8 S. W, Johnson on two Sugars from California. 



quantity of ether added to it, which caused a dense milkiness. 

 After some hours globular or stellate deposits of white and mostly 

 opaque crystals were formed on the sides and bottom of the 

 vessel, while the liquid became clear. If too much ether was 

 added a small quantity of syrup of uncrystallizable sugar (?) gath- 

 ered in globules at the bottom of the liquid. 



The crystals thus obtained were further purified by recry stall i- 

 zation, they possess a pure and intense sweet taste, are very hard, 

 brittle, and unless pulverized, dissolve but slowly in boiling alco- 

 hol. In the mother liquors accumulated a substance of bitter 

 taste. 



After having procured these crystals in a state of purity and 

 remarked their non-identity with mannite, &c, Berthelot's paper 

 on several new sugars (Compt. Eend. 1855, No. 12, p. 452, t. xli,) 

 came to hand. This chemist describes the body in question 

 under the name of Pinite. He relates that it is yielded by the 

 Pinus lambertiana of California, and exudes from cavities made 

 by the aid of fire, near the roots of the tree. According to 

 Berthelot, "it possesses right polarization .and is incapable of fer- 

 mentation even after treatment with sulphuric acid. Its analysis 

 led to the formula C 1 2II 1 2 0 1 0. Acetate of lead-oxyd ammonia 

 precipitates from its solutions the compound C12H12O10 4Pb.O. 

 It is isomeric with Quercite, but differs from that body in crystal 

 form, and has greater solubility and sweetness." The quantity 

 at my disposal was so small that I only attempted to make an 

 ultimate analysis ; my results were slightly vitiated by the fracture 

 of the combustion tube, after the burning was complete, but be- 

 fore the CO 2 had been fully carried into the potash bulbs. 



Below are the obtained numbers compared with those required 



Berthelot's formula. 



Calc. Found 



C12 =72 43-90 42-75 



Hi 2 = 12 7-32 7-40 



O10 =80 48-78 49-85 



164 100-00 100-00 



In another paper, Berthelot describes a large number of com- 

 pounds of sugars with acids. Among these are the acid and 

 neutral stearates and benzoates of Pinite. He has further found 

 that when these compounds are saponified there is obtained the 

 original acid, and, not .pinite, but a substance which gradually 

 passes into pinite. 



The name pinite is very objectionable, as identical in orthogra- 

 phy with one appellation of a mineral which is overloaded with 

 synonyms. 



