W A X

W E R

( 489 )

fwarms of bees within their hives, .and feedingone with honey, another with mufcovado fugar,another with treacle, another with refined fugar,in all of which abundance of fine wax was pro-duced : and on the other hand, by feeding ano-ther hive only with pollen and fruits, no waxwhatever was formed, though the bees remainedfor a week in their confinement. Other obfer-vations and experiments by this ingenious natu-ralift ftiil further explain this fubjedt, by ihew-ing what is the real ufe of the pollen, namely,to afford fuftenance for the larva of the bee themoment it is hatched.

The Myrtle Wax is a concrete fubftancemoderately hard, nearly of the confidence ofbees-wax, and of a dingy green colour: itis contained in abundance in the berries of theMyrka laiifolia , a fragrant bufhy fhrub withleaves like the myrtle, which grows abundantlyin many parts of North America : it is alfo pro-cured from another fpecies of the fame genus,die Myrica Gale which is common in boggy mof-fes in f’cveral counties of England.

A very large quantity of the myrtle wax isextracted from this fhrub in Louifiana, by col-lecting the berries, boiling them with water,and bruifing them at the lame time, by whichthe wax melts out and rifes to the top as a thickoily fcum, which is eafily fi-parated. The ber-ries yield about a fourth of their weight of thiswax. h They contain alfo, according to M.Cadet, a confiderable quantity of gallic acid.

This wax has been examined chemically bothby the above-mentioned chemid and by Dr.Bodock,- and it is found to refemble bees-waxfo clofely in the mod important properties, thatthey may be claded under the fame genus ofchemical bodies. In fome refpe&s howeverthe myrtle wax ditiers from that of the bee.Its fpecific gravity is 1.015, f° that it finks inwater. It melts at 109 0 , and when kindled itburns with a clear white dame, and an agreeablearomatic odour, and produces little fmoke.With alcohol, ether, and the alkalies, its habi-tudes clofely refemble thofe of bees wax, only itappears to be a little more foluble in each ofthefe mendrua. The acids have, when cold,as little effect on the myrtle wax as on that ofthe bee, and the former is not entirely bleachedby digedion with nitric acid, but only renderedof a pale yellow. Caudic potafli however indiffolving it whitens it compleatly. No .attemptshave yet been made to bieach it in, the largeway by expofure to the fun and air.

The myrtle wax is ufed largely in fome partsof America , as a material for candles, and onthe whole it appears worthy of further attention.WEIGHTS. See the Appendix .

WELD . In addition to what has been faidon the ufe of this plant under the articleDyeing, we may add that the fine delicateyellow which it gives is much employed bythe paper dainers in this town, and is fold inthe form of hard lumps, confiding chiefly ofchalk faturated with the colouring matter.

The following is given by Mefirs. CoIIardand Frafcr as an improved procefs. 1 Diflufeany quantity of fine whiting in boiling water,add thereto one ounce of alum for every poundof whiting, which will caufe a brilk eflervef-cence, and dir thefe materials well together tillall difengagement of gas has ceafed. On theother hand, boil in a feparate veflel fome weldwith water jud enough to cover it, for fifteenminutes, filter the yellow decoCtion, and thenmix it with the Vhiting and alumine in fuchproportions as that the earths may appear to befaturated with the colouring matter. Then letthe mixture remain a day at red, and at the bot-tom will be the precipitated earth firmly unitedwith the colour, and of a fine yellow tinge, whichmay be conveniently dried on chalk-dones.

The weld yellow is a water colour, and isnever mixed with oil.

WELDING. Welding is that intimateunion produced between the furfaces of twopieces of malleable metal when heated ahnodto fufion and hammered. This union is fodrong that when two bars of metal are pro-perly welded, the place of junction is as drongrelatively to its thicknefs as any other part ofthe bar. Only two metals are capable of firmunion by welding, namely platina and iron t(which fee).

WELTER’S TUBE. See Appendix ofApparatus .

WERNERITE.

Its colour is intermediate between pidachia-green and Ifabella-yellow. It occurs crydal-lized in rectangular tetrahedral prifms, termi-nated by obtufe tetrahedral pyramids: fome-times the lateral edges are truncated, formingan oCtohedral prifm. The crydals, are fmall,and laterally aggregated. It is more or lefsfliining with a ludre between greafy and pearly :its fracture is curved lamellar in two directions,pading into uneven. It is tranflucent, and fome-what inferior in hardnefs to felfpar. Sp. gr. 3.6.Before the blow-pipe it intumefees, and melt*

1 Cadet, in An. Cliim. Tom. xliv.

a PhiJ. Mag, V-oJ.xiii,

3 <L

VOL. II.