ANALYSIS OF DEADLY NIGHTSHADE. 353 



On examioiug the liquid product I found a great deal of 

 free ammonia, though there was some in combination, for 

 the addition of a few drops of caustic potash rendered the 

 aramoniacaJ smell much stronger. The oil was black, very 

 thick, and very acrid. 



The coal left in the retort weighed 1 gr. [15-45 grs.]. ItThecoal. 

 had an alkaline and prussiate taste. Washed with boiling 

 water it yielded a lixivium, which, being mixed with sul- 

 phate of iron, produced a very considerable quantity of 

 Prussian blue, considering the small quantity of matter 

 employed. The coal, aher having been lixiviated and dried, 

 still weighed 7 dec. [10-81 grs.]. 



This quantity of coal, exclusive of what was encrusted fts quantify 

 on the retort by the violence of the fire, which I was un-^^'^y gi^eat. 

 able to separate, is larger than is furnished by most other 

 ■vegetable matters, that I have yet had an opportunity of 

 distilling; for the 2-7 gr. [41-7 grs.] certainly contained 

 more than 7 dec. [10 81 grs.] of water, beside nitrate and 

 acetate of potash. 



It appears too, that it contains a large quantity of ni-itcoi tains 



trogen and hidrogen, since it yielded by distillation a great ™"'=*^ ^''^'^''8^" 

 1 1 r . . ., , ., n . ,t . and nitrogen. 



fieal oi ammonia, prussic acid, and oil. But as this mat- 

 ter might contain a little nitrate, I suspected, that part at 

 least of the nitrogen forming the ammonia and prussic acid 

 was produced from the nitric acid. 



To clear up this doubt, I mixed 6 gr. [92'67 grs.] of Gum arable 

 gam arabic, in which there is supposed to be nitrogen, with™'^^^ ^'V^l*, 

 a tenth of saltpetre; and, after having distilled, examined tilled. 

 the products. The liquid that came over was in fact am- 

 moniacal; and its smtll became stronger on the addition of 

 potash, which shows, that an acid was formed at the same 

 time with the alkali. 



The coal remaining in the retort, which weighed 2 gr. 

 []30-89 grs,], and was extremely pyrophoric, contained 

 prussiate/of potash, like that of my matter. But though 

 J employed in this experiment three times as much gum, 

 and probably more saltpetre, the mixture did not furnish so 

 large a quantity of ammonia, or of prussic acid, as the 

 nauseous principle of belladonna. 



Supplement— Vol. XXXI, A a If 



