CHEMISTRY. 4'} 3 



ol>tained by J. Klobb. They are all explosive wtien ueated or struck 

 by a bamraer. (Coinptes Keudus, cm, 384.) 



The decomposition of cbloriue water in suulightis sbown by A. Popper 

 to yield, besides the usually admitted oxygeu and liypocbloric acid, 

 chloric acid itself, aud he shows that this was not formed by the treat- 

 ment to which the liquid was subjected for analytical purposes. (Ann, 

 Chem., ccxxxi.) 



Phosphorus tetroxide,P2<^4, has been obtained by Thorf)e and Tuttou. 

 It forms when phosphorus is burned in a limited supply of dry air. It 

 occuis as transpaient, highly lustrous, very deliquescent crystals, which 

 do not fuse at 100°, and do volatilize at 180o. On solution in water 

 they form phosphoroso-phosphoricacid, previously discovered by Salzer. 

 For reactions of this oxide and other details see original paper. (J. 

 Chem. Soc, Trans. 1886, 833.) 



The thickness of the air layer adhering to glass has been carefully 

 measured by Otto Schumann and found to be somewhat less than 

 O.OOOOOT*^™. O. E. Meyer estimates the diameter of molecules at 

 O.OOOOOOOOo'^'"; the air layer is therefore more than one thousand times 

 as large as the diameter of molecules. (Wiedemann's Annaleu, xxvii, 

 91, '86.) 



Attention is called by Arthur G. Bloxam to the solubility of sulphur 

 in alcohol, a fact not generally noted in textbooks. By slowly cooling 

 a solution of sulphur in hot alcohol he obtained brilliantly transparent 

 crystals up to half an inch in length, and so white as easily to be mis- 

 taken for niter. Chemists using rubber corks in distilling alcohol should 

 bear in mind this solubility of sulphur as a possible source of impurity. 

 (Chem. Xews, Liii, 181.) 



Tyrotoxicon is the name given to a highly poisonous ptomaine dis- 

 covered by Dr. Victor C. Vaughan in cheese. Its occurrence in poison- 

 ous ice-cream has also been demonstrated by Dr. Vaughan, who pre- 

 sented a paper on the subject to the Michigan State Board of Health, 

 July 13, 1886. 



Lecoq de Boisbaudran remarks the fluorescence of manganese sul- 

 phate when mixed with a large amount of calcium sulphate and subjected 

 to electrical action in a vacuum. Sulphate of manganese alone does not 

 fluoresce under these conditions. (Comptes Rendus, cm, 46S.) 



Ciesium and rubidium nitrites, according to Th. liosenblatt, form 

 with cobalt nitrite crystalline double salts, which are the least soluble 

 compounds of these alkaline metals yet discovered. Caesio cobaltic- 

 nitrite requires 20,100 parts of water at 17° C, aud the rubidium salt 

 19,800 parts for solution. Thallium forms similar compound. (Ber. d. 

 chem. Ges , xix, 2531.) 



The oxides of gold have been critically studied by Gerhard Kriiss, who 

 finds there are three only : AU2O1 , AU2O, , and Au,0 , . All attempts to 

 obtain lower or higher oxides were futile. (Ber. d. chem. Ges., xix, 

 2541.) 



