| Value per pound. | |
|---|---|
| Nitrogen (ammonia, 17½ c.) | 21¾ c. |
| Soluble phosphoric acid | 10 c. |
| Reverted phosphoric acid | 8 c. |
| Insoluble phosphoric acid | 2 c. |
| Potash, as sulphate and phosphate | 7½ c. |
“The first cargo of Peruvian guano, sold under this guarantee, contained:
| Value per ton. | ||
|---|---|---|
| Ammonia | 6.8 per cent | $23.80 |
| Soluble phosphoric acid | 3.8 per cent | 7.60 |
| Reverted phosphoric acid | 11.5 per cent | 18.40 |
| Insoluble phosphoric acid | 3.0 per cent | 1.20 |
| Potash | 3.7 per cent | 5.55 |
Estimated retail price per ton of 2,000lbs. | $56.55 | |
Marked on bags for sale | $56.00 | |
The second cargo, sold under this guarantee, contained:
| Value per ton. | ||
|---|---|---|
| Ammonia | 11.5 per cent | $40.50 |
| Soluble phosphoric acid | 5.4 per cent | 10.80 |
| Reverted phosphoric acid | 10.0 per cent | 16.00 |
| Insoluble phosphoric acid | 1.7 per cent | .68 |
| Potash | 2.3 per cent | 3.45 |
| $71.43 | ||
Selling price marked on bags | $70.00 | |
“It is interesting,” said I, “to compare these analyses of Peruvian guano of to-day, with Peruvian guano brought to England twenty-nine or thirty years ago. I saw at Rothamsted thirty years ago a bag of guano that contained 22 per cent of ammonia. And farmers could then buy guano guaranteed by the dealers (not by the agents of the Peruvian Government), to contain 16 per cent of ammonia, and 10 per cent of phosphoric acid. Price, £9 5s. per ton of 2,240 lbs.—say $40 per ton of 2,000 lbs.
The average composition of thirty-two cargoes of guano imported into England in 1849 was as follows:
| Ammonia | 17.41 per cent. |
| Phosphoric acid | 9.75 per cent. |
| Alkaline salts | 8.75 per cent. |
At the present valuation, adopted by the Agents of the Peruvian guano in New York, and estimating that 5 per cent of the phosphoric acid was soluble, and 4 per cent reverted, and that there was 2 lbs. of potash in the alkaline salts, this guano would be worth: