CHEMISTRY. 219 



nanha wax, and does not act at all upon any other of the resins 

 above named. Caustic soda solution readily dissolves shellac, 

 with difficulty colophony, and has no action upon the rest. In 

 sulpliide of carbon, amber and shelhic are insoluble ; copal 

 swells therein ; elemi, sandarac, mastic, and carnauba wax arc 

 with difficulty dissolved, while dammar and colophony are 

 readily soluble. Oil of turpentine has no action upon amber or 

 shellac; causes copal to swell; dissolves readily dammar, co- 

 lophon}', elemi, sandarac, carnauba, and very readily mastic. 

 Sulphuric acid does not dissolve carnauba wax ; all other resins 

 are dissolved and colored brown, excepting dammar, which be- 

 comes bright red. Nitric acid does not act upon the resins, but 

 colors carnauba wax straw-yellow, elemi a dirty-yellow, and 

 mastic and sandarac bright brown. Ammonia does not dissolve 

 certain of these resins, but causes copal, sandarac, and mastic 

 first to swell, afterward dissolving them; colophony is easily 

 soluble therein. — Sci. Am. 



A SUBSTANCE HOMOLOGOUS WITH BORNEO CAMPHOR. 



The substance known in perfumery and in pharmacy as 

 patchouli camphor is, according to recent researches of M. Gal, 

 a substance homologous with Borneo camphor, which is repre- 

 sented by C30H28O2. The average results of several elementary 

 analyses of patchouli camphor gave for 100 parts: C, 80.1; 

 H, 12.6; the formula just quoted requires C, 80.3; H, 12.5; the 

 vapor densit}^ of this substance taken at 324° is 8.00 ; patchouli 

 camphor is solid, fuses between. 54° and 55°, and boils at 296°; 

 its specific gravity is 1.051, at a temperature of 4.5° C. The 

 camphor is insoluble in water, readily soluble in alcohol and 

 ether ; it crystallizes in hexagonal prisms. While Borneo cam- 

 phor is a right-handed rotatory substance, the patchouli camphor 

 is left-handed. When patchouli camphor is distilled with chlo- 

 ride of zinc, at between 248° and 252° C, it yields a carbide of 

 hydrogen, C30II26. The essence of patchouli is isomeric with the 

 camphor, which is, it a])pears, simply formed by a molecular 

 change. — Dnig gists' Circular. 



FORMATION OF UREA. 



Basarow has discovered that anhydrous carbonate of ammonium 

 is converted into urea by heating in a sealed tube to 130° C. 

 (266° F.) The carbonate he obtained by the action of carbonic 

 acid gas on amnnjnia gas dissolved in aljsolute alcohol. He offers 

 the following equation to express the reaction : — 



(C2O2) II.NO, H4NO — 2 IlO^CoOa H2 N ? ^ 



II2 \ 



Even when commercial carbonate of ammonium is subjected to 

 a temperature of 130° — 140° C, a considerable quantity of urea 

 is formed. — Zeitschr.fur Ch. IV., 204. 



