30 NAT. ORDER. CI.NCHONACE.(E. 



The mode of obtaining the qumine and cinchoriine (as given by 

 Magendie,) is to "boil the bark in alcohol until it loses all its bitter- 

 ness ; evaporate the decoction to drj^ness in a water bath ; dissolve 

 the extract thus obtained in boiling water, strongly acidulated with 

 hydrochloric acid; add an excess of calcined magnesia; which 

 after boiling a (ew minutes, fixes the red coloring matter, and leaves 

 the liquid clear ; when cold, filtrate, and wash the magnesian pre- 

 cipitate with cold water, dry it on a stone, separate all the bitterness 

 by repeated digestions in boiling alcohol, mix the alcoholic liquors, 

 and the cinchonine will crystalize as the fluid cools." 



The cinclionine and quinine may be obtained by one operation, 

 as follows. Having obtained the sulphate of quinine, by the above 

 jjrocess, (operating on the cinchona cordifolia) decompose the 

 mother waters, and the washings of that operation, (which hold in 

 solution the sulphate of cinchonine) by magnesia or lime ; dissolve 

 the quinine and cinchonine contained in these liquors, by digesting 

 the magnesian precipitate when washed and well dried in alcohol ; 

 if the spirit be sufficiently charged, the cinchonine which predomi- 

 nates will chrystalize ; if it do not, further concentration is neces- 

 sary. The cinchonine thus obtained, must undergo a re-chrystal- 

 ization to purify it ; this is done by dissolving it in a sufficient quan- 

 tity of boiling alcohol. 



Chemical Properties of Cinchonine and Quinine. Cinchonine is 

 white, translucent, chrystalizable in needles, and soluble only in 

 seven hundred parts of cold water. If dissolved in alcohol or an 

 acid, its taste is powerfully bitter, and resembles that of grey-bark. 

 It is dissolved in very small quantities of the fixed oils, and sulphu- 

 ric ether. With acids it forms salts which are more or less soluble. 

 According to the analysis of Mr. Brande, cinchonine consists of 

 about — Carbon 80, 20 — Nitrogen 12, G5 — Hydrogen G, 85 — aggre- 

 gate, 99 70. Quinine is white, incrystallizable ; it is as little solu- 

 ble in water as cinchonine, much more bitter to the taste, as are also 

 most of its salts, which are distinguished by a pearly appearance. 



