210 Messrs. FVancis and Croft's Notices of the 



According to Woehler telluret of ethyl may be formed by 

 distilling baryto-sulphate of ethyl oxide (sulphovinate of ba- 

 ryta) with telluret of sodium; the telluret, as obtained by 

 fusing tellurium or telluret of bismuth with carbonate of soda 

 and charcoal, is thrown into the baryta solution in a solid 

 state. {Poggendorff' s Annalen, 1. 404.) 



The aether is a yellowish-red fluid, like bromine, heavier 

 than water, in which it is but little soluble ; has a strong dis- 

 agreeable smell, similar to sulphuret of ethyl and to tellu- 

 retted hydrogen; appears to be poisonous; boils under 100°; 

 inflammable, burns with a white flame with blue margin, in 

 the air changes into tellurous acid. When acted on by the ni- 

 tric and hydrochloric acids, an oily body is formed: contains 

 68'75 per cent, tellurium; it should contain 68"53. For- 

 mula C* H Te. 



Mylius has found that Helix pomatia,nemoralis and hortensis 

 (but no species o^ Liinncea or Planorbis) contain pure uric acid 

 in a free state; it occurs in a glandular organ situated immedi- 

 ately beneath the shell, — which is therefore without doubt the 

 urinary vesicle, — secreted in a solid form, so that it shines 

 through the covering membrane. To obtain it, it is merely ne- 

 cessary to cut open the organ and squeeze out the white paste 

 into a glass. When a sufficient quantity has been collected, it is 

 shaken frequently with water, by which the slime is suspended 

 and can be poured off", while the uric acid is deposited at the 

 bottom of the vessel. This simple and mechanical operation 

 suffices to obtain a perfectly pure product : it has a pulve- 

 rescent appearance, and contains no crystalline particles. The 

 quantity obtained from each garden snail amounts to about 

 one and three-quarter grains. {Journal fur praldischc. Chemie, 

 XX. p. 509.) 



Brucin is considered by Dr. Fuss of Schonebeck to be 

 merely a mixture of strychnia with a resin, from which it 

 may be separated by a peculiar method. Erdmann has made 

 some experiments with the products obtained by Dr. Fuss. 

 {Journal fi'ir jpraktische Chemie, xix. 510.) 



For preparing the chlorate of barytes, Duflos dissolves 

 thirteen and a half parts of chlorate of soda in double the 

 quantity of water, to which he adds a solution of ten parts of 

 tartaric acid in as much water, and pours the whole into a 

 glass containing a double volume of alcohol. It is then left 

 to stand for twenty-four hours, filtered, the acid liquid neu- 

 tralized with pure carbonate of barytes, which has been pre- 

 viously mixed with water to a milk, the spirit left to evapo- 



