DICTIONAKY OP THE ACTIVE PRINCIPLES OP PLANTS. 



49 



Conceutrated sulphuric acid with nitric acid, no effect, or light yellow. 

 Nitric acid alone, no effect, or very pale yellow. 

 Acids in general, no pronounced colour. 

 FriJhde'a reagent, no effect, or reddish-brown~vdirty green. 

 (b) STAPHISAGRINE A., C„H.,,N05 (a mixture ? Charalampi) ; amor- 

 phous ; M.P. '.Ml ; optically inactive, reaction alkaline, bitter. 



Soluble in -'(10 parts water, ,S."j5 ether, as well as in alcohol and chloro- 

 form. 



Colour tests (uncertain) : 



Concentrated sulphuric acid, red~N.violet. (Muter says no effect.) 

 „ ,, ,, with sugar, brown. 



„ ,, ,, „ nitric acid, no effect. 



., h3-drochloric acid, no effect. 



Fr(>hde's reagent, brown~v.violet. (No effect, Muter.) 

 (<•) DELPHINOIDINE A., CjoH.sN.O, (?) ; amorphous ; M.P. 110°-120' ; 

 alkaline reaction, poisonous. 



Soluble in 17-8 parts 00 per cent, alcohol, 4 of ether sp. gr. 0'728, or 

 37 absolute ether, 30 parts benzene, petroleum ether ; also in chloroform, 

 but scarcely in water. 



Chloroform and benzene remove from alkaline solution, and the latter 

 traces even when the solution is acid. 

 Colour tests : 



Concentrated sulphuric acid, reddish-brown. 



,, „ ., with bromine, violet. 



., ,, ,, ,, .sugar, green. 



,. „ ,, ,. nitric acid, no effect (Muter). 



Nitric acid alone, no pronounced colour. 

 Acids generally, solution remains light coloured. 

 Per-iodic acid, blood-red, gradually darkening. 



with sugar, browni.sh-green. 

 Fn'ihde's reagent, blood-red. 

 ((/) DELPHISINE A., aj,Hj„N.,Oj ; crystalline ; M.P. 189" (Charalampi) ; 

 extremely poisonous. 



Soluble in 370 parts absolute alcohol, readily in chloroform, in 43 parts 

 ether of sp. gr. 0728 or 71 parts absolute ether, 7h benzene, CG5 petroleum 

 ether ; slightly in water. 



. (e) CALCITRAPINE A. Soluble in ether and chloroform. 

 Reactions : 



Picric acid, pp. (at 1 in 1,000 after C, hours). 



[Platinum chloride, cloud.] 

 Gold chloride, yellow pp. 



Phospho-molybdic acid, yel. pp., becoming bluish-green after '24 hours. 

 Bismuth potassic iodide, orange pp. 

 Cadmium potassic iodide, pale yellow pp. 

 Mercuric-potassic iodide, pp. yellow amorphous. 

 Colour tests : 



(concentrated sulphuric acid, dark brown, changing to violet, then 



grayish-brown. 

 Fn'ihde's solution, olive-green, becoming grayish-yellow in 24 hours*. 



§ 92. DIGITALIS lutea and purpurea (Foxglove) ; Scro/ihnlariaceai. 

 There is considerable divergence of opinion regarding the individuality 

 and relative importance of the active principles of Digitalis, as will be 

 noticed. 



(1) DIGITALIN G. (Nativelle's Digitalin [Walz's Digitalin differs greatly 

 from this in solubility, see below] ; Nerianthin ? see Nerium), Cj,,H„0.,„ (?). 

 ' Commercial Digitalin contains the four substances (1) to (4), but No. 2 

 principally ' (Schmiedeberg). ' Commercial Digitalin, crystallized, consists 

 chiefly of Digitonin (3), which is useless medicinally' (Kiliaui). 'Crys- 

 tallized Digitalin is a distinct chemicil individual ; it is not necessary to 

 denote it by Digitoxin, etc' (Arnaud). Acids produce dextrose, galactose, 

 and Digitogenia (1«). Prepared according to Nativelle's method, it 

 crystallizes in tine needles ; M.P. 243° (Arnaud) ; neutral reaction, taste 

 gradually bitter. Dilates pupil ; very poisonous. 



Solubility* in water very slight even boiling, N. (in 125 cold or 42 

 boiling, W.), 12 cold alcohol, (5 boilin?, N. (2i cold, 1 to 2 parts boiling, W.), 

 with difficulty in ether, N. (in 20,001) cold or 10,0;JO hot, W.). Miscible in 

 all proportions with ordinary chloroform, but less soluble in pure chloro- 

 form, Dragendorff (1 in 80, Schlimpert) ; dissolved with difficulty also 

 by benzene and amyl alcohol. 



It is removed from w/d solutions by immiscible solvents — benzene, 

 ether, chloroform (partly), amyl alcohol (partly). 

 Reactions (mostly negative) : 



[Not precipitated by neutral lead acetate] nor metallic salts 



(Fresenius). 

 Tannic acid, pp. 

 Picric acid, not at 1 in 3,000. 



Gold chloride, crystalline pp. ; at first clear at 1 in 3,000. 

 » N. = Nativelle ; W. = Wolz. 



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