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35 water for twenty-four hours, and evaporated, produced only ten drams of a brown salt, having a strong caustic alkaline taste. Upon examination, they appear to contain an earth half vitrified, some lime, alkaline salt, and a quantity of sulphur.

MARCOFT ASHES

Are of a paler colour than the former, with some small pieces of charcoal in their composition. Half a pound of them dissolved in water, filtrated and evaporated, yielded only eleven drams one scruple and two grains of alkaline residuum.

The blue and white pearl ashes, discovered by experiment to be pure alkaline salts, without any considerable mixture of heterogeneous bodies, may be used in hard soapmaking, mixed with kelp or barilla, with certain success. When used alone, a large