CRYPTOPIA,  A  NEW  ALKALOID  IN  OPIUM, 
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give  it  a  right  to  be  considered  a  substance  not  hitherto  known 
to  exist  in  opium. 
The  very  sparing  solubility  of  cryptopia  in  spirit  separates  it 
widely  even  from  morphia,  the  least  soluble  of  the  other  alkaloids 
in  that  medium,  The  insolubility  of  cryptopia  in  ether  does  not 
distinguish  it  from  morphia,  but  does  so  completely  both  from 
codeia  and  thebaia. 
The  action  of  strong  sulphuric  acid  (pure)  on  cryptopia  cannot 
allow  of  its  being  confounded  with  any  of  the  other  three.  This 
acid  produces  a  blue  color  with  the  most  minute  quantity  of 
cryptopia ;  a  blood-red  with  thebaia ;  and  no  color  with  either 
morphia  or  codeia. 
The  salts  of  cryptopia  have  a  great  tendency  to  give  jellies 
on  cooling  from  hot  solutions.  None  of  the  others  show  this 
tendency.  The  muriate  of  cryptopia  crystallizes  in  tufts,  but  of 
a  different  kind  from  those  of  muriate  of  morphia  and  muriate  of 
codeia  ;  while  the  muriate  of  thebaia  crystallizes  in  hard,  stony- 
like  crystals.  Again,  the  muriate  of  cryptopia  is  much  more 
easily  bleached  with  charcoal  than  either  of  the  other  muriates* 
It  appears  to  us  unnecessary  to  carry  the  comparison  further ; 
we  think  we  have  said  enough  to  show  a  difference  of  characters 
so  distinct  as  to  prevent  the  chance  of  cryptopia  being  confound- 
ed with  any  of  the  other  principles  of  opium. 
It  is  already  known  that  a  blue  color  is  produced  by  the  ac- 
tion of  vitriol  on  papaverine,  but  the  shade  of  blue  is  far  more 
faint,  and  passes  into  an  orange  on  the  addition  of  a  minute 
particle  of  powdered  nitre.  By  the  same  addition  to  the  blue  of 
cryptopia  green  is  produced.  A  faint  green  can  also  be  pro* 
duced  by  the  addition  of  nitre  to  the  blue  of  papaverine ;  but  it 
is  very  faint,  and  requires  careful  management  to  produce  it.* 
*  The  rationale  of  the  production  of  the  green  color  is  easily  compre- 
hended. Sulphuric  acid  producing  a  blue  and  nitric  acid  an  orange  yel- 
low 5  when  the  two  reactions  are  applied  consecutively  to  one  and  the 
game  quantity  of  cryptopia,  the  compound  result  is  the  production  of  a 
green  color  5  and  as  the  action  of  nitric  acid  is  more  powerful  than  that 
of  sulphuric  acid,  if  the  quantity  of  nitre  added  should  be  more  than  sufR- 
cent,  the  yellow  would  so  predominate  as  to  overwhelm  the  blue  reaction 
of  the  sulphuric  acid  ;  in  this  ease,  however,  we  never  failed  in  bringing 
