i8 13] Chlorine, and its Compounds. is 



that this assertion and proof would be exactly analogous to those 

 offered by Mr. Dalton. 



Since, then, unless we adopt the recent views of Sir H, 

 Davy, his experiments,* in conjunction with those of Dr. 

 Henry, f MM. Gay-Lussac and Thenard,J M. Berthollet,§ 

 Mr. Murray, || and Dr. Bostock,** may be looked on as proving 

 satisfactorily the existence of water in muriatic acid gas; let us 

 examine the relation, in regard to quantity, subsisting between 

 it and the oxygen, which oxymuriatic gas used to be supposed to 

 contain. 



According to the analysis of Chenevix,ft oxymuriatic gas 

 consists of 77'5 of muriatic acid, united to 22-5 of oxygen °by 

 weight. If to this compound a quantity of hydrogen be added, 

 and if the mixture be then exposed to the sun's light, muriatic 

 acid is produced. In Mr. Dalton's detail of his experiments on 

 this subject (which are by far the most complete set that have 

 fallen under my notice), he mentions that he always employed a 

 quantity of water to condense the residual muriatic acid ; he 

 could not, of course, easily ascertain whether or not any water 

 was evolved along with the acid. By calculation, 1 am* led to 

 believe there was not : for 22-5 of oxygen are capable of form- 

 ing, by union witli 3- 76479 of hydrogen, a quantity of water 

 equal to 26-26479, which approaches singularly near to the 

 estimate of MM. Gay-Lussac and Thenard; and which may 

 acquire some additional probability from the circumstance that 

 ah others who have experimented on the quantity of water in 

 this gas, have stated it as being greater than that which is 

 assigned by these chemists. J % 



Let us pursue the subject a little farther. Mr. Dalton, speak- 

 ing of the quantity of hydrogen necessary to decompose oxymu- 

 riatic gas, says, " From the mean of five experiments, I am 

 induced to conclude, that 100 measures of hydrogen require 94 

 measures of oxymuriatic acid gas. In every "one of the experi- 

 ments the acid was less than the hydrogen." §§ 1 have already 

 slated that 3*76479 of hydrogen are sufficient to unite with the 

 oxygen which 100 of oxymuriatic gas has been thought to 

 contain. Now 3'76l79 grs. of hydrogen occupy, according to 



• Phil. Trans. 1809, p. 92, 458. 



+ Nicholson's Journal, 4te. vol. iv. p. 247. 

 % Kerh. Phys. Chim. tome ii. p. 9!, &r. 

 § Journal de Physique, tome Ixiv. p. 196. 

 || Nicholson's Journal, vol. xxx\. p. 123, &c. 



* * Nicholson's Journal, vol. xxxii. 



t + Sec Thomson's S\-l. vol. ii. |,. 2. r >7. 



j t I' '"ay not be unworthy of notice that 1 cubic inch of hydrogen, by 

 onion wiih \t-rv nearly 2 Inches of oxygen, forms a quantity of water, whose 

 "eight '> to that of the real muriatic acid contained in 2 Inobesof the acid eat, 

 to 100. 



'; j »iv Sy-t;-m, p. 307. 



I 



