-i : ..•>••• >.a-\i---r'-V w frf*:< «wmniH,^"4 mirtfrt-: '>-»* •!♦?•>* It II «tU '-'..'.I' MM «•• ILL NATIONAL LIBRARY OF MEDICINE Washington Founded 1836 U. S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare Public Health Service A TREATISE ON .\t ax 'P HARMA C Y. DESIGNED AS A TEXT-BOOK FOR THE STUDENT, AND AS A GUIDE FOR THE PHYSICIAN AND PHARMACEUTIST. CONTAINING THE OFFICINAL AND MANY UNOFFICIAL FORMULAS AND NUMEROUS EXAMPLES OF EXTEMPORANEOUS PRESCRIPTIONS. by yS EDWARD PARRISH, GRADUATE IN PHARMACY; MEMBER OF THE PHILADELPHIA COLLEGE OP PHARMACY; OP THE ACADEMY OP NATURAL SCIENCES OP PHILADELPHIA J AND OF THE AMERICAN PHARMACEUTICAL ASSOCIATION J PRINCIPAL OF THE SCHOOL OF PRACTICAL PHARMACY, PHILADELPHIA. THIRD EDITION, THOROUGHLY REVISED AND IMPROVED WITH IMPORTANT ADDITIONS. WITH TWO HUNDRED AND THIRTY-EIGHT ILLUSTRATIONS. PHILADELPHIA: BLANCHARD AND LEA. 1864. \ Entered according to the Act of Congress, in the year 1864, by BLANCHARD AND LEA, in the Office of the Clerk of the District Court of the United States in and for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. PHILADELPHIA. COLLINS, PRINTERS, 705 JAYNE STREET. '/ TO WILLIAM PROCTER, Jr., PROPESSOR OF THEORY AND PRACTICE OF PHARMACY IN THE PHILADELPHIA COLLESE OF PHARMACY, EDITOR OF THE AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHARMACY, ETC., AS A TESTIMONIAL TO HIS ZEAL AND ABILITY IN PROSECUTING THE ART AND SCIENCE OF PHARMACY, AND AS A TRIBUTE OF THE ENDURING FRIENDSHIP AND ESTEEM OF THE AUTHOR. (Ui.) PEEEACE TO THE THIED EDITION. Some explanation seems necessary in view of the delay in the appearance of the present edition of this work, which has been out of print for nearly a year; this has been caused by the non-appear- ance of the revised Pharmacopoeia of the United States until the last half of the year 1863, and in part by the impossibility of hastening the mechanical execution of a work of such extent and variety of detail. It has been completed as early as practicable under the cir- cumstances, and no effort has been spared to make it worthy the posi- tion heretofore accorded it, as a text book for the student and a guide for practitioners of medicine and of pharmacy. The introduction of working formulas for many of the officinal preparations, from the new edition of the National Pharmacopoeia, will be found to increase the value of the work to the practical pharmaceutist; these are also displayed, as heretofore, in the form of syllabi, followed by brief remarks upon their properties and uses, adapted to the requirements of the student. The use of syllabi, in the scientific portions of the work, Parts III. and IV., is still further extended in the present edition, having been found to furnish the most compact method of displaying the compo- sition, doses, and other important facts in regard to the inorganic chemical products and the proximate principles of organic substances used in medicine; of these many possess only a scientific interest, and could not be advantageously described in detail in a practical work like the present. By the valuable assistance of Prof. J. M. (v) VI PREFACE. Maisch this portion of the work has been rendered still more accurate, and is brought up to the existing state of chemical science. Notwithstanding the constant effort to prevent the unnecessary extension of the work, it has grown in the present revision quite beyond the limit originally proposed, and yet it would be difficult to omit any portion without destroying its comprehensiveness and impairing its usefulness to some of the several classes for whom it was written. To the favorable notice of all it is again commended. Philadelphia, January, 1864. HINTS TOWARD THE STUDY OE AND REFERENCE TO THE WORK. The syllabi are adapted to the student, and may be used by teachers of materia medica and pharmacy as affording classifications of the officinal preparations. Working formulas are inserted for the use of the practical manipulator; they are so displayed as, with ordinary care, to avoid mistakes in com- pounding. Comments upon the uses and properties of the officinal preparations follow the respective syllabi. The processes for preparing and dispensing medicines are separately described and illustrated in Part II., the first chapter in Part III., and in the several chapters of Part IV. Chemical compounds are displayed in the syllabi so as to show their composition, most prominent properties, and doses ; their composition is further given with the process for their preparation, and its rationale, in the text. In consulting the index, the most ready method of finding a preparation is to refer to the class to which it belongs—an inorganic salt is best found under the head of its metallic base, an organic compound by its most com- mon name. ( vii) CONTENTS. PART I. PRELIMINARY. CHAPTER I. ON THE FURNITURE AND IMPLEMENTS NECESSARY TO THE DISPENSING OFFICE OR SHOP Implements ........ CHAPTER II. ON THE UNITED STATES PHARMACOPEIA ...... CHAPTER III. ON WEIGHTS AND MEASURES AND SPECIFIC GRAVITY .... Weights and measures ....... Specific gravity ........ PAGE 33 40 56 61 62 71 PART II. GALENICAL PHARMACY. CHAPTER I. ON THE DIFFERENT PARTS OF PLANTS, THEIR COLLECTION AND DESICCATION . CHAPTER II. ON THE POWDERING OF DRUGS AND ON POWDERS .... Pulveres, U. S. P. (syllabus) ..... CHAPTER III. ON SOLUTION AND FILTRATION ...... Officinal solutions (syllabus) ..... CHAPTER IV. THE MEDICATED WATERS ..... Aquae medicatae ..... Aquae (syllabus) ..... Working formulas from the U. S. Pharmacopoeia Remarks on distilled waters 81 86 96 97 101 113 113 114 114 116 (ix) CONTENTS. CHAPTER V. On maceration and the infusions Infusa, V. S. P. (syllabus) Unofficinal infusions CHAPTER VI. Percolation or the displacement process The apparatus .... Management of the process CHAPTER VII Tinctures Tincturae, U. S. P. (syllabus) Working formulas Unofficinal Ethereal CHAPTER VIII. Medicated wines, vinegars, elixirs, and cordials Vina, U. S. P. (syllabus) Remarks on the medicated wines Working formulas from the U. S. Pharmacopoeia Unofficinal wines Aceta Syllabus of officinal vinegars Elixirs and cordials CHAPTER IX. Preparations op opium ..... Officinal (syllabus) .... Remarks ...... Working formulas .... CHAPTER X. The generation of heat for pharmaceutical purposes CHAPTER XI. On the modes op measuring and regulating heat for pharmaceutical pur poses, and on the decoctions Thermometer Sand bath Water bath Processes requiring heat Decocta, U. S. P. (syllabus) Remarks on the decoctions CHAPTER XII. On evaporation and the extracts Extracta, U. S. P. (syllabus) Unclassified extracts Working formulas Unofficinal extracts Physical properties 176 CONTENTS. XI CHAPTER XIII. Fluid extracts and oleoresins, Extracta fluida, U. S. P. (syllabus) General remarks on fluid extracts Working formulas for fluid extracts Unofficinal fluid extracts . Oleoresina, U. S. P. Working formulas for oleoresins Unofficinal oleoresins CHAPTER XIV. Syrups and honeys Byrupi, U. S. P. (syllabus) Working formulas for officinal syrups Unofficinal syrups Mellita .... Glyceroles Flavoring syrups used with " Mineral Water" and other beverages CHAPTER XV. Conserves, confections, electuaries, pastes, lozenges, and candies Confectiones, U. S. P. (syllabus) Pastes .... Lozenges .... Trochisci, U. S. P. (syllabus) . Working formulas for officinal lozenges Unofficinal lozenges Candy and drops . CHAPTER XVI. Extracta resina and " concentrated remedies" Resinae, U. S. P. (syllabus) Medical properties of the officinal resinae Unofficinal concentrated remedies CHAPTER XVII. On distillation, distilled products and perfumery Apparatus .... Galenical preparations made by distillation Aquae medicatae . Olea destillata Spiritus, U. S. P. (syllabus) On perfumery and toilet articles Colognes . Toilet waters Vinegars . Musk perfumes . Tooth preparations Sachet powders and fumigators Hair preparations PAGE 215 216 216 219 227 232 234 235 236 238 244 251 258 259 259 267 267 269 271 273 274 277 279 280 283 284 285 295 295 299 300 3<>0 301 303 304 305 307 308 308 310 312 Xll CONTENTS. PART III. INORGANIC PHARMACEUTICAL CHEMISTRY. CHAPTER I. On chemical processes . Distillation Sublimation Dehydration and calcination Incineration and ignition Torrefaction or roasting . Reduction of oxides, &c. Oxidation Carbonic acid processes . Decoloration Washing of chemical substances Precipitation Crystallization CHAPTER II. The non-metallic elements and their medicinal preparations Oxygen .... Ozone .... Chlorinium Chlorine disinfecting preparations Iodine and its preparations Bromine preparations Phosphorus Sulphur and its preparations CHAPTER III. The inorganic acids ....... Syllabus of mineral acids ...... CHAPTER IV. The alkalies and their salts ....... Group 1.—Alkaline salts, prepared from natural mineral deposits Group 2.—Salts, starting with wood ashes Group 3.—Alkaline salts, starting with common salt Group 4.—Alkaline salts, starting with crude tartar Group 5.—Preparations of ammonia . CHAPTER V. The earths and their preparations Group 1.—Preparations of baryta Group 2.—Preparations of lime . Group 3.—Preparations of magnesia Group 4.—Salts containing alumina Group 5.—Cerium and its oxalate page 315 316 323 323 324 324 325 325 325 326 327 328 329 330 330 332 333 333 335 339 241 343 345 346 361 363 368 376 383 385 391 392 393 401 408 411 CONTENTS. X1I1 CHAPTER VI. Iron and manganese Ferrum (iron) Group 1.—Preparations of iron Group 2.—Compounds of iron with halogens, &c Manganese .... Preparations of manganese CHAPTER VII. Preparations of copper, zinc, nickel, and cadmium Cuprum (copper) Preparations of copper . Zincum (zinc) Preparations of zinc Cadmium . Preparations of cadmium Nickel Cobalt CHAPTER VIII, Lead, silver, bismuth Plumbum (lead) . Preparations of lead Argentum (silver) Preparations of silver Bismuthum (bismuth) Preparations of bismuth CHAPTER IX. Antimony and arsenic preparations Antimony Preparations of antimony Arsenicum Preparations of arsenic . CHAPTER X. Mercury, gold, and platinum .... 478 Hydrargyrum (mercury) 478 Mercurial compounds .... 480 Aurum (gold) 489 Preparations of gold .... 490 Platinum ...... 491 XIV CONTENTS. PART IV. PHARMACY IN ITS RELATION TO ORGANIC CHEMISTRY CHAPTER I. Ligneous fibre and its derivatives • Lignin ...■•••• Collodium .....•• Products of the distillation of wood .... Acidum aceticum . . .... Acetone or pyroacetic spirit, and methylic alcohol, pyroxylic spirit, wood naphtha .....•• Creasotum ....... PAGE 493 494 496 502 503 504 505 LES 506 . 507 • • 509 . * . 509 • • . 512 • • • 514 • • • 517 • • e 51S CHAPTER II. On farinaceous, mucilaginous, and saccharine principles Starches, amylaceous medicines, &c. Gums and mucilaginous medicines Sugars ..... Remarks on sugars Tests for sugars and other carbohydrates Glucosides .... Saccharine group of medicines . CHAPTER III. On albuminous and similar principles, and certain animal products . Protein compounds ...... Modified albuminous principles ..... Animal products used in medicine containing protein compounds General observations ...... Gelatinous principles ...... Pepsin ........ CHAPTER IV. On fermentation, alcohols, and ethers Alcohol ..... jEtherea ..... Methylic alcohol and derivatives Medicinal preparations of the group of methyl Chloroform um Derivatives of butylic alcohol Derivatives of amylic alcohol Artificial fruit essences 519 520 522 522 523 525 528 529 533 535 540 540 540 543 543 544 CONTENTS. XV CHAPTER V. Fixed oils and fats Lead plaster Glycerin . Soaps used in medicine . Principal fixed oils and fats used in medicine Remarks on the fixed oils CHAPTER VI. On volatile oils, camphors, and resins Volatile or essential oils . Adulterations and tests . Carbo-hydrogen essential oils List of plants yielding carbo-hydrogen essential oils Oxygenated oils . List of plants yielding oxygenated oils, &c, Nitrogenated oils Sulphuretted oils List of plants yielding sulphuretted oils, &c. Empyreumatic volatile oils List of empyreumatic volatile oil Camphors Caoutchouc and caoutchoucoids Resins Syllabus of resins Remarks on the resins, oleoresins, and balsams CHAPTER VII. On organic acids .... First group.—Fruit acids Second group.—Derivatives of the fruit acids Third group.—Acids representing wholly, or in part, the medicinal virtues of plants ..... Fourth group.—Acids combined with vegetable alkalies Fifth group.—Acids derived from, or yielding essential oils Sixth group.—Astringent and allied acids Seventh group.—Acids of animal origin Eighth group.—Acids pertaining to coloring matters CHAPTER VIII. On the organic alkalies or alkaloids . Syllabus of natural quaternary alkaloids Syllabus of artificial quaternary alkaloids Syllabus of natural ternary alkaloids . Syllabus of artificial ternary alkaloids . The opium alkaloids and their salts The cinchona alkaloids and their salts . General remarks on the cinchona alkaloids The alkaloids of strychnos and their salts Alkaloids of the solanaceae The ternary alkaloids Alkaloids of animal origin . XVI CONTENTS. CHAPTER IX. On neutral organic principles mostly peculiar to a limited number of plants, and possessed of medicinal properties Syllabus of plants, and their neutral characteristic principles . Remarks on some of the neutral principles On the decomposition of organic bodies . PAGE 665 666 674 679 PART V. EXTEMPORANEOUS PHARMACY. CHAPTER I. On prescriptions .... . . • • 681 The language used in prescriptions . CHAPTER II. On the art of selecting and combining medicines . • • .691 The art of combining medicines .... 693 CHAPTER III. On powders, pills, suppositories, &c. . . • • • .696 Pulveres . 696 Pilulae ..... 697 Astringents .... 703 Tonics and aromatics . 704 Nervous stimulants ; antispasmodics . 709 Arterial stimulants 710 Cerebral stimulants, or narcotics 710 Rheumatism and gout pills 711 " Excito-motor stimulants 712 Arterial sedatives 712 Emetics 712 Cathartics and laxatives . . 712 Diuretics and expectorants . 717 Diaphoretics, &c. 717 Alteratives . . . 718 Emmenagogues 719 Trochisci .... . 719 Suppositories • 720 CHAPTER IV. Liquid preparations, solutions, mixtures, &c. . . « t .722 Chemical and pharmaceutical incompatibles . 724 Extemporaneous solutions, mixtures, &c. 728 Astringents . . . • . 728 Tonics .... • e • 729 CONTENTS. xvii page Arterial and nervous stimulants . 731 Narcotics and nervous sedatives 733 Arterial and nervous sedatives . 734 Cathartics 734 Refrigerants and antacids 736 Antacids . 738 Demulcents and diuretics 739 Taraxacum mixtures 739 Expectorants, &c. 741 Emulsions of fixed oils, &c. 743 Alteratives 744 Anthelmintics 744 Jellies 745 CHAPTER V. Styptic and depilatory powders, lotions, collyria, injections, enemas, gar- gles, baths, inhalations, and fumigations .... 745 Styptic powders . 745 Lotions 745 Collyria . 747 Injections 748 Enemata . 748 Gargles 749 Baths 750 Inhalations, fumigations, disinfectants, &c. 750 CHAPTER VI. Cerates, ointments, and liniments ..... 752 First Group.—Cerates and ointments, much used as vehicles for medi- cinal substances ...... 754 Second Group.—Those in which the medicinal substances are mixec with the unctuous ingredient by fusion and digestion 756 Third group.—In which the medicinal ingredients are incorporated by trituration with the unctuous ingredients 758 Fourth group.—In which the fatty ingredient is chemically changed 759 Working formulas for preparing the cerates and ointments 760 Selections from unofficinal cerates and ointments 765 The officinal liniments ...... 770 Unofficinal liniments ...... 771 CHAPTER VII. Plasters, plasmata, and cataplasms 774 Emplastra .... 774 Syllabus of officinal plasters 775 Remarks on the officinal plasters 775 Working formulas from the Pharmacopoeia 775 Unofficinal plasters 778 Plasmata ..... 784 Cataplasms 2 785 xviii CONTENTS. CHAPTER VIII. On dispensing and compounding prescriptions Dispensing Preparation and dispensing of pills Preparation of mixtures . Management and discipline of the shop Rules of a pharmaceutical store . page 7sG 791 799 805 811 812 APPENDIX. On the management of a sick chamber . . . • Preparations used as articles of diet for the sick and convalescent Fifty dollar outfit ..... One hundred dollar outfit .... Twenty-five dollar outfit ..... Recipes for some of the more important popular medicines 815 818 822 823 824 824 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. FIG 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22. 23. 24. 25. 26. 27. 28. 29. 30, 34, 36. 37. 38. 39. 40. 41. 42. Broad German salt-month, adapted to materia medica specimens German mushroom stopper German salt-mouth bottle, flat stopper " tincture " salt-mouth Tincture with enamelled label American blown salt-mouth Moulded salt-mouth, showing hollow stopper Moulded salt-mouth Long-neck German tincture American moulded tincture Ordinary blown tincture Oil bottle .... Tin oil can .... Specia jar . . . . Common wide-mouth packer Extra wide-mouth packer . Common packing bottle . . Extra packing bottle Tin can for keeping herbs . Canopy-top jar . Tie-over jar Flat-top covered jar Gallipot .... Prescription scales and case, with the sash use .... Prescription scales without upright Beam end of scales Troemner's army scales Cheap tea scales 31, 32, 33. Weights of sheet brass 35. Avery's weights . Nest of apothecaries' weights f |iv graduated measure Medicine chest measure Minim measure Wedgewood mortar and pestle Porcelain mortar French porcelain mortar raised to the proper height for (xix) XX LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. FIG. PAGE 43. Mortar and pestle for contusion . 48 49 50 50 50 50 51 51 51 44, 45, 46. Spatulas 47. Graduated pill tile . 48. Pill roller . 49. Wooden pill machine 50. Brass pill machine . 51.'The porcelain funnel 52. Evaporating dish . 53. Porcelain cup . 54. Capsule .... 51 55. Flask .... 52 56. Tripod ..... 52 57. Fluted long prescription vial, of flint glass 52 58. Wide-mouth flint fluted vial 52 59. Plain prescription vial, of flint glass 52 60. Plain German flint vial 53 61. Old fashioned long green vial 53 62. Short prescription vial, green glass 53 63. Tapering and straight corks 53 64. Pill box . . 55 65. " The slipper" 55 66. Covered bed-pan 55 67. Pamphlet case 55 68. Series of apothecaries' or cup weights 64 69. Commercial or avoirdupois weights 64 70. f §iv graduated measure 67 71. Hodgson's patent graduated measure 68 72. Minim measure . . 68 73, 74. Bottle with drop machine 71 75, 76, 77. Stoppered specific gravity bottle, tin box, and counterpoise 72 78. Specific gravity bottle, unstoppered 73 79. Hydrometer for liquids lighter than water 77 80. Urinometer box containing thermometer, graduated glass vessel, <5, minims. The kind used in fitting saddle-bags, and 1 ™ ( physicians' pocket cases, is made of glass tube with or without a foot, and does not occupy more space than an ordinary f 3ij tube vial. The inconvenience of employ- ing a measure of this kind has led to the use of drops in prescription, instead of minims, and as essential oils and spirituous liquids drop so differently from aqueous liquids, and as the same liquid drops very differently from different vessels, great discrepancies occur, unless the dispenser sufficiently understands and observes the distinction. (See tables of approximate measurement in next chapter.) Minim measure. Tin Measures.—Tin or copper measures of half pint, one pint, or two pints capacity, will be found very useful to the dis- pensing physician, and indispensable to the pharmaceutist. They may be used for water, alcohol, syrups, and most tinctures, whenever the full quantity they will contain is prescribed. Graduated measures of block tin, having ridges on their inner sur- faces marking the quantities, are much used by German Pharmaceu- tists, and are well adapted to many purposes, though rarely kept by dealers in chemical wares in this country. Mortars.—Mortars are necessary in so many processes of phar- macy, as to be among the most important items of an outfit. I shall describe the kinds usually sold, with their different uses, leaving to the physician the choice of one or more varieties, according to cir- cumstances. mjortars. 47 Wedgewood mortars are largely manufactured in England, and an inferior quality of similar ware has been made in this country. They differ somewhat in their texture, though designed to have sufficient roughness or grit to adapt them to the powdering of substances by trituration. The best varieties are glazed enough to prevent their absorbing or becoming permanently stained by chemicals triturated in them, and yet are not so smooth as to allow substances to slip about instead of being retained under the pestle. At least one good wedge- wood mortar is necessary. It should be of the shape indicated in Fig. 40, perfectly flat on its base, so that it will stand firm during the Fig. 40. Wedgewood mortar and pestle. process, and furnished with a good lip. The pestle should be, in shape, precisely adapted to the interior surface of the mortar; neither flattened nor pointed at its lower extremity, As the larger sized pestles always consist of two pieces, a wooden handle, and the rounded portion, which is of wedgewood ware, care should be taken to have the connection between them, which is made with cement, perfectly tight. When they become loosened, they may be secured by a cement made of resin, two parts; yellow wax, one part; and Spanish brown, three parts; melted together by heat. For the purpose of solution, a porcelain mortar is convenient; such are frequently more shallow than the wedgewood variety. They are perfectly smooth, and highly glazed, and are not liable to be stained by chemical substances dissolved in them. They will also be found convenient in preparing such ointments and cerates as require to be introduced into a mortar, being more readily cleansed than wedge- wood ware. The one shown in Fig. 41, has a pestle of the same material. Fig. 42 represents a French porcelain mortar well adapted to many purposes, as making emulsions; the pestle, though having a 48 THE DISPENSING OFFICE. handle of hard wood fitted to the porcelain part, requires no cement to secure them together; wooden plugs are fitted into holes in the porcelain and wood, which render the connection secure. Fig. 41. Fig. 42. Porcelain mortar. French porcelain mortar. Fig. 43. Glass mortars are frequently found in the office of the physician, and the shop of the apothecary. They are too soft for use in reducing hard substances to powder, but are adapted to forming solutions of readily soluble materials, and to use in making ointments. The small sizes are much employed in fitting up medicine-chests and medical saddle-bags. The smoothness which occasions substances to slip about under the pestle in manipulating with glass mortars, may be overcome by grind- ing fine emery and oil of turpentine in them. For large operations, as, for instance, in making syrup of bitter almonds, confection of roses, or mercurial ointment, a marble mortar is most convenient; a perfect block of hard and close grained marble of requisite size, is cut out into a shape adapted to trituration. The pestle is made of hard wood, or of the same material, fastened upon a long wooden handle, which may be projected into an iron ring above, secured properly over the centre of the mortar, so that while the operator gives the re- quisite grinding motion to the lower extremity of the pestle, the upper is held securely in its place; the use of this is, how- ever, restricted to substances neither very hard nor of acid properties. Mortars of the kinds above Mortar and pestle for contusion. MORTARS—SPATULAS. 49 described are not adapted to contusing substances, either with a view to obtaining powders, or to employing them in a bruised condition. If used for this purpose, they are very apt to be broken on the first trial. For contusion, an iron, brass, or bell-metal mortar, of the shape shown in Fig. 43, is best suited. Unlike mortars for trituration, these are flat at bottom, and the pestles terminate in a flattened ball; they are tall in proportion to their diameter, as seen in the drawing. The laborious process of powdering drugs is greatly facilitated by the employment of mills; some of the varieties of coffee and spice mills met with in iron or hardware stores are exceedingly useful in the comminution of vegetable substances, for the preparation of tinc- tures, infusions, &c, and even in their reduction to powder; one of these may well form part of an outfit. To the physician who prepares his own powders, one or more sieves will be found very useful. The most permanent and desirable kind is that made of wire-gauze, though hair and bolting-cloth sieves are somewhat less costly; the latter answer very well if kept clear of moths. A sieve with a covering at top and bottom is preferable; these coverings should be made of leather, secured by hoops rather than of wood, which is liable to warp and crack. Wire sieves are numbered by the manufacturers with reference to the number of wires in the linear inch, and the most desirable sizes, with reference to the preparation of tinctures and infusions, are Numbers 20, 40, 50 and 60. For separating powders to be taken in substance, the very finest sieves, as high as No. 80, are most desirable. Spatulas.—Of these there are several kinds. The plain steel spatula, or palette knife, shown in Fig. 46, is, perhaps, best adapted to the general purposes of dispensing. In selecting them, care should be taken to have one very flexible, and another quite stiff, while, of course, they should be of two or more sizes. The balance handle spatula (Fig. 45) is also useful in dispensing operations, being generally reserved for folding powders, and for other neat manipulations. It has the merit of lying on the table or counter without the blade coming in contact with it, a convenience when employed with pill masses or ointments. Three inch spatulas may be made with a tapering blade, as shown in Fig. 44, so as to allow of their being introduced into rather narrow-mouthed bottles, such as are usually put into saddle- bags and medicine chests. 4 50 THE DISPENSING OFFICE. Spatulas of glass, ivory, and bone, are sometimes, though rarely employed. They are useful in manipulating with corrosive substances which would act upon steel, and the latter is especially adapted to manipulations with ointment of nitrate of mercury, and certain other ointments, though well substituted by an easily prepared wooden utensil. A pill tile (Fig. 47), made of porcelain or queensware, is useful in preparing certain ointments and pills. Tiles are made of various sizes, and are sometimes graduated, as seen in the drawing, to facilitate the division of masses into twelve or twenty-four pills. Fig. 47. 12 1R 24 1,111 itl I Hljll III [ill I 11 Graduated pill tile. Fig. 48. Fig. 49. a' ' a.a. ■' - ill w !| 1 Jill ill Pill roller. Wooden pill machine. Fig. 48 shows a little implement adapted to rolling a pill mass on the tile or pill machine; it is made of wood, and furnished at a very inconsiderable cost. The division of pill masses is best accomplished by the use of the machine shown in Figs. 49 and 50. These may be made of wood or Fig. 50. Brass pill machine. EVAPORATING DISHES AND CAPSULES. 51 of brass, and adapted to different sizes of pills, and to making one or two or more dozen pills at one time. In selecting them, care should be taken that they have been so manufactured as to cut the mass with precision, which ever way the roller is applied; most of those hereto- fore manufactured have been defective in this respect. Those manu- factured by Wurtz, of Philadelphia, are the most perfect I have seen. The mode of using the machine is described in the chapter on Dispensing Medicines. The funnel, sometimes called tunnel, is an article of every day use in the dispensing shop or office, as well as in the laboratory. A porcelain or wedgewood funnel is Fis- 51- represented in the plate. The sides should be straight, and at an angle of 60° to each other. The tube should be smallest at its lowest extremity, and should have one or more grooves upon its outer surface, to allow of the egress of air from a bottle, into the mouth of which it is fitted. Fun- nels which are grooved on their inner surface, are generally preferred for filtration, as allowing a more ready downward passage of the liquid, espe- cially when the plain filter is employed. They may be made of glass, porcelain, Berlin or queens- ware, vulcanized rubber, and tin; those of glass The porcelain funnel. are generally furnished physicians in their outfits; but the porcelain variety is far less liable to breakage, and is equally cleanly. Gutta-percha or vulcanized rubber has the advantage of lightness and durability, and not being affected by acids leaves nothing to desire for the manufacture of a permanent funnel. The displacement apparatus recommended in the previous editions of this work as almost indispensable to the pharmaceutist and phy- sician, may be well substituted by a funnel in almost every small operation. For details of the mode of preparing displacement tubes extemporaneously, and managing the process, see the chapter on Dis- placement or Percolation. One or more evaporating dishes of Berlin or fine porcelain ware, and a porcelain cup (Fig. 53), will be found convenient in the preparation Fig. 52. Fig. 53. Fig. 54. Evaporating dish. Porcelain cup. Capsule. of many of the galenical and most of the chemical preparations appro- priate to the office or shop. These dishes are of different prices according to quality, and range from the two gallon to the one fluid- ounce size. 52 THE DISPENSING OFFICE. The flash (Fig. 55) is a cheap and convenient implement for small operations requiring heat, and especially for forming solutions of saline ingredients. Fig. 55. Fig. 56. CO) \b Tripod. The tripod (Fig. 56), or a retort stand, sold by dealers in apparatus, should not be forgotten, as being necessary to the conve- nient use of the foregoing. Yials.—The physician's outfit usually contains from a half gross to a gross of prescription vials, varying in size from f5viij to fgss. As more of the smaller sizes are used than of the others, it is desirable to have about the following proportions in a gross: One doz. fgviij, one doz. f3yj, two doz. f%\v, three doz. f.lij, three doz. f 3j, two doz. f gss, though usually a larger number of the two smaller sizes are introduced at the expense of the three largest sizes. Several of the larger sizes should have wide mouths, for convenience in bottling solid substances, and also to adapt to the displacement apparatus. A few vials of half drachm, one drachm, and two drachms capacity are very desirable for articles dispensed in these small quantities. Vials in commerce are classified as flint, German flint, and green glass; as fluted and plain; and as long and short. Flint vials are considerably more expensive than the green; though they are far more elegant for prescription purposes. They are generally made in a mould. Of the fluted vials, the long (Fig. 57) are the most conve- nient for ordinary purposes; they admit of a larger label being pasted on them, which is sometimes desirable in case of prescriptions, and they are more convenient for medicines that are to be administered by drops. Fig. 58 represents a short fluted vial of the same size, and having a wide mouth, adapting it to solid substances. Fig. 59 is a flint vial, Fig. 57. Fig. 58. Fig. 59. IK Fluted long prescription vial, of Bint glass. Wide-mouth flint fluted vial. Plain prescription vial, of flint glass. now very much in vogue, intermediate between the two preceding in height, and without the fluted surface; these are apt to show a crease down their whole length, at the point where the two halves of the mould in which they are made come together in shutting it a common feature in all bottles made in moulds which open and shut by what VIALS AND CORKS. 53 may be called a lateral suture. Figs. 60, 61, and 62 represent vials blown without a mould, or in an open clay mould, and finished by hand. These have a handsomer and smoother surface, though less regular and uniform in shape, as here the shape depends on the skill of the finisher, not the construction of his tools. German flint vials are intermediate in price between those of flint and common green glass. They are very well adapted to ordinary dispensing purposes, and, as made by our best manufacturers, leave little to desire. The shape of the lip is one of the most important considerations in the selection of vials; if the lip is too narrow or rounded, a constant source of annoyance will occur from the liquid trickling down the Fig. 60. A Fig. 61. Plain German flint vial. A u Old fashioned long green vial. Fig. 62. 7k Short prescription vial, green glass. neck and sides of the vial after pouring from it, and it will be impos- sible to drop from it at all. Figs. 61 and 62 represent the old fashioned cheap green glass blown vials; that shown in Fig. 61 has the disadvantage of not standing up, and is usually suspended by a string. A few colored vials may be advantageously introduced into an outfit for use in dispensing solutions of nitrate of silver, or other solutions decomposable by light. Some pharmaceutists adopt the plan of dispensing poisonous preparations and liquids, designed for exter- nal use, in vials of peculiar shapes or colors, for the sake of distinc- tion. The disadvantages of any attempt to substitute precautions of the kind for that constant vigilance in regard to medicines, which is the only safeguard of the public, must have occurred to every person of experience. Fig. 63. Corks.—These are exceedingly variable in quality; the softest and most perfectly shaped varieties, though expensive, are so far prefer- able for use as to make them cheaper in the end. Tapering or "homoeopathic" corks possess the ad- vantage of being fitted to vials of various sized necks with great facility, and if sufficiently "velvety," will bear thrusting tightly and securely into their place. These remarks are equally true of the larger sizes, called bottle corks; of these we have pint corks, quart corks, demijohn corks, and flat or pot corks, the last being used chieflv for wide-mouth packing Tapering and straight corks. 54 THE DISPENSING OFFICE. bottles and earthen jars. There is a variety called " citrate corks, introduced since the invention of citrate of magnesia solution, very uniform in size and quality, and an improvement on the ordinary pint corks. It is well to be supplied with a few of these, though vial corks constitute far the largest proportion of the number required. Among the numerous gum-elastic implements which have come into use within a few years are suitably shaped stoppers, adapted to bottles of various sizes. These are not liable to the same objections which apply to corks; they are not acted upon by the strong acids or alkalies, nor by iodine. They are, however, comparatively expensive, and their surface is not so well adapted to the purpose as the soft, velvety surface of cork. Paper of different kinds should not be overlooked in making up an outfit. The most useful is druggist's white wrapping-paper, which should be fine without being heavy or spongy in its texture; it should not crack at the edges when turned over sharply. The sizes met with in commerce are medium, about 19 x 24 inches, and double medium, 24 x 38 inches. The price of this paper is generally in proportion to its weight. It varies in the Philadelphia market from 121 to 20 cents per pound, varying with the quality and with the relation of supply and demand. For directions in regard to dividing the sheets, for dispensing medicines in packages, see chapter on dispensing. The kind of paper called flat cap will be found very convenient in addition to the above, especially for putting up powders in small doses. Filtering paper should be without color, and of a porous texture, and yet sufficiently firm to sustain the weight of the liquid placed upon it. The market is now, freely supplied with a superior article in circular sheets, called French filters. Swedish filtering paper is the very best, and is preferred for analytical processes; it is, however, too expensive for common use in the shop. Envelope paper, though not white, and hence seldom used for ordi- nary dispensing purposes, is extremely useful as an outer wrapper to packages requiring additional security. Fancy paper, employed for capping corks, or as a very nice outer wrapping to packages, is recommended to those who desire to practise neatness and elegance in dispensing. Tin-foil is also required for covering jars of ointment, deliquescent powders, &c. Pill Boxes.—These are of three kinds: 1st. Paper pill boxes, adapted to dispensing pills. 2d. Wooden pill boxes, or chip boxes, made of shavings, and best suited for ointments, confections, &c.; of this article, a very beautiful style is imported from England, which commands nearly double the price of the American kind. 3d. Turned boxes which have been recently introduced for dispensing pills, and are certainly more substantial than either paper or chip boxes. They do not, however, serve so good a purpose for ointments; the bottom, being cut across the grain of the wood, soon becomes saturated with the grease, and soils everything it is set upon. Pill boxes are usually URINALS AND BED PANS. 55 Fig. 64. sold by the dozen nests, wrapped in paper. Sometimes a nest contains three, and sometimes four boxes, ranging from about an ounce capacity to one-fourth that size. A new pattern of paper pill box, recently introduced in the best pharma- ceutical establishments, is here figured. It is made with a shoulder; the top and bottom overlap the edges, so that they cannot be forced in by ordi- nary pressure. The diameter being large in pro- portion to the depth, they are conveniently carried in the waistcoat pocket. The physician should provide himself with a tin case, in the shape of a closed cylinder, in which to carry his gum catheters and bougies, and another for adhesive plaster cloth, which otherwise is liable to become useless in our climate. In severe illness, and especially after confinement, patients are fre- quently so situated as to be unable to be moved without great incon- Pill box. Fig. 65. Fig. 66. "The slipper." Covered bed-pan. Fig. 67. venience or danger, and a variety of urinals and bed-pans have been contrived. "The slipper," made of tin, upon the plan of Dr. Jos. Warrington, is adapted to the use of females, and is certainly an im- provement upon any contrivance for the purpose. It is of precisely the shape best adapted to slip in between the thighs and under the lower extremity of the back, without pain, and to receive the evacua- tions, whether alvine or urinal, without the danger of soiling the sheets. The bed-pan of planished tin, Fig. 66, is a wedge-shaped receptacle, neatly covered by a movable lid, while the tubule is effectually closed by a brass screw, facilitating the complete closure of the apparatus till its re- moval from the apartment. Among the useful additions to the physician's and pharmaceutist's outfit is the pamphlet case here figured. It consists of a tin case of the size of a large octavo volume, adapted to receiving and preserving the journals and other unbound publications, which will accumulate on the hands of any one who is properly alive to the current literature of his profession. By having several of these, one can be appropriated to each of the 999999999999 56 ON THE UNITED STATES PHARMACOPEIA. periodical issues, and one reserved for the occasional pamphlets, price currents, &c. At the end of the year, their contents may be sent to the binder, or tied in packages and laid away. _ The other items to be mentioned are a few pieces of fine lurKey sponge for surgical use, and one for the inhalation of ether it a friend to anesthesia in surgery and obstetrics. A corkscrew, a ball of tine linen twine, a pair of scissors, a few coarse towels for wiping mortars, a tin cup for heating liquids, a sheepskin for spreading plasters, &c The apparatus and furniture here described, are such as may be regarded as necessary to the outfit of a country practitioner. I shall find occasion to refer to many implements in the subsequent parts of this work, which it would be superfluous to describe in this place, though frequently included in the outfit. CHAPTER II. ON THE UNITED STATES PHARMACOPOEIA. The necessity of accurate standards for the regulation of the strength and purity of medicines has been felt ever since medicine has been cultivated as a liberal profession, and in modern times has led to the adoption of authoritative works, called Pharmacopoeias. Those pub- lished in Great Britain and on the continent of Europe were generally used in America during the last and the early part of the present cen- tury ; though much confusion grew out of their different and some- times conflicting directions. The want of a national standard for the preparation of medicines having thus been felt for some time by practitioners of medicine and pharmacy, in 1818 a practicable plan for originating such a work was proposed at the suggestion of Dr. Lyman Spalding, by the New York State Medical Society. This was so generally acceptable to physicians, that in accordance with it, on the first day of the year 1820, a conven- tion of medical delegates met in the city of Washington, over which Dr. Samuel L. Mitchell, of New York, presided, and Dr. Thomas T. Hewson, of Philadelphia, acted as secretary, in which essays prepared by the district conventions previously held in the Eastern and Middle States were duly considered, and the first edition of the " Pharmacopoeia of the United States " was adopted, its publication being intrusted to a committee, who issued it before the close of the same year. This work, from the respectable authority which issued it, and from its general adaptation to the wants of physicians and apothecaries, was calculated to supersede the standards previously in use, although its general adoption was not rapidly brought about. With a wise forethought to correct the imperfections of their work, and to adapt it to the future progress of pharmaceutical knowledge, the convention of 1820 provided for the choice of delegates to meet THE PHARMACOPEIA AND DISPENSATORY. 57 in convention after the lapse of ten years for revising the Pharmacopoeia. The convention of 1830 elected Dr. Lewis Condict,1 of New Jersey, its president, and after discussing the proposals submitted to them, referred the work of revision to a committee, of which the late Dr. Thomas T. Hewson was chairman, which met in Philadelphia, and by general correspondence and comparison of views with those residing in other localities, were enabled to add much to the value of the work. No small share of the labor of this committee was borne by Drs. Wood and Bache, who, by the publication, in 1831, of the U. S. Dispensatory, a work of great utility, in which the pharmacopoeia was fully explained, commented on, and compared with similar foreign works, aided greatly in giving it the character it has since enjoyed, of a national standard for the preparation of medicine. The decennial revisions, in 1840 and 1850, were accomplished under similar auspices. The conven- tions which assembled at the capital in those years were presided over by Drs. Lewis Condict and George B. Wood, respectively, and the committees charged with carrying out the views of the body met in Philadelphia. The Pharmacopceial Convention of 1860 contained delegates from Medical and Pharmaceutical organizations in seven States, and the District of Columbia, and from the army and navy of the United States. Its sessions were held in Washington, and the Committee of Revision of Publication, which contained a majority of practical phar- maceutists, met as heretofore in Philadelphia. The fourth decennial revision was not completed till the summer of 1863, when the Phar- macopoeia was published; the present revision of this Text Book, in part a commentary upon it, was immediately matured and put to press. Allusion has been made to the U. S. Dispensatory as having contributed largely to the establishment of the authority of our national standard, while it has promoted the diffusion of medical and pharmaceutical knowledge; it remains to define the comparative utility of the Pharmacopoeia and Dispensatory, especially as so many students confound the two works with each other. Every physician who prac- tises pharmacy, as most country practitioners do, and every druggist and apothecary, should possess a copy of each of these works. The Pharmacopoeia for use as a guide book in making officinal prepara- tions, and the Dispensatory for reference as an encyclopedia of materia medica, therapeutics, and pharmacy. The conciseness and brevity of the Pharmacopoeia, the clear and conspicuous type, and the absence of unnecessary detail, adapt it especially to the purpose of indicating the ingredients, the propor- tions, and the mode of preparation of the officinal preparations. Liability to mistakes is greatly lessened by the clearness and accu- racy of'a recipe, which should always be open before the operator, and should be continually consulted" in the course of his manipula- tions. 1 Dr. Condict, who, at the period of issuing this edition, is still an active and capa- ble physician, participating with zeal in all the progressive movements of the profes- sion, is perhaps the oldest living graduate of the University of Pennsylvania, having taken his degree in 1794, and been a practitioner of medicine for 69 years. 58 ON THE UNITED STATES PHARMACOPEIA. It will be in place to explain, in this connection, the use of the term Officinal in this work. While by some, this word is meant to apply to all permanent preparations; by others it has an application to those only which are spoken of in the Dispensatory, or in foreign Pharma- copoeias. In this work the use of the term is restricted to drugs and preparations mentioned in the U. S. Pharmacopoeia; and I have dis- tinguished these throughout the work, from such as are omitted from that standard; this is the only limit of the term officinal which renders it definite and precise, and with this meaning it certainly is most use- ful in a work like the present. The Pharmacopoeias of London, Edinburgh, and Dublin, which were formerly much used in this country, and now constitute the standards for the British empire, are about to be superseded by one consolidated British Pharmacopoeia, and it was the design in the third edition of this work to introduce all the formulae of that, together with our own; the long delay in the revision, consequent on the disagree- ment on the vexed question of weights and measures, has^ prevented this, and somewhat limited the sphere of the present edition.^ Some idea of the plan of the U. S. Pharmacopoeia, and especially of the principles of nomenclature adopted in it, may be drawn from the following selections from the preface of the edition of 1850 :— "The contents of the work are arranged in the two divisions of Materia Medica and Preparations; the former enumerating and defin- ing medicines as they are derived from nature, or furnished by the manufacturer, the latter containing formulae, or rules, by which they are prepared for use. " Both in the Materia Medica and the Preparations, the alphabetical arrangement has been adopted. In a work intended not for regular perusal but for occasional reference, it has the great merit of conve- nience. It has, moreover, the advantage that, making no claim to scientific classification, it is not liable to the charge of failure, so often and so justly urged against more ambitious systems. " The Pharmacopoeia was originally published both in the Latin and English languages. This was, at the time, an innovation upon general usage; as codes of this kind had been almost always issued by the dignified bodies from which they emanated exclusively in the Latin, which was considered as the language of science. In the revision of 1840, the Latin was dropped; as it did not offer advantages equivalent to the trouble of adapting a dead language to facts and processes for which it had no terms, and to the double cost of the work which it occasioned. The Latin names, however, of the medicines and prepa- rations, have been retained, as they are still generally, and often very conveniently, used in prescription; and it is desirable that medicines should have designations by which they may be recognized in all civilized countries. " The system of nomenclature of the Pharmacopoeia of the United States is one of its chief merits. Adopted at a period when it was without example in other works of the kind, and improved with each successive revision, it now prevails to a considerable extent in all the Pharmaceutical codes recognized where our vernacular tono-Ue ia THE NOMENCLATURE. 59 spoken. Its aim is to be simple, expressive, distinctive, and conve- nient. In relation to medicines of vegetable origin, it adopts for those which have been long and well known, the names by which they have at all times been recognized, and which have withstood, and will no doubt continue to withstand all the mutations of science. In this category are such titles as Ammoniacum, Camphora, Galla, Opium, Senna, &c. For medicines of more recent origin, which had received no distinctive officinal designation, it takes either the generic or specific title of the plant or animal from which the medicine is derived. Thus, we have the generic names Anthemis from Anthemis nobilis, Chima- phila from Chimaphila umbellata, Eupatorium from Eupatorium per- foratum, Gillenia from Gillenia trifoliata, Lobelia from Lobelia inflata, &c.; and the specific names, Senega from Poly gala Senega, Serpentaria from Aristolochia Serpentaria, Taraxacum from Leontodon Taraxa- cum (now Taraxacum Dens-leonis), &c. A very large proportion of the names have been formed in this way; and as the generic or specific title of the plant had its origin, in many instances, in the vernacular name, the original designation is thus fixed and perpetuated. " When it happens that two different medicines are obtained from different species of the same genus, it becomes necessary to adopt either for both, the whole botanical title of the plants, or for one of them the generic or specific name, and for the other the whole name. Thus we have Cassia Fistula and Cassia Marilandica, Quercus alba and Quercus tinctoria, as titles both for the plants and their medicinal products; and, in the case of the different species of Gentiana, the generic name Gentiana for the product of G. lutea, and the whole name, Gentiana Catesbaei, for that of the species designated in scientific arrangements. When different parts of the same plant are recognized as distinct medicines, they are designated by attaching to the generic or specific title, the name of the part employed. Thus are formed the names Colchici Radix and Colchici Semen from Colchicum autum- nale, and Stramonii Folia,] Stramonii Radix, and Stramonii Semen2 from Datura Stramonium. When these names become established in phar- macy, it does not follow that they are to be changed with the changing scientific titles. On the contrary, it is generally best to retain them, unless, by doing so, injurious confusion may be occasioned. Thus we have Pr'unus Virginiana as the name of wild-cherry bark, though the plant from which it is derived is now usually designated by botanists as Cerasus serotina. It will be noticed that the Latin names are generally used in the singular number, even though the idea of plurality may be essentially connected with the medicine. Thus, Cantharis, Caryophyllus, Ficus, Galla, Limon, &c, are used instead of the plural of these terms respectively; and, in reference to the names derived from the part of the plant employed, the same plan is mostly followed, as in the case of Stramonii Semen, Colchici Semen, &c. In this the example of the Roman medical writers, particularly of Celsus, has been followed. " In the use of English names, it is not deemed necessary that they ' Changed to Stramonii Folium in tho U. S. P. of 1860. » Omitted in the U. S. P. of 1860. 60 ON THE UNITED STATES PHARMACOPEIA. should be literal translations of the Latin terms; but that title is pre- ferred which custom and the genius of the language seem to sanction. Thus, the English name corresponding to Linum is not flax but flax- seed; and, on the same principle, Fceniculum is called *enneL-seea, Ulmus, Slippery Elm Bark; Glycyrrhiza, Liquorice Root, &c. JNor are the English names always in the same number as the Latin. W e may correctly say, Caryophyllus, Galla, Prunum, and Rosa; but the genius of our language requires that we should translate these terms Ltoves, Galls, Prunes, and Roses. " The plan of nomenclature in relation to medicines of mineral origin is to give the proper scientific name, when convenience, or some higher principle does not call for a deviation from that rule. Hence, the names of most mineral medicines are in strict accordance with existing scientific usage. But, in some instances, short and old esta- blished names are preferred to the scientific, especially when these happen to be somewhat unwieldy. Thus, Alumen, Calamina, and Oreta have been preferred to the chemical names A luminee et Potasses Sulphas, Zinci, Carbonas Impurus, and Calais Carbonas Mo His. In other instances the chemical designation is more or less unsettled, or the composition of the substance has not been decisively determined. _ In such cases, either an old name is retained, as Acidum Muriaticum instead of either Acidum Hydrochloricum or Acidum Chlorohydricum; or some name is preferred generally expressive of the composition without aiming at chemical accuracy, as Calx Chlorinata, taken from the London Phar- macopoeia, and Ferrum Ammoniatum. "In other cases, it is considered safest to designate very active medicines, which, if their strict chemical titles were used, miglrt be dangerously confounded, by names which, though upon the chemical basis, have some epithet attached expressive of their distinctive cha- racter, as mild chloride of mercury and corrosive chloride of mercury, instead of protochloride of mercury and bichloride of mercury. Some- times, for convenience sake, when no risk of confusion can possibly arise, names are adopted sufficiently expressive of the nature of the substance, though not precisely so; as sulphate of iron instead of sul- phate of protoxide of iron, hydrated oxide of iron instead of hydrated sesquioxide of iron, &c. If any part of the nomenclature of mineral bodies should seem at first sight somewhat incongruous, it will be found to have been adopted in accordance with some one of the prin- ciples here stated, or in some other way to have the advantage of convenience or utility. Not a single name has been given or retained without careful consideration. " When the officinal names of particular medicines may be supposed not to have yet become universally known, and the old names are still extensively used, the latter are given as synonymes in a subordinate type and position; and those officinal titles which have been superseded by others adopted at the present revision, are inserted beneath, with a reference to the Pharmacopoeia of 1840 (in the last edition, 1850). " To one familiar with the British Pharmacopoeias, it will be obvious that, in the preparation of our own, many of the processes have been taken from them with little alteration. This has been done advisedly. METROLOGY. 61 It is of the highest importance that medicines having the same names should have the same composition; and, as British works on medicine are much read in this country, it would lead to never ending confusion if the substances they refer to by name should differ materially from those known by similar names with us. It has, therefore, been a general aim to bring our pharmacy into as near a correspondence as possible with that of Great Britain; but in all cases in which greater purity or efficiency in the medicine, or greater convenience and econo- my in the process, or any peculiarity in the relation of the preparation to our own circumstances and wants, called for deviation from the British standards, modified or wholly original processes have been adopted." It will be observed that the Pharmacopoeia necessarily omits a large number of remedies, the reputation of which is local, or, in the opinion of the Committee of Revision, likely to be but transient. Until the last revision, the common tinctures of arnica and of the " American hellebore" (veratrum viride) were not officinal. Other well known remedies are omitted, for causes which it would be hard to define. The universally known soda and Seidlitz powders are now, for the first time, honored with places as officinal remedies. Extemporaneous preparations, which can be prescribed and compounded with such » facility as to remove the chief motive for standard formulas, are only made officinal with a view to furnishing the non-professional public with an assortment of popular medicines adapted to common use, and to furnishing physicians with a series of models for their pre- scriptions. A conservative rather than a too progressive spirit very properly animates the successive committees of revision. In the original design and subsequent revisions of the present work, the object of supplying to physicians and pharmaceutists a more frequent and less restricted view of the progress of pharmacy in connection with a practical treatise upon the science and art of Phar- macy has been attempted; in the present edition, most of the working formulas of the Pharmacopoeia of 1860 are introduced, together with a large number of unofficinal and extemporaneous formulas and prescriptions. CHAPTER III. ON WEIGHTS AND MEASURES AND SPECIFIC GRAVITY. Metrology embraces the science of determining the bulk or extension of substances, called measurement, their gravitating force, called weight, and the relation of these to each other, called specific gravity. In the present essay, it is not designed to enter into the subject further than is necessary to the student of medicine and pharmacy. 62 ON WEIGHTS AND MEASURES AND SPECIFIC Weights and Measures.-So difficult has it been found to modify or materially alter the systems of measurement and weight Kanaeu down from the earliest antiquity, and tenaciously adhered to oy xne mass of the people, and so inadequate have been the efforts ot the British crown and Parliament to supply proper and invariable stand- ards, that the present Troy and Avoirdupois weights are believed to be even less perfect and consistent with each other than the very ancient standards from which they were derived. The inconveniences attendant on the use of separate sets of weights and measures lor different kinds of commodities, have probably always been felt, and are only partially remedied by adapting these to one common unit to which all can be reduced. This adaptation, in the case of our different standards, is through the grain or unit of weight; the systems ot Troy, Apothecaries' and Avoirdupois weights, and of Wine measure, are all readily compared through this common standard—the grain, Troy Weight is used by jewellers, and at the mints, in the exchange of the precious metals. Its denominations are the pound, ounce, pennyweight (= 24 grs.), and grain. Apothecaries' Weight is used by apothecaries and physicians in mixing and prescribing medicines, and is officinal in the United States Pharmacopoeia. The denominations of the apothecaries' weight are pounds, ounces, drachms or drams, scruples, and grains. Its pound, ounce, and grain correspond with the Troy weight. Avoirdupois Weight is used in general commerce, and by apothe- caries in their strictly commercial transactions, as in buying and selling medicines without the prescription of a physician, and also in compounding recipes for domestic purposes, and for use in the arts. As at present used, it has pounds, ounces, and fractions of the ounce. Its higher denominations need not be named. After earnest discussion in the Committee of final revision and publication, appointed by the decennial Pharmacopoeial Convention of 1860, the use of apothecaries' ounce has been continued in the United States Pharmacopoeia, and this vexed question is set at rest among us for another decade. This abandonment of the pound and the use of the new officinal word troyounce removes the uncertainty formerly pertaining to the weights directed in the officinal formulas,i though the distinction between the officinal and commercial weights needs to be kept in view in many pharmaceutical processes. In the General Council of Medical Education and Registration, to which the Consolidated British Pharmacopoeia was submitted for adoption, the modification of the previously existing weights, in- volving a change in the value of the grain, which had been adopted by the Pharmacopoeia Committee, was considered, and received a most decided negative. The Council resolved, " That the weights used in the British Pharmacopoeia be the imperial or avoirdupois pound, ounce, and grain; and that the terms 'drachm' and 'scruple,' as desig- nating specific weight, be discontinued." The British Pharmacopoeia has unfortunately not appeared in time COMPARISON OF WEIGHTS. 63 to furnish material for the present edition of this work, but numerous formulas are inserted in which the avoirdupois or commercial weight is directed, and when this is intended care will be taken to indicate it in the text. A knowledge of these standards and their relations to each other— always a most important preliminary item in the study of Pharmacy— is now rendered indispensable by the fact that the two Pharmacopoeias used in this country and in Great Britain, agree only in the unit of each system, the grain. In the following tables I have endeavored to display, in the simplest and most comprehensive manner, the value of each denomination in the respective weights, and the relation of these to each other:— Table of the U. S. P. Apothecaries' Weight. 20 grains = 9j (one scruple) = gr. xx. 60 grains = 3j (one drachm) = §nj (3 scruples). 480 grains = 3j (one troyounce) = Sviij (8 drachms). 5,760 grains = Ibj (one pound) = §xij (12 troyounces). Table of Avoirdupois Weights. 437.5 grains = 1 oz. (one ounce). 7,000 grains = 1ft) (one pound, Com.) = 16 oz. The use of signs is here seen to be of importance, as designating, when correctly used, to which system of weights the particular deno- mination refers; thus, ,?j means 480 grains; while one oz. means 437.5 grains. The sign for designating the pound is not so distinctive; Ibj is applied equally to the apothecaries' pound, 5,760 grains, and to the avoirdupois pound, 7,000 grains. Comparison of the Apothecaries' and Avoirdupois Weights. The comparative value of the different parallel denominations may be thus expressed:— The apothecaries' ounce (troyounce) contains 42J grains more than the commercial. The pound (Sxij) contains 1,240 grains less than the commercial. The apothecaries' pound contains Sxij; the avoirdupois pound 16 oz. 480 grains, (3j) X 12 = 5,760 grains, Ibj, U. S. P. 437.5 " (1 oz.) x 16 = 7,000 " 1 lb, Commercial. To the pharmaceutist who manipulates with large quantities of drugs, the use of apothecaries' weights is very inconvenient, and a con- venient rule for converting one system into the other is a desideratum. The following is the simplest rule for the purpose with which I am acquainted, and gives a pretty close approximation to the exact result. To convert a given number of troyounces into avoirdupois ounces, add Tl2 and J2 to the number. For example: to find the value of 24 and of 72 troyounces in avoirdupois ounces:— 24 -f f % + 2 4 = 26J oz. (real value, .8 grs. less.) 72 + Jl + ?! = 79 oz. (real value, 2.5 " " ) 64 ON WEIGHTS AND MEASURES AND SPECIFIC GRAV To convert a given number of avoirdupois ounces into troyounces, subtract r'2 and r£2 from the number. For example: to find the value of 16 and of 96 avoirdupois ounces in troyounces. 16 96 i • — t\% = 16 — lr's = 14/2 = 3xiv 9xiv 96 T2 96 __ U« __ 192 ~ yD 872 troyounces. United States Coins. A convenient standard by which to test weights used in pharmacy, is furnished by the legal coins issued from the mint of the United States. Those of gold are to be preferred, and when new will rarely be found to vary more than one-tenth of a grain from the following weights:— Double Eagle, $20 00, weighs 516 grs. I Quarter Eagle, Eagle, 10 00, " 258 " Three Dollar, Half Eagle, 5 00, " 129 " | One Dollar, &2 50, weighs 64.5 grs. 3 00 " 77.4 " 1 00 " 25.8 " Weights.—The balance, or scales, is of course indispensable to the idea of metrology, and the possession of masses of previously ascer- tained gravitating force, called weights, is equally necessary. Scales are of various styles, although, for use in pharmacy, the kinds figured in the last chapter among the necessary implements for furnishing the physician's office, answer every purpose. In this place, it will be proper to call attention especially to the usual forms of weights of the different systems. The apothecaries' weights are invariably, for all denominations, made of brass or copper. The larger weights come in the cup form, as shown in Fig. 68. Each cup is equal to the sum of Fig. 68. Fig. 69. Series of apothecaries' or cup weights. all those which fit in it, or is twice the sum of the next smaller. These weights are expensive, and, unfortunately, too little used by physicians, and even by some apothecaries. The small weights which accompany the box scales, and figured in the last chapter, are used for all denominations up to two drachms, and then the common commercial or avoir- dupois weights, which are cheaper than the brass cup weights, are frequently brought into use. These are usually in piles of iron, brass, or zinc, of the form shown in the annexed figure, each weight being half that of the one below it. In a lar°-e num- ber of processes, officinal in the U. S. Pharmacopoeia, one ounce, or two ounces, are ordered, and in these cases, if the avoirdupois weight is used, a 3ij, or 3j and 3ss weight must be added from the small set. In the case of a pound being Commercial or avoir- dupois weights. DECIMAL WEIGHTS. 05 ordered, as there shown, 13 ounces from the pile, and a 5j from the small set, will nearly approximate the required weight. The Decimal System.—The attention of pharmaceutists and of com- mercial men^ has recently been, directed to the subject of reforming the systems of weight and measurement in use in this country and in England, and the most prominent change now proposed is the entire substitution of the French decimal system for all those now in use. This system is now used in most analytical laboratories in this country, and throughout Europe, and although its adoption for the purposes of trade is, as yet, considered rather chimerical, yet it is worthy of careful study, and as it is so useful to all who pursue chem- istry and pharmacy, the following table is inserted:— Comparative Table of Decimal with Avoirdupois and Apothecaries^ Weights. Names. Equivalent in Equivalent in Equiva ent in Equivalent in Grammes. G rains. Avoirdupoi s Weight. Apotheca's Weight. lb. oz. gr- lb. oz. dr. gr. Milligramme . . .001 .0154 Centigramme .01 .1543 Decigramme .1 1.5434 1.5 Gramme . 1 15.4340 15.4 Decagramme 10 154.3402 01 45 2 34.0 Hectogramme 100 1543.4023 H 12.152 3 1 43.0 'Kilogramme 1000 15434.0234 2 3i 12.173 2 8 1 14 Myriagramme 10000 154340.2344 22 0| 12 26 9 4 20 The apothecaries' weight of other civilized countries is subdivided similarly to our own, though the value of the different denominations varies considerably, as will be seen from the annexed table. In Portugal, Spain, and Italy, all the subdivisions of the pound cor- respond to ours, except the scruple, which contains 24 grains, thus making the pound 6912 grains, one-fifth more in number than the Troy grains contained in a Troy pound. The medicinal weight of France is the gramme, and for an account of the weight, about to become the standard in the German Zollverein, we refer to a notice in the Amer. Journ. of Pharm., 1859, p. 207. The Nuremberg weight is the legal standard in Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Russia, and in nearly all the German States, with the exception of Austria, Prussia, Saxony, and Bavaria; but its value varies in the different countries between 357.845 and 357.567 grammes, and is still less in Sweden. In the following table the pound is compared with grammes, and the different medicinal grains with the Troy grain:— 1 korn = 0.259 Troy grs. = .0166 gram. 1 grain = 1.127 " =.0729 " " = 1.005 " = .0651 " " =1. " = .0648 " 1 Abbreviated Kilo. 5 1 lb German Zollverein = 500. gram. " Austria = 720.009 " " Ho,ilan+d' Belgium, | ==375>000 « Switzerland J " England and U.S. =373.246 « 66 WEIGHTS AND MEASURES, AND SPECIFIC G 1 grain = .965 Troy grs. = -0625 gram. „ =.959 « =.0625 " = i959 « = .0621 = .959 « = .0621 = .959 " =-0621 = .955 « =.0679 = .954 " = -0618 _'940 « =.0609 = .785 " =.0491 _ .770 " = .0499 = .769 " =.0498 1 lb Bavaria, Greece = 360. gram. " Russia, Norway, ^ Frankfort on the I — 357.854 " Main J " Denmark, Holstein, \ Hessia, Wurtem- \ = 357.664 " berg J " Hamburg =357.629 " " Baden, Hanover, \ __ 357.567 " Oldenburg ) « Berne =356.578 " « Sweden = 356.227 || " Prussia, Saxony = 350.783 » Rome • = 339.161 " « Spain = 345.072 " « Portugal = 344.190 " Measures of capacity are used for liquids, and, in the higher deno- minations, for corn and the cereal grains; but the only table of these we need present is that employed in medicine, called Wine Measure The unit of this system is called a minim, and is equal to about .95 of a grain of pure water at 60° F. Table of the Wine Measure. U. S. P. 60 minims are one fluidrachm. 8 fluidrachms are one fluidounce. ' 16 fluidounces are one pint. 2 pints are one quart. 4 quarts are one gallon. Or thus:— Minims Grains of water. 60 _ f5j (one fluidrachm) = *l Ix = 56.9 480 = fsj (one fluidounce) = fSviij = 455.7 7,680 = Oj (one pint) — f^xvj = 7,291.2 61,440 = Cong, j (one gallon) = Oviij = 58,328.8 Besides the discrepancy occasioned by the minim not being equal to one grain of the natural liquid standard, it will be perceived at once that a wide variance exists in the denominations above an ounce. The fluidounce contains 480 minims, as the apothecaries' ounce con- tains that number of grains; but in the pint are 16 fluidounces, while the corresponding pound contains only 12 ounces. From these causes, the adjustment of proportions of solids to liquids, when accuracy is required, is a matter of no little calculation. In England, this system of measures has been revived of latter years, so as to bring about a close relation between the solid commer- cial ounce and the fluidounce. In the Imperial measure, the minim is equal to .91 of a grain, and it is multiplied as follows:— Imperial Measure. Ph. Br. Minims. ., Grains of water. 60 = f 5j (one fluidrachm) = nilx = 54.6 480 = f3j (one fluidounce) = fSviij = 437.5 9,600 = Oj (one pint) = fjxx = 8,750' . 76,800 = Cong, j (one gallon) = Oviij = 70,000 1 Equal to 1 lb. 4 oz. avoirdupois weight. METRICAL MEASURE OF CAPACITY. 67 The Imperial pint is, within an inconsiderable fraction, exactly one- fifth larger than the wine pint. A wine pint, = 28.875 cubic inches, or 7291.11 grains. Add one-fifth, = 5.775 " " or j458.22 " 34.650 An Imperial pint=34.659 8,749.333 8,750 The same relation holds good in the case of the gallon. Metrical Measure of Capacity.—It may be appropriate to this place to describe the measure of capacity adopted in France, which is fre- quently referred to in scientific works, and has of late years been introduced in analytical chemistry, for the purpose of avoiding the weighing of precipitates, and to facilitate analyses in general. The cube of one decimetre, which equals 3.937 English inches, is called a litre, and measures 2.1135 pints. The weight of one cubic decimetre of water at 4°C. (39.2°F.) is one kilogramme. The one-thousandth part is a cubic centimetre, or one millilitre, and contains 1 gramme of dis- tilled water. The close relation between the measures of length, of capacity, and of gravity, renders it more easy to measure correctly than to weigh accurately. By calculation from the above, we shall find that one fluidounce of our officinal measure equals in capacity 29.53 cubic centimetres, and we have thereby a convenient means of ascertaining the correct- ness of graduated measures without the necessity of weighing water at a certain temperature on a delicate balance. All the subdivisions and the higher denominations may be easily calculated, and all that is necessary is to measure the corresponding number of cubic centimetres of any liquid into the graduate in order to ascertain its correctness. Glass tubes, which are graduated into the subdivisions of cubic centimetres—burettes, as they are called—are now extensively manu- factured and sold by dealers in chemical apparatus. Graduated measures of glass of Oj, flviij, fSvj, f^iv, f^ij, Oj, f3j capacity are manufactured, and sold by drug- gists; these are sometimes quite inaccurate, but may be readily verified, as above, by balancing them on the scales, and gradually adding pure water until the required weight in grains, as shown in the table, is attained. In the same way we may graduate measures, marking the denominations by the following ready process:— Having coated one side of the glass with a thin coating of wax, balance it on the scales, adjust the weights, and add the required number of grains of pure water, observing to add it drop by drop toward the last; as soon as the weight is accurately counterpoised, remove it to a level table or counter, so high that it will be on a line with the eye, and carefully, with the point of a pin, mark the line formed by the surface of the liquid, and opposite this the appropriate Fig. 70. & ?> b s 2-r mm Sir 3r- ¥f/ zFl it/ f Siv graduated measure. 68 WEIGHTS AND MEASURES, AND SPECIFIC GRAVITY. sign; this may be rendered more clear and distinct afterwards. In the same way mark the various other denominations, having regard to the temperature, which should not vary far from 60°. Now form a paste, by mixing a sufficient quantity of finely-powdered fluor-spar with sulphuric acid, and spread this over the marked surfaces, and set the measure aside for a day or two, after which wash it off and remove the wax; the graduated measure is now indelibly and distinctly marked, and, if we have used the proper care, more accurately than is usual with those sold. I have compared two, in which the one fluidrachm mark of one corresponded nearly with the two fluidrachm of the other, and in other respects they were almost as much at variance. Fig. 71 exhibits a graduated measure, patented by W. Hodgson, Jr., of Philadelphia; it is made in a mould in which Fig. 71. depressions are cut for the several denominations of the scale, and, on the reverse, for the corresponding approximate measurements used in popular and domes- tic practice. By a plunger, which is graduated pre- cisely to the required bulk and thrust into the mould while the glass is fluid, the required measurement is accurately adjusted to each of these marks, and the necessity of further graduation is obviated. These measures are much more accurate than the ordinary kinds met with in the shops, though the glass is rather deficient in that perfect surface which characterizes blown glass vessels. The smaller sizes are perfectly adapted to medi- cine chests and saddlebags, and are much more satisfactory in measur- ing fluidrachms than the common kinds. A precaution to be observed, whether in graduating or using a measure, particularly of small diameter, may be appro- Fig. 72. priately mentioned here. Owing to the adhesion of the liquid to the sides of the measure, its surface is concave, and shows, from a side view, two lines; one where the edge of the liquid adheres to the glass, and the other, the line of the lower surface of the concavity. In order to fix the true line in this case, it must be intermediate between the upper and lower edge of the liquid, and not at either surface. This is more obvious the smaller the diameter of the measure, and, in the accompanying drawing, the dotted line has been made at the proper point for measure- ment. Besides the common forms of glass graduated mea- i measure. sures, a measure is used, especially by German phar- maceutists, made of block tin and graduated on the inside; each denomination is marked by a raised rim, and the quan- tity designated by an appropriate sign. These are especially convenient for measuring hot liquids, and if readily procurable, would soon be generally introduced. Approximate Measurement.—The approximate standards of measure- ment are very inaccurate, but they have no wider range than the doses APPROXIMATE MEASUREMENT. 69 of medicines, so that they are for the most part satisfactory. lowing table exhibits those in common use:— The fob A gill mug, or teacupful . . f.liv. A wineglassful . . . . fSij. A tablespoonful . . fsss A dessertspoonful • • • f3ij- A teaspoonful . . . f3j-. . A drop .... . from J to 1J minims Of the above, it may be remarked that the wineglassful is frequently less than two fluidounces, although the champagne glass is nearer four fluidounces. I have observed that the modern teaspoons are larger than formerly, and that the silver spoons are generally larger than those of common metal of the same nominal size. The size of drops varies from various causes, of which the nature of the liquid, the size and shape of the lip of the vessel from which dropped, the extent to which the lip is moistened, and the rapidity of dropping, are the most important. Four lists are appended: 1st. That by Elias Durand, originally published in the " Journal of the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy," vol. i. p. 169, and copied into most of our standard works; from this I have omitted several items, on account of their standard strength having been altered since the period of his experiments. 2d. That of Prof. Procter, published in the tenth edition of the "United States Dispensatory," and confined to different essential oils. 3d and 4th lists I have prepared as the result of my own observations, chiefly confined to medicines not included in the foregoing. 1st. Durand''s Table of the number of Drops of different Liquids equivalent to a fluidrachm. DROPS. Acid, acetic, crystallizable . . 120 " hydrocyanic, medicinal . . 45 " muriatic..... 54 " nitric ..... 84 " sulphuric .... 90 " " aromatic . . .120 Alcohol ...... 138 " diluted . . . .120 Arsenite of potassa, solution of . 57 Ether, sulphuric .... 150 Oils of aniseed, cinnamon, cloves, peppermint, sweet almonds, and olives......120 2d. Procter's Table of the number of Drops to a fluidrachm of Essential Oil, as dropped, A, from the bottles from ivhich they we commonly dis- pensed, and B, from a minim measure. Oleum anisi . " cari " caryophylli " chenopodii " cinnamomi Tinctures of assafcetida, foxglove > guaiacum, and opium . 120 Tincture of chloride of iron 132 Vinegar, distilled . 78 " of colchicum 78 " of squill . 78 Water, distilled 45 " of ammonia, strong 54 " " weak 43 Wine, Teneriffe 78 " antimonial . 72 " of colchicum 75 " of opium 78 A. B. A. B. . 85 86 01 eum cubebfe . 86 96 . 106 108 a foeniculi . 103 103 . 103 103 (< ganltherise . . 102 101 . 97 100 " h^deomae . 91 91 . 100 102 « uieuthse pip. . 103 109 70 WEIGHTS AND MEASURES, AND SPECIFIC GRAVITY. A. B. Oleum menthae viridis . . 89 94 " rosmarini . . . 104 105 " sabinae . . .102 108 " sassafras . . .102 100 3c?. Table of the number of Drops of different Liquids equivalent to f 5j, as dropped from pint and half pint tincture, bottles and from a minim measure. Thermometer 80° F. Those marked av. are averages of several droppings. FROM TT\, MEASURE. FROM Oj OB OSS TR. 90 Acidum aceticum (commercial) 102 73 " " dilutum, av. 52.5 55 " nitricum dilutum 44 62 " sulphuricum dilutum 49 54 " " aromaticum 148 116 " hydrocyanicum dilutum, a v. 52 i 143 118 " dilutum, av. 124.5 98 46 64.5 Chloroformum, av. . 276.5 180 Extractum Valerianae, Fid. 126 115 Glycerina (first dropping) 135 53 . 84.7 55 60 62.5 Liquor ammoniae 62 49 " iodinii compositus . 75 75 " hydrarg. et arsen. iodid. 52 52 " potassae arsenitis 63 60 Oleum menthse viridis, old 103 110 99 76 80 Spiritus aetheris nitrici . 148 90 " " compositus . 140 90 56 58 " scillse 88 85 Tinctura aconiti radicis . 130 118 " ferri chloridi 151 106 144 113 147 106 " " camphorata 110 95 138 120 84 62 92 78 ±th. Number of Drops of Water equivalent to f3j dropped from fgj vials. 1st trial 34. 2d trial 48. 3d trial 32. 4th trial 48. 5th trial 60. 6th trial 50. 7th trial 65. Average 48! 1. It will be observed from the above tables that the size of the drops of different liquids bears no relation whatever to their densitu • sul- phuric acid is stated in Durand's table as yielding 90 drops to the fluidrachm, while water yields but 45, and oil of anise, according to Prof. Procter, 85. It follows then that the weight of drops varies for most liquids. But few experiments on this subject have been recorded the oldest being contained in " Mohr's Pharmacopoeia Universalis " of Oleum tanaceti " Valerianae Creasotum 92 111 116 110 95 91 • From f|j Tr. hot. 53. SPECIFIC GRAVITY. 71 1845, where he states the weight of 30 drops of several volatile oils to range between 15 and 18 grains. More accessible to the American and English student are the results of Bernoulli, contained in the " Amer. Journ. of Pharm.," 1859, p. 442, to which we have to refer; the Troy drachm being one-half per cent, lighter than the Swiss, the difference amounts only to one drop for every 200. The drop machines here figured are contrived to obviate, to a certain extent, the inequalities given in the above table; they are not gene- rally known, though quite useful to the physician and apothecary who has occasion FiS- 73. Fig. 74. to drop a large number of drops in succes- sion. Their construction will, be obvious from the drawing. A perforated cork/ with a tube, either of glass or metal, drawn out to a small orifice b, c, and a capillary tube of metal e, passing above the surface of the liquid in the inverted bottle, so as to supply air to the vacuum created by the liquid as it drops out, constitutes all that is essential to the apparatus, a d is a me- tallic disk for collecting the descending drop, and thus preventing a thin stream from pouring from the bottle, when the liquid is very thin or the pressure great. In extemporaneous drop machines this has been substituted by a steel pen bent at right angles to the barrel. Specific Gravity.