EXPERIMENT STATION. 71 



If the cost of soluble and reverted phosphoric acid were the 

 same, there would he soine good grounds for rejecting the dis- 

 tinction, hut the cost is not the same, and the purchaser ought for 

 that reason to know what he has to pay for. Again, in some 

 cases, on mucky soils, soluble phosphoric acid in large doses ap- 

 pears to be a damage, while on others it is much more efficacious 

 than reverted. From two distinct points of view then, that of 

 commercial value or cost, and that of applicability to certain soils 

 or crops, the consumer may require or may desire the distinction 

 to be maintained. 



Manufacturers who are not able or are not willing to give the 

 purchasers of their "superphosphates" any considerable quantity 

 of soluble phosphoric acid, are apt to be pleased with the term 

 " available," which relieves them from a troublesome responsi- 

 bility, since they can manufacture and furnish such " available " 

 more cheaply and certainly than tliey can suj)pl7 a constant 

 proportion of soluble and of reverted. 



On the other hand, manufacturers who make a "superphos- 

 phate " in the original and strict sense of this much-abused term, 

 containing soluble phosphoric acid in large quantity, would be 

 aggrieved if that quality of their pi-oduct were ignored. 



When consumers come to agree that reverted phosphoric acid 

 is practically as good a fertilizing agent as soluble, and when 

 manufacturers generally understand how to give the consumer his 

 money's worth in reverted phosphoric acid, i. e. to give him more 

 pounds corresponding to the less cost per pound, as compared 

 with soluble, then it will be time to abolish the distinction which 

 it now appears needful to maintain. No one should be more 

 pleased with this simplification than the Experiment Station 

 chemist whose labors would thus be materially lessened. 



