16 
Acidum  Oleicum. 
Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
Jan.,  1884. 
answered  all  the  other  tests  of  the  Pharmacopoeia  as  well,  but  no 
better  than  the  red  oil  acid,  and  in  all  probability  it  contained  quite  as 
much  oxy oleic  acid. 
Cotton  seed  oil,  olive  oil,  refined  lard  oil  and  almond  oil  were  then 
each  saponified,  the  soaps  decomposed  by  tartaric  acid,  and  the  oleic 
acid  separated  from  the  other  fatty  acids  in  all,  except  the  cotton  seed 
product.    This  contained  so  little  oleic  acid  that  it  was  not  separated. 
The  work  was  not  done  with  critical  accuracy,  but  only  with  practi- 
cal accuracy,  such  as  would  be  applied  on  a  manufacturing  scale,  and 
the  results  were  briefly  as  follows : 
The  olive  oil  gave  an  oleic  acid  which  was  almost  odorless,  was  neu- 
tral, and  when  sufficient  palmitic  acid  was  left  in  it,  was  semi-solid  at 
14°  C,  but  the  proportion  of  palmitic  acid  to  produce  this  was  very 
considerable,  so  that  a  large  proportion  of  the  lead  salt  was  insoluble 
in  ether.  The  s.  g.  at  15°  C.  =  59°  F.  was  "9026  ;  at  25°  C.  =  77°  F. 
it  was  '8964.  The  s.  g.  was  taken  with  enough  palmitic  acid  in  it  to 
be  not  quite  transparent  at  15°  C.  =  59° F. 
Refined  lard  oil  of  very  good  quality  gave  an  oleic  acid  which  was 
perceptibly  different  in  some  sensible  properties  from  the  acids  from  the 
olive  and  almond  oils.  The  difference  is,  however,  difficult  to  describe. 
It  felt  a  little  smoother  and  softer  to  the  touch,  and  a  little  of  it  seemed 
to  spread  over  greater  surfaces,  and  it  seemed  that  the  hands  became 
dry  more  quickly  when  wetted  with  it.  Some  comparative  trials  of 
the  rate  of  absorption  were  made,  but  they  were  not  accurate  enough 
or  definite  enough  to  be  stated.  The  lard  acid  was  nearly  odorless, 
but  not  tasteless,  and  gave  the  irritant  acrolein-like  impression  or  after- 
feeling  in  the  fauces.  It  was  neutral  to  litmus  paper,  and  only  lost 
its  transparency  when  cooled  to  5°  C.  =  41°  F.  The  s.  g.  at  15°  C.  = 
59°  F.  was  -9041 ;  and  at  25°  C.  =  77°  F.,  '8976. 
The  mixed  acids  from  the  almond  oil  when  cooled  to  8°  C.  =  46'4° 
F.,  and  the  oleic  acid  filtered  out  at  that  temperature,  gave  an  acid  of 
a  rich,  deep  brownish  yellow  color,  deeper  than  that  of  the  oil  from 
which  it  was  made,  and  deeper  than  any  of  the  other  acids.  It  was 
nearly  odorless  and  tasteless,  and  not  quite  neutral  to  litmus  paper. 
It  remained  entirely  transparent  at  4*4°  C.  —  40°  F.,  and  was  not 
cooled  lower  than  this.  Its  s.  g.  at  15°  C.  =  59°  F.  was  -9100 ;  at  25° 
C.  =  77°  F.,  *9039.  This  acid  was  then  again  saponified  with  caustic 
soda,  and  a  lead  salt  made  from  it  by  decomposition  with  solution  of 
acetate  of  lead.    The  washed  lead  salt  was  exhausted  by  ether,  the 
