WATER OF THE OCEAN. 145 



thus overcome by the neutralizing acid of the water, can 

 be of little fer\ace, and the difengaged greafe immediately 

 thereafter becomes a real impediment. 



The bafis of all hard foap isfoda. I'he alkaline matter 

 oi foft foap is potajh. This probably happens becaufe 

 the former is prone to eff.orefce^ the latter to deliquefce in 

 the air. The reafon of mingling oil, turpentine and tal- 

 low with potalh is that this fait is too corrolive to be 

 handled naked or alone. By its caufticity/o/^j deftroys 

 the (kin and flelh of the wallier, and unlefs carefully em- 

 ployed, will deftroy the goods too. But this is not the 

 cafe with foda ; which in conjunction with carbonic acid 

 may be diflblved in water without exercifmg any cauftic 

 effect upon the arms and fingers of the perfon who ufes 

 it. By virtue of this convenient and excellent quality, 

 the carbonate of foda can not only be ufed in a lixivial 

 form to cleanfe goods, but may be employed to alkalize 

 or foften ocean water and to render it lit for wafhing 

 with. 



It has been afcertained long ago by Profeflbr Home in 

 his experiments on bleaching, that neither fea fait, nor 

 any other of the ferfe£lly neutral falts compofed of an 

 acid and an alkali give any hardnefs to water ; that the 

 common forts of fea fait make water hard by means only 

 of the heterogeneous falts they retain from the bittern • 

 and that alkalies by precipitating the earth of falts with 

 an earthy bafis and by neutralizing their acids, w\\\ foften 

 water. 



Ocean water, it has been fhewn, befides a pcifeB 

 neutral fait, contains a quantity ot faline matter with 

 earthy bafes. To thefe latter, it owes its hardnefs^ or 

 quality to decompound foap. But carbonate of foda dc- 

 compofes thefe terrene falts and forms with their acids 

 refpe£lively ferfctl neutral falts. The water thereupon 

 becomesy&/?, or in other words, fit for walhing goods. 



I find 



