in the neighborhood of Paris, where it rains
less frequently than at Turin, no good soil contains more than 50 pei
cent, of sand. A light sandy soil which in the south of France
would only be of very inferior value, presents real advantages in the
moist climate of England.* Irrigation supplies the place of rain,
and in those countries or situations where recourse can be had to it,
the question in regard to the constitution of soils loses nearly the
whole of its interest. Land that can be irrigated has only to be
loose and peimeable in order to have the whole of the fertility de-
veloped which climate and manure can confer. Sandy deserts are
sterile because it never rains. Upon the sandy downs of the coasts

♦ Sinclair's Practical Agricultnre.

232 SOILS If REFERENCE TO CLIMATE.

of the Southern Ocean, a brilliant vegetation is seen along the course
of the few rivers which traverse them ; all beyond is dust and sler*
ility. I have seen rich crops of maize gathered upon the plateau of
the Andes of Quito in a sand that was nearly moving, but which
was abundantly and dexterously irrigated.

A sandy and little coherent soil is by sc much the more favorably
situated as it lies in the least elevated parts of a district ; it is then
less exposed to the effects of drought ; any considerable degree of
inclination is unfavorable to such a soil, inasmuch as the rain drains
off too quickly, and because it is itself apt to be washed away. It
is to prevent this action of the rains, that the abrupt slopes of hills
are generally left covered with trees ; and the deplorable conse-
quences which have followed from cutting down the woods in moun-
tainous countries are familiarly known.

Strong soils, on the contrary, are better placed in opposite cir-
cumstances. A certain inclination is peculiarly advantageous to
them ; and, indeed, in working clayey lands that stand upon a dead
level, we are careful to ridge them in such a way as to favor the
escape of water.

In countries situated beyond the tropics, where consequently
shadows are cast in the same direction throughout the whole year,
the exposure of a piece of land is by no means matter of indiffer-
ence. In our hemisphere, the lands which have a considerable in-
clination and a northern exposure, receive less heat and light, and
remain longer wet than those that slope towards the south ; vegeta-
tion consequently is less forward upon the former than the latter
lands : but, on the contrary, the latter are less exposed to suffer
from want of rain ; and it is a fact, now well ascertained from data
collected in Switzerland and in Scotland, that the slopes which de-
scend towards the north, if they be only not too abrupt, are actually
the most productive. This kind of anomaly is explained by the fre-
quence and rapidity of the thaws which take place upon slopes that
lie to the south. Frost, when not too intense, is certainly less inju-
rious to vegetables than too rapid a thaw ; and it is easy to under-
stand that in situations where, from the mere effect of nocturnal
radiation, vegetables are covered almost every morning through the
spring with hoar frost, a rapid thaw must take place every day im-
mediately after the rise of the sun. With a northern exposure, the
frost occurs in the same measure ; but the cause of its cessation
does not operate so suddenly, the fusion of the rime being effected
by the gradual rise in temperature of the surrounding air. In other
respects, it is obvious that the advantages and disadvantages of dif-
ferent exposures are connected with the nature and the constitution
of soils. The same may be said with reference to means of shelter
from the action of prevailing winds. Stiff wet lands are much bene-
fited by the action of free currents of air ; our stiff soils at Bechel-
bronn remain impracticable for our ploughs during but too long a
period of the spring, when they have not been well dried in the
months of March and April by strong winds from the east. Light
and sandy soils, again, require to be well sheltered. The whole ob-

IMPROVEMENT OF SOILS. 2SS

ject of Studying the soil, is its amelioration ; the industry of the
agriculturist is, in fact, more effectually bestowed, and exerts a
greater amount of influence upon the soil than upon all the other and
varied agents which favor vegetation.

To improve a soil is as much as to say that we seek to modify its
constitution, its physical properties, in order to bring them into har-
mony with the climate and the nature of the crops that are grown.
In a district where the soil is too clayey our endeavor ought to be, to
make it acquire to a certain extent the qualities of light soils.
Theory indicates the means to be followed to effect such a change ;
it suffices to introduce sand into soils that are too stiff, and to mix
clay with those that are too sandy. But these recommendations of
science which, indeed, the common sense of mankind had already
pointed out, are seldom realized in practice, and only appear feasible
to those who are entirely unacquainted with rural economy. The
digging up and transport of the various kinds of soil according to
the necessities of the case, are very costly operations, and I can
quote a particular instance in illustration of the fact : my land at
Bechelbronn is generally strong ; experiments made in the garden
on a small scale showed that an addition of sand improved it consid-
erably. In the middle of the farm there is a manufactory which
accumulates such a quantity of sand that it becomes troublesome ;
nevertheless, I am satisfied that the improvement by means of sand
would be too costly, and that all things taken into account, it would
be better policy to buy new lands with the capital which would be
required to improve those I already possess in the manner which has
been indicated, I should have no difficulty in citing numerous in-
stances where improvements by mingling different kinds of soil were
ruinous in the end to those who undertook them.

A piece of sandy soil, for example, purchased at a very low price,
after having been suitably improved by means of clay, cost its pro-
prietor much more than the price of the best land in the country.
Great caution is therefore necessary in undertaking any improvement
of the soil in this direction, — in changing suddenly the nature of the
soil. Improvement ought to take place gradually and by good hus-
bandry, the necessary tendency of which is to improve the soil.
Upon stiff clayey lands we put dressings and manures which tend
to divide it, to lessen its cohesion, such as ashes, turf, long manure,
&c. But the husbandman has not always suitable materials at his
command, and in this case, which is perhaps the usual one, he must
endeavor, by selecting his crops judiciously, crops which shall agree
best with stiff soils, and at the same time meet the demands of his
market, to make the most of his land. In a word, the true husband-
man ought to know the qualities and defects of the land which he
cultivates, and to be guided in his operations by these ; and in fact
it is only with such knowledge that he can know the rent he can
afford to pay, and estimate the amount of capital which he can rea-
sonably employ in carrying on the operations of his farm.

In an argillaceous or clayey soil, which we have seen above is the
best adapted for wheat in these countries, it would be absurd to per-

20*

894 IMPROVEMENT OF SOILS.

sist in attempting to grow crops that require an open soil. Clayey
lands generally answer well for meadows, and autumn ploughing is
always highly advantageous to them by reason of the disintegrating
effects of the ensuing winter frost.

Chalk occupies a large space in recent formations ; as a general
rule, the soil it supports immediately is of no great fertility. Sir
John Sinclair proposed to improve such soil by growing green crops
and consuming them upon the spot. Properly treaicd, the chalky
soils of England produce trefoil, turnips, and barley, and they ar«
particularly adapted to cinquefoin. It is doubtful whether in France,
where the climate is not so moist as in England, chalky lands could
be treated to advantage on the English plan. Recent inquiries have
shown that chalk contains a small quantity of phosphate bf lime, a
salt, as we shall see by and by, whose presence is always desirable
in arable lands.

Turf or turfy soils yield rich crops when we succeed in converting
the turf into humus. The grand difficulty in dealing with turf is to
dry it properly, inasmuch as it is generally found at the bottom of
valleys or of old lakes and swamps. By a happy coincidence, turfy
deposites frequently alternate with layers of sand, of gravel, of clay,
and of vegetable earth, which have been accumulated at the 'same
epoch. By a mixture, by a division of these different materials,
preceded in every case, however, by proper draining, mere peat bogs
may be turned into good arable soil. Pyrilic turf, however, shows
itself more intractable, it rarely yields any thing of importance. To
improve such a soil it is absolutely necessary to have recourse to
substances of an alkaline nature, such as chalk or lime, wood-ashes,
&c., which have the property of decomposing the sulphate of iron
which is formed by the efflorescence of the pyrites. Turfy lands
can also be brought into an arable state, with the help of paring and
burning. Scotch agriculturists, who are very familiar with reclaim-
ing land of this kind, hold, that the best method of improving turf or
bog lands, is to turn them into natural meadows. Where the wet
and soft state of the soil does not allow cattle to be driven upon it,
the crop of hay should only be cut once, the second crop should be
left standing. By proceeding in this way mere bogs have been turned
into productive meadows.* Turfy lands thoroughly drained and im-
proved, present many advantages connected with their natural but
not excessive moistness. In the neighborhood of Haguenau, mag-
nificent hop-gardens are found upon bottoms of this kind ; madder
also thrives in it equally well, and for certain special crops it is in my
opinion one of the richest soils.

Sandy soils do perfectly well in countries which are not exposed
to long droughts ; their cultivation is attended with little expense,
and they grow excellent crops of turnips, potatoes, carrots, and
rye ; but it is well to exclude clover, oats, wheat, and hemp, which
require a soil of greater consistence. In southern countries, a sys-
tem of irrigation is absolutely necessary, in connection with the

* Sinclair, Practical Agriculture

MOVING SANDS DOWNS. SJSfe

cultivation of sandy soils-if they are not watered, they remain nearly
barren ; the only mode of making them productive is to lay them
out in plantations of timber.

Those moving sandy plains of great extent, which are found in the
interior of many continents, seem at first sight stricken with eternal
barrenness Nevertheless, the mobility of the sand of the desert,
which permits it to be swept hither and thither, and to be tossed
about like a liquid mass, depends less upon the total absence of ar-
gillaceous particles than upon the want of the moisture necessary to
agglutinate or to fix its grains. The burning steppes of Africa and
America have their oases here and there, the surface of which,
moistened by a spring, is green with vegetation ; and whenever
sandy plains are bathed by a river, it is possible to render them fit for
cultivation. In Spain, for instance, in the neighborhood of San Lu-
car de Baromeda, a powdery soil of extreme dryness has been fer-
tilized by the hand of man. The mammillated downs of San Lucar
are covered on the surface by a layer of quartzy sand, so loose that
it is blown about by the wind ; but by a happy disposition of things,
a lower stratum of these downs is kept constantly moist by the wa-
ters of the Guadalquiver, and it is only necessary to remove the su-
perficial sand, and to level the surface, in order to have a loose soil
which unites in the highest degree two essential conditions of fer-
tility, viz : openness, and a constant supply of moisture, which pene-
trates the soil in virtue of its permeability ; under the influence of a
fine climate and manure, the market gardens established in the riiidst
of this desert are remarkable for the rapidity and the vigor of their
vegetation. To avoid great expense, the labor of removing the sand
is only undertaken in places where the layer is least thick ; and what
is removed being heaped up as a mound around the soil which is clear-
ed, a kind of boundary wall is formed, which is not without its use
in affording shelter, and which becomes productive itself by the
plantations of vines and fig-trees that are made upon it with a view
mainly to its consolidation. In the same way in Alsace, in the plains
of Haguenau, the soil which was a moving desert of sand, has, in
the course of less than forty years, become one of the most fertile
under the influence of incessant cultivation ; in the same way also it
is that in Holland, mountains of sand, which had been accumulated
by the winds, have been fixed. This sand, which rests upon a wet
bottom, draws up the moisture by capillary attraction, and so be-
comes fit to support certain vegetables. These downs, which may
be said to have come out of the sea, have a constant tendency in
many places to encroach upon the cultivated lands. To oppose their
progress, the Dutch sow them with the arundo arenaria. the long
and creeping roots of which bind together the movmg mass and
imprison the particles of sand within a kind of net-work. These
masses of sand become fixed in this way ; but they remain nearly
or altogether unproductive.

It is therefore a problem of the highest importance in many in-
stances to fix permanently masses of sand blown up from the sea,
by covering them with productive plantations. This problem wat

£38 DOWNS ^ARREST OF MOVING SANDS.

studied and successfully resolved by M. Bremontier, a French en
gineer, who by sagacity in the choice of means and persever-
ance in their employment gave a complete and practical solution of
the question among the downs of the Gulf of Gascony.*

The downs formed by the sand which is thrown up by the ocean
between the mouths of the Adour and the Girond, occupy a surface
of 75 square leagues and have a mean elevation of from 60 to 70
feet, 'rhey form a multitude of hillocks, which appear co.iUected
by their bases, the crowns of many of them rising to a height of
160 feet and upwards. Under the influence of the prevailing west
winds, these masses of sand move with a mean celerity of about 80
feet per annum, covering forests and villages in their progress. A
part of the little town of Mimizan is already invaded, and it has
been calculated that in the course of twenty centuries, things pro-
ceeding at their present rate, the rich territory of Bordeaux will
have completely disappeared. In their progress these moving mass-
es of sand choke up the beds of rivers, and increase the disastrous
effects they produce otherwise by causing formidable inundations.

The sands of the Gulf of Gascony, like those of Holland and the
Low Countries, are not altogether without moisture ; a very short
way below the surface they are moist, and even present a certain
degree of cohesion. This, in fact, might have been predicated, for
otherwise the wind which brings them from the sea would have dis-
persed them in clouds of dust and to great distances ; but no such
dispersion takes place. Downs advance slowly, at the rate already
indicated, and by rolling over, as it were, upon themselves. The
sand driven by the wind creeps up on the flanks of the ridges as
upon an inclined plane ; after having got over the summit of the
hillocks already formed, it falls down the opposite slope, and accu-
mulates at the base. The action of the wind is only exerted upon
so much of the sand as is rendered loose and moveable by its dry-
ness ; but the moist part is exposed, dried, and swept away in its
turn ; in this way the whole mass of sand which was at first deposit-
ed upon the west aspect of the hillocks is carried to the east, where
it is in the shelter. By this process, under the influence of a wind
fvhich blew steadily for six days, a hillock has been seen to advance
towards the interior of the country through a space of 3| feet.f

The moisture contained in the sand proceeds from the rains, from
the surface water that filters through it and displaces the salt water
which impregnated it originally. The very slight trace of sea-salt
that finally remains it it has no unfavorable influence on vegeta-
tion.

Once aware of the fact that certain plants throve in the sands of
downs, Bremontier saw that they alone were capable of staying their
progress and consolidating them. The grand object was to get
plants to grow in moving sand, and to protect them from the violent
winds which blow oflf the ocean, until their roots had got firm hold
of the soil.

• Annals of French Agriculture, vol. xxvii. p. 145.
t D'Aubiiisson, Geognosy, vol. ii. p. 467.

ARREST OF MOVING SANDS. 237

Downs do not bound the ocean like beaches. From the base of
the first hillocks to the line which marks the extreme height of spring
tidee, there is always a level over which the sand sweeps without
pausing. It was upon this level space that Bremontier sowed his
first belt of pine and furze seeds, sheltering it by means of green
branches, fixed by forked pegs to the ground, and in such a way
that the wind should have least hold upon them, viz., by tu.-ning the
lopped extremities towards the wind. Experience has shown that
by proceeding thus, fir and furze seeds not only germinate, but that
the young plants grow with such rapidity, that by and by they form
a thick belt, a yard and more in height. Success is now certain.
The plantation so far advanced, arrests the sand as it comes from
the bed of the sea, and forms an effectual barrier to the other belts
that are made to succeed k towards the interior. When the trees
are five or six years of age, a new plantation is made contiguous to
the first and more inland, from 200 to 300 feet in breadth, and so
the process is carried on until the summits of the hillocks are gradu-
ally attained.

It was by proceeding in this way that Bremontier succeeded in
covering the barren sands of the Arrachon basin with useful trees
Begun in 1787, the plantations in 1809 covered a surface of between
9,000 and 10,000 square acres. The success of these plantations
surpassed all expectation ; in sixteen years the pine trees were from
thirty-five to forty feet in height. Nor was the growth of the furze,
of the oak, of the cork, of the willow, less rapid. Bremontier show-
ed for the first time in the annals of human industry, that moveable
sands might not only be stayed in their desolating course, but actu-
ally rendered productive. Like all other inventors, this benefactor
of humanity was soon the object of jealousy among his contempora-
ries. Doubts were of course entertained at first of the possibility
of consolidating the moving sands of downs ; and when this was de-
monstrated, the honor of originality was denied him. The ingenious
engineer defended himself with moderation, and demanded an in-
quiry ; in the course of which it was satisfactorily proved that noth-
ing of the same kind had been attempted by others previously to the
year 1788. The labors of Bremontier must be regarded as another
of those remarkable struggles which the industry of man has suc-
cessfully waged with the elements.

CHAPTER V.

OF MANURES.

Whatever may be its constitution and physical properties, land
yields lucrative crops only in proportion as it contains an adequate
quantity of organic matter in a more or less advanced state of de-
composition. There are favored soils in which this matter, desig

238 MANtTRES.

nated by the name of humus^ or mould,* exists by nature, while there
are others, and they form the majority, which are either totally des-
titute of it, or contain it but in insignificant proportion. To become
productive, these soils require the intervention of manure ; for this
"here is no substitute, neither the labor which breaks them up, not
the climate which so powerfully promotes their fecundity, nor tho
salts and alkalies which are such useful auxiliaries of vegetation.
Not that land entirely destitute of organic remains is incapable of
producing and developing a plant. We have already seen that the
atmosphere, light, heat, and moisture, suffice for its existence ; but
in such a condition, vegetation is slow and often imperfect ; nor
could agricultural industry be advantageously applied to a soil which
approached so near to absolute sterility.

Plants, considered in their entire (?Onstitution, contain carbon,
water, (completely formed, or in its elements,) azote, phosphorus,
sulphur, metallic oxides united to the sulphuric and phosphoric acids,
chloildes, and alkaline bases in combination with vegetable acids ;
many of these elements form no part of the atmosphere, and are
necessarily derived from the soil. Moreover, the manures most
generally made use of are nothing but the detritus of plants, or the
remains or excretions of animals, including by the very fact of their
origin the whole of the elements which constitute organized beings;
and although it is very probable that certain tribes of plants are more
adapted than others to appropriate the azote or the ammoniacal va-
pors of the atmosphere, experience proves that azotized organic re-
mains contribute in the most efficacious manner to the fertility of the
soil. Besides, we are far from being able to affirm that the carbon
of plants is derived from the carbonic acid of the atmosphere.
Doubtless this acid is its principal source ; but it is possible that
certain elements of carburetted dungs may be directly assimilated.

The writers who have treated of manures, have generally formed
them into two grand classes :

1st. Manures of organic origin, in which are again found all the
elements of the living matter.

'2d. Mineral manures, saline or alkaline, which are particularly
designated under the name of stimulants, thus ascribing to them the
faculty, purely gratuitous, of facilitating the assimilation of the nu-
triment which plants find in dung, and of stimulating and exciting
their organs. Such a distinction has no real foundation, and nothing
shows so much how scanty our knowledge upon this subject has
hitherto been as this tendency in the ablest minds to connect vege-
table nutrition with the feeding of animals.

All the agents employed by the agriculturist to restore, preserve,
and augment the fecundity of the soil, 1 shall term Manures. In
my view gypsum, marl, and ashes are manures, as much as horse-
dung, blood, or urine ; all contribute to the end proposed in em])loy-
ing them, which is the increase of vegetable production. The hest

* Mould, or vegetable earth, as the word is generally used, is not exactly humua r
but as it derives its principal q'ialities from the presence of the humus of the chemist
\ iball eenerally employ the terms as synonymous.— Eng. Ed.

DECAY OF ORGANIC MATTERS. 239

manure, that which is in most general use, is precisely that which
by its complex nature contains all tlire fertilizing principles required
in ordinary tillage.

Particular cultures may demand particular manures ; but the stand-
ard manure, such as farm dung, for example, when it is derived from
good feeding, supplied to animals with suitable and abundant litter,
affords all the pr'inciples necessary to the development of plants ;
such manure contains at once all the usual elements which enter
into the organization of plants, and all the mineral substances which
are distributed throughout their tissues; in fact, carbon, azote, hy-
drogen, and oxygen are found therein united with the phosphates,
sulphates, chlorides, &c.

In order to be directly efficacious, every manure must present
this mixed composition. Ashes, gypsum, or lime spread upon bar-
ren land, would not improve it in any sensible degree ; azotized or-
ganic matter, absolutely void of saline or earthy substances, would
probably produce no better effect ; it is the admixture of these two
classes of principles, of which the first is derived definitively from
the atmosphere, while the second belongs to the solid part of the
globe, which constitutes the normal manure that is indispensable to
the improvement of soils.

Dead organic matter, subjected to the united influence of heat, of
moisture, and of contact with the air, undergoes radical modifica-
tions, and passes by a regular course of transformation into a con-
dition more and more simple. The tissues, so long as they form a
part of the animated being, are protected against the destructive ac-
tion of the atmospheric agents ; in plants and animals this protec-
tion is not extended beyond the period of th^ir existence ; destruc-
tion commences with death, if the accessory circumstances are suf-
ficiently intense ; and then ensue all the phenomena of decomposi-
tion, of that putrid fermentation which, at the expense of the primi-
tive elements of the organized being, generates bodies more stable
and less complicated in their constitution, and which present them-
selves in the gaseous and crystalline conditions, forms which are
affected by the inorganic bodies of nature in general.

The mineral substances which had been taken up in the organiza-
tion become freed, and are thus again restored to the earth. The
organized substances which change the most rapidly, are precisely
those into which azote enters as a constituent principle. Left to
themselves, whether in solution or merely moistened, these sub-
stances exhibit all the characteristic signs of putrefaction ; they ex-
hale an insupportable odor ; and the result of their total and com-
plete decomposition is finally the production of ammoniacal salts.
The water wherein the phenomenon is accomplished facilitates it
not only by weakening cohesion and enabling the molecules to move
more freely, but it assists also by the very affinity which each of its
own principles bears to the elements of the substance subjected to
the putrescent fermentation. Proust observed that during the de-
composition of glute 1 immersed in water, a mixture of carbonic
acid and of pure hydrogen gas is disengaged, i phenomenon which

240 MANURES.

he explains by the decomposition of the water ; at the same time
are produced ammoniacal sahs, among which are acetates and lac-
tales, whose acids are generated by the very act of fermentation.
As a striking example of the agency of water in the transit of azote
into the ammoniacal state in a quarternary compound, we may tak*»
the putrefaction of urea.

Urea is found in the urine of man and of quadrupeds ; its compo
sition, according* to M. Dumas, is :

Carbon... 20.0

Hydrogen 6.6

Oxygen 26.7

Azote .••46.7

100.0

The animal substances dissolved in urine, as the mucus of the
bladder, &c., undergo, on contact with the air, a modification which
causes them to act upon urea like ferments. By their influence the
elements of water react upon this substance, and transform it into
carbonate of ammonia.

Carbonate of ammonia is composed of :

Carbonic acid 56.41, containing j Sxy^g^en .'.'." .' !.*.*.*!!*.*!!.' .'.".'.4l!^

and

Hydrogen 7.

Ammonia 43.59, containing . j Azote 35.90

But 100 of urea have been found to produce by fermentation 130
of carbonate of ammonia.

Carbon. Hydrog^en. Oxygen, Aiote.

Previous to fermentation, 100 of urea ) 20 00 6 60 2 67 46.7

contains ....}'

After fermentation, 130 of carbonate J 2000 10 00 533 46 7

of ammonia contains . . J ' ' '_ '__

Difference 0.0 3.4 26.6 0.0

So that during its transformation, the urea has gained 3.4 of hy
drogen, and 26.6 of oxygen.

In water the hydrogen is to the oxygen as 1 to 8. (: : 1 : 8.)

Now it is precisely in this proportion that hydrogen and oxygfti'
are found to be acquired by the urea in passing into the state of ea*
bonate of ammonia ; whence it follows that the elements of wave
are fixed in the process.

The putrefaction of azotized substances is far from always pre-
senting results equally precise ; most frequently in decomposing
they pass through a series of changes, still very obscure, before
they attain their ultimate limit, viz. the production of ammoniacal
salts. Thus from putrefying caseum diffused in water, M. Braconnot
obtained, among other products and ammoniacal salts, a very remark-
able substance which he calls aposepedine.

Aposepedine when purified is a white crystalline substance, soluble
in water and in alcohol, capable of combination with the metallic
oxides ; azote is one of its elements.

This substance, although engendered by the act of putrefaction, is
rsvertheless itself capable of putrefying and giving birth to the last
products of the spontaneous decomposition of azotized matter.

One of the most striking characteristics, at least that which is

DECAY OF ORGANIC MATTERS. 241

most readily remarked, is the fetid odor which animal substances
exhale during putrefaction. It is not always the smell of ammonia
which preciominates ; that of sulphuretted hydrogen gas is often
very strong ; yet that is not the emanation which is most repulsive :
miasmata and nauseous principles are also developed which seem to
be the changed matter itself carried away by the gases that are dis-
engaged.

Sulphur, like phosphorus, is 'almost always a constituent of or-
ganic bodies ; its minute proportion, however, would be insufficient
to give out the hepatic odor so intense as we often find it during
putrefaction. The production of sulphuretted hydrogen is connect-
ed with the very curious fact, first appreciated by M. O. Henri,
that sulphates dissolved in a medium impregnated with azotized
matter in decomposition, do themselves undergo an actual reduction,
pass into the state of sulphurets, and immediately give out sulphuret-
ted hydrogen, either by the action of the carbonic acid of the at
mosphere, or by that which is formed during the putrefaction of the
organic matter. It is by a similar action exerted upon sulphate of
lime that M. Henri explains the origin of the sulphureous waters of
Enghien, near Paris ; and M. Fontan in his important work on min-
eral waters has generalized this explanation.

The causes of the destruction of sulphates under such circum-
stances if^ easily understood. During the decomposition of organiz-
ed substances, the carbon belonging to them forms carbonic acid gas ;
by combining both with the oxygen of the substances themselves,
and with the oxygen of the water, it is probable that the oxygen of
the sulphuric acid contributes equally to this formation, and that the
sulphur is liberated.

The hydrogen of the decomposed water, as well as that of the
solid matter, in contact with sulphur in the nascent state, combines
with it to form sulphuretted hydrogen, which straightway reacts
upon the base of the sulphate, producing from it, as we know, water
and a metallic sulphuret. This sulphuret being unable to exist when
exposed to the continued disengagement of carbonic acid gas which
takes place in the centre of the mass in putrefaction, yields, as a
definite result, a carbonate on the one part, and sulphuretted hydro-
gen on the other.

The faculty which azotized organic bodies possess of undergoing
spontaneous decomposition in presence of water, and under the in-
fluence of heat, seems to depend upon the tendency which azote has
to unite with hydrogen in order to form ammonia.

This tendency is perhaps the determining cause of the phenome-
non of fermentation taken in the most general acceptation of the
term. Organic bodies void of azote decompose less easily, and the
kind of alteration which they undergo from the action of water and
air, differs in many respects from the putrefaction of azotized mat-
ter. Of this the difficulty experienced in effecting the fermentation
of vegetable substances is a proof Nevertheless, the vegetable re-
fuse which goes to the dunghill, all without exception, contains azo-
tized elements, often, it is true, in extremely minute proportions ;

21

343 MANURES.

but we Icnow that there is no example of a vegetable organic tissas
from which they are completely excluded.

The refuse of plants, the most amply endowed with azote, such as
cabbage, beet-root, beans, &c., are certainly those which are sus-
ceptible of the most rapid and complete putrid fermentation ; straw,
on the contrary, when alone, undergoes it slowly and imperfectly,
the small quantity of the azotic principle which it contains is chang*
ed, and reacts upon the ligneous particles which surround it ; but
the effect is soon arrested, and even ceases entirely, unless substances
richer in azote concur. The woody matter of the straw is exactly
in the condition of sugar which has not had a dose of ferment suf-
ficient for its total transformation into alcohol.

Most organized substances, whether they belong to the animal or
vegetable kingdom when placed in certain conditions, undergo the
profoundest changes from the action of hydrogen ; these alterations
ought to be studied with all the more care, because in practical
agriculture we are interested successively in fostering or preventing
the causes which produce them, according as our object is to accele-
rate the decomposition of vegetable refuse for manure, or to adopt
the precautions which experience suggests, in order to preserve
the produce of our harvests unchanged. Organic substances moist-
ened and exposed to the air under a temperature, the minimum of
which (I believe after several experiments) may be fixed at 48° or 50"
F., seize upon the oxygen and absorb it, in part, in order to form water
with their hydrogen, and carbonic acid with their carbon. When
these substances are accumulated in a mass sufficiently great, the
heat produced is not rapidly dissipated, the temperature rises, and
promotes the reaction to such a degree as to produce active burning,
a conflagration, in place of the slow combustion manifested at first.
It is not very unusual to see hay, which had been gathered in too
damp a condition, take fire in the stack ; and the high temperature
acquired by wet rags placed in the fermenting vats of paper mills,
and the copious production of carbonic acid which results, show that
we are right in assimilating this kind of action to the phenomenon
of combustion. This sluggish combustion is not peculiar to azotized
organic substances : it takes place equally in those destitute of azote.
The alteration of organic matters, the combustion which goes on at
a low temperature by the action of the air, difi'ers in its results from
the decomposition which is effected in the midst of a liquid mass.
We have seen, for example, that gluten fermenting under water,
disengages hydrogen gas. Now Berthollet has established, and
Saussure has confirmed his observations, that an azotized body in
putrefaction, the whole of whose parts are in contact with the air,
never contributes either hydrogen gas or azote to the confined at-
mosphere in which it is placed ; and on the other hand, Saussure
has shown, that organic substances which do not emit hydrogen gas
during their spontaneous decomposition in a medium void of oxygen,
do not alter the volume of an atmosphere of which this gas forms a
purt; on the contrary, these sub tances condense oxygen as soon af

DECAY OF ORGANIC MATTERS. 243

they attain that stage of their alteration in which they give out hy
drogen.

In pursuing with persevering sagacity the study of putrefaction,
M. de Saussure discovered the cause of this condensation ; it con-
sists in the fact, that an organic suhstance in course of spontaneous
decomposition, acts in some respects like the platina sponge placed
in a mixture of oxygen and hydrogen gas ; we know that platina
recently heated and introduced into a mixture of these two gases,
determines their union in the proportions required to constitute water.
Nowr by substituting for the metal some moistened seeds, previously
deprived of their germinating faculty, the same effect is produced :
the two gases combine until one of the two entirely disappears.
When this combustion of hydrogen, proceeding from the decomposi-
tion of organic substances, takes place in the body of the atmosphere
which contains azote, it is possible that a minute quantity of ammonia
may be produced together with water ; nor is it going too far to
suppose, that manures very slightly azotized, take up azote from
the atmosphere during their fermentation; that during the act of
vegetation itself, the hydrogen proceeding from the decomposed
water, or yet more, that which makes part of the essential oils form-
ed by plants, may, in oxidating afresh, introduce atmospheric azote
into their composition.

Dead organized matter, such as wood, straw, or leaves, exposed
to wet, and for a long time to the action of the air, ends by becom-
ing transformed into a brown substance, which when damped is al-
most black, which falls to powder when dry, and which is commonly
known by the name of humus or mould.

This is, so to speak, the last term of the decomposition of organic
matter ; mould appears to belong already to the mineral kingdom ;
and whatever may be the diversity of its origin, it presents a suf-
ficient number of peculiar characteristics to be considered a distinct
substance. In fact, the atmosphere continues to exert its action
upon mould ; its inflammable elements are dissipated by a slow and
imperceptible combustion, giving place to water and carbonic acid.
But in this ulterior decomposition, those fetid products which char-
acterize putrid fermentation are no longer observed.

Wet saw-dust, placed for some weeks in an atmosphere of oxygen,
forms a certain quantit}' of carbonic acid, and the volume of the gas
does not perceptibly diminish. The wood at the surface acquires a
deep-brown color. Several experiments made by Saussure, prove
that dead wood does not absorb the oxygen gas of the atmosphere ;
it transforms it into carbonic acid, and the action takes place as if
the carbon of the organic matter alone experienced the effects of the
oxygen ; for the gaseous volume remains the same. The loss, how-
ever, undergone by the ligneous fibre, during its exposure to the air,
is greater than it ought to be if carbon alone were eliminated : whence
Saussure concludes, that while the woody matter loses carbon, it
also lets some of its constituent water escape.

As a consequence of these observations, the relative proportion
of carbon ought to augment in the humid wood changed by the ac

S44 MANURES.

tion of the atmosphere, since we have established that by this action
the woody fibre suffers loss in the elements of water besides what it
loses in carbon. This is confirmed by the following analyses. The
first, made upon some oak wood, previously purified by washing ia
water and in alcohol, we owe to Messrs. Thenard and Gay-Lussac;
the succeeding one to Messrs. Meyer and Will :

Oak wood. Id. rotten. Id. rotten.

Carbon 52-5 .53.6 5«.2

Hydrogen and oxygen, water ■•47..'> 46.4 43-8

100.0 100.0 100.0

Wood decomposed under water, without being in direct contact
with the air, undergoes a different modification ; it is blanched in-
stead of blackened, and the carbon far from increasing is diminished.
Saussure thinks that this kind of alteration depends mainly on the
loss of the soluble and coloring principles of the wood, principles
containing more carbon than the ligneous matter itself: so that pure
woody fibre exposed wet to the action of the air would yield pro-
ducts analogous to those which result from its decomposition under
water.

The damp linen rags which are fermented in paper manufactories
afford a product which is white, and but slightly coherent. The
mass, which heats successively during the operation, loses about 20
per cent, of its original weight. This is exactly what takes place
in wood decayed by the alternate action of water and air, namely, it
becomes white and extremely friable.

Some oak arrived at this stage of decomposition contained, ac-
cording to Liebig :

Carbon 47-6

Hydrogen 6.2

Oxygen 44.9

Ashes 1.3

100.0

Compared with the composition of oak wood when sound, thesd
numbers show that during its modification the wood has lost carbon,
and that it has gained hydrogen. The elements of water must ne-
cessarily have intervened, and become fixed during the reaction.
Ligneous fibre decaying under water is not thereby completely pro-
tected from the atmosphere. Water always holds some air in solu-
tion, and the oxygen of that air reacts exactly as if it were in the
gaseous state.

Upon all the phenomena of decomposition connected with fermen-
tation, with putrefaction, or with dilatory combustion, heat exerts
an influence which has certainly not been sufficiently appreciated.
Organic bodies sunk in a large mass of water are not exposed to
changes of temperature so various and abrupt as when they are
placed in the atmosphere ; their decomposition is more gradual,
more uniform, and the soluble materials which they contain, or which
are the result of the alteration they are undergoing, are in a great
measure dissolved. Temperature may also produce great difference!

DECAY OF ORGANIC MATTERS. 24S

m the final lesiilt of the decomposition. Peat, which is derived, aa
we know, from the slow decomposition of submerged plants, does not
appear to be formed in the swamps of warm climates ; it has, per-
haps, never been encountered in the stagnant waters of the equinoc-
tial regions ; there the woody fibre appears to be totally dissipated
in carbonic acid gas, and in marsh gas, the probable source of the
insalubrity of those countries. Lakes with peat bottoms are not
found except on the very high table-lands of the Andes, in localities
where the mean temperature does not exceed 49° or 50° F.

The alkalies are powerful agents in the decomposition of certain
organic substances, whether in determining or in accelerating it.
There are some, indeed, which experience no change without their
intervention, whatever may be the other conditions favorable to de-
composition. Thus, according to M. Chevreul, many coloring sub-
stances may be preserved in solution almost indefinitely, without
change, in contact with gallic acid ; but the presence ot a very small
quantity of free alkali suffices for their immediately acquiring the
power of absorbing oxygen, and at the same time of acquiring a brown
tint. M. Chevreul observed that 3.087 grs. of hematine dissolved
in potash will absorb 3.857 grs. of oxygen in forming 0.925 of car-
bonic acid. The oxygen which enters into the carbonic acid, there-
fore, represents nothing like the quantity which was fixed by the
solution, and it is almost certain that this gas likewise reacted upon
the hydrogen of the coloring matter. The use of the alkalies for
accelerating the destruction of organized matter has been long known
to agriculturists.

Straw, fern, and the ligneous parts of plants are sometimes strat-
ified with quick-lime, in order to facilitate their disintegration, and
consequently their decomposition. The utility of this old practice
cannot be disputed while confined within certain limits ; but it is
often abused ; for it is beyond doubt that alkalies mingled indiscrim-
inately with manure become in reality more injurious than advan-
tageous for the end proposed in their introduction.

The appearance of a certain brown substance, little soluble in
water, but easily dissolving in alkalies, is a characteristic proper to
all vegetable matter under decomposition ; a characteristic which
becomes more marked as the decomposition advances towards its
last stage, namely, the production of humus. This substance is
ulmine, which, on account of some acid properties which it pos-
sesses, is also named ulmic acid. It forms a part of mould, and M.
P. Boullay constantly found it in the water of dunghills.

In 1797, Vauquelin discovered ulmine united with potash in the
matter of the exudation from the ulcer of an elm-tree.

In 1804, Klaproth confirmed this observation. M. Braconnot
succeeded in obtaining ulmine artificially by subjecting woody fibre
to the action of alkalies. This substance is easily procured by
carefully heating in a silver capsule, and continually stirring a mix-
ture of equal parts of potash and of saw-dust slightly damped. At
a certain time the woody matter softens and suddenly dissolves ; the
mass then begins to swell up, and the fire is slaked. The product

3i*

246 HUMTTS.

obtained dissolves almost totally in water. The solution is of a very
deop brown color, and contains as prinjipal ingredient ulmine com-
bined with potash ; the ulmine is precipitated by the addition of a
sufficient quantity of weak sulphuric acid. After having been
washed and dried, ulmine is black and brittle, and resembles jet ;
while still wet, it reddens turnsole paper, and its solution in potash
forms with several sahs, and by the way of double decomposition,
insoluble ulmates. M. Peligot assigns to ulmine the following
composition :

Carbon 72.3

Hydrogen 6-2

Oxygen .-21.5

100.0

Dunghills, rotten wood, and mould, always contain a brown sub-
stance, which possesses properties very similar to those which char-
acterize ulmine obtained by the action of alkalies upon ligneous
fibre.

Mould which contains this ulmine in abundance, and in the con-
dition most favorable to vegetation, ought on that account to be
examined with attention. Its history has, indeed, been so ably traced
by M. de Saussure, that science at the present day can add but little
to the important deductions of the celebrated author of the Re-
cherches Chimiques.

M. de Saussure defines vegetable mould (humus) to be the black
substance which covers dead vegetables after they have been long
exposed to the combined action of water and oxygen. His experi-
ments refer to mould nearly pure ; that is, separated by a fine sieve
from the vegetable remains which are always mixed with it ; to
mould which had been gathered on high rocks, or from the trunks
of trees, where it could not have been exposed to admixture or to
any influence, other than that of the spontaneous decomposition by
which it had been produced. All the varieties of mould collected
in this way appeared fertile, especially when they were previously
mixed with gravel, which supplies support to the roots of plants, and
permits the access of the air. That variety, however, must be ex-
cepted which was obtained from the interior of trees, and had been
formed in such a situation that the rain-water which entered found
no free outlet ; the huriius then contained extractive principles, de-
rived in part from the living plant, and which seemed to obstruct the
pores of the vegetable to which it was applied as manure.

In making comparative calcinations in close vessels of different
varieties of humus, and of plants similar to those from which they
had proceeded, and collecting the charcoal on one hand, and the
volatile and gaseous matters on the other, M. de Saussure discover-
ed that they contained, for the same weight, a larger quantity of
carbon and of azote than the vegetables whence they proceeded.
The larger proportion of azote in the humus seems to imply that
during their decomposition, vegetables do not throw off this element*
but to this cause must be added that which might be connected with
the spoils of insects which live in humus.

HUMUS. 247

Weak acids have no other effect upon humus than to dissolve out
the metallic, earthy, and alkaline elements which it contains. The
more powerful acids, such as the sulphuric acid, frequently cause a
disengagement of acetic acid. Alcohol scarcely acts upon humus,
merely dissolving out of it a few hundredth parts of resinous matter,
which probably pre-existed in the vegetable. Potash and soda dis-
solve humus almost completely, causing an evolution of ammonia.
From this solution, acids throw down a brown, inflammable powder,
possessing the characters which we have recognised in ulmine. The
ulmine which is separated in this way, is far from corresponding
with the weight of the matter treated with the alkalies, which is
evidently due to the humus containing principles which are not pre-
cipitated from the alkaline solution.

A quantity of humus which yielded no more than one tenth of
ashes by incineration, only lost one eleventh of its weight under re-
peated treatments with boiling water. The humus thus exhausted,
was exposed in a moist state to the action of the air for three months,
and gave a new quantity of soluble matter under renewed washing
with water; and the same effect is constantly reproduced. By ex-
posing moist insoluble humus to the air, therefore, a quantity of so-
luble extractive matter is formed. This matter, obtained by evapo-
rating the water which is charged with it, is not deliquescent ; it
yields ammonia on distillation. The watery solution, brought to the
consistence of sirup, is neutral to re-agents, and its taste is sensibly
sweet.

It is familiarly known that the alkaline salts, which enter into the
constitution of vegetable juices, but rarely exhibit the reactions that
are proper to them ; the plan or the sap must be dried and inciner-
ated before their presence can be ascertained. It is the same with
regard to the salts contained in humus.

Humus, as I have already observed, is the last term in the putre-
faction of vegetable organic matter ; its elements have acquired a
stability which enables them to resist all fermentation. M. de Saus-
sure preserved humus for a whole year in vessels filled with distilled
water, and plunged in mercury, without remarking any emission of
gas. Still it is unquestionable that the organic portion of humus is.
completely destructible when exposed moist to the action of the air;
in the course of time it is dissipated, and by and by there remains
nothing more than the fixed saline and earthy matters which it con-
tained. This fact M. B. de Saussure had already perceived from
his observations upon the vegetable soil that occurs in the country
between San Germano and Turin. This destructibiliiy of vegetable
earth, says M. de Saussure, sen., is a fact without exception ; and
as often as agriculturists have proposed to supply the place of ma-
nure by repeated ploughings, they have had sad experience of its
truth : the soil is gradually impoverished, and fertile fields ultimate-
ly become barren. I may add, that the nature of the climate has a
vast influence upon the dissipation of the fertilizing principles of the
soil, and that Europeans are certainly in error when they object to
the superficial ploughings or hoeings which the land ^ commonly

M8 nitrificatiopt.

receives in tropical countries. It is there well known that too mnch
stirring of the soil is i 'ten prejudicial even in irrigated lands, where
consequently the bad i ifects cannot be attributed to too great a de-
gree of dryness. The information which has lately reached the
Academy of Sciences upon the agriculture, of the French posses-
sions in Africa, tend to make us perceive that the same cause pro-
duces the same effects in Algeria, and that it is not without reason
that the Arabs only work their lands that are preparing for grain
crops, very superficially.

Humus is, in fact, dissipated by a process of slow combustion in
the air : in contact with oxygen, it produces carbonic acid, as is
proved by the experiments of M. de Saussure. Pure humus, moist-
ened with distilled water, confined in bell-glasses placed over me:»-
cury, formed carbonic acid, causing the disappearance of the oxygen
of the air. The volume of the acid gas formed, corresponded ii
volume with that of the oxygen which had disappeared. Humus,
therefore, in contact with air, gives off carbonic acid, and the phe-
nomenon here still takes place as if carbon were not alone consumed.
The loss experienced is greater than that which ought to occur from
the quantity of carbon which unites with the oxygen ; and Saussure
concluded that there is, at the same time, a loss of the elements of
water. The capital fact which results from these experiments of
Saussure, the deduction directly applicable to the theory of manures
is this : that humus is dissipated when it is exposed to the air, and
that during the slow combustion which it undergoes, it is a constant
source of carbonic acid gas.

To complete the views that may throw light on the part played
by manures, I have still to speak of an important phenomenon which
occasionally takes place under the same conditions as those that ac-
company the decomposition, the putrefaction of animal matters : I
mean the spontaneous formation of nitric acid — the occurrence of
nitrification as it is called. Nitric acid results from the union of
azote with oxygen. Such at least is the constitution of this acid
when it is combined in salts ; but in its isolated state, it is always
united with a certain quantity of water. It has not yet been obtain-
ed, and it appears indeed not to exist, in the perfectly dry or anhy-
drous state. The azote, therefore, does not combine directly with
the oxygen ; there must be, at all events, the intervention of water,
and to effect the union of the two gases by means of the electric
spark, the mixture, according to Cavendish, must be moist. Never-
theless, the combination of azote with oxygen appears to be singular-
ly favored by the presence of earthy or alkaline bases, seeing that
in nature the nitrates are met with in a certain abundance ; but the
circumstances which determine their formation are still involved in
deep obscurity.

Three distinct origins may be assigned to the natural nitrates :
Ist. certain soils, still indifferently studied, show an efflorescence of
nitrate of potash on their surface, or by lixiviation yield large quan-
tities of this salt. Such is the gource of the saltpetre which is im-
ported from India.

PRODUCTION OF NITRE AND NITRATES. 249

According to M. Proust, the soil of certain localities in the neigh-
borhood of Saragossa is an inexhaustible mine of saltpetre. I have
myself seen, near Latacunga, a short way from Quito, upon a soil
formed of trachytic debris, a similar production of nitre taking place
as it were under my eyes.

2d. On the coast of Peru, in the desert of Tarapaca, at a short
distance from the port of Iquique, and in an argillaceous soil of ex-
tremely recent formation, there are numerous stratified deposites of
nitrate of soda, analogous to, and perhaps contemporaneous with, the
deposites of common salt which are worked upon the same coast, in
the desert of Sechura, near the equator. This is, so far as I know,
the only instance of a nitrate being dug out of the bowels of the
earth as a mineral mass. The nitrate of soda of Tarapaca, reacr.es
Europe at the present time in large- quantities, and supplies the
place of nitrate of potash in many chemical processes. Various ex-
periments have also been made upon the value of the salt as a ma-
nure ; but at present these experiments have been very contradic-
tory, and further experience seems necessary before any definitive
judgment can be come to on the matter.

3d. The greater number of the soils that are exposed to animal
emanations — heaps of rubbish proceeding from buildings that have
been long inhabited, the soil of stables, cow-houses, cellars, &c.,
almost always contain a quantity of nitrates. In countries where
rain seldom falls, and where consequently these salts, which are ex-
tremely soluble, can accumulate in the soil, in Egypt, for example,
the ruins of ancient cities are at the present time true nitre-beds.
It is with the formation from nitre in such circumstances that we
feel particularly interested. The presence of the salt is frequently
proclaimed in our agricultural operations ; it is formed during the
preparation of our dunghills, in the midst of our cultivated fields,
and we discover it in the plants which we gather. We are by so
much the more interested in discovering its existence, and in ascer-
taining its mode of action, as in the actual state of our knowledge we
are still unable to say whether or no nitre is an auxiliary in the
phenomena of vegetation, and contributes to the production of the
azotized principles which enter into the organization of plants.

To have nitrates formed, the presence of azotized organic matter
is not sufficient ; it is further necessary that this matter during its
decomposition be in contact with alkaline, calcareous, or magnesian
carbonates. It has been observed that rocks of a crystalline struc-
ture do not nitrify so readily when they are without the substances
which have just been named. The calcareous and magnesian rocks
which are most favorable to nitrification, under the influence of ani-
mal emanations and of vegetables in a state of decomposition, are
those which are the least coherent, or which are most porous, such
as chalk, tufa, &c. In those countries where the soil does not un-
dergo spontaneous nitrification, certain arrangements of circum-
stances, known to favor the production of saltpetre, are made : arti-
ficial i\itre-Deds are prepared. In the north of Europe where the
rocks are 'granitic, m a hut or shed uuilt of wood, a mixture is made

250 THEORY OF THE FORMATION Of NITRIC ACID.

of common earth, of calcareous sand or marl, and of wood-ashes.
This heap is watered with the urine of herbivorous animals, and the
mixture is stirred or shifted from time to time to favor the access
of the air ; and with the same view, the workmen are very careful
never to beat or press the heap, which is generally from two to two
and a half feet in thickness, and usually of the whole length of the
hut or shed. Experience has shown that the process of nitrification
goes on best in the shade. In Prussia, the practice is to wet vi'ith
the water of a dunghill a mixture composed of five parts of vegeta-
ble earth, and one part of wood-ashes and straw. With this kind
of mortar, solid walls or masses from twenty to four and twenty
feet in length, by about six feet and a half in thickness, are built,
rods of wood being introduced during the construction in eonsidera-
ole numbers, and in such a way that they can be pulled out w^hen
the mass has acquired sufficient solidity ; by this means it is obvious
that a very free access of air is secured to the interior of these
litre walls, which are always built in damp places, and thatched over
with straw to preserve them both from the sun and the rain. The
mass is watered from time to time, and after the lapse of a year,
'.he materials are held sufficiently impregnated with saltpetre to be
ivorth lixiviating.

In these artificial nitre-beds we perceive the object to be, to com-
)ine the circumstances under which the nitrates are formed in the
oil of stables, and in the cellars of human habitations. Organic
A latters, rich in azote, are, in fact, brought into contact with earthy
. kaline carbonates. The necessity that is felt in the arrangement
c * nitre-beus for the introduction of substances of animal origin,
L \ds us to presume that the greater part of the nitric acid which is
pioduced, is derived from the azote of these substances. But
whether tliis azote combines with the oxygen of the air, or with the
oy.ygen of the organic principles, we do not know — we are still ig-
norant of the way in which the acidification is effected.

Professor Liebig, setting out from the fact that azotized organic
substances always produce ammonia during their putrefaction, and
next perceiving that during the combustion of ammoniacal gas,
mixed with a large excess of hydrogen, there is always oxidation of
the azote, concludes that nitrification is the result of the slow com-
bustion of the ammonia which is the product of the azotized matters
in progress of decomposition. The azote of ammonia is indeed
oxidated under favor of divers conditions which it is easy to secure.
In burning animal substances by means of oxide of copper, it is well
known how many precautions must be taken to prevent the appear-
ance of nitrous acid ; and on the contrary, by taking measures to
favor th.>, production of this acid, for example, by passing a current
of ammoniacal gas over peroxide of iron or manganese in a red hot
tube, abund.ince of nitrate of ammonia is obtained. The same re-
sult follows exposure of a mixture of oxygen and ammoniacal gas
to the action of incandescent spongy platinum. The determining
cause of the acidification of the azote, which forms an element of
the ammonia, is probably due to this, that during the combustion two

DETECTION OF NITRATES IN THE SOIL. 251

bodies are formed which are capable of combining immediately :
nitric acid, on one hand, and on the other water, without which this
acid could not exist. The phenomenon, however, only takes place
in this instance at a considerably elevated temperature. At ordi-
nary temperatures, combustion of the elements of ammonia has not,
as far as 1 know, yet been observed ; and in a series of experiments
which I undertook, proceeding all the while upon ideas completely
in conformity with those advanced by Liebig, I did not succeed in
forming any nitrates by enclosing mixtures of chalk, potash, «&c., in
an atmosphere composed of oxygen and ammoniacal vapor.

In a communication made to the Academy of Sciences, M. Kuhl-
man announces that he had ascertained the presence of nitrate of
ammonia in the products of the putrefaction of animal matter. If
this announcement be confirmed, if nitric acid be in reality one of
the numerous products of the putrid fermentation, the nitrification of
soils in contact w-ith organic matters would be readily explicable.
I must say, however, that I have sought in vain for nitrate of ammo-
nia in the product of the putrid fermentation of caseum. And after
all, we should still be at a loss to account for the formation of nitre
in many places, where it appears to be produced in the absence of
organic matter, as in the saltpetre soils of India, South America,
and Spain. Dr. John Davy, who visited the nitre districts of Cey-
lon, and Proust, who long inhabited the Peninsula, have given it as
their opinion that the nitre appears in soils which contain no vestiges
of organic matter. The assertion of Proust, however, is open to
suspicion, inasmuch as in his memoir he affirms that the lands close
to those that produce the nitre are extremely fertile, so that they
yield abundant crops without ever receiving manure. But at the
present day, it is a law that every fertile soil must contain or receive
dead organic matter. In Ceylon, according to Davy, the caverns,
the walls of which become covered with an efflorescence of salt-
petre with such rapidity, have a fertile and thickly wooded soil lying
over them, the percolations from which may readily penetrate their
interior. The observations which I had an opporti' lity of making
upon the nitre soils near Latacunga, were not perhaps of sufficient
precision ; but I think I can affirm that the soil was not without hu-
mus : patches were perceived here and there that were covered with
turf It must still be admitted, however, that in the localities which
have been particularly indicated there must exist some peculiar and
permanent cause of nitrification ; inasmuch as in other and fertile
soils, saltpetre only appears as it were accidentally, and never in
extraordinary quantity.

Whatever the value of the ingenious but still very imperfect theo-
ries of nitrification, it is still of importance to ascertain the exist-
ence or absence of nitrates in the soil. Wollaston recommended
a process which enables us to do this very readily. It is founded
on the property possessed by the aqua regia — a mixture of the nitric
and hydrochloric acids — to dissolve pure gold, which, as^is familiarly
knuwn, resists the action of either of these acids applied separately.
The soil in which the presence of a nitrate is suspected ie treated

252 FARM-YARD DUNG.

with boiling distilled water, and thrown upon a filter. The filtered
fluid is reduced by evaporation to a very small quantity, which is
then poured into a test tube, and a little pure hydrochloric acid is
added ; some particles of leaf gold are then introduced, and the
fluid is stirred with a glass rod. If any nitrates have been present,
the particles of gold are speedily dissolved.

Having now described the circumstances which determine, and
the phenomena which accompany the decomposition of dead or-
ganic matter, I have next to treat of manures in particular, of their
preparation, of their application, and of their relative values.
Speaking generally, the manure which is derived from the dejec-
tions of animals, supplied in a farm-yard with abundance of food
and of litter, used with the double object of cleanliness and health,
is the best of all. The principal substances which contribute day
by day to increase the mass of our dunghills are straw, and the ex-
cretions and urine of horned cattle, horses, hogs, &c. These va-
rious substances, besides the organic elements which enter into their
composition, further contain the various mineral substances which
are indispensable to the development of vegetables. Animal excre-
ments of every kind, in fact, when they are burned, leave quantities
of ashes which are frequently very considerable, and in which are
encountered the same saline and earthy ingredients that pre-existed
in the forage with which the animals were supplied. Excrements,
therefore, necessarily vary in their composition according to the
kind of food that is consumed, and the nature and the state of health
of the animal which produced them. Those of the herbivora have
never been sufficiently examined. Thaer and Einhof have merely
ascertained that cow-dung contains an extractive principle, partly
coagulable by heat, and that remains of the food may be separated
from it. All excrementitious matters, in fact, contain a certain
quantity of the alimentary matter which has escaped digestion,
especially when animals are abundantly supplied with food. Some
albuminous matter is also found there ; but the substance after vege-
table remains that appears to predominate is bilious.*

We know that after mastication, the food, mingled with saliva and
the secretions of the mucous glands, passes into the gullet, and from
thence into the stomach. There it imbibes gastric juice, turns sour,
becomes modified, and is finally converted into a kind of pulp which
is called chyme. Once formed, chyme passes into the small intes-
tines, where it encounters the bile and pacreatic juice, which modify
it, and cause it to separate into chyle, which is absorbed by the ves-
sels of the bowels, and excrementitious residue, which descends into
the large intestines, where it becomes a fetid mass that is expelled
from time to time by the animal.

* The latest inquiries of the physiological chemists would lead us to suspect that
this was not the case. Bile ought only to be an occasional, and even an unnatural
constituent of animal excrement, if these views be well founded. It seems that the
elements of bile added to the elements of starch supply the precise elements of fat ,• a
BUbstnnce so abundantly formed in the process of digestion. The bile that is poured
Into the upper part of the uUiucnUry cauul is probjOiiy all usod up in forming Ikt—
Sack Ed.

MANURES — URINE. 258

The bile which accompanied the fecal matter is secreted by the
liver, and is familiarly known as a viscid, bitter fluid bf a yellowish
green color and a peculiarly nauseous odor. According to M The-
nard, the bile of the ox contains : —

Water 700

Picromel* 69

Fatty matter 15

Soda, phosphate of soda, chlorides of potassium and > ,«

sodium, sulphate of soda j ^"

Phosphate of lime, oxide of iron 1

Urine is a liquid secreted by the kidneys from arterial blood ; it
passes into the bladder by the ureters. Its composition varies ac-
cording to the animals which produce it. Urea is its most charac-
teristic principle ; and in the water which it always contains in large
proportion, various saline substances and animal matter, which is re-
garded as mucus of the bladder, are encountered. The urine of the
horse, according to M. Chevreul, contains carbonate of soda, of lime,
and of magnesia, sulphate of soda, chloride of sodium, hippurate of
soda, urea, and a red-colored oil.

The urine of horned cattle has a similar compositon, with this dif-
fer ence, that it is much more watery. In the urine of our cow-
houses which had undergone change, I have ascertained the presence
of the alkaline carbonates, of common salt, and of the reddish oil
mentioned above. Having at various times had occasion to evapor-
ate considerable quantities of the urine of the horse, I always ob-
served that on coming to the boiling point, a quantity of azotized
matter which resembled albumen was coagulated. I also perceived
in the urine of herbivorous animals a volatile acid, to which its odor
is probably owing.

In the urine of the camel, M. Chevreul found the carbonates of
lime and magnesia, silica, sulphate of lime, and oxide of iron, in
very small quantities ; chloride of potassium, carbonate of potash,
sulphate of soda, in small quantities ;* sulphate of potash, in large
quantity ; urea ; an alkaline hippurate ; and a reddish oil.

The urine of the rabbit, according to Vauquelin, contains carbon-
ate of lime, of magnesia, and of potash, chloride of potassium, sul-
phate of potash, sulphur, urea, and mucus.

The urine of birds is distinguished by the large proportion of uric
acid it contains. Food, however, has a great influence upon this
proportion ; highly azotized aliments increasing it considerably.
Wollaston observed that the excrements of a fowl which was fed

* Picromel, discovered in the bile of the ox by M. Thenard, is colorless, and of the
consistence of sirup. It produces upon the tongue an acrid and bitter sensation, which
rapidly changes to a flavor slightly sugary. The recent researches of Messrs. Tiede-
mans and Gmelin have discovered in ox bile substances which had escaped the first in-
vestigations. These chemists found : 1st. a subst-ince having the smell of musk, and
which is probably one of the causes of the odor peculiar to the excrement of kine; 2d.
fatty substances ; 3d. biliary resin : 4th. a crystallized substance called taurine : 5th.
biliary sugar, of wliich azote forms one of the elements. According to Messrs. Tiedc
mann and Gmelin, the picromel of M. Thenard results from the union of sugar and
biliary resin.

254 MANURES THE PUTREFACTIVE FERMENTATIOIf .

upon herbage contained only 2 per cent, of uric acid. That of a
pheasant fed upon barley contained, on the contrary, 14 per cent. ;
and that of a falcon which fed upon flesh alone, yielded scarcely any
thing but uric acid. The urine of an ostrich was found by Fourcroy
and Vauquelin to contain uric acid in the proportion of about one six-
teenth of its mass.

I have already given the composition of urea. Hippuric acid is
an azotized acid which is readily obtained by adding a little hydro-
chloric acid to the fresh urine of the horse reduced by evaporation to
about one tenth of its original volume, when a granular crystalline
mass is precipitated. If the urine have been stale instead of fresh,
benzoic acid and not hippuric acid is obtained ; benzoic acid was, in
fact, long admitted as one of the elements of the urine of herbivorous
animals ; but it is derived from the transformation of hippuric acid
into benzoic acid and ammonia, the change being produced by con-
tact with the organic matters which putrefy so quickly in urine.
Liebig was the author of this observation; it was in operating upon
unchanged urine that he discovered hippuric acid. The following is
its composition : —

Carbon 60.7

Hydrogen .5.0

Oxygen 26.3

Azote 8-0

100.0

Uric acid has not yet been met with in the urine of mammiferous
herbivora ; but it exists in that of man, having been first discovered
in calculi from the bladder ; whence it received the name of lithic
acid. Liebig's analysis shows it to be composed of : —

Carbon 36.1

Hydrogen 2.4

Oxygen 28.2

Azole 33.4^

lOO.O

The litter most commonly used to absorb the urine of stall-kept
animals is wheat straw, which consists in principal part of lignine
or woody fibre : like all vegetable tissues, however, it contains an
azotized principle, and substances that are soluble in caustic alkalies.
In the ashes of straw, we have indicated silica as abundant, and va-
rious alkaline and earthy salts. The proportion of azote appears to
vary in t|ie ratio of from 3 to 6 per 1000. An analysis which I made
of dry wheat straw gave the following elements : —

Carbon 48.4

Hyilrogen 5.3

Oxygen 38.9

Azote 00.4to0.6

Ashes 07.0

100

Agriculturists have, in all ages, admitted that the most powerfu.
manures are derived from animal substances, an opinion or rather a
fact, which, expressed in scientific language, anounts to this, that

MANURES LVALUE OF AMMONIACAL SALTS. 255

rtie most active manures are precisely those which contain the largest
proportion of azotized principles. It is obvious indeed from every-
thing which precedes, that all the substances which contribute to
form farm dung, contain azote ; and that into many of them, such as
uric acid, hippuric acid, and urea, this element enters very largely.

When we consider the immediate changes which all highly azo-
tized substances undergo in the process of putrefaction, we can fore-
see that in their transformation into manure, they must give origin
to ammoniacal salts ; and well-established facts prove beyond d.oubt
that salts, having ammonia for their base, must be ranked among
the most powerful of all the agents in promoting vegetation. It is
sufficient, for instance, to bear in mind that in the productive hus-
bandry of Flanders, putrid urine is the manure that is employed with
the greatest success ; but we have seen that by putrefaction, the
urea of the urine is entirely changed into carbonate of ammonia.
The fields of Flanders are consequently fertilized with a solution
of carbonate of ammonia in water.

Along a great extent of the coast of Peru, the soil, which con-
sists of a quartzy sand mixed with clay, and is perfectly barren of
itself, is rendered fertile, is made to yield abundant crops, by the
application of guano; and this manure, which effects a change so
prompt and so remarkable, consists almost exclusively of ammoniacal
salts. It was with this fact before me that in 1832, when I was on
the coasts of the Southern Ocean, I adopted the opinion which I
now proclaim in regard to the utility of the salts having a basis of
ammonia in the phenomena of vegetation. I have stated my views
on this subject in a memoir published in 1837.* Previous to this
publication, however, M. Schattenmann, one of the most ingenious
manufacturers of Alsace, had already directed the attention of hus-
bandmen to this important matter, by reminding them that it is the
custom in Switzerland to add sulphate of iron or green vitriol to the
urine-vats, for the purpose of changing the carbonate of ammonia
into the sulphate, and thus obtaining a fixed instead of a highly vola-
tile salt, liable to escape and to be lost. In a communication made
in 1835 to the agricultural association of Bauchsweiler, M. Schat-
tenmann announced positively that the drainings from dunghills
thus prepared, applied upon meadow lands, produced very grea
effects.

Such, to the best of my knowledge, are the practical facts whicK
establish the useful influence of ammonia on the growth of plants
far better than the experiments of the laboratory could have done.
Nevertheless, it must be acknowledged that long before the dates
above quoted, Davy had shown that water containing s^oih of car-
bonate of ammonia is singularly favorable to the growth of wheat,
far more so, under circumstances exactly similar, than the hydro-
chlorate and the nitrate of the same base ; and this influence, it is
important to observe, Davy ascribed to the fact that carbonate of
aimnonia contains carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, and azote ; in a wcrd,

* Annates de Chimie, t. Ixv. 2e sirie, p. 301.

256 OTANTTEES — PREPARATION OF DtJNG.

all the elements that are essential to the organization of plants. The
illustrious English chemist concluded from his experiments, that the
well-known efficacy of soot, as a manure, is due, in part, to the vol-
atile alkali which it contains.

Professor Liebig, in adopting these opinions, has sought to gener-
alize them ; he has attempted to show, by very delicate experiments,
that the air which lies immediately over the surface of the ground,
always contains carbonate of ammonia, and that the same salt can
be detected in rain and snow, and in spring water. The ammonia
of the atmosphere, according to Liebig, concars with that which is
developed in manures, in the formation of the azotized principles
proper to vegetables. These ingenious ideas correspond exactly
with those which M. de Saussure made public in 1802, when he
ascertained that the gaseous azote of the air is not directly absorbed
by plants. " If azote be a simple substance, and not an element of
water," says this celebrated observer, " we must admit that plants
do not assimilate it, save in vegetable and animal extracts, and in
the ammoniacal vapors or other compounds soluble in water which
they absorb from the soil, or from the atmosphere. It is impossi-
ble," he continues, " to doubt the presence of ammoniacal vapors in
the atmosphere when we see that the pure sulphate of alumina, ex-
posed to the air, ends by becoming changed into the ammoniacal
sulphate of alumina."*

In agricultural establishments, in which the importance of manure
is duly appreciated, every precaution is taken both for its production
and preservation. Any expense incurred in improving this vital
department of the farm, is soon repaid beyond all proportion to the
outlay. The industry and the intelligence possessed by the farmer,
may indeed almost be judged of at a glance by the care he bestows
on his dunghill. It is truly a deplorable thing to witness the neglect
which causes the vast loss and destruction of manure over a great
part of these countries. The dunghill is often arranged as if it were
a matter of moment that it should be exposed to the water collected
from every roof in the vicinity, as if the business were to take ad-
vantage of every shower of rain to wash and cleanse it from all it
contains that is really valuable. The main secret of the admirable
and successful husbandry of French Flanders may perhaps lie in
the extreme care that is taken in that country to collect every thing
that can contribute to the fertility of the soil. Our agricultural so-
cieties, which are now so universally established, would confer one
of the greatest services on the community if they would encourage
by every means at their command economy of manure ; premiums
awarded to those farmers who should preserve their dunghills ia
the most rational and advantageous manner, would prove of more
real service than premiums in many other and more popular direc-
tions.

The place where the dung of a farm is laid ought to be rather
noar to the stables and cow-houses. The arrangements may be

♦ Becherches Chimiquos, p. 207.

MANURES THE DUNG-HEAP. 257

jraried to infinity, but they ounrht all to combine the following condi-
tions : 1st. That the drippings from the heap should not run away,
but should be collected in a tank or cistern under ground ; 2d. That
iio water, except the rain which falls on the dung-heap, or any wa-
ter that may be thrown upon it on purpose, should be allowed to
drain into this reservoir ; 3d. That the place for the dunghill be of
size enough to avoid the necessity of heaping the manure to too
great a height. The ground upon which the dung is piled ought to
slope gently one way or another — from each side towards the centre
is best — so that the drippings may be collected in the tank or cis-
tern. It is also desirable that the soil underneath should be clayey
and impermeable ; where it is not so, it becomes necessary to pud-
dle, to cement, or to pave the bottom of the dunghill stance as well
as the bottom and sides of the tank or cistern. The water which
runs from the heap should be thrown back upon it occasionally, by
means of a pump and hose, so as to preserve it in a state of constant
moistness. The opening into the tank, which is best placed imme-
diately under the centre of the dung-heap, is closed by means of a
strong grating in wood or iron, the bars being sufficiently close to
prevent the solid matters from passing through. One very impor-
tant arrangement, one which, in fact, must on no account be over-
looked, is that the drains from the stables and cow-houses be so
contrived, that they all run to the dunghill. The litter, however
abundant, never absorbs the whole of the urine, especially at the
time when the cattle are upon green food ; and it would be quite
unpardonable in the husbandman did he not take measures to se-
cure this, the most valuable portion of the manure at his disposal.

The litter mixed with the droppings of the animals, and soaked
with their urine, ought to be carried from the stables to the dunghill
upon a light barrow. The practice of dragging out the manure with
dung-hooks, which is often permitted when the field upon which it
is to be spread is at no great distance, ought on no account to be al-
lowed ; the loss from the practice is always considerable.

Materials ought not to be thrown on the dunghill at random or
hap-hazard ; they should be evenly spread and divided ; an uneven
heap gives rise to vacancies, which by and by become mouldy, to
the great detriment of the manure. It is of much importance that
the heap be pretty solid, in order to prevent too great a rise of tem-
perature, and too rapid a fermentation, which are always injurious.
Particular care must also be taken that the heap preserves a suffi-
cient degree of moistness, not only of its surface but of its entire
mass, which is effected by watering it frequently. At Bechelbronn,
our dung-heap is so firmly trodden down, in the course of its accu-
mulation, by the feet of the workmen, that a loaded wagon drawn
by four horses can be taken across it without very great difficulty.
The thickness of the heap is not a matter of indifference : besides
the convenience of loading, which must not be forgotten, any great
thickness may become injurious by causing the temperature to rise
too high ; circumstances occurring which should compel us to keep
a mass in this state for any length of time, the decomposition would

22*

258 PREPARATION OF MANURE.

make such progress as to occasion very great loss. Experience has
shown that the thickness of a dung-heap ought not to exceed from
about four feet and a half to six feet and a half; it ought certainly
never to exceed the latter amount.

With a vievT to prevent the drying of the dung-heap and its con-
sequences, too great a rise in temperature and destruction of manure,
it is the practice in some places to arrange the dung-heap on the
north side of a building, which is undoubtedly advantageous, but not
always to be realized, especially in connection with a farm of some
magnitude, where the immediate vicinity of a large mass of matter
in a state of putrid fermentation is not only unpleasant, but may be
unwholesome. In the north of France, the dung-heap is sometimes
shaded from the sun by means of a row of elms, and the shelter thus
secured is vastly preferable to that which it has been proposed to
obtain by means of a roof or shed, which, besides other inconveni-
ences, would be found costly at first, liable to speedy decay, &c.
If circumstances, such as the smallness of the farm, the permeable
nature of the soil, &c., prevent the construction of a reservoir, there
is risk of the dung-water being quite lost; but such waste may be
prevented by covering the bottom of the pit or stance for the dung-
heap with a bed of sand, peat marl, or any other dry and porous sub-
stance capable of absorbing liquids. This practice is often followed
by the farmers of> Alsace.

In some farms, the different kinds of dung are piled apart from
one another in particular heaps ; that of the stable being put by it-
self, as well as that of the cow-house, that of the hog-stye, and that
of the sheep-pen. In great establishments, such a separation is
often one of necessity ; but the advantages which are ascribed to it
are questionable at least, and the remarks that have been made upon
it by writers do not appear founded on any accurate observation.
Without denying that certain crops answer better when special ma-
nures are employed, it still seems to me more advantageous to pile
■»,very kind of manure together, when the difficiilties of the situation
are not such as to make this either particularly inconvenient or ex-
pensive. In this way, indeed, a dung-heap of medium constitution
is obtained, which is regarded with reason as that, the application
of which to the soil is attended with the greatest advantages in the
majority of instances. The distinction which seme have sought to
make between the relative qualities of manures of different origins
is far too absolute ; and this is the reason, without doubt, wliich
renders it so difficult to bring the observations of different agricultu-
rists to agree. Thus, according to Sinclair, the dung of the hog-
stye is the most active of all, the richest in fertilizing principles ;
according to Schwertz, on the contrary, it is the most indifferent
manure of the farm-yard.

The fact is, that manures, which are the produce of the same
animals, often present greater differences in regard to quality, than
manures which proceed from diferent sources I shall show by
and by that the value of manure dfj^ends especially upon the feeding
the age, and the condition in which the animal ia placed that pro-

PREPARATIOTT OF MANTJRE. 259

iTuces it. It is well known that the dung of cattle, fed during winter
upon straw, is greatly inferior to that which they yield when con-
suming food of a more nutritious quality.

When the litter mixed with animal excrements is accumulated in
sufficient quantity in the pit or on the dung stance, fermentation
speedily sets in, and abundance of vapor is disengaged. As car-
bonate of ammonia is among the volatile products of this decomposi-
tion, it is of importance to hold it under control ; this is done by
keeping the heap in a state of proper moistness, and in excluding as
much as possible the access of air. The daily addition of fresh
quantities of litter from the stables and stalls, contributes powerfully
to impede the dispersion of the volatile elements, which it is so im-
portant to preserve in manure ; duly spread upon the heap, each ad-
dition becomes, in fact, a fresh obstacle to evaporation ; it forms a
covering which plays the part of a condenser, at the same time that
it protects the inferior layers from the direct contact of the air. So
long as the dung-heap is kept up and attended to in this way, the
fermentation is limited to the inferior layers of the mass. Thaer
even satisfied himself that air collected from the surface of a dung-
heap, undergoing moderate fermentation, does not contain much
more carbonic acid than that -which is taken from the mass of the
atmosphere. Neither does a vessel containing nitric acid, when
placed upon the fermenting mass, produce those dense white vapors
which are a certain indication of the presence of ammonia. The
slow decomposition which it is of so much importance to effect, is
not readily secured save in masses sufficiently trodden down, and in
which the litter of different kinds has been spread as evenly as pos-
sible.

It is an important point that the manure should be carried out to
the field before the upper portions recently added begin to undergo
change, otherwise the whole mass enters into full fermentation, and
the volatile elements, being no longer arrested by the upper layer,
escape and are lost. One means of preventing this loss in any case
(which however can but rarely occur) in which there was a neces-
sity for suffering the mass to become made through its whole thick-
ness, would be to cover it with a layer of vegetable mould, in which
the volatile principles would be condensed ; the layer of earth would
in fact thus be converted into a most powerful manure.

The loss of carbonate of ammonia, during the fermentation of
farm-dung, is further prevented by the use of certain salts which
have the power of changing the volatile carbonate into a fixed salt.
It was with a view of bringing a re-action of this kind into play,
that M. Schattenmann, the able director of the manufactories of
Bauchsweiler, proposed to add to dung-heaps, in the course of their
accumulation and preparation, a certain quantity of sulphate of iron
or of sulphate of lime, either of which is decomposed by the carbo-
nate of ammonia evolved, and a fixed ammoniacal salt (the sulphate)
is produced.* The loss of ammonia from dung-heaps in the course

* Annales de Chiniie, 3e s6rje, t. Iv. d. 118

260 PREPARATION OF MAPnJRE.

of regulated fermentation, must not however be estimated too hignly ;
when the decomposition is carefully conducted, the mass having
^een well trodden and properly damped, the loss is really very small.
The gentle fermentation, secured by these means, has characters
which differ essentially from those that accompany the rapid putre-
faction which never fails to take place when matters are not well
managed. As an example of the rapid and injurious fermentation
of which I speak, I may cite that which frequently takes place in
piles of horse-dung : every one must have seen such dung-hills
loosely thrown together, left to themselves, without any addition of
water, acquiring a very intense heat in the course of a few days,
and have even heard of their taking fire. I have seen piles of this
kind reduced to their merely earthy constituents! Such are never
the results of the moderate and gradual decomposition which farm-
dung ought never to exceed. When the pit or stance is emptied,
in which a slow and equal fermentation has taken place, the superior
layer is seen to be very nearly in the same state in which it was
when it was piled ; the layer immediately beneath this one is chang-
ed in a greater degree, and sometimes exhales a slight ammoniacal
odor. In the lower strata, the modification is yet greater in degree :
the straw has lost its consistency, it is fibrous and breaks into pieces
with the greatest ease ; the mass is also progressively darker in
color as we go deeper, and on the ground it is completely black ;
the smell which this part of the heap exhales, is that of sulphuretted
hydrogen, and when it is tested, sulphate of iron is discovered ; no
doubt these sulphurous products are all the consequence of the de-
composition, under the influence of the organic matter, of the sul
phates which were contained in the manure. This is the sign by
which I know that farm-dung is duly prepared ; the presence of
sulphurets and of the hydrosulphate of ammonia will have no ill
effect upon vegetation ; for scarcely is the manure spread upon the
ground, than these products are changed into sulphates, and then
the manure emits that musky smell which is peculiar to it. Fur-
ther, there is no doubt but that the state in which a carefully tended
dung-heap is found in the end, is due to the circumstances in which
it has been placed and kept during the whole time of its preparation ;
its constituent elements would have gone through a totally different
course in the progress of their modification had they been left ex-
posed to the open air. To be satisfied of this, it is enough to re-
mark the powerful and purely ammoniacal smell which meets us in
a warm stable, especially during the summer season, upon the ground
of which the urine of the animals it contains is left to decompose.

From what has now been said, it will be understood how destruc-
tive to good manure is the custom which obtains in certain countries
of turning dung-heaps frequently, of airing them as it were, in order
to hasten decomposition. Treated in this way, stable litter, &c.,
does in fact decompose much more rapidly ; but it does so, and I
own that I do not myself clearly perceive the object proposed by it,
%t the expense of the quality ; for it is very evident that the volatile

PREPARATION OF MANTJRE. 261

principles must be dissipated and lost in the same propoition as their
points of contact with the air are multiplied.

The plan of collecting all the litter of the farm into one particular
and appropriate place, is that which is generally adopted. Never-
theless, there are countries in which the dung is left to accumulate in
the cattle- stalls, it being merely covered with fresh straw every day.
The ground thus rises continually under *he feet of the cattle, so
that it is necessary to have moveable cribs which can also be raised
by degrees. This method is so far convenient, that the necessity
for cleaning out the stable continually is avoided ; but little is gain-
ed in the end in the matter of labor, for the same mass of manure has
still ultimately to be removed. The fermentation of the manure
would be greatly accelerated by the usual high temperature of the
stables, did not the feet of the cattle tread the mass very closely,
and this and the daily addition of straw together produce the same
effect as I have indicated in treating of the management of the dung-
heap out of doors : it condenses vapors and volatile particles, and
prevents evaporation. The fact is, that in stalls and stables in which
the dung is allowed to accumulate in this way, we are not sensible
of any very offensive odor, and the animals which live in them breathe
without inconvenience, it being always understood that all communi-
cation with the exterior is not interrupted, which in fact it ought
never to be, even in cases where the stables and stalls are kept per-
fectly clean. This method of proceeding becomes almost impracti-
cable when cattle are fed upon food that is not dry, but on the contrary
that is extremely watery, such as roots, green clover, &c. ; the
quantity of urine that is then passed is so considerable, and the
excrements themselves are so copious and so liquid, that an enormous
quantity of straw would be required to absorb the liquid parts ; in
spite of any reasonable addition of litter, indeed, the animals would
still be exposed to be kept in the mire, which would doubtless become
a powerful cause of insalubrity among them.

In Belgium, according to Schwertz, manure is accumulated in the
stables by guarding against the inconveniences which the last mode
of proceeding generally implies. The cattle are placed upon a kind
of platform raised above the pavement of the stable, and the drop-
pings being withdrawn from under them, are trodden down and allowed
to accumulate upon the floor.

One inconvenience attending the use of straw, is that it is frequently
dear ; it is also scarce in some countries. In those parts of Swit-
zerland, for instance, where all the available lands are meadows, they
are obliged to economize litter as much as possible, so that they
even wash it, and thus make it serve repeatedly. Although it would
be difficult to give a reason for a practice which has the effect of
increasing the bulk of the manure, adding to the expense of transport,
and at the same time diminishing its quality ; it is, nevertheless, a
fact that this mode of proceeding has been long in use in various
Cantons. We probably only see here another means of securing
even the last particle of the excrementitious matters passed by cat-
tle, the process employed being in fact identical with that us^ed by

262 tiQtriD MAiamK.

the chemist in his most delicate analyses. In Switzerland, the urinft
that is passed by the cattle flows along a gutter which communicates
with a large reservoir containing water, in which not only are the sol-
id excrements diffused, but in which the litter is washed, this being
tlianged only twice a week. The reservoir is constructed under
the floor of the cow-house itself, in order to be protected from the
frost. The fermentation of a mass so diluted is scarcely percepti-
ble, and, save from leakage, there is no loss of decomposing animal
matter. The liquid manure is raised by means of a pump, and car-
ried to the meadow in tubs placed upon carls. In Switzerland it is
also the usage to employ the urine of cattle separately as manure,
under the name of pvrin; to this liquid manure, a quantity of sul-
phate of iron is frequently added with the view of bringing the volatile
carbonate to the state of the fixed sulphate of ammonia, as I have
already said.

Liquid manures have their advantages and their inconveniences.
We shall immediately discuss their value comparatively with that
of solid manures, and we shall be led to adopt the opinion of M. Crud
in regard to them, viz., that the advantages ascribed to them in Switz-
erland are exaggerated. Whatever the form under which manures
are applied, the question has been warmly discussed, whether it be
to the interest or disadvantage of the agriculturist to employ them
before or after they have undergone fermentation 1

Organic substances, however, are in no condition to favor the
growth of vegetables until they have undergone material changes
which modify their nature. One of the results of this change, as
we have seen, is the development of ammoniacal salts. Fresh ma-
nure, such as it comes from the stable, introduced immediately into
the ground, there undergoes precisely the same changes, and gives
rise to the same producis as it does when subjected to preparation in
a dung-heap in the manner already described ; there is only this
difference, that being scattered and mixed with a large quantity of
inert matter, the decomposition takes place much more slowly than
it does in the heap. The question which has been so actively dis-
cussed, therefore, reduces itself to this : is it advantageous to have
the manure fermented in the soil it is intended to fertilize 1 We
may be allowed to express surprise that such a question should have
been raised in the present day, and still more that the afl!irmative
answer should have been disputed by agriculturists of distinguished
merit. Some have even gone so far as to maintain that fresh ex-
crements were injurioui to vegetation. Proofs to the contrary are
readily obtained ; it is enough to recollect that in the grazing and
folding of sheep and ki.ie, the dung and urine pass directly into the
ground of our pastures and fields, and who shall say that the land
is not benefited by what it thus receives 1 Unquestionably fresh
manure in excess proves injurious to vegetables, but as much inay
be said in regard to the best-fermented dungs.

M. Gazzeri, an Italian chemist, has devoted himself with tr.e
most laudable perseverance to inquiries having for thoir object tu
I^OW that the general custom of leaving manures to become d«-

VALUE OP FRESH AND MADE MANURES. 263

composed before leading them out to the field is attended with a
considerable loss of fertilizing principles, and that it is therefore
advantageous to use them in the state in which they come from the
stable. To remove all doubts which might yet be entertained upon
the effects of unfermented manures, M. Gazzeri showed that wheat
could be successfully grown in land which had received an extraor-
dinary dose of pigeon's dung, which is regarded as one of the most
active of all manures; and horse droppings, taiven at the moment
they were passed, mixed with earth, in the proportion of one-fourth
of the whole bulk, had no injurious effect on the growth of the
cereals. To ascertain the amount of loss which fresh manures suf-
fered from fermentation, M. Gazzeri placed certain quantities, as-
certained by weight, to putrefy under favorable circumstances ; and
the decomposition completed, he weighed them again. In this way,
he ascertained that horse-dung, in the course of four n.onths, lost
more than the half of the dry matter which it contained before its
putrefaction. Davy, indeed, had already shown that there is a loss
of volatile principles, during the decomposition of fresh manures,
that must be useful to vegetation. Davy's experiment consisted in
introducing manure into a retort, the extremity of which communi-
cated with the soil under turf, and he found that in the course of a
few days the grass which was thus exposed to the emanations from
the retort, grew with particular luxuriance. Although it appears
certain, then, that in conducting the preparation of manure in the
heap with prudence, the volatile and ammoniacal principles which
appear in the course of the putrefaction may be retained, it is never-
theless unquestionable that the employment of manure directly and
without previous fermentation, would most effectually prevent the
loss of matters that must be valuable. Thaer, Schwertz, Mr Coke,
and others, have consequently admitted the advantages of the latter
procedure. In agreeing with them completely, which I do, it still
remains certain that on the greater number of farms, dung-heaps
must be formed as matter of necessity. Manure is only available at
certain determinate seasons of the year ; it cannot be carried out
and spread as it is produced. In Alsace it is carried out to the fields
on which it is to be spread whenever circumstances will permit, and
without regard to its more or less advanced state of decomposition.
The circumstances which lead to its being kept in the pit for t\\ o or
three months, also lead to the manure being half or more than half
matured before it is led out ; and this, after all, is perhaps the best
state in which it can be put into the ground. It is then easily incor-
porated with the soil, and its fertilizing principles are already in that
condition which enables them to act, within a limited time, with
greater energy than ihey would do were the manure employed quite
fresh. This is the condition in which our manures almost always
are at Bechelbronn when we carry them out : it rarely happens that
they have been three months on the stance before their removal.
Speediness of action is a point which is not without importance.
Fresh dung will always act more slowly than that which has reach-
ed a certain point of decomposition, and the advantage which mostly

264 VALUE OP FRESH AND MADE MANURES.

accrues to the farmer in forcing: his crops, will often induce him to
use manure that has ripened in the pit or stance.

In warm and moist countries, as may be conceived, it is almost
matter of indifference whether the dung be put into the ground quite
fresh, or in a state of decomposition further advanced ; its decom-
position, aided by the heat of the climate, is always effected rapidly
enough. But it is otherwise in cold climates, where the tempera-
ture which excites and maintains vegetation is often of short dura-
tion, and must at once be taken advantage of. During a great part
of the year, the ground is so cold that organic substances buried in
it are preserved with comparatively little change. Under such
climatic conditions, there is no doubt that manures in a state of for-
wardness are to be preferred. It is probably from such motives
that the extensive use of liquid manures in Switzerland is derived,
the action of these being, so to speak, immediate ; and it is with
such manure that in Flanders the cultivation of various plants that
are of great value in manufacturing processes, is carried on.

When the fermentation of manure has been managed discreetly,
and all the precautious requisite to prevent the dissipation of ammo-
niacal salts and the loss of soluble elements have been taken, there
is the immense advantage attending it, besides obtaining immediate
action, that a manure is produced of greater value under a smaller
bulk and a less weight. The dung-heap often loses a third of its
bulk in undergoing fermentation, a circumstance which occasions an
important saving in carriage. A like saving may be effected with
reference to fresh manures, by drying them in the sun, which I have
sometimes seen done ; they are thus reduced to one-third or one-
fourth of their original weight, and when the distance to which they
have to be carried is great, there may be real advantage in proceed-
ing in this way.

An objection of some moment made to the use of fresh dung to
corn lands is, that it usually contains the seeds of weeds and the
eggs of insects which nothing but putrefaction will destroy. This
objection of course loses all its weight when the land that is ma-
nured is to receive a crop which admits of hoeing ; and the custom
which obtains with us at Bechelbronn of using manure in every
state of decomposition to the first crop in the rotation, is a guaran-
tee that fresh manure is really productive of no inconvenience in
practice. Another difficulty pointed out by Thaer, is that of cover-
ing in dung so long and full of straw as fresh stable or stall dung.
This objection disappears when the manure is laid in furrows formed
by the plough, as is done in Alsace, by which means the covering in
is effected by a single operation.

If opinions are still divided upon the question whether dung ought
to be employed before or after fermentation, they are no less so as to
the mode of spreading it, and the best periods for laying it on the
land. It may be imagined that the conclusion come to upon the first
question necessarily influences, the opinions held on the second.
Thoge who believe that manure may be advantageously used in the
Btate in which it comes from the stables, are altogether indifferent io

SPREADING OF MANURE. 265

regard to the times of carryingr it out. They take advantage of every
lehiipe moment that occurs for performing this necessary work, which
is no trifling advantage ; it is the practice which we folh)w at Be-
chelbronn — we carry out our manure as we find opportunity. The
lands which are to be manured in the spring have frequently their
supply carried out during winter when the frost enables us to get
upon them. The dung first shot down in little heaps, at regular
distances, is afterwards spread as equally as possible, frequently
even upon ti.e snow ; and I have never seen any ill effect from the
practice. The custom which some farmers have of keeping dung in
large heaps in the field, in order that it may be all spread and work'
ed under at the same time by the plough, is certainly objectionable ;
the places upon which these heaps have been laid are evidently too
strongly ifianured ; no manure, save that which is quite fresh and
very long i.i the straw, or which it is proposed to spread immediate-
ly in furrows, ought ever to be laid down in large heaps upon the
field.

The method which I have recommended, of leaving manure spread
over the surface of the fields exposed to the weather for several
weeks or months, has been severely criticised. By such exposure,
it has been said the dung must lose its volatile elements, and the
rain must wash out and carry off its more soluble parts. Influenced
by such fears, some farmers do not spread their dung until the mo-
ment of ploughing it in. Such diversity of opinion among practical
men, all personally interested in deriving the greatest possible amount
of advantage from the manure they employ, mi.3t not be thought of
lightly : when different modes of procedure in agriculture are the
subjects of debate, we must not be in too great a hurry to come to
general conclusions. Climate is not without its influence in the
question which now engages us. In Alsace, experience has pro-
nounced in favor of the practice followed ; but in other countries
there may be very good reasons for not proceeding in the same way.
In Alsace, where the annual depth of rain amounts to 26.7 inches,
no more than 4.3 inches fall during the three months of December,
January, and February. In a district where a larger quantity of
rain falls during the winter, the manure would probably suffer from
the procedure followed in Alsace.

The quality of the manure must also be taken into consideration.
A dunghill which contained a large proportion of carbonate of am-
monia, which exhaled a strong smell of volatile alkali, would infal-
libly lose in value by any unnecessary or prolonged exposure to the
ail ; but the loss becomes insignificant when the manure, by good
managemert, is brought to contain but a small proportion of volatile
ammoniacal salts, as happens with manures which have received
additions of gypsum ; or otherwise, when the dung-heap has been
carried out fresh, and at a season so cold that it can be kept without
material change until the period arrives for spreading it over or
working it into the ground. When the rains are not excessive,
the soluble parts of manure spread upon the ground penetrate and
remain in its upper stratum, exactly as happens when, instead of

83

266 ELEMENTARY COMPOSITION OF MANURE.

being buried, it is spread upon the herbage in full growth. The
plan of top-dressing is often of great use, and is another and a prac-
tical proof of how little detriment results from leaving manure ex-
posed to atmospherical vicissitudes. The procedure by top-dressing
has arisen from necessity : it was first resorted to with the view of
giving the land an addition to the inadequate dose of manure which
it had received before it was sown ; but it has been found to answer
so well in many districts, that it has been continued. We have em-
ployed it at Bechelbronn upon various occasions, even to hoed crops,
and with decided advantage, the main one being, that time was gained
for the production of manure.

