CHEMICAL DEPARTxMENT. 29 



INSTEUCTIONS FOR SELECTING SAMPLES FOR ANALYSIS. 



MANURES. 



Four or more bags should be selected for sampling. Each bag is to be 

 emptied out separately on a clean floor, worked through with the spade, 

 and one spadeiul taken out and set aside. The four or more spadefuls 

 thus set aside are to be mixed together until a uniform mixture is obtained. 

 Of this mixtui'e one spadeful is to be taken, spread on paper, and still more 

 thoroughly mixed, any lumps which it may contain being Ijroken down with 

 the hand. Of this mixture two samples of about half a jiound each should 

 be taken by the purchaser or his agent, in the presence of the seller or his 

 agent or two witnesses (due notice having been given to the seller of the 

 time and place of sampling), and these samples should be taken as quickly as 

 possible, and put into bottles or tin cases to prevent loss of moisture, and 

 having been labelled, should be sealed by the samplers — one or more samples 

 to be retained by the purchaser, and one to be sent to the chemist for 

 analysis. 



FEEDING STUFFS. 



Samples of feeding compounds should be taken in a similar manner. 



Samples of cake should be taken by selecting three cakes, breaking each 

 across the middle, and from the broken part breaking off a small piece. 

 The three pieces thus obtained should be wrapped up and sealed by the 

 samplers, and sent for analysis as in the case of manures, and three dupli- 

 cate pieces similarly sealed and labelled should be retained by the purchaser. 



SOILS. 



Dig a little trench about two feet deep, exposing the soil and sub- 

 soil. Cut from the side of this trench horizontal scrapings of the soil 

 down to the top of the subsoil. Similar sections of subsoil immediately 

 below these samples should be taken and preserved separately. Five or 

 six similarly drawn samples should be taken from difterent parts of the 

 field, and kept separate while being sent to the chemist, that he may 

 examine them individually before mixing in the laboratory. 



VEGETABLE PRODUCTS. 



Turnips, <fcc., 20 to 30 carefully selected as fair average bulbs. 



Hay, straiv, ensilage, djc., should be sampled from a thin section cut across 

 the whole stack or silo, and carefully mixed about j about 10 lbs. weight is 

 requii-ed for analysis. 



Grain should be sampled like manures. 



'DAIRY PRODUCE. 



Milk. — Samples of milk from individual cows should be taken direct 

 from the milk-pail. Average samples from a number of cows should be taken 

 immediately after milking. Samples to be tested for adulteration should 

 not be drawn from the bottom or taken from the top of standing milk, but 

 they should be ladled from the vessel after the milk has been thoroughly 

 mixed. 



For most purposes half a pint of milk is a large enough sample. 



Butter and Cheese. — About quarter-pound samples are required. 



