2,66 
Mr. W. Brande’s Account of a 
now change its colour to a very bright brown, which is de- 
stroyed by washing with dilute muriatic acid, and its original 
yellow colour restored. 
Neither the fusibility, nor the inflammability of the wax, 
are impaired by this process. 
Nitric acid, diluted with eight parts of water, produces the 
same change in the colour of the wax as the concentrated 
acid. 
Having been unsuccessful in my attempts to bleach the wax 
in its original state, I made some experiments to ascertain 
whether its colour could be more easily destroyed, after it had 
been acted upon by nitric acid, and found, that by exposing it 
spread upon glass to the action of light, it became in the 
course of three weeks of a pale straw colour, and on the sur- 
face nearly white. The same change was produced, by steep- 
ing the wax in thin plates, in an aqueous solution of oxymu- 
riatic gas, but I have not hitherto succeeded in rendering it 
perfectly white. 
10. Muriatic acid has little action on the wax : when boiled 
upon it for some hours, it destroys much of its colour. 
11. Sulphuric acid changes the colour of the wax to a pale 
brown, and when water is added, it becomes of a deep rose 
colour ; the inflammability and the fusibility of the wax are 
slightly impaired by this process. 
When heat is applied, the wax is decomposed with the usual 
phenomena, sulphurous acid is developed, and charcoal de- 
posited. 
12. Acetic acid has very little action on the wax, when 
cold. 
When the wax is boiled in this acid, a minute portion is 
dissolved, and again deposited as the solution cools. By long 
