318 
THE CULTIVATOR. 
roots of turneps and radishes may thrive exceedingly; 
and so may other plants that do not employ Septon as an 
article of their diet.”—(Trans, p. 252.) 
Under the third head the author of the “ Doctrine of 
Septon” further remarks, 
“ 3. There now occurs an obvious explanation of one 
of the operations of lime as a manure, when mingled 
with dung and soil. The common opinion has been, 
that it promoted the putrefactive process of animal and 
vegetable matters, and thus made them more fit for ab¬ 
sorption and nutrition. This may be the case, but there 
is yet another effect which has not been generally attend¬ 
ed to. Calcareous earth combines with the septic acid 
into a septite of lime, (calcareous nitre) and thus be¬ 
comes a very valuable manure; and at the same time, by 
its attractive power, it prevents the evaporation of that 
fluid in the form of pestilential steam. I believe like¬ 
wise, it has a further use in retaining the septic substan¬ 
ces longer on the land, and thereby lengthening out their 
fertilizing effect. Old walls and rubbish, abunding with 
septite of lime, frequently answer valuable purposes as 
manures. Lime in its simple state, destroys vegetation. 
Before it is fit to promote the growth of plants, it must 
be combined with some neutralizer. Its combination 
with carbonic acid, is the most frequent; but in dung¬ 
hills and heaps of manure, a more common compound is 
formed with the septic (nitric) acid. By this connec¬ 
tion, both the lime and the acid are deprived of their caus¬ 
ticity, and preserved upon the land, a sufficient duration 
of time, to undergo that gradual decomposition, by the 
vegetable economy and other causes, which favors the 
production and growth of plants.”—(Trans, p. 255.) 
If my previous remarks, Mr. Editor, on the early ag¬ 
ricultural essays of one of our countrymen, who was an 
excellent and learned chemist, and for a while a practical 
farmer, are agreeable to you and your readers, I may 
continue them, and quote from other essays of his, all 
showing' what has been stated by your late associate, 
that some of the members of the old agricultural Society 
were C( before their age.” Richmond. 
SORRELL AND SOUR SOILS— Errors Excepted. 
I was much amused a few days ago by an article in the 
American Farmer, credited to the American Agricultu¬ 
rist, by Wm. Partridge, criticising the scientific errors 
of Dr. Dana and Noyes Darling. Among these correc¬ 
tions, he says, <c It is still more strange that Mr. Dana 
should prescribe lime as a cure for the growth of sorrel, 
when it exists in this place as an oxalate of lime, and 
could not grow in any soil unless lime was present.” 
How ready we all are, and how able, too, to discover 
errors in others, and at the same time heed not our own. 
Now I have always been taught that oxalic acid exists in 
sorrel and oxalis only in combination with potash, in the 
form of oxalate of potash. I have also been taught, that 
by a careful evaporation of the juice of wood sorrel, 
(Oxalis acetocella,) or of common sorrel, (Rumex acetosa,) 
we obtain the binoxalate of potassa in chrystals. Hence 
it would seem, that potash, not lime, is necessary in a 
soil to produce either of the sorrels. Is it not a fair pre¬ 
sumption that the poverty of the soil and not the absence 
of lime permits the growth of sorrel ? If the ground be 
well limed and manured, and then seeded with wheat or 
other grain, would not the growth of the crop prevent 
the growth of the sorrel ? I have no belief in the actual 
existence of sour soils; that is, soils with such a predomi- 
nence of acid of any kind as to induce the growth of one 
plant and prevent that of others. We all know that sorrel and 
oxalises will grow in common garden soil most thriftily, 
even in the midst of all other kinds of plan's, as can be 
at any time observed in the public gardens, where may 
be seen thousands of species of plants, native and exotic, 
all growing together in the most luxuriant manner. The 
fact appears to be, that the plants take from the soil, wa¬ 
ter and air, such matters as suit them, analyse and take 
from them the various elementary principles that consti¬ 
tute when combined, the various constituents of the plants 
themselves. That a plant takes an acid ready formed, 
from the soil, I do not believe; but that it takes the ele¬ 
mentary principles that constitute an acid, thence, and 
from water and air, I can readily conceive. For exam¬ 
ple, I often cultivate the Cicer arietinum; or Chick Pea, 
in my garden, for the pea is one of the most delicious 
vegetables I ever ate, amid all other kinds of vegetables. 
