=223. Consumption of Chile Saltpeter.=—The entire consumption of sodium nitrate for manurial purposes in the whole world for 1894 was 992,150 metric tons, valued at $41,000,000. For the several countries using it the consumption was distributed as follows: Germany 397,200 tons. France 187,100 “ England 117,000 “ Belgium 123,000 “ United States 100,000 “ Holland 56,700 “ Italy and Spain 5,200 “ Other countries 5,950 “ ------- Total 992,150 “ The above figures represent the actual commerce of each country in Chile saltpeter, and may not give the exact consumption.[184] For instance, Germany exports sodium nitrate to Russia and Austria, but it imports this salt from Holland and Belgium. Belgium imports from France, but its exportation is greater than its importations from that country, so that its actual consumption on the farm probably falls considerably below that given on the table. Holland also exports larger quantities than are imported from neighboring states. The exports from England are inconsiderable compared with the quantities received, amounting only to about 5,000 tons a year, while the exportations from France reach nearly 10,000 tons. Sodium nitrate has a moderate value at the factories where it is prepared for shipment in Chile. Its chief value at the ports where it is delivered for consumption comes from freights and profits of the syndicate. The factories, where it is prepared for the market, are at or near the deposits, and the freights thence to the sea coast are very high. The rail roads which have been constructed to the high plateaux which contain the deposits, have been built at a very great cost, and the freights charged are correspondingly high. There is also a tax of $1.20 levied on each ton exported. Deducting all costs of transportation and export duties the actual value of sodium nitrate at the factory, ready for shipment, is about sixteen dollars in gold a ton. AUTHORITIES CITED IN PART SECOND. [125] American Chemical Journal, Vol. 13, No. 7. [126] Atwater: Report of the U. S. Commissioner of Fish and Fisheries, 1888, pp. 679-868. [127] American Naturalist, Vol. 14, p. 473. [128] Wiley: Retiring Address as President of American Chemical Society, Baltimore Meeting, Dec. 1893, Journal of the American Chemical Society, Vol. 16, pp. 17-20. [129] Vid. op. et. loc. cit. supra. [130] Vid. op. et. loc. cit. 4. [131] Vid. op. et. loc. cit. 4. [132] Vid. op. et. loc. cit. 4. [133] Bulletin No. 43, p. 343 (to paragraph =156=). [134] American Chemical Journal, Vol. 2, pp. 27, et seq. [135] Vid. op. et. loc. cit. supra. [136] Weather Bureau: Barometers and Measurements of Atmospheric Pressures. [137] Physikalisch-Chemische Tabellen Landolt und Börnstein, S. 32. [138] Battle and Dancy: Conversion Tables, p. 34.