Ixxiv GENEKAL SUMMARY OF SCIENTIFIC AND 



believes that by the action of the meat the salt is decomposed, yield- 

 ing a simple borate, which preserves from decomposition, while the 

 boric acid thus set free preserves it from mould. 



Troost and Hautefeuille have observed that when boron chloride 

 is passed through a heated porcelain tube, silicon chloride and alu- 

 minum chloride are formed. Even pure silica and pure alumina are 

 thus attacked. Silicon chloride does not attack porcelain, but is de- 

 composed by alumina. Both chlorides attack zirconia and titanic 

 oxide readily. 



Hornberger has attempted to introduce zirconia into organic com- 

 pounds, and has studied this earth at length. He concludes, first, 

 that the similarity with silicon which is so striking in inorganic 

 chemistry does not hold in organic ; since, second, zirconia can not 

 unite with alcohol radicals to form a sort of ether in Mdiicli it plays 

 the part of an acid ; and, third, zirconia plays a decidedly positive 

 part in organic compounds, this element replacing readily only acid 

 hydrogen. 



Moride has given some statistics of the production of charcoal 

 from algae on the French coast, which has risen to an important in- 

 dustry ; 100,000 kilogrammes of the fresh plants yield 20,000 kilo- 

 grammes of the dried, and 5000 kilogrammes of charcoal. This, 

 when incinerated, yields from 3500 to 4000 kilogrammes of saline 

 matter, containing 20 per cent, of potassium salts. The charcoal it- 

 self is an excellent disinfectant and decolorizer, and is also used as 

 a fertilizer. 



Hartley has examined the liquid which is contained in the cavi- 

 ties of some varieties of rock-crystal, and comes to the conclusion 

 that it is liquid carbon dioxide. Comparing his results with Brews- 

 ter's, he adds to the list several other minerals. The proof of the fact 

 stated he finds in the fact that the critical point for the inclosed 

 liquid is between 30.75 and 31 Centigrade, while that of liquid 

 carbon dioxide, as determined with great care by Andrews, is 30.92. 



Wright has examined several more meteorites for the purpose of 

 determining their gaseous constituents, and finds essentially the 

 same composition for these gases as that given by the Iowa meteor- 

 ite before published. The ^^resent results, however, were obtained 

 at temperatures varying from 350 Centigrade to a full red heat for 

 the stony, and from 500 to a bright red heat for the iron meteorites. 

 His previous generalization, that stony meteorites differ from iron 

 ones in containing more carbon dioxide and less hydrogen and car- 

 bon monoxide, and in evolving their gaseous constituents at a much 

 lower temperature, seems fully confirmed. 



In a later paper Wright continues his studies upon the gases con- 

 tained in meteorites, and gives the results of his examination of the 

 Kold Bokkeveld meteorite, which, though stony, contains consider- 

 able carbon and some bituminous matters. It yielded 25.23 volumes 



