on Phosphoric Acid. 5 
acid, the phosphate of lime was precipitated 
by lime water, dried and heated to redness; 
it weighed 86 grains; the nitrate of lime 
liquor being tested by the hydrometer was 
found to contain 11 grains of lime moré than 
the lime water added contained; so that it 
must have acquired that weight of lime from 
the bones. This conclusion was corroborated 
by the quantity of nitric acid in the liquor 
andthe quantity of lime which it was calculat- 
ed was necessary to saturate it. Hence then 
it appears that calcined bones may be deem- 
ed to consist of 3 
3 carbonic acid 
11 lime 
86 phosphate of lime. 
100 
It is remarkable that the carbonic acid is 
far inferior to the lime not directly engaged 
with the phosphoric acid, being 3 parts in- 
stead of 9. It is probable that part of the 
carbonic acid is driven off by calcination. 
It seems too that the lime is of that engag- 
ed with the phosphoric acid; so that we may 
conclude the constitution of bones, as far as re- 
gards the earthy parts, is probably 1 atom of 
carbonate of lime united to 4 atoms of phos- 
