56 



to commence the present investigation by a series of analyses of our 

 material, in order to ascertain which variety of narcotine we were 

 dealing with. 



The narcotine employed was obtained from Mr. Morson, to whom 

 we are greatly indebted for the scrupulous care bestowed on its pre- 

 paration and purification. He stated that it was extracted from the 

 residues which had accumulated during the preparation of very large 

 quantities of morphine and codeine, from opium of various qualities 

 and from various sources. If, therefore, distinct varieties of narcotine 

 exist, there was reason to expect that our narcotine would prove to 

 be a mixture of several of them. The results of all our analyses, 

 however, agree with the formula C 22 H 23 NO 7 , as shown by the 

 following Table, which gives the highest, lowest, and mean results 

 obtained : 



Calculated. Found. 



C 22 H 23 N Q7 413 100-00 



The formula which has been generally admitted since the publi- 

 cation of Wohler's* and Blyth'sf researches on narcotine, namely, 

 C 23 H 25 NO 7 , requires the following per-centages : 



Carbon 64*61 



Hydrogen 5*85 



Nitrogen 3-30 



Oxygen . . 26'24 



We may here remark that the recorded analyses of narcotine and 

 its salts, with the exception of one by Dr. Hofmann, published by 

 Blyth, agree at least as well with the former as with the latter for- 

 mula ; moreover, during the course of experiments made with several 

 pounds of narcotine, we have observed nothing, either in the be- 

 haviour of this base itself, or in the nature or proportions of its pro- 



* Ann, Chem. Pharm. vol. 1. p. 1. 



t Ibid. p. 29 ; Mem. Chem. Soc. vol. ii. p. 163. 



