ON  CONHYDRINE. 
321 
ON  CONHYDRINE,  A  NEW  ALKALOID  FROM  CONICJM 
MACULATUM. 
By  Prof.  T.  Wertheim. 
If  the  fresh  flowers  of  Oonium  maculatum  be  extracted  with 
hot  water  containing  sulphuric  acid,  and  the  moderately-concen- 
trated extract,  after  supersaturation  with  caustic  lime  or  potash, 
be  submitted  to  as  rapid  a  distillation  as  possible,  a  strongly  al- 
kaline distillate  is  obtained,  which,  besides  ammonia  and  coniine, 
contains  a  hitherto  undescribed  organic  base.  It  is  obtained  in 
the  pure  state  in  the  following  way. 
The  alkaline  distillate  is  neutralized  with  sulphuric  acid,  the 
fluid  evaporated  on  the  water-bath  to  the  strongest  syrupy  con- 
sistence, the  residue  extracted  with  very  highly  rectified  alcohol, 
and  the  alcoholic  solution  separated  by  filtration  from  the  depos- 
ited sulphate  of  ammonia.  After  the  alcohol  added  has  been 
distilled  off  in  the  water-bath,  the  residue  is  gradually  mixed, 
with  continual  refrigeration,  with  a  considerable  excess  of  the 
most  concentrated  solution  of  potash ;  the  mixture,  when  com- 
pletely cold,  is  then  brought  in  contact  with  a  sufficient  quantity 
of  pure  ether,  and  left  so  for  a  long  time  with  frequent  agita- 
tion ;  the  ethereal  solution,  which  is  of  a  yellowish  or  brownish- 
red  color,  is  drawn  off  from  the  potash  solution  beneath  it,  and 
the  ether  distilled  off  as  completely  as  possible  in  a  glass  retort 
on  the  water-bath  ;  the  remaining  fluid  is  afterwards  put  into  a 
tubulated  retort  of  smaller  dimensions,  and  the  distillation  con- 
tinued on  the  oil-bath  in  a  current  of  hydrogen  gas,  the  heat 
being  very  gradually  increased.  In  this  way  oleaginous  coniine 
first  distils  over,  contaminated  at  the  commencement  with  a  lit- 
tle ether  and  water,  but  afterwards  far  purer  and  perfectly  co- 
lorless ;  but  when  the  heat  is  gradually  raised,  the  retort  be- 
comes filled  with  beautiful,  colorless,  splendidly-iridescent,  crys- 
talline laminae,  which  appeared  in  one  case  at  302°  F.,  in  another 
at  374°  F.,  and  in  a  third  only  at  410°  F.  They  appear  sooner 
the  more  slowly  the  preliminary  stage  of  the  distillation  is  con- 
ducted. In  the  first  case  this  was  done  very  slowly,  so  that  the 
coniine  was  evaporated  at  the  lowest  possible  temperature. 
Of  course,  in  this  mode  of  preparation,  a  considerable  contam- 
ination with  coniine  cannot  be  avoided.    But  the  greater  part  of 
21 
