68 an ihe production of nitre. Sept.f2i 



On this principle I think. It is pofsible to account for 

 the phenomenon already remarked. Nitre may be pro- 

 duced by the decaying of certain plants, and not by 

 others. Some light is thrown upon this subject by the 

 ollowing remarks and experiments, publifl^ed in the 

 fourth volume of the Memoirs of the Imperial Academy 

 of Sciences and Belles Lettres, of Brulsels, by M. Van 

 Bochaute. 



' lt«is well known,' he observes, ' that barrage, bu* 

 glofs, perietaria, and sutiflower, often contain a good deal 

 of saltpetre ; but this is afforded in still greater quantities 

 by several kinds qI chenopodium, as appears by the follow- 

 ing experiments : 



' Two years ago,' says he, ' I made the analysis of cT 

 plant of the c\2^k pentandria, order dtgynia, which is called 

 by some chenopodium ambrosioides Mexicanum, and by 

 others botrys ambrosioides Mexicanum. Having visited the 

 extract made from it in the balneum marie, some days afi 

 terwards, we were surprised to find the surface of that 

 extract altogether covered with oblong chrystals, which 

 upon examination with a glafs, we found to be prismatic, 

 like that of the best saltpetre. They detonated when thrown 

 upon a burning coal, and fused. We put some of the ex- 

 tract upon a red hot (hovel ; it detonated and fused also, 

 • leaving behind it a good deal of fixed vegetable alkali. 

 We even went farther : we put some of the dried plant 

 upon the same (hovel •, it fused and detonated also. We 

 tried in the same manner the botrys ambrosioides vulgaris, 

 and this plant fused and detonated the same as the Mexi- 

 ana. In fine, we procured the same plant from different 

 -apothecaries, they all fused and detonated equally with 

 the other. From hence, adds he, we have concluded, 

 that these two plants are very nitriferous ; and that their 

 conomy is a natural nitr^rla, (nitr e work.) This, says 



