138 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
followers only with her pen ; and I believe the 
best stimulus to arouse to action the many who 
need it, would be to read the beautiful and in¬ 
structive articles of their sisters. These have 
at least contributed their full share in making 
me, on so short an acquaintance, so strong a 
friend of the American Agriculturist. 
But it is a lamentable fact that the ladies are 
not alone to blame, for even those who, as a 
class, are immediately engaged in agriculture, 
read far too little, particularly on such subjects 
as concern their own business. Many cry out 
as soon as an agricultural paper is mentioned, 
“ I don’t believe in book-farming.” I have, as 
yet, never heard that expression from one to 
whom the language of “Minnie Myrtle” would not 
be applicable, namely, “A little book knowledge, 
practically applied,” would be of considerable 
advantage. In truth, I consider the man who 
ridicules the idea that reading is beneficial to 
the farmer, a parallel case, as regards ignorance, 
with an Irishman employed on a farm not far 
from here, who, to tilt a cart, tried hard, it is 
said, to make the oxen stand on their hind feet. 
I should like all my friends to enjoy the same 
treat, and to share the same pleasure it gives 
me to peruse the pages of the Agriculturist. 
I hope they soon will, if they do not, I cannot 
help them further than to inform them of its 
existence. But I am saying too much for a so¬ 
cial talk to one I never saw. I ask your par¬ 
don. I feel in some respects like your “Boy 
from Down East,” who did not know how to 
stop. 
For the last few days the farm operations have 
been partially suspended, owing to the four 
days’ storm, which has made the ground, in 
many places, too wet to work. In Chester 
County, Pa., near the Lancaster line, I found 
that sleighing, and the other usual pleasant and 
unpleasant accompaniments of “ second edition 
of winter,” had been there in abundance. By 
the way, I think there are some ladies in that 
county, who practically exhibit such industry, 
generosity, gentleness, and intelligence, as 
should characterize that noble and lovely class 
of persons, the “ Farmers’ Daughters.” 
But spring is again here, the weather is now 
pleasant, the oats and grass begin to show very 
prettily; the wheat, far and near, at least in 
Chester County, Pa., and New-Castle County, 
Del., promises to yield most abundantly, and 
the corn, though it will be a week or more later 
than was anticipated, will be now speedily 
planted, and in good time. On the whole, it is 
thought the storm has done the farmers no 
great injury, and we now commence the season 
once more, “full of glee, and take its labor 
cheerily.” J. II. 
-♦ • •- 
ABSORBING POWER OF SOILS. 
It has been long known to chemists that clay 
possesses, to a small extent, the power of ab¬ 
sorbing and fixing ammonia; but Mr. Way has 
shown that all fertile soils are capable of ab¬ 
sorbing not only that substance, but the alkalies 
and magnesia. Thus, if a soil be shaken up 
with water containing a small quantity of am¬ 
monia or any of its salts in solution, and then 
left to deposit, the clear fluid drawn from the 
surface is found to be entirely free of ammonia. 
This absorption, however, is confined to the 
ammonia, none of the acid with which it is com¬ 
bined being retained by the soil. Thus, if sul¬ 
phate of ammonia be employed, the whole of 
the sulphuric acid is found in the fluid combined 
with lime. A true chemical decomposition has 
here occurred, lime derived from the soil having 
replaced the ammonia in its compound. The 
extent to which the absorption of these sub¬ 
stances takes place is small, and has, as yet, 
been accurately ascertained only with regard to 
ammonia and potash. It differs greatly accord¬ 
ing to the nature of the soil, and whether the 
substance is employed in the pure state or com¬ 
bined with acids. Thus, a loamy soil from 
Dorsetshire absorbed 0.3921 per cent, of am¬ 
monia ; a lighter soil from Berkshire took up 
0.1570, and a sub-soil clay from Somerset only 
0.0818. In regard to potash, the experiments 
published by Mr. Way refer only to a sort of 
pottery clay, which takes up 0.4366, per cent, 
from the nitrate and 1.05 from a solution of 
pure caustic potash. Direct experiment has 
shown that this absorptive power is not due to 
sand; and as it is found to exist in pure potter’s 
clay, brought up from a considerable depth, Mr. 
Way infers that it does not depend on organic 
matters, but is entirely due to the clay. In a 
later paper he has extended his investigations, 
and starting from the obvious fact that the ab¬ 
sorption could not be due to the clay as a whole, 
but rather to some particular substance existing 
in it, and possessing a high degree of absorp¬ 
tive power, he has inquired into the subject in 
this point of view, and arrived at results of 
much practical and scientific interest. As it 
was manifestly impossible to extract from the 
clay the supposed substances to which its ab¬ 
sorptive power was attributed, he adopted a 
different mode of investigation. He first proved 
that felspar, albite, and the other minerals from 
which the clay of our soils is produced, have no 
absorbent effect, and then proceeded to try what 
could be done by the artificial formation of sub¬ 
stances of similar nature. When silicate of 
soda is added to a solution of alum, a white 
powder is formed which is a compound of sili¬ 
cate of allumina and silicate of soda, and this, 
when treated with a salt of lime, gives a similar 
compound, containing lime in place of soda. 
