Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1895-01-19

by any means be dccomposcl into ]
simpler substances. Thus defined. gold. |
silver copper lead in short, 90 the |
metal, arc elements; for the application |
OF all known means, such as heat cleo.
ulcity, solvents. aud Others, Of splitting !
substances up into simpler bodies, has |
failed TO produce simpler products from
thg5v metals. SO iar as known, the
world is composed OF about seventy
elements, either free or combined one
with another. but many of these clu.
mcus are rare, the common ones, 0r
those that make up the bulk OF the
world almost entirely being ablu,
twelve iu number. ~, @ rule. the Gle.
mcuts arc combined, one substance con.
s.stIng, in general Of from two 90 five
elements chemically united. Water, for
example, consists of but two elements,
oxygen and hydroEcu marble, u pure,
Of three, quart OF two. and air of %
mixture Of TWO, nitrogen and oxygen a
new element IS occasionally discovered,
so that the exact number Of elements of
which the world is composed is not
known. Further, Dc is entirely possible
THAT some OF our elements may some
day be found 90 be compounds, being
dugomp0sgd by means a9 yet unknown.
o. HN NINNNN HNNnNAlN"NH AINNN WNNN hNNN|NNN
thought TO be elements have been
proved since 20 be chemical compounds
boy dccomposing them into simpler
bodies.
but since an element cannot De dc.
composed, % follows that it gauuo, be
changed into another element; 10 mly
however, unite with other elements 10
produce chemical compounds. Hence
FL al. cas-. H.s
anticipate somewhat they cannot
possibly be made from other elements.
such as lead and C1pp.r The GAS. ui
the a.Chgmst, therefore. wl. O. Ruthless
one 500 Car Us tLugmutauIl OF metals
was concerned, but biz work was not
entirely without valuable results. Tor 10
brought TO light many important, chcmi.
cal facts.
Bot itmay De asked how the ancicnu
obtained such erroneous ideas OF the
elements. We uu not have 90 look long
for the answer, .tis because their method
was purely speculative. Their theories
were not founded upon long and pIil q
taking experiments. such as are nova.
days held 10 be Indispensable Tor the
basis Of any hypothesis. They were
very much more free with the magma
ton than afe the scicnuilcmgu 1t today,
Though they were entirely without yy.
pcumvntal data, this did NOT deter them
from circulating upon the nature q the
| universe. Instead of drawing CuuC.l.
sipps from accurately Observed facts.
/ they infinitely preferred 90 call speCula
| ton 10 their AID by which they did not
hesitate to attempt au explanation Of the
] ultimate reasons Of 80 things This
! lack Of the glit of ohsvfyatgusly Won
l Meyer this Jis.uCluatluu 60 10 90 the
root Of any Phenomena, in fact Ger.
/ tain indifference with regard 90 the
| natural events, are Characteristic of the
/ anciens with reaptc. 10 uJluTt. The
| most miHchicyUus rffOn Crgpt in as %
! consequence. The most superficial
! observations gave rise 10 opinions, which
| when uttered by high authorities, OBJ.
| tanned TO the dignity of dOEmas How
| otherwise than from au utter CE O
| observation can one explain Auslutic's
/ assertion that % vessel filled with ashes
| Wlll hold as much water ls one which ia
| gmpty' a further instance of the Gre
| dulIty OF that time i5 given iu the cone
| yic,i0n expressed by piuy and unyar.
/ sally held, that air can Doe transform a
/ into water and vice lysrI, that cath IS
| produced from water and lhlt rock
| CRYSTAL proceeds from the latter
Now 10 substances so unlike one
| another g8 air and water change one u-
| lqthc other how natural % is 10 suppose
| TINT one metal can DE changed into
another, since metals do not uHgr from
one another apparently, as much as do
] Uir aud water And as said before, the
1uClUn,s considered that tho,chlnge OF
| water into air was matter O. every day
| observation. What else could % be than
air being changed into water when
clouds were formed from the Invisible
atmosphere and were condensed into
| water and Gel, as rain. Further water
] Isit ln r. vessel exposed Go the summer
aun disappeared and clouds were seen
! 90 vanish from view, Were these not
cases OF water being changed into air.
Aud In regard to their belief lhat earth
produced from water % may be- slii
that this idea v1F pr1ycdt1 nr erroneous
] only q Ono more tIIu hundred yeats
| Hgo. II has been observed th1t when
/ even the puTua, water was heated for
/ some time ina glass vessel and finally
/ boiled Co dryntsb t'at un cIrhy residue
] was found 900 the bottom Of tie vessel.
| This seemed to DE ample proof that
/ some OF the water ~, least bad changed
/ into earth And 10 was not until about
| wa chat Tue true explanation ul thia
| phenomenon whal gwen, when the
! Tgat French chemist Layol5iyr proved
that this caHuF residue was due TO the
water Gisaolvng some Of the glass.
Although the ancient Greek paillgl.
! pliers did not themselves teach chat
METALS my c tun mu,ed one in'o
! mother, SET TINS doctrine wa5 readily
| u.GuCyi subsequently from what they
| .il teach tnat auuaiangrs Change into
! other substances, Yet aside tom aUy
| spccuIauuns OF this nature there We're
] superficial observations VI practical
kind which appeared To- give q aron.
support 10 the belief ln such tnnsmull-
! tons. Among such accidental uHsgr.
| val.ons was luat OF the deposition ol
copper. from ,hc water which accounts
! lated iu the copper mines upon iron
/ utensils lct therein. MUa. mu.c natural
! than tu conclude that q Ttnsmulauon OF
| iron into corp r bad u curr-at We now
| know, however tint compound Of
| copper was IN sulut O 90 the water, aud
| that the iron simply ~ laced heCopprr
/ in rs compound, aaying tine copper 20
| be depts TEL upOl the remaining lIuu.
! The experiment Is easily tried, 10 %
clean ron nail Is put iutO a solution OF
| blue vlliiul,a COmplu nd OF copper q de-
| post Of HE latter nc 81, Is seen TO form
| on the Ual Chemical analysis enables
Us TO learn that for every particle OF
| copper deposited uIou the nail one OF
| iron las gone into solution TO dl5plaCe
/ the copper from It's compound, No