354 MISSOURI AGRICULTURAL EXP. STA V RESEARCH BULLETIN NO. IO 



For the sake of comparison with the carotin bands of the alfalfa 

 hay, the alcoholic solution of the main butter fat pigment was exam- 

 ined in the spectroscope. The results are given in Table 5. 



TABLE 4. 



ABSORPTION BANDS OF BUTTER FAT XANTHOPHYLLS SHOWN IN 

 FIGURE III. 



TABLE 5. COMPARISON OF BANDS OF CAROTIN OF ALFALFA AND BUTTERFAT. 



(C 2 H 6 OH SOLUTION). 



The result of this experiment was not only to confirm the re- 

 markable similarity of the main butter fat pigment of this partic- 

 ular fat to the carotin of alfalfa hay, but also to confirm the presence 

 of a secondary constituent practically identical with the xanthophylls. 

 In addition it was found that these xanthophylls, like the xanthophylls 

 of alfalfa hay, could be chromotographically separated into three 

 constituents. The two main constituents seemed to be closely related 

 to carotin in adsorption properties so that their presence could not 

 be detected in the presence of a large amount of carotin until first 

 separated from the main pigment with the aid of their relatively 

 greater solubility in alcohol with respect to petroleum ether. The 

 third constituent of the secondary group was more nearly related 

 to a true xanthophyll in all its properties, including its adsorption by 

 CaCO 3 . When classified with respect to the action of their alcoholic so- 

 lutions toward a little concentrated HCl all the xanthophyll pigments 

 apparently belong to the group which Tswett calls oc xanthophylls. 



