338     CONSTITUTION  OF  THE  WAX  OF  MYRICA  CERIFERA. 
The  traveller,  Kalm,  speaking  of  myrtle  wax,  says,  "  in  the 
country  where  it  grows,  they  make  excellent  soap  of  it  which 
washes  linen  perfectly  white." 
The  first  attempt  to  investigate  the  chemical  composition  of 
the  substance  was  made  by  the  Danish  chemist,  Dr.  John,  in 
the  early  part  of  the  present  century.  By  treating  the  wax  from 
the  M.  cerifera  with  boiling  alcohol,  this  observer  separated  it 
into  two  portions.  To  the  soluble  portion  he  gave  the  name  of 
cerin  and  to  the  insoluble  that  of  myricin,  from  the  specific  and 
generic  names  of  the  plant.  Subsequently  discovering  as  he 
supposed  two  identical  substances  in  bees-wax,  he  conferred  upon 
them  the  same  names,  which  are  even  still  in  use. 
In  the  year  1802  Mr.  C.  L.  Cadet  gave  an  account  of  the 
myrtle  berry  and  the  mode  of  culture,  with  experiments  on  the 
solubility  of  the  wax  in  various  menstrua,  and  mentioned  that  it 
saponified  readily  with  the  alkalies. 
A  few  months  later,  Dr.  John  Bostock  gave  an  accurate  de- 
scription of  the  physical  properties  of  the  wax,  its  comportment 
towards  solvents  and  alkalies,  and   concluded  by  stating  the 
find  shelter  (hiring  his  residence  in  this  place,  which  is  usally  three  or  four 
weeks.  While  he  cuts  down  trees,  his  children  gather  the  berries.  A 
very  fertile  shrub  will  afford  nearly  seven  pounds.  When  these  are  ga- 
thered the  whole  family  employ  themselves  in  procuring  the  wax.  They 
throw  a  certain  quantity  of  the  berries  into  the  kettle,  and  then  pour  a 
sufficient  quantity  of  water  on  them  so  as  to  cover  them  to  the  depth  of 
about  half  a  foot.  They  then  boil  the  whole,  stirring  the  grains  about  and 
rubbing  them  against  the  sides  of  the  vessel  in  order  that  the  wax  may 
more  easily  come  off.  In  a  short  time  it  floats  on  the  water  like  fat,  and  is 
collected  with  a  spoon  and  strained  through  a  coarse  cloth  to  separate  it 
from  any  impurities  which  might  be  mixed  with  it.  When  no  more  wax 
can  be  obtained,  they  take  the  berries  out  with  a  skimmer  and  put  others 
into  the  same  water,  but  it  must  be  entirely  changed  the  second  or  third 
time,  and  in  the  meantime  boiling  water  must  be  added  as  it  evaporates  in 
order  to  avoid  retarding  the  operation.  When  a  considerable  quantity  of 
wax  has  been  obtained  by  this  means,  it  is  laid  on  a  cloth  to  drain  off  the 
water  with  which  it  is  still  mixed.  It  is  then  melted  a  second  time,  and  it 
is  then  formed  into  masses.  Four  pounds  of  berries  yield  about  one  of  wax  ; 
that  which  is  first  obtained  is  generally  yellow  ;  but  in  later  boilings  it  as- 
sumes a  green  color  from  the  pellicle  with  which  the  kernel  of  the  berry 
is  covered." — Translation  in  Nicholson's  Journal,  vol.  iv.  p.  189. 
