We report additional detections of the chloronium molecular ion, H$_2$Cl$^+$, toward four bright submillimeter continuum sources: G29.96, W49N, W51, and W3(OH). With the use of the HIFI instrument on the Herschel Space Observatory, we observed the $2
_{12}-1_{01}$ transition of ortho-H$_2^{35}$Cl$^+$ at 781.627 GHz in absorption toward all four sources. Much of the detected absorption arises in diffuse foreground clouds that are unassociated with the background continuum sources and in which our best estimates of the $N({rm H_2Cl^+})/N({rm H})$ ratio lie in the range $(0.9 - 4.8) times 10^{-9}$. These chloronium abundances relative to atomic hydrogen can exceed the predictions of current astrochemical models by up to a factor of 5. Toward W49N, we have also detected the $2_{12}-1_{01}$ transition of ortho-H$_2^{37}$Cl$^+$ at 780.053 GHz and the $1_{11}-0_{00}$ transition of para-H$_2^{35}$Cl$^+$ at 485.418 GHz. These observations imply $rm H_2^{35}Cl^+/H_2^{37}Cl^+$ column density ratios that are consistent with the solar system $^{35}$Cl/$^{37}$Cl isotopic ratio of 3.1, and chloronium ortho-to-para ratios consistent with 3, the ratio of spin statistical weights.
We have mapped faint 1667 OH line emission (TA approx 20 - 40 mK in our approx 30 beam) along many lines of sight in the Galaxy covering an area of approx 4circ times 4circ in the general direction of l approx 108circ, b approx 5circ. The OH emission
is widespread, similar in extent to the local HI (r </= 2 kpc) both in space and in velocity. The OH profile amplitudes show a good general correlation with those of HI in spectral channels of approx 1 km/s; this relation is described by TA(OH) approx 1.50 times 10^{-4} TB(HI) for values of TB(HI) </approx 60 - 70 K. Beyond this the HI line appears to saturate, and few values are recorded above approx 90 K. However, the OH brightness continues to rise, by a further factor approx 3. The OH velocity profiles show multiple features with widths typically 2 - 3 km/s, but less than 10% of these features are associated with CO(1-0) emission in existing surveys of the area smoothed to comparable resolution.
