196 Journal of the Astatic Society of Bengal [April, 1907. 



figures given in the fourth column of the foregoing Table which 

 are roughly proportional to the measured deflections. 



The least ionised sample of oxygen was that split off from 

 its double-bonded union with mercury 



2Hg = = 2Hg + 0^ 



The ionisation of the oxygen expelled from the middle of the 

 peroxide molecule 



2Na-0-0-Na = 2]S'a-0.Na + Og 



is only slightly greater. 



The fact that the decomposition of KMnO^, yields less than 

 half as many ions as that of KCIO^, with which it is isomorphous, 

 is perhaps connected with the fact that the chlorine atom with 

 which the oxygen is united in the latter case is left in the solid 

 residue at the end of the experiment in a completely electro- 

 negative capacity of direct combination with potassium 



KCIO. ^ KCl + 20 



2 



whereas the manganese atom, though occupying the correspond- 

 ing position in the original molecule, is left behind in an electro- 

 positive capacity of holding on to a large part of its oxygen 



2KMn04 = KgMnO^^+MnO^ + O 



^ 



or whatever other equation be taken to represent the reaction. 



If we compare the numbers obtained for the ionisation of the 

 oxygen from potassium chlorate with those obtained from potas- 

 sium perchlorate, we notice that the number of positive ions are 

 simply proportional to the number of molecules of the substances 

 taken in order to produce equal volumes of oxygen : 



4KCIO3 = 4KCI + 6O2 ( + 4?^ ions) 



3KC10^ = 3KCI + 6O2 ( +3^ „ ) 



This can readily be explained on the hypothesis that the i 

 are all produced from the breaking out of the oxygen atom (a) 



. 



(^) II (a) H 



K-O-Cl and K^0-C1 = 







which in each molecule acts as a connecting link between the 

 potassium atom and the chlorine atom ; whereas those oxygen 

 atoms which are doubly connected with the chlorine atom are ex- 

 pelled without any electi-ic displacement. This result is arrived at 



