54 ON THE SEBACIC AC*1>« 



20. It forms a purpliih blue glafs with phofphate of am- 

 moniac. 



21. It reddens litmus paper. 



22. It appears to be of extreme difficult reduction. 

 Condition. From the above properties it appears to be an acidifiabje 



metal different from thofe already known, and it lias been 

 therefore diftinguiuied by the name of Columbium. 



VII. 



On the Seback Acid g or Acid of Fat. By Cit. Thenar d *, 



Authors who J\ GREAT number of chemifts have fucceflively written 

 fuhjeft. on the febacic acid. Grutmacher appears to have been the 



firit who has fpoken of it; it has fince been treated of by 

 Rhadcs, Knap, Segner, and Haller, who have confirmed and 

 augmented his experiments. Crell has given us fcveral pre- 

 cedes for obtaining this acid in a ftate of purity, and has fub- 

 jecled it to a number of experiments, the remits of which 

 Citizen Guy ton has infer ted in the Journal dc Phj/fique, (Vol. 

 XVIII. pages 110 and 383, and Vol. XIX. page 381.) 

 Bergman has afeertained the order of the attraction of this acid 

 for the falifiable bafes. Citizen Guy Ion has handled the fame 

 fubjeft, and discovered fcveral error* which had cfcaped the 

 notice of this chemift. 

 Objeft of proof The object of all the experiments which I havejuftmen- 

 LVfideTablf" .tioned, is to prove that theprodua of the dillillation of fat 

 from the refult contains a peculiar acid, of extreme volatility, and of fuch a 

 wperim'nts?' P oi g uant and futfbeating nature, that it cannot be refpired 

 without fome degree of danger. Thole of which I am about 

 to give an account prove 1 . That this product actually contains 

 a peculiar acid, which however, fo far from being volatile, 

 odorous and fuffoeating, is on the contrary folid and inodo- 

 rous; 2. That it alfo contains acetous acid ; 3. That this new 

 acid has no part in the fmell of diftilled fat ; 4. That by all the 

 procefles that have hitherto been employed for extracting the 

 febacic acid, nothing is obtained but a foreign acid, and tkat 

 confequently the febacic acid has not yet been known. 



* Communicated to the National Tnftitute of France, and in- 

 •fcrted in the Annales de Cfcmie, XXXIX. 193. 



2 A. Proccffes. 



