sms's;
JOURNAL
OP
NATURAL PHILOSOPHY, CHEMISTRY,
AND
THE ARTS.
VOL. XXXIV.
Sllusttatett toftl) enjjmbtojj&
BY WILLIAM NICHOLSON-
LONDON:
PRINTED BY G. SIDNEY, NORTHUMBERLAND-STREET STRAND,
For W. Nicholson, No. 13, Bloomsbiiry Square;
AND SOLD BY
SHERWOOD, NEELEY, and JONES, Paternoster Row - and all Booksellers.
1813.
■XAVMXSOT.
- -, ■ >&
TABLE OF CONTENTS
TO THE THIRTY-FOUR! H VOLUME.
JANUARY, 1813.
Engravings of the following subjects : A Periscopic Camera Obscura, by Dr. Wollaston, Sec. R. S. A Periscopic Microscope, by the 'same. An improved Pump for raising water, and keeping itself clear in mines or wells, during the time of sinking, bv Mr. William Brunton.
I. — Comparative Analysis of the Urine of different Animals. By M. Vauquelin. - - - 1
II. — Some Account of Zerah Colburn. an American Child, who possesses some very remarkable Powers of solving Questions in . Arithmetic by Computation, without Writing, or any visible Contrivance. - 5
III. — Far her Experiments and Observations on the Action of Poisons on the Animal System. By B. C. Brodie, Esq. F. R. S. Communicated to the Society for the improvement of Animal Chemistry, and by them to the Royal Society. (Concluded from p. 268.) ~ - 9
IV. — On the Vegetation of high Mountains, translated from a Paper of Mr. Ramond's in the Annales du Museum, V. iv. p. 395. By Richard Antony Salisbury, Esq. F. R. S. &c. 16
V. — Description of a Bank for Alpine Plants, by Monsieur Thouin, abridged from his Paper in the Annales du Museum, V. vi. p. 183. By Richard Anthony Salisbury, Esq. F. R. S. &c. - - 24
VI. — On a Periscopic Camera Obscura and Microscope. By William Hyde Wollaston, M D. Sec. R. S. From the Philosophical Transactions for lbl2.p. 370. ... . - - 26
VII. — Practical Experiments on hardening Steel. By Mr. E. Lydiatt, Lecturer on metallurgy, and the mechanic Arts, &c. In a letter from the Author. - ... - -. 31
VIII. — Chemical Observations on the Sepia of the Cuttle Fish. By Mr. GroverKemp. Received from the Author. 34
IX. — On the Motions of the Tendrils of Plants. By Thomas Andrew Knight, Esq F. R. S. From the Philosophical Transactions for 1812. 37
X. — Additional Experiments on the Muriatic and Oxymuriatic Acids. By William Henry, M. D. F. R. S. V. P. of the Literary and Philosophical Society, and Phys:cian to the Infirmary at Manchester. From the Phil. Transactions, 1812. ... 42
XL — Experiments on Putrefaction. By John Manners, M. D. of Phila- delphia. In a letter from the Author. - - 49
XII. — Of the excellent Qualities of Coffee, and the art of making it in the highest perfection. By Benjamin, Count of Rumford, F. R. S. Abridg- ed from his 18th Essay, published in London in 1812. - - - 56
XIII.— Meteorological Journal. - - - - 62
XIV. — Description of an improved Pump for raising the water from Wells or Mines, while sinking or making. By Mr. William Brunton, of Butterly Iron Works, in Derbyshire. Extracted from the Transactions of the Society of Arts, published in the Year 1812. - - 64
XV. — An Account of an Experiment made in the College Laboratory, Edinburgh, drawn up by John Davy, Esq. 68
Scientific News. ------ 72
FEBRUARY,
if CONTENTS.
FEBRUARY. 1813.
Engravings of the following subjects: l.A new Remontoire Escape- ment for a Pendulum Clock, by Mr. Prior. 2. A method of conveying
steam from Boilers, by Mr. Webster.
I.— An Account of some Experiments on different Combinations of Fluoric Acid. By John D?vy, Esq. From the Philosophical Transactions, 1812. .. 81
Il.-r-Obscrvations on the Measurement of three Degrees of the Meridian conducted in England by Lieut-Col. William Mudge. By Don Joseph Rodriguez. From the Philosophical Transactions for 1812, p. 321 . (Con- cluded from p. 334 . Pol. XXXI il J . . . . . . 90
III. — Critical Observations, on Dr. Wollaston's stated improvement of the Camera Obscura and Microscope in the application of the Meniscus, and two Piano-Convex Lenses ; proving their inferiority to the double Convex Lens generally used. By Mr. William J jnes, Optician 100
IV. — Rules for discovering new Improvements, exemplified in the art of thrashing and cleaning grain ; Lulling rice ;. warming rooms ; preventing ships iV>;ra sinking,, &c. By Oliver Evans, of Philadelphia 10?
V. — Useful or Instructive Notions, respecting various o! jects. 1 . Multiply- ing of Copies of Writing. 2. Scintillation of tiie Stars. 3. Large Aeronaut I enses.—W. N .. .. .. .. .. 113
VI. — An Account of some Experiments on -he Congelation of Mercury, by means of Ether. By A. Marcet, Itf . D. 1 . R. S ' 1 1 9
VII. — Observations upon the best state in which it is adv.'iable to bring the British Merino Wools to market. By Edward Sheppard, Esq. of Uley, in Gloucestershire. .. .. .. .. .. . . • 121
VII L — General Results of Beccaria's Observations upon the Electricity of the Atmosphere during serene weather ; together with those of Romayne and Henley. Abstracted by a Correspondent. (R. B.) .. 126
IX. — Notice of an Adventurer to the Interior of Africa. . . 134.
X. — Description of a remontoire Escapement for Pendulum Clocks, invent- ed by Mr. George Prior, Jun. .. . . . . 13(5
XL — Description of a simple, cheap, and easy method of preventing the Annoyance of steam from Boilers in Manufactories and other Places. By Mr. George Webster, of Leeds. .. .. ... 138
XII. — Meteorological Journal. . . . . . . . . 140
XIII. — An Explanatory Statement of the Notions or principles upon which the Systematic Arrangement is founded, which was adopted as the basis of an Essay on Chemical Nomenclature. By Professor J. Berzelius. 142
XIV. — Facts and Remarks upon the Interruption which the situation of the maintaining weight produces in the rate of a Clock when near the Pendulum. By H. K. .. .. .. ... 146
Scientific News. .. .. .. .. .. 148
MARCH,
CONTENTS.
MARCH, 1813.
Engravings of the following subjects : — 1. A very simple and cheap distil- latory apparatus. 2. An instrument for ascertaining the quality of corn by its weight in a given measure. 3. A statical blow-pipe. 4. Plan of the drainage of marsh land in Yorkshire. 5. Instruments for treating the new explosive compound of chlorine and azote.
I.— An explanatory Statement of the Notions or Principles upon which the systematic Arrangement is founded, which was adopted as the Basis of an Essay on Chemical Nomenclature. By professor J. Berzelius. 153
II. — Notice respecting Experiments on the freezing of Alcohol. By Mr. Hutton. 166
III. — Some Remaiks on the Use of Nitrateof Silver, for the Detection of minute Portions of Arsenic. By Alex. Marcet, M. D. F. R. S. - 174
IV. — Meteorological Journal -- - -- ------ 173
V. — On the Explosive Compound of Chlorine and Azote. By Messrs. R. Porretty jun. William Wilson, and Rupert Kirk. - 180
VI. — A statical Blow Pipe, with Remarks by C. L. - 190
VII. — Description of a simple Apparatus for Distillation. By a Correspon- dent. - - - - - - - - - --192
VIII. — Upon certain ready Processes for Computation, supposed to have been invented by the American boy exhibited in London. - - 193
IX. — On the Appearance and Disappearance of the Aurora Borealis. By M. Cotte. I96
X. — Description cf a portable Instrument for ascertaining the Quantity of Grain by Weight, called the Chondrometer. - - - - 198
XI. — Further Experiments and Observations on the Influence of the Brain on the generation of animal heat. By B. C. firodie, F. R. S. - - 199
XII. — Abstract of a Memoir upon the Origin and Generation of the electric Power, whether by Means of Friction, or in the Pile of Volta. By J. P. Dessaignes. - - - - - - - -211
XIII. — Account of the Drainage of a Piece of Morass Land, called the Tarn, in the Parish of Clapham, in Yorkshire. By Major B. Hesleden. - 218
XIV. — Respecting the Action of coloured Rays upon a Mixture of oxy mu- riatic Gas and hydrogen Gas. By Mr. Seebeck. ... 220
Scientific News. - - - - - - -- * 221
APIUI ,
vi CONTENTS.
APRIL, 1813.
Engravings of the following subjects : 1, Apparatus for experiments on ani- mal beat. 2. Apparatus for experiments on the explosive compound. 3. Delineation of a very singular figure, formed in the ice of a pond, cor- re»ponding with that of a man, who lay drowned at the depth of five feet below the ice. 4. View of the Caldeiras or boiling Fountains in one of the Azore Islands.
I. Experiments on the comparative Strength of Men and Horses, ap- plicable to the Moxement of Machines. By M. Schulze 233
II. — An explanatory Statement of the Notions or Principles upon which the systematic Arrangement is founded, which was adopted as the Basis of an Essay on Chemical Nomenclature. By Professor J. Berzelius... 240
III. — A Reply to Don Joseph Rodriguez's Animadversions on Part of
the Trigonometrical Survey of England. By Olinthus Gregory, LL. D.
. of the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich 246
IV. — On the Existence of combined Water in muriatic acid Gas. By J. Murray, Lecturer on Chemistry, &c. Edinburgh .. 264
V. — On the Explosive Compound of Chlorine and Azote 276
VI. — Vindication of the Claims of the American Boy to extraordinary Talents and original Discovery. In a Letter from Mr. W. Saint 29 1
VII. — Meteorological Journal. ... 1 296
VIII. — On the Connection between Shooting-Stars and large Meteors, and proceeding both from terrestrial and satellitulae, in rejoinder to Mr. G. J. Singer. By Mr. John Farey, Sen 298
IX. — Account of a remarkable Appearauce in the Ice of a Pond in which a man was drowned. (W. N.) 301
X.— Of the Caldeiras or Hot Fountains of the Furnas in the Island of St. Michael, one of the Azores 305
Scientific News 30^
CONTENTS. vii
SUPPLEMENT TO VOL. XXXIV.
Engravings on the follow!: g subjects : A perspective View of Machinery for raising boats from a lower to an upper level upon canals, and the contrary. By Mr. Woodhouse. Paits ot the Engine given in detail.
I. — An explanatory Statement of the Notion or Principles upon which the systematic Arrangement is founded, which was adopted as the Basis of an Essay on Chemical Nomenclature. By Professor J. Berzelius. (Continued from p. 246.) - - - 313
II. — Inquiries relative to the Structure of Wood, the specific Gravity of its solid Parts, and the Quantity of Liquids and elastic Fluids contained in it under various Circumstances ; the Quantity of Charcoal to be obtained from it j and the Quantity of heat produced by its Com- bustion. By Count Rumford, F. R. S. Foreign Associate of the Imperial Institute of France, &c. --- - - -- - 319
III. — Description of the perpendicular Lift erected as a Substitute for Locks on the Worcester and Birmingham Canal at Tardebig, near Bromsgrove. By Mr. Woodhouse. From a printed Letter of Mr. Edward Smith, of Birmingham, and the Reports of W. Jessop, Esq. - 335
IV. — Curious Fact of the Outlines of Trees, accurately sketched on the surface of the ice on the Bog Lakes of Ireland. In a Letter from John Chichester, M.D. of Bath. 343
V. — On Copper Wire, gilt with Brass. In a Letter from a Corres- pondent. ^ .... 344
A JOURNAL
JOURNAL
OP
NATURAL PHILOSOPHY, CHEMISTRY,
AND
THE ARTS.
JANUARY, 1813.
ARflCLE I.
Comparative Analyses of the Urine of different Animals. By Mr. Vaugiuelin*.
THE only kinds of urine, that chemists have hitherto ana- Few kinds oi? Jysed in a satisfactory manner, are those of man, and some "J^6 sa^sfac- of the larger herbivorous animals. Those of the carnivorous ed. animals and glires have not yet been examined by any person that I know of.
If it be acknowledged, however, that comparative anatomy Comparative has contributed much to the advancement of physiology, it will commended." also be found, perhaps, that comparative chemistry may be of great advantage to that science. i
Already has the analysis of the urine of birds afforded re- ^"ne °* hirds. suits sufficiently interesting and unexpected, to induce chemists to pursue the inquiry in all animals that furnish this fluid, that we may not judge from analogy, which is frequently deceitful. It is with this view, that I have undertaken the analysis of the urine of the royal tiger, the lion, and the beaver -f the results of which I here give, till I have time to pursue my inquiry Qn this subject farther.
* Ann. de Chim. vol. LXXXII, p. 197. Vol. XXXIV.— No. 156. B Urine
ANALYSES OF URl-NE OF DIFFERENT ANIMALS*
Urine of the lion and tiger.
Points in
which they differ from that of man.
Ammonia.
No uric acid
animal food therefore not its source.
Want of phos- phate of lime.
Yet this is se- parated in the kidneys ; but prohably precipitated by the ammo- nia.
Their calculi must he phos- phate of lime.
Little muriate of soda.
Much urea. Other sub- stance*.
Urine of the lion and the royal tiger.
The urine of the lion, and that of the tiger, are perfectly similar in every respect. They have likewise some analogy to that of man, but they differ from it essentially in some im- portant points.
First difference.— They are alkaline at the very instant they are voided : on the contrary, those of a healthy man are con- stantly acid.
It is to the presence of ammonia developed in these urines> that we must ascribe the strong and disagreeable smell they diffuse immediately on issuing from the bladder of these ani- mals.
Second difference.*— They contain no uric acid, either free or combined with an alkali. At least the analysis of these urines four times repeated afforded me no sensible trace of it.
The want of uric acid could riot but the more attract my attention, as I had considered its formation to be owing chiefly to animal food.
Third difference.— The almost total absence of phosphate of lime.
This might naturally be expected, as this salt is soluble in water only by the help of a superabundance of acid, and the urine in question is alkaline.
It appears, however, that the kidneys of these animals sepa- rate a certain quantity of this salt from the blood, for I have found slight traces of it in these urines ; while the ammonia is formed only in the bladder, where probably it precipitates the phosphate of lime j and this is no doubt the reason why the urine of these animals is almost always turbid when voided.
Hence, if calculi be ever found in the bladder of these ani- mals, they can be formed only of phosphate of lime, since they contain no other insoluble substance.
Fourth difference. — The urine of the lion and of the tiger contains but an infinitely small quantity of muriate of soda, while that of man commonly affords much.
In these urines we rind a large quantity of urea, much dis- posed to crystallize, and in general but lightly coloured} phos- phates of soda and ammonia ; sulphate of potash ; a mucous matter, and a trace of iron.
Thes«
ANALYSES OF URINE OF DIFFERENT ANIMALS. $
These are the points in which the urine of the lion and the royal tiger resembles those of man : but it differs from it, as we have seen, in a sufficient number of points, to consider it ,
as a distinct species.
It is composed of
1, Urea, Component
2, Animal mucus, p
3, Phosphate of soda,
4, " ammortia,
5, Muriate of ammonia,
6, A trace of phosphate of lime,
7, Sulphate of potash in large quantity;
8, An atom of muriate Of soda.
Urine of the beaver.
A careful analysis of the urine of the beaver, Several times Urine of thi repeated, has taught me, that it has a great similitude with the urine of the common herbivorous animals.
In fact, we find in it carbonate of lime held in solution by a its contents, superabundance of carbonic acid ; the benzoic and acetic acids; urea, muriate of soda, and sulphate of potash : but no uric acid, or phosphoric salt.
It differs from them, however, in containing no muriate of Difference ammonia, but a notable quantity of carbonate and acetate of common" her- magnesia, which are not found, at least in any great quantity, bivorous ani- In the urine of herbivorous animals. ma s*
The following is the mode in which I detected the carbonate of magnesia.
After having concentrated a certain quantity of the urine by ^odem a gentle heat, I decanted the thickened liquor, and washed with which the car- distilled water the vessel, on the sides of which the carbonate nesb^vv^df- of lime had settled. I then poured in some sulphuric acid, tected. diluted with water, which produced a frothy effervescence, on account of a mucous matter, which the carbonate of lime car- ries with it.
Perceiving that the sulphuric acid had acquired a bitter taste in this combination, 1 dried and calcined the mixture, washed it with a little water, and by evaporation obtained a salt, that possessed all the properties of sulphate of magnesia,
B 2 Desirous
* ANALYSES OF URINE OF DIFFERENT ANIMALS.
Desirous of knowing by another experiment, whether the urine of the beaver, like that of all other herbivorous animals, • contained any muriate of ammonia, I put into a portion of the
thickened liquor a bit of caustic potash ; and as no smell of ammonia was perceived, even when heat was applied, I con* eluded, that it contained no muriate of ammonia. But a phe- nomenon presented itself, that occasioned me some surprise, and made me desirous of discovering its cause. The liquor coagulated into a gelatinous mass. Suspecting that this effect was produced by the precipitation of some earthy substance, I treated the whole of the thickened urine I had with caustic potash j filtered off the liquor to obtain the matter in question j and after it was washed and calcined, combined it with sul- phuric acid, diluted with water, and obtained sulphate of mag- nesia mixed with a little sulphate of lime. , The acetate of Though I have said, that the urine of the beaver contains
Tna^iieiia P*r" acetate of magnesia, yet I am not perfectly certain of it. It haps a pro- . .,, ,,., . i i ■«« j .
duct. is possible, that during the evaporation, though effected by a
gentle heat, a certain quantity of acetic acid was formed ; and that this acted on the carbonate of magnesia, remaining in the liquor in consequence of its being more soluble than the car- bonate of lime. Colouring We commonly find by the colour, smell, and taste of the
juatter of its beaver's urine, and particularly by its property of dying the urine. alumed stuffs, the kind of vegetable on which it h;is fed. Instance. I" that in question I very evidently distinguished the colour-
ing matter of willow bark, and its keeper afterward confirmed my observation. Properties of There are cases, theiefore, in which certain vegetable sub- vegetables not stances are capable of passing the digestive organs and the cir- stroyed in the dilation, without losing the properties that distinguish them ia circulation. their natural state. ^
Presence of * found also in the urine of the beaver a quantity of iron,
iron, that at first astonished me: but on reflecting, that it had been
saved in a tin vessel, and that it contained carbonic acid, I be- lieve the greater part of the metal must be ascribed to this vessel.
The urine of the beaver, then, is composed of
l,Urea, Component 2 . A ■ j
parts of the ' '
urine. 3, Ben*
COMPUTATION BY A CEIILD.
3, Benzoate of potash,
4, Carbonate of lime and of magnesia,
5, Acetate of magnesia (questionable), G, Sulphate of potash,
7, Muriate of potash and of soda,
8, Colouring vegetable matter, Q,~A little iron.
Some Account of Zerah Colburn, an American Child, ivho possesses some very remarkable Powers of solving Questions in Arithmetic by Computation, without Writing, or any visible Contrivance.
[The present article is copied from a printed paper, which I ob- tained from Messrs. Johnson and Co., booksellers, in St. Paul's Church-yard. This boy has been publicly exhibited in America and in London, and some time ago subscriptions were solicited for placing him to be educated under the inspection and care of several mathematical gentlemen : but I have been informed, that the plan was relinquished, from some reasons on the part of his father ; and he is again to be seen by the public. A subscription is now solicited for publishing a portrait of him on the following terms J
ZERAH COLBURN, a child just eight years oj age, RemarkaM, without any previous knowledge of the common ru'e; of powers of com*
arithmetic, or even of the use and power of the Arabic numerals, Plltat,onin a
. child,
and without having given any particular attention to the subject,
possesses (as if by intuition) the singular faculty of solving a
great variety of arithmetical questions by the mere operation oj
the. mind, and without the usual assistance of any visible symbol
or contrivance.
This print will be engraved from a drawing by Mr. Trumbull -t and the size of it will be about J 2 inches by 10.
The price to subscribers will be One Guinea, to be paid at the time of subscribing : and the plates will be delivered accord- ing to the order of subscription.
The following gentlemen (who are well acquainted with the
extra*
5 COMMUTATION BY A CHTLD.
Remarkable extraordinary abilities of this child) have kindly undertaken to powers of com- attend to the progress and execution of the work, and to see to child.°n m a t,ie distribution of the plates, viz. Sir James Mackintosh ; Dr. W. H. Wollaston, Sec. R. S. ; William Vaughan, Esq. ; John Bonnycastle, Esq., Math. Prof, j Francis Wakefield, Esq. j William Allen, Esq., F. R. S. F. L. S j John Guillemard, Esq., F. R. S. F. Amer. S.; Samuel Parker, Esq. 5 Francis Bailey, Esq.
Subscriptions are received by either of the above gentlemen, or by Messrs. Johnson and Co., No. 72, St. Paul's churchyard : and printed receipts will be given for the same, which must be produced and given up at the time the plates are delivered.
Zerah Colburn is at present to be seen at the Exhibition Rooms, Spring Gardens. Many persons of the first eminence for their knowledge in mathematics, and well known for their philosophical inquiries, have made a point of visiting him : and they have all been struck with astonishment at his extraordinary powers. It is correctly true, as stated of him, that — " He will " not only determine, with the greatest facility and dispatch, the " exact number of minutes or seconds in any given period of time; " but will also solve any other question of a similar kind. He " will tell the exact product arising from the multiplication of '* any number, consisting of two, three, or four figures, by any " other number consisting of the like number of figures. Or, €t any number, consisting of six or seven places of figures, (t being proposed, he will determine, with equal expedition and " ease, all the factors of which it is composed. This singular " faculty consequently extends not only to the raising of powers, " but also to the extraction of the square and cube roots of the " number proposed ; and likewise to the means of determining " whether it be a prime number (or a number incapable of divi- " sion by any other number) j for which case there does not * " exist, at present, any general rule amongst mathematicians." All these, and a variety of other questions connected therewith, are answered by this child with such promptness and accuracy (and in the midst of his juvenile pursuits) as to astonish every person who has visited him.
