AGRICULTURE WITH CHEMISTRY. 27 



having undergone, by the vegetative process, their full 

 degree of concoflion and maturation : whence it is ob- 

 vious, that neither the precise food of vegetables, nor 

 their component parts, can be ascertained by any ana- 

 lysis of them by fire ; at least it is not practicable with 

 the several substances, resulting from such process, to 

 recompose a juice, or fluid, similar to that by which the 

 vegetable had originally been nourished. 



It has been stated, that by an intense degree of heat 

 all the component parts of vegetables, excepting the 

 earthy, may be resolved into permanently elastic fluids, 

 or gasses ; and into the compound substance called water. 



By vegetables being thus reduced to their simple or 

 elementary principles, they are found to be composed of 

 gasses, with a small proportion of calcareous matter. Al- 

 though this discovery may appear of small moment to 

 the practical farmer, yet it is well deserving of his atten- 

 tion and notice, as it throws great light on the nature and 

 footl of vegetables, and proves that a large proportion 

 ^f vegetables consist of the aery form, fluids or gasses. 



D 2 ANALYSIS 



