20 THE CANADIAN NATURALIST. [Feb. 



without sulphates. The carbonates of lime and magnesia 

 are either wanting, or present only in small quantities. 

 These waters are generally bitter to the taste, and may be 

 designated as brines or bitterns. 



II. Saline waters which differ from the last in containing, besides 

 the chlorids just mentioned, considerable quantities of 

 carbonates of lime and magnesia. These waters generally 

 contain much smaller proportions of earthy chlorids than 

 the first class, and are hence less bitter to the taste. 



III. Saline waters which contain, besides chlorid of sodium and 

 the carbonates of lime and magnesia, a portion of car- 

 bonate of soda. 



IV. Waters which differ from the last in containing but a small 

 proportion of chlorid of sodium, and in which the carbon- 

 ate of soda predominates. The waters of this class gener- 

 ally contain much less solid matter than the three previous 

 classes, and have not a very marked taste until evaporated 

 to a small volume, when they will be found, like the last, to 

 be strongly alkaline. 



Of these four classes, I corresponds to the division D, and 

 IV to C, while II and III are regarded as resulting from 

 the admixture of these in varying proportions. Sulphates are 

 sometimes present in these waters, but never predominate ; in 

 their absence, salts of barium and strontium are often met with. 

 The chlorids are generally, if not always, associated with bromids 

 and iodids. Small quantities of potassium-salts are also present, 

 while borates, phosphates, silicates, and small portions of iron, 

 manganese, and alumina, are generally present. These various 

 waters are occasionally sulphurous, and those of the last three 

 classes may be impregnated with carbonic acid. 



V. The fifth class includes acid waters remarkable for containing 

 a large proportion of free sulphuric acid, with sulphates of 

 lime, magnesia, portions of iron, and alumina. These 

 waters, which are characterized by their sour and styptic 

 taste, generally contain some sulphuretted hydrogen. 

 VI. The sixth class includes some neutral saline waters, in which 

 the sulphates of lime, magnesia, and the alkalies predomi- 

 nate, chlorids being present only in small quantities. 

 These waters, like the last, are often impregnated with 

 sulphuretted hydrogen. 



