THE BOOK OF LIME. 
185 
found it to contain 41 per cent, of carbonate 
of lime in the form of crumbled chalk. 
" The natural soil of the plains of Athens, 
lately sent me for analysis, contains also 
nearly as much lime, as appears in the follow- 
ing results : — 
SOIL FROM THE PLAINS OP ATHENS. 
Organic matter 5"75 
Salts, soluble in water (common salt 
and sulphate of soda) 0-20 
Sulphate of lime (gypsum) 018 
Oxide of iron 2 - 91 
Alumina (soluble in acids) 2'35 
Carbonate of lime 38"08 
Carbonate of magnesia 0-73 
Phosphate of lime 0-033 
' Insoluble siliceous matter 50-33 
100-563 
" This soil produces excellent crops of 
wheat, but is liable when the dry season 
comes to be covered over with a crust of 
saline matter which prevents it from growing 
grass. 
" 2°. Sow little may be "present ? — It is 
more difficult to say how little lime may be 
present without materially affecting the fer- 
tility of the soil. The nature of the surface 
and under .soil of a field, the circumstances in 
which the field is placed, and the kind of 
cropping to which it is subjected, all mate- 
rially atfect this question. 
" a. If the upper soil abound in vegetable 
matter, the proportion of lime cannot be dimi- 
nished to so great a degree without affecting 
its fertility — while if under the soil abound in 
lime, so large a proportion may not be abso- 
lutely necessary in the surface. 
" b. The circumstances in which the field 
is placed will influence the proportion of lime 
that is absolutely necessary. Thus, if springs 
arise in it the waters of which contain lime, 
or if waters impregnated with lime flow from 
the adjacent rocks or hills, as in the forma- 
tion of marl beds, or if the yearly rains wash 
down into it from the higher grounds the 
lime which they contain — these circumstances 
may give such a constant supply of lime to 
the land, as to render unnecessary the per- 
manent presence of a large proportion in the 
soil of the field itself. It is necessary that 
the effect of such local circumstances should 
be, in all cases, taken into account, otherwise 
analysis might sometimes lead us to suppose, 
and no doubt has led some to suppose, that a 
much smaller proportion of lime may be pre- 
sent without injury to the soil, than is really 
required — where no such supplies are natu- 
rally brought into it — to keep it in an average 
state of fertilit}'. 
" Thus, Sprengel found upon analysis that 
the rich marsh lands of Holstein and East 
Friesland contained only a minute proportion 
of carbonate of lime— the marsh lands of Hol- 
stein, only - 2, or one-fifth per cent. ; the salt 
marches of East Friesland 0-6, or three-fifths 
per cent. 
" But we should be wrong were we to con- 
clude that because these lands bore rich and 
fattening pastures, therefore, this small pro- 
portion of lime is sufficient to make every 
land bear good grass. The floodings to which 
these lands are subject, or the supplies of 
water that are constantly brought into them 
from beneath, no doubt contribute, in a consi- 
derable degree, to the permanent richness of 
the grass they bear. 
" It appears, however, from these analyses 
that, under certain circumstances, a very 
small proportion indeed may be sufficient to 
keep the land in a state of permanent fer- 
tility. 
"c. But something also depends upon the 
kind of crops we wish or continue to grow. 
It is possible that grass land may require less 
lime than arable lands, because the roots of 
the grasses are small, branch out in every 
direction, so as to come into contact with a 
large proportion of the soil, and remain in 
the land the whole year through, collecting 
their food from the soil. A field of old grass 
land in the neighbourhood of Durham, I found 
to contain 1 - 3 per cent, of carbonate of lime. 
" Yet when such land is ploughed up, 
though it may give one or more good crops by 
the aid of the decaying vegetable matter of 
the turf, it will soon refuse to grow healthy 
crops of corn or oats, and certainly, large 
green crops, unless lime be added in greater 
or less proportion. I have already alluded to 
the fact that crops become diseased — grow up 
perhaps well at first, but afterwards assume a 
sickly appearance, or fail altogether — when 
the proportion of lime in a soil becomes very 
small. This is true of every kind of soil in 
almost every part of the world, and in refer- 
ence to almost every crop. The first of the 
following soils w r as sent to me with the state- 
ment that for four rotations the turnips had 
come up well, but in the autumn had always 
become diseased, rotted, and failed, and a 
remedy was asked — on the second, barley 
came up well, but afterwards failed — on the 
third plantains refused to grow — 
PINKIE. 
LTSEDOCH. 
JAMAICA. 
Soil. 
Subsoil. 
Organic matter . . . 
. 669 
10-03 
2-05 
9-59 
Salts soluble in water 
. 1-07 
trace 
trace 
116 
Oxide of iron . . . 
•} 6-91 
J3-02 
\2-56 
512 
3-21 
2-23 
1-16 
Sulphate of Lime . . 

0-44 
014 

Carbonate of lime . . 
. 0-31 
030 
0-37 
0-38 
Carbonate of magnesia 
. trace 
trace 
trace 
trace 
Oxide of manganese . 
. 0-24 


007 
Siliceous matter . . 
. 84-5S 
83-37 
88-20 
84-31 
99-80 
99-72 
98-11 
99-SS 
"In all these soils, and especially in the 
first and third, the proportion of lime is very 
