(C,II,) NP, is such a body formed by the action of sulpha cyanide upon triethyiphosphine. It contains an equivalent of phosphorus In the place of one of nitrogen. This class has at present only few members, but inasmuch as many monamines exist containing not only phosphorus but arsenic and antimony, in the place of nitrogen, it is possible that the NN in diamines may be replaced by I'P, As As, Sb Sb, and by NAs, NSb, PAs, PSb, and As Sb the flame as by Ni', as seen in the formula of the phosphamino just given. .
3. Tria mines, derived from a triple atom of ammonia or triammonia. The fame general remarks that have applied to the monamines and diamines apply also to thin third class. Although many natural organic bases contain three equivalents of nitrogen, and may be repre sented as triamines, it is not positively known that they really are so, and at present only two artificial bases poaness the triammonic character at all decidedly ; they are :— (C,N).
Melamine (tricyan-trIsmine) . . 11, N, and Cyanelbine (trisllyl-triamine) . . . . (C.11.1"" N, 4. Trtratnines.—Theobromino and caffeine contain four equivalents of nitrogen, and may possibly be tetramines. The only well marked artificial one is glycosine (not glyeoein), containing the hypothetical tetratomic radical glycyl (C,11,)"" ; its formula is (C,I1,)'" N,, and (C,H,)"" its explanatory name would be triglyeyl-tetramine.
5. Pentamines have no representatives among the strictly organic bases. Some cobalt bases that have recently been discovered seem to be pentammonie.
ammonia (NH,) is dissolved in water a solution is obtained having all the characters of the hydrated oxides of the alkali metals, and is by analogy looked upon, therefore', as containing the hydrated oxide of ammonium (NI1,0, 110, or 0„ or IIHIIHN 00. Similarly when the monamines, whose general formulm have already been given, are dissolved in water, hydrated oxides of organic bases are produced of the general formula }`-' 11111111N 11111111N n l,H or 1111111IN 0 and having the H H termination -monium in place of the original Thus, ethylamine furnishes hydrated oxide of ethylammonium, and di- and tri-ethyla mine yield hydrated oxides of di- and tri-ethylammonium. This
change of constitution, and therefore of typical expression, is, more over, warranted by the fact that the fourth equivalent of hydrogen in ammonium may be replaced, and organic bases of the general formula ItRIIRN }0, readily produced; such an one is the hydrated oxide of 71 tetrethylammonium (C41105 0„ and the corresponding compound of methybethyl-amyl-phcnyl-ammonium N 11 In the ammoniums, as in the amines, biatomic (R"), teratomic (R"), and quadratomie (R"") radicals may replace two, three, or four equivalents of hydrogen respectively. There seem also to be compounds conveniently represented on the ammonium type as ammonium in which hydrogen is replaced by ammonium itself, or rather by a derivative of ammonium, but at present only two organic bases can be thus viewed. Finally, there are good indications of the existence of di-aminonium and tri-aminonium organic bases derived from double and triple atoms of hydrated oxide of ammonium, and resembling the climnine and triamino bases.
Fornzation of Organic bases.
The modes in which the natural organic bases aro formed are not yet ascertained, for all attempts to produce them artificially have hitherto failed. The artificial hisses are formed by several processes, which we now propose to notice, including under each a list of the chief bases produced.
First. Direct substitution of organic radicals for the hydrogen in ammonia. This process will be readily understood by the following example. A mixture of strong alcoholic solution of ammonia with iodide of ethyl is hermetically sealed up in a long tube and heated for some hours in a water-bath ; combination takes place, and the result C,1 is hydriodate of ethylamine ( II N, HI). On distilling the latter C,, with potash, iodide of potassium, water, and ethylamine H N aro formed. On now going through the same process, but using ethylamine instead of ammonia, dicthylamine C,11, N is obtained.