Hyoscyamine crystallizes in the acicular form, with greater difficulty even than atropine, it also forms less compact crystals. Its fusing point is 149.6° F. I have not yet succeeded in crystallizing any of its more simple salts. The double platinum salt melts at 392° F., with decomposition. The double gold salt, which has been described above, does not melt in boiling water, and its aqueous solution is reduced neither by boiling nor by long exposure to light. By leaving the hot saturated solution to cool it does not cloud, but the double salt separates pretty rapidly in the form of plates.
One liter of water containing 10 cubic centimeters of hydrochloric acid at 1.19° dissolves 65 centigrammes of the salt at 146° F.
These characteristics allow us to differentiate atropine and hyoscyamine, the reactions of which are almost identical, as will be seen from the following table, which shows the action of weak solutions of the acids named on the hydrochlorates of the bases:
_Reagents_. _Hyoscyamine_. _Atropine_.
Picric acid. An oil solidifying Crystalline precipitate.
immediately into
tabular crystals.
Mercuropotassic White cheesy Same.
iodide. precipitate.
Iodized potassic An immediate A brown oil crystallizing
iodide. precipitate of after a time.
periodate.
Mercuric chloride. Same as picric acid. Same.
Tannic acid. Slight cloud. Cloud hardly visible.
Platinum chloride. O. O.
(To be continued.)
DETECTION OF SMALL QUANTITIES OF MORPHIA.
By A. JORISSEN.
The solution of morphia, free from foreign bodies, is evaporated to dryness, and the residue is heated on the water bath with a few drops of sulphuric acid. A minute crystal of ferrous sulphate is then added, bruised with a glass rod, stirred up in the liquid, heated for a minute longer, and poured into a white porcelain capsule, containing 2 to 3 c.c. strong ammonia. The morphia solution sinks to the bottom, and where the liquids touch there is formed a red color, passing into violet at the margin, while the ammoniacal stratum takes a pure blue. The reaction is very distinct to 0.0006 grm. Codeine does not give this reaction. If sulphuric acid at 190° to 200° is allowed to act upon morphia, there is ultimately formed an opaque black green mass. If this is poured dropwise into much water, the mixture turns bluish, and if it is then shaken up with ether or chloroform, the form takes a purple and the latter a very permanent blue. Codeine gives the same reaction, but no other of the alkaloids. This reaction can be obtained very distinctly with 0.0004 grm. of morphia.