Library of The University of North Carolina COLLECTION OF NORTH CAROLINIAN A ENDOWED BY JOHN SPRUNT PULL of the Class of 1889 C-ss}^ rc^-}a a^lf:''^'a^^■" -^ \ 'S GO ' ( -.m^ .w ,.-^§Li> -^ ^^A^o^i^:.'-^^^^^^^^^^^ J:"S.*^^.o:*P- ^Ml^%g and if ^_^;^' fine oWj)^;. This hook must not he taken from the Lihvary huildin^. LUNC-ISM F.38 OP-1S906 Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2012 with funding from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill http://archive.org/details/agricultureofnorOOnort AGRICULTURE ^^^ JNT O H. T H- C:? -A. R OH. I INT j^. I»-A.H.T 11: CONTAINING A STATEMENT OF THE PRINCIPLES OF THE SCIENCE UPON WHICH THE PRACTICES OF AGRICULTURE, AS AN ART, ARE FOUNDED. BY E B E N E Z E R EMMONS STATE GEOLOGIST. ^^ RALEIGH : ^ W.^'. HOLDEN, PRINTER TO T!^ STATE. ^ I860, v^- ^ To His EMellency, John W. Ellis, Governor of North- Carolina : Sir I Althongli your station in life withheld your hands from the active and laborious duties of husbandry, yet, in the discharge of your former official duties, you were furnished with constant oppor* tunities to acquire exact information of the state and condition of Agriculture throughout the State. It is no doubt for this reason that you have so frequently expressed the strong interest for the improvements in this department of labor, and the more general dift'usion of information upon those subjects which are intimately related to it. By your permission and advice I have been led to undertake the preparation of several works upon the Agriculture of the State. The first is designed to be preparatory to those which will follow, and although the subject matters are by no means easily treated, yet I am encouraged to hope I shall so far succeed as to present them in a form and in a language which can be understood by the common reader. I am, sir. Tour obedient servant, EBENEZEE EMMONS, State Geologist Ralmgh, Mavoh 1, 1-660, PREFACE. The principles of Agriculture set forth in the following pages are designed for the use of Planters and Farmers of this State. The subjects involving the principles herein detailed, are not so fully treated of as in other works of a higher aim, and which profess to be scientific ; but we hope that they belong to a class which may be regarded as the leading principles of Agriculture ; and there- fore, may secure the attention of those for whom they are designed. In consequence of the fixed prejudices to change modes of" culture, and the strong tendency to unbelief of promised advaur tages when mcdifications of a system of husbandry are proposed^^ it has happened that prolessional men have taken the lead and ad- vanced forward, when the regular bred farmer has stood stilh The- lawyer, the physician, and merchant, men of capital,, who' have been disposed to retire from their professions have been generally more ready to follow new modes of culture, and to. engage in some- what more expensive experiments than the farmer. It istrue, .their example has not been followed immediately,, and' indeed, they have not always succeeded ; but their resiajts hav^e often been so striking, as to arrest attention, and it baa- worked in some way or other to the advantage of agriculture ;; sometimes by exciting the pride or vanity of the regular bred farmer, who feels that he ought,; not to be outdone or outshone ia cropa or cattle; and has thei^^r- fore, been led to attempt on his- part to, outdo a competitor,. w\hoi has placed himself irregularly in the ranks of laboring men* B^v way of illustration, we may mention, Livingston, who introdneed plaster, by which the agriculture ofuNew York was revolutionized. LiEBiG, a chemist, first gr:ej:|ared and recommended the use of the superj)hosjphat6 of Z^mJSj, which had, a decided inJBluenCiei upon the progress of agriculture.. The introduction, of fertilizers of this- class could not fail to su,ggest many others, and hence, a multitude of mineral substaaaes have been tried with varied tsuecess. The faithful rea,der, of the following pages m,ay probably observe . that certain fa§j9..,a;P.d prmcjplea aj:e repeated i ift, different parts of ■ Vl PREFACE. the work ; if so, it will be found that they stand in different rela- tions, and hence, are possessed of a greater value; we are not always losers by repetitions, when we can present them under a new phase. We have prepared this work, because we considered it necessary to carry out the objects of the survey. It is intended to prepare the way for other works which require a knowledge of the facts and principles contained in this. Agriculture is com- manding more attention than formerly. Products, which ten years ago were unprofitable, have become profitable, because of the greater facilities and a diminished expense in reaching the markets of the world. Every mile of railroad helps the farmer, as his pro- ducts are heavy, and are often both heavy and bulky. He re- quires, therefore, more than any other citizen, public facilities. As the world now moves, time is doubly imporiant, and to attempt to reach a distant market with flour, corn or cotton, with the old six horse or mule team, would be utterly ruinous. It was impossi- ble to revive agriculture under the old dynasty, inaction; but the advantages of public improvements are now so strongly felt that very few remain to oppose them: the great care which now de- volves upon this generation of active and influential men, is to direct them judiciously. TABLE OF CONTENTS. CHAPTER I. General remarks. Obstacles which retard the diffusion of knowledge among farmers. Errors often due to imperfect observations. Case in point relating to acid soils. How experiments should be conducted. 9 — 14. CHAPTER II. The difficulty of classifying soils systematically. Varieties of soils. Soil elements. Derivation. Composition of rocks which furnish soils. Weight of soils. Average quantity of silex in soils. Carbonate of lime in soils. Losses which soils sustain in cultivation well established. Temperature an essential element in productive . soils. Soils of the Southern States remain iii situ. Organic elements of soil. Inorganic elements, etc. 14 — 27. CHAPTER III. The organic part of a soil and variety of names under which it is known. Changes which it undergoes, and the formation of new bodies by the absorption of oxygen. Fertihzers in North-Carohna. Green crops. Mutual action of elements of soils upon each other. Composition of one or two of the chemical products of soils, showing the sources of carbon in the plant. 27—32. CHAPTER IV. The mechanical condition of soils differ. Circulation of water in the soil with its saline matter. Capability of bearing drouth. How to escape from the effects of drouth. Temperature of soils. Influenced by color. "Weight of soils, etc. 32—36. CHAPTER V. Mechanical treatment of soils. Deep plowing. Advantages of draining. Open drains. Plowing. Objects attained by plowing. Harrowing. Roller. Im- provement of soils by mixture. Hoeing. Effects of hoeing. 36 — 42. CHAPTER VI. Soil elements preserve the proportions very nearly as they exist in the parent rock. Weight of different kinds of soils. Most important elements of soil represented by fractions. Effects of small doses of fertilizers explained. Nature deals out her nutriment in atom doses, and so does the successful florist. 42—45. CHAPTER VII. Fertilizers defined. Their necessity. Mechanical means of improvements of soil. Effects of lime. Growth is the result of change in the constitution of the fertilizers employed. Organs have each their own special influence upon the fertilizing matter they receive. Provisions for sustaining vegetable life. A system of adaptive husbandry. Instances cited. Adaptation of a crop to the soil. What fertilizers will aid in ripening the crop at the right time. The source of fertilizers. Green crops. Peat. Advantages of a green crop. Marine plants. Straw. Losses of farmyard manure. Peat, how prepared for use. Composts. Fertilizers of animal origin. Solids and fluids. 45 — 61. VUl TABLE OF CONTENTS. CHAPTER VIII. Solid excrements. Guano. Composition and comparative value. Discrepances stated. 61—67. CHAPTER IX. Mineral fertilizers. Sulphates. Native phosphates. Carbonates. Nitrates. Sil- icates. Ashes. Analysis of the ash of the white oak. Composition of peat ashes. Management of volatile and other fertilizers. 67 — 84. CHAPTER X. The quantity or ratio of the inorganic elements in a plant may be increased by cultivation. Source of nitrogen. Specific action of certain manures, particu- larly salts. Farmyard manure never amiss. Use of phosphate of magnesia. Special manures sometimes fail, as gypsum. 84 — 87. CHAPTER XI. On the periodical increase of the corn plant. The white flmt, together with the increase of leaves and other organs. The proportions of the inorganic elements in the several parts of their composition. The quantity of inorganic matter in an acre of corn, and in each of the parts composing the plant. Remarks upon the statistics of composition. 87 — 95. CHAPTER XTI. Value of foliage for animal consumption depends upon the quantity of two differ- ent classes of bodies : heat producing and flesh producing bodies. These two classes are the proximate organic bodies, and are ready formed in the vegetable organs. Proximate composition illustrated by two varieties of maize. Their comparative value. Analysis of several other varieties of maize for the pur- pose of illustrating difference of composition as well as their different values. Composition of timothy, etc. 95 — 100. CHAPTER XIII. Composition of tuberous plants with respect to their nutritive elements. Irish potatoe. Sweet potatoe. Their nutritive values compared. 100 — 102. CHAPTER XIV. Composition of the ash of fruit trees ; as the peach, apple, pear, Catawba grape. Amount of carbon or pure charcoal which some of the hard woods give by ignition in closely covered crucibles. 102 — 105. CHAPTER XV. Nitrogenous fertilizers most suitable for the cereals. Correlation of means and ends which meet in fertilizers. The final end of nitrogenous bodies. The power to store up or consume fertilizers modified by age, exercise and tempera- ture. Error in cattle husbandry. Crops containing the largest amount of nu- triment. Weights of crops, etc. Indian corn and turnips. Sweet potatoes. The produce of an acre of cabbage, etc. 105 — 112. SURVEY OF KORTH-CAROLINA, PART II, Makch, 1860. E. EiiMONS. CHAPTER I. Greneral remarks. Obstacles which retard the diffusion of knowledge among Farmers. Errors often due to imperfect observations. Case in point relat- ing to acid soils. How experiments to be useful should be conducted. § 1. Ageictjltuke is regarded as an art and a science. As an art, its practice comprehends the preparation of the earth for the reception of seed, and the mechanical state best fitted for the perfection of a crop. As a science, it comprehends that kind of knowledge which re- lates to th(j structure and composition of vegetables, their adaptions to climate, soil, and the relation which any members of the king- dom hold to the forces of nature. The successful practice of the art, is more or less dependent upon agricultural science, though in the order of time, art preceded science. This fact may seem to contradict the foregoing assertion, nevertheless its truth may bo made to appear from sundry considerations. In the first place, the practice of the art is founded upon the simplest observations when the soil was fresh from the hand of nature and rich in all the ele- ments of growth, when nothing perhaps was required but to gather the fruit and watch the progress of the seasons. When improvement was attempted more attention was required. The grafting of one kind of fruit upon another must have demand-^ ed a knowledge of the structure and functions of bark, stem and the circulation of sap. The success would depend upon a purely scien-- 10 NORTH-CAROLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVICT. tific conception, which would suggest the proper artistic mode of procedure. Accident must frequentl}'^ have promoted discoveries, but accident happens in vain to the man who neglects to think, and perceive the real nature of results and how they came to pass. Accident in the presence of GtAlvani laid the foundation of the beautiful science of galvanism ; the same accident in the presence often or a hundred other men may not have awakened a single idea beyond the naked fact. Accident, therefore, though it may have done much for science as well as art, yet it is only when it has occurred under the eyes of thinking men ; in them alone will be awakened the germ of a prac- tical idea. It is not to accident however that progress in science or the arts is expected. An unexpected result may and often occurs which is turned to account; still, it is by a train of systematized knowledge that agriculture must depend for its future progress. The more exact this knowledge becornea the more we may hope from its gen- eral diffusion. § 2. Governed by the foregoing views we have proposed to pre- face a series of agricultural papers by stating as fully as the nature of the subject demands the elements of scientific and practical agri- culture. In former reports, we have not entirely neglected or overlooked this part of the subject, but to add to the value of our agricultural investigations, it seems that something more than a few isolated principles should accompany the reports. The public mind is now awakened to the importance of book knowledge as it has been called. Old prejudices and old practices are giving away, these should be replaced by something more sound or rational, or more in accordance with recently established principles. In agri- culture there still remains much that is obscure or has not been satisfactorily explained. When a true reason can be given for modes of successful or unsuccessful culture, agriculture will then have attained its highest stage of perfection. But agriculture re- quires extensive knowledge, and it will happen when this stage has been reached, that agriculturalists will rank with the most learned of the professions. That it is progressing to such a stage we enter- tain no doubts ; for most of the natural history sciences are con- stantly contributing their discoveries to this ultimate result. But for results so desirable, time is an essential element, and no one NORTH-CAROLINA IDEOLOGICAL SURVEY. 11 should expect an immediate fulfilment when so much remains to be discovered and when no doubt, a great deal has yet to be unlearnt or must still bear a doubtful import. § 3. One of the great obstacles in the way of a general dif- fusion of agricultural knowledge, especially to the farmer who makes no claim to a scientific education, is the frequent occurrence of hard names or words. A book is often thrown down in despair when so much meets the eye which is unknown. How to get around this difiiculty is not yet clear ; it is a difficulty which is complained of even b}'' persons who have no just right for com- plaint. Even a word so common as ammonia^ perplexes many, and although it is frequently translated hartshorn^ yet how this pungent vaporous body can play so important a part in husbandry cannot be comprehended. There is certainly a grain or two of com- mon sense in this ; for as ammonia is usually spoken of, it would seem unfitting that it should enter the structure of vegetables as hartshorn, and that it is hartshorn itself which is so important to vegetation, whereas, it is no such thing; it is only a body whicli contains a needful element which it furnishes by decomposition. Its properties are due to powers conferred upon the vegetable kingdom. Knowing this body as a powerful stimulant to the sense of smell, does not impart to us a property fitting the sphere it is said to fill. It is so with many other bodies whose names often occur, as sulphuric and nitric acids. Many points relating to these powerful bodies should be more fully explained, and no doubt much of lihe prejudice of common minds to book knowledge arises from a misapprehension of subjects. How, for example, can a person who has been told that ammonia and nitric acid or aqua fortis are fertilizers, but would at once question the validity of the information. Something more is necessary then, than to be told that certain bodies are fertilizers ; they should also know the reason why they are so, and the conditions under which they become so. To understand these points, something must be known of the powers conferred upon the vegetable kingdom, as well as upon the state and condition under which simple or compound bodies be- come really fertilizers at all. A systematic treatise on husbandry requires that certain elementary facts relating to the origin or source of soils and nutriment of vegetables should be sJt least generally stated. 12 NOKTH-CAKOLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. § 4. The importance of established principles as they are considered in the present state of agricultural knowledge, induces us then to state somewhat in detail their practical bearing. Facts differ from principles. The latter are deductions from the former. It is often the case that what are regarded as facts are imperfect observations. Principles which may be deduced from supposed facts may be, and often are, wrong. "When practice is based upon observation, it is quite necessary we should not be mistaken in our facts. We may cite one or two examples of a mistaken theory based upon imperfect observation and an igno- rance of the functions which the vegetable kingdom performs. Thus the idea of an injurious acid in the soil is the basis of the applica- tion of marl and lime to correct that condition, and the inference is, that the beneficial effects of marling is due solely to the correction of acidity. The acidity itself is founded upon the growth of sheep sorrel, pine and other plants, which impart the taste of sourness to the palate. Sheep sorrel, however, grows upon poor soil — not upon an acid soil, for it otten grows around lime kilns, where it is impossible that an acid should exist at all. We have seen it grow- ing with great vigor through a stratum of air-slacked lime two inches thick, where it had been thrown from a lime kiln. We have seen sheep sorrel also covering a dry hill-side which had be- come poor by cultivation ; whereas, it is rare to see this plant growing in moist peaty grounds, where acids from vegetable de- composition are usually expected. The fact is, in all plants which impart to the palate an acid taste, we may be assured it is not due to an acid soil, but to the action of their own peculiar organization, and this acid will be found to exist under any condition in which the plant can bo grown. The soil has really no agency in its pro- duction ; for sow sorrel seed in white pure sand and water, with that which is free from acidity, and the sorrel will be acid ; it is characteristic of the plant, and indej)endent of the soil in which it grows. Yet marl is useful, though our notions of its action are erroneous ; still the question is highly practical ; it would govern our practice in the quantity to be used ; for if it is merely wanted to correct acidity, a small quantity will suflSce for that. Whereas, if it is maintained that it furnished directly or indirectly food to the crop, a much greater quantity will be required. NOETH-CAROLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. 13 § 5. Another instance of an erroneous view of the operation of lime was related a few years ago at an agricultural meeting by the President of a State Agricultural Society. He said, he had used lime on two different kinds of soil. 1st. On a sandy soil, and at a certain amount per acre. He could not discover the slightest ben- eficial effects. He therefore concluded lime was good for nothing for sandy soils. He then tried it upon a clay soil. This experi- ment too was a failure, as he could not perceive that his crop was increased in amount. His general conclusion, therefore, was that the benefits of lime had been greatly overrated. !N^ow both conclusions were erroneous, because all the facts oi the case had not been investigated. In the first instance the conclusion that the crop upon the sand was not improved by lime was true, but it does not follow that lime upon sandy soils is always useless, that contradicts the equally good experience of oth- ers. The fact was, the sandy soil was in a great measure destitute of organic matter, and hence the failure. We do noi stop now to state the reason in greater detail ; this subject will be considered fully hereafter. In the second instance, the clay soil, the conclu- sion that the crop did not appear to be benefitted by marl was no doubt true, but the speaker appears not to have at all apprehended the cause; it was not because it was a clay soil, but because there was already enough lime in the clay, there being not less than five per cent. We find, therefore, that the result of simple experiment, though made by the President of an Agricultural Society, may entirely mislead a community when all the associated facts are ignored. It turns out that lime is a fertilizer only upon certain conditions; those conditions must be complied with. Where it already exists in the soil to a large amount, it can only be useful in a Caustic state. In this condition it affects both the chemical and mechanical condition, but is not necessary to form certain com- binations by which a fertilizing substance is, as it were, generated or in part formed. Experiments then, to be useful, must be ccnducted with a know- ledge of all the essential points which bear upon the results obtained. The nature of the soil must be understood — the general composition of the fertilizers employed. In other words the experimenter must know what he is about. 14 NOETH-CAKOLINA GEOLOGICAL, 8UEVET. CHAPTEK n. The difficulty of classifying soils systematically. Varieties of soils. Soil ele- ments. Derivation. Composition of rocks which furnish soils. Weight of soils. Average quantity of silex in soils. Carbonate of lime in soils. Losses vphich soils sustain in cultivation well established. Temperature an essential element in productive soils. Soils of the Southern States remain in situ. Organic elements of soils. Inorganic elements, etc. § 6. Soils cannot be systematically classified. We may divide them so that, considered in the extreme, the strong lines of demarkation will appear quite distinct, as a clay soil and a sandy one, but these graduate into each other and the lines of demarka- tion disappear insensibly. So we find peaty soils, and in districts where chalk underlies the surface soil, we may distini;uish a cal-, careous soil, but both kinds lose their characteristics by intermix- tures of clay and sand. We may however, say with truth, of any particular locality, that it has an argilaceous, calcareous or sandy soil as the case may be. Such a statement should be made, but this does not amount to a classification. We shall not, therefore, attempt the arrangement of soils into a systematic classification ; it will be sufficient to indicate in our nomenclature the predominant element, whether it is clay, sand, lime or vegetable matter. It is not, however, proper to omit the statement that sand or silex is the basis of all soils except those in which organic matter greatly pre- ponderates, for, in clay soils silex still exceeds in quantity the clay, but still clay maslxs the silex, though it is less than one-half, and hence has to be treated as an argilaceous soil. But the real nature of soil is not fully stated, by any means when they are merely referred generally to the preponderating element, there is left out of view certain elements which, so far as fertility is concerned, are quite as important, though they exist only in minute proportions. We shall, however, take the ground tliat all the ele- ments of a soil are important, and take away entirely any one of them and its fertility will be aff'ected for certain crops at least, if not for all. § 7. The soil elements are only few, when compared with the number of known simple bodies; thas, while the known elements amount to about sixty-two or three, only about thirteen or fourteen NOETH-OAKOLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. 15 play any considerable part for the benefit of the vegetable kingdom. The latter are embraced in the following list, viz: Oxygen, hydro- gen, nitrogen, sulphur, carbon, phosphorus, the base of silex, or silicon potash, soda, lime, magnesia, clay or alumine, iron and manganese. Iodine and chorine also exist in plants and soils. Potash, soda, lime, magnesia are compounds of oxygen and a metal, whose names terminate in %im — as potassium, sodium, calcium, &c. The first seven which stand in the list, are unmetalic bodies, the last seven are metals. Oxygen, hydrogen and nitrogen in their free or uncombined states, are aeriform bodies; the others are solids possessing different weights. The foregoing bodies or ele- ments exist in the rocks which compose the earth's crust, not how- ever as simple bodies, but in combination with each other, forming what are usually known as simple minerals. Thus, quartz, mica, fels- par, hornblende, talc, serpentine, carbonate of lime consist of these elements, and furnish them when they decompose or disintegrate into soil. The foregoing minerals constitute the great mass of the earth's crust. To take an example of the number of elements which a simple mineral as hornblende furnishes may be seen by the results of analysis. Thus hornblende, felspar and serpentine ai*e compos- ed of HOENBLENDB^ FELffPAB. BKBPENTINE. Silex, 45.69 66.75 43.07 Alumine, 12.18 17.50 0.25 Lime, 13.83 1.25 0.50 Potash and Soda, 12.00 12.75 Magnesia, 18.79 40.37 Oxide of Iron and Manganese, 7.32 0.75 1.11 A simple or homogeneous substance, therefore, furnishes many soil elements, and as rocks, such as granite, gneiss, mica slate, horn- blende, are made up of several minerals in mixture, or are aggre- gates, we may see how a single rock furnishes all the essential ele- ments of nutrition. The rocks which are composed usually of simple minerals, yield one or two elements in excess : silex and alumine, and hence these necessarily predominate in most soils. Almost all of these minerals furnish other bodies in minute doses, potash, and soda, together with combinations of lime and silex, potash and soda with phosphoric acid. 16 NORTa-CAROLlNA GEOLOGICAL STTETEY. The latter forms such small proportions that thej were at one time set down as accidental and unessential soil elements, but now they are known to be all-important. § 8. The mechanical condition and weight of any soil depends upon the existence of the predominating element. Sandy soils have a loose porous texture while an argilaceous one has a close one, and may be impervious to water. The weight of soils is dependent of course upon composition* A cubic foot of dry silicious soil weighs,* 111.3 pounds, A sandy clay, 97.8 Calcareous sand, 113.6 Loamy clay, 88.5 Stiff clay, 80.3 Slaty marl, 112. A soil richly charged With vegetable mould, , . 68.7 Common arable soil, 84.5 The average weight is about 94.58, and when charged with water will Weigh 126.6 pounds. § 9. Soils which are formed from the debris of rocks, contain a large though variable proportion of sand and silex. Of one hun- dred and forty-six soils of Massachusetts, the average quantity of silex is T1.733. This is insoluble matter. The soluble and that which is fitted ultimately to enter into the composition of vegetables is about 15 per cent., of which 2.075 is a salt of lime. The midland counties of ]^. Carolina furnish coincident results. But the eastern counties, which have extensive tracts of swamp lands, differ con- siderably from the foregoing. The silex and aluminein many large tracts, amounts to less than 50 per cent., and sometimes is even less than five, oi indeed must be classed as a peat unsuitable to cultivation. Of lime, which is so much talked about, and is truly an essential element in soil, it appears from hundreds of analyses, that it rarely exists in large proportions. Such is the case in the soils of New York, even where tliey overlie a limestone, its average quantity rarely exceeds one per cent., and in large tracts it scarcely comes Dana's Muck Manual, p. 36. NORTH-CAKOLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. 17 ti'p to on^-half of one per cent. In the western States there is about 1.50 per cent. In 48 European soils, noticed by Dana, it is 1.860. European soils agree generally with American ; all things, there- fore, being equal, their treatment with fertilizers will be based upon similar rules. We must not, however, disregard the influence of climate and temperature. These are important elements in agri- culture, but so far as the composition of the soils of all the great geographical divisions are concerned, their differences have arisen from cultivation mainly ; in their natural state they were much alike. § 10. Soils are analyzed for the purpose of determining their con- stituents. Under long cultivation some of the important elements are so much diminished that fertility cannot be claimed for them. We shall show hereafter how soils become infertile, and what becomes of the fertilizing matter. The proof that soils actually part with cer- tain elements essential to fertility has been fully ascertained and de- termined. This result is certainly due to chemistry, and it is a great result ; for, for a long time the contrary was maintained, and even now many believe that by a rotation of crops and good manipula- tion, soils may be maintained for an indeflnite period in a state of productiveness. So, also, it has been believed, and is still in cer- quarters, that lands thrown out to commons, or to remain a few years fallow, will recover their original fertility. The sooner, how- ever, such opinions are abandoned the better, as they lead to an erroneous system of agriculture. A destructive practice really grew out of the doctrine, it was the continued use of the axe and fire, followed by long fal- lows when exhaustion was nearly completed. It demanded exten- sive plantations, and had such a system of extermination of timber been followed in a more northerly clime, the loss of wood and tim- ber would have become a severe calamity. § 11. I have observed that temperature independent of the composition of soil is an essential element in agricultural practice. It often determines the kind of crop as well as the season when it is to be planted. In England maize finds an incompatible climate, and hence, as a substitute for grain wherewith to fatten cattle, root crops as the turnip is resorted to. Maize germinates in a soil when its temperature is as low as 60°, and also when it rises to 105. Germination is however arrested when the temperture reaches 116- 120. In tropical regions the order of things is somewhat changed. 