Chemical Science. 469 



which always occur together when the crystalline state is assumed ; 

 whereas, when rapid cooling has hindered crystallization, the mas^ 

 remains soft and transi)arent, until it crystallizes, which usually 

 happens in twenty or thirty hours. — Arm. de Chimie, xxxvi. 83. 



11. Oil the Fluidity of Sulphur and Phosphorus at common tem- 

 peratures, by Mr. Faraday. — I published some time ago a short ac- 

 count of an instance of the existence of fluid sulphur at common tem- 

 peratures* ; and though I thouglit the fact curious, I did not esteem 

 it of such importance as to put more than my initials to the account* 

 I have just learned, through the Bulletin Universel for September, 

 p. 178 t, that Signor Bellani had observed the same fact in 1813» 

 and published it in the Giornale di Fisica, vol. vi. (old series). I 

 also learn, by the same means, that M. Bellani complains of the 

 manner in which facts and theories, which have been published by 

 him, are afterwards given by others as new discoveries ; and 

 though 1 find myself classed with Gay-Lussac, Sir H. Davy, 

 Daniell, Bostock, &c., in having thus erred, I shall not rest satisfied, 

 without making restitution, for M. Bellani, in this instance, certainly 

 deserves it at my hand. 



Not being able to obtain access to the original journal, I shall 

 quote M. Bellani's very curious experiments from the Bulletin, 

 in which they appear to be fully described. " The property which 

 water possesses, of retaining its fluid states, when in tranquillity, at 

 temperatures 10° or 15° below its freezing point, is well known ; phos- 

 phorus behaves in the same manner; sometimes its fluidity may be 

 retained at 13° (centigrade ?) for a minute, an hour, or even many 

 days. What is singular is, that, though water cooled below its 

 freezing point, congeals easily upon slight internal movement, how- 

 ever communicated, phosphorus, on the contrary, sometimes re- 

 tains its liquid state even at 3°, even though it be shaken in a 

 tube or poured upon cold water. But, as soon as it has acquired 

 the lowest temperature which it can bear without solidifying, the 

 moment it is touched with a body at the same temperature, it soli- 

 difies so quickly, that the touching body cannot penetrate its mass. 

 If the smallest morsel of phosphorus is put into contact with a 

 liquified portion, the latter infallibly solidifies, though it be only a. 

 single degree below the limit of temperature necessary ; this does 

 not always happen when the body touching it is heterogeneous. 



" Sulphur presented the same phenomena as phosphorus ; frag- 

 ments of sulphur always produced the crystallization of cold fluid 

 portions. Having withdrawn tlie bulb of a thermometer which had 

 been plunged into sulphur at 120°, it came out covered with small 

 globules of sulphur, which remained fluid at 60° ; and having 

 touched these one after another with a thread of glass, they became 

 §olid ; although several seemed in contact, yet it required that each 



♦ Quarterly Journal of Science, xxi. S92. 

 t The Italian Journal has not yet arrived in this country. 



