39^  Gleanings  from  the  European  Journals,  {^""sipt^^'isys^*""* 
Consequently  specimen  No.  I  contained  71 '59  per  cent,  carbon, 
while  specimen  No.  II  contained  80*73  P^^  cent. 
GLEANINGS  FROM  THE  EUROPEAN  JOURNALS. 
BY    THE  EDITOR. 
Decomposition  of  Chloroform. — Mr.  Jaillard,  military  pharmacist,  be- 
lieves that  the  spontaneous  decomposition  of  chloroform  is  caused  by 
the  presence  of  moisture,  and  may  be  explained  by  the  following 
equation:  CHCI3+2H2O  yield  3HC1+CH202-  ^^hat  hydrochloric 
and  formic  acids  are  the  decomposition  products  may  be  proven  by 
agitating  some  altered  chloroform  with  half  its  volume  of  distilled 
water,  and  treating  the  aqueous  liquid  with  some  solution  of  nitrate  of 
silver,  when  a  white  curdy  precipitate,  soluble  in  ammonia  and  insoluble 
in  diluted  nitric  acid,  is  obtained.  To  the  filtrate,  an  excess  of  the 
silver  solution  is  added  and  the  mixture  heated  to  boiling,  when  a  black 
precipitate  of  metallic  silver  will  indicate  the  presence  of  formic  acid. 
Chloroform  thus  altered  is  purified  by  washing  it  carefully  with  potassa 
solution,  and  after  decanting,  distilling  it  over  chloride  of  calcium. — 
Rep.  de  Phar?n.^  1875,  p.  391,  from  Mem.  ph.  Mil. 
Zinc  in  Vinegar. — Jaillard  reports  some  cases  of  poisoning,  accom- 
panied by  weakness,  headache,  diarrhoea  and  vomiting,  the  causes  of 
which  were  traced  to  the  use  of  vinegar  in  which  he  found  acetate  of 
zinc  corresponding  to  3  2  parts  of  the  metal  in  100  of  vinegar,  which 
had  been  kept  for  some  time  in  a  zinc  vessel. — Ibid..^p.  392,  from  Ibid. 
Constituents  of  Mahogany-wood. — Latour  and  Paul  Cazeneuve  have 
examined  mahogany-wood  (bois  d' acajou).  Deprived  of  the  hygroscopic 
water,  the  sawdust  was  exhausted  with  ether,  from  which  an  amber- 
yellow  extract  was  obtained  which  dissolved  in  boiling  water,  yielding, 
on  cooling,  crystals  of  catechin.  The  exhausted  sawdust  yielded  to 
cold  water  a  red-brown  extract,  which  contained  a  small  quantity  of 
catechin,  yellow  coloring  matter,  and  an  astringent  principle  analagous 
to  catechu-tannic  acid.  The  exhausted  sawdust  yields  to  alcohol  a  red 
principle  of  acid  properties,  dissolving  in  alkaline  carbonates  with  a 
carmine  color,  and  resembling  in  its  properties  rubinic  acid  and  cin- 
chonic  red. 
With  hot  water  12  per  cent,  of  dry  extract  is  obtained  from  mahog- 
any sawdust  ;  nearly  one-half  of  the  extract  (5*8  per  cent.)  is  soluble 
in  cold  distilled  water. 
