Feb, 13, 1879] 



NATURE 



355 



Hydrogen i 



Oxygen 7'99 



Carbonic oxide 6*03 



Carbonic acid 22'05 



Marsh-gas lo-oi 



Nitrous oxide. 12*90 



Sulphurous acid 36*95 



Nitrogen 4'27 



It was remarked that the number for nitrogen was probably 

 too low ; I had some belief that the charcoal retained a certain 

 amount which I had not been able to estimate. 



For common air, the number 40-065 crept into the paper or 

 abstract instead of the quotient 7" 06. 



I considered the numbers very remarkable, but was afraid 

 that they would be of little interest unless they could be brought 

 more easily imder the eyes of others ; my experiments were 

 somewhat laborious ; the exact nimibers were seldom approached 

 by the single ' analysis, but were wholly the result of a series of 

 irregular averages and apparently irregular experiments. The 

 cause of this was clear, as I believed, namely, the irregular 

 character of the charcoal with which I had to deal. The ex- 

 periments were forgotten, I suppose, by most men, but the late 

 Prof, Graham told me that he had repeated them with the 

 same results that I had published. I might have considered this 

 sufficient, but waited for time to make a still more elaborate 

 investigation of the subject, and to take special care with oxygen, 

 in the belief that, the rule being found, the rest of the inquiry 

 would be easy ; this was extended to nitrogen, but not by so 

 many experiments as with oxygen. I am now assured of a sound 

 foundation for inquiries, which must take their beginning from 

 the results here given. 



It is found that charcoal absorbs gases in definite volumes, the 

 physical action resembling the chemical. 



Calling the volume of hydrogen absorbed I, the volume of 

 oxygen absorbed is 8. That is, whilst hydrogen unites M-ith 

 eight times its weight of oxygen to constitute water, charcoal 

 absorbs eight times more oxygen by volume than it absorbs 

 hydrogen. No relation by volume has been hithertofoimd the 

 same as the relation by weight. 



The specific gravity of oxygen being 16 times greater than 

 hydrogen, charcoal absorbs 8 times 16, or 128 times more oxygen 

 by weight than it does hydrogeiL This is equal to the specific 



16^ . . , 

 gravity of oxygen squared and divided by two — , orit is the 



atomic weight and specific gravity multiplied into each other, 



2?6 



16X16, and divided by two -^^=:I28. 



Nitrogen was expected to act in a similar way, but it refused. 

 The average number of the latest inquiry is 4*52, but the 

 difficulty of removing all the nitrogen from charcoal is great, and 

 I suppose the correct nim^iber to be 4 •66. Taking this one as 



the weight absorbed, 14 X 4*66 = 65 "3, or it is — . Oxygen is a 



dyad ; nitrogen a triad. 



We have then carbonic acid not divided, but simply 22 

 squared = 484. 



Time is required for full speculation, but the chemist must be 

 -urprised at the following : — 



Carbonic oxide 6 volumes. 



Carbonic acid, CO2 6-hl6 ,, =22. 



Marsh-gas, CH4 6 + 4 ,, =10. 



Protoxide of nitrogen, NO 8 -h 4*66 (N) (4"9).= 12*66, 



These four results belong to the early group not corroborated 

 lately, but so remarkably carrying out the principle of volume 

 in this union giving numbers the same as those of weight in 

 chemical union, that they scarcely require to be delayed. 



I am not willing to theorise much on the results ; it is here 

 sufficient to make a good beginning. We appear to have the 

 formation of a new series of molecules made by squaring our 

 present chemical atoms, and by certain other divisions peculiar 

 to the gases themselves. Or it may be that the larger molecide 

 exists in the free gas, and chemical combination breaks it up. 

 These new and larger molecules may lead us to the imderstand- 

 ing of chemical combinations in organic chemistry and whenever 

 there is union not very firm, and may also modify some of our 

 opinions on atomic weights and the motion of gases. 



Of course, I cannot pretend to give the result of these results ; 

 but as we have here the building up of a molecule by volumes, 

 so as to form an equivalent of physical combination analogous to 



the chemical equivalent, it is impossible to avoid seeing that it 

 indicates the possibility of our present equivalents being made 

 up in a similjir manner. 



I did not expect these numbers ; but I certainly, as my pre- 

 vious paper showed, had in full view a necessity for some 

 connection between physical and chemical phenomena more 

 decided than we possessed. 



Chemical Society, February 6. — Dr. Gladstone, president, 

 in the chair, — This meeting was occupied by the discussion on 

 the processes for determining the organic purity of potable 

 waters, a paper read by Prof. Tidy some time since. Dr. 

