130 



der formic aldehyde, while the growth of both ba- 

 cilli under -ulphurou> arid was good. After the 



:i.elits the fon:.Se-aldrli\de r.-.-m CKHlld : 

 with I'Ut little inconxelllcn, e lit a \iT\ short 



while an hour was required to make the -ul- 

 phur -'in habitable. l>r. Hlyili coin 



formic aldehyde tfrvutly MI|HTIT to Ulphuioai acid 

 as a disinfr 



In the investigation ..f thr In 1m 

 towanl chemical reagent. ul and IV 



nig. a definite number of organs [>osed 



f a solution ,.f the disinfectant font 

 definite mm-: the disinfectant was then completely 

 ,n.l the niimhrr of organiMiis si ill 



..-nt iras determined Th 

 the anthrax bacillus were n-ed in most of tli< 

 periments. The different salts of a metal lessees- 

 ing a specifically |* haraeter. as. for in- 



stance, those of" mercury. \\vrr found to be 



iaJly deadly. Other thin. .-ual. thos,. 



salts motet fully susceptible of electrical dissociation 



art' the in. A solution of men-uric chloride 



contains many more mercuric ion- than a mercurie- 



iution of the same concent ration, ami is 



COfres|ondin;iy more deadly. The disinfecting 



idoo Of merOCtnC chloride is tin-ally 



diminished by the addition of -...Hum chloride, a 



fact of importance in view of the frequent addition 



of salt to mercuric-chloride solutions to increase 



-olubility. Similar results are obtained with 

 silver salts. The disinfecting |>ower of solutions of 

 bins or of acids depend-. <>n the wh-.]e. ..11 their 

 Strength that is to sav. on their decree of elec- 

 trohtic dissociation. The specific action of the 

 anion and of the in. <1 molecule is. how- 



ever, not to be neglected. Silver nitrate shows t lie 

 greatest disinfecting power when di .-he 1 in -Vi- 

 per-cent, alcohol and mercuric chloride in 'Jo-per- 

 cent, alcohol. Solutions of these salts in absolute 

 alcohol are practically without effect on anthrax 

 -p. ret 



In a discussion on "The Teaching of Chemistry." 

 in the International ('onjrr.-^ mi Technical Kduea- 

 tion.at London, Ir. OttoN. Witt. of Herlin, said that 



ddnotadmitany fundamental difference, in the. 

 methods of research of pure and applied chemistry, 

 consequently he could not admit the necessity of a 

 difference of instruction for the two. A well-or- 

 ganized instruction in pure chemical science would 

 be the best |>rej>aration of any voting cheini-t for 

 his future career. Schools for producing special- 

 ists are not wanted; specialism comes as a matter 

 of course in later life. Chemists are needed who 

 embr -Hence as a whole, and who are in- 

 capable of separating practice from theory or th y 



from p ra- 

 in their experiments on the direct union of car- 

 bon and hydrogen Mes-rs. I',.. tie ami Jordan found 

 that at a temperature of !.,( HI ('.or tliereaUmts 

 carbon unites directl v with hydro^-n to form meth- 

 ane, while no acetylene or other un-at united hy- 

 drooarboo is found at this temperature: that when 

 the electric arc i- prorl need between carUm termi- 

 nals in an atmosphere of hydrogen methane and 

 acetone are to be found. On c<,ntinuini; th- 

 sage of the arc a state of equilibrium between hy- 

 dnMpBO, met bane, and aoetyleoeifl final lyestablisheaj 

 and that the same state of c.juilibriu m is pr.Hlu<-e,l 

 when the el. -trie arc is passed in an atmosphere of 

 either methane or acctvlene under similar con- 

 ditions. 



fractional distillation of pentane from Amer- 



fN-trol'Mim. S. Vountr and (J. L. Thomas have 

 obtained pure normal and iso-pentane. the tailing 

 points of which under normal pressure are :;<;:{ and 

 87-95 F. respectively. The critical data of normal 

 pentane (temperature, pressure, and volume) as 



found by Mr. Yoiin- are 17'2 . 2.V100 millimetres 

 and -J-;lu:{ cubic centimetre-: the thermal and other 

 i:ned lead to the conclusion that in the 

 liquid state and at the critical temperature tlu\ 

 molecule- ,,f pentane are simple ones, a- 111 the 

 gMtOQI -tale. 



