Compound Celluloses 1/9 



reactions (e.g. chlorination) remains united to the R. hexene 

 groups ; in others passes into cellulose, and is isolated as such 

 (regulated oxidation by CrO 3 ) ; in others it is broken down, 

 and this destruction takes place at the expense of cellulose. 

 These considerations are dealt with at greater length in a paper 

 by the authors, * Celluloses, Oxycelluloses, Lignocelluloses ' 

 (Berl. Ber. 1893, 2520). 



(3) Regarding lignification as a process of continuous 

 modification of cellulose, and the woods as representing the 

 extreme limits of such a process, these should show an 

 increase in lignone at the expense of cellulose ; which is in fact 

 the case. Lignocelluloses in the first year of growth contain 

 7<D-8op.ct. cellulose ; the woods, on the other hand, 50-60 p.ct. 



(4) The woods often contain aromatic products of definite 

 and well-ascertained constitution. We have given some of the 

 evidence for the view that the tannins in heart woods are direct 

 products of transformation of the lignocelluloses of the tissue. 

 We shall presently see that aromatic products are formed in 

 large quantity in the process of destructive distillation of the 

 woods, some of the most characteristic of these being pyrogallol 

 derivatives. We have also seen that the origin of the hippuric 

 acid of the herbivora has been traced to the lignocelluloses of 

 the fodder plants. It is, therefore, generally established that 

 the lignocelluloses are connected on the one hand with the 

 celluloses, and on the other with the derivatives of benzene, 

 through a series of intermediate products ; and in the present 

 state of knowledge it is not difficult to account for the relation- 

 ships which exist as genetic. 



(5) The most convincing evidence, however, is that 

 furnished by a general review of the numerical constants of the 

 lignocelluloses. We have already alluded to the general 

 uniformity in composition of the woods, and therefore for 

 our immediate purpose we select a typical wood (beech) for 



K 2 



