170 Schunck and Brebner. — On the Action of A niline 
difficult to say what part the acid plays in the process. From 
the fact that in anilophyll the number of atoms of N is to that 
of the C atoms as 1 : 8, not as 1 : 6 as in aniline, it might be 
inferred that the acid enters into the composition of the pro- 
duct. On the other hand, we found that in preparing anilo- 
phyll in three different ways, using acetic acid, propionic acid, 
and butyric acid respectively, the three products did not differ 
either as regards properties or composition, the analyses yield- 
ing closely concording numbers the mean of which for 100 parts 
was C 79*13, H 5*55, N 11*55, O 3*77. We were unable, too, 
to detect nitrogen in the form of ammonia or nitric acid along 
with the product obtained, so that if there is elimination of 
nitrogen it remains uncertain under what form this takes 
place. It is not our intention to enter on any further con- 
sideration of the chemical nature of anilophyll. The remainder 
of our paper will be devoted to a discussion of the bearing of 
our experiments on the vexed question of the presence of 
active oxygen in the cells of plants. 
We may here intercalate a few remarks as to the identity 
or non-identity of anilophyll with any previously described 
derivative of aniline. At the time when the ‘ Chemistry of 
Chlorophyll 5 appeared, the substance seems to have been 
almost unknown. Leeds 1 appears indeed to have observed 
it, for by the action of hydrogen peroxide on a solution of 
aniline in acetic acid he obtained a brownish crystalline mass 
which, however, he did not further examine, the main product 
of the action according to him being azobenzol. A few years 
later Zincke and Hagen 2 described a substance obtained by 
the action of benzoquinone on aniline having properties very 
similar to those of anilophyll, which they called dianilido- 
benzoquinone-anilide. A similar body was obtained by 
Kohler 3 and named hydroxyazophenin, the formula C 30 
H 24 N 4 O being assigned to it. Lastly Fischer and Hepp 4 
give an account of a compound obtained by the action of 
o-nitrophenol on aniline which they call dianilidoquinonanil, 
1 Berichte d. deutschen Chem. Gesellschaft, 14, 1383. 2 lb. 18, 787. 
8 lb. 21, 910. 4 Liebig’s Annalen, 262, 247. 
