﻿CRYSTALLINE 
  CONSTITUENTS 
  OF 
  OPIUM. 
  

  

  353 
  

  

  direct 
  from 
  the 
  establishment 
  of 
  Messrs 
  Robiquet, 
  Pelletier, 
  and 
  Caventou, 
  in 
  

   Paris 
  ; 
  but 
  I 
  am 
  informed 
  by 
  Professor 
  Heinrich 
  Rose 
  of 
  Berlin, 
  that 
  he 
  possesses 
  

   a 
  specimen 
  from 
  the 
  same 
  source, 
  which 
  shews 
  a 
  feeble 
  blue.* 
  

  

  The 
  specimen 
  of 
  narceine 
  which 
  I 
  obtained 
  from 
  Paris, 
  though 
  closely 
  agree- 
  

   ing 
  in 
  character 
  with 
  that 
  which 
  I 
  had 
  myself 
  prepared, 
  presented 
  some 
  minor 
  

   differences, 
  and 
  analysis 
  shewed 
  that 
  its 
  constitution 
  was 
  entirely 
  different. 
  

  

  {4-458 
  grains 
  of 
  Robiquet's 
  narceine 
  gave 
  

   10-250 
  ... 
  carbonic 
  acid, 
  and 
  

   2-620 
  ... 
  water. 
  

  

  f 
  3-340 
  grains 
  of 
  Robiquet's 
  narceine 
  gave 
  

  

  [ 
  2-245 
  ... 
  platinochloride 
  of 
  ammonium. 
  

  

  Carbon 
  

   Hydrogen 
  

  

  Nitrogen 
  

   Oxygen 
  

  

  Experiment. 
  

  

  62-70 
  

   6-53 
  

  

  4-22 
  

   26-45 
  

  

  100-00 
  

  

  Calculation. 
  

  

  62-95 
  

   6-23 
  

   4.58 
  

  

  26-24 
  

  

  100-00 
  

  

  N 
  

   O, 
  

  

  32 
  

  

  192 
  

   19 
  

   14 
  

   80 
  

  

  305 
  

  

  These 
  results 
  correspond 
  exactly 
  with 
  the 
  formula 
  C 
  32 
  H 
  19 
  NO 
  10 
  of 
  which, 
  

   however, 
  I 
  have 
  no 
  means 
  of 
  confirming 
  the 
  correctness. 
  I 
  attempted 
  to 
  form 
  a 
  

   platinum 
  salt, 
  but 
  the 
  fluid, 
  in 
  place 
  of 
  depositing 
  a 
  crystalline 
  salt, 
  solidified 
  into 
  

   a 
  thin 
  jelly, 
  which 
  I 
  did 
  not 
  think 
  deserving 
  of 
  analysis. 
  The 
  high 
  price 
  of 
  the 
  

   substance 
  (nine 
  francs 
  per 
  gramme), 
  has 
  deterred 
  me 
  from 
  attempting 
  a 
  more 
  ex- 
  

   tended 
  examination. 
  

  

  V. 
  Salts 
  of 
  Narceine. 
  

  

  According 
  to 
  Pelletier 
  and 
  Couerbe, 
  narceine, 
  though 
  dissolved 
  by 
  the 
  acids, 
  

   is 
  deposited 
  unchanged 
  from 
  the 
  solutions. 
  In 
  this, 
  however, 
  their 
  results 
  do 
  not 
  

   agree 
  with 
  mine. 
  Though 
  incapable 
  of 
  restoring 
  the 
  blue 
  of 
  reddened 
  litmus, 
  

   narceine 
  is 
  a 
  feeble 
  base, 
  and 
  its 
  solutions 
  in 
  acids 
  deposit 
  crystalline 
  salts 
  of 
  well- 
  

   marked 
  characters. 
  

  

  Hydrochlorate 
  of 
  Narceine. 
  — 
  When 
  narceine 
  is 
  mixed 
  with 
  water, 
  and 
  hydro- 
  

   chloric 
  acid 
  is 
  added, 
  it 
  rapidly 
  dissolves, 
  and 
  on 
  standing 
  deposits 
  large 
  groups 
  

   of 
  radiated 
  silky 
  needles. 
  These 
  needles, 
  if 
  collected 
  on 
  a 
  filter 
  and 
  left 
  for 
  some 
  

   time, 
  occasionally 
  pass 
  into 
  a 
  congeries 
  of 
  short, 
  thick, 
  irregular 
  prisms, 
  and 
  si- 
  

   milar 
  crystals 
  are 
  deposited 
  by 
  spontaneous 
  evaporation 
  in 
  dilute 
  solutions. 
  

   These 
  crystals 
  are 
  readily 
  soluble 
  in 
  water 
  and 
  alcohol, 
  and 
  their 
  solution 
  has 
  a 
  

  

  * 
  Dr 
  Traill 
  has 
  since 
  informed 
  me 
  that 
  a 
  specimen 
  in 
  his 
  collection 
  gives 
  a 
  fine 
  blue 
  with 
  hy- 
  

   drochloric 
  acid 
  ; 
  so 
  that 
  the 
  product 
  sold 
  in 
  Paris 
  as 
  narceine, 
  would 
  appear 
  to 
  be 
  very 
  variable 
  in 
  

   its 
  properties. 
  

  

  