UNDESCRIBED SPECIES OF LEPTOSPERMUM. 127 



than would be necessary for commercial distillation, so that 

 the yield of oil as here given, is perhaps a little less than 

 would be obtained commercially, particularly if care were 

 taken in the collection of the material. 



The amount of oil obtained from 373 pounds of leaves and 

 branchlets was 13^ ounces, equal to 0'227 o /°. The crude oil 

 was somewhat mobile and had a marked secondary odour 

 of citral ; it was reddish-brown in colour, but this, being 

 due to the mode of distillation, was accidental. The red 

 colour was entirely removed by agitating the oil with a 

 very dilute solution of aqueous potash or soda ; after 

 this treatment the oil was of a light lemon tint. 



The principal constituents in the oil were, (1) the aldehyde 

 citral, (2) an alcohol considered to be geraniol, (3) an acetic 

 acid ester considered to be geranyl-acetate, (4) the terpene 

 pinene which was dextrorotatory, and (5) a sesquiterpene, 

 which is probably the constituent which gives the lsevo- 

 rotation to the higher boiling portion. Limonene could not 

 be detected by any method, and was, therefore, absent ; 

 nor was phellandrene present. The whole of the aldehyde 

 appears to be citral, as proof of the presence of any other 

 aldehyde could not be obtained, and two determinations by 

 Flatau and Labbe's method failed to give any indication for 

 citronellal. The physical determinations seem also to 

 indicate that citral is alone present. The secondary odour 

 of the oil, from which the aldehydes had been removed, 

 strongly resembled that of geraniol. The oils of the Lepto- 

 spermums do not appear to have been chemically investi- 

 gated, so that the occurrence of citral in the oil of Lepto- 

 spermum Liversidgei is of some scientific interest. 



Experimental. 

 The crude oil was insoluble in 10 volumes 70°/° alcohol (by 

 weight) but was soluble in 1 volume 80°/° alcohol. The 

 rotation in 100 mm. tube was a D -f 9*2°. The refractive 



