34. Mr. Davy's Experiments on the 
will be necessary ; and it is to be hoped that whenever they take 
hydrogenated muriates or hydromuriates ; and on such a plan, the compounds of 
exymuriatic gas must be called demuriates or oxymuriates, which I conceive would 
create more complexity and difficulty in unfolding just ideas on this department of 
chemical knowledge than the methods which I have ventured to propose. It may 
however be right, considering the infant state of the investigation, to suspend, for a 
a time, the adoption of any new terms for these compounds. It is possible that oxy- 
muriatic gas may be compound, and that this body and oxygene may contain some 
common principle ; but at present we have no more right to say that oxymuriatic gas 
contains oxygene than to say that tin contains hydrogene ; and names should express 
things and not opinions ; and till a body is decompounded, it should be considered 
as simple. 
In the last number of Mr. Nicholson’s Journal, which appeared February ist, 
whilst this sheet was correcting for the press, I have seen an ingenious paper, by Mr. 
Mur ray, of Edinburgh, in which he has attempted to shew, that oxymuriatic gas con- 
tains oxygene. His methods are, by detonating oxymuriatic gas in excess, with a mix- 
ture of hydrogene, and gaseous oxide of carbone, when he supposes carbonic acid is 
formed ; and by mixing oxymuriatic gas in excess, w'ith sulphuretted hydrogene, when 
he supposes sulphuric acid, or sulphureous acid is formed. In some experiments, in 
which my brother, Mr. John Davy, was so good as to co-operate, made over boiled 
mercury, we found, that 7 parts of hydrogene, 8 parts of gaseous oxide of carbone, 
and 20 parts of oxymuriatic gas, exploded by the electric spark, diminished to about 
30 measures ; and calomel was formed on the sides of the tube. On adding dry am- 
monia in excess, and exposing the remainder to water, a gas remained, which equalled 
more than 9 measures, and which was gaseous oxide of carbone, with no more impurity 
than might be expected from the air in the gasses, and the nitrogene expelled from the 
ammonia; so that the oxygene in Mr. Murray’s carbonic acid, it seems, was ob- 
tained from water , or from the carbonic oxide. Sulphuretted hydrogene, added over 
dry mercury, to oxymuriatic gas in excess, inflamed in two or three experiments ; 
muriatic acid gas containing the vapour of oxymuriate of sulphur, was formed, which, 
when neutralized by ammonia, gave muriate of ammonia, and a combination of am- 
monia, and oxymuriate of sulphur. 
When a mixture of oxymuriatic gas in excess, and sulphuretted hydrogene, was 
suffered to pass into the atmosphere, the smell was that of oxymuriate of sulphur J 
there was not the slightest indication of the presence of any sulphuric or sulphureous 
acid. If Mr. Murray had used ammonia, instead of water, for analyzing his results, 
I do not think he would have concluded, that oxymuriatic gas is capable of decom- 
position by such methods. 
I shall not, at present, enter upon a detail cf other experiments which I have made 
