TRANSACTIONS OF THE SECTIONS. 45 
acquires peculiar properties. At the request of Professor Liebig, who had given 
Dr. Harley some fine specimens of the mineral, the latter gentleman showed some 
of the more striking properties of the mineral to the members of the Association. 
For example, the distilled water in which the mineral has been pulverized, when 
filtered gives no precipitate with nitrate of silver, and only the very slightest tur- 
bidity with oxalate of ammonia and with weak sulphuric acid. From this it is 
seen that no chlorine is present, and only a trace of an earthy base. The liquid 
blues iodized starch, decolorizes a solution of permanganate of potash acidified 
with sulphuric acid, at the same time liberating oxygen gas. The liquid gives a 
blue with the brownish mixture of dilute ferridcyanide and perchloride of iron, and 
_gradually precipitates prussian blue. When mixed a short time with the peroxide 
of lead and finely reduced platinum-powder, it loses some of the above-named pro 
erties. Heating the mineral entirely destroys its properties. Schinbein concludes 
om these and other facts that the mineral contains antozone. 
On the Adulteration of Linseed Cake with Nut-cake. 
By W. H. Harris, F.C.S. 
The frequent adulteration of linseed cake, used for cattle-feeding purposes, has 
drawn considerable attention on the part of the agricultural chemist to the ditfer- 
ent adulterative substances employed by the trade. Many of these have been from 
time to time exposed. But there is one substance largely used for adulterating lin- 
seed cake, which has not, that I am aware of, received the notice which it deserves. 
The substance I refer to is the market nut-cake, obtained from the fruit of the Arachis 
hypogea, or Ground-nut of America, indigenous to Mexico, but cultivated in the 
West Indies. As botanists are aware, it derives its name from the singular manner 
in which its fruit is perfected; for as its yellow papilionaceous flowers fall from 
their stalks, the pods which follow are forced by a natural motion of the plant into 
the ground, where the seeds ripen and come to perfection—hence the name of 
Ground-nut. 
| As the cake composed of the marc of these seeds can be purchased at about half 
the price of linseed cake, it is often used for the purpose of adulteration—a fact 
patent to most agricultural chemists. But this substance seems to have been gene- 
rally condemned as a worthless article ; for we have seen this verdict given against 
it in several instances by eminent agricultural chemists; at any rate, if I am mis- 
taken in the article of commerce which has been classed with bran, rice dust, and 
treated as rubbish, the mistake is attributable to an unfortunate looseness of lan- 
guage adopted by the authorities in question. 
My attention being directed to the true feeding qualities of this substance was 
accidental; for having to analyse a sample of linseed cake which contained a con- 
siderable quantity of bran, I was surprised to find the analytical result, in reference 
to the percentage of flesh-formers, was considerably superior to the result I had 
aiiained from many genuine samples I had analysed. This led me to resubmit 
the cake to a careful microscopic examination, which enabled me to detect what 
afterwards proved to be the decorticated nut-cake of commerce. 
My next step was to get a sample of this nut-cake in its simplicity; this, 
through the kindness of a gentleman connected with the trade, I succeeded in doing, 
On submitting this sample to analysis, the result exceeded my highest expectations, 
as the following results of the examination will show :— 
Per cent 
Moisture... eee aeeenne eeeeebovueod eoee 6, OD 6.9 SIAR Ob 8:50 
REE SCRERG Dis 2a hale aia's oie VRS FEELS TAS OP 3 4:94 
Cellulose, insoluble in warm solution of potash, sp. gr. 1045 3°51 
Albuminots compounds”. sve secs b gases ev nces 43°31 
Amylaceous constituents......., i PONE D Me rabies oe B74 
Onl Shae Mee eWN Ea ad Oat dees Khang ag ED pedsaas ag 12:40 
100-00 
To be able to introduce to the cattle-feeder a highly nutritious substance, capa- 
* Containing nitrogen 6-93 per cent, 