—In works on physics and chemistry, the subject of specific gravity is treated of as related to solids, liquids, and gases, but inasmuch as we are seldom under the necessity of taking the spe- cific gravity of solids or gases except in experimental research, and as this text-book is designed to direct the practitioner of medicine and pharmacy in the necessary pursuits of his office or shop, I shall confine this essay to the specific gravity of liquids, the most important branch of the general subject to these. It has been said at the commencement of this chapter, that while extension and gravitation or weight, are each capable of a separate standard of measurement, it is impossible to bring them to a common standard—they are only capable of being compared with each other. If we take a vial which will hold an ounce of water by weight, we find it will hold about an ounce and a half of nitric acid, and about three-quarters of an ounce of ether; hence we may say,_ approximately, that nitric acid is twice as heavy as ether, or that it is half as heavy again as water, while ether is only three-quarters as heavy. We thus compare these two liquids with a common standard, and one which, being universally diffused in a state of tolerable purity, furnishes the most° ready means of comparing solid or liquid substances together. The relation which the weight of a substance bears to that of water is, therefore, called its specific gravity. Water being assumed as 1, in the illustration just given, nitric acid would be 1| or 1.5, and ether f 72 WEIGHTS AND MEASURES, AND SPECIFIC G or .75. Upon this principle we may ascertain the specific gravity of all liquids by having a bottle, the capacity of which is well and accu- ratelv determined, filling it with these various liquids at a certain normal temperature, ascertaining their weight, and by a simple calcu- lation bringing them to this common standard. The specific gravity of substances, when accurately ascertained, constitutes one of the most important items in their history. In pharmacy, it is much employed to indicate the strength and purity of medicines^ particularly acids, alcohol, the ethers, and essential oils; and a physician is deficient m one of the most important aids to diagnosis who has not at hand the means of taking the specific gravity of urine. _ _ The apparatus for ascertaining the specific gravity of liquids are ot two kinds: first, specific gravity bottles; and second, hydrometer^or loaded tubes which mark the density of liquids by the depth to which they sink in them, according to known and purely artificial standards. The most convenient specific gravity bottles are graduated to hold 1,000 grains, or 100 grains of pure water at 60° F. Those made by Dr. W. H. Pile, of Philadelphia, are accurate and reliable; they are of two kinds, stoppered and unstoppered; the former are most ap- proved ; they are accompanied by a little counterpoise to be placed on the opposite scale plate, which exactly balances the empty bottle, so that the weights which balance it, when filled and placed on the scale, indicate the weight of its contents. Fig. 75. Fig. 77. Fig. 76. Stoppered specific gravity bottle, tin box, and counterpoise. In filling the stoppered thousand grain bottle, it requires to be filled a little above the point in the neck to which the stopper will reach when replaced, so that this shall force out the air and a small portion of the liquid into the capillary tube drilled through it. The whole bottle is then wiped clean and dry, and weighed. The unstoppered thousand grain bottle is marked by the scratch of SPECIFIC GRAVITY. 73 a file opposite the point in the neck to which the liquid must reach; this line should be intermediate between the upper and lower edge of the concave surface of the liquid in the neck when filled. The hundred grain bottles are of the same description, Fig. 78. and used in the same way; they are convenient when only very small quantities can be obtained for testing, but are, of course, not quite so accurate. One particular merit of the 1,000 and 100 grain bottles is, that the weight of a liquid, as obtained by filling and weighing them, expresses its specific gravity. The equa- tion is this: as the weight of a certain bulk of water is to the weight of the same bulk of the liquid being tested, so is the specific gravity of water, which is unity, to vny^ottie^un- the specific gravity of the liquid; or, as 1,000 is to the stoppered. weight of the liquid, so is 1 to the specific gravity of the liquid. Having obtained the weight of this quantity of a liquid, we have its specific gravity, attention being required to the decimal mark merely. If, for instance, we fill the 1,000 grain bottle with alcohol, and find it weighs 835 grains, we write its specific gravity .835, placing the decimal mark before the figures, because the weight is less than the unit adopted. If we fill it with chloroform, and find the weight to be 1,490 grains, we state the specific gravity at 1.490, placing the decimal after the first figure; or, if we find it to hold 13,500 grains of mercury, we state the specific gravity 13.5, the decimal being varied for obvious reasons, but no calculation being necessary to ascertain their relation to water. The specific gravity bottle I next proceed to describe does not exhibit the specific gravity of the liquid without a calculation, special in each case, but possesses the advantage of being cheap and extem- poraneous, and, if carefully made, is nearly as accurate. Select a smooth and clean bottle, not too thick, with a ground glass stopper; after first filing down the side of the stopper a small groove to subserve the purpose of the capillary orifice in the stopper of the 1,000 grain bottle, adjust it to one or more weights which counterpoise it, and put these aside for that use. Now find, by several trials, the exact weight of water it will hold at the proper temperature, and mark this on the bottle, or on a paper in which it is constantly wrap- ped; this is used in the same way as the 1,000 or 100 grain bottle, except that it is necessary to make a calculation after each weighing, to ascertain the specific gravity of the liquid. Suppose it to be a f.^ss bottle, and to contain, say 242.5 grains of pure water, and the liquids tested to have weighed 256 grains; now, to ascertain its specific gravity, a sum must be made as above stated: as the weight of a certain bulk of water is to the weight of the same bulk of this liquid so is the specific gravity of water to the specific gravity of this liquid:— 242.5 : 256 :: 1 : 1.055, or divide the weight of the liquid by the 256 weight of the same bulk of water, thus -^ 5 s 1-055-tlie SP- Sr- 74 WEIGHTS AND MEASURES, AND SPECIFIC GRAVI I have, though rarely, been able to select fsss bottles, which, by modifying their size by filing the stopper, would hold exactly 2oU grains, or i555 hence it was only necessary to multiply the ascertained weight by 4 to get the specific gravity. This plan of taking the specific gravity is so much more accurate than that by hydrometers, that these extemporaneous or home-made bottles, when well made, and used with good scales, are to be preferred to the best hydrometers, which rarely mark with precision more than the second decimal, a point reached without difficulty with a bottle, even when the scales do not indicate the fractions of a grain: unstoppered specific gravity bottles are still more readily made. The greatest practical difficulty in accurately adjusting a specific gravity bottle, and in taking the specific gravity of liquids, has relation to the tem- perature. The proper temperature for liquids to be measured by the specific gravity bottle is 60° Fahrenheit's scale, which at certain seasons of the year, in our climate, is readily attainable, but in hot weather the tempera- ture of water will reach 90° or more ; the dew-point then rises above 60°, so that if the water be brought to that temperature artificially and put into the bottle, the moisture deposited upon the outside of the bottle while weighing it will sensibly increase its weight. In order to obviate this diffi- culty, it is more convenient to have tables giving the variations of specific gravity by elevation or depression of temperature. The tables of this description formerly in use are unsatisfactory and conflicting, and have led Dr. Pile to prepare an original table, founded upon many hundred trials at all temperatures from 50° to 93°. This he has kindly furnished me for publication. The utility of this table in verifying the accuracy of the specific gravity bottle at any temperature will be apparent. It may be remarked that the glass bottle itself expands and contracts, and experiment has shown it will contain about .013 grains more for every degree above 60°, and as much less below it. In weighing liquids above or below that temperature, we do not obtain directly the true specific gravity, but the conjoined result of the expansion or contraction of the water and the glass bottle. If the actual specific gravity is sought, it will be neces- sary to make the proper corrections both for the liquid on trial and for the glass bottle. This also has been done in the following table.1 Table of Apparent Specific Gravity of Water as observed in a Glass Bottle at different temperatures; also its true Specific Gravity. By W. H. Pile, M. D. Sp. gr. in Sp. gr. in Temp. Fahr. Glass Bottles True Sp. Gr. Temp. Fahr. Glass Bottles. True Sp. Gr. 50O 1000.54 1000.67 590 1000.07 1000.08 51 1000.50 1000.62 60 1000.00 1000.00 52 1000.46 1000.56 61 999.92 999.91 53 1000.41 1000.50 62 999.84 999.82 54 1000.36 1000.44 63 999.72 999.72 55 1000.30 1000.37 64 999.68 999.63 56 1000.25 1000.30 65 999.60 999.53 57 1000.20 1000.23 66 999.51 999.43 58 1000.14 1000.16 67 999.42 999.33 1 For tables showing the variation in specific gravity of alcohol by changes of tem- perature, see Booth's " Encyclopaedia of Chemistry," art. Alcoholometry, Tables III. and IV. HYDROMETERS. 75 Sp. gr. in Sp. gr. in Temp. Fahr. Glass Bottles. True Sp. Gr. Temp. Fahr. Glass Bottles. True Sp. Gr. 68O 999.33 999.23 810 ■ 997.79 997.52 69 999.24 999.12 82 997.64 997.36 70 999.14 999.01 83 997.49 997.20 71 999.04 998.90 84 997.35 997.04 72 998.94 998.78 85 997.20 996.87 73 998.83 998.66 86 996.94 996.60 74 998.72 998.53 87 99^.78 996.43 75 998.60 998.40 88 996.62 996.26 76 998.48 998.27 89 996.46 996.08 77 998.35 998.13 90 996.29 995.90 78 998.22 997.99 91 996.12 995.72 79 998.08 997.84 92 995.96 995.54 80 997.94 997.68 93 995.79 995.36 Schiff has proposed a very simple arrangement for the determination of the specific gravity of solid and liquid bodies. It consists merely of a test glass of even width graduated into cubic centimetres from the bottom and resting in a wooden or cork foot. It is used by pouring a convenient quan- tity of any liquid into the tube, noting its height and weighing the appara- tus in grammes ; the solid body is then introduced in a coarse powder, the apparatus weighed again and the height of the liquid noted. The differ- ence of weight indicates the weight of the body, the difference of measure gives in cubic centimetres the amount of liquid displaced, and (as one cubic centimetre of water weighs one gramme) also the weight of distilled water in grammes displaced by the above body; consequently the weight of the body divided by the difference of measure in cubic centimetres gives the specific gravity. To find the specific gravity of any given liquid, this is introduced into the tube previously weighed, the difference of weight in grammes after and before filling it, is simply divided by the number of cubic centimetres occu- pied by the liquid, to furnish the specific gravity. The greatest density of water is at 39° F., and as the specific gravity is usually taken at 60° F., there is a slight discrepancy in the weight of water, which is exactly one gramme for each cubic centimetre at 39°; but the ex- pansion of water between 32° and 212° is not more than .012, and the dif- ference of its weight at 39° and 60° so slight that for ordinary purposes it may be overlooked. Hydrometers.—The specific gravity of liquids may be most readily ascertained by plunging in them instruments so adjusted as to mark their density by the depth to which they sink. These are called hydrometers, and although not capable of the same accuracy as spe- cific gravity bottles, furnish approximate results with great facility. The application of the hydrometer depends upon the well ascer- tained law that a body floating in a liquid displaces it own weight of the same, and its use dates back to the discovery of that principle, a period of about three hundred years before the Christian era. Hydrometers are named with reference to the class of liquids for which they are designed, and to the scale upon which graduated. The kinds most sold are called, Baumd's hydrometers or areometers; they are also called saccharometers, when adapted to the measurement of syrups; acidometers to acids; elseometers for oils, and urinometers for urine. Cartier's hydrometer, which is somewhat used in France, is only 76 WEIGHTS AND MEASURES, AND SPECIFIC GRAVITY. applicable for light liquids; it is a modification of Baume's Pese Esprit, and, having some points in the scale which correspond, is generally confounded with it. Without intending to confuse the student with unnecessary details, I shall give in a few words the method of obtaining the standards on the respective scales, and the mode of converting them into specific gravity and the reverse rule, omitting the tables, which will be found in the U. S. Dispensatory and in chemical works. , Baume had two instruments, one for liquids heavier than water, and one for liquids lighter than water; the former called Pese Acide, or Pese birop, and the latter Pese Esprit. # . . The zero for heavy liquids was water, and the point to which the instru- ment would sink in a solution containing fifteen per cent, of salt was marked 15° The interval doubled gave 30°, the next 45°, and so on. The zero for lighter liquids, or pese esprit, was obtained by immersing the tube in water containing 10 per cent, of salt in solution, and the point to which it would sink in pure water he made 10° ; dividing the stem into like intervals, he obtained 20°, 30°, &c, the intermediate degrees by subdivision _ _ Now it will be at once perceived that the slightest error made in obtaining the first interval by this process becomes increased in every extension, so that with all care and precaution to insure accuracy, scarcely any two instru- ments could be made to correspond precisely. This mode of graduating hydrometers has long since been superseded by the equally practicable and more accurate method of obtaining the specific gravity of two known liquids at a certain fixed temperature. These are placed at the extremes of the scale, and the intermediate space is accurately subdivided into the requisite number of degrees. The liquids ordinarily used for this purpose are, for liquids heavier than water, sulphuric acid and water; for those lighter than water, ether (highly rectified) and water. The specific gravity of these being of course ascer- tained before each trial by a standard hydrometer, or by the use of the 1000 grain bottle; but authorities are not agreed precisely in fixing their specific gravities, so that even the most accurate manipulators are liable to error from this fact, unless by having a common definite rule accuracy is ascer- tained. Another difficulty in .regard to Baume's hydrometers, as usually imported, is, that they are marked by arbitrary numbers, which have no necessary connection with the specific gravity, and they can only be used with facility when access can be had to the tables published in chemical works, in which the degrees of Baume, with their corresponding specific gravity numbers, are represented. The following simple formula has been contrived for the purpose of find- ing the specific gravity of any liquid, the degree of Baume being known, or the reverse. For Liquids heavier than Water. 1. To reduce Baume to sp. gr. Subtract the degree of Baume from 145, and divide into 145; the quotient is the specific gravity. 2. To reduce specific gravity into Baume. Divide the specific gravity into 145, and subtract from 145; the remainder is the degree of Baume. For Liquids lighter than Water. 1. To reduce Baume to sp. gr. Add the number of the degree to 130, and divide it into 140 ; the quotient is the sp. gr. HYDROMETERS. 77 2. To reduce sp. gr. to Baume. Divide the sp. gr. into 140, and subtract 130 from the quotient; the remainder will be the degree of Baume. In this manner, the tables at the end of this article were calculated. The rationale of this formula is more difficult to understand than its application. The modulus or constant number here used, is the proportion which the space of one degree (or the bulk which one degree occupies) bears to the space or bulk of the whole hydrometer below the water line. Or, it may be stated to be the proportion which the weight of water dis- placed by the hydrometer when floating in water, bears to the weight of water equal in bulk to one degree. For example: suppose the weight of a hydrometer to be 200 grs., it is floated in water and marks the water line (10° B. in pese esprit, or 0° B. in pese acide); now to sink it one degree in the first case, T^ of its weight must be added, or 1.428 grs. ; 140 is therefore the modulus of the scale for light liquids; in the other case, we must withdraw ,|g of its weight, or 1.38 grs., to enable the hydrometer to rise one degree ; 145 is therefore the modu- lus of the pese acide: from this it will appear that the modulus determines the size of the degrees. That here presented was selected (as most consistent* with the practice of manufacturing chemists, and according with the tables published in the "United States Dispensatory") by Henry Pemberton, Prac- tical Chemist, of this city, to whose able article, showing the inconsistency of the standards in use, published in Fig. 79. the" American Journal of Pharmacy," vol. xxiv. p. 1, the reader is referred. The inconvenience of an arbitrary scale, as that of Baume, has long been felt, and has led to the manu- facture of the new style of hydrometer, which is here figured; these have the scale of Baume, with the actual specific gravity corresponding to it written op- posite each other on the tube. This article, as manufactured by Dr. W. H. Pile, before referred to, is unexceptionable. He makes a large size containing two in a series, one for liquids heavier, and the other for liquids lighter than water, each having an extensive range, and also a small size, consisting of two for light, and three for heavy liquids. The advantage of the series of five small instruments is, that the scales having a much less range, are capa- ble of exhibiting more accurately slight differences in sp. gr. than in the other case. In the drawing, one of the large instruments is exhibited, considerably reduced in size; and as the scales with the two sets of figures could not be represented in a single view of the tube, the printer has appended on either side the figures representing the degree of Baume, and a part of those representing the sp. gr. Besides these hydrometers, Dr. Pile makes others for special applications, and graduated to suit particu- Hydrometer for lar objects; one of the most curious of these is the ^ter.8 lg er ' an 78 WEIGHTS AND MEASURES, AND SPECIFIC GRAVI Lactometer, for the measurement of milk, which, as we get it in large cities, is liable to adulteration, and especially to dilution with water. (See Lac Vaccinum, Part IV.) Of all the practical applications of the art of determining specific gravity, none is more important and interesting than its use in ascer- taining the qualities of urine. The urinometer is the most delicate of this class of instruments; it is a hydrometer tube with a very small range, only going from 1.000 to 1.060 specific gravity; within these limit* all the variations of urine from its normal standard may be ascertained. So delicate are these determinations, that the variations of temperature, important in all cases, here require special attention; and accordingly many of the urinometers are accompanied by a little thermometer to be plunged into the urine simultaneously with the tube; sometimes the thermometer is inclosed in the tube, and at others, as in the apparatus, Fig. 80, accompanies it in a neat box con- taining also a graduated glass for containing the urine. The thousand grain bottle, with proper observance of the thermo- meter, is, however, in this as in all other cases, the surest test of specific gravity. Fig. 81 represents the urinometer removed from the box and floated in the vessel accompanying it (in which the graduation marks are not seen). The graduation of the urinometer is such, that each degree represents 1-1000, thus1 giving the actual specific gravity by simply adding the number of degrees on the scale corresponding with the surface of the liquid, to 1000. Thus, supposing the number cut by Fig. 80. Fig. 81 Fig. 82. Urinometer box containing thermometer, graduated glass vessel, &c. Urinometer in nse. the surface of the fluid to be 30, as shown in the figure, the specific gravity would then be 1.030. The average density of healthy urine is about from 10° to 25° of this scale, at 60° F., or sp. gr. 1.010 to 1.025. That of diabetic urine ranges from 30° to 60°, or sp. gr. 1.030 to 1.060. Saccharometer. SPECIFIC GRAVITY. 79 Some hydrometers for liquids heavier than water are manufactured of small size, for the special purpose of measuring the strength of syrups. Fig. 82 represents one of these, which is graduated to Baume's scale. It floats at 30° in a solution of the sp. gr. 1.26, the density of saturated simple syrup when boiling. baume's deoeees, with their corresponding specific gravity. Table for Liquids lighter than Water. Temp. 60° Fahr. Degrees of Specific Degrees of Specific Degrees of Specific Hydrom. Gravity Hydrom. Gravity. Hydrom. Gravity. 10 1.000 31 0.870 51 0.773 11 0.993 32 0.864 52 0.769 12 0.986 33 0.859 53 0.7-65 13 0.979 34 0.854 54 0.761 14 0.972 35 0.848 55 0.757 15 0.966 36 0.843 56 0.753 16 0.959 37 0.838 57 0.749 17 0.952 38 0.833 58 0.745 18 0.946 39 0.828 59 0.741 19 0.940 40 0.824 60 0.737 20 0.933 41 0.819 61 0.733 21 0.927 42 0.814 62 0.729 22 0.921 43 0.809 63 0.725 23 0.915 44 0.805 64 0.722 24 0.909 45 0.800 65 0.718 25 0.903 46 0.795 66 0.714 26 0.897 47 0.791 67 0.711 27 0.892 48 0.787 68 0.707 28 0.886 49 0.782 69 0.704 29 0.881 50 0.778 70 0.700 30 0.875 Table for Liquids heavier than Water. Temp. 60° Fahr. Degrees of Specific Degrees of Specific Degrees of Specific Hydrom. Gravity. Hydrom. Gravity. Hydrom. Gravity. 1 1.007 26 1.218 51 1.543 2 1.014 27 1.229 52 1.559 3 1.021 28 1.239 53 1.576 4 1.028 • 29 1.250 54 1.593 5 1.036 30 1.261 55 1.611 6 1.043 31 1.272 56 1.629 7 1.051 32 1.283 57 1.648 8 1.058 33 1.295 58 1.667 9 1.066 34 1.306 59 1.686 10 1.074 35 1.318 60 1.706 11 1.082 36 1.330 61 1.726 12 1.090 37 1.343 62 1.747 13 1.098 38 1.355 63 1.768 14 1.107 39 1.368 64 1.790 15 1.115 40 1.381 65 1.813 16 1.124 41 1.394 66 1.835 17 1.133 42 ■ 1.408 67 1.859 18 1.142 43 1.422 68 1.883 19 1.151 44 1.436 69 1.908 20 1.160 45 1.450 70 1.933 21 1.169 46 1.465 71 1.959 22 1.179 47 1.480 72 1.986 23 1.188 48 1.495 73 2.014 24 1.198 49 1.510 74 2.042 25 1.208 50 1.526 PART II. PHAEMACY PEOPEE (Galenical Pharmacy). CHAPTER I. ON THE DIFFERENT PARTS OF PLANTS, THEIR COLLECTION AND DESICCATION. The plant is conveniently divided, for the purposes of the druggist, into the root, stem, bark, buds, leaves, flowers, fruit, and seed, and these different parts require the observance of different rules in regard to their collection, desiccation and preservation for use in medicine. Eoots of annual plants should be dug immediately before the time of flowering; of biennials, or perennials, late in the fall, or very early in the spring. If the latter, it should be immediately after the first appearance of the plant above the ground. Perennial roots should not be gathered until after two or three years' growth. Ehubarb is allowed to mature for four or five years—asparagus till three years old. Fleshy, or succulent roots, require to be cut previous to drying, so as to expose a large surface to the air; the mode in which they are sliced, whether longitudinally or transversely, is of interest in judg- ing of certain foreign drugs, such as colomba root, which is always met with in transverse slices, gentian in longitudinal, the English variety of colchicum cormus, cut transversely, that from the Continent entire, &c. The mode of cutting is little regarded by herbalists in preparing the indigenous roots for market. In all cases, it is important that the root, or other part of the plant, should be thoroughly dried. In the case of taraxacum, parsley, and other succulent roots, it is necessary to apply a heat of about 150° F., in order to destroy the eggs deposited by insects, which, through neglect of this precaution, may occasion the speedy deterioration of the root by worms. For drying roots, recourse may be had to a barrel open at both ends, and having a network suspended in it for holding the roots, it is to be stood over the register of a common house furnace. The smaller and more fibrous roots, and especially those containing essential oils, require to be less thoroughly dried, and, as soon as their condition will admit of it, should be carefully put away into tight drawers, bottles, or tin cans. The stems of herbaceous plants should 6 (81) 82 ON THE COLLECTION AND DESICCATION OF P be gathered after foliation, but before flowering, unless the flowers are to be used with the stem. Barks of trees are best gathered in the spring, of shrubs in the autumn, at which seasons they can be most easily separated from the wood. They should be generally deprived of their epidermis, and dried spontaneously, their porous texture and comparative tenuity facilitating the process. Wild-cherry bark is often deficient in quality from beinr=®* Filter for volatile liquids. Pouring with a guiding rod. whether a flask, a vial, or an evaporating dish, is furnished with no lip, or a very poor one, for pouring. A useful precaution in pouring liquids from bottles may be men- tioned in this connection. It nearly always happens that the last drop or two of the liquid being poured remains on the lip of the bottle, and is liable, if the lip is ill formed, to run down the outside; this may be obviated by touching the stopper to the edge where the liquid is collected, thus transferring this drop to the end of the stopper previous to inserting it in the neck of the bottle. Much of the filtration in pharmacy has for its object the separation of the insoluble ligneous portions of vegetable medicines, after they THE MEDICATED WATERS. 113 have been sufficiently macerated. A practical difficulty in this case is deserving of mention here. If a measured portion, say one pint of liquid, has been macerated with two, four, or six ounces of a vegetable substance for the purpose of making a tincture or infusion, and, after the proper lapse of time, the whole is thrown upon a filter, the clear liquid that will pass will measure as much less than a pint as the vegetable substance holds by its capillary attraction. In order to obtain the whole quantity desired, some have diluted the filtered liquid till it reached precisely the required measure; but by the dis- covery of the principle of displacement (see Chapter VI.), it is found that an additional portion of liquid, if presented to the saturated powder, under favorable circumstances, will displace the portion of the original menstruum remaining in its pores. To secure this is more important from the fact that it is usually most highly impregnated with the active principles of the plant; and, therefore, in transferring the macerated preparation to a filter, the swollen mass of powder should be carefully compacted into the filter, and after the liquid has drained off, a fresh portion of similar liquid should be added till the preparation measures the quantity originally intended. CHAPTER IV. THE MEDICATED WATERS. Aqu^e U. S. P. (Aquj5 Medicate U. S. P. 1850.) These are generally solutions in water of the essential oils, made by triturating the latter with a third substance (carbonate of magnesia, usually), which, either by dividing them mechanically, and thus pre- senting them to the water under favorable circumstances, or by a chemical union with them, renders them soluble to a limited extent, and imparts their sensible properties to the medicated waters thus formed. . . . . A better result is often obtained by mixing the fresh herb with a quantity of water in an apparatus for distillation, and allowing them to remain in contact until the water has, to a certain extent, dissolved out the essential oil, extractive matter, coloring principle, &c, and then, by the application of heat, volatilizing the water and the essential oil, and collecting them in a refrigerated receiver. If the oil is in excess, it will be found, on standing, to collect on the surface of the liquid in the receiver, but a certain amount is retained m solution by the water, imparting to it the fragrance peculiar to the herb employed. There are undoubtedly other volatile principles present in odorous plants besides the essential oils, for without exception medicated waters prepared directly from the plant by distillation, possess milder and more plea- 114 ON SOLUTION, FILTRATION, AND MEDICATED WATERS. sant properties than when prepared from the corresponding essential oils. When distilled in tin condensers, these preparations are contami- nated with small portions of the metal which they deposit by age. (See chapters on Distillation, and on Essential or Volatile Oils.) In the preparation of extemporaneous solutions or mixtures, the medicated waters are very convenient; but where the one required is not at hand, it may generally be substituted by dropping the essential oil on a small piece of su . . " spigeliae, Boiling water. Anthelmintic. " gentianae comp., Cold water + ale. §ij, bit. 1 orange peel, £j, corian- V Tonic. der, 3j. J Third Group.—Proportions varied. Infusum caryophylli, ??ij to Oj boiling water. Stimulant. " quassiae, 5U to Oj cold water. Tonic. » rhei, 3ij to Oss boiling water. Cathartic. digitalis, 3J t« °8S boilin£ wa„ter + \ Narcotic. Dose, ftij. tmct. cinnamon, fgj. J " tabaci, 3j to Oj boiling water. Sedative inj. in hernia. " taraxaci, §ij to Oj boiling water. Diuretic. " rosffi comp., See formula. Adjuvant ; astringent. " picis liquidae, do. Expectorant; tonic. As illustrations of the mode of preparing the foregoing infusions, the following officinal forms are selected :— With Boiling Water. Infusum Taraxaci U. S. P. Take of Dandelion, bruised, two troyounces. Boiling water a pint. Macerate for two hours in a covered vessel, and strain. Infusum Rosee Compos itum U. S. P. Take of Red rose, half a troyounce. Diluted sulphuric acid, three fluidrachms. Sugar, in coarse powder, a troyounce and a half. Boiling water, two pints and a half. Pour the water upon the rose in a covered glass or porcelain vessel; then add the acid, and macerate for half an hour. Lastly, strain the liquid, and in it dissolve the sugar. Compound infusion of rose is said to be an excellent addition to Epsom salts in solution for overcoming its bitterness. With Cold Water. Infusum Cinchonas Rubras U. S. P. Take of Reel cinchona, in moderately fine powder, a troyounce. Aromatic sulphuric acid a fluidrachm. Water a sufficient quantity. Mix the acid with a pint of water. Then moisten the powder with half a fluidounce of the mixture, and, having packed it firmly in a conical glass percolator, gradually pour upon it the remainder of the mixture, and afterwards water, until the filtered liquid measures a pint, Infusum Pruni Virginianee U. S. P. Take of Wild-cherry bark, in moderately coarse powder, half a troyounce. Water a sufficient quantity. Moisten the powder with six fluidrachms of water, let it stand for INFUSIONS. 125 an hour, pack it gently in a conical glass percolator, and gradually pour water upon it until the filtered liquid measures a pint. Infusum Gentianas Compositum U. S. P.1 Take of Gentian, in moderately coarse powder, half a troyounce. Bitter orange peel, in moderately coarse powder, Coriander, in moderately coarse powder, each, sixty grains. Alcohol, two fluidounces. Water, a sufficient quantity. Mix the alcohol with fourteen fluidounces of water, and, having moistened the mixed powders with three fluidrachms of the men- struum, pack them firmly in a conical percolator, and gradually pour upon them, first, the remainder of the menstruum, and afterwards water, until the filtered liquor measures a pint. Infusum Picis Liquidee U. S. P. (Tar water) Take of Tar, a pint. Water, four pints. Mix them, and shake the mixture frequently during twenty-four hours. Then pour off the infusion, and filter through paper. This is a new officinal in the last edition of the Pharmacopoeia, being placed under a different head from that to which common con- sent has heretofore assigned it. It is a useful preparation, and much in request as a remedy in pectoral affections. With either Cold or Hot Water. Infusum Valerianae U. S. P. Take of Valerian, in moderately coarse powder, half a troyounce. Water, a sufficient quantity. Moisten the powder with two fluidrachms of water, pack it firmly in a conical percolator, and gradually pour water upon it until the filtered liquid measures a pint. This infusion may also be prepared by macerating the valerian with a pint of boiling water, for two hours, in a covered vessel, and straining. 1 Compound Infusion of Gentian is liable to separate a pectine-like precipitate, by Btanding, which interferes with its being dispensed conveniently. It is also rather bulky, which suggests its being prepared in the following concentrated form for extem- poraneous dilution, as proposed by J. T. Shinn:— Take of Gentian powder, two ounces. Orange-peel powder, Coriander powder, each a half ounce. Diluted alcohol, sufficient to make one pint. By percolation, make a pint, of which one part i3 to be added to three of water to make the compound infusion. 126 ON MACERATION AND THE INFUSIONS. Unofficinal. Dr. Mettauer's Aperient. Take of Aloes (soc.)......3 v. Bicarb, soda . . . . . • 3xj- Valerian (contused)' . . . • 3j. Water.......Oj. Comp. spirit of lavender . . . f3vj. Make an infusion by maceration or percolation. Dose.—A tablespoonful containing about 9 grs. aloes, 20 of bicarb. of soda, and 14 of valerian. As a laxative for constipation, &c. Mistura Aloes Composita.—I. J. Grahame. Recommended as a substitute for compound decoction of aloes of the British Pharmacopoeias. Take of Extract of liquorice ..... Liquorice-root in moderately fine powder Carbonate of potassa .... Aloes, myrrh, and saffron, in moderately fine powder, each ..... Compound tincture of cardamon Distilled water ..... Rub well together the aloes, myrrh, and carbonate of potassa; add the remaining powder, and mix all intimately. Having mixed the water and compound tincture of cardamon, pour off this liquid on the compound powder, sufficient to dampen it; pack moderately in a suitable displacer, and, having placed over the surface a piece of per- forated filtering paper, pour on the remainder of the liquid, and when it has ceased to pass, add water sufficient to make the filtrate measure in all twenty-four fluidounces. A clear, rich, reddish-brown liquid. ■—Transactions Md. Col. Phar., 1858. 1 2 ounce. 11 ounces. 1 drachm. 11 drachms. H fluidounces. 18 fluidounces. Elixir Clauderi R.—Carbonate of potassa Aloes Guaiacum Myrrh . Saffron . Rhubarb (contused) Water . Macerate a few days and decant Dose.—A tablespoonful. 5j. 3ij. 3ij. 3ij. 3ij. 3ij- fSxviij. The concentrated infusions, of which several are in common use in England, properly belong to the class of fluid extracts, and under that head a recipe will be found for infusum cinchonas spissatum, of the London Pharmacopoeia. 1 Some recipes omit the valerian. PERCOLATION, OR THE DISPLACEMENT PROCESS. 127 Parrish's Cider Mixture. Take of Juniper berries, Mustard-seed, Ginger, .... each 2 ounces. Horseradish, Parsley-root, . . . each 4 ounces. Cider.....1 gallon. Macerate for a week and strain, or make by displacement, adding a little alcohol if designed to be kept long. Dose.—A wineglassful three times a day, increased at discretion. In dropsy. Black Draught. Take of Senna......gss. Sulphate of magnesia . . . |j. Manna......|j. Fennel-seed.....3j. Boiling water.....fSviij. Macerate in a covered vessel till the liquid cools. Dose.—One-third, to be repeated every four or five hours till it operates. Physick's Medicated Lye, or Alkaline Solution. Take of Hickory ashes .....3viij. Soot . . . . . • 3J. Water......Cong. j. Digest for twenty-four hours and strain. Dose.—A wineglassful. In dyspepsia. CHAPTER VI. PERCOLATION OR THE DISPLACEMENT PROCESS. A knowledge of this process is justly regarded as indispensable to the pharmaceutist and physician who may be called upon to practise pharmacy. In previous editions of this work many details were rendered necessary by imperfect knowledge of the essential conditions of success in extracting the soluble principles of drugs, which are now no longer required. In accordance with the results of investiga- tion and experience, the U. S. Pharmacopoeia has given, in the late edition, such lucid directions for its employment in making the nume- rous tinctures, wines, vinegars, syrups, extracts, fluid extracts, and some of the infusions, that its adoption must become almost universal, and must effect a corresponding improvement in these classes of prepa- rations. History.—The process of percolation or displacement has been em- 128 PERCOLATION, OR THE DISPLACEMENT PROCESS. ployed from time immemorial in the preparation of coffee in the cele- brated Cafetilre de Doubelhy, an instrument much used in France, and occasionally in this country at the present time. It consists ot a coffee- pot, surmounted by a movable cylinder, usually varying from three to five or six inches in diameter, and from eight to ten inches in length, and which contains two perforated diaphragms, one permanent and soldered on to the lower extremity of the cylinder, and the other movable, so as to be supported either above or upon the top of the mass of coffee in using the apparatus. The French coffee-pot is a displacement apparatus of convenient construction, and had been long celebrated for the production of a clear and strong coffee, possessing a finer aroma than that made by decoction, but, until the year 1833, the idea seems not to have occurred of applying it to the production of pharmaceutical preparations. This application is due to M. Boullay & Son, French pharmaciens, who, by their admirable and well-conducted experiments, first demonstrated the adaptation of percolation to the general purposes of the shop and laboratory, drew the attention of the profession to its merits, and pointed out certain forms of apparatus, and the modes for using them. In 1836, an article by M. A. Guillermond, translated from the "Journal de Pharmacie," was published in the "American Journal of Pharmacy," vol. vii. p. 308, and in 1838, the late Augustine Duhamel, a scientific pharmaceutist of Philadelphia, published in the " Ameri- can Journal of Pharmacy," vol. x. p. 1, his first communication upon the new process. In the following year, in connection with William Procter, Jr., now Professor of Pharmacy in the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy, he engaged further attention to the subject in an able article of the same Journal, vol. xi. p. 189, in which a series of care- ful experiments in the preparation of extracts, tinctures, infusions, and syrups were detailed, which so conclusively proved the superiority of this over the ordinary processes in use that intelligent pharmaceutists generally were induced to try, and eventually to adopt it. In the meantime the process was extensively made known through pharma- ceutical works in England, and on the Continent of Europe, and was incorporated more or less fully in the several Pharmacopoeias. This process so far found favor-with the committee having under care the decennial revision of the U. S. Pharmacopoeia in 1840 that it was sanctioned to a considerable extent in the edition of our national standard of that year. In 1850 it was still more fully adopted, though not without directions for maceration designed for those not practically familiar with it. At the present time, it is so fully recog- nized, and extensively employed in the preparation of the Galenical solutions, as almost to supersede the process of maceration. At the annual meeting of the American Pharmaceutical Associa- tion in 1858, Prof. I. J. Grahame, of the Maryland College of Phar- macy, proposed some modifications of the process as then conducted, of so much utility as to have given a new impetus to this branch of pharmaceutical manipulation. His improvement consisted: First, in the use of the common funnel for all ordinary purposes, the conical THE APPARATUS. 129 Fig. 119. shape allowing the swelling of the solid contents without compacting them so tightly together as in the case of a straight-sided cylinder. Second, the use of powders of regular and definite degrees of fineness, regulated by the permeability of the drug. Third, the proper gradua- tion of the degree of moisture imparted to the powder before packing it in the funnel. Increased attention to these points has so far sim- plified the process, and increased its rapidity and efficiency, that it now leaves little to be desired for the ordinary purposes of the phar- maceutist. _ The far more ready and universal adoption of percolation in the United States than in England has, perhaps, promoted the adoption, among us, of the more concentrated forms of medicines in preference to those prepared by the old processes, still largely em- ployed by the British pharmaceutists. The Apparatus.—In describing the common forms of displace- ment apparatus or percolators, I shall introduce some, which in my own practice have become obsolete, confining myself chiefly to the more simple and extemporaneous kinds adapted to the use of the physician and retail pharmaceutist. The common tin displacer consists of a cylinder varying in size, but at least twice as long as its diameter, terminated at one end by a funnel, the neck of which is made small enough to insert conveniently into a common tincture or narrow-mouth packing bottle; two perforated diaphragms of the size of the cyl- inder, and loosely fitting into it; each of these has a small ring of wire soldered on to it to facilitate its -removal. Sometimes these cyl- inders are much larger at the top, tapering toward the lower end, and there is an advantage in this shape over straight sides, as shown in the drawing. The lower diaphragm should be of finely perforated tin plate; the finest sold is not objec- tionable, while the upper may be made of ordinary tinned iron, pierced with comparatively large holes. Occasionally the lower dia- phragm is soldered to a very small tin tube, open at both ends, of nearly the length of the cylinder, near the top of which is a ledge on which the upper diaphragm is made to rest, as in the French coffee-pot and in the air-tight displacer (Fig. 124); the object of this is to allow the passage of air from the lower or receiving vessel into the top of the cylinder. The Queensware Displacer.—This is the same as the above in shape; the material is considered more cleanly; it is not liable to corrosion with acid liquids, nor to impart a black color and metallic taste to solutions of the vegetable astringents. Lamp-chimney Displacers.—No form of apparatus is cheaper for 9 The displacer, with upper and lower diaphragm. 130 PERCOLATION, OR THE DISPLACEMENT PROCESS. Fig. 120. Fig. 121. small operations than ordinary lamp-chimneys, either plain (Fig. 12-) or with bulb (Fig. 123). The smaller end of the chimney is filled with a cork cut so as to allow the free passage of the liquid, at the same time that it affords a mechanical support to the mass, or covered with a piece of gauze, book-muslin, or other coarse fabric, tied securely by a string round the chimney near its lower edge, and a little carded cotton being placed on it, the under diaphragm is rendered complete; the upper one may be made of paper, when necessary, as before described, or, where the diameter is small, may be omitted. These, having no funnel-shaped termina- tions, require to be inserted in a wide-mouth bottle; one which answers the purpose should be selected and always kept at hand; a piece of thick pasteboard, or other firm sub- stance, may be used as a support for an apparatus of this description Porcelain displacer, with two diaphragms. Fig. 122. Fig. 123. Lamp-chimney displacer with supports. by cutting a hole in it of the required size, so as to suspend it over a dish, or by the aid of a retort stand into a suitable jar or measure, as shown in Figs. 122 and 123. Lamp-chimneys with bulbs are still more convenient in this respect. Fig. 124 represents a tin displacer with a water-joint near the top for covering and preventing evaporation in making ethereal or other very volatile preparations; the little tube e serves for the escape of THE APPARATUS. 131 the air from the lower vessel B, so as to equalize the atmospheric pressure between the top of the air-tight displacer and the receiving bottle; the lower diaphragm a is soldered on to the top of this tube, and the upper diaphragm rests on it; c represents the gutter into which the top d fits, and which, being filled with water, constitutes an air-tight connection. The displacer fits into the narrow-mouth bottle either by the aid of a cork or not, as the case may require. Broken Bottles.—A portion of the broken bottles in a shop have the bottom cracked uniformly oft', which is likely to occur when hot liquids are poured into them; they furnish a cylinder-shaped vessel not unlike the tin displacement apparatus above de- scribed ; a plug of cotton is used for a diaphragm, as in the case of the funnel. The bottoms of bot- tles may be cracked off for this purpose by passing gradually round them a red-hot rod of iron in con- tact with the glass, and, when fractured, removing the sharp edge by a file, or by inserting the bottle in a shallow vessel of cold water, so as to be im- mersed just up to the line to be fractured, and filling it nearly to the same line with water, then pouring in a sufficient quantity of oil of vitriol suddenly to raise the temperature on the inside, the bottom will generally drop out. Very convenient and economical glass displace- ment funnels are made of various sizes, in shape like a broken bottle, but thicker and more uniform, and with a smooth edge at both ends; the neck is drawn out with the view to inserting into a bottle, and the cylinder may be conveniently covered with a suitable piece of glass when desirable. No diaphragms ac- company the apparatus; sponge, cotton, or broken glass being used. Availing ourselves of the very cheap and common production of syringes from glass tubes, which ex- tend to one and a quarter inch in diameter, and can be furnished at a very low price, we have procured the apparatus represented in Fig. 125. It is a glass syringe of the largest size, without the piston or cap. It can only be used for small operations, for which, however, it is well adapted. In treating Spanish flies and other substances with ether, we have found it convenient from the facility with which the top can be corked up, preventing evaporation; a variety of preparations may be conveniently made with the syringe pattern displacer. Tin displacer for vola- tile liquids. Fig. 125. The Glass Funnel.—As already stated, the common Small syringe pattern displacer. 132 PERCOLATION, OR THE DISPLACEMENT PROC funnel furnishes one of the most complete forms of displacement appa- ratus. A porous diaphragm inserted at the upper and widest portion ot the neck, may consist of a piece of moistened sponge, of cotton or of tow, while for the purpose of spreading the liquid over the surface ot the mass, a circular piece of porous paper or of cotton cloth will serve every purpose. When a straight cylinder is used the swelling ot the solid contents of the displacer during the progress of its saturation with the menstruum frequently almost arrests the passage of the liquid; but in an ordinary funnel the lateral pressure is forced into an upward direction, owing to the tapering of the sides of the funnel, and while the mass is rendered sufficiently compact, it is not so compressed as to interfere with the operation of capillary attraction and the displace- ment resulting from the pressure of the superincumbent liquid. In the Pharmacopoeia, the form of the percolator is often though not always designated in the several formulas. When a funnel is used, a circular piece of muslin or of lint is directed to he pressed into the neck by means of a cork with notched sides, but in all cases a similar piece of muslin, moistened slightly with the menstruum, is directed to be interposed between the diaphragm and the powder to prevent the passage of the fine particles of the latter. Receiving Vessel.—For reasons that will more fully appear when describing the management of the process, it is necessary that the receiving vessel should be of such size as to hold precisely the quantity it is proposed to make, or be suitably graduated to this quantity. A convenient plan adopted in the school of practical pharmacy, where a variety of preparations are going on at the same time, is to mark upon a narrow slip of paper the name and quantity of the preparation about being made, and paste this upon the receiving vessel before commencing the process, in such a position that when the required quantity has passed it wl just reach the top of the slip of paper. It is convenient for common purposes to keep one or more graduated bottles, made by pasting a slip of paper longitudinally on the bottles marked with a pen to the fsviij, f.fx, fsxij, Oj, and fsxx denominations, as shown in this cut; the paper mayi be rendered impervious to moisture by collodion or other varnish. Fig. 126. Graduated receiving bottle. The Management of the Process.—The fol- lowing general directions describe the most approved mode of conducting percolation:— Reduce the substance to a uniform powder which will pass through a sieve of from twenty to fifty meshes to the linear inch (if of very close texture a sieve of sixty meshes is to be preferred); now add just sufficient of the menstruum to dampen the powder without wholly destroying its mobility; this usually requires from one-fourth to one- half as much menstruum as of the powder, and may be accomplished THE APPARATUS. 133 on paper without moistening it. Now transfer to a glass funnel or other cylindrical vessel with a porous diaphragm, and pack it with little or much pressure, according to its tenacity or disposition to adhere (more firmly when alcohol or ether is the menstruum than when water is to be used); if the particles of the moistened powder move freely on each other, the packing should be with as much force as a glass vessel will bear, the whole of the powder being introduced at once, and packed with a pestle or packing-stick. The percolator being now properly supported with its neck in a marked receiving vessel, the whole quantity of the menstruum may be poured on, or to the capacity of the funnel, and the process allowed to proceed to comple- tion. The liquid must not be allowed to pass more rapidly than by drops, and where a continuous stream runs from the extremity it is an indication of the necessity of more thorough packing. In most cases this may be remedied by corking up the tubule of the funnel and allowing the mass to become more compact by swelling, or it may be necessary to remove and repack the mass. Instances in which ether or strong alcohol is used as the men- struum, frequently constitute exceptions to the rule of passing by drops; in these the operator will use his judgment as to repassing the liquid, being careful that the strength is fully and completely ex- tracted by the quantity of liquid remaining in the preparation when completed. In the process of packing the moistened powder into the cylinder, reference must be had to the nature of the substance in hand and the menstruum; the rule seems to be that the firmness of the packing should be inversely as the solvent and softening power of the liquid upon the solid under treatment. When a substance in a suitable powder has been dampened and properly packed in a percolator, so that, on the addition of the liquid above, it passes drop by drop, and the first portions being returned, give a clear and very strong preparation, the last portions of liquid should pass almost destitute of the soluble principles contained in the drug. This is the clearest indication of the success of the manipula- tion, and obviates the necessity of any means of expressing the last portions of liquid from a porous mass. In making preparations by displacement, we should aim by skilful manipulation to extract nearly all from the drug that is soluble, before reaching the measure indicated in the formula, the last addition will then serve to displace the last portion held by the dregs, and to dilute the liquid to the proper point. After the process of maceration the dregs are almost always satu- rated with the strongest portion of the liquid, which is wasted unless some means of expression are resorted to; but, if the dregs be thrown upon a filter and drained, and a portion of the menstruum poured upon it, the last drop may sometimes be displaced without a resort to the troublesome process of expression. If the liquid thus added to the dregs is different from the men- struum originally employed, and especially if it is a heavier liquid, it is liable to mix with it, and sometimes results in injury to the pre- 134 PERCOLATION, OR THE DISPLACEMENT PROCESS. paration. By adding about one-third less of the displacing liquid than the supposed quantity of menstruum remaining m the dregs, this inconvenience is generally obviated. . In the preparation of tinctures in which the last portions cannot be recovered by adding water on to the top of the cylinder, and in making lar^e quantities of extracts with strong alcoho^ the con- siderable loss of the alcohol calls for the use of a press Convenient screw-presses are made in the cities, and sold at moderate prices; those shown in the previous chapter are well adapted to the object in view. , . Solution of Gum Resins, &c, in Displacement Apparatus.— Vegetable products of this class are usually so soluble in the menstrua employed for their extraction as to render it a matter of little importance whether they are treated by maceration or percolation. They should be thoroughly divided in order to expose an extended surface to the action of the liquid, and, if dissolved by percolation, should be mixed with an equal bulk of sand to facilitate the process. Tinctures of this class made by maceration require to be filtered to free them from im- purities suspended in them, the necessity of which is obviated when they are made by percolation. Continuous percolation may be accomplished by the following automatic arrangement, which is adapted equally to filtration :— A bottle or globe, capable of containing the quantity of menstruum necessary to complete the preparation, is fitted with a perforated cork, in which is inserted a glass tube of such length as that, being inverted over the percolator, the tube will descend below the surface of the liquid contained in it. The lower end of the tube should have a short curve turned on it; the bottle or globe being filled and arranged in this manner will not discharge any of its contents into the percolator until the surface of the liquid contained in it falls below the extremity of the tube; a bubble of air will then pass up into the bottle, and a corres- ponding portion of the liquid will descend. In this way, the supply in the percolator will be kept up until the bottle has emptied itself; and, if the quantity of the liquid has been accurately estimated, the preparation will be finished without further attention. Instead of having merely a straight piece of tube inserted in the mouth of the bottle from which the liquid is supplied, two tubes may be used, as shown in Fig. 127. In this case, the afflux tube a is turned up at the end, as re- commended above, and as the liquid runs out here air enters at b. The surface of the liquid into which a is immersed must, however, be so far below the lowest point of b as to enable the air to depress the liquid in the external ascending part of b, and thus to enter the bottle. The ^ize of the tubes must be also so ar- ranged that the liquid will not run from a unless the orifice of the tube be in contact with Fig. 127. Bottle for continuous filtration anil displacement. MANAGEMENT OF THE PROCESS. 135 the contents of the filter, so that the cohesive attraction of the liquid may overcome the capillary attraction. The rationale of the process of percolation is very similar to that of filtration; both are due to capillary attraction. In ordinary filtra- tion, the capillarity of the paper causes the absorption of a certain quantity of liquid, but, on more than enough to wet it being added, the pressure of this drives out the first, taking its place, and so on. Precisely the same thing occurs in percolation; a porous substance being saturated with any liquid for which it has an affinity will yield this up, if a portion of liquid be poured on above, from the force of gravitation merely; and hence, in proportion to the height of the column of liquid, other things being equal, will be the rapidity of the process. The fact that alcohol and ether pass through most plants so much more rapidly than water, is due, perhaps, in part to these liquids being less forcibly held by this species of attraction, but mainly to their dissolving less freely the organic proximate principles most abound- ing in plants, and which render aqueous liquids so thick and viscid as to pass with difficulty. Very porous drugs, such as rhubarb, senna, squill, gentian, hyoscya- mus, and others containing a large proportion of extractive matters, cannot be conveniently treated by displacement with wine or liquids containing a considerable proportion of water, owing to their powerful capillarity; in treating these, either by water, diluted alcohol, or diluted acetic acid, the following points are to be observed:— a. The powder must not be too fine, though uniform. The Pharma- copoeia directs for rhubarb, to be treated with mixed alcohol and diluted alcohol, in a powder which would pass through a sieve of 50 meshes to the linear inch (moderately fine); or in an instance where diluted alcohol is used, 40 meshes (moderately coarse). For senna, treated with diluted alcohol, moderately fine. Squill, treated either with diluted alcohol or diluted acetic acid, moderately coarse. Gen- tian is ordered in moderately fine (No. 50) and moderately coarse (No. 40) powder, according to the alcoholic strength of the menstruum. b. The coarse powder must be thoroughly moistened with the men- struum before being introduced into the percolator; it must be at first rather loosely packed, otherwise, being swelled very much on the absorption of the liquid, it may become too tight. The common funnel is to be preferred under these circumstances. c. When the process proceeds with difficulty, from the causes above described, or from otherwise defective manipulation, it may be partly obviated by adding a considerable column of the menstruum above the mass; this, acting by hydrostatic pressure, forces the liquid through with increased facility. d. Time and patience will, to a certain extent, correct the same difficulty; after the first portions of the liquid, which pass so slowly from being highly charged with the soluble principles, and from the 136 PERCOLATION, OR THE DISPLACEMENT PROCESS. continued swelling of the powder, the remainder will often come through more readily, increasing in rapidity to the end. e. The admixture of sand serves a good purpose in this case, as in that of the gum resins. /. Alcohol, diluted in various proportions with water, is directed for making fluid extract of senna, fluid extract of pink-root, syrup of rhubarb, syrup of seneka, compound syrup of squill, and some other preparations, with a view to the difficulty of conducting the percola- tion with water alone. Very compact Drugs.—Seeds and other parts of plants, when of close texture, not readily penetrable by menstrua, may require, as directed in the case of tincture of nux vomica, that the finely pow- dered drug be subjected to prolonged elevation of temperature in contact with the menstruum, previously to percolation. And the instances are frequent, not only in preparing fluid extracts, but also tinctures, that owing to failure to extract the whole strength of the drug with the quantity of menstruum ordered, it becomes necessary to continue the process and evaporate the excess of the menstruum; in such cases, special care must be taken to preserve the proper alcoholic strength of the preparation by allowing for the greater proportional loss of the more volatile ingredient, and to prevent the deterioration of the preparation by heat, by the precaution almost invariably directed in the Pharmacopoeia, of setting aside the first, more concentrated, part, evaporating the last portion only, and finally mixing the liquors. Displacement, applied to hot liquids, requires some modification of the apparatus and the manipulation. The deterioration to which vegetable infusions are liable by boiling is adverted to under that head; the chief use of percolation with steam or hot liquids is to obviate this, at the same time that the advantages of high temperature are secured. The steam percolator, Fig. 128, invented by the late C. Augustus Smith, of Cincinnati, Ohio, consists of two distinct parts, B, the dis- placer, and C, the boiler, connected by a tube of tin or lead, D. A is a tin cap luted on to the top of a common displacement tube terminating in the funnel-shaped appendage below. This is surrounded by a tin jacket, into the bottom of which the conical tube G conducts cold water, while the spout H discharges the warmed water from the top. The substance to be treated being placed in the displacer, and the liquid designed to be applied to it put into the boiler, the connections are luted on, and heat applied by the lamp E, or preferably by a gas furnace. The vapor which is generated passes through the tube D, and peu^tr^-es -th^whole mass in the displacer, the jacket being now filled with cold water, the steam is condensed and passes out below, where it is collected in the receiver F. The advantage is thus gained of penetrating" the powder thoroughly by the aid of heat, while the de- teriorating influence of decoction is avoided. Repeated use of this instrument has convinced me that it possesses advantages over the ordinary means for extraction with hot liquids DISPLACEMENT APPLIED TO HOT LIQUIDS. 137 which should recommend it to general favor; it is not only useful as a substitute for decoction, but obviates the difficulty above adverted to of extracting certain porous and largely soluble vegetables with water. The steam, whether of water or alcohol, being generated in the boiler and passed into the displacer before the addition of cold Fig. 128. Smith's steam displacer. water to the cooler, is maintained at an elevated temperature until it has thoroughly permeated the mass; it is then, by refrigeration, con- verted into liquid, which finds ready egress through the lower orifice, and is highly charged with the soluble vegetable principles present. The removal of these, added to the pressure of the steam, continually kept up from the boiler as fast as it is condensed, renders the flow rapid and the preparation concentrated. Fluid extract of senna can be prepared in the steam displacer in less than twelve hours, without the use of alcohol as a menstruum; so concentrated is the decoction obtained in the first instance as to require comparatively little evaporation to bring it to the officinal standard. The apparatus, as above described, is imperfectly adapted to treat- ing substances with diluted alcohol; if that liquid be placed in the boiler, the effect of the heat applied is to drive over the alcohol first and then the water, so that the first portion being stronger of the resinous principles, and the latter of the starch and extractive, the mixture of the two would be turbid, and the extract not freely soluble. To obviate this, two boilers are sometimes adapted to one cylinder, one for alcohol and the other for water, and, by a proper regulation of the heat to each, the vapors may be brought over in nearly equal proportions at the same time. The cylinder should not be made of too great diameter nor length; but I am informed by the inventor 138 PERCOLATION, OR THE DISPLACEMENT PROCESS. that he uses cylinders of the capacity of a barrel; this is perhaps the largest size that would answer well in practice; where larger quanti- ties of the same substance are to be treated at once than will fill such a cylinder, or where several different operations requiring the same menstruum are to be conducted simultaneously, two or more cylinders may be attached to the same boiler, and placed in the same cooler. Substances heretofore digested in hot alcohol, a very inconvenient process, may be treated with that menstruum with great facility by using this apparatus. 1'or percolation with ether, an ingenius apparatus, invented by Prof. Mohr, is figured in his work. It combines the advantages of a good air-tight displacer with that of a still for recover - Fig. 129. ing the ether; it is, however, a complex appa- ratus, and rather troublesome to use. For percolation at ordinary temperatures, es- pecially where a small amount of the medicinal substance is to be treated with ether, a common displacer maybe used, care being taken to cover it and the receiving vessel, to prevent evapora- tion ; a narrow lamp-chimney, fitting below into a wide-mouth bottle, will be found to serve a good purpose, or, if large enough, a syringe pattern displacer. An adapter, such as is used in retort operations (Fig. 129, A), may be in- serted through a perforated cork into a con- venient bottle, the top being covered with a piece of bladder pierced with pin-holes, or fitted rather loosely with a cork to prevent evaporation. Fig. 129 represents two forms of displacers for ether and other volatile liquids; A is an adapter. The tube C is drawn out into a fine point, so as to admit the passage of the air without favoring evaporation. E represents a notched cork dia- phragm, F a broken retort beak, suited to similar operations. The application of a vacuum to promote the rapidity of percolation is an important improve- ment in certain cases, and several very ingenious forms of apparatus have been contrived °by the French with this end in view; perhaps the best of these are the coffee-pots, in which the pressure of steam is first brought to bear in penetrating the mass with the hot liquid, and then, by the withdrawal of the source of heat, the steam is immediately condensed, creating a vacu- um which hastens the downward passage of the liquid. In usin See Group 2, and Galenical Preparations of Opium. 14:2 OF TINCTDBES. The majority of them are narcotics, and are given in the dose of from 20 to 60 drops. Considered therapeutically the six first named in the table form a very natural group; the remaining four have fewer points of resemblance, and several cannot be classed with narcotics without doing some violence to their true position. The tincture of digitalis is not only peculiar in its therapeutical action, but forms an exception in the dose, which should not exceed ten drops. Group 2.—Narcotics, sedatives, &c. With strong alcohol, saturated or nearly so. Dose 5 to 10 drops. Officinal Name. Proportions. Dose. Medical Properties. Tinctura aconiti radicis " nucis vomicae " veratri viridis " cannabis §vj to Oj 5$iv to Oj jf viij to Oj 3vj ext. to Oj gtt. V to X gtt. v to XV gtt. v to XV gtt. v to XX Nervous, sedative. Nervous, stimulant. Arterial, sedative. Cerebral, stimulant. The second Group of tinctures are among the most powerful liquid preparations in use. They require the utmost care in percolating the several drugs, that the process shall proceed so slowly and so com- pletely as to extract the active principles from the large amounts prescribed, or should it happen that the whole strength has not been extracted up to the time or near the time of the full quantity having passed, it is better to set aside the tincture which has been collected and pass the remainder into an evaporating dish, in which it may be concentrated at a very low temperature and added to the first portion. These tinctures should be generally diluted in prescription, rather than prescribed singly, except where the patient or nurse has experi- ence and care in dropping.1 It is needless to remind the reader that these tinctures are powerful poisons, though the tincture of veratrum viride is perhaps not unfrequently taken in doses much larger than that indicated above. Gboup 3.—Chiefly stimulants and aromatics. Doses, generally from f5j to f3ij. Made of varying proportions with diluted alcohol. Officinal Name. Proportions. Dose. Med. Properties, &c. Tinctura Valerianae " serpentariae " cubebae " cantharidis " capsici " cinnamomi " cardamomi " cardamomi comp. " arnicas £ij to Oj 3;iss do. 5|ss do. do. do. ,5iss do. Jij do. f cardamom 5iij ~] j cinnamon 5hss | to Oj J. caraway 5j honey %j [cochineal 5ss ° J J \ water 1 p. do. do. gtt. XX f3ij f3j f^as Tonic, antispasm. Stimulant, tonic. Stimulant, diuretic. Stim., to be diluted. do. do. Aromatic,adjuvant. do. do. do. do. Used externally. 1 The tincture of cannabis, which is prepared by trituration in a mortar is quite incompatible with aqueous liquids unless suspended, as directed under the head of Extemporaneous Preparations. It is very variable in strength owing to the differ- ence in the quality of the extract in commerce. TONIC AND ASTRINGENT TINCTURES. 143 The third Group has less points of resemblance among its members than either of the others. Tinctures of valerian and serpentaria may be substituted by the corresponding fluid extracts. Tincture of cubebs is rarely used, the oleo-resin being adapted to the form of lozenge and of mixture. Tincture of cantharides, which is much prescribed as an addition to preparations for the hair, to the growth of which it is an admirable stimulant, should for this purpose be made with strong- alcohol. Tincture of arnica, which is a new officinal, is often made with strong alcohol, which has the advantage in view of its use externally, of less color, and more powerful stimulating properties. The addition of one-third water, as directed in the Pharmacopoeia, should, of course, be complied with, out of respect to the national standard, and for the sake of uniformity. The last three tinctures of this group are all used for the same purposes, as adjuvants to other medicines, in extem- poraneous solutions and mixtures. The compound tincture of carda- mom is a very elegant one for this purpose. In the late edition of the Pharmacopoeia this has been improved by the substitution of raisins, which were formerly introduced as a sweetening ingredient, by honey, which, besides being added with more facility, does not interfere with the permanence of the rich color, which is one of the great recom- mendations of this adjuvant. Group 4.—These are made with diluted alcohol. They are generally quite incom- patible with salts of iron, forming inky solutions. They are all astringents or tonics, or both. Doses, from f 5j to f 3ij. Officinal Name. Proportions. Dose. Med. Properties. Tinctura gallae giJtoOj f3U Astringent. u catechu giss to Oj with §j cinnam. do. do. u kino _. , „. f alcohol 2 p. >s t0 °J | water 1 p. m do. ii krameriae 3"j to Oj do. do. u cinchonas do. (yellow bark) f5U Tonic. red bark §ij B. orange-peel §iss | do. aromatic. ii " comp. serpentaria 3iij J-tofgxx saffron 3j | saunders zj do. (Huxham's.) n calumbae § ij to ' j ( gentian gj \ do. Tonic. n gentianaecomp. •j B. orange-peel g ss > to Oj ( cardamom 3U J do. do. aromatic. ii quassiae li to oj do. , do. ii humuli §iiss to Oj do. do. sedative. In this group the tonic and astringent preparations are appropri- ately associated, though differing among themselves. The tinctures of quassia and Colombo are sui generis m containing no astringent prin- ciple. The dose of these will be observed to be larger than of the previous groups, ranging from two fluidrachms to half a fluidounce. Tinctures of kino and catechu are very popular astringents, but liable to gelatinize by age, particularly the first named, on which account the Pharmacopoeia directs that only half a pint should be made at once. In the late edition the proportions of alcohol and 144 OF TINCTURES. water are varied to meet this difficulty, doubtless as the result of ex- periments. Of this group Huxham's tincture of cinchona holds pre-eminence as a popular tonic, though it and the simple tincture of (yellow) cinchona, a most unsightly preparation, are both being superseded in many circles by the more elegant " elixirs of bark" recently introduced. [Group 5.—With diluted alcohol, cathartics, and stomachics. Doses, f3j to fgss. Officinal Name. Proportions. Dose. Med. Properties, etc. Tinct. hellebori " jalapae " rhei " " et sennae " aloes gij to Oj !,... . r.. "I alcohol 2 p. 3nJt0Nwaterlp. 1 rhubarb giss ) tQ Qj ( cardamom 31! ) [ rhubarb §ss ] senna 3j coriander 3SS fennel 3ss ItoOiss j saunders gj | | saffron gr. xv | liquorice gr. xv | [raisins giij J f soc. aloes §ss ) ale. f^iv \ liquorice §iss j water fgxij f3J do. f§ss do. do. Emmenagogue, cathart. Cathartic used in com-bination. Tonic, cathartic. Carminative, laxative. (Warner's Cordial.) Cathartic. Tinctures of hellebore and of jalap are rarely prescribed, especially the latter, which is not miscible with aqueous liquids without precipi- tation. Two compound tinctures of rhubarb which were officinal in the older Pharmacopoeias, have been omitted from the late edition, as also the tincture of senna and jalap; they were little prescribed. The tincture of rhubarb and senna is directed to be made by macera- tion, but, with the exception of the raisins, which should be sepa- rately macerated in the tincture, the ingredients if properly powdered and mixed, are well adapted to displacement. Tincture of aloes is so very disgusting that few physicians with due regard for their patients will inflict it upon them, especially as vinum aloes is so superior to it. Several infusions containing aloes are given under the head of Unofficinal Infusions. The doses named in the tables may be considered as average adult doses; it is impossible to state their variations in a syllabus. OF TINCTURES. 145 Group 6.—Resinous Tinctures, made with strong alcohol, incompatible with aqueous liquids. Doses, f 3ss to f^ij. Officinal Name. Proportions. Dose. Medical Properties. Tinctura myrrhae1 " aloes et myrrhae " guaiaci " assafoetida " castorei " lupulinse " tolutani " benzoini comp. " zingiberis giij to Oij f$ ( aloes giss ") \ saffron gss J- f^j I myrrh giss j giij to Oj f gij §ij to Oj f 3J §j to Oj f gss §ij to Oj f £j giss to Oj fgss [ benzoin giss ') ! storax gi _.i jbals. tolu^ss t0°Jf^s [ aloes 3ij j giv to Oj f^j Astringent, emmenagogue. Laxative, emmenagogue. (Elixir proprietatis.) Alterative, diaphoretic. Antispasmodic. Antispasmodic. Tonic, narcotic. Stimulant, expectorant. Stimulant, expectorant. (See Turlington's balsam.) Carminative. Tinctures of this group are all incompatible with aqueous liquids, which, by rendering the resinous ingredient insoluble, precipitate it. Notwithstanding this apparent disadvantage, they may be added to aqueous mixtures, where sugar or gum are added as excipients. Some of the resinous tinctures are much given on sugar, which is allowed to dissolve slowly in the mouth; they may also be given in milk. _ Tinctures of tolu and ginger are used in the preparation of the offi- cinal tolu and ginger syrups. The latter is extensively known as essence of ginger, and is one of the most popular of carminatives. Tincture of myrrh is almost exclusively used in the composition of gargles and mouth-washes, its stimulant and astringent properties fitting it to these uses. Tincture of guaiac is remarkable for the green color of the precipitate produced on its addition to milk, which is the usual vehicle in which it is administered. The patient is apt to be alarmed at this appearance unless previously informed of it. The solutions of camphor and essential oils in alcohol are placed, by the last revision of the Pharmacopoeia, under the general head Spiritus. Group 7.—Ammoniated or Volatile Tinctures, made with aromatic spirit of ammonia. Tinct. guaiaci ammoniata ,|iv to Oiss Stimulating diaphoretic, Dose, f 3j. " Valerianae " gij to Oj Antispasmodic, do. Aromatic spirit of ammonia, itself an admirable stimulant and ant- acid, and extensively used as a remedy for sick headache, is used as a menstruum in this class of tinctures; it has the advantage, from the quantity of carbonate of ammonia it contains, of increasing the solu- 1 I do not see the propriety of the use of strong alcohol in all the tinctures of this class; in several, diluted alcohol would seem to be the proper menstruum. In myrrh, there are 44 parts of gum to 40 of resin, and 2 of essential oil, so that the proportion of diluted alcohol would be nearly suited to its solution. In assafoetida there are about 65 parts of resin and 31 of gum, which would seem to indicate the use of about 2 parts of alcohol to 1 of water. 10 146 OF TINCTURES. bility of resinous bodies, and also adding to their stimulating effects and comparative medicinal efficiency in certain cases. Volatile tincture of guaiac is prescribed in gouty affections with an acid diathesis. Volatile tincture of Valerian has been almost superseded, of late, by Pierlot's solution and elixir of valerianate of ammonia; yet the diffu- sible character of the ammoniacal spirit is well adapted to add effi- ciency to this noted antispasmodic root, and when the tincture is carefully prepared with fresh materials, it is a most valuable remedy; the percolator should be covered to prevent loss of the volatile in- gredient. Working Formulas for preparing the Tinctures. From the If. S. Pharmacopoeia. Tinctura Aconiti Folii U. S. P. Take of Aconite leaf, recently dried and in fine powder, four troy- ounces. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Moisten the powder with two fluidounces of diluted alcohol, pack it firmly in a conical percolator, and gradually pour diluted alcohol upon it until two pints of tincture are obtained. Tinctura Aconiti Radicis IT. S. P. ' Take of Aconite root, in fine powder, twelve troyounces. Alcohol a sufficient quantity. Moisten the powder with six fluidounces of alcohol, pack it firmly in a cylindrical percolator, and gradually pour alcohol upon it until two pints of tincture are Qbtained. Tinctura Aloes TJ. S. P. Take of Socotrine aloes, in fine powder, a troyounce. Liquorice three troyounces. Alcohol half a pint. Distilled water a pint and a half. Macerate for fourteen days, and filter through paper. Tinctura Aloes et Myrrhas U. S. P. Take of Socotrine aloes, in moderately fine powder, Myrrh, in moderately fine powder, each, three troyounces. Saffron, in moderately coarse powder, a troyounce. Alcohol a sufficient quantity. Mix the powders, and, having moistened the mixture with two fluidounces of alcohol, pack it moderately in a conical percolator, and gradually pour alcohol upon it until two pints of tincture are obtained. This tincture may also be prepared by macerating the powders with two pints of alcohol for fourteen days, and filtering through paper. OF TINCTURES. 147 Tinctura Arnicas U. S. P. Take of Arnica six troyounces. Alcohol a pint and a half. Water half a pint. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Mix the alcohol and water, and, having moistened the arnica slightly with the mixture, bruise it thoroughly in a mortar. Then pack it firmly in a cylindrical percolator, and pour upon it, first the remainder of the mixture, and afterwards sufficient diluted alcohol to make the tincture measure two pints. Tinctura Assafoetidee1 TJ. S. P. Take of Assafoetida, bruised, four troyounces. Alcohol two pints. Macerate for fourteen days, and filter through paper. Tinctura Belladonnas. Take of Belladonna leaf, recently dried and in fine powder, four troyounces. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Moisten the powder with two fluidounces of diluted alcohol, pack it firmly in a conical percolator, and gradually pour diluted alcohol upon it until two pints of tincture are obtained. Tinctura Benzoini Composita U. S. P. Take of Benzoin, in coarse powder, three troyounces. Socotrine aloes, in coarse powder, half a troyounce. Storax two troyounces. Balsam of tolu a troyounce. Alcohol two pints. Macerate for fourteen days, and filter through paper. Tinctura Calumbee U. S. P. (Tinctura Colombas U. S. P. 1850.) Take of Columbo, in moderately fine powder, four troyounces. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Moisten the powder with a fluidounce of diluted alcohol, transfer it to a conical percolator, and gradually pour diluted alcohol upon it until two pints of tincture are obtained. Tinctura Cannabis. (Tincture of Indian Hemp) U. S. P. Take of Purified extract of hemp three hundred and sixty grains. Alcohol a pint. Dissolve the extract in the alcohol, and filter through paper. ' Tincture of assafoetida may be rapidly prepared by introducing the gum resin into a mortar, and pouring on to it about an equal quantity of boiling w; ter, triturating into a paste, then add alcohol to make up the required quantity. 148 OF TINCTURES. Tinctura Cantharidis IT. S. P. Take of Cantharides, in fine powder, a troyounce. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Moisten the powder with half a fluidounce of diluted alcohol, pack it in a conical percolator, and gradually pour diluted alcohol upon it until two pints of tincture are obtained. Tinctura Capsici IT. S. P. Take of Capsicum, in fine powder, a troyounce. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Moisten the powder with half a fluidounce of diluted alcohol, pack it in a conical percolator, and gradually pour diluted alcohol upon it until two pints of tincture are obtained. Tinctura Cardamomi U. S. P. Take of Cardamom, in fine powder, four troyounces. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Moisten the powder with two fluidounces of diluted alcohol, pack it firmly in a cylindrical percolator, and gradually pour diluted alcohol upon it until two pints of tincture are obtained. Tinctura Cardamomi Composita IT. S. P. Take of Cardamom, in moderately fine powder, three hundred and sixty grains. Caraway, in moderately fine powder, one hundred ^ and twenty grains. Cinnamon, in moderately fine powder, three hundred grains. Cochineal, in moderately fine powder, sixty grains. Clarified honey two troyounces. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Mix the powders, and, having moistened the mixture with half a fluidounce of diluted alcohol, pack it in a cylindrical percolator, and gradually pour diluted alcohol upon it until two pints and six fluid- ounces of tincture are obtained. Lastly, mix this with the clarified honey, and filter through paper. Tinctura Castorei IT. S. P. Take of Castor, bruised, two troyounces. Alcohol two pints. Macerate for seven days, express, and filter through paper. Tinctura Catechu IT. S. P. Take of Catechu, in moderately coarse powder, three troyounces. Cinnamon in moderately coarse powder, two troyounces. