﻿200 
  PROCEEDINGS 
  OF 
  THE 
  CALIFORNIA 
  

  

  advance 
  until 
  more 
  than 
  half 
  civilizetl, 
  and 
  it 
  has 
  been 
  reserved 
  for 
  Americans 
  

   to 
  deny 
  them 
  schools, 
  laws, 
  or 
  protection, 
  and 
  to 
  cast 
  them 
  on 
  the 
  tender 
  mer- 
  

   wes 
  of 
  unscrupulous 
  traders. 
  

  

  On 
  Niekeliferous 
  Sand 
  from 
  Fraser 
  River. 
  

  

  BY 
  JAMES 
  BLAKE, 
  M. 
  D. 
  

  

  This 
  sand, 
  which 
  was 
  obtained 
  in 
  the 
  gold 
  washings 
  on 
  Fraser 
  River, 
  has 
  

   very 
  much 
  the 
  appearance 
  of 
  small 
  i:)articles 
  of 
  iron 
  pyrites, 
  being 
  of 
  decidedly 
  

   a 
  yellowish 
  color. 
  Under 
  the 
  microscope 
  it 
  is 
  found 
  to 
  consist 
  of 
  two 
  distinct 
  

   substances, 
  one 
  of 
  which 
  is 
  evidently 
  magnetic 
  oxide 
  of 
  iron, 
  or 
  the 
  common 
  

   black 
  sand 
  of 
  our 
  gold 
  deposits 
  ; 
  the 
  other 
  is 
  of 
  a 
  yellow 
  color, 
  in 
  the 
  form 
  of 
  

   small 
  scales, 
  without 
  any 
  well 
  marked 
  crystaline 
  structure, 
  and 
  the 
  edges 
  of 
  

   which 
  have 
  been 
  rounded 
  by 
  abrasion. 
  The 
  whole 
  of 
  the 
  sand 
  is 
  strongly 
  mag- 
  

   netic, 
  so 
  that 
  with 
  the 
  exception 
  of 
  a 
  few 
  scales 
  of 
  gold, 
  it 
  contains 
  nothing 
  that 
  

   is 
  not 
  taken 
  up 
  by 
  the 
  magnet. 
  An 
  analysis 
  of 
  the 
  sand 
  shows 
  that 
  it 
  contains 
  

   nothing 
  but 
  the 
  oxides 
  of 
  nickel 
  and 
  iron. 
  0.91.53 
  grains 
  of 
  the 
  sand 
  yielded 
  

   0.256 
  sesquioxide 
  of 
  iron, 
  and 
  0.6548 
  oxide 
  of 
  nickel, 
  which 
  would 
  give, 
  sup- 
  

   posing 
  the 
  iron 
  to 
  be 
  in 
  the 
  state 
  of 
  magnetic 
  oxide 
  0.231 
  of 
  oxide 
  of 
  iron, 
  and 
  

   if 
  we 
  suppose 
  an 
  analogous 
  oxide 
  of 
  nickel 
  to 
  exist 
  we 
  sho 
  uld 
  have 
  0.702 
  of 
  the 
  

   magnetic 
  oxide 
  of 
  nickel. 
  

  

  Thus 
  making 
  0.931 
  instead 
  of 
  0.9153 
  the 
  quantity 
  used, 
  the 
  excess 
  of 
  

   0.016 
  being 
  undoubtedly 
  due 
  to 
  the 
  nickel, 
  from 
  the 
  difficulty 
  of 
  freeing 
  it 
  com- 
  

   pletely 
  from 
  the 
  potash 
  with 
  which 
  it 
  is 
  precipitated. 
  

  

  Although 
  I 
  can 
  find 
  no 
  mention 
  of 
  such 
  a 
  compound 
  of 
  nickel, 
  either 
  in 
  

   Watts' 
  Dictionary 
  of 
  Chemistry, 
  or 
  in 
  Dana's 
  Mineralogy, 
  yet 
  I 
  have 
  no 
  doubt 
  

   that 
  the 
  form 
  in 
  which 
  the 
  nickel 
  exists 
  in 
  this 
  sand 
  is 
  an 
  oxide 
  with 
  the 
  com- 
  

   position 
  Ni^ 
  0'*, 
  analogous 
  to 
  the 
  magnetic 
  oxide 
  of 
  iron, 
  Fe^ 
  0^, 
  thus 
  estab- 
  

   lishing 
  another 
  relation 
  between 
  the 
  compounds 
  of 
  nickel 
  and 
  iron. 
  From 
  the 
  

   large 
  proportion 
  of 
  it 
  in 
  the 
  sand, 
  fully 
  75 
  per 
  cent., 
  it 
  is 
  strange 
  that 
  its 
  pres- 
  

   ence 
  has 
  not 
  been 
  before 
  noticed. 
  

  

  On 
  the 
  Spontaneous 
  Combustion 
  of 
  Hydro-Carbon 
  Vapors. 
  

  

  BY 
  I. 
  C. 
  WOODS. 
  

  

  During 
  the 
  years 
  1870-1871, 
  and 
  a 
  portion 
  of 
  1872, 
  at 
  the 
  wood 
  preserving 
  

   works 
  of 
  which 
  I 
  am 
  the 
  manager, 
  we 
  had 
  several 
  instances 
  of 
  the 
  spontaneous 
  

   combustion, 
  accompanied 
  by 
  explosions, 
  of 
  hydro-carbon 
  vapors 
  ; 
  some 
  of 
  the 
  

   particulars 
  of 
  these 
  accidents, 
  and 
  a 
  statement 
  as 
  to 
  the 
  remedy 
  I 
  successfully 
  

   applied, 
  may 
  be 
  interesting 
  to 
  the 
  members 
  of 
  the 
  Academy, 
  and 
  useful 
  to 
  the 
  

   public. 
  

  

  The 
  hydro-carbon 
  vapors 
  we 
  use 
  for 
  the 
  preservation 
  of 
  wood 
  are 
  obtained 
  

   by 
  the 
  distillation 
  of 
  coal 
  tar. 
  A 
  brick 
  pit 
  is 
  attached 
  to 
  each 
  two 
  stills, 
  to 
  

   hold 
  the 
  hot 
  pitch 
  product 
  as 
  it 
  runs 
  from 
  them. 
  This 
  pit 
  has 
  an 
  opening 
  on 
  

   the 
  side 
  for 
  access, 
  and 
  a 
  ventilating 
  chimney 
  through 
  which 
  the 
  vapors 
  from 
  

  

  