Intelligence and Miscellaneous Articles. 1 53 



of the steam is conveniently situated in the same furnace employed 

 for heating the retorts. Decomposition of water ensues of course, 

 accompanied with the production of carbonic acid (CO 2 ), carbonic 

 oxide (CO) in small quantity, of free hydrogen and a limited quan- 

 tity of light carburetted hydrogen gas (C' 2 H). The mixture of these 

 gases is conducted through a lime purifier to remove carbonic acid, 

 and without further washing or purification the product is ready for 

 use. Consisting almost wholly of hydrogen gas, the flame of its com- 

 bustion is of course very feebly luminous ; to obviate this difficulty, 

 it is burned in contact with a cage or network of platinum wire- 

 gauze surrounding an ordinary Argand burner, protected by a glass 

 chimney. This simple contrivance (so well known in the lecture- 

 room) is perfectly successful, and the light given out from gas lamps 

 of this construction is extremely vivid and constant. 



This invention claims the following advantages in practice : — 1 . The 

 gas so produced is cheaper than any other mode of artificial light, 

 costing, as is asserted by M. Gillard, and sustained by the ample ex- 

 perience of M. Christolef, only about y(jth the average cost of coal- 

 gas. 2. The gas has no unpleasant odour, being entirely free from 

 the volatile hydrocarbons which are so peculiarly offensive in oil and 

 coal-gas. 3. The products of its combustion are almost solely water, 

 so little carbonic acid resulting in the combustion, that practically it 

 may be disregarded. 4. This mode of producing gas may be applied 

 to any existing gas-works by a slight modification of the retorts, and 

 without any essential change in other portions of the apparatus, the 

 platinum cages being applied to the Argand burners. 5. The cheap- 

 ness of this mode enables us to apply it with great advantage as a 

 fuel for cooking and for numerous purposes in the arts. For example, 

 we saw in the establishment of M. Christolef, the soldering of silver 

 plate accomplished in a rapid and remarkably neat manner by a pow- 

 erful jet of this gas, driven by a pneumatic apparatus. Its perfect 

 manageableness, the ease with which an intense heat is applied lo- 

 cally and immediately when it is wanted, coupled with advantages 

 of employing for such a purpose so powerful a deoxidizing agent as 

 hydrogen, render this mode of soldering preferable to every other, 

 and peculiarly suited for the process of autogenous soldering. 6. The 

 nuisances resulting from the presence of large coal-gas works in po- 

 pulous districts are entirely avoided by this mode, which is as free 

 from objection as a steam-engine. 7. The arrangements are so 

 simple and inexpensive, that every establishment, where it is desired 

 to employ light and heat, may erect its own apparatus even in the 

 most isolated situation, all the materials employed being everywhere 

 accessible. 



It is understood that M. Gillard has secured his patent in the 

 United States, and it is presumed that his method will soon be prac- 

 tically tested there. 



We merely add that the result of M. Gillard's invention in one 

 particular differs from the anticipation of chemists ; that is, we should 

 expect from the decomposition of water in this mode the production 

 of carbonic oxide CO, carbonic acid CO' 2 , and light carburetted hy- 



