142 
BERBEBJN  IN  HYDRASTIS  CANADENSIS. 
Hydrastis,  however,  contains  an  alkaloid  and  there  are  several 
methods  mentioned  by  which  it  may  be  most  conveniently  ex- 
tracted. The  Eclectic  Dispensatory  gives  one  of  those  methods, 
according  to  which  the  powdered  root  should  be  extracted  with 
alcohol.  The  tincture  thus  obtained  is  then  evaporated,  the 
residue  mixed  with  water,  the  whole  filtered  and  a  quantity  of 
hydrochloric  acid  added  to  the  watery  liquid,  when  a  beautiful 
crystalline  precipitate  makes  its  appearance,  which  was  assumed 
to  be  the  pure  hydrastin. 
The  circumstance,  that  this  substance  is  precipitated  from  its 
solutions  by  a  mineral  acid,  at  the  first  glance  makes  its  basic 
nature  a  little  improbable.  This  circumstance  combined  with 
the  fact,  that  an  organic  elementary  analysis  of  this  substance 
does  not  exist,  seemed  to  make  it  desirable  to  have  its  proper- 
ties a  little  better  investigated. 
In  preparing  the  body  in  question,  I  followed  in  general  the 
above  given  directions.  I  modified  the  process  merely  by  effect- 
ing the  extraction  in  a  hot-water  percolator  so  that  the  alcohol 
was  always  in  boiling  condition.  I  found  that  by  this  modifi- 
cation the  process  was  finished  in  much  shorter  time,  and  that 
less  quantities  of  alcohol  were  necessary.  The  crystalline  body, 
formed  by  the  addition  of  hydrochloric  acid,  was  collected  on  a 
calico  filter,  pressed  and  redissolved  in  boiling  alcohol.  The 
hot  filtered  solution  readily  deposits  on  cooling  such  an  amount 
of  crystals,  that  the  whole  seems  to  form  one  solid  mass.  These 
crystals  were  again  pressed  and  once  more  crystallized  from  al- 
cohol, after  which  they  were  considered  pure. 
This  substance  forms,  when  dry,  a  light  yellow  powder,  which 
presents  under  the  microscope  the  appearance  of  prismatic  crys- 
tals. It  has  a  bright  yellow  color  and  a  very  intense  bitter 
taste.  It  is  inodorous  and  little  soluble  in  cold  water,  to  which 
it  imparts,  however,  a  deep  yellow  color.  Cold  alcohol  dissolves 
also  very  little,  but  it  is  readily  soluble  and  in  large  proportions 
both  in  boiling  water  and  in  alcohol.  These  hot  solutions  ex- 
hibit a  brown-yellow  tint,  while  the  cold  diluted  solutions  are 
purely  yellow.  Neither  litmus  nor  curcuma  paper  is  affected  by 
them. 
Concentrated  sulphuric  acid  dissolves  it  with  olive  green  color 
and  disengages  hydrochloric  acid. 