In the district of Marck, the practice of top-dressing lands sowed
with winter grain, is rapidly gaining ground; the dressing takes
place when the blade is already above ground ; and experience proves
that the passage of the wagons over the field, and the feet of the
horses and the men, cause no appreciable mischief; all traces of
them very soon disappear. Nevertheless it is decidedly better to
take advantage of a hard frost, when the land will bear carts,
&c., for the performance of the process. This plan, according to
Schwertz, is found to answer extremely well in Switzerland, for
hemp, and indeed for almost every thing else. In my opinion, top-
dressing ought to be viewed as a means of giving the soil, already
under a crop, the manure which we had been compelled to refuse it
at an earlier period. Still, Thaer assures us, and his authority is
always of great weight, that he has loo frequently seen the good
effects of top-dressings to beans, peas, and leguminous crops in gen-
eral, not to be satisfied of the general advantages of the method, in
connectiim with light soils especially, in which the sowing may have
been late.

The elementary composition of farm-dung is a point which is not
undeserving of consideration. I have made repeated analyses of
that of Bechelbronn, operating upon it in a medium state of decom-
position. The animals which had produced this dung were thirty
horses, thirty oxen, and from ten to twenty hogs. The absolute
quantity of moisture was ascertained by first drying in the air a con-
siderable weight of dung, and, after pounding, continuing and com-
pleting the drying of a given quantity in the oil-bath, in vacuo, at a
temperature of 230° F.

The dung prepared in the winter of the year —

1837-8 contained 20.4 > per cent, of

1838-9 22.2J dry matter.

Prepared in summer of 1839 19.6

Medium 20.7

Water 793

Analysis yielded the following results :

Ttmei •f preparation. Carbon. Hydrogen. Oxygen. Aiote Aihct.

Winter of 1837-8 32.4 3.8 25.8 1.7 36.3

32.5 4.1 26.0 1.7 36.7

38.7 4.5 28.7 1.7 96.4

Bprin«ofl838 36.4 4.0 191 2 4 38.1

1839 400 4.3 27.6 S. 4 25.7

" •♦ 34.5 4J 27.6 2JQ HA

COMPOSITION OF FARM-YARD DUNG. 267

On the average, farm-dung dried at 238° contains :

Carbon 35.8

Hydrogen 4.2

Oxygen 25.8

Azote ; 2.0

Suits and earths 32.2

100.0

When moist, its composition is represented by —

Carbon 7.41

Hydrogen 0.87

Oxygen 5.34

Azoie 0.41

Salts and earths 6.67

Water 79.30

100.0

The constitution of dung-heaps must of necessity vary ; those,
however, vvliicii have a common origin do not seem to present very
great differences in the proportion of their elements. Thus, horse-
dung, in the south of France, yielded, on analysis, in the dry state,
2.4 per cent, of azote. This manure contained only 61 per cent, of
moisture.

Did we but know the composition and the quantity of the excre-
tions passed, in the course of the twenty-four hours, by the various
animals which contribute to the production of manure, we should be
able to determine approximatively what the elements are which have
been eliminated in the course of the fermentation. It would be suf-
ficient to compare the elementary matter in the litter, or fresh dung,
as it comes from the stable, with that which exists in the fermented
or prepared manure. 1 have data which I think sufficient tO" enable
me to institute this comparison. It must always be, borne in mind,
however, that the analyses which I shall now^ detail were made
upon the excrements of a single individual of each kind. It would
certainly have been preferable to have had average analyses of
average qualities ; but the object I had in view, when I undertook
these experiments, was quite different from that which I have nov;
before me.

EXCRETIONS OF THE HORSE.*

The horse was fed upon hay and oats. The urine and the excre-
ments together contained 76.2 per cent, of moisture. In twenty-foui
hours the excretions weighed — moist, 34.2 lbs. ; dry, 8.1 lbs.

Their composition was found to be —

In the dry state. Moist ditto.

Carbon 38.6 9.19

Hydrogen 5.0 1.20

Oxygen 36.4 8.66

Azote 2.7 4.13

Salts and earth 17.3 4.13

Water " 76.17

1)0.0 100.0

• The size of the horse was rather below the average usual size of farm YiaraaB.

tGS *,OMPOSITION OF FARM-YARD DUNt

EXCRETIONS OF THE COW.

The cow was fed upon hay and raw potatoes. The urine and the
excrements together contained 86.4 of moisture. The weight of
the excretions, in twenty-four hours, was — moist, 80.5 lbs. ; dry,
10.9 lbs.

Their composition by analysis was :

Dry. WeU

Carbon 39-8 5-39

Hydrogen 4-7 0.64

Oxyfren 35-5 4.81

Azote 2.6 0.36

Sails and earth 17.4 2.36

Water ■ " 86.44

100.0 100.00

EXCRETIONS OF THE PIG.

The pigs, upon which the observations were made, were from six
to eight months old. They were fed upon steamed potatoes. The
urine and the excrements lost by drying 82 per cent, of moisture.
The average of the excretions yielded by one pig in twenty-four
hours was : moist, 9.1 lbs. ; dry, 1.6 lb.

Composition :

Dry. Moirt.

Carbon 38.7 6.97

Hydiogen 4-8 0-86

Oxygen 32-5 5.85

Azote 3.4 O-Gl

Salts and earth 20-6 87.1

Water " 82.00

100.0 100.00

The litter that is generally employed is wheat-straw. This straw,
in the condition in which it is used, contains 26 per cent, of moist-
're.

Its composition is :

Dried. Undriea. *

Carbon 48.4 35.8

Hydiogen 5.3 3.9

Oxygen 38.9 28.8

Azote 0.4 00.3

Salt*- and earth 7-0 5.2

Water " 26.0

100.0 100.0

At Bechelbronn each horse receives daily as litter 4.4 lbs. ; each
cow 6.6 lbs. ; each pig 4.1 lbs. of straw.

To the stables and the cow-houses together are given every
twenty-four hours 132.0 lbs. of straw for thirty horses ; 198.0 lbs.
for thirty horned cattle ; 06.0 lbs. for sixteen pigs; making 396.0
lbs. of straw, estimated when dry at 292.6 lbs.

The composition of the materials which constitute the dung pro-
duced in one day are set forth in the following table :

COMPOSITION OF FARM- YARD DUNG.

269

ExcretioiiB yieWad
ill 24 hours by

Wei-ht
wlieii dry.

Wei-ht

in the wet

state.

Elements of the dry matter.

Water

Carb.

Hydro-

Oxygen

Azote.

Salts &
earths.

tin^ till!
wet mailer

Tliiity horses

Thirty horned cattle

Sixteen pigs

Straw used in litter

lbs.

245.08

326.36

26.40

292.60

lbs.

1028.28

2416.48

146.74

396.00

lbs. 1 IDS.

94.60 12.32

130.241 «.i.4U

10.12 1.32

41.6815.62

lbs.

89.10

116.16

8. .58

113.74

lbs.
6.60
8.58
0.88
1.10

lbs.

42.46

56.98

5.50

20.46

lbs.

783.20

2089.12

120.34

103.40

The average or mean composition of this mixture may be taken
as follows :

In the dry state.

In the wet state.

Carbon.

Hydrog. Oxygen.

Azote.

Salts.

Carbbn.

Hydrog.

Oxygen.

Azote.

Salt.

Water.

42.3

5.0 1 36.7

1.9

14.1

9.4

1.2

8.2

0.4

3.2

77.6

That of the resulting Bung :
1 1 1 1 1 1

35.8

4.2

25.8

2.0

32.2

7.4

0.9

5.3

0.4

6.7

79.3

On comparing the composition of the dung-heap with that of the
different kinds of litter collected in a day, little difference is ob-
served ; the larger quantity of saline and earthy matters discovered
in the fermented manure is readily explained from the additions of
ashes incorporated with it, and also by the accidental admixture of
earthy matters proceeding from the sweepings of the court, the
earth adhering to the roots consumed as food, &c. — refuse of every
kind, the residue after cleansing the various kinds of fodder for the
stable and stall, &c., all goes to the dung-heap. Lastly, and with
reference to the elements that are liable to be dissipated in the state
of gas, or which'may be changed into water, the azote is percepti-
bly in larger quantity in the prepared manure than in the unfer-
mented litter and excretions. This is at once seen on comparing
the composition of these two products after the saline and earthy
matters have been deducted.

The composition of fresh litter, is.
That of dung

Carbon. Hydrogen.
.49.3 5.8

..52.8 6.1

Oxygen.
42.7
33.1

Azote.

2

3.0

Dung is, therefore, somewhat richer in carbon than litter, and it
contains less oxygen. It is the property of lignine undergoing de-
composition, that it yields a product which relatively abounds more
in carbon than the original matter, in spite of the carbonic acid
which is formed and thrown off during the alterations undergone ;
this is owing to the elements of water being thrown off in relatively
still larger quantity at the same time.

Fermented dung contains less oxygen than that which comes
from tb^ stable; it ought also to contain less hydrogen: but this
analysis does not proclaim. It must be observed, however, that the

23*

270 DURABILITY OF MANURES.

quantity of oxygen (4.6,) the loss of which appears would require
no more than 0.57 of hydrogen to constitute water ; and this is a
quantity which jt is impossible to answer for in experiments made
upon such substances without excessive delicacy of tnanipulation.
This much may be certainly concluded, viz.. that manure which has
undergone preparation contains a larger relative proportion of azote
than the substances which have concurred in its production ; and for
this reason, it is very probable that upon the whole a very trifling
loss of this element is experienced if the fermentation has heen
carefully managed, and the manure has been carried out and dis-
tributed upon the land before its decomposition is loo far advanced.
This conclusion, which I am particularly anxious to establish, is
partly explained by the interesting researches of Mr. Hermann,
which go to prove that woody fibre in rotting attracts and fixes a
quantity of the atmospheric air.

Azote is in fact the element which it is of highest importance to
augment and to preserve in dung. The organic substances which
are the most advantageous in producing manures are precisely those
which give origin by their decomposition to the largest proportion
of azotized matters soluble or volatile. I say by their decomposi-
tion, because the mere presence of azote in matters of organic ori-
gin does not suffice to constitute them manure. Coal, for example,
contains azote in very appreciable quantity ; and yet its ameliorating
influence upon the soil is absolutely null ; this happens from coal
resisting the action of those atmospheric agencies which determine
that putrid fermentation, the ultimate result of which is always the
production of ammoniacal salts, or other azotized compounds favor-
able to the growth of vegetables. While we admit the high impor-
tance, indeed the absolute necessity of azotic principles in manures,
then, we must not therefore conclude that these principles are the
only ones which contribute to fertilize the earth.

It is unquestionable that the alkaline and earthy salts are further
indispensable to the accomplishment of the phenomena of vegeta-
tion ; and it is far from being sufficiently shown that the organic
principles void of azote play a. merely passive part when added to
the soil. But with few exceptions, the lixed salts, water or its ele-
ments, and carbon superabound in manure. The element which
exists there in smallest proportion is azote, which is the one also that
is most apt to be dissipated during the alteration of the bodies that
contain it. For these reasons azote is really the element whose
presence it is of highest moment to ascertain ; its proportion is that
in fact which fixes the comparative value of different manures.

Since it is by undergoing modification in the course of their de-
composition by putrefaction that those azotized substances which are
favorable to vegetation are developed in quaternary compounds, it
will be readily understood that all things else being equal, a manure
which is completely decompoundable into soluble or gaseous products
in the course of a single season, will exert in virtue of this alone
the whoie of its uselul influence upon the first crop. It is entirely
dififereot if the manure decomposes more slowly ; its actioa upon ti'O

STRAW, STEMS, ETC. :271

first crop will be less obvious, but its influence will continue lonjrer.
There are manures which act, it may be said, at the moment they
are put into the ground ; there are others, the action of which con-
tinues during several years. Nevertheless two manures, although
acting within periods so different in point of extent, will produce
the same final result if they severally contain the same dose of
azotic elements, if they are of the same intrinsic value.

The durability of manures, the length :f time during which they
will continue to exert their influence, is a matter of great impor-
tance. It often depends on their state of cohesion, or on their in-
solubility, though climate and the nature of the soil have also a
marked influence on their decomposition and consequent effects. It
}s not easy in the present state of knowledge to predict with cer-
tainty how long the beneficial effects of a given manure will con-
tinue to be felt ; but we know well enough what will hasten the
decomposition of manure, and what will retard this final result, and
so apportion as it were the fertilizing principles among the different
crops in the rotation. xA.ware of the importance of azote in manures,
M. Pay en and I undertook an extensive series of analyses, with a
view to ascertain the proportion of this principle in the various mat-
ters and mixtures made use of in the improvement of the soil. This
labor enabled us to class manures ; and assuming farm-dung as the
standard, to refer each to its place in a comparative scale, I shall
give the conclusions to which we came in the tabular form ; but be-
fore doing this, I think it necessary to premise a few observations
upon the several manures, or substances usually employed in prepar-
ing manures.

Straw, looody stems, haum, leaves, and weeds. The straw^ of
corn, the haum and stalks of various plants of farm growth, weeds of
allv kinds, and leaves collected in the woods, all contribute to in-
crease the supply of manure.

Slraio is the article that is generally employed for litter ; its hol-
low tubular structure, which makes it apt to imbibe urine, renders it
peculiarly valuable for this purpose ; and it at the same time sup-
plies a soft and warm bed for the cattle. The weight of the straw
used as litter may be doubled by the absorption of urine and admix-
ture with excrements ; but it is by its very nature and of itself a
manure which is not to be slighted, since it contains from 2 to 6
thousandths of azote.

The stems of leguminous plants — bean and pea straw— are much
more highly azotiz'ed than the straw of corn ; it is certainly best to
consume this article as forage when it is not too woody and hard.
As litter it is often unfit to form a good bed for cattle, and should
therefore not be so employed alone ; but it presents the t\yofold ad-
vantage of adding to the manure a large proportion of azotized prin-
ciplesTand at the same time of effecting a saving of straw. At
Bechelbronn we have found it very advantageous to mix a certain
quantity of the dried stems of the Madia saiiva (gold of pleasure)
\»ith both our cowhouse and stable litter.

In fttrest districts, the leaves of trees are frequently used aa lit-

1872 LEAVES ^BEAN-STRAW.

ter ; they perhaps absorb urine in smaller quantities than straw iloe».
but as they are much more highly azotized, they greatly improve the
quality of the dung. It is desirable that the materials used for litter
should be capable of imbibing a large quantity of liquid ; and these
same materials are by so much the more advantageous as the pro-
portion of azote which enters into their composition is high. The
leaves of trees combine both of these conditions, and are therefore
an immense resource in districts where they can be procured in
abundance. Where the woods are strictly preserved, the removal
of the leaves is generally prohibited ; and it is doubtless injurious
to deprive the soil of them in young plantations ; but where the tim-
ber is further advanced, the objections to their remi>val are infinitely
less, and it is therefore generally permitted to carry them away
within certain limits. And when it is seen that from natural causes
a great part of the leaves is actually lost to the soil of the forest,
the wind sweeping them into the ravines, whence they are carried
away by the rains, it is evidently far better to allow the poorer cul-
tivators to profit by them. The benefit obtained appears the greater,
as the time and labor bestowed in collecting the leaves is not taken
into the reckoning.

Bean straw, and other stalks of a very hard and thready nature,
make but indifferent litter, they are often so hard that they hurt cat-
tle : and then their cuticle being impermeable, they absorb little or no
urine. It has been proposed to crush them in the mill or to cut them
in pieces, but either of these processes is attended with expense.
The best thing to do would sometimes be to place them where they
would get crushed under the wheels of the farm carts. The use of
woody stems of every description would be attended with unques-
tionable saving in the useful article of straw, and it must never be
forgotten that to economize straw as litter, is to increase the quan-
tity of available forage. If, for example, it were possible to reduce
to the state of litter the woody stems of the Jerusalem artichoke in
places where this vegetable is grown to any extent, the advantages
would be very decided ; the quantity of these stalks collected from
an acre may amount to from four to five tons ; the pith of which
they are almost entirely composed is of a very spongy nature and
well fitted to absorb fluids. These stalks are light, and properly
bruised, would probably replace an equal weight of straw, first as
litter and then as an element of the dunghill, instead of being burn-
ed as at present to heat the oven or to boil the copper, which seerns
of all methods the worst to derive any advantage from the woody
haum, whether of the Jerusalem artichoke, the potato, rape, &c.
These substances contain about 4 per 1000 of azote, and are most
profitably transformed into manure. We have found that by placing
them at the bottom of the dung-heaps, they end by undergoing de-
composition ; even the most woody stems of vegetables, indeed, de-
compose pretty rapidly when ihey are impregnated with urine and
mixed with the droppings of animals. Mere moisture without other
addition does not suffice, they then rot with extreme slowness.

The green parts of vegetables buried in the ground with the wa-

GREEN MANURES. 273

ler they contain, undergo decomposition rapidly ; the best plan of
using them as manure would therefore be to plough them in at once,
were there not certain objections to this. In the first place it cannot
always be done, on account of the season and the crops upon the
ground ; and then it might be imprudent to return to the earth the
noxious weeds which had just been pulled up, frequently full o/
seeds, which would not fail to make their existence known before
long. It is besides often impossible to bring loads of weeds to the
farmstead ; the best thing that can then be dont, is to change them
rapidly into manure in a corner of one of the fields which has pro-
duced them. This is readily accomplished by means of lime ; a
bed is first made of the weeds about 14 inches thick, this is ther»
covered with a thin layer of quick-lime, from half an inch to an inch
in thickness ; another layer of weeds is laid on, and then another
layer of quick-lime, and so on in succession. After a few hours the
action between the dry lime and the moist herbage begins, and it
may be so intense as even to go the length of burning, to prevent
which the pile must be covered with earth or with turf, and every
means used to prevent the access of air. The process is generally
complete within twenty-four hours, and the heap may then be spread
as manure. Before proceeding to such an operation, however, it
wouM be highly proper to calculate its cost. All depends on the
price of the lime and the labor ; and all things considered, I myself
much doubt whether the plan could be followed with advantage.

Green manures. Under this title I include the green parts of
vegetables which form part of our crops, such as the haum of po-
tatoes, the outer leaves of carrots, cabbages, beet, turnips, &c.
These articles are at once forage and manure, and it is for the hus-
bandman to decide in conformity with his position and particular
resources whether he ought to bury them at once, or to use them
first as food for cattle.

From my own experience I should say that the leaves of beet
and of turnips, and potato haum were articles which ought only to
be given to cattle in cases of necessity. It is generally much better
to bury them in the ground immediately after the crop is gathered ;
if they be very indifferent food, they are on the contrary excellent
manure, superior in quality even to the best farm dung. From the
experiments I have made on this subject, I find that the potato tops
from an acre of ground may be equal to 6 or 7 hundred weight of
that manure presumed to be dry ; and the leaves of the beet, from
the same extent of surface, are equal to more than 21 hundred
weight of the same manure, also in a state of dryness. It is among
green manures that we are to class the sea-weed or marine plants,
which in many places are employed for improving the soil. These
cryptogamic plants, which abound in azote, have a^fertilizing power
superior to that of common dung, a fact which explains the great
store which is set in Brittany by the sea-weed that is collected on
its coasts. Sea-weed is employed either fresh and as it comes from
the sea, or half dried or macerated, or roasted, and even partially
Uiraed. It appears to act at once in virtue of the azoiizcd or

874 GEEEN MANURES — SEA-WEED.

ganic matters which it contains, of the hygrometric propert'cs which
it possesses, and of the saline substances which enter into its com.
position. The agriculturists of Brittany have employed sea-weed
as manure from time immemorial ; and so have the people oi
Scotland and Ireland. In Brittany, the sea-weed is gathered at
periods fixed by law. The first gathering, as well as that which
has been cast up by the waves, is given up to the poor. The gath-
erings then take place at regular intervals by means of a kind, of
cutting rake. The sea-weed cut from the rocks is piled upon rafts
or thrown into barges, and carried to the shore ; and there is a tiade
carried on in the article all along the shores of the channel between
Genest and Cape La Hogue, from the Chansey Isles, and from the
coast of Calrados.

When sea-weed is employed in the fresh state, it is ploughed in
as speedily as possible. For those kinds of crops which require made
manures, the sea-weed is stratified with dung and so left to ferment.
In some places the sea-weed is roasted or imperfectly burned, by
which, while a large proportion of the vegetable tissue is destroyed,
an azotized product is still left behind. Before burning the sea-
weed, it is exposed for a time to the air and the rain, and it is then
dried, being frequently turned. In this state, it is even used as fuel
in places where wood is scarce. One great advantage in sea-weed
which has been particularly indicated, is its total freedom from the
seeds of noxious weeds.

Aquatic plants which grow in fresh water may also be employed
as manure ; the common reed cut and buried green, decomposes
rapidly. And here I may mention that to destroy reeds which are
often a cause of great annoyance in ponds, Schwertz recommends
lowering the water about 16 inches, cutting the plant, and then rais-
ing the water to its old level ; the water enters the interior of the
Mems and they all die in a very short space of time.

Crops which are buried green, for the improvement of the soil,
are also to be ranked in the list of the manures which now engage
lis. The plan of burying green crops dates from the most remote an-
tiquity ; it was greatly recommended by the Romans, and is followed
in Italy at the present day. The plants usually grown for the pur-
pose of being buried green are colza or colewort, rape, buckwheat,
tares, trefoil, &c. The preference, however, is given to one or
other of the leguminous plants, such as tares, lupins, &c., plants
which appear to have the highest power of extracting azotized prin-
ciples from the atmosphere ; and indeed the value of the whole pro
cess is founded upon this fact, for otherwise it would be impossible
to give any reason for this long accredited mode of improving the
soil. This, too, is one of the ways in which fallowing becomes use-
ful ; it is not merely the rest which the land thus obtains, it is also
benefited by the vegetables which grow upon it spontaneously, which
come to maturity and die, leaving in this way in the ground all they
had attracted from the atmosphere, or fixed from the water with
which they had been supplied.

SeedSf Oil-cake. It is in the seed that by fw the largest proper

OIL-CAKE MANURE. 275

tion of the ar.otized matter assimilated by vegetables during theit
growth is finally concentrated at the period of their maturity. Seeds
are consequently very p(»werful manures, and great advantage is
taken of them. In Tuscany, lupin seed is sold as manure; it con-
tains 3^ per cent, of azote. It is employed after its germinating
power has been destroyed by boiling or roasting. The cultivation
of the lupin is carried on in districts, the situation of which is such
that difficulty would be experienced in exporting more bulky crops.
Grains from the brewery would also make excellent manure Were it
not generally found more advantageous to use them as food for cat-
tle. In some places, however, where there is no adequate demand
for them in this direction, they are dried upon a kiln, and are then
equal to twice and a half their weight of farm dung; in some places
they are actually sold at a proportionate price. The state if divis-
ion of grains admits of their being regularly spread. In some parts
of England, grains are used in the proportion of from 40 to 50
bushels per acre for wheat or barley.*

The refuse of the grape in wine countries contains a large quantity
of azotized matter. The decomposition of the grape stones being
slow, this refuse answers admirably as a manure for vines.

Oleaginous seeds after the extraction of the oil leave a residue
which is an article of commerce, and is familiarly known under the
name of cake. Oil contains no appreciable quantity of azote ; this
principle is contained entirely in the cake, which becomes through
this alone most excellent manure. The proportion of azote which
cake contains, varies from 3| to 9 per cent. Oil-cake, from its mode
of preparation, contains but very little moisture, and consequently of-
fers great facilities in the way of carriage ; it may be taken without
difficulty to situations whither a load of dung could scarcely be carried.

Cake is applied in two modes : 1st. In powder, and by sowing
upon the field, sometimes mixed with the seed. 2d. Mixed in water
or in the drainings of the dung-hill, in which case the liquid contain-
ing the products of the decomposition of the cake is distributed over
the land. By putrefaction under water, cake yields a matter of ex-
treme fetor, comparable both in point of smell and of effects on vege-
tation to human excrement obtained from privies.

Although cake, from the large proportion of albumen and legumen
which it contains, be an excellent food for cattle, it is still found
more advantageous in many districts to use it as manure than for
feeding. England imports oil-cake from all parts of the continent.
France alone, from 1836 to 1840, exported more than 117,860 tons
of the article. Oil-cake has been particularly recommended as
manure for light sandy soils. When the soil is clayey and cold,
Schwertz recommends a mixture of one part of lime and 6 parts of
powdered cake. To me, however, the addition of lime has always
appeared a questionable auxiliary in such manures as give rise readily
to ammoniacal products, as is the case with oil-cake. For clayey
lands, it would perhaps be advisable to employ oil-cake in a statn of

** Sinclair, Agricniture^ vol. i.

B76 REFUSE OF BEET AS XTANURE.

decomposition and diffused in water ; its effects, I imagine, would
not he doubtful.

Oil-cake, as a mar.ure, is employed at very different seasons, ac-
cording to the nature of the husbandry. It is always well to employ-
it in rainy weather. Its effect is always certain, if it comes on to
rain two or three weeks after it has been put into the ground.
Drought suspends its action ; it frequently happens, indeed, that the
first crop shows none of its good effects ; but these never fail to ap-
pear in subsequent crops. Schwertz remarks very properly, that
this circumstance has led many farmers to overlook the real advan-
tages that belong to this manure. Cake, in fact, according to the
dryness or moistness of the season, may act as a manure either of
difficult or of easy decomposition, and so produce more immediate or
more remote effects. In England about 800 weight of oil-cake per
acre are commonly applied. Mr. Coke, of Holkham, ploughed in the
powdered cake about six weeks before sowing turnips, but it is held
more economical and more advantageous to strew it in fine powder
along the furrow with the seed. The latter view, however, must not
be too confidently acted on by farmers ; the general recommendation
to sow the fields with powdered cake, either some weeks before 'or
some weeks after putting it in the seed, and when the plants have
already sprung, appears to be the right one. We have various ob-
servations made by one of our most experienced practical farmers
which prove that oil-cake used dry and without mixture often pro-
duces the most injurious effects upon germination. In September,
1824, M. Vilmorin, desiring to make a comparative trial of different
pulverulent manures, strewed a quantity of powdered colewort-cake
upon a piece of red clover. Upon all the parts of the field which
had received other manures, applied in the same way, the clover
sprung perfectly ; but that which had received the oil-cake continu-
ed absolutely naked ; the cake had been employed in the proportion
of about 800 cwt per acre. The same result was also obtained in
a trial made with vetches and gray winter peas.* Duhamel, refer-
ring to similar facts, recommends the cake to be applied ten or
twelve days before sowing. In Flanders, from 6 to 7 cwt. per acre
is the quantity generally employed for wheat crops, and it is scatter-
ed over the surface before winter sets in, when the grain is already
above the ground.

The pulp of the beet-root vihich has been employed in the sugar
manufactories of France and Flanders, is an article which as food for
cattle is known not to be inferjftr to the root before it has undergone
expression, and it contains nearly the same proportions of sugar, al
bumen, &c. It is, therefore, always used as food to as great an ex
tent as possible. But the article is kept with difficulty, and the pro
duction at times far exceeds the powers of consumption, so that i
has to be made into manure, for which it answers excellently. Tin
skimmings and dregs which are collected in the process of suga»
making, are also available as manure. They contain about the sam<
amount of azote or azotized matter as farm dung, and are therefor*

• Vilnjorin, in Malson Rnstiin<> vol. i. p. 204.

REFUSE OF THE SUGAR-HOUSE, ETC. 277

of similar value. The animal charcoal of the sugar refinery, after
it has served its office there, is an admirable manure. It is, in fact
bone or ivory-black, mixed with the coagulated blood which has been
employed to clarify the sirup by entangling impurities, and a very
small quantity of sugar. This mixture, so rich in azotized princi-
ples, used actually to be turned into the sewers until the year 1824,
when M. Payen showed its value as manure, since which time near-
ly 10,000 tons have been annually employed in ameliorating the soil,
to the great advantage of practical agriculture. The importance
of the trade in this residue of the sugar-house, and complaints of the
occasional indiflferent quality of the article, attracted the attention of
the department of the Inferior-Loire in 1838, and led to the appoint-
ment of an inspector of the manure shipped from the port of Nantz.
I may here observe, that in testing a manure it is by no means
enough to limit attention to the quantity of organic matter which it
contains. The only sure means is to determitie the amount of azote •
it is not organic matter, but the amount of azotized organic matter
upon which almost alone depends the value of the manure.

The residue of the sugar refinery is another of those articles
which presents an occasional anomaly in its application, and which
must not be left unnoticed. Its eflfect upon the ground has not only
been extremely variable, but it has sometimes happened that this
manure, laid on very soon after coming from the manufactory, has
been found decidedly injurious to vegetation. Kept for some time,
for a month or two» in a heap before being applied, its effect has no
only been found more certain, but also uniformly favorable.

It is not difficult to explain these divers and opposite influences :
the sugar contained in the refuse undergoing fermentation yields
irst alcohol, and than acetic and lactic acids. Employed in this
state, the substance must necessarily prove injurious to vegetation.
It is only after it has lain for a sufficient length of time exposed to
the air, to have had the animal matter it contains changed into am-
monia, and the organic acids engendered saturated with this base,
that it becomes truly useful to vegetation. The heap indeed then
shows alkaline, not acid re-action.*

The residue of the starch manufacturer, the fetid water which is
obtained in such quantity in the process of making starch from grain,
is a powerful manure, and ought not to be suffered to run to waste.

The pulp or residue of the potato which is now produced in con-
siderable quantity in the potato starch manufactories, is known to
be an excellent article of food for hogs and cattle. Towards the
end of the season, however, it is apt to be of very indifferent quality,
and green food having by this time come in abundantly, it often
goes to the dung-hill. In the dry state, it is worth its own weight
of farm dung; wet, 100 of the pulp may be equal to about 131 of
farm-yard dung. The water which has served for washing out the
starch from the pulp, as in the case of wheat and other grain, coa-
tains an organic substance which when dried constitutes pulverulent

* Payen and Boussingault, Ann. de Chimie, v. iii. p. 95, 36 seJie
24

278 ANLMAL REMAINS.

Taanure that is equal to about half its weight cf: he dry manure prtv
pared from night soil, which the French call pc idrette. M. Daillj
made a cotnparative trial of these two kinds cf manure, and from
actual experiment found that 200 parts of the deposite from th« starch
manufactory might be used for 100 of poudrette. Even the water
that is used in the manufacture, and from which tlie subsiance m
question is deposited, is an excellent manure when thrown upon the
ground, a circumstance which is by so much the more fortimate that
this water by standing putrefies and throws off' most utFensive ex-
halations. By using the liquor to his fields, at once, M. Dailly pre-
vents every kind of annoyance to himself and his neighbors, and
moreover from his great starch manufactory he realizes in this way
an additional profit which he estimates at upwards of jC60 per an-
num. Analysis has shown that 100 of this water from the potato
starch manufactory represents 17 of moist farm-yard dung.

In cider countries, the ■pulp of the apples that have been pressed
is always thrown upon land as manure. At Bechelbronu we reserve
it for our Jerusalem artichokes ; in Normandy it is thought excel-
lent for meadows and young orchards.- Analysis of the pulp of ap-
ples grown in Alsace shows that when dry it contains a quantity of
azote, which places it on the same footing as farm-yard dung,
Sinclair informs us that in Herefordshire the pulp of the cider press
is made into good manure by being mixed with quick-lime and
turned two or three times in the course of the following summer.
Doubtless the addition of lime will hasten the decomposition of the
woody matter of the pulp ; but it strikes me that this will take place
rapidly enough of itself in the ground without contriving any means
of accelerating the process.

Animal remains. The remains of dead animals and the animal
matters obtained from the slaughter house are powerful manures,
which are much sought after in places where their value is properly
appreciated. Scraps and the refuse of skin, hair, horn, tendons,
bones,. feathers, <fec., all form invaluable manure. The flesh of ani-
mals which die, and so much of that of horses that are slaughtered
which cannot be used as food for animals, may be dried after having
been previously boiled, and then reduced to powder and applied as
manure. The blood of slaughtered animals is less proper as food
for hogs, although it is often used in this way, than muscular flesh ;
it even occasionally gives rise to serious diseases among these ani-
mals. It is most easily prepared as manure, however, for which it
answers admirably ; it is enough to coagulate it by exposure to heat,
and then having broken it down, to dry it in the air or in the stove.
Liquid blood has been employed as manure, but decomposition then
takes place so rapidly, that the produc s are exhaled without pro-
ducing much eff(ect. This objection may be remedied by two means,
either by diluting the blood in a large quantity of water, with which
the land is then irrigated, or by mixing it with a considerable mass
of vegetable earth, which is then applied like ordinary manure.
There is even a pulverulent manure of which blood forms the basis,
|?ropared in special establishments m the vicinity of various large

BONES. 2T9

towns. The large quantity of azote contained in these manures
shows how their value may be such as to permit of their being
advantageously exported to great distances beyond seas.

Bones are employed in agriculture after having had the fat which
they contained extracted from them by boiling. They are crushed
by being passed between the teeth or grooves of a couple of cast-
iron rollers. They must be regarded as a manure, the action of
which is of long duration, because the animal matter contained in
them decomposes slowly, protected as it is by the earthy casing
which surrounds it. In England from 50 to 60 bushels of biuiseJ
bones per acre are usually put upon land prepared for turnips

The employment of bones as manure has given rise to the most
various and contradictory observations. In certain circumstancesi
their effect upon vegetation has been almost null ; in others their
action has been decisive and most favorable. M. Payen has given
a solution of these anomalies which is perfectly satisfactory. Ac-
cording to my learned colleague, bones in their interstices, contain
a quantity of fat of various consistency, which may be removed by
long boiling in water ; the average quantity of grease obtained from
fresh bones is about 10 per cent. It has been observed that this fat-
ty matter diminishes gradually in bones that dry by long exposure ;
it even disappears almost entirely when they are dried at a high
temperature. This happens from the water which is disengaged
from the bony tissue by the effect of evaporation, being replaced by
fat melted by the heat. The consequence of this is, that the organic
tissue of bone, which was already sufficiently rebellious to decom-
position, becomes still less alterable when it is impregnated with
grease. The grease, in fact, by reacting upon the carbonate of
lime of the bone, has formed an earthy soap which long resists at-
mospherical influences and change under ground.

It will readily be understood that bones in this condition can have
little or no action upon vegetation, unless indeed they be reduced to
very fine powder. This alone will explain how it may happen that
some bones, after having remained four years in the ground, have
been found to have lost no more than 8 per cent, of their weight,
while those, the grease of which has been removed by boiling water,
have lost in the same space of time from 25 to 30 per cent, of their
weight.*

These observations of M. Payen show how completely Schwertz
was mistaken when he ascribed the indifferent quality of the ma-
nure prepared from old bones, or from bones that had been boiled,
to the absence of fat, which he regards, I know not on what
authority, as a substance extremely favorable to vegetation. It is
not very obvious how fatty substances should act as manures. I
myself ascertained, from experiments made some years ago with
a view to test the conclusions of an agriculturist who ascribed
the good eflfects of cake to the fatty matters which it containeo,
that rape-oil had no kind of favorable influence upon the growth

* Payen, Maison Rustlque v. i. p. 194.

^80 GRAVES WOOLLEN RAGS, ETC.

of wheat. I have said nothing here upon the importance of tn«
earthy matter of bones, particularly of the calcaieons phosphate
which they contain, but which is nevertheless acknowledged to be
of great importance.

The refuse from the glue -maker'* s, washed and pressed, contains
all the animal matters which have resisted the action of boiling
water, such as portions of tendinous and skinny substance, hair,
pieces of bone, of horn, and of flesh, a calcareous soap, and earthy
matters. This mixture putrefies rapidly ; but dried, it may be pre-
served for a great length of time. Analyzed dry, it yields about 4
per cent, of azote. From 4 to 5 cwt. per acre are employed, but it
is necessary to manure every year.

The refuse of the tallow-melter, graves, as it is called, a residue
consisting in great part of the membranes which have enveloped
the fat of our domestic animals, mixed with a little blood, some
flesh, and bony matter, and grease, has hitherto been em^-Zoyed
almost exclusively as food for dogs. Of late, however, graves have
been used as manure, and analysis shows that this substance must
be estimated as equal to about 3|, farm-dung being fixed at 1.
Used in this proportion, graves produce a marked eflfect. The
action of graves, which may be thrown on in fragments and dry, or
after having been steeped in hot water, and reduced to the state
of a pulp, will continue for three or four years.

Shreds o^ woollen rags form a good manure for vines and olive-
trees especially, though they are also available in husbandry of
every description. The large proportion of azote, and the small
quantity of water contained in woollen rags, constitute them not only
one of the richest manures, but also one of those that is most easily
transported ; 25 cwts. per acre of woollen rags, the cost of which, in
J' ranee, may be about £3, have been found sufficient as manure for
three years. The slowness with which wool decomposes, indeed,
causes its action to be continued during six or eight years. Tvventy-
nve cwt. of woollen rags may be held equivalent to upwards of 40
tons of farm-dung, which, at the price of 5^ lOd. per ton, would cost
jCl2 165. At the end of three years, M. Delonchamps, an excellent
practical farmer, gives his land a dressing of farm-dung for three
years more, when he returns to the wool. Before spreading rags
they must be cut into pieces, which is effected either by a machine,
or by a piece of scythe-blade fixed in a block of wood. In England,
the quantity of woollen rags allowed to the acre is generally about
13 cwt. Sinclair says that they are best suited for dry and sandy or
chalky soils, and this because they attract moisture. I have not
found the fact to be so. In the very dry soil of a vineyard manured
with this article, 1 have found the pieces to decompose with extreme
slowness, and, up to this time, the eflfect upon the vines has been
scarcely perceptible.

The raspings and shavings of horn form a manure of great power,
that seems applicable to ,4very variety of soil. In England, about
(0 bushels per acre are usually allowed.

Tendons J trimmings of hides, hair, feathers, <5fC., are manures very

SHELLS MUD. 281

analogous to the last, and of which the value may be estimated from
the quantity of azote which they severally contain. This value once
determined, every farmer knows the quantity which he must lay
upon his land ; and lie thus proceeds upon a much more rational
foundation than when he takes for his guide one or other of those
vague and arbitrary indications that iiave been given. Sinclair, for
example, would have us lay on nine bushels of feather rubbish to the
acre, and Schwertz recommends from four to five times as much
more Nothing, in fact, is more arbitrary and uncertain than to
estimate sucii materials by the bulk ; it must be obvious that the
weight of a bushel of hide trimmings, of horn-shavings, and of
feather-rubbish, must differ very widely, not only with reference to
one another, but also according to the state of division in which each
is measured. As a general rule, it is by weight, and weight alone,
that the quantity of manure must be estimated.

Shells and mud from the sea-shore and the bottoms of rivers, are
matters that are not often very highly azotized ; nevertheless they
may contain an equivalent of the all-important element, azote, which
may bring them near to wet farm-yard dung in point of value. The
abundance of such matters in certain situations makes them ex-
tremely useful. The alkaline and earthy salts, which they generally
contain in considerable quantity, also add to their fertilizing proper-
ties. The sea-sand which is employed in Brittany under the name
oi marl, (merl,) consists, in great part, of the remains of corallines,
madrepores, and shells, mixed with a few hundredths of highly
azotized organic manner. This marine marl is found in great
abundance at the mouths of the river of Morlaix, where there is a
considerable traffic carried on in the article. It is said to be repro-
duced, new banks of it being met with from time to time. It is
obtained by dredging from barges, and the process is only allowed
to go on from the 15th of May to the 15th of October, when the
quays of the town of Morlaix are seen covered with the produce.
It is carted to a distance of five leagues inland. A barge-load
weighing seven tons, sells at from 6^. Qd. to 8.y. This same species
of marl is now obtained upon the coast of Plancourtrez and in
the roads of Brest. It has also been discovered near the mouth
of the river Quimpert. It appears, finally, that the shell sand so
much employed by the farmers of Devonshire and Cornwall is of
the same essential nature.

In the neighborhood of Morlaix, from five to six tons per acre of
this calcareous sand are employed upon light dry soils ; from eleven
to twelve tons are given to clayey lands. This quantity would
probably be too great for porous and damp soils, inasmuch as sea-
marl belongs to the class oi' warm manures ; that is to say, it under
goes speedy decomposition. There can be no doubt that sea-marl
acts further, in virtue of the calcareous matter which it contains,
and also of its merely mechanical properties upon the strong argilla-
ceous lands of Brittany, for which sand alone is an excellent im-
prover. It is also to the carbonate of lime which it contains, that
"Is good effects upon lands that show an inflorescence of iron pyrites

24*

£82 SHELL ^MARL.

must be ascribed. It is well to lay this shell-marl upon the land
shortly after it is taken from the sea : by long exposure to the air,
it suffers disaggregation and loses a portion of its good qualities.

There is another kind of sea-sand called Irez, which forms banks
in the neighborhood of Morlaix, and which is known under the name
of ianifue on the northern shores of France, which is favorable to
vegetation, particularly after it has been washed and freed from the
greater part of the salt which it contains. It is thrown upon the land
in larger quantity than the marl. The small quantity of animal mat-
ter which it contains putrefies and is lost when it ren^ains exposed
to the air for any length of time, so that a distinction has been made
between fresh or live trez^ and old or dead Irez, the one being the
article as ii comes from the sea, the other after it has been exposed
some time on the shore ; the article which has been exposed un-
doubtedly contains a smaller quantity of organic matter than that
which is quite fresh. This variety of sea-sand is particularly avail-
able upon close and clayey lands, which sometimes receive as many
as sixteen tons per acre with advantage ; lighter lands, of course
require much less.

Shells, sand, slime, and sea-weed, are not the only useful mate-
rials supplied to agriculture by the sea ; fish, or their offal, is fre-
quently employed as manure. The practice of manuring with fish
is very old, and is universal wherever it can be had recourse to
I have already had occasion to say, that at the period of the con-
quest of America, the Spaniards found it established among the
Indians, on the shores of the Pacific ocean. The lands are oc-
casionally manured with fish along the sea-board of Great Britain
and Ireland, and the low lands of Lincolnshire, Cambridgeshire,
and Norfolk, also receive occasional supplies of the same power-
ful maimre. The offal of the herring fishery, of cod, of skate, and
of the pilchard, in Cornwall, the dog-fish entire, and other kinds,
that are either less esteemed, or that are caught in quantities greater
than can be consumed as food, are all admirable manures. We have
been recommended to mix the fish or fish-offal with quick-lime ; but,
unless in certain circumstances, the practice is very questionable ;
the addition is probably only proper where the materials are ex-
ceedingly oily, as is the case with pilchards, herrings, &c. : an
earthy soap is then formed which prevents the injurious effects upon
vegetation which wholly oleaginous matters scarcely fail to produce.
One analysis of codfish, which I made along with M. Payen, gave
us a proportion of azote of nearly seven per cent. This, of itself, is
enough to explain wherefore the flesh, the cartilages, and the bones
of fishes should be found such energetic manures.

The slime deposited by rivers also yields manure which may be
employed to much advantage. The Nile, which periodically inun-
dates the plains of Lower EgypU «)wes its fertilizmg action to the
slime which it contains, and which it deposites before it again recedes
into its bed. On the banks of the Durance, the mud or slime depos-
ited by the river is carefully collected for distribution over the fields
in its vicinity. The waters of this river are frequently turbid and

SOOT. 283

improper for irrigation, until they have deposited the slime which
they hold in suspension ; the waters are therefore turned into canals
for the purpose of deposition before they are let upon the land ; and
such is the quantity of slime that is precipitated, that two or three
gatherings of it are made in the course of the year. It is dug out
and thrown upon the banks to dry ; reduced to powder, it is fit to be
laid upon the land ; and such is its fertilizing power, that a field
which yielded but four for one, has been brought to yield twelve for
one by its means.*

Wood and coal soot, and Picardy ashes. Soot has been known
tor a long period as a useful manure. M. Braconnot, in the soot of
a chimney where wood had been the fuel, found the following in-
gredients :

Ulmicacid 30.0

Azotic matter, soluble in water 20.0

Insoluble carbonated matter 3.9

Silica 1.0

Carbonate of lime 14.7

Carbonate of magnesia (traces of)

Sulphate of lime 0.5

Ferruginous phosphate of lime 1.5

Chloride of potassium 0.4

Acetate of potash 4.1

Acetate of lime 5.7

Acetate of magnesia 0.5

Acetate of iron (traces of)

Acetate of ammonia 0.2

An acrid and bitter element 0.5

Water 12.5

100.0

The analysis which M. Payen and I made of wood and coal soot,
confirms the presence of the azotized principle detected by M. Bra-
connot. A considerable trade is carried on in soot for agricultural
purposes in large towns ; it is thrown upon clovers and young wheats,
in the proportion of about 20 bushels lo the acre. Some have re-
commended that it should be mixed with lime ; but as soot always
contains salts having a base of ammonia, the practice is evidently
objectionable, unless indeed the object be to get rid of that which is
most useful in the article, which will be effectually accomplished by
adding lime to it. The proper procedure is to employ the soot
without admixture during calm or wet weather. In Flanders, the
colewort beds destined for transplanting are very generally manured
with soot, which is believed to have the property of preserving the
young plants from the attacks of insects. In the neighborhood of
Lisle, they give from 55 to 60 bushels of soot per acre. Schwertz
appeals to many facts which go far to satisfy us that the eflfects of
soot upon clovers are particularly advantageous ; he says, moreover,
that coal soot is preferable to wood soot. The superior properties
of coal soot are evidently due to two causes : first, it is more dense

* Belleval, in Annals of French Agriculture,«2d series, vol. xiv. p. 261. The beds of
many of the oozy-bottomed rivers in England near the sea are inexhaustible sources
of the most valuable manure. The bed of the Thames, between London Bridge and
Putney Bridge at low wau;r, ii; a true i,(^\t\ mine if it were but richtly used. — Eno. Ed

B84 PICARDY ASHES.

than wood soot, and in a given bulk actually contains a !arger quan
tity of matter ; secondly, I have found that, for equal weights, coal
soot contains the larger quantity of azote.

Picardy ashes are prepared by the slow and imperfect combustion
of the pyritic turf which is dug up in the department of the Aisne
for the manufacture of sulphate of iron and of alum. Tiiis turf piled
up, heats, and finally takes tire ; the combustion continues for about
a month, abundance of sulphureous vapors being disengaged. The
residue is a gray ash, still containing a quantity of carbonaceous
matter, which is found very advantageous in the way of top-dress-
ing for meadows. It might be maintained that the utility of such
ashes depends solely on the sulphate of lime which they contain ;
but it is ascertained that they are much more active as maimre than
this substance employed by itself; analysis, in fact, explains in some
degree the fertilizing powers of these ashes, by showing that they
contain more than 4 per cent, of azote, to say nothing of the saline
matters of which vegetables are so greedy. It is extremely proba-
ble that during the slow incineration of the turf, there is a quantity
of sulphate of ammonia produced.

The ashes which remain after the lixiviation of the pyritic and
aluminous lignites which are mined for the purpose of making green
vitriol, are analogous to Picardy ashes, and are employed with equal
success in agriculture. At Forges-les-Eaux, the pyritic earths after
-ixiviation are mixed with a quarter of their weight of turf ashes,
and form an active manure which is employed very extensively in
the country around the town of Bray in France : it is equally adapt-
ed to meadows and to land under roots, such as potatoes or turnips,
green crops or corn. Analysis shows these ashes to have the fol-
owing composition :

Soluble organic matter 2.7

Insoluble humus .... 49.8

Sulphate of protoxide and of peroxide of iron 1.8

Fine sand 39.0

Sulphuret of iron ) ^ g^

Peroxide of iron \

100.0

The vitriolic ashes of Forges-les-Eaux are more highly azotized
than those of Picardy ; they contain 2.72 per cent, of azote.

The effect of the imperfect combustion of these pyritic turfs, the
product which results from it, explains to a certain extent the bene-
ficial effects of the practice o{ paring and burning, an important and
widely spread practice, the utility of which it would be difficult to
understand, were it not connected in some way with the production
of ammoniacal ashes.

The useful effects of paring and burning, are, in all probability,
connected with the destruction of organic matter, very poor in azo-
tized principles ; in the transformation of the surface of the soil into
a porous, carbonaceous earth, made apt to condense and retain the
ammoniacal vapors disengaged during the combustion ; lastly, by
the production of alkaline and earthy salts, which are familiarly
known to exert a most beneficial influence upon vegetation. These

MANURES. 285

conditions seem so entirely those, the object of which it is to realize
by paring and burning, that in order to make the operation favorable
to the soil which undergoes it, the vegetable matter which it has
produced, must of necessity be transformed into black ashes ; when
it goes beyond this, as Mr. Hoblyn has well observed, when the in-
cineration is complete, and the residue presents itself as a red ash,
the soil may be struck with perfect barrenness for the future. The
burning, therefore, that was not properly managed, that led to the
complete incineration of all the organic matter, would, for the same
reason, have a very bad effect in the preparation of the Picardy ash-
es ; which might indeed act in the same way as turf ashes from the
hearth and oven, but which, deprived of all azotized principles, would
not ameliorate the ground in the manner of organic manures.

I have frequently seen the process of burning pertormed in the
steppes of southern America. Fire is set to the pastures after the
grass which covers them has become dry and woody ; the flame
spreads with inconceivable rapidity, and to immense distances. The
earth becomes charred and black ; the combustion of those parts
that are nearest to the surface, however, is never complete ; and a
few days after the passage of the flame, a fresh and vigorous vege-
tation is seen sprouting through the blackened soil, so that in a few
weeks the scene of the desolation by fire, becomes changed into a
rich and verdant meadow.

ANIMAL EXCREMENTS.

Horse-dung. The composition of horse-dung would lead us to
infer that its action must be more energetic than that of cow-dung.
Nevertheless, agriculturists frequently consider it as of inferior qual-
ity. This opinion is, even to a certain extent, well founded. Thus
although it be acknowledged that horse-dung covered in before it has
fermented, yields a very powerful manure, it is known that in general
the same substance, after its decomposition, affords a manure that is
really less useful than that of the cow-house. This comes entirely
from the fact that the droppings of the stable, by reason of the small
quantity of moisture they contain, present greater difficulties in the
way of proper treatment than those from the cow-house. Mixed
with litter and thrown loosely upon the dung-hill, horse-dung heats
rapidly, dries, and perishes : unless the mass be supplied with a suf-
ficient quantity of water to keep down the fermentation, and the
access of the air be prevented by proper treading, there is always,
without the least doubt, a considerable loss of principles, which it is
of the highest importance to preserve. I can give a striking instance
of this fact in the changes that happen in the conversion of horse-
dung into manure in the last stage of decomposition : fresh horse-
dung in the dry state contains 2.7 per cent, of azote. The same
dung laid in a thick stratum and left to undergo entire decomposition,
gave a humus or mould, from which, reduced to dryness, no more
than one per cent, of azote was obtained. I add, that by this fermen-
|ation or decomposition, the dung had lost nine tenths of its weigtt

280 HORSE-DUNG.

From these numbers every one may judge how great had been the
ioss of azotized principles. In practice, however, little care is be-
stowed on the preparation of horse-dung ; the fermentation is rarely,
if ever, pushed to this extreme point indeed ; but it is not the less
true that it is constantly approached in a greater or less degree ; and
that the consequences, although not altogether so unfavorable as
those which I have particularly signalized, are nevertheless extremely
destructive. A\l enlightened agriculturists have, therefore, long
been aware of the attention necessary to the management of horse-
dung, which requires a degree of care, that may be perfectly well
dispensed with when the business is to convert the dejections of horn-
ed cattle into manure. To obtain the best results in the management
of horse-dung, it appears to be absolutely necessary to give it a
much larger quantity of moisture than it can ever receive from the
urine of the animal ; if it be not watered it necessarily heats, dries,
and loses both in weight and quality ; while, by being kept properly
moist, it produces a manure, which half rotted, is of quality superior,
or at all events equal, to the same weight of cow-dung.

M. Schattenmann, who has the produce of stables containing two
hundred horses to manage, follows a process of the most commend-
able description in the preparation of his manure, and which is
attended with the very best results. His dunghill stance, of no great
depth, is about 440 yards square in superficies, and divided into two
equal portions. The bottom of this stance is so arranged as to pre-
sent two inclined planes, which bring all the liquids that drain from
it to the middle, where there is an ample tank for their reception,
furnished with a pump for their redistribution to the dunghill. There
is also another spring-water pump destined to supply the water that
is necessary to preserve the dung-heap in an adequate state of moist-
ness. The latter auxiliary is quite indispensable ; the quantity of
water necessary is so considerable when masses of such magnitude
are to be treated, that we cannot trust to any casual source of supply .
The two portions of the area are alternately piled with the dung as
it comes from the stables ; it is heaped to the height of 10, 12, or
14 feet ; it is trodden down carefully, as it is evenly spread, and
plentifully watered from the spring-water pump. Due consolidation,
and a state of constant humidity, are the two conditions that are the
most indispensable to the successful preparation of horse-dung. M.
Schattenmann is in the habit of adding to the liquid, saturated with
the soluble matters of the dunghill, a quantity of sulphate of iron in
solution, or of sulphate of lime (gypsum) in powder ; he also throws
the same salts upon the surface of his heap : the object of this is
evidently to transform into sulphate, the volatile carbonate of ammo-
nia formed in the course of the decomposition, and so to prevent its
escape and loss. By these means a pasty manure, as rich as that
which is yielded by horned cattle, and of a quality, the excellence
of which is proclaimed by the remarkable crops that cover the lands
which receive it, is produced in the course of two or three months.*

Bchattenmann Annales de Chimie, 3e 86rie, vol. iv. p 117.

HORSE-DtTNG. 287

It is almost useless to add, that great care must be taken not to in-
troduce too large a quantity of sulphate of iron, which might have
a prejudicial influence upon vegetation, into the dunghill or the
drainings from it. In making use of sulphate of lime there is noth-
ing to fear on this score ; this salt in excess would be rather favor-
able than hurtful ; in general, gypsum is certainly the preferable
substance, both on account of its never doing mischief, and of its
greatly inferior price.*

Farmers generally advise horse-dung to be reserved for argilla-
ceous, deep, and moist soils ; this recommendation is given in con-
nection with the manure that is obtained by the usual imperfect pro-
cess of preparation. With regard to the horse-dung, prepared in the
manner which I have just described, and as practised by M. Schat-
tenmann, it is adapted to soils of all kinds ; and if it differs from
the dung of the cow-house, it is only by its superior quality. This
last fact is at once explained by the elementary analysis of the ex-
crements of a horse fed upon hay and oats.

100 parts of the urine of the animal so fed, yielded 12.4 of dry
extract, the composition of which was as follows :

In the state of extract. In the liquid state.

Carbon 36.0 4.46

Hydrogen 3.8 0.47

Oxygen 11.3 1.40

Azote 12.5 1.55

Salts ..36.4 4.51

Water • " 87.61

100.0 100.00

The droppings of the same horse after drying, gave 24.7 of fixed
matter, the analysis of which indicated :

Dry excrement. Moist excrement.

Carbon ..38.7 9.56

Hydrogen 5.1 1.26

Oxygen 37.7 9.31

Azote 2.2 0.54

Salts 16.3 4.02

Water " 75.31

100.0 100.00

The dung of horned cattle is often extremely watery ; it is espe-
cially so when furnished by animals kept upon gieen food ; this ex
treme humidity renders its preparation easy. Its equivalent number
is higher than that of horse-dung ; it is, in fact, less highly azotized,
and consequently less active. If the food have a great effect upon
the quality of the manure, it is quite certain that the circumstances
or states of the cattle have an effect which is scarcely less remark-
able. Milch cows and cows in calf always furnish a manure that is
less highly azotized than stall-fed and laboring oxen ; and this is
readily understood : the azotized principles of the food are diverted
to secretions, which concur in the development of a new being in
the one case, in t'le production of milk in the other ; for the same

• Every farmer who should have something like a cart or v^^agon-load of gypstun
brought to the farm every year would find his profit from the practice. — Ewa. Ea.

288

reason the dejections of young- animals, all things else being equal
furnish a manure of less power and value than those of adult ani-
mals. I shall have occasion to recur to this important subject
-vhich has never yet been sufficiently studied.

The urine and excrements of a milch cow, which is giving about
12 pints of milk per diem, have shown upon analysis, the following
quantities of elements : 100 of the urine contained H.7 of dry ex-
tract, and had this composition :

Urine dry. Urine liquid.

Carbon 27.2 3.18

Hydrogen 2.6 0.30

Oxygen 26.4 3.09

Azote 3.8 0.44

Salts 40.0 4.68

Water 0.0 88.31

100.0 100.00

100 of fresh excrement left on drying 9.4 of dry substance, and in
each state contained :

Excrement dry. Excrement moist.

Carbon 42.8 4.02

Hydrogen 5.2 0.49

Oxygen 37.7 3.54

Azote 2.3 0.22

Salts 12.0 1.13

Water 0.0 90.60

100.0 100.00

Hog's dung. From all I have seen, I conclude that hogs well
kept and put up to fatten, yidd dejections which are highly azotized,
and which must consequently furnish a manure of excellent quality.
Schwertz has, indeed, ascertained that this manure acts more pow-
erfully than cow-dung.

Sheep-dung is one of the most active of manures, a fact which is
confirmed by analysis ; for it is by no means watery, and in the
usual state contains upwards of one per cent, of azote. The mode
of managing sheep generally implies that they manure the ground
immediately. Schwertz calculates that in the course of a night, a
sheep will manure something more than a square yard of surface ;
at Bechelbronn we have found the quantity manured to be about 4
square feet. The following are the details of one experiment :

Two hundred sheep were folded for a fortnight upon a rye-stubble,
of an extent which gave as nearly as possible four square feet of
surface per sheep. The manuring thus effected was found to pro-
duce a maximum effect upon the crop of turnips which followed the
rye.

Pigeon's dung is known as a hot manure, and of such activity
that it must be used with discretion. Pigeon's dung is available for
crops of every description ; Schwertz has made use of it for a long
time, and always with the greatest success, mixed with coal asheS;
upon clovers. The Flemish farmers procure pigeon's dung from
the department of the Pas de Calais, where there are a great num-
ber of dove-cotes, one of which, containing from six hundred to six
hundred and fifty pigeons, will let for the sum of about £i per annum,

I

GtJANO. 289

mere.y for the sake of the dung ; the quantity yielded in this time
may be about a wagon-load. In the neighborhood of Lisle, this
manure is applied particularly in the cultivation of flax and tobacco.
According to M. Cordier, the dung of between seven hundred and
eight hundred pigeons is sufficient to manure nearly 2^ acres of
ground. The dung of three hundred and twelve pigeons!^ therefore,
would suffice for an acre. The value of pigeon's dung may be es-
timated from the large proportion of azote which it contains ; that
which I analyzed from Bechelbronn gave 8^ per cent, of this prin-
ciple, a result which ought not to excite surprise when it is known
that the white matter that appears in the excrements of birds, con-
sists of nearly pure uric acid. The manure of the hen-house is
nearly or quite as good as pigeon's dung.

Guano is a manure of the same nature as pigeon's dung, and the
use of which, long familiar on the coasts of Peru, has lately extend-
ed to these countries, the article being now imported in large quan-
tities, both from the South American and African coasts. Guano
appears to be the result of the accumulation for ages of the excre-
ments of the sea-fowl, which live and nestle in the islets, in the
neighborhood of the great southern continents of the new and old
world. The mass in many places forms beds of between 60 and 70
feet in thickness. The principal places whence guano is obtained,
are the Chinche islands near Pisco ; but other deposites of the sub-
stance are known to exist more to the south, — in the islets of Iza
and Ilo, at Arica, and in the neighborhood of Payta, as I had an op-
portunity of ascertaining during my stay in that port. The inhab-
itants of Chinche are the principal traders in guano ; and a class of
small vessels, called Guaneros, are constantly engaged in carrying
the manure.*

Fourcroy and Vauquelin were the first who fixed attention on the
nature of guano. The specimen which they examined was brought
to Europe by M. de Humboldt, and contained : Uric acid (0.25,) ox-
alate of ammonia, chlorhydrate of ammonia, oxalate of potash,
phosphates of potash and of lime, chloride of potassmrn, fatty matter,
and sand.

Since this time Dr. Fownes has again analyzed guano. The
sample upon which he operated was of a light brown color and ex-
tremely offensive smell ; it yielded :

I

Oxalate of ammonia

Uric acid

Traces of carbonate of ammonia and organic matter ]

Phosphates of lime and of magnesia • 29.3

Phosphates and alkaline chlorides, and traces of sulphates 4.0

100.0

Another sample, deeper in color and without smell, contained :
Pure oxalate of ammonia, 44.6; earthy phosphates, 41.2 ; alkaline
ohosphates, sulphates, and chlorides, 14.2=100.

The composition of guano would confirm, were there any occasioa

* Humboldt, Annales deChimie, vol. Ivi. p. 258.
35

290 NIGIIT-SOIL.

for confirmation, the opinion that has beer, formed as to its crigin.
The islets which supply it are still tenanted, especially during the
night, by a multitude of sea-fowl. Nevertheless, from the calcula-
tions of M. de Humboldt, the excrements of these birds in the course
of three centuries, would not form a layer of guano of more than
one third of an inch in thickness ; — imagination stops short, startled,
in presence of the vast lapse of time which must have been neces-
sary to accumulate such beds of the substance as now exist, or
rather, as lately existed in many places ; for it is rapidly disappear-
ing since it has become a subject of the commercial enterprise of
mankind.*

The average composition of guano must by no means be inferred
from the preceding analyses of picked samples : earthy matters are
usually present in much larger proportion than they are here stated.
The guano generally imported into England and France yields a
proportion of azote very far short of that which the 25 per cent, of
uric acid which has sometimes been stated to exist in this substance
would yield. In three trials the azote found was 0.14, 0.05, and
0.05 ; the mean would therefore be 0.08, which represents the quan-
tity of azote in pigeon's dung.

The litter and excrement of the silkworm is used as manure in
the south. Analysis indicates 3 per cent, of azote in its constitution.

Human excrements are regarded as one of the most active ma-
nures tliat can be employed. In countries where agriculture has
made real progress, this article is highly prized, and no pains are
spared to obtain so powerful a manure. In Flanders, feculent mat-
ters form the staple of an active traffic ; and in the neighborhood of
large towns, they form -an invaluable material for the amelioration
of the soil. The Chinese collect human excrements with the great-
est solicitude, vessels being placed for the purpose at regular dis-
tances along the most frequented ways. Old men, women and chil-
dren, are engaged in mixing them with water, which is applied in
the neighborhood of the plants in cultivation.! The fresh excrement
is occasionally worked up with clay, and formed into bricks, which
are pulverized when dry, and the powder is applied as a top-dress-
ing. One of the advantages resulting from the almost exclusive
use of this manure in China is this, that the fields seem to grow
nothing but the plant which is the object of solicitude with the
farmer ; it is there extremely difficult to meet with a weed. The
quality of feculent matter as a manure depends much on the nature
and abundance of the food consumed by those who furnish it. M.:
d'Arcet relates a curious anecdote in connection with this fact : a
farmer had purchased the produce of the cabinet of one of the most

* Dr. John Davy, all whose scientific researches equal in accuracy the brilHant in
vestigations of his illustrious brother, has lately turned his attention to this subject:
he finds that we have collections of guano in Great Britain that are really not to ba
despised in some cases. The surface of the ground under old-established rookenes is
a true guano bed ; and removed and used as manure in the open field, produces most
excellent effects. See Dr. Davy's paper in Ed. Lend, and Dub. PhUos. Mag. OcU 1,
1844.— Eno. Ed.

t Jollen, Annates de Chimie, vol. Ui. p. 65» Sd serlM

WIGHT-SOIL. 291

celebrated restau/ateurs or taverns of the Palais Royal ; encouraged
by the success he obtained in employing this manure, and desirous
of obtaining a larger supply of the article, he rented the produce of
several of the barracks of Paris. The manure which he now obtain-
ed, hov/ever, he found to produce an effect greatly less than he had
anticipated, so that he lost money by his bargain. Berzelius found
the following substances in human excrements :

Remains of food 7.0

BHe 0.9

Albumen 0.9

A peculiar extractive matter 2.7

Indeterminate animal matter, viscous matter,

resin, and an insoluble residuum 14.0

Salts 1.2

Water 73.3

100.0

The salts had the composition following :

Carbonate of soda 29.4

Chloride of sodium 23.5

Sulphate of soda 11.8

Ammoniaco-magnesian phosphate • 11.8

Phosphate of lime 23.5

100.0
Human urine is one of the most powerful of all manures. Left
to itself it speedily undergoes putrefaction, and devolves an abun-
dance of ammoniacal salts, as all the world knows. Its composition,
according to Berzelius, is the following :

Urea 3.01

Uric acid 0.10

Indeterminate animal matter > , -,

Laclic acid, and lactate of ammonia \

Mucus of the bladder 0-03

Sulphate of potash 0.37

Sulphate of soda 0.32

Phosphate of soda , 0.29

Chloride of sodium 0.45

Phosphate of ammonia 0.17

Chlorhydrate of ammonia 0.15

Phosphate of lime and of magnesia 0.10

Silica traces

Water 93-30

100.00

The phosphates of lime and magnesia which it contains are ex-
tremely insoluble salts, and have been supposed to be held in solution
by phosphoric acid, lactic acid, and very recently by Professor
Liebig, by hippuric acid, which he now states to be a regular con-
stituent of healthy human urine.

From the interesting inquiries upon urine made by M. Lecanu, it
appears that a man passes nearly half an ounce of azote with his
urine in the course of twenty-four hours. A quantity of urine taken
from a public urine pail of Paris, yielded 7 per 1000 of azote. The
dry extract of the same urine yielded nearly 17 per cent.

Human soil as commonly obtained consists of a mixture of fecu-
lent matters and urine. It may be applied immediately to the ground

292 FLEMISH MANURE.

as it eomes from the privy. In some parts of Tuscany it is mixed
with three times its bulk of water, and so applied to the surface. I
have myself seen night-soil as it was obtained, and without prepara-
tion, spread upon a field of wheat without any ill effect : so that the
Tuscan preparation may be regarded as a simple means of spread-
ing a limited quantity of manure over a given extent of ground.

It is in French Flanders, however, that human soil is collected
with especial care ; it ought to be so collected everywhere. The
reservoir for its preservation ought to be one of the essential articles
in every farming establishment, as it is in Flanders, where there is
always a cistern or cess-pool in masonry, with an arch turned over
it for the purpose of collecting this invaluable manure. The bottom
is cemented and paved. Two openings are left : one in the middle
of the turned arch for the introduction of the material ; the other,
smaller and made on the north side, is for the admission of the air,
which is requisite for the fermentation.

The Flemish reservoir may be of the dimensions of about 35
cubical yards. Whenever the necessary operations of the farm will
permit, the carts are sent off to the neighboring town to purchase
night-soil, which is then discharged into the reservoir, where it usual-
ly remains for several months before being carried out upon the land.

This favorite Flemish manure is applied in the liquid state (mixed
in water) before or after the seed is in the ground, or to transplanted
crops after they have been dibbled in. Its action is prompt and
energetic. The sowing completed, and the land dressed up with all
the pains which the Flemish farmer appears to take a pleasure in
bestowing upon it, a charge of the manure is carried out at night in
tubs or barrels. At the side or corner of the field there is a vat that
will hold from 50 to 60 gallons, into which the load is discharged,
and from which a workman, armed with a scoop at the end of a
handle a dozen feet in length or more, proceeds to lade it out all
around him. The vat emptied in one place is removed further on,
and the same process is repeated until the whole field is watered.*

The purchase, the carriage, and the application of this Flemish
manure cannot be otherwise than costly ; we therefore see it given
particularly to crops which, when luxuriant and successful, are of the
highest market value — such as flax, rape, and tobacco.

This manure, the sample of it, at least, which M. Payen and I
examined, is of a yellowish green color, and with reference to smell
cannot be compared to any thing belter than a weak solution of
hydrosulphate of ammonia. This salt is undoubtedly present ; but
exposure to the air converts it rapidly into the sulphate of the same
base. According to M. Kuhlmann, the quality of the liquid Flemish
manure is to be judged of by its smell, its viscidity, and its saline and
^harp taste. By the fermentation which takes place in the cess-
pools, which are never emptied completely, the feculent matter, kept
for some time there, does in fact acquire a slight viscidity. When
solid excrementitious matter predominates in the fermented maaa

* Cordier, Agriculture of French Flanders, p. 24a

FLEMISH MANURE. 293

its effect upon vegetation is of longer continuance ; but when it is
derived entirely from urine, it acts almost immediately after its
application. In either case, the effect of Flemish manure does not
extend beyond the season ; like all the other organic substances which
have undergone complete putrid fermentation, it is a true annual
manure.

Occasionally, a quantity of powdered oil-cake is thrown into the
reservoir. This is either when the manure is supposed to be too
dilute, or when there is little night-soil at command. The following,
according to Professor Kuhlmann, is an example of the employment
of the Flemish manure in a rotation which is common in the neigh-
borhood of Lisle, and in the course of which the crops are colza or
colewort, wheat and oats.

First year. In October or November, the land is manured with
farm-dung, which is ploughed in, in the usual way. At this time
a dose of the liquid manure, amounting to about 5000 gallons per
acre, is applied : a second ploughing is given, and the colewort is
planted.

Second year. The colza is gathered, the ground is ploughed for
autumn sowing ; from 1000 to 1300 gallons or so of liquid manure
are distributed, and the wheat is sown.

Third year. The wheat stubble is ploughed down at the end of
the autumn, and about 1000 or 1100 gallons of the liquid manure
per acre are distributed ; the oats are sown in the spring. If cir-
cumstances should prevent the application of the liquid manure in
autumn, it is laid on in March, and then it has been found that one-fifth
iCss will suffice ; but its application at this season is avoided as much
as possible on account of the havoc that is made by the passage of
horses, carts, and men over the surface of the soft ploughed land. It
is with a view to avoid this disturbance of the surface that in many
places oil-cake in powder is applied to the fields under colza
when the manuring has to be performed after the crop is in the
ground.

For beet, the dose of Flemish manure is carried the length of from
1300 to 1400 gallons per acre ; but when the root is intended for the
manufacture of sugar, liquid manure is sedulously avoided, experience
having shown that it has the very worst effect upon the production
of sugar, a circumstance which is very easily explained upon ground?
that have already been given.

The price of Flemish manure at Lisle is 2^c?. for a measure con-
taining 22 gallons. In Flanders, it is held that this quantity, which
will weigh hard upon 2 cwt., is equal to about 5 cwt. of farm-yard
dung. The liquid manure which I analyzed yielded 2 per 1000 of
azote. Farm-yard dung, in its usual state, contains as much as 4
per 1000 ; it follows, therefore, that the real equivalent number of
Flemish manure is 182, that of farm dung being 100 ; in other words,
it would require 182 of Flemish manure to replace 100 of farm-yard
manure ; a conclusion that differs widely from that which is usually
acted uporn. But it must be observed that from its nature, the Flem-
ish manure produces its maximum influence in the course of the

-5*

294 POUDRETTE.

season in which it is applied. It seems to have no effect oii ihe
crop of the succeeding year. Farm-yard dung, on the contrary,
only exerts a portion of the whole amount of its beneficial influence
in the course of the year in which it is laid on ; it has still something,
often much, in reserve for succeeding years. To compare liquid
manure with farm-yard dung, with reference to an annual crop, is to
compare this manure to the unknown fraction of the farm-yard dung
which comes into play in the course of the first year, and from such
a contrast no possible inference can be drawn in regard to the rela-
tive value of the two kinds of dung. 1 have insisted upon this cir-
cumstance, because it is often involved in the estimates that are
made of the relative values of the different species of manure ; and
because, from losing sight of it, unfavorable conclusions are frequently
come to in regard to manures that undergo decomposition very slow-
ly ; these manures, nevertheless, acting for a great length of time,
produce both a greater amount and a more durable kind of ameliora-
tion of the soil. Rapidity of action, in a manure, is undoubtedly a
quality that is highly valuable in many cases ; and Flemish manure
possesses this quality in the highest degree. Nevertheless, it is also
an advantage to possess a manure which elaborates gradually, and
according to the exigencies of vegetables, those principles that
contribute to their growth, and which suspend in a great measure
this elaboration in the course of the winter — which remain during
the cold and rainy season in an almost inert condition, when any
fecundating matter produced would merely be washed away and lost.
These advantages, to which must be added that of breaking up and
lightening the soil, are all possessed by good farm-yard manure.
They are such, in fact, that this manure, even in Flanders, is still
indispensable ; the liquid manures of that country are nothing more
than annual auxiliaries.

The method followed in Flanders of using night-soil is certainly
highly rational ; it is the same as that which is adopted in Alsace, in
the neighborhood of towns, with this difference, that our farmers
collect no store of the material ; they go in quest of it at the moment
it is wanted. It is applied as in Flanders, or it is incorporated with
absorbent substances, such as straw, or with other more consistent
manures. The night-soil of Paris, which in the course of a year
amounts to an immense quantity, is treated in a totally different
manner, which appears to be in opposition to the simplest notions of
science, of economy, and of all that is conducive to health. I allude
to the mode of preparing poudrette.

In the neighborhood of Paris there are places appropriated to the
reception of the night-soil : it is thrown into reservoirs of no great
depth, in comparison with their superficial extent, and of an aggre-
gate capacity which is such that they will contain the whole of the
products collected by the night-man in the course of six months.
These reservoirs are arranged in stages, one above another. Into
the upper one are discharged the matters collected in the course of
the night. The upper reservoir full, a slu'ce is opened by being
pushed partially down, which allows the ir.rre liquid matters to es-

POUDRETTE. 295

cape into the second reservoir placed under it. Repeated drainings
are effected in this way, and when the second basin is also full, there
is a deposition of solid matter as in the first ; the more liquid par-
ticles are then let off from the second into the third reservoir, and so
on in succession until the last and lowest is attained, from which the
liquid used to be turned into a watercourse ; but, of late, these con-
taminated liquids have been got rid of by means of what may be
called absorbing artesian shafts — deep holes pierced in a dry and
porous soil.

When the deposite in the first reservoir is held to be sufficiently
consistent, it is drained by lowering the sluicd more and more ; no
fresh matter is added, the new charges being deposited in another
system of reservoirs. The deposite once drained is in the pasty
condition ; it is then taken out with the spade, and spread upon au
earthen floor which slopes off on either side, and the mass is turned
from time to time to favor the drying ; this process, in fact, is con-
tinued until the material has become pulverulent. It is then stored
under sheds, or thrown up into pyramidal heaps, the sides of which
are well beaten in order to enable them to throw off the wet.

Poudrette is of a brown color, and weighs nearly 150 lbs. per
sack. Put into a retort, and distilled with a heat of from 424° to
930° Fahr., it yields 52.6 of ammoniacal fluid, and 47.3 of dry mat-
ter, in which we encounter fixed ammoniacal salts, such as the sul-
phates, phosphates, hydrochlorates, &c. M. Jacquemart finds that
in 100 parts of poudrette there is 1.26 of ammonia, the greater part
in the state of carbonate ; but it contains a quantity of animal matter
besides, which, by dry distillation, yields a nearly equal amount of
the same substance ; whence it follows that poudrette contains
nearly 2^ per cent, of volatile alkali, or 2 of azote. By direct analy-
sis, I obtained 1.6 of azote.

Poudrette is spread upon the land at the time of ploughing, from
26 to 34 bushels per acre being allowed. On meadow lands it pro-
duces very good effects in the dose of about 25 bushels per acre.
The disgusting smell of night-soil is, to a certain extent, an obstacle
to its general use. This obstacle, however, is only felt in places
where agricultural industry, and the manufactures connected with it,
are still in a backward state. One remarkable circumstance is, that
the disgust which naturally arises from the manipulation of such ar-
ticles, has been more especially got over in countries that are justly
celebrated for their extreme attention to cleanliness and the easy
position of their inhabitants. I quote Flanders and Alsace in proof
of the fact. It has been said, moreover, that certain articles pro-
duced in soils manured with human excrement contract a smell and
taste which give rather unpleasant information of the nature of the
manure that has been employed to favor their growth. In the lim-
ited circle of my own experience on this subject, I can say that I
have observed nothing which favors such a statement. However
this may be, Mr. Salmon has succeeded in disinfecting night-soil
completely, by mixing it with a kind of animal charcoal obtained by
calcining in close vessels a porous earth impregnated with organic^

£96 COMPOSTS.

substances. This is the article which is sold under he name of
animalized black. Its quality as a manure must depend especially,
I might even say entirely, on the quantity of azotized organic matter
which enters into its composition.

Composts. A great deal has been written, and much has been
Baid on the advantages of composts, or mixtures, contrived with a
view to the amelioration of the soil. The receipts for these com-
posts are very numerous ; they prove that the discovery of a compost
is an easy matter, and requires but a small amount of ingenuity. To
unite different matters in such a way as to obtain a compound that
shall act advantageously, it is only necessary to make it up of sub-
stances which of themselves and isolatedl}^ are good manures. But
that it is possible to supply the scarcity of manure, to create it in
some sort by means of composts, is a subject of dispute. In fact,
when we look attentively at the numerous mixtures which have been
indicated as leading to this end, we always perceive that the propo-
sal amounts to an extension or dilution of some powerful manure
with a substance that is either inert or has little activity. This mode
of proceeding may have its advantages; it enables us to make a
more equal distribution of the manure we have at our disposal, but
it actually supplies us with none.

Earthy substances almost always figure in composts. Turf-ashes,
wood-ashes, marl, and particularly lime, are constant ingredients.
Marl may suit certain soils ; lime is a substance of great activity,
and which for this reason must be admitted into composts with cau-
tion ; it may act in the disintegration of woody parts — of stalks, and
stems, and leaves ; but we must be very careful not to follow the
recommendation of Schwertz, who would have us throw quick-lime
into our privies with the view to bringing the matters there contained
into a consistent and readily pulverizable state. By doing so we
should infallibly lose the greater part of the principles that are truly
useful in the soil. Much mischief and great destruction of manure,
indeed, have been the consequence of the insensate and indiscrimi-
nate use of quick-lime under all circumstances ; the business is
much rather to preserve than to destroy the substances that are used
as manures ; the purpose is to fix, not to dissipate the volatile elements
which they contain. One great objection to the extensive employ-
ment of composts is the amount of labor they require in the repeated
turnings which are held necessary in their preparation, and in the
large quantity of matter which has to be transported.

The following table will be found iseful as giving a comprehen-
sive view of the proportion of azote ;ontained in the various kinds
of manures which have been partic ilarly examined, and of their
equivalents, referred to farm-yard du; g as the standard.

MANTJRES.

297

TABLE OF THE COMPARATIVE VALUE OF MANURES

DEDUCED FROM ANALYSES MADE BY MESSRS. PAYEN AND BOUSSINGAULT.

1

Azote in

Quality ac-

Equivalent

100 of matter.

cording to
state.

according to
state.

Kind of Dung.

p.

Remarks.

s

1

Dry.

Wet.

Dry.

Wet.

Dry.

Wet.

Farm.yar(i dung . .
Dung from an inn yard

79.3

1.95

0.41

100

100

1R9

100

Aver, of Bechelbronn.

60.6

2.08

0.79

107

107

94

51

From south of France.

Dung wiiter ....

99.6

1.54

0.06

78

2

127

68

Washed by the rain.
Fresh, of Alsace. 1838.

Wheat straw . . .

19.3

0.30

0.24-

15

60

^

167

Idem

5.3

0.53

0.49

27

122.5

367

82

Old Irom environs ol

Paris.
Ditto stubble.

Idem

5.3

?-^§

0.41

22

102.5

fi

98

Idem

9.4

L42

L33

73

332.5

137

30

Ditto upper part, ear
included.

&^*"" : : : :

12.2

0.20

0.17

10

42.5

975

235

Of Alsace,

0.50

0.42

26

105

390

95

Environs of Paris, 1841.

Oat straw ....

21 0

0.36

0.28

18

70

542

143

■i

Barley straw . . .

n.'o

0.26

0.23

13

57.5

750

174

1

Wheat chaff . . .

l-^

0.94

0.85

48

212.5

207

E

i pf Alsace.

Pea straw ....

8.5

1.95

1.79

100

447.5

199

22

1

Millet straw . . .

19.0

0.96

0.78

49

195

203

ii

j

Buckwheat straw .

11.6

0.54

0.48

27

120

361

83

Lentil straw . . .'

9.2

^•^

1.01

57

2cO

^^

40

Dried potato tops .

12.9

0.43

0.37

92.5

453

108

Withered madia stalks

14.3

0.66

0.57

33

142.5

295

70

After seeding.

Idem turned under

while green . .

70.6

1.53

0.45

79

113

126

89

Before seeding.

Dried broom . . .

10.4

1.37

1.22

70

305

142

33

Stalk and leaves.

Withered leaves of

beet-root ....

88.9

4.50

0.50

230

125

43

80

Of mangel wurzel.
Wither*d top & leaves.

Ditto of potatoes . .

76.0

2.30

0.55

117

137.5

85

73

Ditto of carrots . .

70.9

2.94

0.85

150

212.5

66

47

Leaves of heather

7.0

i-is

1.74

103

23

Dried in the air.

Ditto of pear-trees .

14.5

1.59

1.36

81 5

340

127

29

Ditto of oak . . .

25.0

1.57

1.18

80"

293

125

34

1

Ditto of poplar . .
Ditto of beech . . .

51,1

1.17

0.54

66

134

167

^4

I Leaves fallen in au-

39.3

1.91

1.18

78

294

102

34

1 tumn.

Ditto of acacia . .

53.6

1.56

0.72

80

180

125

56

J

Box-tree

59.3

2.89

1.17

147

293

68

34

Branches and leaves.

Barred clover-roots .

9.7

1.77

1.61

90

402.5

110

25

Dried in the air.

Fucus digitatus . .

1.41

72

215

139

46

)

Idem

4o;o

1.58

0.95

81

123

^

> Dried in the air.

Fucus saccharinus .

40.0

2.29

1.38

117

345

85

29

i

Idem

75.5

0.54

135

74

Fresh.

Burnt sea-weed . .

3.8

6.40

0.38

20

95

488

JS5

Oyster shells . . .

17.9

0.40

0.32

20

80

488

125

Sea shells ....

0.05

0.05

3

13

3750

769

Dried sea shelL« of
Dunkirk.

Mud of the Morlaix

river

Trez of Roscoff roads

3.7
0.5

0.42
0.14

0.40
0.13

'i

100

464

100
308

\ Sea sand.

Sea-side marl . . .

1.0

0.52

0.51

26.5

128

^Z

'5

Salt cod-fish . .

38.0

10.86

6.70

557

1675

18

6

Cod-fish washed and

pressed ....

Fir saw-dust . . .

10.0

18.74

16.86

961

4215

10

o-P

Dried in the air.

24.0

0.22

0.16

11

40

886

250.

} ...

Idem

24.0

0.31

0.28

15

57.5

629

174

5 Dried in the air.

Oak saw-dust . . .

26.0

0.72

0.54

36

135

256

74

i

White lupine seed .
Malt grains ....

II

3.49
4.51

872.5
1127.5

S

nii

Tuscan, boiled & dncd

Grape husks . . .

3.31

1.71

169

M^

57

23

Oil-cake of linseed .

13 4

6.00

5.20

307

l.SOO

33

8

Ditto of colewort . .

10.5

5.50

4.92

^2

1230

35

8

Ditto of Arachis . .

6.6

8.89

8.33

655

2082 5

21

1^

Ditto of madia . .

11.1

5.70

5.06

292

1265

^

8

Ditto of sesame , .

6.5

5.93

5.52

304

1378

^

71

Oil-cake of hempseed

5.0

4.78

^

1052

41

&

Ditto of poppy . ,
Ditto of beech mast .

6.0

5.70

5.36

292

1340

34

7

6.2

3 31

181

828

55

^f

Ditto of walnuts . .
Ditto of cotton seed .

6.0

5 59

5-^

^I

1310

35

3

11.0

4.52

4.02

231

1000

^

10

098

MAI4UBES.

g

.»^"Si. -b:-

Equivalent

"^

I

according to
state.

KindofDunf.

temarki.

1
1

Dry.

Wet.

Dry.

Wet.

Dry.

Wet.

Ditto from refiners .

10.0

3.92

8.54

201

885

50

m

Recent fat by means
of poplar sawdust.

Ditto ditto ....

7.7

0.58

M

30

135

332

75

Fish oil by ditto ditto.
Dried in the air.

Cider-apple refuse .

r,^-^

0.63

^•^

32

147

309

^

Refuse ofliops . .
Beet-root refuse . .

73.0

2.23

0.56

114

140

88

67

9.3

1.26

1.14

64

285

155

35

Dried in the air.

Idem

70.0

0.38

64

85

106

Fresh from the press.
Process of Dombasle.

Squeezed beet-root .

1.76

O.Ol

90

2

lii

4137

Potato refuse . . .

73.0

1.95

0.53

100

131.5

100

76

Potato juice . . .

95.4

8.28

0.38

425

94

23

106

Settled and decanted.

Water of the starch

-

manufactory . .

.99.2

8.28

0.07

425

17.5

571

From washing in four

Deposite from the wa-

volumes of water.

ter of ditto . . .

80.

1.81

0.36

92

90.

108 1 111

Drainings from heap.

Idem

15.

1.81

L54

92

384.5

.. 1 24

Dried in the air.

Solid cow-dung . .
Urine of cows . . .

85.9

2.30

0.32

117

80

84

125

3.80

0.44

194

110

51

91

Mixed cow-dung . .

84 3

2.59

0.41

132

102.5

75

98

Solid horse-dung . .
Horse urine ....

75^3

2.21

0.55

113

137.5

88

73

79.1

12.50

2.61

6^1

652.5

15i

ISA

The horse drank but

Alixed horse-dung .

75.4

3.02

0.74

154

185

66 1 54

little ; the urine was

Pig-dung ....

81.4

3.37

0.63

172

157.5

58

63

thick.

Sheep-dung , . .

63.0

2.99

1.11

153

277.5

65

36,

(ioal-dung ....

46.0

3.93

2.16

201

540

50

18i

Liquid Flem. manure

Sl^

47.5

210

In the normal state.

[deiH

0.22

55

, ,

182,

PoudretteofBelloni.

12.5

4.40

3.85

225

44

loi

Dried in the air.

Ditto of Montfaucon

41.4

2.67

1.56

137

390

73

%

Urine of public vats .

96.

17.56

16.83

900

4213

1

Dried in the stove.

Idem ......

96.9

23.11

0.72

1133

179

Sk

56

Thin, ammoniacal.

Animalized black .
Idem from the neigh-
borhood of Paris .

44.6

1.96

1.09

100.5

272

98

37

Prepared for 11 mouths

42.0

2.96

1.24

151.6

310.5

66

32

Recently made.

Idem, called Dutch
manure ....

44.1

^•^

1.36

127

340

79

i

Made at Lyons.

Animalized sea. weed

12.1

2.73

2.40

140

600

7

Dried in stove, (from

Marseilles.)
OfBechelbronn.

Pigeon's dung . .

9.6

9.02

8.30

462

2075

21i

5

Guano imported into
England ....

19.6

6.20

5.00

323

1247

3U

80

In the ordinary state.

Idem

23.4

7.05

5.40

361

1349

28^

74

Sifted.

Do. imp. into France

1L3

15.73

13.95

807

3487

12i

28i

Silk-worm litter . .

14.3

3.48

3.29

178.7

827

56

12

Fifth age.

Idem

11.4

3.71

3 29

190

822

53

12

Sixth age.

Chrysalis of silk-worm

78.5

8.99

1:95

461

485

21i

20J

(Jockchafers . . .

77.0

13.93

3.20

714

801

14

13

Dried muscular flesh

8.5

14.25

13.04

730

3260

111

3,

Dried in the air.

Soluble dried blood .

21.4

15.50

12.18

795

3i

As sold.

Liquid blood . . .

81.0

2.95

795

736

13i

From slaughterhouses.

Idem ......

82.5

2.71

795

580

15'

From worn-out horses.

Blood coagulated and
pressed

78.5

17.00

4.51

871

1128

111

9,

Just out of the press.

Insoluble dried blood

12.5

17.00

14.88

871

3719

2i

Dried in manufactory.

blue manufactory .

53.4

2.80

1.31

144

526

7

30i

Animalized with blood

Meiter's bones . . ,

7.5

7.58

7.02

388

26

6

Dried in the air.

Fresh bones ....

30.0

5.31

1326

*

7^

As sold by the melters.

