KITRE GROUND — SODA SOIL. 229 



During the rains and cold weather, it appears abundantly 

 on the lime on the walls of houses. From these and other 

 damp spots it may be brushed off every two or thi'ee days 

 almost in basketfuls. The groimd too, even in the hot 

 weather, is so moist that it is extremely difficult either to 

 cret earth of sufficient tenacity to make bricks (the country 

 beincr quite destitute of stones), or when the bricks are 

 made to find a spot sufficiently solid to bear the weight of a 

 house. Notwithstanding the greatest attention, the ground 

 at length yields, and the saltpetre corrodes the best of the 

 bricks to such a degree that the whole house gradually 

 sinks several inches below its original level. Houses built 

 of inferior materials, of course, suffer much more ; one, of 

 which the inner foundations were of unburnt bricks, abso- 

 lutely fell down while Dr. Tytler was at Mullye, and the 

 family had a miraculous escape. Dr. Tytler's own house, 

 one little better, sank so much, and the groundwork was so 

 evidently giving way, that at great expense and inconve- 

 nience he was compelled to pull down the whole of the 

 inner walls and rebuild them in a more secure maimer. 

 From the same cause a new magazine, which government 

 had ordered to be built with an arched roof of brickwork, 

 was, when complete, found so very unsafe that it was ne- 

 cessary to demolish it entirely, and rebuild it on a new plan, 

 with a roof of tiles. One hundred parts of nitre earth or 

 soil from the Tirhoot district, when analyzed by Dr. Davy, 

 afforded — 



Nitrate of potash 8.3 



Nitrate of lime 3.7 



Sulphate of lime 0.8 



Common salt 0.2 



Carbonate of lime 35.0 



Earthy matter insoluble in water and niiric acid 40.0 



Water with a trace of vegetable matter 12.0 



100.0 

 The soil in many parts of Ajmere is very nitrous. 

 5. Soda Soil or Ground. — Soil more or less impregnated 

 with carbonate of soda occurs in different parts of Mysore, 

 where the soda is separated and used for glass-making and 

 for washing. Soil of the same kind is found in the Coim- 

 betoor province, and in many other parts of the peninsula 

 of India. Hej'ne savs, the soda of the Mysore effloresces 

 Vol. III.— U 



