Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1917-05-01

seeming relation to limewater, ran
jumblingly through bis head-potassi-
um chlorate, manganese dioxide. chic
ride of sodium, chlorhydric acid These
persisted through the tumble and re-
mained when he wakened.
But what had they to do with lime
water? Nothing that he could remem-
Der. Chloride of sodium was common
salt, he knew. and he had plenty of 1t.
dissolved in water-m0re than he
wanted. Chlohydric acid-hydrochlo-
ric acid-muriatic acid-an acid con-
tanning no oxygen, the one gas that he
needed so badly, formed Of hydrogen
and chloric-chloride, chlorine gas.
Good so far. Chlorine-also a constit-
uent of the salt In his bilge water.
But what Of itP It was oxygen that
he wanted. Potassium chlorate-chlo-
rate Of potassium. This contained
chlorine. Manganese dioxide contain
ed oxygen. But what did 1t meanl
Why should these elements and COM
pounds come to his mind? He had
something of blind faith in the rele-
vancy of thought, but he wanted to
know only Of limewater, with which
he could catch the carbon dioxide In
the air and free the oxygen. This last
thought was an advance, but he could
70 no further In this direction. His
mind returned to chlorhydric acid, to
hydrogen. to chlorine.
How were they made?' They were
all therein this sea water. His wax
ing thought of sulphuric acid as a dry
ing agent meant something Sulphuric
acid, one of the most powerful chem
ical reagents, the most powerful elec-
trolyte - electro - electrolysis- "Hur-
rahw
He bounded to his feet He had It.
Electrolysis Of water yielded oxygen
and hydrogen. But why had manga
nese dioxide and potassium chlorate
so persisted In his mind7 And lime
water-what had that to do with his
problem, now solved by electrolysis?
Slowly the memory Of school day
lessons learned by rote filtered up from
the past-of the test tube manufac-
tuled Of oxygen by the union OF these
chemicals In the presence Of heat.
And limewater, with its affinity for
carbon dioxide? There was no lime
on board, hence no hmewater. But
there was waterloo much. Where
was the affinity? It was slower In
coming, but it came-the old lesson
learned by rote and forgotten. Car
bon dioxide is soluble in water, vol
ume for volume" Oxygen Is but
slightly soluble in water-about three
parts In hundred"
II see how it is," he said, with the
infantile smile that had come to his
boys face in this trouble. Its the
subliminal self that remembers every
thing, and when you've guessed all
around the subject 1t pops out and hits
you when you've touched It"
He found some spare insulated wire
among the stores and rigged two
lengths from the poles Of the battery,
scraping the ends and immersing them
in the salt water A few bubbles arose,
then ceased.
Funny how things come back when
you need them," he said as he pulled
up the wires. II want platinum elec-
trodes and solder and soldering fluid
chloride of zinc-zinc cut by hydro.
chloric acid. Wonder II I'll have to
make my acid?"
He did not He found soldering
outfit in the locker, then rummaged
his scrap heap forward for platinum
sparkers and, finding very little Of the
precious metal, ruthlessly smashed all
but three Of the electric bulbs that
lighted his prison, robbing them of the
platinum wires that led the current
into the carbOns.
Clumsily, for he was but q theoret,
ical mechanic, he soldered the ends OF
the platinum wires and fragments to
the copper ends of his terminals, about
half to each, making brushlike cleo
trodes Of the largest possible surface
exposure. Then he immersed them
and was gratifed at the result BUD
bles arose in generous quantity.
"Now which is which?" he said as
he leaned over them. Lets think.
Water-hydrogen and oxygen-H,o-
two parts of hydrogen to one OF OK
ygen. But the bubbles seem about
the same size."
He stopped and inhaled deeply OF
the air over one column Of bursting
bubbles. A little of this brought on q
curious feeling Of faintness, with q
desire to draw longer breath.
Hydrogen surely" he said. "NoW
the other"
A half inhalation over the other bub'
bles sent him back, coughing and chok'
ing, with a bitter. astringent taste In
his throat.
mo-" he said as he pulled up the
wire; that is not oxygen. It's some
other gas. must separate them some
how"
He racked his brains. He knew that
he was using up the existing oxygen
by combining it in his lungs with car
bon to form carbon dioxide, 10 pei
cent of which in the air might be IA.
tai; that the hydrogen which he would
make, with his oxygen, was nonpoison'
GUS, like the nitrogen Of the air, but
that, there being less Of 1t as a dilu.
ent, he might suffer from preponder'
ance Of oxygen, and that this astrin'
gent gas that would also evolve from
the salt water was a deadly poison te
be got rid of. But how? Was It car
bon dioxide?
He did not need to sleep on the prob
lem. He had already slept upon and
solved it. It came to him suddenly In
the formulated sentences of the morn
ing. Water would absorb carbon dio1'
ide, volume for volume, while oxygen
would only give up three parts to q
hundred.
"What fool ami" he muttered
II can simply blow the whole mixture
back into the water again and again
and get rid Of everything but the OK
ygen and hydrogen"
Breen now constructed Q supple
mentary pneumatic feed system that
was triumph Of driven genius to 9
man dying of headache at the bottom
| Of the sea .