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Mix the powders, and, having moistened the mixture with a fluid- ounce of diluted alcohol, pack it in a conical glass percolator, and gradually pour diluted alcohol upon it until two pints of tincture are obtained. OF TINCTURES. 149 Tinctura Cinchonas IT. S. P. Take of Yellow cinchona, in moderately fine powder, six troyounces. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Moisten the powder with two fluidounces of diluted alcohol, pack it firmly in a glass percolator, and gradually pour diluted alcohol upon it until two pints o.^ tincture are obtained. Tinctura Cinchonas tfamposita IT. S. P. (Huxhams Tincture of Bark) Take of Red cinchona, in moderately fine powder, four troyounces. Bitter orange peel, in moderately fine powder, three troy- ounces. *■ Serpentaria, in moderately fine powder, three hundred and sixty grains. Saffron, in moderately coarse powder, Eed saunders, in moderately fine powder, each, one hun- dred and twenty grains. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Mix the powders, and, having moistened the mixture with four fluid- ounces of diluted alcohol, pack it firmly in a glass percolator, and gradually pour diluted alcohol upon it until two pints and a half of tincture are obtained. Tinctura Cinnamomi IT. S. P. Take of Cinnamon, in fine powder, three troyounces. Alcohol, Water, each, a sufficient quantity. Mix alcohol and water in the proportion of two measures of the former to one of the latter. Then moisten the powder with a fluid- ounce of the mixture, pack it moderately in a conical percolator, and gradually pour the mixture upon it until two pints of filtered liquid are obtained. Tinctura Colchici IT. S. P. Take of Colchicum seed, in moderately fine powder, four troyounces. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Moisten the powder with a fluidounce of diluted alcohol, pack it in a cylindrical percolator, and gradually pour diluted alcohol upon it until two pints of tincture are obtained. Tinctura Conii IT. S. P. Take of Hemlock, recently dried and in fine powder, four troy- ounces. . Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Moisten the powder with two fluidounces of diluted alcohol, pack it firmly in a conical percolator, and gradually pour diluted alcohol upon it until two pints of tincture are obtained. Tinctura Cubebas IT. S. P. Take of Cubeb, in moderately fine powder, four troyounces. Diluted, alcohol a sufficient quantity. Moisten the powder with a fluidounce of diluted alcohol, pack it in 150 OF TINCTURES. a conical percolator, and gradually pour diluted alcohol upon it until two pints of tincture are obtained. Tinctura Digitalis IT. S. P. Take of Digitalis, recently dried and in fine powder, four troyounces. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Moisten the powder with two fluidounces of diluted alcohol, pack it firmly in a conical percolator, and gradually pour diluted alcohol upon it until two pints of tincture are obtained. Tinctura Gallee IT. S. P. Take of Nutgall, in moderately fine powder, four troyounces. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Moisten the powder with a fluidounce of diluted alcohol, pack it in a glass percolator, and gradually pour diluted alcohol upon it until two pints of tincture are obtained. Tinctura Gentianee Composita IT. S. P. Take of Gentian, in moderately fine powder, two troyounces. Bitter orange peel, in moderately fine powder, a troyounce. Cardamom, in moderately fine powder, half a troyounce. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Mix the powders, and, having moistened the mixture with a fluid- ounce and a half of diluted alcohol, pack it in a conical percolator, and gradually pour diluted alcohol upon it until two pints of tincture are obtained. Tinctura Guaiaci IT. S. P. Take of Guaiac, in moderately coarse powder, six troyounces. Alcohol a sufficient quantity. Mix the powder thoroughly with an equal bulk of dry sand, pack the mixture moderately in a conical percolator, and, having covered it with a layer of sand, gradually pour alcohol upon it until two pints of tincture are obtained. Tinctura Guaiaci Ammoniata IT. S. P. (Volatile Tincture of Guaiac) Take of Guaiac, in moderately coarse powder, six troyounces. Aromatic spirit of ammonia two pints. Macerate for seven days, and filter through paper. Tinctura Hellebori IT. S. P. Take of Black Hellebore, in moderately fine powder, four troy- ounces. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Moisten the powder with a fluidounce of diluted alcohol, pack it in a cylindrical percolator, and gradually pour diluted alcohol upon it until two pints of tincture are obtained. OFFICINAL TINCTURES. 151 Tinctura Humuli IT. S. P. Take of Hops, in moderately coarse powder, five troyounces. Diluted alcohol a sufficient o/uantity. Moisten the powder with two fluidounces of diluted alcohol, pack it very firmly in a cylindrical percolator, and gradually pour diluted alcohol upon it until twro pints of tincture are obtained. Tinctura Hyoscyami IT. S. P. Take of Henbane leaf, in fine powder, four troyounces. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Moisten the powder with two fluidounces of diluted alcohol, pack it firmly in a conical percolator, and gradually pour diluted alcohol upon it until two pints of tincture are obtained. Tinctura Jalapas IT. S. P. Take of Jalap, in fine powder, six troyounces. Alcohol, Water, each, a sufficient quantity. Mix two measures of alcohol with one of water. Then moisten the powder with two fluidounces of the mixture, pack it moderately in a cylindrical percolator, and gradually pour the mixture upon it until two pints of tincture are obtained. Tinctura Kino IT. S. P. Take of Kino, in fine powder, three hundred and sixty grains. Alcohol, Water, each, a sufficient quantity. Mix two measures of alcohol with one of water. Then mix the powder thoroughly with an equal bulk of dry sand, and, having in- troduced the mixture into a conical glass percolator, gradually pour the menstruum upon it until half a pint of tincture is obtained. Tinctura Kramerias IT. S. P. Take of Rhatany, in moderately fine powder, six troyounces. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Moisten the powder with two fluidounces of diluted alcohol, pack it in a cylindrical glass percolator, and gradually pour diluted alcohol upon it until two pints of tincture are obtained. Tinctura Lobelias IT. S. P. Take of Lobelia, in fine powder, four troyounces. % Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Moisten the powder with two fluidounces of diluted alcohol, pack it firmly in a conical percolator, and gradually pour diluted alcohol upon it until two pints of tincture are obtained. 152 OFFICINAL TINCTURES. Tinctura Lupulinee IT. S. P. Take of Lupulin four troyounces. Alcohol a sufficient quantity. Pack the lupulin in a narrow cylindrical percolator, and gradually pour alcohol upon it until two pints of tincture are obtained. Tinctura Myrrhse1 IT. S. P. Take of Myrrh, in moderately coarse powder, three troyounces. Alcohol a sufficient quantity. Introduce the powder into a conical percolator, press it moderately, and gradually pour alcohol upon it until two pints of tincture are obtained. Tinctura Nucis Vomicae IT. S. P. Take of Nux vomica, in fine powder, eight troyounces. Alcohol a sufficient quantity. Mix the powder with a pint of alcohol, and digest for twenty-four hours, in a close vessel, with a gentle heat; then transfer the mixture to a cylindrical percolator, and gradually pour alcohol upon it until two pints of tincture are obtained. Tinctura Quassias IT. S. P. Take of Quassia, in moderately fine powder, two troyounces. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Moisten the powder with a fluidounce of diluted alcohol, pack it in a percolator, and gradually pour diluted alcohol upon it until two pints of tincture are obtained. Tinctura Rhei IT. S. P. Take of Rhubarb, in moderately coarse powder, three troyounces. Cardamom, in moderately fine powder, half a troyounce. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Mix the powders, and, having moistened the mixture with a fluid- ounce of diluted alcohol, pack it moderately in a conical percolator, and gradually pour diluted alcohol upon it until two pints of tincture are obtained. Tinctura Rhei et Sennas IT. S. P. Take of Rhubarb, in moderately coarse powder, a troyounce. Senna, in moderately coarse powder, Red saunders, in moderately coarse powder, each, one hundred and twenty grains. Coriander, in moderately coarse powder, Fennel, in moderately coarse powder, each, sixty grains. Saffron, in moderately coarse powder, Liquorice, in moderately coarse powder, each, thirty grains. Raisins, deprived of their seeds, six troyounces. Diluted alcohol three pints. Macerate for fourteen days, express, and filter through paper. ' Tincture of myrrh may be prepared with facility by pouring on the crude myrrh in a mortar about an equal quantity of boiling water and triturating into a paste then adding alcohol to make the required quantity of the tincture. ' FORMULAS FOR TINCTURES. 153 Tinctura Sanguinariee IT. S. P. Take of Bloodroot, in moderately fine powder, four troyounces. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Moisten the powder with a fluidounce of diluted alcohol, pack it in a conical percolator, and gradually pour diluted alcohol upon it until two pints of tincture are obtained. Tinctura Scillas IT. S. P. Take of Squill, in moderately coarse powder, four troyounces. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Moisten the powder with a fluidounce of diluted alcohol, pack it in a conical percolator, and gradually pour diluted alcohol upon it until two pints of tincture are obtained. Tinctura Serpentarix IT. S. P. Take of Serpentaria, in moderately fine powder, four troyounces. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Moisten the powder with a fluidounce of diluted alcohol, pack it in a conical percolator, and gradually pour diluted alcohol upon it until two pints of tincture are obtained. Tinctura Stramonii IT. S. P. Take of Stramonium seed, in moderately fine powder, four troy- ounces. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Moisten the powder with a fluidounce of diluted alcohol, pack it in a percolator, and gradually pour diluted alcohol upon it until two pints of tincture are obtained. Tinctura Tolutana IT. S. P. Take of Balsam of tolu three troyounces. Alcohol two pints. Macerate the balsam with the alcohol until it is dissolved; then filter through paper. Tinctura Valerianae IT. S. P. Take of Valerian, in moderately fine powder; four troyounces. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Moisten the powder with a fluidounce of diluted alcohol, pack it in a conical percolator, and gradually pour diluted alcohol upon it until two pints of tincture are obtained. Tinctura Valerianae Ammoniata. (Volatile Tincture of Valerian) U. S. P. Take of Valerian, in moderately fine powder, four troyounces. Aromatic spirit of ammonia two pints. Macerate for seven days, express, and filter through paper. 154 OF TINCTURES. Tinctura Veratri Viridis IT. S. P. Take of American hellebore, in moderately fine powder, sixteen troyounces. Alcohol a sufficient quantity. . Moisten the powder with four fluidounces of alcohol, pack it firmly in a cylindrical percolator, and gradually pour alcohol upon it until two pints of tincture are obtained. Tinctura Zingiberis IT. S. P. (Essence of Ginger) Take of Ginger, in fine powder, eight troyounces. Alcohol a sufficient quantity. Moisten the powder with two fluidounces of alcohol, pack ft firmly in a cylindrical percolator, and gradually pour alcohol upon it until two pints of tincture are obtained. Selections of Tinctures not Officinal in the IT. S. Pharmacopoeia. Tinctura Ferri Amara. (Dr. Physick's Bitter Tincture of Iron) Take of Iron filings.....3 iij- Bruised ginger, " 'gentian, of each . . 3j. " orange-peel . . . iss. Infuse in one pint of old cider for two weeks, in a bottle without a stopper, and filter. Modified Formula for the above. Take of Iron filings .... . liij. Old cider .... . Oj. Acetic acid . . • fsj. Citric acid .... . 3ss. Ginger, in coarse powder . Siv. Gentian, in coarse powder . 3iv. Orange-peel, in coarse powder . 3ij. Alcohol .... . Oij. Water..... . Oj. To the iron filings in a wide mouth bottle add the cider and acetic acid; digest for several hours by the aid of a moderate heat. Perco- late the aromatics with the mixed alcohol and water. Add the citric acid to the cider preparation, mix it with the aromatic tincture, and after a few hours pour off the clear liquor, filter the remainder into this, and bottle for use. As thus made, this preparation has a rich wine color, becoming darker by age, but not black and grumous like the foregoing. Though not a handsome tincture, this famous chalybeate tonic is still esteemed as most efficient. Tinctura Cinchonas Ferrata. On account of the large number of cases in which the tonic effects of cinchona and aromatics are indicated with ferruginous preparations, FORMULAS FOR TINCTURES. 155 it has been deemed desirable to contrive a method of combining these without producing the inky and grumous appearance resulting from the diffusion of tannate of iron in the preparation; following the pub- lication of formulas for this combination an extensive demand occurred for ferrated tincture of bark, which has only subsided with the intro- duction of bitter wine of iron, wine of citrate of iron and quinia, and other more desirable preparations. Of the several processes recommended, that given among the tonic liquid preparations, in Part V. of this work, is recommended as a simple and satisfactory extem- poraneous process. Tinctura Quinines Composita. (Dublin Ph.) Take of Sulphate of quinia . . . 3v, 9j. Tincture of orange-peel . . Oij (imperial measure). Digest for seven days, or till dissolved. Dose, f3j, containing a grain of the quinia salt. The tincture of orange-peel, which is not officinal here, may be substituted by tinct. gentiana? comp., U. S. P. Tinctura Strychnios. Take of Strychnia.....gr. iij. Alcohol.....foj. Make a tincture. Dose, "iv to xvj. This is perhaps about the strength of tincture of nux vomica (as shown below), for which it is sometimes substituted. Name. Proportions. Dose. Tinctura nucis vomicae, U. S. giv to Oj ale, 5 to 15 minims. " strychniae, gr. iij to f gj (16 minims = ^ grain), do. Flemming's Tincture of Aconite. Take of Aconite root (dried and finely powdered) . 3xyj. Rectified spirits......Sufficient. Macerate for four days with sixteen ounces of the spirits, then pack into a percolator, add more until twenty-four fluidounces of tincture are obtained. This is the strongest of the tinctures of aconite; it is compared with the others in the following syllabus:— Name. Proportions. Dose. Tinctura aconiti folii, U. S. P., gij leaves to Oj dil. ale, 20 to 30 drops. " " radicis, U. S. P., gvj root to Oj alcohol, 5 drops. " " (Flemming's), gviij root to f gxij do., 3 to 5 drops. There is not perhaps so great a difference between the last two as their relative proportions would indicate, both being nearly saturated. Care should be taken to distinguish these by their full name in pre- scribino; and labelling. 156 OF TINCTURES. Tinctura Matico. (Dublin Ph.) Take of Matico leaves, in coarse powder, 8 ounces (commercial). Proof spirit . . . .2 pints (imp'l measure). Macerate fourteen days, strain, express, and filter. Dose, from f 3j to f 3iij. Used as an alterative stimulant and haemo- static. Dewees' Tincture of Guaiacum. Take of Guaiacum resin . . . . Ijv. Carbonate of potassa . . . 3iss. Pulv. pimento . . . . §j. Diluted alcohol . . . -Oij. Digest for two weeks. Dose, from f3j to f3ij. Tinctura Rhei Aromatica. (Noble's Tonic Elixir) Take of Rhubarb, Caraway, Orange-peel, of each . . . Iij. Brandy..... Oij. Macerate for two weeks or displace. Dose, f3j to fjss. Tinctura Moschi (Medicinal). Deschamp. Take of Musk (in grain) .... 1 part. Alcohol (56 per cent.) . . .5 parts. Macerate together for fourteen days, or until needed for use, and filter. Ethereal Tinctures. The use of the several forms of ether as menstrua in tinctures is objectionable, owing to the variations in strength to which these are liable from the rapid evaporation of the ether, even at ordinary tem- peratures, and in the transfer of the liquid from the bottles; yet the solvent action of ether and its diffusible character adapts it to com- bination with certain remedies. The following preparations, prescribed by Dr. Mettauer, of Virginia, containing spt. estheris nitrosi, are selected by way of illustration:— Mettauer's Ethereal Tincture of Cantharides. R.—Cantharidis pulv. . . . . giij. Spt. aether, nit......Oiiss. Macerate for eight days, and filter. The ethereous menstruum seems to promote the tendency of the flies to the genito-urinary organs without producing strangury. It is also used as a blister for the scalp of infants. Mettauer's Ethereal Tincture of Cubebs. R.—Cubebae pulv......3iv. Spt. setheris nit......Oij. Macerate for eight days, and filter. Used for subacute inflammation of the bladder, urethra, &c, and ETHEREAL TINCTURES. 157 of the mucous lining of the stomach and bowels. Dr. M. also uses spirit of nitrous ether as a menstruum for colchicum, guaiac, squill, ergot, ipecac, &c. Asiatic Tincture for Cholera. Take of Opium,......Ij. Camphor.....Ij. Oil of cloves.....f Ij. Capsicum.....Ij. Hoffmann's anodyne . . . Oj. Macerate ten to twenty days, or prepare by percolation. This is a most valuable application of the Ethereal Liquor of Hoffmann, the diffusible character of which is admirably adapted to heighten the effect of the powerful stimulants prescribed. It has attained considerable celebrity within several years past. Adult dose, 20 to 60 drops every second, third, or fourth hour, according to circumstances, in a little sweetened water. Ethereal Tincture of Guaiacum. Take of Resin guaiacum . . .3 troyounces. Spirit of nitrous ether . 1 pint, or q. s. Treat by displacement or maceration, till one pint of the tincture is obtained. Dose, a teaspoonful. Ethereal Tincture of Colchicum. Take of Colchicum . . . . 6 oz. Spirit of nitrous ether . 1 pint, or q. s. Treat by displacement or maceration, till one pint of the tincture is obtained. Dose, 20 to 30 drops. Ethereal Tincture of Cannabis Indica. Take of Squire's extract of cannabis . Half an ounce. Spirit of nitrous ether . . Half a pint. Triturate together in a mortar, till the extract is dissolved. Dose, 5 to 15 drops. • The foregoing preparations of guaiacum, colchicum and cannabis are used jointly for rheumatic and neuralgic symptoms. (See Extempo- raneous Prescriptions) They are also well adapted to substitute the alcoholic tinctures of the same drugs for most general purposes. 158 MEDICATED WINES, VINEGARS, AND CORDIALS. CHAPTER VIII. MEDICATED WINES, VINEGARS, ELIXIRS, AND CORDIALS. Vina U. S. P. This class of Galenical solutions is less numerous than the tinctures, to which it is closely allied. There are two kinds of wine officinal in the U.S. Pharmacopoeia: vinum xericum (vinum album of the former Pharmacopoeia), which is sherry wine (Teneriffe and Madeira are sometimes used in its stead), and vinum portense, which is port wine. The former contains about 20 per cent, of alcohol, sp. gr. .825, and the latter near 26 per cent. In all the medicated wines which are officinal, white wine is directed as the menstruum. This is a clear, amber-colored liquid, having an agreeable pungent taste, and destitute of acidity. It possesses the advantage over either alcohol or diluted alcohol, of being less stimu- lating, and more agreeable in its taste and in its effects on the system. It is chiefly objectionable as a substitute for diluted alcohol, from its liability to decompose when impregnated with the soluble principles of plants. To meet this objection, it is customary with some to add from one to two fluidounces of alcohol to a pint of the wine, and this course is directed in the Pharmacopoeia in the case of vinum rhei. SYLLABUS OF THE OFFICINAL MEDICATED WINES. Officinal Name. Proportions. Dose. Med. Properties. Vinum aloes " rhei ' " colchici radicis " " seminis " ergotse " ipecacuanha " tabaci " antimonii toOj(^ + cardamonL.l J \ gmger, aa 3j j toOi J 3*1 +canella & 1 toUJt dil.alc.fgij/ Ivj to Oj. # Iij <*<>. Iij do. |j do. 3J do. 2 grs. tart. emet. to fgj f3ij to flij f 3j to fgss gtt. x to f 3j f 3J to f3ij t'3j f 3J to f^ss gtt. XX f3J to fgss Carminative, aperient. do. Diuretic, nerv. sedative. do. Parturient. Expectorant. Diuretic, sedat. Expect., emet. REMARKS ON THE MEDICATED WINES. The two wines of cohhicum are much prescribed in rheumatic and gouty affections; that of the root, as seen in the Syllabus, is much the stronger. Prepared according to the working formula appended,.from the Pharmacopoeia, it furnishes a very efficient preparation. The wine of the seed should be made of the fresh and well-preserved seed; it is preferred by some as a more uniform preparation. Lar«-e WINES OF COLCHICUM. 159 quantities of wine of fresh colchicum root are imported from England, and it is said to be more efficient than that prepared of the dried root. Some of the best pharmaceutists in England, however, prefer to use the recently dried root as furnishing uniform and satisfactory results. Antimonial wine is made by trituration in a mortar, owing to the comparative insolubility of the tartrate of antimony and potassa in alcoholic liquids. The late edition of the Pharmacopoeia directs a small portion of boiling water to be added to the salt and this solu- tion to the wine. Wine of ipecac, is an elegant and very popular preparation, being much used by itself, and with other expectorant and diaphoretic reme- dies ; it is not as depressing in its effects as wine of antimony, and yet about equally efficacious as an emetic and nauseant. Wine of ergot is perhaps more used than any other preparation of that drug; it has no other fault than its proneness to decompose in hot weather, which makes it necessary to add a little strong alcohol, or to keep it in a cool place, and in well-stopped bottles. Working- Formulas from the U. S. Pharmacopceia. Vinum Aloes. (Wine of Aloes) U. S. P. Take of Socotrine aloes, in fine powder, a troyounce. Cardamom, in moderately fine powder, Ginger, in moderately fine powder, each, sixty grains. Sherry wine a pint. Macerate for seven days, with occasional agitation, and filter through paper. Vinum Antimonii. ( Wine of Antimony) U. S. P. Take of Tartrate of antimony and potassa thirty-two grains. Boiling distilled water a fluidounce. Sherry wine a sufficient quantity. Dissolve the salt in the distilled water, and, while the solution is hot, add sufficient sherry wine to make it measure a pint. Vinum Cohhici Radicis. (Wine of Colchicum Root.) U. S. P. Take of Colchicum root, ir? moderately fine powder, twelve troy- ounces. Sherry wine a sufficient quantity. Moisten the powder with four fluidounces of sherry wine, pack it firmly in a conical percolator, and gradually pour sherry wine upon it until two pints of filtered liquid are obtained. Vinum Cohhici Seminis. (Wine of Colchicum Seed.) U. S. P. Take of Colchicum seed, in moderately coarse powder, four troy- ounces. Sherry wine two pints. Macerate for fourteen days, with occasional agitation; then express, and filter through paper. 160 medicated wines, vinegars, and cordials. Vinum Ergotas. ( Wine of Ergot) U. S. P. Take of Ergot, in moderately fine powder, two troyounces. Sherry wine a sufficient quantity. Moisten the powder with half a fluidounce of sherry wine, pack it in a conical percolator, and gradually pour sherry wine upon it until two pints of filtered liquid are obtained. Vinum Ipecacuanhas. (Wine of Ipecacuanha) U. S. P. Take of Ipecacuanha, in moderately fine powder, two troyounces. Sherry wine a sufficient quantity. Moisten the powder with half a fluidounce of sherry wine, pack it moderately in a conical percolator, and gradually pour sherry wine upon it until two pints of filtered liquid are obtained. Vinum Rhei. ( Wine of Rhubarb) U. S. P. Take of Rhubarb, in moderately coarse powder, two troyounces. Canella, in moderately fine powder, sixty grains. Sherry wine fourteen fluidounces. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Mix two fluidounces of diluted alcohol with the sherry wine, and moisten the powders, previously rubbed together, with half a fluid- ounce of the mixture; then transfer them to a conical percolator, and gradually pour upon them the remainder of the mixture, and afterwards diluted alcohol, until a pint of filtered liquid is obtained. Vinum Tabaci. ( Wine of Tobacco) U. S. P. Take of Tobacco, in moderately fine powder, a troyounce. Sherry wine a pint. Macerate for seven days, with occasional agitation; then express, and filter through paper. Wines not Officinal in U. S. P. Aromatic Wine. Take of Wormwood, peppermint, Rosemary, thyme, Hyssop, sage, Lavender, sweet marjoram, of each, . 3ij- Port wine.....Oij. Macerate seven days, transfer to a percolator and displace. The principal use of aromatic wine is as an astringent and stimu- lating wash, applied particularly to buboes. Wine of Wild Cherry Bark. Take of Alcoholic extract (from 24 ounces) of wild cherry bark, about . . Ivss Sweet almonds.....I iij. Water......1 pint. Sherry wine.....2 pints. Beat the almonds with the water to a paste, rub down the extract with half a pint of the wine, and mix the two liquids in a bottle of WINE OF IRON. 161 the capacity of three pints, stop it closely, and permit it to stand for three days, with occasional agitation; then add the remainder of the wine, allow it to stand a week, and filter. By this mode of proceeding, opportunity is afforded for the development of the hydrocyanic acid before the menstruum is made so alcoholic as to retard the reaction which favors its formation. Thus made, wine of wild cherry bark is a transparent, wine-red liquid, having an astringent, bitter almond taste and odor, much less agreeable than the syrup, and of about the same strength. The dose of this preparation as a tonic and sedative is a teaspoonful. Wine of Tar—Tar Beer—Jews' Beer. (Prof. Procter.) Take of Ground malt, honey, and tar, of each one pound. Yeast half a pint. Water a sufficient quantity. Mix the malt, honey, and three quarts of the water in an earthen vessel, keep them at the temperature of 150° F. (about), with occa- sional stirring for three hours, then suffer the whole to cool to about 80° F., and add the yeast. Fermentation soon sets in, and should be promoted by maintaining the temperature at between 70° and 80° F. during thirty-six hours. The supernatant fluid should then be decanted from the dregs of the malt, and the tar added gradually to these in a small stream, stirring constantly so as to distribute it uniformly among them, and prevent its conglomerating in masses. The decanted fluid is then returned to the vessel, and the whole well stirred up from time to time for several days or a week, observing to add water occasionally to keep the original measure. The whole is then thrown on a piece of Canton flannel or other close strainer, the fluid allowed to pass, and the dregs expressed strongly to remove as much as possible of the fluid inclosed. The expressed liquid is then filtered for use; there is an advantage in allowing it to stand until it gets nearly clear by subsidence, before filtering it. When first made, before filtering, wine of tar has but little color, but soon acquires a reddish-brown hue by exposure. It smells and tastes strongly of tar, is slightly acid, is not unpleasant to most persons, and, when prepared as above, is undoubtedly a valuable auxiliary to the physician in pulmonary diseases. The dose of wine of tar is a tablespoonful. Wine of Iron. (T. Weaver.) Take of Citrate of Iron1 .... 128 grains. Sherry wine . . . .12 fluidounces Hot water, and Sugar, of each .... Sufficient, Tincture of orange-peel, to make 1 pint. Dissolve the citrate in hot water and add to it the other ingredients in proportion to suit the taste. Dose, a teaspoonful, containing a grain of the iron salt. *. This may bo substituted by an equivalent quantity of the officinal solution of oitrate of iron. Citrate of magnetic oxide of iron is preferred by some. 11 162 medicated wines, vinegars, and cordials. Wine of Citrate of Iron and Quinine. Take of Citrate of iron and quinine . 384 grains. Hot water.....A fluidounce. Flavor of orange . . . Half a fluidounce. Sherry wine .... Sufficient to make a pint. Dissolve the citrate in the hot water, add the wine and flavor of orange, and filter. Dose, a teaspoonful containing three grains of the iron and quinine salt. Bitter Wine of Iron. (T. Weaver.) Take of Citrate of iron .... 128 grains. Extract of calisaya (Ellis) . . 16 grains. Citric acid, Hot water, Sugar, and Tincture of orange-peel, to taste. Sherry wine, to make 1 pint. Dissolve the citrate of iron and extract cinchona separately in hot water, adding a small excess of citric acid; then add the sugar and tincture of orange-peel, and lastly the wine. The chief secret in pre- serving the bouquet of the wine in contact with the iron salt is to add it after the utmost dilution. Dose, a teaspoonful containing one grain of the iron salt and one- eighth of a grain of the extract. Wine of Pepsine. Take of Calves' rennets .... No. 3. Sherry wine.....Two pints. Alcohol......Half a pint. Wash the rennets perfectly clean, cut them up and macerate them for fourteen days with frequent agitation in the wine, then add the alcohol, and filter for use. Dose, a teaspoonful immediately after eating. Aceta U. S. P. Acetum (vinegar) is officinal in the list of the U. S. Pharmacopoeia; it is described as " impure diluted acetic acid prepared by fermenta- tion ;" it is too familiar to require description. Vinegar is chiefly useful in pharmacy for furnishing acetum destillatum, which is made by distillation, by means of a sand bath, from a glass retort into a glass receiver, rejecting from each gallon the last pint, which contains the impurities. This liquid, which is nearly pure weak acetic acid, has about the same strength as the crude vinegar from which it is obtained, and possesses the same saturating power; one hundred grains should saturate not less than 7.6 grains of bicarbonate of potassa. Distilled vinegar was formerly used as the menstruum for the officinal aceta, but in the last two revisions of the Pharmacopoeia it has been substituted by diluted acetic acid. acidum aceticum dilutum. 163 The chief reason for this change has been that the latter liquid is cheaper and much more easily obtained. The immense production of acetic acid for use in the arts as well as in medicine, has reduced its price to a much lower point than formerly. The small bulk of the strong acid recommends it for transportation, and it may be readily and immediately diluted to the point desired. It is free from organic impurities, while the ordinary product of the distillation of vinegar is not, as shown by the fact that, while the latter is apt to turn brown on the addition of an alkali, the former remains clear and colorless. For an account of acetic acid, the chief impurities found in the commercial article and the modes of testing it, the reader is referred to Part IV. of this work. Acidum Aceticum Dilutum.—This liquid is made by adding to one part of acetic acid seven parts of water (making eight parts), so that the proportions may be stated as one part of strong acid in every eight parts of diluted. As 60 grains of bicarbonate of potassa saturate 100 grains of the strong acid, 7| grains (one-eighth of sixty) will saturate the same quantity of the diluted acid; or, observing very nearly the same proportion, 35 grains will saturate one fluidounce. The use of diluted acetic acid as a menstruum is confined 'by the U. S. Pharmacopoeia to colchicum, squill, lobelia, sanguinaria, and opium. It is, however, used in the preparation of the fluid extracts of ergot, ipecac, and conium, and in the solid extract of colchicum, and ammoniac plaster. In the case of colchicum, it is used with a view to furnish the active principle colchicia in the form of acetate; acetum colchici is milder in its action than the wine, and is suitable for combining with magnesia and sulphate of magnesia. It forms an admirable menstruum for squill, its acid taste recom- mending it over both water and alcohol, and its medical action pro- moting that of squill in most cases to which that medicine is adapted. Sanguinaria and lobelia are for the first time introduced into the class in the edition of the Pharmacopoeia of 1860; both these drugs con- tain alkaloids which are fixed in the preparation by the acetic acid. In the case of opium, the object in employing this acid is to assist in dissolving and extracting the morphia, with which it combines, furnishing a soluble salt, and one which is considered by some as more desirable than the meconate, as it exists in laudanum and other solu- tions prepared with neutral menstrua. The addition of acetic acid as an antiseptic to several of the syrups most liable to ferment has recently been recommended, and it is found to serve a useful purpose not only in preventing fermentation, but also in qualifying the cloying sweetness, which is an objection to this form of preparation. The antiseptic properties of diluted acetic acid are inferior to those of diluted alcohol, and on that account these preparations are said to be more liable to change than the tinctures. A small addition of alcohol is sometimes made to obviate this. I have, however, never known either of the officinal "Aceta" to ferment by keeping. A syllabus of this class is appended. 164 medicated wines, vinegars, and cordials. syllabus of officinal vinegars. Officinal Name. Proportions. Dose. Med Properties, kc. Acetum colchici " scillse " lobelia " sanguinariaB " opii §j to Oj gij to Oj do. do. gv to Oij gtt. XXX to f 3U do. gtt. xxx to f 3j do. gtt. v to X Diuretic, sedative, &c. Expect., narcot., &c. do. See Preparations of Opium. Working Formulas from the U. S. Pharmacopceia. Acetum Colchici. (Vinegar of Cohhicum) U.S.P. Take of Colchicum root, in fine powder, two troyounces. Diluted acetic acid a sufficient quantity. Moisten the powder with a fluidounce of diluted acetic acid, allow it to stand for half an hour, pack it firmly in a conical glass percola- tor, and gradually pour upon it diluted acetic acid until the filtered liquid measures two pints. Vinegar of colchicum may also be prepared by macerating the col- chicum root, in moderately fine powder, with two pints of diluted acetic acid, in a close glass vessel, for seven days; then expressing the liquid, and filtering through paper. Acetum Sanguinarise. ( Vinegar of Bloodroot) U. S. P. Take of Bloodroot, in moderately coarse powder, four troyounces. Diluted acetic acid a sufficient quantity. Moisten the powder with two fluidounces of diluted acetic acid, pack it firmly in a conical glass percolator, and gradually pour upon it diluted acetic acid until the filtered liquid measures two pints. Vinegar of bloodroot may also be prepared by macerating the powder with two pints of diluted acetic acid for seven days, express- ing the liquid, and filtering through paper. Acetum Scillee. ( Vinegar of Squill) U. S. P. Take of Squill, in moderately coarse powder, four troyounces. Diluted acetic acid a sufficient quantity. Moisten the powder with a fluidounce of diluted acetic acid, pack it in a conical glass percolator, and gradually pour upon it diluted acetic acid until the filtered liquid measures two pints. Acetum Lobelias. ( Vinegar of Lobelia) U. S. P. Take of Lobelia, in moderately coarse powder, four troyounces. Diluted acetic acid a sufficient quantity. Moisten the powder with two fluidounce of diluted acetic acid, pack it firmly in a conical glass percolator, and gradually pour upon it diluted acetic acid until the filtered liquid measures two pints. Vinegar of lobelia may also be prepared by macerating the pow- der in two pints of diluted acetic acid for seven days, expressing the liquid, and filtering through paper. elixirs and cordials. 165 Elixirs and Cordials. Under these names a variety of unofficinal preparations are sold, most of which are mixtures of aromatic wines and tinctures with sugar, the latter predominating. Preparations of this description are popular in proportion as they are palatable and commend themselves to the taste of the public. Elixir of Calisaya. Take of Calisaya bark .... Recent orange-peel Ceylon cinnamon, Coriander, Angelica seeds, of each . Caraway, Aniseed, Cochineal, of each French brandy, and water, of each Simple syrup .... Percolate the cinchona and aromatics with the brandy, until ten fluidounces are obtained. Continue the displacement with equal parts of brandy and water, till twenty-two fluidounces are obtained, then add the syrup to bring it up to the measure of two pints. Ferrated Elixir of Cinchona. (J. T. Shinn.) One troyounce. Half a troyounce. Three drachms. One drachm. A sufficient quantity. Ten fluidounces. Take of Calisaya bark, in powder, Cinnamon water . Caraway water Tincture of orange-peel Alcohol Brandy Syrup Soluble pyrophosphate of iron Four troyounces. Two pints. One pint. Half a pint. Half a pint. Two pints. Three pints. Two ounces. Mix the cinnamon water and caraway water with the tincture of orange-peel, and percolate the bark with the mixture. Dissolve the pvrophosphate of iron in the percolate, add the other ingredients, and filter. This contains about one grain of pyrophosphate of iron (with citrate of ammonia), and two grains of cinchona bark to a drachm. Ferro Phosphorated Elixir of Calisaya. Take of Pyrophosphate of iron . .128 grains. Extract of calisaya ... 24 grains. Sugar ...... 4 ounces. Tinct. of fresh orange-peel . . 2 fluidounces. Water......2 Sherry wine.....10 " Triturate the iron salt with the extract and sugar till dissolved, then add the tincture and the wine, and filter twice, or till it is perfectly clear. Dose, a teaspoonful. This preparation originated in New York, where it enjoys consider- 166 medicated wines, vinegars, and cordials. able popularity. The formula is that of W. C. Bakes, my valued assistant. Curaqao Cordial. (L. M. Emanuel.) Take of Curacao bark (bitter orange) . Ij. Peel of sweet oranges . . Iss. Cloves, . Canella, of each . . . gr. xv. Brandy . . . . . Oss. Neutral sweet spirits . . . Oij. Distilled orange-flower water . f liij. Sugar . . . • • ft>j. Prepare a tincture by percolation with the aromatics, brandy, and sweet spirits, then add the distilled orange-flower water and the sugar. Red Curaqao Cordial. (Improved Formula) Take of Sweet spirits .... 1 pint. Tincture of orange-peel . . Sufficient. Syrup.....1 pint. Oil of juniper, Tincture of saunders, of each, to taste. Mix. The genuine Curacao cordial is imported from Rotterdam and is highly esteemed. These recipes form good imitations of it. It is recommended as a remedy for nausea, especially when a symptom of pregnancy. Elixir of Valerianate of Ammonia. (T. H. K. Enos.) Take of Valerianic acid . . Two fluidrachms. Carbonate of ammonia . Sufficient. Alcohol, Syrup, of each . . Two fluidounces. Ext. orange-peel . . Half a fluidounce. Orange-flower water . A fluidounce. Water .... Sufficient to make half a pint. Dilute the valerianic acid with a fluidounce of water, neutralize with the carbonate of ammonia, then add the alcohol, holding the aromatic extract (?) in solution, then the orange-flower water and water, and filter. (The extract of orange-peel might be substituted to advantage by tincture of fresh orange-peel.) A fluidrachm, which is the appropriate dose, contains two grains of the salt. Elixir of Valerianate of Ammonia. (Goddard's.) Take of Valerianic acid (from the root) . Six fluidrachms. Carbonate of ammonia . . . Sufficient. Carbonic acid water . . . Eight fluidounces. Red Curacao cordial . . . Twenty fluidounces. Orange-flower water . . . Eight fluidounces. Mucilage of gum Arabic . . Two fluidounces. Saturate the valerianic acid with the carbonate of ammonia diluted preparations of opium. 167 with the carbonic acid water, then add it to the flavoring ingredients and mucilage, and filter. Dose, a teaspoonful. Pierlot's Solution of Valerianate of Ammonia. (Modified Formula) Take of Extract of valerian . . Two scruples. Fluid extract of valerian . Two fluidrachms. Water .... Seven fluidounces. Dissolve the extract in the fluid extract and water, filter, and add Valerianate of ammonia . Two drachms. Orange-flower water, Simple syrup, of each . . Half a fluidounce. Dose, a teaspoonful. Propylamin Cordial. Take of Chloride of propylamin . .96 grains. Aniseed water ... 9 fluidounces. At wood's alcohol ... 3 " Simple syrup ... 4 " Saffron . Sufficient. Dissolve the chloride in the aniseed water, add the alcohol and syrup; digest with the saffron and filter till clear and bright. Elixir Chloroformi. (Chhroform Paregoric) Dr. H. Hartshorne. Take of Chloroform .... One and a-half fluidounce. Tincture of opium of camphor Arom. spt. of ammonia Oil of cinnamon Brandy One and a-half fluidounce. One and a-half fluidounce One and a-half fluidounce. Twenty minims. Two fluidounces. Dose, f 3ss, or less in spasmodic affections of the stomach, cholera, &o. CHAPTER IX. preparations of opium. These preparations assume an importance to the student not be- longing to others, from the extensive use made of opium in almost every form of disease, and from the unusual number and variety of " Galenical" solutions made from it. No student should neglect to study these especially and carefully, so as to be familiar with their relative degrees of activity, and their effects as modified by the menstrua employed. On this account I have devoted a separate chapter to their consideration. 168 preparations of opium. syllabus of officinal preparations of opium designed to TATE THEIR STUDY. Officinal Name. Composition and relative strength. Dose. Tinct. opii camphorata (Paregoric) Tinct. opii (Laudanum) Tinct. opii deodorata Tinct. opii acetata Vinum opii (Sydenham's Laud.) Acetum opii (Black Drop) Liquor Morphiae sulphatis Opium 3ss "] Camphor Bj j tQ Qj dn alc. Benzoic acid 33s l J . 256 ^ Oil of aniseed f 3SS 6 Honey gj J Opium 3x to Oj = 1 gr. in 13 TT\_ do. do. Opium gj "J Alcohol f giv V 1 gr. in 10 Tt^ Vinegar f §vj J Opium gij | Cinnamon, j-to sherry, Oj, 1 gr. in 8 Tt\, Cloves, aa 3J J Opium gv "I Sugar gviij J ^ gr. morphia = f gr. opium, to f 3J f5j tofgss. gtt. XXV. gtt. XX. gtt. XX. gtt. XX. gtt. v to X. f3J. REMARKS ON THE FOREGOING. It will be observed that the preparations are arranged in the syllabus in the order of their strength—the proportion of opium they contain. Camphorated tincture of opium is one of the most familiar and uni- versally used of medicines; its preparation is easy, by macerating the ingredients in a bottle; the honey may be omitted till toward the end of the seven days allotted for the maceration. The chief use of pare- goric is for children, to whom it is given in doses varying according to the age of the child from ten drops to a teaspoonful. The adult dose is as stated in the table. It is used in mistura glycyrrhizee comp., and in numerous expectorant medicines. An enumeration of the cases in which it is employed would be out of place in this work— the variety of its components adapt it to fill numerous indications. This tincture, in the Pharmacopoeia of 1830, was directed to be made with a portion of extract of liquorice, which, as it gave it a dark color, resembling that of laudanum, was substituted in the three last editions by honey. It has a rich brown color, and a rather agreeable aromatic taste. Laudanum is more used than any other preparation of opium. It is employed internally in small doses, combined with stimulants, and frequently repeated, to excite the nervous and arterial systems, as in the typhoid forms of disease. (See Prescriptions) It is also used by itself or in combination to allay nervous irritation, and to promote sleep and relieve pain; for these purposes, it generally requires to be given in full doses, especially when the case is urgent. It is some- times employed in cancerous and other very painful diseases, and in mania-a-potu, in doses of half a fluidrachm to one fluidrachm (60 to 120 drops), and repeated. Camphor water and compound spirit of ether are much used with it in its more strictly anodyne and sedative WINE OF OPIUM. 169 applications. In nervous and spasmodic affections, it is given with other antispasmodic medicines, or by itself. To expectorant mixtures it is a very frequent addition, though the camphorated tincture is generally preferable in this instance. Combined with astringents and chalk, it is much used in the treatment of diarrhoea, dysentery, and cholera morbus, and is a frequent addition to mistura cretes. For its diaphoretic effects, the best combinations contain an emetic, as wine of ipecac or of antimony, or frequently spirit of nitrous ether. It is often added to castor oil, to correct griping or excessive purging from its use. Laudanum is much used in enemata, collyria, and in lotions of various kinds. In an enema it may be used in three times the quan- tity employed by the mouth, with a view to the same effect. In an eye-wash, wine of opium, or a solution of the aqueous extract, is preferred, as obviating the stimulant effects of the alcohol. It is frequently added to cataplasms or poultices. Laudanum is made of deficient strength by some druggists, in order to sell it cheaply; the usual wholesale price for a good article is from one dollar to one dollar and a-half per pint, or by retail, twelve to eigh- teen cents an ounce. If it has become turbid from the evaporation of a portion of alcohol, it is above standard strength, and should be filtered to free it from the precipitate. Tinctura opii deodorata is a new officinal in the Pharmacopoeia of 1860, it is made upon the principle adopted by the manufacturers of the various elixirs of opium, in vogue, of treating opium with water in preference to alcohol, so that the objectionable resinous and odorous principles are but sparingly taken up; in the new officinal process, the aqueous fluid extract obtained is directed to be shaken up with ether, for the complete removal of these, and the ether being rejected the whole is embodied into a fluid form with only sufficient alcohol to preserve it. The dose by drops, as stated, is less than that of laudanum with which it corresponds in strength, because aqueous liquids collect in larger drops than alcoholic. On the whole, this liquid, which will probably be generally dispensed as elixir of opium, is a valuable addition to our officinal preparations, and well worthy the favorable consideration of physicians. Acetated tincture of opium is not commonly designated by any syn- onym, and must be carefully distinguished from black drop, described below. It is prepared by macerating the opium in powder with the vinegar and alcohol for two weeks, or displacing as in the case of laudanum. If the opium is in mass, it should be used in proportion- ately increased quantity, and worked into a paste with a small portion of the vinegar, after which the remainder of that liquid and the alcohol is added, macerating for two weeks as in the other case. This tincture is sometimes recommended in preference to laudanum, as less liable to produce those nervous symptoms which often follow the use of opium. As shown in the table, it is stronger than laudanum, but much weaker than black drop. 170 PREPARATIONS OF OPIUM. Wine of Opium—This officinal substitute for Sydenham's laudanum may be made by a similar process to the foregoing. It is made with a much larger proportion of opium to the quantity of menstruum employed, than laudanum, and yet the dose directed in the books is the same; this must be owing to a supposed inferior solubility of the active principles in wine, than in diluted alcohol. ^ A great many extemporaneous prescriptions for eye-washes and injections contain this ingredient. Vinegar of Opium, Black Drop.—The strongest of the preparations of opium is modified in the last edition of the Pharmacopoeia so as to make it comparatively easy of preparation and of more convenient proportions. The very complex process of the older books is simplified so as to include merely the complete extraction of the opium and aromatics by means of diluted acetic acid, the addition to this of sugar, and its dilution to just the required point, which is a fluidounce for every 75 grains of opium used. The slight alteration in proportions, while it will be quite imperceptible in the use of the preparation, brings it to an even two pints for five troyounces of the opium used. Black drop is deservedly esteemed as a most valuable preparation. The morphia it contains is in the condition of acetate; which is con- sidered by many to be more agreeable in its mode of action than the native meconate existing in the drug. One grain of opium being represented by about 6 fa minims, the dose will be only from five to ten drops because, although in the case of laudanum, two drops are frequently required to make a minim, in this case, sugar being used instead of alcohol, the drops are larger, and frequently reach a minim in bulk. The popularity of black drop with persons who use opium habitu- ally, is one of the strongest evidences of its superiority over laudanum. I was informed by one lady, who is a victim to this vice, and who procures her black drop by the gallon, that in comparing her own condition with that of others within the range of her acquaintance, who have used laudanum to no greater excess than she uses black drop, that while they soon exhibited in their persons the evidences of its poisonous effects, she was enabled to preserve to a great extent the natural freshness and fulness of her features; this she attributed to the form in which she took the drug. Her statement cannot of course be received as evidence of the difference referred to, though it accords with the testimony of others, and also corresponds with the observation of some physicians of large experience. Solution of sulphate of morphia (U. S.), though its strength is usually estimated somewhat above that stated in the syllabus, is believed to be weaker in proportion to the other preparations than is there stated. Magendie's solution, much used in New York and Boston, is made in the proportion of sixteen grains to the fluidounce. Care should be taken in prescribing and vending this, to distinguish between it and the officinal solution. POISONING BY OPIUM. 171 Incompatibhs.—All the preparations of opium are pharmaceutical^ incompatible with the alkalies, and their mono-carbonates generally, on account of their precipitating the morphia in an insoluble con- dition from its meconate. With acetate of lead, they give a precipi- tate, chiefly of meconate of lead, the morphia remaining in solution as acetate. Astringent infusions and tinctures generally throw down tannates or gallates of morphia, which are quite insoluble. Some of the metallic salts may be considered as incompatible, but in practice there is no difficulty in mixing small quantities of laudanum with diluted solutions of these. The chief point to be observed, in the mixing of these preparations in prescription, is to add them after the full degree of dilution is obtained; in this manner they may be mixed without disturbance, in the great majority of instances, especially where, as is mostly the case, the quantity added is small. Treatment of Poisoning by Opium.—When opium is taken in quan- tities sufficient to produce death, the first and invariable remedy is to evacuate the stomach, by administering an active emetic dose, as for instance, five grains of tartar emetic or sulphate of zinc, or, as is fre- quently more convenient and equally efficacious, large doses of mustard suspended in warm water. If emetics refuse to act, which is sometimes the case after long delay, the stomach pump must be resorted to, and should always be at hand in the office of the physician. A tolerable substitute for this is found in the self-injecting apparatus of elastic gum, now so commonly in use, the tubes being transposed so as to reverse the direction of the current. A mode of emptying the stomach of an infant, tried with success in a case of poisoning, by Dr. Stebbins, of Chester Co., Pa., is to insert a catheter and suck up the fluid contents till the catheter is full, then turn the free end downwards so as to constitute it a syphon, from which the fluid will run till the stomach is empty. The patient should be kept in motion, if possible, the face and head being splashed with cold water, when a disposition to sleep seems to be gaining the mastery; in this way, patients may very frequently be restored, even after taking large doses of laudanum. Instances of the kind have been of frequent occurrence within the last few years in this city. The recently discovered use of tincture of belladonna as an antidote for opium should not be forgotten when other resources fail, and when this remedy is at hand. The dose must necessarily be large, corresponding to the quantity of laudanum taken. In the case of young infants too deeply narcotized to swallow, subcutaneous in- jections of g^th of a grain of atropia may succeed in reviving the struggling vitality. Two cases have come under my own notice, in which the galvanic battery has been employed as a last resort, with the effect of restoring one patient permanently, and the other temporarily, the reaction not being sufficient in the latter instance to establish convalescence, though life was prolonged for several weeks. Artificial respiration has occa- sionally been resorted to, when the prostrating influence of the poison had arrested the natural process, life being prolonged by this means, 172 PREPARATIONS OF OPIUM. until the impression of the narcotic had passed off; recovery has been effected in this way. The Abuse of Opium.—-The habitual use of the preparations of opium as a means of intoxication, is an evil, the extent of which is scarcely appreciated by the profession, or by the community at large. There are shops in the outskirts of our large cities in which the sale of laudanum forms one of the principal items of business. These peddle it out to every poor victim who can produce a few pennies to purchase a temporary relief from imaginary pains. So common is this article of trade that even little children are furnished with it on application, as if it were the most harmless drug. It is sold in these shops at half the price maintained by respectable establishments, and there can be no doubt that its intoxicating effects are sought by many, who use it as a substitute for alcoholic drinks. Individuals who would shrink from the habitual use of spirituous liquors, employ this medicine, under a false persuasion that it is useful or necessary to allay some symptom of a chronic disease, until they become victims to one of the worst of habits. There is scarcely an apothecary in our large cities who cannot relate instances of opium intoxication that have come under his own notice, and been served at his own counter. Females afflicted with chronic disease; widows bereft of their earthly support; inebriates who have abandoned the bottle; lovers disappointed in their hopes; flee to this powerful drug, either in its crude form, in the form of tincture, or some of its salts, to relieve their pain of body or mind, or to take the place of another repudiated stimulant. Such, too, is the morbid taste of these, that they think they require the soporific influence of opium to fill up the measure of their life enjoyment, just as the drunkard is wedded to his cups, or the tobacco-user to the weed. The responsibility for many cases of habitual intoxication, both with alcohol and opium, undoubtedly rests with the physician. Almost every apothecary of large experience has met with instances in which the parties attribute their habit to the use of these agents, for the first time, under the advice of a physician, by whose direction it has been persisted in, in some chronic case, till it has become almost impossible to desist from the indulgence. The quantity of laudanum that may be taken varies with different individuals. Those habituated to it consume from a few teaspoonfuls to an ounce or more per day. A medical friend informed me that a child less than two years old came under his observation, to whom was administered a dessertspoonful of laudanum per diem to keep it quiet, while the mother was engaged at her daily toil; this, of course, was the result of previous habit, originating in a small beginning. Persons who have been addicted to the use of ardent spirits, are, per- haps, more apt to use laudanum in preference to the crude drug, or any of the salts of morphia. The cheapness of the tincture over the salts is a strong reason -with others. We know of a lady whose bill for sul- phate of morphia, during a single year, was ninety dollars, which if we estimate it at the usual price, and take the daily average of the quantity consumed, would exhibit the enormous consumption of over 20 grains THE ABUSE OF OPIUM. 173 a day. And yet the victim of this slavery is able to attend, in some measure, to her daily pursuits, and has already attained middle age, without any evidence of organic disease. Another lady, suffering from a uterine complaint, who had been for years in the habit of using opium, at first by the advice of a physi- cian and subsequently from an impression of its value to her, con- tinued it in gradually increasing doses, till the daily consumption of the gum and the tincture, taken alternately, amounted to many grains of the former, and half an ounce of the latter. In this case the patient was bedridden, and suffered a great deal of pain when the system was not directly influenced by the medicine. A degree of restlessness and nervous irritability, amounting almost to spasm, when not under the effects of the drug, are characteristic in almost every aggravated case. One colored woman, advanced in life, who had been advised, many years before, by her physician, to employ laudanum for the relief of the painful symptoms of a chronic disease, was known for several years to take invariably faiss of laudanum, which was purchased daily as required. A lady of my acquaintance, who I believe since recovered entirely from the habit, took for years a half grain powder of sulphate of morphia daily, sometimes perhaps twice a day. On one occasion a man proposed to purchase at the counter a fluidounce vial of laudanum, and when the price of it was demanded, immediately swallowed the whole, as was supposed for the purpose of suicide. He was afterwards seen in the streets apparently in his usual health. Dr. Garrod relates a case of a young man who took one drachm of Smyrna opium night and morning, and frequently from an ounce to an ounce and a half of laudanum in addition. We are informed of an instance of a lady advanced to her three- score years and ten, who, from fear of the pains of death, from day to day kept herself under the influence of this narcotic. Such was the morbid mental influence which kept her unhappy in the anticipa- tion of a result which has not yet occurred. The moral responsibility connected with the question of prescrib- ing and dispensing opium, may be greater than has been hitherto acknowledged; and the few remarks here presented are designed to awaken an interest among those who by position and pursuits are best qualified to exercise a wholesome influence upon its abuse. Who would sell an ounce of laudanum to an applicant whose inten- tion to commit suicide was apparent ? And yet how often it is sold to individuals, who are only protracting their suicide by the demoralizing and dissipating habit of taking it in smaller and gradually increasing quantities ? 174 PREPARATIONS OF OPIUM. Working Formulas for the Preparations of Opium. Tinctura Opii Camphorata. (Camphorated Tincture of Opium) U. S. P. Paregoric Elixir. Take of Opium, dried, and in moderately fine powder, Benzoic acid, each, sixty grains. Camphor forty grains. Oil of anise a fluidrachm. Clarified honey two troyounces. Diluted alcohol two pints. Macerate for seven days, and filter through paper. (It is well to omit the honey till near the close of the maceration.) Tinctura Opii. (Tincture of Opium) U. S. P. Laudanum. Take of Opium, dried, and in moderately fine powder, two troy- ounces and a half. Water, Alcohol, each, a pint. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Macerate the opium with the water for three days, with frequent agitation; then add the alcohol, and continue the maceration for three days longer. Introduce the mixture into a percolator, and, when the liquid has ceased to pass, pour diluted alcohol upon it until two pints of tincture are obtained. All the preparations of opium are directed to be made from the powdered drug; this is designed to prevent variations in strength, resulting from the different degrees of dryness of different specimens, as found in commerce. In many instances, however, the apothecary or physician prefers to select the drug in its crude condition, and in the absence of conveniences for drying and powdering it in large quantities, uses it in lump. In this case the following process may be observed, the necessary increase of weight in the opium being added, on account of the moisture it contains:— Modified Formula for Laudanum. Take of opium, sliced, two troyounces and six drachms, add to it four fluidounces of hot water, and by the aid of a pestle and mortar, work it into a uniform pasty mass; to this add twelve fluidounces of water, and a pint of alcohol, making in all two pints of diluted alco- hol ; allow it to macerate for two weeks, occasionally shaking it, and throw the whole upon a filter—to the pulp, remaining after the liquid has drained off, add about two fluidounces of diluted alcohol, which will displace the last portion so as to make the whole of the tincture measure exactly two pints. • m WORKING FORMULAS, ETC. 175 Tinctura Opii Deodorata. (Deodorized Tincture of Opium) U. S. P. Take of Opium, dried, and in moderately fine powder, two troy- ounces and a half. Ether, Alcohol, each, half a pint. Water a sufficient quantity. Macerate the opium with half a pint of water for twenty-four hours, and express; then repeat the operation twice with the same quantity of water. Mix the expressed liquids, and, having evaporated the mixture to four fluidounces, shake it when cold, in a bottle, repeatedly with the ether. Pour off the ethereal solution when it has separated by standing, and evaporate the remaining liquid until all traces of ether have disappeared. Mix this with twenty fluidounces of water, and filter the mixture through paper. When the liquid has ceased to pass, add sufficient water, through the filter, to make the filtered liquid measure a pint and a half. Lastly, add the alcohol, and mix them together. Lf the opium is not dried and powdered, the manipulation may be varied, using two troyounces and six drachms of moist opium as indi- cated in the modified formula for laudanum. Tinctura Opii Acetata. (Acetated Tincture of Opium) U. S. P. Take of Opium, dried, and in moderately fine powder, two troy- ounces. Vinegar twelve fluidounces. Alcohol half a pint. Rub the opium with the vinegar; then add the alcohol, and, having macerated for seven days, express, and filter through paper. Vinum Opii. (Wine of Opium) U. S. P. Take of Opium, dried, and in moderately fine powder, two troy- ounces. Cinnamon, in moderately fine powder, Cloves, in moderately fine powder, each, sixty grains. Sherry wine a sufficient quantity. Mix the powders with fifteen fluidounces of sherry wine, and mace- rate for seven days, with occasional agitation; then transfer the mix- ture to a conical percolator, and, when the liquid has passed the sur- face, gradually pour on sherry wine until a pint of filtered liquid is obtained. 176 HEAT FOR PHARMACEUTICAL PURPOSES. Acetum Opii. ( Vinegar of Opium) Black Drop. Take of Opium, dried, and in moderately coarse powder, five troy- ounces. Nutmeg, in moderately coarse powder, a troyounce. Saffron, in moderately coarse powder, one hundred and fifty grains. Sugar eight troyounces. Diluted acetic acid a sufficient quantity. Macerate the opium, nutmeg, and saffron with a pint of diluted acetic acid for twenty-four hours. Put the mixture into a conical glass percolator, and return the liquid which first passes until the filtrate becomes clear. Then gradually pour on diluted acetic acid until the filtered liquid measures twenty-six fluidounces. In this dissolve the sugar, and, having strained the solution, add sufficient diluted acetic acid to make the whole measure two pints. CHAPTER X. THE GENERATION OF HEAT FOR PHARMACEUTICAL PURPOSES. Many of the processes directed in the Pharmacopoeias may be con- ducted in an ordinary cannon stove—as making infusions and decoc- tions, syrups, some of the extracts, all of the ointments and cerates, and some of the plasters. The various kinds of cooking stoves are still better adapted to these purposes, each having its particular advan- tages, and nearly all offering facilities not only for performing the processes requiring the naked fire, but also being readily fitted with sand and water baths, and having ovens attached which answer the purposes of the drying chambers. Kitchen ranges, such as are now generally introduced into dwelling houses, are also adapted to the pharmaceutical laboratory; they may be so built as to allow of sheet iron slides inclosing the space above the fire, so as to carry off the vapor from evaporating fluids or the acid and other noxious fumes arising from chemical processes. A light of glass should be introduced into these sliding partitions to facilitate the inspection of the processes, and these slides should be supported at such a distance from the fire as to allow of a draft of air above the containing vessels, and to enable the operator to manipulate without exposure to the fumes. An advantage of these cooking ranges over stoves is found in the supply of hot water furnished by boilers or water backs connected with them, a great convenience in a shop or laboratory. Drawings of these would be superfluous, as the situation and requirements of pharmaceutists are so various that each can be best suited by the exercise of a little ingenuity, and by availing himself of the sugges- HEAT FOR PHARMACEUTICAL PURPOSES. 177 tions of those who make a business of supplying this kind of appa- ratus. The work on Pharmacy by Profs. Mohr and Redwood, edited in Philadelphia, by Prof. Procter, and that on Chemical and Pharma- ceutical Manipulations, by Prof. Morfit, give drawings of different furnaces manufactured for the special uses of the chemist and pharma- ceutist, but few of these are in common use, and it has not been deemed important to present the subject in detail in this work. A notice of some cheap and portable forms of apparatus may ap- propriately preface an account of those pharmaceutical processes requiring heat. The common clay furnace may be used in open chimney-places, or in the open air, charcoal being the fuel; a common bellows is em- ployed when necessary to increase the intensity of the fire. Similar furnaces are made of cast iron; they possess no advantages for use with charcoal, but by becoming hot, they facilitate the com- bustion of anthracite. The small French hand furnace, Fig. 132, is light and portable, and preferable to the ordinary clay furnaces for table operations. Many of the operations of the pharmaceutical laboratory are con- veniently performed with lamps, alcohol being the fuel. A neat auJ common alcohol lamp is that shown in Fig. 130; it has a ground gl^. s Fig. 130. Fig. 131. Fig. 132. Glass spirit lamp. Extemporaneous glass lamp. French hand furnace. cap to prevent the waste of alcohol by evaporation. In the absence of such a lamp, a common glass bottle, with rather wide mouth, may be used; a perforated cork with a small glass tube about an inch long is in- serted in the neck of the bottle, as shown in Fig. 131, and the wick is made to pass through this into the alcohol contained in the bottle. Fig- 133. Fig. 134. A small tin alcohol lamp an- swers about as well as any for common purposes, with the ex- ception of having no cap to pre- vent evaporation from the wick ; such a one is shown in Figs. 133 and 134, with a convenient stand in which to place it under a cap- sule or other vessel to be heated. The aicohoi iamP and stand. 12 178 HEAT FOR PHARMACEUTICAL PURPOSES. Fig. 135 shows an alcohol lamp, invented by Jacob Dunton, of Philadelphia, for use in the field by army surgeons; it is made of metal, and surmounted with a series of rings which, by raising them up, fit each other and constitute a chimney protecting the flame from the draft, which would prevent its use, while the necessary air is sup- plied from below through holes shown in the drawing. This little lamp is carried in the panniers, and supplies the necessary heat for ap- plying adhesive strips, softening cerates, and similar objects. Fig. 135. Fig. 136. Mitchell's lamp. Another alcohol lamp, familiar to chemical students, is Mitchell's argand lamp, shown in section in Fig. 136. In this, which is usually made of tin, an argand burner is placed in the centre of a cylindrical reservoir, r, with which it communicates at bottom by small lateral tubes; the reservoir is furnished with a tube near the top at a, for the introduction of the fluid; this is stopped with cork having a slight perforation, so as to admit the air as the alcohol is consumed. The cylindrical wick, b, which is inserted in the burner, is kept saturated with alcohol, owing to its communicating with the reservoir. When lighted' at its upper edge, it burns freely, having a draft of air within as well as without the cylindrical column of flame, and generates a large amount of heat. When no longer wanted for use, the lamp should be covered by a cap over the burner, or emptied of alcohol, otherwise waste will occur by continued evaporation from the wick. Fig. 137 represents Berzelius's lamp; this is adapted to alcohol or oil; it is attached to a permanent stand, upon the upright rod of which it moves, being secured by a screw, which presses against the rod; the reservoir is here separated from the burner, with which it com- municates by a single tube. A little screw is arranged alongside the burner to raise or depress the wick. Fig. 138 is a chimney, which is adapted to confine the flame within narrow limits, and to increase the draught, thus diminishing the tend- ency to smoke, and increasing the intensity of the heat. It may be applied either to Berzelius's or Mitchell's lamp. " The Universal Lamp," constructed on the same principle as Berze- lius's, but better adapted to.support utensils to be heated, may also be obtained from the manufacturers and dealers in chemical apparatus. One of the best contrivances for generating an intense heat for those HEAT FOR PHARMACEUTICAL PURPOSES. 179 few processes in pharmacy to which it is essential, and for fusing insoluble silicates in analytical processes, and for glass-blowing and Fig. 137. Fig. 138. Berzelius's lamp. Lamp chimney. bending operations, and numerous other uses in chemical laboratories, is the lamp next figured, which is called the Russian lamp, or the alcohol blast lamp. This is shown in Fig. 139. It consists of a double copper cylinder, a, inclosed at top and bottom, and surrounding an interior chamber, which extends somewhat below the bottom of the cylinder to a permanent copper bottom, as shown in the section. Near the top of the cylinder, an open tube of the same material is soldered on at a, for the purpose of filling it, and nearly opposite, on the other side, a tube b, also of Fig. 139. Russian or alcohol blast lamp and stove. copper, is inserted; this is bent, as seen in the drawing, and gradually tapering down to a small diameter, enters the internal chamber between the lower terminus of the cylinder and the bottom; it is now curved upward, and terminates with a small orifice at c; a movable top, d, is 180 HEAT FOR PHARMACEUTICAL PURPOSES. fitted with a handle, and so constructed as to fit tightly over the open top of the chamber. E represents a sheet iron stove or furnace in which the lamp may be placed when used, and which serves as a sup- port for crucibles, dishes, &c. The mode of using this lamp is to fill the cylinder with alcohol by means of the tube a till it commences to run out of the jet c, then cork up the open end of the tube a, observ- ing not to secure the cork too tightly, for fear of explosions. About two fluidounces of alcohol are now poured into the central chamber, or sufficient to cover the bottom and rise to within an inch or two of the orifice at c. This spirit being now ignited by a match, quickly heats that contained in the surrounding cylinder, and as this boils, the vapor formed is forced through the tube & in a powerful jet, which, as it escapes at c, is ignited by the flame playing upon the surface of that in the chamber, and thus forms a jet of flame possessing an intense heating power; should any obstruction occur in the tube b, or at the orifice c, the apparatus might explode, but that the cork at a would be likely to be thrown out. When it is desired to stop the flame, and whenever the apparatus is to be put out of use, the cover d is placed on the top. For accomplishing fluxions with carbonated alkali, where a very intense heat is required, I have found this lamp an admirable arrange- ment, doing away with the necessity of a counter blowpipe. In order to apply this jet to the greatest advantage for the Fig. 140. purpose named, a crucible jacket, F (Fig. 140), may be placed upon the projections on the top of the stove E (Fig. 139), immediately over the flame of the lamp. This is a sort of chimney made of sheet-iron, and serving the double purpose of keeping the cruci- ble from all currents of air but those highly heated by the flame, and of returning the flame back, some- what as in a reverberatory furnace. The cheap and abundant lighting fluids sold under the names of kerosene, coal oil, &c, are too highly carbonaceous to serve a good purpose for heating, crucible jacket. unless with apparatus constructed with special ar- rangements for securing the thorough combustion of the oil and the convenient application of the generated heat to the objects in view. The apparatus figured on the next page is the only appropriate arrangement I have seen with this end in view. In this apparatus, the heat communicated from the flame to the chimney is rendered available for heating liquids. A is a common kerosene lamp, with the peculiar burner necessary for the utilizing of this fuel; over this is ingeniously fitted a chimney of copper, B, around which is a vessel, C, of tinned iron; the outer surface of the copper chimney, constituting the inner surface of the vessel, is also tinned. This tinned vessel is provided with a handle and spout, and an earthen vessel, shown in Fig. 143 (in section, at g, Fig. 142), is a useful though necessarily ill-shaped appendage, for keeping liquids warm or for heating them below the boiling point. In Fig. 141 the apparatus is seen with a metallic cover, and a small casting placed HEAT FOR PHARMACEUTICAL PURPOSES. 181 Fig. 141. Fig. 142. Fish's patent nursery or night lamp. over it to support a tin cup or other vessel to be heated. At d, in the inverted dome which supports the heating vessel, is an opening filled with a piece of mica, through which the flame may be inspected, and which in using the Fig- 143- apparatus as a nursery lamp serves to throw /^^Mf^^^^S^N. out sufficient light into the apartment. A v^-^il^^Oji^^ further advantage claimed for this as a cham- ^Kttlllllllllllll/i^/ ber or nursery lamp, is that the vessel being W|11 / filled with water keeps the air of the apart- ^!Bi|^—** ment from becoming dry by its constant eva- poration. Its utility for keeping a supply of hot water at hand, and for keeping soups, tea, or other necessary concomitants of the sick chamber in a condition for use will be apparent. In the hospital cars, so thoroughly fitted by the U. S. Sanitary Commission for the con- veyance of sick and wounded soldiers, great advantage has been secured by this little apparatus. Larger sizes of lamps in which the same principle is applied are manufactured by the same parties, and where gas is not accessible they serve an excellent purpose for phar- maceutical processes requiring heat. The best fuel for pharmaceutical purposes is the coal gas now so freely and cheaply supplied in almost every considerable town. The gas may be conducted by pipes into the counter or table, and terminated at any convenient point just above its surface by a suitable burner; or, preferably, it may have soldered on to the iron pipe at its terminus a leaden one, which, being flexible, may be moved at plea- re to any desired part of the table. A very good portable apparatus, capable of being used in any part of the room, or in any room in the house, is shown in Fig. 144; it consists of a flexible tube, which is terminated at one end by a cap to fit on to the burner of a common chandelier, pendant, or side light, such as are suspended from the 182 HEAT FOR PHARMACEUTICAL PURPOSES. ceilings or walls of apartments for the purposes of illumination. To the other end of this tube is a little stand of metal surmounted by a burner to be adapted to some of the various kinds of gas furnaces to be described in the sequel. Figs. 145 and 146 are sectional drawings to illustrate the different modes of connecting the flexible Fig. 144. tube as above with the perma- nent pipe. Fig. 145 is the mer- cury cup arrangement; a small cup is screwed on the burner at its base, into which is introduced a few ounces of mercury, and into this the cap of the conduct- ing tube dips so as to form an Fig. 145. Fig. 146. Gas burner with mer- cury cup and cap. Ground gas burner and cap. Fig. 147. air-tight joint, which is very readily shipped and unshipped; in this figure the cap is represented as having a flange covering the mercury cup, which, while it is in its place, protects the mercury from evaporation or from spilling out. When unshipped, however, the bath of mercury is unprotected, and becomes wasted, frequently re- quiring to be renewed, and leading to inconvenience. Fig. 146 is a ground burner and cap, such as is shown also in Fig. 144. The burner and cap are fit- ted and ground to each other, so as to make a direct air-tight connection when adjusted, and yet are remo- vable at pleasure. The screws by which the burner is attached to the pipe, and the cap to the flexible tube above, and also the internal construction of the fish-tail burner, are shown in this section. A more convenient attachment, adapted to ordinary gas burners, ia Curve for gas tubing. HEAT FOR PHARMACEUTICAL PURPOSES. 183 made by simply stretching a piece of gum-elastic tubing over the burner, and connecting the other end with a gas furnace or other ap- pliance on the counter. This arrangement is liable to inconvenience from the folding of the tube upon itself at the point at which it should curve, thus shutting off the flow of gas. To obviate this, a curved piece of tinned iron, shown in Fig. 147, may be slipped over the upper end of the tube into a position to give it the appropriate curve. Fig. 148 represents the argand burner with rim; these were for- merly much used with glass chimneys and shades, for illumination, but have been almost discarded on ac- count of the great consumption of gas FiS- 148- attendant on their use. The jet of gas is here through the small holes at the top of the hollow cylinder, the funnel-shaped appendage above being designed to spread the flame when used for illumination; the disk of brass screwed on below is used to support the chimney, and is per- forated with holes so as to allow a draft of air around the flame, while the hollow Argand burner. cylindrical shape of the burner favors the draft through its centre. The argand burner is shown in Fig. 144, as covered by the cylinder, Fig. 151. Fig. 149 represents a cylindrical screen used to cover over any common burner, the object being to confine the' heat, to prevent the flame being affected by draughts, and to afford a support for the ves- sel being heated. The door is convenient, when the top is covered, to light the flame, and to see its elevation and depression during the process. Fig. 149. Fig. 150. Screen and support io Gas stove. Fig. 150 represents a cylinder of sheet copper, iron, or tin (this may vary in length from 5 to 8 inches, and in diameter from 2\ to 4 inches), with a ring of the same material about an inch wide, and just large enough to slide over the cylinder. A piece of copper or brass wire 184 HEAT FOR PHARMACEUTICAL PURPOSES. gauze, a little larger than the diameter of the cylinder, is stretched over the top, and secured by passing the ring over it, while the bottom is left open, and either supported on feet, or stood directly upon the table, the lower margin being, as in this case, scalloped, so as to allow the free passage of air into it. The obstruction to the free passage of the mixed air and gas which fine gauze presents, causes the large amount of carbon in the flame observed in many of these furnaces; the gas accumulates in the top of the cylinder to the exclusion of the necessary proportion of atmospheric air; a gauze of from 30 to 50 apertures to the linear inch, has the re- quired fineness. This gas stove, as thus constructed, Fig. 151. is to be set immediately over a gas pipe, which may either be permanent or flexible, or it may be open at the end, or terminated by an ordinary bat-wing, or fish- tail, or argand burner; preferably by the latter. Fig. 151 is another form of cylinder, of tin; the bottom being removed, it will fit the rim of the argand burner; the object of the little cap at bottom is to adapt it to an ordinary fish-tail or bat-wing burner. These are extensively introduced in Boston for family use; price 50 cents each. A great many restaurants, in the various cities, are also supplied with them, and their construction is often varied, so as to give support to the vessel to be heated. An iron tripod should ac- smaii gaf stove. company these forms of gas furnace, when permanently fixed and used for a single object, but with a retort stand they may be adapted to a greater variety of operations. The mode of using these cylinders is to place them over the burner, and to allow the gas to escape into them and thus to become mixed with air, then to apply a light above the surface of the wire gauze. The gas which, under ordinary circumstances, burns with a bright yellow flame, indicating the presence of carbon in a state of incandes- cence, and depositing, in consequence, a large amount of soot upon any cold body brought in contact with it, may now be so completely diluted with air, by regulating the jet, as to burn with a light blue flame, containing no carbon. The combustion being much more com- plete, and spread over the whole surface of the gauze, gives an in- creased amount of heat, and so diffuses it over the bottom of the vessel as to diminish the liability to fracture. This kind of heating apparatus, when the fuel is accessible, is recom- mended by its cleanliness, as when carefully used it is as free from any residue or sooty deposit as alcohol itself. Gas is far cheaper than alcohol, even in towns where the price reaches $4 00 per thousand feet. In Philadelphia it is but $2 00. It may be applied for an in- definite period without renewing, which in long evaporations is par- ticularly desirable. It may, also, be regulated with perfect facility, and left burning during the absence of the operator, without the fear of a material increase or diminution of the flame, thus superseding, in many instances, the necessity of a sand or water bath, to be described in a subsequent chapter. HEAT FOR PHARMACEUTICAL PURPOSES. 