APPENDIX. 171 



you please, so that it can be extensively tried, and the result made 

 known. There is an alkali, now extensively imported from England, 

 called "white ash," a carbonate of soda, containing from 36 to 55 per 

 cent of pure alkali. It can be imported, cost and charges, for 4 cents per 

 lb. and may be had of Delano & Whitney, or Grant &. Daniels, Boston, 

 for 5 cents per lb. If this is not at hand, take our own pearl ashes, 

 or an equivalent in lye from ashes. Take 100 lbs. peat as sold, or the 

 fine part from the bottom of a peat-stack — at any rate bruise the peat 

 fine, put it into a potash-kettle, and 2 1-2 lbs. white ash, and 130 gal- 

 lons water ; boil for a few hours. Let it settle, dip off the clear for use — 

 add 100 lbs. more of peat, 2 1-2 lbs. white ash, fill up with water as 

 much as you have dipped off, boil again, settle and dip off. Add again 

 2 1-2 lbs. white ash, boil, settle, and dip off. This may be repeated 

 five times. How much oftener I know not, probably as long as the 

 vegetable part of peat remains. The clear liquor is an alkaline solu- 

 tion of geine. The three first boilings contain geine, alumine, iron, 

 magnesia, and sulphate or phosphate of alkali, potash or soda, accord- 

 ing as we have used tohite or pearlasli. The alumine and iron are 

 quite exhausted by the fourth boiling. 



The dark colored brown solution contains about half of an ounce 

 per gallon of vegetable matter. It is to be applied by watering grass- 

 lands or grain-crops just after sowing, or in any other way a farmer's 

 quick wit will point out. The " dregs" may be mixed with other ma- 

 nure, or spread as a top-dressing ; or put in the hill. Experience will 

 teach — I only suggest. I don't pretend to turn a furrow, only to 

 scratch up the ground. Those who have a steam-apparatus, had better 

 put 75 lbs. peat, say 2 bushels, with I lb. 14 oz. white ash, and 50 

 gallons water inlo a hogshead ; let the steam into the water and boil up, 

 till the liquor increases to 100 gallons. Then repeat as above for the 

 proportions. 



The " Flanders Manure" claims a large part of its active power 

 from its " tirca." This by exposure is changed into ammonia, and then 

 that acts as an alkali upon geine. In the recipe above, we have ingre- 

 dients equally as powerful in this action; a plenty of salts, and vegeta- 

 ble matter. The last goes into the plant as an alkaline geate. It is 

 then decomposed by the vegetable acids. The carbon, hydrogene and 

 oxygene of the geine, are disposed of as as the vegetable best knows 

 how; the alkaline base becomes sulphate, phosphate, citrate, malate, 

 tartrate, &c. of alkali, some or all of which are found in plants. Burn 

 the plant, we reproduce carbonate of alkali from the vegetable acid 



