200 Proceedings of the Royal Society. 



ter substance, like sulphuric ether, he regards not as an oxide, but 

 simply as a ternary combination of its constituents. 



The results formerly stated to the Society in proof of the secon- 

 dary origin of chlorine or iodine, when aqueous solutions of the cor- 

 responding hydracids and haloid salts are submitted to voltaic 

 agency, have been confirmed with stronger voltaic powers, the only 

 diiference being, that the chlorine or iodine, and also the corre- 

 sponding hydracid, from the secondary decomposition of which, by 

 nascent oxygen, the chlorine or iodine proceeds, are sooner carried 

 over from the negatively electrified solution into the positively 

 electrified water, than when smaller powers are employed. The 

 decomposition of bromide of iodine in an aqueous solution of starch, 

 has also been ascertained, by analogous methods, to be a secondary 

 action. 



The appearances presented during the electric decomposition of 

 alcoholic solutions of acids, alkalies, and salts, have been found to be 

 very analogous to those observed in the corresponding aqueous solu- 

 tions, the principal difference being^, that the oxygen of the decom- 

 posed water of the alcohol rarely appears at the positive pole, for 

 reasons formerly explained. An ordinary oxyacid salt dissolved 

 in alcohol is slowly resolved, under voltaic action, into its constituent 

 acid and base, with evolution of hydrogen at the negative jwle ; 

 and, where the base is not of difiicult reduction, a portion of it is 

 reduced by the hydrogen. By experiments conducted on principles 

 exactly analogous to those with aqueous solutions, it was found 

 that the appearance of iodine at the positive pole, in an alcoholic 

 solution of iodide of potassium, is a secondary effect due to nascent 

 oxygen. 



By instituting a comparison between the electric action on alco- 

 holic and on aqueous solutions of chlorides and iodides, under cir- 

 cumstances in which no secondary actions could take place at the 

 poles, the appearances led to the conclusion, that these salts are not 

 dissolved as such in water, but as muriates and hydriodates. The 

 solution was placed in a tube connected by means of asbestus with 

 two other tubes containing distilled water, the positive pole being 

 introduced into one of the tubes containing water, and the negative 

 into the other. When an alcoholic solution of a chloride or iodide 

 was in the middle tube, no acid was observed to be produced in the 

 alcoholic solution, but only at the point of contact between the solu- 

 tion and the water. On the other hand, when an aqueous solution 

 was employed, a plentiful production of the corresponding hydracid 

 was observed in that solution on its positive side. These appear- 