Fat bones, not heated

8.0

1554

64

Including 0.10 of fat.

Dregs of bone g».ue .
Glue dregs ....

t§

0.91
5.63

0!53
3.73

A,

&

^y

76
11,

As sold by the makers.

Graves

8.2

12.93

11.88

663

296953

15

3i

Animal black of the

sugar refiners . .

47.7

2.04

1.06

104

265

96

38

As sent out.

Sugar refiner's black

27.7

19.01

13.75

974

3437

103

28

From Paris.

From the sugar bakery

Scutn from the sugar

Enllish'^lack ! '. '.

67.0

1.58

0.54

81

134

127

75

of Vigneux.
Blood, lime, soot

13.5

8.02

6.95

411.4

1738

24

6

Feathers

12.9

17 61

15.34

903

11

H

Cow-hair flock . .

8.9

15.12 1 13.78

775

3445

13.

3

Woollen rags . . .

11.3

20.26 17.98

1039

4495

,1

n

Horn shavings . . .

9.0

15.78 14.36

809

3590

3

Coal soot ....

15.6

1.59 I.a5

81

337.5

30

Wood soot ....

5.6

1.31 1.15

67

287.5

149

35

Picardy ashes . . .

9.2

0.71 i 0.65

96

162.5

275

62

Veget. mould from bn-
1 mus dnng (terreaii)

• • 1

1.03

..

53

10

33

Dried in the stove.

MANURES. 299

It is almost unnecessary to give any explanation of the uses that
may be made of the preceding table : I shall, however, give a few il-
lustrations from instances which have actually occurred in my ex-
perience.

Oil-caka is cheap at this time, (1842 ;) and the question is, whether
it couM be advantageously employed in connection with the culti-
vation of wheat. The presumption is, that wheat obtains the whole
of its azote in the soil, that it acquires none from the atmosphere ;
and again, I assume that the whole of the azote put into the ground
would be used up by the crop. Under the most favorable circum-
stances of heat and moisture, this would probably be the case ; were
it not so to the letter, the active matter which remained in the
ground would operate advantageously in succeeding years. The
following, then, are the elements of the question :

1st. In the wheat grown at Bechelbronn there is on an average
0.025 of azote. 2d. In the straw of 1841, 1 have just found 0.003
of azote. 3d. The oil-cake which I propose to employ coi.lains
0.055 of azote, and its actual price, crushing included, is 3.?. 4c?. per
cwt. 4th. The relation in point of weight of the grain to the straw
is as 47 : 100.

A sheaf or bundle of wheat, 220 lbs. in weight, consists of:

Wheat 70.4 lbs., containing 1.760 of azote, and is worth 4*. 8d.

Straw 149.6 lbs. " 0.415 " " Is. 8d.

Total of azote 2.175 Total value 6s. 4d.

Difference of value 5s. 4d.

To grovir which, 39 lbs. of oil-cake would be required, of the
value of. Is. 2d.

So that 39 lbs. of oil-cake, converted into a sheaf of wheat, would
be increased in intrinsic value to the extent of 5;?. 2d. Supposing
that but one-half or one-third of this amount, as indicated by theory,
is realized in practice, it is obvious that the addition of the oil-cake
might be made with advantage ; and that no means should be
neglected to ensure the success of its application as a manure.*

The production of oil-cake in France, the Netherlands, and other
countries of Europe, is very considerable ; in round numbers, 100
of oleaginous seeds yield 60 of cake ; but it has been calculated,
with rare ability, and from authentic documents, by M. Leroy de
Bethune, that not only is the whole of the oil-cake, which is the
produce of the soil of France, exported, but that likewise of the
oleaginous seeds which she imports from other countries. This M.
de Bethune looks upon as a very lamentable agricultural fact. I
have shown, indeed, from the example which I have quoted, that
every pound of cake represents a primary material, which, properly
treated, may be transformed into nearly 6 pounds weight of wheat-
grain and straw, having a value infinitely greater than that of the
oil-cake originally employed.

* Our author has of course left many other elements very necessary to be included
out of his calcW'Uion here, such as labor, seed, rent charge, interest on capital, *•
fiKo. Ed.

SOO EXPORTATION : F MANURES.

While I agree with M. de Bethu: e, that it is generally wibe to
encourage exportation, I also admit with him that there are sub-
stances in reference to which it wot Id be prudent to discourage ex-
portation ; oil-cake, this powerful rjeans of giving fertility to the
soil, might be placed in the foremost rank of such substances. I am
far from adopting all the principles of economists, which appear to
me to be frequently far too absolute. In my opinion, any exportation,
the consequence of which is the impoverishment of the soil, ought
to be prohibited. I should, for instance, oppose the exportation of
arable soil ; and in the same way, to allow an active manure to pass
into the hands of strangers, is, in my eyes, tantamount to exporting
the vegetable soil of our fields, to lessening their productiveness, to
raising the price of the food of the poor ; for as much labor is re-
quired, as much care and capital must be expended upon an ungrate-
ful soil to obtain a little, as upon a fertile soil to procure an ample
return. To permit the exportation of oil-cake is to hinder the hus-
bandman from taking advantage of all the circumstances with which
nature presents him ; it is as if a chill were to be brought over the
genial climate of France.*

I have shown the advantages of the application of oil-cake in the
growth of wheat. I shall now inquire whether or not it is equally
useful in connection with hay and potato crops ; the price of the
article being presumed to be the same as before.

Upland meadows, when they have not been soiled, yield miserable
returns, and their situation renders them difficult of access to carts :
oil-cake in such circumstances comes powerfully to our aid.

Taking the price of hay at 5s. per 220 lbs,, which is about its
present price in France, and taking into account the composition of
the after-math, we may reckon the- azote contained in the hay of
natural meadows at 0.015.

220 lbs. of hay, containing 3 lbs. of azote, will be worth 5«. Od,

To produce which 56 lbs. of cake (azote 3.3 lbs.) worth Is, 8d.

would be required.

Difference in value between the cost and the crop 3s. 4d.

Upon this showing, oil-cake may be advantageously employed in
the amelioration of upland meadows. Besides the cost of the ma-
nure, however, there are the very necessary additions to be made of
the price of labor and rent.

From the observations which I made at Bechelbronn in 1839, I

* I own I am surprised at this passage in my esteemed author. There is nothing
parallel in the instances he quotes. Did not the French husbandmen and oil-pressors
jn-ofit by the exportation of oil-cake they woBld keep it at home ; and the profit of the
farmer and manufacturer is the profit of the whole coiimiuriity. To export the soi:
would indeed be madness : it would obviously be killinji the goose that lays the goldea
eggs ; but to export that which the soil produces in abundance year after year, is a
totally diflferent affair, M. Boussingault's reasoning would lead the wine-growers of
Bordeaux and Burgundy to refuse us a hogshead of their smallest growth : they cannot
send it to vs without impoverishing their sul, any more than they can let us have a pound
of their oil-cake. But one half of the vegetables tliat grow, at least, are at work ac-
cumulating the materials from the atmosphere and water, out of which the other half
are supplied, and so the process of wnste fmd tnpply, of destruction and reproducUoo,
goes on wiih'jul limit;-, and wiihcut cnd.-^E.NQ. Ed.

USE OF THE PRECEDING TABLE. 301

find that the relation between the weight of potatoes as they come
from the ground, and that of the tops or haum, supposed to be dry,
is as 100 is to 6.4.

The tubers contain :
Azote 0.0036 per 10000 parts ; and 220 lbs. contain 0.729 of a lb. of

azote, and are worth Is. 8d.

The tops or haum, dry, contain :
Azote 0.0230 per 10000 parts ; and 14 lbs. contain 0.330 of a pound

of azote.
Total of azote 1.122.
Now 20.4 lbs. of cake which would be required to produce 220

lbs. of potatoes, contain 1.1 lb. of azote, and are worth 0«. lid.

Difference ..Is. Oid..

The oil-cake at the price of 3*. 2d. per cwt. may therefore be ad-
vantageously used for the production of potatoes : rent, labor, seed,
&c., considered as before. At the price of 7s. 6d. or 8^. 6d. per
cwt., however, to which oil-cake occasionally rises, it would not be
possible to employ it profitably in this way. The cost of the manure
would then amount to nearly as much as the value of the crop.

The equivalent numbers in the table express the relative values
of different manures ; they proclaim the proportions in which one
substance must be substituted for another, and when purchases are
to be made, they will show at a glance which is the article that is
really, and in fact, the cheapest. The equivalent number of one
variety of oil-cake, for instance, is 7.25 ; that of farm-yard dung is
100 ; which is as much as to say that in reference to mere fertilizing
elements, 100 parts — lbs. cwts. or tons, of farm-yard dung may be
replaced by 7^ parts — lbs. cwts. or tons of oil-cake ; — 2 cwt. of
farm-dung, for instance, by 14|^ lbs. of cake. The 2 cwt. of farm-
dung is valued in the table at 6d., or about 5s. per ton ; the 14| lbs.
of cake would cost 5^d. It is obvious, therefore, that even at the
above low price of oil-cake, there would be no real advantage in
substituting it generally for farm-yard dung ; in situations, however,
remote from large towns, where it is almost impossible to procure
dung, or where the carriage of large masses of dung would be both
difficult and expensive, there would then be advantage in the sub-
stitution.

Woollen rags at the price of about 2*. 10c?. per cwt. are more pro-
fitable than farm-yard dung at 3^. per cwt. The equivalent of the
rags is 2.22, and this quantity (2.22 lbs. avoird.) of rags is worth
about ^d. ; by the substitution of the rags for farm-yard manure,
therefore, a saving is effected of about 2|<i. on every cwt. of the
latter that must have been employed. In good farming, however,
it is less with reference to the money advantage of substituting one
manure for another, that calculations are made, than with reference
to the possibility of procuring either one manure or another at a
moderate price. The estimated value of the dung in one of the
columns of the table gives us at once the price that may be paid for
it ; for this purpose it is enough to know the value of standard dung :
let this be as it usually is, 3^. per cwt. ; if we would now know
what maj be paid for a hundred weight of bones simply ('ried in th«

26

802 VALUE OF DIFFERENT MANURES.

air, the number designating these being 1554, we have only to make
a simple equation in the following terms : — 100 : 3d. : : 1554 : a, to
have the solution : =3s. lOhd.

The most careful consideration of the relative value of different
manures under th^ guidance of the analytical elements which I have
indicated, justifies the preference which is given in practice to one
kind over another, which on simple examination appears to offer
greater advantages. Thus, by diffusing oil-cake through water, and
leaving the mixture to ferment, a manure is obtained which presents
all the characters, which possesses all the properties of human soil
that has undergone fermentation in privies or cess-pools. And it is
to this mixture of putrid oil-cake that the husbandmen of French
Flanders have recourse, as we have seen, when their supply of
night-soil runs short. When oil-cake is low in price, say about 3^.
3d. or 35. 4d. per cwt., it might seem advantageous to manufacture
Flemish manure with it ; expensive carriage and time would be
saved ; for night-soil has generally to be fetched from a distance,
and containing but 0.002 (y/o o^hs) of azote, it is bulky, and its equiv-
alent is in the same proportion high. Cameline oil-cake contains
0.055 (ylf^ths) of azote ; to make Flemish manure that should con-
tain 0.002 of azote, it would be requisite to add to every 100 parts
of cake 2,650 parts of water ; the cwt. of this manure would then
come to l^d., while Flemish manure prepared with night-soil, would
cost the farmer but l^d. I have here taken the cake at a tow price;
were it 7^. 6d. per cwt. instead of 3*. 9d., which is perhaps much
nearer its usual average cost, it is obvious that the cwt. of manure
prepared from it, would cost twice as much more.

The proportion of azote, the value, and the equivalents of the
several manures are given in the table, both for the substances ab-
solutely dry, and for the condition in which they are commonly em-
ployed. This distinction is one of great importance. The water,
the quantity of which is indicated in the first column, is a most
variable constituent ; its presence, of course, depreciates the ma-
nure in the precise ratio in which it occurs. The reference of all
the elements of each particular manure to that manure in a state of
absolute dryness, is a very important feature in the table. In pur-
chasing manures, the precaution of drying them chemically must
never be neglected, more especially in connection with articles,
which by their nature are capable of absorbing water in consider-
able, and often in very different, quantities.

LIMING. 303

CHAPTER VI.

OF MINERAL MANURES OR STIMULANTS.

Ai.t the org-anic manures, when burned, leave ashes composed of
earthy and saline substances. The action of these substances upon
vegetation is quite unquestionable, and it is certain that an organic
manure, were it ever so rich in azotized principles, and ever so as-
similable, would still be imperfect did it not further contain the truly-
mineral matters which plants require to meet with in the soil, in
order to complete their growth and bring their seeds to maturity.
The most active organic manures are always abundantly provided
with inorganic principles. Farm dung (dry) contains about one-
fourth of its weight of such substances, and the water which is used
for irrigation invariably holds saline matter in solution.

Nevertheless, repeated cropping will often end by depriving the
soil of the mineral substances which plants require ; the salts con-
tained in the manure supplied are sometimes inadequate to meet
the demands of successive crops, and then the return falls off. It
is consequently necessary in certain cases to furnish the soil anew
with saline matters, in order to supply the continued drain that is
made upon it, or to meet the exigencies of particular crops which
are known to require an unusually large quantity of salts for their
successful cultivation. It is in this way that clover, lucern, and
sainfoin require plaster, (gypsum ;) the cereals, silica, and certain
calcareous salts ; the vine, potash, &c.

Practice got the start of science in the application of mineral ma-
nures or stimulants. If their useful influence cannot be denied, as
it cannot, if the circumstances in which it is advantageous to admin-
ister them, if the conditions and the doses in which they ought to be
given to the ground have been the subject of long and careful obser-
vation with farmers, it must still be admitted that we are far from
understanding exactly in what way they act ; this is another motive
for continuing to study them with perseverance.

CALCAREOUS MANURES.

In certain soils we have said that the calcareous element is either
wanting, or present in very small and inadequate quantity ; other
soils, again, abound in calcareous matter, and observation appears to
prove that the presence of carbonate of lime in a soil adds unequivo-
cally to its fertility. The majority of the 'good wheat lands hitherto
examined have been found to contain a notable quantity of this earth
or earthy salt.

It is usual to put lime into the ground in the state of caustic or
quick-lime ; this is liming^ properly so called. But it is also ap-
plied in the state of carbonate, as when we make use of chalk or
marl, or shell-sand from the sea-shore.

304 LIMING.

The limestone that is used for burning is seldom pure; it fre-
quently contains clay, quartzy sand, metallic oxides, and occasionally
carbonaceous matter ; frequently too it is so largely mixed with
magnesia that it acquires peculiar characters ; this is the magnesian
limestone or dolomite. The purest carbonate of lime, by exposure
for some time to a white heat, loses 43.7 of carbonic acid, and con-
sequently contains 56.3 of caustic lime. Limestone is one of the
most common of rocks ; in the crystalline and saccharoid state, or
of closer and finer grain, it often constitutes mountain masses, and
is met with in every part of the geological series ; it meet«« us as
chalk in beds of enormous thickness, filling up extensive basins in
the tertiary series ; such are the chalk beds of the south and west
coasts of England, extending through the counties of Kent and
Sussex, &c.

The only mineral substance with which chalk, limestone, or car-
bonate of lime is likely to be confounded, is gypsum or sulphate of
lime. But it is easy to distinguish either of these salts from the
other : carbonate of lime dissolves with eflfervescence in dilute
hydrochloric acid ; sulphate of lime is insoluble in this liquid.
Carbonate of lime is quite insoluble in water ; sulphate of lime is
very sensibly soluble, and a copious precipitate falls on the addition
of a solution of oxalic acid or of oxalate of ammonia. Gypsum is
always so soft that it can be scratched with the nail ; limestone,
save in the state of chalk, is generally so hard that it resists the
nail.

The i)urning of lime for agricultural uses is carried on in the same
way as for building and other economical purposes. Burnt or quick-
lime is a very different article from chalk or limestone ; it is power-
fully caustic or destructive of the organic tissue, and instead of
being altogether insoluble, it is now soluble in about 630 parts of
cold water. All the world knows how lime from the kiln, when
watered, rises in temperature, breaks first into larger and then into
smaller pieces, and finally falls down into fine powder ; but every
one is not aware that there is a true chemical union of water with
the earth, and that the resulting powder is in chemical language a
hydrate of lime, a substance which is much less caustic than pure
lime, but s^till distinctly alkaline in its reaction.

It is generally admitted that the soil which is without a certain,
and that a considerable proportion of the calcareous element, never
possesses a high degree of fertility. This in particular is the opin-
ion of English agriculturists, who apply lime with a kind of profu-
sion ; and the great improvement it frequently produces on the crops
of grain, leaves no doubt as to the advantages of the procedure.
Still it is now generally recognized that liming ceases to be useful
upon lands that are already sufliciently calcareous, or that rest on a
sub-soil of chalk. It is, therefore, by supplying the calcareous ele-
ment which land requires to constitute it a soil adapted to the growth
of corn, that the application of line becomes useful ; liming, in
fa«t, enables us to make this neces&iry addition at least cost. Like
other mineral manures, lime of itself produces little or no eflfect;

LIMING. 305

it is in concurrence with organic manures that it becomes truly use-
ful ; it is nowise, and never can become, a substitute for these.

The geological constitution of a country is perhaps the best guide
10 the necessity or advantages of liming. Soils that are derived
from plutonic or igneous rocks, in which felspar, mica, or quartz
predominate, are on the face of things likely to be improved by the
introduction of lime. Direct analysis would of course give more
decisive information on the fact. In any case, the measure recom-
mended by prudence is to make a few preliminary trials upon the
small scale ; the experimental method is the only safe one in agri-
culture, when the question is in regard to the adoption of new plans.
In England it is customary in liming clayey lands to allow from
230 to 300 or 310 bushels of stimulant per acre ; on lighter soils
the dose may vary from about 150 to 200 bushels, according to their
character. In France the quantity usually employed is greatly less,
from about 60 to 70 bushels being all that is generally thought ad-
visable, and this at intervals of seven or eight years-. In the neigh-
borhood of Lisle little use is made of lime, although there the land
is generally any thing but calcareous ; perhaps the want of lime is
not felt in consequence of the universal practice of employing the
Flemish manure, which, as we have seen, contains ammoniacal
salts, (and both human urine and excrement contain a large quantity
of phosphate of lime and phosphate of magnesia in addition, the
very salts that the generality of vegetables crave.) In the vicinity
of Dunkirk, however, lime is frequently applied in the dose of be-
tween 40 and 50 bushels per acre, and with eflfects that are said to
continue for ten or twelve years.

The dose of lime introduced into the soil in different countries, is
moreover in a certain relation with the time during which the action
of the earth is believed to continue ; as the quantity administered at
once is small, the dose must be repeated more frequently. Near
Dunkirk they use from 40 to 50 bushels per acre every 10 or 12
years ; in the department of La Sarthe, according to M. Puvis, they
scatter on some 9 or 10 bushels only ; but they do so every three
years. This would lead us to conclude that soils which really
wanted lime should receive a dose in the proportion of about 3^
bushels per acre annually. But the crops gathered from the ground
every year, certainly do not abstract any thing like this quantity of
calcareous matter ; which would induce us to infer, that after a cer
tain time the land will contain such a quantity of lime as to make
any further addition of it unnecessary, or at all events, unnecessary
save at rare and distant intervals.

One of the great advantages which lime has over all the other
forms or kinds of calcareous stimulants employed, is unquestionably
the state of extreme subdivision which it acquires in the quenching.
In the course of falling down into this extremely fine powder, lime,
as has been said, combines with a large quantity of water. But the
change experienced does not stop short here ; the air always contains
some lOjOOOths of carbonic acid gas, for which the hydrate of lime
has a powerful ailinity, so that it absorbs this gas greedily, aban-

26*

806 LIMING.

doninff, at the same time, its constitutional water, by which, in due
season, the hydrate of lime becomes changed into the anhydrous
carbonate of lime. This process is always slow ; more rapid at
first, when the interchange between the carbonic acid and watei
takes place freely ; it becomes gradually slower and slower as there
is less and less water left in the particles : the affinity of the lime
for the water seems to increase continually in the ratio of the small-
ness of the quantity which it still contains. It must, therefore, con
stantly happen that in incorporating lime, in powder and partially
carbonated with the soil, we also introduce lime that has preserved
its causticity in some measure ; it must be observed, however, that,
once intimately mixed with the soil, this lime must speedily pass
into the state of carbonate, because the soil and the water with which
it is moistened always contain a considerable quantity of carbonic
acid. Though we commence operations with quick-lime, conse-
quently, it is carbonate of lime that is definitively introduced into the
ground. 1 have thought this a point of sufficient importance to en-
gage our attention for a short time, inasmuch as it simplifies the
view of the end that is to be sought in applying lime; this, as M.
Puvis has most satisfactorily established, is neither more nor less
than the introduction into the ground of that proportion of the calca-
reous element which it either wanted originally, or which it has lost
in the course of repeated cropping, in order to enable it to produce
abundantly. Quick-lime incorporated with the soil must pass, as I
have shown, very rapidly into the state of carbonate ; but, before
attaining to this state, it may, unquestionably, react upon the organic
substances it encounters, disorganize them, favor their decomposi-
tion, in a word, behave as it does when used in composts. On the
other hand, in causing the destruction of organic particles already
in a state of decomposition, it must produce an unfavorable influ-
ence.

Lime, previously quenched and cold, is generally spread by being
raked out from the cart upon the field, in little heaps, from five to six
or seven yards apart, each containing from half to two-thirds of a
bushel. It is or ought then to be spread immediately as evenly as
possible over the surface. There is only the disadvantage attending
this mode of proceeding, that slaked lime is twice the bulk of lime
in the shell or lump, and that, by slaking, it takes up at least one-
fifth of its original weight of water. There is saving of labor,
therefore, in distributing the lime unslaked, in heaps, and waiting the
slow process of extinction and pulverization by the moisture of the
atmosphere. The lime is often laid in a corner of the field, and
covered lightly over with vegetable earth to undergo pulverization,
and this plan answers very well. Sometimes the lime, before being
laid on, is worked up into a kind of compost with vegetable mould
and other matters ; this is all matter of calculation as to cost. If
our object be to supply the soil with the calcareous elements it wants,
the proper procedure is quite obvious.

The mode of using lime with reference to other improvers of the
•oil vaiies in different places. In one place it is usual to lime and

MARL. 30t

to dung alternately ; in others, the two operations are done together,
or very close upon one another. There are some lands so fertile,
that they produce abundantly under the influence of lime alone. In
laying on lime, one general rule is, that the weather should be dry,
and the ground well drained ; the end of summer is probably the
most favorable season. To say nothing of the difficulty of spreading
the lime in wet weather, if it is at all fresh, its caustic qualities are
brought into immediate play by the moisture, and it destroys the
roots of living vegetables, and the organic elements of the soil ; and,
again, it is quite certain that lime produces very little effect upon
undrained and wet lands. In England, lime is very commonly used
upon fallows, in the course of the summer, and before sowing the
wheat for which fallowing is always a preparation. When it is given
to land destined for beet or potatoes, it is led out in the spring, and
spread before the young beet is transplanted, in the one case, the
seed-potatoes deposited, in the other.

It is always matter of great moment to have lime spread evenly ;
a thorough harrowing and a double superficial ploughing incorporate
it sufficiently. According to M. Puvis, who has made a particular
study of the subject of liming, as practised in the department of the
Ain, a quantity of lime, amounting to 8,250 bushels, spread upon
seventy-seven acres of land, in the course of nine years, produced
so decided an improvement that the returns from winter-grain crops
became the double of what they had been before.

Marl. Marl, in a general way, may be regarded as a mixture of
carbonate of lime and clay in very variable proportions. Occasional-
ly the clay^is replaced by sand ; whence the titles, sandy marl, argil-
laceous marl. The article, in short, contains from 15 to as many as
90 per cent, of carbonate of lime. It presents numerous shades of
color. Geologically speaking, it is usually met with in fresh-water
formations of the latest date — the upper strata of the Jura limestone
are frequently covered with deposites of argillaceous marls, and we
see its formation going on at the bottoms of lakes and ponds, at the
present day.

The distinguishing property of a calcareous marl, whatever ad-
mixture of other matters it contains, is that of crumbling to pieces
under exposure to atmospherical influences. Every limestone rock
that has this property may be considered and employed as a marl.
The grand purpose of putting marl upon land is to supply it with the
calcareous element it wants. To marl land, is therefore tantamount
to liming it : the effect is the same. The value of the article is,
indeed, so well known, that considerable expense is constantly in-
curred to get at the beds of it that form strata in the crust of tae
earth, or that lie at the bottoms of lakes. It appears to have been
employed from the remotest antiquity.

The reason why marl and marly limestones fall so completely
into powder, is obvious. If the mass, when wet, form a pasty mass-
it shrinks as it dries, and cracks in all directions ; if more consistent,
it is still always porous, and having imbibed a large quantity of rain
in the autumn, this congeals during the frosts of t.he succeeding win-

308 MARL.

ter, and the ice, expanding with almost irresistible force, separates
the particles, which cohere, indeed, so long as the frost continues,
but fall away from one another on the first thaw, by which the solid
rock of the autumn and winter becomes a heap of dust in the spring.
In the same way, we see chalk, exposed to the wet and the frost,
fall down to powder, and, in virtue of this property, and its constitu-
tion as carbonate of lime, employed with perfect success in lieu of
lime and marl. Wherever there is a bed of chalk at hand, it is need-
less to go further in search of marl and quick-lime, in so far at least
as the calcareous principle is concerned.

Argillaceous marl and sandy marl must, of course, act in two
different ways upon the soil : in virtue of the calcareous element in
either case, and in virtue of the argillaceous principle in the one,
of the sandy principle in the other ; and the kind of soil for which
they are severally adapted can be conceived beforehand. To a stiff,
clayey soil, we would naturally add the sandy marl; to a light sandy
soil we would supply the argillaceous product, and thus effect im-
provement by a kind of double tide. It is therefore very important to
distinguish between these two effects produced by marl — one me-
chanical, connected with the presence of clay or sand ; the other
chemical, and depending on the presence of carbonate of lime. It is
to these two effects, separately and combined, that all the influence
of marl is usually ascribed by practical agriculturists. From certain
inquiries common to M. Payen and me, however, it appears that
marl must act in yet another way ; our analyses show that it always
contains a certain though variable proportion of azotized matter.
And there is nothing extraordinary in the discovery of this fact ; it
is no more than might have been anticipated from the ge(^ogical cir-
cumstances attending its production. Marls are, as has been said,
always connected with the most recent formations of the tertiary
series ; they are constantly accompanied by remains, which attest
the presence of organic beings, and frequently they consist of little
else than shells, and the disintegrated dwellings and bodies of mo-
luscas, and madrepores, and corallines, and other inferior forms of
things that once had life. It is by no means astonishing, therefore,
that deposites which have had such an original should still contain
evidences of the presence of the softer and more decompoundable, as
well as of the harder and more rebellious constituents of the beings
to whose existence they are due. One sample of marl which we
analyzed, gave 0.002 of azote ; another, from the Lower Rhine,
gave rather more than 0.001 of the same element. It were, there-
fore, very proper, in analyzing marls, chalks, &c., to have an eye tc
their organic or azotic, as well as to their mineral constituents ; there
can be very little question of the azotized elements being at the bot
torn of the really wonderful fertilizing influences of the marls of
certain districts.

Marl ought, like lime, to be spread very evenly over the land ; i
is generally laid on in the same way as lime — in little heaps at re
gular distances, and then scattered abroad. It appears to be a verj
general opinion that it is not advisable to cover it immediately, or verj

309

shortly after it is dug from the bed that supplies it ; the practice
where its employment is most general, and probably best understood,
is to let it lie exposed through the summer or winter, or even the
whole year before laying it on the land. It is also held not to be
proper to cover it in marl deeply. Marl is advantageously laid out
in heaps upon stubbles in the autumn ; and in the early spring when
it has been pulverized by the frost, it is spread with the shovel.
When it is to be used with winter wheat or rye, it is laid on in the
summer, and spread at the time of ploughing ; the latter plan of
proceeding, however, as Schwertz observes, can only be followed
with marl that pulverizes readily. In England it is also laid down
as a kind of principle that marl ought to be exposed for as long a
time as possible to the influences of the atmosphere ; that it ought
to have a summer's heat and a winter's cold before it is applied.
And that, in fact, which is at all consistent, and has not been expos-
ed to the frost, scarcely pulverizes sufficiently to be readily miscible
with the soil even under the influence of repeated ploughings ; more-
over, it produces very little obvious ejSfect upon the crop with which
it is first used. After spreading, a rough harrow is passed over the
surface of the ground, which is then ploughed superficially two or
three times, the harrow being again had recourse to repeatedly to
break lumps, and so bring out the effect of the marl.

The quantity of marl that may be advantageously given varies
according to the circumstances of the district. Marl, it may fairly
be said, is frequently abused. In an excellent paper on the subject,
M. Puvis lays it down as a principle that the first element in the
calculation of the proper dose of marl, is the quantity of calcareous
matter that is wanting in the soil. He says that every soil which
contains Q^iore than 9 or 10 per cent, of carbonate of lime can dis-
pense with marl ; and that soils in which the lime falls short of this
quantity, may advantageously receive a dose or successive doses of
the substance that will bring them up to the point. The proper
dose, consequently, depends first on the proportion of carbonate of
lime contained in the soil, and then on that which the marl itself
includes.

Considered from the rational point of view which M. Puvis has
taken, marling is no longer an arbitrary process, but one that may
be conducted on determinate principles. The extravagant quanti-
ties that are often laid on without other assignable reason than blind
custom, are shown to be, if not injurious, yet useless : the quantity
of marl to be incorporated is determined by the quality of the sub-
stance which is at our disposal, and by the depth of the layer of
vegetable ea~th taken in connection with its chemical constitution.
To facilitate the calculation of the proper dose, M. Puvis has drawn
up a table, which, as it may be found useful in practice, I append.
It shows at a glance the quantity of marl in cubic feet that ought to
be put upon an acre of ground, the depth of the arable soil being
considered in connection with the composition of the marl at com->
laand :—

SIO

MARL.

Table of the Number of Cubic Feet of Marl applicable upon an

When 100

Acre of Land ploughed to the depth of:

parts of marl

contain of

carbonate of

lime.

inches.

inches.

Sr^TT

6fV

7tV

8A

inches.

inches.

inches.

inches.

333

444

554

666

776

888

10

1661

222

277

333

388

444

20

111"

146

184^0

222

258^

296

30

83-iV

HI

138fV

166fV

194

222

40

-66fV

88tV

llOrV

133^V

155rV

177y3^-

50

55r\

74

^'^^

111

129y2^

148

60

47A

63A

79A

95^

iioA

126A

70

41t^

55 fV

69t^

83f^

97

111

80

37

49t^o

6li

74

86t^

98T'ff

90

33^

44A

55>o

66A

77^

88A

100

M. Puvis does not by any means give the doses in this table as
those that should be invariably employed ; the table is one of aver-
ages, deduced from practical results, and tested by experience as
most truly useful. But special cases may occur that would make
departure from these conclusions not only advisable, but advantage-
ous.*

The use of marl produces an unquestionable effect on the pro-
ductive properties of the soil. According to M. Puvis, the applica-
tion of the proper dose of a sandy marl, containing from 30 to 60 per
cent, of carbonate of lime, doubled the produce of a piece of parched
land in the department of the Isere. Before the application of the
marl nothing but dwarfish crops of rye were gathered, yielding at
most three for one of the seed ; at present, eight for one of seed,
and that wheat, are obtained ; and the good effects are found to
continue for ten and even twelve years.

The action of marl is not unlimited any more than that of lime,
as the last sentence will give the reader reason to conclude. With
every harvest, a certain proportion of it is carried off, and the land
is finally left with an inadequate quantity of the calcareous element,
which then requires to be restored. The nature of the crop, how-
ever, has the most marked influence on the quantity of lime that is
taken up and carried away from the soil ; allowing the broadest
margin, and judging from the composition of the ashes of the plants
that form the subjects of our ordinary crops, we can see that the
quantity of 3| bushels of marl of the usual composition per acre,
which is assumed as the average quantity to be laid on, is vastly
more than can be absolutely necessary.

Wood ashes contribute to improve the soil. They contain, besides
fiilica, both phosphate and carbonate of lime and alkaline sulphates,
phosphates, and carbonates. In a general way, every thing derived

♦ Puvis in Annals of French AgricuUuro, vol. xxviii. p. 328, 2d series.

PEAT ASHES. 311

fraia plants that have lived must be useful to plants that are about
to live, or that are actually living. Although the utility of wood
ashes, then, is generally admitted, the numerous purposes to which
they are applied in the arts, and their high price, which is the con-
sequence of this, enable the husbandman to employ them but rarely
on his land ; they are almost always lixiviated in order to procure
the carbonate of potash they contain. In countries which are thick-
ly wooded, indeed, the trees are actually cut down and burned for
the sake of their ashes, just as oxen are run down and slaughtered
in the vast plains of South America for the sake of their hides.

The good effect of wood a"shes upon vegetation is known to com-
munities the least advanced in civilization. The Indians of South
America burn the stems and leaves of the maize in order to improve
the soil. The same practice occurs among the natives of Africa :
on the banks of the river Zaire, according to Tuckey, the ground is
prepared by having little piles of dried herbs placed on it, to which
fire is set ; and upon the spots where the ashes are collected, they
sow peas and Indian corn ; these ashes are in fact the only manure
that is employed. In England, wood ashes are esteemed as parti-
cularly useful upon gravelly soils ; about 40 bushels per acre are
applied in the spring, where the article can be obtained.

The lye-ashes from the soap-boiler contain a small quantity of
soluble saline matter which has escaped the lixiviation, mixed with
a large proportion of lime, partly in the state of carbonate, the lime
having been added to bring the carbonate of potash employed in the
manufacture of soap into the caustic state. This ash or refuse is
much sought after, and is administered in quantities that vary from
45 to 70 bushels per acre, a dose in which its action is felt for ten
years or more. In wooded districts, where there is a good deal of
potash prepared, ash of this kind is obtained in large quantity ; it is
there employed alternately with organic manures. Ashes are ap-
plied in th« same way as lime, with this difference, that it is held
better not to plough them in until they have received a little rain.
There tre places where the ashes that remain in the lixiviating tub
are threwn on in the dose of 170 bushels per acre.

Turf or peat ashes. Peat is the result of a peculiar spontaneous
change that takes place in vegetables. It is produced in bogs or
swamps, and in connection with stagnant waters ; turfy deposites are
also encountered on the banks of rivers, in valleys, at the bottoms
of former lakes, and at the mouths of rivers. Peat is met with
from the level of the sea to the elevated platforms of the Vosges
and x\lps ; it lies in horizontal beds, frequently divided by strata of
gravel, sand, or clay. It is always a product of comparatively re-
cent formation, a fact which is attested by the thin layers of vege-
table soil that lie over it in many places, and the animal remains
and products of human industry that are frequently encountered
in it.

The state of decomposition of the vegetables that form turf or
peat is seldom so far advanced as to make the remains of the plants
which compose it doubtful. It is of different kinds : hard or woody,

S13 P£AT ASHES.

*nd sof> o» hffbajeois peat. Some of it is extremrly compact.
Mack, and like vegetable mould in appearance; generally speaking
it is light, spongy, ind of a lighter or deeper shade of brown.
When quite dry, it is often extremely light ; a fiub c metre, which
is about one-eleventh more 1 han a c»ibic yard, wil « weigh from 5 to 6
cwt.

The circumstances in which turf has been found lead us to infer
that it must contain the elementary insoluble elements of the plants
that produced it. It appears, however, to contain a somewhat lar-
ger proportion of azote than the average quantity met with in her-
baceous vegetables, supposed dry ; but we have seen that in the
slow alteration of lignine, azote becomes concentrated, as it were,
in the residue ; and that, in fine, mould contains a larger quantity of
azote than the wood from which it proceeds. It appears further
from some experiments very lately performed by Mr. Hermann, that
during the putrefaction of the woody principle, azote is actually ta-
ken from the air to concur in the formation of certain products that
are perfectly definite. Mr. Hermann quotes the following experi-
ment :

Twenty-eight parts of wood taken from a log already attacked
with rot, and in which, indeed, there were several points already
decayed, were moistened and enclosed in a jar containing atmo-
spherical air over mercury. The bulk of the atmosphere contained
in the bell-glass was 262 volumes. The wood was kept there for
ten days at a temperature of 75.2° Fahr. The apparent volume of
the air continued unaltered to the end of the experiment ; but a
large quantity of carbonic acid had been formed :

RESULTS ON THE INCLUDED AIR.

The air cont^ned : Azote. . . .
Oxygen .

Before.
..207 vols.

... 55

Carbonic acid...

After.
194 vols.
...40 "

28 "

The moist wood in its decomposition during ten days had conse-
quently caused thirteen volumes of azote and twenty-seven volumes
of oxygen to disappear. And Mr. Hermann found that it now con-
tained principles analogous to those of humus, one of which, nitro-
iin, is highly azotized, and by the ulterior action of air and moisture,
gives rise to ulraate of ammonia. These experiments of Mr. Her-
mann are new, and the conclusions to which they lead are both inter-
esting and important.*

Turf or peat is virtually the woody principle in the last stage of
modification by atmospherical influences ; but it appears still to con-
tain, although modified, the usual principles which enter into the
constitution of herbaceous vegetables also, M. Payen detected a
quantity of fatty matter in it, analogous to that which exists in
leaves, and M. Reinsch found it to contain tannin. One sample of

♦ Vide hia paper in Journ. fiir prakt. Cliemie, b. xxUi. s. 379.

?EAT ASHES. 31^

turf (from the neighborhood of Moscow, by the way) examined by
Mr. Hermann, yielded of carbonaceous matter, nitrolin and vegeta-
ble remains 77.5 ; of ulmic acid 17.0 ; extract of humus 4.0 ; am-
monia 0.25 ; and ash 1.25=100.0 The elementary composition of
these varieties of turf, analyzed oy M. Regnault, gave from 57 to
58 of carbon ; 5.1 to 5.6 hydrogen ; 30.8 to 31.8 oxygen and azote ;
and 4.6 to 5.6 ashes.

Turf or peat has consequently a certain resemblance to mould or
.humus ; it differs, hovvever, in the absence of substances soluble in
water ; and it is easy to imagine that, produced as it is in connection
with water, continually soaked in moisture, soluble matters ought
«ot to be expected in it in appreciable quantity. Peat might, in
fact, be likened to the insoluble part of humus left after lixiviation.
A.nd there is this further resemblance, that peat, like the humus
(vhich has been thoroughly lixiviated, if exposed to the air, by and
iy acquires a quantity of soluble material, the evolution of which is
also hastened by the contact of the alkalies. The employment of
hirf as manure, in some countries, confirms the propriety of this
mode of viewing its nature and constitution ; and then it is well
knowc that bogs consisting of pure turf, when drained and limed,
become tolerably fertile lands, yielding magnificent crops of oats
and turnips especially.

The ashes of turf we might expect to contain the mineral sub-
stances usually found in the ashes of plants, and further a certain
quantity of additional earthy matter. But this is not the case : sev-
eral alkaline salts, indeed, have been discovered in very small pro-
portion ; but no chemist, to my knowledge, has ever even suspected
the presence of any of the phosphates ; a special search which was
made for them in my laboratory failed to discover them. This is a
fact which, I own, amazed me ; some coal ash, and another ash
produced from lignite, gave a result equally negative. We might
imagine the disappearance of the soluble salts ; but how the earthy
phosphates should disappear ; how the ashes of coal should come
to be without a trace of phosphoric acid, when we see that the iron
ore, in connection with the coal fields, is always more or less phos-
phorigerous,* is surprising.

Turf or peat ashes are valuable improvers of the soil, and are in
Treat request among intelligent farmers. Analysis, in fact, indicates
several substances in their composition as calculated to assist vege-
tation; carbonate of lime, in a state of extreme subdivision ; occa-
sionally sulphate of lime, (gypsum ;) calcined clay, whose action
upon strong and retentive lands is always beneficial ; silica in a fa-
vorable state for assimilation ; finally, alkaline salts, chlorides, sul-
phates, carbonates, and, perhaps, in spite of the negative given by
chemical analysis, traces of the phosphates.

The peat of the bogs of Sceaux, near Chiteau-Landon, leaves 19
per cent of ashes, composed, according to M. Berthier, of : —

* Our author might have added the fact, that the common bog iron ore of this COUB
try is a phosphate of iron.— Eng. Ed.

27

814 PEAT ASHES.

Caustic and carbonated lime* • 83.C

Clay 7JS

Gelatinous silica 13.0

Alumina .t. 7.0

Oxide of iron 9.0

Car^.. late of potash 0.5

100.0

The peat of Voiuomra, dug upon the frontiers (.£ Bavaria and
Bohemia, contains the remains of trees ; it leaves 1.7 per cent, of
ashes, composed, according to M. Fikenscher, of:

Silica 36.5

Alumina 17.3

Oxide of iron 33.0

Lime 2.0

Magnesia ••'. 3.5

Sulphate of lime 4.5

Chloride of calcium 0.5

Carbonaceous matter not incinerated — 2.7

100.0

The brown herbaceous peat of the neighborhood of Troyes, leave*
1 1 per cent, of residue ; it contains :

Carbonic acid and sulphur 23.0

Lime 23.0

Magnesia 14.0

Alumina and oxide of iron 14.0

Clay and silica 26.0

100.0
The peat of Vassy is compact, and of a brown color; it is mixed
with fragments of chalk. On incineration, it leaves 7.2 of residue
per cent., containing :

Clay 11.0

Carbonate of lime 51.4

Sulphateof lime 26.0

Oxide of iron 11.5

100.0

The peat of Champ-du-Feu, near Framont, (Vosges,) leaves 3
per cent, of ashes, which consist of:

Silica 40.0

Alumina and oxide of iron 30.0

Lime 30.0

100.0

The peat of the environs of Haguenau (Lower Rhine) produces
12.5 per cent, of ashes, which, according to the analysis made in my
laboratory, contain :

Silica and sand 65.5

Alumina 16.2

Lime 6.0

Magnesia 0.6

Oxideofiron 3.7

Potash and soda "... 23

Sulphuric acid 5.4

Chlorine 0.3

10(.0

Supposing the whole of the sulphuric acid fciund to have beeu m

COAL-ASHES. 315

comoination with lime, this peat could only ha^e contained 4.1 per
cent, of gypsum.

These analyses will show that-the composition of peat, or turf, is
very various. The varying and dissimilar effects produced by turf-
ishes, may probably be owing to this variety of composition. Turf-
ashes, in a general way, may be used as a substitute for gypsum ;
but this is upon the presumption that they contain lime, either in the
state of carbonate or of sulphate. The Vassy turf-ashes, for ex-
ample, may be employed for gypsing meadows, inasmuch as they
contain a quarter of their weight of sulphate of lime.

The ashes from pyritic turf ought not to be used without great
circumspection ; they usually contain a quantity of iron pyrites
which has not been destroyed in the burning, and which, exposed
to the action of the air, gives rise to the formation of green vitriol,
or sulphate of iron, which may prove prejudicial to vegetation.
These ashes are generally of a red color, and very heavy, in con-
sequence of containing a quantity of the oxide of iron. Good turf-
ashes ought to be white and light ; the sack ought to weigh some-
thing less than a hundred-weight. Schwertz recommends us to keep
them from the wet ; but at Bechelbronn, where we use large quanti-
ties of peat-ashes, we find no ill effects from leaving them exposed
to the rain ; frequently, indeed, we moisten them with water from the
dunghill, in order to add to their properties as a mineral manure, those
that belong to organic manures. On the whole, however, it is cer-
tainly better, for many reasons, to keep them dry ; they are more
easily carried, and they are more easily spread.

Turf-ashes of a good quality, that is to say, which include in theii
composition a large proportion of calcareous and alkaline salts, are
adapted to crops of every description ; but it is upon clover especially
that their influence is truly surprising. This fact is well established
in Flanders ; but one must have employed them one's self to have any
adequate idea of the improvement they produce. There is no risk
of giving too large a quantity. In winter, when we have peat-ashes
at our disposal, we give as many as 60 bushels per acre to our clo-
vers ; we scatter them even upon the surface of the snow, and dis-
tribute them by means of the rake in the spring. The Dutch use
these ashes in still larger quantity, applying, at two different times,
from 100 to 160 bushels per acre to their clover fields. Accord-
ing to Sinclair, the Dutch also make use of an ash procured from
a turf which during winter is in contact with brackish water, a cir-
cumstance which renders this ash particularly rich in alkaline salts.
It is sowed by hand, in the spring, upon clover, and the following
year an abundant crop of wheat is obtained. The same material is
also used in the cultivation of the hop ; and it is said that, administer-
ed in small quantity to the roots of the vine, they preserve the plant
from the attacks of destructive insects.

Coal-ashes. Coal, like the two last combustible materials, is the
product of vegetables, which, however, have undergone such a
change as to have lost almost every trace of organization. Coal of
different kinds contains from 1.4 to about 2.3 per cent, of ashes, and

816 ALKALINE SALTS.

about 2 per cent, of azote. The ash of a variety of coal of verjf
excellent quality gave of —

Argillaceous matter (silica"?) not soltble in acids 69

Alumina 5

Lime 9

Magnesia 8

Oxide of manganese 3

Oxide and sulpliuret of iron 16

100
Coal ash also contains very minute quantities of alkaline salts,
which usually escape analysis when they are not especially inquired
after. One specimen analyzed in my laboratory, gave nearly 00.1
of alkali. Coal-ash is particularly useful on clayey soils ; it acts by
lessening the tenacity of the soil ; and further, doubtless, by the in-
troduction of certain useful principles, such as lime and alkaline salts.

OF ALKALINE SALTS.

It is impossible to doubt that salts having potash and soda for their
base are useful in agriculture. The influence of u^ood-ashes, and of
paring and burning is unquestionable ; and they are so, in some con-
siderable degree at least, in consequence of the salts of these bases
which they supply, and which always enter into the constitution of
vegetables. There are even certain crops which, in order to thrive,
require a particular alkali ; the vine, for example, the fruit of which
contains bitartrate of potash, and sorrel, which contains the binoxa-
late of the same base, must needs have supplies of potash. The
plants which are grown for the production of soda, the salsola, <5fC.,
from which barilla is made, must come in a soil that naturally con-
tains a salt of soda, such as that of the sea-shore.

It would appear, however, that the salts of soda or potash, must
not exceed a very small proportion in the soil. All the experiments
that have yet been undertaken with a view to ascertain the action
of different saline substances on growing vegetables, have led to no
very certain conclusion but this, that they must be used very sparing-
ly. M. Lecoq has published an account of some experiments, made
apparently with great care, which go to prove that common salt, in
the dose of from \\ to 2j cwts. per acre, favored the growth of barley,
wheat, lucern, and flax. Chloride of calcium and sulphate of soda,
he also found to have the same good effects. M. de Dombasle, how-
ever, came to conclusions totally opposed to them, with reference
especially to common salt, which, applied in the doses advised by M.
Lecoq, was not found to produce any sensible effeci. M. Puvis also
obtained results that were equally negative. It would perhaps have
been well had M. Lecoq begun by determining the proportion of
alkaline salts which existed previously in the soil on which he
conducted his experiments. If he operated on a soil that was either
destitute of these salts, or that contained them only in minimum
proportion, very probably he did good by adding them.

Nitrate of potash has been repeatedly recommended ?r an agent
useful in agriculture. The conclusions that have been come to
however, from its use, are far from accordant. In the processta

NITHATE OF SODA. 81

or modes of using- nitre to the soil, it is not uncommon to find il
associated with soot, or with vegetable mould, substances which
require no assistance of any kind to constitute them powerful
manures, and the addition of which is therefore calculated to raise
strong doubts of the advantageous qualities ascribed to nitre alone.
Were the advantages of nitrate of potash much less questioned
than they are, however, the high price of the salt would probably
always oppose insuperable obstacles to its employment. This is
the reason, in all likelihood that has turned the attention of Eng-
lish agriculturists, for several years past, to nitrate of soda, a salt
that is imported in quantity from Peru, and of which the price
per cwt. may be about forty shillings ; a price which, were it found
really useful, would permit of its being used. Admitting the ac-
curacy of the experiments that have been made, indeed, we can-
not doubt the efficacy of nitrate of soda on soil already furnished
with organic manure. The quantity that has been recommended
is about one cwt. per acre.

Mr. Barclay made a few experiments after having heard muph of
the nitrate of soda from his neighbors, of the results of which the
following examples will suffice to give a comparative estimate :

Without nitrate. With nitrate. Difference in favor of

the nitrates.

Wheat 31 bush. 2 pecks. 35 bush. 3 pecks. 5 bush. 3 pecks.

Straw 21 cwt. 0 qrs. 19 lbs. 23 cwt. 2 qrs. 26 lbs. 3 cwt. 2 qrs. 7 lbs.

The produce of the land treated with nitrate, however, did not
fetch so high a price at market as that grown without it ; and every
item of expense taken into the reckoning, the use of the nitrate was
attended with no commercial benefit. Still this does not militate
against the fact, that the production of vegetable matter was in-
creased upon land treated with the nitrate of soda. And indeed
much of the information which M. de Gourcy collected in England,
is of a kind that tends to confirm the favorable influence of this salt
on vegetation. Wheat, clover, and Swedish turnips are particular-
ly specified as benefiting from its use. These facts admitted, we
rnay ask : how does the nitrate of soda act ? The chemical consti-
tution of the nitrates is such, that we might conceive their acting at
once as mineral and as organic manures. The important point for
solution was to ascertain whether the azote of the nitrate contribu-
ted in any way to the formation of the azotized principles of plants.
Davy, in taking with much distrust the report of Sir Kenelm Digby's
experiments on the influence of nitre in the cultivation of barley,
shows no disinclination to believe that the azote of the salt may
concur in the production of albumen and gluten.* This, however,
is a point in physiology which may be put to the proof by experi-
ment, and seems peculiarly worthy of being tested in this way. I
have admitted it as extremely probable, that the azote of the azoti-
zed principles of plants has its source either in the ammonia, which
18 the special iltimate product of the organic manure we employ, ox

- -. Agricultural Chemistry

•27*

819 MANURE — &i?SUM.

in the azote of the atmosphere, or in both simultaneously ; b it the
opinion which should maintain that the ammonia derived from the
organic constituents of the soil, passes into the state of nitric acid
before penetrating the tissues of plants, would find support nearly in
the same facts which I have quoted as favoring the former view.
We have seen, moreover, in our general considerations on nitrifica-
tion, with what facility the azote of ammonia undergoes acidification
in certain circumstances, a fact from which an argument of much
potency for the nitric acid theory naturally flows. I shall here add
an observation to which I have, up to this time perhaps, attached
too little importance. When M. Rivero and I examined the hig: ly
irritating and poisonous milky sap of the hura crepitans, we had oc
casion to leave a considerable quantity of the water derived from
the sap, after separating the caseum, to itself; by the spontaneous
evaporation of this vi'ater, we collected really a considerable quanti-
ty of nitrate of potash. Since this time I have had occasion to
note the same salt in the sap of several trees of the tropics. In the
leaves and fruit, however, I have never found more than very minute
qu^l.cities.

Gypsum, sulphate of lime, or pla^ier of Parts, is a compcjnd of
41.5 lime with 58.5 sulpnuric acid; gypsum generally contains a
quantity of constitutional water, in which case it consists of 79.2
sulphate of lime, and 20.8 water = 100. This hydrate of sulphate
of lime is one of the abundant minerals on the surface of the earth ;
it is met with in the crystalline state, and in granular and fibrous
masses in the strata of most recent formation. It has no sensible
taste, but is slightly soluble in water, this fluid dissolving ^ of its
weight of the salt. Exposed for some time to a white heat, it loses
its water of constitution, and passes into the state in which when
ground it is known under the name of plaster of Paris.

Gypsum is one of the most commonly employed of the mineral
manures. Its virtues appear not to have been unknown to the an-
cients : but until lately its employment was limited to a few circum-
scribed districts. It was only about the middle of the eighteenth
century that the protestant pastor, Mayer, took up the study of gyp-
sum in the principality of Hohenlohe, proceeding upon certain in-
formation which he had obtained from Hehlen of Hanover, in the
neighborhood of which, it was employed as an improver.

By extending a knowledge of the virtues of gypsum, both by his
example ard his writings, Mayer did great service to agriculture.
Experiments were soon instituted in all quarters. Tschiffeli in
Switzerland, Schubart in Germany, and Franklin in America, wrote
on its effects, or practically demonstrnted them to the satisfaction of
all. But it appears to be the fate c " all useful discoveries, of all
happy applications of principles, to be opposed at first, and only to be
admitted after having been vainly disputed. The use of gypsum
soon aroused formidable opposition ; and there is a curious episodf
in the history of the paper war that was long carried on upon hi
•ubject, which I think worth noting. Among the most strenuous
•oemies of the use of gypsum, were the proprietors of the saJt-paiUb

GYPSUM. 319

They declared that gypsum was not only incompetent to replace
schlot or the refuse of their pans, as had been proposed, but that it
was injurious ; schlot was the only veal improver, the stimulant of
stimulants, for which there was no substitute. But it turned out by
and by, that the schlot oi the salt-pan was found to be neither more
nor less than sulphate of lime, than gypsum — the article that was
not only inefficient, but injurious. These gentlemen were afraid
that the use of gypsum extending, they would want a market for
their refuse.

The use of gypsum once introduced, extended rapidly in France,
particularly around Paris, whence it crossed the Atlantic, and the
fields of North America were actually manured with the produce of
the quarries of Montmartre. The lately cleared lands of America
abound in humus, and the plants indigenous there were most bene-
ficially acted on by gypsum, which really produced remarkable
effects ; in both the new and the old world, its power, as one of the
most useful auxiliaries of vegetation, soon appeared to be estab-
lished.

We must not blind ourselves to the fact, however, that the parti-
sans of gypsum were guilty of exaggeration. They spoke of the
substance as a universal manure, capable of supplying the place of
every other, as advantageous for every description of crop, as appli
cable to every variety of soil. Experience soon set bounds to sucl
indiscriminate laudation ; it was found that gypsum alone was inad-
equate to produce fertility, that it always required the concurrence
of organic manures, if the soil did not contain them of itself; that
it only acted beneficially on a certain, and that a very small number
of plants ; lastly, that it was upon artificial meadows, constituted by
clover, lucern, and sainfoin, that it produced its best effects ; its
action, on the contrary, being scarcely perceptible upon natural mead-
ows, doubtful in connection with hoed crops, and null with the cereals.
These negative results cannot be called in question ; they were come
to by parties who were every way interested in having the decision
otherwise.

The best season for spreading gypsum is the spring, and when the
clover, sainfoin, or lucern, has already made a certain degree of
progress ; calm and moist weather is the best for laying it on.
Opinion wa» long divided as to whether it should be applied in its
natural state, and simply ground, or first burned and then ground.
But it is now generally admitted that burning adds nothing to the
qualities of gypsum. Although the usual practice is to sow or pow-
der the meadows with the ground gypsum, it is still acknowledged
that good effects are obtained from incorporating the substance with
the soil. The advantage of the practice of scattering it on in pow-
der, so as to adhere to the wet leaves of the growing plants, I find
explained in the equality of distribution which is by this means
effected.

In some places, the number and extent of which are by no means
inconsiderable, no good effect whatever has attended the application
of gypsum, altho'igh it has been administered in favorable conditions,

320 GYPSUM.

and in connection with crops that elsewhere derive the highest amovinl
of advantage from its use. This anomaly has been explained by
assuming, without proving experimentally, however, that the fact ia
so, that the soil in these districts naturally contains a sufficient dose
of gypsum. It has also been said that gypsum produces no effect on
low-lying and damp soils.

The quantity of gypsum employed in different places, varies great-
ly : from li to 16 cwts. per acre have been recommended. The
quality of the article employed has a great influence on this question,
to say nothing of the price, which in many places is high.

The opinions of practical men, with regard to the advantages and
propriety of applying gypsum, although they agreed in certain de-
terminate circumstances, were still far from being unanimous upon
every point. A particular inquiry into the subject was therefore
held worthy of its attention by the French government, and a com-
prehensive report on all the information collected, was made by M.
Bosc to the Royal Central Agricultural Society of France. This
report shows in a striking manner the advantage that may be deriv-
ed from the lights of practical men ; in a single line or sentence wo
frequently find a summary of twenty or thirty years of experience.
It is, however, indispensable to go to these gentlemen for their in-
formation ; the agriculturists who devote themselves to cultivation,
it is notorious, write very little, and those who spend very little
time in this way, on the contrary, write a great deal. It may be
that the reason for the silence of the one, is that also for the elo-
quence of the other.

The following series of questions and answers I believe to em-
brace most of the points connected with the employment of gypsum,
that are of interest.

1st. Does plaster act favorably on artificial meadows? Of 43
opinions given, 40 are in the affirmative ; 3 in the negative.

2d. Does it act favorably on artificial meadows, the soil of which
is very damp? Unanimously, no. Ten opinions given.

3d. Will it supply the place of organic manure, or of vegetable
mould 1 i. e. will a barren soil be converted into a fertile one by the
use of plaster ? No, unanimously. Seven opinions given.

4th. Does gypsing sensibly increase the crops of the cereals'? Of
32 opinions, 30 negative, 2 affirmative.

The information thus obtained, valuable as it is, cannot yet be held
to embrace every thing that seems desirable. Happily, all that was
wanting has been supplied by the individual inquiries of Mr. Smith
in England, and of M. de ViMle in France.

The soil upon which Mr. Smith made his experiments was light,
with a substrate of chalk ; the vegetable earth was a yard in depth
at the top of the field, and lessened gradually, in such a way that at
bottom it was but three inches thick. Every precaution was taken
that the respective breadths contrasted should be as nearly as possi-
ble in the same circumstances. The following table shows the
teeulta :

GTPSUM.

321

GROWTH OP SAINFOIN UPON SOILS GYPSED AND UNGTPSED IN

1792, 1793, AND 1794.

Crop on the deeper ungypsed
soil

Crop upon the contiguous breadth,
which had received about 15
bushels of gypsum in April,
1794. . . . . .

Bemarks.

Difference in favor of the gypsed
breadth . . . .

Crop upon the same soil, of less
depth, and not gypsed .

Crop on contiguous soil, dressed
with about 15 bushels of gyp-
sum in April, 1792 .

Difference in favor of the gypsed
breadth ....

Crop on the same soil, 3 inches
deep, and not gypsed

Crop on contiguous soil, dressed
with about 15 bushels of gyp-
sum, 17th May, 1794 .

Difference in favor of the gyp-
sed piece ....

Crop on the contiguous soil of
experiment. No. 3, gypsed
with the same dose in May,
1792 ....

Difference in favor of the crop
gypsed twice, at an interval of
two years

Dry

herb
p«r acre.

Seed per
acre.

lbs.
3357

5462

2105
2766

4381

1615
2068

4879

2811

4310

2242

lbs.

419
582

163
245

379

134
66

211

145

205

139

Weight

of total

crop.

lbs.
3776

6044

Proportion of

stalk to

seed.

2268
3011

4760

1749
2134

5090

2956

4515

2381

100 : 12.5

100 : 10.7

100:8.9

100 : 8.7

100 : 3.2

100 : 4.3

100 : 4.8

^22

GTPSUJI.

These results show to what extent gypsum is favorable t<s tfcfi
production of sainfoin. The cro . from the unplastered breadth be-
ing taken as 100, that upon the plastered breadth is 231 ; it is more
than doubled. The influence of gypsum was also found by Smith
to extend to grain ; assuming the grain crops on the ungypsed land
at 100, those on the gypsed soil were 192 ; they were nearly doubled.

On comparing the weight of the herbaceous portion of the sain-
foin to that of the seed produced, widely different relations are ap-
parent. These Mr. ^mith attributed to the different depths of the
vegetable soil in different parts of the field. In the first experiment,
where the relative proportion of seed is highest, the arable soil was
three feet in thickness ; the other crops were taken from parts where
the depth of vegetable mould was considerably less. Thus the
gypsed soil produced at the rate per acre :

cwts. qrs. lbs.

In the first experiment of 5 0 22 the depth of soil being 3 feet.
In the second experiment of 3 1 15 " " 18 inches.

In the third experiment of 1 3 15 " " 3 inches.

With this interesting fact before him, Mr. Smith imagined that
soils of little depth wanted some principle essential to fructification,
which gypsum, in spite of the unquestionable assistance it gives, is
yet incompetent to supply. This principle is in all probability or-
ganic matter, which is naturally more abundant in the layer of true
vegetable mould which is deepest.

Mr. Smith's observations on white clover were quite as decisive
in favor of gypsum as those on sainfoin, and are confirmatory of the
conclusions of the generality of farmers on the subject. The gyp-
sum in connection with this crop was applied in the dose of 6 bush-
els per acre, on the 22d of May, a date at which the clover looked
pale, and seemed to want sap. A fortnight afterwards, the effects
of the gypsum were obvious; although no rain had fallen in the in
terval, the clover had become vigorous, and soon formed a covering
thick enough to protect the ground from the scorching rays of the
sun, which burned up all the parts which had not been gypsed.

COMPARATIVE GROWTHS OF WHITE CLOVER, GYPSED AND UNGYPSED,
BY MR. SMITH.

1

EXPERIMENTS.

Herb or

stalk per

acre.

Seed
per acre.

Total
weight of
the crop.

Proportion

of herb to

seed.

A. Gypsed . . .

A. Not gypsed . .

Difference . .

B. Gypsed ...
B. Not gypsed . . .

Difference . . .

lbs.

2226

839

lbs.

316

56

lbs.
2542

895

100: 14.3
100: 6.7

K)0: 7 6
100: 7.0

1387

2270
500

260

174

61

1647

2444
561

1770

113

1883

GTPSTTM.

323

The mean o' chese two experiments shows that the crop of white
clover on the ungypsed land being 100, that on the gypsed is 225 —
twice and a quarter more.

The experiments of M. de Villele m^y be viewed as supplemen
Jary or complementary to those of Mr. Smith. They were per-
formed in the south of France, in accordance with the routine that
is generally followed, viz : clover-hay, or sainfoin, previous to grain,
upon soils of considerably different nature, and with doses of gyp-
sum that varied from 8 to 3 on the same extent of surface. His
conclusions or crops are stated in the following table :

KINB OP
SOIL.

Light, dry, ex-
posed to the
Bouth, 6 to 9
inches deep,
and on cliallc.
1

Stony clayey, A
moist, about I
16 inch. deep f
on a stiff clay. J

Crop.

Sainfoin
Sainfoin
Sainfoin

Clover
Clover

Gyp-
sum
per
acre.

wt.qr,
6 3
2 2
4 4

40 3 19
32 2 27

Dry crop
on mea-
dow not
gypsed,
per acre.

Excess of ® * I 2 g

O- S o ?? o c S

cwt.qr.lbs.
18 0 1

16 1 13

17 0 21

20 1 23
19 2 16

over the
crop not
gypsed.

cwt.qr.lbs

10 2 15
16 1 13
19 3 8

20 1 23
13 0 11

«. d.

17 7
27 1
3

33 10

21 8

Hi

o <u

PM7

10 10
25 0
11

2 3
14 2

The unquestionable fact of a mineral salt stimulating the growth
of certain plants in so remarkable a manner as to double and even
to triple the usual quantities grown per acre, naturally aroused the
curiosity of mankind to inquire into and endeavor to discover the
cause. Explanations in abundance have been proposed ; but so lit-
tle satisfactory in general, that I do not think myself bound to men-
tion them all. I shall limit myself, indeed, to two ; one proposer!
by Davy some time ago, and one advocated by Liebig very lately.

Davy assumes that the plants of artificial meadows simply absorb
sulphate of lime. He assures us that he had found a large propor-
tion of this salt in the ashes of vegetables grown in soil which had
been treated with turf ashes abounding in the substance. He be-
lieved that the gypsum entered particularly into the constitution of
the woody fibre. And it is not uninteresting to observe, that the
plants which gypsum certainly favors in the highest degree, are of
very rapid growth ; and that in all probability they would find it
difficult to obtain the whole of the sulphate of lime they require from
ordinary or ungypsed soils within the period of their growth. Let
it not be forgotten, however, that if it be true that saline substances
are indispensable to the organization of plants, it is also true that
these substances can only be absorbed within certain limits ; a salt
the best calculated by its nature to aid vegetation, would become in-
jurious by its excessive proportion, did the water which moistened
the general soil contain too large a proportion of it in solution : if a
plant languishes when it has sot enough of one or other of its natu-
ral saline constituents, it also dies when furnished with the sam*
iubstance in excuss.

il|4 GTPSUM.

Let us now remember that salts can osly act on ve^evables in the
Btate of solution, and we shall understand how those only which are
but sparingly soluble, can ever be advantageously employed in agri-
culture. Water, in fact, having the power to dissolve only a very
limited quantity of the mineral manure, will present it to the grow-
ing plant nearly in a constant quantity, so long as the soil contains
any fair proportion of the substance. It is in this way precisely
that gypsum appears to gain its superiority over the generality of
mineral or saline manures ; water does not take up more than j^T^th
part of its weight before it becomes saturated ; a certain proportion
of the moisture of the earth being dissipated by evaporation, there
is forthwith a precipitation of sulphate of lime ; but the moisture
that remains is nevertheless charged as before, neither more nor less,
and in the fittest state, as it seems, to administer to the wants of the
growing plant. If instead of sulphate of lime we suppose some salt
that is much more soluble, sulphate of soda for example, we have
nothing of the same state of equilibrium between the quantity of
moisture and its charge of saline ingredients maintained. Suppos-
ing the moisture of the ground to hold ^^^^h of sulphate of soda in
solution, and this quantity calculated to produce good effects upon
growing vegetables : suppose now that a drought sets in, which by
dissipatmg one-half of the moisture, increases the charge of saline
matter to 3 jo^b of its bulk, it may very well happen that this pro-
portion, instead of proving beneficial, will be felt as injurious to vege-
tation.

The hypothesis of Davy, supported by these ingenious views of
M. Chaptal, would therefore lead us to regard gypsum as behaving
to plants in the same general way as the insoluble salts which usual-
ly form an element of the soil or of manures, the phosphate and car-
bonate of lime, in particular, salts which are made apt to enter the
tissues of plants by the carbonic acid which is found in all the water
that falls from the clouds and that moistens the soil, and which has
the property of dissolving small quantities of them. But while the
str .ngth of these solutions, weak at all times, is liable through at-
mospherical vicissitudes to vary, when the mere traces of saline
matter which at best they offer at any time are inadequate to meet
the demands of a crop disposed to grow rapidly and luxuriantly,
such as clover, sainfoin, andlucern, the solution of sulphate of lime,
of the same strength at all times and under all circumstances, is
ready to supply the plants with the mineral substance they require,
however rapid and vigorous their growth.

The theory of the action of gypsum proposed by Professor Liebig
is extremely ingenious. He admits, with M. de Saussure, the pre-
sence of carbonate of ammonia in the atmosphere, and consequently
in rain-water. This fact established, and it appears undeniable, the
infiuence of gypsum would consist in its faculty of fixing the infinite-
ly small quantity of carbonate of ammonia which is brought down
by the rain and the dew, and so preventing its dissipation on the
return of drought and sunshine. Carbonate of ammonia, in fact, as
•"•^ hare alreadyspen, when speaking- of manures, in contact witb

GYPSUM. 323

the sulphate of lime decomposes this salt, carbonate of lime and
sulphate of amiri'DTAi being formed. I shall by and by inquire
whether the reaction that takes place is of the precise nature of that
here stated ; but admitting, for the present, that it is, it would still
be comp<;tent for us to ask if the quantity of ammonia condensed in
this way was likely to suffice for the production of such decided ef-
fects as we frequently witness in connection with the crops that are
assisted by gypsum.

Professor Liebig observes that a pound of sulphate of lime once
converted into sulphate of ammonia, would introduce into the soil a
quantity of ammonia equivalent to that which would be afforded it
by 6.250 lbs. of horse's urine ; a showing upon which it would be
easy to demonstrate, taking the composition of sainfoin to be as I
have sho'vn it, that a pound of plaster fertilizing the ground to this
extent, would be adequate to increase one hundred-fold the quantity
of dry fodder produced.

According to my manner of viewing this question, it must be ex-
amined on a totally different basis. It is certain, for instance, that
gypsum has no effect upon natural meadows ; positive experience
has satisfied me of the absolute inutility of the substance here ; so
that upon my natural meadows at Bechelbronn, I now never employ
a particle of it. But let us review Professor Liebig's theory in con-
nection with the production of sainfoin and clover, which in a gene-
ral way derive an advantage from gypsum, which no one disputes.

Our harvest of clover, taken as dry, amounts on an average from
strongly gypsed land, to 2 tons 1 cwt. very nearly per acre ; and
this quantity agrees pretty well with that which appears common in
Germany. It is generally allowed that by gypsing we double the
produce. It would follow from this, that an acre which had not
been gypsed, would yield no more than 20| cwts. of dry clover ; in
my opinion the reduction would be still greater. Dry clover hay,
made from the plant cut when in flower, contains about 2 per cent,
of azote. The 20| cwts. of forage gained by the intervention of the
gypsum would consequently contain 110 lbs. of ammonia, equivalent
to 134.2 lbs. carbonate of ammonia. This consequently is the quan-
tity of carbonate of ammonia which the gypsum ought to have been
the means of procuring from the rain which falls upon an acre of
land during the time that clover is upon the ground, in order to fur-
nish the azote contained in the increased quantity of the crop.

Now in Alsace, from the time of gypsing in April, to the time of
mowing in July, there falls on an average 3.92, nearly 4 inches of
rain, which would amount in round numbers to 982 tons per acre.
Were the azote of what may be spoken of as the surplus produce,
derived from the rain in fact, all the water that falls ought to contain
j^l^ of its weight of carbonate of ammonia. It is very question-
able, however, whether any such proportion of ammoniacal salts
exist in rain-water ; yet the proportion ought to be very much great-
er, inasmuch as we have supposed the whole of the rain that fell to
penetrate the ground, none of it to run off; but the truth is, that a
very considerable proportion of the rain that falls never sinks into

26

Jo GYPSUM.

the soil ; once the surface is thoroughly soaked, much that falls
drains off, passes away by tlie ditches, and is lost with all it may
contain that would prove beneficial to vegetation. It is iii fact alto-
gether impossible to make any approximation, even of the roughest
kind, in regard to the quantity of rain-water that soaks into and that
runs off the ground ; and thus no kind of estimate can be formed of
the relation between the moisture absorbed by plants, and that which
escapes direct by the evaporation, without passing through them at all.

But even in admitting that it was really the ammonia contained
in the rain-water, to which the very considerable increase of the
crop of clover, lucern, and sainfoin was owing, it would still be left
for us to explain wherefore, meteorological and other circumstances
remaining the same, the same relative eft'ects were not produced
upon natural meadows covered with grasses, upon hoed crops, such
as beet and turnips, and upon wheat ; finally, the most serious ob-
jection that can be urged against this theory is founded upon the
fact, that gypsum has no truly beneficial effect upon artificial mea-
dows, save and except when the soil to which it is applied contains
an adequate proportion of azotized organic manure. In a moderate-
ly manured soil, gypsum, as all the world knows, produces no sen-
sible improvement ; and as M. Cvud, one of those men wliom long
experience has placed at the head of practical farming, said : It is
to throw away both money and trouble to put gypsum upon an un-
kindly and impoverished bottom. It would seem, however, that if
gypsum really fixes ammonia in the soil, in consequence of its action
upon the rain-water that falls, converting its carbonate into sulphate
of ammonia, the ammoniacal salt once introduced into the soil, ought
to act independently and without the concurrence of another manure.
That it really does act isolatedly, and of its own proper force when
it exists, has been proved by the experiments of M. Schattenmann,
who demonstrated on the large scale the beneficial effects of the
sulphate of ammonia directly applied to natural meadows. It is
obvious, that if the theory which I discuss be true, the greater num-
ber of practical observations which I have quoted must necessarily
be false ; or, on the contrary, these observations being accurate, the
theory must be erroneous.

I have given reasons for maintaining the accuracy of the practical
results ; nevertheless, the better to establish this conviction, I have
thought it advisable to add a few facts to the many that are already
extant. I was, therefore, induced to undertake a series of experi-
ments with a view to study, independently of all hypothetical idea,
the action of gypsum upon certain hoed crops and cereals.

These experiments were made upon patches of land of 440 square
yards each. Every precaution was taken to render the experiments
strictly comparable one v^ith another. Thus the ground appropri-
ated to each particular crop was divided into three equal contiguous
zones. The first zone, A, always received gypsum in the ratio of
4f bushjls per acre. The second zone, B, and the third zone, C
were not gypsed. Each zone was sowed with the same quantity o
•eed, or planted with an equal number of beet plants or potatoea

MANURE GYPSUM. 327

A. and C were the surfaces which I proposed to myself to contrast ;
the intermediate zone, B, was a kind of neutral ground employed
merely to prevent the immediate contact of the gypsed with the un-
gypsed zone. I may here remark, that it would be well always to
take such a precaution in making experiments on the eifects of dif-
ferent manures.

In 1842 I tried the effect of gypsum upon wheat coming after three
different crops. 1st. After clover ploughed in. 2d. After beet-
root. 3d. After potatoes.

The gypsum was applied the 19th of May, at which time the
wheat looked extremely well. The crop was cut betw^een the 21st
and 26th of July, and the following are the results obtained :

CroTtB Weiffht of grain, corn, and straw.

^ ' A. piece gypsed. B. not gypsed. C. not gypted.

Wheat after clover 319 lbs. 323 lbs. 327 lbs.

Wheat after mangel-wurzel 195 " 176 " 158 "

Wheat after potatoes 235 " 158 " 264 "

Average of the three experiments 250 " 248 " 250 "

The year 1842 having been unfavorable to wheat in consequence
of the long drought, the experiment required to be repeated. This
was done in 1843 ; and it must be allowed, that an experiment could
scarcely be conducted under circumstances of weather more favora-
ble to the cultivation of grain ; the results here are given for equal
spaces of three French acres, equal to 385 square yards. The gyp-
sed zones had been treated with 70 lbs. of sulphate of lime each :

Year 1843. Sheaves. Grain. Straw, chaff, and waste.

lbs. lbs. lbs.

Rye with gypsum 516 137 379

Rye without 472 127 345

Wheat with gypsum 462 147 315

Wheat without 510 156 254

Wheat without 453 143 310

Oats with gypsum 329 112 217

Oats without... 368 113 255

From these numbers it is obvious that gypsum produces no appreci-
able effect upon wheat, oats, and rye, conclusions that agree with
those come to in the previous year.

EXPERIMENT WITH FIELD-BEET OR MANGEL-WURZEL, OPENING THE
ROTATION WITH MANURED SOIL, 1842.

The plants were transplanted and watercv-l, and the gypsum was
applied at the time of earthing up ; a good deal of rain fell, and
shortly after having been laid on, he gypsum had become incorpo-
rated with the ground. The crop vas gathered on the 8th of Octo-
Der, three months after the gypsing, and from two equal surfaces,
each of 242 square yards in extent, weighed as follows :

From the gypsed ground 13 cwt. 2 qrs. 6 lbs.

From the ungypsed 12 " 2 " 3 "

The gypsum would therefore appear to have had no beneficia.
effect ; for the difference in favor of the gypsed piece is so trilling

828

GYPSUM.

that it cannot be reasonably ascribed to the mineral manure : in fact,
the quantity obtained from the gypsed surface does not exceed that
which we constantly take from fields in the ordinary course of cul-
tivation, and which have received no gypsum.

The action of gypsum, limited as it is to certain crops, will not
allow us to admit that it produces its effect by fixing in the ground
the carbonate of ammonia contained in rain-water ; were it connect-
ed with any fixation of ammonia, it would be manifested generally,
and not in particular instances only. Davy's theory therefore ap-
pears the more plausible, and requires discussion. Did the ashes of
the clover grown in gypsed soils actually contain a large proportion
of sulphate of lime, as affirmed by the illustrious English chemist,
the action of gypsunff would be readily understood. The whole
question, therefore, seems to turn upon the composition of the ashes.

I have analyzed the ashes of clover grown at Bechelbronn, with-
out and with the concurrence of gypsum. I shall here give the
conclusions come to in 1841, a year remarkable for the heavy crops
of clover, and those also for the year 1842, when the clover crop
was but indifferent. The first table contains the results in the order
in which they were registered ; the second contains those obtained
after the deduction of the carbonic acid and carbon which had re-
mained in the ashes examined :

Carbon and Carbonic acid
iucluded.

Extraordinary Crop of 1841.

Unfarorable Crop of 1841. 1

Ashes of Clorer.

Ashes of Clover.

Ungypsed.

Gypsed.

Ungypsed.

Gypsed.

Carbonic acid

14.2
3.4
8.0
3.2

23.7
6.3

1.0
19.6

1.0
16.8

2.8

22.1
2.9
6.9
2.6

22.4
5.1

0.6
27.8
0.7
7.9
1.0

21.5
2.5
5.4
2.4

25.4
5.6

0.5
22.5

25
10.0

2.0

26.8
2.2
5.8
2.3

26.7
7.4

traces.
25.3
0.2
2.7
0.6

Ciilorine

Phosphoric acid* • • .

Lime

Magnesia

Oxide of iron, manganese ;

Potash

Soda

Silica, ,

Loss and charcoal

100.0

10C.0

100.0

100.0

Carbonic acid and Loss deducted :

4.1
9.7
3.9
28.5
7.6

15
23.6

1.2
20.2

3.8
9.0
3.4

99.4
6.7

1.0
35.4

0.9
10.4

3.3
7.1
3.1
33.2
7.3

06
29.4

2.9
13.1

3.0

8.2

3.2

36.7

10.2

traces.
34.7
0.3
3.7

Phnsnhnrir nriH .........

Snlnhiirir nriH ... ...

Lime

Oxide of iron, manganese ;

alumina

Potash

Soda

Bllica

100.0

100.0

100.0

lOOX

GYPSUM.

329

The analyses here do not indicate the modes in which the various
substances found were combined in the ashes ; but supposing that
the whole of the sulphuric acid existed in combination with lime,
which it most probably did, the preceding results would meet us in
the following shape : the ashes of the clover grown upon soil with-
out gypsum contain 6,0 per cent, of sulphate of lime ; those of clover
grown upon a soil with gypsum, 5.7 per cent.

As it is impossible to answer for so small a difference as Sy^Viy
parts in researches of this kind, we must presume that the two ashes
contained the same proportions of sulphate of lime.

Here, however, as in all other agricultural questions, isolated
analyses throw but little light on the subject of inquiry. In order
that they may enable us to arrive at any definite conclusion, two
new elements must be taken into the discussion : 1st. The propor-
tion of ash furnished by a given weight of the forage gathered ; 2d.
The quantity of forage yielded by a given surface before and after
the use of gypsum.

I have taken from my own observations the quantity of dry forage
yielded by the two cuttings of 2d year's clover after gypsum, as
amounting to 41 cwt. per acre. The same surface in the 1st year,
and before the use of gypsum, would have produced but 9 cwt. 100
of dry clover gave :

Year.

Clover ungypsed 1841

Idem 1842

Clover gypsed 1841

Idem 1842

Ashes freed from

Ashes.

carbonic acid

Per acre.

per cent.

12.0

10.3

103 lbs

11.2

8.8

89 "

7.0

5.4

248 "

7.7

5.6

257 ♦•

MINERAL SUBSTANCES

tN THE CROP

FROM

2t\

ACRES.

^^

g

■

i

1
o

•c

1

02

i

3

.2
1

1

4

1

1

Year 1841.

lbs.

lbs.

lbs.

lbs.

lbs.

lbs.

lbs.

lbs.

lbs.

lbs.

Fallow ung^'psed ....

10.1

24.2

9.6

70.8

18.9

3.0

58.7

3.0

48.9

248

Ditto gypsed

22.6

53.2

20.2

174.6

39.8

5.9

210.3

5.2

61.8

594

Year 1842.

Fallow ungypsed ....

6.6

15.4

6.6

70.8

15.6

1.3

62.9

6.1

27.9

234

Fallow gypsed

18.4

50.3

19.8

226.1

62.7

—

213.8

1.7

22.8

616

It is therefore obvious, that in the course of the three months
which followed the application of the gypsum, the soil must have
•upplied the plant with very considerable quantities of mineral sub-
stance ; the crops tak ^n from the gypsed soils contained in fact two

28*

S30 GYPSUM.

or even three times the quantity of these substances which those
grown previously to the gypsing contained. Representing, for ex-
ample, by .nity the quantity of the several bases and acids of the
crop grown without gypsum, we should have the quantities of the
same principles contained in the crops produced upon the gypsed
soils represented by the following numbers :

Phosphoric Sulphuric Mag-nesia and Potash and

Chlorine. acid. acid. Lime. metallic oxide. soda. Silica.

1841 2.2 2.2 2.1 2-5 2-1 3.5 1.0

1842 2.8 3.3 3-1 3.1 3.7 3.2 1.0

Silica appears to form the only exception here, which would lead
as to conclude that this earth was only absorbed by clover in the first
period of its growth. Potash and lime are the bases which enter in
largest proportion into the mineral constitution of clover ; and there
is another fact made evident which deserves particularly to fix at-
tention : it is that the lime assimilated subsequently to the gypsing,
bears no kind of relation to the quantity of sulphuric acid fixed dur-
ing the same space of time. The excess of acid and of lime obtain-
ed from the ash of the gypsed clover over that of the ungypsed, is
for:

1841, Sulphuric acid 4.8 Lime 47.2

1842, " 6.0 " 70.6

Supposing further, that the sulphuric acid assimilated subsequently
to the gypsing was taken up in the state of sulphate of lime, we find
that;

In 1841 the gj'psed crop absorbed 18 lbs. of this salt
In 1842 " 22 lbs.

These quantities are so small as to lead us to suppose that the
utility of gypsing consists in furnishing the plant with the large pro-
portion of lime which it seems to require. Gypsing would then be
equivalent to the application of lime ; and in fact, according to
Schwertz, Paris plaster is replaced in Flanders by slaked lime, by
the lye-washed ashes of wood, and by peat-ash, with decided advan-
tage.* Some peat-ash contains sulphate of lime, others none at all.
What is employed successfully, most likely presents sulphuric acid
in the state of an alkaline sulphate.

Wood-ash, which is certainly the best manure for artificial mead-
ows, may contain upon an average one per cent, of sulphuric acid,
and when lye- washed, the proportion ought to be much less ; if per-
fectly washed, it ought to be null ; at all events, there is no sulphate
of lime present to fix the ammonia of the rain-water. Independently
of earthy phosphates, so useful to all plants, lye-washed ashes fre-
quently yield more than 80 per cent, of chalk. We thus perceive,
in a general way, that the manures which stimulate the vegetation
of clover are always calcareous, the lime being either in the state
of sulphate or carbonate, which exists abundantly in the crops, com-
bined with organic acids, and freed consequently of nearly the whole
of the inorganic acid with which it was originally associated. As-
sui'uog that gypsum acts like chalk, it may be conceived that when

* Schwertz, Culture des Plantes fourrag^ret, p 7t

I

GYPSUM. 331

the former is incorporated with the indispensable manure, it is de-
composed, and carbonate of lime, "». a state of minute division, and
for that reason easily absorbed, is the result. It is only upon this
supposition that I can understand the elimiration of the sulphuric
acid of the gypsum ; for if the lime really entered the vegetable in
the state of sulphate, the ashes ought to be much richer in that acid
than analysis shows. This same difficulty occurs in the hypothesis
of Liebig. If the 56 lbs. of ammonia derived from the atmosphere
penetrated the plant in the form of sulphate, here must enter at the
same time 130 lbs. of sulphuric acid, and which ought to be recover-
ed in the ashes of the crop from one acre. Now, the ashes of 41
cwts. of gypsed clover, abstracting the carbonic acid, weigh 2 cwts.
8 lbs., containing in the 100, 3^ of sulphuric acid. But the amount
of ash, were the acid of the ammoniacal sulphate fixed in the crop,
would rise to 3 cwt. 1 qr. 20 lbs., and the ash would then contain
70 per cent, of sulphuric acid.

Before promulgating this last objection against received theories, I
thought it right to ascertain whether the asLes contain, in the state
of sulphate, the whole of the sulphur pre-existing in the incinerated
plant. For it was not impossible that at the high temperature em-
ployed, the silica might react upon the sulphates so as to expel a
portion of the sulphuric acid. However improbable this expulsion,
owing to the great excess of potash always present in clover ash,
it seemed expedient to determine the fact.

After having made out as exactly as possible the quantity of ash
left by the hay, and also the sulphuric acid, I took a certain weight
of the same hay, burned it in a platina crucible along with a mixture
of chlorate and carbonate of potash, and then sought for the sulphu-
ric acid in the product of the ignition.

1000 parts of the plant furnished directly 3 of sulphuric acid, and
by analysis of the ash, 2.8.

Thus, the alkaline ashes retain all the sulphur pre-existing in the
plant which produced them.

I have laid stress upon the small proportion of sulphuric acid in a
crop of clover, because there yet remains for consideration a third
theory of gypsing, which I have helped to propagate, although
doubtful concerning the author. This is founded upon the assumption
that the proportion of sulphur is much greater in the leguminous
than in the cereal tribe. Now, as gypsum is generally adapted to
the manurement of leguminous plants, the origin of the sulphur has
been ascribed to sulphate of lime incorporated with the soil. This
view appeared the more plausible to M. Dumas and myself, inas-
much as in accordance with it plants operatod as reducing agents.
It is, besides, very probable that sulphur, as an immediate constituen
principle of vegetables, is derived from sulphates ; but do leguminous
plants really contain more than the cereals ? This seems doubtful
since careful investigation of the azotized principles of plants has
shown gluten, caseine, and legumine to be nearly identical in com-
position. I moreover find upon analysis of the ashes, that clover
haricots, and beans do not sensibly contain more sulphur than ryo-

•S2 AMMONIACAL SALTS.

wheat, oats, and potatoes. There appears to be no doubt, therefore
that the sulphur required by plants is supplied abundantly by the soil
enriched with ordinary manure, as happens in the culture of the
cereals, roots, and tubers.

In a wcrd, it may be presumed that Paris-plaster acts usefully on
artificial meadows by introducing lime into the soil. This is con-
sistent both with the analysis of the ashes of the crops produced and
of the soil ; for according to the researches of M. Rigaud de I'lsle,
gypsum operates only upon soils which do not contain a sufficient
dose of lime in the state of carbonate.*

OF AMMONIACAL SALTS.

The last products of the putrefaction of azotized matters being
ammoniacal combinations, it necessarily follows that salts having
ammonia for their base, must act usefully in vegetation. This is
confirmed by the employment of guano, and by experiments in which
ammoniacal compounds have been directly applied as manure. I
have already pointed attention to the observations of Davy relative
to the favorable effect of carbonate of ammonia upon the develop-
ment of plants, and shall now detail some recent trials made by M.
Schattenmann with the sulphate and muriate of the same base.

These salts were introduced into the soil as a solution marking
one degree of Beaume's areometer, and in the dose of 102 bushels
per acre. In 1843, the effects produced upon wheat by muriate
and sulphate of ammonia were most distinct ; as was also the case
with natural meadows, which yielded under the influence of this
liquid manure 82 cwts. of hay per acre, precisely double the crop
afforded by the same meadow land without the salts of ammonia ;
but another important fact, and which M. Schattenmann announces
with confidence as having been proved by repeated trials, is this ;
that solution of sulphate of ammonia employed in the same dose, and
at the same degree of concentration, causes no appreciable meliora-
tion upon trefoil and lucerne. The result of a solution of sal-am-
moniac was equally negative.

These observations agree in certain points with those formerly
made by Rigaud de I'Isle, and more lately by M. Lecoq, But they
are in direct opposition with the experiments of several physiologists
who have studied the action of ammoniacal salts presented separate-
ly to vegetables, a circumstance very different from that wherein
ammoniacal solutions are incorporated with arable land. Thus, M.
Bouchardatf has stated that young plants of mentha aquatica and
sylvestris, and of mimosa pudica die very soon, when made to ve-
getate with the roots plunged in very weak solutions of muriate,
nitrate, and sulphate of ammonia. In offering, some years back,
divers considerations upon guano, I promulgated the opinion that
ammoniacal salts, in order to serve as azotized manure, must alway
contain organic acids or carbonic acid. Perhaps the term useftk

• M*moires de la Soci6t6 d'Agriciilttire, ann6e 1844.

t Bottch»rdat, Compte* rendus de l'Acad6mle des Sciences, torn. xvi.

AMMONIACAL SALTS. 335

$alt may be now restricted to the carbonate alone. At least, having
watered young plants of trefoil, growr, in silicious sand, with solu-
tion of oxalate of ammonia at ir^TT^h* 1 observed them die after the
lapse of eight or ten days. Plants of the same size, sown under
like conditions, but irrigated with distilled water, continued to grow
and flowered.

