368 Report on a re-examination of the 
Rules of Analysis. 
. “ Sift the an through a fine sieve. Take the fine part; dake it just up to 
Bick, tie se paper 
2. Boil 100 ; grains of the baked soil, with 50 grains of pearl ashes, saleratus or 
carbonate of soda, in 4 ounces of water, for half an hour ; ; let it settle; decant the 
clear ; wash the grounds with 4 ounces boiling water ; throw all on a ihe fil- 
ter, previously dried at the same temperature as was the soil, (1); wash till color- 
ss water returns Mix all these liquors. It isa brown colored solution of al] the 
soluble geine. Al] sulphates have been converted into carbonates, and with any 
phosphates, are on the filter. Dry therefore, that, with its contents, at the same 
heat as before. Weigh—the loss is soluble geine.” 
“Tf you wish to examine the geine ; pracipitate the alkaline solution with ex- 
atl ime-water. The geate of lime will rapidly subside, and if lime-water 
aes has been added, the nitrous liquor will be colorless. Collect the geate of 
lime on a filter; wash with a little oane or very dilute muriatic acid, and you 
have geine quite pure. Dry and weig 
4. “Replace on a funnel the filter (2) and its earthy contents; wash with 2 
rams muriatic acid, diluted with three times its bulk of cold-water. Wash till 
tle oxide of iron. The alumina will be scarcely touche 
salts of lime Evaporate the muriatic solution to dryness, weigh and dissolve in 
boiling water. The insoluble will be phosphate of lime. Weigh—the loss is the 
sulphate of lime; (1 make no allowance here for the difference in atomic weights 
of the acids, as the result is of no consequence in this analysis.)”” 
_ 5. “ The earthy residuum. if of a greyish white color, contains no insoluble geine 
—test it by burning a weighed small quantity on a hot shovel—if the odor of burn- 
ing feat is given off, the presence of insoluble geine is indicated. Ifso, calcine the 
earthy residuum and its filter—the loss of weight will give the insoluble geine ; 
that part which air and moisture, time and lime, will convert into soluble vegeta- 
ble food. fla ny error here will be due to the loss of water in a hydrate, if one be 
present. but these exist in too small quantities in ‘granitic sand,’ to affect the result. 
The actual weight of the residuary mass is ‘ granitic sand.’ 
“ The clay, mica, quartz, &c. are easily distinguished. 
which may be easily tested by acids ; then before proceeding to this analysis, boil 
100 grains in a pint of water, filter and dry as before, the Joss of weight is due to 
the sulphate of lime, even the sulphate of iron may be so considered ; for the ulti- 
mate result in cultivation is to convert this into sulphate of lime. 
“ Test the soil with muriatic acid, and having thus removed the lime, proceed as 
before, to determine the geine and insoluble vegetable matter.””* 32-35. 
pela a CRS Pel P sete 
* In applying Dr. Dana’s rules given in the text, to the soils of Massachusetts, I 
found it necessary to adopt some method of carrying forward several processes to- 
gether. T accordingly made ten nce esi upon a table, each pro vided with 
If your soil is calcareous, 
at chen a The sand bath was also made large enough for aerate 3 the ten 
flasks. In this manner I was able to conduct ten processes with almost as great 
facility as one could have been carried forward in the usual way 
