CRYPTOPIA,  A  NEW  ALKALOID  IN  OPIUM.  423 
the  result  is  very  different,  the  crystalline  mass  gradually 
shrinks,  and  by  the  time  of  complete  desiccation  it  is  found  to  be 
quite  tough,  and  diminished  in  bulk  to  an  extraordinary  degree ; 
if,  on  the  contrary,  the  liquid  be  removed  by  means  of  a  strong 
press,  the  resulting  cake  is  tough  like  parchment,  so  as  to  be 
powdered  with  very  great  difficulty.  We  have  not  observed  this 
character  in  any  other  salt  of  the  opium  alkalies.  The  crystal- 
lization of  muriate  of  cryptopia,  while  lying  in  the  liquid  from 
which  it  had  crystallized,  is  sometimes  exceedingly  beautiful, 
but  on  being  slowly  dried  up,  its  crystalline  appearance  almost 
ceases  to  be  seen  by  the  naked  eye  ;  but  may  be  again  easily 
brought  out  by  moistening  the  mass  for  a  short  time  with  hot 
water  ;  the  effect  is  very  striking. 
Under  various  circumstances  this  salt  yields  very  fine  crys- 
tals, but  very  different  both  in  form  and  appearance  from  those 
produced  in  the  last  mother-liquids  of  the  muriate  of  thebaia,  in 
which  it  was  first  observed  by  the  manager  of  our  chemical  works, 
Mr.  J.  Smiles,  who  drew  our  attention  to  the  beautifully  light, 
delicate,  floating,  leaf-like,  and  silky  crystallization  which  it 
presented.  This  was  so  different  in  appearance  from  that  of 
any  other  opium  products  with  which  we  had  hitherto  been  ac- 
quainted, that  we  felt  assured  of  the  novelty  of  the  substance. 
It  may  not  be  uninteresting  to  remark,  that  in  addition  to  its 
beautiful  appearance,  the  new  substance  presented  a  feature 
which  has  been  a  characteristic  of  narceine  alone  of  all  the  other 
principles  of  opium,  that,  namely,  of  crystallizing  nearly  color- 
less out  of  an  almost  black  liquid.  The  muriate  of  cryptopia  is 
much  less  soluble  in  water  than  the  muriate  of  morphia.  A 
saturated  solution  of  the  former  gives  only  nine  grains  on  the 
evaporation  of  a  fluidounce,  while  the  same  quantity  of  a  like 
solution  of  the  latter  gives  three  times  as  much.  The  solubility 
of  the  two  salts  is  reversed  when  spirit  is  used  as  the  solvent, 
showing  that  muriate  of  cryptopia  is  more  soluble  in  spirit  of 
wine  than  muriate  of  morphia. 
Cryptopia  is  colorless  and  odorless  ;  its  salts  have  a  taste  at 
first  bitter,  but  the  bitterness  is  soon  followed  by  a  peculiar 
cook  ess,  which  spreads  over  the  tongue  and  palate,  as  if  there 
had  been  an  addition  of  some  peppermint.    It  leaves  no  ash 