In treating of gypsing, I have assigned my reasons against admit-
ting that the azote fixed during the culture of trefoil, proceeds from
the sulphate or muriate of ammonia naturally absorbed. I again
assert, that it is materially impossible that ammoniacal salts com-
bined with inorganic acids, other than the carbonic, can be usefui as
manure to plants, when administered separately ; they can only be-
come advantageous when their composition has undergone modifica-
tion.

.Two cwt. (220 lbs.) of wheat-sheaves, (straw and grain,) contain
upon an average 2 lbs. 1 oz. 14 dwts. of azote, and leave after igni-
tion 11 lbs. 3 oz. 16 dwts. of ash, into which enter 1 oz. 7 dwts. of
sulphuric acid, and 14 dwts. of chlorine.

In the ammoniacal salts :

100 of azote corresponds to 283 of sulphuric acid.
" " 257 of chlorine.

Let us now consider sulphate of ammonia, which, according to the
experiments of M. Schattenmann, supplied an excellent manure for
wheat. If the 2 lbs. 1 oz. 14 dwts. of azote contained in the 2 cwt.
of sheaves be derived from the sulphate absorbed by the cereal, the
sulphuric acid of the sulphate ought to be recovered in its ashes ;
and according to the above standard, these ashes ought to contain
6 lbs. 16 dwts. of sulphuric acid. They afforded by analysis only

1 oz. 7 dwts.

Applying the same reasoning to muriate of ammonia, we find,

supposing the azote of the 2 cwt. of sheaves to emanate from this
salt, that the ashes should contain 5 lbs. 6 oz. 2 dwts. of chlorine ;
whereas they really contain but 14 dwts.

Without doubt, the nitrogenous principles of the cereal cannot be re-
ferred solely to the ammoniacal salts in the trials of M. Schattenmann;
the manure given to the soil, and the atmosphere must have contribu-
ted a share. The appreciation of the value of ammoniacal salts be-
comes more precise when the results obtained on meadow land are
estimated. There the produce was doubled, and of every 2 cwt. ol
hay gathered, 1 cwt. may be ascribed to the action of the salt.

Two cwt. of hay, containing 4 lbs. 16 dwts. of azote, leave 16 lbs,

2 oz. of ash.

If the half (2 lbs. 8 dwts.) of the azote of the fodder comes from
the ammoniacal salts, the ashes will contain :

lb». oz. dwu.

5 8 4 of sulphuric acid, if the sulphate has been naed,

5 2 0 ■' " ifth? mtuiate has been "

Now, the ashes of the hay yielded by analysis :

OS. dwu.

5 9 of sulphuric acid.

S 4 ofchlorins.

334 AMMONIACAL SALTS.

It is then very probable that if the ammoniacal salts afford azote
to the plants, they enter not as muriate, sulphate, or phosphate, be-
cause there is no reason to believe that acids united with an alkali
are eliminated almost in totality during the act of vegetation. It
necessarily follows, that the ammonia of these salts, in order to yield
to vegetables its constituent azote, must reach their organs in the
form of carbonate, inasmuch as that is the sole ammoniacal salt
which seems to exercise a direct and favorable agency.

However, if such be the case, how comes it to pass, that ammo-
niacal salts, as the muriate, phosphate, and sulphate, are converted
into carbonate when once incorporated in the soil 1 Good arable
land almost always contains, it is true, carbonate of lime ; but there
is no ground for admivting an acid interchange betwixt the calca-
reous and ammoniacal salts. We know, on the contrary, that car-
bonate of ammonia reacts instantaneously upon muriate and sulphate
of lime, the products of this reaction being on the one hand muriate
and sulphate of ammopia, on the other, carbonate of lime. The gyp-
sum theory of Liebig is based upon the fact of this double decompo-
sition, whereby the ammoniacal carbonate of rain-water is fixed in
the state of sulphate at the cost of the sulphate of lime put on the
ground as manure.

This reaction of sulphate of lime upon carbonate of ammonia is
incontestable as a laboratory experiment ; but in well-tilled grounds
containing just the pMper quantity of moisture, the reaction takes
place in the inverse sense. The carbonate of lime reacts upon the
sulphate of ammonia, and there result carbonate of ammonia and
sulphate of lime.

This fact, however singular at first sight, is explained upon prin-
ciples established by Berthollet in his chemical statics :

When two saline solutions are mixed together, and from the mix-
ture an insoluble salt lesults, the insoluble compound is formed and
precipitated. This is what happens on pouring a solution of car-
oonate of ammonia into one of sulphate of lime. But if, instead of
Bringing the two salts together dissolved, they are mixed in a pul-
verulent state, and just sufficient water is added to promote the reac-
tion without dissolving the products, a volatile compound forms and
is evolved — namely, carbonate of ammonia.

The experimental proof is easy, and not without interest. If chalk
previously washed be intimately mixed with crystallized sulphate of
ammonia, no change ensues, provided the powders are very dry
Let moist sand be introduced so as to impart to the mixture the con-
sistence of light arable land of the usual humidity ; at the very in-
stant vapors of carbonate of ammonia, cognizable by their action on
vegetable colors and their odor, are developed. When water is
added in excess, the disengagement of ammoniacal vapor immedi-
ately ceases. The carbonate of ammonia not yet volatilized, dis-
solves and acts upon tie ready formed gypsum so as to constitute
sulphate of ammonia and carbonate of lime. The ordinary reaction
is restored. Finally, this watery mixture being exposed to the air
furnishes anew ammoniacal vapors in proportion as the watei vapor

AMMONIACAL SALTS. SS"-

1268, and the volatile salt is progressively evolved until the ma?s is
quite dry. In maintaining a similar mixture in a fit and constant
state of moisture we may in two or three days, under the influence
of a temperature of from 68" to 80° F., dissipate the greater portion
of the ammonia of the sulphate, and obtain a quantity of sulphate of
lime indicating the progress of the reaction.

It is almost needless to remark that sulphate of lime, placed in a
condition of moisture analogous to that of the chalk, undergoes no
alteration from the carbonate of ammonia. Thus, in the ordinary
circumstances of humidity of cultivated land, it is at least doubtful
whether the plaster difl^used through it definitively retains the am-
monia of the rain-water in the state of sulphate.

To estimate the sulphate of lime produced by the reaction between
the sulphate of ammonia and carbonate of lime, the mixture after
having been entirely dried in the air is to be treated with cold water.
The lime of the sulphate dissolved is next thrown down by oxalate
of ammonia, and computed in the state of carbonate.

In order to ascertain the presence of sulphate of ammonia the
mixture is to be digested in dilute alcohol, which dissolves this salt
without taking up sulphate of lime.

Muriate, phosphate, and oxalate of ammonia comport themselves
as the sulphate. Carbonate of lime decomposes them under the
same circumstances, giving rise to equivalent products.*

The preceding facts may perhaps tend to reconcile the contra-
dictory results obtained in the application of ammoniacal salts as
manure. When muriate, phosphate, or sulphate of ammonia is pre-
sented to plants, these salts produce no useful effect ; they are ab-

* 1. 15.4 grains of crystallized sulphate of ammonia incorporated with five or six
times its weight of chalk, gave after two days' exposure of the moist mixture in the
open air, 12.3 grs. of sulphate of lime. In another experiment 16.0 grs. of sulphate of
ammonia were obtained from 13.1 grs. of calcareous sulphate. Now according to the
proportions of ammoniacal salt there ought to have been obtained 13 grs. and 14 grs.
of salpl.ate of lime. Thus about 9-lOths of the arnmonia contained in the sulphate sub-
mitted to experiment had been converted into carbonate.

2. 16.9 grs. of sulphate of ammonia were mixed with 123.2 grs. of chalk, and fronc
924 to 1071 grs. of silicious sand. The mixture was kept moist and exposed to the ail
during four days, the temperature ranging from 68° to 80° F. The substance, afte*
being dried by the action of the air, was set to digest in weak alcohol ; the alcoholi
liquor yielded only an insignificant trace of sulphate of ammonia. There was aboi
18.5 grs. of sulphate of lime.

3. A very simple means of determining the reaction in question consists in plunginw
a fragment of chalk into a solution of siflphate of ammonia ; the fragment so imbued
on being exposed to the air emits during several days fumes of carbonate of ammonia.
Several bits of chalk moistened in the solution, and exposed by the aid of an aspiraloi
to a continuous current of air, afterwards washed in muriatic acid, disengaged enougk
of ammoniacal vapor to form in. the acid nearly 15 grs. of sal-ammoniac.

4. With a slightly moistened silicious sand were incorporated 30.8 grs. of gypsum;
the mixture then watered with a solution containing 30.8 grs. of carbonate of ammo
nia, was allowed to remain in the air during eight days, having always the consistence
and humidity of arable land. At the end of this time it was dried, then treated witfc
weak alcohol; the alcoholic fluid evaporated left no sulphate of ammonia.

5. Phosphate of ammonia, mixed with chalk, and kept in a moist state for somf
days, comported iJself exactly as the sulphate in the same circumstances ; 9-lOths ot
the ammoniacal phosphate were converted into phosphate of lime.

6. The reaction of oxalate of ammonia upon chalk is visible even when the mixturi
is well watered ; this is explained indeed by the powerful affinity of oxalic acid fo»
lime. The totality of the alkaline oxalate is promptly changed into oxalate of linH
Ai»-^ carbonate of ammonia.

336 WATER.

sorbed in limited quantity, like the majority of soluble substances
But if instead of administering them separately dissolved in water,
as was done in the physiological experiments, they are incorporated
with a loose and humid soil, these salts react upon the calcareous
matter almost always existing in the ground, and are transformed
into carbonate of ammonia, which exerts undeniably a favorable in-
fluence upon vegetation. From these facts it may be presumed
that the introduction of lime and marl is not merely to supply the
defective calcareous element, but likewise a principle, carbonate of
lime, which produces a particular action upon the manure, changing,
through double decomposition, the unassimilable ammoniacal salts
there present into a carbonate capable of being assimilated, which
transmits to the plant the azote of the organic matter of the dung
and the carbon contained in the calcareous rocks.

These reactions which go on between soluble salts and one that
is insoluble under the peculiar conditions united in arable land, show
that we must not always conclude as to what passes in the ground
from phenomena observed in the laboratory of the chemist ; and it
is probable that by extending the study, of these singular reactions
to alkaline salts generally, we shall better understand the mode of
action and utility of saline substances in agriculture. Thus, for
example, the operation of common salt as a fertilizer is still very
obscure. Many skilful husbandmen question its efficacy ; neverthe-
less, when moderately employed it seems to do good. In plants
growing on the sea-coast soda is found in a great measure com-
bined with organic acids, and the chlorine deduced by analysis from
their ashes is nowise proportional to the alkali they contain. The
whole sodium does not enter the vegetable as a chloride, but very
likely as carbonate of soda, and that in virtue of a reaction analogous
to the one which calcareous matter has upon ammoniacal salts.

It is quite certain that chloride of sodium in solution is not affect-
ed by carbonate of lime ; but then it was proved by Clouet that if
into sand moistened with this same solution powdered chalk be put,
and the mixture left in contact with air, an efflorescence of sesqui-
carbonate of soda ere long makes its appearance. Thus by the
conjoint effect of capillarity and the carbonic acid of the atmosphere,
common salt in the conditions above mentioned undergoes by contact
with chalk a partial decomposition, of which the result is carbonate
of soda, a salt, like carbonate of potash, most favorable to the growth
of plants. Accordingly, in furnishing sea-salt to a soil sufficiently
calcareous, we really enrich it with carbonate of soda. We more-
over perceive that the same salt diffused through land devoid of
carbonate of lime may not produce any fertilizing effect.

OF WATER.

Water is not only indispensable to the life of plants, but likewi**
promotes vegetation after the manner of a manure, on account of
the saline or organic substances it generally holds in solution. Rain
is the source of the soft waters which flow in rivers, spring from

WATER. 337

the soil, or constitute lakes. Rain-water although nearly pure is
not absolutely exempt from extraneous matters. The air, especial-
ly after continued drought, always holds dust in suspension ; this
yields to the rain by which it is precipitated, whatever soluble mat-
ter it may contain.

It is further ascertained by the experiments of Cavendish and
Seguin, that whenever the electric spark traverses a humid mixture
of oxygen and azote, nitric acid and nitrate of ammonia are produced.
Now this frequently happens; and according to Professoi Liebig
storm-rain always contains nitric acid associated with lime or ammo-
nia. Common rain seldom contains nitrates, merely faint traces of
common salt.*

In river and spring- water there necessarily exists a larger amount
of dissolved substances derived from the strata they pass through,
varying in nature according to the geological structure of the locali-
ty. From old crystalline rocks, like granite, water issues sometimes
so little impregnated with salts, as to be almost identical with dis-
tilled water ; that, on the contrary, which rises from a calcareous or
gypseous bed is always contaminated with salts of lime. Notwith-
standing the minute quantity of saline or earthy ingredients in spring
and river-waters, they are drinkable, and considered good when
they are limpid, without odor, capable of dissolving soap, and fitted
for vegetable cookery. These two last characters are essential,
inasmuch as proving that the waters contain only infinitesimal quan-
tities of soluble salts of lime.

The action of tests readily indicates the nature of the dissolved
salts.

Water contains : sulphates or carbonates, if nitrate of barytes
causes a precipitate ; a sulphate, when the precipitate is not redis-
solved by the addition of nitric acid ;

Chlorides, if it give with nitrate of silver a curdy precipitate, in-
soluble upon addition of nitric acid;

Lime, when rendered turbid by oxalate of ammonia ;

Magnesia, if when mixed with pure ammonia, and preserved in a
closely stopped vial, a white flocculent deposite ensues. This test,
however, is only applicable to water that has been boiled sufficiently
long to expel all the carbonic acid in solution, and which would tend
to hold any carbonate of lime dissolved. Carbonate of lime is sepa-
rated from water by ammonia, after some hours, in the form of gran-
ular crystals, which adhere to the sides of the vessel.

In order to render the operation of tests more sensible, the bulk
of the water may be reduced to a half or a fourth by evaporation.

Besides fixed salts, river- water always contains those of ammo-
nia, particularly the carbonate ; this fact was first ascertained, re-
lative to the Seine water, by M. Chevreul.f Subsequently, Pro-
fessor Liebig has discovered the same ammoniacal salt in rain-wa-
ter ; and M. Hunefeld has proved, that spring-water likewise con-

* Annales de Chimie, t. xxxv. 2e s6rie.

t Chevreul, Annales de Chimie, t. Ixxxii. p. 5(1

. 888 WATER.

tains it.* Lastly, M. Hermann has even determined quanlitatirely,
carbonate of ammonia in the ferruginous waters of a turf-pit. The
water of the Nile is not exempt from it, judging at least from the
analysis of its mud. According to Regnault, 100 parts of this mud
dried in the air contain :t

Chloride of sodium, sulphate of soda, and

carbonate of ammonia J

Organic matter 9

Water 10

Oxide of iron 6

Silica 4

Alumina 48 "

Carbonate of lime 18

Carbonate of magnesia 4

100

The beautiful synthetic experiments of M. Dumas demonstrate
that water is formed of:

Oxygen 88.89

Hydrogen 11.11

When pure, it boils at a temperature of 212° F. under a barome-
tric pressure of 30 (29.921) inches. It congeals at 32° F.

All natural bodies dilate, augment in volume, by the action of
heat, and contract under diminution of temperature. Water is
amenable to this law between rather wide limits ; it deviates, how-
ever, and presents an anomaly as it approaches congelation. As
with all liquids, the density of water gradually increases in propor-
tion as it cools, until its temperature is 39°.38 F. Setting out from
this point the density diminishes, the liquid dilates more and more,
CO that at 32° it occupies nearly the same volume that it did at 49°.
From this remarkable property, it results that during the most in-
tense cold the stagnant water which covers the meadows rarely at-
tains a lower temperature than 39°, whereby the organs of plants
suffer no damage.

Let us suppose, in fact, that at the beginning of winter a sheet of
stagnant water has a temperature of about 54° ; in proportion as the
liquid at the surface cools, it becomes denser, descends, and is im-
mediately replaced by inferior layers, which rise in the ratio of their
less density ; but these new superior layers, subjected to the same
refrigerating cause, contract and descend alternately. There is
then established in the fluid molecules, movements of ascension and
descent, of which the result is the cooling of the entire mass. Let
us now admit that in virtue of this continued mingling of the cooled
superior layers with those below, the temperature of the sheet of
water is lowered to 39°. 38 ; at this degree of the thermometer, the
water acquires its maximum density ; in parting with its heat it not
only contracts no more, but becomes lighter. If then a body of
stagnant water at a temperature of 39° is exposed to the chilling
action of the atmosphere, the superior layer, far colder than the in-
ferior, will no longer descend, since it will become lighter as its

* Lieblg, Traits de Chimie, Introduction, p. cii.
t Dwcription d« TEgypte, t. li. p. 405.

WATBR, ;>39

temperature diminishes. Thus it is that the water of a pond or lake
freezes at the surface, while it preserves beneath a tempciature
some degrees above 32°. In a situation where the temperature of
the air was 29", Davy found the thermometer indicate 43" in he
herbage of an inundated meadow completely covered with ice.*

Water is always impregnated with atmospheric air, and a minjte
quantity of carbonic acid. Deprived of air, it is not agreeable to
drink ; it is even said, when long continued, to prove unwholesome
if the dissolved gases are expelled by ebullition. River-water usual-
ly contains 3'^ th in volume of air, and tJ'o th carbonic acid. In spring-
water, the amount of the latter is sometimes far more considerable.

The quantity and nature of saline ingredients in drinkable water
vary much : in an agricultural point of view, the study of the con-
tained salts would certainly be useful. The waters which serve as
drink to the cattle of a farm, introduce into the dung-heap all the
matters which are dissolved or held in suspension. At Bechelbronn,
for example, I find that more than 2 cwts. of alkaline salts get into
the dung in this way every year. When a farmer has the choice of
several waters for giving his cattle or irrigating his meadows, he
will do well to select that which is richest in alkaline salts, and still
good to drink. In the steppes of America, it is astonishing with
what discernment the cattle choose waters for allaying their thirst,
containing minute quantities of sulphate of soda or common salt.

I close these considerations with a tabular view of the most recent
analyses. The quantities of salts put down have been deduced from
100,000 parts of water for drinking.

* Davy. Agricultural Chemistry, p. 3S9

540

V/ATER.

Of the Seine above Paris .

Marne

Onrcq at St. Denis . .

Yonne at Avalion . .

Benvronne . . . .

Therouenne . . . .

Gergogne

Bievre near Paris . .

Arcueil

Spring of Roye (Lyons) .
Fountain Spring (Lyons) .
Rhone at Lyons (July)
Ditto ditto (February) .
Spring of the garden of

plants at Lyons . . .
Of Lake Geneva . . .
Of the Arve (in August) .
Ditto in February . . .
Loire near Orleans . . .
Loiret

1

H

•<

H

59

i_i to (-> h- to lO k- I-- l-» JO to t->y-i)-i
^ y-t OD Ox -^ ■<l t;iowcoasCopop:>cn4i.;-TpH-'

Carbonate of
lime.

Carbonate of
magnesia.

..pop- • § B O ^PPP

Silica.

w- ojccjoc^ tspK-" H- as S H- too g o^ woo
bo* cnioosio oc5^*^«o^-'C^bc»5ctWH-a3

00

Sulphate of
lime.

• • b «3 F- • ^ g b to en

Sulphate of
magnesia.

Sulphate of
Soda.

ho*-'' ' ' bo ^aw-biocnboibi'-b

Chloride of
calcium.

cn-jix)a5 g' 'o^ioo

Chloride of
magnesium.

traces
idem

0.9
1.2
1.9
1.2
0.2
traces

12.6

traces
2.5

Chloride of
sodium (marine

salt.)

traces

traces

of lime
7.6

Nitrates.

traces
idem
idem
idem

• •

• •

traces
idem
idem
idem
strong
traces
0.6
0.3
0.4

Organic matter.

lO to I-" 1— CO I— ^ to to rfi. C^ to W trt rf>. — i-i
00 OS *^ to Cn O OD O 05 05 CS O — ' ^ 4^ -^ ^ OC 00

'►f^ bo 00 00 io bo i^ bs 05 4^ ^ bo b bo c/i ^ bo b to

Total weight of
matter.

Bouchardat

Ditto

Ditto

Ditto

Colin

Ditto

Ditto

Ditto

Ditto

Bot.J8ingauIt

Dupasquier

Boussingault

Dupasquier

Ditto

Tingry

Ditto

Ditto

Guindant

Ditto

ROTATION. 341

The water of the Artesian well at Grenelle, near Paris, according
to the analysis of M. Payen, contains, in 100,000 parts :

Carbonate of lime 6.80

Carbonate of magnesia 1.42

Bicarbonate of potash ...2.96

Sulphate of potash 1.20

Chloride of potassium 1.09

Silica 0.57

Yellow matter, not defined 0.02

Organic azotized matter .. 0.24

14.30

CHAPTER VII.
OF THE ROTATION OF CROPS;

^ 1. OF THE ORGANIC MATTER OF MANURE AND OF CROPS.

It is known that the atmosphere and the organic matters diffused
through the earth concur simultaneously to maintain the life of
plants ; but how far each contributes is undetermined. We shall now
study the theory of the exhaustion of the soil by culture, and the
rotation of crops.

When a succession of crops is grown upon fertile land without
renewal of manure, the produce gradually diminishes ; and after a
certain period, if it be grain, the quantity which at the outset was
eight or nine limes the amount of the seed, will be reduced to three
times or even to twice the seed. Thus crops impair the fertility of
the soil, and eventually exhaust it.

It has been long admitted that different species of plants manifest
great diversity in their powers of exhaustion. Certain kinds, indeed,
as trefoil and lucerne, far from exhausting it, communicate new
vigor. As a general rule, however, every plant may be said to
impoverish the soil in which it grows. This impoverishment is al-
ways manifest when the plant after maturity is completely removed,
but is less sensible when much rubbish is left. Thus, for example,
clover, after yielding two crops, which are generally cut as fodder,
might still yield a third ; this last, however, is generally ploughed
into the ground as manure, being buried along with a considerable
quantity of roots. This plan of meliorating the soil by the cultiva-
tion of trefoil is what is called manuring by smothering ; a method
practised from a remote period in the south of Europe, and which
offers decided advantages in those districts where there is abun-
dance of pasture land. Hence, in smothering trefoil, the soil is
amended at the expense of the nutritive matter it contains.

Thaer, who endeavored to make theory and practice mutually
agree, laid it down as a rule, that the exhaustion occasioned b_>

29*

842 ROTATION.

cropping is proportioned to the amount of nutriment in the crops
estimating the nutritive value according to Einhof s determination
But the above deduction is founded upon error.

In fact, to adopt the above principle is tacitly admitting that the
whole organic matter of plants originally comes from the soil. This,
no doubt, contributes in a certain proportion to the development of
plants, but so also do air and water. On the other hand, physiolo-
gists, in opposition to the ideas of the school of Thaer, have perhaps
exaggerated the material withdrawn from the air. Thus, M. de
Saussure reckons that a sun-flower derives from the ground during
its growth not more than ^oth of its weight, supposing the plant dry.
The reasoning upon which he formed his conclusion is based, on the
one hand, upon a knowledge of the extractive matter of garden-
mould ; on the other, upon the quantity of water a plant like sun-
flower may absorb in a given time, to return it again to the air by
transpiration.*

Little objection could be urged against the above conclusion, did
not the experiments of M. Gazzeri tend to prove that roots virtually
exercise, by their contact with solid organic matter, an incontesta-
ble absorbent action in imparting solubility.f I might refer to an
observation of M. de Saussure, in which he states that plants grown
in garden-mould deprived of its soluble components by repeated
washing, reached, nevertheless, perfect maturity, although the pro-
duce in seed was less abundant than it might have been. J It is
most probable that both parties have promulgated extreme opinions.
Plants possibly draw from the atmosphere more than agriculturists
commonly suppose, and the soil furnishes, independently of saline
and earthy substances, a proportion of organic matter larger than
certain physiologists admit. There is every reason to believe, from
what I could learn respecting guano during my sojourn on the coast
of Peru, that the greater part of the azotized principles of plants
originates in the ammoniacal salts which exist or are formed in ma-
nure.^

In discussing the advantage of one course of crops over another,
the question always hinges upon that of exhaustion. Wherever an
unlimited supply of dung and of handiwork can be procured, there
is no absolute necessity for following any regular system of rotation.
Under such favorable circumstances, it is expedient to ascertain
what kind of cultivation is, commercially speaking, best suited to
the climate and the soil. There is little to fear that by a continued
succession of similar crops, the fields will get infested with noxious
weeds, because this inconvenience may be obviated by labor. Nor
is impoverishment of the soil to be dreaded, since that can be re-
medied by the purchase of manure. The whole craft of agricuhure
is reducible to comparison of the probable value of the crop with
the cost of manure, labor, &c. Farming of this sort excludes the

* Saussure, Recherches Chimiques sur la V6g6tation, p. 2681
t Annales de rAj^TicuUnrc Franfaise, No. iii. p. 57
i Saussure, Recherches Chimiques, p. 171.
^ Annales de Chimie, t. Ixv. ann^ 1837.

ROTATION. 843

keep and propagation of cattle, and may be strictly regarded morfe
as gardening than as agriculture.

But where manure cannot be had from without, things must be
reduced to a system ; and the amount of produce which it is possi-
ble to export each year is fixed within bounds, which cannot be ex-
ceeded with impunity.

When by judicious cultivation land is rendered fertile, it is ne-
cessary, towards securing its fertility, to supply after every succession
of crops equal quantities of manure. In considering this in a purely
chemical point of view, it may be said that the produce which can
be taken away without damaging the fertility of the land, is the or-
ganic matter contained in the crops, abstraction made of that present
in the manure. Indeed, this latter substance must in some form or
other return to the soil to fecundate it anew. It is capital placed in
the ground, the interest of which is represented by the commercial
value of the produce of all the other agricultural operations.

Where lands are extensive, population scattered, and means of
communication difficult, there is less necessity for being tied down to
systematic cultivation. There is always enough for a scanty popu-
lation. A field yields grain, and after the harvest is converted for a
series of years into meadow-land ; such is the pastoral system in all
its simplicity. To this primitive state of husbandry may be referred
those plantations on cleared land in countries covered with forests.
When the trees are felled and burned upon the spot, the soil yields
for long and without manure, crops of maize and of wheat of sur-
prising quality, at the cost of the fecundity acquired during ages of
repose.

But when from increased population the land becomes more valu-
able, a larger amount of produce is demanded. Imperfect culture
would prove inadequate. Accordingly a triennial rotation of crops
was very anciently adopted in the north of Europe, consisting as is
well known of fallow land frequently ploughed during summer, fol-
lowed by two years of grain. The fallow land received a certain
quantity of manure to repair the exhaustion occasioned by the two
crops of grain ; hence when this mode of rotation is adopted there
should be always sufficient meadow-land to supply manure.

Leaving waste one third of the surface has always been held a
grave objection against triennial rotation. Hence various attempts
have been made to get rid of the summer fallow. Some encourage-
ment was given to these attempts from what occurs in horticulture,
where the ground is rendered continually productive.* In certain
countries, moreover, tillage is only interrupted by severe weather.

On the other hand, it has been long remarked that it is not always
beneficial to grow grain during several consecutive years in the
same ground, even when it is fertile and manure is abundant, owing
to the almost insurmountable difficulty of destroying weeds. The
fallow was justly considered the most efficient and economic means
of getting rid of these. For this ^pmpose fallow-crops^ as they were

• Thaer, Agricaltnre ndsonn^e.

844 ROTATrON.

called, were intrDcIuced. Peas, beans. vetcheS; were at first tht
only plants used as fallow-crops.

However, it was soon perceived that the fallow-crops occasioned
a very sensible diminution in the produce of corn ; to counteract
this inconvenience recourse was had to a surcharge of manure ; but
as this cannot always be obtained, it was necessary either to reduce
the cultivated surface or to appropriate a certain amount of meadow.
Still the fallow-crops had this advantage, that they enabled the farm-
er to derive from land a greater amount of produce in a given time
without prejudice to the raising of corn. Hence the plan of turn
ing the fallow to account was soon generally adopted.

The introduction of clover so modified the system of fallow-crops
as at one time to induce the belief that the point of perfection had
been attained in agriculture.* This was when it was ascertained
that trefoil, which had hitherto been only cultivated in small enclo-
sures, might be sown in spring upon corn land, and occupy next
year the place of the fallow in the triennial rotation. Trefoil, so far
from exhausting the soil, was found to give it new fertility, and the
succeeding corn crop yielded a plentiful harvest.

It may be easily conceived what advantages were expected in
substituting for the unproductive fallow the cultivation of a plant
which did not impoverish the land, and furnished a quantity of ex-
cellent fodder that served as food for an additional number of cattle.
It was even alleged that this plant cleared the fields of weeds.

A few years' experience sufficed to show that trefoil did not pos-
sess all the advantages attributed to it. On renewing the clover
every third year on the same piece of ground it sometimes failed.
Schubarth, the most zealous and enlightened advocate for its use,
limited the renewal of the artificial meadow at first to the sixth, and
eventually to the ninth year ; and finding that it did not completely
destroy the weeds in corn, he had recourse to hoed-crops for that
purpose.

The introduction of trefoil has gradually led to the system of al-
ternate rotation of crops generally adopted at present ; and more-
over, contrary to the anticipations of Schubarth, it may be renewed
every four or five years on the same parcel of land.

The impossibility of substituting trefoil for the fallow of the trien-
nial rotation was offered as a fresh proof of the principle maintained
from time immemorial by agriculturists, namely, that diflferent species
of plants should be cultivated in succession on the same land, and
that the same species should not recur except at considerable in-
tervals ; the earth yielding much finer crops when the same species
do not follow in immediate sequence. f

Attempts have been made at various times to explain this pheno-
menon. It was at first thought that different species of vegetables
required a particular nutriment ; but it was soon perceived to be
otherwise, and that the organs of each plant derived the necessary
juices from substances which cone (r in the nutrition of vegetables

♦ Thaer, Africttlture ral»oiui*e. t Wd.

ROTATION. 345

generally. In effect, plants the most opposite in botanical character
and properties, alimentary as well as poisonous, will live and flourish
on the same mound of earth, and with the same manure. Moreovei
these plants reciprocally withdraw nourishment from one another,
which could not occur did each species need different elements of
nutrition.*

When it was taken for granted that the organs of plants elaborate
a common nourishment derived from the manure, then vegetables of
diverse organizations were supposed endued with the faculty of
searching at different depths for the nutritive matter contained in the
soil, by reason of a more or less considerable extension and develop-
ment of their roots. This served to explain hour a plant with long
and perpendicular roots could, as a sequel to corn, derive benefit
from manure situate in the undermost layers of ploughed land. It
is possible that an action of this kind may take place under certain
circumstances, but the explanation can never be generally re-
ceived.

Another explanation of the necessity for alternate crops is based
upon properties assigned to the excretions of the roots, as compared
to animal excrements.

The excretion of roots, first observed by Brugman in the Viola
arvensis,f has been confirmed by the recent observations of M. Ma-
caire. This physiologist obtained the matter exuded from certain
plants by keeping their roots in water ; but, strange to say, could not
discover it in silicious sand in which certain vegetables had been
grown. I I myself likewise failed in detecting sensible traces of
organic matter in sand which had served as soil during several
months to wheat and clover ; a result which renders the fact of
radicular excretion doubtful. The excretion consequent upon im-
mersion in water is perhaps the effect of disease.

Be that as it may, upon the assumption of the excretion from
roots, Messrs. Von Humboldt and Plenck have explained the cause
of the attractions and repulsions of certain plants. § More recently
M. de Candolle has reproduced this idea as the basis of a theory of
rotation of crops. If it be supposed, in fact, that the excretion from
the roots represents vegetable excrements, it may be easily imagin-
ed that these excretions once deposited in the soil may be as pre-
judicial to the plant which produced them as would be the excrement
of an animal presented to it as food. On the other hand, by change
of species, the plant newly implanted may profit by the excretions of
the preceding crop, absorbing them as nourishment. This ingenious
hypothesis is deficient in the groundwork, inasmuch as the fact of
radicular excretion is not sufficiently established. Again, admitting
the excretion, several facts concur to demonstrate that plants may
thrive in soil charged with their dwn excrements.

The culture of corn, for example, may proceed uninterruptedly,
as we find in the triennial rotation. I have seen in the table-lands

* De Candolle, t. i. p. 248. t Ibid. t. ii. p. 1497.

t Ibid, t iu. p. 1474. $ De Candolle, t. iii. p. J474

846 ROTATION.

of the Andes wheat fields, which had yielded excellent cr:ps annaa]-
iy for more than two centuries. Maize may likewise be continually
reproduced upon the same ground without inconvenienc-e : this fact
is well known in the south of Europe ; and the greater portion of
the coast of Peru has produced nothing else, from a date long ante-
rior to the discovery of America. Further, potatoes may come again
and again upon the same soil ; they are incessantly cultivated at
Santa-Fe and Quito, and nowhere are they of better quality. In-
digo and sugar-cane may be brought under the same category. In
Europe the Jerusalem artichoke produces constantly in the same
place.* It must be conceded, that if all these plants excrete from
their roots, their excretions are not of such a nature as to interfere
with the progress of vegetation of the species producing them.

But the capital objection to the hypothesis of De Candolle is this,
that it would be very remarkable indeed did any soluble organic
matter, like such secretions, not putrefy when lying in the ground
In a word, it is difficult to understand how it should resist for years,
as is pretended, the decomposing influence of heat and moisture to«
gether.

That there is no absolute necessity for alternation of crops when
dung and labor can be readily procured, is undeniable. Never-
theless, there are certain plants which cannot be reproduced upon
the same soil advantageously except at intervals more or less re-
mote. The cause of this exigence on the part of certain vegetables
is still obscure, and the hypotheses propounded for clearing it up far
from satisfactory.

One of the marked advantages of alternate cultures, is the periodic
cultivation of plants which improve the soil. In this way a sort ol
compensation is made for exhaustion. The main thing to be secur-
ed in rotation of crops is such a system as shall enable the husband-
man to obtain the greatest amount of vegetable produce with the
least manure, and in the shortest possible time. This system cao
be alone realized by employing in the course of rotation those plants
which draw largely upon the atmosphere.

The best plan of rotation in theory, is that in which the quantity
of organic matter obtained most exceeds the quantity of organic
matter introduced into the soil in the shape of manure. This does
not hold quite in practice. It is less the surplus amount of organic
matter over that contained in the manure, than the value of this
same matter which concerns the agriculturist. The excess required,
and the form in which it should be produced, must vary widely ac-
cording to locality, commercial demand, and the habits of people,
considerations wholly apart from theoretical provisions. One point

* To this list might be added, according to the recent researches of M. Braconnot,
ihe bay-rose with double flowers, and Papaver somniferum. That distinguished
chemist terminates his memoir as follows : " My experiments are unfavorable, as may
be perceived, to the theory of rotation of cops based on the excretions of the roots.
These excretions if really occurring in the lormal state are so obscure and little known
as to lead to the inference that the general system of rotations must be referred ta
some other source." (Recherches sur I'influence des plantes sur le sol, Annales d«
Chimie t Ixxii. p. 27.)

ROTATION. 847

in theory that should agree with practice is this, that in no case is it
possible to export more organic matter, and particularly more azo-
tized organic matter, than the excess of the same matter contained
in the manure which is consumed in the course of the rotation. By
acting upon another presumption the productiveness of the soil would
be infallibly lessened.

This irrefragable condition as to the term of exportation from a
farm suggests some critical remarks upon sundry notions lately pro-
mulgated. The manufacture of beet-root sugar is an instance.
European agriculture may probably derive certain advantages from
this modern branch of industry, although these have been mu<^h
overrated by certain speculators, who contend that sugar may thus
be obtained through rotation of crops without lessening the other
produce of the domain ; so that the sugar constitutes an additional
source of income. This seems to me erroneous.

If an estate yields annually 100 tons of beet-root for the support
of cattle, their number must be diminished if the root is to he used
for making sugar. The organic matter of the sugar extracted there-
from, is just so much nourishment withheld from the cattle. To
assert the contrary would be equivalent to saying that potatoes grown
upon a couple of acres of land, and submitted to the process of dis-
tillation before being employed as fodder, would feed as many animals
as if eaten directly : assuredly, the organic principles of the potato
converted into alcohol are lost as regards nutrition.

This does not imply that the manufacture of indigenous sugar,
and of potato spirit, is less productive than breeding and fattening
cattle. My sole object is to show that only a limited quantity of
organic matter can be advantageously exported from an agricultural
establishment. It must depend upon local and commercial circum-
stances whether this is to be exported in the form of sugar, corn,
spirit, or butcher-meat.

The above statement is in apparent contradiction with generally
received notions. Many persons believe that the manufacture of
sugar, instead of injuring, is favorable to the breeding of cattle. It
appears, from a Parliamentary return on this subject, in 1836, that
in certain estates where sugar was made, the number of animals
was increased ; the numerical results are no doubt exact, but this
augmentation in cattle is rather to be ascribed to an improved mode
of farming than to the manufacture of sugar. In establishments
where the triennial rotation with fallow was pursued, a rotation of
four or five years with clover and weed-destroying plants has been
introduced ; so that it is by no means to be wondered at, that inde-
pendently of beet-root, there should have been a considerable increase
in other things. The introduction of this root, where it was not
formeny grown, is of itself an important melioration. But in highly
cultivated countries, where the most productive rotations have been
long followed, the extraction of sugar would not effect such advan-
tageous changes as those announced in the above return. If at
Bechelbronn a time should ever come, and at present it seems far
distant, when.it wduld be deemed expedient to make sugar from the

S48 ELEMENTS OF CROPS.

beet there grown it would certainly be requisite to diminish the
number of cattle, or else to annex more meadow land. It is only
indirectly, therefo e, that the manufacture of home-sugar can pro-
mote the breeding of cattle, and so prove serriceable to agriculture.

From the definition given by me of the most advantageous course
of crops, theoretically considered, it may be inferred how closely the
study of rotations is connected with that of the exhaustion of the
soil. Hence, to discuss the value of divers rotations, we must, in
consonance with theory, compare the quantity of organic matter in
a sequence of crops, with that in the manure expended upon them.

From a well-managed farm, where for a series of years an invari-
able system of culture has been steadily pursued, we must look for
data. This I have done, as regards Bechelbronn, determining by
analysis the composition of the manures and crops, and also of the
more ordinary kinds of fodder or food. For a long time, a five
years' rotation has been there adopted in the following order :

1st year.— Potatoes or beet-root manured.

2d year.— Wheat sown the autumn of the first year ; clover interposed In the spring.

3d year. — Trefoil (clover) two crops ; the third crop ploughed in or smothered.

4th year. — Wheat on the clover-break, turnips after the wheat.

5th year. — Oats.

The crop of oats which ends the rotation is generally scanty.
The soil is then brought back to the point of fertility which it had
before being dunged ; and it is known by experience that it will not
now yield a crop of any value.

I now proceed to detail the analyses of the different substances
which enter into the rotation, indicating at the same time the average
produce per acre.

POTATOES.

In the rather strong soil of Bechelbronn one acre produces upon
an average about 105 cwts. of potatoes. This is below the ordinary
rate of Alsace, where the crop amounts to from 155 to 165 cwts.
per acre. The leaves and stems are left upon the ground.

A potato was cut in two, in order to subject it to analysis with a
proportional part of the peel. The half weighed 335.2 grs. Stove-
dried and reduced to flour, it weighed 289.3 grs. By absolute desic-
cation in vacuo, at a temperature of 230° F. it was found that one
of moist tuber became 0.241 ; 15.4 grs. left of ash 0.039.

The average quantity of azote is 1.2. In 1836, I found 1.8 of
azote. This notable difTerence, perhaps, depends on the analysis
not having been made immediately after the harvest ; or it may be
partly du3 to meteorological influences. To convince myself that it
did not depend upon any error of analysis, I examined anew the
potato of 1836, preserved in the farinaceous state : it yielded 1.8
of azote I shall, therefore, reckon the azote at 1.5 :

I. II.

Carbon 43.72 43.40

Hydrogen 6.00 5.60

Oxygen 44.88 45.60

Azote 1.50 1.50

Aih 3. 00 3.90

ELEMENTS OF CROPS. 349

WHEAT.

I analyzed the grain gathered in 1837 : one of wheat, dried in
vacuo at 230° F. was reduced to 0.885 ; one of dry wheat left of
ash 0.0243 :

Carbon 46.10

Hydrogen 5.80

Oxygen 43-40

Azote 2.29

Ash 2.43

100.00

The mean produce in wheat at Bechelbronn varies from 20^ to
22 bushels per acre ; this variation depends on the drill crop which
commences the rotation. After potatoes the average crop is 19^
bushels; after beet-root, 17 bushels; on clover-breaks it is 24 bushels.
The average weight of the grain is 63 lbs. per bushel.

WHEAT-STRAW.

I estimate the proportion of the produce in grain to that in straw,
as 44 to 100.

One of straw completely dried in vacuo at 230° F. becomes 0.740;
one of dry straw leaves 0.0697 of ash :

1. n.

Carbon 48-48 48-38

Hydrogen 5.41 5.21

Oxygen 38.79 39.09

Azote 0-35 0.35

Ash 6-97 69.7

100-00 100.00

RED CLOVER.

Clover delights in clayey soils ; it thrives generally in good wheat
lands ; in light and sandy ground it gets bare and frosted. During
its growth, it always requires the shelter of some other plant. For
this reason, in spring, it is generally sown among wheat, which is
put in the preceding autumn, or barley sown the same spring. We
generally give from 11 to 14 lbs. of seed per acre. Clover is mow-
ed the second year, as it is coming into flower ; but when it is not
to be consumed as green fodder, the mowing may take place before
the flowering ; this is required from the difficulty of making it into
hay. In fact, in the process of drying clover, there is great risk of
losing part both of the leaves and flower ; besides, the drying always
requires a considerable time, during which the clover runs the chance
of being damaged by rain, and clover hay-making is almost im-
practicable in wet weather. Schwertz proposed to dry the clover
on a sort of parrot-perches stuck into the ground. These supports
are but eight feet high, and capable of bearing a load of 2 cwt. of
green fodder, mowed twenty-four hours, and already withered. This
method, as I have seen it practised in the Duchy of Baden, answers
well, but there is considerable cost for manual labor, and in the first
instance for perches. Schwertz reckons that 2 cwts. of green clover

30

350 ELEMENTS OF CROPS.

yield 48 lbs. of hay. The relation of green to dry fodder varies
with the age of the plant, and the meteorological circumstances
under which it has grown. Subjoined is the result of some experi-
ments which I performed on the making of clover hay :

1 ton of clover in flower, 2d year (1841) afforded in hay 7 cwts.

1 ton of clover 1st year (1842) " 4 cwts. 2 qrs. 24 lbs.

The average produce of this fodder reduced to hay at Bechel-
bronn is 41 cwts. 3 qrs. per acre.

One of clover hay, after complete desiccation, weighed 0.790 ;

one of dry hay left 0.078 of ash :

I. n.

Carbon 47.53 47.19

Hydrogen 4.69 5.33

Oxygen 57.96 37.66

Azote 2.06 2-06

Ash 7.76 7.76

100.00 100.00

TURNIPS.

When turnips are cultivated as a second crop, as after rye or
wheat, the produce is very uncertain. Attempts are occasionally
made to raise them after wheat which has followed clover.

When cultivated on fresh manured soil, the produce is considera-
ble ; in some places it amounts to from 28 to 33 tons per acre ; but
as a second crop, we only obtain upon an average 7| tons per acre.
This crop is only counted as a half-crop in the general produce of
the rotation.

Turnip is the most watery root I have examined. A slice weigh-
ing 2 oz. 17 dwts. dried in the stove, was reduced to 4 dwts. After
thorough desiccation, one of turnip weighed 0.075 ; consequently
the root contains 92.5 per cent, of water ; one of dried turnip incin-
erated, left 0.0758 of ash :

I. n.

Carbon 42.80 49.93

Hydrogen 5.54 5.61

Oxygen 42-40 42-20

Azote 1-68 1.68

Ash 7-58 7.58

100.00 100-00

OATS.

As this grain closes the rotation, the produce is not great. The
average crop is 37 bushels per acre, at the weight of 33^ lbs. per
bushel ;* one of oats conrpletely dried weighs 0.792 ; one of dried
•ats leaves 0.0398 of ash ;

I. n.

Carbon 50-32 51.09

Hydrogen 6.32 6.44

Oxygen 37.14 36.25

Azote 2.24 2.24

Ash 3-98 3-98

100.00 100-00

• This is but a light weight for a bushel of oats.— Ejf«. E».

ELEMENTS OF CROPS. 851

OAT STRAW.

Oat straw is estimated at about 15 cwts. per acre ; one part
becomes, when dried in vacuo, 0.713 ; one part burned leaves 0.0509
of ash •

Carbon 49.93 50-25

Hydrogen 5.32 5.48

Oxygen 39.28 38.80

Azote 0.38 0.38

Ash 5.09 5.09

100.00 100.00

riELD BEET OR MANGEL-WURZEL.

Or a freshly manured soil, the average produce of beet at Bechel«
bronn is 10 tons, 15 cwts. 1 qr. per acre. The worst crops do not
fall below 5 tons, 2 cwts. 1 qr. 14 lbs., and the best do not exceed
16 tons, 7 cwts. 1 qr., results which I took occasion to.observe varied
sensibly from those obtained in different places. I stated that
Schwertz and Thaer make the average 14 tons, 14 cwts. 2 qrs. 16
lbs. Moelinger, after taking the mean of ten years, adopts 11 tons,
1 cwt. 3 qrs. 6 lbs. At Roville, M. de Dombasle speaks of 7 tons,
3 cwts. 26 lbs. as the mean of seven years.

At Bechelbronn, the leaves of the beet are not given to cattle ;
thpy are left upon the ground. A piece of beet-root weighing 1 oz.
16 dwts. was reduced to 4^'^^, say 5 dwts. after being stove dried.
After complete desiccation, at 230° F. one part of root became 0. 122 ;
one part of root left upon incineration 0.0624 of residuum :

Carbon 42.75 42.93

Hydrogen 5.77 5.94

Oxygen 43.58 43.33

Azote 1.66 1.66

Ash 6.24 6.24

100.00 190.00

RYE.

Rye is seldom introduced into the rotation at Bechelbronn. They
reckon its produce at 26 bushels per acre, when it has had a sup-
plementary dose of manure. The bushel weighs fully 58 lbs. I
have taken the proportion of grain to straw as 45 is to 100. One
part of rye, dried at 230° F. weighed 0.834 ; one part incinerated
left 0.0237 of ash :

1. n. in.

Carbon 46.35 4.5.72 46.38

Hydrogen 5.38 5.70 5.74

Oxygen 44.21 44.52 43.82

Azote 1.69 1.69 1.69

Ash 2.37 2.37 2.37

100.00 100.00 100.00
RYE-STRAW.

One part of straw, completely dried, weighed 0.813 ; one part of
which, incinerated, left 0.0368 of ash :

852 ELEMENTS OF CROPS.

Carbcn 49.88

Hydrogen 5.58

Oxygen 40..')6

Azote.. 0.30

Ash..... 3.68

100.00

WHITE PEAS

Raised on manured land yielded 16 buihels per acre, weighing
fully 62 lbs. per bushel. One part of peas, after complete desicca-
tion, weighed 0.914 ; one part of dried peas left of ash 0.0314 :

I. n.

Carbon 46.06 46.94

Hydrogen 6.09 6.34

Oxygen 40.53 39.50

Azote 4.18 4.18

Ash 3.14 3.14

100.00 100.00

PEA STRAW.

One acre of peas produces about 22 or 23 cwts. of straw ; one part
of the straw after desiccation weighed 0.802 ; one part after incine-
ration 0.1132 :

Carbon 45.80

Hydrogen 5.00

Oxygen 35.57

Azote •••• 2.31

Ash 11.32

100.0C

JERUSALEM POTATO OR ARTICHOKE.

In Alsace, Jerusalem artichokes are always grown on one and
the same piece of land, which is manured every two years. At
Bechelbronn, on a somewhat shallow soil, the produce per acre
amounts to :

Tubers 10 tons

Dry stems Hi cwts.

A tuber which weighed on being taken from the ground 1 oz.
IS^nr dwts , weighed ^ dwts. after it was dried in the stove. Afler
absolute desiccation, one part was reduced to 0.208 ; one portion of
the dry tuber left 0.0594 after incineration :

n.

Carbon 4-12 43.62

Hydrogen 5.91 5.80

Oxygen 43.56 43.07

Azote 1.57 1.57

Ash 5.94 5.94

100.00 100.00

DRIED STEMS OF JERUSALEM ARTICHOKES.

These stems had stood through the winter where they grew, and
were almost wholly composed of pith. One part after desiccation
weighed 0.871 : one part left of ash 0.0276.

ELEMENTS OF CROPS.

358

Carbon 45.68

Hydrogen 5.43

Oxygen 45.72

Azote 0.43

Ash 2.76

100.00

I fear that in this analysis the carbon and azote are rated too low.

I have collected in two tables the results of the analyses as detail,
ed above. The first exhibits the quantity of dry matter and moisture
contained in each specimen ; the other, the elementary composition.
On careful examination of the numbers given in the second table,
certain substances will be found very analogous in composition. If
the ashes be deducted, the analogy becomes complete ; for many
substances differing widely both in character and properties, never-
theless appear to possess the same composition ; a fact which I do
not undertake to explain.

TABLE OF THE PROPORTIONS OF WATER CONTAINED IN DIFFERENT
SUBSTANCES.

Substancet. Dry matter. Water.

Wheat 0.855 0.145

Rye 0.834 0.166

Oats 0.792 0.208

Wheat-straw 0.740 0.260

Rye-straw 0.813 0.187

Oat-straw 0.713 0287

Potato 0.241 0.759

Field-beet 0.122 0.878

Turnip 0.075 0.925

Jerusalem potato 0.208 0.792

Peas 0.914 0.086

Pea-straw 0.882 0.118

Clover-hay 0.790 0.210

Jerusalem potato-stems • • • . • 0.871 0.129

COMPOSITION OF THE SAME SUBSTANCES DRIED IN VACUO AT SSO*

FAHR.

SUBSTANCES.

Ashes included.

Ashes deducted.

1

i
>«

1

S

so

<

1

d

X

3

•<

\Y^gjit

46.1
46.2
50.7
48.4
49.9
50.1
44.0
42.8
42.9
43.3
46.5
45.8
47.4

45.7

05.8
05.6
06.4
05.3
05.6
05.4
05.8
05.8
05.5
05.8
06.2
05.0
05.0

05.4

43.4
44.2
36.7
38.9
40.6
39.0
44.7
43.4
42.3
43.3
40.0
35.6
37.8

45.7

02.3
01.7
02.2
00.4
00.3
00.4
01.5
01.7
01.7
01.6
04.2
02.3
02.1

00.4

02.4
02.3
04.0
07.0
03.6
05.1
04.0
06.3
07.6
06.0
03.1
11.3
07.7

02.8

47.2
47.3
52.9
52.1
51.8
52.8
45.9
45.7
46.3
46.0
48.0
51.5
51.3

47.0

06.0
05.7
06.6
05.7
05.8
05.7
06.1
06.2
06.0
06.2
06.4
05.6
05.4

05.6

44.4
45.3
38.2
41.8
42.1
41.1
46.4
46.3
45.9
46.1
41.3
40.3
41.1

47.0

02.4
01.7
02.3
00.4
00.3
00.4
01.6
01.8
01.8
01.7
043
02.6
02.2

00.4

Rve

Wheat- straw ...

Rye-straw

Oat-straw

Field-beet

Turnip

Jerusalem potato

Pea-straw

Clover-hay

Jerusalem pota-
to-stems

30*

854 ELEMENTS OF MANFRE.

RELATIONS OF MANURES TO CROPS.

The manure employed at Bechelbronn is what is commonly called
farm-yard dung, a compost made up of the excrements of horses,
oxen, and straw litter impregnated with urine. The dung of fowls
and pigeons, and the sweepings of the yard, are sometimes applied
to special purposes. The animals whose excrements form the dung"
which I have examined were horses, oxen, and swine.

The manure is put upon the ground when it has undergone fer-
mentation in the heap : it is manure half-made : the straw litter is
not entirely decomposed, but is soft and filamentous ; in this state
manure retains a great deal of moisture.

DESICCATION OF HALF-MADE OR HALF-DECAYED MANURE.
EXPERIMENT I.

A quantity of manure prepared during the winter of 1837-1838,
which in the state in which it was being put on the ground, weighed
257 lbs after it had been dried so as to be easily reduced to powder,
weighed 57 lbs. The loss of water was therefore about 77.3 in 100
This number comes very near the estimate of several German
agriculturists, who reckon the moisture in farm-yard dung at 75 per
cent. Still this loss does not represent the whole of the water ; for
after desiccation at 212° F. the 57 lbs. weighed 54 lbs. In fine,
after desiccation in vacuo, at 230° F. it was found that one part of
stove-dried manure lost 0.039. Thus the manure parted in totality
with 79.62 per cent, of water, and contained in consequence 20.4 of
dry substance.

EXPERIMENT II.

Of the manure prepared in the winter of 1838-1839, 220 lbs. after
being chopped and dried weighed 56 lbs. One part of this manure
was reduced in dry vacuo at a temperature of 230° F. to 0.872. The
280 lbs. would therefore have weighed when dry 48 lbs.

EXPERIMENT III.

Of the manure prepared during the summer of 1839, 660 lbs.
weighed after desiccation 151 lbs. ; of this dry manure reduced to
powder, one part lost by desiccation in vacuo at 230° F. 0.1461.

The 151 lbs. would therefore have lost 22 lbs. ; consequently the
660 lbs. of manure contained 129 lbs. of dry matter, that is, 19.64
per cent.

Subjoined is a summary of the per centage of dry matter :

First experiment 20.4

Second " 22.2

Third ♦ 19.6

Average 20.7

Moisture (average) 793

ANALYSES OF HALF-MADE MANURES.

I. Manure prepared during the winter of 1837-1838:
Matter 0.5595, gave carbonic acid 0.528, water 0.157 : C. 32.4, H. 3.8^
Asote 1.7.— 1.0 gave ashei 0.462.

ELEMENTS OF MANURE. 355

II. Manure prepared during the winter of 1837-1838 :

Matter 0.575. gave carbonic acid 0.676, water 0.212 : C 32.5, H. 4.1,
.A.zote 1.69.— 1.000 gave ashes 0.357.

III. Manure prepared during the winter of 1837-1838:

Matter 0.567, gave carbonic acid 0.791, water 0.232 : C. 38.7, H. 4.5,
Azote 1.73.— 1.000 gave ashes 0.264.

IV. Manure prepared during the spring of 1838 :

Matter 0.586, gave carbonic acid 0.759, water 0.308 : C. 36.4, H. 4.0,
Azote 2.4.— 1.000 gave ashes 0.381.

V. Manure prepared during the spring of 1839 :
Matter 0.445, gave carbonic acid 0.643, water 0.171 : C. 40.0, H. 4.3,

Azote 2.4.-1.000 gave ashes 0.257.

VI.

Matter 0.427, gave carbonic acid 0.543, water 0.150 : C. 34.7, H, 3.9.
" 0.427, " " 0.530, " 0.127 : " 34.3, " 4.8,

Azote 2.0.-1.000 gave ashes 0.315.

COMPOSITION OP THE MANURES ANALYZED.

Carbon. Hydrogen. Oxy^^en. Azote. Salts and earthly

I. 32.4 3.8 25.8 1.7 36.5

II. 32.5 4.1 26.0 1.7 35.7

III. 38.7 4.5 28.7 1.7 26.4

IV. 36.4 4.0 19.1 2.4 38.1
V. 40.0 4.3 27.6 2.4 25.7

VI. 34.5 4.3 27.7 2.0 31.5

Mean . . . 35.8 4.2 25.8 2.0 32.2

In all these analyses, the combustion was promoted by the addi-
tion of chlorate of potash ; some oxide of antimony was likewise
added. The carbonic acid of the ash was determined and struck off.

The measure of dung in use at Bechelbronn is the wagon drawn
by four horses. After repeated weighings it was found that this
measure contains nearly 1 ton, 15 cwts. 2 qrs. 23 lbs. of moist material,
or 7 cwt. 1 qr. 15 lbs. if that be computed dry. The first course of
the rotation receives 27 loads of this manure, weighing about 48 tons,
14 qrs. 5 lbs., equivalent to 9 tons, 19 cwts. 0 qr. 2 lbs. of dry ma-
nure.*

The preceding analyses show that this charge of manure, which
is to fertilize the soil during the course of the rotati/>n ^five years)
contains :

Carbon .- 8027 lbs.

Hydrogen 925

Oxygen 5767

Azote 447

Salts and earth 7188

22355

Such are the principles vi4iich together form the organic matter
that is to be consumed and in major part assimilated by the crops

» I presume that the quantity above specified is that which is laid on the French
hectare, equal to 2.4 acres English. To get at the quantity laid on per acre, it would
therefore be necessary to divide by 2 4-10 : Thus 48 tons, 14 cwts. 5 lbs. per hectare
will be equal to 20 ton's, 1 cwt. 3 qrs. per English acre.— Enq. Ed.

356 relax:, ns of elements

grown. I say partly, because I do not believe that the whole or
ganic matter necessarily enters into the constitution of the plants
which spring up during the rotation ; no doubt a considerable por-
tion of the manure is lost through spontaneous decomposition, or is
carried away by the rain ; and another portion may remain a long
time dormant in the soil, to act as a fertilizer at a more or less dis-
tant period ; just as in the present rotation the manure formerly in-
troduced co-operates with that recently added. One thing is certain,
viz., that the proportion of manure indicated is essential for a\erage
crops ; by diminishing it the produce is necessarily lessened. Last-
ly, it is proved that after the rotation the crops have consumed the
manure, and the earth will not yield its increase unless a fresh quan-
tity be added.

I now proceed to consider the relation subsisting between the
quantity of organic matter buried in the soil as manure, and what is
recovered in the crops. In this way the respective proportions of
elementary matter which various crops derived from the air and the
soil, may be determined approximately, and a knowledge obtained
of those rotations which least exhaust the land, or in other words,
which obtain from the atmosphere the largest amount of organic
matter.

The rotations set down in Tables I. and II. are those definitively
adopted at Bechelbronn, and throughout the greater part of Alsace.
These two rotations, which differ only in the hoed crop introduced,
potatoes in one, beet-root in the other, are almost identical ; nearly
the same quantity of dry matter being produced per acre, and nearly
the same quantity of organic material withdrawn from the atmo-
sphere.

The rotation No. 3 was introduced by Schwertz at Hohenheim ;
theoretically, it is one of the most advantageous ; it was tried at
Bechelbronn but abandoned, because, from meteorological causes,
peas and vetches fail frequently.

Table No. 4, shows the triennial rotation with manured fallow ;
this is disadvantageous in point of theory. The organic consti-
tuents of the crop exceed but little those of the manure. Suppos-
ing that even the whole of the straw were converted into manure,
the farmer would still be compelled to procure manure from abroad,
in compensation for the out-going of wheat. It is thus obvious why
triennial rotation always requires a great deal of meadow land.

In table No. 5, the result of the continuous cultivation of Jerusa-
lem artichokes is given. At Bechelbronn these are dressed every
two years with about ten loads of dung per acre. Upon an average
20 tons of tubers and about 2 tons of woody stems are gathered in
the course of two years. It will be perceived from perusal of this
table, that the culture of Jerusalem artichokes presents, theoretical-
ly, considerable advantages. The organic matter of the crop greatly
exceeds that of the manure. Moreover, in Alsace, where it is very
common, it is held to be most productive. Still, the organic matter
of the stems must be taken into account, which, practically speak-
ing, are nearly worthless.

IN CROPS AND MANURE.

357

Table No. 6 comprises the data relative to a quadrennial rotation,
adopted by M. Crud, and in which are grown successively : 1st.
Potatoes or beet-root. 2d. Wheat. 3d. Red clover. 4th. Wheat.
The first sowing is dressed with about 18 tons of half-wasted farm-
yard dung. The gain in organic matter obtained by this rotation
surpasses that of the preceding ; but as the clover crops are not very
sure when repeated every four years, M. Crud, for reasons which
may be called in question, follows this rotation with one of lucern,
which gets a fresh supply of manure. It cannot be denied that lu-
cern furnishes a great mass of fodder, and in this respect the fertili-
ty of the land ought to be vastly enhanced, were this consumed on
the spot ; but I can discover no objection to the renewal of clover,
if the lucern succeeds so well as M. Crud says it does. From too
frequent repetition, farmers have gone into the opposite extreme of
cultivating clover only every five or six years. This subject offers
an important field for research. It is not impossible that the ill-
success depends often on premature mowing of the clover during
the first year, and before its roots have acquired sufficient vigor.
This practice has been abandoned with us for some years, and there
is now every thing to assure us that the second year's crop is there-
by secured.

ROTATION COURSE No. 1.

Years,

Substances.

Crops
per acre.

Crops
dry.

Carbon.

Hydro,
gen.

Oxygen.

Azote.

Salts

and

earths.

1st

2d

3d
4th

5th

Potatoes ....
Wheat ....
Wheat-straw . .
Clover-huy . . .
Wheat ....
Wheat-straw . .
Turnips C2d crop) .

Oat-stra*w' ! *. !

Manure employed .
Difference . . .

lbs,

'ii?

2798
1650

1052
1300

1?

975
1176

1244

1002
1750

2832

185
75
135

lbs,
1264

99;
458

'SI-
%
i

10
5

1

li 1

1!

179

1

60

37050
4495

16307
9314

10236
3426

891
391

6575
2403

229
185

^

6993

6810

500

4172

44

a»3

ROTATION COURSE No. 2.

Years.

Substances.

Crops
per acre.

Crops
dry.

Carbon.

Hydro-
gen.

Oxygen,

Azote,

Salts

and

earths.

Ist

2d

■ 6th

^K'"."™'. :

Wheat-straw . .
Clover-hay . . .
Wheat ....
Wheat-straw . .
Turnips ....

Oat-straw' '. '. '.

Total

Manure employed

Difference . . .

lbs,
2383

fJ^

11675
1520
3456

1630

lbs,

1827

lbs.
281

'iii
i

'1

135

36

lbs.

1

lbs,

i

7
77
30
10

^1

'la
,1

1
i

60

27224
4495

16018
9314

7505
3426

11

6423
2403

231
185

S_

6704

4079

473

4020

46

2024

S53

RELATIONS OF ELEMENTS.

ROTATION COURSE No. 3.

Yean.

Substances.

Crops
per acre.

Crops
dry.

Carbon.

Hyd- J-

gen.

Oxygen.

Azote.

Salts

and

earths.

lbs.

lbs.

lbs.

lbs.

lbs.

lbs.

lbs.

1st

Potatoes ....

11733

2^

1244

164

1264

42

113

2d

Wheat ....

1231

1054

485

61

457

24

25

W^heat-straw . .

2;98

2070

1002

110

805

8

145

3d

Clover-hay . . .

4675

3693

1750

185

1396

78

284

4th

Wheat ....

1515

1300

75

564

30

31

Wheat-straw . .

3456

2558

1238

135

995

10

179

Turnips ....

8754

656

282

36

11

50

5th

Peas (dunged) . .

1001

915

425

56

366

38

28

Pea-straw . . .

2558

22.56

1033

112

803

255

6th

Rye

1539

1278

590

71

565

22

30

Rye-straw . . .
Total

3420

2780

1387

155

1129

«

100

148280

21388

10035

1160

8622

323

1240

Manure employed
Difference . . .

148285

11176

4000

470

2883

223

3599

10212

6035

690

5739

100

2359

ROTATION COURSE No. 4.

Years.

Substances.

Crops
per acre.

Crops
dry.

Carbon.

Hydro-
gen.

Oxygen. Azote.

SalU

and

earths.

1st
2d&3d

Dung^^ fallow. .

Straw

Total

Manure employed

Difference . . .

lbs.

9041

6875

lbs.

2600
5080

lbs.
2462

lbs.

150
270

lbs.

1128
1979

lbs.

lbs.

'62

356

S

7680
3795

3413
1358

420
159

'S

fS

418
1222

8414

3885

2055

261

2128

4

804

No. 5, CONTINUOUS POTATO CROPS-

!
Yean. 1 Substances.

Crops
per acre.

Crops
dry.

Carbon.

Hydro-
gen.

Oxygen.

Azote.

Salts

and

earths.

l8t&2d

Potatoes ....
Stalks ....

Total

Manure employed .

Difference . . .

S

lbs.

10289

.1

10289

lbs.
161
90

lbs.
605
630

74323
41663

32580
8624

■S

■1^

'^

251
172

1235
2777

23956

11568 1438

12430

79

1542

No. 6, QUATRENNIAIi ROTATION, ADOPTED BY M. CRUD.

Yean.

Crops grown.

Crops
per acre.

ELEMENTARY INGREDIENTS OF THE CROP.

•ir

Carbon.

Hydro-
gen.

Oxygen.

Azote,

SulU
earths.

Ist

2d&4th

8d

Hdlf acre of ^tatoes
Ditto of beet-rooU .
Wheat. 153 bushels .
Wheat-straw . , .
Clover three cuttings

Total

Manure consumed .

Difference ....

lbs.
9167

lbs,

2847
5243
5793

lbs.
1312

1

290

'1

1235
2190

38

if

121

1^

S

8524
2989

991
a30

7422
2154

278
167

1110
2688

9980

5535

641

6268

111

1578

IN CEOPS AND MANURE.

859

SUMMARY.

1

Dry manure

Dry produce

•5

expendetl upon

Azote con-

obtained in

Azote con-

ic maiterni

Gain in aiote

1

one acre in

tained in the

one year upon

tained in the

one year upon

\a one year

one year.

manure.

one acre.

produce.

one acre.

upon one acre.

1

lbs.

lbs.

lbs.

lbs.

lbs.

lbs.

No. 1

1862

37

3261

46

1996

9

No. 2

1862

37

3204

46

1746

9

No. 3

1862

37

3564

54

2513

17

No. 4

1247

23

2567

26

1565

3

No. 5

3710

86

16299

125

12758

39

No. 6

2087

42

4582

70

2889

.

From all that precedes, it is obvious that rotations which include
trefoils, red clover, lucern, and sainfoin, are those that afford con-
siderably the largest proportion of organic matter ; a fact, indeed,
which if not legitimately established, has still been long acted on
in that system of cropping which embraces forage plants as an ele-
ment. Lucerns, too, when they have taken kindly, yield an extra-
ordinary quantity of forage, as every one may see by turning to the
produce of the piece under that crop which in the system of M.Crud
succeeds the quatrennial rotation. At the end of his rotation, M.Crud
always lays on manure in the ratio of 18 tons per acre, which lasts
for six years, and may be said to suffice for the succession of crops
in the appended table :

Crops. Produce per acre. Contents in azote.

Luceradry, 1st year 3080 lbs. 72 lbs

2dyear 9240 215

3d year 114.58 269

" 4th year 9240 213

" Sthyear 7333 172

Wheat, 6th year 1448 28

Straw 3645 11

980
Dang employed 40233 205

Total gain in azote 775

Gain in azote per annum and per acre 130

In glancing at these tables, it is obvious that the azote of the crop
always exceeds the azote of the manure. Generally speaking, I
admit that this excess of azote is derived from the atmosphere : but
I do not pretend to say in what precise manner the assimilation takes
place. I shall only quote the conclusion of a paper which I published
on the subject in the year 1837.* Azote may enter immediately into
the constitution of vegetables, provided their green parts have the
power of fixing it ; azote may also enter vegetables dissolved in the
water which bathes their roots, and which always contains it in a
certain proportion. Lastly, it is possible that the air may contain
an infinitely minute quantity of arnmoniacal vapor, as some natural

• Annales de Chimie, t. liix. p. 366.

360 BELATIONS OF ELEMENTS

philosophers* have maintained, and that this assimilated, decom-
posed, and recomposed anew by the plant, is the source of its azotized
constituents.

§ 2. OF THE RESIDUES OF DIFFERENT CROPS.

The vegetable matter which is produced in the course of a season
is never found entirely in the crop. A certain quantity of it, for
instance, always remains in the ground. It is, therefore, a point of
interest to ascertain what quantity of elementary matter is left in the
soil after each kind of crop in the rotation ; precise knowledge of
this description may even be important in calculating rotations, for
it is obvious that the remains of the crop now on the ground must
influence that which is to follow, and in the course of a rotation the
sum of the residuary matters must be regarded as a supplement oi
addition to the manure put into the ground at its commencement.

In the systems of rotation very generally followed at the present
time, the infloence of these residuary matters is manifest, and it is
partly by their means that we can explain how a quantity of manure,
frequently very moderate, should suffice for the whole of the crops
in a productive rotation. The remarkable effect of clover has not
failed to arrest attention even from the most unobserving. The
wheat crop which comes after our drill crop in Alsace, beet or
potatoes, averages from 18 to 20 bushels per acre ; but the wheat
crop that succeeds our clover averages from 23 to 24 bushels per
acre.

The improvement of the soil, so obvious in connection with clover,
in all probability also occurs in connection with the residues of other
crops ; but as in most instances the residue merely compensates the
loss, or lessens its extent, the effect produced is less remarkable,
and is less, indeed, in amount. All the world acknowledge, then,
that the residues of the crops that enter into a rotation compensate
in greater or less degree for what is carried away in the shape of
harvest, and that in some cases they even add to the fertility of the
soil ; for in growing crops that leave a large quantity of residue, it
is precisely as if a smaller quantity were taken from a given extent
of surface. But what is the amount of residue or refuse which is
returned to the soil by such and such a crop ? What, in a word, is
the value of this residuary matter considered as manure ? This is
a point upon which only the most vague and indefinite ideas are
generally entertained ; and it was with the purpose of substituting
positive facts for mere guesses, that I determined on weighing and
analyzing the vegetable residue of the several crops that enter as
elements into our more usual rotations.

My experiments were made upon breadths of land which varied
from 120 to 500 square yards in extent. The clover roots and
stubble were taken up with the spade, and before being dried, were
freed from adhering earth by washing. The beet-leaves and pota-
to-tops were dried at once in the oven ; and it was from each of the

* Saoisore Recberches Chimiques, and Liobig, Agricultural Chemistry.

IN CROPS AND MANURE. 36

general masses reduced to powder that samples were taken for ulti-
mate analysis, before proceeding to which, they were carefully dried
in vacuo at 230° F.

It is not likely that any accurate mean result should have been
come to from^ an examination of the produce of a single season. I
should even say that the year in which these inquiries were under-
taken was little favorable to them, inasmuch as the crops were gen-
erally bad ; but it is obvious that they form a nucleus, around or by
the side of which the results of other seasons may be arranged, and
an average from larger premises come to.

POTATO TOPS OR HAUM.

A piece of land measuring 120 square yards, marked off from a
spot that had suffered from drought, yielded 47.0 lbs. of green tops,
which were reduced by drying to 18.4 lbs. A similar extent of
surface, selected from a part of the field that looked well, gave green
tops 79 lbs., which dried in the air were reduced to 16 lbs. We
should thus have 23^ cwts. of green, and 6j cwts. of dry tops per
acre. The crop of potatoes in 1839 yielded at the rate of 101^
cwts. per acre. One hundred grammes, or 3 oz. 4 dwts. 8 grs.
troy, of the top dried in the air, lost 12 grammes, or 7 dwts. 17 grs.
by thorough drying at 230° F. The weight of the tops yielded per
acre, taken as dry, consequently amounts to 5 cwts. 2 qrs. 14 lbs.,
and by elementary analysis they were found to have the following
composition :

Carbon 44-8

Hydrogen 5.1

Oxygen 30.5

Azote 2.3

Salts and earths 17.8

100.0
LEAVES OF FIELD-BEET, OR MANGEL-WURZEL.

Upon a surface of 500 square yards, 976 lbs. of leaves were gath-
ered, the weight being taken two days after the roots were pulled up.

55 lbs. of leaves reducible to powder by drying in an oven, were
brought to 6.6 lbs.

3 oz. 4 dwts. of leaves dried and pulverized, lost by desiccation
at 230" F. 3| dwts. of moisture. The 6.6 lbs. brought to that state
of dryness would have weighed 6.1 lbs. With these data it is found
that the 976 lbs. of green leaves gathered upon 500 square yards
would have weighed when dry 108.9 lbs. ; and that the acre produced
85| cwts. of green and 9| cwts, of dry leaves. The crop of roots
which answers to that quantity of leaves, was in 1839 but 6 tons, 2
cwts., that is to say, little more than half a crop ; for our average
is about 10| tons.

COMPOSITION OF DRY LEAVES.

Carbon 38.1

Hydrogen 5.1

Oxygen 30.8

Azote 4.5

Salts and earths 21.5

100. 0
31

ORGANIC ELEMENTS : MANl' RES AND CRCPS.

WHEAT STUBBLE.

From 120 square yards of ground we have obtained 13 lbs. of
Btubble dried in the air. The same isurface in another field produced
171 lbs.

Thus we have 5| cwts. of stubble per acre ; but as wheat recurs
twice in the rotation, the residues must be doubled ; say, IH cwts.
Stubble loses 0.26 of moisture when dried completely at 230°.

In 1839, the wheat after the drilled crop, or £tfter clover, was onlj
17 bushels per acre.

I have assigned to stubble the same composition as that of straw.

CLOVER ROOTS.

A surface of 120 square yards gave 44 lbs. of roots, vveighed after
being thoroughly dried in the sun ; when pulverized after drying in
the stove the weight was reduced to 37 lbs.

3 oz. 4 dwts. of powdered roots lost by drying, at a temperature
of 230° F., 5 dwts. of moisture. Thus the 44 lbs. of roots dried in
the sun would have weighed 34 lbs., and one acre would have
furnished I2f cwts. of residue perfectly dry.

In 1839, the clover crop when reduced to hay was far below the
average.

COMPOSITION OF THE ROOTS.

Carbon 434

Hydrogen 5.3

Oxygen 36.9

Azote L8

Salts and earth 12.6

100.0

OAT STUBBLE.

The residue of the oat crop, which concludes the rotation coarse,
does not act upon the present, but on the next rotation ; in the same
way as the organic remains left in the ground by the oats which ter-
minated the antecedent course, exerted their influence upon the
present one. In 1839, the oat crop was above the average ; it was
as high as 16 cwts. 2 qrs. 18 lbs. per acre.

One French are of the land, equal to 120 square yards English,
yielded 20 lbs. of stubble dried in the air, or at the rate in round
numbers of 8 cwts. per acre.

In the following table I have given a srimmary of the results above
stated, combining therewith the quantity ind the comi>osition of the
manure expended in the rotation.

ORGANIC ELEMENTS OF MANc^ES AND CROPS.

363

•UMMARY OF THE FOREGOING RESULTS.

Nature of
the crop.

hat
0^

II

1^

Potatoes .
Beetroots .
Wheat . .
Clover-hay
Oats ....

bs.
11367

s

lbs.
2739

1^

1810
1474

9527

Total . . .

31349

Manure
employed

44995

Nature of the

residues buried

in the soil.

Potatoetops .
Beetroot leaves
Stubble. . . .
Roots dried in
the sun . . .
Stubble ....

^1.

1*

Elementary matter of the residues.

?^5

is
Is

1
1

i

>>

s

<

^§1

t

lbs.

.a

950

1418

596

460

615
•299

r

75
32

1^-
1

lbs.
14
48
4

1,

lbs.

67

178
30

16182

'4664

2066

244

1643

94

617

9314

3335

391

2403

186

2995

It therefore appears that the refuse or residue of the several crops
of a rotation represent, both in quantity and nature, somewhat
less than one half of the manure originally put into the ground ; I
say somewhat less, because it must be remembered that in the sum
of these residuary matters, the beetroot leaves and potato tops must
not be allowed to stand together, the one crop naturally excluding
the other, or at all events the two hoed or drilled crops not entering
in this proportion into the same rotation.

The large quantity of organic matter restored to the soil by several
of the crops in the series, consequently explains how the rotation
may be closed without its being found indispensable to supply any
additional manure in its course. It seems indubitable that without
this addition of elementary matter, the fertility of the soil would
decline much more rapidly than it does ; the residue of each crop is
nothing more than a portion of the crop itself restored to the ground ;
it is as if we only carried off one portion, the larger portion of the
crop, and buried another portion green.

In the five years' rotation, it may be observed that there are two
crops, the hoed crop and the forage crop, which yield substa^ices to
the ground that are both abundant in quantity and rich in azotized
matter, and it is unquestionable that these crops act favorably on the
cereals which succeed them. But data are wanting for the appre-
ciation of their specific utility in the general rotation. We see, for
instance, that despite the large proportion of residuary matter left by
the beet or mangel-wurzel, this plant lessens considerably the pro-
duce of the wheat crop that comes after it. The potato, though it
leaves much less refuse than the beet, seems nevertheless to act lesa
unfavorably than this vegetable. Clover leaves more residue than
the potato, and on this ground, alone, ought to favor the cereal that
follows it ; but it has a favorable influence out of all proportion with
its quantity, contrasting this with the residue of either of the hoed
crops ; a fact from which we learn that the visible appreciable influ-
ence of the residuary matters of preceding crops, upon the luxuriance
of succeeding crops, does not result solely from their mass, even
supposing earh to be possessed of equal qualities ; this other, this

364 INORGANIC ELEMENTS OF MANURES aN^ CBOPS.

additional effect, depends especially on an influence exerted on the
Boil by the crops wiiich leave them. Had these crops been power-
fully exhausting, we should expect that their refuse or residue, how-
ever considerable in quantity, could do no more than lessen the
amount of exhaustion produced ; in which case, its useful influence,
however real, would pass unnoticed, were it estimated by the produce
of the succeeding crop. If, on the contrary, a crop has been but
slightly scourging, whether in consequence of the smallness of its
quantity, or because it may have derived from the air the major part
of its constituent elements, the useful influence of the residue will
not fail^to be conspicuous. When the relative value of different sys-
tems of rotation is discussed in the way we have done, we in fact
estimate the value of the elementary matter derived from the atmo
sphere by an aggregate of crops ; but the procedure generally fol-
lowed is silent when the question is to assign to each crop in
particular the special share which it has had in the total profit. To
reply to this question, of which a knowledge of the various residues
is one of the elements, we must first ascertain the quantity of ele-
mentary matter supplied by the soil and the atmosphere, with refer-
ence to each of the crops which enter into the rotation ; in other
words, the same investigations must be undertaken in reference to
each plant considered by itself, that have been made in reference to
the series collectively. There is unquestionable room, in this direc-
tion, for an important series of experiments.

§ 3. OF THE INORGANIC SUBSTANCES OF MANURES AND CROPS.

We have but just considered the organic matter developed in a
series of successive harvests. To complete the study of rotations,
to the extent at least that this can be done in the present state of
science, we have still to examine the relations that may exist between
the mineral substances which enter into the constitution of the pro-
duce, and those that make part of the manure given.

We have already shown in a general way that certain mineral
salts, certain saline matters or salifiable bases, are essential to the
constitution of vegetables. To the best of my knowledge, no seed
has yet been met with that is without a phosphate ; and it is now
known that the alkaline salts powerfully promote vegetation.

Such is their ascertained influence, indeed, that tobacco, barley,
and buckwheat sown in soils absolutely without organic matter, but
containing saline substances, and only moistened with distilled water,
produced perfect plants, which flowered and fruited, and yielded ripe
seeds.* Whence it follows, that the presence of saline matter fa-
vors remarkably the assimilation of the azote of the atmosphere
during the act of vegetation.

The importance of considering rotations in connection with the
inorganic substances that are assimilated by plants was perfectly
well known to Davy. " The exj rtation of grain from a country
which receives nothing in exchange that can be turned into manure,
must exhaust the soil in the long run," says the illustrious chemist -
• Lieblg, in Journ. de Pharmacie, vol. Iv., 3d series, p. 94.

INORGANIC ELEMENTS OF MANURES AND CROPS. 36ri

who ascribed to this cause the present sterility of various parts of
Northern Africa and of Asia Minor, as well as of Sicily, which for
a long succession of years was the granary of Italy. Rome un-
questionably contains in its catacombs quantities of phosphorus from
all the countries of the earth.

Professor Liebig, in insisting with the greatest propriety on the
useful part played by alkaline bases and saline matters in vegetation,
has shown the necessity of taking inorganic substances into serious
consideration in discussing rotations. It is long since I came to the
same conclusion myself; but it strikes me, that to be truly profitable,
such a discussion must necessarily rest on analyses of the ashes of
plants which have grown in the same soil, and been manured with
the same dung, the contents of which in mineral elements were al-
ready known. There is in fact a kind of account current to be es-
tablished between the inorganic matter of the crop and that of the
manure. Although I give every credit to the fidelity of the analyses
of vegetable ashes that have been published up to the present time,
I have not felt myself at liberty to make use of any of them in the
direction which I now indicate. I have not thought that it would be
fair or reasonable to contrast such heterogeneous compounds, as the
ashes of plants grown at Geneva and Paris, under such dissimilar
circumstances, with those of vegetables produced on a farm of Al-
sace, where the point to be explained, through the results of this
contrast, had reference to a particular series of agricultural phenom-
ena. And then my business was not merely with the scientific ques-
tion ; the manufacturing or commercial element in the consideration
also touched me. I had to ascertain how I was likely to stand at
some future time, did I presume to act upon the conclusions to which
I came. There was nothing for me therefore but to analyze the
ashes of the several vegetables which entered as elements into the
rotation followed at Bechelbronn, but confining my inquiries to that
portion of the vegetable which is looked upon particularly as the
crop, so much of the plant as remains on the ground and is turned in
again, of course taking nothing from it.

The ashes examined were almost all from the crops of 1841, two
analyses having generally been made of each substance : and here
I ought to say, that in this long and tedious labor, in which I spent
Dearly a whole year, I was most ably seconded by Mr. Letellier. By
way of preface, I should say that in these analyses, losses will fre-
quently be apparent, which for the most part exceed the limits that
in the present day are tolerated in the more careful operations of the
laboratory. These deficiencies, which puzzled me a good deal at
first, I by and by discovered to proceed from the difficulty of incin-
crating certain vegetable substances completely. When they abound
in alkaline salts, they leave ashes that melt so readily, that it becomes
difl[icult to prevent their agglutination, and the charcoal that is not
consumed is then effectually protected against any further action of
the fire. There is nothing for it in such cases but to incinerate at
the lowest temperature possible, and then a little moisture is apt to
be left ; the charcoal, however, is the substance that occasions th«

31*

866

INORGANIC ELEMENTS OF MANURES .-. ND CROPS.

main difficulty, and the more important loss. To quote one of the
instances, that of wheat, where the loss or deficiency is as high as
24 per cent. I may say that a direct inquiry after charcoal brought
it out equal to 2, by which the actual deficiency is reduced to 0.4.
I have not, however, introduced any correction for carbon, but pre-
sent the reader with the results as they actually presented them-
selves to me. Among the number of the products of the analyses,
alumina figures beside the oxide of iron. Alumina is an earth which
I have always met with in minimum quantity in the ashes of plants,
and is perhaps accidental ; it may proceed from the earth which ad-
heres to all herbaceous plants, and from which it is so difficult to
free them completely.

COMPOSITION OF THE ASHES PROCEEDING FROM THE PLANTS GROWN
AT BECHELBRONN.

Acids.

V

3

11

■5*

Substances which

n

.

•z

P

V

^

1

g

■~e

m

yielded the ashes.

-i--

i?,^

«

15

ts

53

^■f

"^•s

^^

O

^

g-i

"e

Potatoes ....

13.4

7.1 i 11.3

2.7

1.8

5.4

51.5

traces

.•j.6

0.5

0.7

Mangel-wurzel
Turnips . .

lfi.l

1.6 6.1

5.2

7.0

4.4

:«.o

6.0

8.0

2 5

4.2

14.0

10.9 6.0

2.9

10.9

4.3

33.7

4.1

6.4

1.2

5.5

Potato tops .

11.0

2-2 10.8

1.6

2.3

1.8

44.5

truces

13.0

5.2

7.6

Wheat. . .

(M)

1.0 ! 47.0

traces

2.9

15.9

iW.5

traces

1.3

0 0

2.4

Wheat-straw

0.()

1.0 i 3.1

0.6

8,5

5.0

9,2

0,3

67.6

1.0

3.7

Oats . . .

1.7

1.0 14.9

0.5

3.7

7.7

12.9

0.0

5;i.3

1.3

3.0

OaUstraw .

8.2

4.11 3.0

4.7

8.3

2.8

24,5

4.4

40.0

2.1

2.9

Clover . .

2.5.0

2.5 6.3

2.6

24.6

6.3

0.5

5.3

0.3

0.0

Peas . . .

0.5

4.7 30.1

1.1

10.1

11.9

35 3

2.5

1.5

traces

2.3

French beans

3.3

1.3 26.8

0.1

5.8

11.5

4.9.1

0.0

1.0

traces

1.1

Horse beans .

1.0

1.6 34.2

0.7

5.1

8.6

45.2

0.0

0.5

traces

3.1 1

1

If these analytical results be now applied to the produce of an
acre of ground, we should have the precise quantities of minera.
substances abstracted from the soil by each of the several crops tha
enter into the rotation. Here they are in a table :

MINERAL SUBSTANCES TAKEN UP FROM THE SOIL BY THE VARIOUS
CROPS GROWN AT BECHELBRONN UPON ONE ACRE,

1

i

1

<

P

Acids.

1

i

1

1

1

i

0

Crop.

II

11

Ih^.

Ih^

lbs.

Ihs,

IM

IN.

llw.

lbs.

lb..

lbs.

lbs.

Potatoes

2828

4.0

113

13

8

3

2

6 1 58

6

"a

Beet-roots ....

2908

6 3

183

11

3

9

13

81 82

15

Half crop of turnips, )

consumed off the>

mi

7.6

50

8

5

U

2

19

3

0.7

ground, S

Potato tops ....•'

5042

6,0

303

33

7

A

m

5J9

16

Wheat . .

1052

24

25

12

0.3

' R

7

0.4

, ,

WheatJtraw

2,^58

70

179

5

1.5

1

1

17

121

li

Ojit-straw' .'

1^5

40

39

6

0.4

0,2

lii

5

21

0.6

1176

5 1

60

u

2.5

3

1-5

17

24

1

-AiKi

77

284

18"

7

7

70

18

77

15

0.9

Manured peas

915

31

28

8

1.2

0?

3

3

10

0.5

traces.

French beans

1448

3,5

51

13

0.7

01

3

6

2.i

0.6

traces.

Horse beans . . .

1944

3.0

58

20

0.75

0.5

3

5

^

0.3

traces.

INORGANIC ELEMENTS OF MANURES AND CROPS. 367

On looking at this table we perceive that a medium crop of wheat
takes from one acre of ground about 12 lbs., and a crop of beans
about 20 lbs. of phosphoric acid ; a crop of beet takes 11 lbs. of the
same acid, and further, a very large quantity of potash and soda. It
is obvious that such a process tends continually to exhaust arable
land of the mineral substances useful to vegetation which it con-
tains , and that a term must come when, without supplies of such
mineral matters, the land would become unproductive from their ab
straction. In bottoms of great fertility, such as those that are brought
under tillage amidst the virgin forests of the New World at the pres-
ent day, it may be imagined that any exhaustion of saline matters
will remain unperceived for a long succession of years ; for a sue
cession of ages almost. And in South America, where the usual
preliminary to cultivation is to burn the forest that stands on the
ground, by which the saline and earthy constituents of millions of
cubic feet of timber are added to the quantities that were already
contained in the soil, I have already had occasion to speak of the
ample returns which the husbandman receives for very small pains.*
Under circumstances, in the neighborhood of large and populous
towns, for instance, where the interest of the farmer and market-
gardener is to send the largest possible quantity of produce to mar-
ket, consuming the least possible quantity on the spot, the want of
Baline principles in the soil would very soon be felt, were it not that
for every wagon-load of greens and carrots, fruit and potatoes, corn
and straw, that finds its way into the city, a wagon-load of dung,
containing each and every one of the principles locked up in the
several crops, is returned to the land, and proves enough, and often
more than enough, to replace all that has been carried away from it.
The same principle holds good in regard to inorganic matters, which
we have already established with reference to organic substances.