18 NOKTH-CAKOLINA GEOLOGICAL SUKVEY. So much heat exists in the period answering to our summer that wheat, barley and oats are sown in the coolest months. So in mountainous regions, temperature becomes the controlling element. In the latitude of the Swiss Alps in Europe, wheat ceases to germi- nate at 3400 feet which corresponds to the latitude of 64°. Oats, at 3500, corresponding to latitude, 64° Kye, at 4600, corresponding to latitude, 67° Barley, 4800, corresponding to latitude, 70° In Northern New York at the hight of 2000 feet above the ocean, wheat is an uncertain crop, or is liable to be cut off by an early frost ; while oats, barley and rye come to maturity. So far as these facts go, it appears that the solid masses of the globe as the rocks, have little influence upon crops; but at the same time cultivation never fails to produce its influence, that of impoverish- ing the soil. I have shown in a former report that the soils of the Southern States are not only formed from the rocks of the country, but that the}^ remain upon the place where they are formed or in situ. The proof may be found in every railroad cutting from Virginia to Alabama. Wherever a quartz vein penetrated the rock it remains unchanged in position, it presents the interesting and curious phe- nomenon of an irregular band which seems now to have been forced through yielding and soft materials. Quartz veins standing up for 20 feet unsupported except by soft yielding materials. It is rare to see any thing of the kind in New York or New England. There, at some former period such soft materials with their veins of quartz were swept off by a mighty flood of waters. This erosion no doubt extended deeply or down to the solid plane of rock. No flood however, has disturbed the debris of rocks in North-Carolina, and hence it is no doubt true that this debris is really one of the most ancient products of the globe, equaling in age the Silurian or Devonian systems ; still there is no clue by which its age can be exactly determined, it is now a soil often 25 to 50 feet deep. This condition of the soil no doubt has some important influence upon its agricultural capabilities. The plough in many places must con- tinue to bring up for years an unexhausted soil where the mass is penetrable. This new soil turned up by deep plo ighing, however, is necessarily coarse, especially where it is derived from the coarse schists, as gneiss and mica slate, hence it requires before it is really NOETH-GAEOLINA GEOLOGtCAL SURVEY. 19 prepared to receive a crop to be exposed to the chemical influence of the air and the action of frosts whose effects are mainlj to in- crease its fineness. § 12. Simple bodies enumerated in a foregoing paragraph seem to require a fuller notice, particularly as to their properties or func- tions as soil elements. Wlien either of them is isolated they ap- pear to be neutral bodies ; that is, they manifest but little disposi- tion to form combinations. Nitrogen and hydrogen would re- main in contact w^itli each other for ages wn'thout entering into combination. Oxygen and hydrogen never combine when con- fined together in a vessel, A force is necessary ti > effect it in eitlier case. A flame however, unites them suddenly, attended with a violent explosion. When burnt in streams issuing from small orifices, they combine evolving great heat and intense light. The product of combination is water, and nothing else. Most bodies have a strong aflinity for oxygen ; and hence, it is an element common to most solids. The air or atmosphere is composed of oxy- gen and nitrogen, water, of oxygen and hydrogen, iron rust of iron and oxygen ; potash, of oxygen and potassium; soda, of oxy- gen and sodium ; lime, of oxj'gen and calcium. The general term for compounds of the metals with oxygen is, '^'oxide^ as (>xide of iron, manganese, lead, copper, &c. Oxygen when isolated is always aeriform; and has never been condensed into a solid or liquid. It is the essential element in combustion as usually under- stood, and is the only body capable of supporting life by respiration. "When the word oxygen occurs we can scarcely fail to be remind- ed of it agency in sustaining life, and for supporting combustion. From these two facts, we may proceed farther, and call to mind that it forms a great class of bodies, called oxides. ISTeithercan we fail to consider that it changes the condition of all bodies with which it unites. Water is unlike oxygen or hydrogen. Oxide ot iron has no property in common with either of its elements. § 13. Htdkogen, is the lightest body known, and is always aei- form except when in combination. It lias neither taste or smell, * The word oxide, properly terminates in ide and not yde^ because in framing the nomenclature, this termination was fixed upon ; according to idiom it would be spelt oxyde. 20 NOETH-CAKOLINA GEOLOaiCAL SURVEY. and is never found in nature uncombined with other bodies. Al- though it exists in many bodies as oils, and those which are termed organic, yet water is the body in which it most abounds — not that its proportion is greatest in water, but the general diffusion of wa- ter over the globe and in most bodies, makes it the great source of this element. § 14. ISTiTKOGEN, is another aeriform body, neutral and of little power ; it would seem almost destitute of affinty, for other bodies, if we judge of its perperties as it exists in the atmosphere. Indeed, though it has feeble affiinities, it is for that reason, an element of one of the most powerfully corrosive bodies known. Nitric acid for example is only oxygen and nitrogen, but who ventures to taste it the second time, notwithstanding we inhale the elements of nitric acid at every breath. What substance is more singular than ammonia, or harthorn, which is only nitrogen and hydrogen chemically combined. It will be seen in the sequel that nitrogen performs important functions in the soil. § 15. Carbon, is a solid. We feel relieved when a solid pres- ents itself, something to be seen and handled. It is pure in the diamond ; nearly so in anthracite coal, and in the purest charcoal. It has only a feeble disposition to combine with other bodies. Heat materially puts its particles in a combining state. It forms with oxygen, carbonic acid, an aeriform body sufficiently heavy to be poured from a tumbler. If poured upon flame it extinguishes it, showing that though one of its elements is a combustible and the other a supporter of it, that it is itself an extinguisher when applied to burning bodies, and hence has been and may be used to extin- guish lires — when inhaled, it acts as poison to the system ; and yet in all organic bodies it is a basis of support. § 17. The four preceding elements are often called by way of distinction, the organic elements of bodies ; because all bodies which are organized are composed mainly of them. The following examples will show more clearly than any other statement, the fact alluded to. For example, hay, in 1,000 pounds, is composed of: LBS. Carbon, 458 Hydrogen, 50 Oxygen, 337 Nitrogen, 15 TfOKTH-CAEOLINA GEOLOGICAL 8UETEY. 21 in which is found 90 pounc's of inorganic matter called ash, the product of combustion. Potatoes is composed of: I.E3. Carbon, 440 Hydrogen, 58 Oxygen, 447 Nitrogen, 15, Ash 40 lbs. Oats is composed of: Carbon, 507 Hydrogen, — 64 Oxygen, 367 Nitrogen, 22, Ash40 lbs. Wheat is composed of: Carbon, 461 Hydrogen, 58 Oxygen 434 Nitrogen, 23,Ash241bs. ■ The constituents of animal bodies are quite different, though the same elements are usually found. Thus in lean beef blood, white of eggs, there is found: Carbon, , 55 per cent. Hydrogen, 7 Nitrogen, 16 Oxygen, 22 The propriety, therefore, of calling these four elements or- ganic is not improper; it is true, however, that inorganic mat- ter is always present. It seems to be necessary wherewith to form a species of skeleton, especially in such bodies as hay, oats, and wheat. In animal bodies, as hair and wool, sulphur is an im- portant element, as well as phosphorus. In the solid structures, as bone, phosphorus, an element of the mineral kingdom, is always present in the largest proportion. All good soils have their organic parts. When, therefore, the organic constituent of a soil is referred to, we are necessarily re- 22 NORTH-CAROLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. minded of the fact that it consists of these four elements, carbon, oxygen, hydrogen and nitrogen, or that it may be resolved into them. It is not to be concealed, however, that there are numerous bodies belonging to the organic kingdoms in which nitrogen is absent, as starch, gnm, sugar, and the essential oils. § 18. Sulphur is a M'ell known substance, of a yellow color, and a faint, peculiar odor. It burns with a pale blue flame, giving off at the same time a pungent suffocating vapor, which consists of oxygen and sulphurin combination. One pound of sulphur will make three pounds of sulphuric acid, or oil of vitrei. Sulphur is present in many substances. Mustard seed contains it in a large proportion ; it is also always present in eggs, and which in conse- quence blackens silver; in wheat it is present, particularly in its gluten ; also in lean meat, and in hair and wool, in which it forms nearly one-twentieth of their weight. From its constancy in the vegetable and animal kingdoms, it might be inferred that its appli- cation to the soil would be attended with favorable results. It is however, a striking example, illustrating numerous other cases, that in a simple condition it is not at all fitted to fulfil the office of a fertilizer, although it is not entirely insoluble in water. It may be used, however, beneficially in its simple state for the purpose of protecting vegetables from the attack of insects, as turnips, cab- bages, &c. '^• But the sulphur of organic bodies, as hair, wool, mustard seed, is derived from salts wdiich contain it; gypsum furnishes it; and other sulphates, as the sulphate of soda (glauber salts) sulphate of ammonia, etc. In this fact we find an illustration of the power of organic bodies to appropriate elements which are locked up in chemical combinations. Nothing is created in the vegetable tissue ; it is only possible for it to decompose and appropriate such bodies as they require in growth, and each organ performs an indepen- dent office, and takes only that which its constitution demands. Thus the chaff of wheat differs in composition from the enclosed grain ; and the hair differs in composition from the skin, upon which it is supported. § 19. Phosphorus is a yellowish, waxy substance, extremely inflammable, and even consumes at the ordinary temperature, but does not burst into a flame except its temperature is slightly ele- - NOKTH-CAEOLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. 23 vated. Friction upon a rough board sets it on fire. The common hicifer match is a good ilhistration of the fa^t, and tlie vapor given off in the act of combustion is composed of oxygen and phos- phorus. It is generally diffused in the organic kingdoms ; in certain parts, as bones, it is far more abundant than sulphur in other tissues. It is contained in the substance of brain. Wherever a compound word, as phosphate of lime, phosphate of soda, etc. occurs, they will at once suggest to the mind of the farmer the combustible substance, phosphorus, or it may be the lucifer match ; but as in thev case of sulphur, the simple body phosphorus connot be em- ployed directly as a fertilizer. Combinations of it must first be formed with oxygen, and then the acid thus formed must combine again with bodies which are called bases, as lime and potash. These form the base with which a salt is the final result. In the condition of a salt then, which is a body composed of an acid and a base, both sulphur and phosphorus are brought into a condition in which they may be employed as fertilizers. The composition of the salt is indicated by its name. Sulphate of lime, phosphate of lime, nitrate of lime, the latter indicating the presence oi nitrogen, and by^going back a step, it will be understood that nitric acid is implied, a compound of nitrogen and oxygen. § 20. The simple minerals from which soils are mainly derived, are felspar, hornblende and trap mica serpentine, talc, carbonate of lime. Their composition which has been given shows what ele- ments they respectively furnish for the soil. Silex, which we find in the condition of sand, is a common product even of serpentine. But of the others we find felspar furnishes potash and soda, and one kind of felspar furnishes lime. Serpentine and talc abounds in magnesia, and so, also, certain kinds of limestone, particularly those called dolomites. Hornblende furnishes lime and but a trace of potash or soda. Hornblende is, however, generally of a dark green color, a color which is mainly due to iron, and hence soils derived from hornblende and trap, which is also dark colored, are generally red, for the reason that the iron when set free from its combina- tions, takes more oxygen and forms thereby a red peroxide of iron. "When we find a soil derived thus from hornblende, and knowing also the composition of the mineral, we safely infer that the soil will contain a sufiiciency of lime. A felspar soil is often gray, but 24: NOKTH-CAKOLINA GEOLOGICAL SUKTET. when iron is present in one or more of the elements of gninile, it will charge to a red which indicates a better soil than the gray. Granite soils are often very silicious, in which case they are coarse and poor or meagre in consequence of the great excess of quartz in the <>-ranite. The granite soils of ISTorth-Carolinaj however, are gene- rally very good, or are less meagre than in many other parts of the United States. Where felspar and mica predominate over the quartz element in granite, the soil resembles an hornblende soil in color, and in composition we may expect a larger per centage of potash. Hence we obtain approximately several important facts r^ative to the composition of a soil when we have ascertained its origin. It will appear also, that this information may be obtained with greater exactitude in the Southern than in the Northern or Western States, where the soil has been transported to a distance from its jDarent bed. § 21. It has been stated that the original source of nutriment for the vegetable and animal kingdoms may be traced back to the rocks and mineralo ; it is still required that we also show as correctly as possible how the seemingly insoluble debris of the globe's crust be- comes food, or is fitted for its high and important function. The fact itself is based on observation and experiment. For example, the process of disintegration goes on under our eyes. We see rocks crumbling to a coarse powder which becomes by the continuance of atmospheric action still finer. If in any stage the composition of the rock is determined by analysis, it is found to consist of similar elements. But still the debris may and often does lose a portion of the mass, by solution. Granite contains in its felspar, potash or soda ; both substances are finally washed out by water, or are per- fectly set free from their combinations, and become soluble matters in the soil under other chemical states; those for example, which are called organic salts of potash or soda. We are required to look upon all the solid parts of the earth as in a state of change ; everj"- particle is in motion, nothing at rest. Some compounds it is true, are much more stable than others. Quartz for example, when un- mixed with other bodies, appears to iis stable. But felpar and mica are constantly undergoing change. The same maybe said of hornblende, trap, mica, serpentine, talc, carb. of lime, etc. A double change is in progress. 1st, the. mass is mechanically divided ; and NORTH-CAROLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. 25 2d. It is changed chemieallj. A piece of felspar, hornblende, or trap splits into thousands of particles. The surface is thereby greatly increased. In this condition the carbonic acid of the at- mosphere acts upon its potash. This aids greatly in breaking up the affinities between the silex and alumine, and the consequence is that in the masses the silex chrystalizes out; the bond that united all the elements of felspar and formed an homogeneous mass is broken. In the original compound as felspar, the mineral was a silicate of alumine and potash, soda or lime, but carbonic acid having combined with one of the alkalies and formed a car- bonate instead of a silicate, both the silex and alumina are set free, and the particles of silex will come together, and those of the alumine also. In the first mineral we perceive the grains of quartz or flint, and in the latter the pure clay. Molecular force, as it is called, brings together like particles. Under the operation of these molecular forces, felspar will not be reformed, though all the elements are present at one time ; but in process of time all the carbonate of potash is dissolved out. An ultimate result which is quite obvious from inspection of beds of decomposing granite is the finding of a pure white bed of clay, called porcelain clay, inr terraixed with fragments of quartz, together with nodules of flint,, as they would be called, and which are often hollow and their in- terior lined with fine crystals of quartz. The nodules are derived from the silex of the felspar, which was in combination with the alumine and potash. In this condition we see a perfect change o>f state. Analogous changes are in progress all the time. § 22. From the foregoing it may be seen that lime, potash, soda> silex, etc., are originally rock constituents, which by a process of decay become parts of the soil, and thereby accessible to the roots of plants. So also sulphur and phosphorus belong to the common compounds of the earth's crust. The first is extremely abundant in a class of bodies called sulphates or sulphides ^ combinations of metals with sulphur, as sulphuret of iron, so generally difi'used in nature. It is known to be present by heating the body, when the peculiar bluish flame appears, accompanied with the suffocating odor of sulphur. Phosphorus, though less common, is probably always diffused through granite, but it is known to be more con- stant and more abundant in that class of rocks, called trajp^ in which also potash and other alkalies are constituents. Hence, aa 2 26 NOETH-CAEOLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. trap, M'hen it decomposes, furnishes an aluminous basis for a soil, and is at the same time impregnated with sulphur, phosphorus, and the alkalies, their soils are eminently adapted to the wheat crop. The gluten of wheat requires sulphur and phospliorus, as well as potash in certain combinations. Tlie organic constituents of the soil exist also as mineral bodies in the soils, and also rocks ; oxygen in combination with all the elements of soil, hydrogen in water, and nitrogen in tlie nitrates, and the atmosphere diffused in the soil, where it is an active body, ever ready to form ammonia with hydrogen when water is de- composed. • § 23. A substance which is not simple requires in this place a further notice, because its office is an important one in the vegeta- ble economy ; it is carbonic acid. The atmosphere is regarded as its source. It is, however, generated in the soil. Its solvent prop- erties are among its most important properties. It is, notwith- standing, a feeble acid, and a feeble solvent, water charged with it dissolves rocks, and the indispensable com-ponnd, phosjyhaie of lime, is dissolved by it, and being thereby brought into a soluble state by water, it becomes accessible to the roots of plants when diffused in this menstruum. In the atmosphere it forms only one two- thousandth part. It is maintained that leaves absorb it from the atmosphere, and obtain thereby the carbon required to build struc- tures. StilJ, water in the soil holds it in solution, and from this source it is furnished in a direct way to the vegetable. It is also furnished to growing plants by peat, and the changes which or- ganic matter undergoes in the soil; there is, therefore, an aerial source from which the leaves or upper structures of plants obtain it, and a sub-aerial source from whence the vegetable gets it by the roots. The latter are the channels by which the former may feed it to his growing crop. The organic part of the plant, that in which carbon is so abundant, is that which is consumed in com- bustion. The products are all volatile, and hence, are dissipated. It is by far the heaviest and most bulk}'- part of the vegetable. That which is left after combustion is the inorganic part, and .con- sists of lime, silejs, potash, raajgnesia, soda, iron, etc.. NORTH-CAROLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. 27 CHAPTER III. The organic part of a soil and variety of names under which it is known, changes which it undergoes, and the formation of new bodies by the absorption of oxy- gen. Fertilizers in North-Carolina. Green crops. Mutual action of the ele- ment5 of soils upon each other. Composition of one or two of the chemical products of soils showing the source of carbon in the plant § 24:. The organic part of a soil consist apparently of carbona- ceous matter, and taken as a whole, it is the brown or blackish part, and which is consumed when ignited. Its appearance, indeed, is due to a species of combustion which is carried just far enougli to char the vegetable matter. In warm climates it is nearly all con- sumed, while in cold it constantly accumulates, and forms at the surface a coat of blackish mould. The term organic applies to this part of the soil. On the mountains of this State it is often more than a foot thick. In the swamps of the eastern counties it is often ten feet thick, while in the midland counties it is only sufficient to give a brown stain to the surface. It does not seem to accumulate in consequence of a slow combustion, or as it may be termed decay which takes place. In common language, the organic part is known under a variety of names, as humus ^ mouldy vegetable mould. It is, however, a complex substance, and is constantly undergoing changes which promote vegetation. Chemists have obtained several distinct sub- stances from it. It is really a mixture of organic and inorganic bodies. A portion of the organic matter is free, that is, it is un- combined with the inorganic part. Other parts are in combination with lime, magnesia, iron, potash, soda, &c. The latter are soluble, and also fertilizing matters, and play an important part in vegeta- tion. The cause of this intermixture of organic and inorganic mat- ter is to be traced to its origin. Thus, organic matter being the debris of the vegetables which had grown upon the soil, it must necessarily contain also the inorganic part which belonged to the living vegetables. From this fact it may be inferred that this mat- ter is, in the proper proportions, to be employed by any subsequent crop. § 25. Yegetable Matter after death passes through a series of chemical changes, which gives origin to the numerous compounds 28 KOKTH-CAEOLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. found in organic matter. These changes are due mainly to the absorption of oxygen. The first substance formed from woody fibre after the death of the plant, is uhnic acid. Another portion of oxygen changes nlmic acid into humio acid i and the last is changed into geic acid; on a farther oxydatiou it passes into crenic acid ; and finally by the same process into apoct'enic acid. In an old soil, all these bodies exist simultaneously. The most im- portant, or those which are immediately active, are the three last, geic acid, crenic and apocrenic acid. All the foregoing bodies are the products of the decay of plants, when exposed in the soil to air and moisture. They cannot be distinguished by sight, and the whole mass is simply a homogeneous brown substance. But it is i^'ichly charged with the elements of fertility. We may omit the details respecting the chemical constitution of these bodies. It will be sufficient to state in this place, that they are feeble acids ; and yet possess considerable affinity for inorganic matter, lime, magnesia, ammonia, potash, soda, iron, etc.; so much 80 as to combine and form with them salts^ which are at once in the proper state to be received as nutriment into the tissue of, growing vegetables. This organic matter, however, is remarkable for its affinity for ammonia ; the result, therefore, is that this im- portant substance may be detected in vegetable mould, though it may be chemically nncombined with the foregoing acids ; it may be present as a mixture, yet being present, it will be disposed and ready to combine with the crenic and apocrenic acids, in both of which nitrogen may be always detected. Organic salts, formed by the union of organic acids, with lime, magnesia, potash, ammonia, etc , are the proper food for plants ; and hence, it will be a maxim with the farmer to take such measures as the nature of those sub- stances require to increase it upon all occasions which occur. The greater the amount of these salts in his soil, the greater his crops. § 26. From the foregoing statements we may deduce the follow- ing principle, that there is a mutual action of the organic and inor- ganic parts of the soil upon each other, and that to this action fer- tility is, in a great measure, due. In order that these mutual actions may be better understood, we proceed farther and state, that those substances which are called silicates, have but a slight if any tendency to act upon each other. They are, however, gradually decomposed by carbonic acid, the NORTH-CAROLINA GEOLOGtOAL SURVEY. 20 effect of which is to form with the base of the silicate a carbonate. Thus in the case of granite and similar compounds, the felspar and mica which are silicates, are slowlj decomposed, and the alkali, as potash, or alkaline earths, as lime and magnesia, or even iron and manganese of the rock, lose their silica, or are disengaged there- from ; and the carbonic acid combines with them. These being soluble compounds, are liable to be washed out and carried to the sea, while the insoluble silicate of alumina, or its pure form, remains behind. The consequence of this is, that the soil is relatively richer in clay than before, and the longer the chemical changes are going on, the larger the quantity of clay in the soil ; and it is agreeable to experience that soils become stiffer by cultivation. By this pro- cess they become less adapted in the course of time to certain crops in consequence of this change of constitution. Large districts which once grew the peach luxuriantly, seem to have lost in part the power or abilit}'-, or, at any rate, the peach tree does not thrive so well in the oldest districts of New York and New England, as it did in the early period of their settlement. It is not possible prob- ably to be satisfied fully with respect to the cause why the peach is cultivated with difficulty, but the fact that the soil by cultivation becomes more close and compact, may be remotely connected with the change we have stated. It has been attributed to a change of climate, but it is not true that the climate has changed, and hence we are disposed to refer the change in question to a change in the soil. § 27. In North-Carolina the natural supply of fertilizers exists in the marls of the lower counties, together with the organic matter of the swamps and bogs. The two exist often in juxtaposition. Experience has proved that marl applied to exhausted lands is often injurious. Now this exhaustion extends to the organic matter, though it also exists in its inorganic also. But experience further proves, that however large a quantity ot the latter is applied, little benefit is secured so long as the first deficiency exists. We may see the reason why no organic salts can be formed in the absence of organic matter. The inorganic matter cannot find the proper elements with which to combine, and which the constitution of the vegetable requires. The practical inference is, that marls should be composted with organic matter, as leaves, straw, and weeds, which are free from seeds, or anything which has lived. Or, an- 30 NOKTH-CAEOLINA GEOLOGICAL 8UKVET. other plan may be pursued — supply the organic matter from a green crop, as a crop of peas, ploughed in. In certain parts of the State, clover or buck-wheat may be resorted to. The gain arising from the latter practice, arises from the ability of these crops to take from the atmosphere the organic elements, and deliver them to the soil, a process over which the planter or farmer has no con- trol, except the institution of means. Under many circumstances, the organic matter may be supplied more cheaply by sowing seed than by composting. The importance of organic matter in soils has been sustained by the experience of ages ; but there was a time when this point was denied by the ablest Chemists of the age. It was maintained, that the ash or the inorganic part gave to the soil all that was impor- tant, and hence certain practices were recommended which were in accordance with this theory, such as burning manures, burning turf and the like. Happily, this question has been set at rest, and the best Chemists admit those views which the experience of ages has confirmed independently of chemistry. § 28. But the point which bears more immediately upon the principle respecting mutual actions, comes in play subsequently to the decomposition of the silicates ; which, so far as inorganic mat- ter is concerned, are inert ; but the lime and alkalies once freed from their original combinations with silica, becomes fitted to act at once upon organic matter, and form with it salts. This decom- position may take place where no organic matter exists by the carbonic acid of the atmosphere, but it happens that organic com- pounds furnish also carbonic acid to the soil ; for it is displaced when carbonate of lime or potash is acted upon by an organic salt. Crenic acid, acting upon carbonate of lime, sets free the carbonic acid, and this, in its turn, acts upon the silicates to decompose them, and thereby sets the alkalies and alkaline earth also free. There is then a double mutual action, as it were, constantly going on in the soil, by which nutriment is furnished to the crop. Some physiolo- gists maintain that the jpresence of a living Ijocly^ as the root of a growing plant, effects decomposition similar to the action of sul- phuric acid in converting starch into sugar. However this may be w^e are inclined to beheve that the root has power to act and effect changes upon the elements of soil which are unknown in the laboratory of the chemist ; and many substances which are insolu- NOETH-CAEOLINA (GEOLOGICAL SUKVEY. 