on the Atomic Weights of Bodies. 



265 



Atoms. 



Phosphorus, . j 1 

 Silver, j 6-875 



Specific 

 heat. 



0-385 

 0-056 



Product. 



0-385 

 0-385 



Berzelius's atoms for these bodies reduced to one-half, 

 give 



Phosphorus, 

 Silver, 



Atoms. 



Specific 

 heat. 



0-98071! 0-385 

 6-758 0-056 



Product. 



0-377 

 0-378 



Both of these numbers approach nearer 0-375 than mine. 

 I think it exceedingly probable that the true atomic weight 

 of silver is 6-75. But unity is much more likely to be the 

 atom of phophorus than 0*98071. A very slight alteration 

 in the specific heat of phosphorus as determined by Avo- 

 gadro would render the product by unity 0*375. We have 

 only to suppose it 0*375. 



As for iodine, the number obtained by multiplying its 

 atomic weight by its specific heat is 1*40175, which is four 

 times greater than the mean quantity 0*375. Were we to 

 adopt Berzelius's atom of 7*8975 matters would not be 

 much mended. We would obtain 0*703 which approaches 

 0*375 x 2. The atom of iodine is obviously heavy. I do 

 not think it advisable to reduce it to one-fourth of its pre- 

 sent number or to 3*9375. I think it more probable that 

 iodine will ultimately be found a compound of four dis- 

 tinct atoms, and that its true place is in a subsequent com- 

 partment of our table. 



Let us now take a view of the second table. It contains 

 16 substances all of which, in the present state of our 

 knowledge, are considered as binary compounds, or com- 

 pounds of two simple substances united together. One of 

 these constituents is always either oxygen or sulphur, while 

 the other is a combustible. Besides these 16 there are 5 

 in a compartment by themselves at the end of the table 

 consisting of water and four different chlorides. Let us 

 examine the 16 binary compounds constituting the upper 

 compartment of the table. 



It has been already observed, that to make silicon and 

 aluminum accord with the general law, we must double 



