ON THE COMl'OSITION OF BIED-LIME. 27 



insoluble in 80 "/o spirit. It l)egins to volatilise in a vacuum below 

 150°, and sublimes freely near its melting point in beautiful tiifts of 

 needles, still melting at 172°. Heated witb palmitic acid it also 

 forms a body like bird-lime. It fails apparently to yield an acetate, 

 even after long heating at 150-170° with acetic oxide, in which when 

 hot it, as also mochylic alcohol, readily dissolves, partly crystallising 

 out again unchanged on cooling, and partly becoming a dark viscid 

 matter not acetate. Personne found his ilicic alcohol to yield a 

 crystalline acetate with acetic oxide, melting at 204°-6°. The melt- 

 ing point of Personne's ilicic alcohol was 175°, and its boiling point 

 above 350°, but under the reduced pressure of 100 mms. it began to 

 sublime at 115°. In appearance and in behaviour to spirit of different 

 strengths, it was like our ilicylic alcohol. ]5oth mochylic and ilicylic 

 alcohols dissolve in a mixture of sulphuric and nitric acids, and from 

 the solution water separates a gelatinous matter, readily soluble in 

 spirit, and puffing only slightly, when dried and heated. 



Chemical composition of the two alcohols, — Combustion of the two 

 alcohols has given us the following results: — 



Mochylic alcohol, m. p., 234° 



I. II. III. C^eH^eO. 



Carbon 83.37 83.39 83.28 83.42 



Hydrogen 12.29 12.16 12.38 12.30 



Oxygen 4.28 



100.00 



llicijlic alcohol^ m. p., 172° 



I. II. a,H3,o 



Carbon 83.09 82.98 83.02 



Hydrogen 11.93 11.92 11.95 



Oxygen 5.03 



100.00 



