ON THE NATURE OF OXIMURIATIC ACID. ' 143 



bon into carbonic acid, than that of communicating 

 oxigen ? 



The experiment however it occurred to me might be made Carbonic oxi<T« 

 in a manner free even from this ambiguity. Cruickshank J." actd^gas'les 

 observed, that, when carbonic oxide is mixed with oximu- notchanged by 

 riatic acid gas, on taking the electric spark in the mixture j, 

 there is no detonation produced, nor any sensible change. 

 This must be ascribed, on the common hypothesis, to .the same 

 cause as the nonoxigenation of charcoal in o>;imuriatic 

 acid gas — the absence of that portion of wuter, which is 

 essential to the constitution of muriatic acid gas. But he though tl^ey 

 observed, tliat, if the two masses were mixed together, a «re by standing 

 mutual action is slowly exerted, and after twenty four ** 

 })ours they are converted into carbonic and muriatic acids. 

 Now this Is a fesult different from what the view of the sub- 

 ject I have given would lead to expect, and apparently tOQ 

 in Opposition to the result obtained when the action of 

 the electric spark has been employed ; for there is no ob- , 

 vious cause why the oxigenatioii of the cavbouic oxide 

 should be effected in the one case, more than in the other. 

 This difference it appeared probable depended on the This differ- 

 Hgency of water. When the electric spark is taken in the ^"q^3*J,7^"o 

 mixture of the passes, even though they may not hivve the preseace of 

 been previously dried, the quantity of water within the ^''^^^^' 

 sphere of agency of the spark is so inconsiderable, that the 

 action is not favoured. But in the slow action the whole 

 water diffused through them can operate successively, and 

 therefore witii more effect, so as to admit of at least a 

 partial oxigenation, and if tl;e gasses have been passed 

 through water into the bottle in which they are allowed to 

 remain mixed, (ihe manner probably in which the experi- 

 ment was performed by Cruickshank) the film of water ad- 

 hering to the internal surface may render the action com- 

 plete. To ascertain if this supposition were just, I made 

 the experiuieiit in the following manner. 



Two measures of carbonic oxide gas, and two measures Experiment t« 



and a half of oximuriatic acid> each having been previously ^^^'■'^'" *^'* 



, *' r » 1 no two f assf^ 



exposed to muriate of lime, were mixed together. The made as dry as 



mixture could not be passed through quicksilver without P^'"^*'*'*^ ^jo'^*! 



. . . ' — ■ P ^ tojjKther 24 



Uie quicksilver bemg acted on by .the acid, so that a por- hours v»uhout 



tion 



