SSO hitelligence and Miscellaneous Articles. 



Cubebin is white, insipid, inodorous. It occurs in groups of small 

 acicular crystals. At 392° in vacuo, it loses no weight. It is not 

 volatile, and is scarcely soluble in water ; cold alcohol dissolves but 

 a small quantity of it; at 53*^, 100 parts of absolute alcohol dis- 

 solved but 1'31 part : alcohol of 82° dissolved 070, but when boiling 

 both dissolved so much that on cooling the liquor became a mass. 

 At 53°, 100 parts of aether dissolve 3*73 of cubebin; it is more 

 soluble in it when hot; it is also soluble in acetic acid, in the 

 volatile and fixed oils. 



Concentrated sulphuric acid renders it of a deep red colour. This 

 substance was analysed by means of oxide of copper, it being pre- 

 viously dried in a dry vacuum at 322° ; it was found to consist of 



Hydrogen 5*56 



Carbon 68-29 



; Oxygen 26-25 100- 



which are equivalent to nearly 



Eight equivalents of hydrogen 8 or 5-33 

 Seventeen ,, carbon. . 102 6-8 



Five „ oxygen. . 40 26-67 



150 100- 

 Cubebin is neutral, and does not appear susceptible of forming any 

 compound from which its true atomic constitution can be inferred. 

 In this respect it is a substance of little interest ; but the following 

 two consequences result from its composition : first, that it differs 

 essentially from the crystalline matter of black pepper in several re- 

 spects, and especially in its composition, since it contains no azote ; 

 that it is not derived from the volatile oil of cubebs, this, according 

 to our experiments, containing hydrogen and carbon in the atomic 

 relation of 5 to 8, as the oil of turpentine does. — Journal de Pharm., 

 Juillet 1839. 



ANHYDROUS PHOSrHORIC ACID. BY M. MARCHAND. 



A small porcelain capsule is to be placed on a stand, in a large 

 porcelain vessel ; some pieces of dry phosphorus are to be put into 

 the small capsule, and a tubulated glass receiver is to be placed over 

 it; a cork containing two glass tubes is to be inserted into the 

 tubature ; of those tubes, one is large and almost reaches the small 

 capsule, and it is to be fitted with a cork ; the other tube is narrow, 

 and is to be bent at an angle externally. The narrow tube is to be 

 connected with an apparatus, from which dry oxygen gas is disen- 

 gaged; a retort in which chlorate of potash is heated is to be pre- 

 ferred. It is more convenient to convey a current of gas from a 

 gasometer, and to dry it perfectly by chloride of calcium and sul- 

 phuric acid in the potash apparatus of Liebig. At first oxygen is 

 to be passed through the receiver to expel the atmospheric air from it ; 

 the phosphorus is then to be inflamed with hot iron rod passed 

 through the larger straight glass tube. When all the phosphorus 

 is burnt, more is passed thi-ough this tube into the small capsule. 

 The retort may also be readily changed when all the chlorate of 