185 In some gas furnaces, the rim used to secure the wire gauze over the top is made to project for a half inch or more above the gauze, and the inclosure is filled with pieces of pumice-stone, or of brick, about the size of a chestnut; the advantages of this are, that the flame is not so liable to be blown out by a draught of air, the rim acting as a shield to it; the incombustible material becoming hot, radiates heat beside the direct heating effect of the flame. It also protects the wire gauze from corrosion by liquids accidentally spilled, and diminishes the liability to its becoming so per- ^g-152- forated as that the flame may be communicated to the mixed gas in the interior of the stove. If the cylinder rests on the table, and is short, so that the fire is brought near the top of the table, the heat will scorch, and may inflame it. To avoid this, elevate the top of the cylinder, at least eight inches, or place it and the burner both on a plaster tile. The fashion of putting a wire gauze diaphragm between the gas burner and the top of the stove, with a view of mixing the gas and air more com- pletely, though recommended in some of the books, is rarely followed. In those instances where a gentle heat is required, and especially when the vessel to be heated is small, the cylinder covered with wire gauze may be dispensed with, and an argand burner being used, a small chimney of metal or glass is set on its rim, as shown in pig. 152, and the jet of gas being small, and the object removed some distance above the flame, a steady and continuous heat is attained without a deposit of soot. Several gas furnaces will be desirable to pharmaceutists engaged in a variety of manipulations, and Fig. 153 is intro- duced as an approved kind, patented by W. F. Shaw, of Boston, Mass., who manufactures several useful forms of apparatus. Over the tube which contains a diaphragm of very coarse wire gauze, rises a finely perforated metallic chimney which prevents the lateral escape of the products of the combustion of the gas and determines an upward current in which the alde- hyde and formic acid gas are completely consumed, adding to the heat of the flame and obviating one of the objections to this mode of generating heat. Ker- shaw's patent gas furnace, Philadelphia, is constructed with a view to the same end, the flame being spread over an extended surface of wire gauze through which a draft of air is constantly playing to assist the combustion. In studying the subject of the application of gas to heating pur- poses, especially with reference to my own wants, I have adopted a form of apparatus which appears to me to possess advantages over any other for the general purposes of the shop and laboratory. It is partly of my own invention, and having the patterns, I am prepared to supply the furnaces to those who may desire them. This furnace 186 HEAT FOR PHARMACEUTICAL PURPOSES. is of cast iron, open at bottom, of the shape shown in the drawing, a brass burner of two rings, a, Fig. 155, passes into the body of the furnace near the bottom; the rings are perforated at suitable distances with small holes for the ignition of jets of gas; for all purposes re- quiring a moderate and diffused heat, as the evaporation of extracts and fluid extracts, and the distillation of distilled spirits, this answers an admirable purpose. The scalloped rim allows the free passage of a draft of air from the flame when the furnace is covered by a receiv- ing vessel, while the distance of this from the flame prevents the de- ■polit of soot upon it unless when the flame is at its highest, which it need not be for the purposes named. Fig. 155 represents the wire gauze attachment, adapted to operations requiring a high heat; the lower casting, b, fitting accurately into thes Fig. 154. Fig. 155. throat of the furnace, is covered with wire gauze, which is secured in place by the upper, c; this has three projecting arms for supporting the receiving vessel at the right elevation from the flame. The small trripod, d, is useful for supporting smaller vessels and flasks, either when subjected to the high flame or to that designed for evaporation. Being open at the bottom, this furnace allows a free ingress of air to mix with the gas, which being ignited above the diaphragm of wire gauze, produces perfect combustion without the least smoke, and with greatly increased evolution of heat. The greatest consumption of gas by this burner, under ordinary pressure, is from seven to ten cubic feet per hour, though this would smoke without the wire gauze attach- ment; for evaporation without the attachment a much smaller flow of gas is required. A gallon of water in a pharmaceutical still of tinned iron, placed on the projecting arms over the wire gauze, was raised to the boiling point in thirteen minutes, though in an uncovered enamelled iron ves- sel it required nearly twenty minutes. In this, as in all other apparatus for burning gas, much depends on the flow of the gas, which is partly regulated by the stopcock, and partly by the pressure at the works. Bunsen's burner is familiar to most chemical students as furnishing a concentrated flame similar to that produced by a blowpipe, and MODIFICATIONS OF BUNSEN's BURNER. 187 useful for fusions, for blowing and bending glass, for bringing a cru- cible to redness, and for many purposes in the laboratory. For blow- pipe operations the upright tube is fitted with another one, which is flattened laterally at the upper end so that the orifice presents the appearance of a narrow slit, which being cut off' obliquely gives to the blowpipe flame a downward direction. The tube of Bunsen's burner may be covered with the gas stove, Fig. 150; as the mixture of gas with atmospheric air is effected in the tube, this arrangement is not liable to the disadvantage of imperfect combustion. Another arrangement for the same purpose is to cover merely the upper end with a short cylinder fastened on a retort stand, the top of which is covered with gauze; or a still cheaper one, to place a piece of gauze upon the ring of a retort stand. In both these cases the gas may be lit either above or below the gauze, and the flame spread over its diameter or confined below it at pleasure. Bunsen's burner has been modified by J. J. Griffin, F. C. S., whose modification is figured in the "Chemical News," London, Nov. 2, 1861. The most important improvement suggested by Griffin is a movable cap fitting over the air box at the bottom with holes so arranged as to diminish the supply of air at pleasure. A modified Bunsen burner with this arrangement is now sold by dealers in chemical apparatus; it can be adjusted to produce a yellow carbonized flame, or an intense blue flame, at pleasure, and is regulated with ease so as to prevent either an excess of gas or of air. Griffin's attachment of a circular cast iron box, with holes around the margin and on the top, designed to surmount the Bunsen burner and spread the flame for boiling and evaporation, was, I think, anticipated by McGlensey, of Philadelphia,, whose patent burner is figured below. Fig. 156 (1, 2) shows a simple brass cylinder with attach- ment for the introduction of gas and atmospheric air. The orifice of the burner is about £ of an inch above the top of the holes for the ad- mission of air, an important feature in determining the degree of force of the upward column of mixed air and gas; this constitutes a Bunsen burner. The perforated coni- cal top piece is designed to be screwed on to the top of the tube, and spreads the flame by discharging the gas through the small orifices in the top. In other patterns of this, designed for larger tubes, this perforated disk is convex, and some of the holes are so near the outer edge as to spread the flame more thoroughly. Fig. 157 shows one of the numer- ous arrangements adopted by the patentee for the support of vessels over the burner. The various forms of apparatus constructed with McGlensey's improvement are used for heating sad-irons, the cast iron Fig. 156. Fig. 157. McGlensey's gas lamp. 188 APPLYING HEAT FOR PHARMACEUTICAL PURPOSES. plates for batter cakes, and for radiating heat, as in warming bath- rooms and other small apartments. For boiling I have found them useful, but they are not so well adapted for evaporation. It is claimed that one of them will boil a quart of water in a tin vessel in ten min- utes, burning at the rate of four cubic feet of gas per hour. W. CHAPTER XI. ON THE MODES OF MEASURING AND REGULATING HEAT FOR PHARMACEU- TICAL PURPOSES, AND ON THE DECOCTIONS. Thermometer.—The measurement of temperature, which is of prac- tical importance in some heat operations, and in ascertaining the specific gravity of liquids, is effected by the use of a thermo- Fig. 158. meter. These, as made for the measurement of ordinary q changes in the temperature of the atmosphere, are of various cheap patterns, generally having a small range from a few degrees below zero of Fahrenheit, to about 120° above it. Fig. 158 represents a thermometer such as is convenient in a chemical or pharmaceutical laboratory. It is graduated by Fahrenheit's scale from — 20° to 4- 640°, and adapted to immersing in liquids the temperature of which is to be measured. In the United States and Great Britain, Fahrenheit's scale is universally used; but as the student is liable to see Centi- grade and Reaumur's scales referred to, in works written in continental Europe, I append a description of these, with the mode of converting them into Fahrenheit's. The Centigrade scale is the best adapted to the wants of the scientific, by its decimal arrangement; in it the freezing point is zero, and the boiling point of water 100°, each degree being equal to 1.8 Fahrenheit's. Reaumur's scale has the boiling point of water at 80°, the zero being at freezing; it has been superseded, where it was formerly used, by Centigrade. Fahrenheit's has the zero 32° below the freezing point, and 180° between freezing and boiling, so that the latter point makes 212°. To reduce Centigrade to Fahrenheit's, multiply by 9, divide by 5, and add 32. To reduce Reaumur's to Fahrenheit's, multiply bv 9, divide by 4, and add 32. The following diagram illustrates the relation of these three scales to each other. In most of the operations of the pharmaceutical shop and laboratory, the intervention of some conducting medium, between the fire and the vessel in which the operation is performed, is useful, either to prevent its too sudden eleva- THE SAND AND WATER-BATHS. 189 tion and depression of temperature, or to regulate the degree of heat applied. For these purposes, sand, water, and steam baths are in- vented. Fig. 159. Fahrenheit. Centigrade. Reaumur. n 212. 192 152 132 112 92 72 52 32. 100. SO 60 40 20 0. Diagram of different thermometers. The Sand Bath.—This is used to prevent the sudden elevation and depression of temperature, and where arrangements for burning gas, such as are described in the last chapter, are at command, may be dispensed with in nearly all cases. A convenient sand bath, at all times ready during the winter season, is furnished by the top of an ordinary stove, such as is used with anthracite coal for warming apartments; a rim of sheet iron stretched around the top and pro- jecting from three to four inches above it, makes a good receptacle for the sand, which becomes more or less heated according as the fire is increased or not, and may be used to digest infusions, to dry pre- cipitates, and to evaporate any solutions, the vapors of which would not contaminate the atmosphere injuriously. A shallow cast-iron pot, fitting, though not too closely, the top of a stove or furnace, is also a good arrangement; this is to be filled only so full of sand as is necessary completely to cover the bottom of the vessel to be set in it; as a general rule, the greater the amount of sand, the greater will be the waste of heat. In introducing a vessel to be heated, it may be plunged into the sand, so as to cover the bottom and sides more or less, according to the degree of heat required; and when the diameter of the sand bath is greater than that of the fire below, there is a similar choice between placing it immediately over the source of heat, or in a ]ess heated position near the edge of the bath. The Water Bath.—An extemporaneous water bath is prepared by procuring a rather shallow tin or copper cup, and an evaporating dish of just such size as will completely cover it, projecting slightly 190 APPLYING HEAT FOR PHARMACEUTICAL PURPOSES. over its edge. Those glass evaporating dishes which have a project- ing edge turned over and downwards, will fit more securely over the metallic vessel without being pushed out of place by the force used in stirring. They are also convenient from not allowing the ready escape of steam round the edge; this being condensed, either passes back into the cup, or drops from the edge. The lower vessel is to be nearly filled with water, and the substance to be heated placed in the evaporating dish, which being adjusted to its place, the whole is put over the fire. Now, the temperature of boiling water under ordinary circum- stances of pressure being 212°, it is obvious that the contents of the evaporating dish cannot reach a higher point; it is found practically, that two or three degrees of heat are lost, in passing from the boiling water through the dish, so that when the water below is boiling, the temperature of the contents of the dish will not exceed 210°. Aque- ous liquids will not boil in a water bath, but many of the solutions used for the preparation of extracts being alcoholic, undergo active ebullition at this temperature. A disadvantage attending upon an extemporaneous arrangement, arises from the rapid escape Fig. 160. of steam from the lower vessel on all sides of the capsule: now the quantity of vapor which will be suspended in a given space in the atmosphere is constant at any given tem- perature, so that in proportion as such space is saturated with moisture, further evaporation becomes difficult. A convenient water bath, less liable to the above objec- tion, is here figured; it is con- structed of tinned iron, or preferably of copper, and con- sists of an outer vessel or jacket soldered on to a shallow dish coated with tin, designed to contain the evaporating solution. The jacket is fed with water by the tube a, which may be fitted more or less tightly with a cork. It is tightly corked when the vessel is to be tilted in pouring off the contents of the upper part of the vessel, but loosely during Fig. 161. the application of heat. In drying substances, and in all cases where it is desirable to prevent the escape of steam from the water in the jacket into the surrounding air, the cork may be perfo- rated and fitted with a steam pipe of glass con- ducted into a vessel of cold water, b, into the flue Porcelain water bath. of a chimney, or through a window. When put out of use, the water bath should be carefully dried by wiping out the upper or evaporating vessel, and placing it 99999 MODIFIED WATER BATHS. 191 in such a position that the jacket will be completely drained of its moisture. By adapting to the cork, as above, a tube of glass, and passing it into a vessel of mercury, steam may be obtained under pressure so as to raise the temperature of the bath somewhat above 212°, and this arrangement may be resorted to with advantage when a more rapid evaporation is desirable than that afforded by the ordinary water bath. Steam with regulated pressure is applied on a large scale in a variety of manufacturing processes as explained in the sequel. Fig. 161 shows a porcelain water- bath, sold by the importers of Berlin ware, which is too small except for experimental purposes, or for the prepa- FiS- 162< ration of very small quantities of extracts or chemical products; it is, however, very convenient in these cases, and not liable to corrosion. Figs. 162, 163, and 164 represent the so- called Hecker's farina boiler, which is useful for the preparation of farinaceous articles of food, particularly where milk is employed; it obviates the danger of scorching, which is constantly experienced in heating milk over a naked fire. Fig. 162 is an outside tin vessel with a spout for the ready introduction of water. Fig. 163 is the inner vessel fitting into the above for containing the farinaceous substance, and Fig. 164 shows the two as fitted together. Fig. 165 represents a little apparatus for v£st ^ri Flg- 164- applying the principle of the water bath to drying precipitates on filters; it consists of a kettle of water, surmounted by a steam jacket surrounding a funnel, which is closed at bottom, so that a substance laid into it is heated to about 212° when the water reaches the boiling point. Fig. 166 illustrates the application of the water bath to filtering liquids while hot—Physick's jelly strainer, Fig. 93, operates on the same principle. Fig. 163. Fig. 165. Fig. 166. Water bath for drying filters. Apparatus for hot filtration. 192 APPLYING HEAT FOR PHARMACEUTICAL PURPOSES. The Steam Bath.—A steam boiler, by arranging pipes to communi- cate with suitable forms of apparatus, and by adapting the fittings and safety valve so as to regulate the pressure, may be made to sup- ply the heat necessary for the processes of boiling, evaporating, digesting, distilling, drying, and even for heating apartments. In manufacturing establishments this is now generally adopted as the chief or only means of generating and applying heat, and its applications are so varied that it constitutes one of the main topics of illustration and description in works on technology. The design and scope of the present work do not include the details upon this branch of the general subject, and it will be sufficient here to advert to the principle on which steam baths are constructed. As already stated, water boiling under ordinary circumstances of pressure does not exceed the temperature of 212° F., and the utility of the water bath is limited to processes in which that degree of heat is sufficient, but if water be boiled under pressure, the temperature rises in direct and invariable proportion to the pressure, and in this way may be rendered available with great facility and certainty in processes in the arts. In most public institutions recently erected, such as almshouses, prisons, insane asylums, and hospitals, arrangements are made for the introduction of steam pipes either directly into the apartments to be warmed, or preferably, into air chambers through which fresh air is made to pass by a system of ventilation into the several parts of the building. The boiler being located in a fire-proof basement, or at a suitable distance from the main building, the danger of conflagration is greatly lessened. To the physician, the study of these properties of steam in their applications to the warming and ventilation of public buildings, is even more interesting and important than their manifold uses in pharmacy and the industrial arts, and it is to be regretted that no means of systematic instruction upon these and kindred matters of public utility are placed within the reach of those who are so liable to be called upon for advice in relation to what might be called archi- tectural hygiene. Processes requiring Heat. The generation and application of heat in pharmacy having been specially treated of as far as deemed necessary, we proceed to the consideration of the processes of decoction, evaporation, distillation, &c. and of the Galenical preparations in which they are necessary. Decoction, or boiling, is a process to be applied with care to vegetable substances in contact with water; although boiling water, from its being permeated by steam, and from its being of less specific gravity, is more penetrating, and dissolves many principles which resist the action of water at a lower temperature. It is, nevertheless liable to disadvantages as a menstruum for the preparation of solutions from plants and parts of plants. The boiling points of liquids, although constant under precisely the same circumstances, vary on account of increased or diminished atmo- PROCESSES requiring heat. * 193 spheric pressure, the greater or less depth of the liquid, and the nature of the containing vessel. Fluids boil at a lower temperature and more quietly in vessels with rough surfaces than in those which are polished; in glass vessels, especially, they display a tendency to irregu- larity of ebullition, and the boiling point of water, which, under ordi- nary circumstances, is at 212° F., rises sometimes as high as 221° in a vessel of pure and smooth glass. The boiling points of infusions rise in proportion to the amount of contained vegetable matter, and there appears to be a difference be- tween the apparent temperature of a boiling solution, and the actual heating or scorching influence to which it is subjected by contact with the bottom and sides of the containing vessel. The steam generated at the point of contact being under heavy pressure in deep vessels, and temperature rising.in proportion to pressure, it may be supposed at the moment of its formation to be much hotter than 212°, and if the portion of liquid immediately in contact with the heated vessel contains substances in solution liable to be burnt, it is reasonable to suppose that such a result occurs during the moment consumed in converting any portion into steam. In this way we may account for the well known injurious effect of boiling upon vegetable infusions. Starch is a proximate principle, present in a large number of vege- tables ; being inert and soluble in water at a boiling temperature, it adds to the viscidity of decoctions, and renders them disagreeable to the patient, while it has no connection with their medicinal activity. The extractive matter upon which depends the activity of some medicines, is more freely soluble in hot than in cold water, but the boiling temperature applied under ordinary circumstances produces the decomposition of this and other vegetable principles, or so modi- fies them as to impair their efficiency. The access of air seems to promote this result, and hence boiling in a covered vessel is prefer- able, except where the quantity of the solution is to be reduced by the process. In this case, by conducting the operation in a still, the surface of the liquid may be kept covered by the vapor, almost to the exclusion of the air. A substance called apotheme, or oxidized extractive, is also apt to be deposited by vegetable solutions on boiling with access of air; this may carry with it a portion of the active principles, and should not be rejected from the preparation. If the plant under treatment contains a volatile oil or other volatile principle which it is desirable to retain in the decoction, long boiling is inadmissible, especially in an open vessel. Vegetable decoctions, if strained while hot, generally deposit a portion of insoluble matter on cooling, which may or may not contain active ingredients; but it is generally advisable to retain the precipi- tate and diffuse it through the liquid, stirring or shaking it up before taking each dose. The proximate principle called vegetable albumen, which is soluble, in cold water and alcohol, is coagulable at a boiling temperature, and hence is removed from decoctions on straining them. The existence of starch and tannic acid together, in a vegetable 13 194 APPLYING HEAT FOR PHARMACEUTICAL PURPOSES. substance, forbids the long-continued application of a boiling tem- perature, especially during exposure to the air, as a tannate of starch is formed which is insoluble, and probably nearly inert. The state of division of the drug is among the most important points to be observed in preparing decoctions; if too coarse, it is liable to be im- perfectly extracted, while, by being too finely divided, it is rendered difficult to separate on the strainer. The use of the tobacco knife, Fig. 85, or of a pair of shears, furnishes a more uniform and conve- nient state of division than a mortar and pestle. In preparing decoc- tions of the vegetable astringents, the use of an iron or rusted tin ves- sel is to be avoided on account of the inky tannate of iron being formed. In making decoctions the ebullition should not be violent nor Ion or continued, as simmering answers every purpose of hard boiling. If the drug contains an essential oil or other volatile principle, the vessel should be covered. OFFICINAL DECOCTIONS. Decocta U. S. Name. Proportions. Medical Properties. Decoctum chimaphilae Ii to oj Alterative, diaphoretic. u uvae ursi do. Astringent, diuretic. n dulcamaras do. Sedative, alterative. u hsematoxyli do. Astringent. " quercus alb. do. do. Externally. " cinch, flav. do. Tonic. u " rub. do. do. 11 cornus floridae do. do. (I senegse do. Acrid expectorant. 11 hordei do. Nutritive, diet. " cetrariae gss to Oj Tonic, demulcent. 11 sarsaparilla comp. (see Formula) ^iss to Oj Alterative. REMARKS ON THE DECOCTIONS. The dose of the decoctions is the same as of the infusions, from flij to Oj, or may be generally stated at one pint in divided portions. Care has been taken by the framers of the Pharmacopoeia to select for this form of preparation those drugs least liable to deterioration by exposure to the influence of heat and the atmosphere. To this remark the decoctions of cinchona seem exceptions; these are even more objectionable than the hot infusions, letting fall a copious precipitate on cooling, which is apt to contain most of the alkaloids. They are improved by the addition of a little aromatic sulphuric acid, and should always be strained while hot, and shaken up when about'to be administered. Chimaphila and uva ursi are well adapted to this form of prepara- tion, the coriaceous surface of the leaves resisting the action of water at a lower temperature. The decoction of senega is almost superseded by the syrup, which is a far more agreeable preparation, and is efficient in a much smaller dose. The formula for these preparations is so nearly uniform that with the exceptions of decoctions of pearl barley, decoction of Iceland moss DECOCTIONS. 195 and compound decoction of sarsaparilla, given separately, it may be thus stated:— Take of (the bruised drug) a troyounce. Water a sufficient quantity. Boil the (bruised drug) in a pint of'water for fifteen minutes, strain, and add sufficient water through the strainer, to make the dec-oction measure a pint. Decoctum Cetrarias. (Decoction of Iceland Moss) Take of Iceland moss half a troyounce. Water a sufficient quantity. Boil the Iceland moss in a pint of water for fifteen minutes, sti ain with compression, and add sufficient water, through the strainer, to make the decoction measure a pint. Decoctum Sarsaparillee Compositum. (Compound Decoction of Sarsaparilla) Take of Sarsaparilla, sliced and bruised, six troyounces. Bark of sassafras root, sliced, Guaiacum wood, rasped, Liquorice root, bruised, each, a troyounce. Mezereon, sliced, one hundred and eighty grains. Water a sufficient quantity. Macerate with four pints of water for twelve hours; then boil for a quarter of an hour, strain, and add sufficient water, through the strainer, to make the decoction measure four pints. Compound decoction of sarsaparilla, which is an imitation of the cele- brated Lisbon diet drink, is also officinal in some of the foreign Phar- macopoeias, and is much more extensively used in those countries than with us. It is often used along with or after a mercurial course. Decoctum Hordei. (Decoction of Barley) Take of Barley two troyounces. Water a sufficient quantity. Having washed away the extraneous matters which adhere to the barley, boil it with half a pint of water for a short time, and throw away the resulting liquid. Then, having poured on it four pints of boiling water, boil down to two pints, and strain. Decoctum hordei, called barley-water, is peculiar in its mode of pre- paration, the directions requiring that the decorticated seeds, called pearl barley, should be washed with cold water to separate extraneous matters, then boiled for a short time in a small portion of water, which is to be thrown away: upon the seeds, which, by this process, are completely freed from any unpleasant taste, and are much swollen, the remainder of the water is poured boiling hot; it is now to be boiled down to two pints and strained. Various adjuvants are used to im-' prove the taste of this, such as raisins, figs, liquorice root, &c, which are sometimes contraindicated. Its use is as a demulcent and nutri- tive drink in inflammatory and febrile diseases affecting the alimentary canal and the urinary organs. 196 ON EVAPORATION AND THE EXTRACTS. CHAPTER XII. ON EVAPORATION AND THE EXTRACTS. This process, which is employed in the preparation of most of the extracts, fluid extracts, and syrups, and in the concentration of solu- tions generally, differs from that of decoction in the degree of heat employed, and in the precautions necessary to success. When the liquid under treatment is brought to a temperature above its boiling point, so that the formation of vapor is upon the inner sur- face of the containing vessel, and it escapes by its elasticity through the body of the liquid in the form of bubbles, the process is termed decoction; but when the liquid does not reach its boiling point, and the temperature and other circumstances are such that it is liberated without disturbance, in the form of vapor, directly from the surface exposed to the air, it is termed evaporation. In decoction, the rapidity of the conversion of the liquid into vapor is in proportion to the extent of surface of the containing vessel ex- posed to the fire, while in evaporation it depends principally upon the extent of surface of the liquid exposed to the air. Viewed as pro- cesses for dissipating the volatile liquid ingredients from a solution, these differ chiefly in regard to the degree of heat employed, and the consequent rapidity with which the object is attained. The effect of .reducing the temperature below the boiling point is exhibited by the following ascertained rates of evaporation: At 212° the rate of evaporation of water may be represented by 512; at 180° by 256; at 150° by 128; at 125° by 64; at 100° by 32; and at 79° by 16, which exhibits a gradation of much interest, whether from a practical or theoretical point of view. In evaporating saline solutions reference should be had to the presence or absence of volatile constituents, or the liability to decom- position at elevated temperatures, but as a general rule the most rapid evaporation would be preferable. For reasons pointed out in the last chapter, evaporation at a mode- rate temperature is generally preferred, for Fig. 167. the preparation of vegetable extracts. Many vegetable solutions, which would be greatly deteriorated by the long boiling necessary to reduce them to the condition of extracts, may be exposed to a temperature below Large evaporating dish. their boiling point in a wide and shallow vessel until completely inspissated, with but little danger of losing their solubility, or their medicinal activity. Extracts are, therefore, always evaporated in shallow vessels, which should be of porcelain, or well tinned iron or copper. Fig. 167 repre- sents an evaporating dish of Berlin ware, which is the best material. The long exposure of a vegetable solution to a moderate heat, ON EVAPORATION AND THE EXTRACTS. 197 besides being so tedious, is liable to the objection of exposing the proximate constituents present for a long period to the oxidizing influ- ence of the air, sometimes even allowing of the acetous fermentation. The liquid to be evaporated should be divided into comparatively small portions, and each reduced separately till it is highly concen- trated : then the whole may be mixed. By this means, no one portion is kept a very long time under the unfavorable circumstances of an elevated temperature and exposure to the air. In many preparations, particularly the fluid extracts and some syrups, the process is directed to be carried to a certain point indicated by the quantity'of the concentrated liquid. To facilitate the determi- nation of this without removing the liquid from the evaporating dish two methods are resorted to, the dish may be tared and from time to time placed upon the scale until it reaches the required weight previ- ously ascertained, or a suitable slip of wood is previously marked with a notch at the point reached by the required quantity of liquid, and this being inserted perpendicularly in the liquid will indicate the point to arrest the evaporation. Air at a certain temperature is capable of taking up a certain por- tion of vapor which is constant at this temperature, and evaporation must cease when the point of saturation is attained, therefore a draught greatly facilitates evaporation by carrying oft' the air as fast as it becomes charged with moisture, and constantly furnishing a dry atmosphere to become saturated in turn with the escaping vapor. Constant stirring, by continually exposing a large surface of the heated liquid to the air, also increases the rapidity of evaporation. The different modes of applying heat for the purposes of evapora- tion, are: 1st. Directly by exposing the source of heat. 2d. By a sand bath. 3d. By a water bath. 4th. By a steam bath. Whenever a vegetable solution is evapo- rated by a direct application of heat, it should be at such an elevation from the furnace or lamp, as not to be touched by the flame, so that the heat should be com- municated by radiation. When the heat is under perfect control, as in a gas furnace, this plan is not objectionable, and may be substituted for the use of a water bath with the advantage of being raised to the boiling point, or depressed below it at pleasure. Fig. 168 shows an arrangement for the direct application of radiated heat in evaporation; a is a diaphragm of wire gauze placed between the evaporating dish b and the source of heat c, which spreads the flame and prevents its contact with the dish, though brought closely together; the diaphragm a may be omitted in using a gas furnace, as the flame is then under control by regulating the jet. Several retort stands have been shown in the last chapter and in containing vessel to the Application of radiated heat. 198 ON EVAPORATION AND THE EXTRACTS. that on displacement, and the instrument as commonly constructed is sufficiently familiar. In the ordinary kind, it is necessary m adjusting apparatus, or when it is desirable to disconnect or alter the position of the rings for any purpose, to slide them up the whole length of the rod, and remove all above them, which is Fig. 169. sometimes a very great inconvenience. In Wiegand's improvement, the casting that clasps the rod is open on one side to the diameter of the rod, so that by loosening the screw it may be slipped off laterally, Wiegand's improved c.asp for retort ^ ^ ^^ ^ ^^ .^ finned SO as to press firmly against the rod, it is suffi- ciently secure to bear any weight appropriate to such an apparatus. Fig. 169 gives a view of one of these separated from the rod, and in Fig. 168 the whole retort stand is shown in use, giving a front view of the improved clasp. The sand bath is very little employed in the preparation of extracts, possessing no advantages over the carefully regulated direct applica- tion of radiated heat. The water bath is directed in all the officinal processes, for the preparation of extracts; its advantages are detailed on pp. 189 to 191. Whatever means may be resorted to for effecting the concentration of vegetable solutions, with a view to the preparation of extracts, they should be finally evaporated to the proper consistence with great care, and a water bath furnishes a means of controlling the temperature, especially adapted to unskilful and inexperienced persons. The steam bath is by far the most eligible means of applying heat for the purposes under discussion, although being out of the reach of a majority of pharmaceutists and medical practitioners, it is confined to the comparatively few who manufacture pharmaceutical prepara- tions on a large scale. One difference between a steam bath and a water bath consists in the facility of the application of pressure to the steam in the one case and not in the other. The temperature of steam, as already stated, p. 192, bears a remarkable relation to the pressure under which it is maintained; steam under pressure of five pounds to the square inch is at a temperature of 226°, which is about as high as can be safely employed in making extracts; as the liquid will boil at this temperature, of course the evaporation is more rapid than ordinary surface evaporation, and yet the containing vessel is not so hot as in ordinary cases of the direct application of heat. The fact that the temperature of steam under pressure is liable to the objection of in- juring the vegetable principles in solution has recently attracted atten- tion, and induced a modification of the steam bath so as to give it more the character of a water bath, though with the advantages of con- ducting and communicating heat, which apply so peculiarly to steam. The apparatus in the U. S. Army laboratory, in Philadelphia, is a hemispherical iron basin, perforated by a pipe through which the steam is introduced, and another for the exit of the condensed water into a waste pipe. The steam pipe communicates with the boiler in which steam is generated for all the processes in the establishment, and several steam baths stand out in the room, in convenient positions, ON EVAPORATION AND THE EXTRACTS. 199 and are adapted by rings of various diameters to any of the vessels in which it is desirable to conduct the several evaporations. Since the introduction of steam apparatus into pharmaceutical labo- ratories, a great improvement has taken place in the pharmaceutical processes and products. In the preparation of extracts by the use of steam, the pressure is so regulated that, as the solution becomes inspissated, the degree of heat can be diminished. Near the conclusion of the process the extract is sometimes withdrawn, and poured in thin layers on plates of glass, which are placed in a drying room or closet, and subjected to a cur- rent of warm and dry air, till sufficiently hard. The most perfect form of apparatus for the preparation of extracts, is a combination of the steam bath with a vacuum pan. A suitable air-tight boiler is connected with an air pump worked by machinery, which, by removing the pressure of the atmosphere from the liquid placed in it, lowers the boiling point, and greatly increases the rapidity of evaporation, even at a temperature of 120° to 140° F. The air being excluded, the principal objection to the long continued evapo- ration of vegetable solutions is also removed. In the absence of facilities for evaporation in vacuo the advantage of apparatus for dis- tillation in concentrating vegetable juices and infusions should not be overlooked. The head of the still becoming full of steam excludes the air for the most part, and the condensation of the steam in the cooler brings about a partial vacuum which favors rapid evaporation. In most establishments for the manufacture of extracts, vacuum pans, heated by steam, are employed for their concentration, and their products are generally considered to furnish proof of the superiority of this mode of evaporation over that accomplished under ordinary circumstances of pressure and exposure to the air; this is especially the case with those constituting the first group in the classification adopted in this work, which is primarily according to therapeutical properties, though the different modes of preparation are included in the arrangement of the groups. Extracta U. S. P. 1st Group.—Narcotic. Inspissated juices. From the fresh plant by expression, coagu- lation of the albumen, straining, and evaporation. Officinal Name. Dose. Medical Properties. Extractum belladonnas " stramonii " conii " hyoscyami 1 to 2 grains do. 2 to 3 grains do. See 2d Group, Alcoholic Ext's. Seldom prescribed. Added to alterative compounds. Laxative, narcotic. REMARKS. The four extracts classed above form a remarkably natural group, therapeutically, pharmaceutically, and physically; as commonly pre- pared and imported, thay have a more or less decidedly green color, and this feature was formerly regarded as a test of their having been 200 • ON EVAPORATION AND THE EXTRACTS. prepared without scorching from the employment of too high heat; but, on the other hand, the green coloring principle (chlorophylle) is asso- ciated with the inert and insoluble vegetable albumen, which sometimes exists to the amount of from 12 to 18 per cent., and which thesU. b. Pharmacopoeia directs shall be first coagulated and separated; the strictly officinal extracts prepared by inspissating the juice of the green herbs being deprived of this, have a brown color, and are nearly soluble in water. Under the name of clarified extracts. Tilden & Co., of New Lebanon, N. Y., offer an article answering this description. The odor of extracts is one of the surest indications of their quality; it should, as nearly as possible, resemble that of the undried plant. Extracts which are made by the use of vacuum apparatus, and de- prived of a portion of their inert constituents (clarified) are, of course, stronger than the kind formerly in use; and, hence, the doses stated in the books are generally rather above those usually prescribed. I have known of one instance of great inconvenience resulting from a physician ordering too large a dose of extract of belladonna, under a wrong impression as to the strength of the best commercial article. This impression was founded on his own experience with the inferior article met with in country practice. The United States are largely supplied with this class of extracts from England, where the herbs from which they are prepared appear to come to great perfection, but of the English manufacturers, of whom Squire, Allen, Herring, and Kansom, have a high reputation here, none adopt the method of clarification which is required by the Pharmacopoeia of the United States. Extract of belladonna is useful externally and internally as an anodyne in neuralgia, tic douloureux, and other painful affections, and as an antispasmodic in whooping-cough, and as a prophylactic in scarlet fever. It is much used in the treatment of diseases of the eye, and especially for the dilatation of the pupil before operations for cataract; for this purpose the extract is softened with water to the consistence of a thick liquid, and applied directly to the eyeball and painted on the upper and lower lids, a few hours before the operation. The fresh leaves yield about 5 per cent, of this extract. Extract of stramonium is usually prepared from the whole herb, which yields about 18 per cent, of extract. (Gray) It is the least employed of the group. Besides the uses to which the others are applied, this has been prescribed in spasmodic asthma. The ointment made from the extract is a popular remedy in piles. Extract of conium, which, on account of the volatility of its active principle, is one of the most difficult of the extracts to prepare and preserve, is also one of the most useful. It is extensively employed in the treatment of glandular enlargement, scrofula, rheumatism, &c, as an alterative and anodyne, entering into the composition of numer- ous empirical preparations, besides being extensively prescribed in regular practice. The whole plant is usually employed in its prepa- ration, though the Pharmacopoeia indicates the leaves as the officinal portion; the yield is about 3 to 5 per cent. It should have a strong and characteristic odor, and is readily tested ON EVAPORATION AND THE EXTRACTS. 201 by the following experiment: Take a small pellet of the extract, soften it into a thin paste with water, and add a drop of solution of potassa, or of carbonate of potassa; immediately a strong characteristic odor will be observed, resembling, when faint, the odor of mice. This is from the liberation in a gaseous form of conia, the active principle of the herb, and on holding near it a rod moistened with muriatic acid, a copious cloud of muriate of conia will be produced. If the extract is very inferior, the experiment will not succeed, or will be only partially successful. A cloud of muriate of ammonia without the mouse-like odor will be perceived. Extract of hyoscyamus is the most extensively used internally of the series. The yield of the plant is about 5| per cent, of extract. Its tendency to increase the secretions and to promote the action of the bowels renders it a particularly useful anodyne remedy. Mohr's Process.—Prof. F. Mohr, starting from the fact that the activity of narcotic herbs belongs to principles which are soluble in both alcohol and water, proposed a method for preparing such extracts, the main features of which have been adopted by the Pharmacopoeias of the different German States. It is the following: The fresh herb is expressed, mixed with about one-seventh of its weight of water, again expressed, the liquid raised to near the boiling point, and strained from the precipitated albumen, which has coagulated and thrown down the chlorophyll; it is then evaporated at from 120° to 130° F. to one- fourth the weight of the original material, mixed with an equal bulk of alcohol to separate gum and mucilage, strained, and with constant stirring evaporated to the proper consistence. This process furnishes very strong and reliable extracts; they are not so variable* as those obtained by the inspissation of the juices, which vary according to the locality and the season. The only principles here extracted are active, and the dose is correspondingly small. None of our manufacturers have as yet put this process in practice, though some of the best Ger- man pharmaceutists import these excellent extracts. It is, however, worthy of remark that inferior, almost worthless, extracts are manu- factured in Germany for the American market. 2d Group.—Narcotics, &c, Alcoholic, extracted by alcohol and diluted alcohol, and evaporated. Officinal name. Dose. Medical Properties. Extractum Aconiti alcoholicum £ gr. to 1 gr. Nervous sedative. " Belladonnas " do. Narcotic. " Stramonii " do. do. " Conii " 1 to 2 grs. Alterative, narcotic. " Hyoscyami " do. Laxative, narcotic. " Digitalis " \ gr. to £ gr. Art. sedat., diuretic. " Cannabis purificatum i gr. to 2 grs. Intoxicant, (variable). Valerianae alcoholicum 3 to 5 grs. Antispasmodic. " Arnicae " In arnica plaster. " Nucis vomicae " £ gr. to 1 gr. Tonic, excito-motor. " Ignatiae " do. do. 202 QN EVAPORATION AND THE EXTRACTS. ^ REMAP KS. The use of an alcoholic menstruum for the extraction of the dried herbs possesses some advantages, in the preparation of extracts, over the inspissation of the juices of the fresh plants as obtained by ex- pression. The albuminous and extractive matters, not being soluble in alcohol, are not present in the solution, and on its evaporation the active principles constitute a much larger proportion of the resulting extract; hence the doses of the narcotic extracts are much smaller than of'those of the first group. They are also much more easily prepared by the pharmaceutist on a small scale than the inspissated juices; by the use of apparatus at hand in almost every shop the members of this group can be satisfactorily prepared, the only prac- tical difficulty being the supply of fresh and reliable herbs. Those imported from England at high prices are the only commercial variety of these leaves to be depended on, except in the case of stramonium, which may be collected in abundance in the outskirts of almost any town. The modes of extraction and evaporation of this group are varied in almost every instance; in the case of aconite, conium, digi- talis, stramonium and valerian, a limited quantity of strong alcohol is first passed through the mass of powdered leaves; this_first percolate is set aside to evaporate spontaneously, and the extraction being then finished with diluted alcohol, and this evaporated on a water bath, it is, toward the last, incorporated with the reserved portion, and the whole brought to the proper consistence. Alcoholic extracts of bella- donna, of hyoscyamus, and of arnica, are made by the inspissation, without'reserving any portion for spontaneous evaporation, of a tinc- ture made with two parts of alcohol to one of water. . Alcoholic extracts of nux vomica and ignatia are obtained by in- spissating tinctures made with strong alcohol, of the powdered drug; they are very powerful remedies, and possess a resinous consistence, becoming dry and brittle by age. The extract of cannabis indica, as obtained from the East Indies, often contains much insoluble and inert matter which in the above purified extract is separated by solution, filtration, and evaporation. This method, however, is less practised than the direct preparation by digestion or steam percolation of an alcoholic extract from the carefully dried imported herb. I have not met with the East India extract in our markets for a long time, and have been in the habit of dispensing the best English extract prepared from the Gunjah itself. The therapeutical applications of these extracts are numerous, though the inspissated juices of belladonna, stramonium, conium, and hyoscya- mus, as included in the first group, are much more used. The alcoholic extracts are best adapted to incorporation with ointments and plasters, from their containing less inert insoluble matter, also for reducing to a dry and pulverulent condition, where this is necessary, as for prescrip- tions in the form of powder. In the absence of an inspissated juice of aconite, formerly officinal, the alcoholic extract should have an op- portunity of a fair trial, and in view of its importance as a powerful internal remedy in neuralgic aft'ections and in fevers, and its great ON EVAPORATION AND THE EXTRACTS. 203 utility in the form of plaster, as well as the smallness of its dose for internal use, it will doubtless find a place in many prescriptions. An alcoholic extract of aconite root would probably be an improvement on that of the leaves for most external applications. Alcoholic ex- tract of arnica is for the first time made officinal in the Pharmacopoeia of 1860, its use being in the fabrication of arnica plaster. An oppor- tunity is now furnished for the trial of this remedy internally in the form of pill and for the settlement of its therapeutical position. Extract of valerian is for the first time introduced into our national standard in the revision of 1860 ; the formula seems a good one, and as it furnishes an opportunity for prescribing this esteemed antispas- modic in a less offensive form than the tincture or fluid extract, it will doubtless gain favor with physicians and patients. Extract of digitalis should have been, long since, in the U. S. Phar- macopoeia ; it has been in common use for many years. In view of the perishable nature of the powdered leaves, it is adapted to supersede these in extemporaneous combinations. Extract of cannabis is one of the most useful of the class of narcotic remedies, but for its great uncertainty of operation. Some specimens produce the most powerful and even alarming symptoms in doses of a single grain or even less, while others require 5 or even 10 grains to produce its characteristic results. Its peculiarities as a remedy consist in its producing none of those depressing effects generally characteristic of narcotics; it does not affect the pulse nor the appetite, nor is it apt to cause sleep except by allaying nervous symptoms. It is equally applicable to acute inflammatory and to typhoid affections. Alcoholic extracts of nux vomica and ignatia are two of the most powerful tonics within the reach of the practitioner, they are usually prescribed along with other bitters and sometimes with the mineral tonics; it should be remembered that they contain strychnia and brucia, two powerful vegetable alkalies, and that they are cumulative in their effects and liable to produce tetanic symptoms, on the least appear- ance of which the use of the remedy should be arrested. The com- mercial extract of nux vomica is often given in one grain doses, but it is frequently much below standard strength. 3d GKorjp.—Cathartics, tonics, &c, alcoholic. Extracted by alcohol and water, or diluted alcohol. Officinal name. Dose. Medical Properties. Extractum hellebori alcoholicum " jalapae " " podophylli " rhei " " 'colocynthidis " " 2cinchonae *♦ " dulcamaras " senegae " 10 to 15 grs. do. 5 to 10 grs. 10 to 15 grs. 10 to 15 grs. 3 to 6 grs. Emmenagogue, cathartic. Cathartic. do. do. do. Tonic' Alterative, narootic. Stimulant, expectorant. 1 See Extractum Colocynthidis Compositum. 2 See Extractum Calisayicum. 204 ON EVAPORATION AND THE EXTRACTS. REMARKS. In preparing the above important preparations there are various modifications of the process of extraction by diluted alcohol and subsequent evaporation. This process in its simplest form is adopted in the case of colocynth, dulcamara, and senega, in the former of which maceration and strong expression precede percolation. In treating cinchona, jalap, and podophyllum, the alcohol and water are applied successively and the percolates separately evaporated to the consistence of thin honey, mixed and further concentrated to the proper consistence. Ehubarb and black hellebore are instances in which the percolation is, first with strong alcohol, followed by diluted alcohol; the first percolate being evaporated spontaneously, and the other by a water bath, till they reach the consistence of syrup; they are then directed to be mixed and further concentrated to the consist- ence of an extract. Of the above cathartics, each has its peculiar properties, adapting it to some peculiar use. Extract of hellebore is used as an emmenagogue cathartic. In com- bination with aloes, myrrh, sulphate of iron, &c, it constitutes the celebrated Hooper's Female Pills. Extract of jalap is combined with compound extract of colocynth, calomel, and gamboge in the compound cathartic pill; it is, perhaps, seldom prepared of standard quality, and is especially liable to sophis- tication and adulteration. Extract of podophyllum is less used than it deserves, being equal to extract of jalap in its cathartic effect in half the dose. Podophyllin is a more concentrated and, for many uses, a more convenient prepara- tion, but it is not so perfect a representative of the root as this extract. Extract of rhubarb is rarely employed by practitioners in the United States, though it offers facilities for using this valuable tonic cathartic in larger doses in the form of pill than the powdered root itself. Extract of cinchona is seldom used in practice in this country. This extract of cinchona must not be confounded with the article called Wetherill's Extract, nor with extractum calisayicum, which are superior preparations, treated* of among the unofficinal extracts. Extract of dulcamara has been removed into this group from the group of aqueous extracts in which it was formerly included; it is but little prescribed, though doubtless an admirable vehicle for other alterative medicines in the form of pill. Extract of seneka is a new officinal for which there seems to me to be little use, as seneka root, being an expectorant, is seldom required in the pilular form, and its syrup and decoction are favorably known as liquid preparations. Extract of cohcynth is introduced into the Pharmacopoeia with a view to the ready preparation of the compound extract, which is a well known and popular remedy; its properties adapt it to being dried and powdered. It may be advantageously prescribed as an active cathartic in many combinations. ON EVAPORATION AND THE EXTRACTS. 205 4th Gboup.—Tonics, astringents, &c. Extracted by water and evaporated. Officinal Name. Med. Dose. Remarks. Extractum gentianae 10 to 20 grs. Tonic. " quassias 3 to 6 grs. do. " krameriae (rhatany) 10 to 20 grs. Astringent. " hsematoxyli do. do. juglandis (butternut) do. Cathartic. " opii 1 grain. Narcotic. REMARKS. Extracts of gentian, quassia, and butternut, are made by precisely i the same process involving percolation with cold water, boiling down to three-fourths, straining, and evaporating. Extract of rhatany differs from this by being raised to the boiling point merely, strained, and evaporated on a water bath, a variation made necessary by the proneness of the astringent principle to become insoluble and inert by long exposure to a boiling temperature. Logwood, on the con- trary, is extracted by long boiling, and on evaporation becomes dry and pulverulent, a property which it shares with most of the astrin- gent extracts. Opium is sliced and triturated with water to obtain its soluble principles, requiring repeated macerations and nitrations, it forms then a perfectly smooth, uniform, and soluble extract by careful evaporation. The great advantage of extract of quassia over extract of gentian in making pills, will be seen by comparing the doses. Extract of rhatany, when well prepared, so as to be soluble in water, is a valuable substi- tute for kino and catechu, which it resembles in physical as well as medical properties. It differs in medical properties from extract of logwood, though both are astringents; the last named is more mild in its action, and is especially adapted to relaxed conditions of the bowels. Extract of logwood is also largely used in dyeing, and in the manufacture of writing fluids. Extract of butternut, or white walnut, is a mild alterative, laxative, and diuretic medicine, but little prescribed, but well worthy the atten- tion of practitioners in the treatment of chronic diseases. Aqueous extract of opium is a most useful preparation, much used in eye-washes and astringent injections, and well adapted to substitute opium itself in pill masses and for other internal uses; the proximate principles of opium, soluble in water, are those most agreeable in their action. Unclassified Extracts. Extractum taraxaci Dose 3j By inspissating the expressed juice, diuretic, cholagogue. " colchici acet. Dose 1 to 2 grs. Extracted by diluted acetic acid, astringent, sedative. " colocynthidis comp. Dose 10 grs. Cathartic mixed powders. Extract of taraxacum is a most useful, though mild, remedy adapted to a large class of chronic cases. Much that is met with in the mar- ket is quite deficient in the bitterness characteristic of a good article, 206 ON EVAPORATION AND THE EXTRACTS. it is also apt to ferment or become mouldy from deficient evaporation. The evaporation should be pushed till the pilular consistence is fully attained. Acetic extract of colchicum is an invaluable remedy in rheumatic and gouty affections, and in a variety of combinations indicated under the head of Extemporaneous Prescriptions is largely prescribed. Compound extract of colocynth is a most valuable remedy, for which an entirely new formula is given in the Pharmacopoeia of 1860, found among the working formulas which follow. It is an exception to the extracts generally in being kept in powder. "Working Formulas of Extracts, including some not found in the pharmacopceia. second group. Extractum Digitalis Alcoholicum U.S.P. Take of Digitalis, recently dried and in fine powder, twelve troy- ounces. Alcohol a pint. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Introduce the powder, previously mixed with one-third of the alco- hol, into a percolator, and pour upon it the remainder of the alcohol. When the liquid has all been absorbed by the powder, pour diluted alcohol upon it until a pint of tincture has been obtained. Set this aside in a warm place, and allow it to evaporate spontaneously until reduced to three fluidounces. Continue the percolation with diluted alcohol until two pints more of tincture have passed, or until the powder is exhausted; then evaporate this liquid, by means of a water- bath, at a temperature not exceeding 160°, to the consistence of syrup. To this add the three fluidounces of tincture first obtained, and con- tinue the evaporation, at a temperature not exceeding 120°, until the whole is reduced to the proper consistence. By the same process prepare— Extractum Conii Alcoholicum U. S. P. From hemlock, recently dried and in fine powder. Extractum Stramonii Alcoholicum U.S.P. From stramonium leaf, recently dried and in fine powder. Extractum Valerianae Alcoholicum U.S.P. From valerian in fine powder. Extractum Aconiti AhoholicumJJ.S.F. From aconite leaf, recently dried and in fine powder. FORMULAS FOR THE EXTRACTS. 207 Extractum Belladonnas Alcoholicum U. S. P. Take of Belladonna leaf, in fine powder, twenty-four troyounces. Alcohol four pints. Water two pints. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Mix the alcohol and water, and moisten the powder with a pint of the mixture; then pack it firmly in a conical percolator, and gradually pour upon it the remainder of the mixture. Continue the percolation with diluted alcohol until six pints of tincture have passed. Lastly, evaporate this, by means of a water bath, to the proper consistence. By the same process prepare— Extractum Hyoscyami Ahoholicum U. S. P. From henbane leaves, recently dried and in moderately fine powder. Extractum Arnicas Ahoholicum U. S. P. From arnica, in moderately coarse powder. Extractum Nucis Vomicae Alcoholicum U. S. P. Take of Nux vomica, in fine powder, twelve troyounces. Alcohol a sufficient quantity. Mix the nux vomica with four fluidounces of alcohol, and allow the mixture to stand for an hour. Then introduce it into a cylindrical percolator, and gradually pour alcohol upon it until the tincture passes without bitterness. Distil off the alcohol, by means of a water bath, .until the tincture is reduced to half a pint, and evaporate this to the proper consistence. By the same process prepare— Extractum Ignatias Alcoholicum U. S. P. From ignatia, in fine powder. Extractum Cannabis Purificatum. (Purified Extract of Hemp) U. S. P. Take of Extract of hemp two troyounces. Alcohol a sufficient quantity. Eub the extract with two fluidounces of alcohol until they are thoroughly mixed; and, having added twelve fluidounces of alcohol, allow the mixture to macerate for twenty-four hours. Then filter the tincture through paper, passing sufficient alcohol through the filter to exhaust the dregs completely. Lastly, by means of a water bath, at a temperature not exceeding 160°, evaporate to dryness. THIRD GROUP. Extractum Colocynthidis Ahoholicum U. S. P. Take of Colocynth forty-eight troyounces. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Dry the colocynth, and, having removed the seeds and reduced it 208 ON EVAPORATION AND THE EXTRACTS. to a coarse powder by grinding or bruising, macerate it in eight pints of diluted alcohol for four days, with occasional stirring; then express strongly, and strain through flannel. Pack the residue, previously broken up with the hands, firmly in a cylindrical percolator, cover it with the strainer, and pour diluted alcohol upon it until the tincture and expressed liquid, taken together, measure sixteen pints. Mix the tincture with the expressed liquid, and, having recovered from the mixture ten pints of alcohol by distillation, evaporate the residue to dryness by means of a water bath. Lastly, reduce the dry mass to powder, and keep it in a well-stopped bottle. The extract obtained by this process weighs about seven troyounces. Extractum Dulcamaras Ahoholicum U. S. P. Take of Bittersweet, in moderately fine powder, twelve troyounces. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Moisten the bittersweet with four fluidounces of diluted alcohol, pack it in a conical percolator and pour diluted alcohol gradually upon it until the tincture passes but slightly impregnated with the properties of the bittersweet. Distil off the alcohol from the tincture until reduced to one-half; then strain, and by means of a water bath, evaporate to the proper consistence. Extractum Senegas Ahoholicum U. S. P. Prepare from seneka in moderately fine powder by the above pro- cess, omitting to strain the liquid when reduced to one-half. Extractum Jalapas. (Extract of Jalap) U. S. P. Take of Jalap, in moderately fine powder, twelve troyounces. Alcohol four pints. Water a sufficient quantity. Introduce the powder, previously mixed with three fluidounces of alcohol, into a conical percolator, and gradually pour upon it the re- mainder of the alcohol. When the liquid ceases to pass, pour upon the residue sufficient water to keep its surface covered, until four pints of tincture have passed. Set this aside, and continue the percolation until six pints of infusion have been obtained. Distil off the alcohol from the tincture and evaporate the infusion until the liquids respec- tively have been brought to the consistence of thin honey; then mix them and evaporate to the proper consistence. By the same process prepare— Extractum Cinchonas1 U. S. P. From Yellow cinchona, in fine powder. Extractum Podophylli U. S. P. From May apple, in moderately fine powder. 1 See Extractum Calisayicum. FORMULAS FOR THE EXTRACTS. 209 Extractum Hellebori Alcoholicum U. S. P. Take of Black hellebore, recently dried and in fine powder, twelve troyounces. Alcohol a pint. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Introduce the powder, previously mixed with one-third of the alco- hol, into a conical percolator, and pour upon it the remainder of the alcohol. When the liquid has all been absorbed by the powder, pour on diluted alcohol until a pint of tincture has been obtained. Set this aside in a warm place, and allow it to evaporate spontaneously until reduced to three fluidounces. Continue the percolation with diluted alcohol until two pints more of tincture have passed or until the powder is exhausted; then evaporate, by means of a water bath, at a temperature not exceeding 160°, to the consistence of syrup. To this add the three fluidounces of tincture first obtained, and continue the evaporation, at a temperature not exceeding 120°, until the whole is reduced to the proper consistence. Extractum Rhei Alcoholicum. (Alcoholic Extract of Rhubarb) U. S. P. Extractum Rhei, Pharm. 1850. Take of Ehubarb, in moderately fine powder, twelve troyounces. Alcohol a pint. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Moisten the powder with four fluidounces of the alcohol, pack it in a conical percolator and gradually pour upon it, first the remainder of the alcohol, and afterwards diluted alcohol, until twelve fluidounces of tincture have been obtained. Set this aside in a warm place, and allow it to evaporate spontaneously until reduced to six fluidounces. Continue the percolation with diluted alcohol until the tincture passes nearly tasteless. Evaporate this in a porcelain vessel, by means of a water bath, at a temperature not exceeding 160°, to the consistence of syrup. With this mix the tincture first obtained, and continue the evaporation until the mixture is reduced to the proper consistence. FOURTH GROUP. Extractum Gentianas U. S. P. Take of Gentian, in moderately coarse powder, twelve troyounces. Water a sufficient quantity. Moisten the gentian with four fluidounces of water, pack it in a conical percolator, and gradually pour water upon it until the infusion passes but slightly impregnated with the properties of the gentian. Boil the liquid to three-fourths of its bulk; then strain, and, by means of a water bath, evaporate to the proper consistence. By the same process prepare— Extractum Quassias U. S. P. From Quassia, in moderately fine powder. 14 210 ON EVAPORATION AND THE EXTRACTS. Extractum Juglandis U. S. P. From Butternut (bark), in moderately coarse powder. Extractum Kramerias. (Extract of Rhatany) U. S. P. Take of Ehatany, in moderately fine powder, twelve troyounces. Water a sufficient quantity. Moisten the powder with four fluidounces of water, pack it in a conical percolator, and gradually pour water upon it until the infu- sion passes but slightly impregnated with the astringent property of the rhatany. Heat the liquid to the boiling point, strain, and, by means of a water bath, at a temperature not exceeding 160°, evapo- rate to the proper consistence. Extractum Heematoxyli. (Extract of Logwood) U. S. P. Take of Logwood, rasped, twelve troyounces. Water eight pints. Boil down to four pints, and strain the decoction while hot; then evaporate to dryness. Extractum Opii. (Extract of Opium) U. S. P. Take of Opium twelve troyounces. Water five pints. Cut the opium into small pieces, macerate it for twenty-four hours in a pint of the water, and reduce it to a soft mass by trituration. Express the liquid, and treat the residue with each of the four remain- ing pints of water successively in the same manner. Having mixed the liquids, filter the mixture, and evaporate by means of a water bath to the proper consistence. Unclassified. Extractum Taraxaci1 U. S. P. Take of Dandelion, gathered in September, sixty troyounces. Slice the dandelion, and bruise it in a stone mortar, sprinkling on it a little water, until reduced to a pulp. Then express and strain the juice, and evaporate it in a vacuum, or in a shallow dish over a water bath, to the proper consistence. Extractum Cohhici Aceticum. (Acetic Extract of Colchicum) Take of Colchicum root, in moderately fine powder, twelve troy- ounces. Acetic acid four fluidounces. Water a sufficient quantity. To the acetic acid add a pint of water, and mix the resulting liquid with the colchicum root. Transfer the mixture to a conical glass per- colator, and pour water gradually upon it until the liquid passes with little or no taste. Lastly, evaporate the liquid, in a porcelain vessel, to the proper consistence. 1 See Fluid Extract of Taraxacum for process for preserving the root for expression and evaporation. UNOFFICINAL extracts. 211 Extractum Colocynthidis Compositum. (Comp. Extract of Colocynth U.S.P. Take of Alcoholic extract of colocynth, in fine powder, three troy- ounces and a half. Socotrine aloes, in fine powder, twelve troyounces. Eesin of scammony, in fine powder, three troyounces. Cardamom, in fine powder, a troyounce. Soap, in fine powder, three troyounces. Mix the powders thoroughly, and keep the mixture in a well- stopped bottle. Unofficinal Extracts. Of the extracts not recognized in the U. S. Pharmacopoeia, described in the last edition of this work, several have been introduced into the recent edition of our national standard; without wishing to add unne- cessarily to the numerous preparations already introduced, the following are deemed of sufficient importance to claim the attention of the student and practitioner:— Calisaya Extract (Ellis).—Is made by boiling coarsely-powdered Calisaya bark in successive portions of water, acidulated with muriatic acid, precipitating the decoction with hydrate of lime, digesting the precipitate in hot alcohol till all taste is exhausted, and then evapo- rating the alcohol so as to leave an extract. The old-fashioned pre- cipitated extract of bark was nearly identical with this, which is only objectionable on the score of expense. It contains all the quinia and cinchonia contained in the bark, besides the amorphous quinia, or chinoidine, and is an admirable substitute for the celebrated " Wetherill's extract," formerly much in vogue. Its dose is from 2 to 5 grs.—Am. Journ. Pharm., vol. xx. p. 15. Chinoidine is the name given to an insoluble residuary extractive principle obtained in the manufacture of quinia, which is described under the head of Vegetable Alkalis. Extractum Lobelias Aceticum.—To prepare this, the powdered seed of lobelia are macerated, and then displaced with diluted alcohol, to the first portion of which has been added a small portion of acetic acid. This liquid is then to be evaporated to the consistence of an extract, which will be about one-eighth the quantity of the seed em- ployed. (Am. Journ. Pharm., vol. xiv. p. 108.) Dose, from 2 to 3 grs. The object of the use of the acetic acid is to form a soluble acetate of lobelina, less readily decomposable by heat than the native salt. Extract of Lupulin.—Take of lupulin half a troyounce, alcohol half a pint. Mix in a percolator and allow it to stand an hour, then dis- place with alcohol until two pints are obtained, or the whole strength extracted; pour this into a shallow dish in a warm place, and allow it to evaporate spontaneously to the consistence of an extract; 3j of lupulin yields about 9ij of the extract, which is proposed as a substi- tute for the powder when prescribed in the pilular form. The dose is from 3 to 6 grains; it is recommended by its utility as a convenient 212 ON EVAPORATION and the extracts. and adhesive excipient for other substances. The reputation lupulin has obtained as an antaphrodisiac in irritable conditions of the genital organs, calls for convenient preparations by which the physician is enabled to make choice of the several forms of extemporaneous pre- scription. The new officinal fluid-extract seems less eligible for most purposes than a solid extract such as this, proposed some years since by my late pupil, W. W. D. Livermore. The empirical preparation prescribed under the name of " lupulin" by the Eclectics, is probably nearly identical with this. Extractum Cimicifugee.—This extract is made by evaporating sepa- rately a tincture prepared with alcohol of 95 per cent., and one made with diluted alcohol, until they reach a syrupy consistence, then mixing these and finishing the evaporation over a water bath, with constant stirring. This process is liable, in the case of cimicifuga, which is a very resinous root, to a serious objection. Even after the extract has been completed a partial separation of the resinous ingredient is liable to occur, producing great variations in quality between different portions of the same lot of extract. Prof. J. F. Moore, of Baltimore, recom- mends that the tincture made with strong alcohol should be first evaporated to dryness, powdered and incorporated with the other portion just before it is removed from the fire. The dose of this extract is 5 grains; it represents all the constituents of the root more thoroughly than the resinoid cimicifugin, and is worthy a trial in the anomalous cases of nervous disorder which so often tax the resources of the physician. Much that is sold is prepared from the root after the separation of the cimicifugin. Extractum Pareires is prepared from sliced pareira brava, by decoc- tion with water, staining, and evaporating. A decoction is more fre- quently prescribed; but this extract allows the practitioner a choice of the pilular form, in which combinations with various other reme- dies may be conveniently prescribed. Dose, from 10 to 30 grs. Extractum TJves Ursi.—The London College directs the preparation of this, also, by maceration and decoction with water. Its dose is the same as the foregoing, and they are both used as tonics and diuretics in chronic urinary disorders. Ergotine.—Under this name an extract of ergot is sold in the shops, for which the following is the formula of M. Bonjean:— Exhaust powdered ergot by displacement with cold water, heat the solution in a water bath and filter; evaporate to the consistence of syrup, and add rectified spirit to throw down the gummy matter; when settled, decant the clear liquid, and evaporate by water bath. One ounce of ergot yields about 70 grains. It is said to possess the haemostatic without the toxic effects of ergot. Dose, from 4 to 10 grs. The ergotine of Wiggers consists chiefly of resinous principles, and is insoluble in water. The extracts of lettuce, poppy-heads, and hops are very weak narcotic extracts, occasionally prescribed, but less esteemed than lactucarium, PHYSICAL PROPERTIES. 213 opium, and lupuline, which are the more efficient products of their respective plants. Extractum glycyrrhizse is the name given in the list of the Pharma- copoeia to the common drug known as liquorice, imported from Italy and Spain. Until recently this was the only extract of liquorice used; our manufacturers now make a true and proper extract, which is made in either of two ways, as follows:— 1st Process.—Take of liquorice root, bruised, any convenient quan- tity, macerate in water, with the application of heat, until exhausted; strain, and evaporate to the consistence of an extract. 2d Process.—Take of liquorice (impure extract) any convenient quantity, lay the pieces of liquorice in a large displacer, or a barrel, in layers alternating with straw; macerate, and then percolate the mass with cold water, and evaporate the clear liquid that runs off. The pieces of liquorice will be found to have lost their saccharine matter, glycyrrhizin, although retaining their shape as before. This is officinal in some European Pharmacopoeias, under the name of Extractum s. succus liquoritae depur, and is valued particularly on account of its perfect solubility in water. A large proportion of gly- cyrrhizin is left behind in a modified state, and may be gained by exhausting the residue with a very dilute ammonia, which renders it soluble. The extract has a yellow color, becoming brown by age. and, as made by the first process, has the taste of the root, and is deliques- cent, so as to require to be kept in jars. One part of powdered liquorice root to sixteen of the extract will render it firm enough to keep in sticks. Tilden's extract of liquorice is made into sticks of a yellowish-brown color by admixture with gum Arabic; its taste resembles the root more decidedly than that of black liquorice. Physical Properties. The physical properties of extracts vary, according to their composi- tion, age, and the circumstances in which they are kept. The narcotic extracts of the first class, as vended by the manufac- turers, are apt to be too soft for convenient use in the form of pills, and are disposed to deliquesce. This want of a firm consistence, which results from a disposition to preserve the more volatile ingre- dients from loss in the final concentration, causes no inconvenience when the extract is used with a considerable proportion of dry or hard ingredients. It may be obviated by combining with them pow- dered liquorice root or marsh mallow, when the additional bulk is no objection. The alcoholic and hydro-alcoholic extracts are seldom liable to this objection; they harden on exposure to the air, and when old are sometimes inconveniently dry. The extracts of jalap and podophyllum are apt to become tough and unmanageable, so as to resist the action of the pestle either by trituration or contusion. Extract of jalap is ordered, in compound cathartic pills, in the form of powder, and this is in some respects its best form for use; it is conveniently kept in bottles, as other powders 214 ON EVAPORATION AND THE EXTRACTS. are, is readily weighed and incorporated with other substances, and becomes plastic by the addition of moisture. Few manufacturers push the evaporation so far as to produce the extract dry enough for powdering; but there is no difficulty in accomplishing it in dry and frosty weather where steam is employed, and as a demand grows up for the article it will be more generally met with in the stores, although at a somewhat advanced price on the soft extract. Compound extract of colocynth is frequently brittle enough to powder, and is now directed in the Pharmacopoeia in this form. The addition of soap to its other ingredients prevents the liability to toughness, besides increasing its solubility. Extracts of rhatany and of logwood are always pulverulent, and when properly made are nearly soluble in water. The kind of jars usually employed for preserving extracts are figured in the chapter on the outfit of the physician's office. Those with covers or tops are most eligible. In furnishing a shop where a good many are needed, it is well to reserve the canopy-top jars exclu- sively for ointments, the flat tops for extracts, for the sake of distinc- tion. Extracts should never be put in gallipots or tie-overs, except for temporary purposes. Besides the cover, which fits loosely on the jars, there should be a piece of bladder, or tinfoil, or paper saturated with oil, wax, paraffine, or soluble glass, or parchment paper which may be made after the common paper has been marked with the name and quantity of the extract. (See Lignin.) Upon covered jars these impervious coverings should be stretched over the open top before fitting on the lid. In the case of soft extracts, which have a tendency to mould, the occasional addition of a few drops of alcohol is found advantageous; wide mouth bottles, either with ground stoppers or corks, are prefer- able to jars as affording a more complete exclusion of the air, but the smaller sized bottles, having too narrow mouths to admit a spatula of ordinary width, are inconvenient. The Uses of Extracts.—This class of preparations may be used either in the form of pill, solution, or mixture. They are chiefly prescribed in the pilular form, combined with other substances, and to this they are peculiarly adapted. One of the chief points in making pills is to increase or modify the effect in the highest degree, without a corre- sponding increase of bulk. Hence the utility of adding extracts to substances possessing no adhesiveness, choosing among them such as will most promote the therapeutic effect, while a plastic mass will be the result. Thus, in tonic pills, as of subcarbonate of iron or sulphate of quinia, extract of quassia, or of gentian would be preferable to an inert substance like conserve of rose or mucilage. In dilute aqueous solutions, extracts are not generally preferable to the corresponding tinctures or fluid extracts, but where the dose of the tincture would be large, the physician often avails himself of the extract in preference, as not containing alcoholic stimulus. Extracts are generally combined in mixtures containing sweet or viscid sub- stances more than in solutions proper, although in cases where the FLUID EXTRACTS AND OLEO-RESINS. 