48 
New  Essential  Oils. 
( Am.  Jour.  Pbarm 
(    January,  1911. 
tillation  the  fruit  yielded  3.7  per  cent,  of  a  leiiion-yellow  oil  with  a 
pecuHar  odor,  reminding  of  oil  of  water-fennel.  Continued  dis- 
tillation yielded,  in  addition,  0.9  per  cent,  of  a  crystalline  substance. 
We  were  compelled  to  abandon  the  attempt  to  dissolve  this  sub- 
stance in  the  oil  in  the  proportion  indicated,  because  the  bulk  of  the 
solid  constituents  again  separated  out  even  at  a  temperature  of  25 
to  30°.  The  properties  of  the  oil  and  of  the  solid  substance  were 
therefore   determined   separately.     The  oil  behaved  as   follows : 
djgo  0.8653,  a^  — 23°  35'>n^2o°  i.48i3i»  acid  no.  9.9,  ester  no.  10.3, 
ester  no.  after  acetyl.  33.6,  soluble  in  2.6  vol.  and  more  of  90  per  cent, 
alcohol.  According  to  these  analytical  values  the  oil  appears  to 
consist  chiefly  of  hydrocarbons,  the  nature  of  which  remains  to  be 
elucidated  by  further  investigation.  The  odor  suggests  the  presence 
of  phellandrene. 
The  solid  substance  which  was  obtained  in  the  process  of  distilla- 
tion, after  being  twice  recrystallized  from  alcohol,  presented  color- 
less, odorless,  optically  inactive  needles  or  leaflets,  m.  p.  83°.  It 
was  readily  soluble  in  ether,  chloroform,  and  acetone,  a  little  less 
readily  in  alcohol,  benzene,  and  light  petroleum  (all  three  of  which 
solvents  are  very  suitable  for  recrystallizing  the  body),  and  was 
insoluble  in  water.  The  substance  is  not  an  acid ;  it  appears  rather  to 
be  a  phenol  or  lactone-like  compound,  as  is  evident  from  the  fact 
that  it  does  not  react  with  solutions  of  alkahne  carbonates,  while  it 
does  react  with  those  of  caustic  alkalies,  from  which  latter  it  is  again 
separated  out  by  acidulation.  Although  when  heated  with  benzoyl 
chloride  it  reacted  violently,  the  yield  of  the  resulting  benzoyl  com- 
pound was  only  slight,  the  greater  part  of  the  compound  having 
remained  intact.  After  repeated  recrystallization  from  alcohol  the 
benzoyl  compound  formed  stout  crystals,  melting  at  89°. 
Dr.  A.  J.  Ultee,  of  Salatiga,  Java,  has  recently  sent  us  a 
sample  of  an  essential  oil  which  we  desire  to  describe  here  only 
briefly,  as  a  detailed  publication  concerning  its  composition  has 
been  promised  by  Dr.  Ultee  himself. 
Oil  of  Alpinia  Galanga  Willd.  (Fam.  Zingiberacese).  This 
oil  was  of  a  lemon-yellow  color  and  possessed  a  peculiar,  strongly 
aromatic  odor.  Its  constants  were  as  follows:  di5o  0.9847,  a^-\- 
4°  20',  nj^2o°  1-51638,  acid  no.  1.8,  ester  no.  145.6,  soluble  in  its  own 
vol.  of  80  per  cent,  alcohol,  opalescence  ensuing  upon  the  addition 
of  3  vols.  According  to  Dr.  Ultee,  the  oil  contains  pinene,  cineol, 
camphor,  and  methyl  cinnamate.  The  ester  number  of  the  oil  indi- 
cates the  presence  of  42  per  cent,  methyl  cinnamate. 
