Lf. A. Hili—Notes on Argon and Helium. 373 
Authorities. 
1, Argon, Prouts’ Hypothesis and the Periodic Law, this Journal, May, 1895, 
p. 416. 
2. Chemical News, March 8, 1895, p. 116, and June 7, 1895, p. 271, and Jour. 
Chem. Soc, July, 1895, ccexcii, p. 550. 
3. Ibid., May 3, 1895, p. 213; Journal of the Franklin Institute, July, 1895, 
- p. 68, and Nature, July 18, 1895, p. 278, 
4, Nature, Feb. 21, 1895, p. 389. 
5. Chemical News, March 22, 1895, p. 139. 
6. Ibid., May 17, 1895, p. 244. 
7. Nature, March 21, 1895, p. 486, 
8. Journal Chemical Society, July, 1895, p. 707. 
9. Zeit. Anorg. Chemie, viii, 283-8, and Chemisches Central-Blatt, Band IT, 1895, 
p. 429. 
Note A. Prof. Reynolds, while indicating the existence of members of Family 
VIII of higher weight than 36-39, does not assign their atomic weights in the 
article quoted. Atomic weights are given in the body of the table and the agree- 
ment, it will be seen, is very striking. It will be noted that three of the values in 
Mr. Reed’s classification (68, 84, and 132) are just one unit greater than the cor- 
responding values in my own series (67, 83 and 131), 
The coincidences are certainly very striking. 
New Haven, Ct., Aug. 10, 1895. 
Addendum, October 7th, 1896: 
The publication of the foregoing article having been delayed 
until the November issue renders necessary some additional 
remarks. 
Prof. Ramsay (Chem. News, Aug. 2, 1895, p. 51) has pro- 
duced a compound of carbon and argon by the action of an 
incandescent carbon arc in an atmosphere of argon. Four hours’ 
action increased the volume one-fifth. Mr. Crookes (Chem. 
News, Aug. 30, 1895, p. 99) examined the product spectro- 
scopically, finding residual argon, and also a compound with 
a spectrum very analogous to that of cyanogen and other 
carbon compounds. This, however, he says, is not evidence 
favoring the N’* theory, since most volatile carbon compounds 
have similar spectra. 
In view of the many analogies between argon and nitrogen, 
this new compound may have the formula CA, and be analo- 
gous to cyanogen, which can be formed in a very similar _man- 
ner; i.e., by passing induction sparks between carbon poles in 
an atmosphere of nitrogen. This new compound furnishes a 
strong argument against the theory that argon at ordinary tem- 
peratures is like mercury at 800°, too hot to combine (hence its 
inertness). All the argon compounds thus far formed, as those 
of Berthelot with benzene and carbon disulphide, and the 
apparent absorption of argon by the magnesium and platinum 
poles, have been produced by heating and not cooling argon, 
and by increasing, not decreasing, its store of energy. 
Am. Jour. Sci—Tuirp SERIES, Vout. L, No. 299—NovemMBER, 1895. 
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