368 Report on a re-examination of the 



Rules of Analysis. 



1. "Sift the soil through a fine sieve. Take the fine part; bake it just up to 

 browning paper." 



2. " Boil 100 grains of the baked soil, with 50 grains of pearl ashes, saleratus or 

 carbonate of soda, in 4 ounces of water, for half an hour; let it settle; decant the 

 clear; wash the grounds with 4 ounces boiling water ; throw all on a weighed fil- 

 ter, previously dried at the same temperature as was the soil, (1) ; wash till color- 

 less water returns. Mix all these liquors. It is a brown colored solution of ail the 

 soluble geine. All sulphates have been converted into carbonates, and with any 

 phosphates, are on the filter. Dry therefore, that, with its contents, at the same 

 heat as before. Weigh — the loss is soluble geine." 



3. " If you wish to examine the geine ; precipitate the alkaline solution with ex- 

 cess of lime-water. The geate of lime will rapidly subside, and if lime-water 

 enough has been added, the nitrous liquor will be colorless. Collect the geate of 

 lime on a filter; wash with a little acetic or very dilute muriatic acid, and you 

 have geine quite pure. Dry and weigh." 



4. "Replace on a funnel the filter (2) and its earthy contents ; wash with 2 

 drams muriatic acid, diluted with three times its bulk of cold water. Wash till 

 tasteless. The carbonate and phosphate of lime will be dissolved with a little 

 iron, which has resulted from the decomposition of any salts of iron, besides a lit- 

 tle oxide of iron. The alumina will be scarcely touched. We may estimate all as 

 salts (if Vime Evaporate the muriatic solution to dryness, weigh and dissolve in 

 boiling water. The insoluble will be phosphate of lime. Weigh — the loss is the 

 sulphate of lime ; (I make no allowance here for the difference in atomic weights 

 of the acids, as the result is of no consequence in this analysis.)" 



5. " The earthy residuum, if of a greyish white color, contains no insoluble geine 

 — test it by burning a weighed small quantity on a hot shovel — if the odor of burn- 

 ing peat is given off, the presence of insoluble geine is indicated. If so, calcine the 

 earthy residuum and its filter — the loss of weight will give the insoluble geine ; 

 that part which air and moisture, time and lime, will convert into soluble vegeta- 

 ble food. Any error here will be due to the loss of water in a hydrate, if one be 

 present, but these exist in too small quantities in 'granitic sand,' to aftect the result. 

 The actual weight of the residuary mass is ' granitic sand.' 



" The clay, mica, quartz, &c. are easily distinguished. If your soil is calcareous, 

 which may be easily tested by acids ; then before proceeding to this analysis, boil 

 100 grains in a pint of water, filter and dry as before, the loss of weight is due to 

 the sulphate of lime, even the sulphate of iron may be so considered; for the ulti- 

 mate result in cultivation is to convert this into sulphate of lime." 



" Test the soil with muriatic acid, and having thus removed the lime, proceed as 

 before, to determine the geine and insoluble vegetable matter."* pp. 32-35. 



* In applying Dr. Dana's rules given in the text, to the soils of Massachusetts, I 

 found it necessary to adopt some method of carrying forward several processes to- 

 gether. I accordingly made ten compartments upon a table, each provided with 

 apparatus for filtering and precipitations, also 10 numbered flasks, 10 evaporating 

 dishes, and a piece of sheet iron pierced with ten holes, for receiving the same 

 number of crucibles. I provided, also, a sheet iron oven, with a tin bottom large 

 enough to admit 10 filters, arranged in proper order, and a hole in the top to admit 

 a thermometer. The sand bath was also made large enough for receiving the ten 

 flasks. In this manner I was able to conduct ten pi'ocesses with almost as great 

 facility as one could have been carried forward in the usual way. 



