Intelligence and Miscellaneuus Articles. 233 



the space of the original specimen. The pounded mass is quite in- 

 fusible. If heated in a glass retort, there condenses in the upper 

 part of it a water which does net attack the glass, and which on 

 evaporation leaves no silica. Soda dissolves the mineral, with efl'cr- 

 vescence, into a clear yellow glass. Phosphoric salt dis.solves it into 

 a colourless glass, leaving a siliceous skeleton. It acquires a blue 

 colour with solution of cobalt. By these characters the mineral is well 

 marked, and is distinguished from talc, particularly by its relations 

 with solution of cobalt, its aqueous contents, and its fan-splitting by 

 heating. Subjected to analysis it yielded : 



Silica ; 59-79 



Alumina 29 46 



Magnesia 4-00 



Oxide of iron 1-80 



Water 5 02 



(A trace of oxide of silver.) 



100-67 

 The name of Pyrophillite i.*- given to it on account of its exfoliation 

 on exposure to heat. — Jamesons Journal, Jan. 1830. 



IMPROVEMENT IN THE SMELTING OF IRON. 



Heated air for blast furnaces has been used for some time at the 

 Clyde Iron Works, and with great success. Experiments have proved 

 that iron is smelted by heated air, with three-fourths of the quantity 

 of coal required, when cold air, that is air not artificially heated, is 

 employed fur that purpose, while the produce of the furnace in iron is at 

 the same time greatly increased. All the furnaces at Clyde Iron Works 

 are now blown with it. At these works the air, before it is thrown 

 into the blast furnaces, is heated 220" of Fahr. in cast iron vessels 

 placed on furnaces, similar to those of steam-engine boilers. It is 

 expected that a higher temperature than 220° will be productive of a 

 proportionally increased effect. But this is a subject of experiment. 

 It is supposed that this improvement will accomplish a saving in the 

 cost of the iron in Great Britain, to the amount of at least £200,000 

 a year, — Ibid. 



NEW VEGETO-ALKAMES OBTAINED FROAI CINCHONA. 



Dr. Serturner, in re examining the products obtained by chemical 

 means from the cinchonas, finds that the precipitates produced by 

 alkalies from the acidulated infusion of these barks contains, besides 

 cinchonia and quina, other vegeto-alkalies, which are to be considered 

 as modifications of the former. The new bodies recall the case of 

 opium to tiie mind, in which narcotine exists simultaneously with 

 morphia. The new substances, and especially that named by M. 

 Serturner rliiniuidia, exist in the alkaline precipitate in intimate com- 

 bination with a resinous subacid substance, which is not injurious, 

 but is of no advantage. It is very difficult to separate these two sub- 

 stances, and M Serturner succeeded only when he used the charcoal 

 obtained wlien croconic acid i.s prepared bv Liebigs procc s. This 

 N. S. \'i>\. 7. No. 3'J. March 1830.' 2 II substance 



