MANNA  OP  SINAI,  AND  MANNA  OF  SYRIA. 
71 
Nitrite  of  Ethyl  The  action  of  nitric  acid  on  alcohol  in  the 
preparation  of  nitrite  of  ethyl  may  be  conveniently  moderated 
by  protosulphate  of  iron,  and  the  nitric  acid  reduced  by  that 
agent  instead  of  at  the  expense  of  part  of  the  alcohol.  The 
proportions  which  I  have  used  are,  nitric  acid,  specific  gravity 
1-37,  90  cubic  centimetres  ;  alcohol,  of  90  per  cent.,  150  cubic 
centimetres  ;  ferrous  sulphate,  45  grammes.  The  product  is 
very  large ;  the  distillate,  on  being  shaken  up  with  water,  yields 
more  than  half  its  bulk  of  nitrite  of  ethyl.  The  latter  is  not 
perfectly  free  from  aldehyde,  but  more  so  than  that  obtained 
by  some  other  processes.  The  action  is  perfectly  quiet  to  the 
last,  and  the  distillation  may  be  carried  on  rapidly. — Ameri- 
can Journal  of  Science  and  Art,  Sept.,  1861. 
ON  THE  MANNA  OF  SINAI,  AND  THE  MANNA  OF  SYRIA. 
By  M.  Berthelot. 
1  They  took  their  journey  from  Elim,  and  all  the  congregation  of  the  children 
of  Israel  came  unto  the  wilderness  of  Sin,  which  is  between  Elim  and  Sinai. 
.  .  .  And  the  whole  congregation  of  the  children  of  Israel  murmured  against 
Moses  and  Aaron  ;  and  the  children  of  Israel  said  unto  them  .  .  .  Why  have 
ye  brought  us  forth  into  this  wilderness,  to  kill  this  whole  assembly  with 
hunger  ?  Then  said  the  Lord  unto  Moses  :  Behold  I  will  rain  bread  from 
heaven  for  you.  .  .  .  And  behold  upon  the  face  of  the  wilderness  there  lay  a 
small  round  thing,  as  small  as  the  hoar  frost  on  the  ground.  And  when  the 
children  of  Israel  saw  it,  they  said  one  to  another:  Manhu  ?  which  signifies  : 
What  is  it?  .  .  .  And  the  house  of  Israel  called  the  name  thereof  Manna.  .  . 
The  taste  of  it  was  like  honey.  .  .  .  And  the  children  of  Israel  did  eat  Manna 
forty  years.  .  .  .  They  did  eat  Manna,  until  they  came  to  the  borders  of  the 
land  of  Canaan. — Liber  Exodi,  cap.  xvi. 
What  is  the  substance  described  in  the  preceding  recital, 
which  figures  so  much  in  the  history  of  the  Hebrew  nation,  and 
the  name  of  which  serves  as  a  type  of  a  multitude  of  natural 
sugary  substances  ?  Can  it  be  likened  to  any  saccharine  matter 
known  in  the  present  day  ?  This  is  a  very  controverted  question. 
Two  principal  opinions  are  current  on  this  point :  the  one  re- 
gards manna  as  a  sugary  exudation  supplied  by  various  shrubs, 
principally  by  the  Alhagi  Maurorum  (Tourn.),  a  kind  of 
saintfoin  ;  the  other  opinion  likens  the  manna  of  the  Hebrews 
to  a  species  of  cryptogamous  plant.    In  these  days  the  origin 
