VEGETABLES AS THE SOURCES OF ARTIFICIAL ALKALOIDS. 
59 
Addendum to the paper on the Nitrogenous principles of Vegetables as the sources of 
artificial Alkaloids. 
Since the preceding paper was written several additional experiments have been 
made, some of the results of which I now beg leave to subjoin. 
Bases by putrefaction. 
A quantity of horse-flesh whieh had been cut into small pieces and the juice 
extraeted by long-continued boiling, was moistened with water and was plaeed in a 
warm situation for nearly a month. It became very putrid and was full of maggots. 
It was then supersaturated with muriatic acid, and repeatedly agitated with water so 
long as anything was dissolved. The acid liquor was superfluous, coneentrated to a 
moderate bulk, and filtered to remove the flocculent and albuminous matters collected 
in it. The clear liquid was next supersaturated with carbonate of soda and subjeeted 
to distillation. A highly alkaline liquor came over, consisting chiefly of carbonate of 
ammonia, but mixed with small quantities of organie bases. By repeated rectifiea- 
tions with caustie soda, a quantity of a light oily fluid consisting of one or more bases 
was separated. It had a pleasant aromatic odour, and was exceedingly soluble in 
water, from which however it separated, when sufficiently concentrated, as a trans- 
parent colourless oil, which was strongly alkaline, saturating acids and forming salts 
similar to those of the preceding bases. I was surprised however to find that it did 
not contain any aniline. The quantity of organic bases obtained by this experiment, 
though very appreciable in amount, was not nearly so great as I had anticipated ; as, 
instead of yielding more than was obtained by destructive distillation, it gave a great 
deal less. Had however the superfluous putrefaction been carried far enough, and 
the whole of the flesh been deeomposed, it is not improbable that as large or even a 
greater amount of bases would have been obtained as by destructive distillation ; but 
a great deal of time would have been required to have effected the eomplete decom- 
position of the flesh by simple putrefaction. The present experiment however suffi- 
ciently proves that putrefaction forms no exception to the law I have ventured to 
lay down in a preceding part of this paper, viz. “that whenever ammonia is gene- 
rated in quantity from a complex organic substance, it is always aecompanied by the 
produetion of a larger or smaller amount of organic bases.” It is also remarkable that 
the putrefaction of flesh in this instance yielded no aniline, whieh is a constant and 
considerable product when either flesh or bones are destructively distilled. The nature 
of the organic bases obtainable from the deeomposition of nitrogenous substances 
appears to be dependent therefore on the processes to which they are subjected. 
Bases from Lycopodium. 
A quantity of lycopodium (pollen) was boiled with some strong soda-lye, and then 
evaporated to dryness. It was next destructively distilled in an iron retort, and the 
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