344 
cian in Germany, he thinks a very proper 
receptacle for the documents neceflary to- 
wards a final decifion of this: important 
eontroverfy. Mr. Hufeland concludes his 
addrefs, by requefting his colleagues to 
-be on their guard againft prejudice or par- 
tiality in their invettigations and reports ; 
for, fays he, ‘“ it is not the interefts of 
the vaccine inoculation, but the good of 
mankind and truth, that.is our object ; 
and therefore unfuccefsful experiments are 
as important and interefting to us as thofe 
which have been attended with fuccefs.”” 
An analyfis has lately been made by 
VauQuELIN of the four water of the. 
frarch-makers, a liquer produced in great 
quantity during the maceration of the 
wheat in “this manufa&tery, and which 
has hitherto been thrown away as ‘ufelefs. 
It is of a turbid milky-white colour, of 
a flightly acid and fpirituous odour, and 
a four and fomewhat putrefcent tafte. By 
being pafied through a filtering paper, it 
becomes clear and colourlefs. Twelve 
thoufand parts of unfiltered four qwater 
were diftilled in a copper alembic; the 
firft five hundred that came over contained 
nearly all the fpirit, which, being rectified, 
yielded 30 parts O(a pure inflammable 
aleohol, but of an unpleafant flavour: the 
remaining 11,500 parts being diftilled off 
clear; were found to have a ftrong acid 
tafte, and diffolved readily 288 parts of li- 
tharge; this felution being evaporated, 
and {ct to cryftallize, afforded 384 parts 
of acetite of lead (fugar of lead). By 
further analyfis, the other component parts. 
of the four-water were obtained, frdm 
_ which it appears to confilt of acetous acid, 
ammcenia, phofphat of lime, animal mat- 
ter, and alcoho]. In an economical point 
of view, all-the ingredients, except the 
firt and laft, may be negleéted, and the 
method of making the moft profit out of 
it will be to diflil the liquor, referving the 
firft runnings for re&tification, and making 
fugar of lead of the remainder. From 
thefe data, 120 gallons of the four-qwater 
fhould yield about three pints of alechol 
(rectified fpirit), and thirty-two pounds 
and a halr of acetite of lead (fugar of 
Jead). 
The ufe of fumigations as an antidote 
to putrid-air has been examined mto with 
much-care by Mogveau: he inclofeda 
quantity of infeéted air in a jar, and kept 
it in conta with perfunies of various 
kinds; this being afterwards wafhed, the 
putrid fmell remained as f&rong as at firft : 
no better fuccefs attended the alcoholic 
folut.ons ef myrrh, benzoin, &c. the weak 
Literary and Philofephical Intelligences 
[ Nov. 15 
acids, fach as vinegar, &c. the pytaligne< 
-ous acid had no effeét; neither had con- 
centrated fulphuric acid any: fulphureous 
acid in part took away the bad fmell; but 
thé nitric, muriatic, and efpeeially he oxy- 
muriatic acid, inftantaneoufly deftroyed 
every trace of the foetor. Air highly 
charged with the effluvia of putrid flefla 
exhibited neither acid nor alkaline proper- 
ties, and the caufe of this loathfome {mell 
is, at prefent at leaft, Leyond the power of 
chemical analyfis. 
The fiexible fand-ftone of Brazil is well 
known to all mineralogifts, and M. FLev- 
RIAU DE BELLEVUE, of Rochelle, has 
fucceeded in giving this quality of flexi- 
bility to Carara-marble; thin flips of 
which being expofed in a fand-bath to a 
certain temperature become fo far weak- 
ened in their power of cohefion as to be 
very fenfibly flexible. © / 
A fingular difcovery has lately been 
made in Spain. In digging the foundation 
for a bridge, the workmen met with fix 
{mall eggs, which, upon examination, bore 
a near refemblance to thofe of patridges ; 
their colour is ayellowifh white: they ef- 
fervefce with nitric-acid. One of them 
being divided with the faw, the yolk was 
found flattened, and reduced to a line in - 
thicknefs, and the who.e of the reft of the 
cavity was filled with beautiful cryftals of 
prifmatic calcareous fpar. 
Much doubt has of late exifted among 
chemifis about the febacic acid; fome 
maintaining it to be nothing but acetous 
acid, while others confider it as poffeffed 
of peculiar properties. A paper of Citi- 
zen THENARD, prefented to the Sucieté 
Philomathique, contains feveral important 
vefearches into the nature of this fub- 
ftance. Sebacic-acid may be obtained by 
diftilling animal-fat with a naked fire, and 
wafhing the produét in warm water, which, 
when evaporated, depofits the acid which 
it had diffolved in needle-fhaped cryftals ; 
or, the water ho!ding the acid in folution, 
may be faturated with potafh; if to this 
acetite of lead is added, a copious precipi- 
tate falls down, which is febat of lead, 
and this being decompofed by fulphuric 
acid affords pure febacic acid, This fale 
has a flightly.acid tafte, is without fmell, 
is much more foluble in hot than in cold 
water, from which, by gentle evaporation, 
it may be obtained in the form of large 
brilliant plates: it precipitates and de- 
compofes acetite and nitrat of lead, nitrat 
of filver, and acetite and nitrat of mer- 
cury ; with potafh it forms.a permanent, 
foluble, infipid, falt; it does not render 
turbid 
