On definite Proportions, 4 1 3 



was a large quantity of the amalgam of ammonium^ pre- 

 pared from sal ammoniac and amalgam of potassium. The 

 bottle was opened, the point quickly broken off", and the 

 cork made air-tight in the neck of the bottle, in such a 

 manner, that the point of the tube entered the amalgam. 

 The ball was then warmed, and the hydrogen forced into 

 the bottle ; as it cooled, the amalgam began to force itself 

 into the tube, but it was of such a consistence that it stuck 

 half-way within the •tube. By the application of warmth 

 it acquired a greater degree of fluidity, but was still driven 

 back. After repeated trials, I at last succeeded in getting 

 a part of the semifluid mass into the ball ; but it soon be- 

 came covered with a thin coat of saline dust, so that I was 

 obliged to content m\ self with the smaller portion of amal- 

 gam~ which 1 had been able to collect in tolerable purity. 

 When I had melted together the sides of the tube a little 

 above the bottle, 1 tried to distil the amalgam contained in 

 it from one bulb into the other. The saline powder, which 

 had entered with it, lay on the metallic surface as a gray 

 mealy covering. The mass was first heated over the flame 

 of an oil lamj) ; the saluie powder was thus still further 

 decomposed, and the amalgam swelled to twice its volume: 

 the salt in the mean lime became agitated, and was con- 

 verted into a fine snow white dust of muriate of potass. 

 The amalgam was now almost entirely hardened, and du- 

 ring a whole hour, while the heat of the lamp acted on it 

 without interruption, and raised its temperature far above 

 the boiling point of water, it underwent no further change 

 whatever. I then put a spirit lamp under the bulb : the 

 mass then became black, and was covered with a dark crust, 

 while the quicksilver returned to its original dimensions. 

 By continuing the process, this crust disappeared, and the 

 quicksilver was distilled over to ■§- of its volume. The 

 product of the distillation was not quite so fluid as pure 

 quicksilver; but the difference was inconsiderable. When 

 I opened the apparatus under water, after it had been cooled, 

 the quicksilver ran out, the water forced itself in, and oc- 

 cupied somewhat more than -J of the receiver; a proof that 

 there was some ammoniacal gas in the apparatus, having 

 been left in the gaseous form, unaltered by the amalgam re- 

 maining in the retort. The quicksilver, which ran out, gave 

 indistinct marks of an evolution of gas, which I could 

 however by no means attribute to the passing over of the 

 base of ammonia ; since this base, when the amalgam sub- 

 sided, had certainly oxidated itself at the expense of the 

 water in the powder of sal ammoniac. The amalgam left 



in 



