Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
July,  1895. 
White  and  Black  Mustard  Seed. 
341 
In  reviewing  the  literature  relating  to  black  and  white  mustard, 
the  average  reader  is  exceedingly  liable  to  be  confused  and  misled  ; 
in  the  first  place,  because  there  exists  a  great  similarity  between  the 
white  and  black  mustard,  and  at  the  same  time  there  exists  a  very 
decided  difference  between  the  two ;  then  also  because  of  the  ever- 
changing  system  of  nomenclature  in  use.  The  glucoside  from  white 
mustard  has  been  known  under  no  less  than  four  different  names : 
sulphocyanide  of  sinapine,  sulpho-sinapisin,  sinapin,  and  sinalbin, 
and,  which  makes  it  more  confusing,  one  of  these  names  has  been 
retained  for  the  alkaloid  developed  from  sinalbin  by  decomposition 
with  myrosin.  Even  now  sinigrin  is  known  by  two  different  names  : 
sinigrin  and  potassium  myronate  ;  and  the  pungent  oil  of  white 
mustard  is  known  by  three  different  names,  acrinyl  sulphocyanate, 
ortho-hydroxy-benzyl  sulphocyanate,  and  sinalbin-mustard-oil  (many 
believing  this  to  be  a  volatile  oil). 
Owing  to  this  general  confusion,  one  has  to  read  with  the  utmost 
care,  and  carefully  sift  from  the  miscellaneous  mass  the  points  which 
draw  a  sharp  comparison  between  the  two.  The  following  compari- 
son of  their  constituents  will  probably  help  make  it  more  clear : 
BLACK.  WHITE. 
Fixed  oil  23  per  cent.  Fixed  oil  .....   22  per  cent. 
Stearin,  Stearin, 
Olein,  Olein, 
Erucic  acid  (C02H42O0),  Erucic  acid  (C^H^Oo),. 
Sinapolic  acid  (C20H38O2),  Sinapolic  acid  (C2oH3802), 
Behenic  acid  (C00H44O2).  Behenic  acid  (C20H44O0). 
Mucilage  about  19  per  cent.  Mucilage. 
Albuminous  matter.  Albuminous  matter. 
Myrosin  (generally  less  than  in  white  seed).  Myrosin  (generally  more  than  in  black  seedj. 
Sinigrin  (C10H18KNSoO10),  or,  Sinalbin  (CaoH^NsSoOiel  : 
Potassium  myronate :  Glucose  (C6H1206),  ] 
Glucose  (C6H]206),  Sinapine  sulphate  (Ci6H25NS09),  5 
Potassium  acid  sulphate  tKHS04),  Ortho-hydroxy-benzyl-sulphocyanate  |  ~r 
Allyl-isosulpho-cyanide  (C3H5NCS),  (fixed  oil)  \  SLS. 
volatile  oil.  C  H  <^  OH 
Sinapine     sulphocyanate     (alkaloid)  6   4  ^  CHECKS 
&     ^       (C16H24NO5CNS).  Sinapine  Sulphocyanate  (alkaloid) 
As  it  would  prolong  this  paper  unduly  to  give  the  details  ol 
laboratory  work  in  connection  with  the  study,  and  as  this  work  was 
designed  merely  for  the  purpose  of  verifying  and  studying  the 
work  that  has  been  done  by  others,  it  behooves  the  writer  to  make 
no  further  reference  to  this  than  to  say  that  the  constituents  of 
white  mustard  were  extracted,  following  the  process  of  Will  and  Lau- 
benheimer,  and  by  test-tube  experiments  the  acrid  and  pungent 
