394 MAINE AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION. I916. 



With the best of care, different samples taken from the same 

 goods at the same time and examined by the same analyst will 

 show slightly discordant results. These may be slightly too 

 liigh or slightly too> lo'w. A variation of two-tenths of a per 

 -cent in the actual content may occur. That is, the examination 

 •of a sample of goods that actually carried 4 per cent nitrogen 

 might show a result as low as 3.8 per cent or as high as 4.2 per 

 cent. Hence when only a single sample is examined variations 

 to these limits are passed, because a case could not be main- 

 tained in court. If several samples of the same goods are founri 

 to be all or nearly all even slightly low in only one constituent 

 a case could probably be maintained under the fertilizer law, 

 provided' the other constituents were not present in sufficient 

 '•excess to indicate the sample taken did not fairly represent the 

 output. 



Nitrogen and particularly potash are the most costly constitu- 

 ents of fertilizers, and in examining the tables special attention 

 should be given to these constituents. In 191 6, probably because 

 •of the high cost of sulphuric acid, there is an unusual nurnber 

 of samples that are well up in total and somewhat below in 

 -available phosphoric acid. 



On the whole the fertilizers of 1916 are fairly well up to tlie 

 guaranty. It is to be remembered, however, that these. .guar- 

 antees are minimum and not average guarantees, and that com- 

 panies whose goods on the whole run close to their guaranteed 

 analyses may be manufacturing too close to their minimum 

 guarantees for safety to themselves or their customers. 



Formerly the lower figure in a guaranty was usually main- 

 tained with a good margin for safety. There seems to be a 

 growing tendency on the part of certain companies to manufac- 

 ture too close to the minimum guaranty. Of course in theory 

 a fertilizer should never fall below the guaranty for thai: is 

 supposed to be its minimum. 



Delay in Publication. 



The fertilizer law requires the Director of the Station to 

 ""publish the official bulletin giving the results that are deeme 1 

 of public importance annually in the month of October." The 

 present year the last samples were received from the Commis- 



