Chemical Science. 397 



are large, the crystals appear as prismatic prisms. When heated, 

 they readily fuse, and by careful management may be repeatedly 

 sublimed ; but when highly heated, iodide and sulphur are set free, 

 sulphurous acid is formed, and a mixture of antimony and oxide 

 produced. The crystals have a sharp disagreeable taste: light 

 has no action on them. "When put into alcohol or ether, iodine is 

 dissolved, and a yellow sulphuret of antimony deposited. When 

 put into water, hydriodic acid, protoxide of antimony, and sulphur 

 are formed. The action of the acids is such as might be ex- 

 pected, decomposition of the substance being always produced. 



Upon analysis, this substance gave as its elements, antimony 

 23.2, iodine 67.9, sulphur 8.9, which nearly corresponds with one 

 proportional of each substance. The authors have called it a Sul- 

 pho-iodide of Antimony.— Jowr. de Pharmacie, x. 511. 



19. Glass of Antimony. — This substance contains, according to 

 M. Soubeiran — 



Protoxide of antimony 91.5 



Silica 4.5 



Peroxide of iron 3.2 



Sulphuret of antimony 1,9 



101.1 



20. Cnnxersion of Oxalate and Formiate of Ammonia into Hydro- 

 cyanic Acid. — Professor Dobereiner has proved, by experiment, 

 the occurrence of a phenomenon, the possibility of which he had 

 previously inferred. It is, the conversion of the oxalate of am- 

 monia into cyanogen and water. If this salt be mixed with oxalate 

 of manganese, and heated by a spirit lamp in a glass tube closed 

 at one end, we obtain, besides carbonic oxide and carbonate of 

 ammonia, water and cyanogen, but the cyanogen is speedily con- 

 verted, by the action of the carbonate of ammonia and water, into 

 hydrocyanic acid. 



The formiate of ammonia decomposed in a glass retort, is also 

 converted into hydrocyanic acid and water. — Phil. Mag, Ixiv. 234. 



2 1 . On the Defection of Hydrocyanic Acid in the Bodies of Animals 

 poinoned by it. — The Report on a Memoir by M. Lassaigne on this 

 subject, states; that having prepared the pure hydrocyanic acid, 

 according to M. Gay Lussac's method, it was diluted with five 

 times its weight of water to retard its spontaneous decomposition. 

 A ten thousandth of this acid in water could be detected by per- 

 sulphate of iron, i. c., a grain of the diluted acid being added to 

 eighteen ounces of water was rendered sensible by the action of 

 the ferruginous salt. 



This test, although very delicate, is surpassed by another, in 



