The fundamental NH and CH stretching vibrations of a number of cyclic imines have been examined in dilute CCI, solution. A trat~s orientation of the N lone pair orbital and one or more hydrogen atoms on adjacent carbons lowers the relevant vo, ("Bohlmann" bands) and raises VNH, reflecting an increase in the s-character of the CH bond(s), consistent with a partial delocalization of the lone pair electrons into the CN bond. Conformations in which this interaction occurs are thermodynamically favored, and the AH values for the lone pair axial-equatorial equilibrium in piperidine, pyrrolidine, and indolene are estimated to be 0.4, 0.2, and 0.1 kcal/mole, respectively, in dilute CCI, solution.The effects of hetero ring size, N-substitution, a-methyl substitution, and the solvent environment are investigated.Canadian Journal o f Chemistry, 48,3236 (1970) Introduction Conformational problems which arise from different orientations of the nitrogen atom lone pair orbital in heterocyclic compounds (la) have received much attention in the case of sixmembered rings like piperidine or morpholine, and a variety of methods like i.r. spectroscopy (2-12), n.m.r. spectroscopy (12-22), microwave spectroscopy (23), and dipole moment measurements (24-30) have been employed. The results of these studies have not been uniformlv consistent.