COKIIKE-LIKE SUBSTANCES. 175 



solution alkaline with potash, then extracted the base with 

 petroleum ether. On evaporation of the petroleum ether 

 the alkaloid appeared as a bright yellow oil, which had a 

 strong, unpleasant odor, quite different, however, from 

 that of coniine. It was strongly alkaline and had an 

 intensely bitter taste. At ordinary temperature it was 

 volatile. From its aqueous solution it was precipitated 

 by the chlorides of gold, platinum, and mercury. In 

 these reactions it resembled nicotine, from which it differed 

 in the double refractive and crystalline character of its 

 hydrochloride. With an ethereal solution of iodine this 

 substance did not give the EoussiN test for nicotine, but 

 instead of the long ruby-red crystals there appeared small, 

 dark-green, needle-shaped crystals. 



This substance was found to be highly poisonous. Seven 

 centigrammes injected subcutaneously into a large frog pro- 

 duced instantaneous death, and forty-four milligrammes 

 given to a pigeon caused a similar result. On account of its 

 poisonous properties the jury of medical experts decided 

 that the substance was a vegetable alkaloid. Otto says 

 that this decision astounded the chemists. 



Brouaedel and Boutmy found in the body of a woman, 

 who had died, after suffering, with ten other persons, from 

 choleraic symptoms from eating of a stuffed goose, a base 

 which gave the odor of coniine and the same reactions with 

 gold chloride aud iodine in potassium iodide, etc., as 

 coniine. The same base was found in the remainder of 

 the goose. But it did not give a red coloration with the 

 vapor of hydrochloric acid, and it did not form butyric 

 acid on oxidation, and although it was poisonous, it did 

 not produce in frogs the symptoms of coniine poisoning. 



Selmi repeatedly found coniine-like substances in de- 

 composing animal tissue. By distilling an alcoholic extract 

 from a cadaver, acidifying the distillate with hydrochloric 

 acid, evaporating, treating the residue with barium hydrate 

 and ether, and allowing the ether to evaporate spontane- 

 ously, he obtained a residue of volatile bases, the greater 

 part of which consisted of trimethylamine. After remov- 

 ing the trimethylamine, the residue had the odor of the 