The most interesting case for consideration is that of an isolated
farming establishment — a rural domain, so situated that it can obtain
nothing from without, but exporting a certain proportion of its pro-
duce every year, has still to depend on itself for all it requires in the
shape of manure. I have already shown, with sufficient clearness,
I apprehend, how it is that lands in cultivation derive from the at-
mosphere the azotized principles necessary to replace the azotized
products ff the farm, which are continually carried away in the
shape of grain, cattle, &c. I have now to show how the various
saline substances, the alkalies, the phosphates, &c., which are also
exported incessantly, are replaced. I believe that I shall be able,
with the assistance of chemical analysis, to throw light on one of
the most interesting points in the nature and history of cropping, and
succeed in practically illustrating the theory of rotations. In what
is to follow immediately, I shall always reason on the practical data
collected at Bechelbronn, and which have already served for the

* The first breaks of the early English settlers in North America are now either very
Indifferent soils, or they have only been restored to some portion of their original fer-
tility by monarlng; so that the supply of fertilizing eletoents is not inexhaustible —
Exa Eo

868 INORGANIC ELEMENTS OF MANXTRES AND CBOPS.

illustration of other particulars. My farm, I may say, by way of
preliminary, is an ordinary establishment ; the lands which have
been brought by a system of rational treatment to a very satisfactory
state of fertility, are not rich at bottom and originally, and they fall
off rapidly if they have not the dose of manure at regular intervals,
which is requisite to maintain them in their state of productiveness.
My first business was to determine the nature and the quantity of
the mineral substances contained in my manure ; and with a view to
arrive at this information, I burned considerable quantities of dung
at different periods of the year, mixed the ashes of the several in
cinerations, and from the mixture took a sample for ultimate analysis
The mean results are represented by :

(Carbonic 2.0

Acids < Phosphoric 3.0

(Sulphuric 1.9

Chlorine 0.6

Silica, sand 66.4

Lime 8.6

Magnesia 3.6

Oxide of iron, alumina 6.1

Potash and soda 7.8

100.0

But our farm-yard dung is not the only article we are in the habit
of giving to our land ; it further receives a good dose of peat-ashes
and gypsum. I here recall to the reader's mind that the mean com-
position of peat-ashes is this :

Silica 65.5

Alumina 16.2

Lime 6.0

Magnesia 0.6

Oxide of iron 3.7

Potash and soda 23

Sulphuric acid. 5.4

Chlorine • 0.3

100.0

In the system followed at Bechelbronn, the farm-yard dung laid
upon an acre contains 26 cwts. 3 qrs. of ashes. On our clover leas
we spread the first year 7 cubic feet of turf-ashes ; and in the begin-
ning of spring of the second year, we lay on as much more, say 14
cubic feet, in all weighing about 2 tons. I do not take the 8 cwts.
of gypsum which, in conformity with usage, the second year's clover
generally receives, because I believe this addition to be perfectly
useless after the very sufficient dose of peat-ash which we employ.

The whole of the mineral substances given to the land in the
course of five years per acre is as follows, viz. : Ashes contained in
the manure and in the peat-ashes, 7624 lbs. ; consisting of phos-
phoric acid 90 lbs., sulphuric acid 304 lbs., chlorine 4.5 lbs., lime
532.5 lbs., magnesia 135.6 lbs., potash and soda 339 lbs., silica and
sand 4630 lbs., oxide of iron, &c., 353 lbs.

It is therefore easy to perceive, from the preceding data, that
what with the manure and the ashes it receives, the land is more
than supplied with all the mineral substances required by the sev-
eral crops it produces in the course of the rotation. Let us cast a

INORGANIC ELEMENTS 0/ MANURES AND CROPS.

369

glance over these with reference to their mineral or inorganic con-
stituents, as we have already done in so far as the organic matters
are concerned ; let us compare, in a word, the quantity and the na-
ture of the mineral substances removed in the course of five succes-
sive years, in contrast with the quantity and the nature of the same
substances supplied at the commencement of the series, and we shall
find that the sums of the phosphoric acid, sulphuric acid, and chlo-
rine, and of the alkaline and earthy bases of the crops, are always
smaller than the quantities of the same substances which exist in
and are supplied to the arable soil.

I shall institute the comparison with the rotation No. 1, which
begins with potatoes ; and further, with a continuous crop which,
as the one that is most common and convenient, shall be Jerusalem
artichokes. I have not thought it advisable to discuss the rotation
No. 2, in which beet replaces the potato, because the ashes of these
two crops are so much alike, that it may be assumed to be matter
of indifference which of the two enters as the drill-crop element into
the series. With reference to the Jerusalem artichoke, I shall only
remind the reader that the piece of land where it grows receives a
dose of manure every two years, in the proportion of 41245 lbs. per
acre, which manure contains 2776 lbs. of mineral constituent. Fur-
ther, in the course of each winter peat-ashes, in the ratio of 2700 lbs.
per acre, are laid on the land ; and that the stems are generally in-
cinerated on the spot, and the ashes they contain returned directly
to the soil.

TABLE OF THE MINERAL MATTERS OF THE CROPS AND MANURES IN
THE COURSE OF A ROTATION.

Average crop per acre.

Mineral

substances

in the

crops.

ACIDS.

15
O

S

.S

fcC

1

i

Phos-
phoric

Sul-
phuric

ROTATION NO. 1.

Potatoes ...••....

lbs.

113
.50

358

284
39
60
50

lbs.
13
24
11
18
6

I'

lbs.
8

4

7

f

lbs.
3

2

7

3

1

lbs.

2

1

30

,0

5
5

lbs.

6

8
18
18

3

¥

lbs.
58
15
34
77
5
17
19

lbs.
6

242
15
20
24
3

TM ttn • iia t-stra w

Sum of mineral substances

Mineral substances of the manure

Excess over the mineral matters of

927

7582

'^

27
304

16
32

114
533

56
136"

225
339

310
5049

605

14
65

277
13

15
9

417
14

79
11

114
270

4736
79

INCESSANT PRODUCTION OF THE JE-
RUSALEM POTATO.

Island 2d years: mineral matters

2777
4583

65

53

248

17
14

239
275

100

27

219
105

1843
3002

TMtlft nf tiirf n«>iAa

Whole mineral matters of manures
Difference in favor of the manures

83

301

31

514

127

324

4845

18

287

20.5

500

117

52

4767

870 INORGANIC ELEMENTS OF MANURES AND CROPS.

It was at one time asserted, that in order to ensure to a crop of
wheat the necessary quantity of phosphates, its cultivation w^as pre-
ceded by one of roots or tubers, or leguminous plants, which were
supposed to contain a much less proportion of these salts. By ref-
erence, however, to the table of mineral substances, removed from
the soil by different crops, the absurdity of such reasoning becomes
evident. For example, beans and haricots take 20 and 13.7 lbs. of
phosphoric acid from every acre of land ; potatoes and beet-root
from the same surface take but 11 and 12.8 lbs. of that acid, exactly
what is found in a crop of wheat. Trefoil is equally rich in phos-
phates with the sheaves of corn which have gone before it, and this
large dose of phosphoric acid withdrawn from the soil, will nowise
diminish the amount which will enter into the wheat that will by
and by succeed the artificial meadow. It may be readily under-
stood, that if the ground contains more than the quantity of mineral
substances necessary for the total series of crops in a rotation, it is
a matter of indifi'erence whether the crops draw upon the soil in
any particular order, and these succeed according to rules generally
adopted for quite different reasons. It suits well, for instance, to
begin a rotation with a drill crop sown in spring, and which, conse-
quently, follows in our system the oats which closed the preceding
rotation ; it is a great advantage to be able to collect and cart out
the manure during winter. Besides, the order is quite at the farm-
er's discretion, and there are places where, from particular reasons,
quite another course is pursued. One part of the produce returns,
as has been shown, to manure, after having served as fodder for the
animals belonging to the farm. The inorganic matters are restored
to the earth from which they came, deducting the fraction assimi-
lated in the bodies of the cattle. Lastly, the whole of the wheat,
and a certain amount of flesh will be exported, and with these a no-
table quantity of inorganic matter. Thus, in the above described
rotation of five years, the minimum exportation of saline substances
which must be removed from every acre of land, may be represent-
ed by 27| lbs. of phosphoric acid, and from 36 to 45 lbs. of alkali ;
this is just so much lost for the manure, and as there is definitively
found at the end of the rotation a quantity of manure equal and
nearly similar to that disposed of at the commencement, it is essen-
tial that the loss of mineral substance be made up from without,
unless it be naturally contained in the soil.

In my first researches on the rotation of crops,* I stated that
wherever there are exportable products, it becomes indispensable to
keep a large proportion of meadow land, quoting, as an extreme
case, the triennial rotation with manured summer-fallow. It is, in
fact, the meadow which restores to the arable land the principles
which have been carried off. This point, advanced upon analogy,
is amply confirmed by the results of analysis.

I have examined, in reference to this question, the ashes of the
hsLy of our meadows of Durrenbach, irrigated by the Sauer. The

* Memok COTununkated to the Acad^mie des Science^ in 1838

INORGANIC ELEMENTS OF MANURES AND CROPS. 371

analyses were made with ashes furnished by the crops of 1841 and
1842.

I. II. III. Average

(Carbonic 9.0 5.5 " 7 3

Acids < Phosphoric 5.3 5.3 5.5 5.4

(Sulphuric 2.4 2.9 " 2.7

Chlorine 2.3 2.8 " 2.6

Lime 20.4 15.4 " 17.9

Magnesia 6.0 8.3 " 7.2

Potash 16.1 27.3 " 21.7

Soda 1.2 2.3 " 1.8

Silica 33.7 29.2 " 31.5

Oxide of iron, &c 1.5 0.6 0.5 0.9

Loss 2.1 0.4 " 1.0

100.0 100.0 100.0

No. 1 yielded 6.0 per cent, of ash.

No. 2 " 6.2 idem.

In admitting as the average yearly return of our irrigated mead-
ows, 3666 lbs. of hay and after-grass for the acre, it appears that
we obtain, from a corresponding surface of land, 223.6 lbs. of ash,
containing :

(Carbonic 16.3

Acids < Phosphoric 12.1

(Sulphuric 6.0

Chlorine 5.7

Lime 39.1

Magnesia 16.1

Potash and soda 52.0

Silica 70.4

Oxide of iron, andloss:. 4.2

221.9*

In reckoning, as I have done, the lowest annual exportation of
mineral substance from one acre of arable land at 5.5 lbs. of phos-
phoric acid and 8.2 lbs. of alkali, (potash and soda,) there must, in
order to make up for loss, arrive each year at the farm a quantity
of hay corresponding to about 1800 lbs. for every acre of ploughed
land, which would establish between the arable and meadow land, a
relation somewhat less than 1 to ^.

In practice, the relation in question is sensibly less than that de-
duced from analysis ; in some farms the meadow-land only occupies
a fourth or fifth of the whole surface. When rye replaces wheat,
the extent in meadow-land may be still more limited. It deserves
notice, that I have supposed the arable land as destitute of proper
inorganic matter, and that all came from the manure ashes and lime
laid on, which is not rigorously true. Tnere are soils containing
traces of phosphates, and it is difficult to find clay or marl exempt
from potash. Nevertheless, many clear-headed practical men begin
to suspect that meadow has been too much sacrificed to arable land.
In localities placed in similar conditions to those in which we are,
removed from every source of organic manures, which, as I have
shown in concert with M. Payen, are always furnished with saline

* The sura Is only too small here from the number of places of dedtnals not havli||
been carried out far enough. — Evo. Ed.

372 INORGANIC ELEMENTS OF MANURES AND CROPS.

principles, an attempt has been made to imitate what is done in more
favored districts, where it is possible, for example, to add animal
remains to the manure. The corn crops felt this new procedure ;
nor could it be otherwise. But now there is a reaction in the op-
posite sense, and I could name most thriving establishments, where
one-half of the farm is in meadow. The ever-increasing demand
for butcher-meat will further this movement to the great advantage
of the soil. In consequence of our peculiar position at Bechelbronn,
nearly halt 3ur land is meadow, which allows of a large exportation
of the prodjce of the arable land. In applying the results of the
preceding analyses, I find that each year, provided there is no loss
the hay ought to bring at least :

1254 lbs. of phosphoric acid,

627
602

«
it

sulphuric acid,
chlorine,

4155

u

lime,

1672
5456
7312

magnesia,
potash and soda,
silica.

This large amount of mineral substances is supplied by the mead-
ows, which have no other manure than the water and mud thereby
deposited, after flowing over the Vosges' freestone ; they receive
no manure from the farm, but are merely earthed with the sludge
and mire borne down by the stream ; these are real sources of saline
impregnation. Meadows without running water ought not to be
ranged in the same category, they only give the principles naturally
contained in them ; hence, they must be always manured ev^ry
three or four years, and indeed, if not situate upon a naturally rich
soil, are, according to my experience, very far from profitable.

The excess of mineral matters introduced into the ground over
those that issue with the crops, an excess that ought always to be
secured by judicious management, enriches the soil in saline and
alkaline principles, which accumulate in the lapse of years, just as
vegetable remains and azotized organic principles accumulate un-
der a good system of rotation. By this, even in localities the most
disadvantageously situate for the purchase of manure, temporary
recurrence may be had to the introduction of such crops as flax,
rape, &c., which being almost wholly exported, leave little organic
residuum in the earth, and at the same time carry oflf a considerable
quantity of mineral substance ; circumstances which determine, as
may be easily conceived, the maximum of exhaustion, and for that
reason wend to reduce a soil becoming over-rich to what may be
called the standard fertility.

In reviewing the chief points examined it will be seen, that as far
as regards organic matter, the systems of culture which in borrow-
ing most from the atmosphere, leave the most abundant residues in
the land, are those that constitute the most productive rotations. In
respect to inorganic matter, the rotation, to be advantageous, to have
an enduring success, ought to be so munaged that the crops ex-

INORGANIC ELEMENTS OF MANURES AND CROPS. 373

ported should not leave the dung-hill with less than that constant
quantity of mineral substance which it ought to contain. A crop
which abstracts from the ground a notable proportion of one of its
mineral elements, should not be repeatedly introduced in the course
of a rotation, which depends on a given dose of manure, unless by
the effect of time mineral element has been accumulated in the land.
A clover crop takes up, for example, 77 lbs. of alkali per acre. If
the fodder is consumed on the spot, the greater portion of the potash
and soda will return to the manure after passing through the cattle,
and the land eventually recover nearly the whole of the alkali. It
will be quite otherwise if the fodder is taken to market ; and it is to
these repeated exportations of the produce of artificial meadows
that the failure of trefoil, now observed in soils which have long
yielded abundantly, is undoubtedly due. Accordingly, a means has
been proposed of restoring to these lands their reproductive power,
by applying alkaline manure.* If under such circumstances carbo-
nate of soda would act as favorably as carbonate of potash or wood-
ashes, the soda salt, in spite of its commercial value, might prove
serviceable, and deserves a trial.

The lime manures naturally promote the growth of plants of
which calcareous salts form a constituent ; but here a capital distinc-
tion must be made. A soil may contain from 15 to 20 in the 100 of
lime, and still be unable to dispense with calcareous manure ; be-
cause the lime is in some other state than as it exists in chalk, as
in the rubbish of pyroxene, mica, serpentine, and the like. A soil
of this kind, although replete with lime, might still require gypsum
for artificial meadow, and chalk for wheat and oats. It is from the
carbonate that plants of rapid growth derive the lime essential to
them, as was established by the researches of Rigaud de Lille, re-
searches which have been censured by agricultural writers to whom
they were unintelligible. I advocate the opinion of Rigaud, be-
cause in the Andes of Riobamba I have seen lucern growing in au-
gitic rubbish, very rich in calcareous matter, and yet greatly bene-
fited by liming.

The operation of gypsum is to introduce calcareous matter into
plants. This I have endeavored to demonstrate from the analysis
of the ash on the one hand, and on the other, from the consideration
that finely divided carbonate of lime, as it exists in wood-ashes, acts
with equal efficacy upon artificial meadows. By what means gyp-
sum, if it does not enter the vegetable as a sulphate, parts with its
sulphuric acid, is at present conjectural. It appears highly proba-
ble that calcareous matter is chiefly beneficial from the particular
action it exercises on the fixed ammoniacal salts of the manure,
transforming these successively, slowly, and as they may be wanted,
into carbonate of ammonia. In the most favorable condition, the
earth is only moist, not soaked with water, but permeable to the air.
New researches will perhaps illustrate the utility of ammoniacal va-
pors thus developed in a confined atmosphere, where the roots are

* Infiarmation communicated by M. Schattenmaim,
32

374 INORGANIC ELEMENTS OF MANURES AND CROPS,

in operation. At least, it would be difficult to assign any other office
to chalk in the marling or liming of land intended for corn, when
we know how little lime corn absorbs. If, indeed, gypsum promotes
the vegetation of trefoil, lucerne, sainfoin, &c., by furnishing the
needful calcareous element, it could not fail to exercise an equally
farorable agency upon wheat and oats, did they require it. The ex-
periments adduced prove it not to be so, and their results are in
some measure corroborated by analysis. Thus, if we compare the
different quantities of lime withdrawn from the soil by trefoil arvd
corn, we find them as follows :

The clover crop takes from 1 acre of ground nearly 70 lbs. of Ume.
Wheat " " " 16

Oat ^ " " " 6.4 "

With this comparison before us, it seems evident that if the marl-
ing and liming of corn lands had no other object than the introduc-
tion of the minute portion of lime which is encountered in the crops,
it would be difficult to justify the enormous expenditure of calcare-
ous carbonate which is proved by daily experience to be advan-
tageous.

It may be inferred from the foregoing, that in the most frequent
case, namely, that of arable lands not sufficiently rich to do without
manure, there can be no continuous cultivation without annexation
of meadow ; in a word, one part of the farm must yield crops with-
out consuming manure, so as to replace the alkaline and earthy salts
that are constantly withdrawn by successive harvests from another
part. Lands enriched by rivers alone permit of a total and contin-
ued export of their produce without exhaustion. Such are the fields
fertilized by the inundations of the Nile ; and it is difficult to form
an idea of the prodigious quantities of phosphoric acid, magnesia,
and potash, which in a succession of ages have passed out of Egypt
with her incessant exports of corn.

Irrigation is, without doubt, the most economical and efficient
means of increasing the fertility of the soil, out of the abundant for-
age which it produces, and the resulting manure. Plants take up
and concentrate in their organs the mineral and organic elements
contained in the water, sometimes in proportions so minute as to es-
cape analysis ; just as they absorb and condense, in modified forms,
the aeriform principles which constitute but some 10,000th parts in
the composition of the atmosphere. It is thus that vegetables col-
lect and organize the elements which are dissolved in water, and
disseminated through the earth and the air, as a preparative to their
being assimilated by animals.

jRlGm OF ANIMAL PRINCIPLES. 375

CHAPTER VIII.

OF THE FEEDING OF THE ANIMALS BELONGING TO A FARM;
AND OF THE IMMEDIATE PRINCIPLES OF ANIMAL ORIGIN.

^ I. ORIGIN OF ANIMAL PRINCIPLES.

It is now generally admitted that the food of animals must ne-
cessarily contain azote ; and this circumstance has led to the infer-
ence, that the herbivorous tribes obtain from their food the azote
which enters into the constitution of their bodies.

In a general way, the individual consuming a certain portion of
food every day, nevertheless does not increase in his average
weight. This is what occurs with animals upon the quantity of
food which is known to be sufficient for their keep ; and it has been
found that the human subject, living very regularly, returns at a cer-
tain hour, or at certain hours of the day, to a certain mean weight.
Grooms, farm servants, &c., are perfectly well aware of the fact,
that with a certain allowance of hay and corn, a horse will be kept
in the condition necessary to do the work required of him without
either gaining or losing in flesh.

Under such circumstances, the whole of the elementary matter
contained in the food consumed, ought to be found in the dejections,
the excretions, and the products of the act of respiration. And as-
suming that this is so, it might then be maintained that none of the
elements is assimilated, assimilation being taken in the sense of an
addition of principles introduced with the food to the principles al-
ready present in the body. Yet is there unquestionably assimila-
tion, in the sense that the alimentary matters of the food become
fixed in the system, having there undergone modification or change ;
and that they replace, or come instead of other elements of the
same kind, which are daily thrown oflf by the vital acts of the
economy.

During the nutrition of a young animal, and also in the process
of fattening an adult, things go on differently ; here there is unques-
tionably definitive fixation of a portion of the matter contained in the
food : there is no longer balance between the waste and the supply ;
an animal then increases in weight notably and rapidly.

Looking at the question of feeding in the most general way, then,
I admit that an adult animal, upon the daily allowance, voids a
quantity of matter in its various excretions precisely equal to the
quantity which it receives in its food :* all the elements, the sajnne
in nature and in quantity, which are contained in the food, are also
contained in the excrements, vapors, and gases, which pass off from
the living body ; carbon and azote, hydrogen and oxygen, phospho-

* Boussinganlt, Annales de Chimie, 3e sirie, t. Ixzzi, p. IH

376 ORIGIN OF ANIMAL PRINCIPLES.

rus, sulphur, and chlorine, calcium, magnesium, srdium, potassium
and iron, as they are all encountered in the food • j are they all en
countered in the body, and also in the excretions cf an animal ; ana
it seems certain, that no one of these primary or simple substance*
can be wanting in the nutriment without the body very speedilj
feeling the ill effects of its absence. Iron, for example, is a con
stant principle in the coloring matter of the blood ; it also exists ii
large quantity in the hair ; and he who should live on food that con
tained no trace of it would certainly, and before long, become disor
dered in his health.

In what has just been said, I take it for granted that animals dt
not absorb or assimilate any of the azote which forms so large a
constituent in the air they breathe ; and I am warranted in this by
the researches of every physiologist of any name or distinction. Not
only do animals obtain no azote from the atmosphere, but they actu-
ally exhale it incessantly, as was proved by M. Despretz in the
course of his numerous experiments, and as I myself also demon-
strated in the inquiries I undertook to ascertain whether herbivorous
animals obtained azote from the air or not. The azote exhaled, it
was discovered, proceeded entirely from the food consumed by the
animal ; a fact which, already of great importance in a physiologi-
cal point of view and in reference to general physics, bears at the
same time so immediately upon one of the most important questions
of agriculture, that I think it well to give the particulars of one of
the procadures by which it has been established.

The experiments in this case were performed on a milch-cow
and a full-grown horse, which were placed in stalls so contrived
that the droppings and the urine could be collected without loss.
Before boing made the subjects of experiment, the animals were bal-
lasted or fed for a month with the same ration that was furnished to
them during the three days and three nights which they passed in
the experimental stalls. During the month, the weight of the ani-
mals did not vary sensibly, a circumstance which happily enables us
to assume that neither did the weight vary during the seventy-two
hours when they were under especial observation.

The cow was foddered with after-math hay and potatoes ; the
horse with the same hay and oats. The quantities of forage were
accurately weighed, and their precise degree of moistness and their
composition were determined from average samples. The water
drunk was measured, its saline and earthy constituents having been
previously ascertained. The excrementitious matters passed were
of course collected with the greatest care ; the excrements, the
urine, and the milk were weighed, and the constitutiaji of the whole
estimated from elementary analyses of average specimens of each.
The results of the two experim* Us are given in this table :

ELEMENTS OF FOOD AND OF EXCRETIONS.

377

FOOD CONSUMED BY THE HORSE IN 24 HOURS. |

Weight in
the wet
state.

Weight in

Elememary matter in the food. 1

Forag^e.

tlie dry
state.

Carbon. [Hydrogen.

Oxygen, j Azote.

S«lis and
enrihs.

Water. - .
Total, . .

lbs.

20
6
43

lbs. oz.

lbs. oz.
7 11
2 7

Ib.oz. dwt.
0 10 7
0 3 18

lb. oz.Uwi. lb. oz.dwt.

6 8 8.03 2
1 10 14 1 0 1 7

b. oz.dwt.
1 6 14
0 2 10
0 0 8

69

23 6

10 6 1 1 2 5

8 7 2 1 0 4 9

1 9 12

PRODUCTS VOIDED BY THE HORSE IN 24 HOURS.

Producti.

Weig-ht in
the wet
state.

Weight in
the dry
state.

Elementary matter in the producu. 1

Carbon.

Hydrogen.

Oxygen.

Azote.

Salts and
earths.

Urine. . -
Excrements, -

Total* matter of ?
the food, . 5

Difference,

lb. oz. dwt.

lb. oz. dwt.
0 9 14
9 5 6

lb oz.dwt.

§11?

Ib.oz. dwt.
0 0 7
0 5 15

lb. oz. dwt.
0 1 2
3 6 14

lb.oz.dw..
0 1 4
0 2 10

lb. oz. dwt.

0 3 10

1 6 10

41 8 17
69 0 0

10 3 0
22 6 0

3 11 7
10 6 0

0 6 2

1 2 5

3 7 16
8 7 2

0 3 14
0 4 9

1 10 0
1 9 12

27 3 3 Il2 3 0

6 6 13

0 8 3

4 11 6

0 0 15

0 0 8

WATER CONSUMED BY THE
HORSE IN 24 HOURS.

WATER VOIDED BY THE HORSE
IN 24 HOURS.

With the hay, ....
With the oats, . . - .
Taken as drink. ....

Total eonsurned.

lbs. oz.
2 3

With the urine

With the excrements.

Total voided,

Water consumed, ...

lbs. oz.

J i

38 4

25 14
38 4

Water exhaled by pulmonary and cutaneous transpiration,

12 6

FOOD CONSUMED BY THE COW IN 24 HOURS.

Fodder

Weight in
the wet
st&t«.

Weight in
the dry
ttate.

Elementary matter ot the food.

Carbon.

Hydrogen.

Oxygen. | Azote.

Salts and
earths.

Potatoes, . .
Atler-math hay.
Water, . .

Total. . .

lb. oz. dwt.

^f 1

160 0 0

lb. oz. dwt.
11 2 1
16 11 0

lb. oz. dwt.
4 11 2
7 11 11

Ib.oz. dwt.
0 7 15

on 7

lb. oz. dwt. lb. 02. dwt.

4 10 17 1 0 1 12

5 10 17 0 4 17

lb. oz. dwt.

0 6 13

1 8 6
0 1 12

220 3 7

28 1 1

12 10 13

1 7 2

10 9 14 0 6 9

2 4 U

PRODUCTS VOIDED BY THE COW IN 24 HOURS.

Product*.

Weight in
the wet
slate.

Weight in
the dry
state.

Elementary matter in the producU.

Carbon.

Hydrogen.

Oxygen.

Azote.

Salts and
earths.

Excrements, .
Urine, . .
Milk. . .

Total,
" matter of food.

Difference.

lb. oz. dwt.
76 1 9

21 11 12

22 10 10

lb. oz. dwt.
3 1 0

lb. oz.dwt.
4 7 0

0 8 7

1 8 3

lb. oz.dwt.

roil

0 3 3

lb. oz.dwt.

tl 1

0 10 6

lb. oz. dwt.

lif'l

0 1 9

lb. oz. dwt.
0 1 16

120 11 11

220 3 7

16 4 9
28 1 1

6 11 10
12 10 13

0 10 12

1 7 2

5 6 18
10 9 14

0 5 11
0 6 9

2 5 10
2 4 11

99 3 16

11 8 12

5 11 3

0 8 10

5 2 16

0 0 18

0 0 19

WATER CONSUMED BY THE COW
IN 24 HOURS.

WATER VOIDED BY THE COW IN
24 HOURS.

With the potatoes.

With the hay, ....

Taken as drink. . . . •

T**a1 consumed.

lbs. oz.

I'l

132 0

With the potatoes.

With the urine

With the milk. ...

Total voided

Water consume'', ....

lbs. oz.
53 10

15 14

16 3

158 5

.i'l

Water passed off

ay pulmon

Etry and

eu

taneou

stre

nspiration

» -

.

_raj!9

378 COMBUSTION OF CARBON.

From these f?ams it appears that the azote of the excrements is
less by from 339.6 to 455.0 grains than that of the forage consumed.
It appears also that the whole q. antity of elementary matter con-
tained in the excrements is less than that which had been taken as
food ; the difference is of course due to the quantities which were
lost by respiration and the cutaneous exhalation.

The oxygen and hydrogen that are not accounted for in the sum
of the products have not disappeared in the precist proportions re-
quisite to form water ; the excess of hydrogen amounts to as many
as from 13 to 15 dwts. It is probable that this hydrogen of the
food became changed into water by combining during respiration
with the oxygen of the air.

The loss of carbon, which is very considerable, seeing that in the
two experiments it aBiounts to nearly 12^ lbs., must have gone to
form the carbonic acid, which is known to be so large and import-
ant a constituent in the expired air, and which is also exhaled from
the general surface of the body. Neglecting the latter, it appears
that each of the animals produced in the course of twenty-four
hours upwards of 13 cubic feet of carbonic acid gas, the thermome-
ter supposed at 32*^ F., the barometer at 30 inches.*

During respiration, then, or as a consequence of respiration, the
carbon and hydrogen of the food have disappeared and given rise,
by the concurrence of the oxygen of the air, to carbonic acid and
water, precisely as if they had been burned. And an animal may,
in fact, be regarded as an apparatus or system, in which a slow com-
bustion is incessantly going on ; there is perpetual disengagement
of carbonic acid gas and of the vapor of water, just as there is from
a stove in which any organic substance, wood, for example, is burn-
ing. In either case there is evolution of heat ; all animals have a
temperature above that of the medium which surrounds them, and
the excess of the elevation is in some sort relative to the activity of
the respiratory process, or, in other words, to the intensity of the
combustion.

Under the influence of the oxygen that is taken into the body, the
soluble principles of the blood pass through a series of modifications,
the last of which is carbonic acid, which is exhaled and dissipated
in the air ; and it is in this way that a portion of the carbon of the
food is returned to the atmosphere, after having accomplished the
important function of supplying the animal with the heat that is ne-
cessary to its existence. Far from deriving any thing from the air,
consequently, animals, on the contrary, are continually pouring car-
bon into it. The food is, therefore, the only source whence animals
derive the matter that enters into their constitution ; and, as tho
primary food of animals is obtained from vegetables, herbivorous
creatures must necessarily find in the plants they consume all the

♦ The large quantity of carbonic acid shows the necessity for large and well-venti-
lated stables and cow-houses. A cow, i* appears, will vitiate 66 cubic feet of air in
a day. It will bs observed in the table tliat the saline and earthy matters of th«
ejects exceed those of the ingesta in both instances. This is from error in observa
tlon, and is owing to the difficulty of d Uermining exactly the quantities of these sab
ftaaces. The error is less in the case vf the hon* than in that of the cow.

IDENTITY OF ANIMAL AND VEGETABLE PRINCIPLES.

370

elements they assimilate. It might be expected from this, that the
material constitution of animals should approach, and sometimes even
be identical with that of vegetables ; and it is found, in fact, that a
considerable number of ternary or quarternary organic compounds,
of either kingdom, present the greatest analogy to one another ; their
identity, in some cases, is even complete. Some fatty substances
of animal origin do not differ in any way from vegetable fats ; the
margaric acid which is obtained from hog's lard has the precise
characters of the margaric acid which is furnished by olive oil, and
the same identity is preserved through the entire series of quarter-
nary azotized principles, as a glance at the following table, which
contains the results of the analyses performed by Messrs Dumas
and Cahours, will show.

MBRINK.

ALBUMEN.

CASEINS.

Animal.

Vegetable.

Animal.

Vegetable.

Animal

Vegetable.

r h

52.8

7.0

23.7

16.5

53.2

7.0

23.4

16.4

53.5

7.1

23.6

15.8

53.7

7.1

23.5

15.7

53.5

7.0
23.7
15.8

53.5

7.1

23.4

16.0

Hydrogen

100.0

100.0

100.0

100.0

100.0

100.0

These principles, to which must be added gelatine, the fats and
several earthy and alkaline salts, constitute the frame-work of the
animal tissues, or the fluids which penetrate them ; it is therefore
necessary for us to examine each of them shortly.

Gelatine is met with in almost all the solid parts, in the bones,
tendons, cartilages, skin, cellular tissue, muscular flesh — all contain
it. It is readily soluble in boiling water ; cold water only takes up
a small quantity of it. Two or three parts of gelatine dissolved in
100 parts of hot water, suffice to turn the fluid into a tremulous jelly
when it has become cold. Tannin, or infusion of gall-nuts, precipi-
tates gelatine completely from its solution, the precipitate being very
bulky and perfectly insoluble in water ; and it is this chemical com-
bina bn or principle which lies at the bottom of the art of tanning.

Gelatine is extensively used in the arts, under the familiar name

of glue. Isinglass consists of gelatine nearly pure, and, according

to Mulder, contains :

Carbon. 50.8

Hydrogen 6.6

Azote 18.3

Oxygen 24J

100.0

Fihrine occurs in a state of solution in the blood, and forms the
principal ingredient in muscular flesh. It is readily obtained by
whipping a quantity of blood just taken from the veins of a living
animal ; the white stringy masses that adhere to the rod are fibrine,
which, by gentle kneading under water, become colorless. Fibrine,

380 ALBUMEN, CASEUM.

when moist, is a highly elastic and flexible substance ; dried, it loses
about 30 per cent, of water, and becomes brittle, horny, semi-trans-
parent. Thrown into water, it gradually imbibes all it had lost by
drying, and regains its former properties. Burned and incinerated,
fibrine leaves a quantity of ash, which consists, for the major part,
of phosphate of lime, with which is mixed a small quantity of phos-
phate of magnesia and of oxide of iron.

Albumen exists in large quantity dissolved in the water or serum
of the blood, and in the white of the egg ; it is also found in almost
all the animal fluids that are not excretions, or destined to be thrown
oflf as useless to the system. Albumen, as familiarly known, has
the remarkable property of coagulating or setting into a soft fluid, at
a certain temperature — 158° F.

Caseum, or caseine, is the distinguishing principle of milk. By
combining vvith acids it forms an insoluble compound ; and it under-
goes a remarkable coagulation, as all the world knows, in contact
with a piece of the inner membrane of the stomach of a young ani-
mal : from a fluid it sets into a soft solid, which by degrees separates
into two portions — whey and curd. The curd, or caseum, always
contains fat, and, when burned, leaves a considerable quantity of
ash.

Physiologists distinguish three principal tissues in the bodies of
animals ; the muscular, the nervous, and the cellular.

The muscular tissue consists of an assemblage of contractile fibres,
here disseminated through the masses of organs, there collected into
bundles and constituting the flesh. This is the instrument by which
animals perform all their voluntary motions, and it is that also by
which all the active but involuntary movements of the body are ex-
cited. Muscular flesh is always a compound substance, however ; it
consists of fibrine, the contractile or proper element, albumen, fat,
gelatine, an odorous extractive matter, lactic acid, different salts and
the coloring principle of the blood.

Put into cold water, so long as the temperature is below from 130°
to 140° F., little effect is produced beyond the solution of the soluble
salts which it may contain, and of a portion of its extractive matter
and albumen. At from 175° to 195°, the albumen which had been
dissolved, coagulates and rises to the top as scum, and the fat melts
and floats on the surface. The fibrinous element of the meat, how-
ever, preserves its characters even after the action of boiling water
continued for some time.

The nervous tissue constitutes the brain, spinal marrow, and
nerves, distributed to all parts of the body. Brain in its composition
contains a large quantity of water, — 80 per cent. — certain fatty mat-
ters, albumen, osmazone, phosphorus in combination with fat, sul-
phur, and phosphates of potash, lime, and magnesia. The composition
of the brain of animals, the dog, the sheep, the ox, appears to be
very analogous to that of the human subject.

Cellular tissue is the general connecting medium throughout the
animal body, and is not only met with, it may be said, everywhere,
but forms a main element in many of the textures of the body, sucb

BONES, BLOOD. 381

as the serous and mucors membranes, the cartilages, the bones
themselves, which are in fact only cellular tissue impregnated with
calcareous salts. Tendons may be viewed as condensed ropes of
cellular tissue ; by long boiling in water they melt entirely into gela-
tine.

Bones consist of cellular tissue, as stated, resolvable into gelatine,
and of a large proportion of saline earthy matter, consisting princi-
pally of phosphate of lime. The presence of this phosphate is not
extraordinary, inasmuch as we have found that it forms an element
in all the vegetables upon which animals are supported. By boiling
bones even reduced to powder under the usual pressure of the atmo-
sphere, but a small quantity of their gelatine is obtained ; but by put-
ting them into a Papin's digester, and subjecting them to a consider-
ably higher temperature than that of boiling water, we can dissolve
the whole, or nearly the whole of the animal matter, and leave the
earthy parts unchanged ; or by proceeding in another way, by soaking
bones for a time in dilute muriatic acid, we can dissolve out the
earthy matter, and leave the bone, having its original form indeed,
but as an elastic, pliant gristle.

The relations between the earthy and organic matter of bone,
vary with the species, but especially with the age of the animal. In
early life the cellular element predominates ; in adult age the salts
predominate. We have three analyses of bone, which I shall here
present :

Man. Ox. Ox.

Cartilage susceptible of change into gelatine 33.3 33.3 50.0

Sub-phospliiite of lime 53.0 57.4 37.0

Carbonate of lime 11.8 3.9 10.0

Phosphate of magnesia 1.2 2.0 1.2

Soda, and a trace of common salt 1.2 3.4 "

100.0 100.0 98.3

Hair has a very complex composition, no fewer than nine different
principles or substances having been detected in its constitution ;
among the number, mucus, various oily matters, sulphur, and iron ;
wool, fur, and horn, are all similar in their composition to hair.

Bloody in all the higher animals, is a sluggish fluid, of a deep red
color ; in many of the inferior tribes, however, such as insects, crus-
taceans, and shell-fish, it is limpid, and generally colorless. Under
the microscope, red blood is seen to consist of two distinct portions,
a serum or whey, in which float a multitude of minute, solid, opaque
corpuscles — the globules of the blood of physiologists, particles which
have different characters in different classes of animals.

Blood is a very heterogeneous compound. Left to itself, after
being drawn from a vein, it sets or coagulates into a soft gelatinous
solid, which by and by begins to separate into two portions, one
watery, of a yellowish color, and opalescent, the water, whey, or
serum ; another solid, of a deep red or reddish brown color, the clot
or coagulum. The watery portion contains a large quantity of albu-
men in solution. M. Lecanu, in his analysis of the blood, speaks of
as many as twenty-five different substances as entering into its cona-
positioQ :

882 BLOOD, MILX.

Water. 7904

Oxygen, azote, free carbonic acid

Iron

Hydrochlorates of soda, potash, ammonU

Sulphates of potash and of poda

Subcarbonate of lime and magnesia

Phosphates of soda, lime, and magnesia

Lactate of soda

A soap, having soda and fixed fat acids fcr its elements

An odorous, volatile salt, a fat acid

A fatty substance, containing phosphorus

Cholesterine

Scroll ne

Albumen dissolved in the water -

IIJO

67.8
Globules and fibrine 130.8

iooo.e

The blood globules consist principally of albumen combined with
a little fibrine and red coloring matter. Any difference observed
between one sample of blood and another, is connected especially,
almost exclusively, with the relative proportions of the liquid part or
serum, and the solid part or clot. The solids are in larger propor-
tion in males than females, in grown-up persons than in aged indi-
viduals and children, in subjects well and abundantly fed than in
those indifferently supplied with food. No analysis that has yet
been made has thrown any true light on the cause of the difference
of color perceived between arterial and venous blood ; nevertheless,
it is positively known that it is by the concurrence of the oxygen of
the atmosphere that the arterial blood in the living body acquires
the characters which distinguish it, and that carbonic acid gas is
evolved or thrown off in the course of the action that takes place.

Ox blood, thoroughly dried, has been found to consist of:

Carbon 52.0

Hydrogen 7.2

Azote 15.1

Oxygen 21.3

Ash 4.4

100.0

Milk. This well-known fluid may be said to combine in itself all
the organic principles and mineral substances which enter into the
constitution of organized beings. Caseum, identical with fibrine and
albumen, fatty matters, sugar of milk, and different salts, among the
number of which the phosphates stard distinguished.

The ciseum, the sugar, and a port:on of the salts, are in solution ;
the fatty matters are held in susper sion in the milk in the form of
globules. The following table will b^ found useful, as giving a com->
prehensi 'c survey of the compositior of different kinds of milk.

MILK.

383

il.

.•

s ,

a .

•5S2

■5

fu'^

-s

Milk.

1

1

!i

Remarks.

Authors of the
analyses

O 2

Ui

CO «o

Q

Of the cow. .

3.6

4.0

5.0

87.4

12.6

Average of 12 Le Bel and Bous-
analyses at Be- singault.
chclbronn.

Of the cow. .

3.8

3.5

6.1

86.6

13.4

Average of 6 an-:Q,uevenne.

alyses in the en-

virons of Paris.

Of the cow. .

4.5

3.1

5.4

87.0

13.0

Idem.

Henri and Chev-
alier.

Of the cow. .

5.6

3.6

4.0

86.8

13.2

Idem.

Lecanu.

Of the cow. .

5.1

3.0

4.6

87.3

12.7

An analysis,
Giessen.

Haidlen.

Of the ass...

1.7

1.4

6.4

90.5

9.5

Average of 5 an-.P61igot.

alyses. |

Of woman...

3.1

3.4

4.3

89.2

10.8

Of good quality. jHaidlen.

Of woman...

2.7

1.3

3.2

92.8

7.2

Of middUng qual-jHaidlen.
ity. 1

Cow's milk always shows slight alkaline reaction ; its density is
about 1.03. According to M. Haidlen, it contains no salt formed
by an organic acid, no lactates, and the alkali is in combination with
caseum, the solution of which it assists. It may contain about a
half per cent, of ash, the several constituents of which appear to be
very stable, though their proportions vary greatly. In 100 parts
of milk, taken from two different cows, Haidlen found the following
salts :

Phosphate of lime 0.231 0.344

Phosphate of magnesia 0.042 0.064

Phosphate of iron 0.007 0.007

Chloride of potassium 0.144 0.183

Chloride of sodium 0.024 0.034

Soda.... 0.042 0.045

0.490 0.677

As cow's milk is that which is by far the most directly interesting
to agriculture, I shall enter somewhat particularly into its history ;
having, however, already spoken of caseum, its distinguishing con-
stituent, and albumen, I shall here confine myself to the subject of
the sugar and the oil or butter.

Sugar of milk is prepared for commercial purposes, in countriea
or districts where cheese-making is carried on to a great extent,
and the quantity of whey at command is very large. In some Can-
tons of Switzerland, sugar of milk is obtained by simply evaporating
whey properly clarified, to the consistence of sirup, which deposites
the sugar in the crystalline form as it cools. This first produce is
brown, and contaminated with various impurities, from which it is
freed by repeated solutions and crystallizations. It then becomes
colorless, transparent, and nearly tasteless, feeling gritty between
the teeth, and having only an obscure sweet taste. Ii requires from
8 to 9 parts of cold water to dissolve it ; in hot water it is more
soluble. According to Proust, it consists of :

884 MILK.

Carbon 40.0

Hydrogen 6.7

Oxygen 53.3

100.0

Buttct To understand the preparation of butter thoroughly, it
is absolutely necessary to know the physical constitution of the
milk from which it is obtained. Now the microscope shows us that
milk holds in suspension an infinity of globules of different dimen-
sions, which, by reason of their less specific gravity, tend to rise to
the surface of the liquid in which they float, where they collect,
and by and by form a film or layer of a diflferent character from the
fluid beneath ; the superficial layer is the creairu, and this removed,
the subjacent liquid constitutes the skim-milk. This separation ap-
pears to take place most completely in a cool temperature from 54"
to 60" F.

Allowed to stand for a time, which varies with the temperature,
milk becomes sour, and by and by separates into three strata or
parts : cream, whey, and curd, or coagulated caseum. By suffering
the milk to become acid before removing the cream, it has been
thought that a larger quantity of this, the most valuable constituent
of the milk, was obtained ; and the fact is probably so ; but in dis-
tricts where the subject of the dairy has been most carefully stud-
ied, it has been found that it is better to cream before the appearance
of any signs of acidity have appeared. WTien a knife can be push-
ed through the cream, and withdrawn without any milk appearing,
the cream ought to be removed.*

Butter is obtained from cream by churning, as all the world
knows ; by the agitation, the fatty particles cohere and separate from
the watery portion, at first in smaller and then in larger masses.
The remaining fluid is buttermilk, a fluid slightly acid, and of a very
agreeable flavor, containing the larger portion of the caseous element
of the cream coagulated, and also a certain portion of the fatty
principle which has not been separated.

The globules of milk appear, from the latest microscopical ob-
servations,f to be formed essentially of fatty matter, surrounded with
a delicate, elastic, transparent pellicle. In the course of the agita-
tion or trituration of churning, these delicate pellicles give way, and
then the globules of oil or fatty matter are left free to cohere, which
they were prevented from doing previously, by the interposition of
the delicate film or covering of the several globules. Were the
butter simply suspended in the state of emulsion in the milk, we
should certainly expect that it would separate on the application of
heat ; but this it does not : cream or milk may be brought to the
boiling point, and even boiled for some time, without a particle of
oil appearing. Could M. Romanet show any of these pellicles,
apart from the oil-globules they enclose, it would be very satisfacto-
ry, and would certainly enable' us to explain the effect of churning

Churning is a longer or shorter process, according to a variety of

* Thaer, Princlpes, tc, t. iv. p. 34L
, t M. Bomanet, MSS.

I

MILK. 885

circumstances ; it succeeds best between 55 and 60* F. So that,
in summer, a cool place, and in winter a warm place, is chosen for
the operation. There is no absorption of oxygen during the process
of churning, as was once supposed ; the operation succeeds perform-
ed in vacuo, and with the churn filled with carbonic acid or hydro-
gen gas.

On being taken out of the churn, the butter is kneaded and press-
ed, and even washed under fair water, to free it as much as possible
from the buttermilk and curd which it always contains, and to the
presence of which must be ascribed the speedy alteration which
butter undergoes in warm weather. To preserve fresh butter it is
absolutely necessary to melt it, in order to get rid of all moisture,
and at the same time to separate the caseous portion. This is the
process employed to keep fresh butter in all the warmer countries
of the world. In some districts of the continent, it is also had re-
course to with the same view. The butter is thrown into a clean
cast-iron pot, and fire is applied. By and by the melted mass enters
into violent ebullition, which is owing to the disengagement of wa-
tery vapor ; it is stirred continually to favor the escape of the steam,
and the fire is moderated. When all ebullition has ceased, the fire
is withdrawn, and the melted butter is run upon a strainer, by which
all the curd is retained. M. Clouet has proposed to clarify butter
by melting it at a temperature between 120° and 140° F., and keep-
ing it so long melted as to dissipate the water and secure the depo-
sition of the cheesy matter, after which the clear melted butter
would be decanted. I doubt whether by this means the water could
be sufficiently got rid of, a very important condition in connection
with the keeping of butter, though certainly all he caseum would
be deposited.

The moisture and curd contained in fresh butter may amount to-
gether to about 18 per cent. ; at least we find that we lose about 18
lbs. upon every. 100 lbs. weight of butter which we melt at Bechel-
bronn.

The information which we have on the produce in butter and
cheese, from different samples of milk, is very discordant, so that
I prefer giving the results of a single experiment made under my
own eyes. From 100 lbs. weight of milk, we obtained :

Cream 15.60 lbs

White curd cheese 8.93 "

Whey 75.47 "

100.00

The 15.60 lbs. of cream yielded by churning :

3.3 lbs. butter, or 21.2 per cent., and
12.27 " buttermilk.

The reckoning with reference to 100 lbs. of milk consequently
stands thus :

Cheese 8.93

Butter 3.33

Buttermilk 12.27

Whey 75.47

100.0
33

388 FOOD AND FEEDING.

Taking the whole of the milk ootained and treated at differenl
seasons of the year, I find that 36,000 lbs. of milk yielded 1080 lbs.
of fresh butter, which is at the rate of 3 per cent. From the state-
ment of M. Baude, it appears that near Geneva a proportion of
butter so high as 3 per cent, is never obtained, probably because
there a larger projJortion of fatty matter is left in the cheese. In
the dairy of Cartigny, 2200 gallons of milk gave :

B'^tter 363 lbs. or about 1.6 per cent,

Gruye re cheese 1515 " 6.9 "

Clot from the whey, obtained by boiling 1140 " 5.2 "

In the same neighborhood, another dairy, that of Lullin, gave from
the same quantity of milk :

Butter 4181bs.or 1.9 per cent.

Cheese 1485 67.5 "

Clot from whey 968 4.4 " *

OF THE FOOD OF ANIMALS AND FEEDING.

The identity, in point of composition and properties, which ap-
pears to obtain between certain substances derived from either king-
dom of nature, naturally led to the conclusion that animals do not
form or originate the substances which enter into their organization,
but that they find these ready formed in their food, and merely ap-
propriate them ; whence we must conclude, that herbivorous animals
assimilate several of the proximate principles of plants immediately,
causing them to undergo but slight modifications, and that the ele-
ments of the animal tissues and fluids pre-exist in vegetables, which
further contain the earthy phosphate that forms the distinguishing
characteristic in bone.t

The food of herbivorous animals must, therefore, always contain,
and in fact always contains, four essential principles, which, by their
combination or reunion, constitute nutritious matter, properly so
called : — 1st. An azotized matter, such as albumen, caseine, gluten,
substances which are probably the original of flesh. ' 2d. An oily or
fatty matter, which approaches more or less closely to fatty bodies
in general. 3d. A substance having a ternary composition, sugar,
gum, fecula. 4th. Certain salts, particularly phosphates of lime,
magnesia, and iron. This mixed constitution, which a forage plant
must needs offer, justifies the general ideas propounded by Dr. Prout
on nutrition. This able chemist has said that milk was to be viewed
as the standard food, and that all alimentary matters must resemble
it in composition, in greater or less degree : that is to say, besides
phosphates, food must contain an azotized principle, a non-azotized
principle, and a fatty body, to stand in lieu of caseum, sugar, and
butter.

The fundamental principle that animals find the several substances
which make up their bodies, ready formed in the substances they

* In all the dairy counties of England, the milk is never required, like the ground, ta
five a double crop ; 'I yields either butter or cheese, not both. Hence the greater rich-
ness of English cheese In general. — Eno. Ed.

t Dumas and Boussingault. The Chemical and Physiological Balance of Organl*
Natnxe, post 8vo. London. BalUiere, 1843. (A very useful little work.— Eno. Ed. J

FOOD AND FEEDING. 387

consume, seems very well calculated to assist the practical farmer
in managinor the food of the animals upon his land ; for if flesh, fat,
and bone exist all but ready formed in the food, it is obvious that
the best kind will be that precisely which, under the same weight,
contains the largest quantity of the various matters of the organi-
zation.

It is by no means easy to ascertain precisely the amount of the
azotized constituents, gluten, and albumen, contained in plants ; to
do so requires both time and pains. But let it be once admitted that
the nutritive properties of forage increase in the precise ratio of
these matters, this is clearly as much as to say that the value is in
proportion to the quantity of azote contained in the food, and that it
becomes a matter of the highest moment to have at hand a ready
mode of determining the point. I believe it infinitely better to get
at the quantity of azote immediately, which is easily done, than by
any roundabout and laborious process to ascertain the amount of
albumen and gluten : the quantity of azote ascertained, it is most
easy to deduce the quantity of albumen and gluten — in other words,
o^ flesh — contained in each particular species of food examined ; for,
as a general rule, vegetable food does not contain any other azotized
principle. It is true, indeed, that all the azotized principles of vege-
table origin cannot be considered as nutritious ; some of them, on
the contrary, are virulent poisons or active medicines, according to
the dose in which they are administered. But these poisonous sub-
stances are not met with in appreciable quantity in the plants which
are commonly grown for the food either of man or beast. Still, all
the truly nutritious articles of food contain an azotized principle.
The experiments of M. Magendie have shown, that substances which
contain no azote, such as sugar, starch, oil, will not support life ;
and, on the other hand, it is ascertained that the quality of alimentary
matter, flour for example, increases with the amount of gluten which
it contains. It is because the seeds of the leguminous vegetables
are richer in azotized principles — that is, in flesh — that they are also
more highly nutritious than the seeds of the cereals.

These several considerations, therefore, induce me to conclude;
that the nutritious principles of plants and their products reside in
their azotized principles^ and consequently that their nutritious pow-
ers are in proportion to the quantity of azote they contain. From
what precedes, however, it is obvious that I am far from regarding
azotized principles alone as sufficient for the nutrition of animals ;
but it is a fact, that every highly azotized vegetable nutritive sub-
stance is generally accompanied by the other organic and inorganic
substances which concur in nutrition.

In seeking to learn the precise quantity of azote contained in a
great number of articles used as food for cattle, I have had it in
view particularly to find a standard or fixed point for estimating their
comparative nutritive properties. It is long since more than one of
the most distinguished farmers, both of England and Germany,
essayed to resolve this important problem in rural economy. Thua
Thaer and many others have given tables of the quantities by weight

888 FOOD AND FEEDING.

in which one article of alimentation might be substituted for another
These tables are in 'ict tables of equivalents with reference to food
But it is unfortunate that there should be considerable diversity of
statement among thnr authors. Yet, even up to the present time,
it could not well have been otherwise, and these discrepancies will
only surprise those who are unacquainted with the difficulties of the
subject. One grand cause of difference probably exists in the de-
gree of dryness of the article subjected to experiment. The nature
of the soil, a very dry or very rainy season, the climate, &c., must
all be regarded as so many causes influencing the quantity of water
contained in plants, and in consequence their actual nutritive quali-
ties. The only sure mode of proceeding, in short, appears .o be, to
reduce the several articles to a state of complete dryness, and to
make their quantity in this condition the first element in the reckoning.
I may state, that the theoretical data obtained by proceeding in this
way have already been approved by practical applications.

Hay may be assumed as the most common or universally used of
all kinds of fodder : it is in some sort the staple food of the animals
that are particularly attached to an agricultural concern, and may
therefore be appropriately made the standard of comparison for all
other kinds of food or forage. Hay itself, however, varies greatly
in point of quality : in assuming it as the standard, I have therefore
to state, that meadow hay of good quality is to be understood. The
analyses which I have made of this article at different times, satisfy
me that in the state in which it is commonly used, it contains from
1.0 to 1.5 of azote per cent. In choosing a specimen for analysis,
it is, of course, highly necessary that it be an average specimen ;
that it consist of equal or rather relative proportions of the several
elements which enter into its constitution, such as stalks, leaves,
flowers, and seeds. Taking a sample of hay, for instance, weighing
exactly 5 lbs. avoird., I found that it was made up of —

Hard woody stems 2.393 lbs.

Bottoms of leaves and very fine stems 0.847

Flowers, leaves, and a few seeds 1.760

5.000

The ultimate analysis of which gave :

Of azote per cent. >...1.19

Military contract hay of 1840 gave of azote per cent 1.21

Hay made in Alsace in 18:J5 " " 1.04

Hay made in Alsace in 1837 " " 1.15

Average of azote per 100 1.15

Hay, as it is generally used, contains from 11 to 12 per cent, of
water, which is got rid of by thorough drying. And as albumen,
caseum, and vegetable gluten contain 16 per cet)t. of azote, we
perceive that the azotized matter which is the representative of
flesh, in hay may be represented by the number 7.2 per cent. Hay
does not, indeed, always contain so much azote ; that which is won
from marshy lands contains much less ; and again there are samples
.hat contain more. After-math, or second-crop hay, is certainly
more nutritious than first-crop hay, a fact which we have ascertained

POOD AND FEEDTNG. 389

rej€atedly at Bechelbronn ; but this hay is nevertheless held less
suitable for horses, probably because, being made late in the season,
it is commonly stacked more or less damp, and suffers change in
conscjuence :

After-math hay gave 2.0 per cent, of azote

A choice siiinpie 'f the best hay 1.29 "

The flower or ear, containing little woody stem- .. • 2.1 "

These examples suffice to show, that when an animal is to be put
upon another kind of food than hay, it is very necessary to take the
quality of the latter article, which has been employed, into the ac-
count. In the table which I shall immediately present, I have as-
sumed good meadow-hay, containing 1.15 of azote and 11 of water
per cent, for my standard. The importance of a table of equivalents
for forage has long been felt by farmers ; and they who have given
their attention to the accumulation of data for its construction, de-
serve our best thanks. The use of a table of equivalents is extreme-
ly simple : the numbers placed underneath the value of hay in-
dicate the weights of the several kinds of forage named in the first
column, which may respectively be substituted for 100 parts of hay
by weight. Thus, according to Block, 366 lbs. of carrots may be
substituted for 100 lbs. of meadow-hay. Pabst holds 60 lbs. of oats
to be equivalent to 100 lbs. of hay. If the question be to replace
7.26 or 7| lbs. of oats in the ration of a horse by Jerusalem arti-
chokes, we find in the table that 60 of oats are equivalent to 274
Jerusalem potatoes, and we therefore infer that 35.2, say 35| lbs.
is the weight of the root to be substituted for that of the oats.

Certain information on the nutritive value of the various articles
consumed by cattle as food, is really of high importance in rural
economy : it is obviously the only guide for the feeder in the use or
purchase of forage. Let us suppose, for example, that a measure of
potatoes (22 gallons) weighing 165 lbs. is worth lOd. at market,
and that hay is worth 2*. 6c^. the cwt. ; 2 cwts. or rather 220 lbs.
would cost 5s. Let us now admit, on theoretical grounds, that this
quantity of hay is equivalent to 693 lbs. of potatoes; it plainly ap-
pears, on looking at the cost of these equivalents, that there would
be a positive advantage in using potatoes, inasmuch as they are
worth no more than 3^. 6^d. There would indeed be money to be
made by selling hay, and purchasing its equivalent in potatoes.

The equivalents which I have deduced from my elementary ana-
lyses, agree on many occasions with the conclusions of practical
men ; in others, they differ notably from them ; at the same time it
must be observed, that the practical equivalents differ from one
another in at least an equal degree. We see, for instance, that
Schnee and Thaer think 220 lbs. of hay will be replaced by 1405
lbs. of wheat straw, while Flottow gives 429 lbs. as the equivalent
number. According to Mayer, 630 lbs. of turnip are equivalent to
220 lbs. of hay, while Middleton gives 1760 as the equivalent num-
ber of turnips, a number which coincides remarkably with that infer-
red from theory. Block assigns 66 as the equivalent number of
peas. Thaer makes it more than twice as high, viz. 145. Mangel

33*

390 POOD AND FEEDINO.

wurzel, according to Thaer, is represented by 1012 ; while Mayei
and Pabst call it but 550, ^ud M. de Dombasle states it a little high-
er, viz. 574. However highly we estimate the difficulties of com-
ing to accurate conclusions on the subject of alimentation or feeding,
it is not easy to account for such discrepancies among practical
men ; and then, as to the astonishing similarity which their conclu.
sions bear to one another upon many heads, it is impossible to over-
look the fact, that the resemblance is far more in appearance than
in fact ; for it is notorious, that the generality of those who have
committed themselves to writing have generally copied each other.
Indeed, it is not always very obvious whether the equivalent number
which we find assumed, has been determined by the farmer from his
own observation or experience, or has been adopted from some other
observer. No one who is not a total stranger to the art of making
experiments will ever be brought to believe that eleven experiment-
ers, operating separately, could have fallen plump upon the number
90 as the equivalent for lucern, or even that any five of them could
have lighted upon 600, neither more nor less, as the equivalent num-
ber for cabbage !

The method which I have myself pursued, that namely of infer-
ring the nutritious quality from the contents in azote, is far from
being free from objection ; on the whole, it may be said to place the
equivalents somewhat too low, inasmuch as by the process of ele-
mentary analysis, the quantity of azote is apt to come out a little too
high, some portion of it being derived from the nitrates present in
vegetables, which are certainly of no avail in nutrition. This is the
source to which I ascribe the anomaly presented by the leaves of
mangel-wurzel. And, then, it is not to be forgotten that in dosing
the azote we have regard but to the jlesh contained in the article of
food, which although unquestionably the principle that is of highest
value, and the one which is apt to be most deficient, is still not all.
The neutral non-azotized substances, starch, sugar, gum, oil, are in-
dispensable as auxiliaries in the alimentation of cattle ; the three
first undergo changes in the course of the digestive process which
fit them to be absorbed immediately, and the oil is brought to the
state of an emulsion, and so is taken up and adds to the fat. The
woody fibre alone of vegetables appears to have no direct share iu
the nutrition of animals ; it is discovered almost or altogether un-
changed in the dejections.

It is therefore every thing but matter of indifference whether a par-
ticular article of forage contains a larger or a smaller proportion of
starch, sugar, &c., associated with a given quantity of azoti/ed or
truly animalized matter. The potato and meadow-hay brought to
the same state of dryness, contain as nearly as possible the same
proportions of azote — from 1.3 to 1.5 per cent.; in other words, about
8^ per cent, of albumen and gluten, i. e., of flesh. But in the pota-
to, almost the whole of the 9U per cent, of the remainder consists
of starch ; while in hay it is woody fibre, inert matter as we must
presume it, that is present in by far the largest proportion. And
this explains the higher value of the same weight of dry potato a4

FOOD AND FEEDING. 391

an aiticle of sustenance. To give our theoretical equivalents all
the precision that is really desirable, it would be necessary to as-
certain the quantity of organic matter which escaped digestion with
reference to each particular species of food. This is an inquiry
which it is my purpose to enter upon by a:nd by. The labor com-
pleted, we should then be in possession of tables in regard to the
proportion of the non-azotized as well as the azotized principles ;
and further, to the quantity of inert matter which it would be proper
to deduct from the weight of the ration allowed in each case.

To have determined the azote in an article of food, then, is not
to have done all that is strictly necessary : still azote is the scatea
element in all kinds of vegetable food; starch, gum, sugar, pectine,
oil, are universally present, and generally in adequate quantity. A.s
articles, as unlike one another as possible, I have mentioned pota-
toes and meadow hay. Now the theory indicates 300 of the root for
100 of the dried grass ; and I can state positively, from long and re-
peated observation, that it is not advisable in practice to substitute
less than 280 of potatoes for 100 of meadow-hay.

The state of dryness of certain kinds of forage may have a mark-
ed influence on their nutritious qualities. They may even decline
in nutritive value by the process of drying, so that analysis of itself
may lead us into error in regard to the nutritive value of dry articles
of food. Breeders have in fact long suspected that green fodder is
more nutritious than dry fodder; that grass, clover, &c., lose nutri-
tious matter by being made into hay. That the thing is so in fact,
appears to have been demonstrated by a skilful agriculturist, well
acquainted with the ait of experimenting,* who found that 9 lbs. of
green lucern were quite equal in foddering sheep to 3^^^ lbs of the
same forage made into hay, while he at the same time ascertained
that 9 lbs. of green lucern would not on an average yield more than
2.02 lbs. of hay. In allowing each sheep 3i^jj^ lbs. of lucern hay as
its ration, consequently, it was as if the animal had had 14.34 or
more than 14| lbs. of the green vegetable for its allowance.

These practical facts are obviously of great importance ; they
prove beyond a shadow of doubt that the belief of agriculturists in
general as to the immense advantages of consuming clover and lu-
cern as green meat is well founded. Nor is this all ; it is not mere-
ly the absolutely greater feeding value of the crop green than of the
crop dried and made into hay ; there is further, the saving of ex-
pense in making the hay, and still further, the escape of all risk from
loss through bad weather during the process, by which that wiiich
was valuable fodder but a few days before, may become fit only for
the dung-hill. Still, because 100 of green clover or lucern repre-
sent 2-3 of the same articles dried, it does not follow that the feeding
properties of the fodder in each of the two states can be truly re-
presented by the ratios of these numbers to one another. Messrs.
Perrault find from their experiments that the true relation is 8 to 3.
By assuming 71.5 lbs. as the quantity of dry forage obtained from

• M. PterraBlt de Jotemps, in Jcmrn. d'Agricult. v. iii. p. 97.

892 FOOD AND FEEDING.

220 lbs. of gretu clover or lucern, the quantity which is actually
obtained on an average, the ratio comes out 8 to 2.G, a number which
falls somewhat short of that which is assumed, but not much. With
regard to the difference in the feeding or nutritive value of green
and dried fodder, the loss may in a general way be ascribed to loss
of the more substantia] parts of the plants especially experienced in
the process of drying. This is the conclusion, at all events, to which
M. Crud came ; I have myself, however, found that clover-hay,
made in the field and ricked in the usual way, had not the same
nutritive value as a quantity of the same crop carefully dried :n the
laboratory.

By way of pendant to the conclusions of Messrs. Perrault, from
their valuable observations, I shall here add the average of some
experiments that were made at Bechelbronn, in 1841, on the eon-
version of clover into clover-hay. The clover crops of this season
were magnificent ; the plant in its second year growing to more than
a yard in height. Green clover on the average may be considered
as consisting of:

Clover-hay 29.85

Water 70.15

100.00

As extremes in our experiments of 1841, we add :

Clover-hay 35.7 25.0

Water 64.3 76.0

100.0 100.0

Analysis gave the number 75 as the nutritive equivalent number
of clover-hay. Assuming 76 to represent the moisture lost during
the drying, the equivalent becomes 311 for the same fodder in the
green state, meadow-hay, the standard, being 100.

But practice is not here in harmony with theory ; the value of
clover-hay, in point of nutritive power, is found not to differ essen-
tially from that of meadow-hay ; and the equivalent of green clover
is generally placed between 425 and 500. And I may say, that
daily experience in the stable tends to show that the theoretical
equivalent of clover-hay is too high, that its nutritious properties are
not so great as they are inferred to be. From a mean of four
weighings, I find that four cows upon green clover consume 2499
lbs., or 624f lbs. each per diem. The usual allowance to one of
our cows, however, is 33 lbs. of hay of good quality ; from which
it would follow, that the equivalent of green clover would be 445.
But the animals on the green fodder fattened apace, and every thing
showed that they were very differently nourished than they would
have been with their 33 lbs. of meadow-hay. According to theo-
retical data, each cow in its 624| lbs. of green food per day received
an equivalent of 47.3 lbs. of hay ; and if it be considered, that during
the season of green forage they have it almost at will, it must be
conceded that during this period the quantity of food consumed ii
actually greater than when it is regularly doled out. .A^dditional ex-

FOOD AND FEEDING. 393

pcriments are therefore necessary to decide the question as to
whether forage eaten green is really more nutritious than the same
forage consumed when converted into hay. For my own part, I
should not be surprised, from what I have seen, were it found that
dry fodder, previously moistened and carefully portioned out, wa?
actually more nourishing than the same food would have been had
it been eaten green. Green forage, of a very soft or watery nature,
is notoriously possessed of purgative properties, which must lessen
its value as food ; but my observation leads me to say, on he othei
hand, that animals kept upon dry fodder require more care with re-
gard to watering than is generally bestowed upon them. The abso-
lute necessity of a sufficient degree of moistness in the food, in order
to secure its due and easy digestion, greatly countenances the prac-
tice which is beginning to be introduced in some places of steeping
hay for some time in water before giving it to cattle. This neces-
sity further explains the great advantages in associating with dried
fodder other very watery articles, such as roots and tubers, turnips
and field-beet, potatoes and Jerusalem artichokes.

The oleaginous seeds contain a considerable proportion of animal-
ized matter, similar in composition and qualities to the caseum of
milk ; and the cake which comes from the oil-mill retains almost
the whole of this substance. The proportion of from 0.05 to 0.06
of azote, indicates nearly 42 per cent, of the representative of flesh
m oil-cake. Theory, in fact, rates the nutritious power of this sub-
stance so high, that 100 of hay may be replaced by from 22 to 27
of cake.

The almost universal use of oil-cake in the feeding and fattening
of cattle, is of itself sufficient evidence of its highly nutritive quali-
ties. It has even been found possible to keep sheep and oxen upon
this food almost exclusively. M. Bouscaren finding considerable
difficulty in getting rid of his oil-cake, thought of associating with
his oil-mill an establishment for feeding cattle ; and he found that
oxen put up to fatten throve perfectly upon a mixture of the refuse
of the wine-press and oil-cake. Cows, upon a diet of this kind, give
on an average 12^ pints of milk per diem. The allowance per head
is about 15 lbs. of oil-cake in three meals, given each time imme-
diately after the animals have been watered, and in the interval,
each is allowed about 12 lbs. of straw or chaff. The cake broken
in pieces is steeped in water, and worked up into a paste of the
consistency of dough. If the animals show any disinclination to
this food at first, they are brought to like it by having a ball of it,
the size of the fist, administered to them two or three times.

Supposing that the cows fed in this way would be adequately
maintained upon 33 lbs. of hay, and that 13 lbs. of straw are equiv-
alent to 3 lbs. of hay, it appears that in the allowance given, 15 lbs.
of oil-cake will supply the place of 30 lbs. of hay ; the equivalent
of the cake, therefore, is 51.5, a number very different from the 22
deduced from analysis. The equivalents of those who have sought
to appreciate the alimentary value of oil-cake are, however, suffi-
ciently at variance with one another. It will be seen in the table,

894 FOOD AND FEEDING.

that the numbers assigned by different authorities are 42, 57, and
108 ; and M. Perranlt, Tom direct experiment, found the equivalent
number of colza-cake t* be 36, analysis giving 23 as the theoretical
number. On the whole it may be said, that in practice, the results,
although sufficiently different, still agree in ascribing to oil-cake a
nutritive value inferior to that indicated by theory.

I have thought it important to insist upon the discrepancy which
is here so conspicuous between the inferences from chemical analy-
sis and those arrived at by experience, because it appears to me to
depend upon a particular circumstance which frequently intervenes
in the feeding of cattle, and which it is very important to be aware
of; I allude to the influence of the bulk of the allowance of food.

Vegetable food of every description has nearly the same specific
gravity ; it is but little above that of water ; the bulk of the allow-
ance therefore depends upon its weight. Every one will conceive
that a ration of highly nutritious food, which for this reason would
occupy but little space, would be open to many objections. A cart-
horse, of the ordinary size, from what I have myself repeatedly
observed, requires from 26 to 33 lbs. of solid food, and about the
same quantity of water in the twenty-four hours. The bulk of this
allowance, when masticated and brought to the state in which it is
swallowed, will be upwards of 9^ cubic feet. Now, if for the ordi-
nary forage, one that is five times more nutritious were substituted,
oil-cake, for example, the dry ration, according to the rule of equiv-
alents, would be reduced to 6.6, or a Mttle more than 4^ lbs., and its
bulk would not surpass 5^ cubic feet. The animal would not feel
satisfied with this allowance, it would still feel hungry, or the food
given in such a concentrated shape would disagree with it. If, on
the contrary, a forage that is very little nutritious were substituted,
such as wheat-straw, the equivalent of which is 500, the ration
would then become too bulky to be eaten in the course of a day, it
would amount to as many as 165 lbs. It is therefore absolutely ne-
cessary to take into consideration the bulk of the food allowed : the
belly must of necessity be filled ; whatever the nutritive value of
any article, it must be given in a certain quantity ; and in the case
of such a substance as oil-cake, the consumption to fill the stomach
would cease to be in any kind of proportion to the nutritive equiv-
alent.

It is extremely difficult to appreciate the precise limits beyond
which an article of forage or a given ration ceases to be nutritious.
When any addition is made to an allowance known and admitted to
be sufficient, the effect of the extra quantity is scarcely perceptible ;
so that, in practice, we are apt to fall into the error of estimating at
too low a rate the nutritious powers of food given in too large quan-
tities. I have had proof of this in a series of experiments on the
maintenance of a number of milch-kine. To a cow which was
receiving the equivalent of 33 lbs. of meadow-hay in dry fodder and
Jerusalem potatoes, an addition was made of 6| lbs. of oil-cake, by
which the allowance of nourishment was doubled theoretically ; the
4oiraal (Mily ate the half of the cake, howfever : still, the quality of

FOOD AND FEEDINa. -• 895

the milk was not improved. Experience heie would oompe. os to
set down the 3^ lbs. of cake consumed as nil ; yet it is positively
ascertained that tlie article is one of" the most substantial known.

The hard and husky grain which is given to cattle frequently
escapes digestion, because it has escaped the teeth — a circumstance
which leads to the formation of an estimate of its nutritious quali-
ties inferior to those it actually possesses. To prevent this loss,
oats are now often bruised, as are beans and peas also ; or they are
mixed with chopped hay or straw, which the animals are compelled
to chew thoroughly before they can swallow it ; or the corn is
steamed or steeped in boiling water before it is put into the manger.
Some experiments that were instituted by order of the French vete-
rinary commission, however, seemed to show, that the loss of corn
from passing through the stomach and bowels unchanged was really
so trifling, that it might be safely left out of the account.

Tubers and roots are invaluable fodder for horned cattle, and in
the course of the winter, come instead of hay to a considerable
extent. Our experience at Bechelbronn also enables us to say, that
horses are readily brought to a regimen of the same description,
which, judiciously instituted, becomes the means of great economy
in the maintenance of these animals.

Roots, turnips, and mangel-wurzel, are frequently thrown down
whole before the animals. It is vastly better ; nay, it is so much
better that it ought to be made an invariable rule never to give them
save cut into slices and mixed with cut straw or chaff. There is
always a great advantage in combining any very soft and watery
article of food with one that is dry and hard, to say nothing of the
chaff absorbing and rendering useful the juices that would escape
and be lost.

Mangel-wurzel, turnips, carrots, and Jerusalem potatoes, are
always given raw. The potato is frequently steamed or boiled first ;
yet I can say positively that horned cattle do extremely well upon
raw potatoes ; and at Bechelbronn, our cows never have them other-
wise than raw : they are never boiled, save for horses and hogs.
The best mode of dealing with them is to steam them ; they need
never be thoroughly boiled as when they are to serve for the food
of man. The steamed or boiled potatoes are crushed between two
rollers, or simply broken with a wooden spade or dolly, and mixed
with cut hay or straw or chaff before being served out. It may not
be unnecessary to observe, that by steaming, potatoes lose no weight ;
whence we conclude that the nutritive equivalent for the boiled is
the same as that for the raw tuber. Nevertheless, it is possible that
the amylaceous principle is rendered more readily assimilable by
boiling, and that by this means the tubers actually become more
nutritious. Some have proposed to roast potatoes in the oven ; and
there can be little question but that, treated in this way, they answ^er
admirably for f^*tening hogs or even oxen. Done in the oven, pota-
toes may be brought into a state in which they may perfectly supply
the place of corn in the foddering of horses and other cattle.
There is but the expense of the firing to be taken into the a/Ccouat

396 FOOD AND FEEDING.

The only mode of ascertaining the favorable or unfavorable influ-
ence of any particular system of diet or regimen upon animals, ia
by weighing them. In ref rd to full-grown animals performing
regular work, such as cart a;.d plough horses, and to milch-kine, the
allowance ought to be such as will maintain them at the same or
nearly the same weight. Any thing like stinting is immediately
followed by loss of flesh and of weight, of strength and spirit, in the
animal. The allowance being continued the same, similar effects
will follow any increase of work, any exaction of unusual eifort on
the part of the animal. An essential condition, therefore, in all
experiments on the due dieting or feeding of animals, is, that they be
performed under precisely similar conditions of labor. Young ani-
mals receiving a sufficiency of wholesome food, increase from day
to day by a quantity which we shall have occasion immex.iately to
mention ; and all changes of regimen are followed at once by notable
variations in the ratio of the growth ; if the new regimen be less
nutritious than that which went before it, the balance immediately
proclaims the fact.

Cattle put up to fatten are always supplied with a superfluity of
fodder ; the excess may be regarded as an addition to the quantity
requisite to maintain them in health and strength. The increase in
the weight of an animal is often so great within a given time, as to
be very appreciable by weighings made even at very close intervals ;
the balance also shows us that the rate of increase varies at different
periods of the interval during which the fattening is going on. An
animal put up to fatten for the butcher, is not the best subject for
coming to conclusions upon in regard to the nutritive value of dif-
ferent articles of sustenance ; still it is useful, in a practical point
of view, to determine the influence of this and of that course of
regimen on the production of fat. Any misapplication of nutritive
equivalents is speedily proclaimed by the animal's losing weight,
instead of maintaining or gaining upon the amount to which it had
attained.

When the quantity of fodder has been ascertained which an ani-
mal ought to have in the twenty-four hours to maintain it in full
health and vigor, or that may be necessary to enable it to lay on
additional flesh and fat, it is to be weighed, and the article or mix-
ture of articles which it is the business of the experimenter to try,
is to be given in part or in whole. After the lapse of a certain
time the animal is weighed again, and the weight upon this occasion
enables us to say whether the new or amended ration is superior,
equal, or inferior, to that which had preceded it. Such is the pro-
cedure generally followed : but in putting it in practice myself, I
saw that it was liable to lead to rather serious mistakes, which I
then used every effort to diminish or to nullify in the experiments
which I undertook on the keep of horses — experiments which I
^hink interesting enough to deserve being particularly related.

In a considerable number of observations with which I had be-

>me familiar, I saw that the course had not always been continued
4r a sufficierJ length of time ; so that changes which were the

POOD AND FEEDING.

897

effect of more accident must frequently have boen ascribed to the
effects of regimen. In a general way, it is acknowledged that an
adult animal, upon the ration that is known to be adequate for its
maintenance, returns at the same hour every day to the yesterday's
weight : this, however, is only strictly true in reference to a series
of weighings continued through a number of days, to make any
irregularity between one weighing and another disappear.

With a view to discovering the amount of variation which an
animal experiences in point of weight when it is fed in the same
uniform manner, is foddered precisely at the same hours, &c., I
weighed a horse and a mare, which were leading the most regular
and unvaried life possible, for they were both employed in working
an exhausting machine for several days in succession, the weighings
being performed at noon each day before they were watered, and
from four to five hours after their breakfast. Here are the results
in a tabular form :

Date of the weighings.

Weight of the
horse.

Weight of the
mare.

kil. lbs. avoird.
453.0 996.6
4.55.0
456.0
454.0

449.0 988.9
449.5
449.0
454.0

454.0 998.8
459.5 1010.9
448.0 985.6
452.0 994.4
454.0
448.0
452.5

kil. lbs. avoird.
494.0 1086.8
497.0
497.0

497.5 1092.7
487.0
487.5
492.0
496.5
484.5 1065.9

490.5

496.0

491.0

484.0 1064.8

491.0

17 •« '< ,...

18 " "

19 " "

21 «' "

22 «' "

23 " "

24 " "

25 «« «< ....

27 " "

28 " "

29 «« «'

30 " "

31 " "

4.52.0 994.4
459.5 1010.9
448.0 985.6

491.8 1081.9
497.5 1092.7
484.0 1064.8

Greatest difference above the mean

Greatest difference below the mean

Difference between the extreme weights..

16.5

8.8
7.7

10.8
17.1
6.3

Another horse (Old Fox) 12 years old, taken fasting, at four
o'clock in the morning of the 28th of April, 1842, weighed 1051
lbs. ; at the same hour of the 29th, he weighed 1060 lbs. ; ditto on
the 29th, 1038 lbs.

It is obvious, therefore, that a horse foddered most regularly and
weighed at the same hour, nevertheless presents differences in his
weight that may amount to nearly 30 lbs. ; and which, without as-
surance of this fact, we should be disposed to ascribe to the effect
of our regimen. This is enough to satisfy us that in all experi-
ments upon feeding, it is absolutely necessary to carry them on for
some considerable time, in order to escape, or at all events to lessen
the errors that would be introduced into the conclusions by these ac-
cidental differences of weight. They may vary with reference to

34

8d8 MAINTENANCE OF ANIMALS.

different animals ; they are necessarily smalkr in amount among
those that are young and small, such as calves and sheep, than in
adult oxen and horses; hi.-, they do not occur the less on that ac-
count, and must, therefore, occasion errors of the same description.
What, then, shall we say ot" those small variations in the weight in
a ewe or a ram, amounting perhaps to 1^ or 2 lbs., ascertained in
the course of an experiment carried over two or three days, though
conducted with the most scrupulous attention to accuracy in the
world ? That they may very possibly have been purely accidental.
The first in every series of experiments on the maintenance of
animals, ought in fact to have it in view to ascertain the amount of
accidental variation in the weight of the creatures which are their
subjects ; as this variation is now on this side now on that, there is
an obvious advantage in having a certain number upon trial at a
time ; any error that occurs will thus be more apt to be corrected ;
and the results may be held more worthy of confidence in propor-
tion as the numbers have been large from which they have been de-
duced Another cause of error, which I had occasion to discover
in the course of my experiments, appears to be connected with the
weight of the allowance. Equal in nutritious value, difl^erent allow-
ances may still have very diflferent weights ; it is obvious, that a ra-
tion of hay and corn will weigh much less than its equivalent in
roots, tubers, or green meat. Animals that have been kept for some
time upon a dry diet, if put on one that is very bulky and watery,
will immediately increase very considerably in weight ; and their
increase is both so sudden and so great, that it is impossible to as-
cribe it to augmented nutrition, to liesh and fat laid on. The ani-
mals are simply distended, their paunch and bowels are filled with a
larger quantity of food than they were before ; and the state of dis-
tension continues, though it suffers accidental variations, so long as
the new course of feeding is persisted in. In opposite circum-
stances, as when animals that have been long upon soft and watery
food, are suddenly put upon hard diet, they always drop very con-
siderably in weight. These sudden changes throw disorder and
contradiction into the conclusions, and puzzled me greatly until I
discovered their cause. It is obvious that no kind of reliance can
be placed upon the conclusions which have been come to from single
weighings made at the end of each particular course of alimentation.
To get at results which shall be worthy of any credit, the animals
that are to be made the subjects of experiment must be fed for sev-
eral days upon the particular ration that is to be approved, in order
to be brought to the state of body which may be said to belong in
particular to each system of dieting, before being weighed ; it is
only when this is attained, indeed, that the experiment can be held
to be properly begun ; and then it is to be continued for a sufficient
length of time to lessen the influence of those accidental variations
of weight, of which I have spoken so particularly. It is perhaps
oeedless to observe, that any increase in weight and the maintenance
of that increase, are not always of themselves sufficient signs for
affirmmg that the course then followed is superior or equal to tbe

MAINTENANCE OF ANIMALS. 399

one which preceded it. Various other circumstances of divers char-
acter must be taken into the reckoning, and in particular the state
of the animals. It is very necessary to have an eye to the state of
the coat, to the spirit or liveliness of the animal, to the nature of the
dejections, the size of the belly, the disposition of draught animals
for their w^ork, the quantity of milk given by milch-kine, &c. Nev-
ertheless, and as a general proposition, it may be said that a station-
ary condition, or a slight increase of weight, is almost always in
favor of the course along with which it is gained or maintained,
while any loss is almost always an indication of an inadequate al-
lowance or of deficient nutritive qualities in the ration, taken in con-
nection with the work required or the milk obtained.

The experiments which I am about to detail were undertaken to
determine the nutritive value of a variety of forages associated with
the ordinary articles in keeping the horse. The great dearth of for-
age that was felt in Alsace, in consequence of the extraordinary
droughts of 1840, led us to feel the full importance of researches in
this direction ; for then we were compelled to replace by potatoes a
very large proportion of the hay usually consumed in the stable.
And, indeed, by assuming the theoretical equivalent as the basis of
this substitution, I found that I saved money by the course, at the
same time that the health and strength of my draught cattle were
maintained unimpaired. Still, as every quesvion that bears upon the
keep of the animals attached to a farm is too important to be left to
the decision of theory alone, I thought it imperative on me to con-
trol the inferences of chemical analysis by the results of experience.

The best food for horses has long been admitted to be hay and
oats in combination ; neither article alone would have the same
happy effect that the two together produce. A ration of hay alone
would be too bulky ; one of oats alone would not be bulky enough.
But the horse is not particular in his food. Barley in southern
countries replaces oats, and answers equally well. I have my-
self kept horses and mules for long periods of time on maize and
the tops of sugar canes exclusively ; and on the elevated table-
lands of the Andes, and in the steppes of South America, the
horses, though they do much hard work, are kept wholly on green
meat. Much of course depends on the way in which the animal
has been brought up.

In the circumstances in which we are generally placed in this
country, I do not imagine that there would be any actual advantage
in replacing the ordinary food of our horses by roots and tubers ; I
doubt even whether the substitution would have good effects. I
know, indeed, that horses have been kept through the winter upon
potatoes and mangel-wurzel ; but it is a different matter to feed an
animal and keep him standing quiet in the stable without work, and
to feed him at the same time that a certain quantity of labor is re-
quired of him every day. A horse in full work would scarcely get
through the bulky ration, which should consist of beet»root alone ;
his meal-times are restricted ; if he has certain hours for his work,

has he certain hours for his breakfast, dinner, and supper also.

400 MAINTENANCE OF ANIMALS.

This is one reason why carriers' horses and pi'St-horses, horses, in
a word, which have long and severe work to perform, receive the
larger portion of their allowance in corn. The inconveniences of
bulky rations are much less felt in the cov/-house than in the stable ;
not to speak of their particular organization, which actually enables
them to take in a much larger quantity of food than the horse, the
steer and the cow have always a longer time allowed them for their
meals than are regularly given to the horse.

The experience of nearly a whole year having satisfied me that a
cart-horse may have half his ration in roots or tubers, I set out from
this fact in the experiments which I instituted.

EXPERIMENTS ON THE MAINTENANCE OF HORSES WITH MIXED FOOD.

The usual allowance to a horse at Bechelbronn for the twenty-
four hours consists of :

Hay . . 22 lbs.

Straw . . . 5J

Oats . . . . 7i

With this ration the teams are kept in excellent condition. Two
teams were selected as subjects of experiment, each consisting of
four horses ; these I shall distinguish by the titles. Team No. 1
and Team No. 2. Each remained under the care of the same ser-
vant throughout. Team No. 1 was composed of:

Braun, a mare, 7 years old.

Schimmel, a horse, 7 "

Hans, do., 16 «

Gaty, do., 8 "

Team No. 2 was composed of :

Old Fox, a mare, 16 years old,

Braun, do., 5 "

Nickel, do., 14 "

Hengst, a horse, 5 "

EXPERIMENT I.

One half the allowance of hay was replaced by potatoes lightly
steamed ; 280 of the tubers being assumed, according to theory, as
equivalent to 100 of hay. The ration, therefore, consisted of:

Hay . . . .11 lbs.

Straw . . . 5i

Oats . . . . 7j

Potatoes . . . 30 8-10

The potatoes were broken down and mixed with chopped straw,
and never put into the mangers until cold.

From accidental circumstances, particularly bad weather during
the course of the autumnal labors, the teams were exposed to very
hard work, an event which of course throws uncertainty over the
results of this trial. After having been upon the course of food in-

MAINi-ENANCE OF ANIMALS. 401

dicated for a few days, the teams were weighed once, and again
after an interval of twenty-four hours :

Team No. 1. No. 2. Both teams. Mean per horse.

First weighing 4617.8 4461 9079.4 1134.9

Second weighing 4554.0 4334 8888.0 1111.0

In 24 hours loss 63.8 127 191.4 23.9

The loss experienced here authorized me to conclude, that the al-
lowance under the circumstances was not sufficient. The 30.8 lbs.
of steamed potatoes could not have adequately replaced the 11 lbs.
of hay ; it would have been highly interesting to have ascertained
how horses kept on the standard and usual allowance would have
stood the same amount of fatigue. Unfortunately this comparison
could not be made, all the horses in the stable having been put on
the potato regimen at the same time. There is this much to be said
for the particular course tried, however, that the animals did their
work with great spirit, and continued in excellent health.

EXPERIMENT II.

INTRODUCTION OF JERUSALEM f OTATOES INTO THE RATION.

Jerusalem potatoes are held excellent food for the horse ; they are
eaten greedily, and he thrives on them. In this second experiment,
30/oths lbs. of Jerusalems cut into slices were substituted for 11
lbs. of hay, the same theoretical equivalents being assumed for them
as for the common potato. The ration now consisted of:

Hay .... 11 lbs.

Straw . .■ . 5i

Oats . . . . 7j

Jerusalem potatoes . 30.8

Having been accustomed to this regimen for some days, the
teams were weighed, and having gone on for eleven days they were
weighed again :

Team No. 1. No. 2. Both teams. Means per horse.

First weighing 4556 3245 8901 1112.7

Second weighing 4611 3412 8923 1113.6

In 11 days gain 55 loss 33 gain 22 gain 0.9

A result which leads to the conclusion, that the equivalent as-
sumed for the Jerusalem potato was correct ; the animals had done
their work, and gained, one with another, f^ths of a pound in
weight.

EXPERIMENT III.

RATION OF HAY AND POTATOES.

Eleven pounds of hay, in the usual allowance, were replaced by
30.8 lbs. of potatoes ; the whole of the oats and straw, by 15.4 lbs
of hay. These substitutions were made upon the supposition, that
100 of hay was equivalent to 280 of potatoes, to 50 of oats, and to
630 of straw. The ration, then, was composed as follows :

Hay 26.6 lb*.

Potatoes 30.8 "

34*

402 MAINTENANCE OF ANIMALS.

This was a ration which it was the more interesting to try, from
the circumstance of Professor Liebig* having come to the conclu-
sion, from certain theoretical views, that it must be impossible to
keep horses in health and strength upon hay and potatoes exclusively.
The experiment was continued for a fortnight :

Team of No. 1. No. f. Both teams. Mean weight per hone.

