132 Q U A R T E U L Y ' J <) U R N A L. 



producing them, prevents me I'rom hazarding any explanations on 

 the subject. This is the first destructive analysis ever made (at 

 least so far as my knowledge extends,) of the cotton wool. Nor 

 am I acquainted with the properties of the soil which afforded it. 

 Prior to any deductions, it is clear we must know the composition 

 of each variety of cotton, as well as that of the soil it affects. At 

 present I can only venture on connecting together two facts, which 

 appear to occupy important relations to one another. The soil of 

 St. Stephen's, which is said by F. A. Porcher, Esq., to be a stiff 

 clayey loam, produces the strongest and finest fibre of the Santee 

 varieties. The Sea-Island qualities are supposed to owe their 

 superiority to the use of marsh mud, which I have ascertained to 

 be a clayey admixture, rich in alkalies and alkaline earths. Whe- 

 ther the similarity between these two staples is influenced most (if 

 it is affected at all,) by the chemical or mechanical qualities of the 

 soils producing them, it is impossible to decide. It is also con- 

 ceivable that the two sets of qualities may conspire to one and the 

 same end. 



2d. Cotton Seed. 



One hundred parts, heated as above, lost 11 Aid, and the tho- 

 roughly charred residuum burned under the muffle, left 3 .856 parts 

 of a perfectly white ash. The composition was found to be as 

 follows : 



Phosphate of lime (with traces of magnesia,) 61 .64 



Phosphate of potassa (with traces of soda,) 31.51 



Sulphate of potassa, 2 .55 



Silica, 1 .74 



Carbonate of lime, 0.41 



Carbonate of magnesia, 26 



Chloride of potassium, 25 



Carbonate of potassa, ") 



Sulphate of lime, ! « , , ^. 



c 1 I 4. f • } ^ loss, 1.64 



Sulphate of magnesia, ' 



Alumina & oxides of iron & manganese in traces j 



100.00 



In comparing the above table with that afforded by the cotton 

 wool, a marked dissimilarity presents itself. The ash of the cot- 

 ton seed is fourfold that of the fibre ; while the former has also 

 treble the phosphoric acid possessed by the latter, as will the more 

 clearly appear, when we present the analysis under another form, 

 corresponding with the second table under cotton wool. 



