^ GEOLOGY OF SOIL. 33 



a relation to the underlying rock as do the soils of New 

 England. These western soils are convinchig proof of the 

 third principle (29). 



But the same proof of the independence of soil and of its 

 uniform composition, is afforded by the results of the exam- 

 ination of the continental European soils. Forty -eight soils, 

 from Germany, Holland, Belgium, Hungary, Bohemia, by a 

 process very different from either of those which had been 

 used in the analyses above stated, by an acute and intricate 

 mode of operation afforded 



Insoluble, 87.053 



Soluble clay, iron, magnesia, . . , 5.853 



92.906 

 Lime in various forms, — as plaster, bone-dust, lime- 

 stone, 1.860 



Taking these several results, we have 



Soils. Insoluble. Forms of lime. 



146 Massachusetts, . . 89.305 . . 2.047 

 15 Wisconsin and Iowa, . 88.100 . . 1.860 

 48 European, . . .• 92.906 . . 1.860 



209 3)270.311 3)5.767 



Mean, .... 90.103 1.922 



Excluding that form of lime whose existence as limestone 

 naturally in Massachusetts soil is very questionable, the lime 

 in her soil would be represented by 1.851. The average of 

 the forms of lime would then be in the above 209 soils, 

 1.857, which is only 0.006 more than that of Massachusetts, 

 while the insoluble portion of her soil is actually very near 

 the mean of the whole. ;'^-. 



But if the comparison is to be made with other soils-i'the 

 2* 



