3,286,308 5,030,652 8,316,960 25,795,708 3,802,399 Russia 1859–63 74,139,394 ... ... 25,444,000 45,130,800 10,097,000 Denmark Proper 1861 1,662,734 756,834 361,940 1,118,774 1,751,950 300,928 Sleswig 1861 421,486 217,751 172,250 390,001 362,219 87,867 Holstein 1861 561,831 198,310 92,062 290,372 165,344 82,398 Sweden 1860 3,859,728 1,112,944 803,714 1,916,658 1,644,156 457,981 Prussia 1862 18,491,220 3,382,703 2,251,797 5,634,500 17,428,017 2,709,709 Hanover 1861 1,880,070 ... ... 949,179 2,211,927 554,056 Saxony 1861 2,225,240 411,563 226,897 638,460 371,986 270,462 Wurtemburg 1861 1,720,708 466,758 490,414 957,172 683,842 216,965 Grand Duchy
   of Baden 1861 1,429,199 348,418 273,068 621,486 177,322 307,198    " Hesse 1863 853,315 187,442 129,211 316,653 231,787 195,596    " Nassau 1864 468,311 116,421 84,224 200,645 152,584 65,979    " Mecklenb.
     Schwerin 1857 539,258 197,622 69,215 266,837 1,198,450 157,522    " Oldenburg 1852 279,637 ... ... 219,843 295,322 87,336 Holland 1864 3,618,459 943,214 390,673 1,333,887 930,136 294,636 Belgium 1856 4,529,461 ... ... 1,257,649 583,485 458,418 France 1862 37,386,313 5,781,465 8,415,895 14,197,360 33,281,592 5,246,403 Spain 1865 15,658,531 ... ... 2,904,598 22,054,967 4,264,817 Austria 1863 36,267,648 6,353,086 7,904,030 14,257,116 16,964,236 8,151,608 Bavaria 1863 4,807,440 1,530,626 1,655,356 3,185,882 2,058,638 926,522 United States 1860 31,445,080 8,728,862 8,182,813 16,911,475 23,317,756 32,555,267

NUMBERS OF THE LIVE STOCK IMPORTED INTO GREAT BRITAIN DURING THE ELEVEN MONTHS ENDED 31st NOVEMBER, 1867.
Bullocks, bulls, and cows		150,518
Calves		20,720
Sheep and lambs		504,514
Pigs		45,566
		————
		721,318
AMOUNT OF ANIMAL FOOD IMPORTED DURING SAME PERIOD.
Bacon and hams	cwts.	452,132
Salt beef	"	163,638
Salt pork	"	123,257
Butter	"	1,000,095
Lard	"	213,599
Cheese	"	798,267
Eggs		373,042,000

I am indebted to Professor Ferguson, Chief of the Veterinary Department of the Irish Privy Council Office, for the following statement:—

RETURN OF HORNED CATTLE EXPORTED FROM THE SEVERAL IRISH PORTS AT WHICH VETERINARY INSPECTORS HAVE BEEN APPOINTED, AND CERTIFIED AS FREE FROM DISEASE, FROM THE 18th OF NOVEMBER, 1866, TO THE 16th OF NOVEMBER, 1867 (52 WEEKS).
Fat Stock	187,483
Store Stock	317,331
Breeding and Dairy Stock	36,599
	————
Total	541,413
	———— ————

PART I.

ON THE GROWTH AND COMPOSITION OF ANIMALS.

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SECTION I.

ANIMAL AND VEGETABLE LIFE.

Functions of Plants.—It is the primary function of plants to convert the inorganic matter of the soil and air into organised structures of a highly complex nature. The food of plants is purely mineral, and consists chiefly of water, carbonic acid, and ammonia. Water is composed of the elements oxygen and hydrogen; carbonic acid is a compound of oxygen and carbon; and ammonia is formed of hydrogen and nitrogen. These four substances are termed the organic elements, because they form by far the larger portion—sometimes the whole—of organic bodies. The combustible portion of plants and animals is composed of the organic elements; the incombustible part is made up of potassium, sodium, and the various other elements enumerated in another page. The organic elements are furnished chiefly by the atmosphere, and the incombustible matters are supplied by the soil.

Water in the state of vapor forms, according to the temperature and other conditions of the atmosphere, from a half per cent. to four and a half per cent. of the weight of that fluid—about 1·25 per cent. being the average; carbonic acid exists in it to the extent of ¹⁄₂₀₀₀th; and ammonia forms a minute portion of it—according to Dr. Angus Smith, one grain weight in 412·42 cubic feet of air (of a town), or 0·000453 per cent. It is remarkable that the most abundant constituents of atmospheric air—oxygen and nitrogen—are not assimilable by plants, although these elements enter largely into the composition of vegetable substances. In the soil, also, the part which ministers to the wants of vegetables is