At a meeting of his friends, which was held for the purpose of concerting the best method of promoting the views of the father respecting his education, this child undertook, and com- pletely
COMPUTATION BY A CHILD. P 7
pletely succeeded in, raising the number 8 progressively up to Remarkable
the sixteenth power : and in naming the last result, viz. powersof com-
^ r> i » • . m t-, i putation in a
281,474,976,710,656, he was right m every figure. He was then child.
tried as to other numbers, consisting of one figure ; all of which he raised (by actual multiplication and not by memory) as high as the tenth power : with so much facility and dispatch, that the person appointed to take down the results was obliged to en- join him not to be so rapid. With respect to numbers consist- ing of two figures, he would raise some of them to the sixth, seventh, and eighth power j but not always with equal facility : for the larger the products became, the more difficult he found it to proceed. He was asked the square root of IO6929, and before the number could be written down, he immediately an- swered 327. He was then required to name the cube root of 268,336,125, and with equal facility and promptness he replied 6-45. Various other questions of a similar nature, respecting the roots and powers of very high numbers, were proposed by several of the gentlemen present, to all of which he answered in a similar manner. One of the party requested him to name the factors which produced the number 24/483, which he imme- diately did by mentioning the two numbers 94 1 and 263 j which indeed are the only two numbers that will produce it. Ano- ther of them proposed 171395, and. he named the following factors as the only ones (hat would produce it ; viz. 5 x 34279, 7x24485, 59X2905, 83X2065,35X4897, 295x581, and 413x415. He was then asked to give the factors of 36083 5 but he immediately replied that it had none j which in fact was the case, as 36083 is a prime number*. Other numbers were indiscriminately proposed to him, and he always succeeded in giving the correct factors, except in the case of prime numbers, which he discovered almost as soon as proposed. One of the gentlemen asked him how many minutes there were in forty- eight years j and before the question could be written down, he replied 25,228,800) and instantly added, that the number of
• It had been asserted and maintained by the French mathematicians, that 4,294,967,297 (= 292 + 1) was a prime number: but the cele- brated Euler detected that errour by discovering, that it was equal to 6,700,417*641. The same number was proposed to this child, who found out the factors by the mere operation of his mind.
seconds
8 COMPUTATION BY A CHILD.
Remarkable seconds in the same period was 1,5 13, 728,000. Various ques- powersofcom- tions Qf the j;ke kincj were pnt tQ him . and to a]\ 0f them he
J-hiid. answered with nearly equal facility and promptitude ; so as to
astonish every one present, and to excite a desire that so extra- ordinary a faculty should (if possible) be rendered more exten- sive and useful.
It was the wish of the gentlemen present to obtain a know- ledge of the method by which the child was enabled to answer, with so much facility and correctness, the questions thus put to him : but to all their inquiries upon this subject (and he wai closely examined upon this point) he was unable to give them any information. He positively declared (and every observation that was made seemed to justify the assertion) that he did not know how the answers came into his mind. In the act of multiplying two numbers together, and in the raising of powers, it was evident (not only from the motion of his lips, but also from some singular facts which afterward occurred,)- that some operation was going forward in his mind ; yet that could not (from the readiness with which the answers were furnished) be at all allied to the usual mode of proceeding with such subjects : and moreover, he is entirely ignorant of the common rules of arithmetic, and cannot perform, upon paper, a simple sum in multiplication or division. But, in the extrac- tion of roots and in mentioning the factors of high numbers it does not appear that any operation can take place j since he will give the answer immediately , or in a very few seconds, where it would require, according to the ordinary method of solution, a very difficult and laborous calculation : and moreover, the know- edge of a prime number cannot be obtained by any known rule.
It may naturally be expected, that these wonderful talents, which are so conspicuous at this early age, will by a suitable education be considerably improved and extended ; and that some new light will eventually be thrown upon those subjects, for the elucidation of which his mind appears to be peculiarly formed by nature, since he enters into the world with all those powers and faculties, which are not even attainable by the most eminent at a more advanced period of life. Every mathematician must be aware of the important advantages, which have sometimes been derived from the most simple and trifling circumstances ; the full effect of which has not always been evident at first
sight.
ACTION OF POISONS ON THE ANIMAL SYSTEM. [
sight. To mention one singular instance of this kind. The Remarkable very simple improvement of expressing the powers and roots J^p"ta^ion of quantities by means of indices introduced a new and general in a child. arithmetic of exponents ; and this algorithm of powers led the way to the invention of logarithms, by means of which a'l arithmetical computations are so much facilitated and abridged. Perhaps this child possesses a knowledge of some more important properties connected with this subject ; and although he is incapable at present of giving any satisfactory account of the state of his mind, or of communicating to others the know- ledge which it is so evident he does possess, yet there is every reason to believe, that, when his mind is more cultivated and his ideas more expanded, he will be able not only to divulge the mode by which he at present operates, but also point out some new sources of information on this interesting subject.
The profits of the present print will be given to the father of this child, in order to enable him to provide a more suitable education for his son : and it is hoped that the friends of science, and the public in general, will promote a plan, which promises to be attended with such advantages.
III.
Farther Experiments and Observations on the Action of Poisons on the Animal System. By B. C. Brodie, Esq. F. R. S. Communicated to the Society for the improvement of Animal fihemistry, and by them to the Royal Society.
{Concluded from p. 268.)
IV. Experiments with the Muriate of Barytes.
Baryt.es poi- HEN barytes, is taken into the stomach, or applied to a sonous, but wound, i>t is capable of destroying life j but when in its 8aits!° uncombined state its action is very slow. The muriate of ba- rytes, which is much more soluble than the pure earth, is (pro- bably on this account) a much more active poison. ' Exp 3 jyru. Experiment 5. Ten grains of muriate of barytes rubbed very
fine,
w
JO ACTION' OP POISONS ON THE ANIMAL SYSTEM.
tlat? of lury. fine, and moistened with two drops of water, were applied to
re* applied to two WOunds in the thigh and side of a rabbit. In four minutes a wound in a , .,, , , . « /•• • T ,
rabbit. he was evidently under the influence of the poison, in a short
time he became giddy : then his hind legs were paralysed ; and he gradually fell into a state of insensibility, with dilated pupils, and lay in general motionless, but with occasional con- vulsions. The pulse beat 150 in a minute, but feeble j and it occasionally intermitted. Ke was apparently dead in twenty minutes from the application of the poison j but on opening the chest, the heart was found still acting, and nearly three minutes elapsed before its action had entirely ceased, ^xp. <5. Solu- Experiment 6. An ounce and a half of saturated solution non of man- 0f nwriate of barytes were iuiected into the stomach of a full
at* ot barytes , J r J .
injected into grown cat, by means of an elastic gum tube. In a tew minutes the stomach of it operated as an emetic. The animal became giddy, after- ward insensible, and lay with dilated pupils, in general mo- tionless, but with occasional convulsions. At the end of sixty- five minutes, from the beginning of the experiment, he was apparently dead ; but the heart was still felt through the ribs acting one hundred times in a minute. A tube was introduced into the trachea, and the lungs were inflated about thirty-six times in a minute -} but the pulse sunk notwithstanding, and at the end of seven minutes the circulation had entirely ceased. ft appears to From these experiments I was led to aonclude, that the the brain f °n Princ,Pal action of the muriate of barytes is on the brain ; but in the first tha pulse was feeble and intermitting j in the second, although the artificial respiration was made with the greatest care, the circulation could not be maintained more but in some than a few minutes. These circumstances led me to suspect, ^egree on t ie ^^ a]th0Ugh this poison operates principally on the brain, it; operates, in some degree, on the heart also. Farther experi- ments confirmed this suspicion. In some of them the pulse soon became so feeble, that it could be scarcely felt ; and its intermissions were more frequent ; but in all cases the heart continued to act after respiration had ceased ; and the cessation of the functions of the brain was therefore always the immediate cause of death, When I employed artificial respiration, after death had apparently taken place, I seldom was able to prolong the heart's action beyond a few minutes. In one case only it was maintained for three quarters of an
hour.
ACTION OP POISONS ON THE ANIMAL SYSTEM. 3 1
Jiour. I never by these means succeeded in restoring the ani- mal to life, although the experiments were made with the greatest care, and in a warm temperature. In some instances, after the artificial respiration had been kept up for some time, there were signs of the functions of the brain being in some degree restored ; but the pulse notwithstanding conti- nued to diminish in strength and frequency, and ultimately ceased. I shall detail one of these experiments,* as it serves to illustrate the double action of this poison on the nervous and vascular systems.
Experiment 7. Some muriate of barytes was applied to a ExP- 7- Actio* ' ... - , , . mi - .i of the muriate
wound in the side of a rabbit. The usual symptoms took of -jar tes oa
place, and at the end of an hour the animal was apparently tbe nervous
dead • but the heart still continued to contract. He was placed svstelrTilhis-
in a temperature of 80°, and a tube being introduced into the trated.
nostril, the lungs were artificially inflated about thirty-six times
in a minute.
When the artificial respiration had been maintained for four minutes, he appeared to be recovering ; he breathed voluntarily one hundred times in a minute, and showed signs of sensibi- lity. The artificial respiration was discontinued. The volun- tary respiration continued about nine minutes, when it had ceased, and the animal was again apparently dead ; but the pulse continued strong aud frequent. The lungs were again artificially inflated. At the end of four minutes the animal once more breathed voluntarily one hundred times in a minute, and repeatedly moved his limbs and eyelids. The pulse be- came slower and more feeble.
In a few minutes the voluntary respiration again ceased, and the artificial respiration was resumed. The pulse had fallen to one hundred, and was feeble. The animal again breathed voluntarily j but he ceased to do so at the end of five minutes. The lungs were inflated as before ; but he did not give any sign of life, nor was the pulse felt afterward. On opening the thorax, his heart was found to have entirely ceased acting.
A probe having been introduced into the spinal marrow, it was found, that by means of the Voltaic battery powerful con- tractions might be excited, not only of the voluntary muscles, but also of the heart and intestines ; from which it may be ijiKeafie|l|c inferred, that the muriate of barytes, like arsenic, affects the it renders the
circa*
ACTION OF TOISONS ON THE ANIMAL SYSTEM.
heart fnsensi- circulation by rendering the heart insensible to the stimulus of
hie to the sti the blood, and not by destroying altogether the power of mus- mulusol' the . .
bjooti cular contraction.
The muriate of barytes affects the stomach, but in a less
It affects the
stomach, hot degree than arsenic. It operates as an emetic in animals that
less thaa awe- are capable of vomiting j but sooner when taken internally,
than when applied to a wound. In general,, but not constantly,
there are marks of inflammation of the inner membrane of
the stomach, but not of the intestine. In many instances there
is a thin layer of dark coloured coagulum of blood lining the
whole inner surface of the stomach, and adhering very closely
to it, so as to have a good deal of the appearance of a slough ;
and this is independent of vomiting, as, where I met with it,
it occurred in rabbits.
The same circumstances, from which it may be inferred,
that arsenic does not produce its deleterious effects until it has
passed into the circulation, leads to the same conclusion with
regard to the muriate of barytes.
V. On the Effects of the Emetic Tartar.
Trneuc tamr The effects of the emetic tartar so much resemble those of kas similar et- arsenic aod« of muriate of barytes in essential circumstances, that it would be needless to enter into a detail of the individual experiments made with this poison. Applied to a When applied to a wound in animals, which are capable of wwuiid. vomiting, it usually, but not constantly, operates very speedily
as an emetic j otherwise I have found no material difference in the symptoms produced in the different species of animals, which I have been in the habit of employing as the subjects of experiment. The symptoms are paralysis, drowsiness, and at last complete insensibility ; the pulse becomes feeble j the heart continues to act after apparent death ; its action may be maintained by means of artificial respiration, but never for a longer period than a few minutes : so that it appears, that this poison acts on the heart as well as on the brain ; but that its principal action is on the latter. Both the voluntary and in- voluntary muscles may be made to contract after death, by means of Voltaic electricity. The stomach sometimes bears the marks of inflammation ; but at other times it has its natu- ral appearance. I have never seen any appearance of inflam- mation.
ACTION OF POISONS ON THE ANIMAL SYSTEM. U
mation of the intestines. The length of time which elapses from the application of the poison to the death of the animal varies. In some instances it is not more than three quarters of an hour ^ but in others it is two or three hours, or even longer.
When a solution of emetic tartar was injected into the sto- Acts in the mach of a rabbit, the same symptoms took place as when it jjJttr4Mlij„ was applied to a wound.
VI. On the Effects of the Corrosive Sublimate. When this poison is taken internally in very small and re- Effects of rau.
peated doses, it is absorbed into the circulation, and produces nate of m&r*
cu r v . on the system those peculiar effects, which are produced by
other preparations of mercury. If it passes into the circulation in larger quantity, it excites inflammation of some part of the alimentary canal, the termination of which may vary accord- ingly as it exists in a greater or less degree. When taken in a larger quantity still, it occasions death in a very short space of time. I had found, that, if applied to a wounded surface, it produced a slough of the part to which it was applied, without occasioning any affection of the general system. This led me Thev depend to conclude, that the effects of it, taken internally, and in a on its locai large quantity, depended on its local action on the stomach, ac lou" and were not connected with the absorption of it into the cir- culation. The following experiments appear to confirm this opinion.
Experiment 8. Six grains of corrosive sublimate, dissolved Exp 8. Ad-
in six drams of distilled water, were injected into the stomach ministered m*
J ternallytojt
of a rabbit, by means of an elastic gum tube. No immediate rabbit.
symptoms followed the injection; the animal made no ex- pression of pain ; but in three minutes he became insensible; was convulsed ; and in four minutes and a half from the time of the injection being made, he died. Tremulous contrac- tions of the voluntary muscles continued for some time afterward. On opening the thorax, the heart was found to have, entirely ceased acting, and the blood in the cavities of the left side was of a scarlet colour. The stomach was much distended. The pyloric and cardiac portions were separated from each other by a strong muscular contraction. The con- tents of the former were firm and solid, and in every respect
resembled
u
ACTION OF POISONS ON THE ANIMAL SYSTEM.
Experiment repeated.
Similar effects on the sto- mach of a dead rabbit.
Etp. 9. Mil- riate of mer- cury given to a cat.
appearances o:\ dissection.
resembled the usual contents of the stomach j while those of the cardiac portion consisted of the food of the animal much diluted by fluid j so that the solution, which had been injected, appeared to be confined to the cardiac portion of#the stomach, and to be prevented entering the pyloric portion by the muscu- lar contraction in the centre.
In the pyloric portion of the stomach the mucous membrane had its natural appearance j but in the cardiac portion it was of a dark gray colour, was readily torn and peeled off j and in some parts its texture was completely destroyed, so that it appeared like a pulp, on removing which the muscular and peritoneal coats were exposed.
The repetition of the experiment was attended with similar results. The alteration of the texture of the internal mem- brane appears to have been occasioned by its being chemically" acted on by the corrosive sublimate injected into it. When the injection is made into the stomach of a dead rabbit, pre- cisely the same effects are produced, except that, as the middle contraction is here wanting, the appearances are not confined in the same degree to the cardiac portion.
Experiment g. A scruple of corrosive sublimate, dissolved in six drams of distilled water, was injected into the stomach of a full grown cat. For the first five minutes no symptoms were produced. After this, the poison operated twice as an emetic. 'The animal appeared restless, and made expression of pain in the abdomen. He gradually became insensible, and lay on one side motionless, with the pupils of the eyes dilated. The respiration was laborious, and the pulse could not be felt. Twenty-five minutes after the poison was injected, there was a convulsive action of the voluntary muscles, and death ensued. On opening the thorax immediately afterward, the heart was seen still contracting, but very feebly.
The stomach was found perfectly empty and contracted. The mucous membrane was every where of a dark gray colour. It had lost its natural texture, and was readily torn and separated from the muscular coat. The internal mem- brane of the duodenum had a similar appearance, but in a less degree, for nearly three inches from the pylorus. In the situa- tion of the.pylorus the effects of the poison were less apparent than in any other part.
The
ACTION OF POISONS ON THE ANIMAL SYSTEM, 15
The particular state of the internal membrane of the sto- mach, in this experiment as well as in the last, appears to have been occasioned by the chemical action of the poison on it. When 1 injected a solution of corrosive sublimate into the Effects on the
stomach of a dead cat, and retained it there for a few minutes, yorT}a(\ °- *
dead cat simi-
a similar alteration of the texture of the -internal membrane lar. took place ; but it assumed a lighter gray colour. The differ- ence of colour may be explained by the vessels in the one case being empty, and in the other case being distended with blood at the time of the injection being made.
The destruction of the substance of the internal membrane The nvrian of the stomach precludes the idea of the poison having been on tlie sto/ absorbed into the circulation. We must conclude, that death mach ; was the consequence -of the chemical action of the poison on the stomach. This organ, however, is not directly necessary to life, since its functions, under certain circumstances, are suspended for hours, or even for days, without death being produced. Although the stomach was the part primarily af- but produce*
fected, the immediate cause of death must be looked for in d^ath l)y uu]v~
recti y destroy ilut cessation of the functions of one or more of those organs, ing the func-
the constant action of which is necessary to life. From the scar- *,ons of *}**
heart sivd let colour of the blood in the left side of the heart, in the expe- braia.
riment on the rabbit, we may conclude, that the functions of the lungs were not affected j but the affection of the heart and ferain is proved by the convulsions, the insensibility, the affec- tion of the pulse in both experiments, and the sudden cessation of the heart's action in the first j and we may therefore be justified in concluding, that the immediate cause of death was in both of these organs. As the effects produced appear to have been independent of absorption, we may presume, that the heart, as well as the brain, was acted on through the me- dium of the nerves.
That a sudden and violent injury of the stomach should be capable of thus speedily proving fatal, is not surprising, when we consider the powerful sympathy between it and the organs on which life more immediately depends, and the existence of which many circumstances in disease daily demonstrate to us.
VII. The facts which have been stated appear to lead to the General ief*.
following
1(> VEGETATION OF HIGH MOUNTAINS.
rences respect- Allowing conclusions respecting the action of the mineral pol- ing the jK-ion i0n8 which were employed in the foregoing experiments, of these mn«- , ! / ,...*•_ j
ral poiNAft. ] • Arsenic, the emetic tartar, and the muriate ot barytes, do
not produce their deleterious effects until they have passed into the circulation.
2. All of these poisons occasion disorder of the functions of the heart, brain, and alimentary canal j but they do not all affect these organs to the same relative degree.
>. Arsenic operates on the alimentary canal in a greater degree than either the emetic tartar, or the muriate of barytes. The heart is affected more by arsenic than by the emetic tar- tar, and more by this last, than by the muriate of barytes.
4. The corrosive sublimate, when taken internally in large quantity, occasions death by acting chemically on the mucous membrane of the stomach, so as to destroy its texture j the organs more immediately necessary to life being affected in con- sequence of their sympathy with the stomach.
Mineral and jn making the comparison between them, we observe, that
vegetable poi-
sons om- the effects of mineral, are less simple than those of the gene-
pareJ. rality of vegetable poisons ; and when once an animal is
affected by the former, there is much less chance of his
recovery, than when he is affected by the latter.
IV.
IV. On the Vegetation of high Mountains, translated from a Paper of Mr. Ramond's in the Annates du Museum, V. 4, p. 395. By Richard Anthony-Salisbury, Esq. i<\ R. S. &c*.
AN observing gardener, on ascending the high mountains of our temperate region, is immediately struck with the vi- mountain in gour and luxurious appearance of their vegetation. The plants he temperate re- jias geen m tjie adjacent plains are changed in size, aspect, and form, so that he hardly recognises the most common. Their . stems are elevated, their flowers larger, even the leaves of the trees have acquired a size, which makes him doubt the identity
* Hort. Trans, vol. I, appendix, p. 15.
of the
VEGETATION OF HIGH MOUNTAINS. 1/
of ihe species. The woods are more impenetrable, the turf of the downs closer, and a green more lively, fresh, and brilliant, colours every thing, from the depths of the valley, up to those heights, where the eye can discern nothing but naked rocks and eternal snows*.
Thus, endowed with a vigour elsewhere unknown, vegetables ?£]*[£ °^T* there hasten with increased energy through the various periods of their existence. Time, which to them moves slowly in the plains, in the mountains flies. There, every thing is done rapid- ly -, meteors dart after each other, and the air is in perpetual agitation. From all these controlling causes, acting together in full force, germination, florescence, and fructification take place almost simultaneously. Sometimes, with a wind blowing from the souih, with a heavy shower, or with a scorching sun, the face of the meadows, downs, and forests, in a moment changes, and the whole of a particular species seems to vanish ; in fact, there, every fine day is a spring to some particular as- semblage of vegetables, or to some of the inaccessible heights in which they grow.
To this picture, another succeeds. If we examine the moun- Their localme* j II- i L i- m j -A nl0re distinct,
tains and valhes, every place has its peculiar soil, every dirrer-
ent elevation its peculiar climate, and each of them its charac- teristic vegetables. In the plains, these vegetable assemblages occupy vast spaces, the limits of which are too extensive, and indeterminate, to be easily perceived. On the contrary, in the mountains, they are confined to narrow limits, which the eye often takes in at one view. In a gentle rising extended between two dales, in a pile of rocks, or in a cliff, which the traveller ascends in a few moments, he finds the perpetual barriers of those productions, which nature has been pleased to separate.
