LEACHED ASHES AND PLASTER. 105 



upon corn. I think you are quite right in your manipulation 

 of ashes. 



I will say a word in relation to leached ashes, in which I 

 presume there may be some interest felt. Of course, when a 

 soap-boiler leaches ashes, he leaches out everything that is soluble 

 in hot water, and of course he removes a very large portion of 

 the soluble potash and soluble soda, and those are the two 

 important elements that he removes. He leaves the phosphoric 

 acid, he leaves a certain amount of soluble silica, — that is, it is 

 soluble to plants, — and he leaves the lime ; and, upon the whole, 

 he leaves a considerable amount of fertilizing substances in his 

 leached ashes. Now, as regards the value of leached ashes, I 

 think I said last year, that I regarded them as worth from four- 

 teen to seventeen cents a bushel, but I cannot, of course, state 

 the precise value, because some soap-makers will rob them more 

 than others. I have never been able to find two specimens 

 exactly alike. Some soap-makers will manipulate them longer, 

 and exhaust them more thoroughly ; but I think leached ashes 

 a very cheap fertilizer, at about one-half the price of dry 

 ashes. 



Mr. Buffinton. What is you idea of the quantity of ashes 

 to be iised on an acre ? 



Dr. Nichols. I should estimate dry wood ashes as having 

 four pounds of potash, and make my application in accordance 

 with that estimate. I should say twenty-five bushels to the 

 acre would give it a very good dressing ; fifty would perhaps 

 be better. 



Mr. Buffinton. Fifty would be better than a hundred ? 



Dr. Nichols. Yes, sir, I think that fifty would be better 

 than a hundred. 



Mr. Boise. I would like to ask the doctor if he can tell me 

 the difference between the hard, gray plaster, and the new 

 variegated plaster. We have generally used, in our section of 

 the State, the hard, gray plaster, and that has proved very ben- 

 eficial. A year ago last winter, I was shown some plaster at 

 the Southville station, on the Boston and Albany Railroad, 

 which was variegated in color, and which was spoken of as 

 much more valuable. I obtained some last season, and tried 

 the two kinds side by side, and I could see a marked difference 

 in favor of the soft, variegated plaster. 



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