540 Intelligence and Miscellaneous Articles. 



intimate mixture with the oil, and exposing it in a state of perfect 

 division to the oxygen of the air. Lastly, M. Theraultisof opinion 

 that oil of valerian is not a substance of a complex nature, and that 

 it may be entirely converted into valerianic acid. 



This conversion is readily explained. According to Ettling, the 

 formula of valerianic acid isC*" H'^ O^ + H^ O ; if that of oil of va- 

 lerian be C'^o H-o O^ and if tw^o atoms of oxygen be made to inter- 

 vene, one of vvrhich combines with two atoms of hydrogen to form 

 water, and the other be added, we shall have the following equation : 



C20HW 02 + 20=020 HIS 03 + H'^O. 



M. Tberault finishes his memoir with observing, that the process 

 for extracting valerianic acid, proposed by Messrs. Smith of Edin- 

 burgh in the Journal de Phannacie for January last, appears to be 

 a good one ; excepting that he would propose to use a caustic 

 instead of a carbonated alkali, and after having boiled the mixture, to 

 expose it for a month to the air, stirring it several times a day ; not 

 to subject the residue to pressure, and to distil with the roots, which 

 greatly facilitate the operation. When afterwards the distilled liquor 

 has been saturated by means of an alkali, and the valerianate of pot- 

 ash or soda has been concentrated, it is essential not to employ an 

 excess of sulphuric acid to separate the valerianic acid ; it would be 

 better to leave a small portion of the valerianate undecomposed, for 

 towards the end of the distillation, the organic matter mixed with 

 the salt is carbonized and sulphurous acid is formed, which appears 

 to react upon the valerianic acid. — Journ. de Pharm. et de Ch., Sep- 

 tembre 1847. 



NOTE ON THE MEASUREMENT OF THE DOUBLE SULPHATES OF 

 ZINC AND SODAj AND OF MAGNESIA AND SODA. BY PROF. 

 W. H. MILLER. 



The crystals were not good enough for me to obtain a very satis- 

 factory result from a few observations ; they are however sufficiently 

 good to show that they are isomorphous. 



The crystals belong to the oblique prismatic system. 

 The angles between normals to the faces are — for the oxide of 

 zinc salt, 



nn' 113° 4 

 M u' 74° 12 



the angle between a normal to c and the 

 intersection of 



M, m'=10°22' 

 u c 83° 46' 

 r c 49° 54' 

 The symbols of the simple forms, in the notation which I use, are — 



c 001, rlOl, « 110, 



u 120, e Oil, 5 121. 

 The faces of the magnesian salt are more irregular than those of 

 the former, so that I cannot pretend to determine the diflference be- 

 tween the angles of these crystals. 