Among the various causes of these separations, one seems to Part,cuJar. g*
* The first part of this sentence rather applies to purely mountainous plants, such as aster alfinus, viola grandijivru, uquilegia vulgaris, &c, than to all vegetables indiscriminately; the latter part I should explain by saying, that the foliage of the trees was rather diminished in the dry plains at the base of the Pyreiu est than enlarged by mere elevation, but, along with elevation, to a certain extent, perpetual moisture and food are washed down to their roots; and such a situation in France, is pro bably the aboriginal one of the trees in question. Sec*
Vol, XXXIV.— No. 156,
reign.
]8 VEGETATION OP HIGH MOUNTAINS.
reign predominant over all others j this is, elevation above the level of the sea. In every 100 inches in height, the temperature falls about half a degree of our thermometers. After that de- gree of cold, which generally puts a stop to all vegetation, an eternal frost prevails on the summit of these Alps, as at the 100 yards poles, and every 100 metres of vertical elevation, corresponds vaTent uTa dc- nearty to one degree of the distance at which the mountain is gree of lati- placed from the pole.
J" e* By this scale, the various phenomena of different climates in
Two causes of , , , .. - . . .. _,
thedistribu- our globe may be easily understood : circumstances may differ,
tion of vege- but the general results will be nearly the same. While the in- crease of cold is accompanied by a diminution of the column of air, it is also affected by the obliquity of the rays of the sun, and the distribution of vegetables, in all alpine countries, depends principally on these two causes.
Trees. Thus, in the Swiss Alps, and Pyrenees, trees cease to grow at
about 2-400 or 2500 metres of actual elevation, as they do about the /Oth degree of north latitude j and that circle these gigantic vegetables occupy, is divided into several less bounds, which have each their peculiar characteristics. At the foot of the mountain we find the oak : in the middle region the beech : above these the^r and yew succeed, which soon give place to the pine (Pinus sylvestris L.). Along with this last mentioned tree, in the Swiss Alps the larch and cembro (Pinus cembra L.) also grow wild, which are unknown in the Pyrenees. The cedar of JLebanus would probably thrive as well on these mountains, as on those of Asia, had it been fixed there j but such is still the mystery of the ori- ginal dissemination of vegetables, that Nature seems by turns, indifferent to the similitude of places, or to the distance between them j sometimes bringing together in the same climate, plants of the most distant countries j and sometimes denying this con- formity of vegetables to regions exactly alike, both in soil and temperature.
Jthododen- In tu's zone of trees, the rhododendron ferrugineum L. a little
dron. . shrub peculiar to the mountains of Europe solely, is very abun-
dant. It never descends into the plains, and can hardly be cul- tivated In a garden, demanding its native air, soil, water, nay snows, and even there only occupies particular spots. Nothing is more beautiful when in flower, but nothing is more untrac- table. In the Pyrenees it first appears at exactly 1600 metres
of
VEGETATION OP HIGH MOUNTAINS. ] O,
©f elevation, stopping as precisely at 2600 melres, and within these limits, is so abundant and vigorous, that it would be as difficult to extirpate it there, as it is to cultivate it elsewhere*.
The juniper traverses far beyond this circle, up to the elevation Juniper, of 29OO metres, but this shrub, as it ascends, gradually loses the habit and nppearance, which distinguish it in our plains : there, it resembles the juniper of Sweden and Lapland, with a low spreading stem, prostrate on the ground, seeking an asylum, as it were, by instinct on those sides of the rocks exposed to the south or wesu, against which it spreads out its branches into an espalier, with a regularity which art can seldom attaint-
In a more elevated region, we find the rigour of the climate Annuals
will not permit the existence of ajw shrub whatever, which the scarcely found - r J at a certain
first snows do not entirely cover. Still higher, even this shelter height.
is insufficient, and nothing but a few herbs, with perennial roots actually under the earth, subsist. Nature has almost en- tirely banished from such places annual plants ; where the whole summer is reduced to a few days, nay, sometimes a few hours ; where often a storm of wind, or dripping fog, will destroy the flowers which have scarcely blossomed, and, bringing back winter, terminate the year.
On the contrary, hardly any elevation seems to stop the pro- Hardy peren- gress of some perennials, which, on the approach of severe cold, nia!s- shelter themselves under the double protection of the earth and snow, forming their buds underground, and springing up the first fine day of the succeeding year. Their duration exhausts the chances of all times and seasons, till, sooner or later, they also ripen seed, by which they are multiplied.
Thus the vegetable zone of our alps has in fact no other limits, piants at the than those of the earth or soil covering them. The Picdu Midi, height of S278 which I hafe ascended 26 times, is 3000 metres above the level ^&rd9> of the sea, but I never once found the thermometer there rise to the temperate point. Yet, on a nearly bare rock, I have there gathered as many as 48 species of vegetables, excluding crypto- gamous plants: of these, one only, which perhaps I may never
* No shrub is more plentiful, or easily cultivated in the gardens about London, if planted in light sandy peat under a rock, or north-west wall, and watered plentifully in dry weather. — Sec.
T Two distinct species are probably here confounded, an opinion in Ti(hich I was confirmed by the late Mr. Dryander. — Sec,
C 2 find
£0 VEGETATION OF HI6H MOT7TS"TAINS.
at 35J2 yards, find again, was annual. At Nieuville, a place 250 metres higher than the Picdu Midi,\vhere the thermometer in summer never \ rises to more than S degrees, I have, in five journies, collected
at 3825 yards, j 2 different perennials. On the top of Mont Perdu, at an eleva- tion of 3500 metres, even in the bosom of permanent snows, but on rocks the sloping situation of which had cleared them of snow, I have seen six different plants very vigorous. Here, in one of the hottest days of a summer remarkable for its heat, the thermometer only rose to 5*5° above the point of congelation, and it undoubtedly falls in winter to 25 or 30 : nor is it certain, that those 6 plants, found in a season which melted more snow than usual, are regularly uncovered every year. Besides, I have seen some of them on the borders of the perpetual snow, with only half of their stems exposed and vegetating, the other half buried in it*, and it is probable, that many of them do not see the light ten times in a century, running through the whole course of their vegetation in a few short weeks, and doomed afterwards to sleep through a winter of many years. These plants Plants subjected to so singular a mode of existence are not
mountains! or arnonS tne species which grow in the plains of our temperate re- the vicinity of gions : they belong exclusively tosuch as grow on the summits of the poles. mountains, or near the poles. Norway, Lapland, and Greenland,
■ furnish plants analogous to those of the Swiss Alps and Pyrenees j but few, or possibly none of them, are seen in Siberia, Kams- chatka, or even in the polar regions of America. One would hardly have supposed so great a diversity of vegetable produc- tions in countries so much alike and near each other, nor on the other hand, so great a conformity as exists among the plants of these countries, and the plants of some alpine regions distant from them 40 degrees. Plants not dls- *n ^act' we *earn ^rom actual observation, that the dissemi- seminated in nation of vegetables is not always regulated in parallel distances tudefe.6 atl" fr°m ^c etlliator J tnat V a certain number of plants, confined by their constitution to a peculiar climate, are to be found to a certain distance under the same latitudes, many others, on the
* A similar case occurred in a vine at Chapel AlUrton, planted in the open air, at some distance from the stove ; a branch of which, however, being introduced into the stove early in January, was loaded with cluster* «f grapes, before any of the buds exposed to the open air, shot out. — See.
con*
VEGETATION OF HIGH MOUNTANS. 2K
contrary, have been scattered over different countries in the di- rection of their meridians. Towards the south, America, Africa, and Asia ; towards the north, Europe, Asia, and America, are far from producing the same vegetables under the <-ame paral- lels ; while many plants, growing wild in each of these grand divisions of the globe, brave every obstacle opposed to them by a diversity of climate, and propagate themselves in a geogra- phical direction quite contrary to that which a similar climate would confine them to.
Thus, for example, many of the curious plants of Sardinia, Progress of Sicily, and Italy, mount up the Swiss Alps, and then descend p"^™8 again into the lower parts of Germany, without being allured by our fine climate to France. Thus, likewise, the Pyrenees receive from Spain a great number of the plants of Barlary, scattering them over the western provinces of France. The merendera, which grows in the north of Africa, is found in Andalusia, Castile, Arragon j when crossing the Pyrenees it de- scends as far as the Landes de Bourdeaux. The narcissus hul- locodium*, and hyacinthus serotinus, grow wild in the same places, and follow the same route. The anthericum licolorum of Algiers, traverses the same chain of mountains, and arrives in Anjou. The scilla umhellata and crocus nudijlorus, have migrated from the Pyrenees even into Eng'and. Yet not one .of the above mentioned vegetables have been disseminated late- rally, to meet those southern ones which have crossed the Swiss Alps.
But it is in the great valleys of the Pyrenees, extending from This most
north to south, that these vegetable galaxies become most 8tr'lcing in *ne
valleys of ths striking and singular. The dianthus super bus runs through the pvrenees.
whole valley of Campan and Gavarnie,w'ithom ever entering any
* Here the celebrated author confounds three very distinct species. *p.i snecV*
The plant of the Pyrenees is the AT. Bulbocodium L. with erect leaves, confounded b^ very hardy, and brought forced to Covcnt-gurden in abundance every the author, spring. The plant of Bavbavy and Andalusia, which I received from the late professor Broussonet, is more dwarfish, with leaves spreading flat on the ground, and so tender, that it will only live here through winter, in very warm sandy soils, close to a wall. The plant of Castile grows also near Oporto, and differs from both the others, in having a six-lobed plaited crown, with very narrow leaves ; it is not very tender, but requires a dry sandy soil. Sec.
VEGETATION OF HIGH MOUNTAINS.
Box.
Verbascum 0f {^e s\^e ones »r;he verbascum Mucoid, that beautiful and Mycom.
scarce plant, which does not belong either to the genus in
which Linneus has placed it, or perhaps to any natural order yet defined, and which has so exotic an appearance, that it distinguishes itself like the kingfisher, among our indigenous birds, invariably keeps to the same direction. Nothing is more abundant in all the great valleys of the Pyrenees, in every soil and exposition : yet the very same soil and exposition never attract it to any of the collateral ones. I could cite a multi- tude of similar examples, but it is sufficient at present, to men- tion one more, the box tree. This shrub, so very robust, is affected by elevation like the most delicate ones. At the base of the Pyrenees, both on the French and Spanish side, it covers every hill : thence it enters the great valleys, running from the north-east towards the south, but never quits them ; in .vain do the numerous branches of these valleys offer it an asy- lum ; passing their openings, it keeps to its first direction, stopping on the crest of the chain at about 2000 metres above the level of the sea, and appearing again on the other side at a similar elevation, and in a similar direction, from which it never deviates.
Thus it is, that in high mountainous countries we discover the strongest traces of the original design of nature ; there, each order of vegetables is confined within narrower bounds j, there, local influence more powerfully resists every other. Ne- vertheless, the lapse of ages, and especially the presence of but even here man, has here introduced many modifications ; for, in tra- mochfied by versing the immense deserts of these high mountains, among the rare plants which form their herbage, some few of the commonest here and there occur. If the verdure takes a deeper tint than usual, contrasted with the gayer colour of the alpine turf, the ruins of a hut, or a rock blackened by smoke, explain the mystery. Around these asylums of man, we find naturalized the common mallow, nettle, chickweed, common dock . A shepherd had possibly sojourned here some weeks, and, hither, in driving his flocks here, had also attracted with- out knowing it, the birds, the insects, the seeds of the plants of his lowland cot. He may possibly never return, but these wild spots have received in an instant the indelible impression
of
Local influ- ence striking in mountain- ous coun- tries,
VEGETATION OF HIGH MOUNTAINS. 23
of his footsteps $ so much weight has a being of his impor- tance in the scale of nature.
In other places, by destruction he has signalized his presence. Woods de- Before he approached the mountains, the immense forests ^.r°ye 7 which covered their bases have fallen under his axe, for woods are not the abodes of man ; he avoids the circuitous paths of so vast a labyrinth, suspecting danger under their shades ; he there mourns the absent sun, an object which every day reno- vates his delight j and therefore it is seldom that he penetrates a forest, without fire and sword in hand.
Accordingly the seeds of woodland plants become dormant arid with them in a soil now dried by the sun and wind, and no longer suitable w.°° an to their germinating. Other vegetables take their places, the climate itself changing $ for the temperature rises, the rains are less frequent, but more copious, the winds more incon- stant and impetuous, deep gullies are formed in the sides of the acclivities by torrents, and rocks are/ deprived of the earth which covered them, and, at the same time, of the plants which ornamented them, by falls of immense loads of melting snow ; thus the face of the globe, where man inhabits, is more changed in one century, than in twenty where he is absent.
After all, in Alpine countries, the different soils, and their The horticul- productions, retain most of their aboriginal character: there, ^sital'pine the primitive distribution of vegetables has been least disturbed 3 countries as their localities can be easily traced, the influence of the air is ™elI.a* the Se" most perceptible j there, the contiguity of objects exhibiting more forcibly their similitudes and dissimilitudes, the eye of the observer takes in, at one glance, every trait which is interesting $ and if it is necessary for the geologist to visit these grand chains of mountains, to study the structure of the earth and those ca- tastrophes, which have imprinted its present form, it is still more so for the horticulturist, who wishes to penetrate the mys- teries of the primary dissemination of vegetables and their sub- . sequent propagation, hoping thence to derive hints for their successful cultivation and improvement, in the paradise sur- rounding his dwelling.
24 BANK. FOR ALflNE TLANTS.
IV.
Description of a Bank for Alpine Plants, by Monsieur Thouin, abridged from his Paper in the Annales du Museum. V. 6, p. 183. By Richard Anthony Salisbury, Esq.F. R. S. kc*
Bank for the culture of
PLANTS from alpine and frozen countries are cultivated in the Jardin des PLantes at Paris, ma bank, 60 feet long, in the botani- placed against the wall cf a terrace, 10 feet high, which faces Paris. • tDe south-east so much, that the sun ceases to shine upon it between 10 and 11, A. M. This bank is divided into 5 steps, 1 foot wide, by nailing planks of oak, 10 inches deep, to the top of as many rows of strong posts, charred at the bottom, and driven firmly into the ground ; the taller posts are still fur- ther secured in their places by cross bars let into the wall.
Through the whole length of this bank runs a ditch, 2 feet deep, but sloping gradually towards the front up to 9 inches in height, under* the general level of the ground ; and in making this ditch, its sides were plastered 6 inches thick with mortar of brick mould and chopped straw ; filling up all the cracks which appeared during the week it was left exposed to the aiu. After nailing the planks to the posts, the natural soil, which is of a light nature, was thrown*into the hollow up to within about a foot of the surface of the slope, above which it was filled with sandy peat, such as ling and heaths grow in, passed through a screen. My reason for using all these precautions was topre- Vent the water necessary for the health of those alpine plants in summer, running off too quickly into a bed of dry gravel un- derneath j in a naturally moist soil, this expense and trouble may be saved. Seeds sown in I have sown on this bank the seeds received not only from r* the Alps, but several other frozen regions j for it is probable,
that the elevation of the atmosphere near the poles corresponds with that of the highest mountains in France, rising gradually toward the equator -7 nor is this consideration so foreign to the business of a gardener in naturalizing vegetables, as might be at first supposed.
* Horti. Trans, vol. I, appendix, p. 24.
Roots
BANK FOR ALPINE PLANTS. 25
Roots of all the alpine plants I could collect, have also been Roots planted- planted in this bank, and they thrive much better than uiien cultivated in pot* on a stage, however open or airy, so that most of the following have greatly increased both by seeds and roots. Moehringia muscosa, viola bi flora, androsace carnea, Catalogue. and lactea, soldanella, alpina, primula farinosa* tussilago, alpina, artemisia glaciqlis, salix myrsinites, retusa, and reti- culata.
The culture they require is, 1st, to keep the lank carefully Management, weeded : 2dly, to reduce within bounds many that grow and spread rapidly so as to exclude others : 3dly, to dig and lighten the surface frequently, that it may absorb air and w^ter more readily : 4thly, to add three inches in depth of fresh sandy peat every year, in place of the old, which soon loses its humus, or nutritious part : 5thly, in giving the plants, at a certain season, not only daily, but hourly waterings ; but this being one of the most important points, I shall enlarge more fully upon it.
Almost all alpine plants are of humble stature, growing on Alpine plants steep declivities of rocks in a layer of humus or vegetable earth, naturally wa- formed by the decomposition of jungermannias, lichens, and meltin/snow*. mosses. The greater part of the year, they are covered with a bed of snow, which only begins to melt at stated periods of the day, after the rays of the sun have acquired great force. Then only do these alpine plants awaken from torpidity, exhaling quickly in this light black soil the moisture which they have absorbed during the night j but the returning sun, which excites them to action, also melts the snow above, the waters of which trickling down to their roots, give immediate refreshment. The sun disappearing, these little vegetables are no longer ex-: hausted, and a continuance of moisture would even be hurtful $ accoidingly the snow resuming its solid consistence with the cold of the night, this natural irrigation ceases, with a degree of exactness, that the most careful gardener cannot perform.
From the above remarks, it will easily be deduced, that alpine Artificial wa- plants should have no wa^.r at all during winter and dank tering. moist weather : on the contrary, that they should be kept per-
* I have constantly found this plant growing wild in wet meadows that are seldom dry even in summer, at the foot of the mountains, and even in bogs. Sec.
petually
£fj PERISCOPIC CAMBRA AND MICROSCOPE.
petunlly moist during hot sunshine, by water dribbling through the soil to their roots, without wetting their leaves, which, im- mediately evaporating by the heat, will cool the air just above them. In fact, it is only by a close imitation of the process of nature, that these vegetables of cold regions can be successfully cultivated in botanic gardens.
They must be The last essential nont relative to a/pine plants is to cover
covered from , r . / r
frost. them up on the approach of frost : this may appear a strange
precaution to some, bin when winter commences in their native
• soil, being immediately covered with snow to the depth of seven
inches, they never feel a greater degree of cold than that of the
freezing ppint, the soil itself being hardly frozen. The best
covering is that of fern, pteris aquilina, which does not absorb
moisture so quickly as most other sorts of haulm.
V.
On a Periscopic Camera Ohscura and Microscope. By Wil- liam Hyde Wollaston, M. D. Sec. R, S. From the Philosophical Transactions for 1812, p. 370.
Periscopic im- A LTHOUGH the views which I originally had of the ad-
provement of x^L vantage to be derived from the periscopic construction of the camera. ° i
spectacles*, naturally suggested to me a corresponding improve- ment in the camera ohscura, by substituting a meniscus for the double convex lens, I have hitherto deferred making it known to others, except as a subject of occasional conversation. Themathema- Since in vision with spectacles, as in common vision, the
ti^al conside- pencli 0f rays received by the eye in each direction is small,
ration applied1" . f . '. * / . .
to spectacles is the superiority of that form or glass, which disposes all parts
not with con- 0f ft m0st nearly at right angles with the visual ray, admits of plicable to the distinct demonstration j but with respect to the camera ob- cam. ob8. scura, where the portion of lens requisite for sufficient illumi- nation, is of considerable magnitude, although it is evident that some improvement may be made in the distinctness of oblique images on the same principles, yet as the focus of oblique rays is far from being a definite point, the degree in which it may be improved is not a fit subject of mathematical investigation.
* Phil. Magaz. Vol. XVII. Nicholson's Journal, VII. 143.
I have
PBRISCOPIC CAMERA AND MICROSCOPE. 27
I have therefore had recourse to experiments, in order to Experiment determine by what construction the field of distinct represen- Preferable- tation may be most extended j and I trust the result will be acceptable to this society. I shall take the same opportunity to describe an improvement in the construction of the simple . - •_ microscope, which may also be termed periscopic, as the ob- croscope. ject of it is to gain an extension of the field of view, upon the same principles as in the preceding instances, namely, by occasioning all pencils to pass as nearly as may be at right angles to the surfaces of the lens. The mode, however, in which this is effected is apparently somewhat different in the practical execution.
In the common camera obscura, where the images of distant In the corn- objects are formed on a plane surface to which the lens is J^sideTmages parallel, if the surfaces of the lens be both convex, and equally are indistinct, curved (as in fig. 1,P1.I); and if the distance of the lens be such, that the images formed in the direction of its axis CF be most distinct, then the images of lateral objects are indistinct in a greater or less degree, accordingly as they are more or less remote from the axis. The causes of this indistinctness may because the
be considered as twofold ; for in the first place, all parts of plane is m«re Al , , ■. . . L ,1. distant than
the plane, excepting the central point, are at a greater dis- t^e princjpai
tance from the centre of the lens, than its principal focus j and focus, secondly, the point /, to which any pencil of parallel rays, q"i ,qUe pen- passing obliquely through the lens, are made to converge, is cils have a fo- less distant than the prin«ipal focus. On this account, it is in £us 8tlU short" general best to place the lens at a distance somewhat less than that which would give most distinctness to the central images, because in that case a certain moderate extension is given to the field of view from an adjustment better adapted to lateral objects, without materially impairing the brightness of those in the centre. The want of distinctness, however, is even then only diminished in degree, but is not remedied.
