r62 NEW YORK STATE MUSEUM 



The slight variation in ash does not necessarily indicate any- 

 thing, for even in the same bog the ash percentage may show 

 differences. 



Freshly dug peat may contain from 30$ to 80$ of moisture, 

 depending on the dryness of the bog, and some deposits may be 

 so wet as to need artificial draining before the material can be 

 extracted. 



While most peat is formed by the accumulation of mosses, 

 still it sometimes results from the growth and decay of other 

 plants. Koller 1 states that practically all plants except fungi 

 may form it, but that the bog mosses are the most important 

 as owing to their spongy nature they tend to produce a high 

 water level in the pond or swamp. Indeed, on this account a 

 sphagnum bog may often raise the water level above that of the 

 surrounding country. 



1 Die Torfindustrie. Leipzig 1898. p. 5. 



