^^'i ' On the Analyjis and Synthejts 



riute of foda with fulphur. As charcoal had not been he fS 

 employed, I took great care to repeat this experiment fcveral 

 times ; but always without fuccefs. I cannot prelume to 

 fay what may have been the caufe of the refult obtained by 

 the above authors : it can be afcribed onlv to the matters 

 they employed, (incc, with pure muriate of foda and fubli- 

 mated fulphur, I couid difcover, \n the two experiments I 

 made, no traces cither of lime, maguefia, or alnmine. 



Exp. XIII. As the thirteenth experiment is of no ufe ill 

 regard to the theory of Guyton and Deformes, it is needlefs 

 to give any account of it. 



Jixp. XIV. By mixing fulphate of foda with lime, thefe 

 authors thought thev perceived a difengagcment of ammonia : 

 I alfo thought I obferved the fame diiengagement in the va- 

 pours produced by the muriatic acid when brought into con- 

 faol with the mixture. Lime alone, though exlraftcd from 

 marble, gave by the fame acid, when moiftened, white va- 

 pours. 1 am not convinced that this difcngagement, fenfible 

 only on the approach of the muriatic acid, arofe from am- 

 monia; for, though I employed a large mafs of matter^ I 

 never could dillinguifh that alkali by the fmell. The vapours 

 (iccafioned by the muriatic acid were perhaps owing only to 

 the heat produced at the time of the mixtures, and alio to 

 the great affinity which the acid employed has for water. 

 How, indeed, can we explain the formation of this fubftance 

 bv the combination of lime with pure water? or how can 

 wc conceive, if it is not formed, that it can co-exiil: with 

 lime, which, as is well known, poUelTes the property of ex- 

 pelling ammonia wherever it is found ? 



Exp. XV. In the fifteenth experiment, thefe authors 

 thought alfo that they remarked a diiengagement of am- 

 monia, by combining intimately together limCj fulphur, and 

 water. 



Exp. XVI. The fixtcenth experiment makes mention of 

 an analogous trial as fimple as the preceding. In my opi- 

 nion, the explanation of thefe experiments will be fufliciently 

 developed in the eighteenth experiment, fince it is that which, 

 according to ihele authors, gave a great deal of ammonia. 



Exp. XVII. By this experiment the above authors, iniiead 

 of decompofino; the lime, attempted to compofe it. The pro- 

 ceflbs which they employed for this purpofc were as follow : 



They fermed nitrate of alumine, which they dccompofcd, 

 at feveral times, by heat : by this fimple means they obtained 

 lime. 



Nitrate of magnefia was employed with the fame fuccefs. 



After having carefully prepared the two nitrates, which 

 6 they 