81 ble by chemical agencies, become soluble by the action of the roots of vegetables. § 29. The foregoing facts and principle do not change at all the action of the farmer ; they go to sustain his practice in providing fertilizers by means of composts, formed by mixing the organic and inorganic bodies together, and for the purpose of giving them time and opportunity to effect those chemical changes, of which we have spoken. These never fail, while fertilizers in other states do. The foregoing are some of the chemical changes which take place in the soil, and which are mostly due to the presence of organic matter. All the facts go to prove the importance of organic matter, and the necessity, therefore, to supply it when from any cause it is wanting or deficient in quantity. § 30. In addition to the lime and other mineral bodies which the organic salts furnish to plants, it is plain that carbon is also one of the elements supplied. To make this plain we annex the com- position of one or two of these organic bodies. Humate of am- monia consists of: Carbon, 64.75 Hydrogen, 5.06 Oxygen, 26.22 Nitrogen, 3.97 Humate of ammonia, it will be perceived, contains more than_ half its weight of carbon, which may be taken up in the circulating sap. Bnmic acid is composed of : Carbon, 65.30 Hydrogen, 4.23 Oxygen, 26.82 It will follow, from the foregoing, that carbon, which forms the largest pai-t of a vegetable, is not derived entirely from the atmos- phere. The soil, through the medium of the roots of the j)lant, famishes at least a part of this essential element. In certain plants, as wheat, rye and oats, it is very possible that all the carbon is derived from the soil ; while in beans, clover, lucerne, etc., a large proportion may be derived from the atmosphere. 32 NOBTH-CAKOLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. CHAPTER lY. The mechanical condition of soils diflfer. Circulation of water in the soil with its saline matter. Capability of bearing drouth. How to escape from the effects of drouth. Temperature of soils. Influenced by color. Weight of soils, etc. § 31. The mechanical or physical conditions of soils differ accord- ing to their composition, and these physical differences must not be disregarded. It is well known that a clay soil contains imder ordinary circumstances, more water than a mixture of clay and sand, and much more than sand alone. This fact may or may not become a serious injury to growing crops. It will depend upon the season. If it is very wet serious injury may be expected, or if it is very dry the crop will suffer, but not in the same way. All surfaces, whether composed of clay or sand, become dry by the evaporation of water, and the evaporation not only effects tlie sur- face but extends to a great depth ; water seems to rise up to the surface from beneath to supply the waste. In confirmation of this view it is not uncommon to find a saline matter upon the surface in dry weather, which has been in solution in the water brought to the surface by this process. In many places in Wake county, N^. C, the naked soil in ditches is covered with an incrustation of sul- phates or iron and alumine, an astringent salt injurious to vegeta- tion. This incrustion is formed only when there is a di-outh ; if is a gradual process. In countries where a whole season is dry, the soil becomes whitened with salts. Rains dissolve them and they sink again into the soil, though a portion will be carried away by water. An effect of a drouth upon a clay soil is to cause a shrink- age of the mass. It will then become still more difficult for roots to penetrate it, and hence, when drouth occurs early in the season, the crop is starved for want of nutriment, the roots cannot spread through an impervious mass. But sand simply dries without di- minishing its bulk, but this process takes place with greater rapidity than upon clay soils, the latter being close and more retentive of moisture than the former. § 32. The rise of water to the surface from beneath, is familiarly illustrated by the putting of water into the saucer of a flower pot; its rise to the surface is well known. Flower pots are watered with NOKTH-CABOLINA GEOLOGICAL SUKVEY. BB dommon rain water or charged with fertih'zing matter which is con- veyed to the roots. In long continued drouths when the water rises from a depth of 4 or 5 feet, instead of carrying up matter com- patible with the nature of the plant, the astringent salts take their place, injurious effects to vegetation take place in addition to those vliich arise directly from the want of rain. These injurious salts are easily corrected by the use of lime or marl. When they reach the neighborhood of the roots if lime is present, it will decompose the salts and form gypsum. Fruit trees which send their roots deeply into the soil are often injured by the presence of these salts. From the foregoing facts it is evident that the subsoil should be examined for poisonous salts, and when the ditches or deep layers are exposed in cuttings for roads, and should become partially incrusted with astringent salts, it will be important to institute means for correcting this condition of the deep subsoil. § 33. The foregoing remarks apply to those varieties which are purely clay or sand. Composition may modify results materially; if for example a soil whose composition retains a preponderance of clay and yet has a due admixture of organic matter and lime, its ability to stand a drouth is greatly increased — for organic matter and lime not only retain moisture stronglj'-, but they affect the tex- ture favorably, and counteract the tendency to excess in shrinkage. § 34r. As drouths in North-Carolina are much more injurious than excess of rain, it becomes a question of importance to know how to guard against their effects. The first point to be attended to, is to drain deeply. This will affect gradually the texture of the clay; it will become more porous, while its natural affinity for water will not be diminished ; that is, it will be sufficiently retentive while the excess of water will be drained off. Clay may be regarded as requiring a specific amount of Avater; but at the same time its ca- pacity for receiving and iiolding a greater quantity than this, is proved by experience. Another change maybe affected by the free use of organic matter, which, when mixed with the soil, makes it porous. In the cultivation of not only clay soils, but sandy ones, crops should be planted as early as possible, that the surface ma}'" be protected by the shade of the growing crop. To be able to plant early, in clay soils especially, the water must be disposed of b}^ drainage. Two weeks may be saved in many cases by drain- age ; that is, the land will admit of the plough two weeks earlier 34 NORTH-CAKOLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. in drained, than in undrained lands. Give a crop of corn two weeks more of growtli than another piece eqnall}'^ well prepared, and the former will live through an ordinary drouth without in- jury, while the latter will not become half a crop. § 35. Absorption of moistui-e from the air takes place principally during the night, and unabsorbative power is less in sandy than clayey soils. This respite from heat, which causes so much evapo- ration during the day is of the highest importance. Even when dew does not fall, soils take a small quantity of water from the at- mosphere. A stifi' clay, it is said, sometimes absorbs one-thirtieth part of its own weight. .Dry peat will also absorb nearly as much, but its power depends upon its condition; if very tine it absorbs more than clay; if coarse, less. The best condition of a soil is with- out doubt a mixture of clay and organic matter, where it is neces- sary to guard against droughts. § 36. The surface temperature of soils differ accoi'ding to their composition. Water in all soils favors a low temperature because the evaporation carries oiF heat in the invisible vapor which rises from the surface. So long as an active evaporation goes on the surface continues cold, lience in swamps and bogs where the sup- ply is inexhaustible, very slight changes only occur during the summer. When the surface becomes drj'- it begins to rise, and if the air is only 60° or 70° in the shade, the soil will absorb and accu- mulate heat and may rise to 90° or 100°. Color has much effect upon temperature. The darker the color, all things being equal, the greater is the absorbative power. The correctness of the common opinion with respect to the natural cold- ness of light colored clay soils is correct. § 37. It is stated by good authority that the amount of evapora- tion from an acre of fresh ploughed land is equal to nine hundred and fifty pounds per hour for the first and second days after plowing. The rapid evaporation diminishes every day. Evaporation begins again by hoeing, but the moist surface thus exposed has other func- tions besides the evaporative one. Moist surfaces are mucli better absorbents of ammonia from the atmosphere than dry ones, and one of the most important effects of stirring the soil often, arises from its in- crease in absorbative power. Water in the soil is disposed of by forest leaves or by the vegetable kingdom. A single tree 8^ inclies in NOKTH-CAKOLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. 35 di'imeter and 30 feet high expired from leaves in 12 hours 333,072 grains of water. § 38. An acre of woodland evaporates 31,000 pounds in 12 hours. During the summer, embracing 92 days, the whole amount of evaporation will amount to 2,852,000 pounds. Forests and vege- tation generally lai-gely aid the disposal of excessive water in the spring. Water of course accumulates in the soil during winter. Our wells receive their supply and springs have their sources of water replenished. It is true, however, that the removal of forests presents a seem- ing anomaly, for w^here large tracts of country are shorn of their trees and forests, there the head-waters of our rivers fail or dimin- ish. Evaporation is greatest from a shorn surface, and a country is on the road to ruin when its woodlands are mostly destroyed or consigned to the axe. But woodlands require a change. Rotation is as necessary to the forest as to the successive crops of the farmer. We see tliis in the death of pines over large areas of this State. The idea that death was caused wholly by insects is fallacious. In it we see, in part at least, a natural etfort to change the kind of vegetation. Oaks and hickory replace the pines. For hundreds of years pines had been the staple products of large tracts in this State. Is it therefore remarkable that a light soil containing the true pabu- lum of life for the pine, should have been nearly exhausted and the pine should have thereby become weakened and more liable to disease than formerly ? § 39. The absolute weight of different soils is also variable. A cubic foot of clay, with its moisture, weighs about 115 pounds. The same quantity of damp sand 141 ; while peat, with its water, weighs only about 81 pounds. The weight of soils affects the labor of tillage. More foi'ce is required to lift a sandy soil than a clay. But the texture or compactness of an undrained clay soil more than makes up for its less weight. In every point of view the farmer is encouraged to ameliorate the mechanical condition of his plantation. The first point requir- ing attention is its water or drainage, for when a soil is water soaked, good crops are only to be made in the most favorable season. A subsoil of clay beneath sand is ameliorated by draining, though the top may appear to be sufficiently dry ; for the clay may be 36 NORTH-CAKOLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. regarded as a reservoir of water, just as the filled saucer beneath the flower pot. § 40. We may recognise in all these facts two currents which may be found in soils ; a downward current, which disposes of surface water, and an upward current, when the surface water has become exhausted. This arrangement is a wise one, for if there were no upward currents plants would perish, both for want of nu- triment and water during drouths. This result would be far more likely to happen in the case of the cereals and cultivated crops, than in the plants which grow naturally in the soil. CHAPTER Y. Mechanical treatment of soils. Deep plowing. Advantages of draining. Opeti drains. Plowing. Objects attained by plowing. Harrowing. Roller. Im- provement of soils by mixture. Hoeing. Effects of hoeing. § 41. No doubt the proper mechanical treatment of soils is the most important part of husbandry and farming. By mechanical treatment we mean plowing, hoeing, harrowing, etc. If contrasted with the ciiemical tieatment or with the use ot manures, it will be evident that unless the mechanical treatment is right, much of the labor and expense of manuring will be lost. Probably there is no part of farming which is executed so poorly in North-Carolina as the mechanical treatment of soils. It fails to be effective for want of depth. It is true, we believe, that climate should be considered when the question of deep plowing is to be answered. Tiiat regard should be had to climate will appear from what has been said in the foregoing chapter with respect to the evaporation from freshly plowed surfaces. Under the more powerful influence of the sun's rays in the Southern States, the question may be raised whether the plowing which in New- York is called deep ■plowing^ from 12 to 14 inches deep, might not result in two great a loss of water. But whether this question is answered in the affirmative or not, it will NORTH-CAROLINA GEOLOGICAL SURYEY. 37 be found true that deeper plowing than is usually practiced will be attended witli greater success. Pi'eparatory to plowing stands draining j not always, but fre- quently. An important questio)i to be answered is whetlier any given tract requires this preliminary treatment. Observation may readily return the reply. If water stands upon the surtace only a few hours after a rain, it is probable draining will benefit the tract where it stands. If a bed of clay lies near the surface it is called for even if the top is sand. All swamps and bogs of course require it. In all the eastern counties there is a continuous bed of imper- vious brick clay, which often is not less than one foot from the surface, and its materials are often blended with the sand where it lies deper. This yellowish white clay will frequently be found cropping out in ravines where its position may be determined, and having determined its position, it will aid in solving the question of drainage. This bed of clay varies from four to seven feet thick, and is overlaid, and also underlaid with sand. These sand beds vary in thickness, and are always above the marls, unless we reckon among marls the recent shell bed of the coast. In drain- age it is unnecessary to cut through the brick clay; it is sufficient to cut deeply into it, though the drainage will be more perfect if it is cut through. Another indication of the necessity of special drainage is furnished where springs issue near the surface. Tliese are always thrown out by an impervious stratum. This impervious stratum may be sought for in ravines, or by boring with an auger of a suitable length ; its depth beneath the surface may thereby be determined. § 42. Sandy clays which are sufficiently cohesive to be formed into balls by the hand when moistened, will require drainage. In drainage we not only have regard to surfa<3e water, to draw that off, but we must cut inio the impervious stratum sufficiently deep to take out the water confined in its upper layers or beds. Other- wise the soil will rest on a bed always saturated with water, and always giving it off from the surface in vapor, and hence, will maintain a surface too cool for the growth of cotton or corn. Another fact should be thought of and considered. Old soils become more compact and clayey by cultivation ,' and though in its new state crops were sure and certain, yet, in process of time, a change takes place. The greatest change is in the subsoil, which 38 NORTH-CAROLINA GEOLOGICAL SURViCY. becomes partially consolidated by the infiltration of the oxide of iron and carbonate of lime. Free percolation is stopped, and this partially indurated stratum should be cut through to restore a free passage of water. Breaking it up with a subsoil plow is not suf- ficient with many persons; this pan, as it is called, must not be^ cut. Experience, however, justifies it, and no harm ever follows fj-om the practice. § 43. Drainage has been spoken of and recommended in the preceding chapter, but one or two advantages should be more dis- tinctly stated. It is the openness which follows, and by which air penetrates freely the strata. The advantages, or it should be said the necessity for oxygen in the soil, is absolute, especially where orotmic matter exists, for we have shown that oxygen must change the vegetable fibre into humates, geates, and crenic and apocrenio acids, etc. All these changes are accompanied with the disengage- .ment too of carbonic acid. If the vegetable fibre is confined in wet soils, it is converted into a peat only, in which state it is not fitted for vegetable assimilation. But in soils air must circulate; and when it is too close and compact, circulation can be effected only by drainage. From the foregoing, it is plain drainage effects two objects : § 44. 1- It raises the temperature of the soil b}^ sending the water in subterranean channels to distant parts. 2, It opens the texture of soil and permits the free passage of atmospheric air. Both the mechanical and chemical wants of vegetation are provi- ded for by drainage. Among the advantages of draining one has already been fully stated ; but still, let it not be forgotten that by it seed time comes earlier, where soil is drained, and it may and will happen that to an earlier planting a good crop is mainly due. A result of this kind, together with a larger crop for one or two sea- sons, will more than pay the expenditure incurred in the operation. But when a general system of drainage for the country has been carried out, the general health of all its citizens will be secured. Stagnant pools will not exist; the water of wells will be improved and the climate will be measurably changed. Nothing can be Inore important than the sanitary effects of good drainage. The great source of intermittent fever is in stagnant waters. It is true we cannot prevent the freshets which give origin to miasmata, but NORTH-CAROLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. 39 even hero, drainage wall have a sahitary influence by canying off at an earlier day the surphis waters. The volume of this water is replaced by air. Hence it is plain that a very important change must necessarily take place. "While soa'ced with water, which contains but little air, no chemical changes take place which produce fertilizing matter. The changes are preparatory only, but the peaty matter or peat itself, will re- main peat, or become real coal forever. But draw off the water and replace it by atmospheric air w^ith its active principle, oxygen^ and a new order of things begins. § 45. Drainage is not neglected in North-Carolina, but its sys- tem is defective. Open drains are usually made; they effect the object less perfectly than tile drainimg when properly laid down. The former are obstructed b}" the growth of weeds, and the banks are in part closed to the free exit of water. They are also incon- venient, and hence, it is to be hoped, the time is not far distant when tile wnlf be used. These remarks, however, are applicable to the uplands, the swamps must be drained by open ditches and canals. § 4:6. The operation next in importance to drainage \% 'plowing. By the plow tlie surface is designed to be pulverized, should be pulverized, or else the operation is badly performed. The condi- tion of the surface must be right, or else it will be impef feet, how- ever skilful the holder of the plow may be. If wet, it should not be undertaken. This is a settled and well known point, but it is not always observed, for a large amount of pressing w^ork in the spring may in one sense compel a farmer to plow before the soil is dried. Plowing is an old custom, and the experience of the world says that nations have prospered and communities prospered in the direct ratio that this operation approaches perfection. We throw out of mind all that is done in a new soil full of roots and stumps. Great crops of corn have been raised where the plow could not run. But every old country where roots, stumps and briars have been disposed of and the soil has found its level, there the plow must run. The importance of plowing is felt everywhere, is shown by the inventions of mechanics and farmers to perfect the machine and make an instrument which is adapted to all surfaces and depths to which the machine may be driven by cattle and the hand of man. The evil arising from plowing wet land is the lumpy condi- >M) NORTH-CAROLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. tion of the furrow mass, and as these dry they become really indu- rated in the sun, and the consequence frequently is, that such a condition of the soil remains for one or two years. Another important principle differing in kind from the foregoing is, that furrows should not run down hill ; they should encircle the knowl or hill-side in order to divert streams from a direct descent, and thereby cut a side-hill ditch and finally lead to the formation of unseemly gullies. These, however, are not only unseemly, but monstrous evils, and especial care needs be taken in working the soils overlying the free-stones of this State. The first thing to be effected in plowing is good pulverization, the next is to open the soil to a sufficient depth for the roots to spread themselves, and an indirect benefit is secured when these two ends are accomplished, that of helping a crop through a drought without inj^uy. The reader will understand the mode in which this comes to pass by applying the principles already stated. Washing and the formation of gullies is also prevented in part by deep plowing. The subsoil plow is called into requisition to deepen furrows, but not to bring the broken substance to the sur- face. By deep ploMnng, especially if aided by the subsoil plow, the soil will absorb double the quantity of rain, and hence, di- minish the amount which would otherwise escape in streams over the surface, and thereby carry off good soil, and tend to the for- mation of gullies. Pulverization, an open, porous condition for roots to penetrate, depth for absorption of rain, together with a perfect mixture of the matters of the soil and fertilizers, are objects to be attained by plowing. These are all to be kept in view. § 47. The harrow and bush become necessary to break the lumps and form an even surface for the reception of seed. The whole operation of seeding and providing for the germina- tion of seed is completed by a heavy roller. This acts super- ficially, but fewer seed are lost by its employment, especially small seeds. Let a person step upon a celery bed and he will find that double the number of plants come up where the soil is pressed, than where its surface remains loose. It is to be regretted that the roller is not more frequently employed. It crushes clods which have escaped the harrow, and makes withal an even surface. NORTH-CAROLINA GEOLOaiCAL SURVEY. '^ § 48, The mechanical condition of a soil can rarely be amelio- rated by mixture. Those which really require mixture are stiff clays and loose sands. If a mixture can be effected by the plow, it will no doubt pay. But it becomes quite questionable, whether a farmer can haul sand to mix with the clay, or clay to mix with the sand. The cost of hauling is too great. A gardner may make the necessary mixture. At any rate, before a farmer attempts to change a field of ten acres by mixing clay with sand, or the re- verse, he had better count the cost beforehand. Now although a barren sand will not probably be benefitted by draining, yet the texture of the stiffest clays will be ; and as clays are mixtures of silex and alumine, and as they are often, if not generally supplied with the alkalies and alkaline earths, the most direct as well as the cheapest mode to cure a clay of its stiffness, will be to remove the water by under drainage. As it regards sand, it will be cheaper to employ calcareous fer- tilizers with forms of muck than to mix with it clay. The theory of amendment by mixture is perfectly satisfactory; but in practice, it will be found a losing business, where either material has to be carted many rods. § 49. To recur once more to the subsoil plow in connexion with the clays too stiff to cultivate ; it has been stated, that the subsoil plow should not be used until the land has been well drained. When considerable moisture exists in the clay, it unites and be- comes solid and impervious, so that little benefit has been expe- rienced in certain cases from subsoiling ; but when the water has been drained off and the clays have become loose and porous, the masses raised by the plow still remain in this condition, or become still more porous, so that the beneficial effects of subsoiling a stiff under clay will not be secured till after the land has been well drained. § 50. It is scarcely necessary to speak of hoeing or the use of the cultivator. They are needful operations and no one omits them ; but why lioe? is it simply to kill weeds? Hoeing kills weeds and pulverizes the soil, but it has an effect which is unseen except from its effects which are liable to be misinterpreted. The good efiects of hoeing arise from the moist surface created, and which absorbs ammonia. That the beneficial effects do not all arise from the de- struction of weeds and pulverization is evident from the fact that 3 42 NOKTH-CAKOLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. the more frequently the surface is stirred and a moist surface ex- posed, the more vigorous the growth of the crop. The properties of ammonia remove all doubts respecting the effects of hoeing. Let the vapor of hartshorn in a receiver or tumbler be placed over a ves- sel of quicksilver, and then inti'oduce a mass of moist soil, and see with how much rapidity the whole of the ammonia will be absorbed by the moist soil. Ammonia always exists in the atmosphere, and it is obtained in dry weather by exposing a fresh surface of soil to the atmosphere. Hoeing is a cheaper way of obtaining ammonia than buying it in guano; we get it in dry weather, and it is agree- able to the experience of all good observers, that hoeing in dry weather is followed with greater benefits than il the weather is wet. Gardens are hoed more frequently than field crops, though it may be supposed that the vigorous growth in the former is due to a rich soil. Still, the good efi'eets of hoeing are too demonstrable to the eye to admit of doubt. Hoeing, however, is }aboriG.us, and too- much time is consumed to admit of its repetition in field crops. To supply the place of the hoe the cultivator ce^mes in, and no- doubt its more frequent employment in dry weather, not simply tc> kill weeds and break sods, but to create a moist surface which will absorb ammonia, and which is now known to be so needful to all crops. Dry surface has little or no absorbative power as may be shown by introducing a ball of dry earth inta a tumbler, or receiver of hartshorn in vapor. CHAPTER YI. Soil elements preserve the proportions very nearly as they exist in the parent rock. Weight of different kinds of soils. Most important elements of soil rep- resented by fractions. Effects of small doses of fertilizer explained. Nature deals out her nutriment in atom doses^ and so does the successful florist. § 51. It is well established by experiment and- observation, that the soil contains, in its ordinary state, all the elements the vegeta- NORTH-CAKOLINA GEOLOGICAL SUEVET. 