MANURES. 299 



It is almost unnecessary to give any explanation of the uses that 

 may be made of the preceding table : I shall, however, give a few il- 

 lustrations from instances which have actually occurred in my ex- 

 perience. 



Oil-caka is cheap at this time, (1842 ;) and the question is, whether 

 it couM be advantageously employed in connection with the culti- 

 vation of wheat. The presumption is, that wheat obtains the whole 

 of its azote in the soil, that it acquires none from the atmosphere ; 

 and again, I assume that the whole of the azote put into the ground 

 would be used up by the crop. Under the most favorable circum- 

 stances of heat and moisture, this would probably be the case ; were 

 it not so to the letter, the active matter which remained in the 

 ground would operate advantageously in succeeding years. The 

 following, then, are the elements of the question : 



1st. In the wheat grown at Bechelbronn there is on an average 

 0.025 of azote. 2d. In the straw of 1841, 1 have just found 0.003 

 of azote. 3d. The oil-cake which I propose to employ coi.lains 

 0.055 of azote, and its actual price, crushing included, is 3.?. 4c?. per 

 cwt. 4th. The relation in point of weight of the grain to the straw 

 is as 47 : 100. 



A sheaf or bundle of wheat, 220 lbs. in weight, consists of: 



Wheat 70.4 lbs., containing 1.760 of azote, and is worth 4*. 8d. 



Straw 149.6 lbs. " 0.415 " " Is. 8d. 



Total of azote 2.175 Total value 6s. 4d. 



Difference of value 5s. 4d. 



To grovir which, 39 lbs. of oil-cake would be required, of the 

 value of. Is. 2d. 



So that 39 lbs. of oil-cake, converted into a sheaf of wheat, would 

 be increased in intrinsic value to the extent of 5;?. 2d. Supposing 

 that but one-half or one-third of this amount, as indicated by theory, 

 is realized in practice, it is obvious that the addition of the oil-cake 

 might be made with advantage ; and that no means should be 

 neglected to ensure the success of its application as a manure.* 



The production of oil-cake in France, the Netherlands, and other 

 countries of Europe, is very considerable ; in round numbers, 100 

 of oleaginous seeds yield 60 of cake ; but it has been calculated, 

 with rare ability, and from authentic documents, by M. Leroy de 

 Bethune, that not only is the whole of the oil-cake, which is the 

 produce of the soil of France, exported, but that likewise of the 

 oleaginous seeds which she imports from other countries. This M. 

 de Bethune looks upon as a very lamentable agricultural fact. I 

 have shown, indeed, from the example which I have quoted, that 

 every pound of cake represents a primary material, which, properly 

 treated, may be transformed into nearly 6 pounds weight of wheat- 

 grain and straw, having a value infinitely greater than that of the 

 oil-cake originally employed. 



* Our author has of course left many other elements very necessary to be included 

 out of his calcW'Uion here, such as labor, seed, rent charge, interest on capital, *• 

 fiKo. Ed. 



