132 SCIENCE OF AGRICULTURE. 



geine is produced, and that in a few hours. It is 

 during the passage from protoxide to peroxide that 

 this ' saponifying' action takes place. Geine is pro- 

 duced and then combines with peroxide." And 

 here Professor Hitchcock adds in a note, from Dr. 

 Dana, " How wide is the influence of geine ! It not 

 only enters by itself into the food of vegetables, but 

 becomes the very solvent which nature has prepared 

 to act on the alkaline earths and oxids, dissolving 

 them as they are liberated from decomposing gran- 

 itic sand. By fermenting dung, vast volumes of am- 

 monia are liberated. I do not think that it is the 

 action of gases, as such, which we want, or which 

 nature intends as food of plants to be derived from 

 ;the soil. The air is always full of all which this 

 fermenting manure can supply in a gaseous form. 

 The true action of ammonia and carbonic acid re- 

 solve into their action on geine. The ammonia 

 combines as alkali with that and thus it becomes 

 very soluble. And the carbonic acid produces sur- 

 salts of the earthy geates of lime, and magnesia. It 

 is these, liberated the moment the plant demands 

 them, which cause all the geine of the manure to 

 become alkaline soluble geates." 



MarsJi Mud. 



This substance is so abundant and so accessible 

 to a large portion -of the farmers of the county of 

 Essex, that it would seem desirable that they should 

 know in what its value consists. It is generally, I 

 believe, esteemed a good ingredient in composts. 

 The marsh mud, however, of different localities, 

 varies much in value. And the opinions of different 

 practical farmers as to its worth differ accordingly. 



A scientific analysis of specimens of marsh mud 

 taken from different places, shews how little depend"- 

 ence can be placed on a name of soils, &c. in agri- 

 culture. 