43 ble kini;dom needs. It is also known that all may be, and are probably derived from the solid rocks of the globe; and hence it will follow that the composition of the soil will not diifer materially from the parent rock from which it is derived; and what is partic- ularly worthy of note is, that the proportions of the elements will be found in the soil as they exist in the rock; and that where an element or compound is in excess in the rock, so it will be found in the soil, and where the proportion is small in the rock so it will necessarily be small in the soil. We propose in this chapter to state the quantities of elements in soils, and it will appear that though many important substances are extremely minute when put in a table of the common form used in chemical analysis ; yet, if calculated therefrom in absolute quantities per acre, they are very large. We have given the weight of cubic feet of sandy, clayey and peaty soils ; these data will give the weight of a layer of soil of the area of an acre and one foot deep. A granite soil with its usual state of moisture weighs about 90 lbs to the square foot, and the superficial square feet of an acre weighs 3,920,,000 pounds. If granite is composed of two-fifths quartz, two-fifths felspar and one- fifth mica, its composition will be represented by the following i Silex, 74.84 Alumina, .12.8a Potash, 7.48 Magnesia, 99' Lime, .3T Oxide of iron, 1.93; Oxide of manganese, ... . .12 It will be seen that in this and all other analyses of rocks and soils, that silex and alumina constitute by far the largest parts, while those elements which seem the most important to the veget- able occur, or are represented by fractions^ and generally the frac- tions are much less than in the case seleeteiJ. The potash given is the potash of the rock, and thus never occurs in the soil, and the frac- tion which should represent the potash of a granite soil will not ex- ceed one-half of one per cent, in consequence of its solubility. But if it equals the lime, .S'T, the amount of potash in one hundred pounds of soil will be three-eighths of a pound. If the per centage u NOKTH-CAKOLINA GEOLOGICAL SUEVET. amounts to one-half of one per cent., there will be over twenty- tons of the substance in the mass of soil, one foot thick and within the area of an acre. The small per centages, therefore, in an analysis, when calculated for a field, become large and important figures ; and even where the Chemist makes his note as a trace, and which indicates its presence, without being able to weigh the element, it is still sufficient to meet the wants of vegetation. It is still greater than the farmer employs even when he uses gypsum, and much greater than when guano is employed. The interesting question then comes up, how can the great eflfects of guano be re- conciled with the small quantity used? Two hundred pounds of guano to an acre, sown broadcast upon a wheat field, produces visible effects as far as the field can be seen when growing, and is known to double the ci'op. How can the great efi'ects, then, be accounted for when the quantity is so small that it would be diffi- cult to detect it in a pound of soil ? We may conceive it to be explained in this way : It is all dis- solved and evenly distributed in the mass of soil, and is brought directly to the roots of the growing plant in the right condition to be taken up. It is not the absolute quantity called for by the crop, it is the state or condition of solution. Supposing four times as much used, and hence the solution would be four times as strong, would it produce quadruple effects ? certainly not. Experience does not sanction the doctrine ; instead of good effects, the crop would be hurt, or if taken up by the rootlets at all, it is too strong, and the probability is that much would not be taken up, as the strength or suspended particles of nutriment could not be received into the vegetable tissues at all. We account then for the striking efforts of apparently homeo- pathic doses of fertilizers, on the ground of their solutions being adapted to the mouths of the spongioles through which the nutri- ment must enter the vegetable organism, and the adaptation in this state to the constitution of vegetables. All concentrated doses are rejected. All floriculturalists who produce beautiful flowers, employ agents extremely diluted. Others, who do not understand the business of feeding beautiful plants, attempt to cram them with too much and too rich solutions ; the consequence is, the plants are killed outright, or else become yellow, their leaves drop, .the whole plant indicates sufi'ering. NORTH-CAROLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. 45 It is liiglilj probable too, that a farmer might produce results as beautiful as the florist, by pursuing like means ; applying his fer- tilizers in a state of extreme dilution, in which case it is evenly distributed to roots and in a state in which it can be taken up. Facts constantly occurring in the analysis of soils, favor, and even sustain the doctrine. For how much soluble matter is there in one thousand grains of soil ? It is possible to obtain one and one and a half per cent, consisting of 12 to 14 substances. ^Nature seems to dole out lier treasures; instead of dealing liberally as be- fitting her, she gives atoms. There are practical principles in the facts developed. If soluble substances are employed, they too must be dealt out in atoms only. A few atoms at a time only are found in solution in the soil. The vegetable organism is only fitted to receive atoms; and in this we see adaptations which must bt repeated. It is true, turkeys, swine and men may be crammed and fattened ; but this system will not succeed in raising wheat, cotton or corn. CHAPTER YII. Fertilizers defined. Their necessity. Mechanical means of improvements of soil. Effects of \ime. Growth is the result of change in the constitution of the fer- tilizers employed. Organs have each their own special influence upon the fertilizing matter they receive. Provisions for sustaining vegetable life. A system of adaptive husbandry. Instances cited. Adaptation of a crop to the soil. What fertilizers will ripen a crop at the right time. The source of fer- tilizers. Green crops. Peat. Advantages of a green crop. Marine plants. Straw. Losses of farm yard manure. Peat, how prepared for use. Composts. Fertilizers of animal origin. Solids and fluids. § 52. A Fertilizer is a substance which promotes tlie growth of vegetables. In this definition is included water, and a great va- riety of bodies which would scarcely be ranked under the name of manures. The latter term is generally applied to the excrements of animals, and yet, it has a wide signification, so that when we 46 NORTH-CAKOLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. have really determined the number of bodies which may be clas- sified under it, we find that its meaning is as extensive as that of fertilizer. § 53. The necessity which has given rise to the use of this class of bodies, is the excessive taxation of the natural resources of soil for the support of much greater crops than the soil would sponta- neously produce, and this taxation being prolonged century in, and century out, the necessity now for resorting to their use and here- after, has become a fixed institution, established in absolute do- minion upon the money and labor of all who have anything to do in agriculture in earnest. The improvement of the soil by me- chanical means extends farther than the simple movement of it in a certain way, turning it over with the plow, breaking up the compact matter at the bottom of a furrow, exposing fresh surfaces with the hoe or cultivator ; for in all these there are excited chem- ical actions, whereby combinations promoting growth take place. So also the employment of chemical bodies do not end strictly in chemical changes; mechanical ones result from chemical actions. Witness the efi'ect of quick lime upon a clay soil; it becomes porous and light, even more so than by the use of the plow and hoe ; besides, it is d^ permanent change in texture as well as com- position. From the foregoing facts, it will be seen how one system of improvement connects itself with another, and that the institu- tion of one system of means sets in motion those which seemingly belong to an opposite kind. We repeat that mechanical agencies result in chemical, and chemical ones result also in mechanical. All means, therefore, for improving the soil belong to double systems, excepting those instances where a fertilizer is selected with reference to a single result, as is often the case in most of the 8oils ; as in sulphate of ammonia, nitrate of potash, or phosphate of lime. But still, fertilizers im] trove soils by chemical agencies, and we shall now consider them in this range of their functions, leaving out of view any mechanical results they may produce. § 54. All applications of substances designed to promote growth do not always act by the results of change in themselves, nor by inducing chemical changes in others prior to their introduclion into the organism of the plant. But by far the greater number of fer- tilizers undergo a change somewhere before they are assimilated, NOKTH-CAJtOLINA aEOLOGICAL SURVEY. 47 ■or become ineoi*porated into the vegetable body. We cannot think -of any thing, how much ahke it seems to the constitution of organ- lEed matt-er, which mnst not be changed in its chemical constitu- tion before it finds its destined position in the vegetable structure. Water, it is true, acting as the vehicle by which food is conveyed inward, passes through and out again by respiratory pores and un- dergoes no change; but, what it transmits, must be changed. The actions of organs have much that is special ; each organ its own wants, and its own apparatus to supply them. The husk of a ker- stel of grain demands its supply, and though it gets a supply from the comraoe circulating store, yet its organiEation elaborates from that supply, something quite different from that of the kernel, leaf or stalk. The ehaisges indicated are regarded as chemical, with what, aad how much right, we cannot decide. There is a vitality in each and ever}'^ part and organ; how much is to be attributed to this principle has never been agreed upon; but it is supposed by some that this principle is a force or powea* controlling the move- ments in questioa; yet, the changes in the substance are like unto chemical products taking place independentl}'^ of this subtle force called mtal. But the foregoing is a departure frona the track or iine in which we designed to move. § 55, But before we speak of th« f&rtilizers we may profitably look at or consider the natural provisions for sustaining vegetable life when left to the workings of its own unaided machineiy. The machinery consists of organs for support and reception, discharge and growth. The first are the roots, which consist of a tapering stem which sends off threads terminating in a congeries of exceed- ingly minute orifices, which are called spongiolea^ whose office is to obtain, and we might perhaps say, select nutriment. The second class of organs are the leaves. They exhale water, in vapor of course, from pores which are mainly located upon the under side. The water is pure, though it has been the carriei" of food, as it is called, from which has been manufactured salts, sugar, starch, ex- tract, gum, woody fibre, etc. The superfluous water escapes from the surface of leaves. But leaves, besides performing the office of exhalation, perform that of reception, or of absorption. Tl^is office, however, appears to be an important one in the clover and allied plants; while in the cereals, it is much less so. The move- ment of water (and when impregnated with foreign matter, is 48 NOKTH-CAKOLINA GEOLOGICAL SUEVEY. called sap,) is upward and outward, so as to distribute it to the new growing organs. It passes into cells in its upward progress, where it is changed or assimilated, and becomes by its passage through them, pei'haps by the action of its walls, vegetalised, if we may coin a word answering to animalised. There is motion in all di- rections, but the currents tend upward and outward, so as to reach the extreme bud and leaf. This is a necessary result, because the bud, leaf, and extreme of the branches seem to be the source of the force by which circulation is carried on. In the workings of this imperfectly described machinery, which may be regarded as belonging to a tree, we find organs which are but temporary in their office, and which therefore require periodical renewals. These are the leaves, fruit and bark. The permanent organs are the trunk with its limbs, and the roots. The growth is both aerial and sub-terrestial. The latter keeps pace with .the former; the roots spread equally with the branches, and that the roots may be fed they penetrate outwardly into new feeding grounds, Mhich like the leaves, bark and fruit in- falling after decay, help supply the necessary nutriment. They re-supply in part, and once again tra- verse the organism. '■■ § 56. Time, also, is not to be lost sight of in the range of enqui- ries relative to fertilizers. It may be, and is, of great importance to get an early and good stand ; the result of the crop may turn upon this one point. Hence, what treatment, what fertilizer will best fulfil the end sought ; for instance, in a crop of tobacco or cot- ton ? What is wanted is an early, or indeed an immediate effect; one which will not retard the germination of the seed, but which will act gently upon the infant plant. The dose, too, is an impor- tant consideration ; a tea-spoonful of broth is not too much for the infant, while a table-spoonful, which an adult stomach would man- age, would be too much for the former. There is another enquiry in range of the specialities we are con- sidering. What fertilizer will ripen a crop at the best time and manner? This may not have been thought of so frequently as sojjfie other questions ; but the tobacco grower's attention has been turned to it. This crop must ripen evenly before frost; and as it is a leaf ripening, not a seed, an organ which has no connexion with the organs by which the plant is propagated, but is supplied \ cellular tissue, which may grow and develope itself indefinitely, NOKTH-CAKOLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. 49 ■ > and which, under the influence of abundance of nutriment, will keep green ; this organ, the leaf, may not ripen at the right time, and may ripen quite irregularly and the crop be half spoiled. The problem, then, for the tobacco grower to solve, is, what fertilizer will spend its powers and exert its properties to the best advantage in order that the leaf sliall not grow too large, but expend or exhaust its power before frost, and thereby promote its ripening at the right time ; for, as long as the leaf is encouraged to grow by the fertilizer employed, it will not stop to ripen. The leaf is under a different law from the organs which propagate the species, though even these may not put forth their powers when the woody system is over stimulated with nutriment. A system of husbandry Avhich is now called for \% adaptive, or to use another term of like import, should be as far as possible special; by which we mean, the use of those means of improvement which are adapted to the soil crop. - It is now proved by experiment, that phosphatic fertilizers are better adapted to the growth of turnips than ammoniacal ones, and that a combination of ammoniacal and phosphatic are best suited to wheat. These are instances of adap- tive husbandry, IIow many such instances will be established by experiment and observation we cannot tell. But their discovery is in the right direction ; it is a progression towards perfection. So also as to the mode of application ; abundant experience and obser- vation } oint to the fact, that surface application is the true mode for grass lands. But it may not be the best for corn lands ; it may not supercede a more immediate application of certain fertilizers to the hill of corn. So again, the adaptation of a crop to the soil and to the condition of any particular kind, is an established principle. Clayey lands are better for wheat than sandy, and sandy soils grow rye better than they do wheat. But observations in this direction are older than those which are established relative to the special use of fer- tilizers. The enquiry is and has been in the mind of every farmer, what is this piece of land adapted to? What kind of crop will be the most profitable? and the consequence of this kind of enquiry lias been to establish many important practical results which are now acted upon every day by our best farmers. This field of im- provement comes first in the order of time ; and from the nature 50 NOKTH-CAEOLINA GEOLOGICAL SUEVEY. of things, has made greater progress than that which comes from the special use and adaptations of fertilizers. § 57. Fertih'zers belong to the three kingdoms, and it will pro- mote a systematic view of them by adopting a classitication cor- responding to their origin or source. The most striking difference in these classes is their bulk and the quantity which is to be applied. Those fertilizers which are derived from the vegetable kingdom are bulky ; and hence, one important result is secured, which cannot be obtained from the others, especially the minei'al kingdom ; they lighten the soil and make it more open than the other two; a result which is due from bulk alone, while, if porosity results from mineral fertilizers, it is in consequence of chemical changes in the soiL Mineral manures are more special than vegetable or animal; which arises from the fact that they are less complex in their composition, or consist of two or three elements only. We might have made another class, inasmuch as some of the most favorite compounds are composed of substances deiived from the three kingdoms. These are composts, and it might at first sight be inferred that guano owght to be classi- fied in both the mineral and animal kingdoms ; but it is plain that what is strictly mineral in it is secondarily derived from the animal kingdom only ; as it consists of the excrements of birds, who have subsisted mainly upon fish or other animal bodies. I 58. Vegetable fertilizers do not furnish exclusively vegetable matter, they also yield up mineral matter, which has already been mentioned under the name inorganic. It is that which has been taken up and fulfilled its functions in the vegetable organism, and now, after its death, it is again seperated by a series of chemical actions, and restored again to the soil. It is probably the best part of it, and sooner or more easily soluble, or more quickly prepared for its receptioii into the vegetable organism than the unchanged elements of soil. § 59. Vegetable fertilizers are matters which have decomposed; their particles separated as well mechanically as chemically ; in fine, which have passed through a series of changes which have resulted in the formation of a class of new bodies. The vegetable loses its green, and is blackened, as if charred, but at the same time is softened and becomes pulpy ; the fibrous structure disap- pears and the organization is broken up. It has become subject to NOETH-CAROLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. 51 chemical laws. The common term is rotten or rotted. All vege- table matters pass througli the same changes, whether matured wood, twigs or leaves. Matured wood requires more time, but ul- timately it will become a mixed fertilizer, and have a value pro- portioned to the kind of inorganic matter combined with its quan- tit}'^ ; for observation and experiment proves that the pines, poplars and willows have less mineral matters than oak, hickory or birch: and certain parts have more than others. The bark of the oak is richer in lime than the wood ; the twigs and leaves are richer in phosphates than the wood, and the fruits are worth more for fer- tilizers than other parts, because they contain more potash and phos- phates combined. One thousand pounds of the willow wood will enrich the soil four and a half per cent., while one thousand pounds of dry leaves will enrich it at the rate of eighty-two per cent. Leaves then would bear hauling much farther than the saw dust of willows or pines; hence, it will be perceived that leaves must produce a much greater effect; they are richer in the money elements. Fertilizers belonging to the vegetable kingdom are used in a green or in a decomposing state, as in green crops, plowed under and in the condition of peat, or peaty matter formed in bogs, and in a state of partial decay. Green crops are fertilizers of the first order, being decomposable speedily in consequence of the full charge of sap which they con- tain when plowed under the sod. They change into a light black mould and assume the condition of a compost heap. A crop is selected for this purpose which grows rapidly, has extensive roots, and is supposed to obtain its stock of materials in part from the at- mosphere. This last is considered a clear gain. The extended roots concentrate the mineral matter in the plant, and if its roots run deep, bring up fertilizers beyond the reach of the wheat plant. At any rate, whatever the green crop contains is laid down in a layer some four or five inches beneath the surface, and is really a magazine of food. The red clover and buckwheat are employed most frequently in the northern and middle States, while the pea is best adapted to the latitude and climate of North and South-Carolina. But all that part of North-Carolina which lies north of the Central Railroad, may sow clover instead of the pea. But the pea is a richer plant, 62 NORTH-CAKOLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. especially if the plant is mature, and its pods iilled with fruit. Til e pea has long roots; we have found them twelve feet long. Green manuring is not confined to the plants named ; all the clover class, as lupin, lucern, etc., borage, turnips, and wild mustard are sown in Europe for the same purpose. § 60. The advantages accruing from green crops are numerous, but they are both mechanical and chemical ; the development of ammonia, nitric and carbonic acid within the soil and which therefore are in the best condition to be absorbed by it, belong to the latter. It is maintained that a green crop plowed in enriches the soil as much as the droppings of cattle from three times the quantity of green food consigned to the soil by the plow. Another advantage claimed is, that about three-fourths of the whole organic matter is derived from the atmosphere. This is the most likely to be true in the clover and bean family. Those who reside near the sea may obtain sea-weed, and plow it in, in the same condition that it is cast upon the shore. Sea- weeds decompose readily ; they yield both organic and saline matter, and are nearly equal, for potatoes, to barnyard manure. Sea-weeds are a specific fertilizer for asparagus, a sea-shore plant. The coast of North-Carolina, however, does not abound so much in this class of fertilizers, as the northern rocky shores of the Atlantic. The foregoing fertilizers are employed in their wet state. The fol- lowing are spread upon the ground dry. § 61. Straw of all kinds are used as fertilizers. In the condition of straw or hay, which is a plant dried in the sun, the decomposi- tion is comparatively slow, even if buried in the soil. Mixed with animal matter in heaps, its change is rapid ; fermentation is induced which soon reduces the mass to a bulky consistence, or the fibre of the straw is separated or broken, and admits, thereby, of a ready incorporation with the soil. Fertilizers undergoing a series of changes in the yards where they are formed are subject to a considerable lo^s of weight. The figures given by Johnson are the following. A recent mixture weighs, for example, from 46 to 50 cwt. After 6 weeks, weighs 40 to 44 " After 8 weeks, weighs 38 to 40 " After when half rotten, weighs 30 to 35 " And when fully rotten, weighs 20 to 25 " NORTH-CAROLINA GEOLOGICAL SURTEY. 53 A loss of more than one-half of its weight during the time re- quired to make what is called short manure. But it is not a loss of one-half its value. It may be infered that the principal loss in weight is wafer, though ammonia and carbonic acid also escape. Biit an informed farmer would stop the loss of valuable pai-ts by the use of absorbents, as plaster, weak solution of sulphate of iron, sprinkled over the heap or mass, while fermenting. By these means, if the loss in weight was not entirely prevented, it would greatly diminish that which is regarded as valuable and be confined to the watery parts. Covering the dry manure in the soil answers the same purpose. Among the dry materials generally discarded by our farmers is saw dust. It hes in great heaps around the sites of old saw mills, and has never, in this State, been employed as a manure. It is true that it generally consists of pine, still, on sandy lands, applied in small and repeated doses, it will supply organic matter and prepare the way for a satisfactory use of marl. One hundred loads to the acre is a suitable quantity. This should be spread and ploughed in. § 62. The seeds of all plants are richer fertilizers than the stems or leaves. Cotton seed is in great repute, indeed all that furnish oils seem to be well adapted to promote vegetation. Rape seed (Brassica napus) is equal to cotton seed, but is too valuable for its oil to be employed before expression. The cake which remains is still valuable. § 63. Peat is one of the most common materials which has been employed as a fertilizer, and has received the same sanction of those who have used it, and as it is widely distributed it is neces- sary to notice it in this connexion. It may be regarded as the basis of all composts. It may be employed by itself, provided it is brought by sufficient exposure to the air and moisture to pass into a pulverulent state .when mixed with the soil. If lumps of peat, which have dried in the air, are buried in the soil, they con- tinue in the condition of lumps as a nuisance for two or three years, but if kept moist in a heap, and a species of fermentation is excit- ed, it then pulverises and mixes readily with the soil. Peat is best prepared for crops by composting it with other sub- stances. Johnson gives the following formula as the best, all 54: NORTH-CAKOLINA GEOLOGICAL SUKVlilY. things considered, especially with reference to the cost of materials, and the effects which are produced : Saw dust or earthy peat, (muck,) 40 bushels. Ooal tar, 20 gallons. Bone dust, V bushels. Sulphate of soda, (glaubers salts,) 1 cwt. Sulphate of magnesia, (ep. salts,) 1^ cwt. Common salt, 1^ cwt. Quick lime, 20 bushels. ^ '' These materials are mixed and put into a heap and allowed to' ferment three weeks; then turned and allowed again to ferment, when the compost is ready for use. "This compound is compared with guano, both as a fertilizer for hay and turnips. " On hay, per imperial acre : PEODTICB. COST. Nothing, 416 stones. Guano, 3 cwt., T52 " $7 50 Compost, 40 bushels, 761 " 5 00 " On turnips : PEOBtrCE. COST. Farm yard manure, 28 yards, .... 26 tons. Guano, 5 cwt., 18 " |12 50 Compost, 64 bushels, 29 " 7 75 According to the foregoing experiments the compost seems to be better than guano." But Johnson remarks that the experiments need repeating, and yet from the nature of the compost there is nothing improbable in the results. It will be observed that the compost contains coal tar, a substance which, a priori, we should be very likely to place any where else than in a list with fertilizers, yet experience proves its vahie. A combination of one hundred parts of plaster, and from one to three parts of coal tar, well mixed in a mortar, is valuable in agriculture. For certain purposes olive oil is added, as when the mixture is designed for application to putrid sores, etc. This is principally used, but without the olive oil, in place of chloride of NOETH-CAKOLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. 55 lime to disinfect sinks, privies, etc. It purifies water in a short time. But it is also valuable in agriculture, one-half a pound of the powder dissolved in 5 or 6 gallons of water and sprinkled on the litter of a stable will deprive a cubic yard of manure of all odor, and prevent the loss of fertilizing matter. Coal tar has also been applied, per se, to wheat stubble for the benefit of a root crop which was to succeed. The use of coal tar is mentioned in this place as in many of the towns of North-Carolina it can be obtained at the gas works. It is now wasted. It is expected, also, that the kerosine oil works, which are about to be established upon Deep river, will furnish large quantities of coal tar for market. §64. But to return to the consideration of peat and muck. Many questions have been raised with respect to their use, which are really superfluous ; as in what kinds of soils do they produce the best results, etc. Now, this substance, if properly prepared, acts beneficially on all kinds of soils. It may be in a condition to benefit no soil ; and hence, prejudices will be raised, when its failure is our own fault. But questions respecting the best mode of preparing it for use, are highly important. There are many modes of composting, and undoubtedly some formula prescribing the ingredients should be adopted ; and in constructing a formula, regard must be had, both to the crop it is intended for, and the condition of the soil to which it is to be applied. In practice, muck or peat which by itself is scarcely soluble, re- quires an alkali to efifect a solution of it at least. Mr. Dana, in his Muck Manual, gives a good formula which can be followed by any person who is inclined to try it. It is com- posed of the following proportions : Peat, 50 lbs. Salt, 1 bushel. Ashes, 1' do. Water, 100 gallons. The ashes and peat are well mixed, adding a little water to moisten the materials. This mixture lies a week, when the dis- solved salt or brine is to be added and well stirred in a hoorshead. 66 NORTH-CAROLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. It requires stirring for a week, when it is fit for use. The brown liquid which floats above tlie peat, contains the whole organic matter in the salts. This is to be appHed to the land it is designed for, in sohition. In the course of four or five weeks, however, another substance is formed, sulphuretted hydrogen, which is in- jurious to vegetation. But in the mean time, repeated additions of water w^ill furnish more soluble matter from the peat. A decided benefit is seen upon corn, onions, grass, barley, etc. A compost of these materials applied dry will be attained with less trouble* and though its effects may not be exhibited so soon, yet they will last longer. In the present state of our knowledge respecting the powers of the roots of vegetables to select or obtain nutriment, the necessity of obtaining a soluble condition of peat before its ap- plication, is not well settled ; for it seems that the roots do act upon insoluble matters, and appropriate them to the use of the plant. By this phraseology, it is not meant that roots do take up insoluble material, but that they have a power of imparting solubility which water b}^ its own action has not. § 65. Fertilisers of Animal Origiti. — It will be superfluous to enumerate all the kinds which are referred to the animal kingdonn. It is sufficient to observe that everything has been or may be em- ployed for manures which has lived. All parts, all organs, hair. wool, skin, flesh and bone, help make up the list. To the foregoing we may add the animal liquids, blood, and the excrements both solid and liquid. As in the vegetable kingdom, they possess differ- ent values. A knowledge of their composition furnishes a reason why they are so, as well as how they act. Bone is composed of: Phosphate of lime, 55.50 " Magnesia, 2.00 Soda and common salt, 2.50 Carbonate of lime, 3.25 Fluoride of calcium, 3.00 Gelatine, 33.25 100.00 NORTH-CAROLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. 