MERCURY — ITS  OXIDES  AND  ACETATES,  ETC. 
261 
To  show  more  fully  the  character  of  mercury  and  some  of  its 
salts, — claiming  attention  in  connection  with  blue  mass, — I 
give,  in  addition  to  my  experiments,  the  observations  of  some 
others. 
1st.  Metallic  Mercury  "remains  unaltered,  when  agitated 
for  any  length  of  time  with  oxygen,  common  air,  nitrous  oxide, 
nitric  oxide,  carbonic  acid  gas,  or  alcohol." — Proust  $  Vogel. 
2d.  Mercury  in  a  state  of  minute  division, — as  precipitated 
from  its  solutions  by  protochloride  of  tin, — was  not  affected  by 
glacial  acetic  acid  when  heated  over  it,  and  yielded  nothing  to 
hydrochloric  acid,  sp.  gr.  1.12,  diluted  with  seven  volumes  of 
water. 
3d.  Black  Oxide  of  Mercury,  of  the  U.  S.  Pharmacopoeia, 
(mercurous  oxide),  was  prepared  by  acting  on  hydro-sublimed 
calomel  by  caustic  potash  in  excess,  washing  the  oxide  till  the 
washings  were  no  longer  disturbed  by  nitrate  of  silver,  and  dry- 
ing in  the  dark.  While  washing  the  calomel  previous  to  acting 
on  it  by  potash,  it  was  observed  that  the  washings  were  affected 
by  both  nitrate  of  silver  and  sulphide  of  ammonium,  a  fact 
which  was  subsequently  found  to  be  stated  by  Mialhe,  who  gives 
the  solubility  of  calomel  in  various  solutions  of  the  alkaline 
chlorides.  It  is  also  stated  by  Simon,  that  calomel  is  taken  up 
by  boiling  water. 
Biack  oxide  of  mercury  was  found  to  be  soluble  to  an  appre- 
ciable extent  in  distilled  water  at  60^  F.,  giving  an  evident  re- 
action with  sulphide  of  ammonium.  At  212°  F.,  distilled  water 
takes  up  a  much  larger  quantity,  affording  a  deep  brown  color 
with  sulphide  of  ammonium,  and  a  white  turbidity,  with  solu- 
tions containing  half  grain  to  the  ounce  of  chloride  of  sodium, 
or  chloride  of  ammonium,  but  is  not  disturbed  by  hydrochloric 
acid. 
The  precipitates  afforded  by  the  chlorides  were  insoluble  in 
the  cold  in  an  excess  of  the  precipitants,  but  were  completely 
re-dissolved  by  dilute  hydrochloric  acid.  [Hydrochloric  acid, 
when  diluted  so  as  to  merely  redden  litmus,  did  not  disturb  the 
solution  of  the  oxide.] 
Water  boiled  over  the  oxide,  and  allowed  to  stand  seve- 
ral days,  contained  more  of  the  oxide  in  solution  than  was  taken 
up  at  60°  F. 
