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ON  TINKALZITE  FROM  PERU. 
July  several  flower-pots,  each  containing  four  grains  of  rye, 
sown  respectively  on  the  24th,  26th,  27th,  and  28th  of  July, 
were  placed  in  a  large  space  perfectly  secluded  from  external 
light,  the  pots  standing  about  one  metre  from  the  electric  lamp, 
and  half  a  millimetre  below  the  point  of  light.  The  grains 
sown  on  the  24th  and  26th  had  sprouted,  the  stems  being  about 
0.m005  to  0.m012  in  length.  One  of  these  small  plants  pre- 
sented the  commencement  of  a  green  tint  at  the  point,  the  others 
were  white.  By  the  middle  of  the  day  of  the  31st  the  plants 
of  the  24th  and  26th  had  grown  to  0.m01  and  0.m06  in  length  ; 
they  were  very  green,  and  strongly  inclined  towards  the  light. 
The  plants  of  the  27th  had  sprung  up  and  were  green  at  the 
tips.  By  the  2d  of  August  all  the  plants  had  developed  as 
well  as  if  they  had  been  in  the  open  air,  and  all  exhibited  their 
natural  green  color.  On  the  3d  of  August  the  experiment  was 
brought  to  an  end.  It  is  scarcely  necessary  to  add  that  some 
corresponding  seeds  grown  in  darkness  for  the  same  period  were 
perfectly  yellow. 
It  follows  from  the  above  that  the  electric  light,  like  sunlight, 
is  capable  of  causing  the  development  of  the  green  parts  of 
plants.  It  has  been  previously  shown  that  the  light  resulting 
from  very  intense  combustion,  such  as  results  from  pyrotechnic 
compositions  for  instance,  is  capable  of  producing  the  same  ef- 
fect.— Lond.  Pharm.  Journ.,  Oct.,  1861. 
ON  TINKALZITE  (BORATE  OF  LIME  AND  SODA)  FROM  PERU. 
'By  T.  L.  Phipson. 
Phil.  Nat.  Doct.  Bruxelles  University ;  Member  of  the  Chemical  Society  of  Paris,  Ac.  &c. 
The  useful  mineral  of  which  I  am  about  to  speak  was  dis- 
covered only  a  few  years  ago  in  the  deposits  of  nitrate  of  soda 
in  Peru.  It  is  now  imported  into  Europe  in  considerable  quan- 
tities as  a  substitute  for  borax.  It  was  first  examined  in  3  850 
by  M.  tJlex,  who  found  that  it  contained  boracic  acid,  lime,  and 
soda  ;  but  the  analysis  published  by  this  author  shows  too  small 
a  quantity  of  water,  and  too  much  boracic  acid.  In  1859,  M. 
Kletzinsky  received  some  samples  of  this  same  mineral  from  the 
Western  Coast  of  Africa,  and  the  analysis  he  has  made  of  them 