07 In adding dry bone pulverized there is added thirty-three per cent, of organic matter in gelatine. Bones are employed in a dry state after being ground or crushed. They of course act slowly in this condition, but with excellent re- sults. The most popular mode of employing bone, however, is as a super-phosphate, as it is called. This substance is prepared by mixing one half of its weight or its whole weiglit, which is better, with sulphuric acid, (oil of vitriol,) previously diluted with three times its hulk of water. The materials require repeated stirring. When the solution is effected, a pasty substance is obtained. Two modes of applying it are recommended. The first in substance, in the condition of a powder. This is obtained by mixing with char- coal powder, dry peat, saw-dust or a fine vegetable soil. If it is wished to drill in this fertilizer with the seed for a crop, as wheat, the powdered state as above may be resorted to, or if it is designed to use a solution, it is necessary to add forty or fifty times its quan- tity of water, when it may be applied to the crop with a water cart. The latter mode brings out results much more speedil}^, and as farmers are anxious to see immediate effects, the latter may afford more encouragement to use those fertilizers which belong to the first class. § 6Q. The comparative results as' determined by experiments of the two forms of bones, the crushed and dissolved, should be given in this connexion. Thus, while 16 bushels of crushed bones gave ten tons and three hundred pounds per acre, two bushels of super- phosphate gave nine tons and twelve hundred pounds ; the latter approximating very closely upon the former. But this statement taken literally, does not reveal to us the state of the case, fov the^ latter has cost something for its preparation, but the difference in; the long run will be found to be much less, inasmuch as the pow- dered preparation will continue to fertilize the soil for the next 10 years without additional expense; and yet the following practice we would recommend, viz : for all cultivated crops, as turnip&,. corn, oats, etc., to use the super-phosphate on the score of speedy action and immediate results; for long continued use, as for pas- tures and hay, the ground bones. The powder will be slowly das- solved by the aid of carbonic acid and; furnish thereby a constant supply of food for years in succession.. So also, as a fertilizer for vines and fruit trees, the bone in substance answers a batter pur- 4 58 NORTH- CAROLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. ■pose than the super-phosphate. It is no object to over manure a vine or tree; what is wanted is a steady and constant supply. When a great growth of vine and limbs is obtained by great doses ^ to Dr. John Davy, quicklime, instead of promoting fermentatiou, ar- rests it in vegetable matters, as peat for example, and as it regards its action upon animal bodies, it only attacks the cuticle, nails and hair, exerting no destructive influence upon the other tissues. Mixed with peat and vegetable organic matter, it confers a ne- cessary solubility, or rather, the probable action is the formation of an organic salt of lime, w-hich is soluble. This view is sustained by the fact that in the absence of organic matter, lime exerts no perceptible effects. Quicklime should not be mixed with stable manure, unless there is added at the same time gypsum,^ to absorb the ammonia which the lime will be instrumental in dischar^rin^. Peat, in a state of fineness, may be employed in the absence of gypsum, as its absorbent powers are equally great. The deficiency of limestone in this State is notorious. The moun- tains and the region of the Yadkin are tolerably well provided for. The midland counties, which take in a belt over one hundred miles wide, are destitute of it. The lower counties supplj'' carixmate of lime for agriculture in their marl beds, and might also quicklime for building, white-washing, etc. The banks of the Neuse, 2() m.les above Newbern, are well stocked with consolidated marl, well adap- ted in composition for quicklime. For more than a century, burnt lime has been used in England for the benefit of the soil. It may be shown that potters and brick clay, which are stiff and unyielding, contain potash and other alka- % . 76 NOBTH-CAKOLmA GEOLOGICAL SUKVET. lies. Now, no plowing, hoeing, or mechanical operation can hasten very materially the liberation of these important elements. No mechanical means effect materially its condition ; chemically, they are too slow. If we resort to the use of quicklime, in the fall spread- ing it over the plowed field, and allow it to act through the winter, the potash will be liberated and the whole field become porous. § 91. That form of carbonate of lime which is known as marl, acts more efficiently as a fertilizer than the ordinary air slacked lime. It is not simply a salt of lime alone, but a mixture of fine carbonate of lime, phosphate of lime, magnesia, iron, and some or- o-anic matter. Marl appears to be in a more favorable condition than pure lime for an easy solution. This substance, though it appears inert to the eye, still has to be applied under the guidance of a few rules. It cannot be freely used on poor soils; those, we mean, which are destitute of organic matter. It being an absorbent of water, it is prone to act injuri- ously upon a crop in dry weather, or to burn it. If on the contra- ry, the quantity applied is proportionate to the organic matter, it will form soluble combinations adapted to the wants of the crop. There is no poisonous matter in the marl usually, and the proba- bility is that when in large doses, as 600 bushels to the acre, it de- prives the plant of water, being in itself one of the strongest ab- sorbents of moisture known. Where sulphate of iron and alumina are' present, this astringent salt being a poison, the plant is killed by its chemical action upon its tissues. As marl is applied to the surface and rarely buried by the plow deeply, it occupies a position which commands all the moisture in a dry time. To forestall the evils of a large application, it may be compos-ted with peat, or any organic matter; it should always be prepared in this way. But when an over dose has been applied, the most direct mode of neutralizing its bad effects, is to plow it in deeply. It will then become mixed with a large quantity of soil, and all the or- ganic matter of it. It will probably be changed into a fertilizing agent. As used in common cases in this State with the oi-dinary depth of plowing, a large body of it must effect unfavorably the whole surface, for there is only a few inches of soil for it to act upon. § 92. The marls of North-Carolina are not rich in lime, but still remarkable effects are obtained by their use. The following shows NORTH-CAROLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. 77 the composition of a marl upon the plantation of Col. Clark, of Edgecombe : Peroxide of iron and alumina, 6.800 Carbonate of lime, 16.100 Magnesia, 0.436 Potash, 0.616 Soda, 1.988 Sulphuric acid, 0.200 Soluble silica, 0.440 Chlorine, 0.030 Phosphoric acid, 0.200 Sand, 72.600 The complex nature of this marl is exhibited in this analysis ; it shows that it is adapted to the wants of the vegetable in furnishing as large a list of tliose elements which the ashes of plants usually contain. An eocene maH from the plantation of Benj. Biddle, Esq., of Craven county, gave : Sand, 9.60 Carbonate of lime, 85.00 Peroxide of iron and alumina, containing phosphoric acid, 4.40 Magnesia, trace. Those marls which are thus rich in lime, are more liable to be used in excess. § 93. The action of the carbonates upon vegetation is usually attributed to the organic salts which are generated in the soil, as the crenafces and apocrenates of lime, etc.; but in the formation of these salts it may happen that carbonic acid is set free, and in this condition becomes also a contributor of matter to the growing plant. The carbon of the carbonic acid will be retained in the plant, and the oxygen set free. The action of marls, as a class of carbonates, upon soils is more favorable in the long run than lime, except where quick lime upon clays is required. The use of lime for many years has induced complaints, whether justly or unjustly, is not perhaps fully settled ; but it is charged with exhausting the soil, and like guano, of which t8 NOKTH-CAEOLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. we have spoken, the charge seems to be reasonable enough and to rest on the same grounds. If the charge is sustained, we can readily see by comparing the composition of marl with common lime, that the former supplies a much greater number of fertilizing elements than the latter; indeed, it is probable that marls, like ashes, cantain the most needful elements ; and hence, the annual application of marl i» not likely to cause an exhaustion of the soil, because of the con- stant additions made by its use. It rather ought to grow better yearly ; for the cotton crop does not require, or does not remove as many pounds of inorganic matter as there are applied. This subject, however, we have not heard spoken of, and we have never heard of injurious effects of marl which could by any means be attributed to exhaustion, and we are confident from the natnre of the facts bearing upon the subject, that where especially a compost is made of the marl, it will continue for long periods to produce good effects. Marl seems well adapted to all those crops where the product sought is made up of cellular tissue, as the lint of cottor, the lint of flax and hemp, the fruit, such as the apple, because lime is the basis of cellular tissue. The phosphoric salts are required in the cereals, the parts sought for must be rich in sulphur and phos- phorus. These last are contained in stems, lint, bark, etc., in niuch less proportions. § 94. Carbonates of potash and soda. — The lirst was anciently called the vegetdble, and the latter the mineral alhali. Both, how- ever, are derived from the mineral kingdom, but they are derived for commercial purposes from the ashes of vegetables. Pearlash is a carbonate of } otash ; it is the common substance used in biscuit making, or short cake, though the bi-carbonate has displaced the old or common carbonate. Neither of these substan- ces have been used extensively in field agriculture. The latter has become a favorite fertilizer for strawberries. Their composi- tion and the fact of their occurrence in the ash of all plants, proves their adaptation to crops. Their cost, however, for general and extensive use, is the only draw-back to their application to corn, wheat, potatoes, etc. § 95. Carbonate of ammonia is a white salt, with the pungent odor of hartshorn. It exists in the ammoniacal liquids already no- NORTH-CAKOLINA GEOLOGICAL SUEVEY. 79 ticed, and is given off in stables in an impure state, or mixed with the effluvia of animal matters. It is an active fertilizer. Its true value, as in tiie case of other compounds of ammonia, is due to its ability to furnish nitrogen to vegetation. As it regards the compounds or salts of ammonia t'oi- wheat and other corn ci'ops, it seems to be established that tliey are essential to tlic increase of grain, beyond the natural pi-odnce of a soil, aided by phoHpJiatic, fertilizers. The experiments of Mr. Ijiwes, of Hert- fordshire, England, gave the following results: APPLICATIOH PBE IMPEBIAI. ACRS. PKODUOE. In grain. In straw. 1844. Super-phosphate of lime, 560 lbs., > ,„ Unshek 1 112 lbs Silicate of potash, 220, ^ lb Dusneis. 1,11/ ids. '"*"■ Mttt?'^''T,"''[ eachicwt, SHdo., 4,206 do., 1846. Sulphate of ammonia, 2 cwt, 27 do., 2,244 do. The increase by the salts of ammonia upon the lormer crop ma- nured by super-phosphate of lime and silicate of potash, is a striking result, and shows that the soil in order to reach ir- capacity for a crop of cereals, requires, besides the phosphaft's, th(»se fertilizers which can furnish nitrogen. It does not prove that phosphates can be dispensed witli, but only that unless nitrogenous ijodies are ad- ded the crop will be less. § 9G — Nitrates. — The union of nitric acid with a l)ase, as potash and soda, constitute nitrates, a remarkable class of bodies. They are all soluble and easily decomposed. When thrown upon glow- ing coals they deflagrate, or burn energetically with flashes of flanse and scintillation. Nitrate of potash., saltpetre., niter. — Its manufacture illustrates its formation in the soil. If the refuse of old buildings, irs mortar, animal refuse, ashes, &c., are mixed in a heap and exjiosed to ihe air and watered occasionally, especially with putrid ui-ine, they become cliarged with nitrates of potash and soda. Whenever, then, the cii'cumstances are favorable, these salts will be formed; the animal matter furnishing the nitrogen which unites as it i? de- veloped with oxygen. The elements of the nitrates are found under houses, in caves, or wherever organic matter is mixed with earth protected from rains. 80 NORTH-CAROLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. Both nitrates of potash and soda are highly esteemed in agricul- ture, though the high price of saltpetre debars it from general use. Its action upon young crops, when applied to them at the rate of one cwt. per acre, is highly favorable. Trees, the sugar cane and the grasses become fresh and green, and when combined with the phosphates is one of the most important fertilizers, as it contains in combination, the most important elements which the crop demands — nitrogen, phosphoric acid and potash. Nitrates increase the foliage of plants; and hence, for grass, or meadows, they ai'e particularly and immediately serviceable. The nitrate of soda, sometimes called soda-saltpetre, is a native product of Peru and Chili, being formed in the earth in those sec- tions where j-ain rarely falls. § 97. Chlorides. — The compounds consist of chlorine and a base, as sodium, uniting directly, or without the previous union of the base, with oxygen. The most common, and to the agriculturist the most importaut, is salt, or the common table salt. It is a native production in many countries, occurring in solid beds, which have to be quarried like rock. The bed near Cracow, Poland, is sup- posed to extend 500 miles, and is 1,200 feet thick. Salt springs are common, but the ocean is the great reservoir of salt. It con- tains about four ounces to the gallon of water. Salt has been and is variously estimated as a fertilizer. It strengthens the straw of the cereals, and is supposed to increase the weight of the grain. It is more important in land, or at a distance from the sea, than upon the shoves. § 98. Chloride of ammonia. — Sal ammoniac of the shops. Mu- riate of ammonia. This well known salt has proved by experi- ment, to exercise a beneficial influence upon crops. It is, however, too expensive in its pure state, to be economically employed in ag- riculture. A solution for steeping seed corn is recommended ; it hastens gei-mination, and is supposed also to add to the luxuriance of the crop. § 99. Silicates. —Ture silica, or pure flint is strictly an acid, but it is so insoluble that under common circumstances its real charac- ter is disguised. But put finely ground flints into a solution of potash and the silica unites with the potash, and forms a soluble silicate of potash. Silicates, then, are bodies constituted like other salts, having a base united with soluble flint. The silica may be NOKTH-CAROLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. 81 separated from its combination by the addition of an acid, and tbe silica will form by itself a gelatinous mass, which is a silicic acid with water. If this gelatinous mass is dried, the silica becomes gritty and is really now what is called quartz, and is no longer soluble. Now in the soil there is always a small quantity of soluble quartz, and certain plants must have it in order to give strength to their stems. All the cereals and grasses are furnished with this substance, which is mainly deposited upon the outside ; which both protects and strengthen the straw. ]t is not properly a nutriment, but in the organization of the grass tribes it is an essential element ; wherever the soil is deficient in soluble silica, the straw of the grain is weak. The celebrated German Chemist, Liebig, proposed the use of special manures, consisting of silicates mostly, as a fertilizer for wheat, rye, oats, turnips, &c. His special manures, however, have failed to meet the expectations of his friends. They failed on the ground that mineral substance alone, and by itself, is insufficient to supply the wants of vegetation. The failure has an important bearing on our practical views, showing clearly enough that organic matter is essential to plants. It does not prove that what Liebig proposed was useless and unnecessary, but that he did not go far enough ; he fell short of a sound theory by excluding from his potent fertilizers vegetahle mattei^ from which the organic acids are formed. The silicates of rocks are not wholly insoluble, they are attacked by water and carbonic acid, and by their joint action are dissolved. It is by their action that the soil is furnished with soluble silicas. That such a result is possible is shown by the action of rains and carbonic acid upon window glass, while a silicate which becomes gradually opake, especially in stables, where carbonic acid escapes. Distilled water alone dissolves glass. The tumblers used in carbon- ated spring water are coroded by carbonic acid Straw furnishes silicates, when sftread over the surface of fields, but, if burnt, the silica becomes insoluble. Hence, straw should be applied without change. Its organic matter is also put to use. Straw spread upon meadows for grass is an excellent application. § 100. Ashes contain a large number of fertilizing elements; in- deed it may be presumed that whatever an ash contains performs something in the economy of the vegetable which yields it. 83 NOKTH-CAKOLINA GEOLOGICAL 8UKVEY. The ash of sea weeds is the kelp of commerce. It contains pot- ash, soda, lime, silica, sulphur, chlorine, iodine, etc. The existence of these elements in marine plants throws light on their action upon vegetation. Wood ashes contain, among other ihmg^^ pearlash, or carbonate of potash. The composition of ashes depends upon the tree and the part burned ; the bark furnishes an ash whose composition dif- fers from that of the wood or the leaves. The ash of the bark and wood of the white oak contains the fol- lowing substances: SAPWOOD. BAKK. UEAETWOOD. Potash' 13.41 0.25 9.68 Soda, 0.52 2.57 5.03 Sodium, 2.78 0.08 0.39 Chlorine 4.24 0.12 0.47 Sulphuric acid, 0.12 0.03 0.26 Phos. of peroxide of iron, lime and magnesia, ...32.25 10.10 13.30 Carbonic acid, 8.95 29.80 19.29 Lime, 30.85 54.89 43.21 Magnesia, 0.36 0.20 0.25 Silica, 0.21 0.25 0.88 Soluble silica, 0.80 .25 0.30 Organic matter, 6.70 1.16 7.10 The tree furnishing the ash grew upon a clay soil rich in lime. It will be observed that the bark is much richer in lime than the wood, -while the wood is richer in phosphates; and tlie richest part of the wood is that of the outside. The same result is shown in the distribution of potash ; the outside wood contains more than the heart wood, and in the bark it is reduced to a minimum quantityj only 0.25 per cent. These are leading facts in the distribution of the elements of growth in the vegetable kingdom, and we may feel assured that it is not an accident that they are thus distributed. It is probable that lime distributed to the outside is best adapted to the protection of the vegetable tissues. The newest parts, as the outside wood, derives a part of its elements from the inside, espe- cially the phosphates, which are no doubt transfei-red by the circu- lation. The law which has been already expressed, holds good in all the correct analyses of the parts of trees; their distribution is NORTH-CAROLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. 83 upward and outward, tending continually to the new parts whicli are being developed. § 101. The ashes of peat differ in composition according to the nature oi' the plant from which peat is formed. There will also be changes in the composition of peat which is old, when compared with a new growth of it. The following analj^sis by Johnson, shows the general composi- tion of peat ashes : Chloride of sodium, 0.41 Phosphate of lime, 2.46 Sulphate of lime, 18.66 " magnesia, 1.68 Carbonate and silicate of magnesia, 6.32 " " potash and soda, 5.32 " alumina, 11.63 Oxideofiron, 9.18 Silica, 15.55 Insoluble matter, sand, &c., 7.94 Carb. acid, coal, etc., . , 10.85 100.00 In this sample the gypsum is much greater than usual, and the silicate of alumina is foreign matter, as alumnia is never a true ash product. § 102. On reviewing the general principles which are set forth in the preceding account of fertilizers, we may understand that it is not suflticient to apply to the soil fertilizers in their simple state^ and at landom, provided the planter determines to derive from them the greatest benefit. We are unable to increase their power, but their elements of fertility may be preserved or prolonged by a suitable management, which in reality would be equivalent to an increase of power. The most active and valuable ones require the most particular attention. Guano, for example, requires careful manipulation, and when it is once determined how this volatile compound is to be treated, it furnishes a rule for others whose com- position is closely related to it. Of the different fertilizers, we may arrange them into four orders. i 84: NORTH-CAROLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. In the first, we may place those which contain a notable per centage of ammonia, in such a state of combination that it is freely exhaled, or exists in a volatile condition. In the second, tliose which by chemical changes form ammonia, and which also become volatile. In the third, we may place the fixed salts; and In the fourth, those compounds which consist of carbonaceous matters, and possess also the character of comparative stability under ordinary conditions. The latter order is well adapted to a general use with the preceding, either as an absorbent of the vol- atile matter, especially ammonia, or with the salts, with which they form combinations consisting of an oi'ganic acid and a mineral base. The probability is that the best results are secured by mixing our organic with the inorganic in every instance. By adopting this course, the time when soils will begin to exhibit signs of ex- haustion will be far in the future, or certainly postponed in- definitely. CHAPTER X. The quantity or ratio of the inorganic elements in a plant may be increased by cultivation. Source of nitrogen. Specific action of certain manures, particu- larly salts. Farm j-ard manure never amiss. Use of phos. magnesia. Special manure sometimes fails, as gypsum. § 103. While it is well established that the organs of plants possess each their own component, inorganic elements, it is equally well proved that their quantity may be increased or diminished by modes of cultivation. The organs still maintain their diff'erenceB in respect to the ratio of the component elements under any system of culture. As an illustration of the changes which may be produced by modes of cultivation, we may cite wheat. If, for example, it is NORTH-CAROLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. 85 inannred with the ejecta of the cow, it furnishes a smaller propor- tion of gluten than if manured with fertilizers richer in ammonia. When manured as above, the berry contained 11.95 parts of gluten, and 62.34 of starch. Wlien manured with human urine, which is rich in the elements of ammonia, it yielded 35.1 of gluten ; nearly three times as much as in the former case. Grluten determines the weight of the grain, and, to a certain extent, its nse. Tiie flour, which is suitable for the manufacture of maccaroni, must be rich in gluten. Certain soils produce, without fertilizers, a heavy wheat rich in gluten. This is a fact with the wheat of Stanly county, N. C, which weighs 68 lbs. to the bushel, probably the heaviest wheat ever sent to market. § 104. The important principle contained m the foregoing facts liave a practical bearing; they determine the practicability of rais- ing a crop adapted to a particular use, independent of the influence of climate, and hence of increasing its value. In relation to the subject of ammonia, much thought lias been given, and many experiments made to settle the question of its source. As nitrogen forms a large proportion of the atmosphere it was natural to infer that the atmosphere might furnish this ele- ment directly to the leaves or to some other part of the plant. This view has not been adopted, and it is moreover well settled that ammonia exists in the air in small quantities and is dissolved iii rain water; it is also contained in fresh fallen snow, but notwith- standing its presence in the atmosphere, it is essential to its recep- tion in the plant to combine it with an organic acid, which nature effects in the soil, which contains organic matter, in the condition of acids, as the cerenic and apocrenic. Certain other saline manures exercise a specific action upon crops. Those of ammonia are, perhaps, the most general in their effects; all crops continue to grow longer under the influence of these salts, or continue in a i;rowing state until late in the season. Nitrate of soda has a similar effect. "With respect to their applica- tion to certain crops, which we wish to have ripened within a cer- tain period, as tobacco^ for example, they would not be adapted to it; it would cause the plant to continue growing until frost; it would be in the unripened state, or only ripened in part; and hence the tobacco would command only an inferior price in market. 86 NORTH-CAROLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVKY. § 105. Certain salts promote the growtli in perfection of particu- lar parts of vegetables. Thns when the straw of wheat or vyv is weak, theory would lead to the use of the soluble silicates of lime or potash, for the purpose of supplying the silex whore it is required. The practice is attended with good results. When the ear is not well tilled, the phosphates are resorted to, as it is here that this salt is deposited in the greatest quantify. The leaves of the vine are best developed by carbonate of potash ; and the phosphates again develope or go to the fruit. Other fertilizers seem to be adapted in certain conditions at least to all crojjs. Farm-yard manure never comes amiss, provided it has" been subjected to such physical and chemical changes whicli the crop requires. It is not always proper to apply it fresh or in the condition of long manure. Gypsum is specially adapted to the growth of red clover, and ashes and marl will bi'ing up white clover in places whore it had not been known to grow perhaps at all. Phosphate of magnesia has been praised for potatoes, and the super-phosphate of lime is the best dressing for turnips. But even the foregoing well authenticated facts are somewliat local ; for certain reasons not well ascertained, some of the striking effects of these special I'csalts, do not occur in another section of the country, or at least are far from being so striking It is never pos- sible to predict the effects of gypsum on crops, though its proper- ties must hold good everywhere ; that is, must always act as an absorbent of ammonia and water, but still it is said to fail at times as a fertilizer. In England it is not particularly praised, Avhile in this country there are only a few districts wheie it is not attended with benetit to the crop. jS^atural fertilizers, however, do not stand alone in their failures. Those manufactured for a particular end are found to fail frequently. Failures no doubt occur by a misap- plication of the substance ; it may be given in excess aiul become a destroyer. It may fail from an unfavorable season, and may also fail from adulteration or for want of a natural purity in coniposi- tion as a great excess of inert and valueless substance with which it is intermixed. NORTH-CAROLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. CHAPTER XL On the periodical increase of the corn plant. The white flint, together with the increase of leaves and other organs. The proportions of the inorganic elements in the several parts of their composition. The quantitj' of inorganic matter in an acre of corn and in each of its parts. Remarks upon the statistics of composition. § 106. The changes which a plant undergoes during its period of" growtli are woi'tliy of attention. For the puipose ot illustrating the development uf vegetable organs, we have selected the Indian corn or maize; and as the growtli of the foliage exhibits the views we wish to bring out, we have tabulated the weekly increase of the leaves in weight, and the amount of water thej contain, together with the qnantit}' of ash the whole weight furnisheSo The obser- vations begin in July and are continued until August 11 : time: JULY 5. JULY 12. JULY 18. JULY 29. AUGUST 4. AUGUST 11. Weight in grains, 367 698 886 2294 2810 1042 Water, 304- 568 869 1835 2179 1227 Ash, 6.75 756 8.32 41.58 58.97 30.59 This table shows the rapid increase of weight in the leaves from July 18 to August 4, after which the leaves rapidly lose their weight, by supplying, no doubt, nutriment to the corn, which is then tilling up. There is in most organs a growth which attains its maximum at a certain period, when it seems to retro- grade. This view, however, applies only to the subsidiary organs Ail the energies of a plant are concentrated on the production and pei'fection of seed. The stalks of corn increase in about the same ratio as the leaves. STALKS. TIMK: JULY5. JULY 12. JULY 18. JULY 24. AUG. 4. AUG. 11. Weight in giaiiHS 100 1084 3041 5219 4597 Water, 92 987 2671 4)25 3832 Ash, 94 8 16.82 29.48 51.25 § 107. The stalk attains its maximum growth between by tiie 4th and before tlw? ilth of August, and begins to yield up its nu- triment to tlie ear, which is rapidly forming. By the 2od of the 88 NORTH-CAROLINA GEOLOGICAL SURViiY. month, a week later, they weigh 2,237 only. In the selection of specimens, ic was attempted to employ such as were equally ad- vanced and of equal size, as possible. § 108. The increase in weight of the white flint corn during pe- riods of one week and during the period embraced in the foregoing observations, will be expressed in the following tables and remarks. On the 28th of June the corn was 18 inches high, and had increas- ed in height during the preceding week 7^ inches : Average weight of each plant, 84.15 grs., Increase in weight, 62.05 " July 5th, hight 26 inches; increase in hight, 8 inches: Weight of one plant, 237.5 grs., Increase of weight during the week, 152.35 " Average increase of one plant per daj% 21.76 " July 12th, hight of plants 35 inches; increase 9 inches : Weight of one plant, 861.9 grs., Increase per week, 432.7 " " day, 61.81 " July 19th, hight 43 inches; increase in hight 8 inches ; Average weight of each plant, 875.48 grs., Increase during the week, 177.19 " Increase per day, 25.31 " July 26th, hight 49 inches; increase in hight 6, or one inch per day : " Average weight of each plant, . 