Chemistry and Physics. 14 



I'ed it to be a far more energetic chlorine cam( 

 than iodine, since (1) it acts more readily and quickly, (2) 

 carries the process more uniformly from one stage to the next, i 

 (3) it can be I "' ^ .- - 



grams anhydrous benzol,' S 

 chlorine be passed through it, heat being applied by a water-bath 

 and a return-cooler being used, after three days the liquid solidi- 

 fies on cooling to a)i intermixed crystal mass, consisting of nearly 

 pure para-dichlor-benzol, which after purification is equal in weight 

 to the benzol taken. By acting on toluol in this way, the author 

 in conjunction with Dietrich, has obtained several new chlorine 

 derivatives of this hydrocarbon. — Ber. Berl. Chem. Ges., viii, 

 1400, Nov., 18/5. G. F. B. 



4. On the Effect of Mass on the Chemical action of Water.— 

 OsTWALD has made, in the laboratory of the Dorpat University, a 

 research upon the action of water in mass upon chemical action, 

 A concentrated solution of bismuth chloride in hydrochloric acid 

 was divided into 25 equal portions. To the fii-st, water was added 

 till a permanent turbidity appeared, and quantities of water 

 gradually increasing from this were added to the other portions, 

 the last receiving enough to precipitate all the bismuth. After 

 standing six weeks, the various liquids were separately analyzed, 

 the chlorine, bismuth, hydrogen and w^ater being determined. 

 These results are given in a table. To compare them a second 

 table is given in which the chlorine and bismuth are calculated for 

 100 parts of water. If from these figures a curve be constructed 

 with those for bismuth as abscissas and chlorine as ordinates, the 

 form of the curve for two-thirds of its length is a hyperbola. The 

 first third is nearly a straight line, differing from this no more than 

 is allowed by experimental errors. Hence either BerthoUet's law 

 is true and the action is exactly proportional to the mass, the 

 curve being due to foreign influ( " ' " '' "' ^* 



author inclines to the former view; since he has detected one 

 such disturbing cause in the fact that considerably more of the 

 bismuthyl chloride remains suspended in the diluter than in the 

 more concentrated liquids.— Ji jt>r. Ch., II, xii, 264, Nov., 1875. 



5. Formation of Alizarin by Beduction of BufigaUic Acid.— 

 WiDMAN has observed that when rufigallic acid is reduced by 

 sodium amalgam, a violet solution is obtained. On precipitating 

 this by hydrochloric acid and dissolving the precipitate in potassa, 

 banum chloride throws down a second precipitate, which when 

 treated with HCl leaves a residue. This dissolved in methyl alcohol 

 or acetic acid, is left on evaporation. Heated to 250°, it sublimes 

 in brilliant orange-red needles, having all the reactions of alizarin. 

 Hence rufigallic acid is hexa-oxyanthraquinone CiJIaj JhO^' 

 and the production of alizarin in the vegetable kingdom, is ex- 

 plained.— ^m«. iSoc. Ch., II, xxiv, 359, Nov. 1875. g. f. b. 



