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Action of Hydrocarbon Sulphides on Bromacetic Acid. 
By Dr E. A. Lerts. 
(Sent for Publication August 19, 1878.) 
Action of Sulphide of Benzyl on Bromacetic Acid.—The starting-point of 
these experiments was an observation made some time ago, that if benzyl 
sulphide and bromacetic acid be warmed together, and the resulting mixture 
allowed to cool, it remains liquid for weeks ; whereas, if benzyl-thetine hydro- 
bromate were formed it would certainly be a solid substance, and would crystallise 
out; while, on the other hand, if no action occurred, the mixture ought to 
solidify on cooling, as both its ingredients are solid substances at ordinary 
temperatures. The fact, then, that the mixture remained liquid indicated that 
a reaction had occurred, not analogous to that which takes place when a 
sulphide of the (C,H.,1:).8 series acts on bromacetic acid. 
That a reaction between sulphide of benzyl and bromacetic acid does occur, 
and not that the mixture of the two substances remains liquid simply from 
physical causes, soon became evident after another experiment had been tried 
with the two substances. This time a mixture of them (both specially purified 
and dried) was very gently warmed and agitated till a homogeneous liquid 
resulted; the heat required for this was very slight, the temperature not 
exceeding 80-60° C. On cooling, the liquid solidified to a mass of crystals, 
which no doubt consisted of a mixture of bromacetic acid and sulphide of 
benzyl. This solid mixture, however, in course of time gradually liquefied, 
and at the end of six or seven days was perfectly fluid ; moreover, it no longer 
smelt of sulphide of benzyl, but possessed a powerful odour exceedingly 
irritating to the eyes and nostrils. The mixture was allowed to remain 
undisturbed for several weeks, and eventually warty crystals were deposited in 
it, which increased in quantity as the time went on. 
In order to ascertain whether the reaction would occur more rapidly at a 
higher temperature, the two substances were boiled together for a few minutes 
and then allowed to cool; after a day or two’s standing, crystals separated, 
and by continued boiling more and more of these were produced. 
In order to ascertain whether they consisted of hydrobromate of dibenzyl- 
thetine, some of them were treated with water (in which they dissolved with 
ereat ease), and the solution was tested with nitrate of silver ; a whzte precipi- 
tate resulted, apparently crystalline, and not at all resembling bromide of silver. 
This showed that they did not consist of a thetine compound. 
It occurred to me that even if no thetine compound resulted, the mixture 

