FACTS AND OBSERVATIONS. 
485 
of sulphur is announced in the New York Times . It is the 
island of Saba, one of the Dutch West Indies, situated about 
110 miles south-east from St. Thomas, and 40 miles south¬ 
west from St. Martha. The island is of volcanic origin, 
about 11 miles in circumference, and at its highest point 
about 2800 feet above the sea-level. Though a Dutch pos¬ 
session, the language spoken by its 2000 inhabitants is chiefly 
English. The sulphur deposit was discovered by a person 
from New York, who, noticing indications of sulphur-ore, 
quarried, with the help of the natives, two sloop loads, which 
he took to New York, and submitted for analysis. The re¬ 
port of the chemists was to the effect, that while the Sicily 
ores yield only about 30 per cent, of brimstone for the ore 
consumed, the Saba ore yields an average of over 60 per 
cent. Adding to this the fact that the island is only about 
1500 miles from New York, it will be seen that this is an 
important discovery, and it will not be wondered at that steps 
have been taken to secure leases of the best tracts on the 
island.— Pharm. Journ. 
Peculiar Production of Ozone. —Professor H. Croft 
gives, in the Chemical News, February 24th, an account of an 
anomalous production of this compound which he has expe¬ 
rienced. He states that, about six years ago, when evapo¬ 
rating some syrupy iodic acid, prepared according to Millon’s 
process, over sulphuric acid, he noticed that when the acid 
began to crystallise, the air in the jar (covering the drying- 
dish) had a strong smell of ozone, or active oxygen. A 
couple of years afterwards, on again making iodic acid, this 
observation recurred to his mind, and he carefully tested the 
air in the jar during the evaporation ; no trace of ozone could 
be detected until the acid began to crystallise, when the smell 
of ozone became immediately perceptible, and all the usual 
tests for that body succeeded perfectly. During the last 
month he has had occasion to convert two ounces of iodine 
into iodic acid, and exactly the same result has been observed. 
—The Popular Science Review. 
Tests for Detecting Strychnia. —Dr. Filhol has a 
paper on this subject in the Journal cle Pharmacie et de Chimie 
for January, 1872. After having reviewed the various tests 
described in works of chemistry, the author concludes that 
as regards the sure detection of this alkaloid in cases of 
poisoning it should be obtained in a solid state ; the alkalinity 
of its solution should be ascertained as well as its intensely 
bitter taste; its behaviour with chlorine, and its blue colour¬ 
ation under the influence of sulphuric acid and oxidising 
