250  Annual  Report  for  1904  of  the  Consulting  Chemist. 
ill-advised,  prosecutions.  There  is,  I consider,  a great  differ- 
ence, and  one  that  should  be  drawn,  between  an  accidental 
deficiency  in  quality,  such  as  may  quite  unintentionallj-  occur, 
and  which  may  be  readily  adjusted  by  the  giving  of  an 
allowance,  and  a wilful  falsification,  such  as  occurs  when,  for 
example,  Egyptian  cotton  seed  is  mixed  with  Bombay  seed  and 
sold  as  “Egyptian  cotton  cake,”  or  when  linseed  is  mixed  with 
weed  seeds,  sand,  and  other  adulterants.  The  result  is  that 
even  high-class  firms  will  not  run  the  risks  involved  in  a 
prosecution,  and,  in  order  to  avoid  it,  give  a guarantee  in  terms 
of  which  the  following  are  examples  : — 
(a)  “ Basic  slag. — Phosphates  30-35  per  cent.  In  case  the  analysis 
should  be  below  30  per  cent,  of  total  phosphates,  sellers  to 
make  a pro  rata  allowance  in  the  usual  waj',  but,  for  the 
purpose  of  the  Fertilisers  and  Feeding  Stuffs  Act,  it  is  agreed 
that  sellers  only  guarantee  25  per  cent,  of  total  phosphates.” 
(5)  “ Should  it  be  proved  that  the  total  pho.sphates  are  less  than 
38  per  cent,  we  agree  to  allow  for  any  deficiency,  and  we  fully 
expect  that  when  you  analyse  it  you  will  find  the  deliveries 
higher  than  this.  But,  for  purposes  of  the  Fertilisers  and 
Feeding  Stuffs  Act,  our  guarantee  is  5 per  cent,  total  phos- 
phates less  than  above.  Our  guarantees  are  intended  to  be 
suhstantiulJ g on  the  safe  side." 
Oil  the  general  subject  of  the  pi’evalence  of  adulteration,  it 
has  to  be  recorded  that,  so  far  as  fertilisers  are  concerned, 
there  has  been  practically  nothing  amiss  found.  The  supply 
of  fertilisers  may  be  considered  as  in  a most  satisfactory  state, 
due  largely,  no  doubt,  to  the  action  of  the  Chemical  Manure 
Manufacturers’  Association.  In  feeding  stuffs,  and  more 
particularly  in  the  case  of  compound  cakes,  feeding  meals,  &c., 
there  continue  to  come  under  notice  instances  of  worthless 
and  waste  materials  being  incorporated  with  genuine  ones. 
Attention  is  also  called  to  the  need  of  care  being  exercised  in 
the  purchase  of  certain  materials  in  use  on  the  farm,  e.ff., 
sulphate  of  copper,  and  white  lead. 
A.  Feeding  Stuffs. 
1.  Linseed  Cake. 
No  new  form  of  adulteration  has  been  brought  to  light,  and 
the  cakes  analysed  have,  as  a rule,  been  very  satisfactory  as 
regards  purity.  In  my  last  Annual  Report  I dealt  at  some 
length  with  the  question  of  the  feasibility  of  insisting  on  a 
guarantee  of  a certain  percentage  of  oil,  nitrogen,  &c.,  in 
linseed  cakes,  and  I pointed  out  that  this  was  not  practicable 
and  ought  not  to  be  expected.  A good  deal  of  evidence  on  this 
point  was  submitted  to  the  Departmental  Committee  on  the 
