i5o To the Agricultural Society. 



It is friendly to every kind of grain that I have tried, and 

 likewife to white clover. I fhall be able againfl the clofe of 

 another feafon, to afcertain the efFe£ls it will have upon meadow 

 land ; and am at prefent of the opinion that it will anfwer 

 clay land better than any other manure. 



The white fhell marl has been difcovered, and likely<^iay' 

 be found in all funken holes that are fed by living fprings, 

 and the furrounding afcending ground a fandy or a loam. 

 Its colour when wet, appear at a diftance like flrong lime 

 mortar ; when dry, much whiter. A number of fmall fhells 

 are difperfed through the whole ; fome refembling the fliells 

 of fnails, and others like that of mufsels ; fome as big as a 

 fixpenny-piece. The manner of trying it, is by putting a 

 fmall lump into a glafs, and pouring it full of vinegar j if 

 it is good, it will immediately froth and ferment, and make 

 the glafs run over, and continue in an agitated ftate for three 

 or four minutes. Something like unflacked lime on the top 

 of this white marl : Sometimes there is found to be (which 

 is the cafe with mine) about one foot of manure that refembles 

 blue clay, as eafy for the fpade to enter as the other kind, 

 from the apparent greafmefs refembling hard foap when it 

 is firft made, but fomething fofter : jn this no fhells will be 

 found. My reafon for mentioning this circumftance attending 

 it, is, that many have taken it to be blue clay, and therefore 

 have given up any further fearch. Clay will generally have 

 fand or gravel with it, which is not the cafe with marl, except 



