30 BACTERIAL POISONS. 



reagents, and its lack of bitter taste, it resembles (lie bast- 

 obtained by RORSCH and FASSBENDER, but, unlike that 

 alkaloid, it is extractable from alkaline solutions only. 



SELMI, in commenting upon the base studied by RORSCH 

 and FASSBENDER, SCHWANERT, and himself, believing 

 that all were dealing with the same body, states that it 

 does not contain phosphorus, and that it is separated with 

 extreme difficulty from the vegetable alkaloids. 



LIEBERMANN, in examining the somewhat decomposed 

 stomach and intestines in a case of suspected poisoning, 

 found an alkaloids! body which was unlike that studied by 

 the chemists mentioned above, inasmuch as it was not vola- 

 tile. The STAS-OTTO method was employed. The ether 

 extract from alkaline solution left, on evaporation, a brown- 

 ish, resinous mass, which dissolved in water to a turbid 

 solution, the cloudiness increasing on heating. This reac- 

 tion agrees with coniine, but the odor differed from that of 

 the vegetable alkaloid. The aqueous, strongly alkaline 

 solution gave the following reactions : 



(1) With tannic acid, a white precipitate. 



(2) With potassium iodide, a yellowish-brown, turning 

 to dark-brown precipitate. 



(3) With chlorine water, a marked white cloudiness. 



(4) With phospho-molybdic acid, a yellow precipitate. 



(5) With potassio-mercuric iodide, a white precipitate. 



(6) With mercuric chloride, a white cloudiness. 



(7) With concentrated sulphuric acid, after a while, a 

 reddish-violet coloration. 



(8) With concentrated nitric acid, after evaporation, a 

 yellowish spot. 



These reactions exclude all vegetable alkaloids save 

 coniine. The putrefactive alkaloid does not distil when 

 heated on the oil-bath to 200, while coniine distils at 

 135. The former is with certainty distinguished from 

 coniine by its non-poisonous properties. 



This substance is extracted by ether from acid, as well 

 as from alkaline solutions. The yellow, oily drops ob- 

 tained after the evaporation of the ether are soluble in 

 alcohol. The taste is slightly burning. 



