Ethyl ammonium selenite and Non-existence of 

 Amidoselenites (selenosamates). 



By 



Edward Divers and Seihachi Hada, 



Imperial University, Tokyo. 



Ethyl ammonium selenite. 



In absence of water, selenion dioxide proves to be quite 

 indifferent to ammonia in the cold or to its solution in ether. 

 Although not very soluble in alcohol alone, it dissolves freely 

 in alcoholic ammonia to become, in absence of water, a new 

 salt, ethyl ammonium selenite, obtainable in tlie solid state, 

 either by evaporating the alcohol or by precipitating the salt 

 with dry ether. Hinsberg {Ann., 1890, 260, 40) has found 

 tliat an alcoholic solution of selenion dioxide, free from all 

 water, leaves on evaporation crystals of ethyl hydrogen selenite, 

 which decompose slowly in dry air into alcohol and selenion 

 dioxide again, or at once on contact with water into alcohol 

 and seien ious acid. He also obtained what appeared to be the 

 aniline salt of this compound, in an impure state, by mixing 

 and evaporating solutions of selenion dioxide in alcohol and 

 aniline in ether, but only in absence of water. Water at once 

 decomposed the salt into alcohol and the acid selenite of 

 aniline. 



The production of ethyl ammonium selenite acquires in- 

 terest from the fact, that it can only be effected in the entire 

 absence of water, to the action of which the salt is very 



