112 [June, 



A drop of the honey, in a watch glass, blackened when exposed to a steam heat 

 with dilate sulphuric acid. 



When heated with the blue solution obtained by adding tartaric acid or solu- 

 tion of potassa to sulphate of copper, a red precipitate of the suboxide of copper 

 fell. 



Chloride of bariunn, ferrocyanitle of potassium, and sulphate of copper, added 

 to an aqueous solution of the honey, gave no precipitates, either in the cold or 

 by heat. 



Nitrate of silver gave in the cold a whitish precipitate, which changed to dark 

 brown by heating. 



A portion of ihe honey heated on platinum foil blackened, gave out fumes, and 

 the odor of burnt sugar, leaving a porous coke, which burned off and left an al- 

 most imperceptible ash. 



A portion of the substance which had been left in vacuo for two weeks was 

 taken for analysis by combustion with oxide of copper and chlorate of potassa. 



As the honey thus dried was not perfectly hard, but of a sticky nature, it was 

 necessary to introduce it into the combustion tube upon a piece of glass. 0.497 

 of honey gave 0.306 of water,' and 0.684 of carbonic acid, corresponding to a per 

 centage of C = 37.525 and H = 6.841 by loss = 55.634. This corresponds, as 

 nearly as could be expected, under the circumstances of the analysis, with the 

 formula of crystallized grape sugar C12 Hi4 Ou as may be seen by the following 

 comparison : 



100.000 100.000 100.00 



The following analysis may be compared with my results : 1. Diabetic sugar 

 by Peligot. 2. Sugar of grape, by De Saussure. 3. Cane sugar, by Liebig. 

 4. Sugar of honey, by Prout. 



I. II. III. IV. 



C. 36. 7 36.71 42.30 36.36 



H 7.3 6.78 6.45 C ( ^^ . 



O 56.0 56.51 51.50 H J ^"^'^^ 



100.0 100.00 100.00 100.00 



It results, I think, from these experiments that the honey contained in the 

 Mexican ant is a nearly pure solution of the sugar, so called, of fruits whifth is in 

 a state of hydration, isomeric with grape sugar, Ci2 Hi4 On, and differing from 

 grape sugar in not crystallizing. The phenomena of circular polarization differ 

 in these two named sugars ; but the want of sufficient material rendered such 

 comparison impossible. The honey of bees is a mixture of these two kinds of 

 sugar ; and as it is obtained from the nectar of flowers cotitaining cane sugar, the 

 transformation into fruit and grape sugars must take place in their bodies.* As 

 the ant honey yields, among its reactions, one of cane sugar, viz: that of black- 

 ening when heated with dilute sulphuric acid, it is possible that it may contain 

 an admixture of cane sugar, which would account for the imperfect correspond- 

 ence of the analysis with the per centage calculated from the formula. It renders 

 also the supposition plausible, that these ants obtain their honey from the same 

 source as the bee. 



With regard to the acidity of the honey, want of material prevented any expe- 

 riments. Can it be formic acid, or is it acetic from the oxidation of the alcohol 

 in which the ants were preserved / 



*Loewig-Chem. der Org. Verbindungen. 



