28 NAT. ORDER. LOMENTACEiE. 



mont de Bomare says, in his Dictionary of Natural History, that 

 if an extract be made from the bark, by boiHng it in water, it re- 

 mains liquid, and of a blackish color, and is known under the appel- 

 lation of hlack Peruvian halsam. 



Sensible and Che??iical Properties. Genuine Peruvian halsam 

 is of a deep reddish brown color, very viscid, and of the consis- 

 tency of honey, when first taken from the comb : it has a warm, 

 aromatic, and slightly bitter taste, and, when swallowed, leaves a 

 somewhat acrid sensation in the throat : its odor is very fragrant. 

 Distilled with water, it yields a small quantity of reddish limped 

 oil ; and benzoic acid sublimes in the neck of the retort : the re- 

 mainder is resin. When boiled with water, the liquid becomes 

 acidulated, reddens vegetable blues, and deposites on cooling 

 crystals of benzoic acid. It dissolves completely in ether, and 

 also in alcohol ; but the latter requires to be in considerable quan- 

 tities. The alkalies and their carbonates, form with it thick 

 masses, which, on the addition of sulphuric acid, lets fall a resinous 

 matter, and benzoic acid crystallizes. Treated with the nitric 

 and muriatic acids, the presence of prussic acid is detected, ben- 

 zoic acid sublimes, and the residual matter is artificial tannin. Mr. 

 Hatchett found that when this is heated with sulphuric acid, arti- 

 ficial tannin is also formed ; and the charcoal remaining amounts 

 to no less than 0"64 of the original weight of the balsam. At 

 555° the balsam begins to boil when exposed to some heat in a 

 water-bath, and some gas is discharged. At 594° the oil, mixed 

 with a little water, comes over quite fast. Lichtenberg kept four 

 ounces of balsam at the temperature of 617° for two hours, and 

 obtained two ounces of a yellowish oil, and a crystallized mass' of 

 benzoic acid ; which, together with the water, weighed six drachms 

 and a half The gas obtained amounted to fifty-eight ounce mea- 

 sdres, thirty-eight being carbonic acid : the rest burnt like oleifiant 

 gas. From the analysis of Stoltze, 1000 parts of balsam consist 

 of 24 of brown, nearly insoluble resin, 207 of soluble resin, 690 



