'^'"ocrx8?o^'"'-}      Report  on  the  Aconite  Alkaloids.  501 
out,  a  small  portion  remaining  permanently  dissolved  in  the  alkaline 
fluid,  in  a  form  difficultly  soluble  in  ether;  the  alkaloidal  matter  thus 
retained  yielded  nothing  crystalline  on  precipitation  with  mercuro-iodide 
of  potassium  and  treatment  with  sulphuretted  hydrogen,  and  appeared 
to  be  all  but  destitute  of  the  characteristic  physiological  action  of  aconite, 
producing  little  or  no  tingling  of  the  lips  when  applied  theretf);  it 
greatly  resembled  the  corresponding  substance  similarly  obtained  from 
the  extract  derived  from  the  various  kinds  of  aconite  roots  examined  in 
previous  reports,  consisting  of  a  mixture  of  amorphous  bases  of  lower 
molecular  weight  than  aconitine,  some  of  which  differ  therefrom  mark- 
edly in  being  readily  soluble  in  caustic  and  carbonated  alkalies,  and  in 
being  only  imperfectly  removed  from  such  solutions  bv  ether. 
The  alkaloidal  substances  dissolved  out  by  the  ether  treatment, 
being  mixed  with  a  large  quantity  of  greenish  soft  resin,  were  separated 
therefrom  by  agitation  with  tartaric  acid  solution  and  separation  of  the 
tartrate  solution  thus  formed;  on  treating  this  with  sodium  carbonate 
and  ether  about  15  grams  of  alkaloids  were  finally  obtained  by  the 
spontaneous  evaporation  of  the  ethereal  solution.  No  artifice  employed 
was  successful  in  making  this  product  either  crystallize  or  yield  crys- 
tallized salts  of  any  kind;  it  appeared,  however,  to  contain  a  notable 
amount  of  aconit  ne,  producing  an  energetic  action  on  tne  lips  when 
cautiously  applied  thereto,  though  it  was  by  no  means  so  powerfully 
active  as  pure  aconitine.  On  combustion  it  yielded  the  following  num- 
bers, indicating,  as  did  also  its  physical  properties,  that  it  was  substan- 
tially the  same  mixture  of  alkaloids  as  that  occurring  in  A.  napellus 
roots,  only  differing  therefrom  in  containing  a  smaller  percentage  of 
aconitine,  the  quantity  of  uncrystallizable  bases  being  relatively  much 
larger.^ 
(i.)  '2845  gram  of  substance,  dried  at  1 10°,  gave '6735  CO2  and 
-217  H,0. 
•459  gram  of  substance,  burnt  with  soda  lime,  gave  'oriia  N. 
A  portion  of  the  substance  was  dissolved  in  dilute  hydrochloric  acid, 
and  the  solution  precipitated  by  slow  addition  to  a  dilute  solution  of 
^  It  would  seem  to  be  highly  probable  that  the  presence  in  excess  of  non-crystal- 
line bases,  preventing  crystallization  of  what  aconitine  is  present,  is  the  main  cause 
of  the  difficulty  which  we  understand  is  sometimes  experienced  in  isolating  the  crys- 
tallizable  alkaloid  from  A.  napellus  roots  in  the  process  of  manufacture  on  the  large 
■scale. 
