348 DR. BENCE JONES ON THE VARIATIONS IN 



is more marked and the re-solution on cooling very much less. If the urine be 

 alkaline, containing only common phosphate, this may be passed clear, and still may 

 contain some phosphate of magnesia and a little phosphate of lime, these being 

 somewhat soluble in common phosphate of soda, and these will be precipitated on 

 boiling. 



If the phosphate of lime is from any cause in great excess, it may be deposited as 

 a granular deposit, and never in the crystalline form, unless it be in so great an 

 excess that it is deposited from urine containing very much biphosphate of soda. 



The occurrence of the alkaline condition at the particular period of the day which 

 has been observed is well worthy of attention. The whole truth cannot be arrived 

 at without a very lengthened inquiry into the variations in the amount of acids 

 excreted by the kidneys, but partly at least it must depend on the food which has 

 been taken in the morning, that is on the passage of alkaline phosphates, or carbo- 

 nates, or salts of the vegetable acids through the system. Recent analyses of the 

 ashes of seeds, flesh and blood, do not show any trace of alkaline carbonates, but as 

 these cannot be heated to a red heat with common alkaline phosphates without the 

 loss of carbonic acid, it will be seen how difficult it is to arrive at certainty on this 

 point. 



The conclusions from these observations are — 



1. That there exist two kinds of alkalescence of the urine; the one long known 

 as ammoniacal, the other not distinctly recognised, arising from fixed alkali. This 

 last appears most frequently in water secreted from two to four hours after breakfast 

 in persons suffering only from indigestion. 



2. Water made at this period may be thick when passed from amorphous sedi- 

 ment, or it may be alkaline to test-paper, and still clear ; or it may be free from 

 deposit and slightly acid. If either of these last be heated, an amorphous precipitate 

 may fall, which is soluble in dilute hydrochloric acid, or in solution of biphosphate 

 of soda. 



3. Healthy urine may at any time be made to give a precipitate of earthy phos- 

 phates by heat, even though it be acid, by having a little of its acid reaction removed 

 by any alkali, or by common phosphate of soda, the fluid becoming more acid when 

 boiled. 



4. The solution of earthy phosphates in biphosphate of soda, gives also a precipi- 

 tate on boiling if some of its acid reaction is removed by any alkali. The fluid when 

 boiled becomes more acid to test-paper, indicating the formation of a more basic 

 earthy phosphate. 



5. A precisely similar result is obtained when common phosphate of soda, phos- 

 phate of lime, and a little biphosphate of soda exist in solution together ; and by 

 varying the quantities of each of these substances, the various phenomena which the 

 urine occasionally presents may be produced at will. 



