386 ANNUAL RECORD OF SCIENCE AND INDUSTRY. 



tritive materials; while the ordinary pit sand was superior 

 to the ashes of the Pennsylvania white-ash coal, as regards 

 the amount of potash and phosphoric acid contained in fit 

 form for plant-food. The largest yield was obtained from 

 the green sand, with solution of nitrate of potash. 



This series of experiments shows that, while the ashes of 

 the Pennsylvania white-ash coal examined do contain appre- 

 ciable quantities of potash and phosphoric acid in condition 

 tit for the support of plants, they are, nevertheless, inferior in 

 this respect to an equal bulk of good pit sand from Massa- 

 chusetts. It is interesting to note, in all of the experiments, 

 how readily the, comparatively speaking, insoluble rock phos- 

 phates of the sands are put to use by plants that are duly 

 supplied with potash and nitrogen, and other kinds of plant- 

 food, provided the soil is kept moist. The experiments with 

 the New Jersey green sand illustrates very clearly its ferti- 

 lizing value, both as regards potash and phosphoric acid, as 

 well as the importance of using a nitrogenized manure, in or- 

 der that it may produce its proper effect in field practice. 



Chemical examinations were made of the ashes used, and 

 their absorptive power was also studied. 



On the whole, this series of experiments is quite interest- 

 ing, and it is to be earnestly hoped that investigations of 

 this and similar character may be encouraged, so that we in 

 this country may no longer be so far behind the Europeans, 

 and particularly the Germans, in investigations in agricultur- 

 al science. Bull, of Bussey Institute, 1874, 1. 



coignet's process for the preparation of animal mat- 

 ter FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF FERTILIZERS. 



Without deciding upon the value of samples of fertilizers 

 presented by Coignet, a committee to which the matter was 

 referred recommends the process employed in their manufact- 

 ure, and suggests that it may find many applications, and 

 render possible the utilization of many substances for ferti- 

 lizers that have hitherto been unemployed. Thus horns, hoofs, 

 hair, leather scraps, woolen rags, etc., although rich in nitro- 

 gen, and other fertilizing matter, have hitherto had no special 

 value, on account of the difficulty of pulverizing them, and 

 their slowness of decomposition in the soil. By Coignet's 

 process such substances can be pulverized and decomposed 



