368 DR THOMAS ANDERSON ON CERTAIN PRODUCTS OF DECOMPOSITION 
The ether was prepared in the usual manner, by dissolving the acid in abso- 
lute alcohol, and passing dry hydrochloric acid gas through the solution. The 
product, which possessed all the properties of margaric ether, gave the following 
results of analysis : 



5'596 grains of the ether gave 
15-662  ... carbonic acid, 
6:399 de water. 
Experiment. Calculation. 
—_————_——F———————__ 
Carpon, )'. 20 « = doo 76°51 Cag 2850.0 
Hydrogen, yg EAT 12°74 Jal 475-0 
Oxygenyn fsa. cee a Lom 10°79 O, 400-0 
100-00 100-00 3725°0 
These analyses establish, in a satisfactory manner, that the acid produced 
was margaric acid. It is scarcely possible, however, in the present state of the 
investigation, to give anything like a rational explanation of the mode in which 
it is here formed. Its production from oleic acid has been already observed by 
LavuRENT as the first product of oxidation by nitric acid; but the action of sul- 
phur is certainly of a very different character, and cannot be considered as bear- 
ing any analogy to that of an oxidising agent. The quantity of margaric acid 
produced does not appear to be constant, but varies with the rapidity of the dis- 
tillation, and is always most abundant when it is slowly performed. 
The oil which distils previous to and along with the margaric acid, and con- 
stitutes by far the most abundant product of the action of sulphur upon oleic acid 
and oil of almonds, is a very complex substance, and contains some of its consti- 
tuents in very small proportion. On this account I found it necessary to prepare 
it in very large quantity; and in doing so I abandoned the use of almond oil and 
employed linseed oil instead, which is a much cheaper substance, and yields the 
same fluid products. When the product of the action of sulphur is carefully rec- 
tified, the first portions which pass over, are perfectly transparent and colourless, 
highly limpid and mobile, and boil at the temperature of 160° Fahr. Only a 
small quantity, however, passes at this temperature, and the immersed thermo- 
meter gradually rises without indicating any fixed boiling point for the fluid. My 
first attempts to purify this oil, and separate it into its various constituents, did 
not afford any satisfactory conclusions. Numerous analyses of the more volatile 
portions were made without obtaining comparable results, although all indicated 
the presence of carbon and hydrogen nearly in the proportion of equal atoms. The 
following are the details of three of these analyses :— 
