QUATERNARY FORMATIONS THE DRIFT. 215 



tained in the smallest marsh tested during the summer, consisting of only a few acres, 

 in W. hf. of S. E. qr. of sec. 11, Summit (T. 7, R, 17 E.). It was tested within six or 

 eight rods of the edge, with the following result: 



1. At 6 feet 6 inches, began to be wet. 



2. At 10 feet 8 inches, spongy, undecomposed mosses. 



3. At 11 feet 8 inched, still in peat; bottom not reached. 



Tested in a dry ditch, nearer the edge, to a depth of over 13 feet, without finding 

 bottom. 



The foregoing may be taken as representing the average character 

 of the open peat bogs of the region. There are deeper and more ex- 

 tensive deposits than the ones given the selection of those to be 

 tested having been controlled by the necessities of other departments 

 of the survey. 



Peat has been used in this region to some extent as a fertilizer, 

 and always with good results. Its value is much increased when 

 mingled with other kinds of fertilizers, and it is especially efficient 

 in absorbing the liquid manures that are usually wasted. The good 

 results of the few trials that have been made, corroborated as they are 

 by experience elsewhere, and justified by reasoning from the nature 

 of the peat, commend this subject to the earnest attention of our agri- 

 culturists. In reference to the last point, I may be allowed to pre- 

 sent succinctly those properties of peat that render it valuable as a 

 manure, chiefly on the high authority of Prof. S. W. Johnson: 



1. It absorbs moisture both as a liquid and a vapor, and so coun- 

 teracts the effects of droughts, and makes it invaluable to the more 

 arid soils. This hygroscopic property indicates a natural adaptation 

 to use as a fertilizer rather than as a fuel, it being detrimental in the 

 latter respect. 



2. It improves the texture of the soil. 



3. By its decay it furnishes ammonia and carbonic acid, and some 

 mineral substances. 



4. It assists in the disintegration of other substances in the soil. 



5. It absorbs ammonia from the air, and thus furnishes it to the 

 plants. 



6. By its dark color it absorbs heat from the sun, and thus in- 

 creases the temperature of the soil. 



Attempts have been made to utilize it as a fuel at several points 

 with varying success. In almost all cases it seems to have furnished 

 a very fair fuel, and in some cases it is claimed to be equal to the 

 best hard wood. The general tenor of the results, where machinery 

 has been used, is unfavorable; where the simpler methods have been 

 employed, the prospect is more encouraging. In reference to the 



