a jO On a new fulminating Mercury. 



force, cannot be ufed in fire-arms, unlefs in cafes where it becomes an obje£l to deftroy 

 them ; perhaps, where it is the pra£lice to fpike cannon, it may be of fervice, bccaufe, I 

 apprehend, it may be ufed in fuch a manner as to burft cannon, without difper&ng any 

 fplinters. 



The inflammation of fulminating mercury by concuffion, offers nothing more novel or 

 remarkable, than the inflammation, by concuffion, of many other fubftances. The theory 

 of fuch inflammations has been long fince expofed by the celebrated Mr. Berthollet, and 

 confirmed by Meffieurs Fourcroy and Vauquelint yet, I mud confefs, I am at a lofs to 

 underftand, why a fmall quantity of mercurial powder made to detonate by the hammer, 

 or the ele£tric (hock, fliould produce a report fo much louder than when it is inflamed by 

 a match, or by flint and fteel. It might at firft be imagined, that the loiidnefs of the 

 report could be accounted for, by fuppofing the inftant of the inflammation, and that of 

 the powder's confinement between the hammer and anvil, to be precifely the fame; but, 

 when the elc£trical fliock is fent through or over a few grains of the powder, merely laid 

 on ivory, and a loud report is the confequence, I can form no idea of what caufes fuch a 

 report. 



The operation by which the powder is prepared, is perhaps one of the moft beautiful 

 and furprifing in chemiftry ; and it is not a little interefting to confider the affinities which 

 are brought into play. The fuper-abundant nitrous acid of the mercurial folution, mull 

 firft aft on the alcohol, and generate ether, nitrous etherized gas, and oxalic acid. The 

 mercury unites to the' two laft in their nafcent ftate, and relinquiflies frefli nitrous acid, to 

 aft upon any unaltered alcohol. The oxalic acid, although a predifpofing affinity feems 

 exerted in favour of its quantity, is evidently not formed faft enough to retain all the 

 mercury : otherwife, no white fumes, during a confiderable period of the operation, but 

 fulminating mercury alone, would be produced. 



Should any doubt ftill be entertained of the exiftence of the affinities which have been 

 called predifpofing or confpiring, a proof that fuch affinities really exifl:, will I think be 

 - afforded, by comparing the quantity of oxalic acid which can be generated from given 

 meafures of nitrous acid and alcohol, with the intervention of mercury, and the iftfetv^- 

 tion of other metals. For inflance, when two meafured ounces of alcohol- -sifStreatdd 

 with a folution of loo grains of nickel in a meafured ounce and a half of nitrous acid, 

 little or no precipitate is produced; yet, by the addition of oxalic acid to the refiduary 

 liquor^ a quantity of oxalate of nickel, after fome repofe, is depofited. Copper affords 

 another illuftration : loo grains of copper, diflblved in a meafured ounce and an half o£ 

 nitrous acid, and treated with alcohol, yielded me about i8 grains only of, oxalate; al- 

 though cupreous oxalate was plentifully generated, by dropping oxalic acid into the refi- 

 duary Hquor. About 21 grains of pure oxalic acid feem to be produced, from the fame 

 materials, when loo grains of mercury are interpofed. (See Seftion 14.) Befides, ac- 

 cording to the Dutch paper, more than once referred to, acetous acid is the principal 

 refidue after the preparation of nitrous, ether. How can we explain the formation of a 



greater 



