MAY. 143 



thing that I know of, except by those who prepare salts of 

 ley, for the manufacture of potash. As the elm yields a 

 large quantity of ashes when burned, in proportion to other 

 trees, it is often felled by the salts-boilers. 

 C. What is the process of making salts ? 

 F. One man, or more commonly two, go into the woods 

 with holders, and a kettle or large caldron, and make a 

 kind of camp, very much like a sugar camp. As winter is 

 the usual season of operation, they often make a rude hut, 

 or some little protection from the cold. They commence 

 their business by felling such trees in the neighbourhood as 

 suit their purpose ; unless they have another object in view, 

 the clearing of the land for cultivation, in which case they 

 cut and burn indiscriminately all the timber, except such as 

 is saved for some peculiar purpose, such as cedar for fencing, 

 c. Having cut enough to begin, and divided it into logs, 

 they pile them on one another by rolling them up an in- 

 clined plane, made by stakes from the lower logs to the 

 ground : they then fill the interstices with dry brush, sea- 

 soned wood, &c. and set fire to the whole, taking care to 

 have sufficient wood that will burn to consume that which 

 would not burn without assistance. The ashes are collected 

 from time to time, and put into a holder, shaped like an in- 

 verted cone, with the bottom open ; a little straw is placed 

 over the hole at the bottom, a receiver placed beneath, and 

 water poured on the ashes : the water filters through and 

 runs into the receiver, having extracted the alkali contained 

 in the ashes, which stains it of a dark colour, like that of 

 brandy. This is called lye, or ley, and is boiled down till 

 the water is evaporated and the alkali is left, which is the 

 potash in a very impure state ; it is of a black colour, and 

 is called salts of lye. This is sold to those who keep a pot- 

 ashery, where it is cleansed from its impurities, I believe by 

 burning in a furnace, and becomes the potash of commerce. 



