Formnfion of murialic Acid ly Galvanism. 183 



*'Tome it appears, that, the origin and nature of muriatic 

 acid being; now known, there is no longer any mysten,- in 

 its formaaon, nor in that of the muriatic salts in the vast 

 extent of the ocean. But these and other deductions will 

 be explained by me in another place. They will have al- 

 ready occurred to you, and I should exceed the limits of 

 this letter, if I were to enter further into the subject. With 

 the most profound esteem and sincere attachment, I hav« 

 the honour of subscribing myself 



" Your much obliged servant and friend, 



Pisa, May 9, 1805. " FrAAXIS PaCCHIO;SI." 



*' Contrary as the results announced in this interesting 

 comn.unication are to analogy, there are some facts from 

 which they receive at least such a degree of coniimiation 

 as to entitle them to the attention of every one zealous in 

 the cultivation of science. In 1801 Mr. Cruickshank dis- 

 covered that nifusion of litmus was reddened by the one 

 •end of the pile, and infusion of Brazil wood rendered purple 

 by the other; hut he supposed these eflects to be owing to 

 the formation of nitrous acid and ammonia; and only a 

 few days before professor Pacchioni's letter was published 

 at Pisa, the formation of muriatic acid by the Galvanic 

 action was announced in London *, in a letter from Mr. 

 Peel, dated Cambridge, April 23, 1805." 



ON THE SAME SUBJECT. 



After the preceding was in the hands of the printer, we 

 received the following interesting communication. 



To the Editor of the Philosophical Magazine. 



SIR, 



The very important discovery, announced in your Ma- 

 gazine for April last, by Mr. Peel, of Cambridge, has been 

 lately confirmed by the evidence of professor Pacchioni, of 

 Pisat, who, without any knowledge of the experiments 

 made in this country, attained similar results by the use of 

 precisely the same means. There is one considerable point 

 of difference, however, between the English and the Italian 

 chemist, viz. that by passing a continued current of the 

 Galvanic fluid through water, Mr. Peel obtained muriate of 

 soda; while professor Pacchioni, having employed an in- 

 terrupted gold wire for the same purpose, produced mu- 



• Philosophical Magazine for April 1805, p. 279. 



■f See a letter from Fabbroni, of Florence, to the editors of the Edinburgh 

 Medical and Surgical Journal, No. 3, published July 1. — )l. 



M 1 riatc 



