294 Experiments upon Mushrooms. 
It is speedily precipitated in the form of flakes, if the 
cooling of the solution be rapid; but when the cooling pro- 
ceeds very slowly, it takes upon separating the form of crystal- 
line lamin, like spermaceti: it is then very white, brilliant, 
soft and unctuous to the touch; 3 in short, it does not seem to 
differ from common spermaceti. 
This substance, which was known and described by the name 
of adipocire by M. Braconnot, as one of the elements of mush- 
rooms, exhibits a fact as new as it is interesting, since hitherto 
chemists have met with it in the animal kingdom only. 
Examination of the Alcohol which was boiled over the Husks 
of Mushrooms, and which deposited upon cooling the Sper~ 
maceti just described. 
‘This alcohol, when distilled in a retort, left a liquid re- 
sidue of a brownish yellow colour, in which grumous greasy 
particles were swimming. This residue contained scarcely any 
more alcohol; it was the water contained in the mushroom 
husks, at the moment of being treated by the alcohol, which 
gave it fluidity. This liquor was filtered; and after having se- 
parated the fat matter from it, it was evaporated into-a syrupy 
consistence. 
Examination of the above greasy Matter. 
This substance is of a brownish red colour: it is of a con- 
crete but soft consistence: it is melted and reduced by heat 
into smoke, which has the smell of common fat: the taste is 
not caustic, but it has something sharp. It is soluble in alco- 
hol, particularly by means of heat. 
If it was this substance which M. Braconnot took for ‘vax, 
I think he was mistaken: it is rather a kind of fat, which it 
resembles more than wax; but it is probably not this body 
which M. Braconnot described by the name of wax. 
Examination of the fibrous Part of the Mushroom, called 
Fungine ly M. Braconnot. 
The mushroom having been cleansed, as observed above, 
successively by water and by alcohol, from every thing which 
was soluble in these two agents, it was afterwards dried, and 
submitted to distillation. 
The following are the products which it gave: 
1. A brownish liquid which reddened strongly turnsole paper, 
but which contained however ammonia, which was detected by 
potash. 
2. A thick brown oil which had the smell of tobacco smoke. 
3. A yellow substance under a4 form of crystals attached * 
the 
