CHEMISTRY. 511 



chauges m these substances as they proceed towards absorption, up to 

 their arrival within the portal system of vessels. The experiments were 

 performed upon the digestive organs of freshly-killed rabbits, portions 

 of the stomach or intestines being left in contact, for a given time, with 

 solutions of known weights of the carbohydrate in question, and the 

 copper-reducing value of the substance, after this digestion, was com- 

 pared with that which it had been found to have before contact with 

 the animal substance. Inasmuch as grape-sugar is cha-racterized by 

 the property of possessing the same reducing power after treating with 

 sulphuric acid as before, while the carbohydrates which represent steps 

 in an operation of which glucose is the linal i)roduct are altered in re- 

 ducing power by the action of the acid, the author took the precaution 

 to boil one portion of the modified liquid with sulphuric acid in all cases 

 before estimating the reducing power. The copper-reducing value of 

 the digested liquid may thus be com])ared with that of glucose, while 

 the relation of the modified product to glucose is also ascertained. The 

 most striking result of these experiments is the indication that trans- 

 formation of glucose into bodies of lower reducing j^ower is possible 

 under the influence of a ferment existing in the stomach and intestines. 

 Boiling of the animal substance with water j^revious to the experiment 

 was found to annul the action of this ferment. The latter body seems 

 to exist rather within the walls of the vessels examined than upon the 

 mucous surface. So far as the experiments have gone, the author re- 

 gards them as indicating that this ferment is more abundant in the 

 stomach and intestines of the rabbit than in those of the dog, cat, horse, 

 sheep, or pig. (A. A. B., from Chem. N^eics, XLix, 140.) 



Kancirine, a neiv Dyestuff, by W. Markownikow. — The preparation 

 of this dyestuff, discovered in 1883 by O. Miller, is as follows : 



Dissolve one part of sulphocyanide of potassium in two parts of 

 water, and add about one-fifth of the total amount (one-half i)art) of po- 

 tassium chlorate and one part of hydrochloric acid. The reaction begins 

 in a few minutes, with evolution of gas and the formation of a yellow 

 precipitate; the vessel is placed in cold water, and the rest of the potas- 

 sium chlorate and another i)art of hydrochloric acid is added to the mix- 

 ture. The temperature should not fall below 80'^. An orange-colored 

 precipitate results, which is crude kanarine ; this is then purified by 

 solution in warm caustic-potash solution and precipitation Avith alcohol. 



Dried at 100^ pure kanarine forms a red-brown powdei', with an 

 almost metallic luster. It is insoluble in water, alcohol, ether, and ben- 

 zene, but easily dissolves in alkaline solutions. Kanarine is destined 

 to become an important dye stuff, since it can be fixed on vegetable fibers 

 without a mordant. It possesses great tinctorial power and is a fast 

 color. {Journ. d. Russ. phys.-chem. Ges., 1S84: (1), 380.) 



On the Fractional Distillation of American Pctrolevm, !)y D. Mende- 

 lejelf.— In the IVuctioual distillatiuii of petrulvum Irom Baku the author 