215 quantity of the extract desired is large, and it is soluble in water, it may be employed to impart viscidity to a mixture, and to suspend insoluble substances without the necessity of using either gum or sugar. In triturating an extract, particularly a hard one, with viscid liquids, as syrup or mucilage, or with lard in making ointments, con- siderable difficulty is experienced in dissolving or diffusing it equally throughout the mixture; to obviate this, it should be first softened with a few drops of water if aqueous, or alcohol if alcoholic, until it has about the consistence of thick honey or treacle, and then incor- porated with the other ingredients. Frequently it will require a long and tedious trituration to accomplish the object thoroughly and effectually. The aid of heat will greatly facilitate the softening of extracts, espe- cially in making pill masses, which become dryer and more firm when rendered plastic by heat than when softened by a moist excipient. CHAPTER XIII. FLUID EXTRACTS AND OLEO-RESINS. The class Extracta fluida is found for the first time in the Pharma- copoeia in the edition of 1850. Most of those at that time made offici- nal had been used and were esteemed standard remedies for several years previously, though two of them (oleo-resins) have never attained popularity. During the ten years immediately preceding the edition of 1860, the number of this class had greatly extended, and we have at present twenty-five officinal preparations under this head, besides several formerly classed with them, now named oleo-resins. Of this number fifteen are alcoholic solutions, and may be appropriately defined as concentrated tinctures, although some of them, as fluid extract of taraxacum, are preserved by a minimum of the alcoholic menstruum; the other ten are concentrated syrups, some of which are less highly charged with the saccharine ingredient than would be necessary in the absence of alcohol, a sufficient proportion of which is retained in the solution to prevent decomposition. In making fluid extracts it is often impracticable to dissolve the large proportion of sugar necessary to prevent fermentation without rendering the fluid extract too thick to be conveniently poured from a bottle or spoon, and yet the form of syrup is especially adapted to those which are administered in pretty large doses or are given chiefly to children. The Committee of Eevision have shown great judgment in the framing of these formulas, and it is to be hoped that the officinal fluid extracts will supersede those made by various manufacturers according to their own arbitrary standards, and the precise composition of which has not been made public. 216 FLUID EXTRACTS AND OLEO-RESINS. The original idea of a fluid extract was to make it represent an equal portion of the drug, every troyounce weight of the material from which prepared being converted into a fluidounce of the fluid extract. The result of this, if carried out, would be to simplify the recollection of the doses of fluid extracts by stating the dose in each case to be the same as of the drug. This rule was departed from, even in the Pharmacopoeia of 1850, and the unofficinal formulas^ pub- lished have in many instances been quite independent of any uniform rule of strength. Among the fluid extracts made officinal in 1860, there are only two which form exceptions to this rule, the fluid extracts of cinchona and of wild cherry; in both these instances, good reasons existed for re- ducing the strength from the usual standard. Alcohol, from its eminently useful qualities as a solvent for active vegetable principles, and from its perfect adaptability to their extrac- tion by the process of percolation, and the low temperature at which it evaporates, is invariably selected as the menstruum used in the process of extraction; in the case of conium, ergot, and ipecacuanha, the two first of which contain volatile organic alkalis, while the last named owes its activity to a vegetable alkali not readily separable from associated inert principles, acetic acid is added to bring the natural bases to the condition of soluble and more permanent acetates. In the last edition of this work a variety of formulas were intro- duced for fluid extracts of the same drug; in the absence of an au- thoritative standard it was necessary to allow to the physician and pharmaceutist a choice among all those published; the extension of the officinal series to embrace a large proportion of these, has rendered it quite unnecessary to go beyond the Pharmacopoeia, except in those instances in which the Committee of Eevision have deemed it unneces- sary to give a formula. SYLLABUS OF OFFICINAL FLUID EXTRACTS. First Group.—Concentrated tinctures with diluted alcohol. Officinal Name. Adult Dose. Medical Properties. Extractum conii fluidum n\,v Alterative, narcotii. u hyoscyami fluidum do. Narcotic, laxative. II colchici rad. " n\x Sedative, diuretic, &c. 11 " sem. " n\,x do. !< serpentariae " f ^SS Stimulant, tonic. II gentianae " *3i Bitter, tonic. II taraxaci " m Cholagogue, diuretic, &o. II ipecacuanhas " rc\j to XX Diaphoretic, emetic. II ergotae r\y to X Parturient, excito-motor, stim. REMARKS ON GROUP FIRST. Several modified processes are directed in the Pharmacopoeia for making the fluid extracts of this group; percolation is directed in each case. Of those containing diluted alcohol, fluid extracts of conium, gentian, taraxacum, serpentaria, and ergot are made by treating the EXTRACTA FLUIDA. 217 powdered drug in the first instance with that menstruum. In each case the first portion of the percolate is to be set aside, and an addi- tional portion being collected and evaporated, the two are to be mixed so as to bring the fluid extract to exactly the required measure. This process is so adjusted that in the case of gentian, and taraxacum, and ergot, the doses of which are comparatively large, the proportion of alcohol in the resulting preparation is much below that of the menstruum employed. In the formulas for fluid extract of conium, and of ergot which direct acetic acid, as before explained, this ingredient is in part dissipated by evaporation, but a trace of it remains in the resulting preparation. In the fluid extracts of hyoscyamus and of colchicum root and seeds two parts of alcohol are added to one of water as a more appropriate menstruum for the percolation, and this being set aside when three-fourths of the required quantity has passed, the drugs are further exhausted with the same menstruum which is evaporated, the alcohol being dissipated, so that on the evaporated liquid being added to the first portion, the quantity is brought to the required point and the alcoholic strength of the preparation is reduced to that of diluted alcohol. Fluid, extract of ipecacuanha is an exception to this group in the employment of strong alcohol to extract the active principles. To free it from the inert resin is the next object in view; for this purpose the tincture is to be evaporated to a syrupy liquid to which acetic acid and water is added; this separates the resin and holds the active principles in solution; after filtration and the boiling away of the excess of acid, alcohol is added to bring it to the required dilution. Extracta Fluida U. S. 2d Group.—Concentrated tinctures with strong alcohol. Officinal Name. Adult Dose | Medical Properties. Extract. cimicifugae fluidum Vt^xv to XX Tonic, nervous sedative. " Valerianae " rr^xxx Tonic, antispasmodic. u veratri viride " Tr^v to X Arterial sedative. u zingiberis " rr^x to xv Aromatic, carminative. u lupulinae " rr\,v to x Antaphrodisiac. REMARKS OF THE SECOND GROUP. The preparation of these fluid extracts is easy from the great facility of manipulating with strong alcohol as a menstruum. Fluid extract of cimicifuga is made from the finely powdered root by percolating it in the first instance with stronger alcohol (sp. gr. .817); this percolate is directed to be evaporated spontaneously to three- fourths the required amount of fluid extracts; diluted alcohol is now passed through the powder till it is exhausted; it is now to be evapo- rated to one-fourth the required quantity; this mixed with the first portion constitutes a highly concentrated preparation of intermediate alcoholic strength between that of officinal alcohol and diluted alcohol. Fluid extract of valerian was formerly prepared by the use of ether, which was allowed to evaporate spontaneously, and then added to a 218 FLUID EXTRACTS. tincture; the present process is greatly preferable, containing a much larger proportion of the drug, and more eligibly extracted ; the first percolate is here reserved without evaporation to be mixed with the last portion of the percolate, concentrated by evaporation at a tempe- rature not exceeding 120°. Fluid extracts of green veratrum, ginger, and lupuline resemble the last named in their mode of preparation, differing among themselves- in the proportion of the percolate reserved without evaporation, and the limit of temperature at which the last portion is to be evaporated, which in this and the preceding class is 150° F. The two last named fluid extracts are particularly objectionable frorn the large resinous deposits, separating on addition to water, an objection, as before stated, applying generally to this class. 3d Group.—Concentrated syrups. Officinal Name. Adult Dose. Medical Properties. Extract. cinchonae fluidum f3ss Tonic, antiperiodic f5ij- « dulcamarae " m Alterative, sedative. u uvae ursi " do. Tonic, diuretic. « sarsaparillae " do. Alterative, diaphoret. d " comp. fluidum do. do. ii rhei fluidum do. Cathartic, tonic. ii sennae " f ^ss do. aromatic. u spigeliae fluidum 5i Anthelmintic. ci " et sennae fluidum do. do. cathartic. k pruni VirginianaB " do. Sedative, expect., tonic. Extracta Fluida U. S. REMARKS ON THE THIRD GROUP. The general formula for the fluid extracts may be thus stated: Make a tincture of the drug by percolation with diluted alcohol, evaporate this to nearly one-half, then add the sugar, and continue the evaporation till one fluidounce represents every troyounce of the drug employed. A careful examination of the working formulas appended will exhibit unimportant differences in the details of the several processes; while in some instances care is taken to separate the first portion of the percolate for addition to the syrup where formed, in other cases the evaporation of the whole liquid is directed; the quantity of sugar is also varied, for reasons founded on the peculiarities of the several liquids. The officinal directions to evaporate the liquid after the addition of the sugar to just the required quantity, seems to render the manipulation less easy than the method formerly adopted of bringing the liquid to a fixed quantity before cumbering it with the sugar, the increased bulk given it by any given quantity of sugar being well ascertained, as explained in the chapter on syrups; the merit of the new method is doubtless found in the known agency of sugar in preventing the oxidation of vegetable principles during evaporation; against this, however, we may place the increased tem- perature required for the evaporation of saccharine liquids, and the FORMULAS FOR OFFICINAL FLUID EXTRACTS. 219 inconvenience of diluting the syrup if the evaporation is accidentally carried too far. Fluid extract of rhubarb, as now constituted, is thinner than the thick and tenacious liquid prescribed in the previous edition. The absence of the aromatic oils and tincture of ginger formerly added will be noticed as another change, adapting it to use in the preparation of the syrup, but unfitting it to some extent for the purposes of a popular cathartic. A similar remark is applicable to fluid extract of senna ; as formerly made, it was a well-known cathartic, especially used for children, and dispensed by pharmaceutists as a popular medicine; its most charac- teristic sensible properties being now changed, pharmaceutists will be compelled to adhere to the old formula or to modify the new, with reference to this particular purpose. Fluid extract of pink root and senna, though made extemporaneously, is not materially different from the former preparation, so well known as a popular vermifuge. Fluid extract of cinchona is an exception to the ordinary rule of proportions, and to the ordinary transparency of the fluid extracts. A clear concentrated preparation of this valuable drug is a desideratum not easily attainable except by the use of acids, which modify the natural relations of its proximate principles. Fluid extract of dulcamara, uva ursi, spigelia, and sarsaparilla (com- pound and simple), will all suggest to the experienced prescriber numerous uses alone and in combination, which in connection with their free miscibility with aqueous liquids, the smallness of their doses most commend them to general acceptance. Fluid extract of wild cherry bark.—The impossibility of preserving the volatile constituents produced by the action of water upon wild cherry bark during a process of evaporation, however carefully con- ducted, has led to the ingenious formula of Prof. Procter, now intro- duced into the Pharmacopoeia. An alcoholic extract of the bark containing the amygdalin and bitter principle is dissolved in water and subjected to emulsion of almonds, which, supplying emulsion, results in the production of hydrocyanic acid, and the whole is then successfully embodied by the aid of sugar into an eligible fluid extract. Working Formulas for Officinal Fluid Extracts. (Alphabetically arranged.) Extractum Buchu Fluidum U. S. P. Take of Buchu, in moderately fine powder, sixteen troyounces. Alcohol a sufficient quantity. Moisten the buchu with six fluidounces of alcohol, introduce it into a cylindrical percolator, press it firmly, and gradually pour alcohol upon it until twelve fluidounces of tincture have passed. Set this aside and continue the percolation until two pints more of tincture have been obtained. Evaporate this, by means of a water bath, at a temperature not exceeding 150°, to four fluidounces, and mix it with 220 FLUID EXTRACTS. the reserved tincture. Allow the mixture to stand for twenty-four hours, and filter through paper. Extractum Cimicifugee Fluidum U. S. P. Take of Cimicifuga, in fine powder, sixteen troyounces. Stronger alcohol a pint and a half. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Moisten the cimicifuga with four fluidounces of the stronger alco- hol, introduce it into a conical percolator, pour upon it the remainder of the stronger alcohol, and when the whole of this has entered the powder, gradually add diluted alcohol until a pint and a half of tinc- ture have passed. Set this aside in a shallow vessel, in a warm place, until reduced by spontaneous evaporation to twelve fluidounces. Con- tinue the percolation with diluted alcohol, until two pints more of tincture have been obtained. Evaporate this by means of a water bath, at a temperature not exceeding 150°, to four fluidounces; then add the tincture first obtained very gradually so as to avoid precipita- tion, allow the mixture to stand for twenty-four hours, and filter through paper. Extractum Cinchonies Fluidum U. S. P. Take of Yellow cinchona, in moderately fine powder, sixteen troy- ounces. Sugar, in coarse powder, twenty troyounces. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Moisten the cinchona with ten fluidounces of diluted alcohol, allow it to stand for half an hour, pack it firmly in a cylindrical percolator, and gradually pour upon it diluted alcohol until four pints of tincture have been obtained. Evaporate this, by means of a water bath, to two pints; then add the sugar, evaporate again to two pints, and strain the liquid while hot. Extractum Cohhici Radicis Fluidum U. S. P. Take of Colchicum root, in fine powder, sixteen troyounces. Alcohol, Water, each, a sufficient quantity. Mix two measures of alcohol with one of water, moisten the colchi- cum root with six fluidounces of the mixture, press it moderately in a conical percolator, and gradually pour the mixture upon it until twelve fluidounces of tincture have passed. Set this aside and con- tinue the percolation until two pints more of tincture have been ob- tained. Evaporate this to four fluidounces, mix it with the reserved tincture, and filter through paper. Extractum Colchici Seminis Fluidum U. S. P. Take of Colchicum seed, in moderately fine powder, sixteen troy- ounces. Alcohol, Water, each, a sufficient quantity. Mix two measures of alcohol with one of water, moisten the colchi- FORMULAS FOR OFFICINAL FLUID EXTRACTS. 221 cum seed with six fluidounces of the mixture, press it firmly in a conical percolator, and pour the mixture upon it until twelve fluid- ounces of tincture have passed. Set this aside and continue the per- colation until two pints more of tincture have been obtained. Evapo- rate this to four fluidounces, mix it with the reserved tincture and filter through paper. Extractum Conii Fluidum. (Fluid Extract of Hemlock.) U. S. P. Take of Hemlock, recently dried and in fine powder, sixteen troy- ounces. Acetic acid half a fluidounce. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Mix the acid with three pints of diluted alcohol, moisten the powder with half a pint of the mixture, pack it in a conical percolator, and gradually pour the mixture upon it until twelve fluidounces of tincture have passed. Set this aside, and continue the percolation, first with the remainder of the mixture, and afterwards with diluted alcohol, until three pints more of tincture have been obtained. Evaporate this by means of a water bath, at a temperature not exceeding 150°, to four fluidounces, mix it with the reserved tincture and filter through paper. Extractum Duhamarse Fluidum U. S. P. Take of Bittersweet, in moderately fine powder, sixteen troyounces. Sugar, in coarse powder, ten troyounces. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Moisten the bittersweet with half a pint of diluted alcohol, pack it in a conical percolator, and pour upon it diluted alcohol until three pints of tincture have passed. Evaporate this by means of a water bath to a pint, add the sugar, evaporate again to a pint, and strain the liquid while hot. Extractum Ergotee Fluidum U. S. P. Take of Ergot, in fine powder, sixteen troyounces, Acetic acid half a fluidounce. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Mix the acid with three pints of diluted alcohol, and, having moist- ened the ergot with four fluidounces of the mixture, introduce it into a conical glass percolator, pressing moderately, and gradually pour the mixture upon it until twelve fluidounces of tincture have passed. Set this aside, and continue the percolation, first with the remainder of the mixture, and afterwards with diluted alcohol, until three pints more of tincture have been obtained. Evaporate this, by means of a water bath, at a temperature not exceeding 150°, to four fluidounces, mix it with the reserved tincture, and filter through paper. Extractum Gentianee Fluidum U. S. P. Take of Gentian, in moderately fine powder, sixteen troyounces. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Moisten the gentian with six fluidounces of diluted alcohol, intro- 222 FLUID EXTRACTS. duce it into a conical percolator, pressing moderately, and pour upon it diluted alcohol until twelve fluidounces of tincture have passed Set this aside, and continue the percolation until two pints more of tincture have been obtained. Evaporate this, by means of a watei bath, to four fluidounces, mix it with the reserved tincture, and nltei through paper. Extractum Hyoscyami Fluidum U. S. P. Take of Henbane leaf, in fine powder, sixteen troyounces. Alcohol, Water, each, a sufficient quantity. Mix two measures of alcohol with one of water, moisten the pow- der with six fluidounces of the mixture, pack it firmly in a conical percolator, and gradually pour the mixture upon it until twelve fluid- ounces of tincture have passed. Set this aside, and continue the per- colation with the same mixture until two pints and a half more of tincture have been obtained. Evaporate this, by means of a water bath, at a temperature not exceeding 150°, to four fluidounces, mix it with the reserved tincture, and.filter through paper. Extractum Ipecacuanhas Fluidum U. S. P. Take of Ipecacuanha, in fine powder, sixteen troyounces. • Acetic acid a fluidounce. Alcohol, Water, each, a sufficient quantity. Moisten the ipecacuanha with six fluidounces of alcohol, introduce it into a conical percolator, press it firmly, and pour alcohol upon it until three pints of tincture have slowly passed, or until the ipecacu- anha is exhausted. Distil off the alcohol from the tincture, by means of a water bath, until a syrupy liquid is left. Mix this with the acetic acid and ten fluidounces of water, boil the mixture gently until it is reduced to half a pint, and the resinous matter has separated. Filter the liquid when cold, and add sufficient water, through the filter^ to make the filtered liquid measure half a pint. Lastly, mix this with half a pint of alcohol. Extractum Lupulin&s Fluidum U.S.P. Take of Lupulin sixteen troyounces. Stronger alcohol a sufficient quantity. Introduce the lupulin into a percolator, press it firmly, and, having covered it with a piece of muslin, pour upon it stronger alcohol very gradually until twelve fluidounces of tincture have passed. Set this aside in a close vessel, and continue the percolation until twenty fluid- ounces more of tincture have been obtained. Evaporate this, by means of a water bath, at a temperature not exceeding 150°, to four fluidounces, and mix it with the reserved tincture. FORMULAS OF EXTRACTS. 223 Extractum Pruni Virginianee Fluidum U. S. P. Take of Wild-cherry bark, in fine powder, sixteen troyounces. Sweet almond two troyounces. Sugar, in coarse powder, twenty-four troyounces. Alcohol, Water, each, a sufficient quantity. Introduce the bark, previously mixed with four fluidounces of alco- hol, into a cylindrical percolator, press it firmly, and gradually pour alcohol upon it until three pints of tincture have slowly passed. From this distil off two pints and a half of alcohol, and, having mixed the residue with a pint of water, evaporate, by means of a water bath, to half a pint. Beat the almond into a paste, and rub this with successive portions of water until, after straining through a coarse sieve or cloth, nearly all the substance of the almond has been converted into an emulsion, and twelve fluidounces of liquid have been obtained. Mix this with the liquid first obtained, in a suitable bottle, and having closely stopped it, agitate occasionally during twenty-four hours. Then express quickly and strongly through a cloth; and, if the expressed liquid measure less than eighteen fluidounces, add water to the residue, and again express until that quantity is obtained. Filter the expressed liquid through cotton flannel, in a covered funnel, into a bottle containing the sugar. Shake the bottle occasionally during the process until the sugar is dissolved, and continue the filtration until the syrupy liquid measures two pints. Lastly, mix the whole thoroughly together. Extractum Rhei Fluidum U. S. P. Take of Ehubarb, in moderately fine powder, sixteen troyounces. Sugar, in coarse powder, eight troyounces. Alcohol a pint. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Moisten the rhubarb with four fluidounces of the alcohol, introduce it into a conical percolator, press it gently, and pour upon it the re- mainder of the alcohol. When the liquid has disappeared from the surface, gradually pour on diluted alcohol until a pint of tincture has passed. Set this aside in a warm place until reduced by spontaneous evaporation to six fluidounces, and continue the percolation until two pints more of tincture have been obtained. Evaporate this by a gentle heat to six fluidounces; then add the sugar, and when this is dissolved, the reserved tincture, and continue the heat until the whole is reduced to the measure of a pint. To impart to the above the flavor of this fluid extract, as officinal in the Pharmacopoeia of 1850, add to the quantity as above, tincture of ginger, a fluidounce, holding in solution oil of fennel and oil of anise, each eight minims. 224 FLUID EXTRACTS. Extractum Sarsaparillee Fluidum U. S. P. Take of Sarsaparilla, in moderately fine powder, sixteen troyounces. Sugar, in coarse powder, ten troyounces. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Moisten the sarsaparilla with half a pint of diluted alcohol, pack it firmly in a cylindrical percolator, and gradually pour upon it diluted alcohol until four pints of tincture have been obtained. Evaporate this by means of a water bath, to a pint; then add the sugar, and continue the evaporation until the liquid is reduced to the measure of a pint, and strain while hot. Extractum Sarsaparilles Fluidum Compositum U. S. P. Extractum Sarsaparillae Fluidum, Pharm. 1850. Take of Sarsaparilla, in moderately fine powder, sixteen troyounces. Liquorice root, in moderately fine powder, Bark of sassafras root, in moderately fine powder, each, two troyounces. Mezereon, in moderately fine powder, three hundred and sixty grains. Sugar twelve troyounces. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Mix the powders, and having moistened the mixture with ten fluid- ounces of diluted alcohol, pack it firmly in a cylindrical percolator, and gradually pour upon it diluted alcohol until four pints of tincture have been obtained. Evaporate this, by means of a water bath, to twelve fluidounces; then add the sugar, and continue the evaporation until the liquid is reduced to the measure of eighteen fluidounces, and strain while hot. Extractum Sennas Fluidum U. S. P. Take of Senna, in moderately fine powder, sixteen troyounces. Sugar, in coarse powder, eight troyounces. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Moisten the senna with six fluidounces of diluted alcohol, introduce it into a conical percolator, press it firmly, and gradually pour upon it diluted alcohol until a pint of tincture has passed. Set this aside in a warm place until reduced by spontaneous evaporation to half a pint. Continue the percolation until two pints more of tincture have been obtained. To this add the sugar, and having evaporated it by means of a water bath, to half a pint, mix it with the reserved tincture, and strain. To make this correspond in flavor with the fluid extract officinal in the Pharmacopoeia, add to the above oil of fennel 30 minims, dis- solved in Hoffmann's anodyne, a fluidrachm. Extractum Serpentariae Fluidum U. S P. Take of Serpentaria, in moderately fine powder, sixteen troyounces. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Moisten the serpentaria with five fluidounces of diluted alcohol, FORMULAS OF EXTRACTS. 225 introduce it into a conical percolator, press it firmly, and gradually pour upon it diluted alcohol until twelve fluidounces of tincture have passed. Set this aside, and continue the percolation until two pints and a half more of tincture have been obtained. Evaporate this at a temperature not exceeding 150°, until it is reduced to four fluid- ounces, mix it with the reserved tincture, and filter through paper. Extractum Spigelias Fluidum U. S. P. Take of Spigelia, in fine powder, sixteen troyounces. Sugar, in coarse powder, eight troyounces. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Moisten the spigelia with six fluidounces of diluted alcohol, intro- duce it into a conical percolator, press it firmly, and gradually pour upon it diluted alcohol until a pint of tincture has passed. Set this aside in a warm place until it is reduced by spontaneous evaporation to half a pint. Continue the percolation until two pints more of tinc- ture have been obtained. To this add the sugar, and, having evapo- rated it, by means of a water bath, to half a pint, mix it with the reserved tincture, and strain. Extractum Spigelias et Sennas Fluidum. (Fluid Extract of Spigelia and Senna) U. S. P. Take of Fluid extract of spigelia ten fluidounces. Fluid extract of senna six fluidounces. Carbonate of potassa half a troyounce. Oil of anise, Oil of caraway, each, twenty minims. Mix the fluid extracts, and dissolve in the mixture the carbonate of potassa and the oils, previously rubbed together. Extractum Taraxaci Fluidum U. S. P. Take of Dandelion, in moderately fine powder, sixteen troyounces. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Moisten the dandelion with four fluidounces of diluted alcohol, introduce it into a conical percolator, press it firmly, and gradually pour upon it diluted alcohol until half a pint of tincture has passed. Set this aside, and continue the percolation until two pints and a half more of tincture have been obtained. Evaporate this at a tempera- ture not exceeding 120°, until it is reduced to half a pint, mix it with the reserved tincture, and filter through paper. Extemporaneous Process for the above. (Unofficinal.) Take of Extract of dandelion . . . Four ounces. Alcohol.....One fluidounce. Water.....A sufficient quantity. Triturate the extract with the water and the alcohol, and apply a gentle heat, till it is dissolved, taking care that the product measures just half a pint. This process yields a liquid which is substantially the same in 15 226 FLUID EXTRACTS. physical and medical properties with the officinal. The usual dose is a teaspoonful.1 Extractum Uvas Ursi Fluidum U. S. P. Take of Uva ursi, in moderately fine powder, sixteen troyounces. -----------Sugar, in coarse powder, eight troyounces. "v> Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Moisten the uva ursi with six fluidounces of diluted alcohol, intro- duce into it a conical glass percolator, press it firmly, and gradually pour upon it diluted alcohol until half a pint of tincture has passed. Set this aside, and continue the percolation until two pints and a half more of tincture have been obtained. Evaporate this, by means of a water bath, to four fluidounces, and, having dissolved the sugar in it while hot, mix it with the reserved tincture, and strain. Lastly, eva- porate the whole by a gentle heat until it is reduced to a pint. Extractum Valerianae Fluidum U. S. P. Take of Yalerian, in fine powder, sixteen troyounces. Alcohol a sufficient quantity. Moisten the valerian with six fluidounces of alcohol, introduce it into a conical percolator, press it firmly, and gradually pour alcohol upon it until twelve fluidounces of tincture have passed. Set this aside, and continue the percolation until two pints more of tincture have been obtained. Evaporate this to four fluidounces, at a tempera- ture not exceeding 120°, mix it with the reserved tincture and filter through paper. Extractum Veratri Viridis Fluidum U. S. P. Take of American hellebore, in fine powder, sixteen troyounces. Alcohol a sufficient quantity. Moisten the hellebore with six fluidounces of alcohol, introduce it into a cylindrical percolator, press it firmly, and gradually pour alco- hol upon it until half a pint of tincture has passed. Set this aside, and continue the percolation until two pints and a half more of tinc- ture have been obtained. Evaporate this, by means of a water bath, at a temperature not exceeding 150°, to half a pint, mix it with the reserved tincture, and filter through paper. Extractum Zingiberis Fluidum U. S. P. Take of Ginger, in fine powder, sixteen troyounces. Alcohol a sufficient quantity. Moisten the ginger with four fluidounces of alcohol, introduce it into a cylindrical percolator, press it firmly, and gradually pour alco- -r-k«i-*rj* r.^t -until twelve fluidounces of tincture have passed. Set this aside, and continue the percolation until twenty fluidounces more of tincture have been obtained. Evaporate this to four fluidounces, mix it with the reserved tincture, and filter through paper. ' See Succus. Taraxaci Paratus. FORMULAS FOR FLUID EXTRACTS. 227 Unofficinal Fluid Extracts. Parrish's Compound Fluid Extract of Buchu. Take of Buchu, in coarse powder . . Twelve troyounces. Alcohol.....Three pints. Water.....Six pints, or sufficient. Treat the leaves by maceration and displacement, first with a portion of the alcohol, and then with the remainder mixed with the water; evaporate the resulting liquid by a gentle heat to three pints, and to this add Sugar.....Two and a-half pounds. Continue the heat till it is dissolved, and, after removing from the fire, add— Oil of cubebs, Oil of juniper, of each . . One fluidrachm. Spirit of nitric ether . . . Twelve fluidounces. previously mixed ; stir the whole together. It will be perceived that this preparation differs from the officinal fluid extract, in containing sugar sufficient to impart sweetness to the taste; and the oils of cubebs and juniper, and the spirit of nitric ether, which are not only useful as therapeutic agents in the majority of cases in which cubebs would be used, but act as antiseptics, and would render the preparation permanent without the presence of alcohol or sugar. It has been found useful, being well adapted by its composition, to chronic maladies of the urino-genital organs, appearing to act topically in its passage through them. Fluid Extract of Hydrangea. (Dr. S. W. Butler.) Take of Eoot of hydrangea arborescens . Sixteen troyounces. Water.....Six pints, or sufficient. Boil the root in successive portions of water, mix them, and evapo- rate to half a pint; mix this with Honey.....Two pints. Evaporate to two pints. In the summer season push the evaporation somewhat farther, and add brandy, half a pint. The dose is a teaspoonful twice or three times a day. I have prepared fluid extract of hydrangea for some years, during which time I have dispensed it, under the direction of several practi- tioners, to numerous patients (in irritable conditions of the urethra) with satisfactory results, its value as a remedy in gravel and stone is well established. The plant is abundant in many localities; I have gathered it on the west banks of the Schuylkill, six to eight miles above Philadelphia. 228 FLUID EXTRACTS. Four troyounces. Half a troyounce. Eight troyounces. A fluidounce. Eight minims. Sixteen minims. Fluid Extract of Rhubarb and Senna. (Prof. Procter.) Take of Senna, in coarse powder . . Twelve troyounces. Ehubarb do. do. Bicarbonate of potassa Sugar Tincture of ginger . Oil of cloves " aniseed . Water and alcohol, of each . A sufficient quantity. Mix the senna and rhubarb by grinding them together, pour upon them two pints of diluted alcohol, macerate twenty-four hours, and introduce the mixture into a percolator, furnished below with a stop- cock or cork, to regulate the flow. A mixture of one part of alcohol and three of water, should now be poured on above, so as to keep a constant, but slow displacement of the absorbed menstruum, until one gallon of tincture has passed. Evaporate this in a water bath to eleven fluidounces; dissolve in it the sugar and bicarbonate of potassa, and after straining, add the tincture of ginger, holding the oils in solution, and mix; when done, the whole should measure a pint. The object in adding the alkaline carbonate in this fluid ex- tract, is to prevent the griping which is apt to result from the use of the senna. The aromatics contribute to the same end. Dose, f 5j to Oss. Extractum Jalapae Fluidum. (Prof. Procter.) Take Jalap of good quality . . . Sixteen troyounces. Sugar......Eight troyounces. Carbonate of potassa . . . Half a troyounce. Alcohol, Water, of each, ... .A sufficient quantity. Eeduce the jalap to coarse powder, pour on it one pint of a mixture of two parts alcohol and one water, and allow it to stand twenty-four hours. Then introduce it into a percolator, and pour ordinary diluted alcohol slowly on until half a gallon of liquid has passed. Evaporate this in a water bath, or still, till reduced to one-half, then add the sugar and carbonate of potassa, and evaporate till reduced to twelve fluidounces. Put the liquid thus obtained, while yet warm, in a pint bottle, and add four fluidounces of alcohol, and mix by agitation. The alkali forms a resinous soap with the jalap resin, greatly increasing its solubility in water, and at the same time renders the preparation less griping. The object of the sugar is also to aid in the retention of the resi- nous matter in a fluid condition, as well as to mask the taste of the jalap. The dose will vary from fifteen minims to a fluidrachm accord- ing to the effect desired. By means of this preparation, the'physician may prescribe jalap in mixtures with great facility, and avoid the large proportion of alcohol unavoidable when he resorts to the officinal tincture. FLUID EXTRACTS OF GALLS AND LOBELIA. 229 Succus Taraxaci Paratus. (Preserved Taraxacum. Juice) (Prof. Procter.) Take of Fresh dandelion root . Twenty pounds (avoirdupois). Alcohol (835°) . . Four pints. Slice the roots transversely, in short sections, and by means of a mill or mortar and pestle, reduce them to a pulpy mass; then add the alcohol, and mix them thoroughly. The mixture thus far prepared at the season when the root is proper for collection, may be set aside in suitable vessels (stoneware jars are appropriate), and extracted as the preparation is needed through the other seasons. After having stood a week, or until a convenient time, the pulpy mass is subjected to powerful pressure, until as much as possible of the fluid is removed. This is then filtered and bottled for use. It is necessary that sufficient time should elapse after the pulp is set aside for the alcohol to pene- trate the fibrous particles and commingle with the natural juices, as well as for the woody structure of the root to lose its elasticity, that it may yield the juice more completely on pressure. When the pulp has stood six months in this, it yields the juice with great readiness, and is possessed of the sensible properties of the dandelion in a marked degree. When twenty pounds (avoirdupois) of the root are thus treated after standing several months, the practical result is about six pints of fluid with an ordinary screw press. This yield will vary in amount with the condition of the root when collected, and the length of time it is exposed afterwards, as well as the power of the press used. Should the alcohol in this preparation be contraindicated, it might be partially removed by exposure in a water bath until the juice is reduced to five-sixths of its bulk; then for every pint of the residue, eight offi- cinal ounces of sugar may be dissolved in it. Fluid Extract of Galls. Take of Galls, in coarse powder . . 3viij. Alcohol.....Sufficient. Exhaust by percolation, and evaporate to a pint. This preparation is used by dentists in Philadelphia as a powerful astringent application. Fluid Extract of Lobelia. (Prof. Procter.) Take of Lobelia (the plant), finely bruised Eight ounces. Acetic acid .... One fluidounce. Diluted alcohol . . . Three pints. Alcohol ..... Six fluidounces. Macerate the lobelia in a pint and a half of the diluted alcohol, previously mixed with the acetic acid, for twenty-four hours; intro- duce the mixture into an earthen displacer; pour on slowly the remainder of the diluted alcohol, and afterwards water, until three pints of tincture are obtained; evaporate this in a water bath to ten fluidounces; strain; add the alcohol, and, when mixed, filter through paper. Each teaspoonful of this preparation is equal to half a fluid- ounce of the tincture. The dose would vary from five drops, as a narcotic and expectorant, to twenty or thirty as an emetic. 230 FLUID EXTRACTS. Ferrated Fluid Extract of Wild Cherry Bark. (W. E. Warner.) R.—Pruni Yirginianae contus. . . • 3xy. Amygdalae dulc......3iJ. Ferri oxyd. hydrat.....§ss;< Sacchari albi.....'xij. Ferri citratis......gj-f gr. xcvi. Alcoholis, Aquae, aa......me of the confectioners, when 260 OF SYRUPS AND HONEYS. they are overstocked with lemons, make them into syrup, but from the use of fruit that has partially spoiled, and from the syrup being made in such large quantities at once, as to become more or less altered by keeping, before it is consumed, the article thus made is inferior to that made from acid and oil of lemon. A very fine flavoring syrup may, however, be made by using fresh lemons and making the syrup in small quantities, by the Pharmacopoeia process. Citric acid is preferable to tartaric for preparing the syrup; when made with the former acid it has a more agreeable flavor, which it retains longer unimpaired. The syrup made with either acid, when long kept, is liable to throw down a white granular deposit of grape sugar. A "turpentine taste" is very common in the lemon syrup which is manufactured and sold wholesale, and may frequently be due to the employment of old or impure oil of lemon. A common adulteration of this oil is the admixture of recently distilled oil of turpentine or camphene, and the adulterated oil may contain a con- siderable portion of it without its being perceptible by taste or odor while new, but as the camphene becomes resinous, the turpentine flavor is developed. But even pure oil of lemon degenerates in flavor and odor, when long kept; therefore, it is better to prepare the syrup in small quantities, so that it will be consumed before there is any change in its quality. A more delicate flavor of the lemon may be obtained by macerating the outer portion of lemon-peel in deodorized alcohol, allowing this to evaporate spontaneously, and, when it is nearly all dissipated, add- ing it to sugar to be incorporated with the syrup, or triturating with magnesia, adding water, filtering, and making a syrup; as directed in the officinal process for syrup of orange-peel. The simple syrup used as a basis of these flavoring syrups may be made by the process given on page 245, or may contain a less propor- tion of sugar, say seven avoirdupois pounds to half a gallon of water. The lemon syrup will then be made easily, as follows:— Take of Oil of lemon . . . .20 drops. Citric acid.....An ounce. Tartaric acid .... Two drachms. Simple syrup .... One gallon. Rub the oil of lemon with a little sugar and afterwards with a por- tion of syrup, and having dissolved the acid in a gill of water mix the whole thoroughly together. The addition to this, and to ginger, orange, and capsicum syrups of a little syrup of gum Arabic promotes their frothing. Lemonade may be made, of good quality, by mixing one pint of this syrup with two gallons of iced water, stirring thoroughly. Orange Syrup. 1st Process.— Take of Syrup of orange-peel, U. S P. . . One pint. Citric acid.....45 grains. Dissolve the acid in the syrup. * GINGER SYRUP. 261 2d Process.—Take of oranges, the fresh fruit, a convenient number, grate off the yellow outside peel, cut the oranges and express the juice, to each quart of which add Water......1 pint. Sugar.......6 lbs. com. Mix the sugar with the grated peel, add the mixed water and juice. and apply a gentle heat till it is dissolved, then strain. ' One dozen oranges will make one and a half to two gallons ofj syrup. If a pure and fresh article of oil of orange can be obtained, the syrup may be made by the following formula:— 3d Process.— Take of Syrup......2 pints. Oil of orange .... 5 minims. Tartaric acid .... 1 drachm. Mix. Ginger Syrup. The formula of the Pharmacopoeia makes a syrup of about the proper strength for use with mineral water, though much too inconvenient of preparation. It is usually made in considerable quantities for this pur- pose, and it will be found most convenient to prepare the simple syrup somewhat more dilute than the officinal, and, while it is hot, to pour tincture of ginger on the surface, allowing the alcohol to evaporate before mixing with the syrup. If the .tincture is mixed directly, the syrup will be cloudy. On the other hand, if it is allowed to remain too long on the surface of the hot syrup before mixing, the resin separates in globules, which cannot afterwards be thoroughly diffused through the syrup. The tincture should be allowed to evaporate from the surface of the syrup until the vapor ceases to ignite on the approach of flame, then mixed immediately. The proportions are as follows:— Take of Tincture of ginger, half a fluidounce. A gill. Simple syrup, a pint. A gallon. Mix as above. The introduction of the whites of two or three eggs, boiling and straining, makes the syrup clearer. Some druggists prefer to boil ginger in water, which extracts a large amount of starchy matter, and makes a richer and more frothy mineral-water syrup. The following is the recipe:— Take of Ginger, bruised .... 3 ounces. Water......2 pints. Boil for half an hour in a covered vessel, strain, and add Sugar......4 lbs. com. Continue the heat until it is dissolved. 262 OF SYRUPS AND HONEYS. Capsicum Syrup. Take of Simple syrup .... Two pints. Tincture of capsicum . . .A fluidounce. Proceed as for ginger syrup. This is a fine stimulant, which is used to advantage in mineral water, in intensely hot and debilitating weather, when the relaxed condition of the digestive organs seems to contraindicate the use of cold drinks. Sarsaparilla Syrup for Mineral Water. As this syrup is intended for making a pleasant beverage, it is made much weaker of sarsaparilla than the compound syrup of the Phar- macopoeia, and the senna, guaiac, &c, which enter into the composition of the latter, are very properly omitted. The following is the formula of Ambrose Smith:— Take of Sarsaparilla, finely bruised, Liquorice root, do. each . 2 lbs. (com) 30 lbs. (com) 40 drops. 5 drops. q.s. Sugar Oil of anise, wintergreen, and sassa- fras, of each Oil of cinnamon Water . Digest the roots 12 hours, with 2 gallons of warm water, then put into a percolator and displace, adding sufficient water until 2 gallons of infusion are obtained. In this dissolve the sugar with the aid of heat, and to the syrup when cooled add the oils, previously rubbed up with a little sugar. The following formula is employed by some druggists:— Take of Sarsaparilla, liquorice root, each . 1 lb. Cinnamon, sassafras, each . . 6 oz. Cloves, anise, coriander, each . 2 oz. Red saunders, cochineal, each . IJ oz. Alcohol.....2 pints. ' Water......2 gallons. Digest the above for 4 days, strain, and make a syrup with 27 lbs. (com.) of sugar. It is also frequently made by diluting the compound syrup with twice its measure of simple syrup, and adding the essential oils. The fluid extract of sarsaparilla, if mezereon enters into its composition, does not answer, as the persistent acrimony of this bark is so perceptible even in the diluted syrup as to make it unpalatable. The following is our own formula:— Take of Simple syrup .... Oij. Comp. syrup of sarsap. . . f^ij. Caramel.....3vj. Oil of gaultheria, and Oil of sassafras, of each . . 3 drops. Mix by shaking up in a bottle. ORGEAT AND FRUIT SYRUPS. 263 Orgeat Syrup. This corresponds with the officinal syrupus amygdalae (see p. 246), with the addition of some more decided flavoring substance, as orange- flower water, bitter almond oil, or vanilla. The following formula is sometimes preferred, as requiring less time and trouble in its preparation:— Take of Cream syrup, Vanilla syrup, each . . . 1 pint. Oil of bitter almonds . . .4 drops. Mix well together, observing not to make more than sufficient for one day's sales. Fruit Syrups. To make one gallon of strawberry, raspberry, or blackberry syrup: Take of the fresh fruit . . .4 quarts. Water.....Sufficient. Sugar.....8 lbs. (com.) Express the juice and strain, then add water, till it measures four pints, dissolve the sugar in this by the aid of heat, raise it to the boiling point, and strain. If it is to be kept till the following season, it should be poured while hot into dry bottles, filled to the neck, and securely corked. The clothes-wringer (Fig. 117, page 121) will be found a good press for obtaining the juice from the fruit, which should first be thoroughly mashed into pulp and inclosed in a very strong square canvas bag. Strawberry syrup is made by inclosing the ripe fruit in a strong bag, then applying pressure by means of a screw or lever press, or between elastic rollers as above; small quantities may be pressed sufficiently by hand. The juice is now diluted, mixed with sugar, and transferred to a kettle, in which it is heated to the boiling point, and then strained while hot. The yield of strawberries is from one-third to one-half the bulk of juice, and the dilution with water, by the above rule, will be accord- ingly- Fig. 170 represents the straining bag; and Figs. 171 and 172 the Fig. 170. Fig. 171. Fig. 172. apparatus for straining and expressing, by means of a square piece of flannel or muslin. The mode of using them will be apparent. 264 OF SYRUPS AND HONEYS. Another way to prepare this syrup, where a fine and very delicate flavor is desired, is to macerate the ripe berries in layers interspersed with powdered sugar, one and three-quarter pounds of sugar to a pound of the picked berries for twenty-four hours, in a cellar, and then throw them on a sieve or perforated capsule for the syrup to drain off. This juice is to be put into a bottle, loosely corked, set into a vessel of water, and heated to the boiling point; after which it is to be tightly sealed and laid away in a cool place. Raspberry syrup is made by the same process; the juice is richer in pectin and more liable to glutinize than the foregoing, so that it bears a larger dilution; it improves the flavor of this syrup to use a small proportion of pie cherries, or currants—say a pound to four quarts of the raspberries. Blackberry syrup does not differ from the other fruit syrups in its mode of preparation, except in the usual addition of a small propor- tion of French brandy, say a fluidounce to each pint of syrup. The formula for these three syrups being the same, as the fruits yield variable quantities of juice, the degree of dilution is so regu- lated as that every quart of the fruit will yield a quart of syrup. Blackberry brandy contains a much larger proportion of brandy and less sugar, with some aromatics. (Dr. P. B. Goddard.) Oij. No. vj. §ss. 3ij- 3ij. Oj. Aromatic Blackberry Syrup. Take of Blackberry juice . Sugar . Nutmegs, grated . Cinnamon, bruised Cloves Allspice Brandy Make into a syrup secundem artem. The astringent properties of blackberry juice adapt it particularly, in combination with carminatives, to the treatment of bowel com- plaints. Raspberry Vinegar. Take of Raspberry syrup.....Oij. Acetic acid...... . f 3ss. Mix them. Added to iced water according to taste, this is one of the most delightful of refrigerant drinks. With the object of removing pectin from the juice of fleshy fruits, the Prussian Pharmacopoeia directs the production of incipient fer- mentation. The following is a type of the class:— Cherry Syrup. Take of fresh sour cherries a convenient quantity, bruise them with the stones and let them stand for three days, then express the juice and set aside until, after fermentation, it has become clear. To 20 FLAVORING SYRUPS. 265 ounces (weight) of this filtered juice add of sugar 36 ounces, and make into a syrup by raising to the boiling point. The raspberry and other similar juices as imported into this coun- try from France and Germany, are, or ought to be, the juices pre- pared in the above way; they are devoid of the mucilaginous prin- ciples (pectin, &c), contain a small quantity of alcohol, and keep well in sealed bottles; exposed to the air, of course they soon undergo acetous fermentation. Artificial Syrup of Raspberry. The following formula, though not recommended as a substitute for the true fruit syrup, will be found a tolerable approximation to it:— Take of Orris root (selected).....1 oz. . 2 dr. . 2 dr. . 1 quart. the cochineal, infuse strain, and add four Cochineal Tartaric acid Water Powder the orris root coarsely, together with in the water with the acid for twenty-four hours; pounds of sugar; raise to the boiling point and again strain. A few drops of artificial extract of raspberry (see Part IV.) may be added when cold. Pineapple Syrup. Take of the fruit a convenient number, pare them and mash them, without slicing, in a marble or porcelain mortar, express the juice, and take for each quart— Water.......1 pint. Sugar.......6 lbs. com. The water and sugar may be placed on the fire and heated to near the boiling point before adding the juice, after which, continue the heat till the syrup boils, then remove from the fire, skim, and strain. Preserve this as the foregoing. Vanilla Syrup. Take of Vanilla.......6 drachms. Boiling water......4| pints. Sugar.......8 lbs. com. Reduce the vanilla to fine powder by trituration with a portion of sugar, boil this with water two hours in a covered vessel, then strain, and dissolve in it the remainder of the sugar. This may also be made by adding tincture or fluid extract of vanilla to simple syrup to taste. Coffee Syrup. Take of Roasted coffee......4 oz. Boiling water......2 pints. Sugar.......4 lbs. com. Digest the coffee in coarse powder in the boiling water, in a covered vessel, filter, or clarify with white of egg, strain, and add the sugar. Wild Cherry Syrup is a popular and wholesome flavor for mineral water; the officinal article can hardly be improved upon. 266 OF SYRUPS AND HONEYS. Cream Syrups. These are mixtures of highly flavored syrups with fresh cream. They must be made fresh every few days, and may contain equal parts of their ingredients, or, preferably, two parts of the flavored syrup to one of cream. Some pharmaceutists prefer to make syrup of cream, and to flavor this by the addition of strong fruit, and other syrups, in the glass, on drawing the mineral water. Simple Syrup of Cream. Take of Fresh cream......1 pint. Powdered sugar.....1 lb. com. Mix and shake well together. To be kept in bottles not exceeding a pint. The formula of A. B. Taylor directs equal parts of cream and milk with the same proportion of sugar. That of 0. S. Hubbell directs fourteen pounds of sugar to each gallon of cream. Nectar Cream is variously made from cream syrup and flavored syrups. The following is a good mixture:— Take of Simple syrup of cream .... 1 part. Vanilla syrup......3 parts. Pineapple syrup . . . . .1 part Lemon syrup......1 part. Mix. Hubbell's formula directs the addition of sherry wine, against which objections might be urged as tending to promote a taste for alcoholic stimulants. A great variety of fancy names are given to these combi- nations of cream syrup with alcoholic and other flavoring ingredients. Factitious Cream Syrup. R.—01. amygd. dulcis (recent) .... f Jiij. Pulv. acaciae.......Iij. Aquae........lix. M. ft. Emulsio et adde, Sacchari albi.......Ibj. Albumen ovi.......No. ij. Dissolve the sugar by a gentle heat, strain, and when cool add the white of egg; fill small bottles and keep in a cool place, well corked. This preparation will keep for a long time. For use, mix one part with eight of any of the ordinary syrups, or add about a drachm to every glass. It forms an imitation of orgeat by mixing two drachms or more with two ounces of simple syrup, and flavoring with bitter almond and orange-flower water. CONSERVES, CONFECTIONS, ETC. 267 CHAPTER XV. OF CONSERVES, CONFECTIONS, ELECTUARIES, PASTES, LOZENGES, AND CANDIES. Preparations having pectin as their basis, or containing medicinal substances suspended in a semi-solid form by the aid of honey and syrup, are variously termed Conserves, Electuaries, and Confections. The officinal class Pulpas of the previous Pharmacopoeia, consisting of the pulps of prunes, tamarinds, and figs, has been dismissed in the revision of 1860, and the class Confectiones altered so as to embrace the processes formerly included in it. Confectiones U.S.P. This class naturally subdivides into two, which are nearly alike in their properties, but quite unlike in their mode of preparation. 1st Class.—Conserves. Confectio Aurantii corticis, U. S., 1 part (grated) to 3 sugar. " Rosoz (by an unofficinal process), 1 part to 3 sugar. " Amygdala (Lond. Ph.), sweet almonds, gum and sugar. By beating with powdered sugar a fresh, moist substance, as un- dried rose petals, or the rind of a fresh orange, or a fruit rich in oil, and naturally moist, like the almond, we obtain a true conserve. The trituration should be continued till a smooth and uniform firm paste is produced, which will generally be permanent if kept in a well- covered vessel, except in the instance of the almond, which will be rendered unfit for use by long keeping, and hence the confection has been omitted in the recent editions of the U. S. Pharmacopoeia. Confection of rose is more frequently made, according to my observa- tion, by the above process, with the common hundred leaved and damask rose petals, than by that of the Pharmacopoeia, in which the powdered red-rose petals are directed to be made into an electuary; so that Confectio Rosae, as usually met with, is not decidedly astringent. Confection of orange-peel is made chiefly, as directed by the officinal formula, from the rind of the common sweet orange, so abundant in our market, and not from bitter orange-peel, as sometimes supposed by physicians. The proportion is one part of the grated rind to three of sugar. Confection of almonds is made from the blanched almonds, triturated through a fine sieve, and thoroughly incorporated with the giim and sugar, thus forming the whole into a mass. It furnishes a ready mode of forming alniond mixtures. 268 CONSERVES, confections, etc. 2d Class.—Electuaries. Confectio Rosae. Powd. red rose 2 p., sugar 15 p., honey 3 p., rose-water 4 p. Confectio Aromatica. Aromatic powder, honey, equal parts. Confecto Opii (1 gr. in 36). Opium powd., aromat. powd., and honey. Confectio Senna. P. senna and coriander, added to pulp of prunes, figs, tamarinds, and purging cassia. All of this division of confections are made from dried and pow- dered materials, incorporated mechanically with a saccharine liquid into mass. Confection of rose is used as a vehicle in the preparation of pills, which is almost its only use. Aromatic confection and confection of opium are somewhat used as vehicles; the latter is prescribed in old recipes, and sometimes in pre- scriptions, as Theriaca Andronica. It enters into the composition of a celebrated fever and ague mixture introduced among extemporaneous preparations. Confection of senna is a fine laxative, and, when properly prepared, is one of the most agreeable remedies of its class. If given in large enough quantities to purge actively, it is liable to disagree with the stomach when there is a want of tone in that organ, and to become .distasteful to the patient. Confectio Sennae U. S. P. (Confection of Senna. Lenative Electuary.) Take of Senna, in fine powder, eight troyounces. Coriander, in fine powder, four troyounces. Purging cassia, finely bruised, sixteen troyounces. Tamarind ten troyounces. Prune, sliced, seven troyounces. Fig, bruised, twelve troyounces. Sugar, in coarse powder, thirty troyounces. Water a sufficient quantity. Digest, in a close vessel, by means of a water bath, the purging cassia, tamarind, prune, and fig in three pints of water for three hours. Separate the coarser portions with the hand, and pass the pulpy mass, by rubbing, first through a coarse hair sieve, and then through a fine one, or a muslin cloth. Mix the residue with a pint of water, and, havino- digested the mixture for a short time, treat it as before, and add the product to the pulpy liquid first obtained. Then by means of a water bath, dissolve the sugar in the pulpy liquid, and evaporate the whole until it weighs ninety-six troyounces, or until it has been brought to the consistence of honey. Lastly, add the senna and cori- ander and incorporate them thoroughly with the other ingredients while yet warm. Few manufacturers take the trouble to make this preparation in perfection. The above, which is an improved and simplified formula, should induce every pharmaceutist to make the confection, and by fol- lowing the formula carefully, and securing a perfectly fine powder of coriander seed, a good preparation will be the result. PASTES. 269 Hasmorrhoid Electuary. The following recipe has been in use for many years as a remedy for piles, and, from the numerous cases in which it has afforded relief, is believed worthy a place among our unofficinal formulas:— Take of Bitartrate of potassa, Powdered jalap, Powdered nitrate of potassa, of each Half an ounce. Confection of senna .... An ounce. Make an electuary with syrup of ginger. Dose, a piece the size of a marble three times a day. Confection of Black Pepper. (Ward's Paste) The following is the recipe from the London Pharmacopoeia for this celebrated preparation, which is not unfrequently prescribed for piles; it is said to require to be used continuously for some months to realize good results:— Take of Black pepper, Reduced. Elecampane, each . . .1 pound Ij. Fennel (seeds) .... 3 pounds I iij. Honey, Sugar, each . . . .2 pounds Iij. Rub the dry ingredients together into a very fine powder, and keep them in a covered vessel; but, whenever the confection is to be used, add the powder gradually to the honey, and beat them until thoroughly incorporated. Dose, 3j to 3ij, three times a day. Pastes. Medicines having sugar and gum for their basis, of a firm yet flexi- ble consistence, intermediate between confections and lozenges, are called Pastes. These are usually sold in sheets, or in small squares, each of which is of suitable size to be taken at one time into the mouth, and covered with powdered sugar, or, in the case of jujube paste, with oil, to prevent their adhering together. The object proposed in their preparation is the production of an agreeable demulcent and expectorant form of medicine; as their pleasant qualities are to a great extent lost by age, they should be frequently prepared. The transparent kinds are allowed to cool and harden spontaneously, while the opaque varieties are stirred and beaten as they cool. A few recipes for pastes are appended:— Jujube Paste. (Transparent Gum Paste) Take of Gum Arabic . . .6 ounces. Water.....8 fluidounces. Bruise the gum, and make it into a clear mucilage, which may be conveniently done by inclosing it in a bag of coarse gauze suspended 270 CONSERVES, CONFECTIONS, ETC. near the top of a vessel of cold water; introduce the mucilage into an evaporating dish, and add— Syrup......7 ounces (by weight). Evaporate to a very thick consistence, adding, towards the last— Orange-flower water . . .2 fluidrachms. Let it cool, remove the crust which will have formed on the surface, and run the paste into shallow tin pans, which lay away in a warm place to dry. In order to turn out the paste, some are in the habit of slightly greasing the pans; but, this oil sometimes becoming rancid and giving unpleasant properties to the paste, it is suggested by Dor- vault to make use of tin pans prepared by spreading with a rag a globule of mercury over the whole inside surface, and then wiping it well. The moulds need to be gone over with the mercury only once in eight or ten times. The French Codex directs the addition of a decoction of jujube; but this, which was the original practice, and gave name to the preparation, is now generally abandoned. The use of orange-flower water is generally substituted in this country by oil of lemon or rose, and, where the latter is used, a red color is imparted to the paste for the sake of distinction. Other flavors may be used. Marshmalhw Paste. (Opaque Gum Paste. Pate de Guimauve) Take of Gum Arabic (white), Sugar, of each . " . . . Ibj. Water......Sufficient. ' Orange-flower water . . . fliij. White of eggs .... No. x. Bruise the gum, dissolve it in the water, and strain; put the gummy solution upon the fire in a deep, wide pan, add the sugar, stirring con- tinually until it has the consistence of thick honey, carefully regulating the temperature. Then beat the eggs to a froth, add them and the orange-flower water gradually to the paste, which must be constantly stirred; continue to beat the paste until, in applying it with the spatula upon the back of the hand, it does not adhere to it, then run it out upon a slab, or into pans covered with starch. Formerly this contained marshmallow; now it is, properly speaking, only an opaque paste of gum. The Iceland moss paste, so extensively advertised of latter years, may be closely imitated by this process, slightly varying the flavor. The asserted presence of Iceland moss in it improves it only in name. Carrageen Paste. (Mouchon) Take of Carrageen . . . . . Ij. Water......Oyj. Boil the carrageen (previously soaked) first in four pints, and then in the remainder of the water, and mix the liquids; to this add— Pure gum Arabic, Sugar, of each .... 8 ounces. Strain, evaporate to a very thick consistence, cool it, and separate any crust, and run it out into pans or on a slab. TROCHISCI—LOZENGES. 271 Iceland Moss Paste. Take of Iceland moss . Gum Arabic . Sugar Water (French Codex) . . . 3ij. . Ix. . Iviij. Sufficient. Wash the Iceland moss in boiling water, and, having rejected this, boil it in an additional portion of water during an hour. Express and strain, add the gum and sugar, and evaporate till a drop does not adhere to the back of the hand; then cool it on a marble slab. Trochisci.—Lozenges. The manufacture of lozenges, as of confections, and of some syrups, pertains to the confectioner, in common with the pharmaceutist, and is principally confined to the former; yet the obvious eligibility of this form of preparation, for certain expectorant and other medicines, par- ticularly for children, makes a knowledge of them desirable both to the physician and pharmaceutist. The process for preparing them is quite simple, and so well adapted to all insoluble, tasteless, and agreeable medicines, that we may with propriety resort to it for ordinary purposes in prescribing. The author has repeatedly made up medicines in this form extem- poraneously by physician's prescription, and with considerable advan- tage, as compared with the usual pharmaceutical forms. The lozenges to be described are of two varieties. First.—Those which consist of white sugar combined with a medi- cinal substance, and made up by the addition of mucilage. The dry ingredients are first to be thoroughly reduced to powder and mixed together; then beaten in a suitable mortar, with sufficient mucilage of tragacanth or gum Arabic to form a tenacious and tolerably firm mass; this mass, being dusted with a little powdered sugar (not starch, which is sometimes used), is to be rolled out upon a suitable board, or marble slab, to the required thickness, previously ascertained; and then, with a smail punch, either round, oval, stellate, or cordate, to suit the taste of the maker, cut out singly, and laid away to dry on a suitable tray or sieve. Fig. 173 represents a simple apparatus used for rolling and cutting this description of lozenges. Among the recent inventions is a glass roller of considerable strength and durability, de- signed for rolling out pastry; being open at both ends, it may be filled with warm water and securely corked; in this way a temperature is maintained favorable to the softness and tenacity of the mass. It is well adapted to use in making lozenges. The roller shown in the cut is of hard wood. The rolling- board is adjusted as follows: Fig. 173. Board, roller, and punch, for making lozenges. 272 conserves, confections, etc. Having a punch of a certain diameter, a small portion of the mass is rolled and cut out, and its weight ascertained; if it be too heavy, the cake is rolled thinner, and so on until adjusted to the required weight; a strip is now tacked on to each side of the board, within the range of the roller, and corresponding in thickness with the cake, so that the roller, when passed over, will reduce the medicated mass to the right point. A board arranged in this way should be kept for each kind of lozenges, as the weight of different materials varies, and, in adjusting it, a small allowance must be made for the moisture present in the soft mass, which increases its bulk. In dividing a mass extem- poraneously, it is convenient to roll the whole out into a square or oblong cake of suitable size, and then, with a spatula, divide it equally into a definite number of rectangular masses. Some manufacturers have, independently of their cutting punches, a stamp bearing the name of the base of the lozenge, or the card of the manufacturer, which they impress upon each lozenge; for white loz- enges, the punch is sometimes dipped in an infusion of cochineal. The cutting punches are sometimes so made as to combine cutting and marking in one operation. In order to have lozenges nicely cut, it is important to clean the cutting punch frequently by steeping it for a moment in water, then wiping it dry. In lozenges made of vegetable powders, as, for instance, those of ipecacuanha, the use of thick mucilage is advised to prevent the extractive matter from coloring the product. The mucilage used is nearly always made of gum tragacanth, but some pharmaceutists prefer that of gum Arabic, as giving them a more translucent appearance; white of egg is recommended for the same purpose. The quantity of mucilage necessary to thicken substances varies somewhat; it is greater for lozenges which contain dry powders than for those made of extractive substances. It may be remarked that lozenges containing a large proportion of mucilage become very hard by time. Mucilages are sometimes made with simple water, and sometimes with aromatic waters, or the latter are replaced by essential oils added directly to the mass, or in advance to the dry powders. M. Garot mentions a German method which confectioners sometimes make use of to aromatize lozenges extemporaneously after their de- siccation. It consists in dissolving a volatile oil in ether, and pour- ing this solution upon the lozenges contained in a bottle with a large mouth, shaking them well, then pouring the lozenges upon a sieve, and instantly placing them in a stove to dispel the ether. This method is very convenient, as it permits the preparation of a large quantity of inodorous lozenges, which may be flavored as they are needed. Second.—Two of the officinal lozenges contain liquorice, and consist of adhesive, saccharine, and mucilaginous materials, softened by water and beaten into a mass with flavoring and medicinal ingredients, and officinal lozenges. 273 then rolled into lozenges, generally of a different shape from the others. Trochisci U. S. P. First Group. Officinal Name. Proportion. Adjuvants. Med. Properties. Trochisci cretae " magnesias " sodae bicarb. " ferri subcarb. " ipecac. " menthae pip. " zingiberis 3 J grs. in each 2* 2* 5 grs. " i gr- " A™. oil " liTTL tinct. " Powdered nutmeg u Vanilla Arrowroot Antacid, astringent. Antacid and laxative. Antacid. Tonic, "haematic." Expectorant. Carminative. Carminative. Secono Group. Trochisci glycyrrhizae et opii " cubebae The preparation of these is best described by introducing the offici- nal formulas; their therapeutical properties may be noticed as follows: Of the three antacid lozenges, those of chalk may be regarded as astringent, adapted to an acid condition of the secretions of the stomach with diarrhoea; those of magnesia, as laxative and adapted to remedy costiveness connected with acidity; those of soda,, as more purely alkaline. The lozenges of carbonate of iron have been recommended in the former editions of this work, from which the new officinal formula was taken, as having been long prepared by the author and found to be a most eligible method of giving this nearly tasteless preparation of iron. The dose for children is one, for adults two, three times a day. The lozenges of ipecac, are rarely prescribed, though perhaps well adapted to the treatment of catarrhal affections of children; among the extemporaneous preparations in Part V., a combination, in this form, containing ipecac, and citrate of potassa is recommended as a diaphoretic. Peppermint and ginger lozenges are well known carmina- tives. Those sold by the confectioners have seldom any special rela- tion to the proportions directed in the Pharmacopoeia. Wistar's cough lozenges (trochisci glycyrrhizse et opii) of which an im- proved formula is given in the sequel, has long been a very prominent popular expectorant in Philadelphia and throughout the United States; their peculiar merit consists in their soothing effect'in coughs caused by local irritation, and a tickling sensation in the throat; frequently a single lozenge taken at night will allay this symptom and compose the patient to sleep. In some cases of pulmonary consumption they are complained of as producing costiveness, a defect remedied in the improved formula by the substitution of morphia for opium in their 18 Opium, 1 gr. in 12 lozenges Sugar, liquorice, gum Arabic, and oil of anise Oleoresin cubeb, ln\, in each Sugar, liquorice, gum Arabic, and oil sassafras Sedative. Expectorant. Stimulant. Expectorant. 27-4 CONSERVES, CONFECTIONS, ETC. composition. It is to be regretted that for a small increase of profit, to undersell conscientious pharmaceutists, some of the largest manu- facturers of these lozenges depart from the long established and well recognized proportions, producing a very inferior preparation. Trochisci cubebae are designed to supersede numerous empirical preparations containing cubebs, which are extensively used for hoarse- ness and coryza. The new formula is nearly that of Spitta's lozenges; its chief fault is that in aiming to combine great efficiency with a form of preparation generally designed to be agreeable, it aims in this case at an impossibility. Most of the popular cubeb lozenges contain much less of the active ingredient, but being less disagreeable, they are taken freely and accomplish the purpose. Working Formulas for the Officinal Lozenges. Trochisci Cretas. (Troches of Chalk) U. S. P. Take of Prepared chalk four troyounces. Gum Arabic, in fine powder, a troyounce. Nutmeg, in fine powder, sixty grains. Sugar, in fine powder, six troyounces. Eub them together until they are thoroughly mixed; then with water form a mass, to be divided into troches, each weighing ten grains. Trochisci Magnesias. (Troches of Magnesia) U. S. P. Take of Magnesia four troyounces. Nutmeg, in fine powder, sixty grains. Sugar, in fine powder, twelve troyounces. Mucilage of tragacanth a sufficient quantity. Rub the magnesia and the powders together until they are tho- roughly mixed ; then with mucilage of tragacanth form a mass, to be divided into troches, each weighing ten grains. Trochisci Sodas Bicarbonotis. (Troches of Bicarbonate of Soda) U. S. P. Take of Bicarbonate of soda four troyounces. Sugar, in fine powder, twelve troyounces. Mucilage of tragacanth a sufficient quantity. Rub the bicarbonate of soda with the sugar until they are tho- roughly mixed; then with mucilage of tragacanth form a mass, to be divided into troches, each weighing ten grains. Trochisci Ferri Subcarbonatis U. S. P. (Iron Lozenges) Take of Subcarbonate of iron five troyounces. Vanilla sixty grains. Sugar, in fine powder, fifteen troyounces. Mucilage of tragacanth a sufficient quantity. Rub the vanilla first with a part of the sugar into a uniform powder and afterwards with the subcarbonate of iron and the remainder of the sugar until they are thoroughly mixed. Then with mucilage of tragacanth form a mass, to be divided into troches, each weighing twenty grains. FORMULAS FOR LOZENGES. 275 Ferruginous Chocolate Drops. (Unofficinal.) Take of Reduced iron (by hydrogen) ... 1 part. Vanilla chocolate......15 parts. With the fused chocolate incorporate the iron uniformly, and form into moulds each containing eight grains. Dose, one for a child, two for an adult, three times a day. Trochisci Ipecacuanhas. (Troches of Ipecacuanha) U. S. P. Take of Ipecacuanha, in fine powder, half a troyounce. Arrowroot, in fine powder, four troyounces. Sugar, in fine powder, fourteen troyounces. Mucilage of tragacanth a sufficient quantity. Rub the powders together until they are thoroughly mixed; then with mucilage of tragacanth form a mass, to be divided into troches, each weighing ten grains. Trochisci Menthae Piperitae. (Troches of Peppermint) U. S. P. Take of Oil of peppermint a fluidrachm. Sugar, in fine powder, twelve troyounces. Mucilage of tragacanth a sufficient quantity. Rub the oil of peppermint with the sugar until they are thoroughly mixed ; then with mucilage of tragacanth form a mass, to be divided into troches, each weighing ten grains. Trochisci Zingiberis: (Troches of Ginger) U. S. P. Take of Tincture of ginger a fluidounce. Tragacanth, in fine powder, one hundred and twenty grains. Sugar, in fine powder, twelve troyounces. Syrup of ginger a sufficient quantity. Mix the tincture of ginger with the sugar, and, having exposed the mixture to the air until dry, reduce it to fine powder; to this add the tragacanth, and mix it thoroughly. Lastly, with syrup of ginger form a mass, to be divided into troches, each weighing twenty grains. Trochisci Cubebae. (Cubeb Lozenges) U. S. P. Take of Oleoresin of cubeb a fluidounce. Oil of sassafras a fluidrachm. Liquorice, in fine powder, Gum Arabic, in fine powder, Sugar, in fine powder, each, three troyounces. Syrup of Tolu a sufficient quantity. Rub the powders together until they are thoroughly mixed; then add the oleoresin and oil, and incorporate them with the mixture. Lastly, with syrup of Tolu form a mass, to be divided into troches, each weighing ten grains. These are conveniently made into the shape of Spitta's lozenges for which a formula was given in our last edition. The mass being divi- ded into portions of half a troyounce, each of these is rolled out between two boards to a cylindrical stick, and then after it has partially 276 CONSERVES, CONFECTIONS, ETC. dried it is cut with a sharp knife into twenty-four equal parts., each weighing about ten grains. Trochisci Glycyrrhizas et Opii. (Troches of Liquorice and Opium) U. S. P. Take of Opium, in fine powder, half a troyounce. Liquorice, in fine powder, Gum Arabic, in fine powder, Sugar, in fine powder, each, ten troyounces. Oil of anise a fluidrachm. Rub the powders together until they are thoroughly mixed; then add the oil of anise, and incorporate it with the mixture. Lastly, with water form a mass, to be divided into troches, each weighing six grains. The formation of a mass with these ingredients possessing the requisite softness and pliability, and yet firm enough to retain the shape given to it, is a matter of considerable difficulty, even with those who are somewhat accustomed to it, while those who are not often waste their material, as well as their time, in the manipulation. The following modified formula will be found an improvement:— Take of Powdered liquorice, " gum Arabic, " sugar, of each . . 5 ounces. Oil of aniseed . . . .30 drops. Sulphate of morphia . . .12 grains. Water, and Tincture of Tolu, of each . . A sufficient quantity. Dissolve the sulphate of morphia in one fluidounce of water, and add the oil of aniseed, with sufficient powdered gum Arabic to incor- porate it thoroughly. To this add one fluidounce, of water, or a suffi- cient quantity; add this, now, to the mixed powders, and beat tho- roughly into a mass of the proper consistence. This is to be divided into lozenges, each weighing six grains, and these, after they are dry, are to be varnished with tincture of Tolu. The mode of rolling and dividing these, and, consequently, their shape, is different from that indicated for the lozenges of the first group. After beating the ingredients into a mass, portions of 168 grains each are weighed out, and each of these being rolled between two smooth pieces of board, into a cylindrical stick, 28 inches in length, is laid away upon a drying board, until nearly dry and brittle, and then cut with a sharp knife or scissors into 24 equal lozenges, each about 1\ inch in length, and weighing 7 grains when moist, but re duced in weight by drying. About twelve lozenges contain an ordinary adult dose of sulphate of morphia. Made by this recipe, they are less liable to constipate the bowels, and are less bitter to the taste than the officinal. UNOFFICINAL LOZENGES. 277 Unofficinal Lozenges. Dr. Jackson's Pectoral Lozenges. 10 grains. 5 grains. 6 grains. of each 11 drachms. 4 drachms. 4 drops. 1\ drachms. grains. drachms. Take of Powdered ipecacuanha Sulphuretted antimony Muriate of morphia . Powdered gum Arabic " sugar " ext. of liquorice Tincture of Tolu Oil of sassafras To be made into a stiff mass, with simple syrup, and divided into 200 lozenges, or into lozenges of 10 grains each. Each lozenge con- tains jj'-g- grain of ipecac, ^ grain of the antimonial, ^ grain of mor- phia. They are usually rolled into flat cakes, and cut out with a round punch, as described under the head of the officinal lozenges. Few remedies for pectoral affections requiring anodyne and nauseant treatment are so popular as this. Dose, one every three or four hours. Dr. Jackson's Ammonia Lozenges. Take of Muriate of ammonia " morphia . Powdered elm bark " gum Arabic " sugar " ext. of liquorice Tincture of Tolu Oil of partridgeberry To be made with syrup into 180 lozenges, or into lozenges of 10 grains each, containing \ grain muriate of ammonia, and g'o of a grain of the morphia salt. These are used for somewhat similar affections with the foregoing, and are made into the same shape. Parrish's Cough Lozenges. Take of Powdered ipecacuanha . . 50 grains. Kermes mineral . . . 100 grains. Sulphate of morphia Pow'd sugar " gum Arabic . " extract of liquorice Oil of anise Syrup of Tolu . To be made into a mass and divided into 320 lozenges, each con- taining about \ grain of ipecacuanha, \ grain of kermes, 2V grain of morphia salt. We have been in the habit, for the last ten years, of preparing these pectoral lozenges, which are not unlike those of Dr. Jackson. The recipe was contrived with the aid of a medical friend, and has proved a useful one, producing a comparatively active preparation. The dose of these is one three or four times a day. of each 7 drachms. 3 drachms. 4 drops. 16 grains. of each 3 ounces. 40 drops. Sufficient. 278 CONSERVES, CONFECTIONS, ETC. 10 ounces. 2 ounces. 6 drachms. 2 drachms. 2 drachms. 17 ounces. Phosphatic Lozenges. Take of Phosphate of lime Phosphate of iron Phosphate of soda Phosphate of potassa Phosphoric acid Sugar, in powder Powdered, ginger, Syrup, of each sufficient. Mix the phosphates of lime and iron, with the sugar and ginger, by passing through a fine sieve; then, by the aid of heat, dissolve the phosphates of soda and potassa and phosphoric acid in the syrup and make into a mass with the mixed powders. Roll this into a cake of the proper thickness, dusting it with a sifted mixture of one part of phosphate of iron and eight parts of sugar, and cut out the lozenges, each weighing fifteen grains. Each lozenge contains five grains of phosphate of lime, one grain of phosphate of iron, and half a grain of the mixed phosphates of soda and potassa. The use of the phosphates prescribed above has recently been adopted, to a large extent, with a view to supplying elements to the system which are apt to be deficient, particularly among children, in large cities. It is asserted that these salts not only aid in building up the bony structure, when it is deficient, but assist in maintaining the irritability, without which assimilation and nutrition are always lacking. The dose for children may be from one to two, three times a day. Astringent Rose Leaf Tabhts. Take of Powdered catechu, Powdered red rose, of each ... 6 parts. Powdered tragacanth .... 1 part. Powdered sugar ... .48 parts. Mix, and make into a mass with rose-water and vanilla syrup, then divide into lozenges, of each ten grains. To be taken ad libitum for chronic relaxed conditions of the throat and mouth. Chhrate of Potassa Tabhts Take of Chlorate of potassa Powdered red rose Powdered sugar Oil of rose Oil of orange 200 grains. 300 grains. 500 grains. 15 drops. 100 drops. Powder the chlorate of potassa and incorporate it thoroughly with the other dry ingredients; add to these the flavoring oils and make up the mass with jelly of black currants, then divide into 100 lozenges, each containing ten grains. Dose, one occasionally in sore throat, ulcerated mouth, &c. CANDY AND DROPS. 