570 ANNUAL RECORD OF SCIENCE AND INDUSTRY. 



communication to the Chemical News on the part of Mr. 

 Richard Weaver, who, while agreeing in general with Pro- 

 fessor Calvert's conclusions, remarks that the public disin- 

 fecting chamber in his town has the furnace within it, and as 

 coke is the material employed, the whole place, with the ar- 

 ticles under treatment, is impregnated strongly with sulphur- 

 ous acid, that probably has a destructive action upon the 

 germs. He thinks, however, that a more satisfactory result 

 will be obtained by thoroughly impregnating infected mate- 

 rials with the vapor of phenol at a moderate temperature, and 

 in the presence of steam. 1 A, September 22,1871, 138. 



HYDKATE OF CHLORAL AS AN ANTISEPTIC. 



When hydrate of chloral was first introduced into the ma- 

 teria medica, its expense was so enormous as very materially 

 to interfere with its applications. In consequence, however, 

 of improved methods for its preparation, and the great ex- 

 tent to which this is now carried on, the cost is now very 

 much less, and it is, therefore, possible to make use of it as a 

 reducing agent of metals, as a preservative of objects of nat- 

 ural history, etc. For this latter purpose it would really seem 

 to be of much value, as it is decidedly antiseptic in its char- 

 acter. In one experiment one half of one per cent, of chloral 

 added to some concentrated dried egg albumen kept it for a 

 long time from putrefying. For such application the chloral 

 hydrate must first be dissolved in water, and then the albu- 

 men added to the solution. 8 (7, January 18, 1872, 23. 



COMPARISON OF ANTISEPTICS. 



A series of experiments by Dr. Dougall upon the relative 

 powers of substances to prevent the generation of animalcule 

 gives some interesting and suggestive results. The metallic 

 salts, he finds, possess the highest preventive powers sul- 

 phate of copper occupying the first place, and nitrate of sil- 

 ver the lowest. Of the organic acids, benzoic acid has the 

 highest, and acetic acid the lowest power, carbolic acid oc- 

 cupying the fifth rank. Chloride of aluminium, among the 

 salts of the alkaline earths, stands the highest. The inor- 

 ganic salts have but little power, with the exception of bi- 

 chromate of potash, which ranks very high. The poisonous 

 vegetable extracts appear to be inert. 



