1866.] MEETING OF AMERICAN ASSOCIATION. 117 



and for solutions containing either an indefinite or definite 

 quantity of water. 



In future chemical investigation, the speaker thought increasing 

 significance must be given to the state of dilatation in which 

 the body under consideration exists ; he therefore proposed to 

 designate every gas, and every volatile body after it is formed into 

 vapor, by prefixing to the new name the letter g. For instance, 

 carbonic oxide is gart, CO ; carbonic anhydride (commonly called 

 carbonic acid gas), garet, C0 2 ; sulphuretted hydrogen, gelas ; 

 olefiant gas, gerlel ; carburetted hydrogen gas, garol ; oxychloride 

 of carbon gas, garted; etc. So of volatiles heated to the boiling 

 point; for instance, bisulphide of carbon, ares, when heated to 

 49 ° Centigrade, is a vapor, denoted by gares ; water, elat, 

 heated to 100 ° Cent, or steam, is gelat. 



In conclusion the speaker proposed that the new names, if 

 approved, should be used at first side by side with the old names, 

 and in lieu of the notation. Chemical writers, who study brevity 

 of expression will fully appreciate the saving of pen and type work, 

 as seen in the following statement of a recent discovery in the old 

 and new manners. Lossen has succeeded in replacing an atom of 

 hydrogen in ammonia by an atom of hydrogen and oxygen, or 

 hydroxyl, thus forming hydroxalamine, which may be thus stated : 

 ' Lossen has succeeded in replacing al in ihm by alt, thus forming 

 alt elan.' 



The speaker thus, in one paper, attempted to present to his 

 hearers the whole chemical field ; yet, as he passed from one 

 division to another, he only cited such examples as seemed essential 

 to prove the copiousness and capacity of the new nomenclature. 

 A more complete elucidation and application of it was reserved 

 for succeeding papers. 



* 



ON THE PRIMEVAL ATMOSPHERE. 



Dr. Hunt adverted, in commencing, to a theory first put forward 

 by him to explain the chemical conditions of our globe. Starting 

 from the notion of an igneous origin, he had contended that the 

 mass probably commenced cooling at the centre, and thus gave 

 rise to an anhydrous solid nucleus, having a crust of silicates, 

 with an irregular surface, while the chlorine, carbon and sulphur, 

 together with all the hydrogen, and an excess of oxygen, formed 

 the atmosphere. As cooling from radiation went on, the first 

 precipitate from this dense atmosphere must have been an intensely 



