Am.  Jour.  Pharm.  1 
Dec.  1875.  i 
Erne  tin  a. 
543 
thy  of  notice,  since  it  does  not  accord  with  what  has  been  stated  by 
previous  authors,  who  have  all  considered  emetina  to  be  incapable  of 
forming  crystallizable  salts.  It  is  especially  interesting  in  that  it  fur- 
nishes a  convenient  and  certain  method  of  obtaining  perfectly  pure 
emetina,  for  which  it  is  only  necessary  to  precipitate  a  solution  of  the 
hydrochlorate  with  an  alkali.  But  it  is  important  to  observe  that  am- 
monia does  not  precipitate  all  the  emetina  of  the  hydrochlorate,  and 
that  the  precipitate  is  less  in  proportion  as  the  salt  is  more  acid.  It 
might  appear  from  this  that  emetina  is  soluble  in  hydrochlorate  of  am- 
monia. But  the  author  finds  that  it  is  the  result  of  a  decomposing  ac- 
tion exercised  by  the  emetina  upon  the  hydrochlorate  of  ammonia,  as 
is  shown  by  the  following  two  experiments.  If  a  little  dry  powdered 
emetina  be  placed  in  a  glass  containing  a  solution  of  hydrochlorate  of 
ammonia  it  may  be  observed  to  agglomerate  and  become  transformed 
into  a  soft  resinoid  mass  ;  at  the  same  time  the  disengagement  of  am- 
monia may  be  recognized,  and  the  resinoid  mass  gradually  undergoes  a 
kind  of  metamorphosis  and  becomes  white  and  crystalline.  Again,  if 
emetina  in  powder  be  suspended  in  water  and  solution  of  hydrochlorate 
of  ammonia  be  gradually  added,  the  emetina  is  dissolved,  and  upon 
evaporation  of  the  solution,  crystals  of  a  double  hydrochlorate  of  eme- 
tina and  ammonia  are  obtained. 
The  author  believes  the  decomposition  of  hydrochlorate  of  ammonia 
by  an  organic  alkali  to  have  been  hitherto  unobserved.  It  does  not  ap- 
pear, however,  that  emetina  is  alone  in  this  action,  as  the  author  has 
observed  that  quinia,  under  similar  conditions,  behaves  in  the  same 
manner. 
Composition  of  Emetina  and  its  Hydrochlorate. — These  substances,  dried 
at  110°  C,  gave  upon  analysis  results  corresponding  with  the  following 
centesimal  composition  : 
Hydrochlorate 
Emetina.  of  Emetina. 
Carbon          .....  72*25  ....  63*00 
Hydrogen  .        .        .        .        .  8-6i        .        .        .  8*15 
Nitrogen        .....  5*36  ....  4*75 
Oxygen   1378        .        .        .  11-64 
Chlorine        .....    ....  12-46 
From  these  fio-ures  the  author  has  constructed  the  followino-  for- 
mulae  : — 
C3^,,NO,  C3„H,,NO,-  HCl 
Emetina.  Hydrochlorate  of  Emetina. 
—  Phar.  Jour,  and  Trans. Sept.  11. 
