56 ROYAL SOCIETY OF CANADA 
The chemical data for each month were averaged and from the 
figures so obtained the total monthly amounts of nitrogen in the var- 
ious compounds, per acre, calculated. 
The total amount of nitrogen furnished during the year, 8.364 lbs., 
per acre, is practically twice that of the preceding twelve months, viz. 
4,323 lbs. It is more than probable that the amount is abnormally 
high. Following a severe drought, extensive bush fires raged for many 
weeks during the autumn over large areas in Ontario, Quebec and 
northern New York State. In these fires many hundreds of acres of 
forest were destroyed, and the atmosphere in the neighbourhood of 
Ottawa was, as a consequence, heavily charged with smoke. Quite 
frequently for days together the smoke was so dense at Ottawa that 
it was difficult to see clearly for many yards. The rain falling during 
this period—chiefly September and October—was exceptionally rich 
in nitrogen compounds, and to this fact we may attribute the phenom- 
enally high results obtained for the year. 
AVERAGE NITROGEN CONTENT OF RAIN AND SNOW—AMOUNT OF NITROGEN, PER 
ACRE, AS FREE AND ALBUMINOID AMMONIA AND AS NITRATES AND NITRITES 











Nitrogen 
i Parts per Million Percent. of Total Per Acre 
bem 
gq 2/3 @| In In | In Ni- In | In |InNi- As Free As Ni- 
od 4 9 | Free | Albu- | trates | Free | Albu- |trates & Albu-| trates 
‘6 ÀlS | Am- |minoid) and Total | Am- minoid| and | minoid) and 
Ss |[&‘"|monia  Am- | Ni- | monia | Am- | Ni- | Am- | Ni- 
À monia trites | monia | trites! monia | trites 
| Lbs. |Lbs. 
Rain | 64 122.99] 1.276} .149 | .278 | 1.703| 75 9 16 | 6.324 | 1.204 









Snow| 25 |96.25} .277| .050 | .141 | .468 | 59 EL 30 .585 | .251 
Certain interesting data are set forth in this table. First, we may 
refer to the very considerable difference in the nitrogen content of the 
rain and snow. Previous work had shown that rain was the richer in 
nitrogen, but owing to the smoke laden atmosphere of the autumn 
months, just referred to, this difference, principally in the free ammonia, 
was greater than had been noted heretofore. Practically 90 per cent 
of the whole nitrogen was furnished by the rain, as against 75 per cent 
in the preceding year. 
The nitrogen content of the snow is very similar to that of the 
previous winter, but as the snowfall was considerably lighter (96 inches, 