And yet the chick pea is the only vegetable known to 
possess oxalic acid in a perfectly free uncombined state 
And yet on this same soil, I never saw a single plant oi 
common sorrel, though the wood sorrel grows in it spon¬ 
taneously and luxuriantly. This soil is heavily charged 
with lime. What is still more strange, if the doctrine 
of sour soils be correct, wormwood grows in the same 
soil with equal luxuriance; and we all know that worm¬ 
wood will not grow in a soil where there is not abun¬ 
dance of potash. Can an acid and an alkali, especially 
those of oxalic and potash, intimately exist in the same 
soil, the one giving the character of a sour and the other 
that of an alkaline soil ? True, it may be said that worm¬ 
wood will take the potash, and sorrel the oxalic acid, 
each to themselves, and thus each thrive. But it surely 
cannot be called a sour soil. There is abundance of the 
elements of oxalic acid (carbon and oxygen) in the soil and 
air of all places, and it is just as likely, and rather more 
so, that the plants manufacture it (the acid,) for them¬ 
selves, it being their nature to do so, than it is that they 
take it ready prepared from the soil. Now I shall feel 
obliged to Mr. Partridge for any correction he may think 
proper to make of the facts and reasonings put forth in 
this article. Acetocella. 
REFINING SALT for BUTTER, CURING MEAT, &c. 
Would it not be an improvement in the domestic eco¬ 
nomy of farmers if they were all to adopt some simple 
method of purifying the salt they use in curing butter, 
meal, &c. I have often thought that the bad quality of 
butter is attributable almost as much to impurities in the 
salt as to any other cause. Let any one consult a practi¬ 
cal chemist, or a good chemical book, and he will be in¬ 
formed that the purest salt of commerce contains small 
quantities of sulphate of magnesia and lime, nitrate of soda 
and muriate of magnesia. Rock and bay salt are the purest, 
but even these contain the above named impurities. The 
more common salt, that generally used in domestic eco¬ 
nomy, not only contains these but other impurities in con¬ 
siderable quantities; all which are well calculated to im¬ 
pair the effects of the salt for the purposes intended. A 
very little trouble and less expense will enable any far¬ 
mer's wife to render the salt she uses perfectly pure. In 
the first place put a peck of salt into a large kettle with 
just clear rain water enough to dissolve it; boil it and 
skim off every particle of scum that rises to the surface. 
The# dissolve one ounce of carbonate of soda in four oun¬ 
ces of water, put it in the kettle and stir it well; then 
boil again for ten minutes, taking off all the scum that ri¬ 
ses; then strain the brine through several folds of flannel. 
A considerable quantity of earthy matter will be found 
in the bottom of the kettle, and that is the cause of the 
impurity. After this straining, a small quantity of muri¬ 
atic acid must be added to the brine to neutralize the so¬ 
da; say half an ounce or so; then the brine is to be put 
back into the kettle and boiled again till it cnrystalizes, 
or it may be put into a shallow wooden vessel and the 
water evaporated in the sun. Boiling is the quickest 
method. As soon as the salt is re-chrystalized, it should 
be washed by putting it in a clean basket, and throwing 
a bucket of perfectly pure water over it and letting it 
drain off rapidly; then dry it. In this way, salt perfect¬ 
ly pure may be obtained. I am aware that many people 
will say that the process is too troublesome; but let me 
suggest, that every kind of process for all kinds of ob¬ 
jects, is troublesome, and that it is only because this is 
new or never before practiced by them, that it appears 
troublesome. It is true that it is more troublesome than 
it is to take the common salt as it is and use it; but then 
we propose a valuable object to be obtained by the pro¬ 
cess of purification, that is not attainable from the use of 
common salt. If it is troublesome, it pays well for it¬ 
self in the increased excellence of the butter, &c., in which 
it is used. A high degree of purity may be attained by 
the above process, even if the carbonate of soda and mu¬ 
riatic acid be omitted, though not absolute purity; com¬ 
mon salt will be rendered by it much purer than the best 
rock salt without the carbonate of soda and the acid. D 