2039. grs., Increase per week, 1191.6 " Increase per day, 170.22 " Increase per hour, 7.09 " August 2d, hight 58 inches ; increase 9 inches : Average weight of each plant, 3308. grs. Increase in weight per week, 1269. " Average per day, 181. " I Average per hour, 7.55 " NORTH-CAROLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. 89" August 9th, hight 65 inches ; increase during the week 7 inches: Average weight of each plant, 38.27 grs., Increase during the week, 286. " Increase per day, 11.92 " Increase per hour, .49 " August 16th, average liight 72 inches; increase 7 inches: Average weight of each plant, 6780 grs., Increase of weight during the week, 2953 " Increase per day, 436 " Increase per hour, 18.16 " August 23rd, average increase in higlit of plants for the week ,76 inches ; increase in hight during the week 4 inches : Average weight of each plant, 8170. grs., Increase in weight, 1389. " Average per day, 198. " ** per hour, 8.27 " August 30th, average hight 78 inches; increase in hight during the week 2 inches : Average weight of each plant, 10.580 grs., Increase during the week, 2.409 " Increase per day, 344 " " per hour, 14.34 " September 6, average liight of each plant, 78 inches. No in- crease in hight for the week: Average weight of each plant, 12.917 grs., Increase during the week, ^ 2136. " Increase of weight per day, 305. " Increase of weight per hour, 12.72 " On comparing the parts of the plant with each other at this stage of growth, we find -they hold the following proportions to each other: 6 90 NOETH-CAEOLINA GEOLOGICAL STJRVET. ■WEIGHT. Tassel, 14V.98 Upper part of the stalk, 1128.8 Lower part of the stalk, 2084. Sheaths, 1239. Leaves, 1970. Eai stalks, 1217. Husks, 2484. Kernels, 926. Cob, 1255. grs., 2.29 per cent 0.63 11 1.13 >( 1.42 u Lost. .48 ii 1.65 1( .488 CI .354 l( The composition of the ash of the leaves and sheaths at this stage of growth is as follows : iEATES. &HEATn8 AND HTTSKS. Potash, 10.15 8.76 Soda, 22.13 19.68 Lime, 3.38 1.20 Magnesia, 2.38 2.02 Earthy and alkaline phosphates, 14.50 13.80 Carbonic acid, 3.50 4.14 Silicic acid, 36.27 38.10 Sulphuric acid, 5.84 6.36 Chlorine, 1.63 4.34 At a later period, that of October 18th, when the corn was npe^ the leaves and sheaths were composed of: LEAVES, SHEATHS- Potash, 8.33 7.48 Soda, 8.52 12.44 Lime, 4.51 2.13 Magnesia, 0.86 0.79 Phosphates, 6.85 9.75 Silicic acid, 58.65 51.25 Carbonic acid, 4.05 trace. Sulphuric acid, 4.88 12.27 Chlorine 2.66 2.96 § 109. The stalks of the period were composed of i NORTH-CAEOLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. 91 STALES. Potash, 16.21 Soda, 24.69 Lime, 2.84 Magnesia, 0.93 Pliosphates, , 16.1-5 Silicic acid, 12.8.5 Carbonic acid, .• 1.85 Sulphuric acid, 10.73 Chlorine, 10.95 The phospliates of the loaves of the Octobei-'s growtli are less than in those of September 6. The amonnt of the alkalies have apparently diminished, though it is possible that comparisons maj be fallacious, seeing that the results are obtained from the analysis; of different plants, growing also on different hills, and may prove- to be due to other causes than those connected with the distributioni of inorganic matter by the influence of the organs. Our theory is,.. with respect to the distribution of the inorganic matter, that the leaves furnish to the grain a part of their store, or that it i& transr'- fei'red from the leaf to the grain. The husks are composed of: mrsKS,. Potash, S.51, .Soda, 9.82 Lime, 0.45 Magnesia, .,.. . . 0.(^7' Phcsphates, 2612©" Silicic acid, 47.6© Sulphuric acid, . . 6.6.7 Chlorine, S.Sft Carbonic acid, trace. For feeding stock, horses^ caws, etc-;, the advantages of ane organ over the other are not very great, so far as the inoi'ganic matter is- concerned. The silicic acid ©i: silica is -the greatest in the husks, . w^iich may be regarded as the useless part ; but it happens that the phospha'es are greater in the husks than the leaves at this • stage ; but again, the potash, and soda are greatest in the leaves. . In the sheath and leaves, taken at the same date, Sept. 6, there ■ are but slight differences ia composition in the two organs, leaf . and husks. A comparisoa of the composition of the leaves and. the grain of the. white flint corn of August 22 : 92 , NOETH-CAEOLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. LEAVES. GKAIIJ. Potnsh, 12.76 23.92 Soda, 8.51 22.59 Lime, 6.09 0.16 Magnesia, 1.25 2.41 Alkaline and earthy phosphates, 19.25 35.50 Silica, 50.55 9.50 Sulphuric acid, 4.18 4.38 Chlorine, 9.76 0.40 Tlie alkaline aiid earthy phosphates, potash and soda, exist in large proportions in the grain, while the silica is reduced to a niiniirnim, and is confined to the cuticle. § 110. Analysis of the grain and cob of the 8 rowed yellow corn of the same ear : GRAIN. COB. Potash, 27.35 37.85 Soda, 5.79 1.83 Lime, trace. 0.24 Magnesia, trace. 0.53 Earthj^ and alkaline phosphates, 52.75 36.57 Chlorine, 4.10 2.95 Sulphuric acid, 3.48 9.20 Silex, 1.73 10.76 Per centage of ash, 62 . .40 « As it regards tlie value of the cob for nutriment so far as its in- organic matter is concerned, it is plain that it has a certain value aiid should not be lost. Cob ashes are known to be rich in the al- kalies even when guided only by taste ; but at this stage the potash amounts to 37 per cent, ana the phosphates to 36 per cent, and tlie silica to only ten per cent. But the per centage of ash is small in the cob, scarcely amounting in any case to more than one-half of one per cent. § 111. The husks of this variety of corn and which belong to the eame stage of growth, are composed of: Potash, 21.85 Soda, 2.04 Carb. of lime, 0.27 Magnesia^ 0.23 Phos. of lime, magnesia and iron, 29.43 NOKTH-CAKOLINA (^EOLOGICAL SURVEY. 93 Chlorine, 1.11 Sulphuric acid, 11.11 Silica, 32.13 Fj'oui observation and experiment it appears liiglilj probable, that tiie 8 rowed yellow corn is one of the most valuable for feed- ing } roperties. Its parts are all of them rich in inorganic matter. § 112. Upon an acre of corn we raise about 18,700 plants. These plants will contain 46G.S0 lbs. of inorganic matter. This inorganic matter will be distributed to the parts of plants in the following amounts: Tassels, 64.239 grs., Stalks 525.525 " Sheaths, 594.962 " Leaves, 1.195.845 " Silk.s, 25.284 " Husks, 434.091 " Cobs, 264.600 " Grain, 480.690 " 3.585.036 grs.,=7468.82 oz.=466.801bs. Of this quantity the leaves and sheaths will contain of: LEAVES. SHEATHS Silica, 82.681 pounds, 39.667 pounds, Earthy phosphates, 29.273 " 7.546 Lime, 9.400 " 1.581 Magnesia, 1.910 " 0.589 Potash, 19.704 " 5.571 Soda, 13.142 " 9.262 Chlorine, 15.072 " 2.202 Sulphuric acid, 6.461 " 8.928 The weiglit of the inorganic matter of the grain and cob will be Silica, 5.939 Earthy and alkaline phosphates, 22.187 Lime, 0.187 Magnesia, 1.506 Potash, , 14.950 Soda, , 14.118 COB. 4.678 8.229 0.103 0.309 12.315 2.034 ^ NORTH-CAROLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. Chlorine, 0.309 0.045 Sulphuric acid, 2.740 0.118 The stalks of one acre will contain : Silica, 8.789 Earthy phosphates, 10.362 Lime, J.... 1.928 Magnesia, 0. 640 Potash, 11.087 Soda, 17.094 Chlorine, 7.491 Sulphuric acid, 7.382 64.773 pounds. § 113. The several amounts of the inorganic elements will stand as follows : LBS. OZ. DECIMAL PAKTS OP AN OUNCE. Silica, 173.12.496 Earthy phosphates, etc., 93. 3.984 Lime, 13. 9.248 Magnesia, 5. 0.752 Potash, 66.2.944 Soda, 61.15.184 Chlorine, 28.7.328 Sulphuric acid, 29.11.696 471.15.632 S 114. The foreffoino; statistics of the corn or maize elements show that it is an exhausting crop. This is agreeable to the opin- ions of the best informed farmers. The maize crop is remarkable for bearing high culture Mnthont danger of an excessive growth of stalk or leaves. In this respect it is quite different from wheat or oats. The rich lands of the eastern counties of North-Carolina produce great crops of maize, but when wheat is put upon them, the crop consists of straw instead of grain, M'hich is even of a poor quality, so far as it is produced. Again, the foregoing statistics show the actual amount which each part contains, and what it removes from the soil. An infer- NORTH-CAROLINA GEOLOGICAL SURYEY. ^O ence from all these facts is, that it is not sufficient to supply the phosphates upon an exhausted soil to restore it to fertility ; the quantity of potash, soda, etc., which may be and probably is com- bined in part with silica, shows that the soluble silicates will be required in the list of fertilizers. Plants require foliage elements, as well as grain or seed elements j for undoubtedly the perfection of the seed is dependent, in a great measure, upon the perfection of the foliage. This precedes, or is developed first, and when we iind it green and luxuriant, we predict a fine crop of grain. CHAPTER XII. Value of foliage for animal consumption depends upon the quantity of two differ- ent classes of bodies: heat producing and flesh producing bodies. These two classes are the proximate organic bodies, and are ready formed in the vegetable organs. Proximate composition illustrated by two varieties of maize. Their comparative value. Analysis of several other varieties of maize for the pur- pose of illustrating difference of composition as well as their different values. Composition of timothy, etc. § 115. The true value of foliage is determined from the quantity of the proximate elements of certain organic products developed or produced in the organs and seeds of many plants, particularly those which are in common use for feeding animals. Of these elements starch, sugar, gum, dextrine, gluten, legnmen, casein, albumen, are the most important. The list is naturally divisible into two classes. The four first form a class which have been called respira- tory elements, and furnish the body with heat and fat; they are destitute of of nitrogen. The remainder, of which gluten stands at the head, are the flesh and strength producing elements, and are known to contain nitrogen, and hence are sometimes called nitro- genous elements. The first class meet a special want in the animal economy, that of supplying it with heat, and when they are taken in larger quantities than the system requires, they accumulate around certain parts in the form of fat. W^ NOETH-CAEOLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. It is evident that as the economy of the animal system requires not only heat but sti-ength and muscle or flesh, and as these are furnished from plants in the lirst place, that any given plant is val- uable for food in proportion to the quantity w^hich these two classes of elements are contained in the vegetable or which it can furnish. In order to determine the value of a plant, then, these difi'erent classes and individuals of the class are separated or isolated from their natural combinations, or in other words they are analyzed. As an example we may take the composition of maize, which will show the proximate composition of the grain. Its ultimate analj^- sis would be, resolve the proximate bodies into the elements, car- bon, oxygen, dydrogen and nitrogen. The proximate elements exist ready formed in the grain, leaf or stem, and they are separa- ted from the fibre or cellular tissue by water, alcohol, ether, weak alkaline, solutions, etc. The grain, then, in its proximate elements of ready formed bodies, contains: S BOWED WHITE FLIST. WHITE KESXrCKT DENT COBN. Starch, 57. 4Y 50.92 Oil, 2.55 0.64 Dextrine or gi3m, 4.01 3.08 Sugar and extractive, 13.21 13.80 Albumen, 2.27 4.44 Casein, 0.39 0.80 Gluten, 1.67 0.72 Fibre 6.07 9.70 Water, 11.46 12.22 The heat producing bodies in the two varieties are : rUNT. KENTUCKT CORN. Starch, 67.47 50.92 Oil, 2.55 0.64 Gum, 4.01 3.08 Sugar, 13.21 13.80 77.24 68.42 Heat and fat producing bodies. NOKTH-CAKOLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. W "While the flesh producing are in the FLINT COUN. KENTUCKY COKN. Albumen, 2.27 4.44 Casein, 0.89 0.80 Gluten 1.67 0.72 4.33 5.9G In the Kentucky corn the flesh producing hodies exceed tliose in Flint corn. To give another analysis of corn for the purpose of showing a still greater difference in the varieties often cultivated, we select the small blue corn used tor parching. It contains: Starch, 42.56 Oil, 5.30 Sugar and extractive, 15.32 Gum, 7.52 Albumen, 5.00 Casein, 2.04 Gluten, 4. 78 Fibre,* 8.56 Soluble in fibre by potash, 8.55 The line parching pi-operties of this corn are due to the large quantity of oil present in the grain. Another variety of iwp corn, the lady linger, contains nearly 7 per cent, of oil. The sweet corn is still more remai-kable in its composition, thus it contains: Starch, 11.60 Oil, 3.60 Sugar, 6.62 Dextrine or gum, 24.82 Extract, 8.00 * Fibre is the hard stringy part of vegetables; it is wood or the fibre of flax; cotton lint is the purest form of fibre ; bruise or beat wood or straw or grain, dis- solve out by water, ether, alcohol and a weak solution of pearlash all that can be and the part remaining is fibre ; it exists in the excrements of cattle and horses, and forms much of their bulk. 03 NORTH-CAROLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY, Gluten, 4.62 Albumen, 14.30 Casein, 5. 84 Fibre, 11.24 Water, 10.81 The starch in this variety is reduced to a mini mnm qnantity, and the gnm or dextrine is increased to the maxitnnm known in maize. Tlie gura, no doubt, replaces in part the starcli, and it is this ele- ment which causes the great shrinkage in the kernel, from which we should very naturally infer that the corn was gathered in an unripe condition. This, however, is not the fact. But the sweet corn is eminent for its flesh producing elements when it is seen to contain 14 per cent, of albumen and 5 per cent, of casein. § 116. The value of the corn leaf, or fodder, as it is called, is more accui-ately ascertained by submitting it to an organic proxi- mate analysis. When thus treated timothy and corn leaf are found to be coin posed of: TIMOTHT. CORN LEAF. Fibre, 68.14 60.00 Wax, 2.80 undetermined. Sugar extract and dextrine, 8.20 10.00 Albumen, 1.89 0.22 Casein, 2.34 1.60 Water, 12.30 10.17 The insoluble fibre makes the bulk of the leaf, and serves in the animal economy to fill up space, or give a proper degree of tension to the membranes. The albumen and casein ai-e nearly as large in corn leaf as in the best of grasses. The red top, a favorite hay, is composed of: Fibre, 65.00 Wax, 11.62 Resin, 3.08 E.Ktvact and sugar, I). 00 xUbumen, 1.49 Casein, « 1.80 Water, - 10.00 NORTH-CAROLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. ' mf § 117. It will be observed that the insoluble matter, or fibre, in the three kinds in the above examples, timothy, red top and corn leaf, are really the same, or nearly so. All the other bodies, classed as. n/iitritim and fat jproclucing ^ make up tlie remainder. They dif- fer in quantity in these individual specimens, yet, it is probable, that for feeding stock, as they generally grow, sometimes on ricli and sometimes on poor soil, they cannot differ essentially. One, in its general run, will support as much stock as the other, for it will be observed that cultivation, or no cultivation, changes the character of the crop. If, however, we compare the toregoing compositions with another species, which grows naturally on a cold wet soil we shall perceive a great difference. For example, a cai'ex (a sw\amp grass) collected just before it was to blossom was found to be composed of: Fibre, 86.20 Wax, 2.00 Albumen, 2.84 Casein, , trace. Resin, 0.47 Extract and sugar, 6.60 The greatest part of this grass is nnnutritious fibre, still it is not deficient in albumen, but both classes of bodies are reduced to a low per centage. We find less than 15 per cent, of the heat and flesh producing bodies combined. Composition of the common garden pea, rice and wheat, so far as their proximate organic elements are concerned : PKA. KICE. -WHEAT. Water, 14 13 15 Starch, 42 70 42 Sugar and gum, 6 4 9 Nitrogenous substances, 24 7 15 Oil 2 1 2 Woody fibre, 9 4 15 Ash, 3 1 2 100 100 100 Rice contains a lai-ger amount of stalk than wheat or corn, but in nitrogenous substances it is less than one-half of that in wheat, and in the pea they exceed the rice more than three times. 100 NOETH-CAEOLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. CHAPTER XIII. Composition of tuberous plants with respect to their nutritive elements. Irish potatoe. Sweet potatoe. Their nutritive values compared. § nS. The family of vegetables which rank next in nutritive value to the cereals are the tuber bearing plants, potatoes, sweet potatoes, turnips, etc. They owe their value mostly to the presence of the same heat and flesh producing bodies as the grains. The inorganic elements are the same as in the cereals and grasses, but tlieir proportions differ somewhat from tliem. The asli of the mer- cer potatoe, which is, in general repute, is composed of: MEECEB POTATOE. Silica, 4.40 Earthy and alkaline phosphates, consisting of lime, magnesia and iron, 39.50 Lime, ! 0.15 Magnesia, 0.80 Potash, 14.20 Soda, 24.1)2 Sulphuric acid, 6.25 Carbonic acid trace. A carious fact which we brought out in the analysis of the pota- toes is the difference in the proportion of both water and ash of the ends, and besides the rose end, if planted, will form potatoes earlier than the heel end. They are composed of: EOSF. END. HEEL END. Water, 83.83 75.17 Dry matter, 16.16 24.82 Ash, 0.72 0.43 § 119. The proximate organic analysis of the tuber of the mercer gives us more information, as it regards its nutritions qualities. It contains: Starch, 0.71 Fibre, 5.77 Gluten, 0.20 NORTH-CAROLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. 101 Fatty matter, 0.08 Albumen, 0.24 Casein, 0.50 Dextrine, 0.72 Sugar and extract, 3. 93 The water of the potatoe amounts to about 80 per cent. The starch is less in this sample of mercer than in the earl_y Jnne, which contains 13.37 per cent. As it regards flesh producing bodies all the potatoes rank low. § 120. The follow ing analysis of the sweet potatoe will enable the reader to compai-e it with the Irish as an article of food, partic- ularly with regard to its flesh producing qualities. The ash is com- posed of: _ • Silica, 1.8.5 Earthy and alkaline phosphates, 22.10 Carbonate of lime, 60 Magnesia, 0.50 Potash, 49.36 Soda, 5.02 Sulphuric acid, 1.20 Chlorine, 4.09 Carbonic acid, 15.72 98.91 The tuber co'itains: Water 69.51 Dry matter, 30.48 Ash, 1.09 § 121. The proximate organic analysis gave: 8WEET POTATOE. TURMPS, Starch, 19.95 7 Sugar and extract, 5. SO 2 Dextrine, 0.75 Fibre, ... 1.85 2 Matter dissolved by potash 2.10 ^ Albumen, 5.90}- li Ca.sein, 1.03 J A body that resembles balsam, 0.22 1 qH Water, 96.56 86 102 NORTH-CAKOLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. The foregoing analyses serve to confirm or rather to agree with the common opinion, that the sweet potatoes rank considerably higher in the scale of nutriment than the Irish; they furnish more of the flesli producing bodies ; they contain less water. Both are rich in potash. The per centage of ash appears low, but in both it is ex- tremel}'- fusible and difficult to obtain in a pure condition for weigli- imr, as it is very liable to be caustic. The ash of tlie leaves and stems is composed of: Silica, 23.60 Earthy phosphates, 28.57 Carbonate of lime, 15.00 Magnesia, none. _ Potash, 18.51 " Soda, 9.46 Sulphuric acid, 2.78 Chlorine, 2.09 Per cent, of ash in leaves, 2.63 " " stems, 1.73 The sweet potatoe compared with the turnip used so largely for fattening stock in England, is far superior in every point of view. CHAPTER XIV. Composition of the ash of fruit trees; as the peach, apple, pear, Catavcba grape. Amount of carbon or pure charcoal which some of the hard woods give by ignition in closely covered crucibles. § 122. Persons who cultivate fruit trees may wish to know the composition of the inorganic matter or ash M^Wch the different parts furnish. The following analysis will fulfil in part, at least, tlieii" wishes. The peach being a very important fruit tree in this State, is selected from among many which have been made. The ash of the parts of the peach is composed as follows: •WOOD. LEATES. r.ii 12.41 11.15 O.IG 0.36 1.51 12.12 22.20 14.77 6.40 8.00 0.32 2.47 26.1i> 10.44 1.34 3.15 1.35 6.42 4.48 NOKTH-CAEOLIlSrA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. lOi BAr.K. Potash, 2.20 Soda, Chlorine of sodium, 0.04 Sulphuric acid, 4.19 Lime, '. 42.17 Magnesia, 2.10 Phosphate peroxide of iron, 0.45 Phosphate of lime, 9.79 Phosphate of magnesia, ... 0.51 Silica, 4.15 Coal, In the foi-egoing analysis tlie carbonic acid M'as undetermined. It appears from the analysis that sulphates, gypsum probablj^, will liave good effects upon the peach tree. The loaves in a'nother analysis made in July, gave: FEACU LEAVES. Potash, 14.28 Soda, 21.22 Lime, 16.22 Magnesia, 5.90 Phosphate, 11.60 Sulphuric acid, 4.42 Chlorine, 5.12 Carbonic acid, 14.30 The pits of a peach are rich in lime, phosphate of lime and silica. Lime must hold an important place as a fertilizer for the peach tree, provided we attempt to fulfil the indications furnished by the composition of leaves, wood and bark. The alkalies, potash and soda, are also to be supplied. Ashes, however, will supply all its wants. § 123. Composition of the leaves of the pear and apple tree at the time when the flowers had just fallen : APPLE TKEE LEAVES. PEAR TREE LEAVES. Potash, 27.17 18.95 Soda, ' 11.83 15.19 Lime, 3.38 4.71 Magnesia, 2.74 4.50 Chlorine, 0.79 undetermined. Phosphates, 26.60 25.05 104 NORTn-CAEOLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. Sulphuric acid, 10.12 undetermined. Silica, 4.65 1.75 Carbonic acid, .... 55 11.56 Both the apple and pear leaves are rich in alkalies as well as phosphates. Whether an analysis in September would furnish similar results is donl)tfnl, as it is believed that there may be a transference of these bodies to the matui'ing fruit. § 124. Analysis of the ash of the leaves of the Catawba grape, irathered June 2d : Potash, 18.39 Soda 9.69 Lime, 4.39 • Magnesia, 1.74 Phosphates, 32.95 Sulphuric acid, ._. . .. ■. 2.09 Silica, 29 65 Chlorine, 0.74 Carbonic acid, 3.05 Ash of the wood, .' 0.98 At this pei'iod of the year the leaf is rich in phosphates and alkalies. It is well known that bones and alkalies are among the best fertilizers for the vine. § 125. The ash of wood, it is shown, differs in the proportions of organic matters. Thej- differ also, in quaiitity of carbon or char- coal the wood furnishes. Thus, beech wood gives 17.16 per cent, of charcoal. Deducting its ash, it leaves 16.94 as pure charcoal. The iron wood gives 16.21. Deducting ash, it leaves 15.91. The broad leaved laurel gives only 7.30; and deducting ash, 6.60. The wood is very compact. The chestnut gives 9.75; ash 9.27. The v.-hite elm gives 15.84 per cent of coal, minus ash; leaves 15.04. The black birch gives 16.01 charcoal, minus ash, equals 15.96. The pear tree has 9.79 per cent, of coal, and the apple 15.90; abstracting the ash of the latter, it is reduced to 15.70. Fi'oni the foregoing, it appears that the quantity of cai'bon or coal which the hard woods furnish, rarely exceeds 17 per cent,, and this is reduced bv extractinoj the ash. NORTH-CAEOLINA GEOLOGICAL STIRVEY. 105 CHAPTER XY. Nitrogenous fertilizers most suitable for the cereals. Correlation of means and ends which meet in fertilizers. The final end of nitrogenous bodies. The power to store up or consume fertilizers modified by age, exercise and tempera- ture. Error in cattle husbandry. Crops containing the largest amount of nutriment. Weights of crops, etc. Indian corn and turnips. Sweet potatoes. The produce of an acre of cabbage, etc. Cultivation of fruit trees — trimming and protection. § 126. As those substances are the most suitable for fertilizers, especially for the cereals, which contain the most nitrogen, so, those containing this element are the most suitable food for animals; and as none of the cereals can be grown without this element, so ani- mals cannot be sustained unless it forms a part of their food. There is, therefore, a correlation of means and ends existing in the estab- lished order of things between what plants and animals require for sustenance. In the first case, it would seem that the nitrogenous compounds are secondary necessities, while in the latter they are primary, or have immediate reference to the characteristics of the class of beings by whom they are required. They are more essen- tially the force creating elements, and are designed to be expended for this purpose, and never to accumulate beyond the creation of the parts which are the seat of the force, while 'in the vegetable kingdom they accumulate and are not consumed in the performance of any of its functions. Gluten, a nitrogenous element, and starch, a heat producing element, accumulate in the grain. There they remain until on being received into the animal structure ; the lat- ter is expended in developing heat, the former in motion or exer- cise of the muscular organs. § 127. The final end, then, of furnishing nitrogenous bodies to growing vegetables, is to supply necessities which the -nature and construction of animals demand ; and herein is a broad distinction between the two kingdoms — accumulation in one, waste in the other, or a consumption of its own organs in animals, requiring therefore 'Constant renewal to supply the place of the wasted tissues which, have been expended in the development of force. In the animal economy the heat producing bodies, starchy gum, •oUcmd suga/r, cannot be substituted for the flesh and .force produe- 106 NOKTH-CAKOLINA GEOLOGICAL SUKV15T. iiig bodies, gluten, albumen and fibrin or casein ; their functions being totally different. A dog cannot live on pure starch or sugar ; neither could his life be sustained on pure fibrin. There is always a mixture of these bodies in all kinds of food as prepared by the organic bodies. Wheat, Indian corn, rye, etc., have been shown to consist of a number of elements belonging to each of the class whose functions in the animal economy have been stated. Any of the cereals will sustain life, as they furnish both heat and flesh. Rice contains less of the flesh producing elements than wheat. Indian corn by itself is probably the best life sustaining body of this class. § 128. The ability or power of the animal machine to consume and store up elements is modified by exercise and age. The grow- ing animal only accumulates as it is necessary ; it is a law that the young should attain the size of the species ; so in passing from the embryo to the adult state, consumption falls short of accumulation, when the adult s'cate is attained accumulation is no longer necessary^ and the amount of food taken has to be adjusted to the preservation of the balance between the food eaten and the forces which con- sume it. Exercise increases consumption, a fact established by numerous experiments made with healthy animals. This is an im- portant consideration when applied to the fattening of animals. "When they are allowed' to run at large and exercise at will, or even subjected to such an amount ot exercise as may be required ta feed, the accumulation of fat is slower, and the quantity of food is lef^s, which is necessary to reach that state of obesity required for the stall ; a larger amount of food is necessarily consumed than is essen- tial to it when the animal is still and performs no more exercise than health demands. In illustration of the foregoing statement, it has been determined by experiment that where 20 sheep were allowed to run at large in an open field, they consumed 19 lbs. of turnips each day for 3 successive winter months ; they gained during the time of trial 512 pounds. Twenty other sheep kept for the same time in a shed, and upon an average consumed 15 pounds of turnips per day, and increased in weight t90 pounds. In addition to the turnips both flocks were fed half a pound of linseed cake and half a pint of bar- ley, but from inclination the enclosed flock consumed one-third less- linseed cake than the out door flock. The increase in the confined flock was greater, and also- the consumption of food less. NORTH-CAKGLmA GEOLOGICAL SUKVEY. 