The construction, by which I propose to obviate this defect, New construc-
is represented in the second figure, in which are seen the essen- tion- Witn a ,. , ~ .1.1 . meniscus lent
tial parts or a periscopic camera in their due proportion to concave to- each other. The lens is a meniscus, with the curvatures of wards the its surfaces about in the proportion of two to one, so placed aperture at a*0 that its concavity is presented to the objects, and its convexity distance from toward the plane on which the images are formed. The f^01"*™
aper-
r& *ERISC0PJC camera and microscop*.
aperture of the lens is four inches, its focus about twenty-two. There is also a circular opening, two inches in diameter, placed at about one eighth of the focal length of the lens from its concave side, as the means of determining the quantity and direction of rays that are to be transmitted, flratement of The advantage of this construction over the common camera n» advantages, 0.VjScura jg such, that no one who makes the comparison, can doubt of its superiority ; but the causes of this may require some explanation. It has been already observed, that by the common lens, any oblique pencil of rays is brought to a focut at a distance less than that of the principal focus. But In the Construction above described, the focal distance of oblique penr cils is not merely as great, but is greater than that of a direct pencil. For since the effect of the first surface is to occasion divergence of parallel rays, and thereby to elongate the focus ultimately produced by the second surface, and since the de- gree of that divergence is increased by obliquity of incidence, The oblique the focal length resulting from the combined action of both
pencils have a surfaces will be greater than in the centre, if the incidence on
longer focus ° .
•than the prin- «ie second surface be not so oblique as to increase the con-
tipai focus. \>ergence. On this account, the opening E is placed so much nearer to the lens than the centre of its second surface, that oblique rays Ef, after being refracted at the first surface, are transmitted through the len3 nearly in the direction of its shorter radius ; and Tience are made to converge to a point so distant, that the image (at /) falls very nearly in the same plane with that of an object centrally placed . The aperture In the use of spectacles by long-sighted persons, the course struction re- °*" tne rays *n $9- °PP0S'te direction is so precisely similar, presents by that the same figure might serve to illustrate the advantages oTpT^oTthe6 °^ t"e periscopic construction. For the purpose of seeing the eye in the p. extended page of a book (as at AB) with least fatigue to the spectacles. e^ tkat form of lens will be most beneficial, which renders the rays received from each part of its surface parallel ; and this is effected by the exact counterpart to the preceding ar- rangement 3 for in this case the opening E represents the place of the eye receiving parallel rays from the lens in each direction, instead of transmitting them from a distance towards it. fimit of ad- There is, however, this difference between the two cases,
that
PERISCOMG CAMERA AND MICROSCOPE. 2J)
that in the camera obscura, a much larger portion of the lens ^^ m * is required to conspire in giving a distinct image of any one object; so that the conformation best adapted for lateral ob- jects would not be consistent with distinctness at the centre ; and hence arises a limit to the application of the principle. On the common construction, the whole lens is so formed, as to give brilliancy and distinctness at the centre alone, without regard to lateral objects. In adopting such a deviation from the customary form, as I propose, in favour of a more ex- tended view, some diminution of the aperture is required in order to preserve the desired distinctness at the centre. In my endeavours to ascertain the most eligible form of meniscus Best construe for this purpose, I have assumed sixty degrees to be the field j'°" ^i ^ of view required. But when so large a field is not wanted, vi6Vy. then a lens that is less curved will be preferable ; and the propor- tion of the radii must be varied according to the angular extent intended to be included.
For the purpose of estimating by what combination of radii D,1,a?r^nV>5" any required focal length may be given to a meniscus, I have which the
contrived a diagram by which very much labour of computa- radii or lense*
are settled. tion may be saved, as a very near result may be obtained by
mere inspection. This contrivance is founded on the well known formula for the focal length of any lensF=-— gj3;;r'
m being a certain multiple obtained by dividing the sine of refraction by the difference of the sines of incidence and re- fraction. Hence, in applying this formula to the meniscus, F : R : : mr : R — r. In fig. 3, lines expressive of these quan- tities are so arranged, that by assuming any point F corres- ponding to the focal length desired, and drawing a line FR through a point R indicating any supposed length of th© greater radius, the corresponding length of the other radius will be found where the line drawn intersects the middle line in the diagram.
Inlaying down these lines, the length and position of AF and AR were assumed at pleasure j and they were divided into any number of equal parts. But the position and length of the middle line Ar was adapted with care to the refractive power of plate glass in the following manner, Since m =
»'-,.,. .■ g= 1,08, a line BC was drawn, from the point 10 in
the
30 FERISCOPIC CAMERA AND MICROSCOPE.
the line AR, parallel to AF, and equal to 19,8 divisions of the primary lines j so that if r be = JO. then the line BC a= mr. The distance AC being then divided into ten equal parts, with their subdivisions, afforded the means of continuing the same scale to any desired length. Since the first line BC was laid down parallel to AF, and equal to mr, any other lines drawn through corresponding numbers 7 and 7, 8 and 8, &c. will be also parallel, and by preserving due proportion, will correctly represent mr. Hence in all positions of the line FR, the same similarity of triangles obtains, and the same proportion of F : R : : mr : R — r -, and consequently the focal length, corre- sponding to any assumed radii, is truly ascertained.
For the purpose of duly proportioning the curvatures of flint glass, a second line Ay might be laid down in a mode similar to the preceding, by adapting the multiple m= == — to the different density of this glass.
Periscopic With respect to the construction of a microscope on peris-
cope.6 micros" copic principles, I believe the contrivance to be equally new with the former, and equally advantageous. The great desU. deratum in employing high magnifiers is sufficiency of light 3 and it is accordingly expedient to make the aperture of the little lens, as large as is consistent with distinct vision. But if the object to be viewed, is of such magnitude as to appear under an angle of several degrees on each side of the centre, the requisite distinctness cannot be given to the whole surface by a common lens, in consequence of the confusion occasioned by oblique incidence of the lateral rays, excepting by means of a very small aperture, and proportionable diminution of light. Two piano- In order to remedy this inconvenience, I conceived that the
placedVace^o Perf°ratea< metal, which limits the aperture of the lens, might face with a be placed with advantage in its centre -, and accordingly I
central aper- procure(j two plano-convex lenses ground to the same radius, ture in a plate r r & >
between them, and applying their plane surfaces on opposite sides of the
same aperture in a thin piece of metal (as is represented by a
section, fig. 4), I produced the desired effect $ having virtually
a double convex lens so contrived, that the passage of oblique
pencils was at right angles with its surfaces, as well as the
Dimension*, central pencil. With a lens so constructed, the perforation
that
HARDENING OF STEEL.
31
that appeared to give the most perfect distinctness was about one-fifth part of the focal length in diameter j and when such an aperture i9 well centered, the visible field is at least as much as twenty degrees in diameter. It is true^ that a portion of light is lost by doubling the number of surfaces ; but this is more than compensated by the greater aperture, which, under these circumstances, is compatible with distinct vision.
Beside the foregoing instances of the adaptation of peri- pej f^op^c11 ° scopic principles, I should not omit to notice their application principles to to the camera lucida ; as there ii one variety in its form, that fUgi(J*mera was not noticed in the description which I originally gave of that instrument*.
In drawing, by means of the camera lucida, distant objects are seen by rays twice reflected (d, fig. 5), at the same time and in the same direction that rays (e) are received from the paper and pencil by the naked eye. The two reflections are effected in the interior of a four-sided glass prism, at two pos- terior surfaces inclined to each other at an angle of 135 de- grees. In the construction formerly described, the two other surfaces of the prism are both plane, through which the rays ar« simply transmitted at their entrance and exit. But since an eye that is adjusted for seeing the paper and pencil, which are at a short distance, cannot see more distant objects dis- tinctly without the use of a concave glass, it may be assisted in that respect by a due degree of concavity given to either, or to both the transmitting surfaces of the prism. It is, how- ever, to the upper surface alone that this concavity is given 5 for since the eye is then situated on the side toward the centre of curvature, it receives all the benefit that is proposed from the pei iscopic principles.
VI.
Practical Experiments on hardening Steel. By Mr E.Lydiatt, Lecturer on metallurgy, and the mechanic Arts, &c. In a letter from the Author. •
To W. Nicholson, Esq. Sir,
THE desire I feel to be instrumental in promoting the cause Introduction, of science and truth, makes me regret that indispensable avo-
• Nicholson's Journal, XVII, p. 1. Phil. Magaz. XXVII, p S43.
cations
3l2 HARDENING OF STEEL.'
cations prevent me from communicating much information t6 your valuable, journal, that would stand a chance, at least, of being useful to many of your readers. Common Te- To this circumstance alone, is to be referred the delay of my nac,ty of ™e* promised communication on the tenacity of the different metals. The time necessarily required to complete experiments on this subject, I have not yet been able to appropriate to that purpose j and I am sorry that it must consequently still stand over, subject however to a determination to fulfil my promise on the earliest opportunity.
In the irean time, a few remarks on interesting mechanical
subjects, may not prove unacceptable.
Hardening of The present paper contains some practical experiments on
warping. hardening steel; the results of which have, in a great measure,
proved successful in preventing warping: an inconvenience
hitherto inseparable from the operation.
The u?.ual pro- The process usually practised for hardening, is to heat the
""sis the* aUd Steel Sraduaily t0 a red heat» and lhen P^nge it into cold water, work. which produces the desired effect j but it is a subject of regret
with all workers of this metal, that the figure of their work, is frequently changed by the operation, to such a degree, as to render useless all previous labour, and accuracy of workman- ship. The subject The limited extent of human knowledge respecting the organ-
does not re- t jzation of matter, will only allow us to speak hvpothetically quire theoreti- , . . i , "^ r , ,
cal disquisi- as t0 tne occult causes to which these effects are referable.
tions. I shall not, therefore, on the present occasion, cloud the inves-
tigation of familiar operations, with the subtilties of philo-- sophical disquisition j but proceed to the more useful part of my task. Heated steel Pyrometrical experiments prove that steel, when heated so as contracts, by to carry expansion to its utmost limit, if suffered to cool gra- first 'dni'ien-1* duaHy and °^its own accorcl> ViM return precisely to its original sions. figure and dimensions. The detrimental effects produced by
the operation of hardening, mus/ therefore be occasioned, by some derangement of the particles, on the sudden expulsion of caloric. Keeping this idea in my mind, I thought, perhaps, if a piece of steel were repeatedly heated to different degrees below the hardening point, and as frequently quenched in cold water^, this process might operate ajteratively -9 and induce a different
arrange-
HARDENING OF STEEL. 33
arrangement, more favourable to the instantaueous expulsion,
of a larger proportion of caloric.
To prove this I made experiments with three cylindrical pieces Experiments.
of steel, six inches long, and half an inch diameter, accurately steei'^|°
turned : the first of which I hardened in the usual way, and on heated and
examination, found it had deviated from a straight line '05 In. sud^en,y
' a cooled, warp-
The second piece, I heated just sufficient to occasion a fainted: another
hissing noise when dipped in the water : then a second time a Plcce repeated- ,. , , , f , . . . . 'y heated and
little hotter, and quenched it as belore : repeating this operation cooled at suc-
four or five times, increasing the degree of heat each time ; CC831ve!y ^in- keeping, however, below the hardening point till the last, where did not. it was heated to a blood red and hardened ; and to my surprise remained as perfectly straight and unaltered, as before the operation.
The third piece I treated in the same way, and experienced A third, piece nearly similar results ; and since the time of making these ex- HkethTse- periments, I have had various opportunities of practising the cond, and with process j and in every instance have found it effectual beyond *hesame re~ my expectation.
For smaller articles, to which the above method is not appli- Small articles cable, I have found that by using water whose temperature is were hardened raised to 200°, the steel is not only perfectly hardened, but preserved from the disagreeable consequence, which the use of water at its common temperature, in general produces.
In the hope that the results of these experiments may prove- useful, I offer them for publicity through the medium of your valuable journal $ from which I readily acknowledge to have derived many hints myself, which have proved important in practice as well as theory.
E. LYDIATT.
London, Dec. 5 th, 1812.
Annotation. W. N.
As the hardening of steel is higher, and the contraction byAnotherme- cooling, less, the greater the heat of the ignition. I many years fho<? by heaN ago, endeavoured to equalize the heat by igniting in a bath of iefd? ^^ red hot lead, (SeePhilos. Journal, quarto, No. 129.) which lhave constantly found to answer. This method is particularly appli-
Vol XXXIV— No. 15(5. D cable
34 SEPIA, OR CUTTLE "FISH.
cable to broad flat articles or such as have thick and thin parts. Perhaps the combination of both methods may in various cases be found useful.
VII.
Chemical Olservations on the Sepia of the Cuttle Fish. By Mr. Grover Kemp. Received from the Author.
Introduction. HpHE sepia of the cuttle fish having seldom attracted the -iL notice of chemical writers when treating on animal sub- stances, and its nature and properties being consequently but imperfectly known, the* following experiments, it is presumed, will not be unacceptable to the public j since, without being con- clusive, they may throw some light on the subject, and open the way to further investigation. . Description of The cuttle fish, called by Icthyologists the sepia, or ink fish, the cuttle fish. js a ger)US 0f vermes mollusca. Its body is often nine inches in length, and three and a half in breadth j the head being attached to it somewhat in the same way as in the tortoise. It has ten tentacula, two of which are longer than the rest, and pedunculated. Its mouth is furnished with a strong beak of a horn colour, the upper mandible of which is hooked like the bill of birds of the falcon tribe. Its back is formed by a peculiar white pithy substance of a friable texture and oblong shape. Os Senias or ^'s *s ^ie we^ known ^s Sepiae, or cuttle fish bone of com- cuttlefish merce, which is used for taking off the impressions of seals and
bone' medals ; forming also a common ingredient in dentifrice. It
is exactly similar in composition, according to Hatchett, to mother-of-pearl shells, 100 parts consisting of about 24 parts membrane, and 06 carbonate of lime. This bone has no flesh on it, but is merely covered by the external membrane or skin Singular pro., of the fish. A very singular property of this fish is the power perty of emit- wnicn it possesses of emitting voluntarily a black liquor, not liquor, out °f >ts mouth, as some naturalists assert, but from a small
opening at the upper part of the belly, which communicates by a narrow duct, to a bag or bladder, situated near the coecum, in by which the which this liquor is formed. The cuttle fish is said to avail fi.hissaidto itself of this property when chased by other fishes, and thus, mie*. ' * by rendering the water turbid anil opake, it is enabled to elude
their
SEPIA, OR CUTTLE FISH. 35
their search, — Now it is to an examination of this peculiar liquor or sepia, supposed by Rondelet to be the ^bile of the cuttle fish, that I beg leave to call the attention of the reader ; premising, however, that the sepia which I used was taken immediately from the fish, as no dependence can be placed on that which is exposed for sale, which is probably mixed with gum arabic, or some other foreign ingredient.
The sepia, when fresh, is a black glary liquid of a viscid Properties of consistence, a peculiar fishy smell and very little taste. p a"
Being subjected to experiment it afforded the following results.
l.'It mixed readily with distilled water in any proportion, it mixes with and shewed little or no disposition to subside after standing water, many hours : when the mixture was submitted to filtration, a considerable quantity of sepia was left behind, and what passed the filter was a thin black liquid, being a saturated solution of sepia in water.
2. Being poured into alcohol it coagulated immediately. Coagulates
3. The same effect was produced by mixing it with ether. and with ether
4. Alcalies appeared to facilitate the solution of sepia in Alcalies assist aqueous menstruum ; Potash changing its colour to a brown, its solution, but ammonia not affecting it, after, however, it had undergone spontaneous evaporation to dryness, it became sparingly soluble
in solutions of pure fixed and volatile alcali, but its colour re- mained unaltered by either.
5. When some of the saturated solution of sepia was boiled r* coagulates
the sepia coagulated. b? boi,inS if
1 a saturated,
6. But when a very weak solution of it was boiled, coagula- but not if tion did not take place. weak.
7. The sepia which was precipitated from its solution by The last coagu- boiling, was soluble in nitric acid when assisted by heat. in'hot STtu
8. After separating by filtration the sepia coagulated by The clear
boiling, fiom the water in which it had been dissolved, a pre- "'quor of No. ... ........ /- 1, 5, was precip.
cipitate was obtameo by dropping in tinct. of galls. hv galls
9. A light brown precipitate was also obtained by adding a and also by ox. solution of oxymuriate of mercury to another quantity of. the
water.
10. The sulphuric, nitric, and muriatic acid precipitated the Sol of sepia ig
sepia from- its solution in water.- The sulphuric and muriatic PeciP- by
acids,
D % did
30 SEPIA, OR CUTTLE FISH.
did not affect its colour, but the nitric after standing a day or two changed it to a brown.
but not by ox. li. Oxymuriatic acid did not occasion a precipitate with the solution of sepia j and mixed in the proportion of one part of the former to three of the latter, the colour was not affected ; but when mixed in equal parts, it was changed to a brown.
Dried s. is ]2. Sepia, after having been dryed by spontaneous evapora-
a * lion, was insoluble in oxymuriatic acid.
Ox.mur. of 13. A solution of oxymuriate of mercury being added to a
dD^coDUJuriv solution of sepia, occasioned a copious precipitate.
as does nitrate 14. Nitrate of silver precipitated sepia from its solution in
ot suver, water, but did not injure its colour.
and also sulph. 1.5. Some solution of sulphate of iron, being dropped into a
ot iron. solution of sepia, the sepia was precipitated, but its colour was
not affected.
Deduction. From the above experiments, particularly from 2, 3, 5, (5, 7*
11, and 13, we may reasonably infer, that the sepia is composed for the most part of albumen. Example 8 and 9 indicate the presence of gelatine.
Sepia stands As tne oxy muriatic and nitric acids have so little effect on the
colour. colour of sepia, we may confidently conclude that it possesses
the valuable property of standing well. This conclusion is also strengthened, and in a great measure confirmed, by the information of Dr. Leigh, from whom we learn that sepia has been sometimes used as writing ink, and that in a piece of writing of ten years standing, which he had seen, the colour of the sepia was still retained.
Indian ink It has been conjectured by some writers,* that Indian ink is
tdo be™™™.6** nothing else than the sePia of the cuttle fish- A ve,7 intelligent
gentleman, with whom I corresponded on the subject, and who
was of a contrary opinion, writes me as follows : ** I have
great reason to believe that not a particle of sepia enters into
Sepia is far the composition of Indian ink. The colour is very different j
superior. ancj gep-ia jg as SUperior t0 Indian ink with respect to the ease of
working
* " Sepia piscis est qui habet succum nigerrimum instar atramenti quern chinenses cum brodiooriza vel alterius leguminis inspicsant et formant, et in universuni orbem transmittunt,sub nomine atramenti Chinensis." — Pauli Hermani cynosura, t. 1. p. 17, pars II. Vide etiam Elemens de Chirnie, par M. Chaptal, torn. iii. p. 357;Moutpellier edit. 17D0.
TENDRILS OF PLANTS. 3J
working, as Indian ink is to lamp black, I do not mean to say that it make* a clearer shadow ; but Indian ink dries much quicker than sepia — an important consideration where a very large pale shadow is wanted. If too, a mistake be made with sepia, it may be washed almost clean off, whereas part of the Indian ink, if once dry, will adhere to the paper and resist every effort to remove it, without absolutely rubbing up the surface. I could point out other differences between Indian ink and sepia."
To such artists as, by residing near the coast, have an op- Sepia drierf portunity of procuring the cuttle fish from fishermen, I fxpo"ure to^ would recommend the following simple means of preserving the air the sepia.— After carefully taking the bag out of the fish, ]£*yJ^ J^J* having previously secured the duct by a ligature to prevent the sepia from running out, empty the contents of it into a saucer - or gallipot, and after spreading it round the sides of the vessel, surfer it to dry gradually by exposure to the air. The reason for only coating the sides of the vessel is in order that it may dry before putrefaction commences.
In this dry state it will keep for any length of time, and will always be fit for use, by being rubbed up with a little water,
GROVER KEMP.
Brighton, 11 Mo. 26, 1812.
VIII.
On the Motions of the Tendrils of Plants. By Thomas An- drew Knight, Esq. F. R. S. From the Philosophical Transactions for 1812.
THE motions of the tendrils of plants, and the efforts they Thetendrlls of apparently make to approach and attach themselves to con- P{an*shave tiguous objects, have been supposed by many naturalists to to movePfrom originate in some degrees of sensation and perception : and sensation and though other naturalists have rejected this hypothesis, few, or percePtu no experiments have been made by them to ascertain with what propriety the various motions of tendrils, of different kinds, can be attributed to peculiarity of organization, and the operation of external causes. I was consequently induced, during the last summer, to employ a considerable portion of
time
38 TENDRILS OF TLANTS.
time to watch the motions of the tendrils of different species of plants ; and I have now the pleasure to address to you an account of the observations I was enabled to make. Experiments The plants selected were the Virginia creeper (the ampe-
with the Vir-j0pSjs qlimquefolia of Michaux,) the ivy, and the common ginia creeper, »
the ivy, the vine and pea.
common vine, a plant of the ampelopsis, which grew in a garden pot, was The V. creep- removed to a forcing house in the end of May, and a single er insulated, shoot from it was made to grow perpendicularly upwards, by dril towards a" DeniS supported in that position by a very slender bar of wood, wall eight feet to which it was bound. The plant was placed in the middle of the house, and was fully exposed to the sun j and every object around it was removed far beyond the reach of its ten- drils. Thus circumstanced, its tendrils, as soon as they were nearly full grown, all pointed towards the north, or back wall, which was distant about eight feet : but not meeting with any thing in that direction to which they could attach themselves, they declined gradually towards the .ground, and ultimately attached themselves to the stem beneath, and the slender bar of wood. Another plant A P^ant °^ tne same sPecies M as placed at the east end of differently situ- the house, near the glass, and was, in some measure, screened TendriUo the'tS ^rom ^ie PerPen(Jicular ngnt 5 when its tendrils pointed to- part most wards the" west, or centre of the house, as those under the sia ' preceding circumstances had pointed towards the north and
back wall. This plant was removed to the west end of the house, and exposed to the evening sun, being skreened, as in *► the preceding case, from the perpendicular light ; and its ten-
drils, within a few hours, changed their direction, and again pointed to the centre of the house, which was partially covered and when fully w,tn v'ines- This plant was then removed to the centre of the illuminated, house, and fully exposed to the perpendicular light, and to turne to an the sun ; and a piece of dark-coloured paper was placed upon ' one side of it just within the reach of its tendrils ; and to this substance they soon appeared to be strongly attracted The paper was then placed upon the opposite side, under similar circumstances, and there it was soon followed by the tendrils, bat not to a It was then removed, and a piece of plate glass was substi- transparent tuted ; bnt to this substance the tendrils did not indicate any ' disposition to approach. The position of the glass was then
changed,
TENDRILS OF PLANTS. 39
changed, and care was taken to adjust its surface to the varying position of the sun, so that the light reflected might continue and receded to strike the tendrils ; which then receded from the glass, and ingone# appeared to be strongly repulsed by it.
