Southern Mahratta Country. 51 



little wood, that the cow-dung is carefully collected (as already 

 mentioned) and dried for fuel. Cotton, jooaree, wheat and 

 other grains, are raised from it in succession ; and it has conti- 

 nued to afFord'most abundant crops, without receiving any re- 

 turn for centuries, nay, perhaps, for two or three thousand 

 years, — thus proving the inaccuracy of the opinion held by 

 agriculturists, that if something be not constantly added to land 

 equal to what is taken from it, it must gradually deteriorate. 

 Attention must be paid to the order of cropping, as will be 

 more particularly mentioned hereafter ; but, with this precau- 

 tion, the Ryut is always sure of an abundant return, provided 

 the weather be favourable *. 



It is probable that the fertility of this soil is principally ow- 

 ing to its power of absorbing moisture from the atmosphere, 

 which is great, even when compared with the best soils of Bri- 

 tain. Sir Humphry Davy says, " I have compared the ab- 

 sorbent powers of many soils with respect to atmospheric mois- 

 ture, and I have always found it greatest in the most fertile 

 soils; so that it affords one method of judging of the produc- 

 tiveness of land."" He farther states, that 1000 parts of a ce- 

 lebrated soil from Ormiston in East Lothian, when dried to 

 212°, gained in an hour, by exposure to air saturated with mois- 

 ture at a temperature of 62°, 1 8 grains ; and that 1000 parts of a 

 very fertile soil from the banks of the river Parret in Somerset- 

 shire, under the same circumstances, gained 16 grains -f-. The 

 following are the results of some experiments I made on the 

 absorbent power of the cotton soil. I thoroughly dried a por- 

 tion of the soil, by exposing it for a long time to a heat that 

 was nearly sufficient to char paper. I then exposed 2615.6 

 grains of this to the atmosphere of a moderately damp apart- 

 ment, and found, after a few days, that it had gained 147.1 

 grains. I now exposed it to an atmosphere saturated with 

 moisture, and found that it daily increased in Aveight till the 

 end of a few weeks, when its weight was found to be 2828.4 



• It will be an interesting subject of inquiry for future observers, to as- 

 certain whether any organic remains occur in this extensive deposite, to throw 

 light on its origin, which I think will not improbably be found to be diluvial 



I Elements of Agricultural Chemistry, p. 160. 



1 D 2 



