Miscellaneous Intelligence. 159 



American Soils." The author states that his object is " to teach 

 the science of soil fertility and permanent agriculture" by giving 

 facts leather than theories. 



The work is divided into four parts and an appendix. Part I 

 (pp. 1-15S) embraces a discussion of molecules, valence, certain 

 fundamental chemical laws, the more common chemical elements, 

 radicals, acids, bases, salts, and certain principles of chemical 

 nomenclature. It treats of the chemistry of plant nutrition and 

 synthesis ; minerals of agricultural importance ; and soil forma- 

 tion, classification, and description, as conducted by the Bureau 

 of Soils of the United States Department of Agriculture. It also 

 contains a brief reference to crop requirements, and to sources of 

 plant food. This part, though possibly capable of being read 

 with profit by the farmer, is too technical in character for those 

 not studiously inclined ; it will, however, be found useful to those 

 students of agriculture who have not already laid a broad chem- 

 ical foundation, and who wish in a brief way to secure at least an 

 elementary idea of the relation of chemistrj' to soils and to plant 

 production. 



Part II (pp. 159-342) is devoted to ground limestone and its 

 use, to the phosphorus compounds more commonly used for agri- 

 cultural purposes; to organic matter in its relation to soil improve- 

 ment; and to the fixation of nitrogen by direct bacterial agencies, 

 as well as through the medium of symbiosis. Following a brief 

 chapter on systems of rotations for grain farming, is an extended 

 chapter on farm manures, bone meal, basic slag phosphate, and 

 phosphate rock. The special emphasis on the latter is doubtless 

 due to the efforts of the author to promote its use as a fertilizer 

 on certain of the soils of Illinois. 



Part II closes with a lengthy chapter on theories of soil fer- 

 tility, beginning with those of van Helmont, advanced about 

 three hundred years ago, and extending to certain recent and 

 much disputed theories advanced and supported chiefly or wholly 

 by the Bureau of Soils of the United States Department of Agri- 

 culture. The author points out that a recent investigator of the 

 question in Kentucky finds that these views are not generally 

 accepted and taught in the agricultural colleges of the United 

 States, as had been claimed by the Bureau of Soils at a previous 

 congressional hearing. He also takes occasion to express his 

 opinion concerning these views with characteristic energy and 

 vigor. 



Part III is devoted to soil investigations by culture experi- 

 ments. In this connection extended reference is made to the long 

 continued field experiments at Kothamsted, England. Special 

 attention is also given to the field expei'iments at the Pennsyl- 

 vania State College, at Wooster, Ohio, in the South, in Canada, 

 and in the author's own state of Illinois. The closing chapter 

 deals with pot-culture and water-culture experiments in compar- 

 ison with field results. In this connection the author calls atten- 

 tion to certain shortcomings of the paraflSned wire-basket method 



