78 Composition of the oil from Bir Bahot?. | March, 1905. 
later there were clear indications of the presence of stearic acid in 
the oil. 
The filtrate from the solution in absolute alcohol should have 
contained only lithium myristate. The alcohol was evaporated off 
and the salt decomposed with hydrochloric acid and washed. It 
melted at 53°.7, and after recrystallization at 53°.8. _Myristic acid 
melts at 53°.8. 
Combustion of *1077 gram gave— 
H,0 -1162 gram, z.e., 11-98 per cent. hydrogen. 
CO, °2777 gram, ¢.e., 70°3 per cent carbon. 
Myristic acid, C,,H,.0,, gives 11°8 per cent. hydrogen and 
70°5 per cent. carbon. 
This acid was obviously pure myristic acid. 
The filtrate from the solution in 50 per cent. alcohol was eva- 
porated down and decomposed with hydrochloric acid. The free 
acids thus obtained were liquid at the temperature of the labora- 
tory, showing that all the liquid acids had not been removed by the 
trituration with alcohol sp. gr. 911. The amount was too small for 
further examination. 
In the above work there is uncertainty as to the presence of 
stearic acid, and owing to the method adopted for the separation 
of the fatty acids it appeared desirable to make a separation 
ab initio by means of the lead salts and redetermine the iodine 
value for the unsaturated acids. Accordingly a fresh lot of the 
mixed fatty acids was saponified. The soap was converted into 
the lead salts and these treated according to the method of Tor- 
telli and Ruggeri. The solid and liquid acids were thus separated. 
The liquid acids on standing for a few days at 18° had deposited a 
few small needle-like crystals which melted or dissolved in the 
liquid acid on slightly warming it. These are mentioned below. 
The solid fatty acids were converted into their lithium salts 
as before, and the 50 per cent. alcoholic solution was heated to 60°, 
cooled and filtered. he filtrate gave liquid acids on hydrolysis. 
These were added to the liquid acids obtained from the lead _ salts. 
The salts on the filter were digested with absolute alcohol and 
filtered hot ina hot water funnel. This step was rendered neces- 
sary by the fact that the dissolved myristic acid began to crystallize 
out as soon as the temperature fell more than a few degrees. The 
precipitate left after filtering the hot solution gave on hydrolysis a 
small quantity of acids which was dissolved in boiling alcohol. 
The crystals were pressed in filter paper. This was repeated four 
times, and after each crystallization the melting point of the erys- 
tals was taken. > These were 49°.5, 51°.5, 53°.5, 627.6. The re- 
maining acid was fractionally crystallized in two fractions, and the 
melting point of each fraction was found to be 64°.5. Since. 
this is above the melting point of pure palmitic acid it may be 
taken as certain that stearic acid in small quantity is present in’ 
the oil. ie 
The filtrate from the hot alcohol solution was cooled. -There 
