BUREAU OF CHEMISTRY. 485 



During the past year this laboratory has collaborated ■with other 

 nitrogen chemists in work looking to the improvement of the present 

 methods, especially those relating to the determination of nitrates 

 in fertilizers. An investigation has also been begun of methods for 

 estimating free and combined ammoniacal nitrogen in foods, a diffi- 

 cult point which has given rise to considerable controversy. 



PUBLICATIONS. 



During the past fiscal year the following publications have been 

 prepared : Fourteen bulletins, of which 9 are in print ; 2*2 circulars, 

 of which 20 have been issued; T unnumbered publications, including 

 the Keport of the Chemist and instructions to inspectors and to com- 

 missioned state officials concerning the execution of tlie food law; 3 

 farmers' bulletins; IG food-inspection decisions; and J "2-1: notices of 

 judgment; aggregating about 2,580 pages of original matter. Of 

 this, approximately 830 pages were notices oi judgment received from 

 the Office of the Solicitor. The food inspection decisions included 

 Nos. 109 to 12-i and covered rulings on wines, cordials, whisky, shell- 

 fish, rices, stock feed, cocoa, and certified colors. The l)ulletins cov- 

 ered a wide range of subjects; of special interest are the report on 

 the manufacture of denatured alcohol, the results of experiments on 

 the efi'ect of environment on wheat and on sweet corn, an extensive 

 investigation of the manufacture and composition of maple sirup,, 

 with inspection and analytical data, and the farmers' bulletin on 

 prejDarations containing habit-forming agents, which was widely 

 read and commented upon. ^More use was made of the circular form 

 of publication this year, both for monographs on details of technical 

 research, such as the enzym studies, and for practical applications 

 of scientific data to commercial conditions, such as work on the cold 

 storage of cider, the utilization of peaches as vinegar stock, and the 

 preparation of sugared pineapples. 



Even imder the strict rulings governing the distribution of free 

 publications it was necessary to reprint 7 bulletins, -i circulars, 15 

 food-inspection decisions, 4 notices of judgment, 5 Yearbook articles, 

 5 separates, and 2 unnumbered circulars. 



There were issued 34G requests for job printing, covering all sta- 

 tionery supplies, forms, circular letters, etc., and 241 requests on the 

 photographic laboratory for drawings and photographs in connec- 

 tion with the illu.stration of bulletins or the construction of labora- 

 tory equipment. 



GENERAL BUSINESS OPERATIONS. 



There was appropriated for the Bureau of Chemistrv for the fiscal 

 year ending June 30, 1910, a total of $9.30,5G0. Of this amount 

 $75,5G0 was for statutory salaries; $112,540 for investigations re- 

 lating to the application of chemistry to agriculture and for col- 

 laboration with other departments; $5,000 for investigating the char- 

 acteiof (hcchemir";!! and j)hysic:il tests wjiich are applied to .Vmerican 

 food products in foreign countries and for inspecting the same before 

 shipment ; $737,4G0 for the enforcement of the food and drugs act. 



