^"'rer'^iss?'™'}    Practical  Notes  from  Foreign  Journals.  57 
of  potassium  permanganate  and  heating  to  boiling,  the  first  named 
three  kinds  of  benzoic  .acid  produced  dark  green  colored  liquids  in 
which  gradually  brown  precipitates  appeared,  while  Nos.  4  and  5  pro- 
duced decoloration  of  the  liquids  and  brown  precipitates,  due  to  the 
presence  of  cinnamic  acid. 
Jacobsen  ("  Industriebliitter,''  No.  50)  states  that  pure  benzoic  acid 
from  all  sources  has  exactly  the  same  behavior  against  reagents;  the 
source  of  benzoic  acid  can  therefore  only  be  ascertained  chemically  in 
the  presence  of  impurities  resulting  from  the  material.  Benzoic  acid 
prepared  from  toluol  (benzodi-  or  trichloride)  is  apt  to  contain  chlorine, 
which  is  best  detected  by  cupric  oxide  upon  the  platinum  wire  in  the 
flame.  If  prepared  from  urine,  the  benzoic  acid  contains  nitrogen, 
which  is  detected  by  potassa  as  ammonia,  and  has  usually  also  an  odor 
like  horse  sweat.  Benzoic  acid  from  resin  is  free  from  nitrogen  and 
chlorine.  The  test  with  potassium  permanganate  is  of  no  value  since 
benzoic  acid  from  toluol  will  be  reduced  on  account  of  the  presence  of 
bitter  almond  oil  and  of  derivatives  from  cinnamic  and  phenyl-acetic 
acid;  if  .prepared  from  urine,  various  organic  compounds  will  effect 
the  reduction,  and  if  obtained  from  resin,  cinnamic  acid  and  empyreu- 
matic  products  have  the  same  effect.  But  after  purification,  sublimation, 
etc.,  of  these  acids,  the  reducing  power  is  materially  modified  or  entirely 
removed.  Benzoic  acid  sublimed  from  the  resin  in  imperfect  apparatus 
always  contains  more  of  the  empyreumatic  reducing  compoimds  than 
are  obtainable  in  the  modern  apparatus  with  proper  ventilation  and 
low  heat.— P/iar.  CentralL,  Dec.  22,  1881,  pp.  565-567. 
Chinoline  Tartrate. — The  results  of  the  physiological  and  therapeu- 
tical observations  of  Donath  (this  Journal,  1881,  pp.  173,  620),  Dr. 
Loewy,  of  Vienna,  and  Dr.  Sakowsky,  of  St.  Petersburg,  prove  that 
the  action  of  chinoline  is  analogous  to  that  of  quinine.  The  alkaloid 
is  an  oily  liquid  of  a  peculiar  odor,  insoluble  in  water,  but  easily  solu- 
ble in  alcohol,  ether,  chloroform  and  similar  solvents.  Most  of  its 
salts  are  deliquescent  and  diflficult  to  crystallize;  but  the  tartrate  has 
been  prepared  by  Hofmann  and  Schoetensack  in  glossy  silky  crystals 
which  are  permanent  in  the  air,  are  soluble  in  water,  have  a  slight 
l)itter  almond  odor  and  a  somewhat  pungent  taste  resembling  that  of 
peppermint  water.  The  salt  is  used  in  about  the  same  manner  and 
dose  as  sulphate  of  quinine;  in  cases  of  intc^rmittent  fever,  1  gram  of 
it  is  given  in  2  or  3  doses  about  3  hours  before  the  chill,  eitlier  as 
powder  enclosed  in  wafers,  or  dissolved  each  in  50  grams  of  water 
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