152 



The Ottawa Naturalist. 



[Nov. 



Reference to the data obtained for the year ending February 

 28th, 1909, shows that in certain important respects the results 

 differ markedly from those of the preceding year. Thus, the 

 amount of nitrogen (present as free ammonia, albuminoid ammonia 

 and nitrates) washed out of the atmosphere and furnished to 

 the soil per acre, during the twelve months, was 8.364 lbs. 

 practically twice the quantity reported the year 1907-08. An 

 examination of the monthly precipitations shows that the rain 

 for September, October and November was unusually rich in 

 ammonia. The explanation of this extraordinary abnormal 

 richness of the rain last autumn may be given in the words of 

 the Chief Chemist, Mr. Frank T. Shutt, M.A. : "A very severe 

 drought prevailed during August, September and the first three 

 weeks in October, 1908, the rainfall being considerably below 

 the average for these months. This excessive dryness of the 

 weather allowed the bush fires, which are not unusual at this 

 time of the year, to spread and gain very considerable headway. 

 Fires were common, not only in the district known as the 

 Ottawa Valley, but also over large territories in Ontario and 

 Quebec and the northern part of New York State. These fires 

 raged almost continually, the rainfalls being very light for many 

 weeks, so that for two months, more or less, the atmosphere 

 was heavily charged with smoke. Hundreds of acres of forest 

 were burnt and thousands of dollars worth of timber destroyed. 

 So dense was the smoke at times that for several days together 

 at Ottawa it was difficult to see clearly for many yards, and the 

 irritation to the eyes and mucous membrane of the nose and 

 throat was excessive. Not until the heav}' rain of the 24th and 

 25th of October was the atmosphere again cleared. This smoke 

 naturally contained large proportions of ammonia as a product of 

 combustion and hence the scanty precipitations that occurred 

 during these weeks were exceptionally rich in that constituent. 

 To this cause then we attribute the exceptional and phenomen- 

 ally high results recorded for the year." H^ 



The detailed discussion of the results, appearing in the 

 forthcoming report of the Chemist, will, we are assured, bring 

 out several other interesting points regrading the amount and 

 composition of the year's rain and snow. 



NEW MEMBERS. 



The following gentlemen have recently been elected ordin- 

 ary members of the Ottawa Field-Naturalists' Club: Mr. Chas. 

 H. Bennett, Ottawa; Mr. W. H. Bell, Nepigon, Ont.; Prof. S. 

 Blair, Macdonald College, Quebec; Mr. L. B. Brown, Toronto; 

 Mr. H. C. Duff, Norwood, Ont.; Mr. H. T. Gussow, Ottawa; 

 Dr. C. Gordon Hewitt, Ottawa; Dr. Julius Klotz, Lanark, Ont. 



