HISTORY OF THE ATOMIC THEORY. 207 



which enter into neutrality with an equal amount of vitriolic or 

 muriatic acid, are the three first terms of two series, of which, 

 that which belongs to muriatic acid proceeds by the odd 

 numbers without interruption, and the other is the product 

 of a quantity with the numbers in regular succession." 



Page 167. " When an aqueous solution of vitriolic salammo- 

 niac is poured into a solution of muriate of lime, an abundant 

 precipitate is caused, which is completely formed gypsum ; if 

 the exact quantity of the salammoniac solution has been used 

 which is necessary to complete the precipitation, the liquid 

 above the precipitate contains nothing but perfectly formed 

 common salammoniac. But the proportion in the salt is 

 1000 : 1107^, and to 1000 of the chloride are to be calculated 

 889 parts of the volatile alkali ; now let us inquire how much 

 of the vitriol is needed for 11 07 J parts of the lime, the pro- 

 portion of the last to the first is 796 : 1000, consequently 

 1107i parts of lime demand i^7%V^^=^W9¥^=:1394 parts 

 of vitriol, which belong to the 889 parts of the volatile alkali. 



He gives a list, page 279, of " Proportional quantities 

 of neutral compounds which decompose each other, when 

 entirely deprived of water J* ♦ * » » " In each of these 

 cases it is only necessary to add the numbers representing the 

 quantities standing against each other horizontally, by which 

 the power of the affinity is estimated, and we receive the 

 neutral quantities which decompose each other, and conse- 

 quently their proportion." 



Salammoniac Vitriol. Common Salt. 



689 + 1000 : 960 + 717 = 1689 : 1677 



Salammoniac Vitriol. Common Salt. 



638 + 1000 : 960 + 717 = 1638 : 1677 



Magnesia Salt. Vitriolized Potash. 



868 + 1000 : 2239 -f 1394 = 1858 : 3633 

 &c., &c., &c. ; this is from a list of 28 : the second and third 

 are supposed hydrous. 



