and a Specimen of Native Gold. 147 



gam from Moschelladsberg, Ag Hg 3 . It is worth recording 

 how firmly and tenaciously mercury is retained by silver in 

 the molten state. In one experiment, a fragment of the above 

 amalgam was fused in a glass tube and kept at a bright red 

 heat for more than ten minutes. The bead of silver, when 

 cold, was beaten flat, cut into strips, and again heated, when 

 what proved to be almost an additional one per cent, of mer- 

 cury came off. 



Another specimen of supposed " native silver " from Kongs- 

 berg was found to possess a somewhat different composition. 

 The analysis gave the following numbers : — 



Mean. 

 7-195 





I. 



II. 



Silver . . . 



= 92-454 





Mercury . . 



= 7-022 



7-369 



Iron oxide . . 



= 0-033 





Lime . . . 



= 0-055 





Silver chloride 



= 0-088 





Insol. part . . 



= 1-328 

 100-980 



Calculated. 





Ag 12 Hg. 







Silver . 





=92-84 



Mercury 



.... 



= 7-16 



100-00 



This is an amalgam having the formula Ag 12 Hg, and is new 

 to science. These two amalgams are the only ones which I 

 have examined; and they both yield ratios which appear to in- 

 dicate the existence of actual chemical compounds. 



Travellers journeying through the Straits of Magellan stop 

 at Punta Arenas. At this station the natives offer for sale 

 washed gold in laminated grains and scales against its weight 

 in sovereigns. A specimen of this gold, presented to the 

 Mineral Department by my friend Mr. C. L. Claude, of Val- 

 paraiso, proved to have the following composition: — 



Gold . . . 



. =91-760 



Silver . . . 



. = 7-466 



Copper . . . 



. = 0-248 



Iron oxide . . 



. = 1-224 



100-698 



