OHEMISTEY. 



87 



distillation, and gave a considerable quantity 

 of a clear, colorless, mobile liquid, boiling at 

 from 167 to 168 0., though apparently with 

 slight dissociation. A part of the purest of 

 this substance showed, under elementary analy- 

 sis, a composition corresponding with the for- 

 mula OaoHaaHaO, agreeing with the composition 

 of terpinol. The compound has an odor not 

 quite identical with that of spirits of camphor, 

 is not readily affected by metallic sodium, even 

 when heated with it, and gives off a vapor of 

 a density calculated at 4*7. The higher frac- 

 tion (that boiling at from 210 to 225), when 

 subjected to fractional distillation, gave off a 

 colorless, mobile liquid of aromatic but pow- 

 erful odor, which boils without decomposition 

 at from 215 to 216; gives, with sulphuric 

 acid, a blood-red color, turning to brown and 

 black ; forms with sodium a blood-red, brittle, 

 resinous substance, and is acted on violently 

 and decomposed by strong nitric acid. Its va- 

 por density is 4*39, and its composition is ex- 

 pressed by the formula 8 Hi 2 O. This sub- 

 stance is isomeric, so far as Mr. Stillman knows, 

 with no other known compound. It is homol- 

 ogous, so far as its empirical formula is con- 

 cerned, with common camphor, but has differ- 

 ent properties. 



Messrs. J. M. Stillman and E. 0. O'Neill have 

 examined and described a new fat acid from the 

 nut of the California bay- tree (Umbellularia 

 Calif arnica). The nuts, when ground and ex- 

 tracted, yielded a content of 59 per cent of the 

 crude fat, which solidified on cooling to a hard, 

 tallowy mass, nearly white, having a specific 

 gravity of 0-925 in the melted condition at 88 

 Fahr., its melting-point. It is disagreeable in 

 taste, and produces irritation in the throat. 

 When saponified and treated with hydrochloric 

 acid the fat yielded an oily acid layer, which 

 the analysts regard as composed chiefly of a 

 new acid, of the acetic acid series, to which 

 they have given the name, derived from the 

 accepted name of the tree, of umbellulic acid. 

 With it there seems to be also present a certain 

 quantity of some higher acid, and possibly a 

 small quantity of some lower acid. Umbellu- 

 lic acid, the composition of which is expressed 

 by the formula OnHn(OjH,)Oa, is a white, 

 crystalline substance of a peculiar taste, which 

 does not appear to be derived from mere im- 

 purities, and irritates the mucous membrane 

 of the throat. It distills at the ordinary atmos- 

 pheric pressure without decomposition, giving 

 a water-clear distillate that becomes, on cool- 

 ing, a white, crystalline solid. Its melting-point 

 appears to be from 21 to 23 0. (70 to 73i 

 Fahr.), and its boiling-point from 275 to 280 

 0. (527 to 536 Fahr.). The results of the 

 analysis are the more remarkable inasmuch as 

 they are not in accordance with the general 

 theory that the natural fats contain only acids 

 with an even number of carbon atoms in the 

 molecule. 



Mr. Malvern W. lies has described a new 

 manganese mineral, which has been found in 



Hall Valley, Park County, Colorado. It is a 

 hydrous sulphate of the Epsomite group, and 

 is composed of five equivalents of the sulphate 

 of manganese, with one each of the sulphates 

 of iron and zinc. It is described as composed 

 of loosely adhering, very friable, thick ortho- 

 rhombic prisms, which are frequently found 

 terminating in truncated pyramids, with a 

 slightly glimmering luster, somewhat resem- 

 bling pure kaolin, and a number of effervescent 

 salts, of a pure milky- white color, but sometimes 

 stained with sesquioxide of iron, as having a 

 bitter, astringent taste, and as being very read- 

 ily soluble even in cold water. The aqueous 

 solution effervesces with sodium carbonate, 

 and reddens blue litmus-paper. Its hardness is 

 from '75 to 1, and its specific gravity is 2*167. 



Professor F. W. Clark and N". W. Perry de- 

 scribe a new mineral from near Gunnison, 

 Col., for which they propose, if it should prove 

 to be a new species, the name of gunnisonite. 

 It is massive, easily scratched by the knife, 

 and has a deep purple color, the tint of which 

 is retained in the powder. At first sight it 

 suggested yttrocerite, and this led to its ex- 

 amination for fluorine. The new mineral is 

 associated with a semi-massive calcite, which 

 in portions is tinged with ferric oxide, and 

 with which it is so interpenetrated that it 

 could not be completely separated mechanically. 

 Its specific gravity is 2*85. The analysis, mak- 

 ing allowance for the intermixed calcite, gave 

 for the composition of the mineral nearly the 

 formula 7 CaO, 2 A1 2 O 3 , 4 SiO 2 , 32 CaF 2 . An 

 analysis of purer material might give the sim- 

 pler ratio of four equivalents of the silicate to 

 sixteen of the fluoride. 



M. E. Grimaux, having effected a transfor- 

 mation of morphine into codeine, has since 

 succeeded in obtaining a new series of bases 

 from the latter substance. By treating code- 

 ine or the sodium derivative of morphine with 

 methyl iodide, he obtained the iodomethylate 

 of codeine, a substance possessing the proper- 

 ties of a quaternary iodide of ammonium. 

 This, treated with silver oxide, is transformed 

 into a solid and crystallizable tertiary base, 

 slightly soluble in water and easily soluble in 

 alcohol and ether, which crystallizes in needles 

 fusing at 118*5 0. The new base appears to 

 be formed by the abstraction of a molecule of 

 water from the quaternary hydrate of ammo- 

 nium, and to constitute methocodeine, Ci 8 H 20 

 NO 2 (OCH 3 ), an isomer of codethyline, CirHis 

 NO^OCaHe). The substance was also ob- 

 tained by boiling iodomethylate of codeine 

 with an aqueous solution of potash, but the 

 yield was less than when silver oxide was used. 

 When silver oxide and potash are both used, an- 

 other tertiary crystallizable base fusing at 132, 

 and resembling methocodeine, but less soluble 

 in ether, is obtained. This base has not been 

 analyzed as yet, but is probably methocodethy- 

 line, Ci 8 H 2 iNp 2 (OC 2 H 6 ). We have here, then, a 

 general reaction by means of which can be ob- 

 tained homologues of codeine containing new 



