ON THE REDUCTION OF LIMAILLE. 19 



(being light) may be considered as possessing about 

 half the specific gravity of water, that is, a half- 

 pint measure filled with bone-filings will weigh 

 about four ounces, and that this quantity requires 

 for its solution nearly four fluid ounces of hydro- 

 chloric acid; if, therefore, a measured half-pint of 

 limaille be submitted to the process, however rich 

 or poor in quality, four fluid ounces of hydrochloric 

 acid and sixteen of water would be such proportions 

 as I think would meet every case. For the purpose 

 of experiment for this paper, I desired to test 

 another practitioner's limaille in preference to my 

 own ; my friend Mr. Tomes kindly allowed me the 

 opportunity. Eight ounces by measure of his 

 limaille weighed fifteen ounces avoirdupoise : to this 

 was added four fluid ounces of hydrochloric acid 

 and sixteen ounces of water for the first part of 

 the process, and two ounces of undiluted hydro- 

 chloric acid for the second part. On the application 

 of nitric acid, subsequent to the above, and for the 

 part completion of the operation, one fluid ounce of 

 nitric acid and three ounces of water were mixed 

 and added to the filings (for the removal of the 

 silver usually found accumulated), and one fluid 

 ounce of z^^diluted nitric acid was employed in the 

 second part of the process to complete the cleansing 

 of the filings. If, then, these proportions of the 

 limaille and acids from the sample of another person 

 have given results very closely corroborative of 

 years of experience, I think that other samples may 



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