M. I'., rthel.-t has found that sulphuric acid ab- 

 sorbs hyd: I'letely at . 'I even iii 

 the cold, hurin- two month eilt. of the 

 hydroi:en present was absorbed, with pro.biet ion of 

 unt of sulphur dioxide. Tliis 

 t ;.ik,- p]a< ! \\ it h the diluted acid. 

 A t hermocheinieal study -h..\\- that the dilution of 

 the ., g the thermal si.mi of the r, a. ti-n. 



1 nve-i i-;il i"ii^ by Prof. !'. 1 1. M on-r. of t lie 1', 

 In-t it ut ion. on sonic of the die mica 1 -u I "stances in ihe 

 trunks of trees show that other substances b- 

 stardiare stored up in large quantities as r- 

 f 1 material in the w inter, to be convert. <1 into 



III the -|.' 



The invi-siipitioii ..f the formation of organM 

 bases by jilants of the orchid family, b.-^un l>> M. 

 dc VVildemann, has been continued and e\i 

 by l>r. M. de Ir..o-. Of the KM species of orchids 

 examined nine . led a- producing alkaloids, 



in all their pai t-. and ot In . The 



function of these alkaloids is believed to I 



fe!i-i\e. 



The useful products obtained from -ai-i 



utiliiation processes of di-j.o-ai are emp]..\. 



'liliLT to \V. I . < ...'':_ ... 



i- u -cd chiefly in the maim fad ur<- of ^}\ 

 and candle -lock, but makes only ;. 

 Three methods of extraction are in u-c : I'.y -i.-am. 

 by means of sulphuric* acid, and by the i. 

 naphtha. Tankage is ii.M*d by manufacture 

 fertilisers. 



The results of studies of the pre-eiic.- of tin in 

 canned <;o.><ls by .1. K. K. Cowan confirm th 

 jirevious invent i gators of t he subject. Tin wa- found 



caiicxamincil.in quantities oi 



<iO to 1'tO milligramme* |.-r kilogramme, (irant- 

 inu'that this tin is present in a form that can be 

 a-ied upon in the human system, and considering 

 the lar:re consumption of canned i, r oods, it seem- to 

 follow that tin is less toxic than ha- been sup: 

 and that it can not be a cumulative p..i-on. The 

 pre- in . .f l.-ad wa- not detected ill any in-talice. 



M. < '. l-'riedel. remarking upon the analy-i- "f 

 some fatty matter found in an lyLTvptian toinli at 

 . \b\do-. consisting chiefly of palmitic and si 

 oxide, and doiibtle-s the 'tallow of beef or mutton, 

 observed in the French Academy of Sciences that it 

 was intere-tint: to find that the fatty acid-, and e\eii 

 their irlyrocerides, have been capable of pn 

 tion for thousand- of years. Amoiii: the subsl 

 found in the small vases were pulveri/ed lead sul- 

 phide mixed writ ha quantity of fatty matter, evident- 

 ly a cosmetic* ii-ed as antimony sulphide is still em- 

 ploved in the I 



The sanitation of the manufacture of imr 

 with white pho-phoriis i- regarded by M. M 

 as a problem simj.le mid easy ,,f solution. The 

 met hod of sanitation contemplated bv the author 

 e-n-i-ts of two orders of means bnse<l on ti 

 factors of injiin. whieh are ph<.-phori-m and n- 

 cro-js. To phosphorism he would r>ppose tli- 

 tilationof the work by artificial means, powerful 

 enough to withdraw the" poisonous emanations from 

 the workers. To nccro-js he would oppose the 

 principle* of selection; that of recruitment and 

 maintenance from the hands of persons entirely 

 from any injury of the mouth or the jaws 

 which mi;:lit 'furnish an opening for the ch- 

 mi-chief. 



While the carbides obtained from the- alkaline 

 earths acting with water produce acetylene, some 



