624 



SCIENCE. 



[N. S. Vol. VIII. No. 199. 



few of the many laboratory students are fit 

 for manufacturing chemists, whose pre- 

 liminary training should be of the highest 

 order, especially in mathematics. The stu- 

 dent should have a wide experience in 

 chemical preparations and be able to purify- 

 quickly and study them on a large scale. 

 After such training a man should be sent 

 into a factory for at least two years as 

 a student. Our hope lies in the funda- 

 mental training in good technical schools. 



Dr. W. L. Dudley asserted, in presenting 

 his remarks upon ' Teaching Analytical 

 Chemistry,' that a good course in experi- 

 mental work should precede qualitative 

 analysis. If only a little time is available 

 it should be devoted to experimental and 

 not to qualitative analysis, for fear of turn- 

 ing out men who with only a smattering 

 would think themselves real chemists. He 

 did not believe in books for special students, 

 but in true qualitative analysis containing 

 thoroughly accurate methods for the com- 

 mon metals and semi-common ones. He 

 insisted upon the absolute necessity for 

 accuracy and that the course should be 

 comprised of such methods and not of 

 shorter ones that are inaccurate. In quan- 

 titative analysis it is better to teach manipu- 

 lation and principles and not all the methods 

 of analj'sis known. 



In a paper by Dr. H. "VV. Wiley, read 

 by Dr. E. E. Ewell, on ' The Influence of 

 Temperature upon the Specific Kotary Power 

 of Sucrose,' it was brought out that, con- 

 trary to the generally received ideas, there 

 is a marked influence produced bj'^ change 

 of temperature, the specific rotary power 

 lowering as the temperature rises. 



Three papers were presented by Drs. W. 

 A. Noyes, Hillebrand and N. W. Lord upon 

 coal analysis. The correct determination 

 of water in a coal seems to be obtained only 

 by drying the sample over sulphuric acid in 

 a vacuum dessicator. This is a long method 

 and scarcely applicable in technical work. 



This was a partial report of the Committee 

 on Coal Analysis. 



' The Determination of Water and Coke 

 in Goal,' W. A. Noyes and N. M. Austin. 



' Notes on Determination of Water in 

 Coal,' W. E. Hillebrand. 



' The Valuation of Coals,' N. W. Lord. 



' Analysis of Mixed Acids,' Chas. E. 

 Munroe. 



' A Simple Color Eeaction for the Detec- 

 tion of Methyl Alcohol,' S. P. Mulliken and 

 Heyward Scudder. 



' Detection of ISTitro Group in Organic 

 Compounds,' S. P. Mulliken and E. R. 

 Barker. 



' Electrolytic Determination of Tin in 

 Tin Ores,' E. D. Campbell and E. C. 

 Champion. This depends upon fusing the 

 ore with sodium carbonate and sulphur, con- 

 version of the sulpho-stannate into sulphide, 

 then into double ammonium oxalate and 

 electrolyzing. 



' The Determination of Undigested Fat 

 and Casein in Infant Feces,' Herman Poole. 



' New Method for the Determination of 

 Zinc,' A. C. Langmuir. 



' Note on the Determination of Arsenic 

 in Glycerine,' A. C. Langmuir. 



Professor H. L. Wells, in his ' History 

 of Double Salts, ' stated that the laws gov- 

 erning this class of compounds seem very 

 intricate. The chlorides do not seem to 

 correspond to the bromides, and iodides, 

 and halides of closely related metals often 

 differ. 



Dr. J. L. Howe and E. A. O'Neal stated, 

 in their paper on the ' Use of the Electric 

 Current in Forming Alums,' that they had 

 prepared alums containing the metals 

 aluminum, iron, cobalt, rubidium and 

 cesium, by means of an electric current, but 

 failed to get them of manganese and 

 ruthenium . These compounds of rubidium 

 and cesium are next. Dr. Howe, with S. G. 

 Hamner, gave a method for accurately de- 

 termining ' The Color of Sulphur in the 



