Amides of Meconic and Comenic Acids. 219 



allowed to drain off. After being washed with cold water, they 

 were dissolved in boiling water, and the first crop of crystals 

 from the still warm fluid, which consisted merely of the needles, 

 without any of the grains, was collected, and washed with 

 tepid water. Upon being dried they furnished these results : 



f 4-903 grains, dried at 212°, gave 

 1 9-300 ... carbonic acid, and 

 { 1-935 ... water. 



Experiment. Calculation. 



Carbon, . . . 51*73 

 Hydrogen, . . 4-38 

 Oxygen, 



52-17 C 1A 



96 



4-35 



H 8 



8 



43-48 



o 10 



80 



100-00 100-00 184 



which agree perfectly, as the above comparison shows, with 

 those required by the comenovinic acid I formerly described, 



HO, C 4 H 5 O, C 12 H 2 8 . 

 That it is one of the two basic atoms of water of comenic acid 

 which is here replaced by ether is proved by the deportment 

 of the new substance with ammonia. It dissolves readily in 

 an alcoholic solution of this alkali, forming the beautiful yel- 

 low crystalline salt I before showed to be produced by the 

 union of comenic ether and ammonia. It was mentioned at 

 the time, as a characteristic of this salt, that it loses all its 

 base at 212°. This I find to be the case with that from the 

 new compound ; I conclude, therefore, that this is the true 

 comenic ether, for I conceive that had the action of C 4 H 5 1 

 on comenic acid, consisted in the formation of a bibasic acid, 

 in which one atom of hydrogen is replaced by ethyl, 



™JC 12 H(C 4 H 5 )0 8 



analogous in derivation to the methylosalycic acid of Cahours 

 and Gerhardt, it would have possessed very different powers 

 of combination with bases from .that of the feeble comenic 

 ether. 



I attempted to procure an amyl compound in the same way ; 

 comenic acid, chloride of amyl, and spirit of wine, being heated 

 in the oil -bath, at 300° Fahr., till solution was complete, which 



