250 
ANALYSIS  OP  THE  ROOT  OF  BRYONIA  ALBA. 
The  liquid  filtered  off  from  the  precipitate  by  subacetate  of 
lea<l,  was  freed  of  lead  by  hydrothionic  acid  ;  the  sulphuret  of 
lead,  after  having  been  well  washed,  was  exhausted  by  alcohol, 
this  evaporated,  the  residue  redissolved  in  absolute  alcohol, 
which  left  behind  gum,  a  little  coloring  matter  and  traces  of 
bryonitin.  From  the  residue,  after  the  evaporation  of  the  alco- 
hol, ether  dissolved  a  part,  which  after  distilling  off  the  ether, 
was  insoluble  in  water,  but  soluble  in  alcohol  with  the  exception 
of  a  little  bryonitin.  That  part  insoluble  in  ether,  was  partially 
dissolved  by  water;  alcohol  took  up  the  remainder  which  proved 
to  be  the  brown  glossy  body  mentioned  above.  The  aqueous 
solution  contained  coloring  matter,  gum,  much  bryonin  with 
traces  of  bryonitin. 
'  The  solutions  of  that  matter  which  was  soluble  in  ether,  but 
was  freed  of  bryonitin  by  absolute  alcohol,  were  mixed  and  pre- 
cipitated by  acetate  of  lead  in  alcohol ;  the  precipitate,  after  de- 
composition, furnished  a  peculiar  fatty  matter,  while  the  solu- 
tion left  a  bitter  resinous  yellowish  red  substance. 
The  obtained  bryonitin  was  dissolved  in  ether,  treated  with 
animal  charcoal,  the  ether  distilled  off,  and  the-residue  dissolved 
in  boiling  water,  which  left  behind  a  brown  resin,  and  furnished 
by  crystallization  pure  bryonitin. 
The  watery  solution  from  which  the  lead  had  been  removed 
by  hydrothionic  acid,  was  of  a  pale  wine  yellow  color  and  in- 
tensely bitter  ;  its  precipitate  with  tannin,  on  being  heated  in 
the  liquid,  contracted  to  a  shining  resin-like  mass;  the  acid  solu- 
tion, on  being  neutralized  with  carbonate  of  soda,  afforded  some 
more  precipitate,  but  retained  tannic  acid  and  some  bitter 
principle.  After  treating  successively  with  subacetate  of  lead, 
sulphuric  acid  and  soda,  on  evaporation  an  intensely  bitter  ex- 
tract was  left  behind,  containing  only  traces  of  bryonitin,  a 
little  gum,  sugar  and  bryonin. 
The  tannic  precipitate  was  dissolved  in  alcohol,  digested  with 
lime,  and  evaporated  ;  ether  took  up  a  little  of  the  bitter  resin; 
the  residue,  after  redissolving  in  water,  precipitating  by  tannin 
and  decomposing  by  oxide  of  lead,  dissolving  again  in  water 
and  treating  with  animal  charcoal,  was  pure  bryonin. 
The  resinous  residue  of  the  alcoholic  extract,  washed  with 
water,  was  treated  with  absolute  alcohol ;  the  insoluble  residue 