The tendrils of the ampelopsis very closely resemble those The claws of of the vine, in their internal organization, and in originating gj^jj'ariv a"* from the alburnous substance of the plant ; and in being, under fected.bot at certain circumstances, convertible into fruit stalks. The claws, ledS dl$tances- or claspers of the ivy, to experiments upon which I shall now proceed, appear to be cortical protrusions only ; but to be capable, I have reason to believe, of becoming perfect roots, under favourable circumstances. Experiments, in every re- spect very nearly similar to the preceding, were made upon this plant ; but I found it necessary to place the different sub- stances, to which I proposed that the claws should attempt to attach themselves, almost in contact with the stems of the plants. I observed, that the claws of this plant evaded the light, just as the tendrils of the ampelopsis had done ; and that they sprang only from such parts of the stems as were fully or partially shaded.
A seedling plant of the peach tree, and one of the ampe- The stems of lopsis and ivy, were placed nearly in the centie of the house, l"^v cr.eel>er» and under similar circumstances j except that supports, formed inclined to-' of very slender bars of wood, about four inches high, were wards a tree* applied to the ampelopsis and ivy. The .peach tree continued to grow nearly perpendicularly, with a slight inclination to- wards the front and south side of the house, whilst the stems of the ampelopsis and ivy, as soon as they exceeded the height of their supports, inclined many points from the perpendicular line, in the opposite direction.
It appears, therefore, that not only the tendrils and claws of Not only the
these creeping dependent plants but that their stems also, are tfndr,k»but j / i- I 1 • . . - the stems of
made to recede from light, and to press against the opaque plants incline
bodies, which nature intended to support and protect them. to their »"P- M. Decandole, I believe, first observed, that the succulent This effect is shoots of trees and herbaceous plants, which do not depend opposite to the upon others for support, are bent towards the point from succulent" which they receive light, by the contraction of the cellular plant?, substance of their bark, upon that side, and I believe his opi- nion to be perfectly well founded. The operation of light
upon
40 TENDRILS OF PLANTS.
upon the tendrils and stems of the ampelopsis and ivy, appears to produce diametrically opposite effects, and to occasion an extension of the cellular bark, wherever that is exposed to its influence ; and this circumstance affords, I think, a satisfactory explanation why these plants appear to seek and approach contiguous opaque objects, just as they would do, if they were conscious of their own feebleness, and of power in the objects to which they approach, to afford them support and protection. The vine con- The tendril of the vine, as I have already stated, is inter^ explanation*.™6 na^ Mmilar to that of the ampelopsis, though its external form, and mode of attaching itself, by twining round any slender body, are very different. Some young plants of this species, which had been raised in pots in the preceding year, and had been headed down to a single bud, were placed in a forcing-house, with the plants I have already mentioned j and the shoots from these were bound to slender bars of wood, and trained perpendicularly upwards. Their tendrils, like those of the ampelopsis, when first emitted, pointed upwards j but they gradually formed an increasing angle with the stems, and ultimately pointed perpendicularly downwards 3 no object having presented itself to which they could attach themselves. Other plants of Other plants of the vine, under similar circumstances, were the viae. trained horizontally ; when their tendrils gradually descended
beneath their stems, with which they ultimately stood very nearly at right angles.
A third set of plants were trained almost perpendicularly downwards j but with an inclination of a few degrees towards the north j and the tendrils of these permanently retained very nearly their first position, relatively to their stems ; whence it appears, that these organs, like the tendrils of the ampelop- sis, and the claws of the ivy, are to a great extent under the control of light. Thevinedif- A. few other plants of the same species were trained in each fers from the of the preceding methods j but proper objects were placed, in creeper. different situations, near them, with which their tendrils might
come into contact j and I. was by these means afforded an op- portunity of observing, with accuracy, the difference between the motions of these and those of the ampelopsis, under similar circumstances. The latter almost immediately receded from light, by whatever means that was made to operate upon them j
and
TENDRILS OF PLANTS: 41
and they did not subsequently shew any disposition to approach the points from which they once receded. The tendrils of the vine, on the contrary, varied their positions in every period of the day, and after returned again during the night, to the situations they had occupied in the preceding morning j and they did not so immediately, or so regularly, bend towards the shade of contiguous objects. But as the tendrils of this plant, like those of the ampelopsis, spring alternately from each side of the stem, and as one point only in three is with- out a tendril, and as each tendril separates into two divisions, they do not often fail to come into contact with any object within their reach ; and the effects of contact upon the tendril are almost immediately visible. It is made to bend towaids the body it touches, and if that body be slender, to attach itself firmly, by twining round it, in obedience to causes which I shall endeavour to point out.
The tendril of the vine, in its internal organization, is ap- Explanation of parently similar to the young succulent shoot, and leaf-stalk, J^ ^^rTdrilT <5 of the same plant j and it is as abundantly provided with ves- the vine as- sels or passages for the sap j and I have proved, that it Is SSTaiSf cur- alike capable of feeding a succulent shoot, or a leaf, when vature. grafted upon it. It appears, therefore, I conceive, not impro- bable, that a considerable quantity of the moving fluid of the plant passes through its tendrils j and that there is a close con- nection between its vascular structure and its motions.
I have proved, in the Philosophical Transactions of 180(5, that centrifugal force, by operating upon the elongating plu- mules of germinating seeds, occasions an increased growth and extension upon the external sides of the young stems, and that gravitation produces correspondent effects j probably by occasioning the presence of a larger portion of the fluid orga- nizable matter of the plant upon the one side, than upon the other. The external pressure of any body upon one side of a tendril, will probably drive this fluid from one side of the ten- dril, which will consequently contract to the opposite side, which will expand $ and the tendril will thence be compelled to bend round a slender bar of wood or metal, just as the stems of germinating seeds are made to bend upwards, and to raise the cotyledons out of the ground j and in support of this conclusion I shall observe, that the sides of the tendrils where
in
42
MURIATIC AND OXYMURIATIC ACIDS.
in contact with the substance they embraced, were compressed and flattened. The tendrils The actions of the tendrils of the pea were so perfectly
affecteTas "" similar to tllose °f tne vine» wnen lne>r came into contact whh those of the any body, that I need not trouble you with the observations I *me* made upon that plant. An increased extension of the cellular
substance of the bark upon one side of the tendrils, and a cor- respondent contraction upon the opposite side, occasioned by the operation of light, or the partial pressure of a body in contact, appeared in every case which has come under my observation, the obvious cause of the motions of tendrils ; and therefore, in conformity with the conclusions I drew in my last memoir, respecting the growth of roots, I shall venture to infer, that they are the result of pure necessity only, uninfluenced by any degrees of sensation, or intellectual powers.
T. A. KNIGHT. Doivnton, April 2J ', 1812.
IX.
Introductory remarks.
Reference to the contro- versy between Mr. Murray and Mr. John Davy.
Additional Experiments on the Muriatic and Oxy muriatic Acids. By William Henry, M. D. F. R. S. V. P. of the Lit. and Phil, Society, and Physician to the Infirmary at Manchester. From the Philosophical Transactions, 1812.
THE experiments, which form the subject of the following pages, are intended as supplementary to a more extensive series, which the Royal Society did me the honour to insert in their Transactions for the year 1800*. Of the general accu- racy of those experiments, I have since had no reason to doubt ; and their results, indeed, are coincident with those of subsequent writers of the highest authority in chemistry. My attention has been again drawn to the subject by the impor- tant controversy which has lately been carried on between Mr. Murray and Mr John Davy, respecting the nature of mu- riatic and oxymuriatic acidsf ; and I have been induced, by some hints which the discussion has suggested, not only to
* Page 188. f Nicholson's Journal, XXVIII, and XXIX.
repeat
MURIATIC AND OXYMURIATIC ACID5. 43
repeat the principal experiments described in my memoir, but to institute others, with the advantage of a more perfect appa- ratus than I then possessed, and of greater experience in the management of these delicate processes.
This repetition of my former labours has discovered to me Uncertainty of
an instance in which I have failed in drawing the proper con- an expenment
b ' l . of the quantity
elusion from facts. In two comparative experiments on the of hydrng.
electrization of equal quantities of muriatic acid gas, the one evolved from
, i , • • i' iii • mur. ac. gas
ot which was dried by muriate of lime, and the other was in drje(j and not
its natural state, I found a difference of not more than one per dried. cent, in the hydrogen evolved, relatively to the original bulk of the gas*. Yet, notwithstanding these results, I have ex- pressed myself iricfined to believe, that some water is abstracted by that deliquescent salt ; and this belief was confirmed, seve- ral years afterwards, by the event of an experiment in which muriatic acid gas, dried by muriate of lime, gave only Jj. hs bulk of hydrogenf, a proportion much below the usual ave- rage. The question, however, was too interesting to be left in any degree of uncertainty j and I have, therefore, made several fresh experiments with a view to its decision, in the course of these I have found, that though differences in the results are . produced by causes apparently trivial, some of which I shall afterwards point out, yet that under equal The quantjtv circumstances, precisely the same relative proportion of hy- is the same,
drogen gas is obtained from muriatic acid gas, whether ex- w ieP^lte. & => ° muriatic acid
posed or not to muriate of lime ; and that its greatest amount gas be exposed
does not exceed Jr or V-tj the original volume of the acid gas. °.r not *° ' 111U" 1 b ' 4 ° ° nate of lime.
In the paper last quoted* Itiave also described an experi-
• i , -, , , i , , , • • • Muriate of
ment, in which sensible heat was evolved by bringing muriate ijme does not
of lime into contact with muriatic acid gas ; a fact which, if unless humid, established, would go far to. prove the existence of water in w;tn muriatic that gas. But on repeating the experiment with muriate of acid gas. lime recently cooled from fusion, and over mercury carefully deprived of all moisture by boiling, I was not able to discover any increase of temperature, though a very sensible air ther- mometer was inclosed in the vessel containing the gas. The evolution of heat takes place, only when 4he muriate of lime
* Page 191. f Phil. Trans. 1809, page 433.
} Page 433, note.
hat
44 MURIATIC AND OXYMURIATIC ACIDS*
has attracted moisture, either from the atmosphere or the mercury, and is then owing to a condensation of a part of the gas. Muriatic acid Essentially, the changes produced by electrifying muriatic
Srr when***" ac',J over mercury are tnose which I have stated ; viz. a con- tler'tiified, traction of the volume of the gas, the formation of muriate of w^rfmulv- mercur.v (calomel,) and the evolution of hydrogen. Recent cirogen ; hut experiments, also, have confirmed the accuracy of the obser-
10 a certain ex- vation*, that when a certain effect has been produced by elec- tee only. .. . . , .,, .. , - . ,
tricity, nothing is gained by continuing the process j for neither
is more hydrogen evolved, nor can the contraction of bulk be
carried any farther.
Muriatic acrd I have lately applied, to experiments on muriatic acid, an
jjas-, electrified ...» , ■> - • t. . ' »
in a vessel, apparatus which 1 used advantageously for the analysis of without the ammoniaf . It consists of a spherical glass vessel, into which
T2r£!3CnCC of
any other are hermetically sealed two small tubes containing platina *»"d» wires, the points of which approach within the striking dis-
tance. To the globular part is attached a neck, which may be closed, as occasion requires, either by a glass stopper, or by a metal cap and stop-cock. Into a vessel of this kind I intro- duced A\ cubic inches of muriatic acid gas, and passed through whin™ ]t 300° discharges from a Leyden jar ; at the close of the process, no traces of moisture could be perceived on th& inner surface of the vessel ; nor could I discover, on opening hut when the the stopper, that any change of bulk had taken place. After sas was ah- absorbing the unchanged muriatic acid gas by a small quan-
stracted, the tity of water, a volume of gas remained, in which there were
small residue , * - , .
was oxymuria- Present 10° measures (each equal to one gram of mercury)
tic acid gas of oxymuriatic acid gas, and 140 measures of hydrogen. Two i) rogen. cauges migh^ perhaps, contribute to diminish, in some degree, the proportion of the former. Jt was difficult to exclude from the apparatus, on admitting the muriatic acid gas into it, two or three very minute globules of mercury, which became tar- nished during the experiment, exactly as they would have been by oxymuriatic acid ; and a small portion of the latter gas waa probably also taken up by the water employed to absorb the muriatic acid.
Repetition on With the intention of giving greater effect to the electricity,
* Phil. Trans. 1800. p. 192. i Ibid, 1809.
I re*
MURIATIC AND OXYMURIATIC ACIDS. 45
I repeated the experiment in a vessel capable of containing a smaller «•*»*'• , ./-.,... r ..with the»auie
not more than 1400 grains of quicksilver, (about '41 of a cubic resu|t.
inch,) the neck of which being only one-fifth of an inch in dia- meter, was better calculated to show any minute change in the volume of the gas. On removing the stopper, however, no change of volume was apparent. The hydrogen erolved, in- stead of being more than in the former experiment, equalled in bulk only 20 grains of mercury. The production of oxy- nmriatic acid was sufficiently evinced by its effect in tarnishing some very small globules of quicksilver, which adhered to the inside of the vessel ; but- the minuteness of the quantity frus- trated an attempt to measure it. From subsequent expert* ments on similar quantities of gas, confined in the same appa- ratus, it appeared, that the electrization in this last instance, had been continued much longer than was necessary ; and that an equal effect was produced by one-eighth the number of elec- trical discharges.
In this way of making the experiment, the greatest propor- The hydrogea
tion of hydrogen gas obtainable from muriatic acid, amounted evolved when i iiiii-i.. , ., mercury is not
only to about .^th, while, b/ electrization over quicksilver, present, i«
tV, or t!t was generally evolved. It was evident, then, that 1*70th ; blU d 1 ■ ' * D J ' ' present,
the mercury had considerable influence over the results ; and i-l5th,or
I found, by experiments with tubes of different diameters, "e'ir!y five „.
■ times as much, that the larger the surface of the mercury exposed to the gas,
the more rapid and complete was the change. Its action was
greatly accelerated, also, by causing the electric discharge to
strike from the conducting wire, sealed into the tube, to the
mercury, which was probably thus raised into vapour; for in
some instances, the whole of the inner surface of the glass
was coated with sublimed calomel.
The only way in which the mercury appeared to me likely The mercury
to be efficient in this case, was by removing the oxymuriatic f PPears to a<t
. J ■ - J bv removing
acid as fast as it was formed ; for I have never found any the oxyrauna-
mixture of this gas in the results of experiments on muriatic J.ic aoi<* **
acid, when carried on over quicksilver. Upon any theory of , . . c . . . % J J and prevent-
the constitution of muriatic acid, it may be expected that when, ingthe repro-
in a mixture of that acid gas with hydrogen and oxymuriatic d,,ction of
. , .; *"*;■' . . common mu-
acid gasses, the two latter come to bear a certain proportion to Hatic acid,
the former, they will be brought within the sphere of mutual when t.he ot>'"
agency, and will reproduce muriatic acid. Thii point appears, became* abua.
from daat 1
46 MURIATIC AND OXYMURIATIC ACIDS.
from my experiments, to be attained, when the hydrogen and oxymuriatic acid, taken together, have the proportion to the viz. both gases muriatic acid, of about 1 to 35. The amount of the change, as {h:e™'nal'c therefore, which is capable of being effected on muriatic acid gas, electrified without the contact of mercury, is limited by the reaction of the evolved hydrogen and oxy muriatic acid gasses on each other, whenever they compose a certain pro- portion of the mixture. This proportion being attained, we only, by continuing the electrization, work in a circle. Muriatic acid It may now be inquired, what is the limitation to the action •ver mercury, 0f electricity on muriatic acid gas, which is confined over mer- cury ? In this case it was suggested to me by Mr. Dalton, who favoured me with his presence at most of the experi- ments, that the evolved hydrogen might possibly in some way prevent the effect from being carried beyond a certain amount. Availing myself of this hint, I mixed thirty measures of hydrogen gas with 400 of muriatic acid gas in its ordinary with about state, and passed 900 discharges through the mixture. It soon
1;\3tl!lts buIk became evident that the addition of the hydrogen bad pro- of hydrogen, . ' - ■ i3 not changed duced an important difference in the results of the experi-
by electriza- ments -, for the surface of the mercury, over which the gas rested, was untarnished after some hundred explosions, and was scarcely changed at the close of the process. When the residuary gas, the volume of which remained unaltered, was analyzed, it was found to contain the same quantity of muria- tic gas, as at the outset, and neither more nor less hydrogen, because the To explain the event of this modification of the experiment, wtternfinTsd on the old theory, we may suppose, that, by the action of elec- hydrogen to tricity, a particle of water is decomposed, and that the atom of recompose it : 0XVg-eil) forcibly repelled from that of hydrogen with which it was associated, finds another atom of hydrogen uninfluenced by the electric fluid, and within the sphere of its attraction. With this it unites, and recomposes water. On the theory of or themuriatic Sir H. Davy, the same series of decompositions and recombi- posed and^re™ nat,ons may De assumed to take place between the oxymuriatic composed. acid and hydrogen*. It
* I am aware, that there is an apparent inconsistency in supposing changes of precisely an opposite kind to be effected by the same means. But instances are not wanting, in which the very same elements are krought into combination by electric discharges, and are again disunited
by
MURIATIC AND OXYMURIATIC ACIDS. 47
It still, however, remains to be determined, what is theQu: Whence
source of the hydrogen gas, which, in a limited proportion, umitedhydrog.
is always evolved by the electrization of muriatic acid ? Does evolved by
it result from the decomposition of water, existing as an ele- J^om^vvater
ment of the gas ; or from the disunion of the oxymuriatic acid as an element
and hydrogen, which, according to Sir H. Davy's view, com- J? theffam' the
pose muriatic acid ? The limitation to its amount, which, it disunion of
formerly appeared to me* ceuld only be accounted for by the hydrog. from.
J rt .ii oxymur. acid
complete destruction of the water contained in the gas, may as elements of
now be equally well explained, on the principle which I have mur« acid?
just pointed out. The fact, also, that no appreciable change
of bulk is produced by the electrization of the muriatic acid,
when the presence of mercury is excluded, is perhaps favour- „ , ,
, . i^i, Perhaps the
able to the new theory. For since equal measures of hydro- ]atter; because
gen and oxymuriatic acids afford muriatic acid without any tue volume* condensation of volume, no alteration of bulk should result ^ » from the disunion of those elements ; and the products should be equal measures of the same gases. The proportions, which I obtained (100 to 140) did not, it must be acknowledged, exactly correspond with the theory j but the difference was not greater, than might naturally be expected from the cir- cumstances of the experiment. That equal measures of hy- drogen and oxymuriatic acid are really evolved, appears to me to be proved by the agreement, which I have in several experiments remarked, between the hydrogen gas obtained, and the contraction of volume in muriatic acid electrified over mercury. Now the latter effect of the process can be explained on no other principle than the absorption of oxymuriatic acid by the quicksilver.
When muriatic acid and oxygen gases are electrified toge-
by the same agency. As examples, it may be sufficient at present to state, that nitrous acid and nitrous gas are generated by the action of the electric spark on mixtures of oxygen and nitrogen gases; and that, by the same power, they are again resolved into their elements. If this were the proper place, it might* I think, be rendered probable by several arguments, that electricity, when thus applied, acts rather by mechanical collision, than by inducing a change in the electrical states of the elements of bodies.
* Phil. Trans. 1800, p. 200.
ther
48 MURIATIC AND OXYMURIATIC ACIDS.
ther over" mercury, a gradual diminution ensues in their bulk,*
and the mercury becomes tarnished, precisely as by the contact
of oxymuriatic acid. I have lately examined the agency of
Muriatic acid tnjs process on a considerable quantity of the two gases
gases, electrifi- confined in a vessel, into which they were admitted after ex-
«d alone, hausting it by the air-pump. The phenomena, which in this
afford water Jr ,. , ■ . .... .
and oxymuri- way of making the experiment are extremely decisive and
*tic acid gas. interesting, are the production of water and of oxymuriatic acid. The former, combining with a portion of the uudecom* posed muriatic acid, is deposited in drops upon the inner sur- face of the vessel, in the state of liquid muriatic acid. When the stop-cock, which confines the gases, is opened under mer- cury, a quantity of that metal rushes in, and has its surface instantly tarnished. Besides this test of the production of oxy- muriatic acid, its presence is rendered unequivocal (after ab- sorbing the undecomposed muriatic acid by a few drops of water), both by its smell, and by its effect in discharging the colour of litmus paperf.
