Intelligence and Miscellaneous Articles. 155 



portion of the wax, was yellow, had a strong smell of fresh wax, which 

 it resembled in every respect, and melted at nearly the same tempe- 

 rature. It was treated with a very small quantity of aether, to 

 remove a portion of its colouring matter, and afterwards fused and 

 analysed. It yielded. 



Hydrogen. . . 13' 16 



Carbon 80-57 



Oxygen. . . . 6-27 100* 



M. Hess infers that from the similarity of these results that the 

 first portion dissolved by the aether is identical with the second 

 portion, and consequently that wax is a uniform substance containing 

 neither margaric acid, cerin, nor cerain. 



It may be supposed that this conclusion is applicable only to 

 Russian wax ; but if we consider that M. de Saussure obtained a 

 similar result with bees-wax ; that M. Boussaingault obtained from 

 the wax of the Ceroxylon andicola, after separating the resin. 

 Hydrogen. . . 13-1 13-3 



Carbon 81-2 81-6 



Oxygen. , . . 5'7 5"1 



1000 100- 

 no doubt can exist as to the identity of wax obtained in different 

 places. 



M. Oppermann has analysed two other kinds of wax; Japan 

 wax yielded. 



Hydrogen. . . 12-07 



Carbon 70-97 



Oxygen. . . . 16-96 100- 



If it be admitted that the amount of hydrogen in this analysis is 

 incorrect to the same extent as tliat in bees-wax, which is a very 

 likely circumstance, arising from the errors of manipulation, the 

 hydrogen and the carbon will be found to be in the same proportions 

 in both; forC: H2 = 70-9 : 11-57. In this wax, 100 parts of car- 

 buretted hydrogen are combined with 20-4 of oxygen, which is 

 rather more than Zh times that in bees-wax. 



To Brazilian wax M. Oppermann assigns as the composition, 

 Hydrogen. . . 1203 



Carbon 72-77 



Oxygen. . . . 15-80 100- 



which agrees exactly with this mode of regarding the subjects, since 

 C: H- = 72-87: 11-896, which differs from the number stated 

 within the limits of faults of manipulation; 100 parts of carburet of 

 hydrogen are found combined with 17-7 of oxygen, which is almost 

 identical with the result obtained by M. Hess by treatment with 

 nitric acid. 



All the characters of this substance which M. Oppermann assigns 

 to this substance are confirmed by M. Hess ; it appears therefore to 

 him very probable that in these cases the same radical occurs in two 

 different degrees of oxidizement, and M. Hess remarks that it would 

 therefore be extremely interesting to acquire positive information 



