572  Recent  Contributions  to  Pharmacy.  {AocS^Pt£m' 
ON  THE  COLORING  MATTER  CONTAINED  IN  THE  BARK  OF  MYRICA  NAGI. 
Perkin  and  Hummel  (Proc.  Chem.  Society,  1896,  p.  145)  have  de- 
scribed the  coloring  matter  contained  in  the  bark  of  Myrica  nagi. 
This  plant  is  an  evergreen  tree  belonging  to  the  Myricacese,  occur- 
ring in  the  sub-tropical  Himalayas,  in  the  Khasia  Mountains,  the 
Malay  Islands  and  Japan.  The  bark,  which  is  used  as  a  tanning 
agent,  and  occasionally  for  medicinal  purposes,  contains  a  yellow 
coloring  matter.  This  forms  yellow  needles,  closely  resembling 
quercetin,  having  the  formula  C15H10O8.  and  yielding  compounds 
with  mineral  acids,  C15H10O8H2SO4,  C15H10O8HBr,  C15H10O8HCl  and 
C15H10O8HI,  orange  to  orange-red  needles,  decomposed  by  water 
into  the  free  acid  and  coloring  matter.  In  strong  solutions  of  alkali 
it  dissolves  with  an  orange  color,  which,  on  dilution  and  exposure 
to  air,  becomes  first  green,  then  deep  blue,  and  finally  red-violet.  It 
dyes  shades  which,  in  their  general  character,  closely  resemble  those 
produced  by  quercetin  and  fisetin.  The  acetyl  derivative,  C15H4Og 
(C2H30)6,  colorless  needles,  melting  point  203-2040,  and  the  ben- 
zoyl compound,  C15H408(C7H50)6,  melting  point,  233-2360,  are  de- 
scribed. With  fused  alkali  it  yields  phloroglucol  and  gallic  acid, 
and  with  bromine  a  compound  (orange-brown  needles,  melting  point 
235-2400),  the  analytical  numbers  for  which  agree  with  the  formula 
C15H6OgBr4.  This  is  probably  a  tetrabromo-derivative  of  the  color- 
ing matter,  but  on  account  of  its  somewhat  peculiar  properties  it 
will  require  further  examination.  The  results  of  this  investigation 
show  that  this  coloring  matter,  for  which  the  name  myricetin  is 
proposed,  is  most  probably  an  hydroxy-quercetin, 
O   OH 
/\/\       /  \0H 
OH  "  ^ 
||OH  OH 
OH  CO 
and  experiments  with  its  alkyl  ethers  will  be  carried  out  to  confirm 
this  point.  Its  color  reactions  with  dilute  alkali  are  probably  due 
to  the  oxidation  of  the  pyrogallol  nucleus  it  contains.  The  amount 
of  coloring  matter  isolated  by  the  method  described  varies  from  -23 
to  -27  per  cent.,  and  the  amount  of  tannin  it  contains,  estimated 
under  the  direction  of  Mr.  H.  H.  Procter,  Lecturer  on  Leather 
Industries,  Yorkshire  College,  is  27-30  per  cent. 