First weighing 4620 4312 8932 1116.5

Second weighing 4675 4697 9372 1171.5

In 14 days gain 55 385 440 55.0

In one fortnight, consequently, the weight of eight horses had in-
creased by an aggregate sum of 440 lbs., or 55 lbs. per head — an
increase at the rate of, as nearly as possible, 3.9, say 4 lbs. per diem ;
and allowing the greatest latitude for error, it seems that we cannot
estimate the increase per head at less than 1.76, say If lbs. per
diem. The condition of the horses was most satisfactory ; the de-
jections were healthy in appearance ; the only inconvenience ob-
served was, the considerable bulk of the allowance, and the addi-
tional time which had to be given the teams to their meals. This
inconvenience was particularl}^ obvious in the case of the older
horses. Besides the two experimental lots, other twelve horses
were put upon the same regimen, and with the same good effects.
The equivalents adopted in the composition of the ration, in this
third experiment, may therefore be regarded with perfect confidence
as suitable. Experience, indeed, would rather lead us to conclude,
that the nutritive power of the potato had been estimated at some-
what too low a rate.

EXPERIMENT IV.

SUBSTITUTION OF OATS AND STRAW FOR A PORTION OF THE HAY.

The ration here consisted of:

Hay 11 lbs.

Straw 11 "

Oats 12.1 "

The horses, having been two days on this diet, were weighed.
The experiment was continued for eleven days :

Team No. 1. No. S. Both teams. Arera^ per hone

First weighing 4584.8 4348.3 8933.1 1116.7

Second weighing 4593.6 4352.7 8946.3 lllSi!

In 11 days gain 8.8 4.4 13.2 1.5

Under this regimen, consequently, the weight of the teams re-
mained very nearly the same as it was before beginning the experi-
ment ; still there was something gained.

In conducting this experiment, we had an opportunity of observing
how important it is to habituate the animals to their new regimen
before weighing for the first time. Had this precaution been neg-
'ected, the result would hav« come out against the ration, for the
animals were found, when first entered on it, to weigh together as
many as 9372 lbs., and two days afterwards no more than 8933 lbs.,

* Afiictiltaxal chemistry.

MAINTENANCE OF ANIMALS. 40S

which would have indicated a loss of 449 lbs. ; the difference being
due, however, in great part, or entirely, to the less bulky or weighty
food employed.

EXPERIMENT V.

POTATOES SUBSTITUTED FOR A PORTION OP THE HAY.

The ration made use of in the first experiment looks so well, in
reference to economy of hay, and, indeed, answered so well under
the peculiar circumstances in whi^ch it was tried, that I thought it
would be advisable to try it again when the horses were doing ordi-
nary work. The ration consisted of:

Hay 11 Ihs.

Straw.... 5.5 "

Oats 7.23 "

Steamed potatoes 30.8 "

The first weighing took place after the horses had been over a
week on the ration, and the experiment was continued for 63 days.
In team No. 1, Braun, from indisposition, had been replaced by
Rapp, a horse nine years old, and weighing 1157 lbs. :

Team No. I.
.... 4425

No. 2.
4362
4428

Bott teams.
8348
8929

Averag^e weight per hone.

Second weighing..

.... 4501

1116.2

In 63 days gain 76 66 81 10.1

In the course of two months, consequently, on a ration in which
11 lbs. of hay were replaced by 30.8 lbs. o.^ dressed potatoes, the
weight of the horses may be said to have been more than main-
tained. This experiment seems to show satisfactorily, that the
equivalent of the potato cannot be far from the number 280.

EXPERIMENT VI.

JERUSALEM POTATO FOR A PORTION OF THE HAY.

The horses were brought back to the same conditions as in the
second experiment, 30.8 lbs. of Jerusalem.^ being substituted for
11 lbs. of hay. The team No. 2 was alone subjected to this experi-
ment, being kept on it for 16 days, and first weighed after having
had it for some time :

First weighing No. 2. 4395 lbs. Average weight per horse 1098.9

Second weighing.. " 4396.7 " " " 1099.1

Iniedays gain 1.7 0.2

This result confirms that which was elicited by the second ex-
periment.

EXPERIMENT VH.

INTRODUCTION OF FIELD-BEET, OR MANGEL-WURZEL, INTO THE
RATION.

Horses readily get accustomed to field-beet. The root is sliced,
and mixed with chaff, (cut straw.) For 11 lbs. of hay, which I re-
trenched, I allowed 44 lbs. of beet ; i. e. I took 400 as the equiva-
lent numbei of ^.he root. The ration consisted as under:

404 MAINTENANCE OF ANIMALS.

Hay 11 lbs.

Straw 5.5 "

Oats 7.2 "

Beet, 44.0 "

A horse, after having: been kept on this diet for some time, wai
weighed ; and the regimen having been continued for a fortnight, he
was weighed again :

First weighing 1014.0 lbs.

Second weighing 1023.0 "

In a fortnight gain 9.4

This horse was all the while doing rather hard but very regular
work ; for eight hours every day he was in the shafts of a grinding
mill. He did not alter in condition ; the dejections were healthy.

During the winter of 1841-2, our cows ate a considerable propor-
tion of our beet ; and, as a substitute for the 33 lbs. of meadow-hay,
which is their usual allowance, we gave 72| lbs. of beet. The ration
then stood thus :

Hay 22 lbs.

Beet 72.6 "

Straw 4.4 "

Upon this regimen, the weight of the inmates of one of our stables
i»as:

On the 29th January 24615 lbs.

On the 21st April 26488

Increase due to births and to growth 1837

It thus appears that, in foddering kine, the quantity of beet allow-
ed with advantage may be large ; but it is also obvious, that the
nutritive value of the root is not great. At Bechelbronn, at all
events, we found it requisite to replace 9 or 10 of hay by 40 of root.
Our beet, it is true, contains but 12 per cent, of dry matter ; in other
places, where the proportion of dry substance to the water is larger,
it is possible that a smaller proportion would be found to answer the
end.

EXPERIMENT VIII.

INTRODUCTION OF THE SWEDISH TURNIP INTO THE RATION AND
REPLACING A PORTION OF THE HAY.

Swedish turnip, combined with some dry forage, answers excel-
lently with the horse. Analysis, indicating 280 as the equivalent
of this article, two horses were put upon the following ration, in
which 11 lbs. of the usual allowance of hay were replaced by Swe-
dish turnip :

Hay nibs.

Straw 5.5

Oats 7.2

Swedes.... 30.8

It was obvious before the lapse of but a few days, that the horses
were falling off upon this regimen, that they were not fed ; and on
weighing them, this plainly appeared :

First weighing 2283,6 Aver, of each horse 1141,8

Second weighing, 9 diys afterwards 2178,0 " 1089,0

LotslnQdays .105.6 SZ.i

MAINTENANCE OF ANIMALS. 405

The equivalent for the Swedish turnip adopted, had therefore been
too high ; the allowance was not sufficient. This led me to analyze
the article again ; and I discovered that the true equivalent of the
sample with which I was operating, was at least 676, and not 280
as 1 had presumed before. Indeed, in another experiment with the
same pair of horses where the equivalent of Swedish turnip was as-
sumed at 400, I found that though the animals kept up their weight
at the point to which it had fallen, they gained nothing ; whence it
may be safely inferred that the No. 400 was still too low, and that
the new equivalent 676 is nearer the truth.
EXPERIMENT IX.

INTRODUCTION OF CARROTS INTO THE RATION.

Horses are extremely fond of carrots ; and there is no root per-
haps, the nutritious qualities of which have been more vaunted or
exaggerated. Yet, analysis appears to indicate that 350 of carrot
are required to replace 100 of good meadow-hay. On one occasion,
in the stable at Bechelbronn, when the potato in one of our rations
was replaced by an equal weight of carrots, the eifect was highly
disadvantageous ; and even in following the theoretical equivalent
of the carrot (350) we had still no reason to be perfectly satisfied.
I now believe, in fact, that as many as 400 of carrots may be found
requisite to replace 100 of good meadow-hay.

The carrot crop of 1841 having been a failure, I had to limit my-
self to observations made on a single horse, which was put upon a
ration in which 11 lbs. of hay were replaced by 38.5 lbs. of carrots
The horse, habituated to this diet,

Weighed. 1025.2 lbs.

A fortnight after 1014,2

Loss in a fortnight 11.0

Nevertheless he remained in good condition, so that the equivalent
350 is probably not far from the truth. I ought to say, however,
that the men think this number too low ; an opinion in which they
would be borne out, could we but be certain that the loss of weight
of the horse just indicated was not accidental.
EXPERIMENT X.

BOILED RYE AS A SUBSTITUTE FOR OATS.

It has been stated, that rye boiled till the grain bursts may be
used as a substitute for an equal bulk of oats in the keep of a horse.
The experiment which I made on the point is very far from bearing
out any thing of the kind. By preliminary trials I had ascertained
that rye of good quality swells to twice its former bulk by boiling.

The two horses that were made the subjects of experiment now,
had been kept for some time on a ration formed of :

Hay 2.2 lbs.

Oats 5.5 =8.8 pints.

For the oats, the same quantity by measure, 8.8 pints of boiled
rye were substituted, containing 4.4 pints of raw grain, weighing
4.15 lbs. On the Uth day it was deemed prudent to interrupt the
experinient, of which the following are the results :

406 MAINTENANCE OF ANIMALS.

First weighing : Both horses 2010 lbs. Average of each 10045

Second " " 1927 " 963.0

Loss in 11 days 83 41.5

In fact, with such a ration as this, in which water was made to
replace solid corn, no other result could reasonably be expected.
In continuing it, the health of the horses would very certainly have
soon been seriously compromised. There is no objection to rye in
Itself as an element in the food of a horse ; but then it must be sub-
stituted in the quantity indicated by the table of equivalents, by
adopting which, Mr. Dailly found that he could keep the post-horses
of Paris in good heart, at a time when the difference between the
price of oats and rye made it advantageous to substitute the latter
for the for.rier. The experiments of Mr. Dailly on the subject were
so decisive and so ably conducted, that I felt myself relieved from
the necessity of inquiring further into it myself.

From these experiments, the particulars of which have now been
given, it may be conc'uded that the nutritive equivalents of the po-
tato, beet, Jerusalem potato, and carrot, as they come out upon ana-
lysis, or as they are inferred from the amount of azote they contain,
may be adopted without detriment to the health of horses. If they
err at all, it is that they assign equivalents somewhat too high,
which is the same ay saying that their actual nutritive power is
rather less than these numbers give it ; so that a portion of the hay
of the standard ration being substituted for its equivalent of tuber or
root, the diet will be improved.

Thus, 100 of good meadow-hay may be taken, as ascertained by
experiment, to be equivalent to :

280 potatcjs — ^by analysis, equal to 315

280 Jenisaiems 311

400 beet 548

400 Swede (too little) 676

400 carrot 382

In the following table of nutritive equivalents, to the numbers as-
signed by the theory, I have added those of the whole which I find
in the entire Heries of observations that have come to my knowledge.
I have also given the standard quantity of water, and the quantity of
azote, contained in each species of food. When the theoretical
equivalents do not differ too widely from those supplied by direct
observation, I believe that they ought to be preferred. The details
of my experiments, and the precautions needful in entering on and
carrying them through, must have satisfied every one of the difficul-
ties attending their conduct ; yet all allow how little these have been
attentively contemplated, and what slender measures of precaution
against error have been taken. Our equivalent for field-beet is 400,
a number come to by introducing 44 lbs. of the root into the ration,
in lieu of 11 lbs. of hay ; had we introduced 56 lbs., the equivalent
number would have come out 500 ; and it is questionable whether
the final result would have been aflfected by this substitution. In
my o'pinion, direct observation or experiment is indispensable, but
mainly, solely as a means of checking within rather wide limits tljp
w?'}!^? of cheiflicjl analysi?,

MAINTENANCE OF ANIMALS.

407

Ordinary natural meadow-hay .
Ditto, of fine quality ....

Ditto, select

Ditto, freed from woody stems .

Lucern hay

Red clover.hay, 2d year's growth
Red clover cut in flower, green, ditto
New wheat-straw, crop 1841

Old wheat-straw

Ditto, ditto, lower parts of the stalk .
Ditto, ditto, upper part of ditto and ear

New rye-straw

Old ditto

Oat-straw

Barley ditto

Pea ditto

Millet ditto

Buckwheat ditto ....

Lentil ditto

Vetches cut in flower and dried into hay

Potato tops

Field-beet leaves

Carrot ditto

Jerusalem potato stems . .
Lime-tree young shoots
Canada-poplar ditto ....

Oak ditto

Acacia ditto (autumn)

Drum cabbage

Swedish turnip

Turnip

Field-beet (1838)

Ditto, white Silesian

Carrots

Jerusalem potatoes (18^) .

Ditto C1836)

Standard water
per cent.

Azote per cent.

PPPPPPPP®.O.«.^.®P.®.®.^.-'PP.«P®P.OrP.<='PpH-WJ06S>-M.

Azote per cent.

in the article

not dried.

^im^mB^BB^BBmn^m^mm^m^B^^^^^^

Theory.

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408

MAINTENANCE OF ANIMALS.

Potatoes (1838) .
Ditto (1836) .
Ditto after keeping
Cider apple pulpdr
Beet-ro(jt magma f
Vetciies in seed
Field beans
Whire peas (dry)
White haricots
I^entils .
New maize .
Buckwheat .
Barley (1836)
Barley-meal
Ditto

Oats (1838) . .
Ditto (1836) .
Ditto (Parisian) .
Rye (1836) . .

Ditto (1838)

Ditto from highly n

Recent bran .

Wheat husks or ch
Rice (Piedmont)
Gold of pleasure se
Ditto, cake .
Linseed cake .
Calza ditto .
Madia ditto .
Hemp ditto
Poppy ditto
Nut ditto
Beech mast ditto
Arachis (:•>) ditto
Dry acorns
Refuse of the wine

H

H

^

i".".'.:::

in the pit
ied in the air
rem the sugar

aanured soil

aff. .
8d (Madia)

8. 3

Standard water
per cent-

Azote per cent.

.^pooeocnw4^o*.p.w.wrptar!*?o!*r«!*t-t-rrt-wr?=r'^'^ws"s«^ppppf

s

n

<3

s

Azote per cent.

ffifeSSSI2S2SBgKe£2^ig8RfcfeSg;Sgt3S8S22:gJS;Sgg?Kesii^Kl

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Boussingault.

MAINTErrANCE OF ANIMALS. 409

To complete the preceding ample table, I shall still add the equiv-
alents of a few articles of forage that have not yet been examined
chemically.

100 of meadow-hay are replaced by :

From 85 to 90 of sainfoin hay, accor«iing \o Petri and Meyer.

By 90 of spurry hay " Petri.

325 to 500 of green spurry " Pabst and Flottow

42 to 50 of chestnuts " Block and Petri.

By 50 of Indian chestnuts " Petri.

62 of turnsole seeds " Petri.

109 of rye-bran " Bloclt.

In the list of substances there are some which are used almost
exclusively for the food of man, and I have thought it not uninter-
esting to contrast these different articles with reference particularly
to the quantity of azote they contain. I have composed the follow-
ing table or list of equivalents on this basis; ha\ing assumed wheat-
en flour as the standard and called it 100. As all herbs, roots,
leaves, &c., may be pulverized after drying, I hare spoken of these
articles dry under the name of meal.

Wheat flour (good quality) ... 100 White-heart cabl a ge 810

Wheat 107 Cabbage meal 83

Barley-meal 119 Potatoes 613

Barley 130 Potato meal 126

Rye Ill Carrots 757

Buckwheat 108 Carrotmeal 95

Maize 138 Turnips 1335

Yellow peas 67 Mealy bananas (Ficns Indica) 700

Horse-beans 44 Manihot (casava plart) 700

White French beans 56 Name "? (discorea saliva) 300

Rice 171 Apiol (arracacha) . 1050

Lentils 57

Judging from the equivalents, leguminous vegetables must be pos-
sessed of a much higher nutritive value than wheat ; and it is known,
indeed, that haricots, peas, and beans, form in some sort substitutes
for animal food. The difference indicated is so great, however, that
it may surprise those who have never thought of the subject that
engages us. In a general way we are all perhaps disposed to re-
gard the articles that enter habitually into our food as highly nutri-
tious. The fact, however, is, that tubers, roots, and even the seeds
of the cereal grasses are but very moderately nutritious. If we see
herbivorous animals getting fat upon such things, it is only because
their organization enables them to consume them in large quantities.
i doubt very much whether a man doing hard work could support
himself on bread exclusively. I am aware that countries are quoted
where the potato and where rice form the sole articles of food of
the inhabitants ; but I believe also that these instances are incom-
plete. In Alsace, for example, the peasantry always associate their
potato diet with a large quantity of sour or curdled milk ; in Ireland
with buttermilk. The Indians of the Upper Andes do not by any
means live on potatoes alone, as some travellers have said they do ;
at Quito, the daily food of the inhabitants is lorco, a compound of
potatoes, and a large quantity of cheese. Rice is often cited as one
of the most nourishing articles of diet ; I am satisfied, however, af-
ter having lived long in countries where rice is largely consumed,

35

110 INORGANIC ELEMENTS OF FOOD.

that it is any thing but a substantial, or, for its bulk, nutritious arti-
cle of sustenance. This is an important question, inasmuch as in
some departments of the public service rice is sometimes served
out as a substitute for other articles of diet. In the French navy,
for example, 60 grammes, or about 20 dvi^ts. of rice may be substi-
tuted for 60 dwts. of split peas or haricots ; but I cannot hold such
a substitution to be either fair or reasonable. At a period when I
had myself the charge of the rations for a detachment of men, I
found that the experience of the country where I was, assigned 3
lbs. of rice as the equivalent of 1 lb. of haricot beans ; and analysis
confirms this practical conclusion.

Haricots, in fact, contain about 0.046 of azote ; rice no more than
0.014. And if the nutritious properties be really in proportion to
the amount of azote, it is obvious that 3| of rice will be required in
lieu of 1 of the leguminous seed.

We hear it constantly repeated that rice is the sole nutriment of
the nations of the whole of India. But the fact would appear not
to be precisely so ; and I may here quote M. Lequerri, who, during
a long residence in India, paid particular attention to the manners
and customs of the inhabitants of Pondicherri. " The food," says
M. L., " is almost entirely vegetable, and rice is the staple ; the infe-
rior castes only ever eat meat. But all eat kari, an article prepared
with meat, fish, or vegetables, which is mixed with the rice boiled
in very little water. It is requisite to have seen the Indians at their
meals to have any idea of the enormous quantity of rice they will
put into their stomachs. No European could cram so much at a
time ; and they very commonly allow that rice alone will not nour-
ish them. They very generally still eat a quantity of bread."*

^ II. OF THE INORGANIC CONSTITUENTS OF FOOD.

We discover in the bodies of animals the several mineral sub-
stances, the existence of which we have ascertained in vegetables.
The bones, as we have seen, contain a large quantity of phosphate
of lime ; it is requisite therefore that the elements of this salt, phos-
phoric acid and lime, should form part of the ration or diet-roll ; this
is a point upon which all physiologists are agreed ; but the point
upon which there is nothing like uniformity yet attained h«.s refer-
ence to the precise quantity of mineral matter which must enter into
the constitution of the food. The analyses of ashes which I have given
show that if vegetable aliments all contain nearly the same inorganic
principles, they still contain them in very different proportions : thus
potatoes, wheat, oats, and beans, contain much less lime than clover,
straw, and peas. The phosphoric and sulphuric acids and the alka-
lies do not vary less ; so that we are led to ask whether a ration
compounded of such and such an article, or of such and such arti-
cles, will furnish the animals to which it is supplied with the neces-

* The Irish peasantry, who live so much on potatoes, have buttermilk with them
at least, often salt herring ; and a laboring man, it is said, will consume Ji or 14 Iba
per diem !— £ho. Eik

INORGANIC ELEMENTS OF FOOD. 411

sary dose of inorganic principles, which must be assimilated daily,
and which is quite indispensable to maintain them in health and
vigor.

It is easy to arrive at a knowledge of the mineral principles which
are necessary as elements of the diet, by ascertaining their quantity
in the ration, which long experience has shown to be sufficient. Yet
as there is reason to believe that in many cases mineral substances
are present in excess, I have thought that it might be useful to de-
teimine by means of analysis the nature and the proportion of the
inorganic elements which are actually assimilated by .an individual,
in order to have a minimum which might serve as a basis for any
reasonings or inferences on the subject. My experiments were per-
formed in two opposite circumstances in which I regard assimilation
as most rapid and most complete : videlicit, a calf in full growth,
and a milch-cow in calf

The calf was six months old, and weighed 369 lbs. Some days

before being made the subject of experiment it was fed with hay.

During the two days when it had this fodder ad libitum, it ate 19 lbs.

In the course of the 1st day the calf passed 21.49 lbs. of excrements.
2d day " 20.39 " "

41.88

Which, dried, was reduced to 7.41 lbs.

In the course of the two days 5.584 lbs. of urine were collected,
which, evaporated, yielded 2933.2 grains of extract, the animal hav-
ing in the same interval drunk 45.7 pints of water.

Analysis discovered in 100 :

Of the hay Azote 1.6 Ashes 7.6

Of the dry excrements "2.1 " 12.7

Of the urinous extract " 4.0 " 40.0

Now if we inquire from these data in regard to the quantity o'
azote and of mineral matters which were assumed with the food in
the course of two days, we have :

half-drachms. half-drachmi.

In the food, discarding fractions, Azote 69 Mineral substances 328
In the excrements " "50.5 " 214

In the urine " " 3-8 " 38

Together 54.3 252

Therefore, azote fixed or exhaled in 2 days 14-7 half-drachms.
Mineral substances fixed in 2 days 76 "

The composition of the ashes obtained from the hay and from the
excrements, shows us approximatively both the quantity and the
nature of the several inorganic substances which had been assimi-
lated The composition of these ashes is as follows :

Of the bay. Of the excrements. Of the urine.

(Carbonic 9.0 2.0 17.3

Acids < Phosphoric 5.3 5.1 0.2

(Sulphuric 2.4 2.3 7.0

Chlorine 2.3 1.9 9.9

Lime 20.4 16.0 0.9

Magnesia 6.0 6.5 6.0

Potash and soda 17.3 12.5 57.3

Oxide of iron, alumina 1.5 1.0 "

Wlesia 33.7 51.0 1.9

LoM 2.1 1.7

100.0 100.0 IjOOuO

412 INORGANIC ELE3IENTS OF FOOD.

if the hay consumed contained 328 half-drachms of ash or mineral
matter, the excrements and urine 252 half-drachms of the same
matters ; the difference between the two sums, 76 half-drachms,*
is the quantity of mineral matter fixed in the course of two days, of
which 200.6 grains were phosphoric acid, and 494.0 grains were
lime. This quantity of lime, however, is more than four times as
much as is necessary to constitute a subphosphate of lime such as
exists in the bones. It is true, indeed, that there is always a quan-
tity of carbonate of lime associated with the subphosphate in bones ;
10 of carbonate for 38 of phosphate, according to Fourcroy and
Vauquelin, in those of the ox. Still the quantity of lime assimilated
was vastly more than it ought to have been, had it only gone to assist
in the formation of bone. If there was no error in the observations,
it is probable that the base in question enters into the constitution of
the salts with organic acids which are encountered in all parts of
the animal body.

By a series of weighings, I ascertained that my calf, fed simply
upon hay, increased every day by a quantity equal to 9725.9 grains
troy, in which were included 858.35 grains of mineral substances,
the calcareous phosphate and carbonate of the bones in this quan-
tity being represented by 262.4 grains, or nearly 3 per cent, of the
entire weight acquired in the course of twenty-four hours. '

In the experiment with the milch-cow in calf, I limited my inqui-
ries to the phosphoric acid and the lime taken in and given out.
The animal, four years old, was '2^ months gone with calf, and
weighed 1452.6 lbs. She had the same allowance during the expe
riment as she had had for several days before, and which for twenty
four hours consisted of —

Ha3- 16.5 lbs.

Cut wheat-straw. ••• 9.9
Beet 59.4

The experiment was continued for four days, during which tho
excrements, the urine, and the milk, were carefully collected and
weighed, and the ashes, both of the food consumed and of the pro-
ducts rendered, were determined by chemical analysis. Suffice it to
say, that, representing the quantity of mineral matters assumed into
the body in the course of the experiment by 849.9 half-drachms, the
quantity voided amounted to no more than 556 half-drachms. In the
quantity assumed, there were 100.2 half-drachmsof phosphoric acid,
and 203.8 half-drachms of lime ; in the quantity voided, there were
but 68.2 half-drachms of phosphoric acid, and 116.8 half-drachms
of lime : this is at the rate of about 8 half-drachms of phosphoric
acid, and 22 half-drachms of lime assimilated in the course of twenty-
four hours. Here, as in the case of the calf, the quantity of lime
assimilated is greatly superior to what it ought to be, in order, by
combining with the phosphoric acid, to constitute the phosphate of
lime of the bones.

From these inquiries into the nutrition of a calf and of a cow in

• The szact quantity is 2392.8.grain8 troy.— Ema. E».

INOBGANIC ELEMENTS OF FOOD. 413

calf, it follows that tnere is a portion of the mineral substance taker
in with the food, which remains definitively fixed to concur in the
growth or in the evolution of the individual. In an adult animal it
is to be presumed that no such definitive fixation of inorganic prin-
ciples takes place, or that it is much less considerable ; that in the
dejections and several secretions ought to be found the whole of the
phosphoric acid, of the lime, &c., taken in with the food. And this
presumption is confirmed by experience ; for on instituting an inquiry
into the matter upon a horse, it was found that the mineral matters
assumed were almost exactly balanced by those discharged. Never-
theless, and granting this to be quite true, which it is, it would be a
grave mistake to suppose that an adult animal could go on for even
a very short period of time upon food that contained no mineral
matter. Precisely as in the case of organic matter, it appears that
a portion of inorganic matter is also fixed in the living frame, where
for a time it forms an integral element in the wonderful structure ;
and a supply of the latter kind is undoubtedly no less necessary than
is the supply of the former description recognised by all the world.
Were there an inadequate quantity of phosphoric acid, of lime, &c.,
in the food, no question but that the body would speedily feel the
effects of the deficiency, and that disease and death would by and by
put an end to life. So much, indeed, seems demonstrated by thi>
very interesting experiments of M. Chossat, in which he kept
granivorous animals upon a diet rich in azotized principles and in
starch, but deficient in lime. From some previous inquiries, M.
Chossat had observed that pigeons even require to add a certain
proportion of lime to their ordinary food, the quantity naturally con-
tained in which does not suffice them. Wheat, as we have seen,
though it contains a large proportion of phosphate of magnesia, con-
tains very little phosphate of lime ; and pigeons put on this grain,
though they do perfectly well at first, and even get fat, begin by and
by to fall oflf. In from two to three months, the birds appeared to
suffer from constant thirst ; they drank frequently ; the fceces be-
came soft and liquid, and the flesh wasted, and in from eight to ten
months the creatures died under the effects of a diarrhoea, which
M. Chossat attributed to deficiency of the calcareous element in the
food. And it is neither uninteresting nor unimportant to observe,
that the same thing occasionally occurs in the human subject during
the period when the process of ossification is usually most active.
But one of the most remarkable features of M. Chossat's experi-
ments was observed in the state of the bones of the pigeons ; they
became so thin and weak that they broke during the life of the birds
with the slightest force.* The conclusion from this fact is obvious.
Supplies of all the elements of all the parts of the body are indispen-
sable to the maintenance of health, to the continuance of life.

A pigeon will eat about 463.140 grains of wheat per diem, con-
taining 9.725 grains of ash, in which analysis discovers 4.569 grains
of phosphoric acid, and 0.277 of a grain of lime. But this smaU

* Chossat, in Comptes Rendiis, t. xiv., p, 451.
35*

414 INORGANIC ELEMENTS OF FOOD.

quantity of lime is incompetent to maintain the bones in their stan-
dard condition. I have thought it of moment to insist upon these
facts, because I see that they may sometimes come into play in practi-
cal rural economy. No breeder or feeder ought to be ignorant of
the influence of mineral substances on nutrition. It is not only indis-
oensable that the allowance of an animal in full growth be sufficient
to support, and even to add to the soft textures ; it must further con-
tain the elements requisite for the nutrition of the osseous system :
and it is not impossible but that, in managing the feeding of young
cattle or young horses in such a way as to reduce to a minimum, or
to give in excess, certain of the inorganic elements of the food, we
may succeed in impressing one character or another upon a race.
It is even possible that the empirical rules which are acted upon
with a view to increase or diminish the quantity of bone, the weight
of flesh or of fat, &c., are all connected with various proportions
of phosphoric acid, of lime, magnesia, &c., in the food. It will
probably be discovered, some day, that Bakewell's art is to be ex-
plained through the composition of the ashes of the food.

Wheat is not the only alimentary matter that contains an insuf-
ficient quantity of lime ; maize or Indian corn contains still less .
and if that which is grown in the tropics contains as little as that
which is produced in Europe, it would be difficult to explain how
the grain should answer so well as it unquestionably does for food.*
It is true that it is seldom or never consumed alone and without
addition ; and in South America, where the animals have it largely,
I have observed that they frequently eat earth. The habit which
certain tribes of the natives have of eating earth, too, which has
been particularly remarked upon by travellers and missionaries as an
instance of depravation of taste, presents itself to me in quite another
light, since 1 became acquainted with the composition of the ashes
of the ordinary article of diet in the countries where it occurs.f

The calcareous and other salts necessary to nutrition, how-
ever, are not derived from the food exclusively ; the water that is
generally consumed contains a quantity which is by no means to be
neglected. A horse or a cow, for instance, which drinks from 15
to 45 quarts of water per diem, will even, if the water be as pure as
that of the Artesian well of Grenelle, take in from 35 to 108 grains
of saline matter in which carbonate of lime predominates ; water that
is less free from saline impregnation would of course introduce a
much larger proportion ; some waters in the quantities above speci-
fied will contain from 138 to upwards of 400 grains of saline matter,
one half of which may be carbonate of lime. And I am here speak-
ing of clear or filtered water ; that which is muddy or turbid con-
tains a still larger quantity of earthy matter in suspension than in
solution. In an experiment made for the purpose of getting at the
amount of earthy matter taken by a milch-cow from the watering-

♦ An ash of maize, analyzed in my laboratory by M. LetelJier, contained bat 1.3 pel
•ent. of lime to 50.1 of phosphoric acid and 17.0 of magnesia.

1 1 several times saw children chastised in Indian villages who h«d been saufk
•ating earth.

INORGANIC ELEMENTS OF FOOD.

415

trough in the course of the day, I found that it amounted to about
770 grains troy.

Notwithstanding these facts, it is still doubtful whether the lime
contained in ordinary well-water would prove sufficient to supply a
growing animal with the material requisite to the formation of its
bones ; in adults, indeed, changes in the elements of the bones ap-
pear to proceed so slowly that a very small quantity of calcareous
matter probably suffices to repair losses ; but it is otherwise with
young and growing animals. I have shown that a calf six months
old receives with its forage a quantity of phosphoric acid which cor-
responds to 555.7 grains of phosphate of lime. A calf a few weeks
old, when it has 17 or 18 pints of milk per diem, receives 802.7
grains of mineral substances, into which subphosphate of lime or
bone earth enters in the proportion ot 370.5 grains. It would be in-
teresting to ascertain what quantities of these substances were as-
similated by so young an animal, and at a period when the growth
is so rapid that the increase from day to day sometimes exceeds 2
pounds.

The importance of the inorganic principles of the food once re-
cognised, it concerns us to take note of their nature and quantity in
the ratio we allow to our domestic animals. It is in fact this con-
sideration which has led me to determine the quantities of phospho-
ric acid and lime contained in the various articles of food the ashes
of which have been analyzed. With these data the proportion of
bone earth contained in a given ration is forthwith perceived.

One thousand parts of the forage gathered at Bechelbronn in its
ordinary state contained :

Forage.

Hay

Potatoes

Beet

Turnip ■

Jerusalem Potato

Wheat

Maize

Oats

Wheat-straw • • • <

Oat-straw

Clover-hay

Peas

Haricots

Mineral *„„,. Phospho- , -^^ Bone

Substance*. ^^°*-^' ric icid. ^"°«' earth.

62.33
9.64
7.70
5.70
12.47
20.51
11.00
31.74
51.90
35.70
73.50
30.00
3500
30.00

11.50

3.70

2.10

1.30

3.75

20.50

16.40

17.87

3.00

300

21.00

38.40

45.80

51.10

3.37
109
0.46
035
1.35
9.64
5.51
4.73
1.61
1.07
4.63
9.03
9.38
10.26

10.04
0.17
0.54
0.62
029
0.60
0.14
1.17
441
2.97

18.08
3.03
2.03
1.53

0.33
0.95
0.72
0.56
1.16
0.27
2.27
3.32
2.21
9.85
5.83
5.94
9.27

We seem here to observe a certain relation between the proportion
of azote ard that of the phosphoric acid contained in the food ; the
most highly azotized are also those that generally contain the largest
quantity of the acid, a circumstance which seems to indicate that in
the vegetable kingdom the phosphates are connected more especially
with the azotized principles, and that they accompany them in pass-
ing into the textures of animals. With the assistance of the above
table it is easy to ascertain the quantity of phosphate of lime which

416

FATTY ELEMENTS OF FOOD, AND ON FAITENING.

enters into a given ration. Let us take that given to the horse? in
experiment 3d, in which the half of the hay was replac-'id by pot\-
4X)es, one of the articles that contains the smallest proportion of liu«*J,
and we find in the

26.6 lbs. of hay 632.9 grs. phosphoric acid and 1867.9 grs. of liire.
30.8 lbs. potatoes 387.7 " 37.0

1020.6

1904.9

numbers which correspond with 1798.5 grains of bone earth, \'
078.7 grains of uncombined lime.

In his usual allowance a work-horse at Bechelbronn receives :

Hay 22 lbs. containing 524.8 grs. phosphoric acid, and 1543.8 grs. of lime.

Straw 5.5 " 60.7

Oats 7.2 " 230.2 "

81.57

In other words, 1735 grains of bone earth, and 864 grains of fret
lime.

I have found that very young foals, growing rapidly, and weigh
ing about 374 lbs., consume per diem :

'-«-« Hay- ■ . • J9.8 lbs. containing of phosphoric acid 463 grs. : lime 1389 grs.
Oats... 75 " " 231 " 58.6

which represent 95 of bone earth or subphosphate of lime. As a
consequence of the relation which appears to exist between the
azote and phosphoric acid of an article of sustenance, it comes to
pass that like nutritive equivalents also indicate like proportions of
phosphoric acid ; so that by introducing a suitable quantity of hay or
clover, articles that abound in lime, into the ration, we are always
certain of having food favorable to the development of the osseous
system, whatever the nature and quality of the other articles that
enter into the constitution of the allowance.

The relation of the phosphoric acid to the azote approaches the
ratio of 3 to 10. in the more ordinary articles of forage ; but the
same relation is no longer apparent in the cereals and leguminous
vegetables ; in grain and in peas, beans, &c., the phosphoric acid
amounts to about a fourth of the azote contained. Thus we have :

Theoretical
equivalent.

100

Hay

Potatoes 320

Beet 548

Turnip 885

Jerusalems 273

Dry clover 75

Wheat-straw... 235

Phosphoric
acid in the
equiralent.

0.34

0.35

0.28

0.31

0.37

0.S4

0.37

Theoretical
equivalent.

Oat-straw 380

Oats 68

Maize 70

Wheat 43

Peas 25

Haricots 27

Beans 23

Phoiphone
acid in the
equivalent.

0.40

0.32

0.38

0.41

0.23

0.25

0.24

^ in. OF THE FATTY CONSTITUENTS OF FORAGE : CONSIDERATIONS ON
FATTENING.

When fat was observed accumulating in the tissues of the animal
body, and it was unknown that the presence of fatty matters in
plants is what may be termed a general fact, men naturally con-
ceived that the fat was produced from the food in the act of dige»

FATTY ELEMENTS OF FOOD, AND ON FATTENING. '117

tion, that it was composed in the animal body much in the same way
as it is formed in the seed and leaf of the living vegetable.

The inquiries which I am about to present, however, all tend to
make us conclude that fatty substances are only produced in vege-
tables, and that they pass ready formed into the bodies of animals,
where they may either undergo combustion immediately, so as to
evolve the heat which the animal requires, or be stored up in the
tissues in order to serve as a magazine of combustible matter.

This latter view appears the most simple ; but before discussing
the experiments which bear it out, it seems necessary to pass in
brief review the notions that have been entertained at different times
on the formation of fat. When the great burying-place of the In-
nocents was emptied, for example, it was commonly imagined that
one of the effects of the putrefactive process was to convert the
flesh, the brain, the viscera, &c., into fat — adipocire, as it was
called ; it was not, indeed, till after the researches of M. Chevreul
had been undertaken, and that it was discovered adipocire contained
the same acids as human fat, which had, in fact, only been partially
saponified by ammonia, — until the inquiries of M. Gay-Lussac were
made public — that it was acknowledged that muscular flesh or fibrine
subjected to putrefaction leaves no larger a quantity of fat than can
be obtained from it by proper solvents before it has undergone any
change : the effect of putrefaction is to destroy the fibrine, and so to
expose the fatty substance which it contained.

It may therefore be said, that all these fortuitous opinions upon
the supposed formation of fat by chemical processes, have vanished
as they have been successively subjected to careful examination.

Let us now turn to the inferences come to by physiology. The
Dodies of carnivorous animals are often loaded with fat ; and none
can be detected in any of their excretions. It is therefore in these
animals that it must be most easy to ascertain the source or origin,
and mode of disappearance of fatty matter.

When the progress of digestion is watched in a dog, it is soon
discovered that the chyle is far from being a fluid having uniformly
the same characters and qualities. That which is produced under
the influence of a vegetable diet, abounding in the starchy principle
and in sugar, or after a meal of perfectly lean meat, is always and
alike poor in molecules or globules. The chyle is then nearly trans-
parent, extremely serous, and yields very little fat when washed with
ether. But if the animal have a meal of fat food, the chyle that re-
sults from it is opaque like cream, very rich in particles, and, digest-
ed with ether, yields a large quantity of fatty or oily matter to that
solvent.

These facts, observed by M. Magendie, and confirmed with more
ample details by Messrs. Sandras and Bouchardat, show that the
fatty principles of our food minutely subdivided or made into an
emulsion by the act of digestion, pass without undergoing any es-
sential change into the chyle, and from that into the blood, whithei
they can in fact be followed, and in which they can be shown tc
remain for a longer or a shorter time unaltered, at the disposal of

418 FATTY ELEMENTS OF FOOD, AND ON FATTENING.

the economy, as it were. Such observations have naturally led
physiologists to conclude that the fatty principles of the food were
the principal, if not the only sources whence animals derive the fat
which is met with stored up in their tissues, or which appears in the
butter of their milk. And this view, so long as the carnivorous
tribes alone are considered, has not a single feature which makes it
objectionable. But when we would extend it to the herbivorous
tribes, two difficulties meet us on the threshold of the inquiry.

1st. Do vegetables actually contain such a quantity of fatty matter
in their structure as will explain the fattening of cattle and the for-
mation of milk 1

2d. Is it not more simple to suppose fat and butter the product of
certain transformations undergone by starch and sugar in the animal
economy 1

It appears at first sight most opposite to nature to suppose that the
feeding ox finds the whole of the fat he lays on ready formed in the
food he eats ; it is only, in fact, after having made repeated analyses
of plants, and discovered fatty matters almost everywhere, and in
quantities generally superior to any that had been suspected in the
composition of plants, that the idea begins to acquire likelihood ;
finally, the chemist becomes convinced that it is so when he finds a
regular association of neutral azotized substances and fatty principles
in all the articles usually employed as food for cattle, — in the grass-
es and cereals, in the leaves and stems and seeds of plants.

Fatty substances appear to be principally formed in the leaves,
where they frequently show themselves under the form and with
the properties of wax. Taken into the bodies of animals, mingled
with the blood, and exposed to the influence of the oxygen of the
inspired air, they will undergo an incipient oxidation, whence will
result the stearic or oleic acid that is found as a constituent of suet.
By undergoing a second elaboration in the bodies of the carnivora,
the same fatty substances, oxidated anew, would produce the mar-
garic acid which characterizes their fat. These divers principles,
by a still further degree of oxidation, would give rise to the fat vola-
tile acids which make their appearance in the blood and in the per-
spiration. Finally, did they suffer complete oxidation, i. e. combus-
tion, they would be changed into carbonic acid and water, and be in
this shape eliminated from the economy.

Among the various properties possessed by fatty substances, there
is one which may play an important part in the phenomena of fatten-
ing ; this is the solvent power which they severally possess in re-
gard to one another ; the property of mixing in all imaginable pro-
portions, still preserving the general features which severally dis-
tinguish them. In the stomach, in the intestines, in the chyle, and
in the blood, fatty substances of various kinds may form homoge-
neous matters by their intimate admixture, and become divided into
globules of complex composition, but everywhere the same.

Another property of fatty matters of every kind, which deserves
particular attention, is that of insolubility in water. We find, in
fact, that when an animal eats a soluble substance, that in general il

FATTY ELEME:XTS OF FOOD, AKD OH FATTEJIiXO. 419

i» cob^nmed by a true process of combastion, which conrcrto iU
-jarbDQ into carbonic acid, and its hydrogen into water ; or otherwise,
•X 13 simply eliminated without change in the nrine.

Fatty matters may, indeed, disappear under the first form ; bat
%o long as they escape remarkaUe modification, it is certain tint
ihey do not pass off by the urine, and that the quantity eliminated
by the perspiration is insignificant. Their ins^ubilitj, therefore.
retains them in the economy once they have eotered tftie blood or
the tissues ; and it is in virtue of this quality that tiiej cuaBlilole a
kind of mmgaxine of combustible matter in the umnl body. TUo
18 the principal reason wherefore individuala eapiilied with food mi
excess get fat, and that those insufficiently fed fiill leas ; the httj
matter being deposited in the interstices of the tiawca ia the foimr
case, being taken up from tbem and buned m the aeoood.

This explanation is anractively simple ; bat ia oar attachment to
it we must not forget that other expiaaatiooe hare also been giren :
and in particular it must be contiaMed with a view which has been
formed upon certain inquiries undertaken by M. Dumas. It is
known, for instance, that sugar may be regarded as a eonpoaad of
carbonic acid, water, and olefiant gas. Now there is nnthiag to pie-
vent olefiant gas becoming d^aehed sad takia^ diicieait states of
condensation, to give rise to bodies whieh by onderg ois^ oiidstina
would produce fat acids and consequently fats. Since it has beea
known that the oil ofpot^ito spirit is also met with in the spint obtaia-
ed from the refuse of the grape, and ia the spint ptocaiod finaa
malt, and from the molasses of beeuroot sagar, the assorsace that
the oil is a product ef the fermenution of sogar ipposrs to be com-
plete.

We ought even to be prepared to admit a pheoomen<»i of the same
kind as ta^ng place in plants, when we see the sugar of their stems
disappearing in the same ratio as their seeds or fiwts bee Mas charg-
ed with oleaginous matter : all the palms elabMate si^ar hefoia
producing oil.

It is upon chemical views of this kind that the socoad opskai as
to the source of fat in animals has been formed, sod whieh may he
said to stand in direct contrast with that which assumes this sub-
stance as pre-existing in the food, which regards it as prodnced in
the blood itself, under the influences of the most intimate fagcoo of
animal life. For my own part, I adopt the view which lajiiiooes sa
animal to be supplied with fait alresidy formed, BMiafy ^miw it
presents itself to me as more in harmony with the foi^s which I
observe in oar stshles. Still I do not deny that it may be posiMhiii
for a certain qaaat^ of fat to be elaborated in the bodies of hsihi-
Torous animals, under the influence of a special fermeatatioa of the
sugar which forms an element in their food ; slthoogh I fod tntipfed,
from practical facts, that sugar plays no essentia] part in the fatten-
ing of cattle.

The formation theory, nevertheless, is not without data of a very
curious and important kind, which require notice. Huber had '
tluil bees fed upon honey, and even upon sugar, did not b^

420 FATTY ELEMENTS OF FOOD, .'..ND ON FATTENING.

power of producing wax for a long period. And Messrs. Milne
Edwards and Dumas have lately confirmed the occasional accuracy
at least of this conclusion. Their first experiments were unfavora
ble to the conclusions of the celebrated bee-master of Geneva. A
swarm fed with lump-sugar yielded very insignificant quantities of
wax ; three other swarms, placed in glazed hives, and fed on honey
and water, failed to produce any wax ; but a fourth swarm gave a
totally different result.

The procedure by analysis was now instituted. The absolute
quantity of wax contained in the body of a bee, or in the bodies of a
certain number of bees, was first ascertained ; second, the quantity
of wax in the combs constructed by the laborers was determined ;
third, the quantity of wax contained in the honey consumed was dis-
covered. The final result of the inquiry was, that a swarm of 2005
laborers, after having in the course of a month consumed 12889.43
grs. of honey, had produced 2407 grs. of wax.*

Granting the accuracy of this conclusion, admitting that the bee
fed upon honey has the power of producing wax, I might still ask
whether it was therefore legitimate to conclude that the ox was
endowed with any faculty of the same kind 1 Still, to the interesting
physiological fact above quoted, may be associated the remarkable
fact of the conversion of sugar into butyric acid, observed by Messrs.
Pelouze and Gelis, a conversion effected by mixing a small quantity
of caseum with a solution of sugar, and adding a sufliciency of chalk
to neutralize acid as it was formed. This mixture, placed in a tem-
perature of from 77" to 86° F., by and by passes through a series of
changes, the last term of which is the butyric fermentation.

This butyric acid is a volatile, colorless, and very limpid fluid,
having an odor that brings to mind at once that of vinegar and rancid
butter. Although it has a resemblance to the acids which prevail
in different kinds of fat, it nevertheless, by uniting with glycerine,
constitutes a fatty body, butyrine, which forms about one-hundredth
part in the constitution of butter, and must therefore be received as
one of the elements of the fats ; and the observations of Arthur
Young would even incline us to presume that butyric acid exerts a
favorable influence in the fattening of animals. Comparative experi-
ments satisfied Young that hogs fattened more quickly on food that
had become sour, than on the same food before it had turned. Now
it is very probable that there was production of butyric acid in the
course of the fermentation.

The question in reference to the formation of fat is of much more
limited interest to the farmer than to the physiologist. The agricul-
turist, in fact, cares little whether a couple of pounds of honey con-
sumed by a hive of bees will give origin to some 10 dwts. or so of
wax ; the matter that concerns him is, as to the degree in which
the roots or tubers that he grows are fattening ; and whether or not
he can advantageously substitute a cheaper for a more costly articlti
in his piggery or stalls 1 And here, as in so many other placei

• Vide Co>iii)tcs rcnilus dc rAcadtinlc dcs Sciences t. xvii. p. 131.

FATTY ELEMENTS OF FOOD, AND ON FATTENING. 421

practice got the start of theory ; and I own, with perfect humility,
that I think its conclusions are in general greatly to be preferred ;
the universal custom of giving oil-cake and oleaginous seeds to our
milch-kine and fatting oxen and sheep, appears to me to supply an
argument of much greater force than any that can be obtained from
chemical researches pursued in the laboratory.

Such articles as the potato and the banana, which answer admi-
rably for the keep of hogs after they are weaned, are not adequate to
fatten them for the butcher ; they contain but very small quantities
of fatty matter, and though the animals will grow rapidly upon them,
and even attain to and maintain a certain condition, all that is re-
quired can only be secured by adding some other article to the ration
that is richer in oleaginous or fatty principles. At Bechelbronn,
whatever others have said on the subject, we find that our hogs will
not fatten on potatoes alone ; so that I agree with Schwertz when
he says, that while hogs will get into good flesh upon potatoes, and
even seem to fatten for a time, they soon cease from improving, and
only begin to advance again when they receive in addition an allow-
ance of barley or of split peas or beans.

A young pig will consume about 13 lbs. of potatoes per diem, into
which, as analysis of the ashes informs us, there enters but about
17.2 grs. of lime. But this quantity is probably too small to meet
the demand for bone earth in a young animal in full growth, and
hence the great advantage of the whey or small quantity of skim
milk which is so commonly added to the potato ration. It ought to
be laid down as a general rule, that young creatures as well as adults
ought to have a ration which contains the earthy elements of the
bony system, the azotized elements of the flesh, and the fatty matter
of the fat. From a series of experiments which I undertook, in
concert with Messrs. Dumas and Payen, it appears that all the arti-
cles acknowledged the most powerful as fatteners, are those also
that contain the largest proportions of fatty principles. The follo>y-
ing substances contain the numerical quantities of matter soluble in
et' er in 100 parts :

Common maize 8.8 Dryhicem 3.5

Beaked Lombardy maize 7.8 Meadowhay 3.8

Large white Parisian maize...- 8.1 African wheat straw 3.2

Rice 0.8 Ditto Alsace 2.2

Oats 5.5 Ditto near Paris 2.4

Ditto 3.3 Oatstraw 5.1

Rye 1.8 Beanmeal 2.1

Rye flour 3.5 Beans 2.0

Hard Venezuela wheat 2.6 Haricots 3.0

Hard African wheat 2.1 Peas 2.0

Wheat flour 2.1 Lentils 2.5

Ditto 1.4 Potatoes 0.08

Finebran 4.8 Mangel-wurzel 0.1

Coarsebran 5.2 Carrots 0.17

Dryclover 4.0 Oil-cake 9.0

M. Payen found that the oil was everywhere present in the seeds
of gramineous plants. The embryo contains much, the husk less,
the farinaceous portion still less. But maize and oil-cake contain
about 9 per cent., whence the universally admitted superior fattening
power of these two articles.

36

422 FATTY ELEMENTS OF FOOD, AND ON FATTENING.

If we now discuss particularly one or more of the rations or
allowances to oxen put up to fatten, or to milch-cows, we shall find
that they uniformly contain a larger quantity of fatty matters than
the secretions, excretions, and fat which have heen produced under
their influence. Thus a cow, in good condition, that produces 72
pints of milk, containing 3.3 lbs. of butter, while she eats 220 lbs.
of meadow-hay, will have consumed more than 6.6 lbs. of matter
soluble in ether — fatty substances. The quantity of fat contained
in the food, over and above that which is discovered in the milk, has
passed with the excrements, which are never entirely free from sub-
stances analogous to fatty matters.

With a view to comparing as accurately as is possible in inquiries
of this kind, the quantity of fatty matter contained in the forage
consumed by a cow, with that found in the milk and in the excre-
ments, the following experiment was made. A cow, Esmeralda,
No. 6 in the stable at Bechelbronn, calved on the 26th of September,
and she was put to the bull again on the 4th of November. Up to
the 22d of January (inclusive) Esmeralda received the usual allow
ance, viz :

After-math hay 11 lbs.

Oil-cake 22 "

Turnips 66 "

Wheatchaff. 22 "

and the milk she gave in the course of the month of January,
amounted on the —

Pints. Pints.

Istto 12.9 12th 12.3

2d 12.3 13th 11.4

3d 12.3 14th 11.4

4th 11.4 15th.: 12.3

5th 10.5 16th 10.5

6th 12.3 17th 11.4

7th 12.3 18th 10.5

8th 12.9 19th 11.4

9th 12.3 20th 11,4

10th 10.5 21st 11.4

11th 11.4 22d 11.4

The average quantity of milk, therefore, per day, in the course
of the week that preceded the experiment, was 10.287 pints.
From the 23d of January, when the ration was altered to —

Hay 16.5 lbs.

Chopped wheat straw 9.9 "

Beet-root 59.4 "

the quantity of milk yielded was :

January. Pints. January. Pints.

23d 11.4 27th 11.6

24th 10.5 28th 11.4

25th 10.5 29th IIA

36th 10.5 30th 11.4

on an average 11.8 pints per diem ; a little more than with the form-
er allowance.

The excrement passed by this cow was analyzed during four days,
from the 24th to the 27th of January ; the whole quantity being
weighed moist every day, and well mixed, a mean sample of about
0 oz. in weight was taken for analysis. This being stove-dried, the

f ATTY ELEMENTS OF FOOD, AND ON FATTENING. 423

entire quantity of dry matter contained in the moist excrement waa
readily ascertained :

Dates. Moist excrement. Dry excrement. Milk in pints. Milk in Ibi.

Jan. 24 40.7 lbs. 6.8 lbs. 10.5 13.5

25 41.8 7.3 10.5 13.5

26 62.1 9.0 10.5 13.5

27 43.4 7.1 10.5 13.5

188.0 30.2 42.0 54.0

To ascertain the quantity of fatty or waxy substances contained
in the food, the several samples were first treated with hot water,
then with ether, and finally with a mixture of ether and alcohol boil-
ing. The fatty element of the butter was determined by Peligot'a
method.

Fatty Matters in tbe
Food per c»nt.

„„„ S 1st Experiment 3.6

"*y )2d ditto 3.9

Straw

1st Experiment 2.4

2d ditto 2.0

Fatty Matter in the

Excrements and

Milk per cent.

Excrements (dry) S ^ ^E"'"*:::::::: i.-.lio

Milli 3.7

Let us say, that the proportion of fatty substance contained per

cent, in the several articles consumed as food, was as follows —

Hay 3.7

Straw 2.2

Beet 0.1

Dry excrements 3.6

Milk 3.7

and we shall have the results of the experiment in this shape :

FOOD CONSUMED IN FOUR DAYS. EXCREMENTS AND MILK IN FOUR DAYS.

Fatty matter. Fatty matter.

Beet 237.6 lbs. 1667.3 grs. Excrements 30.4 lbs. 7688.1 grs.

Hay 66.0 1776.1 Milk 54.3 14125.7

Straw 39.6 6113.4

Fatty matter in excrements

Fatty matter in food. .24956.8 and milk 21813.8

The excretions 21813.8

Fatty matter fixed or

burned 3143.0

The natural conclusion from this experiment appears to be this :
that the cow extracts from her food almost the whole of the fatty
matter it contains, and that she converts this matter into butter.

It would perhaps be possible to make the proportion of butter
contained in the milk to vary within certain limits. It is well known
that the butter of cows in the same district varies notably according
to the nature and abundance of the forage ; the butter of the same
country-side, for example, has been ascertained to contain 66 of
margarine to 100 of oleine in summer, and 186 of margarine to 100
of oleine in winter. In the first case, the cows are grazing on the
mountains, (the Vosges ;) in the second they are eating dry fodder
in the stall. I have besides had an opportunity to make a direct
experiment upon this subject, which appears to me quite conclusive
Having substituted for one half the allowance of hay an equivalen

424 FATTY ELEMENTS OF FOOD, AND ON FATTENING.

quantity of rape-cake, still very rich in oil, the cows were kept in
excellent condition ; but the butter was extremely soft, and had the
taste of rape-seed oil to a degree that was perfectly intolerable.

I do not know a single instance in any of the systems followed at
Bechelbronn, in which a milch-cow does not receive in her ration a
quantity of matter analogous to fat, superior to that which is con-
tained in the milk she yields. Having upon a certain occasion put
a cow exclusively upon beet, I anticipated an unfavorable effect on her
milk ; and in fact a very sensible diminution in all its valuable ele-
ments occurred, and the animal began to suffer. By simply adding
a few pounds of straw which had been taken away, the milk resumed
its standard quality. The two rations thus composed may be con-
trasted under the two points of view of contents in fat and contents
in organic matter.

In the ration of beet and straw (beet 119 lbs., straw 7|lbs.) there
were 140 dwts. 20 grs. of fatty matter ; in that composed exclusively
of beet (132 lbs.) there were but 38 dwts. 14 grs. of fat. The ill effects
of the beet- root ration could not be ascribed to deficiency of inorganic
elements, for the phosphate of lime it contained amounted to 37 dwts.
7 grs. — amply sufficient for all the purposes of the economy.

The information we have from M. Damoiseau, one of the most
careful of the observers who have investigated the subject of the
production of milk, confirms us in our views of the necessity of fatty
matters in the daily ration of the milch-cQw. The following are
the elements of three of the rations for a cow in M. Damoiseau's
establishment.

No. I. No. «. No. >.
Beet, or mangel-wurzel. . 88 lbs. Carrots 74 lbs Potatoes 55 lbs.

Bran 6.6 " 6.6 " 6.6

Pollard. 5J " 5.5 " 5.5

Lucern 6.6 " 6.6 " 6.6

Oat-straw 13.2 " 13.2 " 13.2

Salt 0.11 " 0.11 " 0.11

121.0 107.0 88.0

Maximum. Medium. Minimum.

Quantity of milk yielded.. From 25 to 26 pts. 16 to 18 pts. 12^ pts.

Let us now calculate the actual nutritive value of the different
items in the above rations ; or, selecting one, let us take that with
the beet for particular consideration, as among the most usual.

6.6 lbs. of bran and 5.5 lbs. of pollard at. .. . 5 per cent=0.60 of fatty matter

6.6 lbs. lucern 3 " =0.33

13.2 lbs. oat-straw 5 " =0.60 "

1.53

Whence it follows, that a cow here received upwards of 1| lbs.
of matter of a fatty nature with her food — a quantity more than suf-
ficient to produce not only 16 or 18, bu. the maximum quantity of
25 or 26 pints of milk, very rich in cream. Did the cow receive an
additional 40 lbs. of beet-root, she would find something like 12 lbs.
more of solid matter in this article, composed especially of sugar,
which sne would burn to keep up her temperature, and nearly 25
4wt0. ol oily matter, which she would transfer to her milk, — to say

FATTY ELEMENTS OF FOOD, AND ON FATTENING. 425

nothing of new azotized principles which would be converted into
caseine.

If we now, by an easy transition, pass to the phenomena of fatten-
ing, we still find that the principles which have been laid down can
be most satisfactorily applied. Setting out from the numbers ob-
tained from the experiments of Mr. Riedesel, which, in many points,
agree with all I have seen myself, we arrive at the following con-
clusions.

An ox weighing 1320 lbs. avoird. will keep up his weight upon
about 22 lbs. of good hay per diem. Put up to fatten, the same ani-
mal would require about twice this quantity, say 44 lbs., upon which
he would gain at the rate of about 2 lbs. per day.

Now, if we even take Mr. Riedesel's conclusions as a little too fa-
vorable, as giving at least the maximum nutritive value to the hay and
its equivalents, we may still admit, with him, that 22 lbs. of hay will
produce about 17 pints of milk, or about 2 lbs. avoird. of flesh, con-
taining 0.55 lbs., or rather more than | lb. of fat. Now, 22 lbs. of
hay contain nearly 12 oz. 12 dwts. of principles soluble in ether,
i. e. of fatty or waxy matter.

The fatting ox, consequently, fixes a certain proportion of these
principles in the same way as the cow. There is only this differ-
ence, that the cow returns with the milk she yields a considerable
quantity of the fat she finds in her food. There consequently exists
an obvious relation between the formation of milk and fattening — a
position which would gain support, did it require any, from a note
which I owe to the politeness of M. Yvart, who, in summing up a
long array of facts, concludes with these words : " The secretion of
milk appears to alternate with that of fat. When a milch-cow fat-
tens, she loses her milk ;" and the converse of the proposition is no
less true ; when we would fatten a cow, we must let her go dry.

The breeds of kine admitted to be the best milkers remain long
lean after the calving. In some of the short-horned English breeds,
the quantity of milk is often very considerable shortly after the
calving ; but the animals are much disposed to get fat, and getting
fat, the secretion of milk neither continues so long, nor is it so plen-
tiful, as in some of the other less improved kinds. English hogs,
which become much fatter than French hogs, appear not to be such
good nurses. Now, if we admit that there is this intimate relation
between the formation of milk and that of fat, we are obviously very
near the admission, that articles of food containing fatty substances
indispensable to the production of milk, are also indispensable to the
production of animal fat. And, then, has it ever yet happened that
animals have been fattened with food devoid of grease ? I have not,
for my own part, met with a single fact which countenances such a
proposition. I have referred to the distinguished agriculturist, who
attempted to fatten pigs upon potatoes, but who only succeeded by
adding a certain quantity of graves to the food — an article which, as
every one knows, conf ains a considerable proportion of fat in its com-
position.

M. Payen has, in fine, made some experiments which appear alto
36*

426 FATTY ELEMENTS Cf FOOD, AND ON FATTENING.

gether conclusive, and from which it follows, that two Hampshire
hogs which, having consumed 66 lbs. of gluten, and upwards of 30|
lbs. of starch, had only gained 17| lbs. ; while other two animals of
the same breed, having been fed with 99 lbs. of the flesh of sheeps'
heads, containing from 12 to 15 per cent, of fat, had gained 35 lbs.
Yet, judging from elementary analysis, these two rations were almost
identical ; they contained the same quantity of dry nutritious matter.
The first ration contained 26.4 lbs. of dry gluten, and 30.4 lbs. of
starch ; the second contained 20.9 lbs. of dry flesh, and 15.4 lbs. of
fat. The quantities of carbon and azote were, therefore, a little
higher in the vegetable than in the animal ration ; but they differed
notably in this, that the latter contained an equivalent of fat for the
equivalent of starch contained in the former.

In a second experiment, four hogs, fed upon boiled potatoes, car-
rots, and a little rye, gained 117.7 lbs. ; while other four animals,
of the same age, and in the same conditions, but fed upon sheeps'
heads, gained as many as 226.6 lbs.

In the course of these experiments, M. Payen was struck with
this circumstance, that the increase in weight of an animal that is fat-
tening being represented by 50 per cent, of water, 33.3 of fat, and
16.6 of azotized matter, the conviction is forced upon us that he ac-
tually fixes the greater proportion of the fat of his food in the cellu-
lar tissue of his body. The first hogs, for example, had eaten 14.74
lbs. of fat, and had gained 11.44 lbs. in weight; the four last re-
ferred to had had 18.48 of grease, and had increased 14.74 lbs. in
weight.

It has now been the practice for several years, in various places,
to maintain hogs in considerable numbers upon muscular flesh, horse-
flesh; and it has been ascertained that the article, if extremely
lean, though it keeps the animals in good heart and condition, though
they grow and thrive on it, yet they will not fatten. When they are
to be got ready for the butcher, they must, in addition, be put upon
a course that is known to be proper to fatten them.

The scientific question of fattening having, of late years, attracted
very general attention, the opinions which have now been announced
have been very actively contested. Among other arguments, the
general freedom from fat of the bodies of carnivorous animals, and
the usual fat state of those of the herbivorous races, has been cited.
Whales have even mistakenly been included in the list of fat vege-
table feeders ; but it is known to all naturalists, that the great ma-
jority of the whale tribes, the whole of those that inhabit the northern
seas, are carnivorous. And, indeed, the mention of this fact leads
me to revert to one of the most curious problems in the physics of
the globe — that, to wit, presented by the vast amount of animal life
amidst the waters of the ocean, and its support by a quantity of
vegetables which to us appear altogether inadequate to such an end.
The beautiful researches of M. Morren, however, seem calculated
to throw some light on this interesting subject, — that inquirer having
shown that certain animalcules possess the faculty of decomposing
carbonic acid in the same way as vegetables ; and it is probably ia

FATTY ELEMENTS OF FOOD, AND ON FATTENING. 427

virtue of this power that the enigma is to be explained, of the source
whence the myriads that people the deep derive.their food.

But is it absolutely true that herbivorous animals only abound in
fat 1 Who has not seen fat dogs and cats ; and in the Cordilleras,
where palm-trees abound, there is a particular species of bear, which
lives in a great measure on the oily palm -nuts and young shoots of
the palm-tree, which becomes remarkably fat, and proves a great
attraction to the tigers of the country.*

Before coming to a close with this discussion, I think it right to
refer to the experiments of M. Magendie, who has so well establish-
ed the fact, that the chyle of animals fed on fat food contains a large
quantity of fat ; and that animals kept long on such food frequently
become affected with what is called the fatty liver. f

To sum up, then, experiment demonstrates that hay contains a
larger quantity of fatty matter than the milk and excretions which it
forms ; and that it is the same with all the other mixtures and varie-
ties of food that are usually given to animals.

That oil-cake increases the production of butter, and that, like
maize, it owes the fattening properties it possesses to the large
quantity of oil it contains.

That there is the most perfect analogy between the production
of milk and the fattening of animals ; that potatoes, beet, carrot, and
turnip, only fatten when they are conjoined with substances that
contain fatty matters, such as straw, corn, bran, and oil-cake of
various kinds.

That in equal weights, gluten mixed with starch, and flesh meat
abounding in fat, have a fattening influence on the hog, which differs
in the relation of 1 to 2.

Lastly, that fat food — food which will aflford fat in the digestive
canal — appears to be the indispensable condition of fattening. If it
be necessary that the respiration be diminished or lessened in extent,
this is only that the fatty substances taken into the stomach, and
which have made their way into the blood, may not be oxidated,
may not be burned ; not that their formation may be favored.

All these facts are in such perfect harmony with the simple view
of assumption and assimilation of fatty matters, that it is difficult to
conceive on what foundation the opinion can repose which would
have them composed out of their elements in the animal body.
Nevertheless, 1 am myself the first to admit, that more extensive
experience may had to the modification or even entire change of
the opinion which I advocate. The facts on which that opinion is
based, despite their number, are not probably yet sufficient to }on-
Btitute a perfectly satisfactory or conclusive theory. New researches

* These bears, evidently, cease to be carnivorous while they live on palm-nuts and
leaves. For my own part, I do not thinli the point settled yet. The fatty matter of
the generality of vegetables is w^ax rather than grease. And then some of the herbiv
orous tribes seem never to get fat. — Eno. Ed.

t I may here state the contrary fact, as announced to me by a physiological friena,
In whose report I place great reliance, that the chyle of animals fed with substances
that give mere traces ol waxy matter, contains fat or oil that can be collected in lar£4
irtfs—Eva Ed.

428 ECONOMY CF FARM ANIMALS.

are, therefore, indispensable : it would be requisite to show, that a

cow kept on a regimen abundant in point of quantity, but as poor as
possible in matters analogous to fat, will continue to maintain her
condition and yet yield milk abounding in cream ; and that it is
really possible, as some persons affirm, to fatten animals rapidly on
roots and tubers alone.*

CHAPTER IX.

OF THE ECONOMY OF THE ANIMALS ATTACHED TO A FARM
OF STOCK IN GENERAL, AND ITS RELATIONS WITH THE
PRODUCTION OF MANURE.

Agricultural industry generally extends to the breeding and fat-
tening of cattle ; the breeding, or at all events the maintenance, of
horses ; the breeding and feeding of sheep and swine. The cir-
cumstances, indeed, in which the tiller of the ground sees himself
spared the necessity of attending to these matters, are rare excep-
tions to the general rule, and in fact only occur where it is easy to
obtain abundant supplies of manure from without, or in those few
favored spots where the fertility of the soil is such that it continues
to yield its increase without addition in the shape of manure. In
the vicinity of great centres of population, where dung can be bought
cheap, or of guano islands, where a cargo costs a trifle, and in some
tropical countries, large farming establishments may be found to-
tally without stock in the shape of sheep and horned cattle. But in
a general way the agriculturist is obliged to give himself up to the
care of flocks and herds of one description or another ; and, in fact,
we now know that there is a certain and very indispensable relation
to be maintained between the extent of surface under crop and the
number of cattle to be provided for, variable as regards farms dif-
ferently situated and circumstanced ; but invariable when circum-
stances are the same, and the system of management pursued is
similar in its principal features.

The question as to whether the cultivation of grain or other use-
ful plants, or the rearing of cattle, is more profitable, which is often
agitated, must receive a diflferent solution in regard to each different
locality. In one place it may be more advantageous to breed cattle
or horses ; in another to rear or fatten them : here, the production
of milk, butter, and cheese, may be the best husbandry ; there, the
growth of hay, (as for miles round London on the north and west ;)
and again, wheat and the other cereal grasses may be the staples ot

* Whoever would tr>' experiments in this direction, must be careful to mix his food;
one article alone never agrees. The Americans say, a pig will die upon ptmipkins and
upon apples alone • but he will live and fatten on a mixture of the two. I have my-
self seen scores of oxen fattened upon turnips, with a moderate allowance of straw or
bog-hay ; and have seen pigs get into admirable condition for the butcher op itUe mort
th%n potatoes.— Eno. £o.

ECONOMY OF FARM ANIMALS. 429

prod iction. Even supposing that the growth of grain is that which
is most advantageous on the whole, it by no means follows that the
farmer shall give himself up to this exclusively ; it is seldom that
he can do so, indeed ; he must have manure, and this entails the
necessity of keeping cattle. If the latter, however, be the least
profitable item in the economy of a particular domain, it will of
course be kept within as narrow limits as possible.

In many places where the land is well adapted to the plough, and
where the production of grain is unquestionably profitable, stock ap-
pears to offer few advantages ; it sometimes happens, indeed, that the
balance as regards the stall and cow-house is on the wrong side for
the farmer, when the actual value of the forage that has been con-
sumed is taken into the account. The loss is only made up for by the
manure, which is in fact the return. This is the view that M. Crud
obviously takes when he speaks of the stock upon a farm as a neces-
sary evil.* I am far from participating in his opinion ; the cattle
upon a farm are no evil, though they may be very necessary. To
be satisfied of this, it is enough, in fact, to recollect the principle
which has been established in treating of rotation courses, viz :
That in no case is it possible to export a larger quantity of organic
matter, and particularly of organic azotized matter, from a farm,
than is represented by the excess of the same description of matter
contained in the manure consumed in the course of the rotation.
By acting otherwise, the standard fertility of the soil would inevt
tably be diminished.

This principle recognised, and I believe that it cannot be disputed,
it is obvious that a portion of the produce of the fields must be re-
turned to them to fecundate them anew, and it is precisely this por-
tion of the forage crops destined to furnish manure that must be
consumed in the stable and cow-house. Reasoning abstractly, the
forage plants which it is not intended should quit the farm, might be
buried directly as manure, without being made to pass through the
bodies of animals ; their fertilizing influence on the soil would come
out sensibly the same ; and this is what is done, in fact, so often as
we manure by smothering. But we have scarcely made the first
step in the rudiments of agriculture before we discover the immense
advantages of following the usual custom, which first employs as
forage for cattle the crops that are grown with a view to the pro-
duction of manure. And we shall by and by find, in fact, that by
adding to that portion of these crops a supplement of forage plai ts
which it would be legitimate to export, without trenching upon the
fundamental principle above laid down, we obtain the same quantity
of manure, and turn the whole of this supplement into useful forces,
or into animal products which possess a market value greatly supe-
rior to that of the forage before its assimilation. It is only the price
of this portion of the forage, fixed or modified by the cattle on the
farm, which can fairly be set down to the debit account of wool
grown, of power created, and of flesh and dairy articles produced.

* Thewet. and Pract. Economy of Agricul. vol. ii. p. 235, (in French.)

430 HORNED CATTLE.

As to the forage plants which are immediately turned into manuie,
it seems to me impossible to regard them as possessed of the proper
market value ; the farmer could not have sold them at this. In my
mode of looking at the thing, the cost of producing the forage crop,
and the value that it actually has, constitute a circulating capital,
the annual interest of which, estimated at a certain rate, expresses
the true cost-price or value of the manure employed in the 3ourse
of a rotation. In a word, in my eyes, the value of the manure
which gives fertility to the soil is represented by the price of the
labor, the rent charge, &c. — by the general outlay entailed by the
growth of the forage from which it is obtained.

I shall endeavor, by and by, to illustrate this topic by examples ;
but in order thoroughly to understand this mode of estimating the
price of manure, there are several elements wanting, which I pro-
pose to assemble in this chapter- With this view, I shall first pre-
sent the facts which I have been able to collect, or which I have
myself had an opportunity of observing in reference to the economy
of the domestic animals attached to a farm ; and I shall then make
an attempt R) deduce the relation that exists between the consump-
tion of forage and litter, animal reproduction and increase, and the
formation of manure.

^ HORNED CATTLE.

It were foreign to the purpose of this work, did I enter into the
natural history of the animals that are usually attached to farming
establishments ; neither will I pretend to discuss the relative merits
of the different breeds of sheep and oxen, nor speak of the best
methods of improving them. I confine myself to the varieties which
I have on my own farm, or which I see on the farms of my neigh
bors, and upon which I have opportunity of making daily observa-
tions. It will be enough if I give a brief summary, in this place,
of the general principles admitted by practical men of the highest
name and authority upon these points.*

Between the external forms of animals and the internal organs
essential to life, there is the most obvious and intimate connection.
A broad and deep chest is the sure indication of ample lungs and a
good general constitution. The pelvis, or bony cincture formed by
the rump and haunches, ought to be spacious in the females. A
small head is generally the indication of a good kind. Horns in our
domestic animals must be regarded as objectionable rather than use-
ful ; and by adopting measures which tend to repress their growth,
we undoubtedly favor both the prodiiction of flesh and wool. The
strength of animals depends far more on the degree in which their
muscular system is developed than on the mass of their bones ; it is,
besides, flesh, not bone, that has value in the butcher's eyes ; so
that the farmer's business is by all means to strive after a delicate
but well-covered skeleton. Animals which have been indifferently

* Cllne, in General Report of Scotland ; Communication to the Board of Agrlcul
tore ; Bpencer on the choice of male animals for breeding from: Cully's Introduciioti,
|(C., on live nUK^ kc. . -^

BREEDING. 431

fed while young, have often the bony system very disproportionately
developed.

Two modes are generally followed with a view to improving the
external shape of domestic animals. One of these consists in only
breeding from animals of the most faultless forms of the same race,
and generally of close degrees of kindred ; another in crossing
females with the males of a neighboring race, each possessing in
the greatest degree the qualities which it is held desirable to trans-
mit to the future race. The former of these plans is spoken of as
the method of breeding in and in ; the second as the method hy
crossing.

Certain disadvantages have been stated as belonging to the sys-
tem of breeding in, by the side of several unquestionable and more
immediate advantages. While the race acquires small bones and
shows a decided disposition to take on fat readily, it is said after
several generations to lose in constitution, to become more subject
to disease ; the cows to give less milk, and the males, in losing their
characteristic masculine forms, to show themselves less fit for pro-
pagation. The English breeders who take this view of the subject,
are, therefore, in the habit of having recourse to males of the same
race, but bred at a distance from themselves. I must for my own
part say, that T have seen no reason to admit any ill effects from
propagation continued in the same direct line. Our live-stock at
Bechelbronn has not been otherwise renewed for a very long time,
and without the race appearing to suffer in any way ; our bulk, on
the contrary, have very much improved.

Mr. Cline insists greatly on the selection of females not only of
good shape, but so much above the mean height as to approach the
standard of the males. When the bull is very much larger than the
cow, the progeny is apt to fall off instead of improving ; the reason
for which Mr. Cline finds in the large size of the foetus, the issue
of a large male, which a small female can neither accommodate
properly in her womb, send easily into the world, nor suckle duly
when it is born. Whatever we think of this explanation, there can
be no doubt of the propriety of giving the principle pointed at the
most careful consideration in practice. Mr. Cline refers to the great
improvement that has been effected in the breed of English horses
mainly through crosses with small barbs and Arabian stallions ; the
introduction of Flemish mares would upon the same principle have
been another means of still further improving the race. The neg-
lect of this principle, Mr Cline is of opinion, lies at the bottom of
the numerous failures and disappointments that have been encoun-
tered in attempts to improve the breed of horses. A striking illus-
tration of it occurred some years back, when bay horses of great
height were in particular request ; the Yorkshire breeders had
their mares covered by the tallest stallions that could be found ; but
they immediately found that the progeny was merely long-legged,
that it was narrow-chested, and without either weight or bottom.

Spencer acknowledges with breeders in general that the bodily
»nd constitutional qualities are almost always those that preponder-

432 MANAGEMENT OF CATTLE.

ated in ancestors, and that the qualities of the father predominate
in the posterity, particularly as regards oxen and sheep. This point
settled, the choice of a good male is evidently the first point of con-
sequence in attempting to improve a breed. As it is not possible,
however, to find either a bull, or a tup, or a stallion, quite perfect,
the one must be chosen that is most free from defect, particularly
the defect or defects which we have it in view to correct in our
breeding animals, our cows, ewes, and mares. Certainly no reason-
able breeder would bring together animals that presented similar de-
ficiencies ; on the contrary, he will strive to have his female served
by the male which shows all the qualities in the very highest degree
that are most wanting in her. On the whole, the association of
animals of the same race appears to me the best mode of continuing
desirable qualities, especially when this is conjoined with ample sup-
plies of good food to the young. The influence of feeding is im-
mense ; in my own neighborhood I see that the progeny of the
Bechelbronn bulls are often inferior both in stature and shape to
those that are brought up in our own stables.

Great size, however, is not always to be regarded as an improve-
ment ; height is by no means a constant indication of vigor of con-
stitution. Improvement in those particulars of form and stature
which are ascertained to be best suited to the circumstances of the
locality, the climate, the pasture, &c., are the points to be especially
attended to. It is above all indispensable to breed animals of vigor-
ous constitution : over-refinement of original races has often led to
indiflferent conformation of body, and to undoubted delicacy of con-
stitution, which has rendered the herd or the flock much more ob-
noxious to attacks of epizootic diseases.

The degree of refinement of an original stock is evidently con-
nected with the quantity and quality of the forage of the district.
In cold and mountainous districts, where the herbage is scanty, it is
necessary to restrain the ambition of having highly-improved stock
within considerably narrow limits ; in such circumstances, the grand
aflfair is to have a hardy race, not over nice in its food, which, through
a considerable portion of the year, consists of but coarse grass.

The ox {bos taurus) has been reduced to domesticity from the
remotest ages, and nothing but conjecture can be offered with regard
to its original race. The animal accommodates himself with won-
derful facility to the most opposite climatic circumstances ; he mul-
tiplies with astonishing rapidity in the hottest regions of the tropics ;
unknown at the period of the conquest, he has now overrun the
steppes of the vast basins of the Oronoco and the Amazons ; and
is met with in vast herds on the highest and coldest table-lands of
the Andes, even up to the line of perpetual snow ; wherever there
is food, he appears to thrive ; the extremes of temperature seem to
have little or no influence upon him.

The buffalo (the bos bubulus of naturalists) is the only other mem-
ber of this family that has been domesticated. He is fond of warmth,
and is supposed to have been introduced into Italy towards the sixth
century, from Eastern Asia. The buffalo is also found in Hungary

MANAGEMENT OP CATTLE. 433

and Greece ; and wherever he is met with, he is made serviceable as
a beast of draught and burden, and as food.

In breeding oxen, the great consideration is the bull. According
to Thaer, the bull ought to have a short thick neck, the head short
and small, the forehead broad and curled, the eyes black and spark-
ling, the ears long and well placed, the chest broad and deep, the
body long, the legs short and columnar in shape.* A well-made
bull would serve seventy or eighty cows were the season spread
equally over the whole year ; but as it is not so, Thaer thinks that
twenty is as many as can properly be given to the same animal ; and
this, in fact, is the number which we adopt at Bechelbronn.

The cow gives more milk than any animal known. A great va-
riety of external signs of a good milker have been particularized ;
but it may be said that there is none infallible. In a general way, I
think that race has much to do with the point ; the cow that is the
offspring of a mother of a good kind, and a free milker, will herself
be a good milker also. I will only a<dd, that among the milch-kine
which I have had an opportunity of observing, those that showed
little tendency to take on fat, while they kept their appetite, have ap-
peared to me to yield milk in largest quantity, and for the longest time.

The age at which it is advisable to put heifers to the bull, depends
a good deal on the way in which they have been kept and brought
up, and also on their growth. Young animals of a good kind, that
have been well fed from the birth, and received all the care which
contributes so powerfully to their development, will be ready to re-
ceive the bull when they are between a year and a half and two
vears old. At Bechelbronn, we bull the greater number of our
heifers at the age of about eighteen months. Whenever they enter
into heat with any thing like force, whatever their age, they ought
to be put to the bull, or there is risk of the disposition to receive him
dying away, and never returning ; the heifer then begins to lay on
fat, and ever after refuses the male. The rule, however, is not to
allow the young female to be leaped until she is nearly at her full
growth ; this, in fact, is the season when the desire for the male
usually first shows itself.

If there be no new indication of heat, in the course of three or
four weeks after the male has been admitted, there is reason to be-
lieve that the animal is pregnant. The cow goes with calf about
forty weeks ; the delivery generally takes place between the 277th
and the 299th day after the access of the bull ; but periods so short
as 240 days, and others so long as 321 days have been observed.f

The calf that is brought up with proper care is generally allowed
to suck for five or six weeks ; but it sometimes happens that even
at three weeks old the quanity of milk supplied by the mother is
insufficient : an additional quantity of food is therefore requisite.
One of the best drinks for calves is made by mixing a proper quantity
of oil-cake with tepid water ; the large proportion of vegetable ca-
Beum,of oily matter, and of phosphates which the substance contains,

• Principles of Agriculture, vol. iv. p. 296.

t Teissier in Annals of French Agriculture, vol. Ix. 2d series.

37

134 REARING CALVES.

makes it peculiarly appropriate food for calves ; difiused in water, it
ill fact bears a close resemblance to milk in point of chemical com-
position. It is now, too, that the calf begins to play with a little
hay, so that it is always advisable to place some within his reach,
the finest and softest portions being picked out.

But it is by no means necessary that the calf should ever be allow-
ed to suck ; it drinks without difficulty, or can be made to drink, as
every dairy man and woman knows, by putting a finger or two into
the animal's mouth under the surface of the drink. A little warm
water is added to the milk during the first few days, in order to give
it due warmth. Some begin from the very first to measure the
milk ; but those who are best informed upon the subject of breeding
and rearing do nothing of the kind. Crud allows his calves to drink
as much milk as they will take for the first week After this time
they have an allowance of about seven pints of new milk mixed with
the same quantity of fresh whey. They are weaned at seven weeks.
From the age of between nine and ten weeks to a year, a calf will
consume about a fourth of the ration of a grown cow, say 6^ lbs. of
hay per diem. During the second year, the allowance of hay may
be estimated at about 13 lbs., or a little more ; and in the third year
it will amount to between 19 and 20 lbs. This is to be understood
of cattle brought up carefully but frugally.

In some of the best dairies of Switzerland, the procedure is different.
During the first six weeks the calves are allowed to drink as much
milk as they will take without a surfeit. At a month old, they are
served with chopped hay and roots, or better still, if the season ad-
mits of it, with green clover or lucern, which they have at discretion
till they are seventy days old. Treated in this way, a calf is nearly
twice as large and twice as heavy as one that has been brought up
economically. During the remaining 295 days that make up the
first year, the animal is allowed from 8 to 9 lbs. of hay ; and this
quantity is doubled during the second year. By proceeding in this
way, a heifer at two years old may herself be a mother and contri-
buting to the produce of the dairy.

Our procedure at Bechelbronn is calculated on the Swiss plan.
The cfUves suck till they are six or seven weeks old, being put to
the cows night and morning. Any thing they leave is milked off.
After numerous trials by gauging and weighing, I find that our
calves take each during the forty-two days they are allowed to suck,
from 528 to 600 pints of milk ; in other words, from 14^ to 18| pints
per diem. The quantit;^ of milk which a calf takes immediately
after its birth, does not indeed amount to any thing like even the
smaller of these quantities ; still it is considerable.

A calf which weighed at its birth on the 18th of May 108.9 lbs.,
after having sucked, weighed 112.4 lbs. ; so that it had taken 3.5 lbs.
of milk to its meal ; and as it had two of these in the day, 7.0 lbs.
in all. The same calf, thirteen days afterwards, weighed 130.9 lbs ;
and after having sucked, 139.0 lbs. ; it had therefore taken 8.1 lbs.
to its meal, or 16.2 lbs. per day.

About the third week after birth, our calves have hay of the best

REARING CALVES. 435

quality set before them ; they take very little at first, but they soon
get accustomed to it, and at weaning time it commonly suffices for
their support. It may happen, however, that at this period they fall
off a little, but they soon recover again ; still, if any of them appear
delicate, it will be prudent to allow about a couple of quarts of milk
a day mixed with water, for some little time, which is gradually
withdrawn as the animal becomes accustomed to its new food.

Calves grow with great rapidity during the suckling time. The
only experimental data with which I am acquainted in regard to the
increase of weight of calves during the first period of their lives, are
those of M. Perrault de Jotemps. These observations I shall asso-
ciate with those which I have myself made at Bechelbronn, where,
by a happy coincidence, we have the same Swiss race of cattle as
Messrs. Perrault at Feuillasse. The weight of three calves at birth
was found by M. Perrault to be :

No.l 70.4 lbs.

No.2 88.8

No. 8 80.8

Average 78.0

At Bechelbronn the weight of six calves at birth was :

No. 1, bom in May 108.9 lbs

February 88.0

Ditto 90.2

April 100.1

June 88.8

May 101.2

Average 96.2

M. Ernest Perrault found that a calf, No. 1, during the first
eighteen days of its life increased on an average 2.8 lbs. per diem ;
No. 2 increased at the rate of 1.8 lbs. per day ; and No. 3 at the
rate of 2.7 lbs. per day ; average increase 2.4 lbs. per day. An-
other calf, born at Feuillasse, which weighed 101.2 lbs., wien nine-
teen days old weighed 151.2 lbs. ; so that it had gained 50 lbs., or at
the rate of 2.6 lbs. per diem ; a rate which corresponded precisely
with what was observed in the case of nine other calves fed for the
butcher, the average increase of which per diem was 2.7 lbs., during
which each has had about 19.3 pints of milk daily.

The conclusions come to at Bechelbronn bear a close resemblance
to those of Feuillasse :

A calf which at birth weighed .... 108.9 lbs.
Weighed 13 daya afterwards 139.0

Increase in 12 days 80.1 Increase per day, 2JJ lbs.

A calf born 12th of Feb. weighed. . 88.0 lbs
On the 80th of March it weighed. .171.6

Increase in 46 days 88.6 Increase per day, 1.8.

The same calf, weaned the 2l8t of
April, weighed 198.6 lbs.

Increase in 21 days 22.0 Increase per day, 1.08.

It is obvious, therefore, that from the time of weaning, the growth
ceases to be so rapid ; the transition from the milk diet to one of

436 REARING CALVES.

Iiard dry food, is often critical for young animals ; and I have al-
ready said that it is one at which they frequently lose weight.

If we reckon the daily increase from birth, that is to say, for 69
days of mixed alimentation, we have 1.5 lb. for the quantity.

Crescent, bom the 27th of June, weighed. .. 88.8 lbs.
Eleven days later 112.1

Increase 23.3 per day, 2.1 lbs.

At the ago of 87 days he weighed 188.1

Increase in 26 days 27.1 per day, 2.5

Six days afterwards he weighed 202.4

Increase in 6 days 14.8 per day, 2.8

Another calf at birth weighed 101.2

At weaning, aged 41 days 189.2

Increase 88.0 perday,2.1

These various observations give about 2.2 lbs. for the average
daily increase of a calf in weight during the period it is sucking.
The data of M. Perrault make a little higher, 2.7 lbs. So that it
may be assumed that a calf which is receiving from 15 to 19 pints
of milk in the day, will be gaining 2.48, or very nearly 2J lbs. in
weight per diem.

It will readily be understood that in places where milk is of con-
siderable value, as in the neighborhood of cities, the farmer may find
his profit in selling that article directly rather than in turning it into
veal or beef, more especially if the usage of the district be to give
the calves milk till they are three or even four months old. Noth-
ing, in my eyes, can justify such a needless expenditure of milk ;
especially since I have had an opportunity of witnessing what I may
call the natural course of rearing cattle in the steppes of South
America. There the young animals only receive milk in any thing
like quantity for two or three weeks ; they soon get accustomed to
live on grass. In the warmer countries of the earth, too, cows give
much less milk then they do in temperate latitudes, and the secre-
tion also dries up much sooner. The value of the milk, and the
high price of butter and cheese, are unquestionably at the bottom
of the immense slaughter that takes place in France among the
calves even at a very early age, when they are fat, but do not weigh
more than from 110 to 112 lbs. This circumstance undoubtedly
Btands in the way of the production of meat in that country, and
causes the notorious scarcity of meat of the best quality. Of the
two millions of calves which it is calculated are slaughtered in
France, I'oths are killed before they are a month old, and when they
do not weigh, one with another, more than from 90 to 110 lbs. But
we have seen that at two montlis old the weight will have increased
to from 154 to 176 lbs., more than half as much again ; so that, by
merely keeping the animals for one month more, the quantity of
butcher-meat brought to market would be increased by about
120,000,000 lbs.*

It does not by any means follow, however, as the excellent au.
thority I have quoted seems to think, that this increase of butcher,
meat would add to the actual amount of food produced by the agrL
• Perrault de Jotemps, in Journal d'Agrlcnlture, t. v.

REARING CALVES.

43t

cultural industry of the country. To produce 2 lbs. of veal, in fact,
I have shown that something like 22 lbs. of milk must be consumed ;
but it is evident that 1,200,000,000 of pounds of milk represent an
amount of nutritive matter superior in value to 120,000,000 of pounds
of veal. Could the production of the additional quantity of meat in
the course of the second month be eflfected by means of any other
food less costly than milk, which is itself a fluid of great value as
food, with ordinary forage, for example, or linseed tea, or oil-cake,
&c., the state of the question would be changed, and there would
then be no doubt of the advantage to the community of the addi-
tional supply of butcher-meat. This indeed is so well understood,
that all the efforts which have been made to improve upon the ordi-
nary and simply natural mode of rearing young cattle have been
directed with a view to economizing milk. The interesting work
of M. Ernest Perrault, from which I am about to make several ex-
tracts, was not written with any other purpose.