When this substance is macerated with a salt of 
potash or ammonia, it is decomposed, and there 
are formed double compounds containing these 
substances, and nearly insoluble in water. The 
potash compound so formed contains 24 per 
cent, of potash, and that of ammonia contains 
about 5 percent. These substances are so little 
soluble in water, that a gallon extracts from 
them only 2.27 grains of potash, and little more 
than 1 grain of ammonia. The practical infer¬ 
ence from these facts is sufficiently obvious; 
suppose the soil to contain the silicate of lime 
and alumina, and a quantity of sulphate of am¬ 
monia to be employed as a manure, we should 
necessarily have produced the absorptive effect 
actually observed in practice; sulphate of lime 
would be formed, and the ammonia would pass 
into the sparingly soluble double silicate of 
alumina and ammonia, which would thus be¬ 
come a magazine from which that important 
element of our crops would be slowly liberated 
to the extent of a grain for every gallon of wa¬ 
ter, so as to fulfil the requirements of the plant. 
The solubility of these compounds is however 
so small, that in some instances a sufficient 
quantity of potash and ammonia might not be 
obtained by the plant, were it not that their 
solubility is remarkably increased by carbonic 
acid and common salt. Mr. Way found that a 
gallon of water saturated with carbonic acid gas 
dissolved 2.5 grains of ammonia from its com¬ 
pound, and a solution containing 1.97 per cent, 
of common salt dissolved out ammonia at the 
rate of 23 grains per gallon. We have thus 
another function which carbonic acid may pos¬ 
sess, and in addition to that of acting as a food 
for the plant, it may serve as the agent by 
means of which an additional supply of other 
substances is presented to it. The fact just 
mentioned may also explain the effect produced 
by common salt, which has always been a diffi¬ 
culty, especially since we have seen reason to 
believe soda is of little importance as a food of 
plants. We have already alluded to the absorp¬ 
tion of phosphoric acid, which is in no degree 
dependent upon these double silicates, but solely 
on the presence of lime in the soil, with which 
it forms an insoluble compound. It cannot be 
doubted that these observations are of much im¬ 
portance, and have a very important bearing on 
the practice of agriculture. I cannot help think¬ 
ing, however, that Mr. Way carries his views too 
far, when he denies any absorbont influence to the 
organic matters of the soil, and attributes it ex¬ 
clusively to these double silicates. It has been 
distinctly proved that humus absorbs and re¬ 
tains ammonia and its carbonate; and though I 
do not know that the experiment has been tried, 
the humate of lime (which certainly exists in 
the soil) ought on chemical grounds to decom¬ 
pose the salts of ammonia, and form the 
humus of ammonia, which retains its base 
with great obstinacy. It must also be re¬ 
membered that it has not been proved that 
these double silicates actually do exist in the 
soil, but only inferred, that because when arti¬ 
ficially produced they absorb ammonia, they 
may be the cause of the same effect in the soil. 
Difficulties even exist in explaining how they 
should be formed there; but, with all this, it is 
manifest that the inquiry is an important contri¬ 
bution to our knowledge of the chemistry of 
the soil. But wc must beware lest we carry 
too far the inferences to be deduced from those 
experiments, and I think there is rather a ten¬ 
dency to do so. The absorptive power of soils 
is a convenient phrase which I have sometimes 
heard used, as if sufficiently explaining facts 
otherwise unintelligible, although a very little 
consideration might have shown that they could 
not possibly have any connection with it.— Dr. 
Anderson's Address before the Highland Agri¬ 
cultural Society. 
jjjflja’ Corner. 
PERSEVERANCE—ITS VALUE. 
About ten years ago, there was a little news¬ 
boy—very little for his age, which was fourteen 
years—who sold papers at the corner now oc¬ 
cupied by the Tribune buildings and its adjuncts. 
This boy, owing to his cheerful countenance, his 
proverbial integrity and industry—in brief, his 
good qualities generally, (and very good quali¬ 
ties are rarely found among the peripatetic ven¬ 
ders of the dailies and .weeklies,) manufactured 
friends for himself every where, especially 
among the publishers. He did very good busi¬ 
ness as a news-boy, but his position did not suit 
him, as he once confidentially informed us, and 
he was determined to abandon it. 
“ That you can easily do,” said we, “ go into a 
store.” 
“I can neither read nor write,” responded he 
mournfully. 
“Apprentice yourself to some tradewas 
then our advice. 
“ I think I will,” he exclaimed with a bright¬ 
ening eye and a flushed cheek, “ I think I will,” 
and off he bounded. 
We lost sight of him a short time after this 
conference was held, and finally forgot that such 
a being had existed. 
About a week ago, an athletic, well-dressed 
man, with a ferocious—a regular brigandish— 
pair of whiskers, and a brace of merry, twink¬ 
ling optics, that betokened a good heart and the 
best of health, stopped us in the street, and 
extending his hand, called us by name. 
Not recognizing him we had recourse to the 
phrase of “ Really, sir, you have the advantage 
of me.” 
“Not know-, the little news-boy?” he 
cried, as if astonished. 
Truly it was our little news-boy. He had 
taken our advice and apprenticed himself to a 
machinest. 
“Where are you working?” we inquired of 
him. 
“ Oh, I don’t work now,” was his proud an¬ 
swer: “I own a sawmill on Long Island, and 
am doing business for myself. I have been my 
own boss for a year now. I bought out my 
concern with the savings of eight years, have a 
wife and two children, and my owm cottage 
house and garden for them to live and delve in, 
and am as happy as the day is long. I can 
read and write, too,” he continued smiling with 
an air of triumph. 
That man will be somebody besides a boss 
yet. If vre dared tell his name, hundreds would 
at once hail with rapture the good fortune of 
