ETHER. 7(i3 



larger proportion than water, such as oxygen, nitrous oxide, 

 carbonic acid, and phosphuretted hydrogen. It dissolves the 

 hydrates of potash and soda, ammonia, the alkaline sulphurets, 

 likewise all the deliquescent inorganic salts, except carbonate of 

 potash, but none of the salts which are insoluble or sparingly 

 soluble in water, nor efflorescent salts. It dissolves many 

 vegetable principles, such as sugar, resins, essential oils, soap, 

 castor oil, ethers, alkalies, most acids, &c. It does not dissolve 

 the fats and fixed oils. Alcohol forms crystalline compounds 

 with several of the salts it dissolves, particularly chloride of 

 calcium, (CaCl + 2C 4 H 6 O 2 ), nitrates of lime and magnesia, chlo- 

 ride of zinc, and chloride of manganese. These compounds are 

 named alcoates, and correspond with hydrates, but are much 

 less stable. Many solutions made by alcohol, or tinctures, are 

 used in medicine. 



Absolute alcohol dissolves l-240th of phosphorus, and l-200th 

 of sulphur. It is decomposed by potassium or sodium, with 

 the evolution of hydrogen gas, and a crystallizable compound is 

 formed of the remaining elements of the alcohol with the metal, 

 or perhaps of ether with the oxide of the metal. This substance 

 is decomposed by water. Oxygen acids decompose alcohol, as 

 they do a hydrated metallic oxide, uniting directly with the 

 ether it contains, and forming acid salts of that base ; while a 

 hydracid acts upon the ether of the alcohol as it does upon a 

 metallic oxide, forming water, and a haloid compound of the 

 radical of the hydracid with ethyl. 



OXIDE OF ETHYL, OR ETHER. 



Formula : C 4 H 5 O=EO ; distinguished also as sulphuric ether, 

 from the mode of preparing it. This liquid is the product of 

 a remarkable decomposition of alcohol by sulphuric, phosphoric 

 and arsenic acids, and is also formed by the action upon alcohol 

 of the fluoride of boron, the chloride of zinc, the chloride of tin, 

 and some other chlorides. All these agents have a great affinity 

 for water, and might be supposed to convert alcohol into ether 

 by simply combining with the water whicfy the former is sup- 

 posed to contain, but the close examination which the process 

 of etherification has received from chemists, proves that its 

 rationale is by no means so simple. Reserving the theory of 



