Proceedings of Learned Societies. 477 



acted tipon by caustic potash, hydrochloric acid was removed from 

 it, in this way : — 



C 4 H 4 C1 2 = HC1 + C 4 H 3 C1. 



Dutch Liquid. Hydrochloric Acid. Chloride of Vinyle. 



A simpler view regards it as a bichloride, presenting some analogy 

 with the inorganic chlorides, snch as that of platinum : — ■ 



(C 4 H 4 )C1 2 . PtCl 2 



Bichloride of Ethylene. Bichloride of Platinum. 



On heating bichloride of ethylene with acetate of silver the follow- 

 ing change takes place : — One equivalent of the former substance, 

 containing two equivalents of chlorine, removes, from two equiva- 

 lents of acetate of silver, two equivalents of silver in the form of 

 chloride, while the remainder of the constituents of the two bodies 

 unite to form acetate of ethylene. The chemical equation repre- 

 senting this change may be put thus : — 



C 4 H 4 ,C1 2 + 2AgC 4 H 8 4 = 2AgCl + 4 H 4 ,2C 4 H 3 O 4 



Bichloride of Acetate of Chloride of Binacetate of 



Ethylene. Silver. Silver. Ethylene. 



Or thus : — 



C 4 H 4 ,A 2 + C 4 H 3 2 ) = Ag 2 A 2 + C 4 H 3 2 ") 



Ag 2 4 (C 4 H 4 y [ 4 



C 4 H 3 0j C 4 H 3 2 ) 



The two dashes placed after the symbol for ethylene, show that it 

 is equal to two equivalents of silver, Ag 2 . 



On exposing binacetate of ethylene to caustic potash, acetic acid 

 is removed, and hydrate of ethylene formed. Hydrate of ethylene 

 is also termed glycol, and is an alcohol, standing in the same 

 relation to ethylene as ordinary alcohol does to ethyle : — 

 Ethyle. Alcohol. Ethvlene. Glycol. 



(C 4 H 5 )' ) (C 4 H 5 )' 1 (C;H 4 )" (C 4 H*)" ] Q 



(Wi H )° 2 H 2 j U * 



When glycol, C 4 H 4 , H 2 4 , or C 4 H 4 , 2 , H 2 2 , is exposed to the 

 action of hydrochloric acid, a substance intermediate in composition 

 between Dutch liquid and glycol is formed, namely, C 4 H 4 , 2 , HC1, 

 which, when decomposed by caustic potash, yields oxide of ethylene, 

 C 4 H 4 , 2 . This is the ether of the series, and stands in the same 

 relation to ethylene as ordinary ether does to ethyle : — 



Ethyle. Oxide of Ethyle. Ethylene. Oxide of Ethylene. 



The action of oxydizing agents on this substance gives rise to many 

 compounds comparable with inorganic bodies ; one series of ethylene 

 derivatives may be placed side by side with the series derived from 

 hydrochloric acid, namely : — 



C 4 H 4 4 ; C 4 H 4 8 ; C 4 H 4 8 

 HC10 4 ; HC10 6 ; HC10 8 



