1869.] 



the Chemical Constitution of Narcotine. 



341 



B. From reasons given in the memoir, the reactions of methyl-nornar- 

 itine a 

 follows :- 



cotine and nornarcotine with heated water and oxidizing agents are as 



and not 



Methvl-nornarcotine. Normeconin. Cotarnine. 



C 19 H I6 tCH 3 )N0 7 = C s H 8 0, +C n H 10 (CH 3 )NO 3 



Metbvl-normeconin. Cotarnimide. 



C 19 H 16 (CH 3 )N0 7 =C 3 H 5 (CH 3 ) 



Methyl-nornarcotine. Noropianic acid. Cotarnine. 



C 1S H le (CH a ) NO, + 0= C 3 H. 5 +C„ H 10 (CH.) N0„ 

 and not 



Metbvl-noropianic acid. Cotarnimide. 



C 19 H 16 (CH,)NO T +0=O s H, (CH 3 ) s +0 n H u NO 3 , 



Nornarcotine. Normeconin. Cotarnimide. 



C 19 H 17 N0 7 = C 8 H G 4 + O u H u N0 3 , 



Noropianic acid. Cotarnimide. 



C 19 H 17 N0 7 +0 = Q.H.O.. + C u H u N0 3 . 

 Section III. contains some miscellaneous observations on opianic acid, 

 meconin, and hemipinic acid. 



A. Opianic acid treated with sulphuric acid and dilute solution of bichro- 

 mate of potassium becomes oxidized to hemipinic acicl. 



C lo H 10 O s + O=C I0 H 10 O 6 . 

 When heated a few degrees above its melting-point, opianic acid loses water 

 and yields a substance crystallizable from hot alcohol, differing in properties 

 from opianic acid, and apparently containing C 40 H 3S 19 , being formed 

 thus : — 



4C I0 H 10 O 5 =H 2 O + C 40 H 3i O 19 . 



B. All attempts to oxidize meconin to opianic or hemipinic acid were 

 failures. 



Nitrous acid gas passed into melted meconin caused the formation of 

 nitromeconin, identical with that got by the action of nitric acid, each 

 sample, however, giving rather different qualitative reactions from those 

 usually ascribed to this substance. • 



C. Hemipinic acid, when heated to 1/0°, loses water and becomes an 

 anhydride, C 10 H 8 5 , which may be crystallized unaltered from absolute 

 alcohol, but when treated with ordinary spirit of 90 per cent, alcohol forms 

 ethyl-hemipinic acid, C 10 H 9 (C 2 H 5 ) 6 . 



Resume of results obtained in the four portions* of this research. 



(1) It has been shown from the analyses of various samples of narcotine 

 derived from various sources, that narcotine has always the same composi- 

 tion, viz. C 22 H 23 N0 7 (vol.xii. p. 501). 



* Parts I. & II. by Professor G. C. Foster and one of us, Proc. Roy. Soc. vol. xi. 

 p. 55 ; xii. p. 501; xvi. p. 39. Part III. Proc. Roy. Soc. vol. xvii. p. 337. Part. IV. 

 vol. xvii. p. 340. 



