97 
acetie acid and as soon as the mother liquor showed only a very 
faint brownish tint, the erystallisation was carried on using dilute 
alcohol and repeated as often as the product obtained still gave tra- 
ces of alkyliodide in the apparatus of Zeisel. The final product re- 
presented very pale yellow fine needles which melted very much 
higher than the product studied by Schunck and one of us, namely 
at 268—269°. In other respects it does not differ very much from 
the substance studied formerly. It dissolves easily in caustie alka- 
lies with a yellow colour, organie solvents take it up comparatively 
easily. In conc. sulphurie aeid it dissolves with a pale yellow colour 
and the solution shows a pale greenish fluorescenz. Fehlings solution 
is not reduced by it, but its colour turns greenish, silver nitrate in 
ammoniacal solution is reduced by it at the boil. 
The composition corresponds to the formula C,,H,,04 and not to 
C;,H,,0, and the body may be identical with datiscetin isolated by 
Stenhouse. Quite pure samples do not contain alkyloxygroups, whereas 
the less thoroughly purified samples do, as stated above, contain them. 
in one case we found as much as 0:80/,. The substance studied by 
Schunck and one of us contained a large amount of alkyloxygroups 
and this fact amongst others led at that time to the supposition 
that the colouring prineiple of Datisea cannabina is a methoxyxan- 
thonderivative. In the light of our present researches the roots con- 
tain at least two colouring matters in varying quatities, one melting 
at 2370, and another melting at 268—269° of the formula C,,H,004: 
which ought to be called in accordance with the proposal of Sten- 
house datiscetin. In the samples at present at our disposal the al- 
kyloxygroups containing body is undoubtedly also present, as proved 
by the fact that not quite pure datiscetin samples vield small quan- 
tities of alkyliodide when treated with hydroiodie acid. Whether the 
quantities of this alkylated substance in our present raw material 
will be sufficiently large to enable its isolation we cannot say at 
present; we shall endeavour to get hold of it. 
The analysis of datiscetin gave the following results: 
1) 02000 > gave 04604 & CO, and 0:0662 g H,O 
202028 QUE ICT RSR OUEN ES TE 
3),02048 50 1702100, 10 1: OO 
22020307, 040718, MONO 
2002038. 04694, D, CODEN? 
Bulletin III. 
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