S66 Description and Analyns of a Meteoric Stone. 



Three anal\ ses of bits taken from different parts of the 

 Stone were made, and each gave the same substances, but 

 the proportions varied a little. I will describe one more. 

 A fragment of the stone with a part of the external crust 

 adhermg to it was reduced to as fine powder as possible. 

 100 grains of this po\xder wtre calcined in a platina cruci- 

 ble exposed to a sirona red lieat for more than half an hour. 

 It acquired a reddi,-h-brown colour, and allhousih irucli sul- 

 phurous acid was disengaged by the process it gained a lit- 

 tle more than one grain m weight : ddute muriatic acid was 

 poured on it, a slight efltrvcscence ensued, wliich was much 

 increased by the application of heat : the gas evolved had 

 the smell of sulphuretted hydrogen. When thetlTervesccnce 

 nearly ceased, the clear solution was decanted off, and more 

 acid poured on, and boiled down nearly to dryness; di- 

 stilled water was added, and the soluticui was filtered ; both 

 solutions were mixed together. The insoluble earthy part 

 was washed with distilled water repeatedly, until it passed 

 through quite tasteless. After exposure to an obscure red 

 heat ior some time, it weighed 46 strains. The iron was 

 thrown down from the solution by carbonate of anmionia; 

 the mixture was boiled before it was liltered, in order to dis- 

 engage the whole of the iron. The oxide of iron thus ob- 

 tained, after being exposed to a red heat, weighed 42 grains. 



The liquor, after the iron had been separated, was of a 

 very light blue colour; pure potash was gradually dropped 

 into it while any precipitation tdok place. The precipitate 

 was carefully collected on a filter, and well washed: wheri 

 ignited it weighed 14*50 grains: it was of a vellowish-white 

 colour with a slight shade of green. The liquor left by the 

 magTi'ia was colourless, and contained annnonia in a free 

 state. To separate any nickel it might contain, a stream of 

 sulphuretted hydrogen was parsed in it tor some time: a 

 slight black precipitaiewasproduced,but the qi.iantily was so 

 veiv small I barely could ascertain that it contained nickel. 



The magnesia was next dissolved in muriatic acid. The 

 solution had a green colour. Sulphuretted hydrogen threw 

 down a black pre cijiitale, which when collected, washed, and 

 dried,, weighed 3-25 grains; when calcined it was reduced 

 to 1-75 grains. This powder was dissolved in muriatic 

 acid ; an excess of ammonia was poured on, which threw 

 down somewhat less than a quarter of a grain of iron ; the 

 remainder (one grain and a half) was held in solution by 

 muriate of amnionia ; the liquor had a fine violet-blue co- 

 lour, which convinced me that the substance dissolved was 



nickel. 



