OF A METEORIC STONE. 337 



immersed in water contained in a silver bason; the resulting 

 fluid was decomposed by muriatic acid, and evaporation, and 

 the precipitate, alter ignition, in a platinum crucible, was white. 

 There could now be no hesitation in pronouncing it to be silex; 

 and the conclusion seemed sufficiently established, that more 

 than halt' the stone consisted of this earth. 



5. The entire solution was next examined, to discover what 

 was the soluble part of the stone. Alter the superfluous acid 

 was saturated with ammonia, a voluminous red precipitate 

 appeared, which was oxid of iron. The fluid was filtered and 

 heated on a sand-bath, to expel the excess of alkali, and, to 

 precipitate any additional portion of oxid of iron, which it 

 might have suspended; but none was obtained. 



6. As much of the precipitate, as could be collected from the 

 filter, being washed, dried, and ignited strongly in a platinum 

 crucible, became of a dark brown colour, inclining to red, and 

 weighed 32 grains. The filter which had been accurately weigh- 

 ed before it was used, and after it had been thoroughly dried on 

 a heated slab of Portland-stone, was found to have gained six 

 grains. The whole precipitate, was therefore estimated at 38 

 grains. The oxid of iron, thus obtained, was not in the high- 

 eststate of oxidizement, for, it was completely, although not pow- 

 erfully, attractable by the magnet, by which the whole of it 

 was actually transferred from a glass plate to a wine glass. 



7. The fluid from which the oxid of iron had been preci- 

 pitated, was now greenish, being precisely of the same colour 

 as in No. '2. Carbonat of potash produced no preeipitate ; but 

 caustic potash threw down a voluminous, fleecy, white preci- 

 pitate. This being separated by the filter, dried, collected and 

 moderately heated, became almost black; but, on being heated 

 strongly in a platinum crucible, covered by an inverted cruci- 

 ble of the same metal, it became white. It weighed 13 grains, 

 It dissolved rapidly in sulphuric acid, and afforded, by evapo- 

 ration, prismatic crystals, which had an acidulous, bitter taste, 

 (the acidity was produced by a redundancy of the sulphuric 

 acid.) It afforded a white precipitate, with caustic potash, suf- 

 fered the aqueous fusion, and became a dry mass on a live coal. 

 From all these indications it was concluded, that the IS 



