and tue feeming Converjion of Waler into Air, 405 
not lnccced ; but I mu ft repeat the experiments, and note the 
appearances more accurately, before I report them. 
In alkaline air lead feems to be formed from the minium as 
readily as in inflammable air, and indeed I thought rather more 
lo , and. tins is a remarkable confirmation and llluftration of 
thcfe experiments, in which, by taking the elc&ric fpark in a 
quantity of alkaline air, I converted it into three times as much 
pure inflammable air; an experiment which, on account of 
the extraordinary nature of it, I have repeated many times 
flnce I firft publifhed the account of it, and always with the 
fame refult. 
This experiment alfo throws fome light upon thofein which, 
by fuper-phlogifticating iron with nitrous air, I produced a 
ftrong fmell of volatile alkali ; an experiment which 1 have 
alfo fiequently repeated with the fame refult. The reviving 
of lead in alkaline air may alfo help us to conceive how all 
acids fhould have an affinity both to phlogifton and to alkalies , 
which have hitherto appeared to be things fo very different from 
each other ; fince, from thefe experiments, it is probable that 
one of them is fome modification of the other, or a combina- 
tion of fomething elfe with the other. To trace the connec- 
tion between the alkaline and inflammable principles, is a cu- 
rious fubjeft ; and from thefe hints it may, perhaps, not be 
very difficult to profecute it to advantage. It is evident, how- 
ever, from the following experiments, that alkaline air is the 
compound and inflammable air, or phlogifton, the more Ample 
fubftance of the two. 
From 54 ounce meafures of alkaline air I got, by means of 
litharge, 1 7 grains of lead, belides fome that was diffolved in 
the mercury, by which the air was confined. There remained 
2 f ounce meafures, which appeared to be phlogifticated air, 
and 