M. Perrault set out with the view of ascertaining experimentally,
1st, whether the large quantity of milk generally allowed to sucking
calves is really indispensable, and whether it is possible to diminish
it without detriment to the animals ; 2d, whether a portion of the
milk can be replaced by hay-tea, an article prepared by pouring 14
or 15 pints of boiling water upon a pound of fine meadow-hay, and
infusing for a few hours.

The observations were made upon three calves taken after wean-
ing. A was kept for 94 days on the usual allowance to calves at
Feuillasse ; B had a smaller quantity of milk, and from 42d day
after birth had an increasing allowance of solid food ; C in the
course of the comparative experiment had 476 pints of hay-tea, and
as it is impossible to regard the infusion as of higher nutritive value
than the article from which it is prepared, I shall set down this drink
as equal to 28^ lbs of hay. The allowance of milk was stopped 48
days after the weaning.

A, B, and C were kept on their respective rations for 95 days.
The three were kept for the first 18 days on milk entirely, during
which it was calculated that each had had from the mother 337
pints Here are the rations in a tabular and comparative manner.

A.

On the usual allowance.

B.

On a reduced allowance of

mUk.

0.

On hay-tea.

B

1

il

ft

If

Milkinplnta.

Hay or an
equivalent.

Food, 94 days.. .

Suckling, 18 days

Days 112

1460
348

1_8^

lbs.
374

"874

Food, 95 days...
Suckling, 18 days

Days 113

1216

848

1564

lbs.
896

896

lbs.
Food, 95 days... 232 591
Suckling, 18 days 848j . .

Days 118 1 580' 591^

37

438 REARING CALVES.

It would have been desirable to have had these three calves
weighed immediately after the termination of the experiment ; as
this was not done, the results have not the whole of the precision
that seems desirable. Nevertheless, M. Perrault from his observa-
tions concludes ;

Ist. That A, kept on miOt alone, weighed at birth .... 88 lbs.
At the age of 452 days 771.0

Total increase 888.0

Increase per day 1^

2d. That B, on the reduced allowance of milk

weighed at birth 8a6 lbs.

At the age of 224 days 404.2

Total Increase 820-6

Increase per day 1.4

8d. That C, on hay-tea, weighed at birth 111.2 lbs.

At the age of 101 days — 270.6

Total increase 150.4

Increase per day 1.67

M. Perrault's general inference is, that the calf which had the hay-
tea ration grew more rapidly than either of the other two brought
up either on pure or on dilute milk. The differences, however, are
within the limits of the variations noted in animals that are reared
on the same ration.

If we reduce the various articles consumed in these experiments
to food of the same nutritive value — to hay, for example — we find,
that —

A consumed In 112 days, 1857 lbs of hay*

B " 113 " 1137 "

O " 118 " 906 " "

The mininum ration for the maintenance of calves, to which
M. Perrault comes from his experiments, differs little from that which
we think amply sufficient at Bechelbronn ; and our animals certainly
are not inferior to those of Feuillasse. This fact may be judged of
by the following particulars, which I have selected as affording the
elements of contrast with M. Perrault's B and C :

Sophy weighed at birth 100.1 lbs.

At the age of 102 days 279.4

Total increase 179.8

Increase per day 1.76

Food coninmed : Milk 525 parts, weighing 684 lbs.— hay 297 lbs.
Hay 689

In all 886

Rosa at birth weighed 96.8 lbs.

At the age of 289 days 478.0

Total increase 876.2

Increase per day^ 1.58

This calf consmned : Milk 528 pints, weighing 684 lbs.— hay 297 lb&
Hay 1778

In all 2070

• Milk must be regarded in the light of forage, so that its equivalent should be
•Uted. Assuming milk to consist of 12.61 dry matter, and 8T.89 water, 1 find by

REARING CALVES,

439

Without calling in the assistance of hay-tea, consequently, by
bringing up on milk for seven weeks, and giving forage as soon as
possible, it is obvious that we obtain results as fully as good as those
of M. Perrault.

I have said that it was during the period when calves are suck-
ing, or receiving a regular allowance of milk, that the increase of
weight was most rapid. As the animal approaches the term of its
complete development, the weight, in an equal interval of time,
increases at a progressively diminishing rate ; but from the data
which I have collected, but which are not very extensive, it appears
that the increase is very regular until the Ml growth is attained.
From this period the animal continues stationary if he merely
receives the ration of maintenance ; any variation observed is purely
accidental, and loss or gain one day is compensated by gain or loss
on another. The adult animal, which does not lay on fat, thus
acquires a standard weight, which is preserved for a term of years
unchanged, until the period of decrepitude and decay arrives.

It is not unimportant to ascertain the progressive increase in
weight of cattle ; the balance is a means which the breeder and
feeder ought not to neglect ; it is a powerful check upon his ser-
vants, and a sure tell-tale in regard to the state of the stock at any
moment. A conscientious herdsman is a most precious person on a
farm ; but the more I study breeding and feeding, the more I am
satisfied that the most trustworthy agent of all is the balance. Fre-
quent weighings are necessary, in order to keep a regular account
of the state of the cow-houses. I here append such absolute obser-
vations as I have made on the increase of weight in horned cattle,
with an expression of regret that I have not been able to present my
reader with more numerous data.*

Names of Beasts.

Weight at Age when Weight at Increase
birth weighed, this time, per diem

Victoria . . .

Ditto

Susan

Ditto

Gallop . . . .

Ditto

Ditto

Schwartz..

Sophy

Migaonne. •

Ditto

Margot ..•

®itto

Ditto

James

Ditto

Ditto

lbs.
82

80

Davs.

56

156

168
168

82
164
264

88
102

108
190
290
119
201
801

lbs.
180
288
1T6
270
178
254

254

216
812
224

804
482
216
284
452

lbs.
1.98
1.45
1.55
1.26
1.21
1.48
1.59
1.47
1.76
1.84
1.56
1.88
1.56
1.88
1.25
1.07
1.82

Under a year old.

direct analysis that 100 of this dry matter contains 40 of azot« : so that 100 of milk
contains 0.50 azote. This shows that 280 of milk are required to replace 100 of good
meadow hay, containing 150 azote.

* As the weights were merely relative, I have neglected the fractions in turning
the French Kilogramme into avolrd. pounds. I have, however, given the true inora-
toents of weights per diem. — Eno. Ed.

440

INCREASE OF WEIGHT OF STOCK.

Karnes of Beasts.

Weight at! Age when

Weight at

Increase!

birth, jweighed.

this time. "per diem.

lbs.

Days.

lbs.

lbs.

88

270

1.86

229

878

1.40

M

829

588

1.49

88

239

430

1.58

90

2T5

570

1.91

((

867

782

1.98

"

436

880

2.00

89

465

972

2.09

u

547

1080

2.00

90
100

730
811
796

976
1074
1740

184
1.84
2.26

98

1009

1602

1.65

Petrel.
Ditto . .
Ditto..

Stern

Ditto

Diito

Chastel

Ditto

Eichaas

Ditto

Castor, 2d bull.
Castor, 1st bull

From 1 to 8 yrs. old

Become fat, killed.
Ditto.

Byway of pendant to these results, I give two series of weighings,
one of which has reference to the increase of weight of a heifer, on
which I made a number of consecutive observations ; the other was
undertaken with a view to ascertain the variations which milch-kine,
aged more than three years, may experience :

Dates
heifer weighed.

S.pt.5.....

" 23

Weight.

lbs

...869.8)

..874.0 f

...893.8

Gain between one
■weighing M another.

lbs.

42

19.8
85.2

Time
elapsed.

Days.

8

14
41

Increase
in 34 hours. Bemarks.

1 40 Fed with hay

^•*" roots.

141

Nov. 8

...429.0

0.85

" 28 469.4

Jan. 29 650.0

Apl.21 678.4

July 9 884.4

Aug. 8 950.4

40.4

80.6

128.4

206.0

66.0

79

L21

1.82

1.60 Was fed on green

2.48 clover at discretion

2.64

TABLE OF MILCH-KINE THEEE YEAE8 OF AGE AND UPWAED8.

Ist 3d Interval between Diffr'cea

Names. Ago. weighing, weighing. Difference, the weighings, per day.

Esmeralda 8

Orphan 3

Galatea 6

Gitana 6

Hannchen 7

Paysanne 7

Eaffalea 8

Prima Donna 8

Formosa 9

Belle et Bonne 11

lbs. avoir.
1445
1815
1540
1820
1100
1449
1672
1784
1573
1846

lbs. avoir.
1555
1434
1894
1386
1236
1540
1727
1654
1601
1287

110
119
146
66
186
91
65

59

Days.

lbs.
+ 1.8

+ 1.6
-1.7
+ 0.8
+0.8
+1.1
+0.6
-1.6
+0.4
-0.6

Taking the preceding numbers as the authority, and until we have
a larger number of weighings, I think we may conclude that the
living weight of cattle of the Swiss breed increases by the follow-
ing quantities per diem :

During the period of suckling at the rate of 2.4 lbs.

Under three years 1.6

Above three yearn 0.8

The increase of weight of growing animals depends much on the
kind of food they have ^ and it is matter of great moment to know
the precise amount of fodder which neat cattle require in order to
thrive. Those who have treated of it specially, are as far from
being agreed as to the proper ration ; and then many who have
specified the kind and quantity of the food, have neglected the ages

ALLOWANCE TO CATTLE. 441

the absolnte weights, the amount of labor required, and the milk ob-
tained from the animals. It is subject of simple observation, that an
animal of great size, all things else being equal, will require a larger
quantity of forage than another of less bulk.

Once the allowance of food is well established, it is greatly to be
desired that it be continued with the greatest regularity. Nothing
is more injurious to cattle than stinting. Still there is a term in
every year when the live stock, or some portion of them, at least,
are almost necessarily stinted in their food ; in the depth of winter
the animals that are not put up to fatten, consume little or nothing
but straw. At this season, consequently, the stock fall off consider-
ably in flesh, in strength, and in the milk they give ; and when the
loss has been very great, the animals are sometimes too far gone to
recover when the spring has come round. This state of things is
greately to be deplored, and, indeed, ought to be viewed as most pre-
judicial ; it will be altogetJier impossible to advance the economy of
neat cattle to the point of perfection which it is fitted to attain, until
means are taken to secure every portion of the stock, at every period
of the year, a suflSciency of properly nutritious food. Happily, with
the progress of agriculture, this condition is becoming every year
more and more easy ; the introduction of roots, (turnips and mangel-
wurzel,) and of tubers, (potato,) into the routine of every farm that
is respectably managed, supplies a fodder, through the whole of the
winter, that is equivalent to the grass and other green meats of
spring and summer.

1»haer fixes at 13 lbs. the quantity of hay per diem which a cow
requires for her maint;enance in perfect condition ; and if the animal
be in milk, he allows as many as firom 22 to 33 lbs. But the ration
must vary, as I have said, with the weight of the^animal. M. Per-
rault states 27 lbs. as the allowance for a milch-cow weighing about
880 lbs. ; he having, in his experience, found that an animal in milk
required about 6i lbs. of hay for every 220 lbs. of living weight.
Pabst, who paid great attentioL to the feeding of cattle, admits, that
for the ordinary allowance of an ox doing nothing, or of a cow which
is dry, 3.85, or upwards of 3f lbs. of hay, are required for each 220
lbs. of carcass weight ; 4.4, or about M lbs., if the animal be a
draught-ox ; and 6.6, or upwards of 6i lbs., if it be a milch-cow.

The inquiries which I have made into this subject have led me to
conclusions somewhat different ; from which I infer, that the rela-
tion between the weight of the living animal and the necessary fod-
der is not an invariable quantity. A very large ox or cow, relatively
to its weight, requires less food than an animal of smaHer dimensions.
And this circumstance is a grand argument with those breeders who
are in favor of very large cattle ; they saw that if a large ox con-
sumes more food than a small one, still the increase of consumption
is by no means in the ratio of the increase of weight.

The milch-cows at Bechelbronn have no more than 33 lbs. of hay
per head per diem, or the equivalent of this quantity of forage. But
the smallest creature on the farm, at the time my experiments were
made did not weigh less than 1110 lbs. '79 stone, 4 lbs.) ; the relor

442

FEEDING ALLOWANCE.

tion of tlie livin* weight to the food being, therefore, as 100 is to
2 73, say 2|.

The largest cow, again, weighed 1784 lbs., (127 stone 4 lbs.,) so
<^at the relation is here as 100 is to 1.85, or 1 JJths. The average
relation, taking the whole of the cows in the stable, came out as 100
13 to 2.25 ; in other words, for every 100 lbs. of carcass weight,
24 lbs. of meadow-hay per day had to be allowed.

It thus appears, from these inquiries, that growing animals require
more food relatively to their weight than when they are adult. The
young animals, upon which I made my observations, were from 5 to
20 months old ; and for this age I found that for every 100 of living
weight 3.08, or upwards of 3| lbs., of hay were required. The fol-
lowing table will give my conclusions at a glance :

s-

5

•«
U

11.

1!

1

1

a

So

1^

Average age
of the several

m

ii

8^1

BXKABES.

i

5

animals.

II

1^-

-J

107
119

lbs.
418

lbs.
143

months, days.
8 26

lbs.
209

lbs.
7.15

lbs.
8.48

In February

8 126
* i 130

434

14.7

4 6

242

7.85

8.06

ditto.

5 205 ^

170
15S

1267

86.0

6 9

811.8

18.0

2.89

Jaly.

116 J

163

11.0

5 10

297.0

5.5

8.70

February

206
828 ^
290

9.8

6 28

861.4

465

2.58

Septem.

289
252
289 J

2479

66.0

9 6

495.8

88.0

2.66

July.

841 ^

808

302

2586

62.7

9 18

607.8

81.86

2.47

ditto.

265

252

804

22.0

10

627.0

11.0

8.60

February

871

19.1

18 6

650.0

9.56

8.48

ditto.

748
488

2068
B perc

62.7
ent of li

80 6

ving weight...

1027.0

81.85

8.06

dltta

i

A.verag

8.08

In the course of the experiments, the calves were kept on good
meadow-hay, allowed them at will, according to our usual custom,
the hay that was put into the crib once a day was weighed, and an
account was kept and deducted of any that had been left of the pre-
vious day's allowance. The length of time durmg which each sev-
eral experiment was continued, varied from 2 to 13 days; and I have
thought it right to indicate the season of the year, lest that should
have any influence. To sum up, then, it may be said, that for every
100 of living weight neat cattle require ;

FEEDING SALT. 443

For simple snetenance (Pabst) 0.75 or i lbs. meadow-hav.

"When laboring CPabst) 2.0 " "

When in milk, (Pabst) 8.0 " •'

" fPerrault) 8.12 « "

" " (Boussingault, large cows). 8.78 " "

Growing rapidly [Boussingault] a08 ** •*

The forage ought to be given to cattle with great regularity, and
care should be taken that they do not eat too hastily. Grenerally
speaking, they have their allowance three times a day, constituting
so many meals, which, however, are well divided, the whole quan-
tity for each meal not being placed before the animal at once. This
precaution is particularly necessary when the allowance consists of
green fodder. The watering should take place in the intervals be-
tween meals, the animals being driven to the trough night and
morning ; though, when the heat is excessive, it is better to water
them three times a day. The water ought to be of good quality,
though, if it have no deleterious substance dissolved in it, cattle
seem to make no objection to that which is turbid, and which can-
not, we should think, be very palatable. Our cattle are watered,
during a part of the year, with water from a shaft pierced through
a highly argillaceous soil. Cattle seem to dislike excessively cold
water ; they then drink as little as possible. The cattle in the great
South American plains, drink water at a temperature of from 85° to
970 F. In Europe, the best water in point of temperature in winter
is that of a deep well.

Every one is familiar with the taste which herbivorous animals
show for salt, and this is one of the articles which is advantageously
made to enter into the ration when its price is not too high. In
France, it is absolutely necessary to use the article with extreme
parsimony — a circumstance which I much regret, and which I can-
not but view as prejudical to rural economy : — [in England, where
the odious salt-tax has been got rid of, salt, of the most beautiful
quality, is one of the cheapest of all manufactured substances.] I
know that many feeders do not think salt indispensable ; but their
authority is opposed by that of some of the highest names in Ger-
many and England, and my own mind has long been made in regard
to the value, to the excellent effects of this substance. I ascertain-
ed, for instance, that milch-kine, though they would not do upon
potatoes alone, throve very well when they had from two or two and
a quarter ounces of common salt added to the ration. A celebrated
English breeder, Mr. Curwen, recommends about 3| ounces of salt
to be given daily to cows and heifers in calf, and to draught-oxen,
and something less to fatting oxen, to young animals, and to calves.*

The high price of salt in France does not allow us to be so liberal
at Bechelbronn ; yet we make a distribution of the article three
times a week, and in quantities which bring the allowance to some-
thing more than about an ounce and a half per day. By way of
eking out the allowance of saline matter, we further supply, from
time to time, a quantity of Glauber salt, which comes in all to rather

♦ Sinclair, Agriculture.

444 MILCH-KINE.

more than half an ounce per head per diem. The use of this salt,
sulphate of soda, has long been common in Alsace, and also on the
other side of the Rhine ; and its effect on the health of horses and
of sheep, as well as of horned cattle, has been reconized as highly
advantageous. In Wurtemberg, the horses have, very commonly,
725 grains, neat cattle 463 grains, sheep 305 grains, and swine 250
grains of Glauber salt twice a week.*

Salt appears to be more especially useful in hot weather and in
warm climates. In the steppes of South America, it is held by the
llama keepers as an axiom that cattle cannot live without salt.
Wherever a flock thrives particularly well, it may be averred d
priori, that there is a salado there, a salt lick of the North Ameri-
cans, or place where there is a salt-spring. In the savannas that
are without saline springs, the herdsmen make a distribution of salt
every day. On the plateau, or table-land, of Nueva Granada, com-
mon salt is replaced with Glauber salt, as in Alsace and Wurtem-
burg, and I may say, that it was matter of much interest to me to
find the same custom prevailing on the table-lands of the Andes
as upon the banks of the Rhine.

§ II. MILCH-KINE.

I have akeady had occasion to say, that the signs by which the
qualities of kine as milkers were sought to be appreciated, are some-
what deceitful. Still, I am far from denying that practice and ex-
perience do not enable many persons to pronounce with some cer-.
tainty upon this particular. The power of doing so, however, is in
some sort the peculiar privilege of him who possesses it ; at least, I
have seen all the general rules that have been laid down on the sub-
ject fail ; I have seen cows of the most opposite conformations
equally productive. I have also said, that race or descent had much
to do with this quality ; the heifer that comes of a mother, a good
milker, will be very likely to turn out a good milker also. The
legitimate way, therefore, of obtaining a good race of milch-kine, is
to breed them from a stock that is already noted in this respect. At
the time of my penning these lines, there are two animals on the
farm that are remarkable as milch-kine : one is a tall, unseemly
animal, the bones projecting, and altogether thin and miserable ; the
other is a small cow, with rounded outlines everywhere, the bony
frame but little conspicuous ; her skin soft, her hair sleek and fine.
Nevertheless, these two animals have one character in common —
the udder is of extraordinary size.

We ought not to be hasty in judging of the value of a milch-cow
after the first calf ; age has great influence on the secretion of milk.
It is generally allow^ tliat a cow does not attain to her maximum
capacity of yielding milk until she has passed her sixth year.

With regard to the means we have of judging of the age of a cow,
they are principally derived from the horns. The teeth do not af-
ford us any indication, as in the horse and sheep. In the ox, about

♦ Communicated by M. Schattenmani^

MILCH-KINE.

445

the fifth year, there is a ring formed about the root of each horn ; in
the cow, this ring makes its appearance after the first calving, and
from this epoch there is a new ring formed each year, which pushes
on the former one. In aged animals these rings have become
faint, and can scarcely be counted. It is also evident that the horna
which, in early life, were thicker at the base, and tapered gradually
towards the tips, about the ninth or tenth year of the animal's life
present an opposite conformation ; they exhibit a kind of constriction
nt the roots. The depression above the eye increases with age, and
the false hooves become long and often bent.

Thaer reckons that, one with another, in well-regulated establish-
ments, cows will continue in milk for about 280 days, and yield in
all about 2265 pints, or 283 gallons. But it is certain, that the yield-
ing of a cow varies greatly with circumstances, race, age, climate,
and individual. The cows that graze at liberty in South America,
do not give more than about three pints of milk per diem ; which, as
it is almost wholly used in bringing up the calf, the dairy is there
of very little importance. In established farms, a cow is reckoned
to yield about 40 lbs. of cheese per annum. Mr. Curwen estimates
the quantity of milk at 6580 pints, or 822 gallons, per cow; M. Per-
rault states it at but 2992 pints, or 374 gallons ; and Mr. Low gives
the quantity at 5994 pints, or 749 i gallons. The differences between
these several quantities are obviously enormous, and can scarcely
be reconciled with any conceivable diversity of circumstances.
They are probably connected with the method taken to ascertain the
quantities.

The following table comprises the whole of the statements with
which I am acquainted.

ObservationB,

France: La Fenillasse [Aln]:P. de Jotemps.

Lompries [Ain | iD'Angeville.

Eoville [Meurthe] |Do Dombasle.

Lyonnais [montagnes] . jGrognier.
Bachelbronn [Bas-Rhin] Eel «fc Boussing'!

England Low

Do. • ICurwen .

Belcium : Antwerp. iSchwertz.

Do jSchwertz.

Ilolland : Low countries — Schwertz.

Do... jAiton.

Campine 'Schwerts.

Saxony : Meissen jSchweitzer.

Altenburg, jSchmalz.

Austria : Carinthia Burger.

Prussia: Moeglin iThaer.

Neighborhood of Berlin Thaer.

Switzerland iD'Angeville.

Hoflfwyll iD'Angeville.

lbs.
88C
605

lbs. pts.
27.52992
14.8:1610
22.0!2492

" 1284
88.0 "

" 5994
28.66580
27.24495
27.239671

" ;8400

" i7066;

" 9313^
18.6 2687
80.88412

" J2752
22.02648
27.58004

pts
8.2
4.4
5.9
8.5
((

16.2

17.8

12.8

10.9

9.2

19.4

26.5

17.

9.2

7.5

7.2

Cows
In the house.

Do.

Do.
ni-fed in winter

Do.
Do.

Do. niouse.
At grass & in the
In house, winter

Kept in house.

Well fed.
Kept in house.

a2 Do.

13201 88.514685; 12.8 Well fed.

At Bechelbronn we have seven cows whose allowance per head
is 33 lbs. of hay per diem. The milk is measured night and monv
38

446 MILCH-KINE.

mg, and the quantity given by each cow is particularly noted. The
herd consisted of Raflfalea, 8 years old, whose milk failed the 21st of
April, and reappeared the 18th of June without her having calved ; —
La Paysanne, 7 years old, whose milk ceased the 21st of February,
and she calved the 29th of April ; — Prima Donna, 8 years old : milk
stopped February 19th, calved December 5th ; — Formosa, 9 years
old : ceased milking 1st April, calved 2d June ; — La Gitana, 6 years
old : ceased milking 30th September, calved 9th November ; — Grala-
tea, 6 years old : ceased milking 9th July, calved 2d October : — Belle
et Bonne, Hi years old : ceased milking the 15th February, calved
3d April. These seven cows gave in the course of the year, neg-
lecting fractions, 30576 pints, or 3822 gallons of milk. In the month
of January, in round numbers, 1870 pints; in February, 1260 pints;
March, 1260 pints ; April, 1657 pints ; May, 2527 pints ; June, 3726
pints ; July, 4180 pints, August, 3661 pints ; September, 2913
pints ; October, 2622 pints ; November, 2540 pints ; December,
2360 pints ; having, one with another, given 546 gallons of milk,
and milked on an average 302^ days each ; the entire herd having
milked during 2118 days, and the average quantity yielded by each
cow having been 14.6 say 14^ pints for every day she was in milk ;
the quantity for each, day of tne year amounts to 11.9, say 10 pints.

June, July, and August are obviously the months most productive
of milk, during which the cows had scarcely any other food than
clover. The average quantity for these months was undoubtedly
raised from three of the cows having calved in March, April, and
May, so that these were severally giving their largest measures dur-
ing the three summer months.

It may be enough to state, that the largest quantity of milk is ob-
tained in the course of the three first months after calving ; the pro-
duce then will amount to 18, 20, and even 24 pints per day, while
the mean quantity during the whole time of milking will very little
exceed 12 pints.

The observations for the year 1842, which I referred to some
short way back, showed a mean of 14.6, say 14^ pints of milk for
each cow. But in the mode of reckoning pursued, there were
sources of error, which have been avoided in the estimates just
given. The only mode of securing accurancy of result is to take the
quantity of milk yielded by each cow between the period of calving
one year to the same event the following year. This mode of reck-
oning gives the quantity 13 pints per day for each cow, which I am
disposed to adopt as the standard for the Swiss breed, fed with 33
lbs. of good meadow-hay, or an equivalent of wholesome roots, &c.
I am also disposed to look upon 310 as the mean number of days
during which a cow will give milk after calving.

We sometimes see quantities of milk mentioned as given by par-
ticular cows that are truly surprising, and that seem even calculated
to excite suspicion of the veracity of the reporters. Some have
spoken of cows that gave 44 and 52 J pints of milk a day for several
months. M. Crud says that cows of great size indeed have even
given as many as 70.4 pints in twenty-four hours ; and Thaer goes

MILCH-KIN E. 447

still farther when he states that persons worthy of every credit say
they have seen cows in first-rate pastures, which, at the height of
their milking time, produced as many as from 74 to 82^ pints of milk
in the twenty-four hours. Such a flux of milk can only be very tem-
porary, and indeed must occur but very rarely. The herdsmen at
Bechelbronn have often diverted me with tales of such marvels
but since I have accurately guaged the dairy produce of the farm, J
have met with nothing which would lead me to credit their reality
We have had cows indeed which have given 26^, and even 31^
pints a day for several weeks ; but these are still very far from the
quantities which have been mentioned to me.

Good feeding is undoubtedly required in order that cows may pro-
duce milk abundantly ; but I believe that the influence of particular
kinds of forage on the production of milk is often greatly exaggera-
ted. Each breeder or feeder seems to have his own favorite article,
however, so that there is nothing like uniformity among them ; with
one it is the carrot that is in the ascendant ; with another it is the
beet that is supreme ; there is no root, in fact, which has not alter-
nately had its apologists and detractors. The truth lies between the
extremes here as it does in so many other instances ; and I am sat-
isfied that each and all the roots and other articles of forage that are
generally introduced into the rations of milch-kine, are calculated to
produce abundance of good milk ; it is only necessary that the sub-
stances be allowed in ample quantity, that no mistake be committed
in regard to the nutritive equivalents of the several articles. I do
not hesitate to add, that the opinions of the generality of farmers and
dairymen on the subject are based on observations which are always
more or less imperfect.

It is but a few years ago that a series of experiments were under-
taken at Bechelbronn, with a view to ascertain whether the particu-
lar nature of each of the several articles consumed by milch kine
influenced the quantity or chemical constitution of the milk in any
appreciable manner. The purpose of these inquiries being purely
practical, having been undertaken with as pecial eye to the dairy
and its produce, the inquiry was confined to the articles that are
usually given to cows with us. These necessarily vary with the
season, but I have already said that the dole to each head is equiva-
lent to 33 lbs. of meadow-hay, which, indeed, always enters in con-
siderable quantity into the ration, whatever else be given, unless,
indeed, the animals are exclusively upon green meat, when, of course,
the use of every thing else is suspended. In winter the hay is mixed
with beet, potatoes, turnips, or Jerusalems. In spring the hay is
gradually replaced by green fodder, which in the first instance is rye
cut green, and by and by clover. The experiments which I shall
now detail were made upon a cow which had calved two hundred
days, and was again pregnant.

1st EXPEKIMENT.

200 DAYS AFTER CALVING.

The cow fed on hay alone gave 65.42 pints of milk in the courae
of seven days, or 9.34 pints per day. This milk consisted of:

MS MILCH-KINE.
Caseum

l^'ofmii:::::::v::;;:.;- t-vsom^i^a

Ash of caseum

Water 87.7

100.0

2d EXPERIMENT.

207 DAYS AFTER CALVING.

Fea with turnips and cut straw, (the ration consisting of turnips
equal to 29.7 lbs., and straw equal to 3.3 lbs. of hay,) the same cow
gave in the course of eight days 84.4 pints of milk, or 10.5 pints per
day. The composition of this milk was :

Caaeum 8.0 \

g?r„f miii;.;.;.;.::;:.:;.::: l:S[8«ud.M.4

Ash of caseum. 0.2 )

Water 87.6

100.0
The animal discussed her provender with good appetite, but the
ration was too large ; about 11 lbs. of the turnips being left each day
unconsumed.

3d EXPERIMENT.

215 DAYS AFTER CALVING.

The ration here consisted of :

Field-beet, an equivalent for 29.7 lbs. of hay.
Chopped straw " 8.6 "

In the course of fourteen days the quantity of milk obtained
amounted to 137.6 pints, or 9.8 pints per diem, and was composed
as below :

Caseum 8.4

»?"«' f 2 y Solidfl 12.9

Milk sugar 6.8 f '^"""° ■^*-«'

Ash of caseum O.f

Water 87.1

(

100.0

4th EXPERIMENT.

229 DAYS AFTER CALVING.

The ration consisted of:

Kaw potatoes equivalent to 29.7 lbs of haj.
Chopped straw " 8.6 "

In the course of eleven days the cow gave 96.1 pints of milk, or
at the rate of 8.7 pints per day, the fluid consisting of:
Caseum 8.4^

a?'J«g;i::::::::::;:.;.v:::.:;»:S[9«''*'»M

Ash of caseum 0.2;

Water 86.5

100.0

The cow did not do well upon this regimen : she became heated,
and refused one-half the straw. In a general way we do not give
tubers to a greater extent than is equivj>^ent to one-holf of the allow-
ance of hay, in which proportion cows d<> very well upon raw potatoes.

MILCH-KINE. 44&

6th EXPEKIMENT.

240 DAYS AFTER CALVING.

The forage here consisted of the full allowance of hay, or 33 lbs.
In the preceding experiment the milk, which had hitherto kept up to
from about 9| to 10^ pints a day, fell suddenly to little more than
8 J pints. To ascertain whether the fall was owing to the potato
regimen or not, the cow was returned to the ration of hay, mider
which in the Ist experiment the daily average of milk was 9.3 pints.
In the course of thirty days 188 pints of milk were collected, at the
rate of 6.2 pints per day. The declension in the quantity secreted
consequently cannot be ascribed to the potatoes which were given
in the fourth experiment.

6th EXPERIMENT.

270 DAYS AFTEB CALVING.

The ration here was raw potatoes, with salt and straw — the ration
of the fourth experiment, with the addition of about 2^ oz. of salt.
The animal ate this salted ration with appetite ; she also made away
with the whole of the chopped straw, and it agreed well with her ;
nevertheless, the milk continued to decrease in quantity ; it had
failed oflf to 5.9, say 6 pints a day.

7th EXPERIMENT.

290 DAYS AFTER CALVING.

In this trial the ration consisted of Jerusalem potatoes equivalent
to 33 lbs. of hay, under which the milk may be said to have remain-
ed stationary, though it was above rather than under the 6 pints per
diem as in the 6th experiment. In composition it was as follows :

Caseum 8.3 )

fuTofn„ii-.:-.-.v.v.v.".v..::;: ti sond.m

Ashof Caseum 0.2 j

Water 8T.5

100.0

The quantity of the milk had obviously decreased from the first
down to the two last experiments ; but its chemical constitution
does not appear to have varied during the entire course of the trials ;
the varied regimen has had no influence on the proportions in which
its several ingredients are encountered. But there was still one
point to be ascertained, viz. : whether the milk secreted very shortly
after the delivery differed from that which was formed at a period
remote from that epoch.

8th EXPERIMENT.

A cow which had calved twenty-four dajrs before, and, upon a
mixed regimen of hay and green clover, was giving at the rate of
18.6 pints of milk a day, was brought under observation. Analysis
showed this milk to consist of :

Caseum 8.0)

^^o,-;^:::::::::::::::::: II ^"^^^

Ash of caseum 0.2 j

Water 88.8

100.0

38*

450 MILCH-KINE.

9th EXPERIMENT.

35 DAYS AFTER CALVING.

The same cow, upon green clover, was now producmg 21.2
pints of milk a-day, and of the following composition :

Caseum 8.1 \

L-^r <m«i-.:-.:-.-.v;;;;::::;:: il [ ^-"-^ '«•"

Ash of caseum 0.8)

Water 86.8

100.0

This milk evidently presents a larger quantity of butter than ap-
pears in any of the preceding analyses. But no hasty conclusion
must be drawn from this ; for the succeeding experiments will ex-
hibH a change equally sudden in the proportion of the fatty element,
but in a different way.

In a second series of experiments I set myself the task of ascer-
taining whether green fodder had any such remarkable influence on
the production of milk, and especially of its fatty element, or butter.

1st EXPERIMENT.

BEGUN 176 DAYS AFTER THE CALVING.

The ration here consisted of winter fodder :

Potatoes equivalent to 16.5 lbs. of hay.
Hay " 16.5 "

Upon which the cow had long been kept though the milk was only
measured during the last six days. The quantity was 16.3 pints a
day, and consisted of ;

Caseum 8.8)

f."^T«f miii-.:;;::;;;.v.v.v.;:; J:f [8oud.i&»

Ash of caseum 0.8 ;

Water 86.6

100.0

2d EXPERIMENT.

182 DAYS AFTER THE CALVING.

Mixed regimen: Green clover equivalent to 16.5 lbs. of hay.
Hay " 16.5 "

Upon which the quantity of milk was at the rate of 17 pints a day.
3d EXPERIMENT.

193 DAYS AFTER THE CALVING.
Green meat : Clover equivalent to 88 Iba of hay

Quantity of milk, 17.2 pints a day, composed of.

Ctoeum 4.0)

B'^tt«^ 2.2(.g^U^lUI

Sugar of milk 4.7

Afih of caseum 0.8

Water. 89.7

100.0

MILCH-KINE. 451

The small quantity of butter here induced me to repeat the analy-
sis, but the result came out very nearly the same, the quantity being
still but 2.35 per 100.

4th EXPERIMENT.

204 DAYS AFTER THE CALVING.
Green fodder : same quantity as before.
Milk per day 13.7 pints, composed of :
Caseum 8.7 ^

lugr„fm,,i-.-.;::;:;:::::;:;::ll[s«ua»«-6

Ash of caseum 0.2 ;

Water 87.4

100.0

It would therefore appear that fresh-cut clover has no such virtue
as that of increasing the quantity of milk given by cows. Under
the winter fare, in fact, the milk produced in the course of the
twenty-four hours amounted to 16.7 pints ; under green clover it
was but 14.9 pints. It would be a great mistake, however, as I
conceive, to ascribe the diminution here to the use of the green
forage ; it is due, I apprehend, exclusively to the greater length of
time that has elapsed since the period of calving.

The chemical composition of the milk varied little, as I have
already incidentally remarked, in the course of these experiments.
The differences in respect of the caseum, by which let me say I
understand the whole of the azotized constituents, the whole flesh
of the milk, rarely exceed one hundredth part. The proportion of
the fatty element varies suddenly, and, as it seems, independently
of the various circumstances in which the cows are placed.

The general inference from these experiments, then, is that the
nature of the food does not exert any marked influence on the quan-
tity and chemical constitution of the milk (I do not now speak of
the quality of the fluid) if the cows but receive the proper nutritive
equivalents of the several sorts of provender. It is of great impor-
tance to insist on this point ; for it is quite certain, that if the
weight of the several rations be not calculated according to that of
the equivalents, variations in the secretion of milk would be forth-
with conspicuous ; but then these variations would have the increase
or diminution of the provender allowed as their cause.

When cows are kept through the winter upon straw alone, they
cease to give milk ; but on the return of green forage, in the spring,
the secretion is restored. The re-appearance of the milk in this
case, however, is not connected with the coming in of the fresh
provender, but with the return of plenty ; the animals are not only
fed, from having been starved, but they are more than fed ; they
have something to spare, which their economy turns partly into milk.

In well-managed establishments, where a good system of hus-
bandry secures an abundant supply of good nutritive provender to
the cattle during winter, the produce of the dairy during this season
differs much less from that of the summer than is generally supposed.
I am besides persuaded that we estimate the nutritive powers of

452 FATTENING.

green forage at too low a rate, and that \<'hru cattle are upon wet
clover or lucern, they are in fact much moie effectually nourished
than under ordinary circumstances.

If it be true, as it evidently is, that the quantity of milk produced
depends especially upon the absolute quantity of nutritive food con-
sumed, it is not so with the quality of the fluid. It is undeniable,
that the milk of spring and summer, formed upon green and succu-
lent food, is much more palatable than that of the winter season ;
the butter is also much finer and better flavored. The green herbs
of our pastures undoubtedly contain volatile principles which are
dissipated and lost in the processes of drying and fermentation
which they undergo in their conversion into hay. If chemistry- be
powerless 'in seizing such principles, it still informs us of the possi-
bility of introducing a variety of articles into the food of cows
which have the property of communicating those qualities which
we prize in milk. In all grazing countries certain vegetables are
pointed out as giving, in the vulgar opinion, a particular aroma to
the flavor of milk.

§ III. FATTENING OF CATTLE.

Under a parity of circumstances, feeding cattle for the butcher
may occasionally be found more advantageous than the dairy to the
farmer. In feeding for the market there is, in the first place, a
quicker return for the outlay than in keeping milch-kine through
the whole of the year. In the first operation, the capital is realized
at the end of four or five months ; that which is employed in produ-
cing milk, and butter, and cheese, is always lying out like a sum at
interest.

The quantity of food requisite to bring cattle intended for the
butcher into condition, does not vary less than that which is required
to secure a plentiful production of milk. Thus the stature, the age,
the race of the individual, and the relative proportions of flesh and
fat which we would have laid on, all imply varied doles of various
kinds of forage. The age in especial has to be considered ; for in
putting up a young animal to fatten, we have both flesh and fat to
form. This is what always occurs in the fattening of oxen of two
years old, and of pigs of ten or eleven months. The increase in
living weight experienced at various ages, is not equally owing to
accumulation of fat ; this indeed may be so in the case of beasts,
the muscular system of which ha« already attained complete devel-
opment, but it is otherwise with young and still growing animals.

Practice does much in enabling us to select the animals that will
fatten readily. In a general way it is well to choose yomi^ animals
that have a large chest, the body bulky and rounded, the ribs finely
arched, the bones small, the limbs short, the neck thick for its
length, the skin soft, pliant, velvetv to the touch, and moveable over
the body, particularly over the ribs, the tail should be scanty, the
buttocks not deeply cleft, but fleshy — well breeched, as the phrase
runs in some districts. The look of the animal should be sharp

FATTENING. 463

ftnd bold ; the horns slender, whitish, and rather transparent. The
animal must have been cut while he was still at the teat.

The celebrated English breeder, Eobert Bakewell, succeeded,
after a long and troublesome course of experiments, in creating a
race of neat-cattle and of sheep which show themselves particularly
disposed to take on fat. The fundamental principles established by
Bakewell, after all his experience, are these : that smailness of
bone, fineness of skin, and cylindrical shape of body, are the surest
indications in cattle of the disposition to lay on fat readily, and
upon the smallest quantity of provender. The most striking features
in the breed obtained by Bakewell, commonly known as the Dishley
breed, may be summed up in the following terms :

1st. The animal low on his legs.

2d. The back-bone straight.

3d. The carcass rounded and almost cylindrical.

4th. The chest deep and large.

An ox is held to have grown rapidly and well, when at the age of
three years he weighs from 1016 to 1051 lbs. avoirdupois, from 72
to 75 stone. The disposition to fatten young is also a precious
quality in the beast which it is intended to bring for the butcher ;
the feeder comes the sooner at his return. Sinclair thinks, that in-
dependently of good constitution, which is indispensable, this quality
is derived especially from meekness of disposition, from good tem-
per ; and as docility is generally the result of good treatment in
early life, young animals ought always to be treated with great
gentleness and made perfectly familiar.

The different races do not all yield meat of the same quality, and
this quite independently of age. The best meat has a very decided
and characteristic flavor after it is dressed, which indiffeient meat
wants, or which is replaced by a savor that is disgusting rather
than agreeable. The fat in the best meat, as well as being laid on
superficially, is distributed through the substance of the muscles, so
as to give the flesh a marbled appearance.

In fattening cattle it is perhaps of more importance than in gene
ral feeding, that the provender should be distributed regularly ;
plenty of soft litter, and the greatest attention to cleanliness, aid
materially in fattening. The cow-house ought to be dark and quiet ;
in a word, all the conditions ought to be combined which conduce
to sleep, and secure freedom from disturbance of every description.

The age at which cattle fatten most readily is that from 7 to 8
years.* Animals under this age, which have not yet come to their
full growth, will nevertheless get into excellent condition ; but they
require both longer time and more food, for the reason, apparently,
that they are still forming both flesh and fat.

In fattening during winter, which is done almost exclusively with
hay in some countries, an ox weighing 748 lbs., upon 40 lbs. of hay
per diem, will increase by about 2 lbs. daily. According to Mr.

• This is as in tlie original, and may be true, but in England and Scotland we hay*
•eldom an opportunity of proving it so. — ^Eng. Ed,

454 THE ox. — FATTENING.

Low, an ox weighing 770 lbs., and consuming about 2223 lbs. of tur-
nips per week, if he thrive, will gain in the same space of time
nearly a stone in weight. Admitting that the equivalent number for
turnips is 676, 1 find that the ration of hay for this allowance comes
out 47.8 lbs., having produced exactly 2 lbs. of increase.

In the information obtained in the Ehenish provinces by M. Moll,
in regard to the fattening of cattle under the influence of a regimen
which would give 11 lbs. of hay to every 100 lbs. of dead weight,
the animal will increase one third in weight in the course of three
or four months.

To these general results I add a few particular facts, which are,
indeed, the only data in rural economy that can ever be received as
having much value.

In a series of experiments which he undertook, Mr. Kobert
Stephenson proposed to compare the progress of the increase in
weight of oxen upon different alimentary regimens. Starting with
the principle which we have already established, that animals con-
sume a quantity of food in proportion to their weight or size, when
they are under tiie same conditions, he had of course to divide his
stock into several lots, each made up of animals of as nearly as pos-
sible the same weight. Oxen of two years old, brought up on the
same farm, and kept in the same manner, were the subjects of exper-
iment. I shall select one experiment, in which the observations
were made upon three lots of six beasts each. The weight of each
lot was ascertained before and after the experiment, which was car-
ried on for 119 days.

The first lot was put upon white turnips, linseed oil-cake, beans,
and oats ; and for the last 24 days each beast had 20 lbs. of pota-
toes every day in addition.

The second lot was fed like the first, with the difference that it
had no cake, and that during the last 24 days the quantity of pota-
toes allowed was but 10 lbs. per diem.

The third lot had no other provender than turnips.

Here are the weights and the nature of the provender consumed
by the animals during tlje 119 days, with a column added contain-
ing the equivalent in hay porresponding with each of the articles
consumed :

LOT I. LOT II. LOT IIL

,., . 1 EquWnlent Equivalent Equivalent Equivalent

Provender. Weight in hay Weight in hay Weight in hay assumed.

in lbs. in lbs.

in lbs.

White turnips.. 1518 171.6 1628 184.8 1122 137

Swedes. 1^336 1973.4 13884.8 1980 12012 1777.6 67«

Beans 868 1559.8 858 1559 «' " 23

Oil-cake 889 1768 " » « « 28

Oats 173 279 178 279 " " 63

Potatoes 479 151 289.8 77 *♦ " 815

Ration expressed in hay 5904 8971 1905

'^pUCr!^^"^^^f 49.7 848 16.0

""JnVweiglJt^^^^"^:} 4.11 8.08 £.0

It therefore plainly appears that the lot which had the largesf

THE OX. FATTENING. 455

allowance of provender, the food which contained the greatest quan-
tity of azotized principles— of /esA, in fact — produced the largest
amount of dead weight in a given time, and that the lot which had
the shortest allowance increased in the smallest measure both in
flesh and fat — results which might have been readily foreseen. It
is also apparent, from the table, that in proportion to the nutritive
value of the article consumed by each lot, the increase in carcass
weight was greatest in that which received its allowance in the least
bulk. Thus reducing the different rations to a standard forage, we
find that in the first lot, which was most plentifully supplied, 100 of
hay gave 4.2 of increased weight ; while the same allowance of hay
produced 6 in the third lot which was fed parsimoniously. This
fact is most readily explained : over a certain limit, the more food
an animal receives, the smaller is the fraction which \a assimilated
and turned to use in the body. Breeders have consequently discov-
ered, that it is by no means generally advantageous to push animals
beyond a certain point of fatness. The excess of weight which is
obtained with the assistance of quantities of food, exaggerated as it
were, no longer compensates for the additional expense incurred.
This is a circumstance which Mr. Stephenson's experiments also
illustrate, and indeed they led him to the conclusion which has just
been sta:ed. Judging by the market price of the several articles of
provender employed by this distinguished breeder the first lot appears
to be that the fattening of which turned out the least advantageously :
while each pound weight of flesh produced here cost about 5d., the
price of production in the second lot did not much exceed 4d. (45th ;)
in the third it was a little more, (4|ths.)

With these observations of Mr. Stephenson, we find the following
numbers to express the daily increase in weight of the cattle during
the period of fattening :

Average weight of - Hay consumed per day Inore«s« per head Increase per day and

the oxen befor« and per biad. in 119 days. par hoad.
fattening,

lbs. lbs. lbs. lb*.

let lot.... 1115 49.7 247.6 2.

2d " ....1016 84.8 281.6 1.9

8d " .... 794 16. 112.6 0.9

The weight of the several animals must also be taken into account'
in seeking to estimate the increase realized upon every 100 lbs. of
live weight during the fattening.

In the 1st lot— 100 of live weight in 119 days gained, 22.2
2d " " 22.8

8d « " 14.2

It is seldom that cattle are fattened in the house upon clover or
lucern in the green state ; nevertheless, animals will fatten upon
this forage with great rapidity. An ox will eat as much as 1 cwt.
of clover cut in flower in the course of the day. In case the green
food should relax the bowels too much, a fraction of the allowance
may be given dried, and towards the end of the fattening a little cake
may be given. But these additions do not appear to me indispensa-
ble ; they are always attended with additional cost : and I have

456 THE ox. FATTENING.

frequently seen cows, upon green clover at discretion, acquire a
remarkable degree of fatness, although they had not ceased to be
regularly milked.

In those countries, the nature of whose climate is favorable to
pasturage, the rearing of cattle presents immense advantages ; but
the animals can only be fattened in those that are the most fertile.
The meadow that sufiBces for the growth and keep of a bullock will
not always bring the animal into condition for the butcher. Those
countries where the climate is moist, but long droughts rarely felt,
where neither the summer heats nor the winter colds are excessive —
the conditions, in fact, which are met with in the beautiful pasture
lands of England, in special — are those that prove most favorable
to the rearing and feeding of cattle. The pasture lands of Nor-
mandy and Brittany in France, of Switzerland and Holland, several
of the provinces watered by the Khine, &c., are also remarkable for
their luxuriant herbage. In such situations and with such advatages,
the grand object with the farmer is the production and fattening
of cattle. Whenever it has been possible to lay down extensive and
productive meadows, it is now beginning to be clearly understood
that the introduction of even the best system of rotation were to
make a false application of agricultural science. In my opinion, there
is no system of rotation, however well conceived and carried out.
which will stand comparison in point of productiveness with a natu-
ral meadow, favorably situated and properly attended to. The rea-
son of this is obvious, and follows from the very principles which
we have laid down in treating of rotations. The whole object in the
best system of husbandry is to make the earth produce the largest
possible quantity of organic matter in a given time. But in such a
system we are limited by the climate, inasmuch as we are obliged so
to arrange matters that our crops shall always attain to complete
maturity ; the consequence of which is, that with all our pains the
soil remains unproductive during a certain number of weeks and
mouths towards the end of autumn, in the early spring, and through
the whole of the winter. But upon meadow lands, vegetation is in-
cessant ; the winter even does not interrupt it completely ; it still
revives and makes progress on the bright days ; and in the spring"
it proceeds when the mean temperature is but a few degrees above
the freezing point of water, and never ceases until it is checked
again by the severer cold of winter. It is therefore easy to obtain
conviction that a given surface of meadow land must necessarily
produce a larger quantity of forage than land laid out in any other
way. It is true that the forage thus obtained will not, like the cereal
grasses, answer immediately for the support of man ; but it neverthe-
less concurs powerfully in this by producing milk, and butter, and
cheese, and in breeding and fattening cattle ; let there be added to
all these the advantages of what may be called a permanent vegeta-
tion, that the cost of keeping it in order is infinitely less, and that
there is no risk to be run from failures of crops, and the vast advan-
tages of meadow or pasture land will meet us with all their force.

THE OX. FATTENING. 457

On the banks of the Elbe, in Holland, in the neighborhood of
Arnheira, the meadows are depastured during one year, and cut,
and their produce made into hay the following year, and so on alter-
nately. The cattle are fed in the house with the hay during the
winter. They are driven out into the pastures in May. In the Low-
Countries, it has been found that to fatten a large ox a surface of
meadow-land of about 9960 square yards, upon which he will pas-
ture during five or six months, was necessary. In the bottoms of
greatest fertility near Dusseldorf, it has been calculated that to keep
a cow, an extent of surface equal to about 1800 square yards was ne-
cessary.

In countries which possess rich pasture lands oxen are put to fat-
ten immediately upon the richest of them. In the valley of the
Auge, in Normandy, these meadows are designated as herbages. A
meadow of this kind requires a rich, damp soil, capable of retaining
moisture. It is, therefore, to a considerable extent dependent upon
its subsoil. In the district mentioned, the soil of the pastures con-
sists of a thick layer of vegetable mould resting upon clay ; it is
therefore very rare that this meadow land feels the effect of drought ;
it is indeed, only in the early spring that the pasture upon such
lands sometimes fails, in which case the stock must of course be as-
sisted with hay, the quantity being gradually diminished as the sea-
son advances.

M. Dubois finds that a lean ox weighing 473 lbs., after fattening
in the valley of the Auge, will weigh 763 lbs., so that he will have
gained 290 lbs. ; the degree of fatness attained in this district is often
prodigious. M. Dubois mentions oxen which weighr d when fat 1760
lbs., upwards of 125 stone, and he speaks of one which attained the
enormous weight of 2750 lbs., upwards of 196 stone.

The height of the oxen fattened in the herbages of the Auge va-
nes from 4 ft. 7 in. to 5 ft. 3 in. measured at the haunch ; when
thoroughly fat, the four quarters will weigh from 550 lbs. to 990 lbs.,
the hide will weigh from 70 lbs. to 116 lbs., and they will yield from
100 lbs. to 150 lbs. of tallow.

It is calculated that on the meadows of the greatest fertility, a
surface of 2760 square yards are required to fatten a large ox ; on
meadows of medium fertility, a surface of 4680 square yards are re-
quired to fatten an ox of medium size ; on those of the third quality,
a surface of 3720 square yards is deemed necessary to fatten a
small ox.

M. Dubois calculates the quantity of green fodder consumed by
an ox during the eight months when he is fattening, is equiva'ent to
6600 lbs. in dry hay ; this, at least, is the quantity that the extent of
meadow required to fatten one ox would produce. The average
ration of green forage per diem is, therefore, equivalent to about 27
lbs. of hay, a quantity which appears small, and which would be so
in effect, were not the oxen kept so long in the meadows. M.Du-
bois, indeed, observes that in the stall, with a ration composed of
from 11 lbs. to 13 lbs. of linseed oil-cake and 26 lbs. of hay, an ox
will become sufficiently fat for the butcher in seventy days, and will
39

458 THE ox. — FATTENING.

acquire nearly the same weight that he would have gained in the
course of seven or eight months in the meadows. There is nothing
surprising in this fact, inasmuch as the ration mentioned by M. Du-
bois, in our mode of viewing it, is equivalent in nutritive value to at
least 81 lbs. weight of hay; the quantity of oil-cake alone is enough
to supply a good pound weight of fat per diem.

In old Friesland, where the pastures are excellent, results are ob-
tained which may be compared with those of the meadows in the
valley of the Auge ; an ox of from 770 lbs. to 990 lbs. weight will
be pushed to a weight of from 1100 lbs. to 1650 lbs. on a surface
of meadow land between 3000 and 3600 square yards in extent.

In the meadows of the Auge the fattening goes on even during the
winter ; the oxen are received into the pastures between the 15th
of September and the 15th of November, and the animals pass the
winter in the open field ; but they receive from 12 lbs. to 26 lbs. of
hay per diem until the month of April, when the grass has already
grown sufficient to suffice for their keep. These oxen are gener-
ally fat and ready for market in July.

In these observations of M. Dubois, the fattening has reference to
the neat weight of the carcass, sinking the ofial, as it is said, or esti-
mating the weight by the quarter. The most esteemed quarters are
the hind quarters, which are found to weigh rather less than the fore
quarters, although the difference is less, the higher the condition of
the animal.

It is long since various means have been devised for ascertaining
the neat weight of a living animal, or in other words, the weight
which the carcass will have when it has been embowelled, flayed,
and the head and fat cut off. These various parts compose what ia
called the offal. It is readily to be conceived that one grand feature
in the excellence of an ox must consist in the great relative weight
of the carcass properly so called in comparison with the offal ; but
it may easily be imagined also that the relations in the weight of
these two different portions of the living animal will vary according
to the state of fatness, and also according to the breed and the age
of the beast.

Mr. Andcrdon has found that an ox which is not absolutely lean
will give for every 100 lbs. of his absolute weight :

Of marketable meat 58,6 lbs.

An ox somewhat fatter will yield 55 "

And one completely fat as many as. . .62.2 "

Mr. Layton Coke's estimate is :

For a lean ox 60 per cent, of marketable m«»t

For an ox In middling condition. . . 65 "

And for a fat ox 78 "

These estimates appear to me exaggerated, and I much doubt from
the sales of cattle which we make ourselves, whether they would
readily be admitted by the buyers ; they are in fact too high as re-
gards the available meat.

From a great number of actual trials made with animals of about
two years old, and which were all as nearly as poseble in the same

THE OX. FATTENING. 469

condition, Mr. Stephenson was enabled to determine with great ac-
curacy the actual weight of the butcher's meat in contrast with the
entire weight of the animal. Mr. Stephenson comes to the folio ysr-
ing conclusions :

Butcher's meat per cent 57 7

Tallow :. :.: 80

The hide ;;;;.' sis

The entrails and offal 28.8

100.0

The precise quantities of marketable meat and of offal have also
been determined by Mr. Mallo in an ox of the Durham breed which
was slaughtered in his presence. The weight of the animal on its
feet was 1496 lbs.

Per cenfage of
m. . « , ... ""• ""« weight.

The two fore quarters weigned 406.9 ) r^ ,•

The two hind " 428.5 f °^'*

Theskin 62.7 4,2

Thetadow 112.0 7.5

The blood 110,0 7,4

The head, fat, and entrails 881,7 26.5

1496.0 100.0

These relations as to meat, tallow, and skin agree in a very con-
siderable measure with the estimates of Mr. Stephenson.

Sir John Sinclair gives the following numbers as the results ob-
tained in connection with an ox of the Devonshire breed, slaughtered
at the age of 3 years and 10 months.

Weight of the living animal, 1549,6 lbs,

P»r centageof
lbs. the live weight.

Butcher's meat, tho four quarters 1083.5 70,0

Theskin 84.9 5,5

Tallow 143.2 9,2

Entrails and blood 163.6 10.5

Head and tongue 86.7 2.4

Feet 17.1 1.4

Heart, liver and lungs 20.4 1.8

1549.4 100,0

The animal here was not in prime condition. On the whole, the
relations as stated by Mr. Stephenson may be taken as those that
will be found nearest the average truth, and as his numbers are de-
duced from numerous actual experiments, I feel disposed to adopt
them. M. Dubois has found that an ox which will weigh 473 lbs.,
sinking the oftal, will be brought by fattening to the weight of 763
lbs. We have, therefore, for the weight of an animal as it stands :

Before fattening 828 lbs.

After fattening 1386

Gain in weight 508

The fattening having been effected in eight months, the absolute
increase in weight per diem will amount to 2 lbs.; the increase per
cent, upon the weight is 61.4.

We have seen that during the fattening, the mean consumption,
reckoning the provender in hay, amounts to 6600 lbs.: the increase
obtained being 508 lbs. gives 16.9 lbs. of living solid for every 220

^^0 THE HORSS.

lbs. of hay consnmcd. Lastly, the mean ration being settled by M.
Dubois at 26.4 lbs. of hay per head and per diem, and the weig-ht of
tb3 animal on being taken into the meadow being 828.3 lbs., this ra-
tion corresponds to 7.1 lbs. of hay for everj 220 ibs. weight of the
living animal.

To sura up from the facts just stated on the subject of fattening, it
appears that the increase per day is :

According to Thayer 0.98 per cent on the hay consumed.

" Low 0.91

" Stephenson, Ist lot 0.94 "

2d 20.99 "

3d 0.45 "

Dubois 0.95 •*

^ IV. OF HORSES.

In what follows I shall limit myself to the consideration of the
horse in his relation to agricultural industry, and shall give the re-
sult of certain experiments which I have made upon his growth with
a view of solving the question, much disputed in various places at
the present time, whether or not the general farmer can breed hoi-ses
witli advantage to himself.

The horse employed in farm labor ought to be spirited and strong :
attention to external form is only to be given in so far as it is an
indication of the qualities that are required. He ought therefore to
be broad in the chest and in the haunches, and his muscular system
ralist in general be decidedly developed. A horse of considerable
size, if he be otherwise exempt from defects, is generally preferable
to a small animal ; he is stronger, takes longer steps, and does more
for his keep than the other. We are not to require in the draught-
horse the vivacity and amount of spirit which we look for in the
saddle horse, yet he ought to have that liveliness which is almost
always a sign of health in animals.

Thaer does not approve of the practice commonly followed at this
time of mixing with good draught horses the blood of stallions of
elegant shape, but little adapted to stand hard work. Although this
remark, is not without truth, it is still impossible to deny that in many
cases the employment of stallions of some breeding has much im-
proved the race of draught-horses in various districts. It is not
besides unworthy of attention, that it is really important for the
farmer to have a breed which he can readily dispose of to advantage,
particularly in those countries where horses for cavalry and artillery
service are in request. My own observation would lead me to say,
that the breeds in France are frequently improve*^ by crossing with
stallions of the royal studs. The effect from this procedure has not
]ierhaps been so great as might reasonably have been expected, still
evident progress has been made.

The mare will take the stallion at about the age of three years ; but
it is seldom that the animal is covered at so early an age ; on the
farm she will be at least five or six years of age before this is allow-
ed, especially if the animal is to be worked during the time she is
with foal J and the same consideration leads us to say, that a mare

THE HORSE. 461

ought not to be covered oftener than once in two years, although it
is very possible to have a foal from her every year, for she frequent-
ly comes into season towards the 11th day after foaling, and she
goes with young for a term which varies between 333 and 346 days.

A brood mare may be employed in ordinary work during the first
period of her pregnancy ; but when the time is further advanced,
when she is in the tenth month, for example, every possible precau-
tion must be taken against accident. This is the period at which
we withdraw our brood mares from the common stable, and put them
into separate boxes. After she has foaled, the mare receives in
small quantities and frequently repeated, warm drinks and bran
mashes. While she is giving suck, her food ought to be of a more
substantial or better kind than that which is generally allowed.

The mare may be put to light work twenty days after she has
foaled ; but it is requisite not to demand any thing like exertion from
her within eight or ten weeks after this event ; she then goes out
accompanied by her foal which is generally suckled for about one
hundred days. Foals are frequently brought up in the stable or in
the loose box ; this is our practice in Alsace ; but it is well, with a
view to the growth and health of the young animal, that it be taken
out every day. On quitting the teat, foals are fed upon choice hay ;
ill the course of the second year a portion of the hay should be re-
placed by an allowance of oats, and in the season the use of green
clover cannot be too highly recommended.

According to Thaer, the daily allowance to a horse of middling
height, and doing ordinary work, may be regarded as good when it
consists of:

Hay 8.2 lb9. —Hay. 8.» lbs.

Oats 9.2 —Ditto 14.2

Allowance reckoned in hay. 22.4

In England the following allowance has been particularly men-
tiond as that of certain well conducted stables.

Cut Hay 11.0 Iba. -= Hay 11.0 lbs.

Cutstraw 2.2 —Ditto 0.65

Oats 11.0 —Ditto 16.9

Beans 1.1 —Ditto 4.T

Allowance reckoned In hay. 8? .2

According to M. Tassey, veterinary surgeon in the Municipal

Guard of Paris, the provender of the horses in this corps in 1840

consisted of :

Hay nibs. —Hay 11 lbs.

Oats. 8 —Ditto ,...., 12

Straw for litter 11 -Ditto 2i

Total allowance 25^

The same authority reckons that horses employed in severs
draught receive or require :

Hay 16>lb8.-Hay 16*lb»

Oata. IT —Ditto 26

Total allowsn/vo . . 42#

39*

462 THE HORSE.

Until very lately (previoDsly to 1840) the allowance of troop
horses in the French army consisted for the reserve cavalry of :

Hay nibs. —Hay 11 lbs.

Oats 8 =- Ditto 12

Straw. 11 =-Ditto 2^

Total allowance 26*

For the cavalry of the line :

Hay 8.8 lbs. -= Hay 8.8 lbs.

Oats 7.6 =- Ditto 11.5

Straw 11 =Ditto 2.T

Total allowance 28.0

For the light cavalry :

Hay 8.81b8.-=Hay 8.8 lbs.

OatB 6.6 — Ditto 10.1

Straw 11 =Ditto 2.7

Total allowance. 21'6

Influenced by the consideration of the frequent indifferent quality
of hay, and its injurious effect upon the health of the horse, it was
decided in 1841 to replace a portion of the hay ration by a larger
quantity of oats, an article much less liable to be adulterated, or to
be indifferent in quality. The allowance now consisted for the re-
serve cavalry of:

lbs. lbs.

Hay 1.8 =" Hay 8.8

Oats. 9.2= Ditto 14.2

Straw 11 =Ditto 2.7

Total allowance 25.7

For the cavalry of the line :

lbs. lbs.

Hay 6.6 —Hay 6.6

Oats 8.8— Ditto 18.5

Straw 11 —Ditto 2.7

Total allowance 22.8

For the light cavalry :

lbs. lbs.

Hay 6.6— Hay , 6.«

Oats 8.8— Ditto 12.8

Straw 11 —Ditto 2.7

Total allowance 22.1

From what precedes, it appears that the substitution of oats for
hay was made upon a calculation which squares well with the theo-
retical inferences in regard to the relative nutritive powers of these
two articles.

The allowance to the horse ought to be distributed into three por-
tions, constituting as many meals, and put before him in the morning
before going to work, in the middle of the day, and in the evening ;
he is generally watered at meal times. It is also highly advantage-
ous to the health of the horse that he be made to work with a cer-
tain regularity. Our horses at Bechelbronn, upon an allowance
equivalent to 33 lbs. of hay, work from 8 to 10 hours a day, having
an hour's rest at midday.

THE nORSE.

4t)3

There is, of course, a certain relation between the height or, if
you will, the weight of the horse, and the quantity of provender he
requires. Some attention, as we have seen, has been given to this
point, in connection with horned cattle ; but with reference to the
horse I know of no data but such as I myself possess. Seventeen
horses and mares, aged from 5 to 12 years, and having each proven-
der equivalent to 33 lbs. of meadow hay, weighed together 18,190
lbs. The mean weight of each horse being represented by the num-
ber 1070 lbs., we perceive that for every 100 lbs. of live weight 6.7
lbs. of meadow-hay are required for the daily ration, the horses
working from 8 to 10 hours a day. This relation differs very little
from that which we have obtained in reference to cattle.

I was anxious to ascertain the rate of growth of the horse ; and
in connection with our breed, which have a mean weight of about
1100 lbs., I found that the foals weighed as follows :

d

a

a

^

S

H

1

a

,0

bo

Vi-O

\fA

||

Names.

^
"S

■s

^

^
a

11

•s=s

fl

o

2 E3

S+* s s

1

I

§
^

Increa
during

Increa
P

1 1 lbs.

lh8.

T

lbs. lbs.

Filly of Chevreuil 25 May, 1842 1 110

20 Aug. 1842

294.8

184.8 2.1

Filly of Hechler 12 June, 1842: 113

7 Sept. 1842

286.

87

172. 1.9

Filly of Brunette. 12 June, 1842: 113

7 Sept. 1842

854.

87

241.

2.7

The mean increase per day during the period of suckling in thtj
three cases quoted above, therefore, appears to have been rather
more than 2 and /oths lbs. avoirdupois.

Immediately after weaning, young horses appear to experience an
arrest of their growth for some short time, an event which indeed
happens to animals generally. I found, for example that Chevreuil's
filly, which on the day of weaning weighed 294 lbs., nine days after-
wards weighed but 288 lbs., and had consequently lost 6 lbs.

I shall add a few weighings of horses further advanced in age,
although still young :

Alexander, a colt, weighed at birth 110 lbs. : at the age of 128
days, 337 lbs. ; increase 227 lbs., or about 1.8 per diem : 51 days
afterwards, 490 lbs. ; increase 105 lbs., or per day 1.4 lb.

Finette, a filly, weighed, when weaned at the age of 86 days, 295
lbs. ; 83 days afterwards, 396 lbs. : increase 101 lbs. ; per day, 1.1
lb.

Hechler's filly weighed when weaned at the age of 87 days, 286
lbs. ; 65 days afterwards, 358 lbs. ; increase 72 lbs. or per day 1 J
lb.

From what precedes we may conclude :

*38

464 THE HOG.

1st. That foals, the issue of mares weighing from 960 to 1100 lbs.,
weigh at birth about 112 lbs.

2d. That during suckling for three months, the weight increases
in the relation of 278 to 100, and that the increase corresponds very
nearly to 2 and j\ lbs. avoirdupois for each individual per diem.

3d. That the increase of weight per diem of foals from the end
of the first to the end of the second year, is about 1 j\ lbs. avoirdu-
pois ; and that towards the third year, the increase per day falls
something under 1 lb. avoirdupois. After three years complete, the
period at which the horse has very nearly attained his growth and
development, any increase becomes less and less perceptible. These
conclusions in regard to the horse, differ very little from those
which I have had occasion to draw in connection with horned cattle.

I have also made a few experiments with reference to the quantity
of provender consumed by foals in full growth, and have found that
Alexander, Finette, and Hechler's filly, weighing together 1106
lbs., consume per day :

Hay 19.8— Hay 19.8

Oats T =Ditto....; 11

Total allowance 80.8

Per head 10.22

The mean weight of these foals was 368.6 lbs., so that the hay
consumed for every hundred pounds of live weight was 2.85 lbs.,
with which allowance the daily increase amounted to about 1.2 lb.
Consequently, a mixed provender, equivalent to 100 lbs. of hay, had
produced 12 lbs. of live weight. I must confess that this result
appears to be somewhat too favorable, but I can only set down the
numbers as they presented themselves to me.

The flesh of the horse is not generally used, or at least openly
used, as food for man, though there are countries in which it is ex-
posed for sale and commonly eaten. At Paris, indeed, in times of
scarcity, horse-flesh has been consumed in quantity. During the
Revolution, a knacker exposed publicly for sale, in the Place de
Greve, joints from the horses which he had killed, and the sale con-
tinued for three years without any ill efi*ect ; in 1811, a scarcity
obliged the Parisians to have recourse to the same kind of food, and
it is said, indeed, that the traffic in horse-flesh as an article of human
sustenance is still continued to a very considerable extent in the
French metropolis ; at the present moment, a distinguished writer on
Medical Police, M. Parent-Duchatelet, has even proposed to legalize
the sale of horse-flesh as food for man.

There is perhaps no farming establishment which does not keep
a certain number of hogs, a measure by which ofial of all kinds that
would jjo directly to the dunghill, is turned to the very best account.
The dairy, the kitchen-garden, and the kitchen, all yield their con-
tingent of food to the pig-stye, which is moreover an excellent
nuians of using up certain portions of the harvest But the rearing

THE HOG. 465

and fattening of hogs, although frequently looked upon as mattrra
of course, and requiring very little care, do in fact demand consider-
able attention and certain conveniences in situation. The rearing
of hogs, in a general way, may be said to suit the small farmer
better than the great agriculturist.

Our common domestic hog appears to derive his origin from the
common wild hog of Europe. The breeds are extremely numerous.
The black hog, covered with rather fine hair, and commonly found
in Spain, is a native of Africa. This is the race which has been
carried to South America, where it has multiplied in a truly surpris-
ing manner. It grows rapidly ; and if it has little to recommend
it with reference to fattening, it is nowise nice in the matter of food
and general entertainment ; the flesh is excellent when the animal
has been kept upon the banana, and fattened off upon Indian corn.

The hogs of the east of Europe are remarkable for their size ;
they are of a deep gray color, and have very long ears ; they are
not very prolific, the brood swine having rarely more than four or
five at a birth. The Westphalian breed, on the contrary, though
they resemble the last; are highly prolific, the litter generally con-
sisting of from ten to twelve. In Bavaria the hogs are remarkable
for the smallness of their bones, and the readiness with which they
take on fat. Lastly, the Chinese race, which is common in England,
and begins to extend on the continent, differs from those hitherto
known, in having the back straight or even hollow, and the belly
large. This breed is also remarkable for its quietness ; the pork
which it yields is of the very best quality.

One of the great advantages connected with the hog being its
extreme fecundity, it is important to have a breed which is distin-
guished in this respect. There are some brood swine which have
regularly borne ten or fifteen, and even eighteen pigs at a litter ; a
more general number is eight or nine.

According to Thaer, the hog that is disposed to take on fat is
distinguished by length of body, long ears and a pendulous belly.
The hog attains his growth, at the end of about a year, until which
time the female ought not to be put to the boar. One boar generally
suffices for about ten females.

The hog, 'as all the world knows, is an animal the least dainty in
his food ; he is omnivorous, nothing comes amiss to him ; but his
food is by no means matter of indifference when the quality of the
flesh comes to be considered. Thaer seems to think that maize is
of all articles that which is the best for feeding swine ; and I have
had occasion to verify the accuracy of his conclusion in South
America, where I may add it is found that the oily fruit of the palm-
tree contributes powerfully to the fattening.

Husbandry, in regard to the hog, comprises two distinct periods :
the growth of the animal, and his fattenmg. It is generally admit-
ted that it is most advantageous not to fatten swine for the butcher
until they have completed or nearly completed their growth. A
hog which has been well kept from the period of its birth, may be
put up to fatten at the age of about a year. The female shows signs

466 THE HOG.

of heat at the age of about five or six: months, and goes with young
on an average 115 days, and will produce regularly two litters per
annum ; when particularly well kept, she may have three litters in
the course of from thirteen to fourteen months.

The hogs which are destined to be fattened for the knife are ge-
nerally cut at the age of six weeks, particularly if they are to be
put up to fatten at the age of nine or ten months, as is often done.
Almost all the varieties of roots and grain produced upon the farm
are suitable for the maintenance of the hog ; but in Alsace, and I
believe generally, the staple is the steamed potato, with which are
associated various articles in smaller quantity, such as peas, aod
barley and rye meal, &c.

The farrow sow ought to have food by so much the more abun-
dant and nutritious as she is required to suckle a larger number of
pigs. Our allowance at Bechelbronn to the hog with five young
ones during the six weeks of suckling is as follows :

lbs. lbs.

Steamed potatoes 24.75 «= hay 7.8

Evemeal 2.46=- " 40

Skim milk 13.2=- " 6.2

Total allowance 18.0

After the fifth week, when the animal is no longer giving suck,
tlie ration consists of:

lbs. lbs.

Steamed potatoes 12.1 — = hay 7-8

llye tnea! 1.0— " 1.6

Skim milk [sour] 6.5— " 8.8

Total Allowance 12.2

This allowance is gradually reduced to the end of the second
mouth after the farrowing, when the animal is upon the maintenance
ration of the farm, consisting of :

lbs. lbs.
Steamed potatoes 16.5— hay 5.2

The potatoes are mixed with dish washings, which certainly con-
tribute to improve their nutritive power, although I am altogether at
a loss to estimate the value of the article.

The young pigs begin to taste the food given to the mother at the
age of about a fortnight, but they never take to this kind of food
freely until they are four or five weeks old and are weaned ; up to
this time they have an allowance of skim milk and whey. To five
pigs at the time of weaning we allowed per day :

lbs.

steamed potatoes 22.0-= bay 7.8 per head 1.4

Eyemeal 1.0—" 1.6 " 0.88

Sklmmilk 6.0— " 2.8 " 0.67

29.6 "llJ

This allowance was modified by degrees ; the quantities of milk
and rye meal were gradually abridged, and the proportion of pota-
toes increased, so that about the third month the allowance per head
was from 11 to 13 lbs. of potatoes mixed with greasy water. This

THE HOG. 467

is the reg-imen, equivalent to about 5 lbs. of hay, upon which our
store pigs are maintained until they ate put up to fatten. During
tiie three months which follow the weaning, therefore, we may
reckon that each animal has consumed 3.8 lbs. of meadow-hay per
day, and that from the third month the consumption may be repre-
sented by 5.2 lbs. of the same article.

We have attempted in vain to replace the potato by rape or madia
oil-cake ; the pigs refused it obstinately ; but they showed no objec-
tion to poppy seed, walnut and linseed eake ; during the season they
will also eat clover, and are partly maintained- upon this plant. In
summer they are put entirely upon green meat, animals from five to
six months old consuming about 19 lbs. of clover a day, a quantity
which represents very nearly 5 lbs. of clover hay.

The hog may be fattened at any age ; but as we have already said,
it is not generally advisable to fatten before he is ten months or a
year, some say fifteen months or a year and a half old, at which
period the animal is undoubtedly in flesh and at its full growth. The
other extreme limit appears to be about five years ; but it is only a
brood sow that is ever kept to five years of age. It is generally
allowed that twelve weeks are required to bring a hog into prime con-
dition, when he ought to have a layer of fat under the skin upwards
of an inch in thickness. Sixteen weeks may be required to obtain
an animal really fat ; and twenty weeks to have him at the highest
point that is attainable. The hog requires to be fed regularly.
After weaning, pigs should have five or six meals in the course of
the day ; the number of meals is diminished gradually, and towards
the end of two months they amount to but three in all.

I was curious to ascertain the weight of the pigs at the moment of
their birth, so as to determine their rate of increase during the period
of suckling. On the 5th of September a sow farrowed a litter of

five.

lbs
No. 1 weighed.... 2.205
No. 2 " ....8.025
No. 8 " ....2.476
No. 4 " ....2.750
No. 5 " ....8.800

Weight of the litter 13.756

Average weight per head 2.761

On the 11th of October the weight of the litter was 86.6 lbs., or
17.3 lbs. per head ; increase in thirty-six days, 73.2 lbs. ; per head,
14.6 lbs. : per day, 0.409 lbs. On the 15th of November the weight
was 177 lbs. : increase in thirty-five days, 90.2 lbs. : per head, 18
lbs. ; per day, 0.506. During the thirty-six days of suckling, con-
sequently, 100 of live weight at birth had become 632.

In another instance, I found that eight pigs which at the time of
weaning weighed 114 lbs. or 14.3 lbs. per head, at a year old
weighed 1320 lbs., or 165 lbs. per head : increase in eleven months
1206 lbs., or 150 lbs. per head.

The increase per diem since the weaning had been 0.4. — not quite

468 THE noG.

half a pound ; and as the food consumed may be represented by 5.2
lbs. of hay per day and per head, it will follow that 100 of forage
had produced 8.58 of live weight. This ratio is too high, however :
for these pigs besides the regular allowance had whey and various
scraps of which no account was kept ; and we know that whey
alone contains a considerable quantity of the representatives both
of flesh and fat.

Baxter came to some interesting conclusions on the growth and
fattening of young hogs. Four animals each of the age of nine
months weighed at the beginning of the experiment 458.2 lbs. ;
twenty-one days afterwards, 620.8 lbs. : increase of weight 162.6
lbs., to obtain which there were consumed :

lbs. lbs.

Barley 151 equivalent to hay, 250

Beans 140.8 " 611

Maltgrains 440 « 26T

1229

So that a quantity of nutritive matter represented by 100 lbs. of
hay produced 13.21 lbs. of live weight.

Assuming the weight of each pig of nine months old before her
fatting to have been 29 lbs., the increase per head was 40.6 lbs. in
the course of twenty-one days, or at the rate of 1.9 lbs. each. Bax-
ter reckoned the carcass weight, sinking ofiFal, at 7.4 per cent.

One of the pigs between nine and ten months old weighing 159.5
lbs., at the end of twenty days weighed 198.8 lbs. : increase in
twenty days, 39.3 lbs. ; increase per day, 1.9 lbs. During these
twenty days, the animal had consumed 188 lbs. of barley, equivalent
to 314 lbs. of hay. The increase would consequently give for every
100 lbs. of hay consumed an increase of live weight of 12.52, say
12^ lbs.

Arthur Young, by keeping pigs of a year old on peas-meal, obtain-
ed the following results.

No. 1 weighed 99.0 : 85 days afterwards, 167.5 : gain 58 J5 : per day l.fr2
No. 2 " 91.7; 42 " 145.4; 68.7; " 1.876

No. 8 " 86.6; 63 " 189.4; 62.8; •' 0.886

I shall here give two series of observations made at Bechelbronn
on the fattening of hogs. September 6th, 1841, seven hogs, aged
fifteen months each, already in good condition, were put up to fatten.
They had hitherto had the usual hog's food — sour milk and boiled
potatoes after weaning , by and by from 11 to 15 lbs. of potatoes,
whey, and dish washings. The seven porkers weighed 1691.8 lbs. ;
or 241.67 lbs. each. The increase had been at the rate of 0.528,
rather better than half a pound per day and per head, supposing them
to have weighed 13.7 lbs. each, at the time of weaning.

After fattening, 20th December, the 7 swine weighed 2101.0
Before " 6th September " 169.8

Increase In 104 days. 4''9.2 lbs. ; or fcr head . . . 68.8
Increase per day and per head 0.073

THE HOa.

4<59

In the course of the 104 days, there were consumed :

lbs.

Barley 772

Peas.. 1042.8

Potatoes. 9504

lbs.

equivalent to hay 1144

4171

" 8296

Greasy water and whey — quantity not determined • • 8833.6
So that with the provender equivalent to 100 lbs. of hay, 4.91 lbs. ol
live weight had been produced.

These seven porkers, slaughtered, yielded :

Hogs.

Weight
alive.

"Weight after
bleeding.

Weight of
the blood.

Weight of
the porkers

without
heads or feet.

\

Weight of

heads and

Oflfal.

1
2
8
4
5
6
7

lbs.

323.0

259.0

283.0

316.0

264

259.6

393.8

lbs.

312

248

272

306

257.4

250.8

876.2

lbs.

11

11

11

11
6.6
8.8

17.6

lbs.

268.0

208.4

208.2

263.2

220.0

213.4

821.2

lbs.
44.0
39 6
63-8
41.8
37-4
37.4
65.0

2098.6

"

1702.6

"

It must be admitted that these animals had increased both in flesh
and in fat ; but in spite of this, the experiment appears to be un-
favorable to the opinion that fat in animals is the efiect of direct as-
similation of the substance. The whole increase in weight of the
seven porkers had been 409.2 lbs. ; supposing 27 per cent, of fat in
this increase, its amount must have been 110.4 lbs. in all ; but the
food consumed did not contain more than 57.4 lbs. It would there-
fore be necessary to admit that the food which had not been taken
into the account had contained as many as 53.0 lbs. of fatty matter,
which I own does not appear to me probable. But no definitive
conclusion can be drawn from the circumstance, owing to the actual
state of fatness of the animals, when they were specially put up to
fatten, not having been ascertained ; perhaps the absolute quantity
of fat already accumulated is greater at this time than is generally
supposed.

I find, for instance, that a young porker of 196.9 lbs., killed at
the time when he might have been put up to fatten specially, yielded
as many as 25.3 per cent, of fat.

The following are the data afforded by the fattening of the farm
porkers for 1842 :

Nine porkers, from thirteen to fifteen months old, and already in
good condition, were put upon the full fatting allowance on the 1st
of October, on which day they weighed :

lbs.
1940
November 28th, after having been bled, they weighed. . .2807.8

Increase In 58 days per head and per day.
40

470

THE HOG.

In the course of fifty-eight days the hogs had consumed :

lbs. lbs.

Eye. 770 equivalent to hay 1141.8

Peas 1802 " 6209

Potatoes 4796 " 1861

Greasy water and whey undetermined 8221.8

The nine animals gave 1746.8 lbs. of meat, fat and lean, or 75.'3
per cent, of their weight as they stood alive ; besides which, 141.9
say 142 lbs. of lard were obtained from the internal parts. No\n
supposing that in the increase of weight obtained in the course o:
fifty-eight days, the fat were to be represented by 29 per cent., the
fat fixed would amount to 100.1 lbs. ; while the whole of the fatt}
substances contained in the food consumed would not amount to mon
than 59.6 lbs. It would therefore be imperative to us, did we main
tain that all the fat was obtained ready formed from without, to sup
pose that the whey and dish washings administered in indeterminate
quantity, had introduced 40.5 lbs. of fat into the bodies of the animals
Some experiments which are going on at Bechelbronn at this mo
ment will, I trust, settle the question definitively as to whether during
the fatting of hogs and other animals there is any formation of fat a
the cost of the starch and sugar of the food.

The observations which I have .made on the fattening of hogs ma]
be summed up in these terms :

2 b

^

1i

S"^

fe

-§^1

§ag

11

I'

5

Iff

<3"S

Duration of the experi-
ment

lbs.

lbs.

lbs.

Months.

Months.

Days.

5.1

0.440

8.58

1

11

18^

0.836

18.21

9

u

21

15.7

1.958

12.52

9*

t«

20

u

1.254

"

12

t4

«

11.6

0.572

4.91

15

((

104

15.4

0.660

4.21

14

"

68

The allowance to the hogs in the preceding observations was al
ways abundant. To determine the quantity of potatoes consume(
each day by a hog in full growth, and whose weight was known,
had him weighed at intervals, as well as the potato ration, place*
before him at will, which he ate daily, and found that when h
weighed :

Ter 100 of th«

Iba. lbs. Iba, liv

188 he ate 11 equiv.alent in hay to 8.4

145
160.5

184.8

18.2
15.4
17.6

4.'
4.8
6.6

2.52

30.1
8.02

THE HOG. 471

To these observations on the keep and fatting of horned cattle,
horses, and hogs, I would gladly have added remarks of like extent
on the growth and fattening of sheep ; unfortunately, I have only
been able to obtain very imperfect niformation on this branch of
rural economy. I have, however, sought to ascertain approximately
the relations which exist between the weight of a young animal, the
food consumed, and the increase in live weight, by means of the fol-
lowing experiment :

Two sheep six months old weighed together 184.2 lbs.

Sixteen days afterwards they weighed 151.8

Total increase 1T.6

Increase per day, per head 0.55

In the sixteen days the two sheep ate :

Hay 22.0 = Hay 22.0

Potatoes 53.3 —Hay 16.9

88.9

Or per head in hay 19.45

Or per head per day 1.21

^ This would give us about 2.9 of hay provender per cent, of the
Kve weight, so that a ration which should be represented by 100 of
hay would be followed by an increase on the weight of a sheep of
six months old of 27.7 per cent.

^ Vr. OF THE PRODUCTION OF MANURE.

The forage consumed on the farm being the source of the manure
produced there, it would seem that it must be easy to calculate the
value of all that comes from the stables and cow-houses day after
day. I do not mean the mass or weight of the dejections here, for
it is certain that the more or less watery nature of the food mate-
rially influesces the weight of the dung produced ; and if a common
mode of calculating the quantity of dung by merely multiplying the
weight of food consumed by three be correct in some cases, it is
very far from the truth in others. The dung produced on the farm
must be calculated on different gTOunds from this ; and without pre-
tending to any degree of accuracy which is really unattainable, it is
still very possible to get at the quantity of azote which is contained
in the litter and in the dejections, so as to be able to refer to a stand-
ard the quantity of manure made.

Were not the azotized principles of the food partly exhaled by
animals, the whole quantity not appearing in the excretions, it is ob-
vious that it would suffice to have ascertained the quantity of azote
contained in the food, to be in a condition to decide on that con-
tained in the dung added to the litter. But this cannot be done ; to
be convinced of the fact, it is enough to take the least complex case,
that of a full-grown horse, receiving as his allowance per day :

Hay 22 lbs, containing 1775.8 grains of azote.

Oats 11 " 1389.4 "

Straw 11 " 808.T "

Litter..... 8.8 " 108.0 ♦*

Azote.... 8581.4 :: '

4T2 THE HOG.

Now assumiDg 2 per cent, as the contents in azote of dry farm-
yard dung, we see that the food consumed by the horse, speaking
theoretically, might or should form 25.5 lbs. of dry manure. But
we have seen that a horse or cow will exhale from 355.0 to 41 6.8
grs. of azote, which is all derived from the food, and is consequ ntly
lost to the dung-heap. Now 3859 grs. of azote represent 2.75 lbs.
of dry manure ; so that the dry dung produced by the horse kept in
the stable, will be reduced from 25.5 lbs. to 23.1 lbs. In the course
of a year, upon this calculation, the azote exhaled will diminish the
weight of dry dung produced by one horse by a quantity equal to
1045 lbs.

The azote of the food of a cow is still more considerable in quan-
tity, and the loss to the dunghill proportionally larger ; inasmuch as
to the amount she exhales, must be added all that goes to constitute
the milk she gives. Practical men, without pretending to get at
the cause of the thing, have long been aware of the fact, that a cow
produces less dung than a horse ; and the truth of this is readily
demonstrated on scientific grounds. Suppose a cow, consuming the
equivalent of 33 lbs. of hay, and giving about 17 pints of milk per
day:

33 lbs. of hay contain 2670 grs. of aiote,

44 " straw for litter contain. 128 "

Azote 2793 — 19.8 lbs. of dung supposed to be dry.

But in the 24 hours, there have been of

Azote exhaled ... 8S5.9 grains, and of

Azote in 17 pints, or 22.7 lbs of milk carried ofl^ 802.7 grains.

1188.6 — S 8 of dry dung:

The 33 lbs. of hay digested by the cow, consequently, the litter
added, have only produced 8.8 of dry dung. The azote of the food,
of which we find no account in the dejections, amounts per annum
to nearly 30 cwts., (3300 lbs.,) the deficiency in the case of the
horse amounting to no more than 1045 lbs., (9 cwts. 1 qr. 9 lbs.)

The estimation of the dung produced by growing animals, pre-
sents several special difficulties, inasmuch as, besides the azote
exhaled from the lungs, there is the quantity that is fixed in the liv-
ing body.

In one of the experiments which I have related, it appears that a
calf six months old, consuming :

Hay 9.6 lbs. containing 10C9.S azote.

Discharged by its dejections 88S.8 "

Azote fixed or exhaled in 24 hours 281.5 "

The azote lost to the manure by the fixing of azote is therefore
very considerable, in the case of young animals as well as of milch-
kine. We find, for example, that for every 100 lbs. weight of hay
consumed :

A horse supplies the equivalent of 61 lbs. of dry standard dung^

A milch-cow 82 " "

A calf of six months ...40 « •*

THE HOG. 4*73

To estimate with any rigoi* the quantity of azotized manure which
ought to result from the forage consumed on the farm, it were ne-
cessary to know the proportion of azote contained in the bodies of
all the animals entertained upon it. Having the increase of weight
that occurred in the stable, cow-house, pig-stye, and poultry-yard, we
should then be in a condition to Know the precise quantity of dung
wiiich it would be necessary to retrench from that which the forage
ought to have produced, had there been no production of animal
matter, had the whole of the azote of the food passed through the
live-stock to the dung-hill. Unfortunately, we have no very precise
data by which we might calculate the quantity of azote contained in
a living animal. I shall, nevertheless, endeavor to apply such as
we possess.

From a few practical experiments, and the information at my
command, I admit that the following substances in their usual state
contain per cent. :

Moisture. Dry matter. Salts. Azote.

