398  Chemicdl  Notes.  { 
Am.  Jour.  PliariU, 
Aug.,  1881. 
used  it  for  several  years  in  making  the  most  delicate-flavored  colognes, 
and  found  it  to  answer  equally  well  as  ^le  musk  generally  employed. 
I  do  not  know  whether  the  musk  from  musk  rats  has  ever  been 
used  as  an  internal  remedy.  If  any  of  the  readers  of  this  journal  have 
known  of  its  being  so  employed  I  hope  that  they  will  communicate 
their  experience. 
CHEMICAL  NOTES. 
By  Prof.  Samuel  P.  Sadtler,  Ph.D. 
Inorganic  Chemistry. — On  the  Existence  of  Free  Fluorine  in  Cer- 
tain Fluorspars. — Oscar  Low  has  examined  the  strong  smelling  sub- 
stance which  is  liberated  when  the  violet-black  fluorspar  of  Wolsen- 
dorf  is  decomposed.  Schafhiiutl  had  explained  this  previously,  by 
assuming  the  presence  of  calcium  hypochlorite,  Schrotter  had  assumed 
ozone,  and  Schonbein  aiitozone  to  be  present.  Low  became  convinced 
that  the  odor  was  owing  to  free  fluorine,  and  at  once  called  to  mind 
observations  of  Schrotter's  that,  while  sliowing  the  impossibility  of 
ozone  l)eing  present,  made  it  likely  that  free  fluorine  might  be.  Thus 
a  temperature  of  310°C.  did  not  destroy  the  odor,  while  rubbing  up 
the  mineral  with  caustic  potash  solution  changed  it  considerably; 
when  rubbed  up  with  sulphur,  an  odor  like  chloride  of  sulphur  was 
developed  ;  and  lastly,  that  the  odoriferous  substance  liberated  chlorine 
from  sodium  chloride  and  iodine  from  ])otassium  iodide.  Low  also 
observed  that  when  the  mineral  was  rubbed  up  with  dilute  caustic 
potash  a  solution  was  obtained  that  decolorized  indigo  almost  instantly 
like  hypochlorite  solution. 
In  order  to  test  the  question  more  thoroughly.  Low  rubbed  up 
1  kilo  of  the  mineral,  in  small  portions  at  a  time,  with  weak  ammo- 
nia water,  using  filtrate  and  wash-water  for  the  successive  treatments. 
The  last  filtrate  was  treated  with  sodium  carbonate,  evaporated,  and  to 
the  residue,  placed  in  a  platinum  dish,  sulphuric  acid  was  added.  This 
was  covered  w^ith  a  glass  plate,  and  kept  for  some  time  at  a  tempera- 
ture of  40°  to  50 °C.  The  result  was  a  very  decided  corrosion  of  the 
glass. 
As  to  the  question  as  to  the  nature  of  the  fluoride  which  yields  the 
free  fluorine.  Low  thinks  the  presence  of  cerium  in  this  fluorspar  from 
Wolsendorflf  shows  it  to  be  cerium  fluoride,  wdiich,  separated  originally 
along  with  the  calcium  fluoride  at  low  temperatures,  when  the  tempe- 
