372  Varieties.  {^Vur.??""" 
bleaching,  if  the  body  is  colored.  On  allowing  chlorine  to  act  upon  any  animal  or 
vegetable  matter,  it  decomposes  a  certain  quantity  of  water  and  seizes  its  hydrogen, 
forming  hydrochloric  acid.  The  oxygen  set  free  by  this  reaction  is  transformed  into 
ozone,  which  in  its  turn  lays  hold  of  hydrogen  present  in  organic  matter. — Chem. 
Ne^Sj  June      from  Compt.  Rend. 
Researches  on  the  Combination  of  Grape-Sugar  with  Copper  and  on 
Frommherz's  Assay. — E.  Salkowski  states  that,  if  in  testing  diabetic  urine  the  sul- 
phate of  copper  is  added  without  precaution,  the  precipitate  formed  does  not  re-dis- 
solve, and  the  filtrate  is  colorless,  feebly  alkaline,  containing  neither  copper  nor 
sugar,  or  at  most  a  trace  of  sugar.  The  bulk  of  the  sugar  is  in  the  precipitate,  and 
is  held  with  such  force  that  it  cannot  be  withdrawn  by  prolonged  washings.  If  we 
mix  I  atom  of  sugar,  5  atoms  of  sulphate  of  copper  and  10  atoms  of  hydrate  of 
soda,  the  filtrate  contains  no  sugar,  and  the  precipitate  dissolves  readily  in  the  soda- 
lye  ;  and,  if  the  liquid  is  heated,  all  the  copper  is  thrown  down  as  sub-oxide,  whilst 
the  sugar  is  destroyed.  If  these  proportions  are  exceeded,  hydrated  oxide  of  copper 
is  mixed  with  the  precipitate. — Chem.  Ne^s,  June  11,  from  Monit.  Scient. 
Anilin  Black  Marking  Ink.  Dr.  Jacobsen. — To  prepare  this  ink  the  two  fol- 
lowing solutions  are  required  :  (i.)  Dissolve  in  6ogrms.  of  water  8*52  grms.  crystal- 
line chloride  of  copper,  10-65  gr«^s.  chlorate  of  sodium,  and  5-35  grms.  chloride  of 
ammonium.  (2.)  Dissolve  20  grms.  hydrochlorate  of  anilin  in  30  grms.  of  distilled 
water,  and  add  10  grms.  solution  of  gum  arable  (i  part  of  gum  to  2  of  water),  and 
10  grms.  glycerin.  If  4  parts  of  the  anilin  liquid  are  mixed  in  the  cold  with  one 
part  of  the  copper  solution,  we  obtain  a  greenish  liquid,  which  may  be  used  at  once 
for  marking  linen  5  but  as  it  decomposes  in  a  few  days,  it  is  better  to  preserve  the 
two  solutions  separately.  The  writing  is  at  first  greenish,  but  is  blackened  by  ex- 
posure to  steam  [e.  g.,  by  being  held  over  the  spout  of  a  boiling  kettle).  A  dry 
heat  renders  the  tissue  brittle. — Ibid. 
Uninflammable  Products. — It  is  well  known  that  certain  substances,  notably 
phosphate  of  ammonium,  incorporated  in  the  fibres  of  tissues  render  the  same  incom- 
bustible, or,  rather,  admit  of  their  burning  very  slowly  and  carbonizing  without  the 
production  of  flame.  M.  L'Abbe  Mauran,  says  "La  Nature,"  has  recently  discovered 
that  a  mixture  of  borax,  sulphate  of  sodium  and  boracic  acid,  in  suitable  propor- 
tions, while  rendering  cloth  uninflammable,  will  also  prevent  any  alteration  of  color, 
flexibility,  or  lasting  qualities  through  the  effect  of  combustion. — Scientific  American^ 
July  17th. 
Water  and  its  Inhabitants. — The  quality  of  water  in  relation  to  its  fauna 
and  flora  has  been  the  subject  of  investigation  by  some  of  the  French  Academi- 
cians. In  substance,  the  results  seem  to  prove  that  water  in  which  animals  and 
plants  of  higher  organization  will  thrive  is  fit  to  drink  ;  and  on  the  other  hand,  water 
in  which  only  the  infusoria  and  lower  cryptogams  will  grow  is  unhealthy.  If  the 
water  become  stagnant  and  impure,  aquatic  plants  of  the  higher  order  will  languish 
and  disappear,  and  the  half-suff"ocated  fish  will  rise  near  the  surface  and  crowd 