279 Catechu Lozenges. Take of Catechu......2 ounces. Tragacanth.....J ounce. White sugar.....12 ounces. Rose water.....Sufficient. Make into ten grain lozenges; to be used ad libitum. These are particularly adapted to cases of relaxation of the uvula, irritation of the larynx, &c. Wild Cherry Tabhts. Take of Wild cherry bark (powdered) . . ibj. (officinal.) Alcohol......q. s. Make a tincture by percolation, evaporate to dryness, .and powder the extract—to this add Powder of blanched almonds . . liij. Gum.......liv. Sugar......Tbiij-Iiv. The above modification of the formula of W. R. Warner, produces a fine preparation, retaining the sedative virtues of the drug as con- centrated as is safe, in this form of preparation. Make a mass, and divide into oval lozenges, of each ten grains. They are very bitter and develop hydrocyanic acid when introduced into the mouth, acting with energy as a sedative remedy. One lozenge is a dose, repeated as occasion requires. Candy and Drops. Various kinds of candy are used in' medicine for the well-known expectorant or demulcent properties of the sugar alone, or for the effects of such medicines as may be conveniently combined with it. The manufacture of these pertain almost exclusively to the confec- tioner, who prepares a thick semifluid mass by using with the sugar a small portion of water, and boiling till it is brought to such condi- tion as that a small portion removed from the fire upon a glass rod will solidify into a transparent candy on cooling; it is then poured out upon a marble slab. If the coloring or flavoring ingredient is in powder, as, for instance, tartaric acid used in making lemon drops, it is worked in with the melted candy on the slab; otherwise it must be added before testing its hardness and removing from the fire. The sheet of melted candy being smoothed upon the surface, if designed for secrets, a very common form, is partially cut through into squares, and then, when brittle, broken off; if designed for drops, the candy requires to be run into moulds upon a machine constructed for the purpose; if for sticks, it is rolled and drawn out to the required thickness. By kneading and working this material while soft, its whiteness is increased. The principal art in making candies is in removing them from the fire at just the right moment before caramel begins to be formed, and not until the whole of the uncombined water is driven off; besides the proximate mode, with a glass rod, given above, the 280 extracta resina and concentrated remedies. elevation of the boiling point to exactly a certain point is an indica- tion that the candy is finished. The fruit essences, so called, prepared by artificial processes from fusel oil, have been much used of late to flavor drops. Lemon and ginger drops are also much in vogue; the latter are best prepared from the piperoid, or oleoresin of ginger (see p. 200). The following recipes are appended, as of utility to the pharmaceu- tist, who may procure the admixture of the medicinal ingredients, with candy at the confectioner's for a few cents per pound advance on the cost of the sugar. Ginger Drops. To ten pounds of the melted candy add one ounce of piperoid of ginger, and, by means of an appropriate apparatus, run it into drops the size of cherry-stones. Medicated Secrets, or Cough Candy. To ten pounds of melted candy add the following mixture, and divide into secrects:— Take of Tincture of squill......f liv. Camphorated tincture of opium ) r -, „_ Tincture of Tolu | of each . flss. Fluid extract of ipecacuanha In-, Oil of gaultheria [of each . «ivnj. " sassafras ...... th,vj. " aniseed ...... truij. Used ad libitum in ordinary coughs. CHAPTER XVI. extracta resina and "CONCENTRATED remedies." In the last edition of this work the unofficinal class of preparations, designated in a general way as " Eclectic Concentrated Remedies," re- ceived some notice, and formulas for several were given in detail. A considerable increase in the number of these in common use, and the general interest felt in them, which has now extended to transatlantic countries, seem to demand that an effort should be made to include in this work some notice of all of them, which are liable to be met with by physicians and pharmaceutists. This effort is connected with diffi- culties growing out of the fact that the manufacturers of these prepa- rations are all independent of each other; each claiming the superiority of his own preparations over those of his rivals; each adopting such formulas, and such nomenclature, as his own convenience suggests. For many of these preparations no formulas are published, and no accurate description of their chemical and physical properties has ap- peared, while any examination made for the purposes of this work CONCENTRATED REMEDIES. 281 would be unnecessarily onerous, and quite unsatisfactory in view of all of these preparations met with in commerce. Some of the "Eclectic remedies" are nearly pure resins. To this class th< three Resina of the new Pharmacopoeia belong. Viewed as pharmaceutica preparations, eligible for use in medicine, though not purified so as to rani as distinctive proximate principles, these are very appropriately name( resinous extracts or resins. The term " Resinoid," so commonly used, is less appropriate to the class, implying, as it does, a resemblance to resins, whin all of these are either resins, oleoresins, or more or less mixed proximate prin- ciples possessing no real resemblance to the class of resins. Some of the concentrated remedies lay claim to the title of " Alkaloids;" these either are or are not vegetable alkalies, though never pure; and the same objection applies to designating them under a name which is far from being clearly descriptive of their chemical character. It is a scientific objection to the nomenclature of the eclectic pharmaceutists that they misapply the terms employed by chemists to designate the distinctive principles isolated from plants by analysis, and it operates as a practical objection to their system that medi- cines of such totally different chemical properties are grouped together under similar designations. The termination in, so appropriate to resina and neutral principles, is not adapted to extractive matters containing no resin; and the termination ia, though quite appropriate to organic alkalies, ia unsuited to the mixed principles precipitated by the empirical processes of the manufacturers. Two preparations differently prepared from the same drug, such as "sanguinarin and sanguinarina," possessing different degrees of therapeutic power—the one classed by them as a resinoid, and the other as an alkaloid—should, it would seem, be more definitely designated for use in medicine than by uames differing only in the terminal letter. A frequent cause of error in the practice of pharmacy arises out of the substitution of the "Eclectic, hyoscyamin, atropin, veratrin, and other similar preparations," for the pure vegetable alkalies found in commerce The dose is, of course, very different; and the genuine articles imported from England, France, and Germany bearing a very high price, the substitution of cheaper and inferior products labelled with the same names should be carefully guarded against by practitioners. In the present chapter the principal resinous and other "Eclectic concen- trated remedies" are noticed without regard to their strictly chemical cha- racters, while the definite proximate principles of plants used in medicine, which have been isolated and examined, are noticed under their several heads in Part IV. Many of the formulas and descriptions given in this chapter are not practically familiar to me, and I give them only as I find them recorded in the several works on this system of practice. Of these, the chief that have been consulted are the following : " The American Dis- pensatory, by John King, M. D.," published in Cincinnati in 1859, and recommending the " resinoid and alkaloid" preparations of W. S. Merrill and others of that city. " Concentrated Organic Medicines, being a Prac- tical Exposition of the Therapeutic Properties and Clinical Employment of the Combined Proximate Medicinal Constituentst of Indigenous and Foreign Plants, by Grover Coe, M. D.," fourth edition, 1862, published by B. Keith & Co., New York, of whose preparations it treats. And " Formulas for making Tinctures, Infusions, Syrups, Wines, Mixtures, Pills, &c, from the fluid and solid extracts prepared at the laboratory of Tilden & Co., New Lebanon, N. Y." The statements of these authors are not to be accepted as impartial. 282 CONCENTRATED REMEDIES. Each of the two first named is much engaged throughout his book in dis- paraging the preparations recommended by the other. The Cincinnati work) in which many formulas appear, justly charges the New York manufacturers with concealing their formulas, and advances the following criticism : " Unfortunately some persons are so wrapped up in what are called ' concentrated remedies' that they will blindly employ anything pre- sented as such without stopping to inquire or examine into its claims ; this is decidedly wrong." On the other hand, Dr. Grover Coe, writing in the interest of the New York manufacturers of concentrated remedies, repudiates the single princi- ples or precipitates obtained by the same process for almost every variety of vegetable substance as recommended by Merrill and indorsed by Dr. King. He claims for his favorite remedies that they embody not merely single "resinoid," or "alkaloid," or "neutral" principles from plants, but all these as contained in their several plants first separately isolated and then recombined, which is practically impossible and scientifically absurd. This extraordinary assertion, taken in connection with the great number and variety of remedies advertised claiming to be the " concentrated equiv- alents" of plants but little known to chemists, and nefrer satisfactorily analyzed, cannot but strike the mind of any one in the least acquainted with the difficulties of the subject as too severe a tax on credulity. The classification of the proximate principles of plants adopted by Dr. Coe is, moreover, different from any known to science, and some of the definitions given to the several classes named do not correspond with those of the recognized authorities. Thus the oleoresins are stated to be compounds of fixed oils, wax, and resin, while balsams are defined as mixtures of resin and volatile oil. A distinction is drawn without a difference between resins and resinoids. Neutral principles, which the author claims to have been "the first to recognize in their true remedial value, and the first to establish in their identity as a class of distinct proximate principles, and the first to record their physical and chemical characteristics," are said to be altered in their composition or completely destroyed in the preparation of extracts, &c. In the definition of these they are quite confounded with the non- descript and almost infinitely varied " extractive" substances which have no single character in common, and are fast disappearing from the catalogue of vegetable products before the searching scrutiny of modern chemistry. In these remarks I have no desire to call in question the efficiency of many of the remedies recommended by the author alluded to. It is, however, but simple justice to those who are asked to accept remedies prepared by secret processes upon faith in the manufacturer, that his claims, and those of his sponsors, should be somewhat inquired into. It would be in vain to deny that improvement in the extraction and con- centration of medicines is a great and growing demand of our times, but the efforts of the so called " eclectic pharmaceutists" in that direction have been marred by a too exclusive reliance upon the single process of precipi- tation from a strong alcoholic tincture by water—a process well adapted to those cases in which the active principle of the drug is distinctly resinous, but unsuited to a large number of vegetable substances, the active princi- ples of which are more or less completely soluble in water. The practice of bringing all these concentrated remedies to the condition of powders by the addition of sugar of milk, or other dry material, to those which are naturally soft or oily, has many objections, among which are their unnecessary dilution, and the increased exposure of their particles to oxida- tion or evaporation. CONCENTRATED REMEDIES. 283 An important objection to this system of practice is that while it claims to be eclectic, it is, in fact, exclusive, confining its remedies almost entirely to indigenous drugs of vegetable origin. It must be confessed that the variety of our indigenous materia medica is very great, and, perhaps, suffi- cient for most purposes of the physician ; but there is neither philosophy nor policy in creating an exclusively American system of practice, while by commerce, by literature, and science, our country is linked with all the civilized world. The remaining objection to this system is the want of candor and scientific truthfulness which pervades its literature. There is an obvious special plead ing in too many of its arguments, and an aim to promote local business in- terests in its publications, which necessarily detract from its reputation and shut out its professors from the sympathy and countenance of a class whose influence can ill be spared from any scientific or humane reform. In devoting so much space to the so called " American system of prac- tice," I desire to enter a protest against its exclusiveness, its empiricism, and its rather unprofessional and business-like character; but that whatever of good it contains may be made known, the present chapter is devoted to a notice of the remedies offered by its rival schools, giving both an equal hearing, and invoking the impartial judgment of the physician and phar- maceutist as to their merits and demerits. The "Eclectic remedies" are preceded in the present chapter by the new officinal class Resinae, one of which originated with practitioners of that school, and is the most popular representative of the class of so called resinoids. Resinas U. S. P. Officinal Name. Dose. Properties. Synouyme. Resina jalapae " podophylli " scammonii gr. v gr- ij gr. v Cathartic do. do. Jalapin. Podophyllin. Resin of seammony. REMARKS. The resins of jalap and May-apple roots, as above, are prepared by percolation with alcohol through the finely powdered root until the percolate ceases to cause a precipitate on being dropped into water. This is then to be reduced to about half the quantity of the root em- ployed (the alcohol being recovered by distillation), and thrown into eight times its bulk of water, which precipitates the resin; this is ihen washed and dried and powdered, in which state it is dispensed. Resin of podophyllum is of a color varying from a drab to a bright yellow. As above prepared, it is less tinged with yellow than in the usual process of the manufacturers, in which muriatic acid is added to the water with which it is to be precipitated. It is partly soluble in ether, and the residue, when dissolved in solution of potassa, is not precipitable by muriatic acid. Prof. F. Fullager has lately announced the existence in the root of podophyllum of the alkaloid berberina, which was previously noticed by Mr. Hodgson, Jr., as yellow coloring matter; being soluble in cold water this is lost by the officinal method of preparation; but owing to the insolubility of the yellow muriate 284 CONCENTRATED REMEDIES. of berberina it is mixed with the precipitated resin, and accounts for the yellow color of the commercial podophyllin, and in part for some of its properties. Resin of scammony is directed to be prepared from the commercial scammony by digesting with successive portions of boiling alcohol until exhausted, mixing the tinctures, evaporating to a syrupy con- sistence by distilling off the alcohol, adding the concentrated liquid to water, washing and drying the precipitate. It is wholly soluble in ether, also in officinal solution of potassa, from which solution an excess of muriatic acid does not precipitate it. A resin of scammony is prepared from the dried roots by the process of Dr. Williamson, of University College, London. The roots are digested with water and with diluted acid, by which means they are deprived of all matter soluble in these menstrua, then with alcohol, which dissolves out the resin which is collected on the recovery of the alcohol by distillation. The roots are collected in Asia Minor, dried and shipped to London, where this resin is now manufactured. The physical qualities of the scammony thus prepared differ considerably from virgin scammony and from the officinal resin, being non-porous, not producing a lather when rubbed with water, and, instead of pos- sessing a musty or sour cheese-like odor, having an aromatic and fruity smell. Its dose is from four to twelve grains. Medical Properties of the Officinal Resinae. The medical properties of these three resins are somewhat similar. Resin of jalap has long been known as a powerful cathartic, in doses of from one to five grains, triturated with sugar or other diluents or correctives. Podophyllin is undoubtedly one of the most powerful purgatives in use, acting, in doses of two to four grains, as a drastic cathartic, accompanied in its action with much nausea and griping. In smaller doses (I grain to one grain), it operates as an alterative and chola- gogue. It is claimed for this remedy that it is a regulator of almost all the secretions, tending to restore them to normal activity, and that it completely substitutes mercury in all cases where it was for- merly considered to be indicated, even, in some cases, producing ptyalism. It is seldom or never employed alone, its effects being greatly increased, and its dose lessened, according to the testimony of practitioners accustomed to its use, by long trituration with four to ten times its weight of sugar or sugar of milk. " Caulophyllin" com- bined with it is said to materially lessen its painful and disagreeable effects. A compound of podophyllin, with ten parts of " leptandrin" and ten of sugar, is esteemed as an alterative in dyspepsia; the discovery of the presence of berberina in the commercial podophyllin explains its known tonic effects. Resin of scammony has been very rarely prescribed; it is now for the first time officinal, as distinct from the impurities associated with it as commercial scammony. It is made officinal for the purpose of introducing it as an ingredient into the compound extract of colo- UNOFFICINAL CONCENTRATED REMEDIES. 285 cynth. It is feared that its high cost will deter all but the most conscientious from complying with the officinal directions in this respect. Unofficinal Concentrated Remedies. Apocynin is the name given to a preparation by J. B. Robinson, formerly of Cincinnati, from the root of Apocynum androsaemifolium, and recom- mended by Dr. John King in his "Dispensatory." The formula directs tiie preparation of a saturated tincture of the root, treating this with ammonia, then filtering and precipitating the apocynin with sulphuric acid, added gradually; it is to be washed in one or two waters and then dried. One pound of the root yields about half an ounce. It is represented as a powder of a dark brown color, a strong odor of the root, and a bitter, nauseous, and unpleasant taste. It is recommended in jaundice, hepatic torpor, and con- stipation, combined in equal parts with leptandrin and myricin. The dose given by Tilden is ^ to 2 gr. In the absence of positive experiment, I should doubt the eligibility of this formula, as of some others given in the " American Dispensatory." Another remedy called apocynine is mentioned by " eclectic" writers, described as being very bitter and of a dark orange color. Alnuine and Alnuin are names given to preparations derived from the bark of Alnus rubra (Tag Alder). The last named is recommended as pos- sessing alterative, tonic, and sub-astringent properties in doses of one to three grains three or four times a day. The other is said to be adapted to the same purposes. I find no published formula for either of them, though alnuin is announced in Tilden's " Formulary" as useful in herpes, syphilis, scorbutus, impetigo, &c, and by Dr. Grover Coe as adapted to scrofula, eruptions of the skin, rheumatism, and syphilis, and wherever an alterative is required. Ampelopsin is a preparation from Ampelopsis quinquefolia (Virginia creeper), made by an unpublished process ; it is reputed to be alterative, diuretic, expectorant, anti-syphilitic, astringent, and tonic. Dose, 3 to 10 grains. Asclepidin is a concentrated preparation from Asclepias tuberosa (pleurisy root). It is obtained by a process similar to that for the resin cimicifugin, aud is a dark semi-liquid extractive-like mass. Its dose is from 1 to 5 grs. three times a day, as an expectorant, diaphoretic, and tonic. It is recom- mended in fevers of every type, inflammatory diseases, hooping-cough, and in chronic diseases of the digestive organs, and Dr. Coe speaks of Keith's asclepin as universally admissible in the treatment of disease. Ascletine is described as a white powder, with but little taste or odor, recommended as the active principle of the plant; but the editor of the "Eclectic Dispensatory" thinks it "an imposition upon the profession." Barosmin, derived from buchu by an unpublished process, is asserted by Dr. Grover Coe to be a diuretic, alterative, diaphoretic, tonic, stimulant, ■ antispasmodic—properties which, I believe, have not been claimed for the leaves themselves. Dose, from 2 to 4 grains. Baptisin is a preparation prescribed by the " eclectic" practitioners from the bark of the root and the leaves (?) of Baptisia tinctoria (wild indigo), one of our familiar indigenous weeds. In its chemical nature it seems to be a resinous extractive, which is said to be precipitated by an acid, or by acetate of lead, from the saturated tincture. The formula has not been published in detail. It is described as of a yellowish-brown color, a strong and characteristic odor, and a bitter, disagreeable, persistent taste. It is only 286 unofficinal concentrated remedies. partially soluble in alcohol, much more so on the addition of ammonia or potassa. It is given in a dose of from £ to \ grain with a view to increase the action of the glandular system and to arouse the liver, also as an exter- nal application to gangrenous and erysipelatous ulcerations. Variously combined it is much prescribed in eclectic practice. In large doses it is said to produce very disagreeable prostration. Caulophyllin.—This preparation from the root of Leontice thalictroides (Michx.), Caulophyllum thalictroides (blue cohosh), is made by Merrill, by precipitation from the saturated tincture, similar to the preparation of podophyllin and cimicifugin, using, however, as small a quantity of water as possible to prevent waste, as the precipitate is soluble. Caulophyllin thus prepared is an extractive substance of a light brown color, with a peculiar, not unpleasant odor, and a slightly bitter taste, and some degree of pungency. It is insoluble in ether, partially soluble in water, in alcohol more so ; the addition of solution of ammonia renders it completely soluble in either menstruum, and the solution becomes of a dark wine color. The following process for obtaining caulophyllin is by Dr. F. D. Hill, of Cincinnati: Exhaust the root of caulophyllum with alcohol and obtain a thick fluid extract, add this to twice its volume of saturated aqueous solu- tion of alum, and place it aside to rest for three or four days ; then place it on a filter cloth, and allow the water to filter through ; wash the product two or three times with fresh water, and let the residuum dry in the open air. When dry, it readily forms a powder of a light grayish color. The ordinary dose of caulophyllin is from one-fourth of a grain to one grain, three or four times a day ; its therapeutic effect is exerted on the uterus, as a tonic and alterative. As a parturient it is given in doses of from two to four grains, at intervals of 15 to 30 minutes after actual labor has commenced. Caulophyllin is said to be prepared by some manufacturers from an aqueous infusion of the root, decolorized by animal charcoal, and concentrated in vacuo by adding infusion of galls, or 96 per cent, alcohol, collecting the precipitate, drying and powdering it. It is then sold as an " alkaloid," although its properties are said not to vary much from those of the first, which is usually considered as a "resinoid." Ceanothine is the name given to a preparation described in the " New York Journal of Organic and Medical Chemistry," vol. i. page 43, as pre- pared from the leaves of the New Jersey tea, Ceanothus Americanus, by the following process : First extract the coloring and resinous matter from the leaves by alcohol, then place the mass in an alembic apparatus (?) and displace the alcohol remaining in it, after which the mass is to be subjected to the percolating process with hot distilled water until the active principle is displaced. The aqueous solution is then evaporated in vacuo to the con- sistency of thick syrup, and precipitated and purified in nearly absolute alcohol. The precipitate is then directed to be dried into a partially crys- talline mass, in a vacuum at about 100° F. This preparation reduced to powder is said to be nearly white, and to resemble green tea in odor and taste. It is soluble in water, but nearly insoluble in alcohol, in which pro- perties it appears to resemble some of the so called " alkaloids," as caulo- phyllin. This process, like many others, is too obscure to be used by the uninitiated, and the preparation can only be adopted by those who accept it on the ground of confidence in the manufacturers. Cerasein is the. only preparation I am aware of derived from the unoffi- cinal bark of Cerasus Virginiana (choke cherry). It is highly lauded by UNOFFICINAL RESINOIDS. 287 Dr. Grover Coe as a substitute for quinine in certain conditions of the system wherein the vegetable alkali is inadmissible. He represents that cerasein contains "resinoid" and neutral principles besides amygdalin, phloridzin, and picrin. Dose, 5 to 10 grains. It is not made by the eclectic manufacturers generally. Chelonin is a "resinoid," prepared from Chelone glabra (balmony). No formula is published for it, but it appears to be given in doses of from 1 to 2 grains, as a representative of the leaves from which it is prepared. These are accounted tonic, cathartic, and anthelmintic. Cimicifugin, or Macrotin, another eclectic "resinoid," is prepared by forming a concentrated tincture of black snakeroot, Cimicifuga racemosa, diluting it with its bulk of water, and distilling off the alcohol. It is then collected from the bottom of the vessel and powdered. A modification of this process by Prof. E. S. Wayne yields a more elegant and somewhat more active preparation. He directs that the strong tincture shall be allowed to evaporate spontaneously, until a solid mass is deposited, the remaining fluid is poured off and the mass dissolved in alcohol, slowly evaporated to the consistence of a fluid extract, and then placed in thin layers upon glass and allowed to dry. As usually found in commerce, this is a dark-brown powder, of a faint odor, and a slightly bitter nauseous taste. It has not been analyzed, but appears to be an impure resin, which abounds in the root. I obtained 4| per cent, of it in my experiments. (See paper on Eclectic Pharmacy, " Am. Journ. Pharm.," vol. xxiii. p. 329.) Its medical properties are described in Dr. King's " Dispensatory" as tonic, alterative, nervine, anti-periodic, with an especial affinity for the uterus. It does not, according to this authority, possess the narcotic properties of the root. Dr. Grover Coe considers the macrotin of Keith as alterative, antispasmodic, stimulant, diaphoretic, diuretic, expectorant, resolvent, nervine, emmenagogue, parturient, tonic, and narcotic, and enumerates twenty-eight diseases in which it is employed. In regard to this particular manufacture, it may be remarked that it claims to be composed of three principles "resinoid, alkaloid, and neutral." Cimi- cifugin is considerably used by practitioners generally, especially in the treatment of chorea. Of course, a great variety of combinations may be resorted to as occasion requires, and it undoubtedly deserves a fair trial of its merits, especially as it is a preparation free from the suspicion of empi- ricism or secrecy. Its dose is from 1 to 6 grains. Chimaphilin, derived from Chimaphila umbellata by a concealed process, is catalogued among the concentrated medicines of one of the eclectic manufacturers as an alterative, tonic, diuretic, and astringent. The dose is 2 or 3 grains. Collinsonin, extracted from Collinsonia canadensis (hard-hack, or stone root), is represented by Dr. Grover Coe as a valuable tonic, astringent, diaphoretic, alterative, resolvent, and diuretic in doses of 5 grains. Cor nine is the name applied to a precipitate, obtained by adding to water a saturated tincture of the bark of Cornus Florida (dogwood). The del ails of this method are probably varied by the several manufacturers, and the results, doubtless, differ accordingly. It is usually a light grayish- brown powder, of a peculiar odor, slightly bitter, astringent taste; insoluble in water, diluted acids, and volatile oils; nearly soluble in alcohol, entirely with the assistance of ammonia or caustic potassa, which also renders it partially soluble in water. It is soluble in ether, and ammonia added re- moves the cornine in solution, leaving the ether floating clear and trans- parent. (King's "Dispensatory.") 288 UNOFFICINAL CONCENTRATED REMEDIES. How far this product is a representative of the active principles of the bark has not been fully shown, nor do I know whether it resembles the pre- paration long vended under the same name by the late G. W. Carpenter, of Philadelphia. Dr. Coe's work represents the cornin of B. Keith & Co. as containing the proximate principles soluble in alcohol and those soluble in water— tannic acid, &c.—in the proportion in which they exist in the bark, and hence that it is a more perfect representative of the bark than the "resinoid" cornine of Merrill and other manufacturers. A specimen I have examined was equally soluble in water and alcohol, and was evidently composed in great part of tannic acid. Dog-wood bark has, for many years, had an excellent reputation as a tonic and astringent, and has been used with success in the treatment of intermittents, and it is claimed that cornine in 10 grain doses is an excellent anti-periodic, adapted to substitute quinia where, from any cause, it is con- traindicated, or where it is not readily procurable. Of course, this state- ment must be taken with allowance. As a general tonic, it is prescribed in doses varying from one to ten grains. Corydalia.—The small round tubers of Corydalis formosa are largely collected in the Western States of the Union, and considerably used under the name of Turkey corn, as a domestic and eclectic alterative remedy. Analysis has discovered the presence of a vegetable alkali named corydalina, which is described in the chapter on vegetable alkalies. The eclectic pre- parations, as issued by different manufacturers, are called corydalia and corydalin; the former claiming to be an " alkaloid," and the latter a "re- sinoid" principle. Merrill's process for corydalia consists in adding water to the tincture, collecting the precipitate, then adding ammonia and collect- ing the additional precipitate, filtering and adding muriatic acid, when " the balance of the alkaloid" is precipitated. That the mixed precipitates, which, according to Merrill, amount to little more than an ounce from four pounds of the tubers, can lay claim to be the alkaline active principle of the drug, will, I think, be disputed by many; it is, however, highly spoken of as an alterative by Dr. King, who says "it will be found useful in all scrofulous and syphilitic affections, as well as in many cutaneous diseases." Corydalin, issued as a " resinoid," of which there is no published formula, is recommended for the same purposes, in the same dose—from ^ grain to 1 grain. (King.) Keith's preparation, according to Coe, containing resin, resinoid, alkaloid, and neutral principle,'2 grains. Combinations of these preparations with berberin, hydrastin, ptelein, &c, are recommended as tonic, and with podophyllin, xanthoxylin, stillingin, iridin, phytollaccin, &c, as alterative. The custom of giving these combinations to the exclusion of individual remedies is not favorable to a clear appreciation of their re- spective therapeutical properties. Cypripedin.—This preparation, named on the catalogues of the manu- facturers of eclectic remedies, is generally described as an oleoresin ; it is directed to be prepared by the precipitation of a concentrated tincture of the root of Cypripedium pubescens, yellow ladies'slipper root, by adding'it to water. It is given in doses of half a grain to three grains as an anti- spasmodic and anodyne. Ten grains is mentioned as a maximum dose ot Keith's preparation, which is stated to be composed of a " resinoid and a neutral principle." Dioscorein is a resinous extract, prepared from a saturated tincture ol the root of Dioscorca villosa, wild yam, by adding it to its weight of watei and distilling off the alcohol, when the precipitate remaining in the water RESINOIDS. 289 may be collected, dried, and pulverized; this process, which is the same as for other resinous extracts, yields a product described in King's " Dispensa- tory" as a light yellowish-brown powder, growing darker by age, deliquescent, of a faint smell and slightly sweetish, resinous, very bitter, acrid, and per- sistent taste. Like some other resinous extracts, it is much more soluble in alcohol when fresh than after long exposure. This preparation is said to be a valuable antispasmodic remedy, especially useful in bilious colic, in which disease Dr. King believes it to be as much a specific as quinia is in intermittent. It is given in doses of 1 to 4 grains every ten or twenty minutes in colic; also variously combined in some forms of uterine disease, and in combination with extract of Cornus cericea to overcome the vomiting of pregnancy. Euonymin is an empirical preparation, issued by one of the manufac- turers of eclectic remedies, of which the mode of preparation is not pub- lished. It is a product from the bark of Euonymus Americanus, and is represented as consisting of a " resinoid, a neutral, and an alkaloid principle," and as possessed of tonic, laxative, alterative, and expectorant properties. Dose, from £ to 4 grains. Eupatorine and Eupurpurin, prepared, according to King, from eupa- torium purpureum, differ somewhat in their mode of preparation and pro- perties, though, according to the published processes, both are precipitated from the alcoholic solution : the former by an equal bulk or" water acidu- lated with muriatic acid, and the latter by twice the bulk of water alone. Eupatorine, as prepared by J. B. Robinson, of Cincinnati, is described as a solid dark-brown resin, with a peculiar slightly aromatic odor, and a slightly bitter taste; though readily pulverizable, it rapidly runs into a mass, which blackens by age; it is soluble in ammonia and potassa, and is pre- cipitated of a lighter color from the latter solution by muriatic acid. Its therapeutic properties seem rather undetermined. Tilden & Co. prepare eupatorine from Eupatorium perfoliatum, and give the dose as from 1 to 2 grains as a tonic diaphoretic, while eupurpurin is made from E. purpu- reum, and prescribed as a diuretic in doses of from 3 to 4 grains. Eupurpurin, of Merrill, is stated by him to be an oleoresin, of a thick pilular consistence, of a dark greenish-brown color, having a faint peculiar smell, and a slightly nauseous taste; soluble in alcohol and ether and in oil of turpentine, from which ether precipitates the resin, holding the oily por- tion in solution, and on the addition of alcohol, the resin is redissolved ; it is almost completely soluble in dilute alkalies, but completely so on the addi- tion of a small quantity of ether. This is prescribed in doses of 3 grains, repeated every three or four hours, as a powerful diuretic. (See King's "Dispensatory.") Dr. Grover Coe repudiates the nomenclature of Tilden and the Cincin- nati eclectics in case of two or more plants from the same genera yielding concentrated remedies, and prefers to call that from eupatorium perfoliatum, eupatorin (perfo), and that from E. purpureum, eupatorin (purpu). To the concentrated remedies issued under these names by B. Keith & Co., he at- tributes very different properties, though each is said to be a mixture of three principles—a "resinoid, neutral, and alkaloid." Although the E (purpu) is recommended by Coe as a diuretic, and as useful in gravel, he does not mention it as a powerful diuretic, but considers its powers as more directly alterative; he says it operates in dropsy by reason of its stimulant influence on the absorbents, as well as by its powers as a diuretic. Euph.orbin, derived from the root of Euphorbia corollata, is one of the so called " concentrated medicines," made in New York, and recommended 19 290 UNOFFICINAL CONCENTRATED REMEDIES. as an emetic, cathartic, diaphoretic, expectorant, and vermifuge. The dose is I grain or less. Fraserin, derived from the root of Frasera Carolinensis, American Colombo, consists, according to Dr. Grover Coe, of* a resin, a neutral principle, and a " muci-resin ;" ! ! its properties tonic, stimulant, and mildly astringent; its dose from 2 to 10 grains. Gelsemin is the name given to a " concentrated remedy" prepared by B. Keith & Co. from the root of one of the most beautiful indigenous products of our Southern States, Gelseminum sempervirens, yellow jessamine. Tilden & Co. prepare a "resinoid" from the same root, under the name of Gelseminin; neither of these preparations is brought within the range of legitimate practice by the publication of the formula for their preparation, nor are physicians even assured of their actual chemical and physical characters. Like many other medicines of their class, they are presented for our adoption solely on the personal guarantee of their respective manu- facturers that they represent the drug from which prepared, and however high the estimate physicians may place upon the knowledge, skill, and integ- rity of the respective manufacturers, and the judgment of the few physicians who have published the results of their experience in the use of the prepara- tions, the medical and pharmaceutical profession universally feel a proper hesitation in adopting any remedy the preparation of which is confined to a single house, of whose processes they are not allowed to judge, and whose preparations are not thrown open to the results of free competition and scientific criticism. Gelsemin is recommended in doses of from \ to 2 grains in fevers, pneu- monia,. pleuritis, hysteria, amenorrhcea, and dysmeiiorrhcea, &c, and the popularity of this root, and the scarcity of well-known preparations of it, have given this currency among a certain class of physicians. Geranin or Geraniin is prepared from the root of Geranium maculatum, cranesbill, or crowsfoot, a well-known indigenous astringent. The process described in King's " Dispensatory" is similar to thatfor preparing podophyllin and other resinous extracts, though it would seem that the most important constituent of the root, tannic acid, from its ready solubility in water, would be quite lost by this method of preparation. Dr. King says that "many manufacturers prefer making it by evaporating an aqueous decoction of the root to dryness and evaporating." The dose indicated in the books is from one to five grains. Hamamelin is the name of a preparation from the root of witchhazel, Hamamelis Virginica ; its principal utility seems to be as an astringent, of which we have an immense number in use, but Dr. Grover Coe states that it also possesses sedative powers. The dose is 5 grains. Helonin, derived from helonias dioca, false unicorn root, is a so called neutral principle, employed in eclectic practice as a uterine tonic, used in piolapsus uteri, and diseases peculiar to females, and "to remove the ten- dency to repeated and successive miscarriage." Dose, \ grain to 2 grains. It is recommended as a vermifuge in 4 grain doses. Hydrastin is the name applied in commerce to a yellow crystalline preci- pitate, produced on the addition of muriatic acid to an infusion of hydrastis Canadensis, golden seal or yellow puccoon root; this plant being of the family Ranunculacese. The true nature of this precipitate was not suspected till in the number of the " American Journal of Science and Arts" for January, 1862, Prof. F. Mahla, of Chicago, announced the discovery that the so called hydrastin is muriate of berberina. This vegetable alkaline salt, under the name hydrastin, is extensively used as a tonic remedy, espe- RESINOIDS—LEPTANDRIN. 291 cially adapted to treating dyspepsia and chronic inflammation of the stomach, and is said, combined with bitters, to have the effect of gradually removing the. abnormal condition of the stomach in cases of intemperance, and in many instances of destroying the appetite for liquor. The dose for an adult is 3 to 5 grains, repeated three to six times a day. The existence of another alkaloid in this root, the true hydrastia, was discovered by A. B. Durand, of Philadelphia, in 1850, and announced by him in the " American Journal of Pharmacy," vol. xxiii. p. 113. The reader is referred to the chapter on Vegetable Alkalies, in Part IV. of this book, for further account of these principles. Iridin is classed as an oleoresin by the Cincinnati School of Eclectics, though under the name Irisin a different preparation is made in New York. Both are derived from the root of Iris versicolor, blue flag, and recommended as possessed of alterative, sialagogue, laxative, diuretic, and anthelmintic properties. Dose, from % grain to 5 grains. Juglandin is a laxative, diuretic, and in larger closes cathartic agent, prepared from the bark of the root of Juglaus cineria, butternut, or white walnut. The process is identical with that given for the other precipitated resinous extracts. It is said to be nearly soluble in alcohol, and completely in ammonia and potassa, being precipitated from its solution in alkalies by muriatic acid. The dose is from 2 to 5 grains ; combined with leptandrin, in pills of 2 to 4 grains each given after eating, it is highly recommended by eclectic authors for chronic hepatic disorders and constipation. Lupulin.—The preparation of a "concentrated remedy" from hops is the undoubted right of any manufacturer who can induce physicians and the public to make use of his products,- but we protest against the appro- priation of the well-known and recognized name of a drug by which it is universally known in commerce and in the Pharmacopoeia to designate a proprietary preparation. We have had a prescription for lupulin in com- bination, which we have ascertained from the physician issuing it was meant to designate this peculiar preparation, and although as pharmaceutists, wedded to no exclusive views, we were disposed to furnish the medicine intended, we should certainly have been held blameless if we had dispensed an officinal article when ordered by its appropriate officinal name. The lupulin of Keith, Tilden, and perhaps other manufacturers is a mixed resi- nous material,-prepared by an unpublished process ; it is prescribed in doses of from 5 to 10 grains.1 Lycopin is represented as astringent, styptic, sedative, and tonic ; it is derived from Lycopus Virginicus (bugle weed), and is highly recommended by Dr. Grover Coe in hemorrhages, diabetes, dysentery, and cardiac affec- tions. Dose, 2 or 3 grains. Leptandrin.—This is an impure " resinoid," obtained from the root of Leptandra Virginica (black root), an indigenous plant, formerly officinal in the U. S. P. It is prepared like the foregoing, using high proof alcohol for the extraction of the root, as a small proportion of water present in the tincture prevents its successful precipitation. The character of the precipi- tate is also affected by the temperature, which should not exceed 180° F. Roots of the second year's growth are said to yield the most of this product. Leptandrin, as thus prepared, is a jet black substance, resembling asphal- tum, or sometimes has a gray or brown color, with a peculiar faint odor and taste. Like most of these "preparations, it is generally sold in powder 1 See Extract of Lupulin. 292 UNOFFICINAL CONCENTRATED REMEDIES. Though at first soluble in alcohol, it becomes less so by age ; it dissolves in solution of ammonia and potassa, from which acids throw it down. B. Keith & Co., of New York, claim for leptandrin, of their manufacture, that it contains four distinct principles, " resin, resinoid, alkaloid, and neu- tral." In view of the fact, ascertained by Prof. E. S. Wayne, that this root contains a bitter crystalline principle, soluble in water, it would seem that the method of precipitation by water from a concentrated tincture would fail to secure a preparation representing the full therapeutic power of the drug, but in the absence of any information in regard to the process of Keith, or any analysis of his preparation, it is impossible to tell how far it meets the requirements of a preparation representing the root from which it is prepared. The remedy is highly valued by many practitioners as a cholagogue or stimulant to the hepatic secretion, without so decided a purgative action as usually pertains to that class of remedies ; it is highly recommended in chronic dysentery and diarrhoea, and in typhoid and other fevers; it pos- sesses the advantage of being a tonic, which invigorates while it deterges. (Coe.) Like podophyllin, it is a leading article of production with several large manufacturing pharmaceutists in the United States. The dose is two to four grains. Menispermin is prepared by Keith & Co. from Menispermum Canadense, yellow parilla, but no formula being published, and no analysis having been made, it is only prescribed by those who are prepared to accept medi- cinal agents on trust. It is said to be an alterative, tonic, laxative, diuretic, and stimulant, in a medium dose of two grains. (See Vegetable Alkalies.) Myricin.—The published formula of Drs. Hill & Co. for this remedy ex- hibits a departure from the usual method of preparation of the class, which appears to be an improvement. A saturated tincture of bayberry bark (Myrica cerifera), being evaporated by a water bath until of a syrupy con- sistence, is spread in thin layers on glass plates till dried by spontaneous evaporation, requiring several weeks. This is then an alcoholic extract, carefully dried to a pulverulent condi- tion, which, as the bark does not appear to possess any important volatile or readily oxidizable constituent, except tannic acid, which by partial con- version into gallic acid, would not be materially injured in efficiency, gives a convenient representative of the soluble principles of the bark. It is a stimulant and decided astringent, and is asserted to possess alterative, diu- retic, and antispasmodic properties. Dose, 2 to 10 grains. Phytolaccia, Phytolaccin, is a concentrated remedy from poke root (Phy- tolacca decandra). No process is published for its preparation, and it is not made by all the "eclectic" pharmaceutics, nor recommended by all the authors of that school. It is said to be a light-brown powder, soluble in water and insoluble in alcohol or ether, and to be alterative, aperient, and slightly narcotic. Dose, from one-fourth of a grain to a grain three times a day. Populin, from the bark of Populus tremuloides, aspen, or American pop- lar, is recommended by eclectics as a tonic and febrifuge; and Dr. Grover Coe attributes to it numerous valuable properties alone and in various com- binations. Dose, 4 to 8 grains. Prunin, a "concentrated remedy" prepared from wild cherry bark, Cerasus serotina, by the same manufacturers, finds no favor with the author of the " American Dispensatory;" Dr. Grover Coe, however, claims for Keith's preparation that it contains three principles, " resinoid, neutral, and amyg- dalin," of which the neutral principle is the long-sought active constituent UNOFFICINAL CONCENTRATED REMEDIES. 293 of the bark. It is, of course, destitute of hydrocyanic acid, though slated to be stimulant, tonic, expectorant, and, in large doses, sedative. The dose as a tonic is 2 grains, as an expectorant 1 to 2 grains, as a sedative 4 to 8 grains. We have no process for, nor analysis of this and many of the preceding preparations, and little or no impartial testimony as to their merits. Like many others of their class, they are introduced in this work from no design to recommend them, but for the necessary information of physicians and pharmaceutists who meet with them in the course of their professional intercourse. Ptelein.—Prepared from the bark of the root of ptelia trifoliata, wafer ash, by adding a saturated tincture to twice its volume of water and distil- ling off the alcohol, when the ptelein remains as a soft oleoresinous precipi- tate, of a dark brown color, a peculiar odor, and an oily, bitter, acrid, persistent taste; soluble in alcohol, ether, and oil of turpentine, and imperfectly in alkaline solutions. It is recommended as a tonic, and, in combination with various other remedies, has been used in dyspepsia, hepatic torpor, chronic erysipelas, and chronic dysentery. Rhusin.—.The account of this substance, given by Dr. King in his "Dis- pensatory," taken from the " Eclectic Journal of Medicine," Rochester, vol. iv., No. vi., p. 232, is one of the most curious instances of the inaccuracy of many of the processes and descriptions of the " eclectic" works. It is re- presented to be the active principle of the leaves of Rhus glabrum, sumach, which are to be percolated by alcohol of sp. gr. .830, and this displaced by means of a vacuum apparatus. " The rhusine is then precipitated and washed with distilled water, dried on filter cloth in an airy, dry room, and reduced to a fine powder. ' It is said to be a light brown powder, soluble in hot water, insoluble in alcohol, and having a slightly bitter taste." The reader will observe that a precipitate thrown out of solution in alco- hol by water is, when dried, said to be soluble in hot water and insolu- ble in alcohol. If this were the only instance of similar inconsistency, it might be attributed to carelessness in the compiler, or incompetency in the proof-reader. The well-known existence of tannic and gallic acids in large proportion in the leaves of sumach, adapting them to tanning and dyeing processes, renders it impossible that a preparation representing their medical properties could be prepared by the process above quoted. The rhusin of Keith & Co. is stated to be from the bark of the root, and to contain resinoid and neutral principles; tannin is not mentioned, and yet the remedy is esteemed tonic, astringent, and antiseptic. Rumin is a concentrated preparation from yellow dock root, rumex crispus The formula is not published. The manufacturers attribute alterative, mildly astringent, and laxative properties to it, and assert that it resembles rhubarb. It is generally prescribed in combination. Average dose, 3 grains. Rhein.—One of the " eclectic" manufacturers has, of late, attempted the application of his unpublished modes of preparation to rhubarb root, with what success we do not know. The dose, as given by Dr. Coe, is from 1 to 4 grains. Scutellarine, Scutellaria—The formula of Prof. C. H. Cleaveland is as follows : Make a tincture of the herb Scutellaria lateriflora with alcohol of 16 per cent., distil off the alcohol until the liquid is of the consistence of a fluid extract, add to it several times its weight of water, and precipitate with solution of alum. Wash the precipitate to free it from the alum, and dry it in the open air without heat. This process furnishes an extractive material of a light greenish-brown color, partially soluble in alcohol and more so in ether; insoluble in water. Its medical properties are those of a 294: UNOFFICINAL CONCENTRATED REMEDIES. nervine and tonic. Dr. King considers it especially useful in cases of de- pression of the nervous and vital powers after long sickness, over-exercise, excessive study, or from long-continued exhausting labor. Dose, from 2 to 6 grains. Sanguinarina and sanguinarin are two very different preparations from the root of one of our most beautiful American plants, sanguinaria Cana- densis (bloodroot), which belongs to the natural family Papaveracix, the poppy tribe. Of the alkaloid sanguinarina mention is made in Part IV. It is a powerful remedy, being used in doses of one-tenth to one-thirtieth of a grain, and should be carefully distinguished from the so-called " alka resinoid," which is chiefly used in the eclectic practice, and which contains an uncertain proportion of it. Sanguinarin is thus prepared : Take of bloodroot, in coarse powder, a convenient quantity, and alcohol sufficient; make a saturated tincture, as in the case of the other " resinoids ;" filter and add an equal quantity of water; distil off the alcohol and allow the residue to rest until precipitation ceases. Remove the supernatant liquid, wash the precipitate in water, dry it care- fully by moderate heat, and pulverize it for use. As thus prepared, the powder is of a deep reddish-brown color, peculiar odor, and bitter, rather nauseous taste, followed by a persistent pungency on the fauces. It is inso- luble in water, soluble in boiling alcohol, and partially soluble in alkaline solutions, acetic acid, and ether. This is given as a tonic in doses of from £ to 1 grain, and as a hepatic and alterative from | a grain to 2 grains. Senecin, the "concentrated active principle" from Senecio gracilis, precipitated from a saturated tincture of the root and herb, by adding it to an equal bulk of water and distilling off the alcohol. It is called an oleo- resin by Dr. King, but is sold in powder by some manufacturers who mix it with dry materials to give it this character. The dose, as a diuretic, em- menagogue, and expectorant, is given at from 3 to 5 grains, but it would seem that dilution with an inert powder would modify the quantity required to produce a given effect. Senecionine is a modification of the foregoing, directed to be prepared according to Dr. F. Hill, by adding two or three times its weight of water to the tincture ; evaporated to the consistence of a fluid extract, and further precipitating with a solution of alum, washing and drying without heat, it forms a dark green powder, which may be given, as the representative of the plant, in doses of from 1 to 5 grains. Stillingin is advertised as the active principle of Stillingia sylvatica, Queen's Delight, a plant indigenous to our Southern States. The process for its preparation is concealed. Dr. King, in his " Dispensatory," asserts that specimen he has seen is, undoubtedly, the preparation known as oil of stil- lingia, triturated with sugar, or sugar of milk. The oil of stillingia is made by treating the root with 95 per cent, alcohol, or with ether, and evaporating off the menstruum. It is not a uniform liquid, but is liable to deposit flocculi on standing. According to Dr. King, it contains about 40 per cent, of fixed oil, the remainder consisting chiefly of extractive matter and resin. Externally applied, it is recommended as a valuable stimulating application, too acrid for internal use, unless incorporated with viscid in- gredients and largely diluted. Dr. Grover Coe gives it in doses of 1 drop, which he repeats every half hour in croup, or in bronchitis and laryngitis, every four or six hours, incorporated with mucilage or dropped on sugar. Smilasin is the name applied to a preparation of sarsaparilla, lauded in the work of Dr. Grover Coe, from which I have quoted so much. I confess to incredulity about its merits, though founded on no experiment or positive ON DISTILLATION, ETC. 295 information. The dose is 2 to 5 grains. It must, of course, be distinguished from the neutral crystalline principle obtained from sarsaparilla, and resem- bling saponin. See chapter on Neutral Crystalline Principles, Part IV. Trilliin, a " concentrated medicine" extracted by a concealed process from Trillium pendulum, bethroot, is represented as an astringent, tonic, alter- ative, and expectorant, in doses of 4 to 8 grains. It must not be confounded with trilline, a neutral acrid principle, resembling saponine, isolated from this root by Prof. E. S. Wayne. Viburnin is the name applied by one of the "eclectic" manufacturers to a secret preparation, said to be obtained from the bark of Viburnum opulus, and recommended as an antispasmodic, antiperiodic, expectorant, alterative, and tonic, in doses of 2 grains. CHAPTER XVII. ON DISTILLATION, DISTILLED PRODUCTS, AND PERFUMERY. The process of distillation, the reverse of evaporation in its appli- cations, is, like it. designed to separate the volatile from the fixed in- gredients in a solution. While in evaporation the object is to dissipate and reject what is volatile, preserving and retaining what is compara- tively fixed, in distillation the volatile ingredient is to be secured. To distil a solution, it is first converted into vapor by the application of heat, and the vapor is then condensed in a separate part of the apparatus. In a work of the design and scope of the present, any elaborate de- scription of the apparatus used in distillation, and the mode of con- ducting the process on a large scale, would be quite superfluous. The uses of the still in the manufacture of spirituous liquors, spirit of turpentine, and coal oil of commerce, and in the rectification of these, and of petroleum, and in various other branches of manufacture, are among the most i mportant subjects connected with chemical technology, and occupy a prominent place in works on that subject. In the chapter preliminary to the treatise on pharmaceutical chemis- try, Part III., the forms of appara- tus adapted to the purposes of the FiS- !74. pharmaceutist in his more strictly chemical processes are described and figured; in the present chapter only such apparatus is figured and ' described as is adapted to the prepa- ration of distilled spirits and waters, and the recovery of alcohol from evaporating tinctures. Fig. 174 exhibits a copper still and block-tin condensing worm, such as may be conveniently used for the distillation of liquids which are not liable to corrode metallic vessels. 296 ON DISTILLATION, ETC. Such an apparatus is particularly adapted to distilling water for phar- maceutical use, also rose-water and the alcoholic solution of essential oils, called spirits. If of sufficient capacity, it is adapted to the distilla- tion of essential oils. The chief obstacle to its general use for the various purposes of the pharmaceutist lies in the comparative difficulty of depriving the condensing worm of the odor of different substances distilled and the consequent liability of these to contaminate the next succeeding distillate. Fig. 175 represents a vessel of tinned iron which I have used as a substitute for a glass retort in operations in which no corrosive or acid substance enters into the liquid to be distilled. Near the top of a deep tin vessel is soldered on a small gutter, so arranged on its inside as Fig. 175. Tin retort with water joint. not to reach quite up to the level of the sides of the vessel. The top, b, has a rim projecting downwards, which sets into this gutter, as shown at c, in the section. When about to use this, after charging it with the substance to be distilled, the little gutter is filled with water and the top fitted on. The water joint thus formed prevents the escape of any portion of the vapor, while it is prevented from becoming empty by the moisture condensed on the inside of the conical top dropping into it as it descends. This may be used in connection with any means of refrigeration at hand, such as a worm and tub, or a Liebig's condenser, figured in the first chapter on Pharmaceutical Chemistry. Its chief advantages consist in the absence of bumping, a phenomenon which interferes with the use of glass retorts, and its freedom from the liability to fracture. In using it, however, care must be taken to withdraw the heat as soon as. the required quantity of liquid has been distilled; otherwise the solid contents, becoming caked on the bottom of the retort, will give rise to empyreumatic .products, contaminating the distillate. Fig. 176 shows a cooler which may be attached to any still-head or retort, and is especially applicable to the condensation of alcoholic vapor; it consists of a square box of tinned iron, twice the height of its diameter, with a diaphragm soldered on diagonally, so as to be THE PHARMACEUTICAL STILL. 297 lower at one corner than at the other Fig. 176. three. At this lowest corner a ver- tical tube is soldered in the dia- phragm, which descends in that corner of the box nearly to a lower diaphragm. Between this dia- phragm and the upper one the space is separated into equal parts by a series of transverse partial partitions or plates, meeting alter- nately at acute angles, within an inch of the opposite sides of the box, so as to separate the water for condensing, which passes down through the tube and gradually fits one side, from the condensing surface and space for the vapor, which enters at a conical neck c just below the upper diaphragm; a series of plates are soldered to Warner's condenser. the side penetrated by the neck so as to extend into the condensing space and compel the vapor to take a zigzag course, as indicated by the arrows. As the coldest part of the condensing surface is near the bottom, the vapor is thoroughly con- Fig-177. densed in its course through the ap- paratus, the cold water entering at / is discharged warmed at e, the distillate finds an outlet at d. The pharmaceutical still, invented by Prof. Procter, is a cheap and very con- venient apparatus for the uses now under consideration; it is well adapted to re- covering the alcohol from tinctures to be made into syrups, fluid extracts, or ex- tracts ; the alcohol obtained, even though pharmaceutical stm. impure and below standard strength, is suited to preparing the same tincture again ; and the saving of alcohol by this means, in a large establishment, will be very considerable. It may be made of tinned iron, of any required size, from a gal- lon up to five or even ten gallons capacity; the condenser is in this case immediately over the boiler in which the liquid is heated, and the distillate is collected by means of a ledge or gutter on its lower surface. Fig. 178 represents a section of this still; A is a deep tin boiler, with a rim soldered round its top at a a, forming a gutter for the water joint, by which it is connected with the dome or head B. This is the refrigerator, on the inner surface of which the condensa- tion occurs; C is the neck or tube for carrying off the distillate; c t is a circular rim soldered on to the base of the head B in such a posi 298 ON DISTILLATION, ETC. tion as that the upper projection forms a gutter for conducting the condensed fluid as it runs down on the under surface of the cone d d into the neck C, while the lower part projects downward into the gutter a a to form the water joint. The course of the circular rim c c is of necessity inclined downwards toward the under edge of the neck C, as indistinctly shown in the section in order to determine its liquid contents in that direction. b is an opening in the top of the condenser, stopped by a cork, for Fig. 178. Section of pharmaceutical still. inspecting the progress of the distillation, and adding to the contents of the boiler; e is a funnel tube into which a current of cold water is directed during distillation, while as it becomes warm it ascends and escapes by the tube on the other side. The water joint is to be nearly filled at the commencement of the operation, and effectually prevents the escape of the vapor. The long-continued application of a pretty high heat, which is neces- sary in distillation, involves an expense which, if gas or even charcoal fuel is employed, may approach the value of the alcohol recovered, so that in the winter time it is well to avail ourselves of the stove used for heating the apartment by fitting the still to it, and distilling slowly at the moderate heat thus obtained. The advantage gained by the exclusion of the atmosphere in distillation is not to be overlooked when vegetable preparations are being concentrated. The head of the still becoming full of steam excludes the air, for the most part, and the condensation of the steam brings about a partial vacuum which favors evaporation at low temperatures. The proper refrigeration of the condensing surface requires pretty free use of cold water; and the application of this has direct relation to the degree of heat required to vaporize the liquid being distilled. DISTILLED WATER. 299 An indication by which the operator may always judge when the re- frigeration is insufficient, is the escape of uncondensed vapor. When this is observed, he should diminish the heat applied, and increase the application of cold to the condensing surface; this precaution is very important when the vapor is inflammable. The methods indicated in Part III. for the continuous application of cold water by a funnel, and by a small cock, near the bottom of a tin bucket, are also well adapted to the kinds of apparatus now described. In using this still I have usually conducted the operation by the use of a movable gas stove, Fig. 154, on a counter, at the end of which are a sink and hydrant; by the use of a few feet of elastic tube, the cold steam from the hydrant may be determined into the cooler, while the warmed water is con- ducted off into the sink by a similar attachment. The application of heat must of course be regulated by the volatility and inflammability of the liquid treated. Strong alcoholic or ethereal liquids, being volatilized at low temperatures, may be heated by a water bath or a sand bath, not too hot, which, besides preventing the exces- sive boiling of the liquid, will diminish the danger from a fracture if a glass vessel is used. In distilling from flowers or herbs for obtaining essential oils or medicated waters, there is great liability to scorching, from the con- tact of masses of the solid material with the heated surface of the still, thus producing empyreumatic products which quite destroy the agree- able fragrance of the product. A false bottom or perforated diaphragm, a few inches above the point of contact with the flame, is a preventive of this, adopted in large operations. In some cases even this is not sufficient, and, as in preparing oil of bitter almonds, it will be found necessary to introduce the pulpy mass upon a layer of straw over the bottom or upon a diaphragm; by this means the contact of the mate- rial with the spot where the heat is applied is effectually prevented. The application of carefully regulated steam heat is, of course, in this as in most other heat operations on a large scale, a great improvement. Galenical Preparations made by Distillation. Aqua Destillata IT. S. P. (Distilled Water) This is directed to. be used in a great many preparations in the Pharmacopoeia. In some, its employment seems called for, while in others, the river or spring water, so freely supplied in nearly all towns and cities, answers every purpose. The inorganic impurities imparted to spring waters by the rocks through which they permeate are in the highest degree important in connection with solutions of delicate chemical substances, and the same may be said of the organic substances which contaminate some of the natural sources of water, and form precipitates with nitrate of silver, tartrate of antimony and potassa, and a few other very delicate chemical agents. It is, however, generally sufficient that water should be pure enough for safe and wholesome drinking to be fit for use in preparing the Galenical and even many of the chemical preparations. One of the most important uses to the apothecary and physician, 300 ON DISTILLATION. ETC. of the apparatus for distillation figured and described on the fore- going pages, is to enable him to prepare and keep at hand for special occasions, aqua destillata. Aqu^e Medicate. Under the head of Medicated Waters, Chapter IV., it has been stated that most of this class of preparations may be made by the solution of the essential oils in water, or preferably by the distillation of water from the flowers or other odorous parts of plants which contain the essential oils in their fresh and unchanged condition. _ Perhaps the most important case of this kind is aqua cinnamomi, which, as before stated, when made by the distillation of water from the true Ceylon cinnamon, is one of the most delicious of flavors, and besides the pecu- liar odor of the cinnamon is pleasantly sweet to the taste, a property which must be due to some volatile ingredient at present unknown. The proportion of true cinnamon to the water used is 18 troyounces to the two gallons. The bark should be coarsely powdered and mace- rated some hours before applying the fire, and from the two gallons only one gallon is recovered. Aqua roses is one of the medicated waters in most common use, designed to be made by distillation, and prescribed as a solvent for salts which are incompatible with chemical substances often present in minute quantities in water from springs and rivers. It is, however, very liable to undergo spontaneous changes which render it unfit for use. 3 lbs. and 5 oz. com. of rose petals are directed to two gallons of water, from which one gallon is to be collected. The rose petals col- lected in season may be preserved in salt till needed. Fennel water, mint water, and peppermint water are all indicated in the Pharmacopoeia as adapted to this mode of preparation, the propor- tion indicated being 18 troyounces (1^ lbs. com.) to two gallons, from which one gallon is to be distilled. Oleo Destillata U. S. P. The distilled oils are prepared by mixing the bruised herb or other part containing the oil with a small portion of water in a still, when, after macerating for a suitable length of time, and adjusting the appara- tus, heat is applied. The oil, though its boiling point is always much above that of water, is readily diffused in the steam; and when this is condensed in the refrigerated part of the apparatus, the oil, if in excess, separates, and if specifically lighter collects on the surface of the distilled water; or, if heavier, it settles to the bottom, and may be separated. The mode of preparing the officinal aqua roses, and other common distilled waters, corresponds with this, the proportion of water being so adjusted as that no excess of the oil beyond what is soluble in the water shall be present. Spiritus U.S.P. Alcoholic solutions of essential oils are usually called spirits or essences; they are sometimes prepared by distilling alcohol from the OFFICINAL SPIRITS. 301 fresh herb, which thus gives up its essential oil, and on condensa- tion retains it in solution. They are also prepared by dissolving the oil directly in alcohol, as in the spiritus menthae piperitae, spiritus menthae viridis, called essences of peppermint and spearmint, and spiritus camphorae. For the preparation of all spirits by solution, fresh volatile oils ought to be selected, to impart the flavor in its purity; old resinified oils should be rejected for this purpose, or, if used, should be purified by redistillation, with the previous addition of a little water. The officinal class spiritus consists of some which are made by distillation, and some which are simple solutions or mixtures of essential oils and alcohol. In the late edition of the Pharmacopoeia, 1860, several preparations have been added to this series which were formerly classed among the chemicals. Spiritus astherus compositus, spiritus eetherus nitrosi, spiritus ammonias, spiritus ammonias aromaticus, and spiritus chloroformi, are of this description. The reader is referred to the chemical part of this work for a description of these. The following syllabus displays those which do not belong to any chemical series. Spiritus U. S. P. First Group.—Prepared by distillation. Spiritus lavandulse " myristicae flowers 3xxiv, ale. cong. j, water Oij. nutmeg fsjij, dilut. ale. cong. j, water Oj. Distil cong. j. do. Second Group.—Solutions of essential oils. Officinal Name. Proportions. Uses. Spiritus anisi oil f5J + ale. .817 f.^xv Flavoring. ii camphorae camph. §ij -+- .835 Oj Stimulant. u cinnamomi oil ffj +alc. .817 i'|xv Carminative. u limonis oil f ~i 4- ale. .817 Oj -f- rind *ss Flavoring. a menthae pip. oil f 5J + ale. f gxv + herb gij Carminative. a " virid. ( oil juniper f 5iss "| do. ' u juniperi comp. | " caraway tr^x V dil. ale. cong. j ( " fennel Tt^x j Diuretic. it lavandulae comp. see formula Stimulant. The preparation of the two spirits in the first group may be effected, as indicated in the preceding part of the present chapter, with any convenient apparatus. The common "pharmaceutical still," Fig. 177, is a cheap still for the purpose. The uses of this class are familiar to most; they are chiefly used aa flavoring ingredients of various preparations, and this use is also con- nected in some cases with medical properties. Comp. spirit of juniper is a close approximation to Holland gin, and may take the place of schiedam schnapps as a stimulating diuretic. _ The other spirits are mostly the kind of stimulants conveniently designated as carminatives. The simple spirit of lavender prepared by distillation is one of the most pleasant of perfumes. That made by solution from the recipe 302 ON DISTILLATION, ETC. to be given hereafter is dependent on the freshness and fine quality of the oil for its value as a perfume. The cultivated or garden laveuder yields a much better oil than the common wild plant; the finest quality oil of garden lavender comes from England, and commands a high price. The next in quality is of French origin, called cherusse oil, ami is somewhat cheaper, though not identical in flavor. The only preparations of this series which are much prescribed are compound spirit of lavender and spirit of camphor. The former is very often directed by practitioners as a flavoring and coloring ingredient in prescription. The choice of saunders as the coloring agent is, how- ever, unfortunate from the resinous deposit which is apt to separate by dilution with water and on long standing. Cochineal is a much brighter and handsomer coloring ingredient, and the compound tinc- ture of cardamom is, on that account, to be preferred to the lavender compound as a coloring ingredient in solutions and mixtures. Spirit of camphor is made by solution of the camphor in alcohol; it is ill adapted for internal use, owing to its precipitating on being added to water. The dose when properly suspended is twenty drops. Working Formulas for some of the Officinal Spirits. Spiritus Anisi. (Essence of Anise) U. S. P. Take of Oil of anise a fluidounce. Stronger alcohol fifteen fluidounces. Dissolve the oil in the stronger alcohol. In the same way make spiritus cinnamomi, from oil of cinnamon. Spiritus Camphoras. (Spirit of Camphor) U. S. P. Tinctura Camphoras U. S. P. 1850. Take of Camphor four troyounces. Alcohol two pints. Dissolve the camphor in the alcohol, and filter through paper. Spiritus Limonis. (Essence of Lemon.) U. S. P. Take of Oil of lemon two fluidounces. Lemon peel, freshly grated, a troyounce. Stronger alcohol two pints. Dissolve the oil in the stronger alcohol, add the lemon peel, mace- rate for twenty-four hours, and filter through paper. Spiritus Menthae Piperitae. (Essence of Peppermint) U. S. P. Tinctura Olei Mentha; Piperitee U. S. P. 1850. Take of Oil of peppermint a fluidounce. Peppermint, in coarse powder, one hundred and twenty grains. Stronger alcohol fifteen fluidounces. Dissolve the oil in the stronger alcohol, add the peppermint, mace- rate for twenty-four hours, and filter through paper. ON PERFUMERY AND TOILET ARTICLES. 303 In the same way, make Spiritus Menthas Viridis. (Essence of Mint) U. S. P. From oil of mint and spearmint. Spiritus Lavandulae Compositus. (Compound Spirit of Lavender.) U. S. P. Take of Oil of lavender a fluidounce. Oil of rosemary two fluidrachms. Cinnamon, in moderately fine powder, two troyounces. Cloves, in moderately fine powder, half a troyounce. Nutmeg, in moderately fine powder, a troyounce. Red saunders, in moderately fine powder, three hundred and sixty grains. Alcohol six pints. Water two pints. Diluted alcohol a sufficient quantity. Dissolve the oils in the alcohol, and add the water. Then mix the powders, and, having moistened the mixture with a fluidounce of the alcoholic solution of the oils, pack it firmly in a conical percolator, and gradually pour upon it the remainder of the alcoholic solution, and afterwards diluted alcohol, until the filtered liquid measures eight pints. Spiritus Juniperi Compositus. (Compound Spirit of Juniper.) U. S. P. Take of Oil of juniper a fluidrachm and a half. Oil of caraway, Oil of fennel, each ten minims. Diluted alcohol eight pints. Dissolve the oils in the diluted alcohol. On Perfumery and Toilet Articles. Among the uses to which the products of distillation are applied, those connected primarily with the sense of smell possess an interest and importance, especially to the pharmaceutist, who has, from the earliest time, been called upon to manufacture and sell them, which justifies the appropriation of a portion of this work to their modes of preparation. Besides the use of fragrant essences for the mere gratification of the sense of smell, they serve a good purpose in headache, and as grateful refrigerant applications in dry and hot conditions of the skin. Although some of the finest perfumes are derived from the East Indies, Ceylon, Mexico, and Peru, yet we owe most of the supplies used in the perfumer's art to the extensive flower farms of Nice, Grasse, Montpellier, and Cannes, in France, and owing to the peculiar fitness of the climate of those provinces, and the adaptation of the French people to pursuits requiring delicate perceptions and refined tastes, the art of perfumery has attained a perfection in France towards which most of our manufacturers make but a faint approximation. The French recipes call for so many ingredients not readily obtained in this country, and altogether derived from their own gardens and 304 ON DISTILLATION, ETC. manufactories, that they require considerable modification to make them practicable to us. I shall, therefore, confine myself to inserting a few tried recipes which constitute a pretty good assortment of essences. Unlike the medicinal preparations spoken of throughout the other parts of this work, these perfumes allow of an unlimited choice of ingredients, and a corresponding variety of combinations and propor- tions, restricted only by that most capricious of all standards—taste. For further accounts of the art of making fragrant essences and all other perfumes, see the admirable work on the subject by G. W. Septimus Piesse, published in London, and republished in Philadel- phia, in 1856 and 1863. Colognes. Eau de Cologne, as imported from Cologne and from Paris, is a highly rectified spirituous perfume obtained by distillation from a variety of fragrant plants. Of the numerous Farina colognes im- ported, all are highly rectified and apparently distilled from the plants, while, as prepared in this country, Cologne water is almost always made from essential oils dissolved in alcohol. This may be very good, if the oils are fresh and combined with reference to their rela- tive strength and accord. Best Cologne Water. (No. 1.) Take of Oil of bergamot " neroli . " jessamine " garden lavender " cinnamon Benzoated tincture . Tincture of musk . Deodorized alcohol . Rose-water Mix, and allow the preparation to stand a long time for use. Common Cologne Water. (No. 2.) Take of Oil of lavender " rosemary " lemon . " cinnamon Alcohol . Much cheaper than the foregoing. Benzoated Tincture for Colognes, &c. Take of Tonqua beans . Vanilla . Nutmeg, grated Mace Benzoic acid . Alcohol . Macerate the solid ingredients, in coarse powder, in libitum, and filter. flij. f3ij. Oss. f3ij. "ij- fsiij. foSS. Cong. j. Oij. before filtering fSiss. f.Iss. gtt. xx. Cong. j. Mix, 5j. 3ij. No.j. 3ij. gr. x. Oj- the alcohol ad TOILET WATERS. 305 Toilet Waters —(Substitutes for Eau de Cologne) Rose Geranium. Take of Essential oil of citronella (India) . . flij. " " lemon grass " . . flss. " bergamot . . . fSss. " " lavender (French) . . f3ij. Extract of jessamine (from pomade) flj. Benzoated tincture .... fiij. Alcohol (95 per cent, deodorized) . . Cong. j. Mix and reduce with water which has previously been saturated with oil of citronella by trituration, after the manner of the officinal medicated waters, as long as it can be done without precipitating too much of the essential oils; let it stand for a few days and filter Orange Blossom. Take of Essential oil of neroli (petal bigarade No. 1) f5j. " orange peel (bigarade No. 1) gtt. xl. " rosemary (from flowers only) f^ss. " bergamot . . . f5j. Extract of orange flowers (from pomade), jessamine (from pomade), of each f3ij. Alcohol (95 per cent, deodorized) . . Oiv. Distilled orange-flower water . . . Oj, or q. s. Mix, and proceed as before. Putcha Pat. (Patchouly) Take of Essential oil of Patchouly . . . f^ij. copaiva . . . fgss. orange peel (bigarade) . rr^y, " " valerian . ... thjj. rosemary (from flowers only) n^xv. Tincture of ginger .... aiss. Benzoated tincture .... f.lss. Alcohol (95 per cent, deodorized) . . Cong. j. Patchouly water (made with oil of patch- ouly, after the method of medicated waters, as in rose geranium) . . Oj, or q. s. Rose. Take of Balsam Peru......nixxv. Essential oil of bergamot . . . fsiij. " " santal .... T»lxl. neroli (bigarade petal No. 1) "Ixx. rosemary (aux fleurs) . fSiss. rose (kisamlic) . . f3ij. " citronella (India) . . f^iss. Extract of rose (from pomade) . . f.lij. Alcohol (95 per cent, deodorized) . . Ovj. Rose-water, distilled . . . . Oj. Add the last after the mixed oils and alcohol have stood two or three days, and filter the whole. 20 306 ON DISTILLATION, ETC. Lavender. Take of Essential oil of lavender (aux fleurs) " lemon " lemon thyme . " orange peel, sweet " nutmeg " sage Tincture of musk " benzoin Sweet spirit of nitre Alcohol (95 per cent, deodorized) fjiss. *3iij. 6j. Sj. f3j. f3ss. f3vj. faj. Sij. Cong. ss. Lavender water (made from the oil and water) Oj. Millefleur. Take of Balsam Peru . Oil of bergamot " cloves " neroli (pet. gr.) Extract of musk Orange-flower water Alcohol (deodorized) Mix. Frangipanni. Take of Essential oil of rose " " neroli (bigarade) " " melisse . " " bergamot " " santal wood Extract of vanilla . " magnolia (from pomade) Tincture of santal wood saturated, Alcohol, aa Sandal water from oil Mix. Verbena Water. Svj. m- f3vj. f3hj. Oiss, or q. Ovj. "Ixx. "Ix. "I v. 8j. f3ij. foSS. fsj. Cong. ss. q. s. to dilute. Take of Oil of balm melisse .... f 3iij. Deodorized alcohol .... Oij. Water . .....Sufficient. Make a clear solution. This may be made somewhat stronger, though of a less pure ver- bena flavor, by the addition of a little oil of lemon. Oil of balm melisse is imported; its smell seems identical with our garden lemon trifolia. (Simple Spirit of Lavender.) . f3ij. • Oj. Lavender Water. Take of English oil of garden lavender Deodorized alcohol Make a solution. A little fresh calamus root macerated in the above improves it. PERFUMED VINEGARS. 