10 
RESEARCHES OH THE COMPOSITION 
Fish manure of a description other than shime kasu 
and hoshika is made in Japan onlj? to a limited extent. 
Thus, by the manufacture of dried bonito (katsuo bushi) 
from Thynnus vulgaris (shibi maguro) and Thynnus pela- 
mys (katsuo) two sorts of manure which are known as ara- 
kasu are gained from the offal, one being made from the 
heads, bones, fins, tails, and entrails of the two kinds of tun¬ 
ny, the other consisting of the dried scraps from the flesh 
of the fishes resulting when the latter is cut, pressed and 
dried after boiling. 
Of each of these two kinds of manure two specimens, 
one bought in Tokyo and the other kindly collected for us 
at Ishinomaki, Miyagi prefecture by Mr. S. Tanaka and 
obtained from Thynnus vulgaris, were analyzed in our 
laboratory by Mr. T. Yoshii , now professor in the Imperial 
College at Sapporo. Both specimens represented a coarse¬ 
ly granulated mass mixed with larger fragments. Their 
composition, per cent of the original substance, was found 
to be as follows : — 
No. 1. 
T leads, bones, 
fins, etc. 
No. 2. 
Scraps of 
meat. 
Moisture . 
a. b. 
. 7.28 9.47 
a. b. 
8.28 12.63 
Ash . 
-- 28.70 
_ 6 l(j 
Fat and oil . 
....11.83 14.56 
18.01 15.22 
Nitrogen . 
.... 8.16 5.31 
13.01 10.50 
Phosphoric acid . 
. 1.25 7.42 
0.91 2.38 
Lime . 
. 5.14 
0.65 _ 
The composition of these fertilizers is accordingly some¬ 
what variable and dependent upon the content in bony 
matter. The scraps are extremely rich in nitrogen, and 
rank among the most valuable sorts of commercial manures. 