Beef-flesh 77 28 1.0 8.5

Veal "

Blood 80 20 0.9 8.0

Skin 60 40 1.0 7.2

Hair 9 81 2.0 13.8

Horn 9 91 0.7 14.4

Beef bones (tibia) 80 70 "

An entire skeleton 86 64 85.0 5.2

Brain, intestines, &c 81 10 1.0 2.9

Fat freed from skin 20 80 " 1-9

These data applied to the various parts which enter into the
constitution of the animals which up to this point have engaged
our attention, we should have for the quantity of azote per cent.

contained :

In homed cattle 8.47

In the horse 8.64

Inthehog 8.80

In the sheep 8.66

Average 8.64

For every 100 lbs. of live weight produced on the farm, conse-
quently, we may, without probably being a great way from the truth,
presume that there has been 3.6 of azote fixed, azote obtained from
the forage, and which, consequently, cannot go to the dung heap ; in
other words, every 100 lbs. of live weight produced, deprive the
establishment of 180 lbs. of dry standard dung, or nearly 18 cwts.
of moist farm-yard dung.*

We may be allowed, therefore, to entertain the hope that we shall
one day be able, from the quantity of forage consumed upon a farm,
to calculate the actual quantity of manure which we shall have at
our disposal. To arrive at this result, it would indeed only be ne-
cessary to subtract the manure represented by the azote exhaled
from and fixed in the bodies of the stock, from the amount of azo-

• The discussion will undoubtedly extend by and by to phosphoric acid. I shall
only say at this time, that from the results obtained in the case of a pig, tlie phos-
phoric add appears to bo in tho proportion of from 2 to 3 per cent, of the live weight

40*

474 THE HOG.

tized manure represented by the whole quantity of forage, were it
to be used immediately. To obtain results of any accuracy, how
ever, it were necessary to possess data both more numerous and
more precise than any we have at present. This perfection of co-
efficients must be viewed as an affair for the future ; agricultura
science has almost every thing to create.

In estimating the quantity of manure from the forage consumed,
it has been supposed that there is no loss. With reference to the
stall or cow-house, a careful husbandman may approach this perfec-
tion, by doing almost the contrary of all that is usually done now-a-
days ; i. e. by taking every precaution against waste ; but it is obvi-
ous that in so far as the stable is concerned, there must always be a
considerable and inevitable loss ; all that falls upon • highways and
byways is irretrievably gone. It is, indeed, matter of ordinary cal-
culation that in consequence of their work out of doors, the horses
upon a farm do not afford more than about two thirds of the dung
which ought to be obtained from the provender consumed. Some
experiments made in the stables at Bechelbronn show that the loss
in this way may amount to one quarter of the whole amount of
dejections ; still, as the animals are for the major part engaged on
the land of the farm, it is obvious that what falls there is by no
means lost. To supply my reader with definite sums from a partic-
ular instance, upon which he may fix his mind, I shall state for his
information that in the course of 1840-41,* my stock at Bechelbronn,
consisting of sixteen head of cattle, eleven calves, twenty-seven
horses, and (?) hogs, consumed 333,579 lbs. or 148 tons, 18 cwts.
1 qr. 15 lbs. of forage, containing 6925 lbs. of azote, and produced
upon their original weight 20,821 lbs. of flesh, fat and milk, contain-
ing with the addition of a calculated quantity for loss from out of
door droppings, exhalation by the lungs, &c., 2631 lbs. of azote.
The forage and litter, from their contents in azote, ought to have
produced about 15,356 cwt. of moist farm-yard dung; they, however,
produced no more than 9522 cwt. ; and, in fact, we see that there
had been a consumption of azote by arrest within the bodies of the
stock, by exhalation from their lungs, and by loss, amounting to 2631
lbs. ; by an equivalent quantity of dung, therefore, had the absolute
produce necessarily been diminished.

Thaer allows that articles of dry forage and litter double their
weight in becoming converted into dung. The statement which I
have just made agrees on the whole pretty well with this estimate.
In our cow-house ration, one half only is generally hay, the other
half consists of roots and tubers. The dry forage and litter conse-
quently amount to 4G60 cwt. which according to Thaer ought to
become changed into 9320 cwt. of dung, a number not very wide of
that to which we have come. Sinclair reckons the dung of the cow-
house at four times the weight of the litter, a view which neither
accords with Thaer's estimate nor with our experience.

I think it altogether unnecessary to insist on the importance tt

* Twelve months I presume.— Ekg. Ed.

METEOROLOGY. ^TEMPERATURE 415

the farmer of a foreknowledge of the quantity of manure which he
may reasonable calculate on obtaining from a known weight of forage
consumed upon his premises. Of the various methods proposed foi
arriving at this information, that which I have employed, and which
is based on ascertaining the amount of azote, appears to me the best
calculated to supply satisfactory results, particularly when experience
shall have corrected or confirmed the numbers which I have adopted
as the elements of my calculations.

I have already said that any supplementary forage, or forage
added to that which is indispensable to the production of manure,
generally acquires, by the fact of its conversion into power or into
exportable substances, a value superior to that which it could have
had of itself in the market place. This additional forage is that
fraction of the provender, the azote of which figures in the statements
that have just been made as azote exhaled or assimilated and fixed.
We find, in fact, in representing this forage which is lost to the
dung-heap, but gained to power and exportable articles, that in the
stall, 100 lbs. of hay yield 8.6 lbs. of live weight, and 40.8 lbs. of
milk, and that in the hog-stye, 100 lbs. of hay yield 21 of living
weight. In the stable, again, the azote fixed, exhaled, or lost amounte
to nearly 1540 lbs., represented by about 1218 cwts. of hay, which
have yielded 1504 lbs. of live weight, due in great part to the birth
and growth of foals, in addition to the force represented by 8370
days' work.

CHAPTER IX.

METEOROLOGICAL CONSTDERA.TIONS.
g 1. TEMPERATURE.

The phenomena of vegetation are always accomplished under the
influence of a certain temperature. If, in addition, the concurrence
of light, air, moisture, and various inorganic substances, be required,
it is still perfectly certain that all of these agents only contribute to
the development of a plant when they are assisted by a due measure
of heat, variable with reference to the different vegetable species,
and comprised within limits that are rather far apart, but essential.
Germination, for example, takes place at a temperature a few degrees
above the freezing point of water, 38° or 39° P., and at one indica-
ted by 100° or 120° of the same scale. The forests of tropical
countries thrive in a hot, moist atmosphere, which often marks up-
wards of 100° P. ; and I met with a saxifrage upon the Andes at
an elevation of 15,748 feet above the level of the sea, beyond the
line of perpetual snow, and very near the line of perpetual con*
gelation.

Some families of plants require a temperature not only high, but
that never falls bolow a certain very limited degree ; the majority

476 METEOROLOGY. ^TEMPERATURE

of the intertropical plants are in this predicament. There are others
which, imperatively requiring a high temperature for their growth
and perfection, nevertheless suspend their powers during the winter,
and bear without detriment degrees of cold of great intensity :
among the number may be cited the larch-pine, which abounds in
Siberia, and stands the utmost rigors of its climate, where the
thermometer at mid-winter frequently falls to 30° and even 40" be-
low zero, F.

The meteorological habitudes or dispositions of plants being ex-
tremely various, it follows, that the geographical distribution of
plants is a consequence of the distribution of heat over the surface
of the globe — of climate.

The earth we inhabit appears to have a heat proper to itself ; it is
a heated body in progress of cooling. It is found, in fact, that as
the centre of the earth is approached, as mines penetrate more
deeply below its surface, the temperature increases. Below a very
limited distance from the surface, the temperature ceases to be
affected by variations in the temperature of the general atmosphere ;
from the point of invariable temperature the subterranean heat in-
creases uniformly at the rate of 1° cent. (1.8° Fahr.) for every 101
feet of descent.

The depth at which the point or stratum of invariable temperature
is met with, varies in different places, and is mainly affected by the
extent of the thermometrical variations in the superincumbent air in
tlie course of the year. In the higher latitudes, consequently, the
depth is very considerable ; at Paris, for example, M. Arago has
found that a thermometer, buried at 264 feet under the surface, does
not reman absolutely stationary. In climates of greater constancy,
as may be conceived, the layer of invariable temperature will be
found much nearer the surface ; were the temperature of the air in-
variable, the layer of invariable temperature would necessarily be-
found at the surface of the ground. In countries under and close to
the equator, this, in fact, is found to be the case. From a series of
observations which I made in So ith America, between the 2d paral-
lel of southern and the 11th of northern latitude, I found that, near
the line, the layer of invariable temperature is found nearly at the
surface ; the thermometer, placed in a hole about one foot deep,
under the shade of an Indian cabin, or a shed, does not vary by more
than from one tenth to two tenths of a degree Cent.

It was probably under the influence of "the internal or proper heat
of the globe, according to M. de Humboldt, that the same species
of animals which are now confined to the torrid zone, inhabited, in
former and remote ages, the northern hemisphere, covered as it then
was by arborescent ferns and stately palms. It is easy to imagine
how, as the surface of the earth cooled, the distribution of climates
became almost exclusively dependent on the action of the solar rays,
and how also those tribes of plants and of animals, the organization
of which required a higher temperature and more equable climate
gradually died out and disappeared.*

• Huml)oldt'» Central Aria, r. lli, p. 9a

METEOROLOGY. — TEMPERATURE. 47 1

111 the state of stability to which the surface of the globe appears
actually to have attained, the sun must be considered as the agent
which most directly iniiueiicos the temperature of our atmosphere.
The length of the day, the number of hours during which the sun is
above the horizon, coupled with the height to which he ascends,
such is the cause with which the temperature of each particular lati-
tude is primarily connected ; and, in looking at the subject practi-
cally, it is found to be so precisely ; not only is the mean tempera-
ture of the year dependent on the length of the days, and the meridian
altitude of the sun, but the mean temperature of each month in the
year is essentially connected with the same circumstances. In the
northern hemisphere, the temperature rises from about the middle
of January, slowly at first, more rapidly in April and May, to reach
its maximum point in July and August, when it begins to fall again
until mid-January, when it is at its minimum.

The highest mean annual temperature is, of course, observed in
the neighborhood of the equator ; between 0° and 10° or 12° of lati-
tude on either side, at the level of the sea, where besides the equal-
ity of day and night, the sun, always elevated, passes the zenith
twice a year. The observations that have been made up to this
time, lead us to conclude that this temperature oscillates between
260 and 29" cent. ; 78.8o and 84.2° Fahr. _

Did the earth present unvarying uniformity of surface, not only
with reference to elevation but to constitution, so that the power of
absorbing and of radiating heat should be everywhere alike, the cli-
mate of a place would depend almost entirely on its geographical
position ; the points of equal temperature would be found on the
same parallels of latitude, or, to employ the happy expression intro-
duced by M. de Humboldt, the isothermal lines would all be parallel
with the equator. But the surface of our planet is covered with un-
dulations and asperities, which cause its outline to vary to infinity ;
and then the soil is dry, or swampy ; it is a moving desert of sand,
or covered with umbrageous and impenetrable forests ; and all this
causes corresponding varieties in climate, for the surface becomes
heated in different degrees as it is in one or other of these condi-
tions. Another very important consideration is, that the surface is
a continent, or an island in the ocean : the climate of a country, or
a district, is vastly influenced by its proximity to or distance from
the sea. The difficulty, the slowness, with which such a mass of
liquid as the ocean becomes either heated or cooled, is the cause of
the temperate character both of the summers and winters of the
shores it bathes, and the islands of moderate dimensions it surrounds.
As we penetrate great continents from the sea-board, we find that
the temperature both of summer and winter becomes extreme, and
the difference between the mean summer and mean winter tempera-
ture is great ; and again we find, that places which have considera-
bly different latitudes, have still very nearly the same mean annual
temperature. The mean temperature of Paris, in latitude 48° 50 ,
is about 51.4° F. j that of London, in lat 51° 31', is 50.7° F. j that

478 METEOROLOGY. TEMPERATURE.

of Dublin, in lat. 53o 23', is 49 .l^ F. ; and that of Edinburgh, in lai
550 57', is 48.40 F.

An island, a peninsula, and the sea shore, consequently, enjoy a
more temperate and equable climate — the summers less sultry, the
winters more mild. On the shores of Glenarm, in Ireland, in lati-
tude 550, the myrtle vegetates throughout the year as in Portugal ;
it rarely freezes in winter ; but the heat of summer does not suffice
to ripen the grape. Under the very same parallel, however, at
Konigsberg, in Prussia, they experience a cold of 17° and 18° below
zero of Fahrenheit's scale in the winter. The ponds and little lakes
of the Feroe Islands, although situated in N. lat. 62°, never freeze,
and the mean winter temperature . is very nearly 40° F. On the
coasts of Devonshire, in England, the winters are so mild, that the
orange-tree, as a standard, will there carry fruit ; and the agave has
been seen to flourish, after having lived both winter and summer,
lor twenty-eight years, in the open air, uninjured.

One of the grand characteristics of what may be called a mari-
time climate, is the less difference which occurs between the tem-
perature of summer and that of winter. At Edinburgh, for instance,
the difference only amounts to 19° F. ; at Moscow, which is nearly
on the same parallel, the difference amounts to 50^ F. ; and at
Kasan, (lat. 56°,) it is as much as 56.3o F.

The influence of extensive continents, or remoteness from the
sea-board, does not seem merely to render a climate extreme, in-
creasing at once the heat of summer and the cold of winter. The
collective observations on temperature, made in Europe and in Asia,
show that the mean annual temperature decreases as we penetrate
more into the interior of continents towards the east. Humboldt
ascribes this diminution of temperature partly to the refrigerating
action of the prevailing winds. While the mean annual temperature
of Amsterdam (N. lat. 52° 22') is 49.6° F. , that of Berlin (N. lat.
520 31') is 47.40 F. ; that of Copenhagen, (N. lat. 55o 41') is 46.7°
F. ; and that of Kasan (N. lat. 55° 48') is but 35.9o F.

The highest temperi\ture which has yet been registered, as occur-
ing in the open air, appears to have been observed by Burckhardt, in
Upper Egypt ; the thermometer indicated 47.5° cent., upwards of
118^ F. The lowest was seen by Captain Back, in North America,
when the thermometer fell to — .56^ cent., 68.° F. below zero.

I II. DECREASE OF TEMPERATURE IN THE SUPERIOR STRATA OP THE
ATMOSPHERE.

The temperature rises rapidly as we ascend in the atmosphere ;
places among the mountains always possess a climate more severe
as they are higher above the level of the sea. Even under the
equator, height of position modifies the seasons so much, that the
hamlet of Antisana, which is within one degree of south latitude, but
which is upwards of 13,000 feet above the sea level, has a mean
temperature which does not differ much from that of St. Peters-
burgh. Near it, but at a still greater height, the summit of Cyambe,

METEOROLOGY. — ^TEMPERATURE. 479

covered by an immense mass of everlasting snow, is cut by the
equinoctial line itself.

The cold which prevails among lofty mountains, is ascribed to the
dilatation which the air of lower regions experiences in its upward
ascent, to a more rapid evaporation under diminished pressure, and
to the intensity of nocturnal radiation.

Places which are situated upon the same mountain-chain, nearly
in the same latitude, and at the same height, have often very differ-
ent climates. The temperature which would be proper to a place
perfectly isolated, is necessarily modified by a considerable number
of circumstances. Thus the radiation of heated plains of considera-
ble extent, the nature of the color of the rocks, the thickness of the
forests, the moistness or dryness of the soil, the vicinity of glaciers,
the prevalence of particular winds, hotter or colder, moister or drier,
the accumulation of clouds, &c., are so many causes which tend to
modify the meteorological conditions of a country, whatever its
mere geographical position. The neighborhood of volcanoes in a
state of activity does not appear to affect the temperature sensibly :
thus Purace, Pasto, Cumbal, which have flaming volcanoes towering
over them, have not warmer climates than Bogata, Santa Eosa, De
Osos, Le Param de Herve, &c., situated on sand-stone or syenite.

From the whole series of observations which I had an opportunity
of making on the Cordilleras, it appears that one degree of tempera-
ture, cent., 1.8° F., corresponds to 195 metres, or 649.4 feet of
ascent among the equatorial Andes. In Europe, it has been ascer-
tained that the decrease of temperature in ascending mountains, is
more rapid during the day than during the night — during summer
than during the winter ; for example, between Geneva and Mount
St. Lernard, to have the Fahrenheit thermometer fall one degree, it
is necessary to ascend :

In spring 826.1 feet.

In summer 886.6

In autumn • 882.2

In winter. 422.2

It sometimes happens, however, that in winter, in a zone of no
great elevation, the temperature increases with the elevation — a fact
which Messrs. Bravais and Lottin observed in the 70° of N. lat., in
calm weather ; at an elevation between 1312 and 1640 feet, the rise
amounted to as many as 6° centigrade, 10.8° Fahrenheit.

In no part of the globe is the diminution of temperature, occasion-
ed by a rise above the level of the sea, more remarkable than among
equatorial mountain ranges ; and it is not without astonishment that
the European, leaving the burning districts which produce the banana
and cocoa-tree, frequently reaches, in the course of a few hours, the
barren regions which are covered with everlasting snow. " Upon
each particular rock of the rapid slope of the Cordillera," says M.
de Humboldt, " in the series of climates superimposed in stages, we
find inscribed the laws of the decrease of caloric, and of the geo-
graphical distribution of vegetable forms."*

♦ Humboldt's Central Asia, vol. lit, p. 286.

480 METEOROLOGY. — TEMPERATURE.

In the hottest countries of the earth, the summits of very lofty
mountains are constantly covered with snow ; in the elevated and
cold strata of the atmosphere, the watery vapor is condensed, and
falls in the state of hail and snow. In the plain, hail melts almost
immediately ; the fusion is slower upon the mountains ; and for each
latitude there is a certain elevation where hail and snow no longer
melt perceptibly. This elevation is the inferior limit of perpetual
snow.

The accidental causes which tend to modify the temperature of a
climate, also act in raising or lowering the snow-line. On the south-
em slope of the Himalaya, for example, the snow-line does not de-
scend so low as it does upon the northern slope ; and in Peru, from
14° to 16° of S. latitude, Mr. Pentland found the perpetual snow-line,
at an elevation of 1312 feet higher than it is under the equator.

Elevation above the level of the sea, consequently, has the same
eSect upon climate as increase in latitude. Upon mountain ranges,
vegetation undergoes modification in its forms, becomes decrepit,
and disappears towards the line of perpetual snow, precisely as it
does within the polar circle, and for no other than the same reason,
viz., depression of temperature.

The constancy and the small extent of variation which occurs in
the temperature of the atmosphere under the equator, enables us to
indicate with some precision the point of mean temperature below
which there is no longer any vegetation. In ascending Chimbora-
zo I met with this point at the height of 15,774.5 feet, where the
mean temperature approached 35° F., and where consequently the
saxifrages, which root among the rocks, must still receive a temper-
ature of from 41° to 43^ F. during the day, inasmuch as far beyond
the inferior snow-line, at an elevation of 19,685 feet above the sea-
line, I saw a thermometer suspended in the air, and in the shade
mark 44.6° F.

In considering the extension of vegetation towards the polar re-
gions, we discover plants growing in very high latitudes in places
which have a mean temperature much below that which I believe to
be the limit of vegetable life on the mountains of the equatorial region.
In these rigorous climates vegetation is suspended by the severity
of the cold during the greater portion of the year ; it is only during
the brief and passing heat of summer that the vegetable world
wakes from its long winter sleep. Nova Zembla, lat. 73° N., the
mean temperature of whose summer is between 34° and 35^^ F., is,
perhaps, like the perpetual snow-line of the equator, the term of
vegetable existence. It is also to the very remarkable heat of the
summer in countries situated at the nothern extremity of the con-
tinent of Asia, remarkable if it be contrasted with the intensity of
the winter cold, that man succeeds in rearing a few culinary vegeta-
bles in those dreadful climates. At Jakoustk, in 62° of N. lat., and
where mercury is frozen during two months of the year, the mean
temperature of summer is very nearly 64^ F. We have here as M.
de Humboldt observes, " a well-characterized continental climate,"
examples of which indeed are frequent in the north of America. At

METEOROLOGY. GROWTH OF PLANTS. 48 «

Jakoustk wheat and rye sometimes yield a return of 15 for 1, al«
though at the depth of a yard the soil which grows them is cca-
stantly frozen.*

The limit of perpetual snow being much lower upon tl e mountains
of Europe than in tropical countries, agriculture ceases at a much
less elevation. At a height of 6560 feet above the level of the sea
the vegetables of the plain have almost entirely disappeared. In
Northern Switzerland the vine does not grow at an elevation of
more than 1800 feet above the sea-line ; maize scarcely ripens at an
elevation of 2850 feet, while in the Andes it still affords abundant
harvests at an elevation of 8260 feet. On the plateau or table land
of Los Pastes, fidds of barley are seen at upwards of 10,000 feet
above the level of the sea ; but on the northern slope of Monte Rosa,
in Switzerland, barley fails at an elevation of about 4260 feet ; on
the southern slope, indeed, it reaches a height of about 6560 feet ;
and this great variation in the ultimate limit of barley is frequently
observed with reference to the same plant grown upon opposite as-
pects of a mountain range. The difference is ascribed to local in-
fluences ; thus, it is a well-ascertained fact, that on the mountains
of the northern hemisphere vegetation reaches a much higher lati-
tude upon southern than upon northern exposures ; but a general
law, and one applicable to every latitude, is, that the higher we rise
above the level of the sea, the scantier does vegetation become, the
later do harvests reach maturity ; but as the heat of the atmosphere
increases with the elevation, it follows that there is an obvious rela-
tion between the time a crop is upon the ground a. d the mean tem-
perature of the place or season where it grows. We have still to
examine this relationship.

^ III. METEOROLOGICAL CIRCUMSTANCES UNDER WHICH CERTAIN
PLANTS GROW IN DIFFERENT CLIMATES.

In discussing the conditions of temperature under which the va-
rious plants that are common in our European agriculture come to
maturity, we are led to conclusions which are not without interest.
A knowledge of the mean temperature of a place situated between
the tropics suffices of itself to give us an idea of the nature of its
agriculture ; in fact, the temperature of each day differs little from
that of the entire year, during which vegetable life proceeds without
interruption. It is altogether different with regard to countries sit
uated beyond the limits of the torrid zone. The mean annual tem-
perature is not then a datum sufficient to enable us to appreciate the
agricultural importance of a country. In order to know what the
earth will produce, the temperature proper to the different seasons
of the year must be known ; in a word, it is the mean temperature
of the cycle in which vegetation begins and ends that it imports us
to ascertain, in order to learn what the useful plants are which may
be required of the soil.

In examining the question which now engages us, we first inquire
what time elapses between the sprouting of a plant and its maturity

♦ Humboldt's Central Asia, vol. Ul. p. 49.

41

482 METEOROLOGY. GROWTH OF PLANTS.

end then we determine the temperature of the interval which sepe
rates these two extreme epochs in vegetable life. In comparing
these data with reference to the same species of plant grown in Eu
rope an 1 America, we arrive at the following curious result, that the
number of days that elapse between the commencement of vegeta
tion and the period of ripeness, is by so much the greater as the
mean temperature is lower. The duration of the life of the vegeta-
ble would be the same, however different the climate, were this tem-
perature identical ; it will be longer or it will be shorter as the mean
temperature of the cycle itself is lower or higher. In other words,
the duration of the vegetation appears to be in the inverse ratio of
the mean temperature ; so that if we multiply the number of days
during which a given plant grows in different climates, by the mean
temperature of each, we obtain numbers that are very nearly equa'
This result is not only remarkable in so far as it seems to indicate
that upon every parallel of latitude, at all elevations above the level
of the sea, the same plant receives in the course of its existence an
equal quantity of heat, but it may find its direct application by ena-
bling us to foresee the possibility of acclimating a vegetable in a
country, the mean temperature of the several months of which is
known.

CULTIVATION OF WHEAT, ALSACE.

In 1835 we sowed our wheat on the 1st of November ; the cold
set in shortly after the plant had sprung, and the harvest took place
the 16th of July, 1836. The vegetation during the last days of au-
tumn is so sl6w and irregular, that it may be assumed without sensi-
ble error, that it really begins in spring, when the frosts are no longer
felt ; from this period only does it proceed without interruption. For
Alsace I regard this period as beginning with the 1st of March.

The period of the growth was, therefore, 137 days, the mean tem-
perature was 59° F., (3083° F.)

Tremois wheat, this same year, required 131^days to ripen under
a mean temperature of between 60° and 61° F., (7925° F.)

At Paris, setting out from the 31st of March, wheat generally re-
quires 160 days to attain maturity, the mean temperature being
about 56° F., (8960° F.)

At Alais the month of February having generally but few days
of heat, it may be regarded as the epoch when the continued vege-
tation of autumn-sown wheat commences. The harvest taking
place on the 27th of June, the number of days whic h it requires to
ripen is 146, the mean temperature being between 57° and 68° F.
(8322° F.)

CULTIYATION OF WHEAT IN AMERICA.

At Kingston, New York, the wheat is sown in autumn ; Tegeta-
tion suspended through the winter resumes its activity in the begin-
ning of April, and the harvest takes place about the 1st of August
The crop is therefore growing during about 122 days under the in-
fluence of a mean temperature of 63° F. (7680° F.)

METEOROLOGY. GROWTH OF PLANTS. 488

In the same place Tremois wheat is sown in the beginning of
May, and the harvest takes place towards the 15th of August, so
that it is 106 days on the ground under a mean temperature of 68° F .
(7208° F.)

At Cincinnati the wheat sown in the end of February is harvest-
ed in the 2d week in July, say the 15th day, the crop is therefore
137 days on the ground under a mean temperature of between 60° and
61° F. (8288° F.)

INTERTROPICAL REGION.

Wheat sown at the end of February was reaped on the 25th of
July at Zimijaca, plain of Bogota, having been 147 days on the
ground, the mean temperature being between 58° and 59° F.
(8526° F.)

At Quinchuqui the vegetation of wheat begins in February and
ends in the month of July, say, 181 days; and I found the mean
temperature to be between 57° and 58° F.

At Venezuela, according to M. Codazzi, wheat to ripen require?
92 days at Turmero, mean temperature between 75.2° and 76° F.,
(6918° F. ;) 100 days at Truxillo, mean temperature 72.1" F.,
(7210° F.)

CULTIVATION OP BARLEY.

Of the cereals, barley is that which succeeds in the most diversi-
fied climates. It comes to maturity under the burning heats of the
tropics ; and in regions where the mean and constant temperature
is scarcely 52° F., fields of barley of great beauty are still en-
countered.

At Alsace (Bechelbronn) barley sown at the end of April was
harvested on the 1st of August. It had remained 92 days on the
ground, the mean temperature having been between 66° and 67° F.,
(6118° F.)

Winter barley sown on the 1st of November was cut on the 1st
of July. Reckoning the period of active vegetation from the 1st
of March, it was 122 days in coming to maturity, the mean temper-
ature having been between 58° and 59° F., (7076° F.)

At Alais winter barley is harvested on the 18th of June. As-
suming that, as in the case of wheat, the 1st of February is the date
of commencing vegetation, it must have taken 137 days to come to
maturity under a mean temperature between 55° and 56° F.

In Egypt upon the banks of the Nile barley is sown in the end
of November, and the harvest takes place at the end of February,
at an interval therefore of 90 days, and the mean temperature of the
winter at Cairo is nearly 70° F., (6300° F.)

At Kingston, North America, the barley is sown in the begin-
ning of May, and the crop is cut towards the beginning of August,
in about 92 days, therefore, the mean temperature being between
66° to 67" F.

At Cumbal under the line there is no fixed period for sowing
bailey. It is generally put into the ground on the approach of th«

i64 METEOROLOGY. GROWTH OF PLANTS.

rain}' season about the 1st of June, and it is then reaped about the
middle of November ; it therefore stands on the ground for about
168 days, and the mean temperature is between 51° and 52° F.

At Santa Fe de Bogota they reckon about four months between
the barley seed-time and harvest, or about 122 days, the mean tem-
perature being between 58° and 59° F.

CITLTIVATION OF MAIZE, OR INDIAN CORN.

In the neighborhood of Bechelbronn the maize which sprouted on
the first of June yielded an abundant harvest on the 1st of October)
the mean temperature having been 68° F.

In South America maize comes to maturity in the course of three
months, say 92 days, the mean temperature being between 81° and
82° F.; but on the elevated plains, as that of Santa Fe, maize will
require six months to come to maturity, say 183 days, and there the
mean temperature is 69" F.

CULTIVATION OF THE POTATO.

In 1836 our potatoes at Bechelbronn were put into the ground on
the 1st of May, and the crop was gathered on the 15th of October,
after 157 days, therefore, the mean temperature having been about
65° F.; but in ordinary years, when the temperature is less elevated
than that of 1836, the potato crop is generally gathered at the end
of October, after 183 days, the mean temperature having been as
before nearly 59° F.

In the neighborhood of Alais potatoes are planted at the end of
March and taken up about the 1st of September, after five months
or 153 days, the mean temperature of which has been 70° F.

According to M. Codazzi potatoes are grown near the lake of Va-
lencia, (Venezuela,) in 120 days, and the mean temperature of Ma-
racaibo near the lake is 78° F.

According to the same observer, the potato still yields good crops
at Merida in the Cordilleras, where the mean temperature is between
71° and 72° F., and the growth lasts about 4^ months.

On the temperate levels of New Granada at Santa F6 I saw po-
tatoes set in the middle of December immediately after the rainy
season, and the harvest was gathered in the course of the first week
in June, the crop therefore was at least 200 days in the ground, the
mean temperature having been between 58° and 59° F.

On the occasion of my ascent of the volcanic mountain, Antisana,
I ate on the 4th of August some potatoes which had just been gath-
ered, and which had been planted in the beginning of November, so
that the crop had been 276 days in the ground, the mean tempera-
ture of the country being 52° Fahr.

But this is not yet the superior limit to the cultivation of potatoes
under the equator. They are still grown at Cambugan, the mear
temperature of which scarcely exceeds 49° Fahr., the plant remain
ing nearly eleven months in the ground, and the crop being frequentlj

METEOROLOGY. GROWTH OF PLANTS. 48ft

lo«< from frorta that occur at this great elevation in the course of
the mouths of November and January.

CULTIVATION OF THE INDIGO PLANT.

In "Venezuela, in plantations very near the level of the sea, the
first crop is cut about eighty days after sowing. The mean tem-
perature is there between 81° and 82° Fahr. In other countries
where the mean temperature ranges between 72° and 74° Fahr.,
which must be regarded as the limits to the growth of indigo, the
first cutting takes place 3^ months or 106 days after the sowing.
In India the first cutting seems generally to occur about ninety days
after the sowing, and the mean temperature of the two winter months
and of the summer months wheii the crop is on the ground, at Bom-
bay is about 76° Fahr.

I shall terminate this section by calling the attention of vegetable
physiologists to a fact which appears to have escaped them. It is
this : that plants in general, those of tropical countries very obvi-
ously so, spring up, live, and flourish in temperatures that are nearly
the same. In Europe and in North America, an annual plant is
subjected to climatic influences of the greatest diversity. The
cereals, for example, germinate at from 43° to 47° or 48° ; they get
through the winter alive, making no progress ; but in the spring
they shoot up, and the ear attains maturity at a season when the
temperature, which has risen gradually, is somewhat steady at from
74° to 78° Fahr.

In equinoctial countries Aings pass diflferently : the germination,
growth, and ripening of grain take place under degrees of heat which
are nearly invariable. At Santa Fe the thermometer indicates
79° Fahr. at seed as at harvest time. In Europe the potato is
planted with the thermometer at from 50° to 54° Fahr., and it does
not ripen until it has had the heats of July and August. But we
have just seen that this plant grows, slowly indeed, but regularly, in
places where the temperature, nearly invariable, does not rise above
48.2° or 50° Fahr.

Germination, and the evolution of those organs by which vegeta-
bles perform their functions in the soil and in the air, take place at
temperatures that vary between 32° and 112° Fahr.; but the most
important epoch in their life, ripening, generally happens within
much smaller limits, and which indicate the climate best adapted to
their cultivation, if not always to their growth ; for the vine grows
lustily in many places where its fruit never ripens. To produce
drinkable wine, a vineyard must have not only a summer and an
autumn sufficiently hot ; it is indjspensable in addition that at a given
period — that, namely, which follows the appearance of the seeds —
there be a month, the mean temperature of which does not fall below
19° cent, or about 66|° Fahr., a fact of which conviction may be
obtained from the following table which 1 borrow from M. de Huitt-
boldt:

41*

im

METEOROLOGY. — GROWTH OF PLANTS.

Temperature of Temperature

summer. w autumn.

Bordeaux 70® Fahiu 58"

Frankfort, A. M- . 65 50

Lausanne 65.2 49.7

Paris 65.8 52.2

Berlin 63.2 48.0

London 62.9 51.3

Cherbourg 61.9 54.4

Temperature of
the hottest month

73.3® F. very favorahl*

66.0

65.8

66.2

64.4 Wine scarcely drinkable

64.1 Vice not cultivated.

63.2

In high latitudes the disappearance of vigorous vegetation in plants
day depend quite as much on intensity of winter colds as on insuf-
ficiency of summer heat. The equable climate of the equatorial re-
gions is therefore much better adapted than that of Europe to de-
termine the extreme limits of temperature between which vegetable
species of different kinds will attain to maturity. Thus it has been
found that the vine between the tropics is productive in temperatures
that vary from 69° F. to 79° or 80°. I shall terminate with a list of
the temperatures favorable to the particular vegetables in the success
of which man is more especially interested.

^«Ttimiim. Miuimtuit.

Pine-apple "

Melon "

Vanilla "

Guaduas "

The vine 79

CotBse 79

Anise 77

Wheat 74(1)

Barley 74 59

Potatoes 75(1) 52

Arachaca 75 49

Flax 74 54

Apple 72 59

Oak 67 61

Maximum. Minimum.
The cocoa, or chocolate bean 82® F. 73° F.

Banana " 64

Indigo " 71

Sugar-cane " 71

Cocoa-nut " 78

Palm " 78

Tobacco " 65

Manihot " 72

Cotton-tree " 67

Maize " 50

Haricots " 59

OrchU " 72

Rice " 75

Calabash " 72

rjaricapapaya " 66

^ IV. COOLING THROUGH THE NIGHT ; DEW, RAIN.

When the sky is clear and calm during the night, vegetables cooi
down and very soon show a temperature inferior to that of the air
which surrounds them. This property of cooling in such circum-
stances belongs to all bodies ; but all do not possess it to the same
degree. Organic substances, for instance, such as wool or cotton,
feathers, &c., radiate powerfully and sink low ; polished metals, on
the contrary, have a very weak emissive or radiating power ; and
air and the gases in general radiate still more feebly.

Inasmuch as a body is continually emitting heat, its temperature
can only remain stationary so long as it receives from surrounding
objects at every instant a quantity of caloric precisely equal in quan-
tity to that which it loses from its surface.

From the moment that these incessant exchanges cease to be i:
a state of perfect equality, the temperature of a body varies ; it may
even experience a considerable degree of cooling if it is exposed
during a clear night in an open spot. In such circumstances, a body
gives off towards all the visible parts of the heavens more heat than
P wceives ; for the higher regions of the atmosphere are excessive*

METEOROLOGY. NIGHT COOLING. 487

ly cold, a fact which is proved by the rapid diminution of tempera-
ture experienced on ascending mountains, or by rising into the air
in balloons. The internal temperature of the globe, the tendency
of which would be to compensate the loss experienced by the body
which radiates, has scarcely any effect in lessening the cooling, be-
cause it is propagated with extreme slowness, in consequence of the
indifferent conducting powers of the earthy substances of which its
crust is composed. The air, lastly, which surrounds the radiating
body, does not warm it save in the most minute, inappreciable degree,
and rather by its contact than by transmitting to it rays of heat, for
the gases have only very limited emissive powers. It is even in
consequence of the small amount of this power that the stratum of
air in contact with the surface of the ground, does not by any means
sink in the same proportion as the surface upon which it lies. Thus,
in the circumstances which I have indicated, a thermometer laid
upon the ground always indicates a temperature lower than that
which is proclaimed by one suspended in the air ; and the difference
is by so much the greater as the radiating power of the bodies ex-
posed is more decided, or as it may take place into a greater extent
of the heavens. Every cause which agitates the air, which disturbs
its transparency, which contracts the extent of the visible sphere,
interferes with nocturnal radiation, and therefore with cooling. A
cloud, like a screen, compensates either in whole or in part accord-
ing to its proper temperature, for the loss of heat which a body upon
the surface of the earth experiences in radiating into space. Wind,
by continually renewing the air which is in contact with the surface
of bodies tending to cool by radiation, always diminishes its effect to
a certain extent. It is for this reason that a cloudless sky and a
calm atmosphere, when nocturnal radiation attains its maximum, are
most dangerous or injurious to our harvests.

In a night which combines all the conditions favorable to radiation,
a thermometer of small size laid upon the grass will be found to
mark from 10° to 14° or 15° Fahr. below the temperature of the sur-
rounding atmosphere. Thus in the temperate zone in Europe, as
Mr. Daniell has observed, the temperature of meadows and heaths
is liable to fall during ten months of the year by the mere effect of
nocturnal radiation to a temperature below the freezing point of
water ; this is particularly apt to happen both in spring and autumn,
when the destructive effects of radiation are most to be apprehend-
ed, the nocturnal radiations of those seasons frequently lowering the
temperature several degrees below the freezing point.

A few observations which I made upon nocturnal radiation at dif-
ferent heights in the Cordilleras, seem to indicate that its effects
there are less decided than in Europe, in consequence perhaps of
the greater quantity of heat acquired by the ground in the course of
the day. It appears that in this mountain range it rarely freezes at
a height less than 6560 feet above the level of the sea ; although
.here are certain circumstances there which favor nocturnal radia-
tion so much, that it is really impossible to indicate any very precise
timits. In a general way it may be said that the crops of thosr

488 meteorol:>gy. — night cooling.

plains which are sufficiently elevated to hare a mean temperature
of from 50° to 58° Fahr. are exposed to suffer from frost ; it fre-
auently happens that a crop of wheat, barley, maize, or potatoes, of
the richest appearance, is destroyed in a single night by the effect
of radiation. In Europe during the fine nights of April and May,
when the air is calm and the sky clear, buds, leaves, and young
shoots are frequently cut off, are frozen ; in a word, although a ther-
mometer in the air indicates several degrees above the point of con-
gelation. Market gardeners and others who are much exposed to
loss from this cause, ascribe the effect to the light of the mc in of the
months of April and May ; and they ground their opinion upon the
fact that when the sky is clouded, the destructive effects of frost are
not apparent, although the same temperature of the atmosphere be
indicated by the thermometer.

In the lower ranges of the Cordilleras, farmers also ascribe the
same injurious consequences to the light of the moon, wuth this dif-
ference, that according to them the destructive influence continues
throughout the year ; and it is not unworthy of remark that, in the
neighborhoods of Paris and of London, the mean temperature of the
months of April and May (from 50° to 57°, or 58° F.) represents ex-
actly the invariable climate of those places among the Andes, where
the effects of frost upon vegetation are particularly to be apprehend-
ed. M. Arago has shown, that the cold ascribed to the light of the
moon is nothing but a consequence of the nocturnal radiation, at a
season when the thermometer in the air is frequently at from 40° to
43° F. and the sky is clear and calm. At this temperature a plant,
radiating into space, readily falls below the point of congelation,
and then the hopes of the gardener and farmer are destroyed. The
phenomenon takes place particularly in a bright night : and if the
moon happen to be up when it occurs, the influence is ascribed by
the vulgar to her light. Were the sky clouded, the principal con-
dition to radiation would be wanting ; the temperature of objects on
the surface of the ground would not fall below that of the surround-
ing medium, and plants would not freeze unless the air itself fell to
32° F.

The observation of gardeners, therefore, as M. Arago remarks,
was not in itself false, it was only incomplete. If the freezing of
the soft and delicate parts of vegetables in circumstances when the
air is several degrees above the freezing point, be really due to the
escape of caloric into planetary space, it must happen that a screen
placed above a radiating body, so as to mask a portion of the heav-
ens, will either prevent or at least diminish the amount of the cooling.
And that this takes place in fact, appears from the beautiful experi-
ments of Dr. Wells. A thermometer, placed upon a plank of a
certain thickness, and raised about a yard above the ground, oc-
casionally indicates in clear and calm weather from 6° to T or 8° F.
ess than a second thermometer attached to the lower surface of
he plank. It is in this way that we explain the use of mats, of
ayers of straw, in a word, of all those slight coverings which gar-
deners are so careful to supply during the night to delicate plamts ai

METEOROLOGY. NIGHT FROSTS. 489

eertain seasons of the year. Before men were aware that bodies on
the surface of the ground became colder than the air which sur-
rounds them during a clear night, the rationale of this practice was not
apparent ; for it was altogether impossible to conceive that coverings
8o slight could protect vegetables from a low temperature of the air.

The means indicated, as simple as they are effectual in protecting
plants in the garden, are rarely applicable in farming, where the
surface to be preserved is always very extensive. Nevertheless, in
severe winters, the frost by penetrating the ground would frequently
destroy the fields sown in autumn, were it not that in high latitudes
the snow which covers the surface becomes a powerful obstacle to
excessive cooling, by acting at one and the same time as a covering,
and as a screen preventing radiation. As a covering, because snow
is one of the worst of conductors, one of those substances which for a
given thickness opposes the passage of heat most effectually ; it is,
therefore, an obstacle almost insurmountable to the earth beneath it
getting into equilibrium in point of temperature with the atmosphere.
As a screen, because in sheltering the ground it prevents it from
undergoing the cooling which it would not fail to experience in clear
nights by radiation into the open firmament. It is familiarly known
in many parts of Europe, that the accidental want of the usual cov-
ering of snow will cause the loss of the autumn-sown crops of grain
It is on the surface of the snow that the great depression of temper-
ature takes place ; and the substance being a very bad conductor,
the earth cools in a much less degree. In the month of February,
1841, I made some experiments, which show that the snow which
covers the ground acts in the manner of a screen. I had first a
thermometer upon the snow, the bulb of the instrument being cover-
ed by from 0.078 to 0.117 of an inch of snow in powder ; second, a
thermometer, the bulb of which was situated completely under the
layer of snow in contact with the ground ; third, a thermometer
in the open air, at about 37 or 38 feet above the surface, on the north
of a building. The layer of snow was about four inches in thickness,
an J had covered a field sown with wheat for a month. The sun
shone brightly upon the field on those days when my experiments
were made.

Feb. 11. Five o'clock in the evening; the sun has been hidden
by the mountains for half an hour ; the sky is unclouded, the air very
calm : thermometer under the snow, 32' F. ; thermometer upon the
snow, 29° F. ; thermometer in the air, 36.3' F.

Feb. 12. The night very fine, no clouds, the air calm. At sevea
o'clock in the morning, the sun is not yet upon the field : thermom
eter under the snow, 26.2" F. ; thermometer upon the snow, 10" F. ;
thermometer in the air, 26.3° F.

At half-past five in the evening, the sun behind the mountains :
thermometer under the snow, 32° F. ; thermometer upon the snow,
29° F. ; thermometer in the air, 37.5° F.

Feb. 13. At seven in the morning ; the sky gray, the air slightly
in motion : thermometer under the snow, 28° F. ; thermometer
upon the snow, 17° F. ; thermometer in the air, 25° F.

too METEOROLOGY. DEW.

At half-past five in the evening ; the air calm, the sky cloudlesSj
the sun already concealed for some time : thermometer under the
snow, 32° F. ; thermometer upon the snow, 30° F. ; thermometer
in the air, 40° F.

Feb. 14. Seven in the morning, wind W., a fine rain falling:
thermometer under the snow, 32° F. ; thermometer upon the snow.
32° F. ; thermometer in the air, 35.7° F.

When we reflect upon the losses occasioned to farmers and mar-
ket gardeners by frosts that are entirely due to nocturnal radiation
?t seasons of the year when vegetation has already made considera-
ble progress, we ask eagerly if there be no possible means of guard-
ing against them. I shall here make known a method imagined and
successfully followed by South American agriculturists with this
view. The natives of the upper country in Peru who inhabit the
elevated plains of Cusco are perhaps more than any other people
accustomed to see their harvest destroyed by the effects of nocturnal
radiation. The Incas appear to have ascertained the conditions
under which frost during the night was most to be apprehended.
They had observed that it only froze when the night was clear and
the air calm : knowing consequently that the presence of clouds
prevented frost, they contrived to make as it were artificial clouds
to preserve their fields against the cold. When the evening led
them to apprehend a frost — that is to say, when the stars shone with
brilUancy, and the air was still — the Indians set fire to a heap of wet
straw or dung, and by this means raised a cloud of smoke, and so
destroyed the transparency of the atmosphere from which they had
so much to apprehend. It is easy in fact to conceive that the
transparency of the air can readily be destroyed by raising a smoke
in calm weather ; it would be otherwise were there any wind stir-
ring ; but then the precaution itself becomes unnecessary, for with
air in motion, with a breeze blowing, there is no reason to apprehend
frost from nocturnal radiation.

The practice followed by the Indians just described is mentioned
by the Inca Garcillaso de la Vega in his Royal Commentaries of
Peru. Garcillaso in the imperial city of Cusca, and in his youth,
had frequently seen the Indians raise a smoke to preserve the fields
of maize from the frost.*

The cooling of bodies occasioned by nocturnal radiation is always
accompanied by a deposite of moisture upon their surface under the
form of minute globules : this is dew. The ingenious experiments
of Wells having demonstrated that the appearance of dew always
follows, never precedes the fall in temperature of the bodies on
•vhich it is deposited, the phenomenon cannot be attributed to any
hing more than a simple condensation of the watery vapor con-
ained in the air, comparable in all respects to that which takes
■)lace upon the surface of a vessel containing a fluid that is colder
han t'le air.f The quantity of moisture dissolved in the atmosphere

* The good effects of smoke in preventing nocturnal congelation are also sigLalued
oy Pliny the naturalist,
t Aiigo, Annusiire des Longitudes, Aan*e 1837, p. 160.

METEOROLOGY. — DEW. 491

is by so much tlie greater as tlie temperature is higher. In very
warm climates the dew is so copious as to assist vegetation essen-
tially, supplying the place of rain during a great part of the year.

According to some meteorologists dew is most copious near the
sea-board of a country ; very little falls in the interior of great con-
tinents, and indeed is said only to be apparent in the vicinity of lakes
and rivers.* I cannot agree in any statement of this kind ipade so
absolutely. I have never had occasion to see more copious dews
than those which occasionally fall in the steppes of San Martin to
the east of the eastern Cordilleras, and at a very great distance
from the sea ; the dew was so copious that for several nights I found
it impossible to employ an artificial-horizon of black glass in order
to take the meridian altitude of the stars ; the moment the apparatus
was exposed there was such a quantity of water deposited on the
surface that it soon gathered into drops and trickled off. I found it
necessary to have recourse to mercury to reflect the star under ob-
servation. During the clear calm nights the turf of these immense
plains receives a considerable quantity of moisture in the form of
dew, which materially assists vegetation, and by its evaporation
tempers the excessive heat of the ensuing day. In tropical coun-
tries the forests contribute to keep down the temperature. In very
hot countries it is rare to be out in a cleared spot, when the night
is favorable to radiation, without hearing drops of water, produced
by the copiousness of the dew, falling continually from the surround-
ing trees, so that forests contribute further to produce and to main-
tain springs by acting as condensers of the watery vapor dissolved
in the air. I might cite a number of observations upon this point
which I made in the forest of Cauca. In the bivouac between the
4th and 5th of July, 1827, the night was magnificent ; nevertheless,
in the forest which began at the distance of a few yards from our
encampment, it rained abundantly ; by the light of the unclouded
moon we could see the water running from the branches.

It is possible that the transpiration from the green parts of the
trees might have been added to the dew condensed, and so increased
the intensity of the phenomenon which I have described ; but I
rather incline to believe that the cooling of the leaves by way of
radiation had by far the largest share in the production of this dew-
rain. It is true that of all the leaves which form the crown of a
tree, those whose surface is exposed and radiate freely into space
intercept, as would a screen, the radiation of the leaves and branches
which are not so exposed ; but, as M. de Humboldt has observed, if
the leaves and branches which crown a tree cool directly by emis-
sion, those which are situated immediately beneath them by radiating
towards the lower parts of the leaves which are already cooled a
greater quantity of heat than they receive, their temperature will
also necessarily fall, and the cooling will thus be propagated from
above downward until the whole mass of the tree feels its effects
It is thus that the ambient air circulating through the leaves become*

• Kaemtz, Meteorology, translated by W. Walker, London- 1844.

492 METEOROLOGY. — RAIN.

cooled during bright nights, and to judge from the influence which
forests exert in lowering the temperature of a country, it is enough
to recollect with M. de Hunboldt that by reason of the vast multi-
plicity of leaves, a tree, the crown of which does not present a hori-
zontal section of more than about 120 or 130 square feet, actually
influences the cooling of the atmosphere by an extent of surface
several thousand times more extensive than this section.

The proportion of watery vapor which a gas will retain in solu-
tion is by so much the greater as the tempe^rature of the air is
higher. All the causes which cool air saturated with watery vapor
occasion, as we have already seen, the precipitation of a certain
quantity of moisture.

When this condensation takes place in the midst of a gaseous
mass, the precipitated water collects into small floating vesicles,
which trouble the transparency of the medium that momentarily
holds them in suspension. Mists, fogs, and clouds are collections
of these vesicles ; a fog, as a celebrated naturalist said, is a cloud
in which one is, and a cloud is a fog in which one is not.

The vesicles of clouds tend towards the earth, like all heavy bo-
dies, but by reason of their specific lightness the resistance of the
air which they displace lessens the rapidity of their descent. When
they are of larger size they coalesce and form drops of water which
fall with greater celerity. When these drops pass through strata
of very dry air they undergo partial evaporation, and this is the
reason wherefore there is sometimes less rain upon plains than upon
mountains. In opposite circumstances it is the inverse phenomenon
that is observed ; the drops increase in size in passing through the
inferior strata of an atmosphore saturated with moisture, condensing
vapor in their course. This is what happens most generally.

In taking a survey of a large amount of observations, meteorolo-
gists have inferred that the annual quantity of rain varies with the
latitude ; that, greatest at the equator, it gradually lessens as higher
northern and southern latitudes are attained ; this is as much as
saying that the quantity of rain is greater as the temperature of the
climate is higher. But to this rule there are numerous exceptions ;
for instance, under the line at Payta on the sea-coast it only rains
very rarely ; a shower of rain is an event, and when I visited the
country eighteen years had elapsed since they had had any thing of
a fall of rain. Local causes have the greatest influence upon the
fall of rain, so that countries on the same parallel of latitude are far
from being equally distinguished by dryness or humidity.

It is believed that in Europe it rains more heavily and more fre-
quently in the day than in the night. In the equinoctial regions, at
least in those parts that I have visited, it would seem that the op-
posite rule held good. Every one in South America allows that it
rains principally during the night, and the observations which I
made in the neighborhood of Marmato enable me to state that of
7.874 inches of rain which fell in the month of October, 1.336 inches
fell in the day, 5.638 inches in the night ; of 8.881 inches which
C?ll in the month of November, 0.707 inches came dow;j ir the day,

METEOROLOGY. RAIN. 498

8.174 inches in the night ; of 5.934 inches which fell in December,
0.786 inches fell in the day, 5.148 inches in the night.

Two series of observations taken in the same country al two sta-
tions not far from one another, but situated at very different eleva-
tions, seem to confirm, in reference to the equatorial regions, the
conclusions of European meteorologists as to the fact that the an-
nual quantity of rain which falls diminishes as the height above the
level of the sea increases. They also show that in latitudes which
do not differ materially, more rain falls where the mean temperature
is 68° F. than where it is 58° F.

Marmato lies in N. lat. 5° 27", and 75° 11" (1) W. long., at a
height of 4676 feet above the level of the sea ; Santa Fe in N. lat.
4° 36", W. long. 75° 6", at a height of 8692 feet above the level of
the sea. And while the quantity of rain at the former place amount-
ed, according to my own observations for 1833, to 60 inches, ac-
cording to Caldas, in 1807, at the latter there fell but 39.4 inches.

In temperate climates the quantity of rain that falls varies with
the seasons. Near the equator, where the temperature remains
constant throughout the year, the rainy season commences precisely
at the period when the sun approaches the zenith ; and whenever the
latitude of a place in the torrid zone where it rains is of the same
denomination and equal to the declination of the sun, storms occur.
In such circumstances the sky in the morning is of remarkable pu-
rity, the air is calm, the heat of the sun insupportable. Towards
noon clouds begin to show themselves upon the horizon, the hygrom-
eter does not advance towards dryness as it usually does, it remains
stationary, or even falls towards extreme humidity. It is always
after the sun has passed the meridian that the thunder is heard,
which being preceded by a light wind is soon followed by a deluge
of rain. In my opinion the permanence or incessant renovation of
storms in the bosom of the atmosphere is a capital fact, and is con-
nected with one of the most important questions in the physics of
our globe, that of the fixation of the azote of the air by organized

The most recent inquiries show dry atmospherical air to consist

in volume of:

Oxygen 20.8

Azote....: 79.2

The air contains in addition from 2 to 5 10,000ths of carbonic acid
gas, and quantities perhaps still smaller of carbureted combustible
gas. The experiments of M . Theodore de Saussure, as well as
those of Professor Liebig, have further demonstrated in it traces of
ammoniacal vapor.

I have already shown that animals do not directly assimilate the
azote of the atmosphere. Azote is nevertheless an element essen-
tial to the constitution of every living being, and is met with indif-
ferently in either kingdom of nature. If we inquire into the sourc©
5f this principle in connection with the herbivorous tribes of animals,
we find it as an element in the food which sustains them. If we
next inquire into the immediate origin of the azote which entert

42

494 METEOROLOGY. RAIN.

into the constitution of vegetables, it is discovered in the manure
which proceeds more >3pecially from animal remains ; for vegeta-
bles, to thrive, must receive azotized aliment by their roots. We
thus come to apprehend that plants supply animals with their azote,
and that these restore it to plants when the term of their existence
is accomplished ; we are led to discover, in a word, that living or-
ganic matter derives its azote from dead organic matter.

This view leads us to conclude that the amount of living matter
on the surface of the globe is restricted ; that its limits are in some
sort determined by the quantity of azote in circulation among organ-
ized beings ; but the question must be viewed from a loftier emi-
nence, and we must ask what is the origin of the azote which enters
into the constitution of organic matter considered as a whole 1

If we now turn to the possible sources or magazines of azote, we
shall find, setting aside organized beings and their remains, tnat
there is in truth but one, the atmosphere. It is therefore extremely
probable that all living beings have previously obtained their azote
from the atmosphere, just as it seems very certain that they have
thence derived their carbon.*

The most reasonable supposition in the actual state of science, is
to consider the ammoniacal vapors diffused through the atmosphere
as the prime source of the azotized principles of vegetables, and
then through them of animals ; a consequence of which hypothesis
would be to assume with Liebig, that carbonate of ammonia existed
in the atmosphere before the appearance of living things upon the
face of the earth.

The phenomena and effects of thunder-storms appear to me cal-
culated to support this opinion. It is known, in fact, that so often
as a succession of electrical sparks passes through moist air, there
is formation and combination of nitric acid and ammonia. Now ni-
trate of ammonia is one of the constant ingredients in the rain of
thunder-storms. But nitrate of ammonia, being a fixed salt, cannot
exist in the atmosphere in the state of gas or vapor ; and then it is
not the nitrate, but the carbonate of ammonia that has been signal-
ized in the air. In bringing to mind the series of reactions of which
I have spoken, it is not difficult to perceive how the nitrate of am-
monia, precipitated in thunder-showers, and thus brought into contact
with calcareous rocks, should suflfer decomposition, pass into the
state of carbonate on the return of fair weather, and become fitted
to undergo diffusion in the state of vapor through the atmosphere.
We should in this way be led to regard the electrical agency, the
flash of lightning, as the means by which the azote of the atmosphere
is made fit' for assimilation by organized beings. In Europe, where
thunder-storms are rare, an oflice of so much importance will per-
haps be accorded reluctantly to the electricity of the clouds ; but ia
tropical countries no difficulty would probably be felt on the matter.
In the torrid zone, thunder-storms happen in one place or another
iSt only every day, but every hour, and even every minute of eTery

* Bonssingault, Annales de Chimic, t Izxi 1838.

METEOROLOGY. THUNDER-STORMS. 495

hour throughout the year ; so that an observer, placed at th^j equator,
were he endowed with organs of sufficient delicacy, would never
lose the roll of the thunder.

As the equator is quitted, the times at which rain falls become
less specific or periodical. Under the tropics, the rains of thunder-
storms, which are always the most copious, fall while the sun is in
the neighborhood of the zenith. In the northern hemisphere, the
greatest quantity of rain falls during winter ; and at places some-
what far south on the temperate zone, the summer rain is altogether
insignificant. In assuming the number 100 to express the whole
annual quantity of rain, we should have in

Madeira.. Lisbon.

Winter 51 40

Spring 16 34

Summer 3 3

Autumn 30 23

Less rain falls in the eastern parts of Europe than in the western.
The annual rain, too, is distributed very unequally over the diflferent
seasons, as has been shown by M. Gasparin in a remarkable paper.
If we express by 100 the quantity of rain gauged in a year, we
should have for each season :

In the weit of West of East of Germany. St. Petersburjf.

Enrland. France. France.

Winter 26 23 20 18 14

Spring 20 13 23 22 18

Summer 23 25 2d 37 37

Autumn 31 34 28 23 30

The quantity of rain which falls in the course of a year varies
considerably according to the climate ; to form an idea of the extent
of these variations, it is enough to notice the results obtained at dif-
ferent observatories ; but it is less the annual quantity of rain that
falls, than the way or quantities in which it is distributed over the
diflferent months of the year, which interests the farmer ; upon this
distribution, in fact, in many districts, depend the productiveness
and fertility of the soil. I add a table of the mean quantities of rain
in inches and lOths, that fall at London in the diflferent months of
the year :

Jan. Feb. March. April. May. June. July. Aug. Sept. Oct. Not. Dec.
in. in. in. in. in. in. in. in. in. in. in. in.

1.45 1.25 1.17 1.29 1.61 1.72 2.39 1.80 1.84 2.08 2.20 1.72

^ V. ON THK INFLUENCE OF AGRICULTURAL LABORS ON THE CLIMATE
OF A COUNTRY IN LESSENING STREAMS, ETC.

A question of great importance, and that is frequently agitated a
this time, is, as to whether the agricultural labors of man are influ-
ential in modifying the climate of a country or not 1 Do extensive
clearings of woods, the draining and drying up of great swamps,
which certainly influence the distribution of heat during the differ-
ent seasons of the year, also exert an influence on the quantity of
running water of a country, whether by lessening the quantity of
rain which falls, or by promoting the more speedy evaporation of
that which has fallen 1

lit sojae districts it has been held, that the streams which ha4

496 INFLUENCE OF AGRICULTURE ON CLIMATE.

Deen used as moving powers, have very sensibly diminished. In
other places, the rivers are said to have shrunk visibly ; and in
others, springs that were formerly abundant, have almost dried up.
Observations to this effect appear to have been principally made in
valleys, surmounted by mountains ; and it is generally asserted, that
the falling off in the springs and streams, had followed close upon
the period at which the woods, scattered over the surface of the
country, were cleared away without any kind of reserve.

These statements, which may be assumed as facts, see.o to indi-
cate that where the woods have been felled, it rains less than it did
formerly ; this, indeed, is the general opinion entertained on the
subject ; and were it admitted, without further examination, the
natural inference from it would be, that the extension of agriculture
diminishes the annual quantity of rain which falls in a country. But
at the same time that the facts as stated have been observed, it has
further been noticed that since the clearing of the surface from for-
ests, the torrents and rivers which seemed to have lost in amount
of regular supply of water, had become subject to sudden and extra-
ordinary risings which had proved the cause of numerous and grave
calamities. In the same way, springs that are generally all but dry,
have been seen to burst forth again abundantly after violent storms.
These latter observations, as may readily be imagined, are of a kind
that should lead us not lightly to embrace the vulgar opinion, which
maintains that the cutting down of the woods has had the effect of
lessening the mean annual quantity of rain : it is not only not impos-
sible that this quantity has not varied, but it may even happen that
the mass of water which passes over the bed of a stream, supposed
shrunken, is actually the same as ever it was ; the only difference
may be, that now the flow is much less regular than it used to be :
in former times the bed was always and more moderately full ; at
present it is excessively full at intervals only. It is very possible,
therefore, that here as elsewhere, occasionally, the appearance of
the fact has been taken for the reality. It were very important to
discover some natural index to a solution of the question at issue :
whether or not the destruction of the forests that once covered the
face of a district of country, had had the effect of lessening the mean
annual fall of rain ?

The lakes which are met with in plains, and at different levels in
mountain ranges, seem to me peculiarly well calculated to throw
.ight on this subject. Lakes may, in fact, be received as natural
gauges of the running waters of a country. If the mass of the water
contained in the lakes undergo change in one direction or another, it
is obvious 'that this change, and the direction in which it has occur-
red, will be proclaimed by the state or mean level of the lake or

akes, which will differ for the same reason that it does at different
seasons of the year, viz. as drought or rain prerails. The mean

evel of the lake or lakes of a district will, therefore, fall, if the
quantity of water which flows through that district diminishes ; the

evel, on the contrary, will rise, if its streams increase ; and it will

remain stationary if the afflux and efflux of the lake continue ud

INFLUENCE OF AGRICULTURE ON CLIMATE. 497

changed. In the following remarks, I shall attach myself particu-
larly to observations upon lakes which have no outlet, by reason of
the facility with which any even slight change in the level of these
must be discovered. I shall not, however, neglect those lakes
which have an exit by a stream or canal, because I believe that the
study of these may also lead to accurate enough results ; the only
point requiring preliminary remark, is the sense in which the words,
change of level, are to be taken.

Geologists admit, that the level of the waters upon the surface of
the globe has everywhere undergone great changes, whether atten-
tion be directed to the shores of the sea or to those of great inland
lakes. This fact is universal, and is questioned by none, but great
diversity of opinion prevails in regard to the cause of the phenome-
non. Some pretend, that in many cases the change of level is only
apparent, — that the body of water has not sunk, but that the shores
have risen ; others, again, maintain that there has been a true dimi-
nution in the mass of fluid, a true drying up, and that its level has
actually sunk. I shall not, in this place, enter upon the great geo-
logical question ; the variations which are there signalized are often
of vast extent, and involve the supposition of violent catastrophes,
which, in a general way, were long anterior to the historical epoch.
I shall only refer to changes of level observed in lakes by our ances-
tors or contemporaries ; in a word, to facts which have taken place
under the eyes of men, inasmuch as it is the influence of their ag-
ricultural labors upon the meteorological state of the atmosphere,
which I am seeking to appreciate. The facts upon which I shall
more particularly dwell, were observed in South America ; but I
shall show that what is true with regard to this continent, is true
also with reference to any other continent.

One of the most interesting portions of Venezuela is, undoubtedly,
the valley d'Aragua. Situated at a short distance from the sea-
board, possessed of a warm climate, and of a soil fertile beyond ex-
ample, it combines within itself all the varieties of agriculture that
belong in peculiar to tropical regions ; on the hillocks which rise in
the bottom of the valley, are seen fields which bring to mind the
agriculture of Europe. Wheat succeeds pretty well upon the heights
which surround La Vittoria. Bounded on the north by a chain of
hills which run parallel with the sea-board, and to the south by the
range which separates it from Llanos, the Aragua Valley is limited
on the east and west by a series of lesser elevations, which shut it
in completely. In consequence of this peculiar configuration of
country, the rivers which rise in its interior have no outlet to the
ocean ; their waters accumulate in the lowest part of the valley, and
form the beautiful lake Valentia. This lake, which M. de Humboldt
says exceeds the lake Neufch^tel in size, is raised about 1300 feet
above the level of the sea ; it is about ten leagues in length, and
about two leagues and a half where it is widest.

At the time when M. de Humboldt visited the Aragua Valley, the
inhabitants were struck with the gradual diminution which had been
going on in the waters of the lake during the last thirty years. J^

42*

498 INFLUENCE OF AGRICULTURE ON CLIMATE.

was enough to compare the statements of older writers with its con •
dition at this time, to obtain conviction that the waters had, in fact,
rery much diminished. Oviedo, for instance, who visited the valley
frequently towards the end of the sixteenth century, says, that the
town of New Valencia was founded in 1555, at the distance of half a
league from the lake ; in 1800, M. de Humboldt ascertained that the
lake was upwards of 549 yards, or upwards of 3y miles, instead of
about If mile from its banks.

The appearance of the surface also gives new proof of the fact of
the recession of the water ; certain hillocks which rise in the plain
still preserve the title of islands, which, undoubtedly, they formerly
received with propriety, when they were surrounded by water. The
land which had been left by the retreat of the lake, soon became
transformed into beautiful plantations of cotton-trees, bananas, and
sugar-canes. Buildings which had been erected on the banks were
left, year after year, further and further from them. In 1796, new
islets made their appearance. An important military position, a for-
tress built in 1740, in the Isle de la Cabrera, was then upon a penin-
sula. Finally, in two islets of granite, M. de Humboldt discovered,
several yards above the level of the lake, a bed of fine sand, mixed
with fresh-water shells. These facts, so certain, so unquestionable,
did not pass without numerous explanations from the wise men of
the country, who, as if by common consent, fixed upon a subterra-
nean exit for the waters of the lake. M. de Humboldt, after the
most careful examination of all the circumstances, did not hesitate
to ascribe the diminution of the waters of the lake Valencia to the
extensive clearings which had been effected in the course of half a
century in the Aragua valley. " In felling the trees which covered
the crowns and slopes of the mountains," says this celebrated
traveller, *' men in all climates seem to be bringing upon future
generations two calamities at once — a want of fuel and a scarcity
of water."*

In the year 1800, the population of this favored valley, where the
cultivation of indigo, of cotton, of cocoa, and the cane had made im-
mense progress, was as dense as it was in the most thickly popula-
ted districts of England or France, and every one was delighted
with the appearance of comfort that prevailed in the numerous villa-
ges of this industrious country.

Twenty-five years after M. de Humboldt, I explored in my turn
the Valley d'Aragua, having fixed my residence in the little town of
Maracaibo. The inhabitants had now remarked that for several
years, not only had the lake ceased to diminish, but that it had even
risen very perceptibly. Some fields that were formerly covered with
cotton plantations were now submerged. The Isles de las Nuevas
Aparacidas, which had risen from the waters in 1796, had again be-
come shoals dangerous to navigation ; the tongue of earth, De la
Cacrera, on the north side of the valley, had become so narrow that
tl)6 gligh est rise in the water of the lake covered it completely ; a

• Humboldt, vol v. p. 173.

I

INFLUENCE OF AGRICULTURE ON CLIMATE. 499

continuous N.E. wind was sufficient to flood the road which led
from Maracaibo to New Valencia ; in short, the fears which the in-
habitants of the lake had entertained for so long a period had entirely
changed their nature ; they were now no longer afraid of the lake dry-
ing up ; they saw with dismay that if the water continued to rise as
it had done lately, it would in no long space of time have drowned
some of the most valuable estates, &c. Those who had explained
the diminution of the lake by supposing subterraneous canals, now
hastened to close them up in order to find a cause for the rise in the
level of the water.

In the course of the last twenty-two years important political
events had transpired. Venezuela no longer belonged to Spain ; the
peaceful valley d'Aragua had been the theatre of many a bloody con-
test ; war to the knife had desolated this beautiful country and deci-
mated its inhabitants. On the first cry of independence raised, a
great number of slaves found freedom by enlisting under the banners
of the new republic ; agricultural operations of any extent were
abandoned, and the forest, which makes such rapid progress in the
tropics, had soon regained possession of the surface which man had
won from it by something like a century of sustained and painful
toil. With the increasing prosperity of the valley many of the prin-
cipal tributaries to the lake had been turned aside to serve as means
of irrigation, so that the beds of some of the rivers were absolutely
dry for more than six months in the year. At the period which I
now refer to, the water was no longer used in this way, and the beds
of the rivers were full. Thus with the growth of agricultural indus-
try in the Valley d'Aragua, when the extent of cleared surface was
continually on the increase, and when great farming establishments
were multiplied, the level of the water sunk ; but by and by, during
a period of disasters, happily passing in their nature, the process of
clearing is arrested, the lands formerly won from the forest are in
part restored to it, and then the waters first cease to fall in their le-
vel, and by and by show an unequivocal disposition to rise.

I shall now, without, however, quitting America, carry my read-
ers into a district where the climate is analogous to that of Europe,
where the surface is occupied by immense fields, covered with the
cereals as with us. I speak of the table-knds of New Granada, of
those valleys raised from 10,000 to 13,000 and 14,000 feet above
the level of the sea, in which the mean temperature throughout the
year ranges from 58° to about 62° Fahr. Lakes are frequent in the
Cordilleras ; and it would be easy for me to describe a great num-
ber ; I shall, however, confine myself to those which became subjects
of observation in former times.

The village of Ubate is now situated in the neighborhood of two
lakes. Some seventy years ago these two lakes formed but one ;
the old inhabitants saw the water shrinking and new fields pre-
senting themselves year after year. At this present time fields of
wheat of extraordinary luxuriance occupy levels that were com-
pletely inundated 30 years ago.

It is enough indeed to perambulate the neighborhood of Ubate

500 METEOROLOGY.

to consult the old sportsmen of the country, and to refer to the
annals of the various parishes, to be satisfied that extensive forests
have been cut down in the whole of the surrounding- country : the
clearing, in fact, still continues ; and it is certain that the recession
of the waters, although much slower than it was in former times, has
not yet entirely ceased.

A lake, situated in the same valley, to the east of Ubate, deserves
our particular attention. By means of barome trie measurements,
made with extreme care, I found that this lake had precisely the
same level as that of Ubate. Nearly two centuries ago, it was vis-
ited by Piedrahita, Bishop of Panama, an author of great accuracy,
to whom we owe the history of the conquest of New Granada. He
states this lake to be ten leagues in length, by three leagues in
breadth ; but Dr. Roulin having had occasion, a few years ago, to
make a plan of the lake, he found it a league and a half in length, by
one league in breadth ; my own impression is, that at the time
Piedrahita wrote, there was but a single lake, extending all the waj
from Ubate to Zimijaca, not two lakes as at present, a supposition
which would take away every thing like exaggeration from the state-
ment of Piedrahita. But the fact of the retreat of the waters of
these lakes is unquestioned ; the inhabitants of Zimijaca all know
that the village was founded close to the lake, whereas, at the pres-
ent time, it is nearly a league from its banks. Formerly, there was
no difficulty in obtaining all the building timber that was wanted ;
the mountains which rose from the valley on either hand were cov-
ered up to a certain height with the trees proper to these cold re
gions ; the oak of the Andes abounded; numerous myrcias were
also in existence, from which abundance of wax was obtained : at
the present time these mountains are almost stripped of their trees,
an event mainly brought about by the eagerness to procure fuel in
manufacturing salt from the springs of Taosa and Enemocon.

To these authentic facts, which I could multiply and support by
many others of a similar kind, it may be replied, that the diminution
of the water, incontestable as it is, might perhaps have taken place
without the clearing away of the forests. It may indeed be main-
tained, that the drying up of the waters is owing to a totally differ-
ent cause, altogether unknown to us ; that it must be ranked among
the numerous phenomena, the reality of which we perceive, but
without being able to render any account of their cause.

I cannot, in the instance last quoted, as in that of the lake of Va-
lencia, refer to any increase of the lake connected with the suspen-
sion of agriculture, or the reappearance of the forest. I might,
however, adduce in favor of the opinion which I defend, the slow-
ness with which the decrease in the lakes of the valley of Ubate has
lately gone on, and since the felling of trees in the neighborhood
nas almost entirely ceased. Extensive plots of fertile ground are
now no longer left dry and available to the husbandman by the re-
reat of the lake ; he already begins to think of means for obtaining
oy artifice that which nature, assisted by the clearing of the country
presented him with in former times. In the year 1826 there was »

METEOROLOGY. 501

Bpeculation on foot for draining the valley completely by cutting a
canal and letting off the water. Further proof of the fact which 1
am urging is obtained in another way. It is not difficult to show,
that lakes in the immediate vicinity of those that have shrunk most
remarkably, but around which no destruction of the forest has taken
place, have undergone no change in their level. The lake of Tota,
situated at no great distance from the valley of Ubate, at an eleva-
tion that must approach 13,000 feet above the level of the sea, in a
region where vegetation has almost entirely disappeared, has pre-
served its pristine level unaltered. The lake is nearly circular ;
and Piedrahita, in 1542, gives it two leagues in breadth. It is sub-
ject to violent storms, which render its navigation dangerous ; and
even travelling along its banks, from the particular circumstances in
which the road is situated, with tho .ake on one hand and a perpen-
dicular cliff upon the other, is not without risk. In 1652, the road
passed as it does at present, the water laving the foot of the same
rocks, and its level having suffered no change, any more than the
sterile country which surrounds it.

I shall conclude what I have to say on the lakes of South America
by speaking of that of Quilatoa, because it has been made the subject
of accurate observations sufficiently remote from one another — 1740
and 1831.

Living at Latacunga, a town situated at no great distance from
Cotopaxi, the traveller is sure to hear of the wonders of the Laguna
da Quilatoa. From time to time this lake, it is said, casts forth
flames which set fire to the shrubs and withered grass that grow
upon its banks, and frequent detonations are heard, the sound of
which extends to a great distance. M. de la Condamine, in 1738,
visited this lake, which he found of a circular form, and about 1278
feet in diameter ; on the 28th November, 1831, 1 also visited the
Lake of Quilatoa. It cannot be better compared to any thing than
to the crater of a volcano filled with water ; I found it nearly 13,000
feet above the level of the sea, in the cold region, therefore ; and
indeed it is surrounded with immense pastures ; but the information
which I obtained from the shepherds in the neighborhood of the Lake
of Quilatoa, dissipated all that was marvellous in its history ; they
had never seen any flames issue from its bosom, they had never
heard any detonations ; in short, I found the lake as M. de la Con-
damine appears to have found it, every thing having remained for
nearly a century without change.

The study of the lakes which are so common in Asia, would
probably supply conclusions similar to those deduced from observa-
tions made in South America, viz., that the waters which irrigate a
country diminish as the forests are cleared away, and as agriculture
extends. The recent labors of M. de Humboldt, which have thrown
so much new light upon this quarter of the world, appear to leave
no doubt upon the subject. After having shown that the system of
the Altai is about to lose itself by a succession of slopes in the
steppes of Kirgiz, and that consequently the Ural chain is not con-
nected with that of the Altai, as was generally belioved, this celebrated

ft02 METEOROLOGY.

geographer shows, that precisely in the situation where the Alghinic
mountains are usually set down, a remarkable region of lakes com-
mences, which extend into the plains that are traversed by the Ichim
the Omsk, and the Obi.* It would appear that these numerous
lakes are remainders as it were of an immense sheet of water, which
formerly covered the whole of the country, and which had become
divided into so many particular lakes by the configuration of the
surface. In crossing the steppe of Baraba, in his way from Tobolsk
to Baraoul, M. de Humboldt perceived everywhere that the drying
up of waters increases rapidly under the influence of tile cultivation
of the soil.

Europe also possesses its lakes ; and we have still to examine
them from the particular point of view which engages us. M. de
Saussure, in his first inquiries in regard to the temperature of the
lakes of Switzerland, examined those which are situated at the foot
of the first line of the Jura. The Lake of NeufchS.tel is eight
leagues in length, and its greatest breadth does not exceed two
leagues. On visiting it, Saussure was struck with the extent which
this lake must formerly have possessed ; for, as he says, the ex-
tensive level and marshy meadows which terminate it on the south-
west, had unquestionably been covered with water at a former
period.

The Lake of Bienne is three leagues long and one broad ; it is
separated from the Lake of Neufch^tel by a succession of plains that
were probably inundated.

Lake Morat is also separated from the Lake of Neufch4tel by low
and level marshes, which beyond all question were formerly sub-
merged. Unquestionably, adds Saussure, the three great lakes of
Neufch^tel, Bienne, and Morat, were formerly connected, and formed
one great sheet of water.f

In Switzerland, as in America and Asia, the old lakes, those thai
may be spoken of under the title of the primitive lakes, and which
occupied the bottoms of the valleys when the country was unculti-
vated and wild, have become divided, and now form a variable num-
ber of smaller and independent lakes. I shall wind up the present
subject by referring to the observations of Saussure upon the Lake
of Geneva, which may be looked upon as the starting point of the
admirable works of this distinguished philosopher.

Saussure admits, that at an epoch long anterior to the times of
history, the mountains which surround this lake were themselves
submerged ; a great catastrophe let off this immense collection of
water, and by and by the current possessed no more than the bottom
of the valley ; the Lake of Geneva was formed.

In merely considering the monuments left by man, it is impossible
to doubt that within 1200 or 1300 years the waters of the Lake of
Geneva have gradually fallen in their level. It is evidently upon
the levels which have thus been left that the quarter de Rive, and
the lower streets of the city of Geneva have been built. This de

♦ Humboldt, Fragmens Asiatiques, t. i. p. 40-50.
t Saussure, Voyage dans les Alpes, t. ii. chap. 6.

METEOBOLOGY. 508

pression of the surface, continues Saussure, is not merely the effect
of any deepening of the bed of the Rhone, by which the lake is dis-
charged ; it has also been produced by a diminution in the quantity
of water which flows into it.

The conclusions which it seems legitimate to draw from the ob-
servations of Saussure are, that in the course of from 1200 to 1300
years the quantity of running water has sensibly diminished in the
districts around the Lake of Geneva. No one will, I apprehend,
deny that in this long period there have not been extensive clear-
ings of forest lands in Switzerland, and a continual increase in the
extent of cultivated land in this beautiful country. Here, conse-
quently, as elsewhere, an attentive examination of "the levels of the
lakes leads us to conclude, that where extensive clearings froja for-
est have been effected, where agriculture has extended, that there
has in all probability been diminution of the running waters which
irrigate the surface ; while in those districts where no change has
been effected, the amount of running stream does not appear to have
undergone any variation.

The effect of forests considered in this point of view would there-
fore be to keep up the amount of the waters which are destined for
mills and canals ; and next to prevent the rain-water from collecting
and flowing away with too great rapidity. That a soil covered with
trees is further less favorable to evaporation than ground that has
been cleared, is a truth that all will probably admit without discus-
sion. To be aware that it is so, it is enough to have travelled, a
short time after the rainy season, upon a road which traverses in
succession a country that is free from forests, and one that is thickly
wooded. Those parts of the road that pass through the unencum-
bered country are found hard and dry, while those that traverse the
wooded districts are wet, muddy, and often scarcely passable. In
South America, more perhaps than anywhere else, does the obsta-
cle to evaporation from a soil thickly shaded with forests, strike the
traveller. In the forests the humidity is constant, it exists long after
the rainy season has passed ; and the roads that are opened through
them remain through the whole year deeply covered with mire : the
only means known of keeping forest ways dry, is to give them a
width of from 260 to 330 feet, that is to say, to clear the country in
their course.

If once the fact is admitted that running streams are diminished
in size by the effect of felling the forests and the extension of agri-
culture, it imports us to examine whether this diminution proceeds
from a less quantity of rain, or from a greater amount of evapora-
tion, or whether perchance it maybe owing to the practice of irrigation.

I set out with the principle that it must be next to impossible to
specify the precise share which each of these diflferent causes has
in the general result; I shall, nevertheless, endeavor to appreciate
them in a summary way. The discussion will have gained some-
thing if it be proved that there may be diminution of running streams
'n consequence of clearing off the forests alone, without the whole
of the causes being presumed to act simultaneously.

504 METEOROLOGy.

"With regard to irrigation, it is necessary to distinguish between
that case in which an extensive farm has been substituted for an im-
penetrable forest, and that in which an arid soil, which never sup-
ported wood, has been rendered productive by the industry of man
In the first case it is very probable that irrigation will have contri-
buted but little to the diminution in the mass of running water ; it
may readily be imagined that the quantity of water used up by a
dense forest will equal, at all events, if not exceed, that which wil
be required by any of the vegetables which human industry substi-
tutes for it. In the second case, that is to say, where a great extent
of waste country has been brought under cultivation, there will evi-
dently be consumption of water by the vegetation which has been
fostered upon the surface ; agricultural industry will thus tend to
diminish the quantity of water which irrigates a country. It is ex-
tremely probable that it is to a circumstance of this kind that we
must ascribe the diminution of the lakes which receive so large a
proportion of the running streams of the north of Asia. It is al-
most unnecessary to add, that in circumstances of this kind the effect
which is due to the simple evaporation of rain- water is not increased ;
the loss by this means must be rather less, because from a surface
covered with plants evaporation takes place more slowly than from
one that is devoid of vegetation.

In the considerations which I have presented upon the lakes of
Venezuela, of New Granada, and of Switzerland, the diminution may-
be directly ascribed to a less mean annual quantity of rain ; but it
may with equal reason be maintained to be a simple consequence of
more rapid evaporation.

There are, in fact, a variety of circumstances under the influence
of which the diminution of running streams can be shown to be con-
nected with more active evaporation. I shall confine myself to the
mention of two particular instances, one noticed by M. Desbassyns
de Richemond, in the Island of Ascension ; the other is from obser-
vations by myself, and is among the number of facts which I regis
tered during my residence for several years at the mines" of Mar
mato.

In the Island of Ascension there was an excellent spring situated
at the foot of a mountain originally covered with wood ; this spring
became scanty and dried up after the trees which covered the moun-
tain had been felled. The loss of the spring was rightly ascribed to
the cutting down of the timber. The mountain was therefore plant-
ed anew, and a few years afterwards the spring reappeared by de-
grees, and by and by flowed with its former abundance.

The metalliferous mountain of Marmato is situated in the province
of Popayan, in the midst of immense forests. The stream along
which the mining works are established is formed by the junction of
several small rivulets which take their rise in the table-land of San
Jorge. The country which overlooks the establishment is thickly
wooded.

In 1826, when I visited the mines for the first time, Marmato con-
sisted of a few miserable cabins, inhabited by negro slaves. !■

METEOROLOGY. 505

1830, when I quitted the country, Marmato had the most flourishing
appearance • it was covered with workshops, it had a foundry of
gold, machinery for grinding and amalgamating the ores, &c., and a
free population of nearly three thousand inhabitants. It may be
readily imagined, that in the course of these four years an immense
quantity of timber had been cut down, not only for the construction
of machinery and of houses, but as fuel, and for the manufacture of
charcoal. For facility of transport, the felling had principally gone
on upon the table-land of San Jorge. But the clearing had scarcely
been effected two years before it was perceived that the quantity of
water for the supply of the machinery had notably diminished. The
volume of water had been measured by the work done by the ma-
chinery, and actual gauging at diiferent times showed the progressive
diminution of the water. The question assumed a serious aspect,
because at Marmato any diminution in the quantity of the water,
which is the moving power, would be of course attended with a pro-
portional diminution in the quantity of gold produced. Now, in the
Island of Ascension, and at Marmato, it is highly improbable that
any merely local and limited clearing away of the forest should have
had such an influence upon the constitution of the atmosphere as to
cause a variation in the mean annual quantity of rain which falls in
the country. More than this, as soon as the diminution of the
stream at Marmato was ascertained, a pluviometer, or rain-gauge,
was set up, and in the course of the second year of observation a
larger quantity of rain was gauged than in the first year, although
the clearing had been continued ; still there was no appreciable in-
crease in the size of the running stream.

A couple of years of observation are unquestionably insufficient to
show any definitive variation in the annual quantity of rain that falls.
But the observations made at Marmato still establish the fact thai
.he mass of running water had diminished in spite of the larger quanti-
'y of rain which fell. It is therefore probable that local clearings of
•brest land, even of very moderate extent, cause springs and rivu-
fets to shrink, and even to disappear, without the effect being ascri-
bable to any diminution in the amount of rain that falls.

We have still to inquire, whether extensive clearings of the
forest — clearings which embrace a whole country — cause any dimi-
nution in the quantity of rain that falls. Unfortunately, the observa-
ions which we have upon the quantity of rain which falls in par-
ticular districts, are only of sufficient antiquity and accuracy in
Europe to be worthy of any confidence, and there the soil was cleared
before observation, in the generality of instances, began.

The United States of America, where the forests are disappearing
with such rapidity, will probably one day afford elements for the
complete and satisfactory solution of the question, whether or not
the cutting down of forests causes any diminution in the quantity of
rain which falls in the course of the year.

In studying the phenomena accompanying the fall of rain in the
tropics, I have come to a conclusion which I have already made
known to many observers. My own opinion is, that the felling of

43

506 METEOROLOGY

forests over a large extent of country has always the effect of less
ening the mean annual quantity of rain. •

It has long been said, that in equinoctial countries the rainy sea-
son returns each year with astonishing regularity. There can be
no doubt of the general accuracy of this observation, but the mete-
orological fact must not be announced as universal and admitting of
no exception ; the regular alternation of the dry and rainy season is
as perfect as possible in countries which present an extreme variety
of territory. Thus, in a country whose surface is covered with forests
and rivers and lakes, with mountains and plains, and table-lands, the
periodical seasons are quite distinct. But it is by no means so where
the surface is more uniform in its character. The return of the
rainy season will be much less regular if the soil be in general dry
and naked ; or if extensive agricultural operations take the place of
the primeval forest ; if rivers are less common, and lakes less fre-
quent. The rains will then be less abundant ; and such countries
will be exposed, from time to time, to droughts of long continuance
If, on the contrary, thick forests cover almost the whole of the terri-
tory, if its rivulets and rivers be numerous, and agriculture be limited
in extent, irregularity in the seasons will then take place, but in a
different way ; the rains will prevail, and in some seasons they will
become as it were incessant.

The continent of America presents us, on the largest scale, with
two regions placed in the same conditions as to temperature, but in
which we successively encounter the circumstances which are most
favorable to the formation and fall of rain in one case, and to its
absence in the other.

Setting out from Panama, and proceeding towards the south, we
encounter the Bay of Cupica, the provinces of San Bonaventura
Choco, and Esmeraldas ; in this country, covered with thick forests
and intersected with a multitude of streams, the rains are almost
incessant ; in the interior of Choco, scarcely a day passes without
rain. Beyond Tumbez, towards Payta, an order of things entirely
different commences : the forests have entirely disappeared, the soil
is sandy, agriculture scarcely exists, and here rain is almost un-
known. When I was at Pajrta, the inhabitants informed me that it
had not rained for seventeen years ! The same want of rain is
common in the whole of the country which surrounds the desert of
Sechura, and extends to Lima ; in these countries rain is as rare as
trees are.

In Choco, where the soil is thickly covered with trees, it rains
almost continually ; and on the coasts of Peru, where the soil is
sandy, without trees, and devoid of verdure, it never rains ; and
this, as I have said, under a climate which enjoys the same tempera-
ture, and whose general features and distance from the mountains
are nearly the same. Piura is not more remote from the Andes of
Assuay than are the moist plains of Choco from the Western Cor-
dillera.

The facts which ha>e now been laid before the reader seem to
authorize me to infer —

METEOROLOGY. 507

Ist. That extensive destruction of forests lessens the quantity of
running water in a country.

2d That it is impossible to say precisely whether this diminution
is due to a less mean annual quantity of rain, or to more active
evaporation, or to these two effects combined.

3d. That the quantity of running water does not appear to have
suffered any diminution or change in countries which have known
nothing of agricultural improvement.

4th. That independently of preserving running streams, by oppo-
sing an obstacle to evaporation, forests economize and regulate their
flow.

5th. That agriculture established in a dry country, not covered
with forests, dissipates an additional portion of its running water.

6th. That clearings of forest land of limited extent may cause
the disappearance of particular springs, without our being therefore
authorized to conclude that the mean annual quantity of rain has
been diminished.

7th, and lastly. That in assuming the meteorological data collect-
ed in intertropical countries, it may be presumed that clearing off
the forests does actually diminish the mean annual quantity of rain
which falls.*

♦ These meteorological observations are highly interesting, and worthy of every
consideration. That unforesting a country makes it absolutely drier, seems unques-
tionable ; but whether that be in consequence of less rain falling, or of that which
falls going further, making more show, cannot be easily determined. It does not seem
very legitimate to decide, that because a country is covered with wood, therefore it is
wet : the converse of that proposition appears much more probable— viz., that because
a country is wet, therefore it is covered with trees. There is one part of the ocean
which is called by mariners " The Rains ;" because it rains there almoat ceaselessly,
as it does in the province of Choco : but " The Rains" has no forests to account for
its dripping sky. Did that region consist of dry land instead of salt-water, then doubt-
less its surface would be covered, as that of Choco is, with an impenetrable forest
The subject is adverted to here, however, not to discuss the general question, but to
throw out the suggestion that under the hand of man, the soil and even the climate of
our immense Australian possessions might possibly be improved. Drought is the
grand enemy of Australian settlers ; and the country is generally barren of wood.

Governors, district governments, and farmers, and all who are interested in the pros-
perity of the colony, surely ought to encourage, by every possible means, the growth
of the taller trees and shrubs that are indigenous to the country.

Expeditions might be made once or twice a year, at the proper season, for scattenn^
or planting the seeds of these trees or shrubs. Could every knoll within a hundred
miles of Sidney be seen crowned with a thick screen of leafy trees, there can be little
doubt but that the rain which falls would be economized ; and that the beds of the
rivers, instead of being dry for eight or nine months, would be occupied all the yetti
round by at least a moderate stream of water.— Eno. Ed.

THK END.

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