 Frankland opened the discussion and criticised at some length 

 the objections urged by Prof, Tidy against his method of esti- 

 mating the carbon and nitrogen in a water residue by combustion. 

 The discussion was continued by Mr, Wanklyn, Mr. Kingzett, 

 Prof, Bischof, Dr, Voelcker, Mr. Grosjean, Dr, Dupre, Mr. W. 

 Thorp, and Dr, Hake. Prof. Tidy then briefly replied, and 

 the proceedings terminated, with a unanimous vote of thanks 

 from a crowded meeting to Prof. Tidy for his paper. 



Zoological Society, February 4. — Dr. Giinther, F,R.S., 

 vice-president, in the chair. — Mr. Sclater exhibited and made 

 remarks on a specimen of a Curassow, belonging to the Royal 

 Musevun of Copenhagen, which he had received from Prof. J. 

 Reinhardt, F.M.Z.S., for examination, and which Prof. Reinhardt 

 had proposed to refer to a new species {Mitua salznni). — Mr. 

 R, Bowdler Sharpe exhibited a series of Bnlwer's Pheasant 

 {Lobiophasis bulweri), from the La was River, N,W. Borneo, 

 collected by Mr, W. H, Treacher, Acting-Governor of Labuan. 

 The series represented every stage of plumage of this pheasant, 

 and conclusively proved that Z. castamicaudatus, Sharpe, was the 

 inomature male of L. bulweri. — A communication was read from 

 Prof, A, H. Garrod, F.R.S., containing some notes on certain 

 points in the aiiatomy of Hoatzin (Opisthocomus cristatus). — Mr, 

 Sclater read some notes on the breeding of the Argus Pheasant 

 and other Phasianidse in the Society's Gardens. — A?communication 

 was read from the Rev, O. P. Cambridge, C.M.Z.S., containing 

 the description of a new genus and species of spiders, proposed 

 to be called Friizia muelleri. — Mr. W. Ottley read the firs part 

 of a series of observations on the structure of the eye-muscles in 

 the mammalia. — A communication was read from Mr. Osbert 

 Salvin, F,R.S., on some birds transmitted by the Rev, Thomas 

 Powell from the Samoan Islands, amongst which were two new 

 species proposed to be called Pinarolestes powelli and Fregetta 

 mastissatna. — A communication was read from Mr, W, H. Dale 

 containing remarks on the use of the generic name Gouldia in 

 zoology. — Mr, George]A, Shaw read notes upon the habits of four 

 sp>ecies of Lemurs, specimens of which had been brought alive to 

 England in 1878, from the pro\'ince of Betsileo in Central 

 Madagascar. — A communication was read from Mr. F, Moore, 

 F,Z.S., containing descriptions of some new Asiatic diurnal lepi- 

 doptera, — Dr. A. Giinther, F.R.S., pointed out the characters of 

 a new rodent from Medellin, U.S, of Columbia, for which the 

 name Thrinacodus albkauda was proposed. 



Linnean Society, January 16. — Mr. W, Carruthers, 

 F.R.S., vice-president, in the chair. — Prof. Allen Thomson 

 exhibited and made some remarks on a block of wood, during 

 the growth of which a portion of the shank -bone of an ox had 

 become centrally inclosed ; he also called attention to an imper- 

 fect frond of a palm (Chsemserops ? ) asserted to have been 

 discovered within a plank of rosewood. — Mr. Christy in some 

 observations referred to the Chalmugra tree {Gynocardia odorata), 

 its therapeutical properties being highly extolled, especially in 

 rheumatism. — Mr. J. G. Baker read a paper on the Colchicaceje 

 and aberrant tribes of Liliaceje. Colchicacese is the smallest ot 

 the three sub-orders of Liliacese, it includes 39 genera 

 and 153 species. Its geographical dispersion agrees completely 

 with true LUiaceae. In its typical form it is marked by 

 extrorse anthers, a septicidal capsule, and three distinct styles ; 

 but as 24 out of 39 genera do not possess all these three 

 characters in combination, but recede more or less decidedly 

 from the type in the direction of true Liliaceae, it seems injudicious 

 to follow those who have proposed to keep up Colchicacese or 

 Melanthaceae as a distinct natural order. Mr. Baker defines 

 seven tribes, Colchicese, Merendene, Veratreae, Anguillarese, 

 Heloniese, Uvnlariea?, and Tofieldiese. There are several 

 anomalous genera of the Colchicacese, for instance Hewardia, 

 which connects the Liliace^ with the Iridaceae. Again, there 

 are three aberrant tribes of Liliacese, viz., (i) Conanthers a 

 connecting link between Liliacese and Amaryllidace3e,(2) Liriopeoe 



