154 DR. LOWIG ON THE ESSENTIAL OIL 
M. Pagenstuher, an apothecary in Berne, had already drawn attention 
to the oil and distilled water of the blossoms of Spirea Ulmaria in a 
treatise which may be found in Buchner’s Repertorium, vol. xL1x. p. 337. 
He there describes exactly almost all the combinations which are the 
subject of this Memoir; and had he made analyses of the elements with 
only a few substances, the real nature, not only of the oil itself, but also 
several decompositions and recompositions which it experiences would 
not then have escaped him. . 
M. Pagenstuher had the kindness to give me the oil for all the in- 
vestigations, and also to communicate to me his observations made 
up to that time. All his experiments which were of any importance 
on the present subject are incorporated into this Memoir, so that in 
many respects the present work may be considered as undertaken eon- 
jointly with M. Pagenstuher. To facilitate the general view of the fol- 
lowing experiments, a few of the leading results may be first stated. 
The oil of the blossoms of the Spirea Ulmaria is a hydracid; it eon- 
sists of one eq. of a radical = C12 H5 O4, and one eq. of hydrogen, 
which uniting with the radical forms an acid. If the hydrogen, which 
by uniting with the radical forms the acid, be oxidized by nitric acid, 4 
additional eqs. of oxygen are taken up by the radical, thus forming the 
oxyacid of the same radical. Instead of 1 eq. of hydrogen, the radical 
can unite with 1 eq. of chlorine, bromine, iodine, or even of a metal. 
These latter combinations are also formed when the hydracid is made 
to act on metallic oxides. With ammonia, on the contrary, the hydracid 
unites without undergoing any change. From these combinations the 
following compounds result: 
C12 H5 04+ O4 
(C12 H5 04+ H)+NH3 or ammonia. 
The radical is designated by the name Spireoyl, or for the conve- 
nience of shortness Spiroil. Another name would have been chosen for 
it had not a similar nomenclature been already applied to another sub- 
stance nearly allied to it. It is always doubtful policy to derive the 
name of a vegetable principle from the plant in whielf it is first disco- 
vered, for generally with great probability the same body may be found 
in other plants. Names which designate any principal peculiarity of the 
substance are therefore in such cases always preferable. One of the pe- 
culiarities of spiroil is its property of forming yellow compounds with 
oxygen, and withthe metals, alkalies, and earths; a name therefore which 
had reference to this quality would have been very suitable. A name 
