410 



FARMERS' REGISTER 



[No. 7 



fully, in demonstrating to the agriculturists of Ma- 

 rykuul, that they have within their rench the 

 means of fertilizing and improving their soil to 

 any desirahle extent. Shell marl, green sand, 

 oyster shell lime, are all reudily attuinalile in their 

 respective localities, vviiilst the unusual facilities 

 of transportation afilirded by the Chesapeake Bay 

 and its numerous tributaries and inlets, afibrd lo 

 the farmers of both its shores, advantages, which 

 are seldom equalled, and probably no where sur- 

 passed. 



The cultivators of the soil are, it is snid, alrea- 

 dy beginning to avail themselves of what has 

 been pointed out in the former repoits, and, if so, 

 their practical experience will soon corroborate 

 the scientific intelligence, which pointed out to 

 them the sources of abundance and wealth so di- 

 rectly at their conunand. 



One whole chapter of the report is occupied 

 with considerations upon the agricultural resour 

 ces of the lower counties, which is too voluminous 

 for insertion in your [lages ; I therefore extract 

 the following very interesting sunmmry of them, 

 intended by the author to direct the attention of 

 his fellow citizens to the greater advantages which 

 present themselves in their own liiir territory, than 

 may be found in the "far west" whither ihe rest- 

 less spirit of emigration is fast hurrying a great 

 amount of the population. 



"Such are the agricultural resources of the low- 

 er counties on the Eastern Shore of Maryland, so 

 far as the productiveness of the soil, and its sus- 

 ceptibility of im|)rovement are concerned. It has 

 already been stated, that the only incidental re- 

 source possessed by this section of country, is to 

 be derived from the facilities of obtaining calca- 

 reous matter (in which the soil is essentially defi- 

 cient) from the shell banks, oj'ster banks, and other 

 eources already referred to. But before any hope 

 can be indulged, that the inhabitants of this por- 

 tion of the state will avail themselves of these 

 means of bringing their lands into a higher state 

 of cultivation than they seem to have any idea 

 that they are capable ofj it is necessary to remove 

 a fatal impression, too generally made, that the 

 lime derived from shells is of" but little value. 

 The result of the inquiries made to disprove this 

 opinion, will be given in the next section of this 

 report. 



"An en'or equally fatal prevails among the citi- 

 j^ens of Maryland, in reference to the counties 

 that have just been passed in review — that they 

 are as devoid of interest as they have been be- 

 lieved to be of resources. Jt is hoped that the mi- 

 nute, and, at the same time, faithful account given 

 of them — more minute than would otherwise have 

 seemed necessary — will have a tendency to recti- 

 fy the false judgment so commonly passed upon 

 this portion of our territory, and contribute like- 

 wise to cheer those of its mhabitants who have 

 become disheartened at the present aspect of 

 things, and who are too prone to believe that 

 their industry could be better rewarded at a dis- 

 tance." 



The immense heaps of oyster shells fiirnish- 

 ing vast supplies of lime, has induced Prof. Duca- 

 tel to devote an entire chapter, to a comparison 

 of the value of shell and stone lime — an opinion 

 prevalent among Maryland farmers tliat the for- 

 mer was inferior, f!)r agricultural purposes, to the 

 latter, .is satisfactorily refuted. The analysis of 



the respective kinds of lime, showed a decided 

 advantage in the employment of equal weights of 

 lime obtained Ironi calcined shells, over that ob- 

 tained fi'om limestone. 



The annexed extract furnishes a general sum- 

 mary of the comparison ; it is preceded by a par- 

 ticular account of the analyses of ten specimens 

 of limesone, from Baltimore, Harford, and Fred- 

 erick counties. 



"It will l>c perceived that three out of ten are 

 magncsian limestones ; all of them contain more 

 silica or sand than has been found in oyster shells, 

 and one, said to most extensively used in Har- 

 ford county, contains as much as 11 per cent, of 

 inert matter. It follows, therefore, that, as oyster 

 shells are composed nearly of pure carbonate of 

 lime, they will aflbrd a lime containing scarcely 

 an appreciable quantity of impurities. If well 

 burnt, (which is the case when no effervescence 

 is observed on treating them with a weak acid,") 

 lime obtained from them may be deemed, with a 

 fractional ditlerence, etjual, weight lor weight, to 

 the best stone lime ; and as their chemical compo- 

 sition does not vary, there is nothing to be deduct- 

 ed from the value of the product in consequence 

 of the impurities that exist, as exhibited by the 

 foregoing table, in most limestones, and that must 

 necessarily form a part of the residue when these 

 are burtit. 



If the comparative value of the two products be 

 estimated by measure, a greater difference is 

 discovered ; but there is at the same time a dispro- 

 portionate difference in price. A bushel of the 

 best alum-lime weijjhs from ninety to a hundred 

 pounds; whereas, the same bulk of shell lime, 

 unground, weiivhs fi'om sixty-five to seventy-five 

 pounds, and perhaps when ground would weigh 

 eighty pounds — a difference of from twenty to 

 twenty-five per cent. But the former costs from 

 thirty to thirty-five cents at Baldmore, the most 

 convenient spot for its delivery on tide-water, 

 where the latter can be had for ten cents ; whilst 

 farmers, conveniently situated on the bay side, 

 might themselves burn the shells at an expense 

 not exceedingsix cents a bushel. These remarks 

 refer to the lime obtained from recent or fresh oys- 

 ter shells ; but there is little or no difference be- 

 tween it and that procured by the burning of those 

 contained in the Indian shell banks, provided pro- 

 per care be taken to separate theai from the black 

 mould and dirt with which they are mixed. 



It has been supposed, that because alum-lime 

 has been found to admit of a greater mixture of 

 sand than shell lime, in the making of mortar, it 

 was to be inferred that it is correspondingly better, 

 or, as it is termed, stronger for agricultural purpo- 

 ses. But this is an unwarrantable conclusion ; 

 for, as this circumstance seems to depend upon the 

 peculiar aggregation among the particles of" the 

 lime, which prevents it f>om setting too rapidly, (or, 

 in other words attracting water and carbonic acid 

 from the atmosphere sooner than the wants of the 

 mason require,) it would appear, on the contrary, 

 that, if any inlijrence is to be drawn from it, it is 

 adverse to the conclusion; whilst, on the other 

 hand, the fiict that shell lime sets very quickly is 

 favorable to the opinion, entertained by some per- 

 so'>s, of its superior olficacy in agriculture — it be- 

 in<r generally understood that lime acts in the soil 

 in the condition of carbonate of liine. Admitting, 

 however, that the peculiar arrangement of the 



