394 Journal of Agricultural Research voi. x, no. s 



Wollny (17) confirmed Von Klenze's observations, concluding that the 

 finer the texture of the soil, the slower is the capillary movement, but the 

 greater the distance reached before movement ceases. 



Various later studies have in general confirmed Wollny's conclusions 

 as to the relation of the rate and distance of upward capillary movement 

 to the texture of the soil. (4, p. 107; 10; 12, p. 94; 14, p. 230; 15, p. 136). 

 Atterberg (4, p. 108) reports data on the upward movement of water 

 in sands and silts in which he determined also the rate of downward 

 movement (Table I). The data obtained indicate no direct relation 

 between the rates and distances in the opposite directions. 



Grebe (8, p. 391), from a study of the moisture relations in a pine forest 

 on a very sandy soil, concluded that — 



the elevation of ground-water does not make itself felt in sands and very fine sands 

 beyond 1/3 meter and 1/2 meter, respectively.^ 



The only clues he furnishes as to the hygroscopicity of the soils in 

 question are in the statements that in April when they were most moist 

 they retained only from 3.66 to 4.61 per cent of water at various depths 

 from 5 to 300 cm. below the surface and that the samples of the sand 

 contained 41 to 48 per cent of particles under 0.3 mm. and 49 to 54 

 between 0.3 and i.o mm., while those of the fine sand contained 76 to 

 81 and 8 to 12, respectively (8, p. 390). 



While the maximum final elevation of water is to be expected in the 

 very fine textured soils, the rate is so slow that during an interval meas- 

 ured in days or weeks, or even in months, soils of intermediate texture 

 show the greatest rise. 



Data showing what relation the rate and final distance of rise bear to 

 the actually determined hygroscopicity appear entirely wanting. 



Less attention has been devoted to the influence of the initial moisture 

 content. Wollny studied the influence of differences in the initial mois- 

 ture content, using a loam powder and a pulverized calcareous sand rich 

 in organic matter, each in five different moisture conditions — viz, (I) 

 dried at 100° C, (II) air-dry, (III) exposed for several weeks to a saturated 

 atmosphere, (IV) and (V) mixed with small amounts of water (17, p. 275). 

 The soils were tamped into the tubes as compactly as possible and obser- 

 vations made for four or five days. In Table II we have assembled the 

 portions of his data comparable with our own (reported in the experi- 

 mental portion of this paper) . Wollny concluded that the capillary move- 

 ment in a soil increases with the moistness. To us his data do not ap- 

 pear to justify such a broad generalization. The loam in condition II (air- 

 dry) showed practically the same upward movement as in the moister III, 

 although with both there was a more rapid movement than with the 

 oven-dried I; in IV, while the movement was more rapid than in I, II, 

 or III, on the fifth day it practically overtook that in the moister V. 

 With the other soil the rise was greatest in the air-dry form II, next in 



1 Translation. 



