Amides of Meconic and Comenic Acids. 223 



separated into two liquids, one colourless, or yellowish, floating 

 on the surface of a deep brown thick fluid. The upper stratum 

 proved to be pure sulphuric ether, the lower one contained 

 much hydriodic acid, and when evaporated to dryness at 212°, 

 left a gummy residue, which solidified into a mass of yellow 

 striated needles. After these had been dried in vacuo, they 

 afforded evidence of free iodine, and contained much hydriodic 

 acid ; when dissolved in water, the addition of a little ammonia 

 caused a deposit of crystals after some time. I made a deter- 

 mination of the iodine as precipitated from the aqueous solu- 

 tion of this substance by nitrate of silver, to obtain an idea 

 how far it corresponded with the compound above described ; 

 it gave 46*97 per cent, of iodine in this way, approximating 

 roughly to an hydriodate of comenamic ether, which requires 

 42*77. Of course, this experiment and the conclusion I draw, 

 are only given as a rough confirmation of the existence of com- 

 pounds, corresponding to the hydrochlorate. 



Comenamic Ether {Cornena methane). — The pure ether is 

 readily obtained from the hydrochlorate, or the residue left 

 at 212°, as before described, by addition of oxide of silver, or, 

 as I prefer, of ammonia, to its hot aqueous solution. The 

 alkali is added in such quantity that the reaction remains 

 feebly acid, and then the ether is at once precipitated in the 

 form of colourless prismatic needles. After a little washing 

 with cold water, one resolution in the same menstruum, boil- 

 ing, is sufficient to render them perfectly pure. Their ana- 

 lysis was as follows : 



{5-012 grains, dried at 212°, gave 

 9-625 ... carbonic acid, and 

 2-377 ... water. 



Experiment. Calculation. 



Carbon, 52-37 



52-45 



O i6 



96 



Hydrogen, 5*26 



4-91 



H 9 



9 



Nitrogen, 



7-64 



N 



14 



Oxygen, 



3500 



o 8 



64 



100-00 100-00 183 



These results correspond in the most complete manner with 

 the formula, 



C 4 H 5 0, C 12 H 4 N0 7 , 



Q2 



