A series of dye-cellulose compounds and their corresponding models were synthesized. The alkali-hydrolysis rate constants of these compounds were measured
and the kinetics and mechanism of the hydrolysis were investigated. The molecular orbital theory was used in analyzing the hydrolytic behavior of twenty compounds including their models. It was found that the hydrolytic behavior of any dye-cellulose might be well approximated by its corresponding model. Fukis superdelocalizability SrN is a good reaction index for correlating the hydrolysis reaction.