It is to be remembered, also, that in these analyses the experiment is made under the most favourable circumstances for ascertaining the whole quantity of matters which are capable of dissolving in water; that practically dissolved is very different. The recent analysis by Krocker and Way of the drainage water of soils afford a means of estimating this. Way found in one gallon of the drainage water from seven different fields, collected in the end of December-- +-------------------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+ | | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | +-------------------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+ | Potash, |trace |trace | 0.02 | 0.05 |trace | 0.22 |trace | | Soda, | 1.00 | 2.17 | 2.26 | 0.87 | 1.42 | 1.40 | 3.20 | | Lime, | 4.85 | 7.19 | 6.05 | 2.26 | 2.52 | 5.82 |13.00 | | Magnesia, | 0.68 | 2.32 | 2.48 | 0.41 | 0.21 | 0.93 | 2.50 | | Iron and Alumina, | 0.40 | 0.05 | 0.10 | none | 1.30 | 0.35 | 0.50 | | Silica, | 0.95 | 0.45 | 0.55 | 1.20 | 1.80 | 0.65 | 0.85 | | Chlorine, | 0.70 | 1.10 | 1.27 | 0.81 | 1.26 | 1.21 | 2.62 | | Sulphuric acid, | 1.65 | 5.15 | 4.40 | 1.71 | 1.29 | 3.12 | 9.51 | | Phosphoric acid, |trace | 0.12 |trace |trace | 0.08 | 0.06 | 0.12 | | Ammonia, | 0.018| 0.018| 0.018| 0.012| 0.018| 0.006| 0.018| | Nitric acid, | 7.17 |14.74 |12.72 | 1.95 | 3.45 | 8.05 |11.45 | | Organic matter, | 7.00 | 7.40 |12.50 | 5.60 | 5.70 | 5.80 | 7.40 | +-------------------+------+------+------+------+------+------+------+ Some of the soils from which these waters were obtained had been manured with unusually large quantities of nitrogenous matters, which accounts for the large amount of nitric acid, as well as the lime which that acid has extracted. Dr. Krocker's analyses were made on soils less highly manured, and the water was collected in summer.