184 Dr. Wright and M< mn. Hkompeon .-md Leon. [Feb. 12, 



ducing the mixture) represented the water and acetic acid jointly, 

 from which the water was obtainable by subtracting the weight of 

 acetic acid deduced from the previous titration. A number of pre- 

 liminary experiments showed that the sulphuiic acid drying tnl 

 sufficed to retain all traces of acetic acid carried away by the current 

 of air, whilst, on the other hand, it did not permanently absorb 

 chloroform, and did not sensibly act on the chloroform so as to bi 

 it up, or hydrolyse it into hydrochloric and formic acids, <fec. 



As a first experiment, we thought it desirable to find out how 

 short a time might be requisite to bring about such a condition 

 equilibrium (after vigorous agitation) that no sensible further alter 

 tions took place in the composition of the two liquids formed. W 

 found that agitation for a minute or two at a time at intervals for 

 period of an hour always sufficed to bring about this state of matter 

 Thus, the following numbers were obtained in one set of observatioi 

 the liquids being contained in a well-stoppered stopcock-reservoir, 

 that the lower liquid could be readily sampled by opening the stop- 

 cock, and the upper one by means of a pipette. The original mixtui 

 contained 



Chloroform 30'0 per cent. 



Water 297 



Glacial acetic acid (C 2 H 4 O 2 ) 4CK3 



100-0 



Analogous figures were obtained in several other similar experi- 

 ments, the differences observed after different periods being but 

 small (much less than 1 per cent.), and obviously due to experimental 



