London Chymical Society.
The Times, 1824-11-26T00:00:00

The inauguration of the officers of this Society was performed last night at the City of !,ondon Tavern, in the presence of a very nu- rnerous assemblage of ladies snd gentlemen, the greater part of whom had become members of this Institution for the promotlon of one of tbe most usefiul and important branches ot scientific knowledge. At half-pagt seven o'clock, the President, Dr. BrR]icEcHx, entered the room, accornpanied by the Vice-Presidents and Committee. Air. MAaREco, the Chairman of the Committee, took the chair, for the purpose of openIng the business ofthe Society. Le annostnced that the labours of the ommaittee for the formation of the institu- tion had terminated; and the Secretary then read their report, which detailed the origin and preliminary progress of the business of the Society. Dr. )31tRsmncX then took the chair, and delivered an eloquent intro. ductory lecture, exidanatory of the objects of the Society,and of the general principles of chymistry, illustrating as he went on by.prac- tical experiments the elementary parts of his discourse. There was a perspicuit in this lecture which was very rreditable to the Presi- dent. He tid not, after the fashion of higher and more pretending names, consume a large rrtion of the time of his auditory with r digqulsirlo nuron t e elymoloVy of ihe term chymistry, but went at once like a practical man, intending to convey as much useful information as he could through the popu- lar and comnpendious medium of a lecture, to apply the prin- ciples of chymistry to the great phenomena of nature, and to show their more immediate and essential connexion wvith the business of life, at once stimulating and directing those who had taste and application for such a pursuit, to those sources of inquiry where alone the could competently obtain the information whlich they sought. ge described the universe as being pregnant with un- ceasing varlety, and explained the progressive decomposition of matter, which is in constant action. He then explained the two diSUrCt seri of the phenorbena belon ing to tbe planetary systeni, and to the animal world-the one fixed and Imrnutable, the other actuated by motion perceptible and imperceptible. The object of chymistry he described as being to discover and explain the changes of integral particles of different bodies, and their acion on each other: and he enlarged upon the necessity of pro- rootlog that objcct by such a co-operation as the present Soclety af- forded1combining scientific with practical men. Even thevalueofthe ladies in the pursuit of this study, he dwelt upon, and alluded to the works ofDllisstLowrie, to lUric.Marcet's Co)lversatioits on Chymistry, und to Mrs. Fulham's book upon combustion, as illuetrative of their powerful assistance. It was in vain, he said, to explore who were the remote and abtediluvian founders of science, wlho invented the firstplough, or hollowedout the first eanoe,although it was necessary to touch upon the historical progress of the particular science which this Society wras established to promote. The learned Doctor then took a rapid view of the o,nerations of chyinistry in the middle ages, when in the hands of the alchymists, who worked so much delusion by a combination of Ignorance and 'lKavery, and distinguished the prac- tical from the impracticable parts of their study-the failure of their ruccess in endeavouring to make gold, but the importance of their discovery in making Dresden china. The first book of real practical information which he quoted was that published in the year 1650, etitled PhyWca Subterranea; anti from that he passed to the enu- meration of the labours of the illustrious Lavoisier, and from thence to the experimcntal labours and discoveries of Sheele, Black, 5erg- nman, Cavendish, aud Priestley, concluding the list of scientific bene- factors of our times with the name of Sir H. Davy, upon whose im- portant discoveries he pronounced a warm panegyric. He then briefly considered and explained the laws of attraction and repulsion, and illustrated the former by exhibiting twopieces of lead, thesmooth sur- faces of which werebrought in contwt by the adhes!on of whatis called cohesive force, and he demonstrated the latter by showing the repul- sion evinced by the bursting of the particles of a glass drop, when broken in a particular manner. It was this principle of repulsion which he explained kept gaseous matter in a state of elastic fluidity. The earmed Doctor then explainel the principles of the two kinds of attraction-of electricity and magnetism, and their opposite pola- rities, and opposite forces, and proceeded to illustrate what Is tcrmed teieattraetionot composition, by exhibiting the combinatianof two drops of mercury, and the mode of combining low,der of magnesia witb water by a solution of nitric acid. Ile next pointed out the con- nexion between meehanical force and chymistry, by experiments made in the receiver of an air-pump, by combining the pressure of air with fluids, auch as porter, water, &c; Hlis experiments explana- tory of the principle of Illanton's percussion-gun were extremely curious, by showing the efct of a particular combination of sulphur vitb a preparation of copper,which producesdetonation. The principle of wbttias clledl instantaneous light he also explained, by showtng theresultoftheapplication of adrop of sulphuric acid upon two partsofsugaradonenofehlorateof potash. ffepralsed the principle' of Broe-icnswly.-invented pneumatic engine, whieh was a striking ir.stAcAlf the effect of a primary expansion of a burning elaAtic gas, capable qf ieadimig to important consequences. The learned Presi- dent nexf dticribed the various qualities of alkali and acids, and il- lustrastedhis description by a number of very curious, and for the most part, succesfuhly conducted experiments. ffe concluided by exhib:ting specmens of the great moderr. discoveri,s-portable gas, the safety.lnmp,and the protecdion of copper bottoms from the decom- poswngpowver'ofsaltwater: he bestowed the warmest praise on Sir siumphrey for these twvo last mnost beneficial discoveries. The lecture did not terminate until ten o'clock, and was loudly and deservedly applauded. LONDON CNYAUICAL SOCIETr.