( 52 )
the surmise is correct that there is no nicotine. It turns out, however, that after
all there is an alkaloid, if not more than one, present, but that it is of no
physiological importance.
SIEBOLD and BRADBURY' at the British Pharmaceutical Congress of 1881
read an elaborate paper, in which they proved that while in mixtures of 7 ounces
of hemp to 1 ounce of tobacco, and even in a mixture of half a drachm of
tobacco to 8 ounces of hemp, it was perfectly possible to detect nicotine by its
characters and reaction, they could find no trace of nicotine when they examined
as much as 10lbs. of pure Indian hemp, though they did find a thick oily
yellowish liquid, which dried up into a varnish, with a strong mouse-like odour,
which developed more powerfully on heat being applied. This smell is, accord-
ing to these authors, quite different from that of nicotine, and is more like that
of coniine, though less nauseous. The substance is soluble in alcohol and in
ether, is only slightly so in water, is alkaline in reaction and neutralises acids;
it can be reprecipitated by caustic alkali from acid solutions. To this substance
the name cannabinine is given by them.
In the same year VALENTA2 redistilled the essential oil of hemp, already
examined by Dohlig and Personne, by distilling fresh leaves with water, and
agitating the milky distillate with ether. The oil, dried over calcium chloride
and distilled repeatedly from sodium, is colourless and mobile, its boiling point
is 256°-258;`) specific gravity at 0° 0 . 9292. Analysis gives the formula
C15H24; its vapour density is not determinable by ordinary methods, as at 300°C.
it decomposes. It mixes in all proportions with alcohol, ether and chloroform.
Bromine acts on it, a crystalline compound, not yet investigated, being the
result. Nothing like Personne's solid hydrocarbon could be found, and the
formula obtained differs from that given by Personne. This oil resinifies on
exposure its vapour density has since been ascertained to be 7.1.3
About this year MERCK, a Darmstadt chemist, issued a substance called
cannabinum tarazicum, which is the resin treated with tannic acid. This
has been said by some authors to be active,' by others to be inert.' Though
known in Germany in 1882 and 1883, it was not apparently known to HAY,
who about this time instituted an examination into the composition of ficinici,
for the absence of any reference to his preparation induced the manufacturer of
this eannabinum tannicum to write a letter" complaining of the absence of any
reference to it in Hay's paper. Unlike the Smiths, who published an account
of their process, Merck says nothing of the method of preparing his drug,
regarding the composition of which there is more reason for suspension of judg-
ment than the mere diverstity of experience among therapeutists, since Merck
himself speaks of it as a gly coside. We know that there is no glucoside in hemp,
and this would seem to have been explained to Merck subsequently, for the same
preparation is spoken of as cannabinon,,7a b a l s a m o - r e s i n o u s s u b s t a n c e , i n 1 8 8 6 .
The paper by Hay, 8 referred t o i n Merck' s l et t er, descri bes t he i sol at i on of an
alkaloid from hemp. A watery infusion of Cannabis indica was treated with a
solution of sub-acetate of lead and filtered. The filtrate was heated with ammonia
and the precipitate removed by filtration. The filtrate acidulated with sulphuric
acid was treated with phospho-wolframic acid to precipitate the alkaloids.
The abundant precipitate was retained on a filter and washed with dilute
sulphuric acid, then mixed with barium hydrate and water, thus precipitating the
wolframic acid and liberating the alkaloids. Excess of baryta was now removed
from the filtrate b y a stream of carbonic acid gas. The filtrate was again filtered,
evaporated almost to dryness by a gentle heat, acidulated with sulphuric acid and
treated with absolute alcohol. The sulphate of the alkaloids was partly soluble
in the alcohol, partly not. The soluble portion was examined; the sulphate was
converted into a chloride by treatment with barium hydrate, then with carbonic
acid to remove excess of baryta, finally with hydrochloric acid to neutralisation.
The chloride was evaporated and treated with absolute alcohol in which it was
1 rear-Book of Pharmacy (1881), p. 453.
² JOUP71. qf the Chemical Society (1881), p. 248.
³ Tratt's Diction«ry of Chemistry, ed. Morley and Muir, (1888), art. Cannabis indica.
4 Fronmueller and 11 iller quoted by H. C. Wood, Therapeutics, p. 202.
5 H. C. Wood. Therapeutics (ed vii), (1888), p. 202.
6 Pharmaceutical Journal, ser. vol 13, p. 1052.
7 Chemisches Centralblatt for ]886, quoted by Brühl, Proceedings As, Soc. Bengal (1887),p. 227.
8 Pharmaceutical Journal, ser. iii, vol. 13, p. 998,
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