CHEMISTRY. 



121 



by strong pressure. A brittle body is simply 

 one which does not possess the property of 

 flowing under the action of pressure. 



M. Alexeyeff, a Russian, regarding gravita- 

 tion, cohesion, and chemical affinity as three 

 degrees of the same force, asks which of the 

 last two is manifested in solutions, and declares 

 in favor of cohesion. The simplest cases of 

 solutions are, in fact, those where there is no 

 chemical affinity between the bodies dissolving 

 and dissolved. The solution of gases in solid 

 bodies is quite analogous to imbibition by solids 

 of liquids, and the much greater solubility of 

 gases in liquids may be easily explained by the 

 easier penetration of gases between the mole- 

 cules of a liquid. The law of solubility given 

 by Dalton is in perfect agreement with the sup- 

 position that the dissolved gases maintain their 

 own aggregation when dissolved. The same is 

 true with regard to solutions in liquids. 



New Substances. Under the title of u Com- 

 plex Inorganic Acids," Prof. Wolcott Gibbs 

 refers to a class of compounds of molybdic, 

 tungstic, and vanadic acids with other mineral 

 acids, giving rise to substances of very compli- 

 cated atomic constitution. At least ten series 

 of phospho-tungstates have been described, 

 and the phospho-molybdates are equally nu- 

 merous and have a similar range. Combining 

 other acids, we may have a great variety of 

 these compounds; and many of the salts are 

 very beautiful. Compounds have also been 

 prepared in which the methyl, ethyl, and 

 phenyl derivatives of phosphorous and hypo- 

 phosphorous acids occur. As an instance of 

 the extreme complexity of some of these com- 

 pound acids, Prof. Gibbs gave the body 60 WO 3 , 

 3 P 2 O S , V 2 O 6 , V0 2 , 18 BaO,+150 Aq., which 

 has the enormous molecular weight of 20,066. 



From the analogy in constitution between 

 phthalic and ortho-sulpho-benzoic acids, Prof. 

 Ira Remsen inferred that the latter might act 

 upon phenols in the same way that the former 

 does, and that thus compounds analogous to 

 the phthaleins might be obtained. Experiment 

 confirmed this. A mixture of potassium ortho- 

 stilpho-benzoate and resorcin heated with sul- 

 phuric acid and treated with caustic soda, and 

 similar processes with derivative and substitu- 

 tion products of snlpho-benzoic acid, gave rise 

 to a series of products for which the designa- 

 tion of sulphon-phthaleins is proposed. 



M. Struve, of Tiflis, in the ''Journal" of the 

 Berlin Chemical Society, describes a form of 

 fermented rnilk, called kephir, which occupies a 

 similar position in the dietary of the northern 

 Caucasus with koumiss in southeastern Rus- 

 sia. It is prepared by fermenting either sheep's, 

 cow's, or goat's milk in leathern bottles with 

 what are called kephir-grains, a ferment the 

 origin of which is unknown. The milk be- 

 comes very much changed during the process. 

 The kephir-grains are also reproduced, but are 

 removed after a certain stage of fermentation 

 has been reached, and may be preserved by 

 drying in the sun, to be used again in promot- 



ing fermentation. An analysis of the grains, 

 dried at 300 C., gives: 



Water .. H-21 



Fats B- 99 



Soluble peptone substances 10-98 



Proteids soluble in ammonia 10-32 



Proteids soluble in potash 30-99 



Insoluble 88' 11 



The 33-11 per cent, of insoluble matter seems 

 to be the only active part of the kephir-grains ; 

 and its activity is attributed to Saccharomyces 

 mycoderma. 



W. Kuhne and R. H. Chittenden, following 

 up an idea that was suggested to them by some 

 of the reactions of hemialbumose that that sub- 

 stance might be a mixture, have obtained from 

 it, by treatment with sodium chloride and acids, 

 four new forms of albuniose, which they desig- 

 nate as follows: 



No. I. Precipitated by excess of sodium chlo- 

 ride, soluble in cold and hot water : protalbu- 

 mose. 



No. II. Precipitated by excess of sodium 

 chloride, insoluble in cold and boiling water; 

 but, on the other hand, soluble both in strong 

 and dilute solutions of sodium chloride : deu- 

 teroalbumose. 



No. III. Similar to No. II, but insoluble in 

 solutions of sodium chloride : heteroalbumose. 



No. IV. Not precipitated by excess of so- 

 dium chloride, but precipitated by sodium 

 chloride and acids ; soluble in water : dysal- 

 bumose. 



The "hemi " of the name is retained in each 

 case. While these several forms of albumose 

 differ somewhat in their general properties, 

 the percentage composition of the various 

 products shows a remarkable degree of uni- 

 formity. The existence of these substances 

 and the differences in their properties throw 

 some light on the facts, previously determined, 

 concerning "soluble" and "insoluble" albu- 

 mose, and that of the contradiction regard- 

 ing the precipitability of albumose in part by 

 sodium chloride alone, and in part only by 

 the united action of an acid. What was pre- 

 viously designated "insoluble" hemialbumose 

 consists of heteroalbumose, soluble only in 

 boiling dilute sodium chloride, which, after 

 once being boiled, separates in great part 

 on cooling. "Soluble" hemialbumose corre- 

 sponds to both protalbumose and deuteroalbu- 

 mose, or to a mixture of both those bodies. 

 When protalburnos3 is obtained free from deu- 

 teroalbumose, it is at once evident, from the 

 fact that the latter can not be precipitated by 

 sodium chloride alone ; but since we have 

 become familiar with heteroalbumose, it is 

 also clear that in the majority of cases the 

 precipitate obtained by simple addition of so- 

 dium chloride can not be pure protalbumose, 

 as there remains mixed with it a portion of 

 heteroalbumose, which can be separated by 

 dialysis. The earlier statements regarding the 

 'turbidity and precipitation of hemialbumose 

 by neutralization, as also its precipitation, after 

 the manner of albuminates, from solutions ori- 



