Memoir concerning the acidulous, gaseous, bicarbonated, sodaic waters of Vals (Ardèche) / by Dr. Tourrette.

Date:
1866
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Memoir concerning the acidulous, gaseous, bicarbonated, sodaic waters of Vals (Ardèche) / by Dr. Tourrette. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh. The original may be consulted at the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh.

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    IP The other principles of iorfine, Uthine, potash, and phosphate have only been recog-nized in the produces of concentrated waters and by special researches made apart on several litres of liquid. The water of those springs is perfectly clear; in the vases there can only be seen a depot hardly sensible and flaky; when the bottles are uncorked, there escape from the water some bubbles of carbo- nic g-as, but without any sulphydric smell, even from the spring Desiree, which sends forth, it is said, that smell at its point of emer- gence ; and as it is seen in other alkaline bicarbonated waters, the taste ofthe water from the springs Desiree, Precieuse, Magdeleine and Rigolette is analogous, shghtly acidulated, then rather agree- ably alkalescent, without real stypticity. The water ofthe spring St. Jean shows the same association of mineral substances as the preceding. Only, the proportion of salts is less and makes of it a water lighter and more advantageous for certain diseases. The chymical nature as well as its analogy with others of the same kind justify the medical properties which it has been known to possess for these many years. The water of those springs, subjected to the action of the air, allows to escape gaseous bubbles, but there is not produced any sensible precipitate. When the water is boiled, the carbonic gas escapes abundantly, and the liquid takes a very strong character of alkalinity, leaving to a slight degree a deposit of white powder. To make this new analysis on the samples sent to me, I have adopted the methods employed in similar cases, sometimes direct, sometimes indirect; appreciating sometimes apart the mineral substances in order to group them afterwards rationally together or singly directly. Besides I have used in more than one circum- stance, marked liquors, avoiding thereby tedious and very minute weighings. It w^ould be useless to enter here into the detail of extensive proceedings, and useless to describe them ; we shall state that these modes are advised by very able chymists. We shall immediately give the chymical composition of the water from the sodaic springs which we are treating. Further on, we shall speak of a spring of a composition having no analogy witli these and forming a special type.