150 
ON  THE  COMPOSITION  OF  BUTTER. 
exposure  to  a  red  heat.  Boiled  with  solution  of  caustic  potash,  the 
substance  evolved  no  phosphuretted  hydrogen.  Oil  of  turpentine 
dissolved  much  less  of  it  than  of  ordinary  phosphorus. 
From  this  the  author  concludes  that  the  so-called  amorphous 
phosphorus  does  not  deserve  this  name.  It  is  rather  a  low  oxide  of 
phosphorus. — London  Chem.  Gaz.  Dec.  1,  1853,  from  Archiv  der 
Pharm.,  Ixxv.  p.  136. 
ON  THE  COMPOSITION  OF  BUTTER. 
By  Prof.  Heintz. 
Since  Chevreul's  investigation  of  butter,  that  substance  has  been 
regarded  as  a  mixture  of  several  fats  containing  glycerine,  for 
when  saponified  it  furnishes  various  fatty  acids,  whilst  glycerine 
is  separated  from  all  of  them.  These  fatty  acids  are  partly  vola- 
tile and  partly  not  volatile  with  wratery  vapor ;  partly  fluid  and 
partly  solid  at  ordinary  temperatures.  The  former,  according  to 
Chevreul,  are  butyric,  caproic  and  capric  acids ;  the  latter,  stearic 
and  margaric  acids.    He  considered  the  fluid  acid  to  be  oleic  acid. 
Lerch  has  since  shown  that  a  fourth  acid,  caprylic  acid,  was  to 
be  added  to  the  first  group  ;  and  Bromeis  states  that  the  fluid  non- 
volatile acid  of  butter  is  a  peculiar  acid,  distinct  from  oleic  acid, 
and  that  its  solid  acid  contains  no  stearic  acid,  but  consists  entire- 
ly of  margaric  acid. 
As  Heintz  regards  margaric  acid  as  a  mixture  of  stearic  and  pal- 
mitic acids,  he  was  of  cburse  led  to  suppose  that  stearine  and  pal- 
mitine  are  contained  in  butter.  This  he  ascertained  with  certain- 
ty in  consequence  of  Bromeis  having  sent  him  a  small  quantity  of 
the  margaric  acid  prepared  by  him  from  butter.  He  succeeded  by 
partial  precipitation  with  acetate  of  magnesia  in  obtaining  there- 
from pure  stearic  and  margaric  acids. 
The  examination  of  a  considerable  quantity  of  butter  has  led 
the  author  to  the  following  results. 
The  fluid  non-volatile  portion  of  the  fatty  acids  produced  by  the 
saponification  of  butter  is  not  a  peculiar  acid,  butyroleic  acid,  dis- 
tinct from  oleic  acid,  as  stated  by  Bromeis,  but  is  completely  iden- 
;ical  with  ordinary  oleic  acid.  It  is  however  very  difficult  to  ob- 
tain compounds  of  this  acid  in  a  perfectly  pure  state  directly  from 
the  butter.    The  baryta  salt  first  prepared  by  the  author  contained 
