GLUCOSIDE OCCURKING IN THE TIMBER OF tHE RED ASH. LO Ge 
had an odour of sugar, and gavea somewhat impure osazone 
melting at 188—190°. The substance was thus shown to 
belong to the group of natural glucosides. With the aim 
of obtaining the sugar in greater quantity, a portion of the 
original substance was first boiled with dilute sulphuric 
acid for 4hours, with a subsequent addition of hydrochloric 
acid and renewed boiling for several hours. The sugar 
formed by this treatment had increased somewhat in 
amount, and sufficient osazone was prepared to allow of its 
purification by one recrystallisation from dilute alcohol; it 
then melted at 179 — 182°, the indication thus being that 
the glucoside is very resistant to boiling dilute acids, and 
it becomes necessary to devise other methods, capable of 
effecting a more complete hydrolysis. 
For further investigation of this glucoside it is unnecess- 
ary to depend upon its adventitious deposition in the cracks 
of unsound timber, as we have been able to separate it in 
quantity from the wood itself. The method adopted was 
to boil the thin shavings in water for some time, and to 
submit the concentrated filtrate to fractional precipitation 
with lead acetate. After removing the first fraction, which 
consisted of a dark brown precipitate, a further addition of 
acetate produced a light yellow precipitate from the gluco- 
side: this was separated, washed, and then run into boiling 
dilute sulphuric acid, in the form of a thin cream. The 
filtrate from the lead sulphate was then repeatedly ex- 
tracted with ether, and after removing the ether by distil- 
lation the residue was recrystallised from boiling water. 
The resulting product melted at 218 —220°. Thus, although 
fisetin may be present in the timber in small amount, the 
main product isolated in this way is evidently the glucoside 
noted above (compare Perkin, loc. cit.). 
When maintained at 150° for 3 hours, the substance 
underwent a loss of weight corresponding closely with 
Q —December,6, 1! 22. 
