niCTIOXARY OF THE ACTIVE PRINCIPLES OF PLANTS. 



Precipitants : 



Tannic acid. I Jlercuric-potassic iodide. 



Gold chloride. | Mercuric chloride. 



[Platinum chloride, only if concentrated.] 

 Colour test : Xitric acid fuming (a few drops), yields on evaporation a 

 residue which gives a purple red with a drop of alcoholic potash. 



{<!) PSEUDACONINE A. [Lycoctonine, Wright and Luff ; identity ques- 

 tioned by Dra£;endorfE, see (A)], C^HjjNOa. Formed from P.seudaconi- 

 tine by .saponilication with alcoholic potash ; veratric acid (C^HmOj or 

 C„H3(OCH.,).,COOH = Dimethyl-proto-catechuic acid) being formed at 

 same time. Amorphous, but changing gradually under certain conditions 

 to a Femi-crystalline mass ; bitter (without causing tingling) ; alkaline ; 

 feefi'v poisonous ; salts amorphous. 



Soluble in water, alcohol, ether. 



Precipitate with silver nitrate. 



Ammoniacal silver nitrate, reduced. 

 [Fehling's solution, not reduced.] 



(.") PICRACONITINE A., CjiH^jNO,,, (Wright). (Obtained by Groves 

 from a root sold commercially as Aconitum Napellus, but found only in 

 traces, or not at all in the genuine A. Napellus.] Amorphous, resinous, 

 bitter ; feebly, if at all, poisonous ; salts crystalline. 

 Soluble in ether and chloroform. Insoluble in water. 

 Precipitants : 



Alkaline hydrates ) 



„ carbonates [ a resinous pp. on heating. 

 Ammonia I 



Tannic acid. 



[Not Platinum chloride.] 

 Gold chloride, amorphous, pale yellow. 

 Mercuric-potassic iodide. 

 No colour reactions with sulphuric acid or other principal colour tests. 



(/) LYCACONITINE A., C,jH34N„0„ + 2H2O (Dragendorff and Spohn). 

 Pale yellow, amorphous. Anhydrous at 110° C. ; M.P. 114'8° with de- 

 composition; laivo-rojatory : [a]l) = +.'')l'ij (10 per cent, solution in 

 alcohol) ; salts amorphous. Readily changed by alkalies, with produc- 

 tion of (r7\ lycoctonic acid, and a third substance resembling [i). 



Soluble very readily in alcohol, chloroform, benzene and carbon bi- 



sulphide ; less easily in ether, with difficulty in water, and scarcely in 

 petroleum ether. 



Removed by ether or chloroform, from a solution previously treated 

 with sodium bicarbonate. 

 Reactions : 



Alkaline hydrates 



,, bicarbonates ^ pp. 

 Ammonia 



Bromine water, yellow amor- 

 phous pp. (a tribromide). 



Coloier tests : Concentrated sulphuric acid, reddish-brown. 



Sulpho-selenic acid (8 cc. water, Geo. sulphuric acid, and ()'3 gm. 

 sodium selenate), rose or pale red violet coloration. This reaction 

 not given by aconitine, Hiibschmann's nepaline, or commercial 

 lycoctonine. 



Concentrated phosphoric acid, violet on warming. 



(;/) LYCACONINE A. [Lycoctonine? compare (li)], C,,Tl,-^^0, + nB.fi ; 

 crystalline ; M.P. 90°-'J2°, alkaline, fluorescent (blue) ; dextro-rotatory 

 ([a] D=+46-4). 



Soluble in 4 parts absolute alcohol, H chloroform, 684 ether, C4'5 

 benzene, '.^47 water. 



(/() LYCOCTONINE A. [Pseudaconine ? see (rf) above; Lycaconine ? (g)]. 

 Crystallizes in needles and prisms ; M.P. about 100" ; alkaline reaction, very 

 bitter. 



Soluble in water, alcohol, ether, chloroform, petroleum ether, carbon 

 bisulphide. 

 Precipitants : 



Tannic acid. | 20,000 after twenty-four hours, 



[Platiuio chloride, no pp.] j 1 in 8,000 after fifteen minutes. 



[Phospho-molybdicacid,nopp.] I Pji. hecomea crystaU'uie (compare 

 lodo-potassic iodide. Aconitine). 



[Potassic iodide, no i)p.] : [Mercuric potassic bromide, no pp., 



Bismuth-potassic iodide — 1 in 1 compare Aconitine.] 



40,0110. [Mercuric chloride, no pp.] 



Cadmium-potassio iodide. ; Bromine water, pp. crys. 



Mercuric-potassic iodide — 1 in 

 Colour tests : 



Concentrated sulphuric acid 'J 



Nitric acid > colourless. 



Phosphoric acid J 



