286  Root  of  Phytolacca  Decandra.  {^j^ST1"' 
Great  care  was  taken  that  the  extraction  by  each  solvent  should 
be  complete.  The  petroleum  ether  extract  was  of  light  amber  tint ; 
the  ether  extract  was  of  a  burnt  sienna  color,  and  probably  contained 
little  else  than  coloring  matter.  All  the  other  extracts  were  of 
about  the  same  rich  reddish-brown  tinge.  The  water  extract  showed 
an  acid  reaction. 
A  summary  of  the  analyses  may  be  given  in  tabulated  form. 
When  two  or  more  determinations  have  been  made  the  results  have 
been  averaged  : 
Oil  and  wax   '627 
Resin     i'oio 
Non-reducing  sugar  calculated  as  sucrose   9*457 
Reducing  sugar  calculated  as  dextrose   '435 
Proteids   ...    i'944 
Amido-compounds  (calculated  as  asparagin)   1*634 
Free  acid  calculated  as  formic   "360 
Combined  organic  acid  calculated  as  potassium  formate  .  .  .  .  1*891 
Starch   11  "677 
Calcium  oxalate   6*225 
Nitrates  calculated  as  potassium  nitrate   2*408 
Cellulose   16*378 
Lignin,  etc   3*206 
Gum,  coloring  matter,  ash,  moisture  and  undetermined  ....  42*748 
100  000 
The  oil  is  non-volatile,  of  a  brownish  color  and  readily  saponifi- 
able  with  cold,  fixed  alkalies.  The  wax  is  light  yellow  in  color.  It 
was  not  studied.  The  resin  found  in  the  alcohol  extract  was  dark 
brown  in  color,  and  of  a  very  bitter  taste. 
The  sugar  can  only  be  crystallized  with  great  difficulty  and  best 
from  absolute  alcohol,  as  the  various  other  substances  soluble  in 
alcohols  of  less  concentration  seem  to  interfere  with  the  crystalli- 
zation. In  one  analysis  2*6  per  cent,  of  crystallized  sugar  was 
obtained.    It  can  generally  be  had  only  in  much  smaller  quantities. 
This  crystallized  sugar  is  completely  soluble  in  large  excess  of 
hot  absolute  alcohol.  From  such  a  solution  it  is  sometimes  obtained 
in  a  very  fine  crystalline  powder.  From  thick,  syrupy  water  solu- 
tions prismatic  crystals  can,  with  difficulty,  be  obtained.  These 
crystals  are  clear,  colorless,  transparent  prisms,  belonging  to  the 
orthorhombic  system.  Their  most  common  forms  are  represented 
in  the  accompanying  figure.  The  longer  lateral  axis  is  in  nearly  all 
cases  cut  by  pinnacoid  planes,  so  that  the  crystals,  when  seen  from 
