Chemical Nature of Wax. 227 



was boiled with potash, only a very small portion of acid 

 however was separated in this manner. The soap was drawn 

 off by a syphon, and the oil washed out with water. On being 

 washed with strong alcohol the oil dissolved, almost entirely, 

 leaving only a small portion of solid matter of the appearance 

 of paraffine. This oil consists of a mixture of oils of different 

 boiling-points, which were separated as far as possible by rec- 

 tification, but during the distillation the boiling-point kept 

 constantly rising, and I could obtain no oil in which it was 

 absolutely constant. 



Three of these oils, of the respective boiling-points of 210° 

 to 220° C, 230° to 250° C, and 250° to 274° C, were ana- 

 lysed. By far the greater portion of this whole distillate went 

 over between 230° and 250° C. The results of these analyses 

 were — 



In the case of the first oil, 



(1.) 0*2676 grm. gave 0826 carbonic acid and 0*3307 water. 



In the case of the second oil, 



(2.) 0*2629 grm. gave 0*8127 carbonic acid and 0*3325 

 water. 



In the case of the third oil, 



(3.) 0*2697 grm. gave0*8443 carbonic acid and 0*341 water, 

 giving in 1 00 parts — 



100*00 100*00 100-00 



The amount of oxygen therefore diminishes as the boiling- 

 point rises in these oils, the last oil being nearly pure hydro- 

 carbon. It is useless to calculate formulae for them : I give 

 however the anabyses to point out the source of the oils in the 

 wax distillate, and to account for the disappearance of the 

 cerotic acid in that product. 



The products of this distillation prove also that we must 

 look to some other body than the cerine for the source of the 

 margaric acid, or the acid resembling that substance which 

 has been found in the wax distillate, and for the origin also 

 of the para^^l.' , , of which only traces can be found even on the 

 distillation of the impure cerine. 



The existence of a free acid in wax is a fact to which we 

 have no parallel in the constitution of any known fat, and 

 although the reactions, which I have given, left little doubt 

 upon my mind that in the wax the acid was in this condition, 

 it yet appeared to me desirable to procure it from the wax by 



