NEW  CRYSTALLINE  BODY  FROM  HELLEBORUS  NIGER. 
147 
a  tube,  ammonia  is  evolved,  which  shows  that  it  is  a  nitrogenous 
body.  It  therefore  closely  resembles  pipel  ine  in  many  of  its  pro- 
perties, which  is  classed  amongst  the  alkaloids,  although,  likehel- 
leborine,  it  is  devoid  of  alkaline  reaction  ;  but  whether  it  possesses 
an  elementary  constitution  similar  to  that  of  piperine,  or  the 
alkaloids  in  general,  remains  to  be  determined  by  ultimate  ana- 
lysis. 
Having  so  far  endeavored  to  learn  its  characters,  I  proceeded  to 
ascertain  if  this  new  body  could  not  be  extracted  from  black  helle- 
bore root  by  a  more  simple  process.  I  treated  the  bruised  root  with 
alcohol,  to  form  a  strong  tincture.  The  filtered  tincture  was  diluted 
with  water,  and  heated  for  some  time,  to  expel  the  alcohol.  The 
aqueous  solution  was  then  filtered,  to  remove  the  separated  resin, 
and  afterwards  further  evaporated,  when  some  helleborine  crystal- 
lized out  of  the  solution;  but  in  a  less  pure  condition  than  by  the 
former  process.  Consequently,  I  treated  the  solution  with  carbonate 
of  potash  in  excess,  and  agitated  it  with  three  or  four  times  its 
volume  of  ether,  which  extracted  the  helleborine  almost  in  a  state 
of  purity.  This  substance  may  be  further  purified  by  solution  in 
alcohol,  and  recrystallization. 
It  is  probable,  from  this  latter  process,  that  helleborine  exists  in 
an  uncombined  state  in  the  root,  and  that  it  is  the  soft  resin  con- 
tained therein  which  chiefly  interferes  with  its  extraction  and  re- 
cognition by  a  simple  solvent  as  a  crystalline  substance.  There 
is  also  a  free  acid  in  black  hellebore  root,  which  it  is  necessary  to 
neutralize  with  a  base  before  the  helleborine  is  extracted  from  its 
aqueous  solution  with  ether,  as  it  contaminates  the  product.  This 
is  not  gallic  acid,  which  is  said  to  exist  in  this  root,  according  to 
the  analysis  of  MM.  Feneulle  and  Capron,  as  it  did  not  give  a 
black  precipitate  with  a  persalt  of  iron,  but  a  brown  gelatinous  one ; 
it  also  afforded  white  precipitates  with  acetate  of  lead,  and  with 
nitrate  of  silver.  Neither  is  it  the  volatile  acid  found  by  them,  as 
it  is  not  expelled  from  its  solutions  by  long  boiling.  It  seems 
to  resemble  closely  the  aconitic  acid  found  in  another  member  of 
the  natural  order  Ranunculacecs ,  especially  when  it  is  remembered 
that,  like  that  acid,  it  is  soluble  when  free  in  alcohol,  ether,  and 
water. 
It  may  be  mentioned  that,  in  consequence  of  the  insolubility  in 
ether  of  the  coloring  matter  extracted  by  alcohol  from  black  helle- 
