THE FARMERS' REGISTER. 



63 



local causes the dews are heavier and (he rains 

 more frequent the accumulation ceases. Cold 

 water, we have seen,- dissolves at least three- 

 fifths of the guano in the state in which it reaches 

 us. A single day of English rain would dissolve 

 out and cany into the sea a considerable poriion 

 of one of the largest accumulations; a single 

 year of English weather would cause many ol' 

 them entirely to disappear. 



When the recent guano fails it gradually dries 

 and undergoes a partial decomposition. When 

 it is again moistened by an unusual dew, or by an 

 accession of spray driven by the wind, it again 

 sutlers a further partial decomposition, till at 

 length it has given oH, as the ancient red guano 

 appears to have done, from five-sixihs to nine- 

 tenths of all the organic matter it originally con- 

 tained. Mr. Winterleldt states that this ancient 

 guano is lound buried beneath layers oC sand ; 

 and Iquique is mentioned as one of the spois 

 where the guano occurs. Ai this place, accord- 

 ing to Mr. Darwin, the drift-sand climbs up the 

 mountain-sides in great piles to the height of 

 even a thousand feet. This, doubtless, is the 

 sand beneath which the old droppings of the sea- 

 fowl have been gradually buried ; and to this 

 ancient superficial covering it may be owini'', that 

 the bqried masses still retain so much of their 

 original organic matter. Even in that dry climate 

 the lime would at length arrive when the guano, 

 long exposed to the agency of atmospheric 

 causes, would retain only its earthy and non-vola- 

 tile saline ingredients. 



( To be continued.) 



THE FALSE PRETENCES OF THE BANKS OF 

 PREPARING TO PAY SPECIE, AGAIN EX- 

 POSED. 



From tlie Bank Reformer. 



In the pamphlet on the " Abuses of the Bank- 

 ing System," and also at page 3 of the Bank 

 Reformer, there were presented general state- 

 ments, copied and digested from the official re- 

 ports of the banks of Virginia, which showed, as 

 clearly as facts and figures couW show, the truth 

 of what we had been continually settinff forth, 

 to wit : that the banks were not preparing to re 

 sume specie paymeiUs— nor even approaching the 

 state of readiness to pay, by the only possible 

 means of getting ready, which are, reducing their 

 loans and circulation, and increasing their specie. 

 The reports of the three principal banks of Vir- 

 ginia, and their branches, showins their condition 

 on July 1, 1841, (published at'page 3 of the 

 Bank Reformer) showed that their condition was 

 worse then than 6 monihs before. And the re- 

 ports of January 1, 1842, just published, show 

 that their condition, in comparative amounts of 

 means and liabilities, continues much wjorse than on 

 January 1, 1841, after another year of suspension, 

 and o\' pretending to prepeire to pay specie. The 

 table below embraces only the three principal 

 banks of Virginia and their branches. The re- 

 ports of the small western banks have not been 

 yet published. It is presumed however that 

 <"®".e "o*v presented, make at least as good an 

 exhibit aa the smaller banks, not here erhbraced. 



