sio 



Formation of Muriatic Acid hy Galvan'ifm, [Nov. I,' 



erittr zealoufly into my views ; and in his 

 laborntorv we ealily proverl, 



" I. The exiitence of a volatile acid by 

 tlie white vapor.rs wliich wtre formed by 

 ammonia placed near it. 



" a. That this acid was certainly oxy- 

 genated muriatic acid, lince it formed in 

 riirate of filver a curdy precipi:ate, the 

 Ittna cornea of the ancients, or the mu- 

 riate of filver of the mouerns. Fionn thefe 

 fafts we may draw the fuilowing pofitive 

 and undeniable relults : 



•' 1. Muria'ic acid is an oxide of hy- 

 drogen, and is therefore compolied of hy- 

 tirogen and oxyr^en. 



" 2. Oxygenated muriatic acid, and 

 ©f courfe muriat'c acid, contains lefs oxy- 

 gen th^n water d. es. 



«' 3. Hydrogen has not one depjree of 

 oxyp.enstion, but many. One of thefe 

 conftiiutes W3ttr, another belojv it oxy- 

 genated muiiaiic acid, aid iielow this 

 there is another which conftitutcs muriatic 

 at id. 



" I fhall mention the other degrees in 

 another memoir, which will be publiflied 

 iinmediuely. 



•' Thefe, my much efteemed friend, 

 are the decifive f.itfs and expfr^ments, 

 which exclude every doubt, ?.nd wi'ich 

 confirm my fortunate ccpjeciures. It is 

 Jong fince experimental philofophy may be 

 liid to have become a fjurce of wonders. 

 Tlie Iranfmutation of az te into nitrous 

 acid, and of hydr'gen into water, ap- 

 '))ears ro me truly wo derful, and your 

 genius will enable you readily to judge 

 v\'hethcr ihe fameepi'het may !e applied 

 to (he metamorphofis of water iino the 

 ■ inic folvent of gi/ld and platina, into 

 that volatile fubftance which a'ticks and 

 neutralizes peftilen'ial miafmafa, and 

 pielents fo many resources to philofophy 

 and th(e art*. 



" Alttr having thus difccvered the ele- 

 ments of this retraflory fuhltance, I am 

 ergaged in determining their proportions 

 by exi e; iment and calculation. 



" To me it appeals th^t the or'g"n and 

 nature of muriatic acid bcirg now known, 

 thiie is no lo ger any mylter/ in its for- 

 mation, nor in that cf the muriatic falls 

 in the vali extent of the ocean. But thefe 

 snd other dedn^iona will be explained by 

 me in another place. They will have al 

 ready occurred to you ; and 1 rtioold ex- 

 ceed tlie limits of this ie ter it I were to 

 enter further into the ful-jed. , 



" Wi'h th-; mcft prot./und eflcem airl 

 finceie attachment, I hue the honour tf 

 fubfcribing myfelf, &:c. &c. 



" pRANCIi PaccH.om." 

 ?ifa^ May 9, 1805. 



Contrary as the refults announced i« 

 this intereding communication are to ana- 

 logy, there are fbme facta from which 

 they receive at lead 'uch a degree of con- 

 finnativn as to entitle them to the atten- 

 tion of cvcjy one zealous in the cultivatioti 

 ©f fcience. In 1801 Mr. Cruickflianlc 

 difcovcred that infufion of litmus was red- 

 dened by the one end of the pile, and in- 

 fufion of Brazil-wond rendtred purple by 

 the other ; but he fupoofed thele efFetts to 

 be owing to the formation of nitrous acid 

 and ammonia ; and only a fcw days be- 

 fore Profefr.r Pacchiom'.-. letter was pub. 

 lidied at Pila, the formation of muriatic 

 acid by the Galvanic aftion was announc- 

 in London, in a letter fr;m Mr. Peel, 

 da'ed Cambridge, April 23, 1805. 



IVebifvrla It tier of Mr. Htnry, of Man- 

 chefier, on ihe fame fubjeB. 



•' SIK, 



" The very important difcovery an- 

 n unced l)y^5r. Peel, of Cambriilge, has 

 been lately confirmed by the evidence of 

 Prof (Tor Pacchioni, of Pila, who, with- 

 out any knowledge of the experiments 

 made in this countiy, attained limilar re- 

 fults by the ufe of precil'cly the fame 

 me ins. There is cne confiderable point 

 of difference, however, between the En- 

 glifh and the Italian cheini;f, viz. that by 

 paffing a continued current of the Gal- 

 vuiic fluid through water, Mr. Peel ob- 

 tained muriate cf foda ; while Profeifor 

 Pacchioni, having employed an interrup*- 

 ed p;old wire for the fiine purpofe, pro- 

 duced muriate of gold. Thefe experi, 

 men's cinnot fail to have excited an ar- 

 dent ir.tereft in the minJ of every chemift 

 in this country. a"d an anxious expefia- 

 ti n of the iflue of the procefs in the 

 lnnd> of other experimei\tali:is, F"or 

 this reafon I cnmmuniciie to you the 

 fallowing account, thouoh not perfeilly 

 conclufive, with a requeft that you will 

 fufprelsit if more Catisfaftoi y teftimony 

 fliould reach you from any o her quarter. 



" The apparatus which I employed 

 was fuch as would occur to any perfon 

 having the fame object in view ; viz. a 

 plafs tube 4^ inches lung and 35 inches 

 di.nneter, in wiiich weie fecmed, by. 

 means of corks, twollijtsof platina (cut 

 f Vom a piece which was given to me long 

 ago hy Mr. Ttnnant), with their extreini-" 

 ties at a pro.ier di'.'ance frjin each other. 

 The vvater at the outlet amounted to twa 

 diaciims, and was redticed by fix days* 

 expofore to the current (i'l part probably 

 by evaporation, though c;ircfiilly coverevl- 

 with p>(tebiard) to a quan itv which left 

 lialf an inch «?f the,4ube aiiHUed. It hid" 



been 



