A CHAPTER ON GUANO. 353 



farmer ; and, thongli we find a slight mention of it in one of 

 the late Sir Humphrey Davy's lectures before the Board of 

 Agriculture, no practical use was made of it upon the farm. 

 Fortunately, we possess ample and correct sources of informa- 

 tion in the valuable article written by a Mr. Walton, and 

 recently piiblished in the "Edinburgh Journal of Agriculture." 

 To this, and to an Essay by Dr. Ancbew Ure, reference will 

 be made, and thus some effects will be obtained which caimot 

 fail to gratify those persons who like to acquaint themselves 

 with every particular that can lead to a correct understanding 

 of the material they make use of ^Ir. Walton tells us that 

 the early \mters of Peru^^an annals mention the value of 

 o-uano as a fertilizer — and adds, in a note, that Robertson, in 

 his "America," has this passage, — "They enriched the soil 

 by manuring it with the dung of sea-fowls, of which they 

 found an inexhaustible store in all the islands situated along 

 their coasts. The Spaniards have adopted the custom from 

 the ancient Peruvians, and continue to use the guano, or the 

 the dung of sea-fowls, as a manure." Dr. William Robertson 

 first published his celebrated "History of America" in 1777, 

 and thus we are certain that guano, as a fertilizer, was at least 

 alluded to, by an eminent writer, fully seventy years ago. 



Baron Humboldt brought, perhaps, the first specimen to 

 Europe in 1804, and transmitted a sample to the Erench 

 chemists, Eourcroy and Vauquelin, with a short report of his 

 own, stating that " the fertility of the coast of Pern is founded 

 upon guano, which is a great object of commerce. For maize, 

 or Indian com, it is, above all, an excellent enriching manure." 

 In 1806, the above mentioned chemists analysed the sample, 

 and found it to contain " one fourth of its weight of uric acid, 

 partly saturated with ammonia ; small quantities of sulphate 

 and muriate of potash, phosphates of ammonia, magnesia, 

 and lime ; also some flinty and ferruginous sand." But the 

 exact analysis quoted by Dr. Ure shall be given in its place, 

 in order that a due comparison may be obtained. At present, 

 our attention is confined to general facts connected ^vith the 

 history of guano. Mr. Walton favours us Avith the following, 

 while he regrets the " backwardness, the distrust wth which, 

 in an enhghtened country like ours, we refrain from adopting 

 any new project, any untried expedient opposed to our old 

 habits and customs." He says also "that he himself had 

 mentioned the subject of guano to persons of influence ; among 



z 



