THE FARMERS' REGISTER. 



are most desired, and will be most certainly aided, 

 and thereby rendered effective. 



As was staled before, Uie conslilution of a 

 working agricultural society submiited at page 

 719, of last volume, if the general plan be ap- 

 proved, and .whether amended or taken entire, 

 may save much trouble in commencing and or- 

 ganizing societies. And at the time of such or- 

 ganization, or other designated lime of meeiing 

 aflenvards, it may be most beneficial to the cause 

 that the visiting member shall then attend in pur- 

 suance ol' his mission ; and it will be his plea- 

 sure, as well as duty, so to do, so far as the per- 

 formance may be in his power. Though not au- 

 thorized to speak in this respect but for himself, 

 he presumes that the same remarks will apply 

 generally to all his fellow members of the Board 

 of Agriculture in regard to the duties assumed 

 by them.— Ed. F. R. 



with sub-carbonate of soda, which can be obtained 

 at about half tiie price. The mode of delecting 

 this mixture is by dissolving some of the suspect- 

 ed crystals in rain water, and adding a little 

 strong sulphuric acid (oil of viiiiol.) If sub- 

 carbonate of soda be present, efl'ervcecence will 

 ensue. With relerence to bone-dust, Dr. Robin- 

 son said thai this was very IVequenily adulterated 

 with wood dust and other substances, when sold 

 in a very tine state. A simple inoiie ol' detecting 

 Uio presence of saw-dust was by burning a portion 

 of ilie ruanure, ilie bone would not burn, whilst 

 ihe panicles of wood, if present, would sparkle 

 and burn. The farmers of Lincolnshire, partly 

 Irom the fear of adulteration, and partly from 

 bone-dust when ground too fine passing away too 

 quickly, would never buy bone-dust when ground 

 very fine. Dr. Robinson tested some adulterated 

 bone-dust on some burning coals, and the corusca- 

 tions ot the saw-dust were clearly perceptible. 

 He then applied the same lest to some bone-dust 

 which had been obtained (iom the Lenham mills, 

 which was, however, lound to be perlijctly pure, 

 i^nother test was the lollowing. Bone-dust, 

 -when reduced to a fine powder, was perfectly 

 soluble in hydrochloric acid (spirits of sail,) diluted 

 with three times its bulk in rain water. Twelve 

 hours were required lor this experiment, at the end 

 ol which, if pure, the bone-dust would be com- 

 pletely dissolved. The lecturer produced a sample 

 of ihe guano, recently introduced mto this country 

 from South America. It was the excrement of 

 the flamingo and other birds which leed on fish, 

 and which contained all the properties required in 

 a fertilizer. It could be supplied at about 281. a 

 ton, and was drilled in with the crop in the same 

 manner as bone-dust. This, if it came into 

 extensive demand, would also most assuredly be 

 subject to adulteration, which, however, would be 

 very easily detected ; lor the guano, if pure, is 

 readily and completely dissolved in diluted sul- 

 phuric acid. Dr. Robinson next proceeded to 

 notice the mode of analyzing soils, which subject, 

 however, we have only room to mention. It is 



MAIDSTONE FARMERS CLUB. 



Dr. Robinson concluded his course of lectures on 

 chemistry as applied to agriculture, on Thursday 

 evening. The concluding lecture proved, as we 

 anticipated, of very great interest, as it embraced 

 the testing of some of the fashionable artificial 

 manures, the analysis of soils, &c. Those of our 

 readers who had not the good fortune to be pre- 

 sent will doubtless like to acquire a knowledge of 

 some of the simple means used by Dr. Robinson 

 to detect adulteration, more particularly as these 

 require no previous knowledge of chemistry to 

 enable any farmer to apply them. The lecturer's 

 mode of testing nitrate of soda was the Icjllowing. 



This salt is sometimes adulterated by a mixture ol ; almost needless to add'that this course of useful, 

 perhaps one-lburth of common salt (chloride of [ practical, and valuble lectures has given great 



sodium,) which may be purchased at about one- 

 fourth the price, and which it so closely resembles 

 as to render it difficult to protect the admixture 

 without some chemical process. Nitrate of soda, 

 when pure, burns, if thrown on the fire or a pan of 

 live coals, something like saltpetre. U it be 

 adulterated with salt, however, it burns with a 

 sharp cracking noise, which is greater or less in 

 proportion to the quantity of common salt used, 

 and the combustion is imperfect. Dr. Robinson 

 observed that common salt was actually prejudi- 

 cial to some soils, but even if it were not, there was 

 no good reason why the farmer should inve the 

 same price for it as tor nitrate of soda. Another 

 test, which belonged rather to the hitrher branches 

 of chemistry, was the following. Take a brachin 

 of nitrate of silver (lunar caustic) and dissolve 

 it in half an ounce of rain water. Dissolve a 

 tea-spoonful of the suspected nitrate of soda also 

 in rain water. Mix these two solutions together, 

 and if a white curdly precipitate is observed to 

 form, common salt is present. In this case the 

 precipitate (chloride of silver) is insoluble in the 

 acids, but would be soluble in strong ammonia. 



satisfaction, and much inlbrmation, to the mem- 

 bers of the Maidstone Farmers' Club. 



CROP OF CORN-STALKS. 



From the American farmer. 

 Permit me to mention an experiment made by 

 myself at Washington, on the subject of fodder. — 

 Noticing the statement made in the French peri- 

 odicals, that the stalks of corn (maize) contained 

 one hall as much saccharine matter as cane, and 

 knowing that my ancestors made their molasses 

 during the revolutionary war from these stalks, I 

 sowed lour and a half bushels of common corn, 

 broadcast, and harrowed in the same. This labor 

 was easily performed by a single man with a team 

 (includingthe ploughing) in a day. Havingsoaked 

 the corn in saltpetre water, it took a rapid start, 

 overtopped the weeds, and covered the ground 

 with a forest of stalks. When fairly tasselled, I 

 cut the same, which I led to cattle, horses and 



hogs, both green and dry. If fed to swine after 

 Nitrate of soda was also sometimes adulterated 1 being cured, it was cut and fermented with chop 



