"ssith an Account of some airious Properties of that Substance. 115 



ascertaining whether the precipitated albumen contained any 

 of the soluble form of that principle which might have been 

 mechanically carried down with it, but that this was not the 

 case was satisfactorily proved by the five reagents employed 

 not in the least disturbing the limpidity of the filtered fluid. 

 It will be observed that ebullition produced a copious troubling 

 in the solution of bicarbonate of soda that had been digested 

 on the albumen in tbe first flask, as if a portion of uncoagu- 

 lated albumen had been present, which I have just shown 

 was not the case. How then can it be accounted for ? Might 

 it not be suggested that the salt employed had been decom- 

 posed into a neutral carbonate and free acid, which latter dis- 

 solved a portion of albumen, the carbonate being also partially 

 decomposed into free alkali, which by dissolving albumen 

 formed an albuminate of soda, whilst the portion of carbonic 

 acid deserted by its base united to another portion of albumen, 

 and thus the solution might be supposed to consist of unde- 

 composed carbonate of soda, albuminate of soda, and carbo- 

 nate of albumen (if this expression may be •provisionalli) ad- 

 mitted). With regard to the contents of the second flask, in 

 which the neutral carbonate was used, this appears to have 

 undergone an analogous decomposition, for like the contents 

 of the first flask, we find them present the same phasnomena 

 with reagents as would be produced by a mixture of solutions 

 of albumen in carbonic acid and albuminate of soda; but ex- 

 periments are required to clear up the obscurity enveloping 

 this point. 



8. An interesting field for investigation thus appeared to 

 present itself in the examination of the action of albumen on 

 the alkaline carbonates, the investigation of which I com- 

 menced with great care, and obtained some highly interesting 

 and unexpected results; but not having quite concluded my 

 examination of this part of my subject in consequence of the 

 multitudinous repetition of experiments required to obviate 

 the various sources of fallacy peculiarly incident to investiga- 

 tions in organic chemistry, I am compelled to defer their 

 publicity for some weeks, when I trust to be able to commu- 

 nicate some curious and important focts on this interesting 

 subject. 



44 Seymour-street, Euston-square, 

 July C, 183(5. 



02 



