858 ANALYSES OF SOILS. 



Analysis ofj'our specimens of soil from nan- the village of BorM, furnished by 



B. 1'. Johnson. 

 The accompanj ing letter explanator} of the soils, is copied into iliis report. The country 

 in tlic vicinity of Rome is underlaid by the shales and sandstones of the Hudson-river series, 

 01 the upper members of the Champlain division of the New-York rocks. The cobble- 

 stones spoken of are of the usual si/.e of paving stones, and are derived principally from 



the Potsdam sandstone and the gneiss of the Primary district surrounding the head waters 

 hi the Black river. In the neighborhood of Rome there are extensive tracts of peat lands, 

 frequently accompanied with mail, beneath which is the boulder system composed of the 

 cobblestones spoken of above. The depth of the peal and marl varies much at different 

 places; sometimes there is merely a fool or two of peat resting on the drift bed, bul al 

 other points n is ten to fifteen feel deep. These lands, as they remain at present, are cold, 

 and not productive of the valuable grains or grasses, but they contain an inexhaustible 

 suppl] of organic matter for compost, which we hope will he employed in correcting the 

 soils of this neighborhood at no distant day. 



LETTER FROM B. P. JOHNSON. 

 Paor. E EMMONS, Rome, July 3, 1846. 



Sir — [enclose you two specimens of soil, taken from my land in this town, near the village of 

 Rome. The land is the first rise ol land above thi Mohawk flats, and is mostly of the character of the 

 samples senl you This land is. to a considerable extent, covered with cobblestones, and they extend 

 some distance below the surface. It is very productive usually, and is especially favorable for corn. 



Formerly wheat was extensively cultivated here, but, of late years, not to any very great extent, 

 though ezcelli nl crops are siill grown, when the seasons are favorable, and win n the grain escapes the 

 ravages ol the fly or "wheat midge," an insect somewhat resembling a gnat This fly is what infre- 

 quently called in this country the "weevil," though entirely distinct from it 



The Mohawk flats, which extend to a considerable distance from the river, arc of the same character 

 as the flats lower down, in Herkimer and Montgomery counties: they are very productive. .We have 

 another character of soil in this town, on land still more elevated, composed generally of gravel and 

 loam, which is good and productive land. 



I enclose you also two specimens of soil from the land of Henry Huntington, Esq., near this village. 



We feel a deep interest in the agricultural survey which you have been making, and we anticipate 

 very beneficial results to the farming interests of the State. It is of vastly more importance than has 

 generally been supposed, to thi that the composition of his soil should be known, and the kind 



of manures best adapted to it pointed out: so also as to the crops best suited to it. I have long been 

 satisfied that one reason why so many experiments have either wholly or in part failed, has been the 

 want of attention to this subject. I shall be disappointed, if, from your varied experiments, great good 

 does not result: it can not, I think, be otherwise. Nothing so readily does away prejudice among 

 farmers, as facts which are presented to them from actual experiments. 



Tlere is much yet to be done in this State, before we >liall be fully prepared to develope the abundant 

 resources of our soil. It is, however, very gratifying to witness the advances which are making: they 

 are such as to encourage every one interested in the subject, to persevere until the great work is fully 

 accomplished. 



Wishing you every possible success in your labors, I am, very respectfully, 



B. P. JOHNSON. 



