THE 
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHARMACY. 
JANUARY, 1844. 
ART. LVI. — OBSERVATIONS ON THE VOLATILE OIL OF 
BETULA LENTA, AND ON GAULTHERIN, A SUBSTANCE 
WHICH, BY ITS DECOMPOSITION, YIELDS THAT OIL. 
By William Procter, Jr. 
In a former communication* the result of a series of ex- 
periments on the volatile oil of Gaultheria procumbens 
were presented, which exhibited many of the characters of 
that substance, showing that it possessed acid properties, and 
was closely allied to salicylous acid. Since that period M. 
Cahours has occupied himself with the same subject, and by 
applying the sure test of ultimate analysis, has arrived at 
some very interesting results. That chemist has shownt 
that the oil of Gaultheria has the same composition as the 
salicylate of methylene, (C 14 H 5 O 5 + C 2 H 3 0,) and that 
by distilling a mixture of pyroxylic spirit, salicylic acid, and 
sulphuric acid, a product is obtained having the properties 
of that volatile oil, thus exhibiting the first instance of this 
pyrogenous body (methylene) occuring in a natural produc- 
tion. 
* American Jour. Pharm. for Oct. 1842. 
t Jour, de Pharm. et de Chem. Mai, 1843. 
VOL. IX. — NO. iv. 22 
