WHAT SHALL ONE BUY? 



tractable, lime burned on the farm should 

 be used. Some slight benefit to a stiff soil 

 may be obtained from the light application 

 that is deemed practicable where all forms 

 are costly, but this benefit is not usually 

 marked in case of an application of a ton or 

 less of burned lime. It is a safe statement 

 that most buyers of lime in some form or 

 other will profit chiefly through the correc- 

 tion of soil acidity and promotion of bac- 

 terial life. This renders the situation more 

 simple as any carbonate, hydrate or oxide of 

 lime will accomplish these purposes. 



Composition. The first consideration is 

 the actual content of calcium and mag- 

 nesium. A guaranteed analysis is the only 

 safe basis of purchase. The unstable nature 

 of fresh burned and hydrated forms makes 

 an exact statement of percentages impos- 

 sible for goods not wholly fresh, but at least 

 the purity of the original limestone can be 

 judged. 



Equivalents. One ton of fresh burned 

 lime, made from pure stone, is equivalent to 

 2640 pounds of the hydrate, and to 3570 

 pounds of pulverized limestone or of air- 

 slaked lime. It is easy to carry in mind the 

 proportions expressed by i, i% and i/4. 



