402 T. S. Hunt on Cliemical Classifications. 



G 2 H 5 (C 4 H 5 in his notation)— Ae replaces H ; nitrate of ethyle 

 N Ae 3 corresponding to nitrate of silver N Ag 3 . Hydrochlo- 

 ric ether and the compounds allied to it, may by this hypothe- 

 sis be brought into the same class and assigned the place to 

 which by their reactions they are justly entitled ; they become 

 chlorid, bromid and iodid of ethyle. 



This view removes a difficulty unexplained by the theory of 

 Gerhardt ; the ethers proper are quite neutral, the saline ca- 

 pacity of the acid having been satisfied by combination with the 

 elements of alcohol. It is not easy to understand how a replace- 

 ment of an equivalent of the oxygen by the organic elements, 

 eould effect this, for in many instances the oxygen of a compound 

 may be wholly or in part replaced by sulphur or other elements 

 without affecting its basic relations ; but on this view the hydro- 

 gen of the acid, upon which its capacity of saturation depends, 

 is removed in the elimination of the equivalent of water. Diba- 

 sic acids like the oxalic should then yield monobasic compounds 

 with one, and neutral compounds with two, equivalents of alcohol; 

 in accordance with this, the oxalovinic acid is monobasic, and the 

 oxalic ethers neutral. 



The amids are derived from ammoniacai salts which contain 

 the elements of the acids plus NH 3 , and the composition of the 

 amid of a monobasic acid is that of the ammonia salt, minus 

 H a O. Acetic acid being C 2 H 4 o and acetate of ammonia C 2 

 JI 7 N0 2 (=C 2 (H 3 NH 4 ) ) 2 , acetaniid will be G 2 H 5 NO; 

 this compound is capable of regenerating ammonia and the acid, 

 by assimilating H 2 O; it is neutral, and in its reactions so much 

 allied to an ether that the resemblance is at once apparent ; while 

 it is equally clear that it should be referred to the acetic type. 

 But when the acid reacts with the elimination of an atom of 

 water, upon a body which contains no oxygen, the equivalent of 

 this element must evidently be derived from the acid itself, and 

 hence we cannot by any ordinary formula represent acetaniid as 

 & direct derivation of the acid ; for while if we make 



acetic acid,=acetic ether 



H^G 2 H 5 



jve find that if 



acetic acid = ace tamid 



C a H,H'0 ? -C.,H s rsO 



H'=H, N-O. 



In other words, if we would assimilate the amids to the ethers 

 upon M. Liebig's plan, we must have H, N -O, replacing the 

 equivalent of hydrogen or ethyle. He, however, disregarding 

 the analogies between them, is obliged in accordance with his 

 views of organic radicals to regard this and similar compounds as 



