48 DR. R. ANGUS SMITH ON THE EXAMINATION 



and more albumen, or matter so conditioned that it is capable 

 of assuming a great variety of living forms with and with- 

 out locomotion. Water from the hills of Scotland and 

 Wales, Cumberland, and many parts of North England, 

 gives rise to no variety of living forms ; and in many of 

 them there is scarcely anything to be remarked in the 

 deposit. On studying this subject many years ago, I 

 found that in some of those cases where the water was 

 peaty there was also to be found a large amount of 

 ammonia. The words I used were these : — " In a peat* bog 

 which is not well drained, and is therefore wet and cold, 

 the acids of the peat do not become dissolved so as to form 

 a very deeply coloured solution, but they form a solution 

 of a pale yellow. But in grounds which are warmer, or, 

 what is better, well drained, the amount of soluble matter 

 is very great. The colour of such water is not to be con- 

 founded with the water which heavy showers bring down, 

 filled with mud and bits of peat ; it is often perfectly clear 

 and bright, but brown like coffee. The acids in solution 

 at such times are kept so by the presence of ammonia. 

 Ammonia dissolves them in large quantities, and along 

 with them also the salts which they form with lime, 

 magnesia, soda, phosphates, &c. 



" Plants begin to grow in warm weather ; at this time 

 ammonia is formed. It is at this time the organic matter 

 decays, and in its approach to inorganic matter passes 

 through the stage of ammonia. 



" The peat mould Mulder has shown, but he has not 

 mentioned this excess of ammonia.^' 



I supposed at the time, as it appears, that the ammonia 

 produced by the decomposition of vegetable substances 

 was used for the solution of the ammoniacal humates of 

 Mulder. The paper read was only a short note intended 

 to call attention to an important and curious point — the 

 amount of ammonia on those bare hills. I have had the 



