Proceedings of the Royal Society. 273 



buted. The advantage of this plan was surprisingly shewn 

 in the Samarang, which had been coppered in India, in the year 

 1821, and came into dock in the spring of 1824,' covered with 

 rust, weeds, and zoophytes ; she was protected by four masses 

 of iron, equal in surface to about -^^ of the copper, two of which 

 were near the stern, and two on the bows. She made a voyage 

 to Nova Scotia, and returned in January, 1825, not, as was 

 falsely reported, covered with weeds and barnacles, but re- 

 markably clean, and in good condition. After citing other 

 instances of the perfect efficacy of the protectors, and adverting 

 to the relative proportion which, in different circumstances, 

 they ought to bear to the sheathing of the vessel, and to the 

 most advantageous methods of applying them, the President con- 

 cluded by observing upon the importance of selecting perfectly 

 pure copper for the sheathiiig,jof applying it smoothly and equably, 

 and of using, for its attachment, nails of pure copper, and not of 

 mixed metal. 



June 16. A Paper was communicated to the Society, On some 

 Neiv Compounds of Carbon and Hydrogen^ and on certain other 

 Products obtained during Vie Decomposition of Oil by Heat, by Mr. 

 M. Faraday, F.R.S. 



The experiments, of which the results are detailed in this paper, 

 were made principally on the fluid, which is found to be deposited 

 in considerable quantity, when oil gas is compressed. This fluid, 

 as obtained at the works of the Portable Oil Gas Company, is 

 colourless, of a specific gravity less than that of water, insolu- 

 ble in water except in very minute quantities, soluble in alco- 

 hol, ether, oils, ^c, and combustible, burning with a dense 

 flame. It is strikingly distinguished from the oil from which it 

 originated, by not being acted upon to any extent by solutions of 

 the alkalies. 



Part of this fluid is very volatile, causing the appearance of 

 ebullition at temperatures of 50° or CO®. Other parts are rtiore 

 fixed, requiring even 250° or above for ebullition. By repeated 

 distillations, a series of products were obtained from the mos 



Vol. XIX. T 



