ANTAGONISM BETWEEN ANIONS 



299 



antagonism between NaoCOs and NaCl and Na2S04 in which 

 cases the first named salt is a stimulant to ammonification even 

 at high concentrations, but that even between two definitely 

 toxic salts like NaCl and Na2S04 a distinct antagonism obtains 

 so far as the ammonifying flora are concerned. That these 

 results are not accidental is attested to by the large amount of 

 data above submitted and by the excellent agreement which 

 obtains between duplicate determinations. 



In the above data, therefore, we are confronted by the singular 

 and most interesting fact that marked improvement for am- 

 monia production in alkali soils by biological means may be ef- 

 fected by the proper balancing of salts, and what is more striking, 

 that such balancing of salts may actually mean a doubling or 

 even tripling of the total salt content which involves enormous 

 changes in the osmotic pressures of the soil solution in which the 

 organisms work. 



No further discussion is necessary to emphasize the results 

 which are so clearly set forth in Tables I, II and III. The 

 writer only wishes to add the observation that regardless of the 

 attitude one may take with reference to what constitutes antago- 

 nism between ions there are given data in the foregoing tables 

 which testify to the existence of antagonism between anions 



