84 
Test  for  Santonin. 
/Am.  Jour.  Phanc. 
\      Feb.,  1878. 
Sapogenin  and  parigenin  produced,  with  sugar,  when  saponin  and 
parillin  are  split  up  under  the  influence  of  acids,  are  closely  allied,  as 
is  also  cyclamiretin  resulting  from  the  decomposition  of  cyclamin,  and 
possibly  they  are  also  homologous. — Pharm.  your,  and  Trans.  [Lond.],, 
Dec.  23,  1877. 
TEST  FOR  SANTONIN. 
By  David  Lindo. 
Place  the  santonin  in  a  small  deep  porcelain  dish,  and  dissolve  it 
(without  heat)  in  concentrated  sulphuric  acid  \  rubbing  the  crystals 
down  with  a  glass  rod  greatly  facilitates  solution.  Add  highly  dilute 
solution  of  ferric  chloride  in  small  quantities' at  a  time,  and  between  each 
addition  give  the  dish  a  pretty  quick  rotatory  motion  while  it  is  sup- 
ported on  a  table.  A  fine  red  color  is  first  developed,  which  changes 
to  a  magnificent  purple,  and  then  to  a  splendid  violet  as  the  sulphuric 
acid  becomes  more  dilute.  The  heat  produced  by  mixing  the  fluids  is 
necessary  to  develop  the  colors. 
When  applying  the  test  to  small  quantities  of  santonin,  a  somewhat 
difFerent  method  of  proceeding  must  be  adopted.  The  experiment  in 
this  case  is  best  performed  in  a  one-inch  shallow  porcelain  capsule,  with 
a  thick,  flat  bottom.  Mix  the  highly  dilute  solution  of  perchloride  of 
iron  with  an  equal  bulk  of  concentrated  sulphuric  acid,  and  add  the 
mixture  to  the  santonin.  Heat  must  then  be  cautiously  applied.  The 
crystals  of  santonin  will  slowly  dissolve,  and  the  color  will  be  developed- 
The  capsule  is  conveniently  supported  on  the  blade  of  a  spatula,  and 
heated  by  a  spirit  lamp. 
One  drop  of  a  solution  of  1  grain  of  santonin  in  1  fluidounce  of 
chloroform  was  evaporated  to  dryness  in  a  small  capsule,  and  the  resi- 
due heated  with  a  drop  of  the  perchloride  of  iron  and  sulphuric  acid 
mixture.     A  very  fine  reaction  was  obtained. 
The  separation  of  santonin,  however,  from  other  organic  matters 
would,  in  most  cases,  be  very  difficult,  and,  in  many  instances,  an  im- 
possible thing  to  accomplish,  owing  to  the  facility  with  which  it  sufFers 
decomposition. 
In  trying  the  experiment  of  separating  santonin,  by  means  of  chloro- 
form, from  a  powder  containing  rhubarb  and  santonin,  I  noticed  a  thing 
which  I  have  not  seen  mentioned  before.  The  chloroform  separated 
from  the  powder  by  filtration  was  evaporated  to  dryness,  and  the  resi- 
due tested  for  santonin.  The  violet  color  was  obtained  very  distinctly. 
I  then  tried  the  effect  of  the  test  fluid  on  the  coloring  matter  of  rhu- 
barb alone,  as  I  noticed  this  is  dissolved  by  chloroform.  The  test  pro- 
duced a  reddish  color,  not  the  violet  or  purple  color  of  santonin. 
Thinking  that  in  the  case  of  rhubarb  the  iron  had  nothing  to  do  with 
the  reaction,  I  next  tried  the  effect  of  concentrated  sulphuric  acid  alone 
on  the  coloring  matter  of  rhubarb.    I  found  it  produced  a  beautiful 
