386 Miscellaneous Intelligence. 
possesses powerful poisonous qualities. It was found to reside equally 
in the root, leaves, flowers, and seeds of the plant; but associated 
with different proximate principles, so as to have its action on the 
animal system modified.—Jour. de Pharmacie, Jan. 1824, 
24. Jalapine or Jalapia—Mr. Hume, jun. of Long Acre, is said 
to have discovered a vegeto-alkaline principle in Jalap, and pro- 
poses to call it Jalapine. It is procured in the following manner. 
Coarsely powdered jalap is macerated for 12 or 14 days, in strong 
acetic acid; a highly coloured tincture is thus obtained, which, 
when filtered, is to be supersaturated with ammonia, and thmie 
violently shaken: a sabulous deposit will fall rapidly, and a few 
crystals will form on the sides of the vessel. The deposit and crys= 
tals are to be collected and washed with distilled water, again dis- 
solved in a small quantity of concentrated acetic acid, and re-pre= 
cipitated by ammonia added in excess, which throws down the jala- 
pine in small white acicular crystals. 
Jalapine is without any perceptible taste or smell, and seems to be 
heavier than Morphia, Quinia, or other substances of this class; it is 
scarcely soluble in cold water, and only to a small extent in hot 
water; ether has no effect upon it; alcohol is its proper solvent. 
Very little trouble is requisite to purify jalapine from extractive or 
colouring matter, for which it appears to have but a slight affinity. 
Mr. Hume has not made many experiments upon this substance, 
but thinks that one ounce of jalap will, on careful treatment, afford 
about five grains of the substance.—Med. Jour, li. 346. 
25. MM. Liebeg and Gay Lussac on Fulminic Acid and Fulminates. 
An abstract was given in the last number of this journal, (p. 153..0f a 
paper by Dr. Liebeg on fulminating silver, mercury, &c., in w.rich 
the author proved that they were saline compounds containing a 
peculiar acid, which he called the fulminic acid, and the compounds 
of this acid with bases he called fulminates ; shewing at the same time 
that they all possessed similar properties to the compounds of silver 
and mercury. Since the researches referred to, Dr, Liebeg has been 
joined by M. Gay Lussac in further investigations on this subject, and 
the remarkable result has been obtained that cyanic acid is the true 
acid existing in these compounds. The paper containing these ulti- 
mate investigations is published in the Annales de Chimie, xxv. 285. 
and contains admirable examples of chemical reasoning and mani- 
pulation ; but we cannot do more at present than give a very brief 
account of if. ‘ 
The compound principally experimented on was that of silver ; the 
fulminate of silver from its insolubility being more readily obtained 
perfectly pure than any other. It was prepared by putting 6.5 
