Am.  Jour.  Pharm.  1 
Sept.,  1879.  J 
Chemical  Notes. 
C36H38O20+3H2O-2C6HuO6+C24H16O11. 
This  reaction  requires  the  production  of  60*76  per  cent,  quercetin 
and  46*08  per  cent,  isodulcite.  Liebermann  and  Hamburger  found  as 
the  means  of  determinations  with  quercitrins  of  five  different  sources 
61*21  per  cent,  quercetin  and  46*37  per  cent,  of  isodulcite.  From  the 
quercitrin  were  prepared  and  analyzed  tetrabromquercitrin  and  quer- 
citrin-potassium,  and  from  quercetin  acetyl-quercetin,  bibromquer- 
cetin,  bibromacetyl-quercetin,  quercetin-sodium,  tetrabromquercetin, 
and  tetrabrombiacetyl-quercetin,  and  from  isodulcite  isodulcite-sodium. 
— Ber.  der  Chem.  Ges.,  xii,  p.  11 78. 
On  Gardenin  from  Dekamali  gum. — Stenhouse  and  Groves  have  con- 
tinued their  study  of  the  Dekamali  gum,  the  resinous  exudation  from 
Gardenia  lucida.  By  distilling  the  resin  in  a  current  of  steam  a  volatile 
oil  came  over,  which,  after  rectification  over  sodium,  yielded  a  terpene 
boiling  at  1600  having  the  formula  C10H16.  From  the  dark  brown 
liquid  residue  was  extracted  the  gardenin.  Its  formula  is  CuH1206. 
By  treating  this  with  nitric  acid  a  paste  of  bright  red  needles  is  obtained, 
which,  after  recrystallization,  was  analyzed.  Its  composition  is 
C14H10O6,  and  the  authors  have  called  it  provisionally  gardenic  acid, 
although  they  consider  that  it  has  more  the  character  of  a  quinone.  Of 
this  gardenic  acid  they  formed  the  acetyl  compound  C14H806(C2H30)2, 
and  by  treatment  with  aqueous  sulphurous  acid  a  compound  C14H14Oe, 
which  they  term  hydrogardenic  acid.  They  propose  to  continue  the 
study  of  these  compounds. — Cbem.  News,  xxxix,  p.  283. 
On  the  Alkaloids  of  the  Pomegranate-root. — Tanret  announces  the  dis- 
covery of  three  volatile  alkaloids  in  this  bark  in  addition  to  the  pelle- 
tierina,  discovered  by  him  some  time  ago.  The  four  alkaloids  are 
separated  by  adding  milk  of  lime  to  the  powdered  bark,  extracting  with 
water,  shaking  up  this  solution  with  chloroform,  and  then  adding  acid 
to  this  chloroform  extract.  The  aqueous  solution  so  obtained  is  then 
neutralized  with  sodium  bicarbonate,  again  extracted  with  chloroform, 
and  the  solution  treated  with  dilute  sulphuric  acid.  The  acid  solution 
rotates  the  polarized  ray  to  the  right,  and  contains  the  sulphates  of  a 
right-rotating  liquid  alkaloid  and  of  an  inactive  solid  alkaloid  respectively. 
If  the  above  procedure  be  applied  to  the  original  liquid,  using  caustic 
soda  solution,  however,  we  obtain  a  left-rotatftig  solution.  After 
evaporation  over  sulphuric  acid  the  mass  is  spread  out  on  filter  paper, 
whereby  the  amorphous  inactive  sulphate  soaks  into  the  paper,  leaving 
