800 FOODS AND POOD ADULTERANTS. 



The honey in 10 per cent solution, after fermentation, was filtered and evaporated 

 to a thin sirup and poured into absolute alcohol. The brownish precipitate thus ob- 

 tained was rubbed with absolute alcohol, the liquid poured off and the residue rubbed 

 twice with 96 per cent alcohol, separated on a filter, and treated three times with 

 ether. The residue was next dissolved in a small quantity of water, treated with 

 bone-black and filtered. If the water-clear solution is now poured into absolute 

 alcohol, a snow-white precipitate is formed. When the precipitate has subsided the 

 alcohol is removed with a siphon and the residue treated again with a mixture of 

 water- free ether and absolute alcohol. After thirty-six hours it was found that the 

 precipitate had settled well to the bottom. The liquid was poured off and the resi- 

 due poured into a large asbestos filter previously weighed. The washing was per- 

 formed three times with absolute alcohol and three times with ether, and a stream 

 of dried hydrogen conducted over the residue which caused it to fall into a pul- 

 verulent mass. Finally it was dried in hydrogen at 60. At this temperature the 

 mass fell together into a lamp. The filter was further dried forty-eight hours over 

 sulphuric acid and weighed in a closed tube. The specific rotatory power for four 

 samples of the substance, prepared as above, from four different kinds of honey, was 

 as follows : 



From Nuremberg honey 68.06 



Do. 59.30 



From honey from head gardener, Seyfferth , 58. 30 



From Nuremberg honey 52. 60 



The reducing power of the body for Fehling solution was determined for the first 

 and second samples, both before and after inversion. 



No. 1. 



g copper. 



Before inversion, 1 g substance reduced 455 



After inversion, 1 g substance reduced 1. 200 



No. 2. 



Before inversion, 1 g substance reduced 3048 



After inversion, 1 g substance reduced . 8450 



It is evident from the foregoing that no single substance composes the unferruent- 

 able residue of honey and it is further evident that this substance is not largely com- 

 posed of dextrin. It was further established that the substance, after inversion, was 

 fully fermentable. Judged by its specific rotatory power above this substance re- 

 sembles Schmidt's gallisin, but its reducing power is quite different. The researches 

 show that the purity of a honey can not be safely determined by the fermentation 

 process as practiced heretofore. 



In regard to this right-handed body in honey, Amthor and Stern* have made some 

 interesting investigations : 



44.9655 grams of a sample of undoubtedly genuine honey were dissolved in 300 cc 

 of water and allowed to ferment with yeast. After filtering and making up to 200 

 cc (T) the liquid was examined in a Laurent polariscope and gave 24. 9' in a 20 

 cm tube. The dextrin was then converted into dextrose by heating 100 cc with 

 10 cc hydrochloric acid for three hours in a water bath. After cooling and making 

 up again to 100 cc, the polarization gave 9.21', equal to 2.249 per cent dextrose. 

 Allihn's gravimetric process gave 2.266 per cent. The formation of dextrose points 

 to the honey having contained dextrin. The authors further confirmed this view by 

 preparing phenyglucazono. A large quantity of honey was fermented in a weak 

 solution; the filtrate yielded on evaporation a brown, thickish sirup, which was 



Zeit. f. angew. Chem., 1889, 576. 



