472 Royal Society. 



sificd without arrangement. Lying amongst the osteal cells will be 

 seen some which have accumulated around them a quantity of tissue 

 which forms a thick investment to them ; they then become granular, 

 and take on in every respect the characters of a lacunal cell. Tliese 

 are found deposited at intervals along the line of ossification and be- 

 coming blended with the general mass ; the granular cell remaining 

 as a lacuna, and sending out processes amongst the cells in all di- 

 rections. In old bone the cell character is in great part lost by a 

 general blending of the constituents, but may in many specimens be 

 still here and there recognised. Many instances are given in sup- 

 port of the conclusion that absorption of bone and of dental tissue 

 is effected directly through the influence of cells, but these are ne- 

 cessarily excluded from this abstract ; indeed it is impossible to give 

 any other than a very imperfect account of the contents of the paper 

 within the prescribed limits, especially as the numerous illustrations 

 which accompany the paper cannot be made use of. 



" On Rubian and its Products of Decomposition. Part II. 

 Action of Alkalies and Alkaline Earths on Rubian." By Edward 

 Schunck, Esq., F.R.S. 



From the author's experiments it appears that rubian is decom- 

 posed by the fixed alkalies, and by lime and baryta, but not by am- 

 monia. The products of decomposition formed by the action of the 

 alkalies and alkaline earths are five in number. They are as fol- 

 lows : — 1st, Alizarine ; 2nd, Verantine ; 3rd, Rubiretine ; 4th, Sugar ; 

 and 5th, a new substance, which the author denominates Rubiadine. 

 The first four possess the same properties and composition as when 

 formed by the action of acids on rubian. The fifth substance, rubia- 

 dine, occupies the place of rubianine, which it closely resembles. It 

 crystallizes from an alcoholic solution in small yellow or orange- 

 coloured needles. It is insoluble in boiling water, and when care- 

 fully heated it may be almost entirely volatilized, forming a subli- 

 mate of yellow micaceous scales, endowed with considerable lustre. 

 By these two properties it may be distinguished from rubianine, which 

 is soluble in boiling water, and cannot be heated without being de- 

 composed. Its other properties coincide almost entirely with those of 

 rubianine. Its composition is expressed by the formula C^„ Hj, O3, and 

 presuming that the formula for rubianine be CgoH,,, O15, it would 

 differ from the latter only by the elements of 7 equivs. of water. 

 Besides these substances, there is also formed a small quantity of 

 a dark brown powder, which is soluble in alkalies, but insoluble in 

 Avater and alcohol. This substance has precisely the same compo- 

 sition as the ulmic acid of Mulder, formed by the action of strong 

 acids on cane-sugar. Its formation is doubtless due to the further 

 action of the alkali on the sugar formed in the first instance. 



Action of Ferments on Rubian. — It has long been suspected by 

 chemists, that the colouring matter of madder owes its formation to 

 some process of fermentation, but the exact nature of the process 

 has hitherto remained unknown. That some process of decomposi- 

 tion takes place on extracting madder with cold tepid water and 

 exposing the extract to a moderate temperature, is proved by the 



