- 80 - ( 



characters. Attempts to obtain the aldehyde referred to above by means 

 of 0,5 to 5 p. c. sulphuric acid remained without success, both as regards 

 the natural and the synthetic preparation. The paper quoted above gives 

 no particulars whatever of the conditions under which this reaction takes 

 place. Recently, however, we succeeded in discovering in the phenyl- 

 urethane of both products a solid derivative, and thus to establish their 

 identity. As a mixture of the oxide with phenylisocyanate only becomes 

 partly solid after standing for months, it is necessary to drive off the oily 

 constituent with stean. The light petroleum solution of the distillation- 

 residue, upon being evaporated, leaves behind the solid phenylurethane, 

 which after repeated recrystallisation from dilute methyl or ethyl alcohol is 

 obtained in the form of prisms, m. p. 58,5 to 59° (synth.) and 59 to 60° (nat). 

 A mixture of the two phenylurethanes shows no depression of melting-point. 



Analysis: 



0,1665 g. subst.: 0,4324 g. C0 2 , 0,1208 g. H 2 0. 



Found Calc. for Calc. for 



Cib H 17 2 • CONH • C 6 H 5 , Cio H 17 O • CONH • C 6 H 5 

 C 70,81 p. c. 70,59 74,73 p. c. 



H 8,06 p. c. 7,96 8,47 p. c. 



The simplest way of accounting for the occurrence of linalool oxide 



in linaloe oil is as the result of gentle oxidation of the linalool, possibly 



favoured by the moist climate of the tropics or during the transportation 



of the wood by contact of the air with part of the trunks. It may be 



assumed that this absorption of oxygen by the linalool molecule takes 



place at the double bond of the CH:CH 2 - group in ^-position, and that 



therefore the constitution of linalool oxide is as follows: — 



OH 



CH 8 \ I /°\ 

 >C:CH-CH 2 CH 2 C-CH CH 2 . 



CH 3 X I 



CH 3 



We do not wish to pass by without mention an observation respecting 

 Mexican linaloe oil which we have made in the course of years. It is 

 well-known that the Cayenne as well as the Mexican distillate contain 

 but few saponifiable constituents; the ester-value of the former being at f| 

 most 6,5, while in the case of the latter it usually lies between 1 and 30. ' 

 Higher values indicated either an adulteration or at least a low linalool- 

 content, geraniol and terpineol having accumulated in the oils. Lately 

 we have repeatedly received Mexican oils of which the ester value reached 

 40, and in isolated cases up to 75. Our suspicion that these oils were 

 adulterated or inferior was not confirmed, for as a matter of fact the oils, 

 so far as their other constants were concerned, were quite normal, and 

 they were only distinguished by their high linalyl acetate content. At 