107 Protection from cold weather is another way of increasing weiglit by the use of less food. Those elements which ar^e burnt in the system for the purpose of developing heat, must be provided in larger quantities and proportionate to the severity of the cold to which they are exposed. The starch, oil, sugar, etc., is consumed for the generation of heat, which would be deposited in fat if the medium in which they are placed were warmed or was protected from extreme severities. The natural adjustment, then, of food to the wants of the system is influenced by age, exercise and temperature. The two latter may be controlled by means both simple and cheap, so that both food is saved and accumulations of fat deposited. § 129. The great error in this State in cattle husbandry is, the practice of compelling animals to shirk for themselves both winter and summer. So effectually do they consume all they eat in win- ter to keep themselves warm, that when spring comes the}'' are more than spring pooj\ and two months is required to get them up to a living condition ; and it is rare that a fat animal is found or made dnring summer and autumn. There is, then, no doubt that shelter and food is required in ISTorth- Carolina as well as in IN ew York, though the climate is mu3h more favorable here for every purpose than in the north. The natural food which is mostly the produce of old fields and the wood and swatnp ranges, is far less nutritious than the cultivated vegetables; more exercise is required to get it, and hence a greater amount of expenditure of force is necessary. This, coupled with the fact of a less nutritious food and exposure, accounts for the small size of the stock of the Southern States. f 130. It is an interesting enquiry, what crop or production con- tains in itself, the largest amount of nutriment or life-snstaining elements? In a question of this kind, it should be understood that it is not simj ly albumen or gluten, the flesh producing bodies, which are involved in the question, or the quantity of heat producing bodies as starch, sugar and gum; for neither class of bodies is in reality life sustaining by itself, but it relates to, or means to inquire, what crop per acre contains that combination of the heat and flesh producing bodies in the greatest quantity ? A good old Malthusian would regard this as a question of the deepest import, and would call to his aid the power of arithmetic and of the statistics of crops to solve the question. 108 NORTH-CAROLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. § 131. To obtain a close approximate solution of this question^ it is. necessary to state the several weights of the crops which an acre yields under good culture. An acre should yield, for example^ 25 bushels of wheat, though large territories may not yield more than 15 bushels; but an acre which will yield 25 bushels of wheat will yield 60 bushels of corn — it is always competent to do this;. but the reverse of this is not true, for swamp lands will readily pro- duce the Indian corn, but not more than half the amouat of wheat and of a poor quality. If Indian corn is compared with the turnip, which is legarded in^ England as furnishing the greatest amount of life preserving ele- ments, it will appear that in this respect it exceeds our favorite- crop. It is assumed that a crop of turnips yield per acre 67,000 pounds, but only one-ninth of this is nutriment, the rest is water ; there is, therefore, out of the 67,000 pounds only 8,444 of dry mat- ter. The heat producing elements only equal 6,220 pounds, and the flesh producing bodies amount to 1,000 pounds. The grain of Indian corn contains in an acre 2,780 pounds of starch, oil, &c.^ which belong to the heat producing bodies, while the flesh produ- cing amount to 840 pounds. If the grain only is taken into the account, turnips rank higher than corn in their life sustaining pow- er. But it may thus be that though turnips outweigh Indian corn, it is not clear that in actual service this crop could by itself be em- ployed for the human family ; it answers a good purpose as one of our dishes, and gives a relish to a turkey or roast beef; no one would like the process of being fattened exclusively upon turnips. But Indian corn being susceptible of all kinds of treatment by ih& cook, each one of which is generally relished, it is highly probable that it should be placed highest in the scale as a life sustaining body. § 132. Of the root crops, though turnips in England are prefer- red to all others for fattening cattle, yet they must rank far below the sweet potatoe. The dry matter in the sweet potatoe amounts to 30 per cent. It contains 19 per cent, of starch, 5 per cent, of sugar, and nearly 1 per cent, of dextrine or gum. Its heat produ- cing bodies in the aggregate amount to 25 per cent, at least. It contains nearly 7 per cent, of flesh forming bodies. A crop of sweet potatoes will weigh per acre about 30,000 pounds. The quantity of starch, sugar, &c., will amount to 7,625 pounds, and NOKTH-CAKOLINA GEOLOCJ-ICAL SUKVET. 109 the weight of the flesh producing elements amount to 2,100 pounds. The life sustaining eleenents, therefore, in the sweet potatoes exeeed those of the turnip, and would be preferred by far to them ; and if the human family was reduced to the alternative of subsisting upon a single product, the sweet potatoe would do, because, like Indian corn, it may be cooked in various modes and made to suit the pal- ate, which is by no means to be lost sight of. But the turnip has too much water, is too insipid for daily use by itself, and could not be employed alone as a life sustaining substance, notwithstanding its rank. It takes rank because of the immense weight of a crop upon an acre. Taken pound for pound and it ranks low in the scale of nutrients. A person would have to consume 3 pounds of turnips to obtain the nutrient matter of one pound of the sweet potatoe, if our estimate is founded upon the quantity of dry matter which they respectively contain. In the Indiaii corn there is about 14 per cont. water ; by the most thorough drying it amounts to 16. The remainder is important as a nutrient, taking the word in its broad- est signification. We are aware that Johnson's doctrine is somewhat different. He maintains in his scale of heat producing elements that the turnip will support eight times as many men upon the same acre as wheat. On the other hand, when they are estimated for flesh forming qual- ities, turnips will support four times as many men as wheat, Indian corn, or barley. Cabbage, however, it is admitted, ranks higher than turnips in its flesh forming elements. The Irish and the negro population seem to understand this ; the former particularly, purchase in mar- ket a cabbage, if it is to be found. § 133. The produce of an acre of cabbage amounts to 242 ton& if their heads average 10 pounds each. Of this quantity 20.2 tons is water and 4 is dry cabbage, of which a ton will contain 324 pounds of nitrogenous matter. A ton contains 18 pounds of inor- ganic matter, but if the substance is perfectly dry, it contains 153.9' pounds. The problem to be solved, however, is not the power of the different kinds of substances to sustain life by their actual amounts of heat or flesh producing elements which they contain- It does not seem to be intended that either man or beast should subsist upon one kind of food. The appetite is never satisfied with one or two things even, — it seeks variety ; and when variety is at- no NORTH-CAROLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. tainable, the strength for labor and the enjoyment of health attains its maximum power. ' Turnips and cabbage are important articles in the list of nutri- ments; and although they may contain more nitrogenous matter than wheat or corn, yet few persons would make them their exclu- sive meat and drink, unless driven by necessity so to do; and if necessity compelled men to take them, the power to work and en- dure fatigue would be diminished, while Indian corn, wheat, or even sweet potatoes, though the}'' contain less nitrogenous matter, would supply the wants of the system much better. § 134. It is maintained, and the fact should be noticed in this connexion, that root crops, particularly the turnip, are to be spe- cially recommended for cultivation as they impoverish the land less. Let us look, however, at the facts. A good turnip crop weighs to the acre 67,000 pounds, and its inorganic matter or salts amount to 450 pounds to the aci-e, while wheat has only about 60 pounds in the 25 bushels. Cabbage takes away about 600 according to Johnson, but this is rather to little for dry cabbage; it amounts to €15.3i pounds. Gre«n cabbage contains only 18 pounds to the ton. When we consider, then, the great weight of a good crop of turnips or cabbage, it will be admitted, we believe, that the}'' are really more exhausting than the cereals. It makes no difference in the final results if it is proved that the root crop derive a large share of their nutriment from them ; they must obtain inorganic matter from the soil in due proportion, and experiment proves that they remove more from the soil than other crops. This is not stated with a view to discourage the raising of roots. They have their place in feed- ing animals in the winter and spring when the green grasses can- Eot be had. But they should not be selected for cultivation on the erroneous doctrine that they do not impoverish the soil, or to less amount than the cereals and many other crops. § 135. Our remarks thus far have related to the cereals and those crops which are designed for the sustenance of man, or rather the character of the elements which he constantly employs. We have another class of nutrients in fruits, which are of vast im- portance. Their cultivation is every where, we may say, receiving special attention, but many work on the old doctrine that a fruit tree or vine will provide for itself, if it is once fairly planted and watered a few times. It lives and may be it flourishes a few years, NOKTH-CAKOLINA GEOLOGICAL SUEYEY. Ill but in process of time it ceases to grow, and its fruit fails in quan- tity and quality. In such a result the planter is very apt to say that the climate is unsuitable for its growth. But let us briefly inculcate the true doctrine relative to trees. They require fertilizers as well as the cereals, and most of the fruits are injured by heavy grass culture, and especially by corn. The reason is they are robbed of food. Roots extend much farther than many suppose; hence the deep plowing at a distance from the irunk breaks up the rootlets and cuts off the channels through which nu- triment ordinarily flows. Thrifty and profltable trees are made in this way only, that of «upplying that variety of nutriment which any farmer knows his wheat or corn requires. The mode which should be followed in applying it, is to broadcast it over the sur- face, and which should extend beyond the shade of the branches. Yery few rootlets for the support of the tree are thrown out, ordi- narily, near the trunk. It is of little use again to trench around the tree and deposit in the cut manure — it is far better to give the whole surface of an orchard dressings of composted manure. Such a course favors the development of rootlets, and the nutrient mat- ter is carried down to them in that dilute condition which their spongioles require ; and lastly, trees require clean culture, the re- moval of all weeds beneath, and suckers which sprout from the base of the trunk. § 136. Many trim their trees outrageously by cutting the lowest large branches; the consequence is the production of a high, slim- headed tree of little value. The growth of the apple tree is upper- ward and ]iarrow, with only a slight tendency to spread or expand latterally. Tiiis mode of trimming the tree increases the upward growth, and hence, a very imperfect head is formed by the lateral extension of the side branches. Trees thus mutilated always remain cripples, if the word can be a]>plied to trees. Even peach trees in North-Carolina are deprived of their best bearing branches. In addition to the injury sustained directly as fruit-bearing trees,, their trunks are also exposed to the heat of the sun, which blast& the south or south-western sides, in consequence of being deprived in part, at least, of the shading which they require from the branches. In regard to vines, we beliere the European mode of close trim- ming not well adapted to the cultivation of our native graves. It 112 NORTH-CAROLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. is unnatural, and not really required by our climate. It is true, the Catawba, under the knife and sheare of foreign cnlturists, have survived thus far their mutilations; but this fact rather proves their life tenacity and natural recuperative powers under injury, than the utility of the practice. What the human system may endure under physic is one thing; what it requires, and is necessary for perfect health and developement, is another. In our southern climate, protection from a burning sun on the side exposed from noon till five, is one of the most important points to be attended to, and probably it is equally necessary in the growth of young orchards and vinerieS to protect the roots during the heat and drouth of summer by mulching. The object is to preserve the water of the soil, or prevent its excessive evapo- ration by organic matters, which are the most retentive of moisture of ail bodies which can be employed for this purpose. }i[ORTH-CAROLIM GEOLOGICAL SURVEY, PART II AGRICULTURE. OONTAINING DESCKIPTIONS, WITH MANY ANALYSES, OF THE SOILS OF THE SWAMP LANDS. BY BENEZER EMMONS, STATE GEOLOGIST. EALEIGH: W, HOLDEN, PRINTER TO .THE STATE. *t PREFACE. The Swamp lands of North Carolina seemed to require a special examination in consequence of their variable characters and their great extent of surface. Differing in all respects from the uplands but possessing among themselves certain characters in common and at the same time as badies of land other characters, which are not common, we have entertained the opinion that thej richly deserved a careful examination, and have been encouraged to undertake it in the hope that it would result in the discovery of many important facts. Such a result has been hoped for by the fact that other State surveys, as well as those which have been undertaken by private enterprise, have left this field untouched. Viewing the subject in its most general points, before the work was undertaken, it seemed that the most important questions re- quiring solution were those which related to the condition and state of the elements which compose these soils, their relative and absolute quantities, and their prospective powers of endurance when brought into cultivation ; the latter of which would be de- termined, or at least indicated, by the per centages which analyses would give. These are some of the views which have governed us in the choice of measures we adopted in executing the task, and which have also incited us to the undertaking. As we had already ■determined from several analyses that there were varieties of soil included under the general term swamp lands^ though they have the same aspect and appear much alike, and yet were found to be unlike the best lands under this class ; so we felt that it was im- portant to be able to point out those particulars in which they differed. This is not at all diflScult when subjected to laboratory tests, but it would be still more useful to point out some method which could be executed by the planter, and upon which he could rely, at least so far as to distinguish thereby the poor soils from the rick VI PBBFACE, The method proposed i& simply a mechanical separation of parts hj means of water, and by which the coarse sands may be obtained separately from the fine, the latter of which are really the important inorganic parts, and which give in analysis the lime, iron, alnminaj. phosphates^ magnesia, etc. These complex elements, which furnish these important nutritive or available elements differ in different localities and in different parts of the same tracts, facts which are explained in the text. In some they are reduced to 2.50, or 3 to 4 per cent., when in other parts perhaps of the same tract they exist in proportions varying from 10 to 50 per cent. By a mechanical separation in the mode we have described^ a planter may determine these important facts for himself with suf- Hcient accuracy to guide him in his purposes, for it is an established principle, that when the inorganic matter does not exceed 3, 4, or 5 per cent., the land will not produce well. If, however,, this small per centage exists only in a top layer, and at a depth of 18 inches or so, there is a stratum charged with a larger per centago, say 10 to 16 per cent, of inorganic matter in which the fine soil exists^ the land may be cultivated successfully ; if, however, a stratum of this kind is 5 or 6 feet below, or we have a mass of this thickness composed almost exclusively of vegetable matter^ the plant will be unable to send its roots thus far, for it will perish too soon to secure a foothold on life, just as it would in a bed of marl, or a heap of stable refuse. The Carteret county open prairie has been re-examined, and we find a more favorable composition of its soil than at a previous visit. Drainage of a tract has effected a shrinkage of the vegeta- ble matter so much that a stratum of soil may be reached by the roots of crops. The tract, in its poorest constitution, is by no- means to be ranked with a first class swamp soil. I have stated that there is a belt of excellent land surrounding the open prairie. But though the open prairie is not well adapted to the growth of the cereals, yet for Irish potatoes it is admirably constituted, and it is iiot improbable but that an enterprising man would make money by their cultivation. But I have stated the principal facts in their proper places, and need only refer to them in this place. The labor required in the analysis of so many specimens has been exceedingly great. The work has been in hand more than two years. My assistants have been employed with me in the woffk FREFACE. TE when in town and vrhen out door work was impossible or could not be prosecuted to advantage. We have no doubt that much more should be undertaken, the results of which would be anvantageoua to the State, at least indirectly. It is highly important that lands so fertile should be brought into cultivation, and we have no- doubt that large tracts which are classified under the term, svjamj) landSy are to become the best in the State for the growth of cotton. The great want which is felt is the construction of roads by which these lands may be reached and brought into market. We have no hesitation in saying that the two millions of acres of swamp lauds are worth four millions of upland. In a rough estimate of this kind, we take time and expense of cultivation into the account — the time these lands endure without the use of expensive fertili- zers, and the ease and the slight wear and tear of the instruments used in cultiration, when compared in the sam® list of expenses required in the cultivation of the uplands of the middle counties. However this may be, our aim has been to place the merits of these lands in their true light; not to exaggerate or depreciate. If this aim has been secured we shall be satisfied with the resii-ltg-.. TABLE OF CONTENTS. CHAPTER I. The compensations which take place in nature and by which a balance of forces is preserved. Considerations relating to water. Water surfaces. Evaporation regulated by saline njatters in the ocean. Carbon and carbonic acid. Insolu- bility of vegetable matter a conservative condition. Average fall of rain. 9—17. CHAPTER II. The UTILITY resulting from tVie analysis of soils. Methods pursued. IT — 23. CHAPTER III. The swamp lands. Their mode of formation and geological age. 23 — 26. CHAPTER IV. Geographical position of the swamp lands, and their extent in North-Carolina. Defective information in the public archives of the State. The Savannah lands, etc. 26—28. CHAPTER V. Temperature of soils. Distribution and circulation of heat. 28 — 32. CHAPTER VI. Swamp lands divided into six districts. The Dismal swamp district has not been explored. Diversity of composition of these lands. Elevated in the middle. 32-35. CHAPTER VII. Composition of swamp lands stated. Hyde county. Natural crop is Indian corn. Number of plants to the acre. Quantity raised. 35 — i9. CHAPTER VIII. Position of Plymouth. Quality of soils indicated by the growth of timber. Cost ot drainage. Composition of four specimens of soil from the south side of Albemarle sound. Mechanical separation of elements, etc. 50 — 57. CHAPTER IX. The Pungo tract. Gen. Blount's plantation. General description of this part of the Albemarle swamp, with its natural growth of timber. Depth and compo- sition of the soils of this section of the swamp. Mechanical separation of the parts of the soil. How the poor soils of this class may be improved. Tyrrell county. The centre of the Albemarle tract highest in the centre. 57 — 65. VUl TABLE OF CONTENTS- CHAPTER X. Bay river District, composition of its soil. The 4th district of Swamp lands. The open prairie of Carteret county, composition of its soils. Change effected by drainage. Inorganic matter increases with the depth of soil. 65 — 74. CHAPTER XI. Composition of soils towards Beaufort. Composition of Mr. Sefton's swamp land. Adams creek soils, Craven county. Dover swamp Craven county- Its hight above Newbern. Composition of its soil. 75 — 80. CHAPTER XII. Swamp lands of New Hanover and Brunswick counties, their composition with remarks. 80—86. CHAPTER XIII. Gall berry lands, and their composition. The Savannah lands and their charac- teristics and composition. 87 — 91. APPENDIX, iContaining brief descriptions of the Mineral Springs and well waters which .©ocur in and about Raleigh, 92 — 95. SURVEY OF NORTH-CAROLIM. PART II. May, 1860. E. Emmons. CHAPTER -I. The compensafietis which take place in nature and by whiihabalance of forces is preserved. Considerations relating to water. Water surfaces. Evapora- tion regulated by saline matters in the ocean. Carbon and carbonic acid. In- solubility of vegetable matter a conservative condition. Average fall of rain. § 1. Rational farming rests on compensations, and has to be conducted in accordance with the known laws of nature. If, in any part of space the balance of the forces is about to be lost, there will immediately set in counteracting forces to restore the balance which is thus endangered. The machinery of nature is so construct- ed, or under the government of such forces, that a balance is pre- served among them. Heat rarefies the air, and it rises in space, but its place is immediately supplied from the surrounding. cooler atmos- phere. The great body of it may be moved over extensive areas, and when it has been subjected to excessive heat, the balance must be restored by winds and forces acting with a violence pro- portioned to the causes of disturbance. The evaporation of water from the soil is in part, and for a time, .restored from the reservoir below. When, however, solid matters are removed from the soil by cultivation, the balance can be restored only by the hand of man. Even water has to be provided in certain countries by irri- gation. But in the general operations of the natural forces, ample provision is made for supplying water, ammonia and carbonic acid to all ^parts of the earth's surface. If no provisions existed in the 10 NORTH-CAKOLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. machinery of nature to effect a general distribution of these im- portant elements, the earth's surface would be a barren waste. Irrigation can only supply water under favorable circumstances. The great reservoirs of water for watering the earth are the oceans. Let us see how the machinery works when it is furnishing the supplies which vegetation every where requires. In the first place, it is necessary lo know that the area which is to be watered must be rightly proportioned to that from which the supply is to come, and this supply is derived from the water surfaces provided for the purpose. Now, the Atlantic ocean has an area of twenty-five mil- lions of square miles, and the Pacific of seventy millions. These are the two great water surfaces upon which an earths surface of thirty-five millions of square miles is dependant for a constant sup- ply of this element. Now, it is a necessary part of the arrange- ment, that water should pass from the state of water to alight vapor, at all temperatures. Water has this ]>roperty, though we connect its vaporous state with its boiling condition, when its tem- perature is raised to 212° of Fah. But at this temperature we fihd that the heat it receives is just balanced by its apparent loss or by latent heat in the vapor as it escapes. While heating up to 2i2° its iaccession of heat is greater than the loss locked up in 'ira|)6r, Mid hence, continues to accumulate, or to grow hotter, till lifreaches this point. If vapor was not formed till water boiled, oritideed, if hot formed at all temperatures, the earth would be uiifrihaT3itabl6. '^^ 'Water then exposed to the atmosphere at all temperatures gets '^ftffieiiehtiieat to' change it into vapor. It is water still, but its par- ti%lfe& are so widely separated by heat or expanded that if seen, it ^■^'intst^n cldudydr may he steam. Its expansion lifts it above ■th^ water surfaSe, biit this is not all ; the heat which has thus gen- "^f^^ied "i^iipbi', ci'eates ;also currents, moving air, or wind; and wind ii'tlie trah'sporting'^gent by which vapor is borne landward. It ^'6eps'6vel' viast area^, reaches the mountain ranges, and upon ^very object, tre^!,'stofte or land, which is cooler than the vapor •ifsfel^''-Tt'3%)6sitg^!i300 Peroxide of iron and alumina, 4.400 Carbonate of lime, ., . . 1.700 Magnesia, . .IVO Potash,. . .086 99.656 The sample had become dry "by exposure to the air for tEree months. It contained a trace of ammonia in 1,000 grains. Upon a part of this tract whieh had been in cultivation for several years, fine looking cotton was growing. It was late planted, but the trial was regarded as highly successful, and it will probably turn out that the best soil for cotton are those of the half worn ones which originally were rich in vegetable matter. On such lands there would be a great saving in fertilizers. Mechanical separation of. its parts, gave ; 76 NORTH-CAEOLINA GEOLOGICAL SUKVICT. Coarsish sand, 43.2 Fine soil, 30.0 The coarsish sand is all quartz, and it is visible in the dry speci- men, and is easily detected in the wet, by its gritty feel. Still, there is a stock of fine matter sufficient for all the wants of vege- tables. The vegetable matter, as usual, increases in depth towards the central part of the swamp, and the growth of cypress and black gums is also greater in this direction than upon the margin. § 48. Immediately opjtosite to the section of land which has been drained, and the soils of which have been under consideration, ie Adams creek, in Craven county. The principal branches of Adams creek rise in the crowning part of the open prairie, and if pro- longed would interlock with the branches which form the North river on the Beaufort side. We have the soils at this time from the banks of Adams creek, and have made several analyses of them to that extent which will serve as a basis on which we may found a judgment of their merits. We did not deem it necessary to make a minute analysis as in other soils, and it seemed sufficient to do enough to enable us to make a comparison of their qualities with those of the North river a8,"v^e.l-i as those from other swamp lands. The first is evidently a mixture of organic matter with fine and coarse sand and other elements brought out by analysis. It gave : , Organic matter, 29.00 Silex, 54.80 Alamipa, and iron, , 4-40 Carbonate,of lime, 0.35 Magnesia, : 0.13 Water, ... . '.-. 11.00 99.68 A mechanical sep^r^tjipa^^ve: Rather qo^rsish sand, 43.00 ! Fine soil or saind, 28.40 1 Organic matter, 29.00 TliisBoil ha^, become drj ib^ exposure to the air, and much less NOBTH-CAEOLESrA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. T7 water was obtained than is usual from swamp soils, and where there is as much inorganic matter as in this specimen, the drying bj common exposure is more complete and rapid than where it has less. The sand is white quartz. It appears that the sand of the open prairie of Beaufort is coarser than that of the Albemarle district, but it is intermixed with a quantity, 16 per cent, of fine material. Another soil from Adams Creek differs from the foregoing, as will be seen in the larger quantity of sand and less vegetable matter. It is gray and gritty, and harsh to the feel, and was taken from beneath the covering of organic matter. On submitting it to analysis, it gave : Water, 6.30 Organic matter, 8.00 Silex, *. 82.58 Peroxide of iron and alumina, 2.82 Carbonate of lime, 50 Magnesia, 13 100.08 We have been able to obtain a small amount of potash in all the soils we have examined, from the swamp lands. It is dimin- ished to a small fraction wherever the sandy element is so large. A mechanical separation of its parts gave : Coarse sand, ■. 56.2 Fine soil or sand, 29.0 Organic matter, 8.0 93.2 In another specimen, the organic matter was only 3.22, water 6, silex 88.78, alumina and peroxide of iron 2.60. The Adams creek district seems not to want inorganic matter at all ; they have, indeed, rather an excess, and ^oo little vegetable matter. To account for this fact, it seems that the Craven side of the great marsh must have been nearer to the source from whence the sandy matter was derived, and though none of it is what would not ordinarily be regarded as coarse sand, yet it is coarser than 78 NORTH-CAROLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. that of l^orth river. There may have been a direct communica- tion with the ISTeuse in former times, and by means of that com- munication the sandy matter was supphed. The coarse is always nearer the source from where it came. The fine is transported farther and is deposited slowly ; facts which may be witnessed in all heavy showers where currents are formed with suflScient force to move the loose materials upon the surface. § 49. The Dover swamp, lying north of Newborn, in Craven county, is about fifteen miles long. It is about 60 feet above Newbei'n, and 30 or 35 above Kinston. So far as its character is shown by the roads which pass through it, it is a poor tract. A single representative only of its soil will be given in the fol- lowing analysis. The soil is black, and to the eye it may be re- garded as ranking high in the scale of merit, but where the black vegetable mold is cut, and has been exposed to washing by rains, they have brought out mechanically its characteristics. The veg- etable matter is mixed with a white marine sand, which is exposed upon the face of ihe cut; an exhibition of this kind is never wit- nessed in soils suitable for cultivation. An analysis of a soil rep- resenting the Dover class, gave : Water, 2.71 Organic matter, 25.22 Sand, T0.50 Peroxide of iron and alumina, 0.76 Carbonate of lime, . ." 