Characters of the Peruvian Matico. ^05 



was procured from which about one drachm of this oil sub- 

 sided. 



The Oil of Matico has a light green colour ; when recent it 

 has nearly the consistence of good castor oil, but becomes 

 thick and crystalline on keeping. Its smell is very powerful 

 and permanent, and its strong camphoric taste remains a con- 

 siderable time in the mouth. It dissolves readily in aether 

 and in alcohol; the solutions are colourless. Sulphuric acid 

 also dissolves it with the production of a beautiful carmine 

 colour; water added to this solution destroys its colour and 

 converts it into a milky liquid. Nitric acid when poured on 

 the oil becomes of a deep amber colour, and converts it into 

 a resinous matter. Neither caustic potash nor ammonia had 

 any action on it. After all the oil had been separated by di- 

 stillation, a deep rich red-brown liquid remained in the still ; 

 it had a bitter astringent taste, without any of the aromatic 

 flavour of the leaves ; it was neutral to litmus ; the leaves were 

 quite insipid. The filtered liquid acted towards reagents like 

 the infusion (Exp. 1). 



Experiment 5. — Added acetate of lead in excess to the fil- 

 tered decoction (Exp. 4). A light olive precipitate was thrown 

 down and separated by the filter, the excess of lead was re- 

 moved by sulphuretted hydrogen from the filtered liquid, 

 which after this treatment had alight yellow colour, and pro- 

 duced, with tinct. ferri muriat., merely a slight olive troubling 

 Ammonia gave a canary-yellow precipitate, and fresh infusion 

 of nutgalls a light brown precipitate. Evaporated over the 

 water-bath, a gelatinous extract of the colour and appearance 

 of thin glue remained. It tasted like the extract of Matico 

 (Exp. 3), dissolved slowly in water, but was not acted on by 

 aether or solution of potash. From its solution in water al- 

 cohol threw down a gray-coloured precipitate, acetate of lead 

 ditto; perchloride of iron produced no change; caustic pot- 

 ash and ammonia rendered the solution orange, and threw 

 down rich yellow precipitates. Neither muriatic acid, nitric 

 acid or tartar-emetic produced any change. The gelatinous 

 extract was dissolved in distilled water, the solution was cau- 

 tiously evaporated over the water-bath to the consistence of a 

 sj'rup, which was placed aside in a cool place, and after some 

 hours a number of distinct prismatic crystals had formed in it. 

 These crystals had a brown colour and cooling taste ; heated 

 on a slip of platinum foil, they decrepitated and left a yellowish 

 white residue, which effervesced with hydrochloric acid. In 

 their solution in water chloride of platinum threw down a 

 yellow precipitate. Digested the syrupy extract and crystals 

 in alcohol of 84° (Gay-Lussac), its brown colour changed to 



