BATH WATERS. ^23 



V. 



l^Uer from G. S. Gibbes, M. T). sTiewing that tke Bath 

 Waters contain a much greater Portion of Iron than has 

 hitherto been supposed. 



To Mr. NICHOLSON. 



SIR, 



JL BEG leave to send you an account of some experiments I The sand that 



have lately made on the Bath waters ; and as the result ap- "'*^* "'''^ ^^^ 



• , T , , • . 1 , , Bathwaters 



pears to me singular, I could wish to know whether any cir- contains iron in 



cumstance of the same kind occurs elsewhere. '^'^*''^ particles. 



It is well known that many black particles are mixed with 

 the sand which is brought up by the waters of Bath, which 

 particles are attracted by the magnet. 



I have lately evaporated large quantities of the Bath waters, And solike- 



and I have obtained a great deal of their solid contents. Upon wise does the 



, residuum of tn» 



examming with a microscope the dry residuum thus obtained, waters. • 



I find numberless black particles interspersed through it, and 

 from the circumstance of the magnet acting on those in the 

 sand, I was induced to present the magnet to the black parti- 

 cles of the residuum obtained by evaporation from the water. 

 The result was, that the magnet acted very forcibly on these 

 black particles. By passing the magnet through the powdered 

 residuum, it became charged with these particles of iron; and 

 by brushing them off from the magnet, and again presenting 

 them to its influence, they were again acted on by it, and rose 

 to the magnet from a considerable distance. I repeated the 

 experiment, by evaporating twenty-six gallons of the water of 

 the King's bath, in a brass vessel; and no instrument or ves- 

 sel was used during the process that v/as made of or contained 

 the least portion of iron. I obtained 2252 grains of residuum. 

 This residuum was every where interspersed with black parti- 

 cles, and all these particles were very forcibly acted upon by 

 ^he magnetic influence. 



Iron is deposited in three different states by the Bath The Bnth wa- 

 waters: 1st. — It tinges th."; glasses which are made use of for *^*jj''^ .^^j"j*'f_ 

 drinking the water at the pumps, of a yellow golden colour, Carbouute. 

 T t 2 which 



