64 Dr. Walter Flight—On Meteorites. 
blance which he had traced between the artificial phosphide of iron, 
Fe ,P, which M. Sidot had succeeded in preparing, and the rhabdite 
of meteoric iron. I have to offer my hearty thanks to Professor 
Daubrée for permitting me to inspect some of M. Sidot’s crystals, 
which bore the closest resemblance to the above crystals. More 
recently, in the spring of last year, M. E. Mallard! communicated a 
note to the Comptes rendus, on phosphide of iron found among the 
products of the spontaneous fires in the coal-mines at Commentry. 
The crystals are square prisms, terminated by a pyramid, are 
strongly magnetic, have a specific gravity of 6°71 and the composi- 
tion indicated by the formula Fe,P. They, of course, contain no 
trace of nickel; in all other respects, however, they bear the closest 
resemblance to the above body. 
When the crude nickel-iron of the meteorite was treated aa 
hydrogen chloride till action ceased, coarse insoluble particles, 
mixed with a black powder, and the needles remained ; they could 
both be removed by decantation and repeated washings. It was 
then subjected to a thorough cleansing with hydrogen chloride, 
with dilute nitric acid, with water, with a mixture of ether, alcohol, 
benzol, and chloroform, and finally, when dried, with the magnet. 
In this way the coarse powder was obtained in a pure state; it 
consisted of a very brittle, very magnetic, coarse powder, which 
dissolved easily in strong hydrogen nitrate. Analyses gave the 
following results :— 
If ele Mean. 
Tron fed ce MO OSLO 00°990 Sori. 23) — eal 9-993 
Nickel aes arses QOG — 29°176 — 29°5= 0:°989 
Phespliorus|:..0 2-2) leds _ 13°505 + 31 = 0°43806x7=3:045 
98-798 
This is, doubtless, the mineral Schreibersite which appears to have 
the composition indicated by the formula (Fe,Ni),P. The material, 
as already stated, consisted of a coarse powder, of faceless irregular 
fragments of a very brittle constituent of the meteorite. 
Search was accordingly made for crystals, and occasionally. but 
very rarely, larger bodies which might when broken up have 
formed this powder were hit upon. One was met with, a large 
brass-coloured oblique crystal which readily cleaved across the base ; 
it was but slightly acted upon by hydrogen chloride or nitrate, both 
of which. however, on long-continued boiling, dissolve it slowly ; in 
aqua regia, on the other hand, it quickly disappears. When heated 
a fragment of one of these crystals quickly became of a dark brown. 
Analyses of these crystals gave the following results :— 
I IT: 
Tron, sie" jessaiooi2on 69°843 69°547 + 28 = 2°484 = 9-979 
Nickel, see _ — 14°410 + 29°5= 0°488 = 
Phosphorus .,, 157420 16°666 16°043 = 31 = 0°517 = 0°517 
100°000 
1 M. E. Mallard, ‘‘ Sur la production d’un phosphure de fer cristallisé et du feld- 
spath anorthite, dans les incendies des houilléres de Commentry,’’ Comptes rendus, 
1881, xcii. 933. 2 Both determinations were lost. 
