CHEMISTRY. 215 



mon with other improvements upon the locomotive, requires to be 

 worked out.' 



" It will be observed that in burning fuel by this method no 

 sparks will ever escape of sufficient size to set fire to any wood- 

 lots, structures, bridges, houses, depots, etc., along the line of the 

 road, and it is evident that an exceeding economy will result 

 from the perfect combustion of the pulverized fuel in the fire- 

 boxes." 



For a description of the above furnace, see " Annual of Scientific 

 Discovery " for 1866-67, pp. 47-50. 



A NEW MINERAL FROM BORNEO. 



This mineral is found mixed with the native platinum brought 

 from Borneo. It forms small grains or globules of a dark black- 

 gray color, and of considerable lustre. Many of these grains 

 show brilliant crystalline facets, which are the faces of regular 

 octahedra. The new mineral is very hard and brittle. Its pow- 

 der is dark-gray. Its density exceeds 6, according to an approxi- 

 mate determination. When heated it decrepitates like galena; it 

 does not fuse before the blowpipe, but diffuses a strong odor of 

 sulphurous acid, and then of osmic acid. It is not attacked by aqua 

 regia, nor by bisulphate of potash. Fused in a silver crucible 

 with hydrate of potash and nitre, it dissolves to a green mass. 

 After cooling, the mass is brown, and it dissolves in water with a 

 magnificent orange color. The solution has the odor of osmic 

 acid, and nitric acid produces in it a black precipitate. From this 

 it may be concluded that the new mineral contains as its principal 

 elements osmium and ruthenium. It also contains sulphur. To 

 estimate the latter I heated the mineral to redness in a current of 

 hydrogen until no more sulphuretted hydrogen was disengaged. 

 The residue was exhausted many times by aqua regia ; there re- 

 mained metallic ruthenium. A portion of this metal was esti- 

 mated in the orange solution. This was evaporated, then 

 neutralized by ammonia and brought to dryness, and the residue 

 calcined in a covered crucible in an atmosphere of carbonate of 

 ammonia. There remained ruthenium. The osmium which vola- 

 tilized was determined by difference. From this analysis the new 

 mineral contains : 



Sulphur 31.79 



Ruthenium ...... 65.18 



Osmium ...... 3.03 



100.00 



These numbers appear to show that the mineral is sulphide of 

 ruthenium, Ru 2 S 3 , 12 molecules of which are associated with one 

 molecule of sulphide of osmium, OsS*. F. Woliler, in Chemical 

 News. 



INDIUM. 



Two very interesting specimens of this new metal were exhib- 

 ited to the *' Academic des Sciences" in April, 18G7, by M. Rich- 



