COMBINATION* OF OXIMURIATIC ACID AND METALS. 135 



When I first tried the action of muriatic acid on the difTe- Compounds of 



Sliver, ot cop- 

 rent combinations of chlorine already mentioned, I was not per, and of 



aware, that Klapkoth had before observed the solubility of lead. 

 horn silver in this acid, and Mr. Chenevix that of cuprane- 

 Horn silver, cuprane, and horn lead, are precipitated from 

 muriatic acid unaltered by water. Both the hot saturated 

 solutions of the two last compounds deposit crystals on cool- 

 ing ; those from the solution of the former are of an olive 

 green colour, and of a prismatic form, and consist of cuprane 

 and muriatic aciJ ; those from the latter are small white bril- 

 liant plates. 



Finding the combinations of ihe metals and chlorine so None of the 

 generally soluble in liquid muriatic acid, I expected, that some '^h^rb^muria- 

 of them might absorb muriatic acid gas ; but none that I have tic acid ga«. 

 tried have possessed this property, not even the liquor of 

 Libavius. Indeed this is not singular, for water is necessary 

 to the composition of many valine bodies j neutral carbonate of 

 ammonia and nitrate of ammonia, for instance, cannot be formed 

 without the presence of water. Neither is the precipitation of Precipitation 

 cuprane, horn silver, and horn lead from muriatic acid by extraordinary, 

 water extraordinary ; there are several salts containing metal- 

 lic oxides which are liable to the same change, the oxides 

 having less affinity for the acid, than water has. 



The action of muriatic acid on the combinations of theidifFe- The action of 



rent metals and chlorine will, I h ive little doubt, afFjrd, when m'ir«atic acid 



may explain 

 more minutely uivestigated, explanations of many phenomena, niany pheno- 



which are not yet well accounted for. Before I conclude, mena. 



I shall mention only one instance, to wnich it already appears 



to be applicable. Mr. Pkoust has observed the decomposition Decomposi- 



of calomel by boiling muriatic acid, and its conversion into t'°" °^ f^'o" 



corrosive sublimate and running mercury. Now calomel being ^ 



insoluble in muriatic acid, these changes evidently appear to 



be owing to the strojig attraction of the acid for corrosive 



sublimate, which has been already shown to exist. 



Tin. 



