ARTIFICIAL MANURE. 227 



cent, of ammonia, 150 gallons of gas liquor contain equal to 

 27 lbs. carbonate of ammonia of commerce, or 21 lbs. sul- 

 phate of ammonia. Hence the compost above contains == 8 

 per cent, carbonate of ammonia, and one bushel 'may be 

 considered equal to I peck of good poudrette. The total, 

 whatever may be the bulk, is equal to 1| cord of fresh peat 

 mixed with 27 lbs. of soda ash, or about nearly in the pro- 

 portions recommended (271) to make a cord equal to a 

 cord of stable manure. 



If, by repeated drying under sheds in the open air, 50 

 bushels of roasted peat are made to absorb 600 gallons gas 

 liquor, it produces 75 bushels gas poudrette, whose ammonia 

 equals that in 25 bushels of the best poudrette from night- 

 soil, and, used by itself, 3 for 1 of that produces y*/^ of its 

 effects, or, when mixed f to :|^ of poudrette, produces equal 

 effects to one of the night-soil article. It may not be ques- 

 tioned that gas poudrette may be cheaply prepared in a form 

 so concentrated that bushel for bushel its ajnmonia may 

 equal that of poudrette ; and when mixed with a little stable- 

 dung, to set up an active fermentation, it may be expected 

 to act equally well with the best commercial poudrette. 



For this purpose the peat should be dried at the lowest 

 possible temperature which will expel the moisture. It must 

 not be charred. The ammonia should all be in the state of 

 sulphate. The moistened peat powder may then be dried, 

 and thus reduced to nearly its original bulk, without danger 

 of losing ammonia. When dry, to every 100 parts of crys- 

 tals of sulphate-ammonia used, add 05 lbs. of powdered 

 chalk. It will be seen that this will gradually become equal 

 to about 100 lbs. of dry plaster of Paris, giving off ammonia 

 during all this time. Charring stops all further action of 

 the elements of peat. In Jacquemart's experiments, prob- 

 ably the whole effect is due to the ammonia carbonate 



