Reports of the Chemical Committee. 
293 
analysis to be adulterated — one with oat-dust and the other with 
earth-nut cake and beech-nut cake, came under Dr. Voelcker's 
notice ; but the Committee think that the evidence in these 
instances, though sufficiently convincing, might not have the 
requisite legal force to warrant the publication of the names of 
the vendors. 
March. 
In the months of December, January, and February, com- 
paratively few purchases of artificial manures are made by agri- 
culturists, and in consequence a much smaller number of samples 
are sent to the laboratory for examination than during the spring 
quarter. Dr. Voelcker has, however, reported on the following 
cases : — 
1. A sample of artificial manure was sent for examination by 
Mr. Catchpool, Faring Bury, Kelvedon, Essex, with the request 
to have its value ascertained in comparison with best Peruvian 
guano. This manure was found to have the following com- 
position : — 
Moisture 9*65 
'Orgauic matter 13"54: 
Phosphate of lime 4-99 
Carbonate and snlphate of lime 48'77 
Alkaline salts and magnesia (princiimlly common salt) 3'22 
Insoluble siliceous matter (sand) 19 '83 
lOO'OO 
Containing nitrogen 1'12 
Equal to ammonia 1-36 
The large quantity of carbonate of lime (chalk), sulphate of 
lime (gypsum), and sand, amounting, together with the moisture 
in the manure, to rather more than three-quarters of the weight, 
leaves but little room for the more valuable fertilising consituents 
of manure. Making no deduction for the bulky, cheap, or 
absolutely useless matters, for which carriage has to be paid, the 
intrinsic commercial value of the phosphates and the nitrogenous 
organic matters (yielding only ]J per cent, of ammonia) does 
not amount to much, and the manure certainly would be dear at 
2/. a ton in comparison with the price at which Peruvian guano 
is sold. 
Dr. Voelcker has written for information with respect to the 
vendor of this manure, and the price at which it was sold, but 
has not received an answer as yet. 
2. The subjoined analysis of four samples of bone-manure 
show the great differences in the quality and value of different 
samples : — 
