Acidity , the Compojition of Water , and Phlogtjlon . 149 
The mercury being an impediment in this procefs, 1 afterwards 
confined the mixture of air in one vefle! (with mercury and fixed 
ammoniac as before) but I made the explofions in another, which 
1 had previoufly exhaufted of air. This veflel was larger than 
that which I had uied before, containing fomething more than 
eight ounce meafures; fo that the air it contained, being one- 
third dephlogifticated and two-thirds inflammable, would have 
weighed about two grains. After one explofion the quantity of 
water collected appearing inconfiderable, I repeated the procefs 
in the fame vefl'el, and then collecting the water, I found it 
not to exceed a grain and an half. 
I repeated this experiment very often, and conflantly found 
fome water, but it always fell far fhort of the weight of the 
air decompofed. There muff, therefore, have been fomething 
not very fluid adhering to the lides of the veflel, which could 
not be diflodged by a moderate heat ; and indeed the glafs did 
not recover the perfeCt clearnefs that it had before the procefs. 
I always obferved, that, prefently after every explofion, the 
veflel was filled with a denfe vapour, fo that it was fometimes 
impoflible to fee through it; and before I admitted the exter- 
nal air, I could pour it from one end of the veflel to the other, 
and it feemed to fall almofl: as faff as a feather in a common 
vacuum, and in general it did not difappear in lefs than ten 
minutes. I even found this denfe vapour when the mixture of 
air had been confined by water. The fmell of the veflel, 
after the procefs, was that of the moft ottenfive kind of in- 
flammable air from iron. 
From thefe experiments it was fufficiently evident, that 
fomething more than water had been produced ; and pouring 
into the veflel a quantity of the juice of litmus, it was iu- 
ftantly turned to a deep red ; fo that it was equally evident, 
that 
