308 Mr. E. Schunck. 



benzol, and aniline than in alcohol ; it also dissolves in ligroin, but 

 the best solvent is chloroform. These solutions are less distinctly 

 green, and more brown, than those of phyllocyanin ; they are fluor- 

 escent, arid when dilute exhibit a marked reddish tinge, of which 

 nothing is seen in the case of phyllocyanin. The ethereal solution 

 shows five bands closely resembling those of phyllocyanin, as regards 

 both position and relative intensity, with this difference, however, that 

 the first and second bands lie further away from the red end than 

 with the latter, while the space between the fourth and fifth bands 

 is so much darkened that when the solution is concentrated the two 

 bands appear as one. When the ethereal solution is shaken up with 

 concentrated hydrochloric acid, the latter remains colourless, unless 

 phyllocyanin is present, when it acquires a blue colour. It would, 

 however, be a mistake to suppose that if, on standing, a blue colora- 

 tion makes its appearance in the lower liquid, the presence of phyllo- 

 cyanin is indicated, for by the action of hydrochloric acid phylloxanthin 

 undergoes a change whereby it becomes soluble in the acid, leaving 

 the ether in which it was previously dissolved. That this is the case 

 is evident from the fact that the blue coloration commences where 

 the ether and the acid are in contact, and extends from above down- 

 wards. 



Phylloxanthin, like phyllocyanin, may be heated for several hours 

 at 130 without undergoing any change, but at 160 decomposition 

 commences, and at 180 the substance is completely decomposed, 

 yielding a charred mass, which is entirely insoluble in chloroform. 

 When heated on platinum phylloxanthin burns with a luminous 

 flame yielding a bulky charcoal, which burns away with difficulty, 

 leaving a little dark- coloured ash ; this ash consists of ferric oxide. 



Since all the specimens of phylloxanthin I have prepared leave on 

 burning more or less ferric oxide, the presence of the latter cannot 

 be altogether accidental. Those who maintain that iron in some form 

 or other is an essential constituent of chlorophyll may not be sur- 

 prised at its being found in one of the products of the decomposition 

 of chlorophyll ; but it is difficult to understand why the iron, if origi- 

 nally present, should not have been removed during the treatment 

 with hydrochloric acid and acetic acid to which the product was sub- 

 mitted, and should still be present after repeated solution of the sub- 

 stance in ether. 



On adding a little nitric acid to a saturated solution of phyllo- 

 xanthin in glacial acetic acid the colour of the solution changes to a 

 deep yellow ; the solution deposits nothing on cooling ; it gives with 

 water a brown flocculent precipitate, the filtrate from which is 

 yellow, and shows no absorption bands, while the precipitate after 

 washing dissolves in alcohol, giving a yellow solution which shows 

 absorption bands, and leaves on evaporation a yellow brittle amorph- 



