ATOMIC PRINCIPLES OF CHEMISTRY. 24^ 



that in the state of carbonic acid there are two atoms of oxi- 

 gen combined with one of carbon, and a third or fourth 

 atom of oxigen, however it may be attracted by the carbon, 

 cannot join it, without expelling one or more of the atoms 

 of oxigen already in conjunction. The attraction of the 

 carbon is able to restrain the mutual repulsion of two atoms 

 of oxigen, but not of rhrse or more. 



The drift of Dr. Bostock*s remarks and objections, in 

 page 285, is quite beyond my comprehension. The single 

 object I had in view in writing the paragraphs there quoted 

 was, to find the relative weights of hidrogen and oxigen in 

 a pound or any other given weight of water, I hav^ de- 

 duced them as 1 to 7 ; whether right or wrong may be a 

 question: but certainly I had no other object in view, and 

 therefore T consider that as the only one to which any criti- ^ 

 cism can properly apply. 



• I must object to such ^.oose quotations as the following ; Looseness of 

 B«mely, that I have assumed, ** that when only one com- quotation. 

 bination of two elementary bodies can be obtained, it must 

 be binary ;" my language is, " it must be presumed lo be a. 

 binary one unless some cause appear to the contrary.^* Sup- 

 posing for instance, that my hypothesis had been formed 

 previously to the discovery of carbonic oxide, I must have 

 concluded, according to Dr. Bostock's quotation, that car- ^ 

 bonic acid was a binary compound ; whereas 1 should have 

 compared carbonic acid with the other acids, and found 

 that like them it ought to contain at least two atoms of 

 oxigen to one of base, and this with me would have ap- ' 



peared " some cause to the contrary." Again, ** only one 

 combination of oxigen and hidrogen, and only one com- 

 bination of hidrogen and azote can exist," (page 284.) 

 Knowing that I never entertained such ideas, \ was curious 

 to find out those passages in my book, which could possibly 

 be so far misapjprehended, and I think they must have beeu 

 the following: " As only one compound of oxigen and hi- 

 drogen is certainly known," (page 275), and ** only one 

 compound of hidrogen and azote has y»»t been discovered," 

 (page 415), These ideas however are repeatedly ascribed 

 t9 me, and ip the most express manlier. <* We have never 



