Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1903-11-27
CHEMISTS ARE BAFF[ED
Latest Discovery With Myster-
ious Radium Defies All the
Laws of Chemistry
RADluM TURNS INTO HELIum
Sir William Ramsey startles the World
of Science by Report Of His Discov-
cry in Reference to the Mysterious
New Element. Which Changes Into
Another Metal.

| London. Nov. 21-What may prove
ar epoch making discovery in the field
of chemical research is announced by
| Sir William Ramsay with regard to
| that mysterious substance, radum
| which for two years past has heen
puzzling men of science. Professor
| Ramsay. whose name is associated
with that OF Lord Rayeigh in the
study of argon and helium, stated at a
| meeting of the London Institution
| "Wednesday night that he had observed
gives off a heavy gas, which slowly
changes into helium and then vanishes.
The Importance of this discovery,
which has been suspected by scientists
for some months past. lies in the fac:
that ii appears to revolutioniZe all the
old theories about chemistry. Hith-
erto chemistry has been based Oh the
theory that elements are constant and
that one can not change into another,
but now II is seen that radium of its
own accord and without external inter-
ference turns into a totally different
element.
In his lecture Sir William Ramsay
described how his long search into the
problem of what becomes of the min
ute particles with which radum is al
ways parting was quite lately re-
warded. Besides Its other manifesta-.
lions radium constantly gives off an
emanation which seems to behave in
all respects like heavy gas. 1t can be
collected in TASKS, measured and
weighed, and used to display the char
acteristic properties of .adium: but It
entirely disappears. What becomes
OF 1t?
Sir William Ramsey has caught this
emanation In the the act of vanishing.
He found that after 1t had been collects
ed for a couple OF days its spectrum
which previously was entirely unlike
any yet studied. began to display the
typical yellow line OF heiiu1n gas first
known and christened by Its constant
presence in the sun. In four or five
Gays the helium lines grew brighter,
helium was positively blazing In the
Dramatically sealed tubes that had
been filled with the pure carnations OF
gaseous output of radium
In other words, one element had been
literally seen to change into another of
quite different nature under the eyes
of the experimental. What is this"
asked Sir William Ramsay. ''hut an
actual case of that transmutation Of
enc element into another, in which ths
ancient alchemists believed. when they
painfully sought to change lead into
gold and incidentally founded the
modern science of chemistry"
Editorially commenting on Sir Will
lam Ramsay's great discovery, the
Daily Mail says:
ut Is as IL gold were to change into
iron of its own accord and completely
upset the laws of the old chemistry.
No wonder that, with this amazing
fact before them, scientists are hope
full of reading the riddle of the uni
verse They are now lnclining more
and more to the belief that all things
are electricity In different forms and
In varying combinations, and that in
this mysterious force which we use
every day, hut which we can not salts
factorily explain, is the solution to the
great problem which has tasked man
kind for centuries.