These result* These results, it will be found, may be reconciled with
agree with J
either theory, either theory. According to the one which has been com-
The exigen monly received, the oxygen unites with the real acid of mu-
■nay unite . . J , . ;e. • , ,
with the muri- r|atic gas, which becoming oxymuriatic acid, deposits water.
atic acid and On Sir H. Davy's view, the oxygen unites with the hydrogen Water be dnw- r . .... , ,., . . .
rited — or the °* tne muriatic acid, and composes water, while the oxymuriatic
oxigen may acid is merely aneduct. I am not aware of any refinement of hydrogen as me Pr°cess, by which the value of these two explanations can one of the be compared. Something, however, would be gained by a pie- mur" add and cise determination °f tne proportions, in which the two gases form water, saturate each other. For since, on Sir H. Davy's theory, mu-
™" ih(.\ .oxy" riatic acid contains half its volume of hydrogen gas, two mea- mur. acid is / s & '
disengaged as sures of which are known to be saturated by one of oxygen, the other prin- ciple. v * Phil. Trans. 1800, p. 193.
f Those who wish to repeat this experiment need not be deterred by the apprehension of the labour attending it ; for 3 or 400 discharges! from a Leyden jar of moderate size, are sufficient to occasion a distinct precipitation of moisture. When a mixture of oxygen and muriatic acid gases is even suffered to stand over mercury, a gradual contraction of volume takes place; the muriatic acid, if in proper proportion, entirely disappears ; and calomel is deposited upon the surface of the glass vessel ; but, in this case, there is no visible production of moisture.
ON PUTREFACTION. 49
it follows that muriatic acid gas should be changed into oxy- It may be of muriatic by one-fourth of its bulk of oxygen. According to v*lue to Gay Lussac andTHENARD*, three measures of muriatic acid ascertain the should condense one of oxygen (or only one-third their bulk), proportions of and should form two measures of oxymuriaic acid. Hitherto, mur. acjd gai I have not been able to satisfy myself respecting the true pro- which form portions of oxygen and muriatic acid gases, that are capable but^hishas * of being united by electricity j for-though I have made several n°t yet been experiments with this view, they have not agreed in yielding e ecte * similar results. The condensation of a part of the undecom- posed acid by the water, which is formed during the process, will, probably, indeed, always be an impediment to our learning these proportions exactly. The fact is chiefly of value, as it affords an example of the production of oxymuriatic acid under the simplest possible circumstances 5 and as it shews unequivo- cally that, under such circumstances, the visible appearance of moisture is a part of the phenomena.
Manchester, Jan. 6, 1812.
XI.
Experiments on Putrefaction. By John Manners, M. D. of Philadelphia. In a letter from the Author.
To Mr. Nicholson.
SIR,
FROM reading a paper upon the vinous and putrefactive Whether ory< fermentation bv Gay Liusac, in a late number of your g.en eqm* J J J site to putre-
" Philosophical Journal," in which the author, according to the faction, general opinion of chemical philosophers, contended that the access of atmospheric air or oxygen gas, was a sine qua non of the process, I was induced to institute the following experi- ments on putrefaction, by which I have proved (as 1 conceive) beyond the possibility of exoeptioo, that oxygen is not only unessential to the putrefactive fermentation, but has, when in actual contact with the putrefying substance, no influence on that process.
* Memoiread'Arcueil,!!. 217.
Vol. XXXIV.— No. 15$. E I secured
50
ON PUTREFACTION.
The water contained no oxygen.
Remarks on eudiometry.
Muscular flesh 1 secured some fresh muscular flesh . (a portion of lamb) in
vva* included the bottom of a glass jar, and inverted it over distilled water,
in air above ° J '
distilled water, observing that the water within the jar was precisely on a
level with that which was external ; that any absorption of
either of the components of the intercluded atmospheric air,
might be noted by a corresponding absorption of water within
the jar.
Fahrenheit's thermometer stood at 70°. At which tempera- ture it was kept during the experiment.
That the distilled water was perfectly free from any oxygen gas, I proved by Mr. Dusseu's method : viz. I tinged a portion of the same water with litmus, and passed nitrous gas through it, which Dr. Priestley proved would combine with the oxygen, and be converted into nitric avid, which would change the litmus red. Dr. Thompsou says, however, that this is not a critical test, and that the litmus will not be charged unless there be an unusual quantity of oxygen gas present.
Upon the discovery of this property of nitrous gas, by Dr. Priestley, he founded the first eudiometer, which has been since mproved by Falconer, Fontana, Cavendish, Ladriani, Magellan, Baron Von Humboldt, Engenhausz, Dalton, and Gay Lussac, and contributed so much to extend the bounds of philosophical knowledge. Before this important era, the only eudiometer in the hands of the philosophers, was a sparrow, a mouse, or a taper. Since, however, others have been devised -3 as the sulphuret of iron by Scheele, the liquid hydro-sulphuret of potash by De Marti, the rapid combustion of phosphorus by Humboldt and Seguin, the slow combustion of phosphorus by Berthollet, the green sulphate and muriate of iron impregnated with nitrous gas by Davy, and the detonation of hydrogen gas by Volta.
The jar remained three days, during which time the flesh rhinwTiVthe nac* undergone the putrefactive process, as was evinced by the "ncludedair offensive odour emitted. But at no time could I observe any absorption of water within the jar : except where there was a corresponding reduction of atmospheric temperature, and in consequence a condensation of the intercluded air. But Dr. Priestley, in a similar experiment, found a small augmentation of • air within the jar j as I have in subsequent experiments.
The confined air was analysed with the eudiometer of
Humboldt,
The putrefac f icu made no
Cti PUTREFACTION, 51
Humboldt, but not found to differ from atmospheric air in the proportion i f its oxygen and nitrogen.
The stale of the barometer, however, Was not attended to in this experiment, which renders it liable to exception. Neither did Dr. Priestley attend to the state of the barometer in his experiments, or if he did he omitted to*mention it.
I repeated this experiment over mercury. The thermometer Repetition of
as before stood at 70, and the barometer at 20- 1 inches. The rhe "Pen' ' ^ ment over
experiment was continued three days, when the putrefactive mercury ; with fermentation had taken place, as was evinced by the odour n0 absorption, emitted: but there was at no time any absorption of mercury within the jar. Upon examining the included air with the eudiometer it was not found to ditfer from atmospheric air.
But to magnify and render more conspicuous any absorption, The same re- in consequence of a diminution of the included atmospheric ^ different1 air, by the combination of its oxygen with the animal matter, I mercurial ap- invented an instrument which I shall now describe. paratus,
I took a cylindrical bottle perfectly transparent, and put half a pound of muscular flesh (a portion of the diaphram of a bullock) in the bottom of it and secured it there. The flesh was taken while warm, and cooled under mercury to prevent the access of air. To the bottle was adapted a cork which was per- forated, and a bent tube passed through the perforation, the other end of which was hermetically sealed. Some mercury was then put into the bottle — the bottle corked and made perfectly air-tight by luting and sealing — the bottle was now inverted. The mercury filled about two inches of the neck of the bottle, and was made to pass up the glass tube by heating it, and expanding the air, and thus expelling a portion of it to >
a proper distance. In this situation the bottle was put to rest in a fixed position. A thermometer was included within the bottle in order to note the temperature.
The bottle and curved tube in some measure represented Mr. Leslie's Differential thermometer. The barometrical influence was perfectly excluded. And as variations in the temperature equally affected both the air included in the tube, and that in the bottle, it is evident that thermometrical influence could not affect the experiment. To the tube was adapted a graduated scale, which would mark any rise or fall of mercury in the tube.
E 2 Now
52 ON PUTREFACTION.
calculatedto Now it is clear that the smallest diminution of air in the
shewminute bottle would be marked by a corresponding fall of the mercury variations. .,.,.. . . , »•
in the tube, the calibre ot which was not more than one line.
Or, on the contrary, any evolution of gas would raise the
mercury in the tube.
No absorption The apparatus remained three days without any change of
took place. mercury in the tube. On the fourth day the mercury began to
rise, and continued to rise until the experiment was suspended,
which proves that there was no absorption of oxygen gas by the
putrefying substance. The thermometer included in the bottle
stood at 60, during the experiment. This apparatus is easily
constructed and may be used for many similar purposes as a
gasometer.
Putrefaction As from all these experiments it appeared that no oxygen
effected gas was absorbed by the putrefying substance, I determined to
of air : exclude the atmospheric air altogether. This I attempted first
by the following experiment, in carbonic I put some fresh meat into a glass vessel — filled it with mer-
cury— placed it in the pneumatic cistern, and filled it with car- bonic acid. In this situation it was kept three days 3 at the end of which period the flesh was found to have undergone the putrefactive fermentation 3 yet all air except carbonic acid was excluded. Though Sir John Priogle and Dr. Mc Bride (and the latter from actual experiments) contended for the antiseptic powers of fixed air. The thermometer during this experiment stood at 70. and In But as my object was to exclude oxygen gas, and as car-
fcydrogen ga3. jjonic acid contains that as one of its components, I thought it nor impossible but that the animal matter might abstract a portion of the oxygen from the carbonic acid, and convert it into carbonic oxyde : as is the case with iron, zinc, tin, and certain other metals. I therefore repeated the experiment in every circumstance as before, except that I substituted hydrogen for carbonic acid gas : but with precisely the same result, putrefaction went on as well as in any of my former experi- ments, and in other * tried sulphuretted hydrogen and n itrogen gases in the same ga«e*. manner, and with the same result.
I then fell upon a second method of excluding atmospheric air and oxygen gas.
I to
ON PUTREFACTION,
53
I took an eight ounce phial and put six ounces of fresh beef Repetition of
(a portion of the diaphram) in the bottom of it, and secured it ^"P^
there. In procuring this beef I was so careful as to go to the flesh closely
butcher's myself, and have it cut off the moment the animal was surrounded or
t rr immersed in
dead. Upon this meat while thus warrn^. and not affected by mercury.
external air, I placed a column of mercury, by rilling the phial
with that fluid. The phial was corked, and to the cork was
adapted one leg of a syphon, which perforated the cork, all
which was made perfectly air tight by luting and sealing.
The syphon was filled with mercury completely, and passed into the mercurial cistern. Over this was placed a glass vessel filled with mercury and inverted, in order to collect any gas that should come over.
That there was now a complete column of mercury from the meat to the top of the vessel inverted in the cistern. My object in the first place, was to prove by the first phial containing the meat covered with a col u am of mercury, whether putrefaction could take place in that situation where the possible access of air was cut off by the mercury. My object with the syphon and other apparatus was to collect and to examine the products, if putrefaction should proceed : the thermometer stood during this experiment at yo\
In about three days the putrefactive process was evidently going on.
These experiments were sufficient to satisfy me, that atmos- Conclusion.
pheric air or oxygen gas, is so far from being essential to putre- nei^heTewen-8
faction, that it has no influence on that process where it has tial to, nor has
free access to the putrefying substance. These experiments f„ Vmrefac-'
have since been repeated and confirmed by my friend Dr. tiou:
Mitchill at my request.
Therefore I am disposed to believe, that putrefaction must but that it is . caused by
depend on the destruction of the equilibrium of attractions, changes in the
which in the living state of animals exists among the elementary substance principles of which they are composed, by the loss of vitality : by which new attractions are called into action, and new com- binations and decompositions take place.
My next object was to examine the products of putrefaction Products of which had taken place without extrinsic oxygen. putrefaction
The first product was a bloody serum. Serum,
The second was a transparent gas, possessing the transparency, Gas.
elasticity,
54
ON ruTiitr ACTION,
Examination of the gas from putrefac* tion :
by litmus and acid ; no c ha nge.
by turmeric ; no change.
The gas was not absorbed by water.
by sulphate oi copper ; no change.
by carbonic »cid gas ; no change.
elasticity, dilatibUity, compressibility, and other mechanical properties of atmospheric air.
As the gaseous products of putrefaction had never been col- lected and chemically examined, 1 thought it an object of importance to give it a careful and critical analysis.
I therefore proceeded to examine it in the following man- ner.
As it has been the unanimous opinion of chemical philoso- phers, who have written upon the subject, that ammonia is generated, and is the principal product of putrefaction, I first tested for that substance.
1 st. By passing a piece of litmus paper, reddened by vinegar, into a vessel about half filled with this gas over mercury — no change.
2d. Some of the gas was passed through an infusion of lit- mus reddened by vinegar — no change.
3d. 1 filled a vessel with mercury over the mercurial bath, and displaced about half of it by passing up an infusion of litmus reddened by vinegar. After which I passed up the gas, which was somewhat absorbable, until it was strongly impreg- nated with it, and had accumulated in the top of the vessel — no change.
4th. 5th. and 6th. I tesied it with turmeric in all the three ways in which litmus reddened by vinegar was used — no change.
7th. I passed up a piece of wet sponge by means of a wire, but there was no perceptible absorption of the gas by the water contained in the sponge.
8th. The sponge was withdrawn and washed in a solution of sulphate of copper-r-no change.
9th. I passed up a solution of sulphate of copper into a vessel filled with mercury over the mercurial cistern until it was two thirds displaced by the solution of copper. I then passed up the gas until the solution was strongly impregnated with it and it had accumulated in the top of the vessel — no change.
10th. Carbonic acid gas was passed up into a vessel contain- ing this gas. No chemical change (except with Mr. Berthollet we call the admixture of gases chemical dissolution.) The car-
bonic
ON PUTREFACTION*
55
bonic acid produced an augmentation in the bulk of the gases proportional to its quantity.
llth. Muriatic acid gas was passed up into a vessel filled nor by muri- wilh gas over mercury — no change. at,c aci *»as*
These experiments were abundantly sufficient to prove that
there was no ammonia in the products of putrefaction, at least
where it takes place without the influence of external causes.
Secondly, I tested it for oxygen in the following manner. Tried by phos-
n , i • , *Am . phorus ; no
1st. A piece of phosphorus was passed up into a vessel filled combustion.
with this gas and standing over mercury. The phosphorus
was fused and became perfectly fluid, floating upon the surface
of the mercury, by pouring boiling water upon the vessel.
But there was not the slightest appearance of combustion.
2d. Water was now passed into the same vessel, which was tested for phosphoric acidly litmus— no change.
3d. Nitrous gas was passed into a vessel filled with this gas by nitrous over mercury — no change, except in the bulk proportional to ^jjj,J}0 1DU* the gas added.
4th. Water was now passed up into the same vessel and tested for nitric acid by litmus — no change.
5th. A mouse was passed into a vessel of this gas which by a mouie. instantly died.
These experiments were deemed sufficient to prove the Conclusion; no nonexistence of oxygen. sentf"611^
Thirdly, It was now tested for sulphuretted hydrogen.
1st. A piece of silver was placed in a vessel of this gas which Silver shewed was not blackened or converted into a sulphuret when with- 11Q *ulPn« drawn. A piece of silver was also kept in water highly impreg- * nated with this gas, and one was placed at the end of the tube .from which the gas was disengaged, and with the same result.
2d. The gas was passed through a solution of nitrate of silver Nitr. of sil. n» —no change. change.
3d. A vessel was filled with mercury over the mercurial cistern, and displaced by passing up a solution of nitrate of silver until the vessel was half filled with it. After which the gas was permitted to pass up, as it was disengaged from the putrefying substance through the mercury, and through the solution of silver, until it was strongly impregnated with it and had accumulated in the top of the vessel — no change.
4tb.
56 MAKING OF COFFEE.
Acet. of lead: 4th. A solution of atetate of lead in the same manner as
no change. experiment 2d — no change.
5th- A solution of acetate of lend was impregnated with this gas in the same manner that nitrate of silver was in experi- ment 3— no change.
Conclusion. These te&Ls were sufficient to prove that no sulphuretted
No sulph hydrogen was formed.
hydrog. was _ ... T , , . .
formed. fourth, y, I tested it tor carbonic acid.
By litmu». ist. 2d. and 3d. By fmus in all three of the ways in which
litmus n ddened bv vin g«) ^as used tor ammonia- reddened.
and by lime 4th. I ti Hod a vessel ^v i i ti mercury over tin bath,
water ^nd passed up a quantity of lime water, after which I parsed up
the putrescent gas. — The lime was precipitated.
and then an 5th. The precipitate erfervesced with the era/it, sulphuric,
acid- nitric, and muriatic acids.
Consequently the gas is carbonic acid : Probably holding a Thegas prov- r . , ., , J r , . , x. . . . . ,
€d to be car- foetid oil (or some of the animal matter) in solution to which
bonic. it owes its offensive odour.
From the six ounces of animal substance I have already col- lected 100 cubic inches of this gas.
I am, dear Sir,
Your obedient servant,
JOHN MANNERS. Philadelphia, Oct. 12th, 1612.
XII.
Of the excellent Qualities of Coffee, and the art of making it in the highest perfection. By Benjamin, Count of Rumford, F. R. S. Abridged from his ISth Essay, published in Lon- don, 1812.
Praises of coffee.
THE Count begins his Essay with an eulogium on coffee. He celebrates it as uncommonly agreeable in its taste, salubrious in its effects," and producing exhilaration which lasts many hours, and is not followed by sadness, languor, or debility. The glow of health, the consciousness of increased vigour of mind it affords, and the uniform experience of many able, bril- liant, and indefatigable men of the first talents in its favour — are
among
MAKING OF COFFEE.
57
among the topics on which the animated writer dwells in his praises of this most delightful vegetable. He acknowledges his own obligation to its powers, am! society will admit that a more cogent instance could scarcely have been adduced in support of his argument.
But there is no culinary process so uncertain in- its results as The goodness that of making coffee. The same materials, in the same pro depencU great- portions, shall produce good or bad coffee according to the ly on its pre- management. If the peculiar aromatic flavour of coffee be Paratl0n : dissipated and lost, its exhilarating quality is gone, and all that would have made it valuable. To prepare it as it ought to be done, is the object of the Essay before us.
Great care must be taken not to roast coffee too much. Particularly As soon as it has acquired a deep cinnamon colour, it should be ie roas ing* taken from the fire and cooled : otherwise much of its aromatic flavour will be dissipated, and its taste will become disagreeably- bitter.
In some parts of Italy, coffee is roasted in a thin Florence This is best flask, slightly closed by a loose cork, and held over clear burning p[rf0y™ge/n* coals with continual agitation. No vapour issues from the coffee sufficient to prevent the progress of its roasting from being clearly seen. The Count has adopted this process by using a thin globular vessel of glass, with a long neck, which he closes, when charged, with a long cork, having a small slit on one side, to allow the escape of the vapours, and projecting far enough out of the neck to be used as a handle to turn the vessel round, while exposed to the heat of a chafing dish of coals. This vessel is laid horizontally, and is supported by its neck so as to be easily turned round ; which may be done without the least danger, however near the coals, provided the glass be thin, and kept constantly turned.
In order that the coffee may be perfectly good, and very high Instruction* flavoured, not more than half a pound of the grain should be foyoasting roasted at once j for when the quantity is greater, it becomes impossible to regulate the heat so as to be quite certain of a good result. The progress of the operation, and the moment most proper to put an end to it may be judged and determined with great certainty ; not only by the changes which take place in the colour of the grain ; but also by the peculiar fragrance
whick
,38 MAKtNG OF COFFEE.
which will first begin to be diffused by it when it is nearly roasted enough. S nrdHm $t' ^ coffee in powder be not defended from the air,it soon loses mediately after its flavour and becomes of little value j and the liquor is never roasting. in such high perfection as when the coffee is made immediately
after the grain is roasted. This fact is well known to those who are accustomed to coffee in countries where the use of it is not controlled by the laws ; and if a government be seriously dis- posed to encourage the use of coffee, the Count considers it as indispensable that individuals should be permitted to roast it in _., , their own houses. But as the. roasting and grinding of coffee
coffee must be ta^es "p considerable time, the author describes a contrivance carefully pre- of a canister to keep it in, which has a double cover. This
St I VCQ .
vessel is a cylinder of tin, having a sliding piston within, of the same material, formed like the cover of a box, but having several slits in its sides, by which they are sprung outwards and cause it to retain its place in the cylinder with considerable force. The piston, being pressed down upon the coffee retains it and defends it from the air, while the same object is more completely secured by a common well fitted cover at top. It may be here remarked — that this kind of canister has the advan- tage of confining the article without including any air in the same space, except what may be diffused between the particles -r —but that, with this exception, a well-corked bottle or other fit vessel may answer the same purpose. Preparation of After giving instructions for roasting the coffee and keeping the beverage jt for use wnen ground, the preparation of the liquor constitutes the next subject of inquiry. Why this should be so uncertain can only be explained by reference to the circumstances on which those qualities depend which are most esteemed in coffee. A peculiar Boiiing hot water extracts from coffee which has been pro-
aromatic sub- perly roasted and ground, an aromatic substance of an exquisite
stance extract-
ed by boiling flavour, together with a considerable quantity of astringent
water, matter of a bitter, but very agreeable {aste • but this aro-
matic substance, which is supposed to be an oil, is extremely volatile ; and is so feebly united to the water that it escapes into the air with great facility.
W*i'Chl * d ^ a CUP °^ ^ie very kest co^ee prepared in the highest per-
son fliea off. fectioh, and boiling hot, be placed on a table in the middle of a
room,
MAKING OF COFFEE. 5Q
loom, and suffered to cool, it will, in cooling, fill the room with its fragrance j but the coffee, after having- become cold, will be found to have lost a great deal of its flavour. If it be again heated, its taste and flavour will be still farther impaired ; and after it has been heated »nd cooled two or three -times, it will be found to be quite vapid and disgusting.
The fragrance diffused through the air is a proof, that the Upon this the coffee has lost some of its most volatile parts ; and as that liquor exi"|ara«ng
1 ' ^ quality de-
is found to have lost its peculiar flavour, and also its exhilarating pends.
quality, it is inferred, that both these qualities must undoubtedly
depend on the preservation of those volatile parts which so
readily escape.
If the liquid were perfectly at rest, the particles which could It would not escape from its surface, would be incomparably less in quantity, jf^l^jd j\ea(j than would escape by agitation, which would continually pre- no agitation, sent new portions of the fluid to the air. But all fluids, while heating or cooling, by partial communication, are known to be agitated j a fact long and well known, but particularly ex- plained and insisted upon by our author, in many of his valuable works, and which he again perspicuously and familiarly explains in the present essay. His object is to indicate by what means the heat of the liquor may be uniformly kept up in all its parts : for the consequence being, that the parts will, in those circum- stances, be at rest, the motions by which the aromatic parts might have been dissipated, will not take place.
