S68 ANALYSIS «F TOBAOC^. 



5, A red matter soluble both in alcohol and in water, 

 which swells up considerably in the fire, and of which I do 

 Bot well know the nature: 



6, Muriate of ammonia: 



7, Lastly, an acrid, volatile, colourless prinnple, solu- 

 ble both in water and in alcohol, and which appears to be dif- 

 ferent iVom all that are known in the vegetable kingdom. 

 It is this principle, that imparts' to prepared tobacco the pe- 

 culiar character, that renders it easily distinguishable from 

 every other vegetable preparation : this will be proved in a 

 subsequent paper, which we shall give onsnufF. 



Tiis praicip^Ie ^^ '* possible, however, that this principle may be nothing 

 possibly aa oil, but a very thin oil, which, on this very account, would pos- 

 sess a certain degree of volatility, and the property of dis- 

 ^ solving in water and vegetable acids, as common volatile 



oils do ; for on treating dry prepared ]eaf tobacco directly 

 with alcohol, we obtained, independantly of the acrid prin- 

 ciple, a brown oil, that had nearly a similar taste. 



It may be conceived, that this matter existed originally 

 in the plant in the state of volatile oil ; and that it has be^n 

 thifkeued, and in some measure resinified, by the progress 

 of vegetation and desiccation. 



It might be supposed too, with equal probability, that 

 the thick oil, of v/hich we have just spoken, is a part of the 

 green resin, that owes its acrid taste to a portion of the vo- 

 latile principle, which has combined with it. At least there 

 i& no doubt, that prepared tobacco owes the greater part of 

 its distinguishing properties to the acrid principle and the 

 oil that exist in the leaf of the nicotiana, for these two sub- 

 istances produce the same sensations in the mouth and in the 

 liOjie as tobacco itself. 

 B.'ro¥wg i'^ smoking tobacco these sensations are modified by the 



totKicco, empyreumatic oil, pyroligneous acid, and ammonia,, that 



are formed during combustion ; yet we still distinguish very 

 ' sensibly those arising from the substances in question. 



Te«€fer«imiic!~ By pa^ssiug the tobacco smoke through water, as is done 

 «**y water, jj^ certain countries, the smell and taste of these two pceu* 

 liar substances are rendered more mild and agreeable. 



lu a subsequent paper we shall give an analysis of the 

 /Iried leyf tobacco, and of snufF» prepared in different 



countries. 



