450 Mr, Davies on Flame, i [Di**, 



instantly extinguished, and the boiling resumed, as soon as 

 the flame of the alcohol was restored to its natural position, 

 so as to enclose the phosphorus. It would hence appear, not 

 only that the interior of flame will not support combustion, 

 but that it contains no oxygen. 



This conclusion is furtner countenanced by the following 

 addition to the experiment. The extremity of a common 

 blowpipe was introduced into the flame of alcohol : it was 

 found that every time the phosphorus was blown upon, 

 and in that way furnished with oxygen, it instantly inflamed ; but 

 it was again extinguished as soon as its supply of oxygen was 

 exhausted. In this manner the phosphorus, while surrounded 

 by the flame of alcohol, was itself repeatedly inflamed and 

 extinguished in the course of two or three minutes. 



That the interior of the flame of alcohol is incapable of 

 supporting combustion, and that it consequently contains no 

 oxygen, is also shown by the following experiment. While k 

 piece of phosphorus, about the size of a pea, was in the centre 

 of a flame of alcohol, I repeatedly touched it with a red hot 

 wire ; every time the wire came in contact with the combus- 

 tible body, there was a slight flash, often hardly perceptible; 

 but the phosphorus never entered into combustion until the 

 flame of the spirit of wine was extinguished, or blown aside in 

 such a manner that the mere edge of the flame, as already 

 mentioned, should touch the phosphorus. 



Iconfess that I had some hesitation as to the correctness 

 6f toy opinions, upon the first performance of this experiment ; 

 for in this case, the combustion of the phosphorus, though 

 feeble and transient, seems to indicate the presence of oxygen. 

 I am, however, induced to believe, that the oxygen which 

 occasioned the combustion was supplied by the oxide of iron 

 formed by heating the wire red hot. If the quantity of oxygen 

 obtained in this way be thought small, it should be recollected 

 that only a very small quantity is required to produce the effect. 



I hav6 tried several combustible bodies besides phosphorus, 

 and the result, as far as respects the general principle, has been 

 always the same. A wax taper, about half an inch long, was 

 lighted and placed upright in a small cup, and surrounded by 

 alcohol ; as soon as the alcohol was Hghted, its flame enveloped 

 the taper, carrying away the flame of the latter in rather a 

 singular manner ; nor was the extinguished taper apparently 

 aflfected during the operation by the surrounding flame. It 

 sometimes happened that when the flame of the alcohol was 

 burnt out, the flame of the taper would, like that of the phos- 

 phorus, be spontaneously rekindled. 



It is hardly necessary to remark, that the result of the ex- 

 periments which I have described, and of others which I 

 might have stated, appears to be at variance with Sir H. Davy's 



