[Suttons Seeds, Reading.] Typed Letter Signed from Martin H. J. Sutton of the Royal Seed Establishment to G. K. Menzies, Secretary, Royal Society of Arts, regarding his experiments with 'radio-active fertilizers'.

See the entry for Martin Hope Sutton in the Oxford DNB, and that for his grandson Martin Hubert Fouquet Sutton in Who Was Who. 2pp, 4to. I good condition, lightly aged and worn. Folded three times. With RSA date stamp. Signed 'Martin H F Sutton'. In reply to a letter from Menzies, Sutton expresses regret that 'it will be impossible for you to attend the Demonstration here on the 24th inst.' Sutton will be 'publishing certain particulars for the benefit of those present' and will be glad to send Menzies a copy. He continues: 'My experiments, which are now in their second year, have been carried out solely for the purpose of acquiring knowledge and I have no axe to grind for I am interested in none of the Syndicates formed for the purpose of placing radio-active fertilizers on the market.' He is disappointed that the results of his experiments are 'on the whole distinctly of a negative character', given 'the really elaborate character of the experiments' and 'the marvellous results obtained with radium when applied to plants'. He will consider acting on Menzies invitation to read a paper on the matter, but in the meantime asks him to 'treat this letter as confidential'. In 1916 Sutton published 'Experiments in humogen in comparison with other fertiliser: a report of the tests carried out at Reading in 1916'.