307 gtt. XX. gtt. iij. gtt. j. gtt. j. gtt. XX. q. s. Half ounce. 6| fluidounces. Essence of Patchouly Take of Oil of copaiva " orange " valerian " rosemary Tincture of Tolu Alcohol, ginger, aa Mix. Vinegars. Camphorated Acetic Acid. Take of Camphor..... Acetic acid..... Pulverize the camphor by means of a few drops of spirits of wine, and dissolve it in the acetic acid. Used as a fumigative in fevers, an embrocation in rheumatism, and a refreshing and pungent perfume. Aromatic Vinegar. A pungent and reviving perfume, formerly esteemed a preventive of contagion. Take of Acetic acid, very strong, Camphor in powder, Oil of cloves, of each a sufficient quantity. Mix them, and secure in a strong and well-stoppered bottle. Hygienic or Preventive Vinegar. (Piesse.) A toilet preparation, to be mixed with water for lavatory purposes and the bath. Take of Brandy Oil of cloves Oil of lavender Oil of marjoram Gum benzoin Macerate together for a few hours, then add Brown vinegar .... and strain or filter, if requisite, to be bright. Vinaigre de Cologne. To Eau de cologne ; add, Strong acetic acid .... Filter if necessary. These may be varied by substituting any other perfume, such as orange-flower or verbena water, observing, where either of these per- fumed vinegars is required to produce opalescence when added to water it should contain myrrh, benzoin, or Tolu. 1 pint. 1 drachm. 1 drachm. | drachm. 1 ounce. 2 pints. 1 pint. I oz. 308 on distillation, perfumery, etc. Musk Perfumes. Tincture of Musk. Take of Musk.......3ij. Water......Oss. Macerate twenty-four hours and add— Solution of potassa, U. S.P. . . f 3y. Macerate twenty-four hours and add— Alcohol......Oss. Let it stand at summer temperature for one month and decant. Extract of Musk. (Piesse.) For mixing with other perfumes. Take of Grain musk.....2 ounces. Rectified spirit.....1 gallon. After standing for one month at a summer temperature, it is fit to draw off. Extrait de Muse. (Piesse.) Adapted to retailing for use in perfumery. Take of Extract of musk (as above) . . .1 pint. " of ambergris . . .J pint. " of rose (triple) . . . \ pint. Mix and filter. The chief uses of musk in perfumery are due to its persistent character. Though not itself desirable as a perfume, yet mixed in small proportion with rose, violet, and other essences, it enables them to give to the handkerchief a mixed odor which is retained after the first per- fume is dissipated. Tooth Preparations. A few only of these are here given, with reference to meeting the popular demand and the ordinary requirements of the dental profession. Marshall's or Hudson's Dentifrice. Take of Prepared chalk.....3 pounds (com.) Powdered myrrh, orris root, each . . 1 pound. Red chalk (or lake) . . . .an ounce. Thoroughly powder the ingredients and mix them through a fine sieve. Charcoal Dentifrice. Take of Recently-burnt charcoal, in fine powder 6 parts. Powdered myrrh, Powdered cinchona bark (pale), each 1 part. Mix thoroughly. tooth powders and mouth washes. 309 Charcoal Tooth-paste. Take of Chlorate of potassa .... A half drachm. Mint water......1 fluidounce. Triturate to form a solution, then incorporate with— Powdered charcoal 2 ounces. Honey..... 1 ounce. Cuttle Fish Powder. (Piesse.) Take of Powdered cuttle fish Jib. Precipitated carbonate of lime lib. Powdered orris .... lib. Oil of lemons .... 1 oz. Oil of neroli J dr. Thoroughly powder and mix. Mialhe's Tooth Powder. Take of Sugar of milk .... . 1000 parts. Lake...... . 10 parts. Tannin..... . 15 parts. Oil of mint, Oil of anise, Oil of neroli, of each sufficient to flavor to taste. Rub well the tannin and lake together, and gradually add the sugar of milk, previously powdered and sifted, and lastly the essential oils. A Superior Mouth Wash. Take of Old white Castile soap . 3ij. Alcohol..... . fSiij. Honey..... . oj. Perfume, as below . f5iv. Dissolve the soap in the alcohol, and add the honey and perfume. Perfume for adding to Mouth Washes. Take of Asarum Canadense . 3ss. Orris root..... . 3ss. Strong alcohol (Atwood's) . . fSviij. Make a tincture and add— Tincture of musk . f3j. Essence of millefleurs . . f3ss. " patchouly . . gtt. XX. Violet Mouth Wash. (Piesse.) Take of Tincture of orris . 1 pint. Esprit de rose .... . \ pint. Spirit..... . \ pint. Oil of bitter almonds . 5 drops. Mix. 310 ON DISTILLATION, ETC. Botanic Styptic. (Piesse.) Take of Rectified spirit, .... 1 quart. Rhatany, Myrrh, Cloves, of each .... 2 ounces. Macerate 14 days and strain. Sachet Powders and Fumigators. The great popularity of this class of perfumes consists in their per- sistent odors, and their perfect adaptation in envelopes or scent-bags to diffusing an agreeable perfume in drawers, glove-boxes, &c, without soiling the purest white materials. The following formulas, modified from those of Piesse, I have found entirely satisfactory:— Sachet d la Frangipanni. Take of Orris root powder . 3 lbs. Vetivert powder i lb. Santal wood powder . i lb. Oil of neroli, " rose, " santal, each 1 drachm. Grain musk .... 1 oz. Mix well. Sachet d la Marechale. Take of Powder of santal wood Jib. orris root . Jib. rose leaves . i lb. " cloves 2 oz. cassia .... i lb. Grain musk .... . J drachm. Mix. Millefleur Sachet. Take of Lavender flowers, ground, Orris root, " Rose leaves, " each . . lib. Benzoin, Cloves, ground, Tonqua, " Vanilla, " Santal, " each . . i lb. Cinnamon, Allspice, each .... . 2 ounces. Musk, grain .... 2 drachms Mix well together. sachet powders and pastilles. 311 Heliotrope Sachet. Take of Powdered orris .... . 2 lbs Rose leaves, ground . lib. Tonqua beans, '' ... . Jib. Vanilla beans, " ... . £lb. Grain musk .... . 1 oz. Oil bitter almonds . 5 drc Mix well by sifting in a coarse sieve. Fumigating Powder. Take of Frankincense, Benzoin, Amber, of each.....Three parts. Lavender flowers .... One part. Mix. This is designed to be ignited upon coals, a stove, or hot iron, to diffuse an agreeable aroma in an apartment, and incidentally to destroy noxious effluvia. Dr. Paris' Fumigating Pastille. Take of Benzoin, Cascarilla, each . Myrrh Powdered charcoal Oil of nutmegs, Oil of cloves, each . . . . f oz. Nitre.......2 oz. The benzoin, cascarilla, and myrrh are to be separately powdered, and mixed on a sieve with the charcoal; the nitre is then to be dis- solved in mucilage of tragacanth, with which the whole is to be made into a paste and divided with a pastille mould, Fig. 179, and gradually dried. Fig. 179. JL^________________ fl ilb. 1£ oz. IJ lbs. Pastille mould. The mode of using the pastille mould will be sufficiently obvious; the mass being run into cylinders of appropriate size is pressed be- tween the brass cutting surfaces and completely divided into twenty four cones of the required shape. The mode of using pastilles is to place a piece of glazed paper over a glass of water and to stand the pastille upon it when igniting it. As soon as it is sufficiently consumed it will burn a hole through the paper and be extinguished by falling into the water. Sometimes serious injury is done to mantles and articles of furniture by care- 312 ON DISTILLATION, etc. lessly overlooking the intense heat produced by the combustion of these little fumigateurs. Hair Preparations. Rosemary Hair Wash. To be used after oils have been habitually applied. Take of Distilled water of rosemary . . 1 gallon. Rectified spirit.....5 pint. Pearlash......1 ounce. Dissolve the pearlash in the mixed alcohol and water. Essence or Spirit of Mustard. Take of Black mustard.....2 parts. Water......4 parts. Alcohol......1 part. Macerate and distil 1 part of spirit. To be added to hair washes to supply sulphur to the hair and stimu- late its growth. Perfumed Hair Oil. Take of Castor oil.......fox. Very strong alcohol . . . .flij. Ess. of jessamine .... f3ij. Mix. Any other essential oil may be substituted for the essence of jessa- mine, and we usually label the vials according to their perfume, and color the rose oil red. Hair Restorative. Take of Castor oil......f^vj. Alcohol......fjxxvj. Dissolve, then add— Tinct. of cantharides (made with strong alcohol)...... f^j. Ess. of jessamine (or other perfume) . fsiss. Mix. This preparation has the property of rendering the hair soft and glossy, at the same time that, by its tonic and stimulant properties, it tends to arrest its premature decay. To accomplish this it should be rubbed thoroughly into the roots at least once a day. Modified Formula. (Highly esteemed by some.) Castor oil......3 iss. Water of ammonia Tinct. of cantharides Cologne W ater Mix according to art. Oiv. q. s. ft. fix. hair preparations. 313 Marrow Pomatum. Take of Purified lard Suet . Oil of lemon " bergamot " cloves (Piesse.) lb. lb. oz. oz. 3 dr. Melt the greases, then beat them up with a whisk or wooden spatula for half an hour or more, to make the mass white and spongy; per- fume with the oils. Philicome . (Piesse.] Take of White wax . . 5 oz. Almond oil , . 2 1b. Oil bergamot 1 oz. " lemon . , J oz. " lavender 9 2 dr. " cloves t 1 dr. Melt the wax and oil, stir as the mixture cools, and add the per fume. Tw '99*' ■ Hair Dye. An excellent application to the hair, which is also a remedy for skin diseases, blemishes of the complexion, &c. Take of Precipitated sulphur, Acetate of lead, of each . . . 3j- Rose water......fsiv. Triturate together in a mortar. This is not an instantaneous dye, but should be applied twice a day till it gradually restores the color to its natural shade. The addition of half an ounce of glycerin will take from it a drying property which is undesirable. Bandoline. Take of Gum tragacanth (choice) . . . 6 oz. Rose water ......1 gallon. Otto of rose.....J oz. Steep the gum in the water, agitating from time to time as it swells into a gelatinous mass; then carefully press through a coarse, clean linen cloth, and incorporate the otto of rose thoroughly through the soft mass. PART III. INORGANIC PHARMACEUTICAL CHEMISTRY. CHAPTER I. chemical processes. In presenting to view the medicines derived from the mineral king- dom, an effort will be made to give such details in regard to those which fall within the range of the shop as shall render their prepara- tion easy and as uniformly successful as possible, while those derived from the manufacturing chemist will be described chiefly with refer- ence to their uses and the modes of ascertaining their purity, with incidental allusions to their sources, modes of preparation, composition, and rationale. Some of the chemical substances among the preparations in the Pharmacopoeia are rarely made by the apothecary, while those in the list are only interesting to the student as illustrating the laws of chemical reaction, and as showing the marvellous agency of chemistry in meeting the requirements of medical science. Much of the detail appropriate to works on technology being thus destitute of practical value to the class of students and readers for whom this book is mainly written, will be omitted. The laws of chemical reaction, of such immense utility, not only to the physician and pharmaceutist, but to every individual of whatever profession or pursuit, although not falling within the scope of the present work, are recommended to the careful study of its readers. A knowledge of the principles of elective affinity, the peculiar force by which new compounds are formed from those previously existing, is not only of vast importance to the manufacturer and the analyst, but is even necessary to an understanding of the descriptions con- tained in a practical work. The great fact, which underlies the whole science of chemistry, that chemical substances combine with each other in certain definite pro- portions called equivalents, forming compounds, the equivalents of which are always equal to the sum of the equivalents of the elements they contain, is among the first to be thoroughly mastered by the student, and connected with this, he may find great advantage in the study of the equivalent numbers given along with the symbolic for- mulae under each heading contained in Part III. Nothing so facilitates the acquisition of scientific knowledge as an intelligible, concise, and familiar nomenclature, and though this has (315) 316 CHEMICAL PROCESSES. too often been considered a stumbling-block, at the threshold of chemistry, it is confidently recommended to students as a necessary investment of time and energy which will yield ample returns in the subsequent prosecution of the science, whether in its theoretical or practical bearings. Notwithstanding the elementary character of this work, I have not hesitated to employ in this and the following part the abbreviated method of notation now in universal use among chemists, and by which the rationale of the formation and the composition of the most com- plex bodies is fully expressed by a few clear and intelligible sym- bols with numbers attached to designate the equivalent proportions of the elements concerned. The composition and relations of compound bodies can only be shown at a glance in this way, and it is earnestly recommended to the pharmaceutical student that he will in no case neglect to address himself to a full comprehension of these symbolic formulae, as a necessary groundwork of his* studies. By way of a preface to the study of the modes of preparation of the chemical substances treated of in the subsequent chapters, the fol- lowing brief descriptions of some chemical processes chiefly practicable on a small scale in the pharmaceutical laboratory, are appended. Chemical Processes used in Pharmacy. 1st. Processes of separation founded on volatility. Distillation, Fractional Distillation, Destructive Distillation, Sublimation, Dehydration, Calcination, Ignition, Torrefaction. 2d. Processes of reduction and absorption. Reduction of Oxides, Oxidation, Generation and Absorption of Gases. 3d. Processes of purification. Decoloration, Washing, Decantation, Filtration. 4th. Collection of chemical solids. Granulation, Crystallization, Precipitation, Fusion. Distillation, when conducted in a small way, is chiefly accomplished by the use of glass retorts, with or without receivers or other means of condensation. Fig. 180. Plain retort, tubulated receiver, and adapter. Fig. 180 exhibits a plain retort with an adapter a, by which it is connected with a tubulated receiver b, thus furnishing the two condi- tions of an apparatus for distillation (see page 295), a vessel for heating a liquid to be distilled, and a surface to be refrigerated for the condensation of the vapor formed. USE OF RETORTS. 317 Fig. 181. Retort with quilled receiver. The substance to be distilled being introduced into the retort and heat applied, the vapor given off passes at once into its beak or neck, and, if this is not refrigerated, into the receiver. In some cases, par- ticularly in treating very volatile liquids, it is found more convenient to apply cold directly to the beak, as in Fig. 181, in which pieces of linen or cotton cloth, folded several thicknesses and laid lengthwise on the beak, are kept constantly wet by the dropping of water from a filter suspended above it. At the point a, below the lower edge of the wet cotton, a piece of lamp- wick, or waxed string, is tied tightly round the beak, to conduct off the descending warmed water. The receiver here shown, though not tubulated as in the other plate, is quilled or drawn out into a fine tube, which enters the receiving vessel below; this being fully re- frigerated, insures the complete con- densation of the liquid. When the liquid to be distilled is condensed at a moderate elevation of temperature, the mode of refri- geration last mentioned is conducted without the use of a receiver, the distillate being collected directly from the beak of the retort, from which it drops as fast as it accumu- lates. Sometimes the receiver is refrigerated, and not the beak of the retort, and this is perhaps the most common arrangement for retort Fig«182- distillation. It is shown in Fig. 182, which represents a plain re- tort, a common flask adjusted to it as a receiver, and set into a basin, which, by being kept filled with water, would also facilitate the refrigeration of the flask by wet cloths laid upon it. Where this arrangement is adopted, care should be taken not to secure the beak of the retort tightly into the neck of the receiver, in which case the expansion of the heated air and vapors, on commencing the opera- tion, would lead to a rupture of some part of the apparatus. The plain retort is almost super- seded of late years by the tubulated, which has the advantage of allowing the more ready introduction of substances to be distilled, and by loosening the stopper, the prevention of accidents from the too great tension of the vapor, and from the too sudden refrigeration of Distillation with plain retort and receiver. 318 CHEMICAL PROCESSES. the retort, which would cause some condensed distillate to flow back endangering the safety of the retort. Fig. 184 represents a well- Fig- 183. known form of condensing appa- <0 ratus which is constructed on a *XS----\ variety of patterns, and of dif- f ^^\^^ ferent materials. That repre- / r^***^-^^^^^^ sented, Fig. 184, is one I have \ "^-^/^-^ had in use for several years, and ' 1 ^N"*"""'"^""-^) Prefor on several accounts to the \ J more expensive and complicated x^ ^/ kinds. Tubulated retort. It consists of a tin tube 18 inches long and 2 J inohes in di- ameter, and having the ends reduced to 1\ inch to suit the largest Fig. 184. Liebig's condenser. size of good corks that are readily attainable. The funnel a is the upper termination of a very small tin tube, which, passing down the whole length of the apparatus, enters it near the lower extremity, where it is extended by a bent leaden tube, as shown by the dotted lines, to the very bottom, at b. A short piece of thin lead pipe, c, leads from near the apex of the condenser, and passing out through a perforation into which it is soldered, terminates about two inches below, d d is a glass tube 1 inch in diameter, drawn out and bent at its lower end, which passes through the whole length of the apparatus, being secured by the perforated corks e e, at either end. These corks must be perfect, and as soft as can be obtained. A smooth and even perforation may be made by a brass cork-borer, Fig. 185, or rat-tail file, Fig. 186, or both, so as to constitute a water- tight joint. / is a stout piece of sheet copper soldered on to the main tube, and made to work by a screw upon the wooden upright g. DISTILLATION. 319 Fig. 186. Rat-tail file. The use of cement or luting to surround the corks is Fig. 185 necessary if they are not very perfect and very completely fitted, and as no alcoholic liquids will come in contact with them, dissolved sealing-wax is found to answer an excellent purpose. With one or more retorts, and an ap- paratus of this kind, most of the processes requiring dis- tillation can be satisfactorily accomplished. The expense of a condenser such as here described is from $3 50 to $5. The bottom of the wooden stand should be grooved on the under side and filled in with melted lead, to prevent the ill effects of warping, and to give solidity to the whole. Fig. 187 represents a con- denser supported on a retort stand, having freedom of motion in every direction; x is a cast- iron foot, in which is fixed a solid rod of iron z. The condenser, as here represented, is designed to be made of brass, with a glass tube fitted into it with corks, as in the other case; the comparative size of the outer tube, as here shown, is much smaller, which requires a much more rapid passage of the cold water through it, espe- cially in distilling very volatile liquids. The Gay Lussac holder a, and the rings, are usually made of brass in this arrangement. Cork-borer. Fig. 187. Liebig's brass condenser in retort stand. 320 CHEMICAL PROCESSES. A mechanical support for the retort and for the refrigerating appa- ratus is, of course, absolutely necessary in the arrangement of a distillatory apparatus; at least one retort stand is quite necessary, even in connection with the Liebig's condenser, Fig. 187; in which case one of the rings might have a sufficiently long handle, connecting it with the screw that clasps the upright rod, to hold a retort or a flask at a sufficient distance from the condenser, to be adjusted to it for use; but this is not the case with any that I have seen, and would render the whole apparatus unsteady when loaded with the liquid. In Fig. 181, it will be seen that as many as three retort stands are used in a small operation. Fig. 188 will give an idea of the arrangement of the retort and vessel for supplying the condenser with water, and that for catching Fig. 188. n the waste water upon one retort stand, which, however, must be in due proportion to the size of the condenser. When put together, the apparatus for distillation will be complete as arranged in Fig. 189. The tin bucket h has a small brass cock, which is so regulated in using the apparatus as to drop the water either slowly or rapidly as the warming of the water in the condenser may require. The only use of the funnel m is to prevent the splashing of the water as it falls from the condenser. By placing the heavy receiving vessel n on the wooden base of the retort stand, it is rendered solid, and the weight of the retort I is counterbalanced. DISTILLATION. Fig. 189. F=> Fig. 190. Complete apparatus for distillation. A flask with perforated cork and glass tube, as shown in Fig. 190, may be substituted for the retorts before described, an arrangement well adapted to distilling very volatile liquids, and those which boil with great violence. This figure also shows a tube for introducing fresh portions of the liquid without removing the cork; the tube, being bent, retains a portion of liquid in the bulb and adjacent curve, which prevents the escape of vapor from the interior. It is designed to extend only a little below the cork. In case of any stoppage in the apparatus by which an accu- mulation of vapor might take place in the flask or retort, these tubes would serve as a safety valve, and the liquid being forced out would allow of the escape of the accumulated steam. From the description and illustration of apparatus now given, the reader will have a good idea of the process as conducted on a small scale. A volatile liquid or mixture con- taining a volatile ingredient being introduced into a retort or flask connected as before 21 Flaxk and safety tube. 322 CHEMICAL PROCESS. described, and heat applied, the volatile ingredient will rise in vapor, and, being cooled by contact with the neck of the retort, the receiver, or the glass tube of the Liebig's condenser, will be condensed, and may be collected in a liquid and generally a pure condition. It is a good precaution, in manipulating with alcoholic or ethereal liquids, to use -a water bath for the regulation of the temperature, and for protection in case of a fracture of the retort. The use of saturated solutions of saline substances, such as alum, which boils at 220°, and chloride of zinc, which is available for any temperature below 320°, and of fusible metals for higher temperatures, will occasionally serve a good purpose in the process of distillation. In all processes the heat and refrigeration must be very carefully adjusted, so that no portion of uncondensed vapor shall escape, especially if of a poisonous, corrosive, or inflammable nature. One of the chief practical difficulties in distilling arises from the irregularity of the boiling of liquids in glass vessels, occasioning vio- lent bumping, and sometimes the fracture of the vessel. In treating resinous substances in this way, and in numerous chemical processes, especially as in the preparation of hydrocyanic acid, where a large amount of heavy precipitate is present in the liquid, this renders the operation one of great difficulty and annoyance. The best remedy for this is found in the diffusion of the heat over the sides of the retort, and indeed over the whole surface in contact with the liquid, and in the interposition of small angular fragments of insoluble mate- rial, such as rock crystals, flint, or broken glass, among the particles of the liquid, and it is entirely prevented by a glass rod or a metallic wire reaching from the bottom to the surface of the liquid, which serves to diffuse and equalize the heat, and thus to remove the cause of these concussions. Advantage is also gained by covering the bottom of the glass vessel with wire gauze, which diffuses the heat of the flame, or preferably, by coating the retort with metallic silver on its inner surface, which may be done by reducing a solution of am- monio-nitrate of silver, by boiling it in the vessel to be plated, with oils of cinnamon and cloves in solution in alcohol. Silver forms the most eligible metallic coating, next to platinum. Flasks may be coated on the outside with metallic copper so as to answer an excellent purpose; this is done by the aid of a battery. (See Mohr, Redwood, and Proc- ter, p. 457.) Fractional distillation is that modification of the process by which a variety of ingredients of different volatility are separated from one another. It requires special precautions for ascertaining the tempera- ture applied, and for changing the receiving vessel so as to collect the products volatilized at each successive boiling point attained as the process proceeds. A thermometer inserted into the retort or still through a cork, or a tube passing near to the bottom, will serve to in- dicate the variations of temperature, and a quilled receiver (Fig. 181) will be found to facilitate the collection of the successive products. Destructive distillation is a process by which organic bodies are subjected to a gradually increased temperature, whereby the original condition is entirely broken up, the resulting products being invariably SUBLIMATION. 323 of a more simple composition. To guard as much as possible against oxidation by the atmospheric oxygen, the operation is conducted in strong glass retorts, or, on a larger scale, in iron or earthenware retorts or cylinders. Complex organic bodies yield generally a large quantity of incondensable gases, consisting of carbo-hydrogens of varying com- position, an aqueous liquor containing formic or acetic acid, an oily liquid composed of creasote, carbolic acid, empyreumatic oils, &c, and a dark-brown or black body of a honey-like consistence called tar. If nitrogen is present in the original substance in other forms than nitric acid, it is found usually in the most volatile portions in the form of ammonia and various other ternary organic alkalies (see Svllabus of Organic Alkalies). The residue in the retort consists of carbon mixed with the inorganic bases which are combined with mineral acids, except nitric acid, which is invariably decomposed. In their crude state a peculiar smoky odor is attached to all the products obtained by this process, which odor is called empyreumatic. Instances of products of dry distillation are pyroligneous acid, oil of tobacco, oil of amber, resin oil, coal oil, and illuminating gas. Sublimation.—The dry distillation of solid substances which yield at once a solid volatile product, either pre-existing in the substance or the result of the decomposing influence of heat, is called sublimation. The apparatus consists essentially of a subliming vessel and a condens- ing vessel, varied by the volatility of the sublimed product. The con- densing surface must invariably be out of the fire, but so adjacent that the required temperature can be maintained till the vapor reaches it. In the separation of benzoic acid from benzoin, and pyrogallic acid from galls, or their aqueous extract, a shallow iron pot covered by a diaphragm of porous paper and surmounted by a cap of glazed paper, constitutes a suitable apparatus; it may be heated on a sand bath, the heat being so regulated and the diaphragm and cap so arranged that none of the vaporized acid shall escape. In the manufacture of mu- riate and carbonate of ammonia, and of corrosive sublimate and calo- mel, arrangements are required for operating on a large scale and with precautions suggested by experience, the vapor in the latter case being condensed in a condition of very minute division, by a current of cold air, aqueous vapor, or water. Camphor is refined or freed from im- purities by sublimation into large glass balloons, which are afterwards broken, and the condensation of subliming iodine, in order to avoid loss, is effected in a series of globular condensers connected with each other. In many small operations, glass tubes closed at one end, called re- duction tubes, or two flasks, one adjusted to the other and placed in such position that one may be plunged in a sand bath below the level of the contained material while the other is cooled, may serve a good purpose. Dehydration and Calcination.—The application of heat to inorganic crystalline substances is sometimes with a view to the separation of water, and sometimes for the expulsion of carbonic acid, or other volatile constituent. Water is present in chemical compounds either 324 CHEMICAL PROCESSES. as water of hydration or of crystallization. In the former case, it may be regarded as a weak acid combined with a base (K0,H0), or as a base combined with an acid (HO,SO.,), or as a constituent of cer- tain salts (2NaO,HO,cP05); in the two latter cases it is called basic water. Water of hydration cannot, in most instances, be removed by heat (KO,HO, and HO,S03), or if expelled, as in 2NaO,HOc,P05, the nature of the compound is altered. (See Sodas Pyrophosphas) Water of crystallization, on the contrary, can generally be removed by the temperature of a water bath, or by a higher heat; and this process is called dehydration; in pharmacy it is chiefly applied to alum, carbonate of soda, and sulphate of iron, which are directed for use in medicine both in the dried, pulverulent, and crystalline state. In organic substances this water may sometimes be replaced by weak acids, the weaker bases or certain salts, and is then called con- stitutional water: thus cane sugar, C,2HlJ09+2HO, combines with oxide of lead to form C12H909 + 2PbO. The carbonates of the alkalies, potassa, soda, and lithia, do not lose their carbonic acid by a high heat, while those of the alkaline earths, baryta, lime, and magnesia, and of the heavier metallic oxides, are decarbonated by calcination, the former, especially, requiring a very high heat. In the processes of metallurgy, calcination is often used, not only with the view of expelling volatile products, but also for the purpose of oxidizing certain elements present in the ores, especially sulphurets. The process is then termed roasting. The chief use of calcination in pharmacy is in the preparation of magnesia. Incineration and Ignition are the same as calcination, except when applied to organic substances with a view to burning up the car- bonaceous principles, converting them into carbonic acid, which re- mains combined with the alkali present. The free admission of air is essential for this purpose, and may be facilitated by inclining the crucible. The last portions of carbon, when consumed with difficulty, may be oxidized by the careful addition of a little nitric acid to the cold residue, and heating again to redness. Figs. 191, 192, and 193 exhibit different kinds of crucibles used for calcination and ignition in small operations. Fig. 191. Fig. 192. Fig. 193. Porcelain, platinum, and hessian crucibles. Torrefaction or roasting is a process by which organic substances are changed in their qualities, by the modification of some constituents without altering others. The most familiar instance of this is the OXIDATION—CARBONIC ACID PROCESSES. 325 roasting of coffee by which some empyreumatic principles are gene- rated without destroying its peculiar principle, caffeina; by this pro- cess it is adapted to the purposes of a beverage. Rhubarb subjected to the process of torrefaction, care being taken to have it in a suitable coarse powder, and to prevent its being carbonized, loses its cathartic properties without impairing its astringency. Burnt sponge, an old remedy of great repute in scrofulous diseases, has been superseded since the introduction of iodine; in preparing it, the process is carried somewhat further than in the foregoing, and leaves little else than the porous charcoal combined with the inorganic constituents of the sponge, iodides, chlorides, &c. It furnishes an instance of carbonization or charring. Reduction of Oxides, &c.—This process, so largely practised in the manufacture of iron and other metals from their ores, and in other extensive chemical operations, is useful to the pharmaceutist in the extraction of metallic arsenic from arsenious acid (As03), a prelim- inary operation to the preparation of iodide of arsenic. In this in- stance carbon is the reducing agent employed; by its combustion it combines with the oxygen from the arsenious acid, and leaves the metal to be sublimed. In a small way, this process may be conducted in a reduction tube. Another and still more useful application of the process is that for obtaining pure metallic iron from its oxide, in which hydrogen is the reducing agent, and the resulting preparation is one of the most important of the numerous medicinal preparations of iron. The deoxidation of inorganic salts by various chemical means is also termed reduction, sesquichloride and tersulphate of iron are, by di- gesting their solutions with metallic iron, reduced to protochloride and protosulphate of iron. The reduction of the oxides of the so-called noble metals, silver, gold, and platinum, is effected without any re- ducing agent, simply by the suitable application of heat. Oxidation.—This change, the reverse of the foregoing, is accom- plished, in the dry way, by the combustion of substances having a strong affinity for oxygen; at a high temperature these absorb this element from the air. In the combustion of metallic zinc, it is con- verted into oxide of zinc (ZnO), and in the cupellation or fusion of ores of lead and silver, the semivitrified oxide of lead, litharge, is evolved. This method is not adopted in any of the familiar opera- tions of pharmacy, but oxidation by nitric acid is resorted to in several officinal processes, as in the conversion of protosulphate into persul- phate of iron, and in the preparation of red oxide of mercury. This method, founded upon the facility with which nitric acid gives up a portion of its oxygen to substances having an affinity for it, is detailed under its several appropriate heads. Carbonic Acid Processes.—The conversion of caustic alkalies into carbonates is done by heating in contact with carbonaceous material, as in the ignition of potash to form pearlash, and in the incineration of organic matters containing alkali, before referred to. Dry carbonates may also be further charged with carbonic acid by simple exposure to an atmosphere charged with it, as in the conversion of pearlash 326 CHEMICAL PROCESSES. into salaeratus, and of partially dried carbonate of soda into bicarbo- nate. The generation of the carbonic acid gas is accomplished by decomposing either of the cheap and abundant carbonates^ of lime with a mineral acid; muriatic is the Fig. 194. cheapest, and in large operations the =>, best, from its forming a soluble resi- (*[ due. JL Fig. 194 shows the process of gen- jpr crating this gas, in the bottle a, wash- /ik ing it by passing it through water i^^J* in the bottle b, by means of the pipe Bj d, which passes through a pipe e, of sffiSIL large bore to the bottom; and, finally, ^aliiS^ through /, conducting it into a solu- tion to be charged with it. This is the process as used in the preparation of bicarbonate of potassa; the vessel c being,filled with solution of carbonate of potassa; as the bicarbonate is formed the silica present in the carbonate, combined with the potassa, is thrown out of solution, and the bicarbonate being in crystals ia quite pure, and combined with a definite proportion of water. In the manufacture of carbonic acid water, incorrectly called soda water, a forcing pump is used to charge the refrigerated water with an excess of the gas; in the appropriate place an apparatus for its extem- poraneous preparation is figured. In the preparation of chlorine water, the oxidation of substances by the use of nitric acid and the generation of hydrosulphuric acid, special precautions are necessary to prevent the too rapid evolution of the noxious gases, and their diffusion in the atmosphere. A chimney flue furnishes the means of carrying these off, and in the construction of a furnace as before described, ample facilities may be secured. The mode of saturating water either with chlorine or hydrosulphuric acid was formerly, by the use of a series of Woolf's bottles, figured in works on chemical manipulation. The preparation of these involves so much trouble and delay as to operate as a discouragement to the preparation of the solutions. An extemporaneous process found quite successful is to pass the conducting tube from the wash bottle, or the flask in which they are prepared, into a pretty large narrow-mouthed bottle about one-third full of water, having another at hand to substi- tute for it as this becomes filled with gas; these may be dexterously shifted so as to be alternately filled and shaken a few times with the heavy gas, by which means it will be more effectually brought into contact with and dissolved by the water than it can be by bubbling through a still solution for a long time. Decoloration, viewed as a process of pharmacy, is mainly accom- plished by digesting the substance in solution with charcoal, in a granular condition. The utility of this decolorizer is in proportion to its porosity, and hence animal charcoal, which contains bone phos- phate of lime insinuated among its pores in the process of its forma- tion, furnishes a very superior decolorizer. Modern researches have, WASHING OF CHEMICAL SUBSTANCES. 327 however, discovered that the same property which fits the charcoal for this use, causes it to absorb other constituents of solutions, so that unless the precaution is taken to percolate the charcoal thoroughly with fresh portions of the solvent, a portion of the most desirable constituents may be lost. In forming solutions of resins, as that of jalap, Professor Procter recommends that their powders should be mixed with an equal bulk of charcoal, introduced into a percolator on top of a layer of charcoal, and then treated with alcohol until the resin is dissolved out. In the preparation of the vegetable alkalies, animal charcoal is almost invariably employed to decolorize the product previous to its final crystallization, and experiments have recently been made to test the relative value of decolorized morphia and that which has not been subjected to this process; the results, as far as they go, seem to prove that no material difference in therapeutic power can be detected. Washing of Chemical Substances.—In order to remove adhering im- purities, freshly precipitated powders or recent crystals are frequently subjected to the process of washing. This is sometimes accomplished on a plain filter, Fig. 195, by the aid of a spritz, which, besides aiding the removal of the solid material on to the filter, is well adapted to directing a Fig. 195- strong thin current of water or other liquid upon the contents of the filter. The concave surface naturally assumed by the contents of a filter is the most favorable to an equal diffusion of the liquid through its mass. The spritz may be constructed by inserting a single tube with a capillary orifice through a cork into a bottle. The bottle being partly filled with water, the contained air is compressed by blowing into it, so that when the bottle is quickly inverted it forces out the water through the orifice in a jet. The kind shown, in use, in the drawing is more- complete in its operation; it has two tubes, one dipping below the surface of the liquid, bent to an acute angle and drawn out to a small orifice; the other, designed for blowing into the upper part of the bottle, so as by compressing the air to in- duce a stream from the orifice. If the bottle is substituted by a flask, the liquid may be heated over a lamp or sand bath, and the washing accomplished by boiling water or alcohol. Fig. 196 shows an ingenious apparatus invented by my friend C. Wager Hull, of New York, for washing photographic pfmts, but also applicable to any washing process requiring a repeated and entire change of water. Being entirely self-acting, it requires no care or at- tention. It consists of A, a water-tight box of any shape; B, a feed-pipe with a faucet; C, a lead pipe around the inside perforated with small 328 CHEMICAL PROCESSES. brad-awl holes, through which the water is evenly sprinkled upon the articles to be washed. A tray of wire or a network of twine, or any suitable perforated diaphragm may Fig. 196. be placed above and near the bottom of the box to receive the articles. A syphon enters the box through a hole in the bottom, having a broad flange of lead which is nailed to the bottom, and then passes down suf- ficiently to make a suitable curve to the1 point F, which should be one or two inches below the top of the box; here it curves again to 67, or any point below the line of the bottom of the box. The longer the leg D of the syphon, the faster will the liquid Huirs automatic washing box. flow ; it is generally connected with a waste pipe carrying off the washings into the sewer, and the feed pipe may be connected with the street mains or with any suitable reservoir above the box. The successful action of the apparatus depends upon the relative size of the feed pipe and syphon; the former should be smaller than the latter; then as soon as the box is filled by the action of the sprinklers up to the top of the syphon at F, the discharge will begin and go on rapidly till the entire liquid contents have run out; then the syphon will cease to act till the box fills up again, when it will be discharged in the same way. The superiority of this over ordinary tubs for the purpose con- sists in its completely emptying itself at intervals, so that every fresh charge of the liquid is pure and free from contamination with previous charges, a point of great importance in washing photographic prints. The subjects of filtration and decantation have been so fully presented under the head of Solutions, in the first part of this work, that they need claim no further notice in this connection. Precipitation.—The term precipitation refers to the separation of a solid substance, whether in crystal, in powder, or in a moist tenacious mass, called a magma; whether it falls to the bottom, floats in flocculse, collects near the surface, or remains diffused throughout the liquid. This separation is brought about by a chemical or other change affecting solubility, and the substance added to produce it is called the precipitant; the solid substance produced, the precipitate. Pre- cipitation is frequently produced by the play of affinities, affording an insoluble substance from elements which, as previously combined, constituted soluble compounds, as where solutions of chloride of sodium and of nitrate of silver are added to each other, chloride of silver and nitrate of soda are produced, the former an insoluble salt and hence precipitated. Whenever two or more chemical substances in solution are mixed, if the elements of an insoluble compound are present, that insoluble compound will be precipitated. Another cause of precipitation is any change in a liquid by which 3625 CRYSTALS. 329 it ceases to be a solvent for the particular substance in solution. Sub- stances soluble in alcohol, such as iodine, camphor, and the resins, on the addition of water, are precipitated, because the alcohol forms with water a liquid in which they are insoluble. With a view to collecting precipitates deep vessels should be em- ployed, preferably larger at the bottom, as in the drawing; they favor the ready decantation of the liquid. Fig. 197. The strength of the solutions mixed determines the density of the precipitate, and hence in cases where this quality is desirable in the product, and where it is an object to collect the precipitate in small bulk with reference to its convenient washing, the solutions are made correspond- ingly strong. Hot solutions should be used in preference to cold, with a view to the same object, and also in the case of iodide of lead and biniodide of mercury, which are soluble in the hot liquid, to produce handsome and precij^atin« well-defined crystals on cooling. Crystallization.—The most characteristic physical phenomena of chemical substances are those mathematical forms which they spon- taneously assume in passing from the liquid or gaseous to a solid con- dition, and the crystalline form is the purest attainable of chemical substances. Crystals are formed from some volatile substances by the process of sublimation, already referred to; by fusion, in a few instances, such as sulphur, some of the metals, and a few anhydrous salts, but more generally on the cooling or gradual evaporation of a solvent, or by the production of a less soluble crystalline substance by some chemi- cal change in a solution. The vessels best adapted to crystallization are rather shallow evaporating dishes, or. for large operations, wooden or earthenware crystallizers. A hot saturated solution being filtered into the vessel for crystallization, is to be set away in a suitable place, and should not then be disturbed till the liquid has become cool or has been nearly all evaporated. The last portion of the liquid poured off from the crystals is called the mother liquor, and contains the residuary portions in concentrated solution, besides any less crystalliz- able impurities. In manipulating with costly materials the mother liquor is retained for admixture with other lots, or subjected to further evaporation to obtain another crop of crystals. The size and trans- parency of crystals are most influenced by the slowness and uni- formity of their deposition, the clearness and purity of the filtered solutions, and their proper strength. When a solution is evaporated to a very concentrated condition, shown by the formation of a pellicle or crust upon its surface, it generally throws down a confused crys- talline ntass, but when set aside before it has quite reached its point of saturation, thS gradual evaporation insures a slow formation of large and more perfect crystals. The circumstances which promote perfect crystallization are thus the reverse of those by which the finest and most dense powders are obtained, and, as a general rule, those substances most desirable to obtain in the form of powder are not those which form elegant crystals. 330 ON THE NON-METALLIC ELEMENTS, ETC. Some chemical substances, much used in solution, are preferably made in small imperfectly formed crystals; sulphate of zinc and sul- phate of magnesia are familiar instances of this. Some, which are crystallizable with great difficulty, are collected from their clear solu- tions by granulation, a process accomplished by constantly stirring the evaporating solution from the time it begins to thicken till the water is entirely driven off. Carbonate and citrate of potassa are familiar instances of this; in the case of the latter salt the heat must be care- fully managed or the product may be burned. (See Powders.) CHAPTER II. ON THE NON-METALLIC ELEMENTS AND THEIR MEDICINAL PREPARATIONS. The distinction usually recognized by chemists between the non- metallic elements and metals, though arbitrary, is yet well understood and convenient, and will furnish the basis for the division adopted in the present work. Of the thirteen non-metallic elements, nearly all enter into medicinal preparations, but only the six following will re- quire notice in the present chapter—in the following order:— Oxygen. Iodine. Phosphorus. Chlorine. Bromine. Sulphur. Compounds containing carbon constitute the larger number of organic chemicals treated of in Part IV., while carbonic acid and its aqueous solution are more appropriately considered in the chapter on the mineral acids. The same applies to boron, which forms an oxy- acid, and hydrogen, which is chiefly useful in the inorganic kingdom in a well-known acid combination with chlorine; while nitrogen enters into one of the most important of the series of acids, and into the equally important alkali, ammonia. Oxygen, (9(+0)=8. In a state of combination oxygen is the most extensively diffused body in nature, forming one-fifth part of the atmosphere, entering as a constituent into water, into nearly all the mineral substances com- posing the crust of the earth, and into most organic products. With other non-metallic elements oxygen unites to form acids, as carbonic, QOv sulphurous, SO,, and phosphoric acid, P05, while with the metals its tendency is to unite in less proportion to form alkalies or bases, as potassa, KO, lime, CaO, the oxides of iron, FeO and ¥e.pv &c. Some of its compounds are neutral substances, such as water, HO, carbonic oxide, CO, and nitrous oxide, NO. The combination of oxygen with other bodies is attended with the evolution of heat, and sometimes light, which occasions the process of oxidation to be OXYGEN. 331 much resorted to for the productions of heat and light without refer- ence to the compounds produced. Where a body combines rapidly with oxygen it is said to be burned, and the process of rapid oxida- tion is called combustion. Although oxygen is not used in medicine, except for inhalation as an antidote to carbonic oxide or carbonic acid gas, it is an element of great interest not only to the physician and pharmaceutist but to persons in every department of life. Oxygen is prepared by heating binoxide of manganese in an iron retort, or, more readily, on a small scale, by heating chlorate of potassa in a retort of hard glass or a Florence flask. This salt contains potassa combined with chloric acid, KOjCIO,, and yields the whole of its oxy- gen (39.2 per cent.) by heating, chloride of potassium remaining as a residue, thus, KO,C105=KCl and 60. The tubule of the retort, or, if a flask is employed, a bent tube of glass secured to it by a cork is carried into a bell glass or other receiver filled with water and invert- ed in a vessel of water; the gas gradually displaces the water occupy- ing the vessel, which may be removed and replaced by another until the whole is collected; half an ounce of chlorate yields 270 cubic inches, or nearly a gallon of oxygen. The chief inconvenience in this process arises from the liability to softening of the glass of the retort or to its fracture by the intense heat required; this may be partially obviated by mixing two parts of the powdered chlorate with one of the binoxide of manganese, previously well dried, and by subjecting this to a somewhat less intense heat the gas will be obtained. It is a remarkable fact in connection with this phenomenon that no oxygen is given off from the peroxide itself, which Schdnbein explains by assuming that the chlorate is a compound of chloride of potassium and of oxygen in the condition of ozone, and that this compound of ozone, as is the case with free ozone, is changed by the peroxide to oxygen, and is thus readily sepa- rated from the chlorine. The oxygen thus obtained is never perfectly free from chlorine. Peroxide of iron has a still more remarkable effect in the liberation of the oxygen from chlorate of potassa. According to Pelouze and Fremy a thousandth part of the peroxide mixed with the fused chlorate was found to liberate the gas abundantly; with one two-hundredth part it was evolved with great rapidity and incandescence; and with one-thirtieth the evolution of the gas at the point of fusion almost amounted to explosion. To collect this gas for inhalation it should be passed into a tubulated bell jar, over the tubule of which a collapsed and softened bladder, or, preferably, a bag of gum-elastic, has been secured. By submerging the jar the gas ascends into the bag, and it may then be secured and administered by a breathing tube. In cases where, from the stoppage of flues or deficient ventilation in chambers, individuals are subjected to,the inhalation of noxious products of combustion, carbonic acid and carbonic oxide gases pro- ducing more or less complete narcotism, sometimes resulting in death, oxygen gas administered by the lungs before respiration has ceased, or by means of artificial or induced respiration, is found to be a most valuable antidote. 332 ON THE NON-METALLIC ELEMENTS, ETC. Ozone. Active Oxygen. This allotropic condition of oxygen, discovered by Schonbein, seems likely to produce remarkable changes in the generally received opinions in regard to numerous phenomena, both natural and artificial; and its novelty and importance seem to call for a notice in this place. It was first recognized by a peculiar odor accompanying discharges of electricity, especially when silently emitted, and has since been obtained by a variety of processes, among which the following are the most important: Into a large salt-raouth bottle of air place a stick of phosphorus, recently scraped ; cover it partially with water, introduce the stopper and set it away in a room at a tempera- ture of from 60° to 70°. In the process of oxidizing the exposed phospho- rus a portion of the oxygen passes into the condition of ozone, and is dif- fused in the air, though never in large proportion; if long kept, this is lost by combining with and oxidizing the phosphorus; by washing and deeanta- tion, the ozonized air may be deprived of the vapor of phosphorus, and preserved. Ozone is also a product of the slow combustion of ether; if a small quantity of ether is placed in a bottle and a rod of iron or glass heated to just 500° is introduced, the atmosphere of the ja,r will acquire the properties of ozone, while the ether possesses the characteristics of per- oxide of hydrogen or antozone. As a more permanent source of ozone, Boettger has recommended the opaque olive-green mixture of two parts of permanganate of potassa with three parts of strong sulphuric acid; sub- jected to the atmospheric oxygen it continues for a long time to give out ozone. As obtained by these processes it is always largely diluted with air; certain liquids, however, have a strong affinity for it; of these, oil of tur- pentine, oil of cinnamon, oil of lemon, and flaxseed oil, either possess the power of inducing its formation, or, by their solvent power, become reser- voirs of it. How far its presence may account for those changes of pro- perties of oil of lemon, camphene, and other carbo-hydrogens, which are so well known but so ill explained, is worthy of investigation. Oils of cinna- mon and of turpentine when charged with it exhibit bleaching properties. Ozone is readily absorbed by solution of an alkaline iodide, converting it into iodate ; it oxidizes moistened silver leaf and thin strips of arsenic, and antimony in the cold. From the metallic iodides it liberates iodine ; oxidizes protosalts of lead and manganese to peroxides; converts sulphides into sulphates and ferrocyanides into ferrid cyan ides. Taken into the lungs it pro- duces catarrh and contraction of the chest; it destroys organic coloring matter with the greatest energy; bleaches blue litmus without first redden- ing it; discharges the color of sulphate of indigo by contact alone ; turns paper, impregnated with aniline or pyrogallic acid, to brown ; renders cork and caoutchouc brittle and destroys them ; decomposes tannic acid, oxalic acid being a product. These changes are all due to oxidation, and oxides are the result. The following are the usual tests for ozone : Schonbein's test is made by dissolving one part of pure iodide of potassium (free from iodate) in two hundred parts of pure water, then adding ten parts of starch, in fine powder, and gently heating till the starch is dissolved. White paper is soaked in this liquid, then dried and cut into strips which are to.be preserved in stoppered bottles. This paper, exposed to the air in a spot sheltered as much as possible from rain, light, and foul effluvia for a period of from 6 to 24 hours, will show the presence of ozone in the atmosphere by changing to brown, and when wetted, from a pink to blue color, according to the proportion of ozone in the air. Paper soaked in an alcoholic solution of guaiacum and dried in the dark acquires a bright blue color by contact with ozone. CHLORINE. 333 The presence of this active form of oxygen in the atmosphere is deemed of importance in the study of those mysterious influences connected with the cause of malarious and contagious diseases, but the subject has not yet been sufficiently studied. The most remarkable properties of ozone appear to grow out of its peculiar relations to oxygen, from which it is produced by electricity, while by a heat of 450° to 600° it is always convertible into oxygen. Certain well-known disinfectants and bleaching agents are now found to owe their properties to this constituent; this is especially the case with the alkaline permanganates, and the solution of permanganate of po- tassa has been introduced under the name of ozonized water as a deodorizer in medical practice. Magnetic oxide of iron is also said to contain oxygen in the state of ozone, and a filter is in use in England in which this mineral is the active material for the purification of water by oxidizing and destroy- ing all organic matters contained in it. The principal oxides in which the oxygen appears to exist as ozone, called by Schonbein ozonides, are as fol- lows : Mna07, MnOg, Mn03, Pb02, Ag03, CrOs, BiO., NiaO„ among which peroxide of lead (PbOa) appears to have the most energetic action, display- ing some of the characteristic reactions of ozone without the addition of any- acid to decompose it. The limits of this work will not permit an extended account of this substance, and the reader is referred for further details to Braude & Taylor's Chemistry, republished in Philadelphia, 1863. Chlorinium. OZ=35.5. (Chlorine) Chlorine is a dense, suffocating, corrosive gas of a pale yellow color, which under the pressure of about four atmospheres condenses into a bright yellow liquid, sp. gr. 1.33. It is one of the most active of chemical agents, entering into combination with nearly all the other elements, especially with the metals, but not existing in nature un- combined. The chlorides are remarkable for solubility, and conse- quently find a place among the constituents of sea water, common salt, Na,Cl, being obtained in considerable proportion from that great reservoir. The chief use of uncombined chlorine is as a disinfectant and a bleaching agent, both of which properties it appears to owe to its affinity for hydrogen. In contact with most organic substances it decomposes them, eliminates a portion of their hydrogen, as hydro- chloric acid, and enters also into compounds by substitution for the hydrogen in their composition. To the physician and pharmaceutist chlorine is most interesting in the form best adapted to liberate it into the atmosphere for its uses as a disinfectant. The reader is referred to the chapter on the alkalies and alkaline earths for its loose combinations with lime and soda; in this place it will suffice to notice the chlorine mixture furnished to the U. S. Government hospitals, and the Aqua Chlorinii of the Phar- macopoeia. Chhrine Disinfecting Preparation. This consists of packages of a dry powder and a bottle of diluted sulphuric acid, put up together at the laboratories for extemporaneous admixture, as follows:— 334 ON THE NON-METALLIC ELEMENTS, ETC. The Common Salt Mixture. Take of Common salt, well dried . . . 1800 parts. Binoxide of manganese, containing 72 per cent........1875 parts. Grind them together into a fine powder, and put the powder up in packages containing about 195 grains each, and put 130 of these pack- ages in a pasteboard box to accompany the sulphuric acid mixture. Each of these packages requires half a fluidounce of the sulphuric acid mixture, and yields about 57 cubic inches of chlorine. This quantity, when thus liberated gradually in a space containing about 20,000 times its volume of air, is borne without inconvenience by persons generally, and is not injurious even in pulmonary diseases. As very much depends upon the ventilation of apartments wherein it is to be used, no absolute rules of application can be laid down except that it should never be used in such quantities as to produce discom- fort or bronchial irritation to patients. The Sulphuric Acid Mixture. Take of Sulphuric acid sp. gr. 1.845 . . . .45 parts. Water.......21 parts. Mix them carefully, and when cold put the mixture into strong bottles, with accurately ground stoppers, each bottle to contain sixty- five fluidounces. Half a fluidounce of this to be used for each package of the com- mon salt mixture. Directions for Use.—One of the above packages or papers of the common salt mixture, placed in a saucer or plate and thoroughly mixed with half a fluidounce of the sulphuric acid mixture, is to be placed under every alternate bed at night and allowed to remain there three days. Upon the second night, the beds which were omitted the first night should be supplied in the same way and for the same length of time, and the whole process repeated at the end of three days, or sooner, according to circumstances. Should the wards be badly ven- tilated, or contain many sloughing wounds, or be subject to epidemic disease or low forms of fever, the process should be continuous; that is, the mixtures should be renewed every third day. Otherwise once or twice a month may be sufficient; and, when thorough cleanliness and ventilation are attained, the process is unnecessary for occupied wards. In disinfecting unoccupied wards, water closets, latrines, etc., by chlorine, they should be cleansed, closed up as perfectly as prac- ticable, and two packages used for each 600 cubic feet of space. The rationale of the liberation of chlorine from the mixed powder of chloride of sodium and binoxide of manganese, on the addition of sulphuric acid, may be thus expressed. The sodium of the chloride of sodium takes one equivalent of oxygen from the binoxide of man- ganese, reducing the binoxide to protoxide and forming soda, which combines with one equivalent of the sulphuric acid to form sulphate of soda, while the other equivalent combines with the protoxide of manganese, the chloride being thus set free; thus, NaCl and 2SO, and MnOa = NaO,S03 and MnO,S03 and CI. IODINE AND ITS PREPARATIONS. 335 Aqua Chhrinii. (Chlorine Water) \J. S. P. Take of Black oxide of manganese, in fine powder, half a troyounce. Muriatic acid three troyounces. Water four fluidounces. Distilled water twenty fluidounces. Introduce the oxide into a flask, add the acid previously diluted with two fluidounces of the water, and apply a gentle heat. Conduct the generated chlorine, by suitable tubes, through the remainder of the water contained in a small intermediate vessel, to the bottom of a four- pint bottle containing the distilled water, and loosely stopped with cotton. When the air has been entirely displaced by the gas, discon- nect the bottle from the apparatus, and having inserted the stopper, agitate the contents, loosen the stopper from time to time, until the gas ceases, to be absorbed. Lastly, pour the chlorine water into a bottle, of just sufficient capacity to hold it, stop it securely, and keep it in a cool place, protected from the light. This process, which is nearly that of the Dublin Pharmacopoeia, re- quires the adjustment of flask and tubes on the principle directed and figured on page 326. The great solubility of chlorine in water forbids the use of more than a limited quantity in the intermediate (wash) bottle; this is designed to absorb any portion of the undecomposed muriatic acid which may pass from the flask. The size of the receiv- ing bottle is important as determining the quantity of chlorine in the resulting preparation. This mode of receiving and dissolving the gas is considered a great improvement on the complicated Wolff's bottles formerly in use; about three pints of chlorine are by this arrangement conveniently collected and dissolved in the twenty fluidounces of water prescribed. With a view to warming the flask and not the re- ceiving bottle, the connecting glass tube should be ten or twelve inches long, and should have one or more joints of gum-elastic tube. Chlorine water is used chiefly as an antiseptic and stimulant to the liver; it is applied externally and internally. The dose is from one to two fluidrachms, largely diluted. This preparation furnishes a good means of liberating the gas for inhalation, or for diffusion as a disin- fectant ; it is a greenish-yellow liquid, possessing the suffocating odor of chlorine. When a fluidounce of it is mixed with a solution of ten grains of pure sulphate of protoxide of iron in two fluidrachms of water, the mixture does not produce a blue precipitate with ferrid- cyanide of potassium (red prussiate of potassa). Iodine and its Preparations} Iodinium, I. Solid crystalline scales, sp. gr. 4.95. Potassii iodidum, KI. In cubical crystals. Dose, gr. ij to gr. v. Sodii iodidum, Nal. Cubical crystals. Dose, gr. ij to v. Ammonii iodidum, NH^I. Very deliquescent. Dose, gr. v to x. Tinctura iodinii. 5SS to f ^j alcohol, externally used. " iodinii composita, I, gr. xv, KI, 5ss to f.5J- Tt\,xv to xxx Liquor iodinii compositus I, gr. xxijss, KI, gr. xlv to f §j. n\,x to xx. 1 Most of the iodine salts are described under the several heads of their metallic basea. t 336 ON THE NON-METALLIC ELEMENTS, ETC. Iodinium. 1= 126. (Iodine) This non-metallic element is procured for use in medicine from the fused and vitrified ashes of sea-weed called kelp, which is prepared in the Western Islands, North of Scotland, and Ireland, and on the coast of France, at Cherbourg and at LeConquet, near Brest. According to the report on the medical and pharmaceutical products at the Great Exhibition of 1862, Tissier and son, of the latter place, produced of iodine and iodide of potassium, each, from 8000 to 10,000 lbs., bro- mine 1500 to 1800 lbs., and bromide of potassium 1100 to 1300 lbs. annually. The process of preparation is briefly as follows:— The kelp being broken and lixiviated, yields about half its weight of soluble soda, potassa, and magnesia salts. The common salt, and carbonate and sulphate of soda, and chloride of potassium, are crystal- lized out on evaporation. The mother liquor contains iodides of sodi- um, potassium, and magnesium, to which sulphuric acid is added, liberating carbonic acid, sulphuretted hydrogen, and sulphurous acid, by effervescence, and sulphur which is deposited. The acid lye is next distilled from peroxide of manganese, which liberates the iodine, and it is condensed in cooled glass receivers. (See Essay on the Manu- facture of Iodine, "Proceedings Amer. Pharm. Ass.," 1857, page 110.) Iodine is in bluish-black crystalline scales, with a metallic lustre, sp. gr. 4.948, fusing at 225°, boiling at 347°, and evaporating at ordi- nary temperature, especially when damp. Its vapor is of a splendid violet color; odor-like chlorine; it melts when heated, then sublimes in very heavy violet vapors. Free iodine precipitates starch in the cold, of a dark blue color, which reaction is its most familiar and delicate test. Water dissolves about l-7000th of its weight of iodine, being slightly discolored by it, but on the addition of either of the alkaline iodides, or of chloride of sodium, it becomes extremely soluble; it is also very soluble in alcohol and ether. It dissolves in alkaline solu- tions, forming iodides and iodates. With the metals and most of the non-metallic elements, it combines with avidity, and several of its combinations are officinal; of these, the iodides of mercury, of lead, zinc, cadmium, iron, arsenic, and sulphur, are considered under the head of their metallic elements, while the several preparations which owe their value exclusively to iodine, are introduced here. Locally applied, iodine is an irritant and vesicant, staining the skin brown or orange color, causing itching, redness, and desquamation. This discoloration of the skin may be best removed by ammonia or by hyposulphite of soda. Applied by inunction, it is absorbed, pro- ducing its characteristic stimulating effect; inhaled as vapor in a very diluted form, it exercises its alterative effect on the mucous membrane ( of the respiratory passages. Its influence is chiefly exerted on the glandular and absorbent systems. The element itself and its salts are used both internally and topically for an immense number of diseases requiring alterative treatment; when given internally, it is always in solution or combination. (See Solution and Tinctures, on page 339.) IODIDE OF POTASSIUM. 337 Potassii Iodidum. KI, 165.5. (Iodide of Potassium. Hydriodate of Potassa) This salt was formerly directed to be made by combining iodine with iron, and decomposing the iodide of iron with carbonate of potassa, precipitating the carbonate of iron, filtering and crystallizing. A modification of this process by Prof. Mayer, of New York, proposes to combine 400 parts of iodine with 508 of bicarbonate of potassa, and sufficient water, and then add 112 parts iron filings in divided portions; boil, filter, evaporate, and granulate the iodide. (See "Am. Journ. Ph.," vol. xxxiv. p. 292.) This process, which is, in some respects, the most convenient to the pharmaceutist, is not adopted in the Pharmacopoeia, where the plan is prescribed of adding iodine simply to a solution of caustic potash, thus forming the mixed iodide of potassium and iodate of potassa (6K04-6I=5KI + K0,I05). This being heated to redness in contact with charcoal, the iodic acid, 105, parts with its oxygen, and the iodate is reduced to iodide of potassium, KI. The process of Liebig, as modified by W. Stevens Squire, of London, consists of treating the iodine with a small pro- portion of phosphorus in water, thus converting it into hydriodic acid, which is then mixed with lime, and the iodide of calcium formed is first fused and then decomposed by sulphate of potassa into sul- phate of lime, which is precipitated, and iodide of potassium, which remains, in solution, is collected and crystallized. (See "Am. Journ. Pharm.," vol. xxxiv. p. 437.) This salt is in white, shining, semi-opaque cubes, with a character- istic marine odor, an acrid saline taste, resembling common salt. Soluble in two-thirds its weight of cold water, and freely in alcohol. Nitric acid decomposes its solution, yielding iodine, and if starch be subsequently added, it yields the characteristic blue iodide of amylum. Tartaric and other acids do not liberate iodine immediately, but the peculiar acid compound, hydriodic acid (HI); hence the old name of the salt, hydriodate of potassa. Iodide of potassium is liable to adulteration with bicarbonate or carbonate of potassa; the latter renders it very damp, and they both occasion effervescence with acids, and throw down a precipitate with sulphate of iron. Chloride of platinum should color its solutions reddish-brown, without causing a precipitate. The presence of a chlo- ride may be determined with nitrate of silver, which throws down nothing from the pure salt but iodide of silver, which is almost inso- luble in ammonia, while chloride of silver is readily soluble in it. The iodide of silver, precipitated from 10 grains of iodide of potas- sium, weighs, when washed and dried, 14.1 grains. When acetate or nitrate of lead is added to iodide of potassium, it throws down a yel- low iodide of lead, soluble in boiling water. Bromide may be de- tected by adding nitric acid, and observing the vapors that arise; those of bromine are red; those of iodine purple. Sometimes iodate of potassa is present, which may be detected by tartaric acid libe- rating iodine, perceptible by the starch test. This salt contains no water of crystallization. Every four grains 22 338 ON THE NON-METALLIC ELEMENTS, ETC. contain about three grains of iodine. The aqueous solution is capa- ble of taking up a large quantity of iodine, forming a liquid of a deep brown color. Iodide of potassium is considered to possess the same medicinal virtues as iodine, though preferred by some physicians to obtain the constitutional effects of the alterative. It is used very extensively both alone and combined with iodine, and with other alterative reme- dies ; it is incompatible with the preparations of mercury generally greatly increasing their activity. Dose, gr. ij to gr. v. Iodide of Sodium. Nal= 149.6. Sodii Iodidum.—This salt may be prepared from a freshly-prepared solution of iodide of iron or zinc, by precipitating it with pure car- bonate of soda, or by modifications of the processes mentioned under the head of iodide of potassium, evaporating, and allowing it to crystal- lize at a temperature exceeding 120° F. Mayer recommends that it should be evaporated to dryness and granulated on account of ita deliquescent properties. Below the temperature named, it crystallizes with four equivalents of water in deliquescent, flat, hexagonal prisms; crystallized as above, it forms cubes which contain no water, and are very soluble in water, and also in alcohol. It has been used as a substitute for iodide of potassium, but is objectionable on account of its proneness to deliquescence; its advan- tage over the potassium salt consists in its having 85 per cent., while the other has only 76 per cent, of iodine in combination. Ammonii Iodidum. NHAI= 144. (Iodide of Ammonium) Hydriodic acid is supersaturated with ammonia, or iodide of barium is treated with sulphate of ammonia, the precipitate filtered out, and the filtrate evaporated, with the precaution of keeping the ammonia slightly in excess. It crystallizes in cubes, and is very deliquescent. It has been used as a substitute for iodide of potassium, being more irritating than this salt on account of the looseness with which the iodine is combined. It is one of the most useful of chemical agents in the hands of the pho- tographer. Internally it has been used in doses as high as 10 grains; externally held in combination in ointments of from 9j to 3j to an ounce of lard. Tinctura Iodinii U. S. (Simple Tincture of Iodine) To make Oj. To make fSj. Take of Iodine.....5j. 5ss. Alcohol.....Oj. flj. Dissolve the iodine in the alcohol. This is best done by triturating it with successive portions of alcohol in a glass or porcelain mortar. This tincture contains one grain in 16 minims, or about 35 drops; it is not adapted to internal use, as, on the addition of water, the iodine is precipitated, and exercises it's peculiar irritating topical effect on the coats of the stomach. This precipitation is partially obviated by the gradual formation of the hydriodic acid, where there is water present; but the use of strong alcohol as the solvent is said to prevent the BROMINE PREPARATIONS. 339 formation of this acid. The tincture is applied to, the skin as a power- ful irritant in cutaneous and subcutaneous inflammation. In treating erysipelas, and when the surface to be treated is circumscribed; it is applied with a camel-hair brush. Tinctura Iodinii Composita U. S. P. (Compound Tincture of Iodine) To make Oj. To make f3j. Take of Iodine.....Iss. gr. xv. Iodide of potassium . . . 3j. 3ss. Alcohol.....Oj. fgj. Dissolve the iodine and iodide of potassium in the alcohol. This is adapted to the same use as the foregoing; by the presence of the iodide of potassium, the precipitation of iodine on contact with aqueous liquids is prevented. It is weaker than Lugol's solution, and may also be used internally in doses of Hxv to xxx. These tinctures are included under the general head, Tinctures, U. S. P.,while the following is placed under the head Liquores:— Liquor Iodinii Compositus U. S. P. (Lugol's Solution) To make Oj. To make fsj. Take of Iodine .... 3yj gr. xxijss. Iodide of potassium . . Siss. gr. xlv. Distilled water . . . Oj. f§j. Lugol's solution, as originally proposed, contained twenty grains of iodine, and forty of iodide of potassium, to f^j of water; the present officinal preparation is adjusted to the proportions convenient for a pint, and, as is seen above, is somewhat stronger. Dose, n^x to xx. In iodine and compound iodine ointments we have nearly the same proportions as in the tinctures, substituting lard for alcohol and water. (See Extemporaneous Preparations) Chhrides of Iodine. I, CI. I,Cl2. There are two chlorides of iodine, both formed by the absorption of chlorine by dry iodine. When the iodine is in excess, a liquid protochloride is the result. It is a reddish or yellow liquid, of an oily consistence, sharp odor, feebly acid, astringent taste, soluble in water and alcohol. If the chloride is added in excess, a yellow, solid, crys- tallizable terchloride is formed; it fumes in the air, has an acrid odor, and is soluble in water. The long-continued action of chlorine, in excess, upon iodine, results in the formation of hydrochloric and iodic acids. Bromine Preparations. Bittern. The mother liquor after the crystallization of common salt. Brominum. Heavy, very volatile liquid, sp. gr. 2.96. Brominii chloridum. Br,Cl5. Very powerful caustic, &c.; fluid. Potassii Bromidum, KBr. White cubical crystals. Dose, gr. v to x. Liquor ferri bromidi. Solution of bromide with excess of bromine. Dose, n^vtox. Brominum. Br = T8. (Bromine) Bromine is a heavy, liquid, non-metallic element, of a red color stifling odor, and acrid taste; very volatile and fuming, on which ac- count it is generally kept in bottles under a stratum of water, soluble 340 ON THE NON-METALLIC ELEMENTS, ETC. in ether and alcohol, and to a small extent in water; it precipitates Btarch of an orange color. Associated with iodine in sea-water and numerous mineral springs, it is largely extracted from bittern, the liquor left after the crystallization of common salt, whether from sea- water or from certain salt springs. The process consists in passing chlorine gas or a mixture of binoxide of manganese and muriatic acid, which liberates chlorine into the bittern, and on distillation the bromine passes over below the boiling temperature. At the salt works, in Western Pennsylvania, this bittern is preserved for the ex- traction of the bromine, and the American bromine prepared there is fully equal to the imported article. The principal consumption of bromine is in the daguerreotype process, in which large quantities are consumed annually. The vast quantities of bittern thrown away at a single salt manufactory, render it a cause of regret that there is not some use to which it can be profitably applied. Care should be taken in handling bromine, especially in warm weather, or near a fire; it boils at about 117° F., liberating stifling red fumes, which have the sp. gr. 5.39. Few vapors are so corrosive or so dangerous to those exposed to their inhalation. Bromine has recently been prescribed as an antiseptic in purifying the atmosphere of hospitals where erysipelas, gangrene, scarlatina, and smallpox exist, and is used locally in some of these diseases, and in- ternally in diphtheria, and in cases in which iodine has lost its effect from habitual use. With a view to facilitate its employment Dr. J. Lawrence Smith has proposed the following solution:— Take of Bromine.....A troyounce. Bromide of potassium . .160 grains. Distilled water .... Sufficient to make f giv. Dissolve the bromide of potassium in about two fluidounces of water, add the bromine, agitate, and finally add the remainder of the water. It should be kept in small ground-stoppered vials. The dose of this would be from one to two drops. Bittern, as obtained from the salt works, is a heavy liquid, without color, and haying a caustic taste and highly stimulating properties. Its chief medicinal use is to produce a counter-irritant and alterative effect, and, by continued rubbing of the part, a pustular eruption. It is a good application in rheumatism, and in glandular swellings being absorbed, and producing the alterative effects of the iodine and bromine salts. Bibron's Antidote to the Poison of the Rattlesnake.—This combination, introduced to the profession in the United States by Dr. W. A. Ham- mond, of the U. S. Army, is the invention of Prof. Bibron, of France. It has been found an efficient antidote in a number of cases of poison- ing by the bite of this venomous reptile. Mix Iodide of potassium . . Four grains. Corrosive chloride of mercury Two grains. Bromine .... Five drachms. Diluted alcohol . . . Seven fluidounces and a half. Take ten drops in a tablespoonful of brandy, repeated as required. ON PHOSPHORUS. 341 Chloride of Bromine. BrCl5. This compound is prepared by passing a stream of chlorine gas through bromine in a freezing mixture, or at a low temperature. It is a reddish liquid, very fluid and volatile, soluble in water, and having a penetrating odor and disagreeable taste. It has been used externally as a caustic, in combination with chlo- rides of zinc, antimony, &c, and internally in doses of a fraction of a drop, as a powerful stimulant to the lymphatic system. Iodine forms two compounds with bromine, but they are little known, and not used in medicine. Potassii Bromidum. KBr — 117.6." Bromide of potassium is obtained by similar processes to iodide, substituting an equivalent quantity of bromine for the iodine. It closely resembles the iodide in most of its properties, and, like it, is an anhydrous salt. It is believed to possess similar medicinal pro- perties to iodide, acting as a powerful alterative, adapted to scrofulous and syphilitic complaints, chronic skin diseases, &c. Eecent researches upon its medical properties exhibit remarkable sedative effects in this salt upon the urino-genital organs, and an especial influence over the muscular part of these organs and their secretory functions. It is directed in rather larger doses—gr. v to gr. xx. Tests.