88  Gleanings  from  the  German  Journals.  \  Am,Feb.?i89hoarn1' 
(2)  Chlorinated  lime,  treated  with  water,  will  yield  to  the  sol- 
vent considerably  more  calcium  chloride  than  calcium  hypo- 
chlorite. These  experiments  would  indicate  a  mechanical  mix- 
ture of  the  two  salts  and  not  a  definite  chemical  compound. 
The  action  of  bleaching  powder  upon  alcohol  was  also  rein- 
vestigated, with  these  results  :  If  a  clear  solution  of  the 
bleaching  powder  be  warmed  with  alcohol  there  will  be  liber- 
ated small  quantities  of  chlorine  and  oxygen,  with  formation 
of  calcium  carbonate  and  hydrate ;  calcium  formate  could 
not  be  detected  among  the  products.  The  experiments  lead 
him  to  results  indicating  that  from  3  molecules  calcium 
hypochlorite  there  are  formed  1  molecule  chloroform,  1 
molecule  calcium  carbonate  and  \  molecule  calcium  hydrate ; 
writing  alcohol  as  CH3 — CH2OH,  the  CH3  group  is  chlorinated 
to  form  CHC1,  while  the  group  CH2OH  is  changed  by  oxida- 
tion into  C02  and  H20. — Pharm.  Ztg.,  1889,  747. 
Hydro fliiosilicic  and  fluoboric  acids  (H2SiFG  and  HBF4)  as  well 
as  their  soluble  salts,  possess  in  a  very  marked  degree  the 
property  of  preventing  fermentations.  A  ten  per  cent, 
glucose  solution,  to  which  four  per  cent,  yeast  had  been 
added,  did  not  show  any  signs  of  decomposition  when  kept 
for  weeks  at  30-350  C,  if  0*1  to  0-5  per  cent,  of  the  calcium 
salts  of  the  above  acids  were  present.  Grape  juice,  with 
o*2  per  cent,  of  the  same  salts,  will  keep  well  at  30-35°  ; 
starch  paste,  under  the  same  conditions,  remains  also 
unchanged.— F.  J.  Homeyer,  Pharm.  Ztg.,  1889,  761. 
A  quantitative  estimation  of  cellulose,  which  is  simple  and 
convenient,  in  that  the  crude  material  is  taken  without  pre- 
vious extraction  with  solvents,  is  as  follows  :  10  grams  of 
the  material,  with  3-4  times  its  weight  of  sodium  or  potas- 
sium hydrate  and  30-40  cc.  water,  are  placed  in  a  tubulated 
retort  and  heated  in  an  oil-bath,  the  temperature  of  which  is 
obtained  by  use  of  a  thermometer,  the  bulb  being  in  the 
same  line  with  the  bottom  of  the  retort.  When  heated  to 
about  1400  C,  effervescence  commences,  and  the  temperature 
is  then  slowly  allowed  to  reach  1800;  one  hour's  heating  at 
this  temperature  is  generally  sufficient,  the  end  of  the  reac- 
tion being  noticed  by  the  mass  becoming  dry.  The  retort 
removed  from  the  oil-bath  is  allowed  to  cool  to  8o°  C,  warm 
