THE AMERICAN CHEMIST. 249 



decade on the complex organic acids. Morley contributed his masterly 

 papers on the analysis of air and his work on the atomic weight of 

 oxygen; Becker, his digest of investigations on determinations of 

 atomic weights since 1814, occupying 270 pages of the Smithsonian 

 MisceUaneous Collections; Clarke gave his re-calculations of the 

 atomic weights; M. C. Lea, his discovery of the allotropic forms of 

 silver; Cooke and Kichards, the re-determination of the atomic 

 weights of oxygen and hydrogen; Mallet, his revision of the atomio 

 weight of aluminum and determination of the molecular weight of 

 hydrofluoric acid; Craft's, his determination of the vapor destiny of 

 iodine, with results differing from those of both Deville and Troost, 

 and Victor Meyer, and his paper on the vapor density of permanent 

 gases; and Warder, some of the first beginnings of work on physical 

 chemistry. 



I have had pointed out to me by a comj^etent authority as the most 

 significant papers in organic chemistry, " Oxidation of substitution i)rod- 

 ucts of the aromatic hydrocarbons," and " Investigations on the sul- 

 l)hinides," by Eemsen and his pupils; "Researches on the substituted 

 benzyl compounds," by Jackson and his jnipils; " Furfurol and its 

 derivatives," by H. B. Hill, and " Researches on allo-isomerism," by 

 Michael and his pupils. Other leaders in this organic work were 

 Mabery, L. M. ISTorton, and W. A. Xoyes. 



In analytical chemistry nothing more prominent appeared than Mal- 

 let's most valuable and exhaustive work, in the report of the lamentably 

 short-lived U. S. Board of Health, on "The determination o\' the 

 organic matter in potable water " and jNIorley's on "The analysis of 

 air." Analytical chemistry was much advanced along certain technical 

 lines by the work of the Association of the Ofticial Agricultural 

 Chemists, begun in 1884, and by co-operative work on the analysis of 

 iron and steel, imblished in the transactions of the Institute of Mining- 

 Engineers. 



In i^hysiological chemistry, Chittenden continued with Ely and others 

 the important work begun in the preceding decade, and published 

 valuable papers on the digestive liquids and the products of their action 

 on the proteids. In sanitary chemistry the work begun by the lamented 

 Nichols in the seventies was carried further in this decade by Mallet 

 in the paper on the determination of organic matter iu potable water, 

 already referred to, and the valuable papers by Leeds on potable water 

 supplies, in reports of the New Jersey State Board of Health and the 

 Journal of this society. A large amount of work on the examination 

 of foods and drugs was done under the supervision of the boards of 

 health of a very few States, notably Massachusetts ami New York, and 

 of certain cities. 



In agricultural chemistry, under the generous provision made by the 

 IT. S. Government by an act passed in 188G, giving $15,000 annually 

 to every State in which an agricultural college was established under 



