324  Study  of  Astragulus  Caryocarpus.  {Am,JJu°iy,['Sfrm- 
While  analysis  of  the  substance  in  hand  indicated  a  probable 
disaccharide,  further  work  will  have  to  be  done  before  the  size  of 
the  molecule  can  be  finally  determined.  Derivatives  are  now  under 
examination  which,  it  is  hoped,  will  throw  new  light  on  the  sub- 
stance. 
AN  EXAMINATION  OF  THE  PLANT. 
In  the  preliminary  examination  of  the  fruit,  the  apparently  decom- 
posed residue  mentioned  was  incidentally  extracted  with  chloro- 
form. On  evaporating  off  the  chloroform,  a  small  quantity  of  a 
light-colored  substance  remained.  On  first  examination  this  sub- 
stance appeared  amorphous,  but  on  carefully  examining  under  the 
microscope  it  was  found  to  be  crystalline.  These  fine  needle- 
shaped  crystals  were  especially  distinct  if  the  residue  was  first 
treated  with  a  small  quantity  of  ether.  An  examination  of  these 
crystals,  so  far  as  possible,  was  made.  They  were  found  to  be 
organic  and  to  contain  nitrogen.  They  had  a  bitter  taste,  were 
soluble  in  chloroform,  slightly  so  in  ether  and  almost  insoluble  in 
alcohol.  They  gave  distinct  alkaloidal  tests,  although  the  quantity 
was  insufficient  to  make  an  extended  examination. 
In  the  examination  of  the  plant  itself,  the  roots  as  well  as  the 
stems  and  leaves  were  taken.  Several  methods  of  extraction  were 
tried,  including  those  given  by  Dragendorff  and  Otto,  but  the  best 
results  were  obtained  by  extracting  the  material  with  dilute  alcohol 
slightly  acidified  with  sulphuric  acid.  About  4  kilos  of  the 
material  were  thoroughly  triturated  and  enough  alcohol  poured 
over  the  material  to  completely  cover  it.  After  standing  several 
hours,  it  was  transferred  to  a  5-litre  flask  and  the  alcohol  dis- 
tilled off  rapidly  by  steam.  On  evaporating  the  distillate  to  dry- 
ness, an  apparently  amorphous  residue  remained.  An  examination 
of  this  residue  under  the  microscope  revealed  fine  acicular  crystals 
very  similar  to  those  found  in  the  fruit.  As  in  the  case  of  the  fruit, 
the  quantity  was  so  small  that  no  successful  means  of  separating 
these  crystals  from  the  amorphous  substance  could  be  found.  These 
crystals  were  examined  and  found  to  give  many  of  the  characteristic 
alkaloidal  reactions.  They  contained  nitrogen  and  formed  a  well- 
crystallized  platinum  double  salt.  Analysis  was  rendered  impos- 
sible on  account  of  the  small  quantity  of  material  and  on  account 
of  the  difficulty  in  separating  the  crystals  from  the  amorphous 
substance. 
