96 ORIGIN AND NATURE OF LIFE 



replaced by chlorine is called carbon -tetra- 

 chloride, and is an exceedingly valuable 

 organic solvent, especially for bodies of a 

 fatty nature. It has the desirable property 

 that it is not very readily inflammable, 

 as ether, benzene, and many other organic 

 solvents are. 



All these bodies are formed in varying 

 quantities when the two gases methane and 

 chlorine act upon one another, and by appro- 

 priate means can be separated and identified. 

 Once this has been achieved, large quantities 

 can be manufactured by more appropriate 

 methods, and their chemical nature examined. 

 The densities of their vapours compared with 

 hydrogen show that only one carbon atom 

 is present, and when they are burnt or 

 combusted with oxygen, and the percentages 

 of carbon, hydrogen, and chlorine estimated 

 by analysis, the numbers of atoms present 

 in each case can be calculated, on the basis of 

 the known atomic weights of the elements as 

 settled by the concordant analyses of many 

 other simple inorganic compounds. When 

 this has been done the only formulae which will 

 fit the compounds are those set out above. 



It follows from this that the carbon atom 

 is a collection of energy forms, or electrons, 

 possessing such dynamic properties that it 



