SOILS FERTILIZERS. 819 



It is hoped that the report " may demonstrate the possibility of a soil survey 

 useful to the farmer, and indicate the lines on which it can be fruitfully 

 carried out." 



Relation between granitic and gneiss soils (Rev. Sci. [Paris], J/S (1911), 

 I, No. 23, p. 724). — This article is based on the work of M. Sauer and points 

 out the principal differences in the physical properties of granitic and gneiss 

 soils. 



Granitic soils are sandy and nonretentive of lime, gneiss soils are clayey 

 and retentive of lime. In granitic soils the fine particles wash down into the 

 subsoil where they form ferruginous organic cement (hardpan) which prevents 

 the percolation of water. This phenomenon does not occur in gneiss soils, 

 (iranitic regions are apt to contain peat moors, whereas these are more rare in 

 case of gneiss soils. 



Mechanical analysis and cartographic grouping of rocks and soils, G. 

 TuMiN {Ezheg. Oeol. i Min. Rossii, 12 (1910), No. 12, pp. 26-37; abs. in Zhiir. 

 Opytn. Agron. (Russ. Jour. Expt. Landw.), 11 (1910), No. 5, pp. 730, 781). — The 

 author contends that the grouping of soils according to the proportion of cliiy 

 and sand present is unsatisfactory and that a third constituent, silt, must be 

 considered. The three-constituent formula more closely represents the peculiari- 

 ties of the mechanical composition. The advantage of taking account of the 

 three constituents is illustrated by results of examinations of a number of 

 samples of soil. 



Morphological types of soil formations, G. M. Tumin (Dnevn. XII. 8"iezda 

 Russ. Est.-Isp. i Vrach. [Moscoio], p. Q28; abs. in Zhur. Opytn. Agron. (Russ. 

 Jour. Expt. Landiv.), 11 (1910), No. 5, p. 732). — From the morphological stand- 

 point soils are considered to be a body of definite organization and structure 

 and on this basis the author outlines a classification of the soils of Russia. 



Classification of clays, H. Streunne IChem. Ztg., 35 (1911), No. 59, pp. 529- 

 531). — The author reviews the present literature of the subject, stating that 

 clay is formed from such kaolinized rocks as contain the principal clay min- 

 erals, namely, weathered feldspars and allophanes. Feldspars are crystalline 

 and contain alumina and silicic acid in chemical combination; the molecular 

 ratio of the two may vary between that of feldspar and kaolin. Allophanes are 

 colloidal and contain aluminum and silicic acid gels. The molecular relation of 

 the two varies between pure alumina and pure silicic acid. 



Turkestan loess, S. S. Neustkuev (Dncvn. XII. S"'fesda Russ. Est.-Isp. i 

 Vrach. [Moscoivl, p. Ji93; abs. in Zhur. Opytn. Agron. (Russ. Jour. Expt. 

 Landtv.), 11 (1910), No. 4, p. 582). — The obsers-ations of the author led him to 

 the opinion that views as to the eolian origin of the loess soils require a revision. 

 In many places he detected a connection between the loess and the eluvial 

 rocks of the Turkestan mountains, where the ancient species give fine-grained, 

 carbonate-carrying, yellow products of weathering which are transported by 

 the atmospheric agents to the slopes. 



Examinations of soil samples, Y. Lommel and A. Pauly (Ber. Land u. 

 ForstK. Dcutsch-Ostafrika, 3 (1911), No. 5, pp. 2 Jf 8-262) .—The authors report 

 the results of chemical analyses of a number of samples of soil from British 

 and German East Africa surrounding Lake Victoria Nyanza and extending 

 south into British Central Africa, besides samples of the German cotton soils 

 of the neighboring districts. The results show a high plant food content for 

 the volcanic soils, a low phosphoric acid and in some cases a low potash content 

 in the nonvolcanic soils, and a general moderately high nitrogen content in 

 both soils. 



Inferior soils in the Graf ton-Casino district, H. C. L. Anderson (Agr. Gaz. 

 N. S. Wales, 22 (1911), No. 3, pp. 185, 186).— The soils between Casino and 



