Eeport of the Department oi' Agriculture. 557 



(e) Consultation Wor/:. — On frequent occasions reports had to be 

 furnished on miscellaneous abstract questions submitted for advice, 

 such as the manurino^ of sandy grass lands, horns as a fertilizer, 

 preservation of foodstuffs, etc. 



-Grootfontciu : A. Stead, B.Sc, F.C.8. 



Most of the period was occupied l)y the ofticer in charge in serving- 

 as a ]nenil)er of the Drought Inquiry Commission or on leave of 

 absence. Other work included the inspection of manurial experi- 

 ments, of brak land at ITitenhage, of prickly-pear spraying tests, 

 of brak in an orchard near Cradock, the compilation of a compre- 

 hensive report on brak for the Department of Mines and Industries 

 (still in progress), investigation of the 'feeding of sheep on prickly- 

 pear as the main portion of their diet, investigation of farmers' 

 experience in the Graaff-Reinet District regarding the utilization of 

 Agave americana as a stock food, experimental feeding of prickly-pear 

 to cows and oxen, and continuation of sheep-feeding experiments. 



In connection with the report on brak, referred to above, the 

 methods ado])ted for reclaiming* brak land near Robertson were 

 inspected, and led to a reconimendation that tlie Division of Chemistry 

 should engage in such operations as, for instance, at Klijidrift, where 

 the well-known efforts of the late Mr. J. P. Marais had failed. 



A considerable amount of work of an advisory and consulting 

 nature was also done. 



-Pretoria: B. de C. Marchand, B.A., D.Sc. 



(a) Anah/tiral Work. — The samples received for analysis or 

 examination comprised: — Soils and sub-soils, 146; fertilizers, 115; 

 dairy products, 20; tolacco, 16; water, 15; miscellaneous, 69; total, 

 o81. Of the soil samples, 54 were taken by officers of the Division in 

 connection with investigational work. The only other soil samples 

 which call for any comment were five sent in by the Postal Depart- 

 ment in connection with the rapid corrosion of stay rods and plates. 

 This was ascrilied to alkaline salts in the soil. Preventive measures 

 were suggested. 



(h) Ihiirji Glassware. — The total number of pieces tested was 932. 

 consisting' of Bahcock cream bottles 583, Babcock milk bottles 2T7, 

 pipettes 72. The percentage rejected as incorrect was four. 



(c) Investigations. — In addition to the continuation of others, 

 investigations were commenced on the physical properties of soils, the 

 influence of various factors on the citric solubility of the phosphoric 

 oxide in basic slag, and the determination of " available " potash in 

 soils. 



The trials of various methods for the determination of phosphoric 

 oxide in fertilizers were completed, and the results for the sample of 

 basic slag" experimented on were published in the Journal of the Sontli 

 Afriean Chemical Institute, Vol. V, No. 1, p. 16. 



(d) Pot Experiments. — In connection with certain of the investi- 

 gations in hand, pot experi^nents on a small scale were commenced. 



