314 Intelligence and Miscellaneous Articles. 



The density of its vapour is 4'930 ; and by analysis it yielded 



Hydrogen 5"41 



Carbon 34*45 



Oxygen lO'SO 



Chlorine 49'34— 100' 



The formula according to M. D'Arcet is H** C** O C1-. 



Calculated. 



H8 50 5-5 



C8 306 34-7 



O 100 105 



CP 442 49-3 



898 100- 



Excess of chlorine does not act upon this substance, or at any 

 rate no new compound arises from their contact ; this is also the 

 case with ammonia. 



This body appears to be, according to M. D'Arcet's nomenclature, 

 the chloral of aether ; except that, according to the law of substitu- 

 tions, as the hydrogen which has disappeared, and which is replaced 

 by chlorine, must belong to the water which constitutes the hydrate 

 of the carburetted hydrogen of the aether, it ought not to be replaced. 

 Do not the following formulae, inquires M. D'Arcet, appear to ex- 

 plain the reaction } 



C« H8 + H2 O = C8 H«o O sulphuric aether. 

 CsH'oQ 



H2 C2 C2 



C8 H8 C2 O chloretheral. 



Annates de Chim. et de Phys., [xvi. 108. 

 [What is called the law of substitutions, about which no small pa- 

 rade is made by some foreign chemists, when stripj^ed of its name 

 means merely, I believe, what has been known ever since the doctrine 

 of definite proportions was first established by Dr. Dalton, that when 

 a definite quantity of any substance is displaced, that which re- 

 places it is equally definite. I am not sure that I have rightly 

 understood the author, and shall give a part of his statement in the 

 original French : " Ce corps parait etre le chloral de I'ether ; seule- 

 ment, d'apres la loi des substitutions, comme I'hydrogene qui a dis- 

 l^aru, et qui a etc remplace par du chlore, doit appartenir a I'eau qui 

 constitue I'liydrate d'hydrog^ne carbone de I'ether, il ne devait pas 

 etre remplace." 



The simplest view of the nature of this fluid is perhaps to consider 

 it as an oxichloride of hydrocarbon, composed, according to the equi- 

 valents usually adopted in England, of. 



Four eqs. of hydrogen 4 or 5*5 



Four eqs. of carbon 24 or 33"4 



One eq. of oxygen 8 or 11*1 



One eq. of chlorine 36 or 50* 



72 100- 



[R. P.] 