By pouring boiling water on the coffee, and surrounding the Agitation may
containing vessel with boiling water, or with the steam of boil- ^c Preve^ntc^
ing water, the coffee itself will be kept permanently at the same ing the vessel
heat, and will ot circulate, or be agitated. Wlth boiling
° water or
The Count observes, that from the well-known fact, that steam.
boiling: water is not the most favourable for* extracting the Coftee require*
, • r i • • . . -i boiling hot
saccharine parts from malt in brewing, he was induced to try a water.
lower temperature than the boiling heat in making coffee; but
the coffee did not prove so good. The cold infusion of coffee,
which he also tried, was of very inferior quality.
* I have always understood, that the temperature of boiling is no otherwise exceptionable in brewing, than because it makes a pudding- ; which phrase denotes, that the grains are rendered so adherent to each other, by the sudden and complete extrication of mucilage, that the wort cannot run off— N.
*Tht
6o
MAKING OF COFFEE.
The common The common method of boiling coffee in a coffee pot, is wasteful and neitner economical nor judicious. A large quantity of the ma- bad, terial is wasted in this method, and more than half of the aro- matic parts, so essential to its good qualities, are lost. One pound of One pound of good Mocha coffee, which, when properly make 56 cups. roastecl tfWI ground, weighs only fourteen ounces, will make, by proper management, fifty-six full cups of the very best coffee that can be made.
It must be finely ground
If it be not ground finely, the surfaces of the particles only will be acted upon by the hot water, and the waste will be very great, from the large proportion of coffee left in the grounds.
The size of a coffee cup in England usually answers to 8-£ cubic inches, but the Count considers the gill measure as a proper standard for a cup of coffee, which he therefore adopts. This will fill the former cup to seven-eighths of its capacity, and a quarter of an ounce of ground coffee will be fully suffi- cient to moke a gill of the most excellent coffee.
It is well known to chemists, that any solvent already in part charged with a substance intended to be taken up, will be less and not by cle- disposed lhan before to take up any additional quantity ; and coction. upon thisf is founded the process of percolation or straining,
as is practised in brewing and other arts, and has been for some time recommended and used in making coffee. To this the Count gives his approbation. He finds, by experience, that the stratum of ground coffee to be laid upon a perforated metallic bottom of a vessel or strainer, ought to be about two- thirds of an inch thick, and to be reduced by pressure by a pis- ton or flat plate of metal (after levelling it) to less than half an inch. From the data he infers, by a chain of observations, that if the height of a cylindrical vessel or strainer be taken con- stantly at 5\ inches, the diameter of its bottom must be — To make ] cup of coffee = l£ inch— 2 cups = 2 J — 3 or 4 cups = 2f— 5 or 6 = 3 \— 7 or 8 = 4— 9 or 10 = 4-| — 11 or 12 = 5.
These strainers are to be suspended in their reservoirs orves-
reservoir, and sels for containing the coffee, and the whole included in another
Doite"01^ lUS vesse* called tne boiler, which is to contain boiling water, kept
hoi by a lamp, or otherwise. The forms of these are given
with drawings, upon which it does not seem needful to enlarge
in
A coffee cup contains one gill.
Coffee must be made by
The vessels and their di
mensions.
A strainer, a
MAKING OF COFFEE. 6l
in the present abridgment, because there are several vessels of
this description, with the exception of the surrounding boiler,
to be found in our shops.
The reader must have recourse to the essay itself for these Description of
and other particulars of considerable interest, and delivered in a v,eTY RimPIe 1 and cheap ap-
the familiar and perspicuous style which distinguish the vvri- paratus for
tings of this author. The poor, and those who prefer simpli- making coffee.
city of structure to the extremes of perfection, will be gratified
by a description of his last apparatus, fig. 8. It is a porcelain,
or earthern jug, with a tubular spout, not unlike those which we
call milk jugs, except that these commonly have a lip-spout'
(which would answer nearly as well.) Into the mouth of this
is fitted a tin vessel, which fits and descends a little way down.
It has a flat bottom perforated with many holes, and a good
close cover j and it would be well to have a round plate or
rammer, to compress the coffee on its bottom, and defend it
from the stream of hot water, when poured in. These several
parts are to be dipped in boiling water before using, and the
difference between coffee made by this simple and cheap appa-.
ratus, of which the mug may also be applied to other uses,
and that made by the the most perfect machines, will scarcely
be distinguishable.
Sufficient length has already been given to our abstract, to General con- forbid us to follow the Count in the explanation of his views sidcrations or directed to the benefit of society, with relation to the com- jng thebeue- forts of individuals, as well as to the economy of the political fits of coffee, aggregate. That it would be preferable to consume an article produced by the colonies of European nations, who demand the manufactures and products of the parent -state, instead of sending bullion to China for an article of less value: that it would be preferable that the poor should enjby the innocent exhilaration of coffee, and the nutriment of sugar, instead of forgetting their hardships during the momentary intervals of insanity, produced by fermented and distilled liquors j that they should be cheerful, benevolent, animated, healthy, and indus- trious with coffee, instead of becoming outrageous, mischievous, diseased, idle, and sunk in languor and debility with gin, &c.,&c. ♦
These are among the meditations interspersed through this little work, which the reader will be gratified in consulting, and will probably be induced to make others iu his turn.
XIV
62
METEOROLOGICAL JOtfRtfAt*
XIV.
METEOROLOGICAL JOURNAL,
|
B AliOMETER. |
TlIKRMOMETEK. j |
||||||
|
1812. |
Wind |
Max. |
Min. |
Mid. |
Max. |
Mr* |
Med. |
|
10th Mo. |
|||||||
|
Oct. 27 |
S W |
2040 |
29-24 |
2932O |
52 |
40 |
46-0 |
|
28 |
s \v |
2975 |
•J9'40 |
29-575 |
51 |
32 |
41-5 |
|
29 |
w |
29SO |
20/4 |
29-770 |
"49 |
33 |
4 10 |
|
30 |
S E |
2978 |
296O |
29-720 |
51 |
39 |
45 0 |
|
31 |
W |
2994 |
297S |
29 boo |
54 |
41 |
475 |
|
Uth Mo. |
|||||||
|
Nov. J |
s w |
2994 |
29-87 |
29905 |
55 |
50 |
52-5 |
|
2 |
N |
3005 |
2987 |
29960 |
54 |
44 |
49O |
|
3 |
s w |
|
49 |
38 |
43-5 |
||
|
4 |
w |
30-05 |
29*80 |
29.940 |
48 |
39 |
43 5 |
|
5 |
N W |
29\83 |
29- 80 |
29-815 |
49 |
30 |
395 |
|
6 |
S \V |
29 83 |
2C)- 80 |
29-815 |
45 |
27 |
360 |
|
7 |
W |
29 S3 |
2979 |
29 810 |
45 |
24 |
345 |
|
8 |
E |
2979 |
2977 |
29780 |
40 |
27 |
33'5 |
|
9 |
E |
|
46 |
39 |
42-5 |
||
|
10 |
N E |
30" 15 |
30 03 |
30090 |
45 |
33 |
390 |
|
11 |
S E |
|
■ |
46 |
3Q |
425 |
|
|
12 |
E |
30 03 |
29'58 |
29-805 |
45 |
39 |
420 |
|
13 |
N E |
29'58 |
2920 |
29390 |
51 |
44 |
475 |
|
14 |
W |
29'59 |
29-20 |
29,395 |
52 |
40 |
460 |
|
15 |
s \v |
29'59 |
2930 |
29445 |
52 |
39 |
45 5 |
|
10 |
N E |
2930 |
2t)00 |
j 29-150 |
40 |
42 |
440 |
|
17 |
N E |
29'CO |
28*96 |
289SO |
46 |
40 |
43 0 |
|
18 |
N \V |
29-66 |
2S9O |
29310 |
42 |
32 |
370 |
|
10 |
N |
29-86 |
29-66 |
2976O |
42 |
28 |
350 |
|
20 |
N |
29-9; |
29-83 |
29.900 |
41 |
33 |
370 |
|
21 |
N E |
30 32 |
29*97 |
30145 |
39 |
26 |
32-5 |
|
22 |
N |
30-38 |
3031 |
30345 |
43 |
25 |
340 |
|
23 |
S W |
303 1 |
3008 |
30'195 |
44 |
26 |
350 |
|
24 |
s w |
3008 3038 |
29-89 28-96 |
29985 |
48 |
39 |
435 |
|
29-678 |
55 |
24 |
4131 |
Rain
•20
|
_ _ |
•14 |
|
•7 |
•65 |
|
8 |
|
|
5 |
|
|
^mm |
•32 |
|
— |
•38 |
|
— |
■55 |
|
— |
— |
|
— |
3 |
|
— |
— |
|
7 |
•13 |
|
7 |
|
|
9 |
|
|
058 |
246 |
0
The observations in each line of the table apply to a period of twenty-four hours beginning at 9 A. M. on the day indicated in the first column. A dash denotes, that the result is inch ded in the next following observation.
METEOROLOGICAL JOURNAL.
REMARKS.
Tenth Month, 27. Misty and overcast a. m. p. m. the Barometer descended at the rate of a tenth of an inch per hour, the wind increasing in proportion, with much rain, the clouds sweeping the earth. The evening was very- tempestuous j before midnight the Barometer had risen again and the weather was moderate. Many large trees were blown down. 28. a. m. hoar frost rather misty. At sunset, the sky exhibited a fine collection of coloured clouds, in the modifica- tions Nimbus and Cirrus, with broad parallel bands of red in the haze above them. 28. Fair and calm. 30. Cirrostratus and Cumulus : the sky again beautifully coloured.
Eleventh Month. I. Cloudy. 2. a. m. wet. 5. Fine day. 6. 8, 9, 10, 11. Chiefly misty or cloudy, with hoar frost, and some very thick local fogs. 11. Overcast, a. m. l*ie Cirrostra- tus prevails, and sounds travel with the wind to an unusual distance : we hear the rattling of the carriages on the pavement in London through a direct mean distance of five miles. This phenomenon is to be attributed to a thick continuous sheet of haze in the air above us which acts as a sounding board. 12. Rain through the day. 13. Misty : rain : sounds are again distinctly heard from the city. 15. Fair : a Stratus at night. 10'. Overcast ; with an easterly gale. 18. Wet stormy day, night clear and calm. 20. Misty, much rime on the trees, which came off about noon in showers of ice. At 1 1 a. m. a perfect but colourless how in the mist: near 4 p.m. there was a shower, in which the rainbow shewed its proper colours. 22. Clear : the ground just sprinkled with hail balls. 23. a. m. misty rime. p. m, clearer, thaw in the night. 24. Clear morning.
RESULTS.
Vfnds for the greater part westerly ; though the rain chiefly fell
during an easterly wind.
Barometer : highest observation, S'J'otf inches; lowest 23*96 inche» j
.Mean of the period £9*67Q inches.
Thermometer : highest 55° ; lowest £4*. mean •ll'SJ.0.
Evaporation O'o8 inches. Rain &46 inclu ft,
ri.AisTow, L. HOWARD.
Ticdnb Month, is, 1812.
63
64
IMPROVED PUMP.
Improved pump for •inking of wells, mine- shafts, Sec.
XV.
Description of an improved Pump for raising the Water from Wells or Mines, while sinking o? making. By Mr. William B run ton, of Butter ley Iron Works, in Derbyshire*. Ex- traded from the Transactions of the Society of Arts, pub' lished in the Year 1812.
THE contriver of this pump, previous to entering upon a description of his drawings, gives the following statement of the inconveniences he proposes to obviate.
First, as it is necessary for the pumps, whilst sinking, to be always working upon air, that the water may be kept very low in the pit, the engine of course frequently goes too fast, and carries up, by the violence of the current, small pieces of stone, coal, of* other substances, and lodges them abofe the bucket, which must considerably retard the working of the pump, and wear the leather,
Secondly, When the engine is set to work, (after having been stopt whilst working upon air, and consequently a quantity of air remaining in the suction-pipe, with the small stones, &c. deposited on the valves of the bucket) it often happens, that the compression of the air, by the descent of the bucket, is not sufficient to overcome the weight of the bucket valves so loaded with rubbish, and the column of water in the stand pipes, the pump is hereby prevented from catching its water > the usual remedy for which is, to draw the bucket oui of the working barrel, until a quantity of water has escaped by its sides, and displaced the air. Observe here, that tint oiten hap- pens from the unnecessary magnitude of the space between the bucket and clack.
Thirdly, The pumps are suspended in the pit by capstan ropes, for the purpose of being readily lowered as the pit is sunk j the stretching of the ropes, (especially when . sinking in soft strata,) occasions much trouble, by suffering the pumps to choke j but the most serious evil is, that the sinkers, in shifting the pumps from one place to another, throw them very far out of perpendicular, thereby causing immense friction,
• For which the »ilver medal was voted.
and
IMPROVED PUMP.
and wearing in all the parts -, besides endangering the whole Improved apparatus, by breaking the bolts and stays, and straining the P?™P fo,*p joints. * wells, mine-
Fourthly, As the pumps sink, the delivering pipe at the top shafts, &c, is raised, by putting on short pipes, generally about a yard at a time, which occasions many stoppages and much hindrance in the work.
Having an engine pit to sink at Codnor Park Colliery, Der- byshire, belonging to the Butterley Iron Company, I endea- voured to obviate the difficulties stated ; and first, for the. pur- pose of preventing the pumps working too much upon air, 1 constructed a working barrel, (which in this case was nine inches diameter,) AVith a side pipe three inches diameter, con- nected therewith by an opening at the top and bottom ; also at the upper end of the side pipe I fixed a valve, so as to slide over and snut the communication with the working barrel, the Stem of the valve by which it is regulated, passing through a stuffing box, and by letting a quantity of water return through the side pipe to the bottom of the working barrel, (the men at the bottom regulating the valve, so that the pump takes the water as it comes,) very little rubbish is then taken into the pump, and much wear and tear of buckets prevented.
Secondly, t also, by this valve and side pipe, preclude the necessity of ever drawing the bucket to displace the air. The clack piece was made as small as possible, and the clack with its gearing very low, in order to have as little space as possible between the bucket and the clack. The clack, as represented in the drawing, possesses the advantages of being easily caught by the clack hook in case of being under water. The ring" prevents it from oversetting, and thereby fastening itself in the pumps and the valves are very easily repaired by unscrewing the cross-bar, which admits of their being taken off and re- placed.
Thirdly, I avoid the inconvenience of suspending the pumps by ropes, by forming the suction-pipe in two pieces, one inner and outer pipe ; the outer pipe is bored for about six inches in length, and the inner one turned cylihdrically to fit it; they slide into each other the whole length of a regular pipe, viz. nine feet : and they are made tight by collars of leather, surrounded by a cup filled with water and clay. The Vol.XXXIV.-No.156. F pumpe
65
66
IMfROVED fUMP,
Improved pump for sinking of wells, mine- shafts, &c.
pumps are supported at proper distances, so as to suit the length of the pipes, by beams, and across those are other beams, upon which the flanches of die pipes rest : these last are not fastened by any bolt, in order that they may be readily removed. The pumps, by these means, remain stationary, and the suction-pipe lengthens as the pit is sunk, until it is drawn out to its full extent. The whole column is then lowered to the next flanches, and another pipe is added to the top j the lower end of the suction-pipe is formed somewhat like a crank, in order that the sinkers, by turning it round upon the other pipe, may move it from one place to another, and so prevent the necessity of sinking immediately under it.
Fourthly, The pumps being stationary, as above stated, the pipe at the top will of course deliver the water at the same level at all times, and instead of being obliged to lengtherf the column every yard sunk, it will only be necessary every nine feet.
Fig. 1 . PI. II, is the section of a shaft or pit, with the pump fixed in it j it is cast in lengths of nine feet each, screwed to- gether by flanches, and supported by beams extending across the pit, (as shown in the plan, fig. 6,): short pieces are laid across these, with half circular holes in them j and these being put round the pump, just beneath a flanch, sustain the pump firmly, but may quickly be removed when it is required to lower the pumps in the pit j and, as they are not fastened, they do not prevent the pumps being drawn upwards j A, fig. 1, is a door which unscrews, to get at the lower valve or clack of the pump j this is more clearly explained in the enlarged section, fig. 2, where A has the same designation, B, rig. 2, is the working barrel, with the bucket D working in it \ E is th« clack, also shewn enlarged in figs. 3 and 4 j F is the suction- pipe, and GG the moveable lengthening piece \ this slides over, and includes the other, as in fig. 2, when the pump is first fixed ; but, as the pit is sunk, it slides down over the pipe F, to reach the bottom, as in fig. 1 ; the outside of the inner pipe F is turned true and smooth, and the inside of the outer pipe G, at the upper end, is bored out to fit it -, the junction is made perfect by leathers placed in the bottom of the cup a a, which holds water and wet clay over them, to keep them wet and pliable, and consequently air-tight -, the lower extre- mity
IMPROVED PUMP. 67
mity of the suction-pipe G, terminates in a nose, pierced with improved a number of small holes, that it may not take up the dirt : this pump for nose is not placed in a line with the pipe, .but curved to one ^ej)s m;ne. side of it, so as to describe a circle when turned round 5 by shafts, &c this means the sinkers can always place the nose in the deepest part of the pit, as shewn in fig. 1 ; and when they dig or blast a deeper part, they turn the nose about into it, the sliding tube lengthening down to reach the bottom of it : by this means there is never a necessity to set a shot for blasting so near the pump foot, as 10 put it in any danger of being injured by the explosion, as is the case in the common pump j in which this danger can only be avoided by moving the pump foot to one side of the pit, which necessarily throws the whole column of pumps out of the perpendicular.
The construction of the clack is explained by figs. 3 and 4, the former being a section, and the latter a plan j LL is a cast-iron ring, fitting into a conical seat in the bottom of the chamber of the pump, as shewn in rig. 2j it has two stems, //, rising from it, to support a second iron ring, M M 5 just beneath this, a bar, m} extends across from one stem to ano- ther, and has two screws tapped through it j these press down a second cross-bar, n, which presses the leather of the valves down upon the cross-bar of the ring L, and this holds it fast, forming the hinge on which the double valves open, without the necessity of making any holes through the leather, as in common -, but the chief advantage is, that, by this means the clack can be repaired, and a new leather put in, in far less time than at present, an object of the greatest importance 5 for, in many situations, the water gathers so fast in the pit, that if the clack fails, and cannot be quickly repaired, the water rises above the clack-door, so as to prevent any access to it, and (here is no remedy, in the common pump, but drawing up the whole pile of pumps, which is a most tedious and ex- pensive operation. In Mr. Bruntoa's pump, the clack can at any time be drawn out of the pump, by first drawing out the bucket, and letting down an iron prong, fig. 5, which has hooks on the outsides of its two points j this, when dropped down, will fall into the ring M, and its prongs springing out, will catch the underside, and hold it fast enough to draw it up; another part of Mr. Brunton's improvement consists in the
F 2 addi-
68 WATER IN MURIATIC ACIt> GAS?
Improved addition of a pipe H, fig. 2, which is cast at the same time with sinking of tne barrel, and communicates with it both at the top and at the \vells, mine- bottom, just above the clack ; at the upper end the pipe is covcr- ' * ed by a fl.it sliding plate, which can be moved by a small rod, b, passing through a collar of leather ; the rod has a communi- cation by a lever, so that the valve can be opened or shut by the men in the bottom of the pit ; the object of this side pipe is to let down such a proportion of the water, which the pump draws, as will prevent the pump drawing air ; though of course the motion of the engine will be so adapted, as not to f require a great proportion of the water to be thus returned through the side pipe j yet it will not be possible to work the engine so correctly, as not to draw some air, without this con- trivance j and if it does, it draws up much dirt and pieces of stone into the pump, besides causing the engine to work very irregularly, in consequence of partially losing its load every time the air enters the pump. Another use of the side pipe is, to let down water into the chamber of the clack to fill it, when the engine is first set to work, after the pumps have been standing still, and the lower part of the barrel and chamber empty*.
XV.
An Account of an Experiment made in the College Laboratory , Edinburgh, drawn up by Joijn Davy, Esq.
SIR,
If water be 1F"N the preceding numbers of your Journal, several papers have the conTbiuZ "^" aPP^ared> relative to the result of the combination of nation of mur. muriatic acid and ammonia. Mr. Murray first made the expe-
a. gas, and riment, for the purpose of ascertaining the nature of the anim. gas, the ' ~ * * &
viur.a.gas former gas — whether it be a compound of an unknown basis contains none. ancj water> or a compound of chlorine and hydrogene. He
* This communication was accompanied by a handsome letter from that eminent civil engineer, William Jessop, Esq., who, after explaining the usual practice and the effect of Mr. Bruntons improvement, adds, that simple as it is, it will be found, as he has from experience ascer- tained, to be of considerable value to those interested in mining con- cerns.
justly
WATER IN MURIATIC ACID GAS ? ()Q
justly conclude 1, that if water was obtained from muriatic acid Mt, by means of ammonia, its existence in the acid must be admitted ; and that, on the contrary, if no water could be pro- cured, it would be nnphilosophical to suppose water present ; but that muriatic acid gas must be considered as a compound of hydrogene and chlorine. Such were Mr. Murray's pre- mises.
The result of his experiment, he says, was the production Asserted fart
- „ . . c . c , , ' , . t>y Mr. Miir-
of water lrom the muriate or ammonia, formed by the union r^ that thr
of the dry gases. He therefore, of course, concluded, that dry gases af- muriatic acid gas is not a compound of chlorine and hydro- conch
lusion,
gene, but of water and an unknown basis (muriatic acid ;) that m. «. ga$
in fact, that the old doctrines respecting this substance, ^?*r *** *
which he had strenuously defended before, are correct, and
the new theory advanced by Sir H. Davy, erroneous.
