[ 393 ] 

 L. Proceedings of Learned Societies. 



ROYAL SOCIETY. 



[Continued from p. 317-] 

 June 18, 1857. — The Lord Wrottesley, President, in the Chair. 



THE following communications were read : — 

 " Researches on the Phosphorus-Bases." By Dr. Hofmanu 

 and A. Cahours. 



In a note on the action of chloride of methyle upon phosphide of 

 calcium, communicated more than ten years ago to the Institute of 

 France, M. Paul Thenard pointed out the existence of a series of 

 bodies which correspond to the compounds of phosphorus with hy- 

 drogen, which may, in fact, be viewed as phosphoretted hydrogens, 

 the hydrogen of which is replaced by an equivalent quantity of 

 methyle. 



It is now many years since M. Paul Thenard abandoned the 

 study of the phosphorus-compounds, for the first knowledge of 

 vrhich we are indebted to him. The unfinished state in which 

 these researches remained, and the rich and abundant harvest collected 

 since that period, in all the neighbouring fields of science, necessitated 

 a revision of the subject. The discovery of methylamine, dimethjd- 

 amine, and trimethylamiue, and of the corresponding terms in the 

 ethyle- and amyle-series, had shown that the hydrogen in ammonia 

 may be replaced by binary molecules, such as methyle, ethyle, amyle 

 and phenyle, the newly-formed compounds retaining the basic cha- 

 racter of the original ammonia molecule ; whilst the production of tri- 

 ethylestibine and triethylarsine had furnished the proof that the total 

 replacement of the hydrogen in the indifferent antimonietted and 

 arsenietted hydrogens exalts the chemical character of these com- 

 pounds in a most remarkable manner, the methylated and ethylated 

 bodies exhibiting basic characters scarcely inferior to those of am- 

 monia itself. It remained, therefore, to be investigated whether 

 phosphorus, which by its chemical tendencies stands between 

 nitrogen and arsenic, would exhibit a similar deportment. It had 

 to be ascertained in what manner the gradual entrance of binary 

 molecules in the place of the hydrogen in phosphoretted hydro- 

 gen would change the character of the original compound. Again, 

 the discovery of the tetrethylated ammonium-bases had opened 

 a new field of research, in which the corresponding terms of the 

 antimony- and arsenic-series were rapidly brought to light. It was 

 indeed possible to predict with certainty, that an appropriately 

 selected method would lead to the production of the analogous 

 derivatives of phosphoretted hydrogen. The time for resuming the 

 study of the phosj)horus-bases had in lact arrived. 



We have been engaged for a considerable time in the investigation 

 of this subject, and now beg to offer to the Iloyal Society in the 

 following pages a short abstract of our results. 



In the first place, we have endeavoured to obtain the bases cor- 

 responding to phosphoretted hydrogen, by a method analogous to 

 that followed by M. Paul Thenard, simi)ly substituting for the 

 chloride of methyle the iodide, and for the phosphide of calcium 

 Phil. May. S. 4. Vol. 15. No. 101. May 1858. 2 D 



