DESCENT AND EARLY MANHOOD 13 



He obtained from the oil of cassia a new base, which 

 he named triphenylamine, by heating the bisulphite 

 of the ammoniacal cinnamic aldehyde with calcium 

 hydroxide; and obtained tricaproylamine by a sim- 

 ilar mode from caproyl aldehyde. He prepared cou- 

 marin from the Tonka bean, discovered a profitable 

 way of separating styracin, and determined the compo- 

 sition of huanokine, a new base of Peruvian bark, 

 C 20 H 12 NO, and found that it is isomeric with cincho- 

 nine. He investigated the action of zinc chloride on 

 hippuric acid, and showed that when chlorine is passed 

 into a solution of hippuric acid in rather dilute potash, 

 nitrogen is evolved and benzoglycolic acid produced. 



He obtained crystallized sulphocyanide of silver by 

 the action of oxide of silver upon sulphocyanide of 

 ammonium. Experiments on the action of oxide of 

 silver upon sulphocyanide of ammonium gave occa- 

 sion to the observation of the following very beautiful 

 mode of formation of sulphocyanide of silver. If freshly 

 precipitated oxide of silver be digested at a gentle heat 

 with a solution of sulphocyanide of ammonium, a con- 

 tinual evolution of ammonia takes place, while oxide 

 of silver is dissolved; and thus a compound of the sul- 

 phocyanides of silver and ammonium is formed, to- 

 gether with unchanged sulphocyanide of ammonium, 

 the process affording a beautiful example of rapid for- 

 mation of crystals. He found manganate of potassium 

 a suitable substance for decolourizing organic bodies, 

 and employed it in purifying uric, hippuric, and cya- 

 nuric acids, with great success. In 1857 he made re- 

 peated experiments with the view of obtaining by the 