This experiment was also repeated on a very small scale at
Liverpool, by Drs. Bostock and Traill, and with nearly the same
result.
But other results have been obtained. — Sir H. Davy has Sir H.Davy
made the experiment several times, and under different circum- afd the writer
' obtained no
stances ; and has uniformly pei ceived no water, when the at- water.
mospheric air was excluded, and dry vessels, and dry gases were employed • and my experience is agreeable to his, having been unable to obtain any water the only time I repeated the expe- riment, on subjecting the muriate to a heat not sufficient for its sublimation, though water was procured by heating the same salt, after it had been exposed to the atmosphere.
It is not my object at present to attempt to reconcile these contradictory results, or to show, by any process of reasoning or criticism, that Mr. Murray has fallen into errour. It is my intention to confine myself to the concise detail of new ex- periments, which will tend, I trust, to decide the question.
About two months since, when my brother, Sir H. Davy, Repetition of*
wa3 in Edinburgh, he was desirous of repeating the experiment the experi-
on the combination of muriatic acid and ammonia, with Dr. me™ b*fore
eminent men,
Hope. The experiment was accordingly made in the College Laboratory.— Sir George Mackenzie, Mr. Playfair, and some other gentlemen, were present.
The alkaline and acid gases employed, were pure, and both The amm ga» had previously been dried by exposure, for about sixteen hours, was dned b*
to
yQ WATER IN MURIATIC ACID GAS ?
potash ; the substances having a strong attraction for water — the ammoniacal
mur. a gas by gas to pieces of potash — and the muriatic to dry muriate of
They were in nme. The apparatus for making the experiment consisted of
alternate por- a plain retort of about the capacity of twenty-six cubic inch
in°an exhaust- measures* wUh a stop-cock; and of a receiver, with a suitable
-ed vessel. The stop-cock. The latter was filled over mercury with one of the
wwdrlven gases> which from the receiver passed into the exhausted
from the neck retort, by means of the stop-cocks j the other gas was Intro-
°f jtl!tv?ssel ' duced the same way into the retort : and thus alternately about and this being J ' J
cooled, and ninety cubic inches ot each gas were combined. The muriate the body heat- 0f ammonia formed, was of its usual appearance. As it. was diffused over the whole surface of the retort, it was necessary to clear the neck by the sublimation of the salt into the bulb, that if any water was present, it might be detected here in the . second part of the operation.
All the salt being driven into the bulb of the retort, by the heat of a spirit lamp, the neck was cooled and kept cold -by moistened cloths, whilst the buib was heated by a coke-fire, till the muriate began to sublime, and to make its appearance at the curvature of the vessel. The fire was now withdrawn. It had been gradually and equally applied, and it had been con- tinued for a considerable time, a dew, just The result was examined whilst the bottom of the retort was
perceptible, still very hot, and whilst that part, where a little of the muriate the neck had sublimed, exceeded the temperature of boiling water.
A dew just perceptible was observed lining the cold neck. The quantity of water was so extremely small, that the globular particles composing this dew could scarcely be perceived by the naked eye, unassisted by a magnifying glass.
This result appeared to me very decisive. The quantity of gases employed was large -, the water, which ninety cubic inches of muriatic acid gas should afford, is,- according to hy- pothesis, equal to no less than-eight grains. How great is the difference between this quantity and a dew barely perceptible ! which may reasonably be referred to a minute quantity of va- pour in the gases, or to a little moisture derived from the mercury, a small quantity of which entered the retort with the gases, -which seemed Dr. Hope wished to ascertain how much water would pro- about oue- duce such a de\v as was observed. For this purpose he heated
in
WATER IN MURIATIC ACID GAS ? J ]
in a retort, of a similar size to that used in the experiment, sixth of a
a single drop of water, which it may be said weighs about 1 gram«
grain. The appearance of condensed water in this instance in
the neck of the retort, was much greater than in the preceding;
he thought that it was 3 or 4 times as great.
May we not conclude from these results, on Mr. Murray's Deduction :
own ground of reasoning, that water is not a constituent part °f notVconati-
irrai iatic acid gas, and that this substance is a compound merely tuent part of
of chlorine and hydrogene ? And may we not reasonably con- jj™1^ * gas-;
sider that very minute portion of water, which did appear, as comp. of
tincombined moisture derived from various sources ? It is fh,orme afld
Jiydrogene. easy to account for the presence of about ^ of a grain of water
on the one theory; it is impossible to account for the absence of
■8 grs. on the other.
It has been shewn, by Dr. Henry, that ammonia obstinately retains aqueous vapour j and Sir H. Davy has proved, that a minute portion of solution of muriatic acid in water, may be obtained by intensely cooling the gas. There is great difficulty in drying mercury without boiling it ; and in the present instance the mercury was not boiled. These trivial circum- stances do not deserve notice, otherwise than as tending to account for the very minute quantity of water obtained. It is probable, judging from the past, that objections will be made, and I wish to anticipate them.
The present mode of heating the muriate of ammonia in If water na(j a close retort, which had also been adopted on a former occasion, been present it was objected to in a preceding number of your Journal. Mr. ^"^ iav* Murray there observed, that in consequence of the air being confined, it was possible that the water could not rise in vapour, or at least that it was impeded in its volatilization. His reason- ing was subtile, and it would have been plausible had there been no circulation cf air in the vessel, and quite correct if the heat employed had not been sufficient to convert the water into an elastic fluid or true gas. — But in a large retort such as we used, there is a circulation of air, when heat is partially applied; and the heat employed was far above that required for boiling water. Not to dwell on reasonings, which on controverted points are £xper;ment in always very justly to be suspected, I shall have recourse to fact, proof. A single drop of water was introduced into a retort, about t]ie same size as that employed in the experiment, and it was
tightly
72 SCIENTIFIC NEWS.
lightly stopped by a cork. On the Application of heat to the bulb, the water passed off into steam apparently wiih the same velocity that it would have done, had there been a free com- munication between it and the atmosphere, and o( course the steam was just as readily condensed. This experiment was suggested and made by Dr. Hope.
I have now finished the account of the experiments which f wished to communicate, and as I have no intention of answer- ing personal aspersions, which are only injurious to the author when unjustly made, nor of entering again into a controversy- concerning words, I shall here conclude with subscribing myself,
Your obedient humble servant,
JOHN DAVY.
Edinburgh, December 9.
To Mr. Nicholson.
P. S. I have authority from Dr. Hope, and also fiom Sir George Mackenzie and Mr. Playfair, to mention, that the detail I have given of the experiment is correct.
I should have before observed, that the muriate was heated in the preceding experiment in a, partial vacuum. After the: combination of the two gases had been formed, a little ammonia remained in the retort, and to this as much air was admitted, as was conceived sufficient when the heat was applied, to pro- duce the common atmospheric pressure.
SCIENTIFIC NEWS.
Account of Books, &c.
Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London, fur the year 1812. Part II. 4to. 187 pages, with 12 plates.
THIS part contains the following paper. 1 . Observations of a second Comet, with remarks on its construction. By William Herschel, LL. D. F. R. S. 2. Additional Experi- ments on the Muriatic and Oxymuriatic Acids. By William Henry, M. D. F. R. S. &c. (See our present volume, p. 42.) 3. Of the Attraction of such Solids as are terminated by planes ;
and
SCIENTIFIC NEWS.
and of solids of greatest attraction. By Thomas Knight, Esq.
4. Of the Penetration of an Hemisphere by an indefinite num- ber of equal and similar Cylinders. By Thomas Knight, Esq.
5. On the Motions of the Tendrils of Plants. By Thomas Andrew Knight, Esq. F. R. S. (See our present Vol. p. 37.)
6. Observations on the Measurement of three degrees of the Meridian conducted iu England by Lieut. Col. William Mudge. By Don Joseph Rodriguez. 7. An account of some Experiments on difFerent Combinations of Flupric Acid. By John- Davy, Esq. 8. On a Periscopic Camera Obscura and Microscope. By William Hyde Wollaston,M. D. Sec. R. S. (See our present vol. p. 26.) Q. Farther Experiments and Observations on the Influence of the Brain on the generation of animal heat. By B. C. Brodie, F. R. S. 10. On the different Structures and situations of the solvent Glands, in the digestive organs of Birds, according to the nature of their food, and particular modes of life. By Everard Home, Flsq. F. R. S. 1 1 . On some Combinations of Phosphorus and Sulphur, and on some other subjects of Medical Inquiry. By Sir H. Davy, Knt. Sec. R. S. List pf Presents. Index.
The History of the Royal Society from its Institution to the End of the \Slh Century. By Thomas Thomson, M. D. F. R. S. L. and E. 2 vols. 4to. price 21. 2s. and on fine paper, 31. 12s,
Mr. Andrew Horn, of Wycombe, acquaints me that he has a short Essay on Vision in the press, in which the Seat of Vision is determined, and by the discovery of a new function in the organ of Sight, a foundation is laid for explaining its mechan- ism and the various phenomena, upon principles hitherto un- attempted.
Bionomia. Opinions concerning Life and Health, introductory
to a Course of Lectures on the Physiology of Sentient Beings.
By A. P. Buchan, M. D. of the Royal College of Physicians,
London, 8vo. lip pages, with 8 p. Introduction.
Where the master of a science, not to be acquired without
deep erudition, a diligent and correct observation of facts, and
an enlightened spirit of philosophical research, takes his
station
73
7-i SCIENTIFIC NEWS.
station on an eminence, and by a few striking outlines gives a sketch of the prospects around him, it becomes impossible to make an analysis of his work. I mast therefore confine myself to say, that this treatise contains many important and highly interesting truths, delivered with perspicuity and elegance.
M. De Luc's Geological Travels in Germany^ France, and Switzerland, are nearly ready for publication.
A work on Oriental Commerce, in two 4to. vols. By Mr. Milburn, with numerous Charts, by Arrowsmith, is expected to be published in a few weeks,
Tyrocimum medicum ; or a Dissertation on tlie Duties of Youth, apprenticed to the Medical profession. By William Chamber- lay ne, Member of the Royal College of Surgeons, Fellow of the Medical Society of London, &c, duodecimo, 253 pages, London, 1812.
This familiar and very perspicuous Dissertation, contains much more than is indicated in the title. It is a subject of primary interest to the public, that the preparation and dispensing of medicines should be done with fidelity, precision, and dispatch. It is of equal importance that the professors of the art should not be deficient in the requisite information. But in every class and every rank of Society, the habits of order, method, cleanli- ness, punctuality, and other good qualities, which have been called the minor virtues, are so essential to prosperity and hap- piness, that a book which strikingly displays their advantages, must be considered as of much more extensive utility than any set of Aphorisms confined to an individual profession. The good advice with which this Treatise abounds, is calculated to afford great benefit to the reader, whether intended for the Medical profession, or for any other department of life.
M. Zambeccari, accompanied by a friend, ascended in a bal- loon from Bologna, on the 21st September. On his descent, the balloon became entangled in the branches of a high tree, and, before it could be disengaged, caught fire. The two aero- nauts leaped out. M. Zambeccari was killed upon the spot ;
but
SCIENTIFIC NEWS. 7^
but M. Bologna, his friend, survived, though some of tas. limbs were broken.
The ascension of Bittorf, the mechanician, from Manheim, was equally disastrous. When he had risen to a considerable height, he perceived, too late, that his balloon was damaged, and he had no other resource than to open the valve. The balloon descended with extreme velocity, and the inflammable matter which it contained, took fire, the shreads of the bal- loon falling upon M. Bittorf's head and breast, which were much burnt. On a sudden, his crazy vehicle struck upon the roof of a house, two stories high, from which he was pre- cipitated, and died the next day in great agony.
Mr. Sadler, the aeronaut, ascended from Belvidere-house, near Dublin, October 1 , at 1 p. m. with the wind at south- west, and in thirty-five minutes had sight of the mountains in Wales ; he continued in the same direction till three o'clock, when being nearly over the Isle of Man, the wind blowing fresh, he found himself fast approaching the Welch coast ; and at four o'clock, he had a distinct view of the Skerry light- house, and the prospect of consummating his ardent hopes of a speedy arrival in Liverpool. The wind now shifting, he was again taken off, and lost sight of land j when, after hovering about for a long time, he discovered five vessels beating down channel ; and in hopes of their assistance, he determined on descending with all possible expedition, and precipitated him- self into the sea. In this most critical situation he had the mortification to find the vessels took no notice of him : obliged, therefore, to reascend, he now threw out a quantity of ballast, and quickly regained his situation in the air, to look out for more friendly aid. It was a length of time before he bad the satisfaction of discovering any , and then observed a vessel, which gave him to understand by signal, that she in* tended to assist him, but could not reach him. Two others also now appeared in sight, and one of them tacking about, hoisted the Manx colours : night now coming on, he was de- termined to avail himself of their friendly aid, and once more descended into the sea j but here the wind acting upon the balloon, as it lay on the water, drew the car with so much velocity, that the vessel could not overtake it ; and, notwith- standing
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standing he used his utmost efforts, and latterly tied his clothes to the grappling-iron, and sunk them to keep him steady f still the balloon was carried away so fast, that he was under the necessity of expelling the gas ; upon that escaping, the car actually sunk, and he had now nothing but the netting to cling to. His perilous situation, and the fear of getting entangled, deterred the men from coming near him j until, being in dan- ger of drowning, Mr. Sadler begged they would run their bow- sprit through the balloon, and expel the remaining gas. Hav- ing done this, they threw out a line, which he wound round his arm, and was then dragged a considerable way before they could get him on board, quite exhausted,
A meteoric stone, of the weight of 15lbs. fell to the earth on the 1st of March, 1811, in the village of Konleghowbk, dependent on the town of Romea, in the government of Tschernigoff, in Russia, and making part of the domains of Count Golovkin. Its fall was preceded by three violent claps of thunder. When it was dug out from the depth of more than three feet, through a thick layer of ice, it still possessed heat. It was remarked, that at the third clap of thunder there was qn extraordinary explosion, with aloud noise, and throwing out 3 great quantity of spares.
A new comet was discovered by M. Pons, of Marseilles, on the 20th of July. Its course was then between the feet of the Camel-leopard and the head of the Lynx. It was discovered afterwards at Paris, by M. Bouvard j and, according to th# calculations of these astronomers, it passed its perihelion on the 15th of September, when its distance from the sun, taking that ©f the earth at unity, was at 0,77.835, and its inclination to the ecliptic is 74° 50'.
The Geological Society held its first meeting of the present session on Friday, November 6th, 1812.
A second letter from Ed. L. Irton, Esq., in answer to some queries by the President, relative to the sand tubes found at Drigg, in Cumberland, was read.
From
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From this it appears, that the tubes have hitherto been found only in a single hill of drift sand on the sea-shore, of the ex- tent of about five acres. The entire form of the tubes is not known ; for they are discovered in consequence of being laid bare by the drifting of the sand j and the same cause almost always breaks off, and injures their upper extremity. The manner in which they terminate below, is still less known : one of the tubes was exposed by hazardous digging, in running sand, to the depth of about fifteen feet, without the least ap- pearance of its being about to terminate. They lie parallel to each other, and nearly vertical, but at unequal distances — the number must be very considerable, Mr. Irton having himself taken away, at different times, not less than a hundred.
The tubes, when first dug out, are very flexible, but exposure to the air for a fqvv seconds deprives them of this quality. The unctuosity of the internal glazing of these tubes, when re- cently dug up, stated by Mr. Irton, in his first letter on the authority of another person, appears, on more accurate exami- nation, to be a mistake.
A communication from George Cumberland, Esq., relative to some limestone strata in the neighbourhood of Bristol, was read.
The strata here described compose the rocks opposite to the Hotwell Walks, and are farther illustrated by two drawings ; the one of the external face of the rocks, the other of a large cavern recently discovered. In clearing the ground for the erection of houses opposite to the Old York hotel, on Clifton downs, some interesting varieties of sulphate of strontian were met with, but the place being now covered with building and garden grounds, there is little likelihood of its being soon again opened to the researches of the mineralogist.
A communication, accompanied by three drawings in illus- tration, from Dr. Mac Culloch, Mem. G. S. relative to a re- markable interrupted vein in lime -stone, was read.
This vein occurs in a mill-stone which was shipped from Limerick, and is at present at the royal powder mills at Wa!- tham Abbey. The stone itself is a dark blue slaty limestone, containing comminuted fragments of marine remains; the yeiu by which it is traversed is whjtish compact carbonate of lime. This vein, in its present state, consists of a number of separate
.angular
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angular fragments, having somewhat of a general parallelism with such a correspondence at any two neighbouring extremities as to render it a matter past doubt that they have once formed a continuous vein.
To displace such a vein into its present position, it is necessary to suppose that the rock originally consisted of a series of very thin strata, which, being fissured across, formed a spice for the reception of the substance of the vein. It is evident from the angularity and the irregularly-serrated edges of the displaced fragments, that the white calcareous carbonate must have been perfectly indurated at the time of its displacement : yet that the strata of the limestone must have been in a state to admit of a series of shifts or slides, each successively advancing with equal intervals beyond the one preceding it : it is necessary also to suppose that the strata must have been in some condition admitting them to cohere intimately together, either at the period when the slides took place, or afterwards, from the per- fect obliteration of the seam. By what theory can these facts be explained ?
Friday, Nov. 20.
A communication from Ar. Aikin, Esq. Sec. entitled f Some observations on abed of Greenstone, near Walsall, Staffordshire, was read.
The Greenstone, which is the subject of this paper, is of a dark blackish-blue green colour, has a glimmering lustre, and an uneven fracture, breaking into irregularly wedge-shaped blunt-edged fragments : it is tough, acquiring a kind of polish under the hammer, is moderately hard, and rather heavy. It strongly attracts the magnetic needle, and effervesces on immer- sion in cold diluted muriatic acid. It consists pi incipally of felspar, mixed with calcareous spar, with minute shining black grains of Augite, and of hornblende. It is penetrated by nearly vertical contemporaneous slender veins of calcareous spar, and after a few weeks exposure to the air acquires a liver-brown colour and falls to pieces.
It occurs in the independent coal formation ; but is not co- extensive with this formation ; nor indeed in the opinion of the author of the paper is it to be considered as a true bed, but rather a lateral vein branching off from a large dyke of green- stone that comes up to the surface, dividing the colliery in which the greenstone bed is, from another adjacent to it.
On
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On comparing the strata above and below the greenstone, with the very same strata that have been pierced through in a part of the colliery where the greenstone does not occur, it v appears, that the bed of slaty clay with balls of ironstone lying upon the greenstone, does not materially differ from the same bed where the greenstone is absent, but that the beds immediate- ly below the greenstone, present very different characters where, they are covered by this latter from what they do where the contrary is the case. These beds are 1. Sandstone, 2 Bituminous ahale, with slender seams of coal, and 3. a coal somewhat more than a yard thick. Of these the sandstone is considerably indurated, the bituminous shale is also indurated, entirely deprived of bitumen, and is broken more or less into irregular pieces, and mixed with the lower part of the sandstone bed. The yard coal is also entirely deprived of bitumen, is stained and irridescent on the surface of its natural joints, and is more friable. These changes appear to accompany the superposi- tion of the greenstone bed through its whole extent, and from the circumstance of their ceasing where the greenstone termi- nates, they appear to be occasioned in some way or other by this bed.
Scientific Institution, Princes Street, Cavendish Square. On Tuesday, Jan. 5, Mr. Singer will begin his course of twelve Lectures on Electricity and Electro-chemical science, which will be continued upon each subsequent Friday and Tuesday, until concluded. And on the 23d of i'eb. he will begin his course of Voltaic Electricity. In addition to the extensive apparatus before employed, he has now in forwardness an entire new Battery of one thousand double plates, with a variety of auxiliary apparatus.
Anatomical Theatre ; Lower College Street, Bristol. Mr* Thomas Shute will commence his spring course of Lectures on Anatomy, Physiology, and the principles and opera- tions of Surgery, on Saturday the 8th January, at eight in the morning.
Dr. Buxton will commence his spring Course of Lectures oft the Practice of Medicine, about the 20th of January next.
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The Pontine Marshes. It is announced, from the Continent, that the French havtf tucceeded in draining the Pontine Marshes ; a pestilential nuisance which has subsisted for so many centuries, in the vicinity of Rome, in defiance of every attempt of the ancient Imperial, as well as of the papal government. This district, once so healthy and so populous, and at length again reclaimed, is said to afford a disposable quantity of 150,000 acres of excellent land. The means adopted are not, nor perhaps can he, clearly stated in a short notice. That the Engineers have improved the line -, regulated the falls j enlarged the water ways j secured the embankments, sluices, and other works ; and no doubt, employed the powers of steam to facilitate their general and particular labours — may be concluded from the science and activity of a people, too long employed in the works of destruction. To works like the present every friend to humanity must join in wishing success and duration.
William Davis's Treatise on Land Surveying, to which are how first added a supplement, and a portrait of the Author, the fifth edition greatly improved, enlarged and better arranged is nearly ready for publication.
Mr.Bakewell will commence a course of Lectures on Geology and Mineralogy, at the Surry Institution, in January, 1813. v
Mr. Nicholson takes this opportunity to acquaint his Patrons and Correspondents, that he has been, for some time, occupied upon such arrangements, with regard to his public undertakings and other concerns, as have enabled him to take the conducting and editing of this Journal entirely into his own hands ; which, for some time past, have, in a great measure, been committed to an eminent and able scientific gentleman, who is not at present engaged in the work. The whole of the annotations and remarks, together with various original as well as abridged and selected articles, on different subjects, will consequently , as in times past, be produced by Mr. Nicholson ; and he looks forward with con- fidence and pleasure to many a renewed correspondence on the subjects of natural Philosophy and Uie Arts.
mios.Jounuil .Vol. XXXIV. VIM.