^16 
The late Dr. Voelcker. 
jiection with the composition and value of food-stuffs, was by his 
most elaborate investigations, microscopic and chemical, of the 
various matters entering into the composition of feeding-cakes, 
by his numerous analyses of the various cakes themselves, and 
by his fearless and persistent exposure of what he considered 
injurious, or against the feeder's interest, in the manufacture or 
composition of such articles, whether resulting from carelessness, 
ignorance, or fraud. 
There can, indeed, be no doubt that, both in the matter of 
.purchased manures and purchased food-stuffs, his analyses, 
papers, and reports, have done much to raise the standard of 
such articles, and to leave no one to blame but the purchaser 
himself, if he does not get value for his money. There is 
scarcely an article of import to the farm, respecting which the 
intelligent farmer does not now know on what constituents its 
value depends, and what percentage it should contain ; and with 
■the facilities at his command for having the composition deter- 
mined at a trifling outlay, it is his own fault if he allows a 
relapse from the present much improved condition of things, 
the result of the widely disseminated improved knowledge 
which now prevails, compared with the comparative ignorance 
of not many years ago. 
In reference to this subject it seems appropriate to call atten- 
tion here to the rapidly increasing rate at which the members 
of the Society do avail themselves of the facilities placed within 
their reach for obtaining trustworthy analyses. The following 
Table shows the number of analyses executed for Members in 
each of the twenty years from 1865 to 1884 inclusive, as gathered 
from the annual Reports of the Consulting Chemist : — 
Number of Analyses made for Members. 
1865 
.. .. 312 
1875 .. .. 
.. .. 704 
18G6 
.. .. 335 
1876 .. .. 
.. .. 720 
1867 
.. .. ;-i41 
1877 .. .. 
.. .. *642 
1868 
.. .. 432 
1878 .. .. 
.. .. 724 
1809 
.. .. 465 
1879 .. ... 
.. .. 1018 
1870 
.. .. 580 
1880 .. .. 
.. .. 1201 
1871 
.. .. 730 
.. ,. 1058 
1872 
1882 .. .. 
.. .. 1403 
1873 
.. .. 670 
1883 .. .. 
.. .. 1453 
1874 
.. .. 045 
1884 .. .. 
.. .. 1628 
It should be observed that it was in 1879 that the Society's 
Laboratory in Hanover Square was first opened, and that the 
•conditions under which analyses could be obtained were revised ; 
and it will be seen that the number of analyses required by 
Members has considerably increased from about that time. 
After all, however, the numbers are comparatively small con- 
