372 
Bark  of  Fraxinus  Americana. 
Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
Aug.,  1886. 
The  benzin  extract  consisted  of  wax,  and  in  that  of  the  root  bark 
a  little  volatile  oil  was  found.  The  resinous  ether  extract  communi- 
cated to  water  a  yellowish  color  and  a  bitter  taste.  More  of  the  bitter 
principle  was  found  in  the  alcoholic  extract,  the  aqueous  solution  of 
which  did  not  reduce  Fehling's  solution,  yielded  a  white  precipitate 
with  tannin,  reduced  gold  from  the  chloride,  gave  with  phosphomo- 
lybdic  acid  a  dark  blue-green  color  and  yellowish  white  precipitate, 
and  was  not  disturbed  by  potassio-mercuric  iodide,  platinic  chloride, 
or  picric  acid.  The  extract  treated  with  potassa  gave  off  ammonia. 
The  aqueous  solution  rendered  alkaline  was  shaken  with  chloroform, 
the  latter  evaporated,  the  residue  dissolved  in  water,  and  this  solution 
evaporated  over  sulphuric  acid.  The  residue  was  crystalline,  very 
bitter,  and  dissolved  in  hydrochloric  acid  without  color,  in  nitric  acid 
with  a  light  yellow  color,  and  slowly  in  sulphuric  acid  with  a  brown- 
ish red  color,  changing  to  dark  purplish  brown  on  heating.  The 
resinous  residue  of  the  alcoholic  extract  still  imparted  to  water  a 
light  yellowish  color,  changing  to  dark  brown  by  alkali,  and  to  yel- 
lowish again  when  acidulated. 
The  aqueous  extract  of  the  bark  contained  glucose  and  was  free  from 
tannin.  The  alcoholic  extract  of  the  bark  represents  the  medicinal  virtues. 
An  analysis  of  the  trunk  bark  (it  seems  that  the  corky  layer  was  not 
removed)  was  made  at  the  University  of  Wisconsin,  by  Edw.  Kremers. 
(Contributions  from  the  Department  of  Pharmacy,  Univ.  Wis.,  1886, 
p.  19-26.)  The  distillate  with  water  showed  traces  of  volatile  oil. 
The  distillate  with  potassa  gave  no  reaction  for  a  volatile  alkaloid  ;  the 
liquid  in  the  flask  attracted  attention  by  its  intense  greenish-blue 
fluorescence.  The  infusion  with  acidulated  water  afforded  precipitates 
with  iodine  and  with  potassio-mercuric  iodide ;  likewise  after  precip- 
itating with  ammonia,  filtering  and  acidulating,  and  also  the  ether  res- 
idue from  the  alkaline  liquid.  Similar  results  were  obtained  after 
mixing  the  bark  with  lime  and  extracting  with  alcohol.  Petroleum 
benzin  extracted  from  the  bark  0*52  per  cent,  of  yellow  fatty  matter 
of  the  consistence  of  lard;  and  ether  afterwards  took  up  2*08  per 
cent,  of  a  soft  resinous  substance. 
By  a  process  similar  to  that  of  Salm-Horstmar  for  fraxin  the  precipi- 
tate with  basic  lead  acetate  yielded  an  amorphous  glucoside  readily 
soluble  in  water  and  alcohol,  showing  a  strong  blue  fluorescence  in  al- 
kaline, but  not  in  acid  solutions,  and  on  boiling  with  dilute  hydro- 
chloric acid  yielding  sugar  and  an  amorphous  principle  closely  related 
