678 Report on Inspection Work of the 



former law; and the higher the amount of nitrogen guaranteed, the 

 greater becomes the amount of deficiency exemption under the 

 present law. As a further illustration, take nitrate of soda, guaran- 

 teed to contain 15 per ct. of nitrogen; a deficiency of 1.50 per ct. is at 

 present permissible, requiring that the amount of nitrogen actually 

 contained in the nitrate shall not exceed 13.50 per ct. 



In the case of phosphoric acid and potash, the present law exempts 

 smaller amounts of deficiency than did the former law until the guar- 

 anty exceeds 5 per ct., at which particular point the figure (0.50 per 

 ct.) is the same for both the present and former laws. Therefore, in 

 all cases where the guaranteed amount of phosphoric acid or potash is 

 above 5 per ct., then the 10 per ct. deficiency exemption of the present law 

 exceeds 0.50 per ct. and becomes greater under the present law than under 

 the former. For example, in a fertilizer guaranteed to contain 10 per 

 ct. of phosphoric acid or of potash, the present law permits an ab- 

 solute exemption of 1.00 per ct. deficiency as against 0.50 per ct.bythe 

 former law. The exemption becomes, of course, greater in the case 

 of higher guarantees; thus with acid phosphate carrying a guaranty 

 of 14 per ct. of phosphoric acid, we have an exemption of 1.40 per ct.; 

 and with muriate of potash guaranteed to contain 50 per ct., the ex- 

 emption becomes 5.00 per ct., that is, such an acid phosphate needs 

 under the present law to contain only 12.60 per ct. of phosphoric acid, 

 and such a muriate needs to contain only 45 per ct. of potash. Sum- 

 marized in brief form, it is obvious that in comparison with the 

 former law: 



(1) The present law ivorks to the advantage of the farmer in those cases 

 in which the fertilizers contain less than 3.30 per ct. of nitrogen or 5.00 

 per ct. of phosphoric acid or potash; 



(2) The present law works against the protection of the farmer and in 

 favor of the manufacturer in those cases in which the guaranteed amount 

 of nitrogen exceeds 3.30 per ct., or in case of phosphoric acid and potash 

 5.00 per ct. 



It therefore becomes a matter of interest and importance to learn 

 to what extent fertilizers contain amounts of nitrogen above and be- 

 low 3.30 per ct. and phosphoric acid and potash above and below 

 5.00 per ct. 