0.01 Magnesia, trace. 99.20 The specimen had become dry by exposure to the air in paper, and hence, the small quantity of water. The sand is white, and nearly pure quartz, and only a small per centage could be dissolved out by the action of muriatic acid. When this specimen is com- pared with those of the Albemarle swamp, which seemed to lack inorganic matter, a great difference is easily discovered in the Dover swamp representative; the water was reduced to the lowest standard; it was much drier than it ever will be by draining. In the Dover representative there are really only two elements, white NOETH-CAEOLINA GEOLOGICAL STJRVEY. 79 sand and vegetaole matter. If water is added, the sum of the three amounts to 98.43, leaving only 1.57 for the active or soluble elements, and still the Dover swamp is covered with vegetation, though it is not vigorous and healthy. It is no doubt, supported in a great measure, by the subsoil and the elements derived from the atmosphere. If a farmer, however, should drain and put it requisition for corn ■or wheat, it would not answer to the call. It is not to be under- stood that we speak thus confidently of the whole tract, and it is highly probable that rich places exist. The most we wish to incul- •cate is that where the soil consists of vegetable matter intermixed with white or gray quartz sand, there is but a small ground for hope that the tract will pay the expense of drainage. The foregoing views as intimated in the foregoing paragraphs receive support from the consideration that .76 per cent, of per oxide of iron and alumina cannot furnish for a lapse of years sufiicient phosphoric acid to sustain the cereals, it is at least evident, that the available mat- ter for divers crops is extremely small. The practical per centage of important elements, cannot exert a chemical or mechanical in- fluence upon the organic matter. We confess, however, that we do not know the nature of the subsoil, it will probably turn out that the forest trees derive their support from the stiff subsoil on which the silicious vegetable mat- ter rests. There are many points m which the swamp soils differ from the true peat of the ITorthern States and Canada. A very reliable analysis of a kind of peat found in Canada by Mr. Hunt of the Canada Geological survey may be cited. Thus, Mr. Hunt found 6.75 per cent;0of ash, and it should be observed that it is not soil, as in. most eases of the swamp peat of the South but a true a,sh of the vegetable matter, and hence, its composition must partake of that of an ordinary ash ; and hence, it is found to consist of large per cents., viz : of carb. of lime 52.41 ; sulphate of lime 15 ; sulphate of potash 0.60 ; lime and magnesia as silicates, &c., to the amount of 13 per cent. The peaty soils of the South, or certainly of ISTorth- Carolina consist of intermixtures of fine inorganic matter to a large extent, and though the top is essentially vegetable matter, yet the soil increases continually, or if th^ areas as indicated before had communications with rivers from which they received sediments, whereas, in the ISTorth the peat is formed in isolated basin-shaped §P NOKTH-CAKOLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. excavations, which have been filled up by t|»e growth of moss, or sphagnum, etc., and were of course separated from rivers or streams bearing sediments from a distance. § 50. The Onslow and Jones swamp, which appear to be con- nected with the great Carteret open-ground prairie and swamp, has an area of over one hundred square miles. The White Oak river rises in it, together with New river, both of which empty into Bogue sound, or Bogue and Stumpy sounds. Short branches rising in this tract, fall into the Trent. The slope is mainly towards Bogue sound. This great tract is easily drained, being formed upon comparatively high ground. Portions of it have been under cultivation, and the produce in corn has been from ten to twelve barrels per acre. Upon the branches of the White Oak the timber is large, consisting of poplar, cypress, black and white gum and red maple. Other parts are covered with reeds which furnish subsistence to stock during the winter. The surface of the swamp is more or less interrupted by dry islands, which bear large long and short leaved pines. White oaks abound of a large size, where it is not too wet. Some of the islands, as they are called, have a light sandy soil, and seem to have been formed by the action of M'ater. The only canal for drainage which we have in- spected, was cut by Mr. Franck, of Onslow county. It crossed a part of the tract called the White Oak desert. This, on being cut one mile, gave a water power of about twelve feet. Its cost was fifteen cents to the cubic yard. The depth of soil varies from one to twelve feet, the depth increasing towards the central part of ihe tract. The general characteristics of this swamp are the same as those which have already received attention. Tire composition, as de- termined by analysis, may be stated as follows: Silex, 60.00 Organic matter, 25.00 Peroxide of iron and alumina, 11.050 Phosphoric acid, 0.312 Carbonate of lime, 1.500 Magnesia, 0.300 Potash, 0.010 Soda, : 0.020 Silicic acid, 0.100 NOKTH-CAROLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. 81 Water, 2.Y13 100.983 The machanical separation of parts gave: Coarsish felspathic sand, 27.00 Drab-colored fine soil, or sand, 45.00 Vegetable matter, 25.00 The soil was dry by exposure in paper, and to the air. The felspathic sand is coai'ser than that of any part of the Al- bemarle district. The quantity of tine soil, and of lime also, is large, and the elements of fertility appear to be suflBcient to con- stitute a good composition for cultivation. CHAPTER Xn. Swamp lands of New Hanover and Brunswick counties, their composition with remarks. § 51. The fifth swamp district is in ISTew Hanover county. It is formed by the Holy Shelter swamp and Angola bay. They both 'are elongated tracts, and drai^i into the eastern branch of the Cape Fear. We find the composition of the soils of the swamp lands of New Hanover county to correspond with those already given. Thus a specimen gave, on analysis : Organic matter, 7.700 Silex 86.000 Per oxide of iron, 1.000 Alumina 4.000 Silicic acid, 300 Chlorine, trace. Sulphuric acid, trace. 82 NOKTH-CAROLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. Potash, 077 Carb. of lime, 320 Magnesia, 105 99.502 Mechanically separated it gave, m parts : Felspathic sand, 32.0 Finely divided soil, 49.0 Organic matter, 7.7 The specimen was well dried before analysis, and was black, but consisted of vegetable matter in small quantity only, and in which the soil was distinguishable. Still it has been proven produc- tive. § 52. A fact which will perhaps strike the attention of a chemist is the small quantity of iron which exists in all the swamp soils. It is not only, as we have before stated, in the condition of a pro- toxide, but it is in a less proportion than in upland soils. How much influence this quantity of iron may have upon vegetation, to diminish the chances of a healthy growth, cannot be determined before hand. Iron is no doubt an important element in soils, though we believe, upon the whole, that even in the swamp soils it will be amply sufficient to meet the wants of crops. So long as these tracts are undrained, charged with water, the iron will remain in the condition of a protoxide. When drained, and air replaces the water, it is at least partially changed, and be- comes more highly oxidated and is, constantly undergoing changes by which the amount of oxygen is variable, especially when in contact with a large amount of vegetable matter. § 53. The sixth swamp district is confined to Brunswick county. It is round or nearly so, and presents a very uniform outline, but its interior is studded with islands, and the swampy part incloses them entirely or they are connected to others by narrow necks of hard ground. This swamp lies low and its perfect drainage is ques- tionable. We have not been able to obtain an examination of sur- vej^s which were made years ago. It furnishes a vast amount of cypress for shingles. The timber is well set, large and thrifty, and NOKTH-CAKOLINA (JEOLOGICAL SURVEY. 83 the indications for fertility are the same as those which have been already stated. The composition of the soil supports the views jnst expressed. A sample on analysis gave : Organic matter, 37.50 Water, 15.80 Silex, 35.35 Peroxide of iron, and alumina 10.50 Carb. of lime, 1.45 Magnesia, 0.15 Potash, 1.10 Soda, 0.15 Sulphuric acid, trace. Chlorine, trace. 100.00 A mechanical separation of its parts gave : Coarse sand, 2.10 Fine soil, 33.25 Organic matter, 37.50 It should be stated that this soil contained a greater quantity of half decayed wood sticks than usual, and hence, the proportion of soil is comparatively less than it would have been by rejecting this kind of vegetable matter. § 54:. Large tracts of this swamp are laid under water by dams which overflows the high way or roads and the traveler is forced to drive his team through water from a foot to 4: or 5 feet deep. The tide of the Cape Fear sets up the creeks some twelve miles from their mouths, which is indicative of aflat country to within a short distance of their origin. The subsoil is often too stift'for easy cultivation, or the penetra- tion of roots. It approaches in composition and consistence a brick clay. Thus the silex amounts to 83 per cent, with 21 per cent, of organic matter, and with only traces of lime, magnesia and pot- ash. It is probably as in other cases variable in composition. Another specimen of the Brunswick and swamp soil furnished by Mr. H. J. McNeil, gave : ^4 TsoKiM-GJm6%mM' feet. We communicated with those interested at Weldon and Tarboro', and have not preserved a statement of results. The specimens from a swamp at Mosely Hall will require a brief notice ; though they deserve a full analysis, yet time will not permit us now to enter into details. NORTH-OAHOLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. 85 The substances, which are really swamp products, are black, with an astringent ferruginous taste. If applied to crops, or if seed are planted in it, they are of course destroyed. The black astringent substance contains, in 100 parts : Water and vegetable matter, 11.70 Silex or sand, 82.30 Protoxide of iron, 1.52 Alumina, 1.82 Carb. lime, 0.80 Sulphuric acid, 1.61 99.45 The surface of this vegetable matter is crusted in dry weather with this astringent salt. If this substance were in great abundance it would be an excellent material for composts, notwithstanding it is now poisonous in composition. Mixing lime or marl with it will decompose the present salt and form gypsum. This substance too, is adapted to use in stables, or any place where aiiimonia is gen- erated, and escapes into the air. Sulphate of ammonia will be formed, or even the vegetable matter itself as it is absorbative, will attract and retain ammonia, but indeed as it is with this salt, it is an admirable material to spread over the refuse of stables and yards where noxious odors escape and which are always we believe com- pounds, containing ammonia or sulphur or both. From this swamp deposit we have obtained phosphate of iron, a product which we suppose may have been formed from decom- posed animal matter ; it is rare one and may be distinguished from other minerals by its beautiful blue color. Another product of this swamp we are inclined to regard as a compound of phosphoric acid, lime, etc., but we are still in doubt respecting its true character. It is white, inclined to chrystallize in radiating forms, and is sometimes a white, soft substance, and in others quite a hard concretion, assuming a cylindrical form. It is intermixed with grains of quartz, which arc foreign particles. It gave, on analysis : Water, , 4.2 Organic matter, 4.0 Silex, or insoluble matter, , $9.^ 86 NOETH-CAEOLINA GEOLOGICAL SUKVET. A substance resembling alumina, 28.0 Carbonate of lime, 4.82 Magnesia, • 0.10 99.92 The white substance resembling alnmina, we suppose may be a compound with phosphoric acid, but we have not the proper tests to determine full3' its composition ; that it is not ahimina, is proved by tlie fact, that though a part of it dissolves in water, yet the pre- cipitate from the potash solution is fused at once in the flame of the blow pipe. If a phosphate exists in quantity, it is a valuable substance ; if not in quantity, it is a very interesting one for the mineralogist. A test for alumina is the production of a blue bead with nitrate of cobalt in the flame of the blow pipe. There is a tino-e of blue, when thus treated, but the blueness is not strictly that which is common to alumina. These several products were received from Mr. Parrott Mewborn, of Lenoir county, who ob- tained them in draining a swamp. The foregoing products are the 3iiost important, but another which is excessively sandy and brown- ish black, we have analyzed. It contains : Silex, , 91.0 Water, , 2.1 . Organic matter, 4.5 Peroxide of iron and alumina, 2.75 Carbonate of ILme, . . . . ^ . , ,.,,.... trace. 100.3& Compounds having the foregoing composition are worthless, and seem to have acquired the vegetable matter as a debris, and not from a growth of vegetables upon the spot. NOKTH-CAEOLIKA GEOLOGICAL STJKVEY. 8T CHAPTER XIII. Gall berry lands, and their composition. The Savannah lands and their charac- teristics and composition. § 56. Tlie gall berry lands, as tliey are called, are a species of swamp, but their characteristics cannot be subjected to the exact rule of the carpenter, nor the legal measure of the grocer ; they refuse to be subjected to specific technicalities, though they have certain common characteristics. All lands are not gall herry, be- cause the gall berry lias taken possession y neither are gall berry lands all composed of stifP clay ; some are sandy, with black veg- etable matter concealing it, while uncultivated or unbroken. Gall berry lands are level tracts, composed of wet and sandy argilla- ceous matters, or wet sandy, with black vegetable mold intermixed^ and with only small fractional parts of the money elements con- tained in them in either case. They seem to have been formed by denudation, by the action of the waves of the sea, by which the best part of a soil, tlie top, has been carried UM-ay, as a stratum of stiff, incorrigible, sandy and ferruginous clay beneath. Over certain areas subsequent to de- nudation, sand has accumulated along with a coarse vegetable growth, as water grasses and the like ; in fact, a formation went on accumulating like the best swamp lands, but the material was a quartz sand, containing only traces of the nutritive elements. In the other case, a formation, though slowly building up now, began with the process of filling up very recently, and the bottom clays exposed by denudation ; still, from the top or surface the dwarfed vegetation springs from this incorrigible sandy clay, which is- poorly mixed, coarse and closely compacted, so as to hold water about as well as a wash bowl. By evapora^tion in summer, and a slow leakage, these lands get dry by the middle of July or the first of August, and then they may be traversed, but they are liable to become wet by heavy showers, when by the same processes they again may become dry. In this condition of the soil and surface the inducements are not sufficiently weightly to tempt the owner to drain them, for the purpose of testing their qualities for crops of the cereals, or the less expensive products, the root crops, to- 88 NORTH-CAKOLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. •which they are not really adapted. Like other species of land, we find them variable in composition, but uniformly with a level surface, and so close that water stands upon them until it evapo- rates. Their relative position is westward of the kinds of swamp which have been described ; though lands answering to the gall berry occur in patches in all parts of the eastern counties with variable aspects, but always wet, level and with a dwarfed vegetation. Their chemical constitution gives two extremes; the black, sand}^ vegetable mold, and the stiff, sandy, argillaceous bottoms. The former is often mistaken for good swamp soil ; the latter, never. The vegetation is much the same in both ; coarse water plants, a few reeds in favored places, particularly on the banks of streams, small, short and long leaved pines; but the whole aspect of the vegetation is that which arises from a short allowance of food, and exposure to cold bottoms beneath, and a chilly atmos- phere above. The silex in all the kinds of gall berry lands is large, the soluble alumina and iron, small — and the other elements in small fraction- al quantities. Thus in a specimen from Sampson county, we found : Water, 3.09 Silex, ■ 88.40 Organic matter, 4.20 Peroxide of iron and alumina, 2.92 Carbonate of lime, 02 Magnesia, 01 Potash and soda, trace. Phosphoric acid not perceptible, 00 But medium results are obtained by cultivation when these lands are well drained ; but, as it costs as much for draining the lands as better ones, it is not often done. The specimen had be- come dry by e'xposure to the atmosphere. A mechanical separation gave : €oarae sand, 38. "Fine soil, , 50.10 Organic matter, 4.20 NOBTH-pA?.QLnyL GEOLOGICAL SFBYEY. 89 § 57. TTie Savannah lands^ diflfer from the preceding in many important particulars. They are to the eye, dead level tracts, open to the snn and bordered by clumps of trees irregularly plant- ed so as to have open spaces either leading to similar tracts or in- to the depths of a forest. They are now usually covered vrith broom grass, and appear rather barren m winter, but in the spring if the dead grass is burned, they become green and pleasant. "We have no authentic history or tradition which can be believed in all respects, in regard to their origin. But they really are miniature representations of western prairies, and probably originated by the action of similar causes. When a certain kind of soil has been forest planted, it con- tinues in forest for centuries, unless some cause destroys the root and branch, as fire or water ; and when destroyed and opened to the sun a thick coating of grass covers the ground so perfectly, that the seeds of forest trees are deprived of the necessary stimulants to germination, or if they germinate a repetition of destructive agenta again occurs, till all seeds at or near the surface have germinated and have been destroyed. Grass ultimately gets full possession ; and though in the general it appears only as grass, yet if watched carefully, it will be found that the grasses have been changing, or a natural rotation has taken place; the rule ©"f exchange being a succession of grasses from the better to the worse, by which we have ultimately in this climate broom grass, an unmistakeable in- dex of an exhausted soil. This view, however, is sustained only when the products of vegetation are taken away. Combustion of the surface materials, followed by winds which transport the light ash far from the field upon which the plant grew which produced it, is an exhausting process. Forest fields when once exposed to the sun by the destruction of their pines, oaks and hickories, are directly in the road to a prairie, or savannah formation ; and when the latter is formed, it becomes as permanent aa a forest. As it re- gards their origin, we incline to the theory, that fire has been the direct instr«ment& concerned, and is still more or less active, ib preserving these tracts in a stationary condition. The water theo- ry, is less intelligible than the fire theory ; the latter explains all the phenomona as we think better than the former. The soil of the savannahs is fine, yellowish and compact, not un- like a brick clay, and so far as we have observed, contains by fap 6 '%'0 i;f6BTb:-t!AK0LlNA d^lS&^Al. SURVEY. less coarse sand. It is a liomogeneons soil, in which respect, it dif- fers from the gall berrj, and it being fine, compact, deep, and still wet, though not a swamp at all, it still holds always too much wa- ter for the cultivation of the cereals. The land is cold ; a term un- doubtedly applicable to this class, in which respect, it differs from the prairies of the west. It ditfers also from the swamp soils in the absence of vegetable matter, and from the uplands by compactness and firmness of material, and hence too the explanation of the fact, too cold and moist, for the cultivation of the cereals or even of root crops. The specimen of soil which has been examined was taken from a savannah in Craven county, which is being put into a state for cultivation, and which is owned by Mr. Wood. The Atlantic rail- road passes through it. These lands in Craven county, though not so extensive as those of New Hanover, still seem to possess the same characterics. We cannot affirm that there are not many va- rieties of savannah lands, still, there are good grounds for believing that they possess a greater uniformity of composition than the swamp or gall beriy l^nds. The savannah soil of Craven, on b-eing submitted to analysis, gave 4 Water, 4.00 Humic acid or soluble organic matter, ,., 2.00 Insoluble, 1.70 ' Phosphoric acid, undetermined, Silex, 80.590 Silicic acid, 100 Alumina, T.OOO Peroxide of iron, 3.400 Carbonate of lime, 600 Magnesia, 176 Potash, 098 Chlorine, a large, ^ trace. Sulphuric acid, , trace. 99.664 Ammonia, .0387 percent The specimen was dried in the air previous to analysis, it there- fore does not represent the quantity of water held by the soil in its ordinary condition. NOBTH-CAROLINA (J?pLiQ|^^ ^TDTI^^T-. 91 The chemical constitntton of the savannah lands appear to be well composed for durable cultivation. They will require deep draining and the time required for the escape of water will un- doubtedly be twice as long as that necessary to drain ordinary up- land soil, in consequence of the fine state of division in which the materials exist, and their natural affinity for water. When drained and dried, we have reason to believe that they will become good wheat or cotton lands. 92 NORTH-CAKOLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. APPENDIX, Containing brief descriptions of the mineral springs and well waters which occur in and about Raleigh. § 58. At numerous places in Wake and the adjacent counties several springs have been discovered which are entitled to the appel- lation oi mineral boaters. Frequent inquiries have been made by letter relative to them, and in several instances these waters have been sent to me for analysis. These requests have been complied with so far as it seemed to be necessary. In most cases, however, when the general character of the water was known by taste, or by its behavior on standing twenty-four hours, I have merely made a qualiatative examination. The water in this neighborhood, or in the town of Raleigh, are all chalybeates, and though they ap- pear to be weak, or contain a small amount only of mineral mat- ter, yet it is sufficient for medical purposes ; for if the quantity was larger, it would be more disagreeable to the palate, less would be drank, and it would both affect the head and produce a feeling of tightness across the chest. The quantity of mineral matter is there- fore well adapted for use in all eases where chalybeates are useful. An essential condition for the salutary injiuence of chalybeates is, their solution in a large amount of liquid matter. It insures their absorption into the system, and thereby favors their specific in- fluences, much more than if they were in a concentrated state. The well waters of Paleigh, which are used for drinking and cooking rank with as much propriety in the class inineral waters^ as the springs referred to. They differ, however, from them in the absence of iron, or if it exists, it is but a traee, and in the presence of chlorides, which exist only in traces in the mineral spring wa- ters. How muich influence impure well waters have upon the health of a community is not well determined. But it is well known that to strangers the common waters of a locality are fre- quently highl}'^ injurious, and it is probably true that the purer the water for common use, especially for drinking the better it is, and there is very little doubt that the best water which can be procured for family use, is ram water^ collected and preserved in filtering KORTH-CAEOLINA GEOLOGICAL SURVEY. 93 cisterns. In summer it would be warm, but cooled with ice it be- comes a luxury. There is a great uniformity in the composition of the spring waters of this description ; the constant differences being a varia- tion in the amount of solid matter dissolved in the water. They belong to the class known as chalybeate waters, which contain iron as the most active and important element. Such springs are readily recognized by the yellow or ochreous deposit along the line of flow. They are limpid or perfectly transparent when they first issue from the ground and when first bottled, but on standing 24 hours, a yellowish sediment falls down consisting of iron, lime and mag- nesia. This takes place in consequence of the loss of carbonic acid, the matter in solution being retained by an extra atom of carbonic acid, and hence while the salts are held in solution they are bi-car- bonates. When the water is exposed to the air the feeble affinity of tliis extra atom of carbonic acid is such that it soon escapes and the remaining compound in the water is no longer soluble, and hence, is deposited in a powder. A tumbler of those waters stand- ing in the open air sliows the escape of a gas which is carbonic acid. When the fresh water is shaken with a solution of red cabbage changed to a tinge of green by ammonia or an alkali, it becomes purplish again by the carbonic acid which is escaping. It is claimed that some of the springs contain sulphur ; those which have been subjected to the action of basic acetate of lead, have scarcely a perceptible effect upon this delicate test. Silver vessels which have been used many times become slightly tarnished in certain spots. Hence, it is possible, sulphuretted hydrogen es- capes in exceedingly minute quantities. The springs usually fiow out of banks of gravel and sand iu place, and which was derived from granite or gneiss. These banks are more or less ferruginous, but in the best waters they probably flow from the granite, and thence percolate through the soil. Composition of some of the waters of these springs: § 59. Garter spring, at the garden, one mile and a half from town. The whole amount of solid matter held in solution in a gallon of water is 16.72 grains. It consists of chloride of lime, organic matter, bi-carbonate of iron, lime and magnesia. In all cases, the organic matter is in the condition of humic, crenic and apocrenic &4 NOKTH-CAEOLINA GEOLOGICAL SUKYET^ acidsj. which are also in combination with the mineral matter. It contains also silicic acid. The IngUiiide spring, two miles east of Raleigh^ is in a fine grove, and fine drives might be cut ont by opening roads, or tine walks, as thej would be shaded by avenues of trees. This spring contains solid matter, about 15 grains to the gallon, consisting of organic matter, iron, lime and magnesia. The chlo- ride of lime was not tested for,, but as it is usually present, so probabl}'^ it is in this water. Its iise has had a beneficial effect upon invalids in several instances. The analysis of the spring upon Mr. Boylan^s land, was not pre- served ; it scarcely differs from the foregoing in the amount of solid matter, to the gallon. The watei' is pleasant to drink, and is pecu- liar in its taste. The water of a spring in Franklin county resena^bles also the fore- going. One pint of this water contains :. Iron, in combination with carbonic and organic acids, .2X Lime, 34 Magnesia, _., .10 Organic matter as a whole, 2. IS 2.84 To the gallon 22. Y7 grs. The Dadd spring has a temperature of 60°, air being 78. The solid matter in a gallon amounts to 16 grs. In a pint it contains : Organic matter, _ ».. .90 Iron in combination with organic matter, 40 Garb, of Mme, 24 Carb. of raagnesia, 10 Besides the foregoing, we obtained both the chlorides of lime and magnesia, the latter in a large trace. The Dodd spring differs from the Franklin county spring in containing less organic matter, and hence, it is that the iron in it, is more distinct to the taste. The yellow powder deposited from- mineral springs has a com- plex composition. It consists of humic acid, crenic and apo- crenic acids in conabination with the iron, a portion of the carbonic NOKTH-CAKOLmA. GE0LX5GICAL SURVEY. 95 acid having escaped. The two last acids are detected by the action of acetate of copper upon the alkaline solution of this ferruginous deposit. There is no dou%t, also, that phosphoric acid is present in the compound. § 60. The wells of Fayette ville street deserve a place among mineral waters. They differ from the springs simply, in the absence of iron. The well at the corner of Fayette ville street leading to the depot, contains 23.92 grains of solid matter to the gallon, containing alu- mina, sulphuric and muriatic acids, lime, magnesia and organic matter, both vegetable and animal. Mr. Askew's well contains to the gallon, 21.36 grains; organic matter 11.68; saline matter 9.68. The market well contains iS. SO grs. to the gallon ; organic matter 7.20; sahne matter 13.20. The Doctor's well contains 21.44: grains of solid matter to the gallon, saline matter 8.16. organic matter 1.3,28. To repeat once more, the saline matter in the foregoing wells consists of, 1, chlorides, or we may call them muriates, muriates of lime and magnesia;; 2, sulphates, as sulphate of lime, together with organic matter. The saline matter is white and free from iron, or merely traces of iron. The brown or gray crust upon the tea kettles consists of the sulphates and carbonates of lime ; the latter is formed probably from the orgaiiic salts. The salutary eft'ects of the spring water, which we have wit- nessed in several instances, is to be attributed to the iron, which is perfectly dissolved in the water when it issues from the fountain^ in which condition it is readily absorbed into the system. The other substances, however, are regarded as aiding in the general effects. a(5-'» p-^'