The news & observer. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 1894-current, 1901-07-28
HOW IT GOT ITS NAME
No Element Had Previously Been Dis
covered by an American.
SUCCESS MEANS SCIENTIFIC TRIUMPH
Or. Baskerville is Continuing His Experiments
and viii Present Fuller Paper Before
American Chemical Society in
Denver Next August.
Denver Next August.

The following is taken from Public
Opinion" July 4th, which, under the
heading of "Carolnium, Another New
Element" says: cat the last meeting
of the North Carolina section of the
American Chemical Society, Charles Bas-
keryille presented a paper dealing with
the existence of a new element in
thorium. The specially purified oxide was
found on fractionation to possess a vary
ing specific gravity, one varying from "a
to 10.4. While atomic weight determin-
ations have not been made, there is much
evidence going to show the existence in
these oxides of a new element which he
has Professionally called carolinum.
His excuse for presenting the matter in
this incomplete fashion is based on the
fact that he made his observations some
four years ago, and that in the Interim
he has been fully engaged in securing
from monaZite a sufficient quantity OF
pure thorium salts. The authors work
is interesting on account of the support
which it affords to a recent paper by DIR.
Brauner, of Prague, published in the pro-
ceedings of the London Chemical Society,
in which he stated that he had fractioned
thorum oxalate into two bodies which
he named TIL and TIL. /"
Prof. Baskerville, who is spending part
of his vacation in Raleigh, was seen in
regard to the above. He said it was a
conservative summarized statement of his
paper presented last April in Raleigh.
He will present a much fuller paper on
the subject at the next general meeting
OF the American Chemical Society, which
meets in Denver in August.
When asked what this thorium is, DR..
Baskerville said that "Thorium dioxide
constitutes from SO to 99.5 per cent of
the Welsbach incandescent nantes used
in gas lighting. Practically all of the
thorium oxide is secured from monazite
sand from North Carolina and Brazil"
His attention was drawn particularly to
thorium when he made the analysis of the
numerous monazite sands occurring in
North Carolina, and described in one OF
the bulletins of the State Geological sur
vey prepared by the late Mr.. H. B. C.
Mite. He noted over four years ago
some hitherto unremarked property of
thorium and has been working on it all
the time, but had not desired to publish
anything of his work until it had been
completed. In his Investigations he had
toned in the excerpt given above in re-
gard to this work. Dr. Brauner published
some work along similar lines in London
during April, hence DR.. Baskerville pre-
scented the results of his incomplete work
at once The element thorium is usually
accorded an atomic weight of 1926. Dr.
Baskerville has proven by his experiments
that it is much lower, about 223. This in
itself is an important discovery He says
he has secured good evidence of the pres
enoe of a new element which contamin-
ates thorium and gives it the high atomic
weight hitherto accredited to it. He has
named the element, which has not been
separated yet however carolinium, after
the State in whose university he is the
professor of chemistry. OF all the chemi-
cal elements not one has ever been dis
covered by an American, so should this
work of DR.. Baskerville's have a sue
cessful issue, and all the indications point
in that direction it will be semitic
triumph.