Dalton. 231 



* In all chemical investigations, it has justly been con- 

 sidered an important object to ascertain the relative weights 



of the simples which constitute a compound. But unfor- 

 tunately the inquiry has terminated here; whereas, from 

 t he relative weights in the mass, the relative weights of the 

 ultimate particles or atoms of the bodies might have been 

 inferred, from which their number and weight in various 

 other compounds would appear, in order to assist and to 

 guide future investigations, and to correct their results. 

 Now it is one great object of this work to show the impor- 

 tance and advantage of ascertaining the relative weights of 

 the ultimate particles, both of simple and compound bodies, 

 the number of simple elementary particles which constitute 

 one compound particle, and the number of less compound 

 particles which enter into the formation of one more com- 

 pound particle, 



' If there are two bodies, A and B, which are disposed to 

 combine, the following is the order in which the combin- 

 ations may take place, beginning with the most simple, 

 viz. : — 



I atom of A + I atom of B = i atom of c, binary. 



1 atom of A + 2 atoms of b = i atom of d, ternary. 



2 atoms of A + I atom of b = i atom of e, ternary. 



I atom of A + 3 atoms of B = i atom of F, quaternary. 



3 atoms of A + I atom of B = i atom of G, quaternary. 



&c., &c. 



* The following general rules may be adopted as guides 

 in all our investigations respecting chemical synthesis . . .' 



Page 214. . . . * From the application of those rules to 

 the chemical facts already well ascertained, we deduce the 

 following conclusions : ist. That water is a binary com- 

 pound of hydrogen and oxygen, and the relative weights 

 of the two elementary atoms are i : 7, nearly ; 2nd. That 



