NITROPHENIC  ACIDS. 
467 
lished  in  the  April  number  of  the  Chemical  News),  I  instituted 
a  series  of  similar  experiments  with  binitrophenic  acid,  deter- 
mining the  comparative  amount  and  rapidity  of  coagulation  of 
albumen  from  different  sources,  with  the  acid  in  various  degrees 
of  dilution.  A  solution  of  the  acid  in  ten  thousand  parts  of 
water  produced  in  bloodserum  a  coherent  film  of  coagulum,  while 
the  same  solution  of  carbolic  acid  produced  only  turbidity,  the 
turbid  liquid  passing  partly  through  a  filter. 
If  the  property  to  coagulate  albumen  is  taken  as  the  modus 
operandi  of  carbolic  acid,  against  which  suggestion  no  serious 
objection  seems  to  have  been  raised,  the  production  of  the  same 
result  by  another  substance  should  recommend  the  latter  for  the 
same  purpose.  The  nitrophenic  acid  seems  not  only  to  coagu- 
late albumen  readily,  but  in  a  dilution  of  1-100,000  it  produces 
that  loose,  cloudy  coagulum  which  carbolic  acid  shows  in  a  solu- 
tion of  ten  times  greater  concentration. 
To  test  its  efi'ect  upon  the  lower  classes  of  animal  life,  a  tub 
(half  a  barrel)  was  set  aside  for  a  few  days,  in  a  w^arm  room,  its 
bottom  covered  an  inch  high  with  blood.  The  decomposition  of 
the  latter  had  progressed  so  far  that  the  sides  of  the  tub  were 
literally  covered  with  white  maggots,  some  of  them  measuring 
five-eighths  of  an  inch  in  length,  and  one-thirty-second  of  an  inch 
in  diameter  at  their  thickest  extremity,  that  of  the  head.  The 
countless  smaller  ones  showed,  by  the  billow-like  motion  of  the 
whole  mass,  that  they  were  full  of  life  and  vigor,  and  of  promise 
of  increase.  A  solution  of  one  per  cent,  of  nitrophenic  acid  was 
brushed  on  the  inside  of  the  tub,  in  the  evening,  very  carefully. 
This  did  not  seem  to  disturb  the  good  humor  and  activity  of  the 
creatures,  for  they  moved  along  as  lively  as  ever.  But  the  next 
morning  the  sides  of  the  tub  were  perfectly  clean,  the  worms 
having  retreated  to  the  centre  of  the  tub,  where  they  all  lay 
dead,  in  one  heap,  in  the  blood.  After  the  lapse  of  some  weeks 
the  same  blood  showed  no  sign  of  renewed  life,  nor  the  unpleas- 
ant odor  of  decomposing  animal  matter.  The  preparation  used 
was  the  binitrophenic  acid,  prepared  from  the  crude  carbolic  acid. 
It  possessed  the  aromatic,  pleasant  odor,  reminding  faintly  of 
nirobensol,  and  due  probably  to  the  presence  of  this  substance  in 
minute  quantity.    This  pleasant  odor  is  certainly  a  valuable 
