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been isolated. Up to now it had frequently been necessary to be 
content with Bertram's isoborneol reaction alone, for the purpose of 
detecting the presence of camphene in essential oils. But as the occur- 
rence of this reaction might also be due to the presence of a hitherto 
unlmown hydrocarbon, it was desirable to supply the proof by isolating 
the solid hydrocarbon. We found a welcome subject for examination 
in the first runnings of Ceylon citronella oil, which, judging from the 
results obtained with the isoborneol reaction, should contain large quan- 
tities of camphene. We used for this purpose the portions passing 
over between 158° and 162°. The mercuric compound separated off 
was purified and decomposed in the above-described manner. Strange 
to say, it was found extremely difficult to isolate the camphene with 
water vapour from the decomposed compound. We believe that this 
was solely due to causes of a mechanical nature, for as long as the 
steam distillation was continued, small quantities of camphene distilled 
over. Melting and boiling points agreed with those of pure camphene. 
For further identification we converted the camphene into isoborneol, 
whose melting point we found at 212°. 
Hydrocarbons. 
Pin en e. According to the German Patent No. 134553, one of the 
substances formed by the action of oxalic acid on pinene is camphor. 
Schindelmeiser^) has not found this statement confirmed, as chiefly 
esters of the inactive borneol are obtained. 
Camphene. Konowaloff and Kikina^) have obtained nitro- 
compounds by heating dihydrocamphene and pinene hydrochloride with 
nitric acid of the specific gravity 1,12. The former yielded chiefly a 
secondary nitro-body of the melting point 125° to 129^, which on 
reduction with zinc and hydrochloric acid yielded an amine of the 
melting point 65° to 130°, and boiling at 194° to 204°. It was more 
difficult to nitrate pinene hydrochloride; it yielded a mixture of solid 
(secondary) and liquid (primary and secondary) derivatives. These obser- 
vations lead to the conclusion, that camphene, camphor, and pinene 
hydrochloride contain a CH-group, to which no methyl group is attached. 
Fenchene. In a long publication which has recently appeared^), 
J. Kondakow returns to Wallach's explanation of the history of 
fenchene, mentioned on page 91 of our last year's October Report. 
^) Joum. d. russ. phys.-chem. Ges. 34 (1902), 954; according to Chem. Centralbl. 
1903, I, 515. 
^) Journ. d. russ. phys.-chem. Ges. 34 (1902), 925 ; according to Chem. Centralbl. 
1903, I, 512. 
^) Journ. f. pract. Chemie 11. 67 (1903), 94. 
