ON OXALIC ACID. 31 



may be stated in round nunpibers a^ the mean of the whole. 

 Oxalic acid is a compound of 



Oxig'en 64 Mean in roun4 



Carbon 32 numbers. 



liidrogen 4 



100 



8. The only other analysis of oxalic acid, with which I Elements ac- 

 am acquainted, has been given by Mr. Fonrcroy, as the re- co.dingto 

 suit of his own experiments, in conjunftion with those ofvnuquellih 

 V^auquelin*. It is as follows: 



Oxigen 77 , 



Carbon 13 



liidrogen 10 



100 



It gave me considerable uneasiness to observe, that my ex- 

 periments led to conclusions irreconcilable with those of 

 vhemists of such eminence and consmrmate skill; and it 

 was not without considerable hesitation, that I ventured to 

 place any reliance upon them. I am persuaded, however, 

 that some mistake has inadvertently insinuated itself into jj^gij. ^,,1^,,,^. 

 their calculatioas; since the carbonic acid alone, formed tions enone- 

 duriiig the distillation of oxalate of lime, contains consi- *^"^' 

 derably more carbon than the whole quantity, which they 

 assign to the oxalic acid decomposed. Mr. Fourcroy in- 

 ibrrns us, that oxalic acid is converted into carbonic acid 

 and water, v.hen acted upon by hot nitric acid ; and this 

 decomposition seems to have been the method employed, 

 to ascertain the proportion of the constituents of oxalic acid ; 

 but the numbers assigned by him do not correspond with 

 this statement. For 10 parts of hidrogen require 60 of 

 oxigen to convert them into water, and 13 of carbon require 

 at least 33 of oxigen. So that instead of 77 parts of oxi- 

 gen, there would have been required no less than 98, to 

 convert the hidrogen and carbon into water and carbonic 

 ijcid. It is true, that the surplus of oxigen may be con- 



* Stjsthne de Comois, Chem. VIT, 224. Trans. VII, 306. 



•ceived 



