DETECTION OF METHYL1C ALCOHOL IN CHLOROFORM, ETC. 173 
alcohol,—so that, to sum up all the essential points, good chloroform, from 
whatever source derived, is a limpid colourless liquid, with a fragrant ethereal 
odour, and a sweetish taste. It is entirely free from alcohol, ether, empyreu- 
naatic oils, chlorine, chloral, or any acid reaction with litmus paper. When 
evaporated from the palm of the hand, or better from several thicknesses of 
blotting-paper, it does not leave behind any strong disagreeable smell. 
Dropped into water it falls to the bottom, and remains perfectly bright; it has 
a specific gravity of about 1*496 to 1*500, and evolves no gas, or but a bubble 
•or two, when potassium is dropped into it. It is not coloured by agitation with 
sulphuric acid, and is soluble in alcohol and ether in all proportions. 
As the results of many experiments, I can find no difference in the behaviour 
of the two chloroforms respectively prepared from methylated spirit and from 
pure alcohol. I should state that I took every precaution to have perfectly re¬ 
liable specimens of the two chloroforms as standards of comparison, and that 
Messrs. Duncan and Flockhart kindly assisted me in this inquiry by placing 
some fine specimens of the chloroforms at my service. I should also state that 
this eminent firm have told me that they know of no test for distinguishing the 
pure from the methylated chloroform. 
Methylated ether is, I believe, prepared commercially in the same way as that 
from the pure alcohol: it must therefore be looked upon as being, under ordi¬ 
nary circumstances, a mixture of nearly 10 per cent, of methyl ether (probably 
contaminated with a small portion of sulphate of methyl) with ethyl ether. 
Now the problem really to be worked out is the following :—Can a mixture of 
10 per cent, of methyl ether be detected in 90 per cent, of ethyl ether ? These 
two ethers differ very much in their general properties and behaviour with 
other bodies ; although both are oxides of their respective radicals, they, so un¬ 
like their hydrated oxides or alcohols, have no properties in common. 
The oxide of ethyl, or ether, as is well known, is a very volatile, fragrant, co¬ 
lourless, transparent liquid, neither acid nor alkaline, and very combustible. 
Its specific gravity varies greatly with the temperature and the amount of spirit 
mixed with it; the ether of the British Pharmacopoeia has a sp. g. *735, and is said 
to contain about 8 per cent, by volume of alcohol, and to boil below 105°. Absolute 
other is said to have a gravity, at a temperature of 60°, of about *720, and causes 
intense cold by its volatilization. The oxide of methyl, on the contrary, is a per¬ 
manent colourless gas, very soluble in water, and still more so in alcohol, wood- 
spirit, and ether. After submitting the mixed ethers to many experiments, I 
have to report that I know of no other test for distinguishing the methylated 
from the pure alcohol ether, than the boiling-point, first pointed out, I be¬ 
lieve, by Macfarlan. I find, with him that the methylated ether has a much 
lower boiling-point than the pure alcohol ether, the difference ranging in my 
experiments from 14 to 17 degrees of Fahrenheit. I found, on boiling the me¬ 
thylated ether with sulphuric acid (sp. g. 1*848), that it became of a decided 
brown colour, whilst pure alcohol ether, under the same treatment, remained 
quite or very nearly colourless. 
The existence of methylic alcohol in sweet spirit of nitre is easily proved f 
without any preliminary treatment whatever, theiodo-hydrargyride of potassium 
clearly indicates it. The plan I adopt previous to applying the oxidation 
method of testing, is to mix the sweet nitre with an equal bulk of a solution of 
caustic potash (twice the strength of the Pharmacopoeia solution), and, after 
allowing the mixed liquids to stand about an hour, I distil off an amount of 
spirit equal to the original sweet nitre, and then oxidize, as in the case of a spirit 
distilled from a tincture. I found, on distilling some samples of sweet nitre 
mixed with the solution of potash, that they boiled with explosive violence, 
giving off sudden jets of vapour. This, however, can be easily prevented by 
the well-known method of placing some portions of wire in the retort; for this 
purpose, iron wire will do. 
