454 
ON  THE  TOLATILE  OIL  OF  PINUS  PUMILIO. 
yellow  oil  was  analysed  in  Buchner's  laboratory  by  C.  Mikol- 
ascb,  and  found  to  have  many  properties  in  common  with  the 
volatile  oil,  obtained  from  the  twigs  of  Pinus  abies  freed  from 
the  leaves,  which  was  analyzed  a  few  years  ago  by  Woehler. 
It  has  a  very  agreeable  balsamic  odor,  widely  differing  from 
oil  of  turpentine,  and  merits,  therefore,  to  be  substituted  in 
medicines  for  this  less  agreeable  oil  ;  being  very  thin,  it  is  well 
adapted  for  embrocations.  Visitors  to  the  baths  at  Reichenhall 
take  this  oil  along  to  their  homes,  and  sprinkling  it  into  their 
rooms,  are  thus  enabled  to  inhale  in  winter,  and  at  their  own 
firesides,  the  balsamic  air  which  they  found  so  strengthening  in 
the  Alps. 
The  crude  oil  has  a  specific  gravity  of  -893  at  17°  C,  and 
boils  at  152^^  C.  Iodine  acts  less  energetically  than  upon  oil  of 
turpentine,  and  atmospheric  oxygen  is  not  so  strongly  ozonized 
as  by  the  latter.  By  rectification  it  is  obtained  colorless,  but  its 
odor  is  not  improved.  By  treating  it  with  potassa,  and  repeat- 
edly with  potassium,  it  became  thicker  and  dark  brown  ;  the 
distillate  from  this  in  an  atmosphere  of  dry  carbonic  acid,  had 
the  composition  of  oil  of  turpentine,  a  specific  gravity  of  -875, 
much  altered,  less  agreeable  odor,  and  turned  at  20^  C,  and 
with  a  column  of  25  centimetres  polarized  light  18°  to  the  left ; 
the  oil  merely  rectified  with  water  turned  it  16^.  It  absorbs 
much  hydrochloric  acid  gas,  and  increases  nearly  one-third  in 
its  volume,  without  separating  a  solid  compound.  Freed  from 
the  excess  of  acid,  it  was  a  yellowish  liquid  of  an  agreeable  odor, 
resembling  oil  of  thyme,  and  had  the  composition  C20H16'  HCl. 
No  solid  sublimate  was  obtained  by  heating  it  after  Berthelot's 
method  with  fuming  nitric  acid. 
The  volatile  oil  obtained  as  above,  of  Pinus  pumilio,  consists 
of  an  oxygenated  portion,  and  of  one  carbohydrogen  of  the 
composition  of  oil  of  turpentine. — Buchners  iV".  Repert.  ix. 
837-345.  J.  M.  M. 
