430 Chronicles of Science. [July, 



proved by finding that, when the positions of the electrometer and 

 the place where the disc was supposed to be charged were inter- 

 changed, the charge of the electrometer was still always negative. 

 The last resource was to assume that the author himself had become 

 charged by walking across the carpeted room, though the effect was 

 produced even by the most careful treading. This ultimately proved 

 to be the case ; for, resuming his seat at the table, and scraping the 

 foot on the rug, Sir Charles was able, at will, to move the index to 

 its greatest extent. 



As a substitute for copper for the Daniell Electric Battery, Dr. 

 C. Stolzel proposes to take a piece of well-polished tin plate (sheet 

 tin, not tinned iron), immerse it in a very dilute solution of a copper 

 salt, and put it in connection with a weak galvanic current. After 

 the lapse of from fifteen to eighteen hours a layer of strongly 

 adhering metallic copper will have become firmly deposited upon 

 the tin plate ; and the latter, after having been bent into the required 

 shape, is an excellent, cheap, and durable substitute for the copper 

 cylinder in Daniell's battery. 



Considering the numerous experiments now being tried on wine, 

 it is to be hoped that the quality of the cheaper kinds of this be- 

 verage will shortly show some improvement. Whilst Dr. Eousselle 

 proposes to freeze wine, Dr. Scontettin prefers to electrify it. As 

 a very tangible proof of the gain obtained by the immediate con- 

 version of young wines into drinkable beverages by means of elec- 

 tricity, the author states that, considering that the annual production 

 of wine of France amounts to from 60 to 70 millions of hectolitres 

 (each equal to rather more than 22 gallons), and that at least 10 

 francs per hectolitre is lost by vaporization during the time of the 

 maturity of the wine while in casks, this represents an amount of 

 from 600 to 700 millions of francs gained by rendering wine fit for 

 immediate consumption by the author's electric process. We may 

 not inaptly apply here, " Si non e vero e bene trovato." 



Some useful electrolytic experiments have been tried by P. 

 Burckhard. After describing his arrangement, the author states 

 that oxide of bismuth is not a conductor of electricity unless it be 

 in a state of fusion, but in that case one of the copper electrodes 

 becomes coated with bismuth ; while, if platinum electrodes are 

 used, there is formed at one of the electrodes a very fusible alloy of 

 the two metals. Fused borax is not a bad conductor, although the 

 author confirmed the statement made by Dr. Tichanowitsch that 

 pure boric acid does not conduct electricity at all. When borax 

 in a fused state is experimented with, a series of compounds are 

 formed or volatilized ; but the main result is its decomposition into 

 soda, oxygen, and boron. Pyrophosphate of soda in a fused state 

 yields, among the products of electrolysis, phosphide of platinum.. 



