﻿x Proceedings. [October i 8th, i go 4.. 



the closed and its ascent in the open limb of the tube. The 

 new tube is nearly N-shaped, the electrodes being placed near 

 the bottom of the right-hand vertical limb. The water at the 

 commencement of the electrolysis fills the right-hand vertical 

 tube and the narrower sloping tube. As the electrolysis pro- 

 ceeds, and the liquid descends in the right-hand tube, liquid 

 runs over from the top end of the sloping tube into the left- 

 hand vertical tube, so that no change of level occurs in the 

 sloping tube. A short open tube is attached to the top of the 

 left-hand vertical tube to allow the air in that tube to escape. 

 After being once used the apparatus only requires tilting to the 

 right to cause the water to run back again into the right-hand 

 tube for the next experiment. One form of the apparatus is 

 shown in the hitermediate Practical Physics of Schuster & Lees, 

 1 901 edition, p. 213. 



Dr. W. A. Bone read a paper entitled, " On the Mode of 

 Combustion of Hydrocarbons," in which he gave an account 

 of researches carried out by himself, in conjunction with Messrs. 

 R. V. Wheeler and W. E. Stockings, at the Owens College, on 

 the slow combustion of hydrocarbons below their ignition points. 

 The older theories that in a defective oxygen supply either the 

 hydrogen or the carbon is preferentially burned are shown to be 

 based on misinterpretations of the facts and must be abandoned. 

 The authors' results led them to conclude that a hydrocarbon is 

 burned in well-defined stages ; oxygen initially enters the hydro- 

 carbon and is distributed between the carbon and hydrogen, 

 giving rise to unstable hydroxylated molecules which, sooner or 

 later, according to the rapidity of the process, undergo thermal 

 decompositions into simple products. It is therefore necessary 

 to carefully distinguish between the purely chemical and the 

 thermo-chemical changes which occur during combustion. 



