BETWEEN THE FREEZING AND BOILING-POINTS. 
263 
heat approaches infinity at the boiling-point ? And of all the bodies which we 
should select as probably exhibiting this property, water is certainly the first.” 
The identification of latent heat and specific heat which Rowland makes when he 
says “ the specific heat approaches infinity at the boiling-point ” and that ;£ the 
specific heat of melting ice is infinite ” is hardly tenable. Moreover, the character 
of the curve as the boiling-point is reached shows no indication of approaching an 
infinite value, and is entirely independent of the pressure which determines the 
boiling-point. The idea of an infinite value of the specific heat at 0° can hardly be 
reconciled with the idea of the continuity of the curve for under-cooled water. It is 
highly probable that the specific heat approaches an exceedingly high, but 
measurable value, as the freezing point is reached, and that the character of the 
curve below the minimum point indicates an entirely different physical state of the 
water to that above. The law governing the variation of the specific heat with 
temperature above 37°'5 is directly in accord with what knowledge we already 
possess of other substances, and of what our preconceived ideas might lead us to 
expect. 
We can draw no analogies from other liquids, since our knowledge, with the 
exception, perhaps, of mercury, is now only exceedingly meagre. As the 
temperature is reduced below 37°'5, may it not be that the water commences to 
anticipate the formation of the solid phase, even before 0° is reached, and that the 
rapid increase in specific heat indicates the effort being made to resist parting with 
the internal energy necessary for formation of ice, and to form a more and more close 
aggregation ? If this be true, it suggests at once the same effect for other liquids. 
Can we expect to find a minimum point in the specific heat curve for other liquids in 
the light of the above considerations ? I can do no more than suggest such a 
possibility at present. 
