370 ON THE CHANGE OF REFEANGIBILITY OF LIGHT.
employ a clear and highly sensitive solid or fluid. A weak solution of sulphate or phosphate of quinine would do very well, or a weak decoction of the bark of the horse-chestnut (no doubt a solution of pure esculine would be better), or an alcoholic solution of the seeds of the Datura stramonium. But perhaps the most convenient thing of all would be a slab of glass coloured yellow by oxide of uranium. This would be always ready, and in point of sensibility the glass does not seem to yield to any of the solutions above mentioned, at least so far as relates to those rays which are capable of passing through glass *.
192. In making experiments on the invisible rays, it is well to get rid, as far as possible, of the glare arising from the bright part of the spectrum, and therefore a clear solid or solution is preferable to an opaque screen. If it be desired to show the fixed lines in the visible and invisible parts of the spectrum at the same time, a screen may be employed consisting of paper washed with a moderately strong solution of sulphate of quinine, or an alcoholic solution of stramonium seeds. Turmeric paper is not, I think, quite so good for showing the fixed lines of very high refrangi-bility, but is at least equally good for the extreme violet, and for the rays a good distance further on, especially if it has been washed with a solution of tartaric acid. It is likely that many other acids would do as well. Very excellent se.reens might probably be prepared by washing paper with a solution of esculine, or even of the bark of the horse-chestnut^, or by covering pasteboard with yellow uranitc reduced to fine powder, and made to adhere by a weak solution of pure gum Arabic,; hut the.se, I have, not tried.
Application of internal dispersion, to demonstrating the.
of rays.
193. Solutions of quinine have already been employed for this purpose, and a weak decoction of the bark of the horse-chestnut appears to be decidedly better. But the effect is immensely improved by using absorbing media to cut off all the rays belonging to the bright part of the visible spectrum. A deep blue glass will answer very well for this purpose if its faces be even, so as
* See note F. f See note G.