﻿596 
  DR 
  GEORGE 
  WILSON 
  ON 
  NITRIC 
  ACID 
  

  

  salt 
  is 
  of 
  no 
  avail. 
  But 
  it 
  is 
  needless 
  to 
  enlarge 
  upon 
  this, 
  for 
  even 
  if 
  it 
  were 
  con- 
  

   ceded 
  that 
  soda 
  is 
  the 
  more 
  important 
  constituent 
  of 
  nitrate 
  of 
  soda, 
  considered 
  

   as 
  a 
  fertiliser, 
  it 
  is 
  manifest 
  that 
  it 
  must 
  make 
  a 
  difference 
  to 
  a 
  plant 
  whether 
  

   soda 
  be 
  supplied 
  to 
  it 
  combined 
  with 
  carbonic, 
  hydrochloric, 
  sulphuric, 
  or 
  nitric 
  

   acid 
  ; 
  and 
  that 
  in 
  the 
  case 
  of 
  nitrate 
  of 
  soda, 
  the 
  plant 
  must 
  in 
  some 
  way 
  dispose 
  

   of 
  the 
  nitric 
  acid 
  before 
  it 
  can 
  avail 
  itself 
  of 
  the 
  soda 
  ; 
  so 
  that 
  the 
  question 
  must 
  

   be 
  answered, 
  What 
  becomes 
  of 
  the 
  nitric 
  acid 
  which 
  enters 
  plants 
  ? 
  

  

  To 
  this, 
  one 
  reply 
  is 
  offered 
  in 
  the 
  quotation 
  which 
  I 
  commenced 
  by 
  reading. 
  

   The 
  presence 
  of 
  nitrates 
  in 
  tobacco, 
  sunflower, 
  and 
  certain 
  other 
  plants, 
  is 
  thought 
  

   to 
  shew 
  that 
  if 
  they 
  do 
  not 
  even 
  possess 
  the 
  power 
  of 
  producing 
  nitric 
  acid, 
  they 
  

   at 
  least 
  cannot 
  decompose 
  it. 
  But 
  surely 
  this 
  is 
  proving 
  too 
  much. 
  For 
  if 
  the 
  

   presence 
  of 
  undecomposed 
  nitric 
  acid 
  in 
  a 
  plant 
  shews 
  that 
  it 
  cannot 
  decompose 
  

   that 
  acid, 
  then 
  the 
  presence 
  of 
  ammonia 
  shews 
  that 
  it 
  cannot 
  decompose 
  ammonia, 
  

   and 
  the 
  presence 
  of 
  undecomposed 
  sulphuric 
  acid 
  shews 
  that 
  it 
  cannot 
  decompose 
  

   this 
  acid 
  ; 
  and 
  for 
  the 
  same 
  reason, 
  as 
  plants 
  all 
  contain 
  undecomposed 
  chlorides, 
  

   carbonates, 
  water, 
  and 
  carbonic 
  acid, 
  it 
  should 
  be 
  held 
  that 
  they 
  can 
  decompose 
  

   none 
  of 
  these. 
  In 
  short, 
  it 
  should 
  be 
  contended 
  that 
  a 
  plant 
  can 
  decompose 
  no- 
  

   thing, 
  and 
  that 
  its 
  existence 
  is 
  a 
  chemical 
  contradiction. 
  If 
  we 
  refuse 
  to 
  draw 
  this 
  

   conclusion 
  in 
  the 
  case 
  of 
  the 
  other 
  oxides 
  and 
  acids 
  which 
  are 
  found 
  in 
  plants, 
  

   we 
  must 
  extend 
  our 
  refusal 
  to 
  nitric 
  acid, 
  which 
  is 
  circumstanced 
  exactly 
  as 
  the 
  

   others 
  are. 
  

  

  As 
  for 
  the 
  opinion 
  that 
  plants 
  may 
  produce 
  nitric 
  acid, 
  it 
  is 
  quite 
  possible 
  

   that 
  they 
  can, 
  although 
  for 
  reasons 
  to 
  be 
  presently 
  mentioned 
  it 
  does 
  not 
  seem 
  

   likely 
  that 
  they 
  generally 
  do 
  ; 
  but 
  it 
  would 
  be 
  unwise 
  to 
  speak 
  confidently 
  on 
  the 
  

   matter. 
  The 
  only 
  conclusion 
  certainly 
  deducible 
  from 
  the 
  presence 
  of 
  nitrates 
  in 
  

   plants 
  is, 
  that 
  at 
  least 
  nitric 
  acid 
  does 
  not 
  act 
  injuriously 
  on 
  them. 
  

  

  Thus 
  far, 
  then, 
  it 
  has 
  been 
  I 
  think 
  satisfactorily 
  shewn 
  — 
  

  

  Firstly, 
  That 
  nitrates 
  are 
  largely 
  offered 
  to 
  plants, 
  both 
  as 
  they 
  grow 
  wild 
  

   and 
  as 
  they 
  are 
  artificially 
  cultivated. 
  

  

  Secondly, 
  That 
  plants 
  do 
  not 
  refuse 
  the 
  nitrates 
  thus 
  offered 
  them. 
  

  

  Thirdly, 
  That 
  the 
  nitrates 
  which 
  enter 
  plants 
  do 
  not, 
  if 
  properly 
  diluted, 
  do 
  

   injury 
  to 
  any 
  class 
  of 
  them 
  ; 
  whilst, 
  

  

  Fourthly, 
  They 
  largely 
  promote 
  the 
  growth 
  of 
  many 
  of 
  the 
  most 
  important 
  

   among 
  them. 
  

  

  It 
  remains 
  to 
  inquire, 
  Can 
  plants 
  decompose 
  nitric 
  acid, 
  and 
  avail 
  themselves 
  

   of 
  its 
  nitrogen 
  ? 
  I 
  can 
  offer 
  no 
  direct 
  or 
  demonstrative 
  proof 
  that 
  plants 
  possess 
  

   the 
  power 
  of 
  effecting 
  this 
  decomposition. 
  Direct 
  proof 
  is 
  not 
  to 
  be 
  had 
  in 
  the 
  

   matter, 
  but 
  the 
  following 
  powerful 
  considerations 
  may 
  be 
  urged 
  in 
  support 
  of 
  the 
  

   belief 
  that 
  plants 
  can 
  decompose 
  nitric 
  acid. 
  

  

  From 
  the 
  moment 
  of 
  the 
  discovery 
  that 
  water 
  is 
  the 
  oxide 
  of 
  hydrogen, 
  

   chemists 
  perceived 
  that 
  the 
  great 
  characteristic 
  function 
  of 
  a 
  living 
  plant, 
  con- 
  

   sidered 
  as 
  a 
  piece 
  of 
  chemical 
  apparatus, 
  was 
  to 
  deprive 
  oxides 
  of 
  their 
  oxygen, 
  

  

  