—It is very soluble in cold water, more so in hot, slightly soluble in alcohol. By heat it decrepitates, and at a red heat fuses without decom- position or loss of weight. Its aqueous solution does not affect the color of litmus or turmeric, and is not precipitated by chloride of barium. When mixed with starch and heated with S03 it becomes yellow; 10 grains of it require 14.28 grains of nitrate of silver for complete precipitation, and the precipitate formed has a yellow color. If iodine is present it will be shown by adding a few drops of chlorine water to the solution, and then introducing starch paper, which will show the characteristic blue color caused by iodine. Liquor Ferri Bromidi. This preparation was introduced to notice by Dr. Gillespie, of Free- port, Armstrong Co., Pa., who, besides being a practitioner of medicine, is engaged in the bromine manufacture, in connection with the salt springs near that place. Dr. G. recommends this solution very highly as a tonic alterative, and it has been successfully used by numerous other practitioners. It is made by macerating iron filings with bro- mine under water, till they have combined; an excess of bromine being used. The solution, as made by Dr. Gillespie, is given in the dose "lv to x, three times a day, increased to "Ixxv. On Phosphorus. Phosphorus has, ever since its discovery in 1669, been regarded as a substance of considerable interest, though until our time little used in the arts, and to meet only limited and unusual indications in medi- cine; its manufacture has, of latter years, received a great impulse from its use in the odorless matches now so extensively introduced 342 ON THE NON-METALLIC ELEMENTS, ETC. Phosphorus exists in the mineral, vegetable, and animal kingdoms variously combined, the phosphates of lime, lead, iron, copper, and manganese being its principal native mineral compounds. Phosphate of lime, potassa, and iron, and free phosphoric acid, are extensively diffused in plants, and from these sources it is furnished as a constitu- ent of animal tissues. The bones of animals contain a large propor- tion of tribasic phosphate of lime, and are used for the preparation of phosphoric acid and phosphorus. The albuminous and fibrinous tis- sues, " proteine compounds," and the brain, contain the element phos- phorus, though in minute quantity and in an uncertain state of com- bination. This element, as is well known, is a constituent in animal excrements, and especially in urine; it is diffused in the air, combined with hydrogen, and is a very important ingredient in a certain class of manures. Preparation and Properties.—It is obtainable from bones, by calcin- ing, treating with oil of vitriol, and then subliming the mass with charcoal. The phosphorus is thus collected, and being cast into moulds, is found in commerce nearly colorless, in translucent, or white pipes, having a peculiar, almost waxy consistence, and by light assuming a red tint. It is luminous in the dark, from forming phosphorous acid (P03), and is kept under water to prevent gradual oxidation, and to guard against accident from its ready inflammability. It should be handled with care, and not intrusted to children, who frequently pro- cure it for experiment, without due precaution. Its sp. gr. is 1.77. Melting point, 108° F.; at 217° it begins to emit a slight vapor, and boils at 550°, being converted into a colorless vapor. It is soluble in ether, oils, naphtha, and bisulphuret of carbon, but not in water or alcohol. By combustion it yields phosphoric acid, the acid which is combined with lime in bones, &c. It is readily powdered by fusion in a vial or flask of moderately warm water, or, preferably, diluted alcohol, and shaking up as it cools. Phosphorus, when taken internally, enters the circulation, imparts to the breath, urine, and sweat, a garlic smell, and makes these secre- tions luminous in the dark ; it is absorbed by the skin, and after its solution in a fixed oil has been rubbed upon the stomach all the exhalations are luminous. On account of its very energetic action, phosphorus is now seldom employed internally. In small doses it acts as a stimulant, diuretic, and diaphoretic; in larger doses, one grain and more, as a corrosive poison ; ether and fixed oils in which phosphorus is soluble increase and hasten its action. Externally in the form of liniment, it has been employed with marked success in severe rheumatisms, gouts, and simi- lar affections. Great caution is necessary in its use. Red phosphorus is an allotropic variety which is very different from the foregoing in many of its properties; it is not poisonous, but may be administered in considerable doses. If the ordinary kind is kept for several days at a temperature between 465° to 480°, red phospho- rus is found at the bottom of the vessel, while the supernatant mass is a mixture of both varieties, from which the ordinary kind may be extracted by bisulphide of carbon. SULPHUR AND ITS PREPARATIONS 343 Eed phosphorus is much less inflammable, fusible, and luminous than the ordinary kind ; in the presence of moisture and oxygen it is gradually oxidized to an acid liquid, but without phosphorescence; after having been so oxidized, it appears not to be convertible into the translucent or ordinary kind. The application of physiological science to the theory and practice of medicine has recently given rise to numerous experiments upon the usefulness of phosphorous compounds, as nutritive tonics designed to remedy abnormal conditions of the secretions, and to supply the ele- ments wasted in disease. Prof. Samuel Jackson, of the Chair of Institutes in the University of Pennsylvania, whose progressive ideas have had considerable influ- ence upon the methods of practice pursued in this country, has for the last ten or fifteen years been in the habit of prescribing certain prepa- rations containing the phosphates of lime, iron, soda, and potassa, in the treatment of anasmic and other low forms of disease. The popularity reached by these preparations has led to the extensive introduction of other remedies, prepared on the same principles, and, more recently, the announcement by Dr. J. Francis Churchill, of Paris, of import- ant properties in the hypophosphites, adapting these to the treatment of phthisis, has led to their wide spread employment. These salts are described under the heads of their several metallic, alkaline, and earthy bases. Tests.—To detect impurities in phosphorus, it is best to oxidize it by nitric acid ; antimony then remains undissolved, while arsenic, lead, bismuth, copper, and iron may be detected by their various tests; arsenic will pro- duce yellow precipitate with sulphuretted hydrogen; any sulphur present has been converted into sulphuric acid, with which nitrate of baryta causes an insoluble precipitate. The metals are left behind if phosphorus is puri- fied by dissolving it in bisulphide of carbon ; sulphur is not detected in this way, but if pieces of phosphorus are just covered with water, sulphuretted hydrogen will be emitted, which produces a black color with acetate of lead. Phosphorus combines in four proportions with oxygen:— Phosphoric acid, P05 (three modifications). (See Mineral Acids.) Phosphorous " P03. By gradual oxidation of phosphorous in the atmosphere. Hypophosphorous acid, PO. By the decomposition of the phosphuret of an alka- line earth by water. Phosphoric oxide, P20. By the oxidation of phosphorus under water. The existence of this last compound is denied by many chemists, who assert it to be merely amorphous (red) phosphorus. Sulphur and its Preparations. Sulphur. Sublimed sulphur. Yellow crystalline powder. Dose, gr. x to 3U« " praecipitatum. A light and very fine powder. " " Sulphuris iodidum, IS2. Blackish crystalline masses, used in ointment. Sulphur. S= 16. (Flowers of Sulphur) Sulphur is a very abundant substance in the mineral kingdom, existing in direct combination with the metals, as sulphides or sul- 344 ON THE NON-METALLIC ELEMENTS, ETC. phurets; and with their oxides, as sulphates. Yirgin sulphur is a native, tolerably pure form, abundant in Naples, Sicily, and the Eoman States, from whence it is imported. By fusion, and running into moulds, roll sulphur or rolled brimstone is prepared, while flowers of sulphur is the result of subliming and condensing it in suitable chambers. Sulphur has a characteristic yellow color, sp. gr. 1.98, is entirely volatilized by heat, and combustible, burning with a blue color, yielding sulphurous acid gas (S02), v/hich is a powerful disinfectant and bleaching agent. Flowers of sulphur, or sublimed sulphur, is a crystalline powder, of a harsh and gritty character; wholly insoluble in water, alcohol, and ether; tasteless, and nearly odorless; it is the form of sulphur much administered as an alterative and laxative remedy in small doses; being absorbed, it enters the circulation and is given off from the skin as sulphuretted hydrogen. Externally, it is used as a slight stimulant to the skin, and has the power of destroying the acarus scabiei, or itch insect, for which it is popularly known as a remedy. Dose, as an alterative, gr. x to 3ss; as a laxative, 3ss to 3ij; alone or combined with bitartrate of potassa. Sulphur Prescipitatum. (Milk of Sulphur) Made by boiling sulphur and lime together till they combine, form- ing bisulphuret of calcium, and hyposulphite of lime, then adding muriatic acid, which abstracts the calcium, forming chloride, while the sulphur is precipitated as a bulky, light powder; the result of the reaction being water and sulphur. This has a soft and very fine con- sistence, and is adapted to suspending in liquids, though little used internally. It should be completely volatilized by heat. Yery con- siderable quantities have been consumed recently in the preparation of hair dressings, in which it is generally combined with acetate of lead, and by supplying the deficiency of sulphur in hair which has become white or gray, aids in gradually restoring its color. Dose, the same as the foregoing. Sulphuris Iodidum. IS%—158.3 (Bisulphuret of Iodine) Take of Iodine ........3iv. Sulphur........|j. Eub the iodine and sulphur together in a glass or porcelain mortar till they are thoroughly mixed. Put the mixture into a matrass, close the orifice loosely, and apply a gentle heat so as to darken the mass without melting it. When the color has become uniformly dark throughout, increase the heat so as to melt the iodide, then incline the matrass in different directions, in order to return into the mass the portions of iodine which may have condensed on the inner surface; lastly, allow the vessel to cool, break it, and put the iodide into bottles, which are to be well stopped. A suitable vessel for a small operation is a test tube, or a common, cheap bottle should be selected with thin glass at the bottom. The iodide is in bluish-black crystalline masses, in odor reminding of iodine, ON THE INORGANIC ACIDS. 345 staining the skin yellow. Two equivalents of sulphur are combined with one of iodine, so that it may be regarded as a bisulphuret. Internally, this is rarely or never prescribed, but it is much used in the form of ointment applied to chronic and obstinate skin diseases. CHAPTER III. ON THE INORGANIC ACIDS. All the inorganic acids employed in pharmacy are compounds, rich in oxygen, with the exceptions of hydriodic, hydrochloric, and hydrosulphuric, in which that element is wanting. Acids are electro-negative compounds; they usually have a sour taste, change the blue color of litmus to red, and affect other vegeta- ble colors similarly; with alkalies, whether vegetable or mineral, they form neutral salts in which the properties of both the ingredients are lost, while new properties are acquired. They also unite with the oxides of the metals proper, forming a great variety of valuable com- pounds which frequently exhibit slightly acid reactions and usually retain the peculiarities of the metal from which they are prepared, modified by the nature of the acid ingredient. The names of the mineral acids formed from the same element vary in their terminations according to the number of equivalents of oxygen they contain : thus, sulphun'c acid, S03, sulphurows acid, S02, Nitric, N05, Nitrows, N04, Phosphoric, P05, Phosphorows, P03, Hypo- phosphorous, PO, the degree of acidification being marked by the terminations ic, and ous and further by hypo, which indicates the acid containing less oxygen than that to which its name allies it, or per or hyper, which indicates a higher oxidation. The strong acids act upon cork, and should be kept in ground stop- pered bottles which, as made of extra strength, of green glass, are called acid bottles. Unless the stopper and neck are very well ground and fitted to each other, they require to be cemented or luted together to prevent the escape of the acid; this may be done by warming the stopper in the flame of a spirit lamp, and inserting it in the neck of the bottle till the two surfaces are dried and warmed, then coating it with a thin stratum of melted wax, and inserting it securely in its place, and tying it over with kid or bladder. The more common mineral acids are found in commerce of three qualities; the commonest and cheapest, used for manufacturing purposes, the medicinally pure, M. P., and the chemically pure C. P. The use of the latter is chiefly in analysis. The specific gravity furnishes a ready means of testing the strength of the liquid acids, and the Pharmacopoeia indicates this with precision in each case. The mineral acids generally belong to the class of tonics with re- frigerant and astringent properties. Externally, they are caustic, and 346 ON THE INORGANIC ACIDS. require to be applied with care, as many know from experience who have used them, nitric acid especially, for warts. Nitric acid is also used as an alterative in syphilitic and other forms of disease, and nitro-muriatic acid for its effect upon the liver in hepatic diseases. Acids are apt to injure the teeth, upon which they also produce a very unpleasant and characteristic sensation. To obviate this in tak- ing them, they should be largely diluted, and should be sucked through a small glass tube, which may be made by scratching a piece of the tube sold in the shops with a file; this enables the operator to break it at the point required, and then, by heating the sharp broken edges over an alcohol or gas flame till the glass melts, a rounded edge is left. One of the most important facts in connection with the strong mineral acids, is their occasional use accidentally, or for suicide, in poisonous doses. They are among the most powerful of poisons, owing to their corrosive properties producing the most painful and dangerous symptoms. The best antidotes are large draughts of alka- line and oily liquids; the alkali to neutralize the acid, and the oil to obtund its action upon the delicate mucous surfaces. The most ready resort in such emergencies is frequently soap, which should be made into a very strong solution and given ad libitum. Of the mineral acids, the following are used in medicine, and, except those in Italics, are officinal in the U. S. Pharmacopoeia of 1860:— Syllabus of Mineral Acids. Name. Composition, &c. Sp. Gr. Dose, &c. Acidum arseniosum As,03. See Preparations of Arsenic. f'jjth grain. (i boracicum Crystals, HO,B03 + 2HO 1.479 gr. x to 3j. ? ii carbonicum 5 measures C02 to 1 water (aq. ac. carbonic; ii chromicum Cr03, deep red crystals Caustic. M muriaticum Gaseous 11C1 + water 1.160 mjij to v. II " dilutum §j to f§iij water 1.038 n^xv to xxx. II nitricum 110,N06 + 4HO 1.420 mj to iv. (1 nitroso nitricum do. + N04 THJ to iv. Ii nitricum dilutum §iij to f^xiij water 1.068 Ti\,xv to xxx. II nitro-muriaticum |iij nitric to ,^v muriatic rt\,iij to v. II " " dilutum |j to f§iij water TTLXV tO XXX. II sulphuric um HO,S03 1.843 Try toij. II " dilutum §ij to f J xv water 1.082 TTLxv to xxx. II " aromat. +Alcohol, cinnamon, ginger TTLxv to xxx. II sulphurosum S02 in solutiou 1.035 Externally. II phosphoricum glaciale, solid HO,P06 (variable) gr. ij to iij. II phosphoricum dilutum §j to f^xij water-f N05 ^ss 1.056 TTLxv to xxx. ? TTLxv to xxx. (Test, &c.) TTLxv to xxx. Externally. 11 hydriodicum " Liquid HI,-(-water 1.112 II hydrosulphuric " Gaseous HS in solution II hypophosphorous " HO,2HO,PO,-r-9Aq. II II chlorohydrocyanicum sulphohydrocyanicum C2H2N,C15 Acidum Carbonicum. C02 = 22. This acid ordinarily exists as a gas, though capable of being lique- fied and even reduced to a solid form by pressure. It is an invariable AQUA ACIDI CARBONICI. 347 constituent of the atmosphere, being exhaled from the lungs of animals and given off from fermenting saccharine liquids and from the com- bustion of carbonaceous fuel. It is artificially procured by the de- composition of carbonates by any of the strong acids; chalk and marble dust, carbonates of lime, are the two principal minerals em- ployed for the purpose, and sulphuric or muriatic acid is selected for cheapness and availability. The application of heat is unnecessary, the gas easily escaping with effervescence. It should be passed through a vessel of water to deprive it of any soluble impurity. This gas ex- tinguishes flame, does not support animal life, and is distinguished by rendering lime-water turbid in consequence of converting°he hy- drate of lime in solution into the insoluble carbonate. The sp. gr. of this gas is 1.529 (53 per cent, heavier than the air). Cold water dissolves rather more than an equal volume of this gas, and the solution sparkles when decanted. The most important uses of carbonic acid to the manufacturing pharmaceutist are in the preparation of the bicarbon- ates of soda and potassa and of carbonic acid water, frequently mis- named soda water, more correctly " mineral water." Aqua Acidi Carbonici U. S. P. This solution is directed to be made by throwing into a receiver nearly filled with water, a quantity of carbonic acid gas equal to five times the bulk of the water; this is to be done by the aid of a forcing pump. The receiver, which is called a fountain, is usually made of copper lined with tin, of the capacity of 15 gallons. A majority of pharma- ceutists purchase the carbonic acid water from the regular manufac- turers, either owning or hiring the fountains; but those to whom the sale of the article as a beverage is a source of sufficient profit to justify the expense, frequently have apparatus for manufacturing it on the premises. In the first edition of this work two of these were figured, but as they are generally described in the circulars of the makers, which are accessible to all who wish to acquaint themselves with their relative advantages and price, I omit them here and insert the following con- venient form of apparatus. Fig. 198 represents a French gasogene, such as are imported of vari- ous sizes, from one quart to five gallons capacity. This is a strong glass vessel consisting of two bulbs joined togethei at their point of union by a tube of about half an inch bore extend- ing into the upper one to near the top. The upper bulb is surmounted by a metallic cap, on to which is screwed a draught pipe with a valve, opened by pressing with the thumb upon the button at the upper ex- tremity of a rod; attached to this draught pipe is a long glass tube of small diameter, passing through the larger tube, occupying the central space, to near the bottom of the apparatus. The object of this mode of construction is to permit the charging of water placed in the lower bulb, with gas, generated from carbonated alkali and acid placed in the upper bulb, without contaminating the water with the salts. Fig. 199 shows a section of the upper part with the mode of filling 348 ON THE INORGANIC ACIDS. the lower bulb with water by a long funnel, e, extending through the cap and neck of the apparatus, d, into the large tube, /; this obviously prevents any portion of water escaping into the upper bulb; the lower bulb is designed to be filled in this way about three-fourths full of cold water. Fig. 200 illustrates the ingenious arrangement for introducing the bicarb, soda and tartaric acid (one of which should be in crystals par- tially powdered) into the upper bulb; a is a rod with a metallic cone, Fig. 199. Fig. 200. b, of a diameter greater than the glass tube, /, and a leather washer, c, which is thrust into the tube and completely closes it. The wide- mouth funnel, e, is introduced into the cap and neck of the apparatus, and the dry salts, mixed, thrown into it; these, falling over the cone, b, lodge in the upper bulb; the rod and funnel are now removed and the draught pipe screwed on. By tilting the apparatus, some of the water runs through the larger tube into the upper bulb, and, partially dissolving the mixed powders, sets them to combining; a brisk evolution of carbonic acid ensues, and, by shaking, its absorption by the water is facilitated. By open- ing the valve in the draught pipe, the charged water, by its own elas- ticity and the pressure of the excess of gas, is driven up the narrow tube and through the valve, and escapes. The object of the wire Gasogene. MINERAL WATER COOLERS. 349 coating is to protect from injury in case of explosion, a purpose it but imperfectly fills. The water introduced may be flavored with syrup, or it may be drawn into a glass containing the flavoring ingredient. The absorp- tion of the gas is greatly facilitated by the refrigeration of the water, and by frequently shaking it up. This apparatus may serve the purpose of pharmaceutists who do not desire to dispense carbonic-acid water as a beverage, but need to keep it on hand for prescription purposes. Gasogenes are chiefly im- ported from Paris, and sold for six dollars and upwards. The chief use of carbonic-acid water in prescription is for dissolving saline substances in making aperient and antacid draughts, for sus- pending magnesia, for making solutions of citrate of potassa, and occa- sionally by itself as a grateful drink to allay thirst and lessen nausea. As a vehicle for magnesia or saline cathartics, eight fluidounces are usually prescribed, to be taken at once, or in divided portions fre- quently repeated. It parts with the gas upon exposure, and should, therefore, be used as soon as possible after the cork has been drawn. Sometimes, when prescribed in small doses, it is dispensed in one- ounce or two ounce vials, which are to be kept cold and securely corked, the contents of each being taken separately, directly from the mouth of the vial. The chief impurities to which carbonic acid water is liable are the carbo- nates of copper and lead, derived from the fountain and pipe from which it is drawn. These, particularly the former, render carbonic acid water not only worthless, but absolutely injurious; they may be detected by the metallic taste they impart to it, by the addition of ammonia, which gives a blue tint to the salts of copper, and by the ferrocyanide of potassium, which gives a garnet-colored precipitate, if copper is present. Iodide of potassium in- dicates the presence of lead by a yellow precipitate. Mineral water coolers and syrup holders are necessary to all who dispense this beverage. One of the best forms of cooler consists of a coil of half inch pipe disposed around the inside of a circular cedar tub placed under the counter; the pipe is terminated by a small air chamber, in which any excess of the gas is allowed to collect, so as to be drawn off by a screw ; this ap- pendage may be omitted where the bore of the pipe exceeds \ of an inch, and where it is not very long. The size of the tub and length of the pipe may be regulated by circumstances ; where the demand for the water is con- stant in hot weather, the tub should hold half a bushel of ice, and the pipe be at least fifty feet in length. An objection to this arrangement is found in the fact that the portion of the pipe between the top of the tub and the end of the draught pipe is not refrigerated, and the water it contains and the first which passes through it, are invariably drawn off first into the glass. This is obviated by the construction of a cooler upon the counter, which may or may not supersede the necessity of the cooler just described. The cooler for the counter may combine an ornamental vase and draught pipe with the advantage of a coil surrounded by ice, an arrangement now very generally adopted. Connected with this, the cooling of the syrups, also, is a desideratum, and I have recently contrived a vase, which consists of a central, oval cylinder of galvanized iron, closed at the lower end, and containing a coil of block-tin pipe thirty feet long, which is coupled on to a lead pipe communicating with the copper fountain underneath, and is ter- 350 ON THE INORGANIC ACIDS. minated by a draught pipe in the side of the vase ; this central cylinder holds about half a peck of broken ice; outside of this, and fitting closely against it, are eight syrup cans with a plated faucet at the base of each, arranged as closely as possible to admit of their being conveniently used, and all proceeding from the part of the vase facing behind the counter. This ice cylinder and series of cans form a perfect circle with straight sides, and over the hole a tin casing fits accurately, having the proper external contour to form a graceful vase, and the intervening space between this and the inside cylinders is occupied by an air-chamber, which furnishes a non- conducting medium between the ice and the external warmth. In order to have the syrup cans movable for the purpose of repairs, the faucets are all on a line corresponding with the floor of the vase, and the external casing has scallops cut out at its base corresponding with these and the draught pipe, so that the whole fits accurately together, and may be taken apart at pleasure. This apparatus is well adapted to an establishment where the sale is limited or the supply of ice small. It is of too little capacity for a large establish- ment, requiring to be too frequently replenished with ice; and when the syrup cans are emptied it is not readily apparent, as in the case of a trans- parent bottle. The number of syrups this cooler contains being limited, a further assortment is required to be kept in bottles, or in a separate syrup cooler. The same principle is carried out on a much larger scale by some pharma- ceutists in coolers of 18 inches to 2^ feet in diameter on top of the counter, which, being so well protected by a layer of two inches of non-conducting material, and holding so large a quantity of ice, require replenishing only once in several days, except in the hottest weather; these have 12 syrup cans of half a gallon to one gallon each, enough for a full assortment of syrups, and, except for their rather inconvenient size leave nothing to desire. The inconvenience in drawing syrups from a faucet, of a drop collecting at the tip of the pipe after it has been shut off, is obviated by an invention of Isaac S. Williams, of Philadelphia, by which a flat disk of metal moves with the lever and closes the end of the pipe as soon as the flow is stopped; by this contrivance the intrusion of flies and ants into the faucet is guarded against. Artificial Mineral Waters. This class of preparations has never attained a popularity to compare with the natural waters, but some pharmaceutists, who dispense largely of carbonic acid water, connect with this branch of their business the following, or others :— ' Artificial Saratoga Water. Mix Chloride of sodium ....... 3j. " magnesium, solution1 ..... f.^ij. Bicarbonate of soda ....... 3J- Solution of iodine (Lugol's).....f3ss. Tincture of chloride of iron ..... f^ss. Carbonic-acid water ....... Oiss. Filter. Into a Oj tumbler introduce f 5j of the mixture, fill it up with cjtrboiiic-acid water, and drink immediately. 1 Commercial muriatic acid saturated with magnesia. HYDROCHLORIC OR CHLOROHTDR1C ACID. 351 Acidum Boracicum. (Boracic or Boric Acid. B03-f 3110 = 61.9.) For medicinal purposes, this acid is prepared from borax. Mitscherlich recommends the following process : One part of borax is dissolved in four parts of boiling water, and decomposed by a quantity of muriatic acid suffi- cient to impart to the liquid a strong reaction on litmus paper; on cooling, boracic acid separates in shining scaly crystals, which are purified by recrys- tallization. Muriatic acid is preferable to sulphuric acid, for its extraction, because the boracic acid can be easily purified from the former acid adhering to it, while sulphuric can only be entirely expelled by exposing the product to a strong heat, or by precipitating the hot solution with a sufficient quantity of nitrate of baryta. The acid is free of odor, has a bitter taste, dissolves in 20 parts of cold water, and 5 parts of alcohol; its composition, as shown in the syllabus, is one equivalent of boron, 10.9, three of oxygen, 24=34.9, combined with one eq. of basic water and two of water of crystallization. It reddens litmus paper and imparts to curcuma paper a peculiar brown color. On boiling the solution much acid evaporates with the aqueous vapor; its alcoholic solution burns with a green flame. Impurities which it may contain are detected by alcohol, which leaves most of them behind; sulphuretted hydrogen, if metallic salts are present; chloride of barium, if sulphuric acid, and nitrate of silver, if muriatic acid is present. The salts of boracic acid are all soluble, and are decomposed in solution by most acids. Boracic acid is classified as a sedative ; it is not much used in medicine, except in combination with soda, as borax, and with bitartrate of potassa, which it renders soluble. (See Potassae et Boracis Tartras.) Acidum Chromicum. Cr,O3=50.75. Prep.—To 100 parts, by measure, of cold saturated solution of bichromate of potassa, 150 parts of pure sulphuric acid are added and allowed to remain till cool; the sulphuric acid unites with the potassa, and the chromic acid crystallizes in deep red needles—very soluble and deliquescent. It is a powerful oxidizing and bleaching agent, and acts as a solvent of organic matter. In medicine its chief use is a caustic application, which, it is said, is less painful than most others, and, when rightly managed, does not spread beyond the prescribed limits, and so soon as its corrosive operation is finished passes into the state of inert pulverulent sesquioxide ; diluted with two parts of water, it has been used with success as an injection in uterine hemorrhage. When heated to a temperature between 356° and 374°, it melts into a reddish-brown liquid, which, on cooling, becomes a red, opaque brittle mass. If a few drops of alcohol are allowed to fall on a small por- tion of the acid, a vigorous action takes place, attended with an increase in bulk, and the liquid formed becomes yellowish-brown. Acidum Muriaticum. (Hydrochloric or Chlorohydric Acid. HC1 = 36.5.) Prepared by the action of sulphuric acid and water on chloride of sodium (common salt); bisulphate of soda and hydrochloric acid are formed; the latter gas is distilled over, the process being conducted in a retort or flask, connected with a receiver containing water, which absorbs it rapidly in proportion as it is refrigerated. A colorless or slightly yellow transparent liquid, giving oft' white acid fumes on exposure to the air. The sp. gr. of the medicinal acid is 1.16, which indicates the composition 11,01 + 7110 = 99.5. 352 ON THE INORGANIC ACIDS Rationale.—The water of the sulphuric acid is decomposed in the reaction, its oxygen combining with the sodium of the chloride of sodium to form soda, which unites with the sulphuric acid to form bisulphate of soda, while the hydrogen of the water and the chlorine being in a nascent condition combine to form the gaseous hydro- chloric acid which distils over and is absorbed by the water in the receiver. 2 (HO,S03) + NaCl=NaO,HO,2S03 + HC1.) Tests.—It should not dissolve gold leaf, as shown by the acid after digest- ing with it, giving no precipitate with protochloride of tin. The absence of metallic and saline impurities is shown by its being entirely volatile, and yielding no precipitate with chloride of barium hydrosulphuric acid or ammonia in excess. Reactions.—Muriatic acid may be recognized, by the evolution of chlo- rine, on treating a muriate with S03 and black oxide of manganese ; by the white precipitate occasioned by a soluble lead salt which is insoluble in ammonia and acids, but soluble in much hot water; by the white precipi- tate, produced in proto-salts of mercury which is rendered black by am- monia, dissolves very slowly in boiling muriatic or nitric acids, but readily in chlorine water and in aqua regia; by the white precipitate with nitrate of silver which acquires a dark, ultimately black color, in the sunlight, is insoluble in nitric acid, but readily soluble in ammonia. Acidum Muriaticum Dilutum U. S. P. Take of Muriatic acid .... 4 troyounces. Distilled water .... A sufficient quantity. Mix the acid in a glass vessel, with sufficient distilled water to make the diluted acid measure a pint. The specific gravity is 1.038. By the former editions of the Phar macopoeia fluid measure was designated instead of weight, so that the strength of the resulting diluted acid was dependent upon the weight of the strong acid employed; by directing the weighing ofjbe strong acid any deficiency in its specific gravity is compensated by an in- crease of quantity, so that the resulting diluted acid cannot vary widely from the standard. Its dose, as a tonic, is from 15 to 40 minims. Acidum Nitricum U. S. P. (Nitric Acid. HO,NO5, + 3HO=90.) Prepared by the action of sulphuric acid, in excess, upon an equal weight of nitrate of potassa (saltpetre) in a glass retort, when nitric acid and bisulphate of potassa are formed. Two equivalents of sul- phuric acid combine with one of potassa to form the bisulphate, and one equivalent of nitric acid is set free, KO,N05-f 2 (HO,S03) =K0, 2SOs4-IIO, + HOlNOr The acid, being volatile, is distilled over by the application of heat. It is a colorless transparent liquid, with powerfully acrid odor, and is exceedingly corrosive, staining the skin yellow. The strongest acid, containing one equivalent of water, has the specific gravity 1.521; but, owing to the presence of water in the ingredients used in its preparation, and its mixing readily in all pro- portions with water, it is usually weaker, and has its specific gravity reduced in proportion to its dilution. In the Pharmacopoeia of 1840, the officinal strength was 1.5, but it has been changed in the two last editions to 1.42, as stated in the Syllabus, the object being to adapt it ACIDUM NITRICUM DILUTUM. 353 more nearly to the usual strength of the commercial article, and to establish a standard easily attained. The proportion added to water in making the diluted acid was changed to correspond, and in the last edition, by the substitution of weight for measurement in designating the quantity, greater uniformity was secured. If nitric acid of a higher specific gravity than 1.42 be distilled, a stronger acid passes over first, and the boiling point of the residue in the retort gradually rises to 253°, when the officinal acid of 1.42 is distilled. An acid lighter than 1.42 also boils at a lower temperature, distilling a still weaker acid, the boiling point gradually rising to 253°, when it remains stationary; the officinal acid now distils, having the composition NO^-f 4H0, and containing 60 per cent. NO, and 40 per cent. HO. Tests.—The principal impurities are, nitrous acid, which is shown by a red color; sulphuric acid, which may be detected by adding to the diluted acid a solution of chloride of barium ; and chlorine or muriatie acid, which would occasion a white precipitate with nitrate of silver. Reactions.—Nitric acid is remarkable for furnishing salts which are in- variably soluble, except some basic salts of which the officinal subnitrate of bismuth is an example. Cyanide of potassium, mixed with a nitrate and heated on platinum foil, causes detonation and ignition. Copper filings, if mixed with a nitrate, will cause the evolution of red nitrous acid fumes after the addition of concentrated sulphuric acid. The solution of a nitrate, to which concentrated sulphuric acid has been added, and afterwards a crystal of protosulphate of iron, acquires a deep brown color around the crystal, which disappears on agitation or on heating. Added to morphia or one of its salts, nitric acid strikes a blood-red color, which changes to yellow ; a reaction which may also be produced by heating a nitrate in a test tube with a drop of sulphuric acid, and then adding morphia; the same effect is produced by brucia and commercial strychnia. Acidum Nitricum Dilutum U. S. P. Take of Nitric acid three troyounces. Distilled water a sufficient quantity. Mix the acid in a glass vessel with sufficient distilled water to make the diluted acid measure a pint. The specific gravity of this is 1.068. Dose, 15 to 40 minims. Nitrous acid (though, correctly speaking, the name is applied to a red- colored gas, having the composition N03, formed whenever binoxide of nitro- gen, X02, escapes into the air) is commonly understood in trade to apply to fuming red-colored nitric acid, such as passes over chiefly at the commence- ment and close of the process of distilling nitrate of potassa with sulphuric acid, as above. This kind of nitric acid contains nitrous acid fumes, which the manufacturers usually separate from the acid of commerce by boiling, thus rendering it colorless. The best and most distinctive name for the article under consideration is nitroso-nitric acid. Its chief use to the apothecary is in making Hope's camphor mixture, which is elsewhere spoken of as having peculiar value when made with this form of acid. As the prepara- tion of nitric and nitroso-nitric acid may often be desirable to the physician or apothecary, and as it is an easy and instructive experiment to the tyro, a description of the process as practised in a small way is appended. 23 354 ON THE INORGANIC ACIDS. A retort and receiver, such as are figured in Chapter I., Fig. 182, will answer the purpose. If the receiver is well refrigerated, there will be no difficulty in collecting the acid ; no luting of any kind is used. Nitrate of potassa, with half its weight of oil of vitriol (one equivalent of each), is now distilled; at about 250° the acid commences to pass over, afterwards the heat is increased, when the apparatus becomes filled with red fumes, which are absorbed by the nitric acid in the receiver, and with oxygen, which escapes; when the acid ceases to come over, the process is completed. On first decomposing the nitre, the sulphuric acid unites with one-half of the potassa, to form bisulphate of potassa, which, above 400°, acts on the other half of the nitre, setting nitric acid free, which is decomposed into nitrous acid and oxygen. The red fuming acid should be put away for use in glass-stoppered bottles; if the colorless XOs is preferred, it is heated or exposed to the air, to allow of the escape of the nitrous fumes. An extemporaneous process for the production of nitrous fumes in nitric ocid, is to drop, into a vial containing it, a few chips of some pure kind of wood; on this, part of the MOs will act, producing oxidation of the lig- neous matter, and liberating red fumes. This process is only suggested where the last is impracticable. When free nitrous acid is mixed with a considerable quantity of water it is instantly resolved into nitric acid, which unites with the water and binoxide of nitrogen, escapes with effervescence, but this change does not occur in the presence of nitric acid, for which nitrous acid has a strong affinity. Acidum Nitromuriaticum U. S. P. (Aqua Regia) Take of Nitric acid three troyounces. Muriatic acid five troyounces. Mix them in a glass vessel, and, when effervescence has ceased, keep the product in a well-stoppered bottle, in a cool place, protected from the light. This forms a deep yellow, corrosive, fuming liquid, containing chlo- rine and nitric oxide in an unknown state of combination. The acid dissolves gold, from the free chlorine present. It should be made in small quantities, as required, care being taken, in dispensing it, to allow the effervescence to cease before securing the stopper in the bottle. Acidum Nitromuriaticum Dilutum U. S. P. Take of Nitric acid a troyounce and a half. Muriatic acid two troyounces and a half. Distilled water a sufficient quantity. Mix the acids in a well-stopped bottle, having the capacity of a pint. Shake them together occasionally during twenty-four hours, and then add sufficient distilled water to make the diluted acid measure a pint. Lastly, keep it in a cool place, protected from the light. This diluted acid is a new officinal and a convenient and long needed preparation for the practitioner. The eminent usefulness of nitro- muriatic acid as a tonic and stimulant to the liver, makes it important that a preparation of convenient strength for use should be provided by the pharmaceutist. The chlorine and nitric oxide eliminated from the strong acid are fully retained in solution in the water here added ACIDUM SULPHURICUM DILUTUM. 355 to them. The dose is from 15 to 30 drops, which should be adminis- tered in a considerable quantity of sugar and water, preferably sucked through a glass tube so as not to affect the teeth. Acidum Sulphuricum U. S. P. (Oil of Vitriol, Sulphuric Acid. HO,S03.) Made by burning sulphur and nitrate of potassa together in leaden chambers. Sulphur, when burned, forms sulphurous acid (S02), which, in contact, in the form of vapor, with nitrous acid from the burning nitre, and water, becomes more highly oxidized into sulphuric acid, S03, which combines with one equivalent of water. It is an oily-looking, very heavy liquid (sp. gr. 1.845), without color when pure, having no odor, but an intensely acid caustic taste. It becomes darkened in color by contact with vegetable substances, which it chars by abstracting from them the elements of water. When mixed with water, it readily combines with it, disengaging heat; its strong affinity for water is one of its useful properties. When largely diluted with water, it is apt to deposit a white precipitate of sulphate of lead derived from the leaden vessels used in concentrating it. It unites with alkalies and alkaline earths, and separates all other acids more or less completely from their combinations with these. Reactions.—It is easy to determine the nature of this acid, whether free or in combination; its characteristic reaction is a white precipitate with all soluble salts of baryta, which is insoluble in water, in acids, and alkalies. Impurities.—Sulphate of lead is apt to be present in sulphuric acid, and maybe detected and separated by dilution with an equal bulk of water, which will separate it as a white cloud. Arsenic is an occasional impurity, which may be detected by sulphuretted hydrogen, giving a yellow precipitate when passed through it. Arsenic, if present in sulphuric aeid, may be removed by adding some muriatic acid, and heating, when, by double decomposition, water and chloride of arsenic are formed, the latter readily volatilizing ; it' is necessary to evaporate the excess of water from the acid afterwards (Buch- ner's method). To avoid this, Loewe proposed to add chloride of sodium to the heated acid gradually, as long as arsenical vapors are emitted ; the sulphuric acid will be contaminated with a little sulphate of soda, which, however, does not render it unfit for any ordinary purpose. Medical Properties.—It is only prescribed internally in one of the officinal diluted forms which follow, though occasionally the strong acid is used in ointments. It is a powerful tonic, an antiseptic, and a refrigerant, and, externally, is used as a caustic, though rather unsuited for that use. Acidum Sulphuricum Dilutum U. S. P. Take of Sulphuric acid two troyounces. Distilled water a sufficient quantity. Add the acid gradually to fourteen fluidounces of distilled water and mix them; then filter through paper and pass sufficient distilled water through the filter to make the diluted acid measure a pint. The specific gravity of this is 1.082. The white precipitate at first formed, on mixing with water (sulphate of lead), will be separated on the filter, leaving the pure diluted acid. Its dose is from 15 to 40 minims, freely diluted. 356 ON THE INORGANIC ACIDS. Acidum Sulphuricum Aromaticum U. S. P. (Elixir of Vitriol.) Take of Sulphuric acid six troyounces. Ginger, in coarse powder, a troyounce. Cinnamon, in coarse powder, a troyounce and a half. Alcohol a sufficient quantity to make two pints. Add the acid gradually to Oj alcohol, and allow the liquor to cool. Mix the ginger and cinnamon, and having put them into a percolator, pour alcohol gradually upon them until a pint of tincture is obtained. Lastly, mix the diluted acid and the tincture. Formerly, the tincture was made by treating the powdered aromatics directly with the mixed alcohol and acid. The present process is an improvement, giving a clearer and more elegant tincture. Elixir of vitriol is stronger than diluted sulphuric acid, though its dose in drops is usually about the same, the alcoholic liquid giving smaller drops than the aqueous. This preparation is very extensively used as a refrigerant, tonic, and astringent. It is a popular remedy for night-sweats in phthisis, and fer debility generally. In making solutions and pills of quinine, also in the officinal infusion of cinchona, it has important pharmaceutical uses. Acidum Sulphurosum U. S. P. (Sulphurous Acid.) Take of Sulphuric acid eight troyounces. Charcoal, in coarse powder, a troyounce. Distilled water thirty-six fluidounces. Pour the acid upon the charcoal, previously introduced into a matrass, and shake them together. Connect the matrass with a wash- ing bottle, and this, by means of a bent glass tube reaching nearly to the bottom of it, with a two-necked bottle containing the distilled water. To the other neck of this bottle attach another bent tube, and let it dip slightly into a solution of carbonate of soda. All the joints having been properly luted, apply heat to the matrass until gas ceases to be evolved, preventing the temperature of the distillate from rising, by means of cold water applied to the bottle containing it. Lastly, pour the sulphurous acid into half-pint bottles, which must be well- stopped, and kept in a cool place. When sulphuric acid, S03, is heated in contact with certain oxidizable substances, among which is common charcoal, it parts with one equiva- lent of oxygen, and is converted into sulphurous acid, S02; this is a gas very soluble in water, and by passing it into a vessel containing water it is absorbed, and constitutes the liquid acid. The interven- tion of a wash bottle containing water, and of an additional bottle of carbonate of soda is to remove any portions of sulphuric and car- bonic acids, the latter a product of the oxidation of the carbon. This is a new preparation in the Pharmacopoeia; it is adapted to the treat- ment of certain skin diseases, but practitioners have as vet but little familiarity with its uses. It is a powerful antiseptic and bleaching agent, and the gas, when liberated, is corrosive and suffocating. It is a colorless liquid, having the odor of burning sulphur, and a sul- phurous, sour, and somewhat astringent taste. Its specific gravity is about PHOSPHORIC ACID. 357 1.035. When saturated with ammonia, and then treated with an excess of chloride of barium, it should afford a clear or nearly clear solution on tho addition of muriatic acid in excess. Acidum Phosphoricum Glaciah U. S. P. (Phosphoric Acid) This is prepared from calcined bones (bone phosphate of lime), by decomposing them with sulphuric acid, by which process a superphos- phate of lime is produced (the article used as a basis for the manure known by that name). ^ The superphosphate is neutralized by car- bonate of ammonia, which generates phosphate of ammonia in solu- tion with precipitation of phosphate of lime. By calcining phosphate of ammonia at a red heat, the volatile ingredient is expelled, and the solid HO,P05 remains combined with 1, 2, or 3 equivalents of water, or is a mixture of the tri, the bi, and the monobasic acid; the amount of water being dependent on the temperature. This acid hence exists in three allotropic modifications: 1, the or- dinary tribasic, which is capable of uniting with three equivalents of a metallic oxide, and precipitating silver salts yellow; 2, pyro-phos- phoric acid, prepared by calcination of a phosphate, which unites with • but 2 equivalents of a base, and precipitates silver salts white; 3, meta- phosphoric acid, obtained by burning phosphorus in oxygen or atmos- pheric air; this unites with only one equivalent of a base, precipitates silver salts white, and has the property of coagulating albumen. To convert the two lower hydrates into the tribasic acid, Prof. Maisch re- commends the use of nitric acid, as in the formula for the diluted acid. He finds that of three specimens examined, the percentage of anhydrous PO, was respectively 70.2 per cent., 77.19 and 83.48 per cent. To obtain glacial phosphoric acid pure, the fusion must take place at a considerable elevation of temperature in a platinum vessel; vessels of clay, porcelain, and glass, which are generally employed by large manufacturers, are objectionable for this purpose, as the resulting acid is more or less contaminated with lime, magnesia, and silicic acid, which render the crystals slow of solution. Even silver vessels are corroded by the melted acid. Two specimens taken from the same jar, of Merck's manufacture were found by Prof. Maisch (see "Am. Journal of Pharmacy," 1860, p. 193) to be contaminated in the one case with .794 per cent., and in another with .818 per cent, of these impurities. As far as I am acquainted with the source of the phosphoric acid in the American market, it is all of the manufacture of Merck, of Darmstadt, although it is also made by Morson & Son, of London, and by several other manufacturers on the Continent of Europe, who exhibited specimens at the late Industrial exhibition in London. It is in transparent, glossy looking, solid and very hard, though slightly deliquescent masses, of an intensely sour taste, without odor, and freely, j though somewhat slowly, soluble in water and alcohol, dissolving with a characteristic crackling sound. " Its aqueous solution is not precipitated by hydrosulphuric acid, and no precipitate takes place after the liquid has stood for forty-eight hours. Chloride of barium causes a white precipitate, which is readily dissolved 358 ON THE INORGANIC ACIDS. by an excess of the acid. Ammonia in excess produces but a slight tnr- bidness, and caustic potassa in excess evolves no ammonia." There are many curious properties of phosphoric acid compounds which show them to occupy an intermediate place among chemical agents, between mineral and organic bodies, to possess most unusual polymeric properties, and a pliancy of constitution, which, to use the language of Graham, "peculiarly adapts the phosphoric above all other mineral acids to the wants of the animal economy." Acidum Phosphoricum Dilutum U. S. P. (Diluted Phosphoric Acid) Take of Phosphorus three hundred and sixty grains. Nitric acid five troyounces, or a sufficient quantity. Distilled water a sufficient quantity. Mix five troyounces of nitric acid with half a pint of distilled water, in a porcelain capsule, of the capacity of two pints. Add the phos- phorus, and invert over it a glass funnel of such dimensions that its rim may rest on the inside of the capsule, near the surface of the liquid. Place the capsule on a sandbath, and apply a moderate heat until the phosphorus is dissolved, and red vapors cease to arise. If the reaction become too violent, add a little distilled water; and if the red vapors cease to be evolved before the phosphorus is all dissolved, gradually add nitric acid, diluted to the same extent as before with distilled water, until the solution is effected. Then, removing the funnel, continue the heat until the excess of nitric acid is driven off, and a syrupy liquid, free from odor and weighing two ounces, remains. Lastly, mix this, when cold, with sufficient distilled water to make it measure twenty fluidounces, and filter through paper. Diluted phosphoric acid may also be prepared by dissolving a troy- ounce of glacial phosphoric acid in three fluidounces of distilled water, adding to the solution forty grains of nitric acid, boiling it until re- duced to a syrupy liquid, free from the odor of nitric acid, and then adding sufficient distilled water to make the diluted acid measure twelve fluidounces and a half. The first of these processes is too inconvenient to be generally fol- lowed by apothecaries who have ready access to the glacial acid. It is founded on the well-known power of nitric acid to part with two equi- valents of its oxygen by contact with substances having a strong affinity for that element. Of these, phosphorus is a remarkable instance, and unless precautions are taken to check the reaction, as in the formula, it is accompanied by violent explosion, with danger of the ingredients being thrown out of the vessel; the use of an inverted funnel to pre- vent this is an admirable expedient. The second process, founded on the experiments of Prof. Maisch, on the conversion of the monohydrated into common or tribasic acid, contains a modification of the process given in the last edition of this work, by the introduction of nitric acid, which is afterwards driveo off by boiling; the resulting acid is then of the kind that unites with three_ equivalents of a base, and precipitates the salts of silver yellow. It is a colorless liquid without odor, of an agreeable acid taste, sp. gr. 1.056. It is used in the dose prescribed in the syllabus as a tonic. ACIDUM HYDRIODICUM DILUTUM. 359 It is employed in the preparation of the phosphatic lozenges and of the syrups of phosphate of lime and other preparations of the kind. The vapors of boiling diluted phosphoric acid are without action on litmus paper; the acid is not rendered turbid by alcohol, and no precipitate is oc- casioned by the dilute solution of a baryta salt, which remains not entirely dissolved in an excess of phosphoric acid, nor is it soluble in uitric anil muriatic acids, but freely in muriate of ammonia. Arsenic is sometimes present, either from the phosphorus or the sulphuric acid employed, and it is then in the state of arsenic acid; to detect it, the acid is first mixed with sulphurous acid and heated to expel the excess added, after which the addi- tion of sulphuretted hydrogen causes a yellow precipitate. Solution of sul- phate of lime produces a white precipitate soluble in acids. Magnesia salts in the presence of free ammonia cause a white precipitate insoluble in am- monia and ammonia-salts, but dissolving in acids. A solution of a phosphate acidulated with muriatic acid, produces with a drop or two of sesquichloride of iron, and the subsequent addition of ace- tate of potassa, a gelatinous, white precipitate of phosphate of sesquioxide of iron. Acidum Hydriodicum Dilutum U. S. P. Take of Iodine, in fine powder, a troyounce. Distilled water a sufficient quantity. Mix thirty grains of iodine with five fluidounces of distilled water in a tall glass-stoppered bottle, having the capacity of half a pint, and pass into the mixture hydrosulphuric acid gas until the color of the iodine entirely disappears, and a turbid liquid remains Detach the bottle from the apparatus employed for introducing the gas, and gradually add the remainder of the iodine, stirring at the same time. Then re-attach the bottle, and again pass the gas until the liquid becomes colorless. Decant the liquid into a small matrass which it is nearly sufficient to fill, boil it until it ceases to emit the odor of hydrosulphuric acid, and filter through paper. Then pass sufficient distilled water through the filter to bring the filtered liquid to the measure of six fluidounces. Lastly, keep the liquid in a well- stopped bottle. The hydrosulphuric acid gas, required in this process, may be ob- tained by mixing, in a suitable apparatus, a troyounce and a half of sulphuret of iron, two troyounces of sulphuric acid, and six fluid- ounces of water. This is a new officinal formula, considered quite an improvement on the former process of decomposing iodide of potassium by tartaric acid. The acid has a peculiar acid taste and smell, which are not dis- agreeable in its diluted state. It is considered to possess the medicinal properties of free iodine without its local irritating effects, if diluted with water; it has been given in doses commencing with a few drops, gradually increasing, two or three times a day. It is a good solvent for iodine. Diluted hydriodic acid is a sour liquid, colorless when recently prepared, and having the specific gravity of 1.112. It is wholly volatilized by heat, and is decomposed by nitric and sulphuric acids, with the liberation of 360 ON THE INORGANIC ACIDS. iodine. When kept in contact with the air, it gradually becomes brown, and acquires an iodine odor. Acidum Hydrosulphuricum, Hydrothionicum, HS.—Sulphuretted hy- drogen occurs naturally in the so-called sulphur springs, many of which have a high reputation as remedial agents. The White Sulphur Springs, in Virginia, and the far-famed Aix la Chapelle, Warmbrun, and Baden Springs, in Germany, and the springs at Harrowgate, in England, Moffat, in Scotland, Bareges, Cauterets, in France, and many others, owe their cele- brity, in part, to sulphuretted hydrogen. These springs never contain it alone to the exclusion of other gases ; nitrogen, oxygen, carburetted hydro- gen, and carbonic acid, are often found in the same waters. This acid is prepared artificially by mixing an ounce and a half of black sulphuret of iron with two ounces of sulphuric acid, and six of water, in a flask, and conducting the gas through a glass tube and wash bottle into water. The irou, being oxidized by the oxygen of the water, liberates the hydrogen, which, in its nascent state, combines with the nascent sulphur, to form this gaseous acid, which, after being washed by passing it through a little water, is conducted into distilled water, kept well refrigerated. It is a colorless liquid, of a penetrating, disagreeable odor, like rotten eggs, and when inhaled acts as a poison. In contact with air, it is decomposed, hydrogen being oxidized to water, and sulphur precipitated. Hydrosulphuric or sulphhydric acid precipitates a large class of metallic salts, and is, on that account, very much used as a test liquid in analytical researches. It is free of sulphuric acid, if no precipitate occurs with chloride of bari- um, and of muriatic acid, if the filtrate from the precipitate with nitrate of copper occasions no precipitate with nitrate of silver. The natural sulphur waters are much used in rheumatic and cutaneous diseases; externally, as baths, and also freely in large draughts. The aqueous solution of this acid is not, I believe, prescribed as a medicine. Acidum Hypophosphoricum. HO, + 2HO,PO. Hypophosphorous acid is a compound of phosphorus and oxygen, one equivalent of each, PO. It requires, however, not less than three equiva- lents of water to form the liquid acid, and of these, two equivalents enter into its salts, one only being replaced by bases. When heated, these salts emit phosphuretted hydrogen, a peculiar self-inflammable gas (fire- damp) of an odor reminding some, of garlic. They are permanent in the air, but in solution, by heat, are liable to absorb oxygen ; they are all soluble in water, and a few are crystalline. Several processes have been used to produce these salts. Rose recommends boiling phosphorus in a solution of caustic baryta till all the phosphorus disappears, and the vapors have no longer the garlic odor. Lime is found to answer the same purpose, and is commonly used. Hypophosphite of lime is perhaps the most import- ant of these salts ; by oxidation in the animal economy, it is probably con- verted into readily assimilable nascent phosphate of lime, and by decom- position it furnishes the other salts of this acid and the acid itself. So far as I am aware, this acid has not been prescribed in a free state, but it is highly probable that it may come into use. Any claims which phosphoric acid may possess as an agent to supply the waste of phosphorus and phosphates in the human economy, must be more than equalled by this acid. Hypophosphite of baryta is the salt which is most eligible for the preparation of this acid, but it is convenient to prepare it from the lime salt, viz:— THE ALKALIES AND THEIR SALTS. 361 Take of Hypophosphite of lime . . . 480 grains. Crystallized oxalic acid . . .350 grains, or sufficient. Distilled water .... 9 fluidounces. Dissolve the hypophosphite of lime in six ounces of the water and the acid in the remainder, with the aid of heat; mix the solutions, pour the mixture on a white paper filter, and when the liquid has passed, add dis- tilled water carefully, till it measures ten fluidounces, and evaporate this to eight and a half fluidounces. The solution thus prepared contains about ten per cent, of terhydrated hypophosphorous acid (HO + 2HO.PO), a teaspoonful representing six grains of the acid, which contains two and a quarter grains of phosphorus. The dose of this acid solution would vary from ten minims to a teaspoonful. Acidum Chlorohydrocyanicum.—If fulminating silver is decomposed by muriatic acid, chloride of silver is precipitated, hydrocyanic acid evolved, and the liquid contains chlorohydrocyanic acid—2AgO C.NO + 7HC1= 2AgCl + HC2X + 4HO-f CSHUNC1S. It was discovered by Liebig. It has been employed by Drs. Turnbull and Turner in paralytic and tor- pid diseases of the eye and the ear, by exposing the diseased parts for half a minuteto the vapors of one drachm of the acid contained in a sponge in a proper vial. It acts as a stimulant, producing a slight irritation and sensa- tion of heat, and dilates the pupil less than hydrocyanic acid. Acidum Sulphohydrocyanicum, Rhodanicum.—It has been found in the seed of mustard and other cruciferae, and in the saliva of animals; but it is uncertain whether pre-existing or the result of a decomposition by reagents. To prepare it, powdered anhydrous ferrocyanuret of potassium is fused with flowers of sulphur at a moderate heat, dissolved in water, some oxide of iron precipitated by potassa, the filtrate evaporated, and the concentrated solution distilled with phosphoric acid. It is a colorless liquid, of a sour taste, which, when concentrated, is readily decomposed on keeping, but keeps unaltered for a considerable time in a diluted state. Its characteristic property is to impart a blood-red color to all neutral persalts of iron and to assume the same color in contact with paper, cork, and other organic bodies containing oxide of iron. _ It has been used by Dr. Turnbull in diseases of the eye, in a manner similar to chlorohydrocyanic acid. CHAPTER IV. THE ALKALIES AND THEIR SALTS. Alkalies are electro-positive bodies; they may be divided into inorganic alkalies, which are oxides of peculiar, light, and very com- bustible metals, and organic alkalies or alkaloids. Ammonia forms a connecting link between these, and may be classed with either, though most conveniently with the former. The four alkalies used in medi- cine, and to be presented in the present chapter, are, potassa, soda, litbia, and ammonia. They possess in common the property of turning vege- table reds to green or blue, and the yellow color of turmeric, and some othsr vegetable yellows, to brown. They neutralize acids, deprive 362 THE ALKALIES AND THEIR SALTS. them more or less of acidity, and form with them salts which are sometimes acid, sometimes alkaline, and sometimes neutral, according to the proportions and relative strengths of the acids employed. The laws which govern the formation of salts have been very tho- roughly studied, and are fully laid down in works on chemistry; a knowledge of these, in connection with the system of nomenclature founded on them, is in the highest degree important, whether to the practical or theoretical chemist. The plan of this work embraces only such reference to the laws of combination as the pharmaceutical history of some of the leading chemicals will necessarily bring- into view. The officinal names an; partly chemical and partly empirical, being, as more fully explained in the chapter on the Pharmacopoeia and its Nomenclature, framed with a view to distinctness and adaptation to the purpose, rather than to chemical accuracy or elegance. In chemical works, the classification of these is in accordance with their chemical relations and affinities, while in treatises on materia medica, they are arranged according to their therapeutical properties. In a pharmaceutical work like the present, it will be well, perhaps^ to present yet a different arrangement, and bring them into view with reference to their commercial sources and modes of preparation. The following arrangement is adopted in this chapter. The alkaline salts are classified into syllabi, and treated in the same rotation in the text. Group 1st.—Alkaline Salts prepared from natural mineral deposits. " 2d.—Salts, starting with wood ashes. " 3d.—Salts, starting with common salt. " 4th.—Salts, starting with crude tartar. " 5th.—Preparations of ammonia. Potassa, soda, lithia, and ammonia, in tlfeir caustic condition (or com- bined with carbonic acid, which rather modifies than changes their medical properties), are used in medicine chiefly for neutralizing ex- cess of acids existing in the secretions. In the case of ammonia, this use is combined with a powerful arterial stimulant property, adapting it to low forms of disease. The salts formed by these alkalies with the acids vary in their therapeutical properties. Some have a special tendency to the skin, some to the kidneys, some to the bowels, &c. Their physical properties are no less various; although they are mostly crystalline, some assume a pulverulent or amorphous form. The salts of potassa are generally disposed to deliquesce or become damp, while those of soda effloresce, or lose their water of crystalliza- tion, falling into powder. Those of ammonia, by decomposition, libe- rate their volatile and alkaline base, known by its pungency and by the production of a white cloud when brought in contact with vapor of muriatic acid. The class of salts formed by muriatic acid, with the alkalies and earths, have been found to be compounds of chlorine with the metallic radicals of these, and might be considered with the so-called hydrio- dates (iodides) among the halogen compounds, but are usually classed with the oxysalts. NITRE, OR SALTPETRE. 363 The oxysalts of the alkalies are nearly all soluble. The bitartratea of potassa and ammonia, and the antimoniate of soda, which occur as white crystalline precipitates, constitute exceptions, and in their pro- duction furnish tests for potassa and soda respectively. The great solubility of the alkalies and their compounds constitutes a prominent distinction between them and the earths, to be presented in another chapter. Most alkalies, both organic and inorganic, may be detected by form- ing with bichloride of platinum, especially in the presence of free muriatic acid, yellow crystalline double chlorides of platinum and the alkali, which, with the exception of. soda and a few organic alkalies, are precipitated from a concentrated solution, by alcohol. If a potassa salt is heated in the blow-pipe flame, the outer flame is colored violet; the same color is produced on igniting alcohol mixed with a salt; in both cases soda ought not to be present, as the color is obscured by it. Soda imparts an intensely yellow color to flame. The Alkalies and their Salts. GROUP 1.—Alkaline Salts—Prepared from Natural Mineral Deposits. Potassae nitras, KO,N05. From incrustations on the soil, in India and elsewhere. Sal-prunelle, KON05, fused with a little sulphur, and containing a trace of sulphate. Potassx chromas, KO,Cr03, from chrome iron ore and nitrate of potassa by fusion, 6.c. Potassae bichromas, KO,2Cr03, from chromate by an acid. Potassx bisulphas, KO,HO,2S03. The residuum of the process for nitric acid. Potassse sulphas, KOS03. By adding KO to the residuum of the process for nitric acid. Sodae boras, NaO,2BO3+10HO. Found native in Thibet and purified. Sodas nitras, Na0,NO5. Found native in the desert in Peru. Sodse tungstas, NaO,W03. From native tungstate of lime. Sel de Vichy, NaO,C02, &o. By evaporating Vichy spring water. Lithia, LiO. Existing in several minerals and mineral waters. Lithiae carbonas, LiO,COz, precipitated from the chloride by carb. ammonia. Potasses Nitras. (Nitre. KO,NOs.) Nitre, or saltpetre, is imported from the East Indies, where it is extracted from the soils by mixing them with a little wood-ashes, lixiviating with water, and crystallizing. It is refined in this country by recrystallization, and then exists in large six-sided, nearly colorless prisms, anhydrous, soluble in four parts of cold water, and with a cooling rather sharp taste. Among the uses of nitrate of potassa in pharmacy, are the preparation of nitric acid, of spirit of nitric ether, and of collodion. Owing to the im- mense consumption of it in a pure form by the manufacturers of gunpowder, they are resorted to for procuring the best qualities for medicinal use. Dupont, near Wilmington, Delaware, furnishes a fine article both in crystals and in the form of a granular powder. It is one of the most popular of the refrigerant, diuretic, and sedative medicines. Dose, gr. v to 9j. In over- doses it acts as a corrosive poison. Test.—Much of the saltpetre of commerce is adulterated with nitrate of soda and chloride of sodium (common salt). In the absence of these, 100 grains of the dry salt, treated with 60 grains of sulphuric acid, and the whole ignited in a crucible till it ceases to lose weight, yield 86 grains of sulphate of potassa. The presence of chlorides may be shown by treating a 364 THE ALKALIES AND THEIR SALTS. weak solution with a few drops of solution of nitrate of silver, which would throw down a white insoluble precipitate of chloride of silver. Sal Prunelle— This is fused saltpetre run into round moulds about the size of a filbert, of a white color, and possessing the properties of the nitrate. From the use of sulphur in its fusion, it often contains sulphate of potassa. It is used to dissolve in the mouth in affections of the throat. Soda Nitras. (Cubic Nitre. NaO,N05.) This salt is found in the desert of Atacama, in Peru, where it forms beds of vast extent. The natural deposits contain chlorides and sul- phates of soda, and other bases in variable proportions. The native salt, therefore, requires to be purified by recrystallization from twice its weight of boiling water, when it is generally sufficiently pure for medical purposes. It is used in the manufacture of sulphuric and nitric acids, and of manures. In a state of purity, suitable for usein medicine, it may be made by neutralizing carbonate of soda with nitric acid, evaporating and crystallizing. It has been highly recom- mended in dysentery in a dose of from half an ounce to an ounce in a day, in mucilage. It crystallizes in rhombohedrons, detonates less violently than saltpetre upon burning charcoal, when it shows a yellow flame. Its solution in dis- tilled water is not disturbed by any reagent, except those few precipitating the soda; chlorides are detected as above. Potasses Chromas. KO,Cr03. This salt is obtained in large manufactories as a preliminary step to the preparation of the bichromate, by melting powdered chrome iron ore (FeO,Cr20,) with saltpetre, dissolving it out with water, evapo- rating and crystallizing. For pharmaceutical use it may be conve- niently made by adding carbonate of potassa to a solution of the bichromate until it has acquired a slight alkaline reaction. It occurs in lemon-yellow prisms of a bitter, almost styptic taste, requiring little more than two parts of water at 60° for its solution, which has an alkaline reaction; it is insoluble in alcohol. It is an irritating resolvent, alterative and emetic; the dose is one- eighth of a grain every two or three hours; or from 2 to 4 grs. as an emetic. It is used in the preparation of a cheap writing fluid with extract of logwood. Potassae Bichromas. KO,2Cr03. This salt is prepared from chromate of potassa, by adding to a solution of the latter sulphuric acid, which abstracts an equivalent of the base from two of the chromate, and leaves one equivalent of the bichromate in solution. As obtained in commerce it is sufficiently pure for medicinal purposes; it crystallizes in prisms, which are isomorphous with the anhydrous bisulphate of potassa, but the latter, owing to its greater solubility in water, can be easily removed by re- crystallization if present. Bichromate of potassa has an orange-red color and a cooling, bitter, metallic taste ; it is soluble in 10 parts of water at ordinary temperature, but is insoluble in alcohol. BORAX. 365 It has been employed as a powerful alterative in the dose of ??-$ to T'5 grain, repeated two or three times daily. In larger doses, f to 1 grain, it acts as an emetic, but its use is dangerous on account of its irritating poisonous properties. It has been externally employed as a caustic and irritant in the form of a concentrated solution, and in powder. In pharmacy it is employed as an oxidizing agent in the preparation of valerianic acid. Tests.—Muriatic acid, or common salt, is detected by nitrate of silver ; sulphuric acid or sulphate of potassa by chloride of barium ; soda of salts by antimoniate of potassa ; lime and magnesia (as nitrates from imperfect purification) by carbonate of potassa; metallic oxides by sulphuretted hy- drogen and ferrocyanide of potassium. Potassae Bisulphas. (Bisulphate of Potassa. KO,HO,2SO.) Contained in the residuum of the preparation of nitric acid from nitrate of potassa, or obtained from the neutral sulphate by fusing it together with an excess of sulphuric acid, and recrystallizing it. It is readily soluble in water, and has a bitter acid taste; it con- tains 2HO. It is used occasionally in cases of constipation when the tonic effect of an acid is desired. The dose is one or two drachms. Potasses Sulphas. (Vitriolaled Tartar. KO,S03.) Sulphate of potassa is prepared from bisulphate, the residum left after treating nitrate of potassa with sulphuric acid, for the distillation of nitric acid; it is also a residuary product in the manufacture of sulphuric and of tartaric acid. To obtain the sulphate from bisulphate, lime is added, which on boiling abstracts the excess of sulphuric acid and is precipitated as sulphate of lime; by boiling with carbonate of potassa the excess of lime and sulphate of lime are removed, and the sulphate of potassa is then obtained pure by crystallization. The crystals are hard, heavy, and usually regular in their shape, being short six-sided prisms, terminated by corresponding pyramids. It is slowly soluble in 9| times its weight of cold and less than 4 times its weight of boiling water. It consists of one equivalent of sulphuric acid 40, and one of potassa 47.2 = 87.2. It is used in the'preparation of Dover's powder, but in this country is rarely given alone or in any other combination. It is esteemed a cathartic in doses of 3j to 3ij, and often prescribed as such in Europe, especially in cases of pregnancy. Tests.—Lime or its sulphate is detected by oxalate of potassa ; muriatic acid or chlorides by nitrate of silver; metallic oxides by sulphuretted hy- drogen. It is not often adulterated or sophisticated. Sodas Boras. (Borax. NaO,2BO3+10HO.) Borax is found native in Thibet, and imported in a crude condition from India, also manufactured from native boracic acid in Tuscany. In its refined condition it is in large and handsome white crystals, semi-transparent, with slight alkaline reaction, and slightly alkaline not disagreeable taste, soluble in 12 parts of cold water. Borax con- sists of two equivalents of boracic acid 69.8, and one of soda 31.3 = 366 THE ALKALIES AND THEIR SALTS. 101.1. The proportion of water of crystallization appears to vary with the process of crystallization, though generally, as stated in the syllabus, ten equivalents. This salt is called fo'-borate of soda, be- cause it contains two equivalents of its acid constituent, and sw&-borate of soda because it is alkaline in its reaction. It is thus anomalous in its relation to nomenclature. It is a diuretic and antacid, and by some is said to promote contrac- tion of the uterus, to which end it is associated with ergot. It is a very favorite addition to gargles and mouth-washes—being much pre- scribed for the sore mouth of infants, triturated with sugar, 1 part to 7, and touched to the tongue, or blown into the mouth through a quill. It is remarkable for its whitening effect upon ointments, upon which it seems to act by its sub-alkaline properties, partially saponi- fying them without materially diminishing their bland and emollient effects. Tests.—Alum is detected by a white precipitate occasioned by carb. of potassa; metallic oxides by sulphuretted hydrogen; sulphuric acid by nitrate of baryta, if the precipitate is insoluble in water; muriatic acid by nitrate of silver, if the precipitate is insoluble in nitric acid. Tungstateof Soda. NaO,WO,+ 2110= 169. This salt has been introduced as a preservative of cotton and other textile materials from fire. Tungstic acid consists of three equivalents of oxygen combined with one of the metal tungsten; it is obtained from the native tungstate of lime by digesting it with hydrochloric acid; chloride of calcium is dissolved, and tungstic acid precipitates. It is also obtained from wolfram, a native tungstate of manganese and iron, by digesting it in nitrohydrochloric acid, which dissolves the oxides of iron and manganese, and leaves the tungstic acid as a yel- low powder. This acid is quite insoluble in water and acids, but dis- solves in alkaline solutions. Tungstate of soda may be formed by fusing the wolfram with carbonate of soda, and digesting in water, which dissolves out the soda salt, and on evaporation yields it in crystals containing two equivalents of water. The mode of using it upon clothing to be protected from fire is as follows:— To three parts of good (dry) starch, add one part of tungstate of soda, and use the starch in the ordinary way. If the material does not require starching, mix in the proportion of one pound of tungstate of soda to two gallons of water—well satu- rate the fabric with this solution, and dry it. The heat of the iron in no way affects the non-inflammability of the fabric. Vichy Salt for making Artificial Vichy Water. There are two saline substances under this name, obtained by evapo- rating the water of the celebrated Yichy spring, in Germany; the one, consisting chiefly of carbonate of soda, crystallizes out when the waters are evaporated to a sp. gr. of about 1.200; the other is produced by evaporating to such an extent as that the residual saline mass sets upon cooling, and therefore contains nearly if not quite all the mineral CARBONATE OF LITHIA. 367 constituents not susceptible of decomposition by the process. The first of these salts is used for making Vichy water extemporaneously, the second for baths. Lithia. (LiO, = 14.) This alkali is the oxide of a rare metal resembling sodium, which floats on rock oil, and is the lightest of all known solids. Sp. gr. .5986. It belongs to the class of alkalies, as its carbonate is soluble and has an alkaline reac- tion. Lithia exists in small quantities in the minerals spodumene or triphane, petalite, and lepidolite, but the most abundant source of it has been a native phosphate Triphylene, found in Bavaria, consisting of phosphates of iron, manganese, and lithia. This mineral is dissolved in hydrochloric acid, the iron peroxidized by NOs, the solution diluted and the phosphate of iron thrown down by ammonia. The manganese is removed by HS, and the filtered liquid on evaporation calcined and treated with alcohol, which takes up the chloride of lithium. This source of lithia is said to be now exhausted. It is also prepared from lepidolite or lithia mica, in which it is associated with silica, alumina, and potash, and from the waters of Kreuzuach, in Prussia, and of certain mineral springs of Baden. All the salts of lithia impart a red color to flame, similar to that from stron- tia; soda hides this color. The double phosphate of lithia and soda is a very insoluble salt, requiring 1400 parts of water at 59° for solution, hence phosphate of soda is used as a test for its soluble salts. Lith ise Carbonas. ( Carbonate of Lithia, LiO,Cog=3695.) Carbonate of lithia is slowly precipitated from a solution of chloride by the addition of carbonate of ammonia in excess; it is then washed with alco- hol and dried. In the year 1843, Alexander Ure, of London, drew attention to an obser- vation of Lipowitz, that a solution of carbonate of lithia exerts a remarka- ble solvent power upon uric acid, and suggested that advantage might be taken of this fact by injecting into the bladder such a solution, with a view to dissolve or disintegrate uric acid calculi. In 1857, Dr. Garrod, of London, commenced its administration internally in cases of gouty diathesis and chronic gout. The atomic weight of this alkali being very low, it possesses a proportionate saturating power upon acids, and it has been found by experiments that carbonate of lithia will dissolve urate of soda from a piece of gouty cartilage more efficiently than either bicarbonate of potassa or of soda. Dr. Garrod found that in doses of one to four grains, dissolved in water, and repeated two or three times a day, it produced no physiological symptoms, but exerted a marked influence in cases where the patients were voiding uric acid, gravel causing the formation of these deposits, to diminish and even to cease. In gout it is found to diminish the frequency and severity of the attacks. The carbonate is a white powder, having a decidedly alkaline taste, not unlike that of- bicarbonate of soda; it requires about 100 times its weight of water for solution. For internal use the solution is made very dilute, and advantage being taken of the solvent action of carbonic acid, it is usually dissolved in the proportion of five to ten grains in a half a pint of carbonic acid water. Dose, a wineglassful three or four times a day. In cases of gout, where more decidedly alkaline solutions are indicated, it may be asso- ciated with bicarbonate of soda or of potassa. The maximum dose is four grains three times a day. 368 THE ALKALIES AND THEIR SALTS. GROUP 2.—Salts, Starting with Wood-ashes. Potash. Lixivium from ashes of forest trees evaporated to a dark hard mass. Potassae carbonas impurus. Ignited potash. Pearlash. Salozratus. Dry pearlash subjected to gaseous C02. Potassa carbonas, 2(KO,C02),3HO. Solution of pearlash, filtered and granulated. Potassae bicarbonas, K0,H02C0,. Passing C02 into solution of carbonate, &c. Potassae carbonas pura, 2(K0,C02)3H0. Calcining bicarbonate ami granulating. Liquor potassae. Boiling carbonate with hydrate of lime, sp. gr. 1.065. Potassa, KO,HO. Evaporating liquor potassae to dryness, and fusing. Potassa cum calce. Equal parts, potassa and lime, triturated, sometimes fused to- gether. Potassae acetas, KO,Ao. Neutralizing acetic acid with carbonate, and crystallizing. Potassae citras, 3KO,Ci. Neutralizing citric acid with bicarbonate, and granulating- Liquor potassae citratis. A variety of extemporaneous processes. Potassae phosphas, 2KO,HO,P05. Combining 3HO,P05 with 2 eq. KO,CO. Potassae hypophosphis, KO,2HO,PO, by precipitating hypophosphite of lime with carb. potassa. Potassae chloras, KO,C105. Passing excess of chlorine through solution of potassa. Sodce chloras, NaO,C105. Decomposing chlorate of potassa with bitartrate of soda, Potassx silicas, fusing together silica and KO,C02. Potasses picras. Saturating picric acid with KO,HO. It is remarkable that the only available source of carbonates of potassa is from the combustion of vegetable organizations, which, by absorbing the salts of the alkalies in solution in the water permeating the soil, have assimilated these into their structure, and on their com- bustion they are obtained in the ashes, remaining unconsumed. By lixiviating the ashes of forest trees and evaporating the lye, potash is obtained, and by subjecting this to the action of flame it is converted into pearlash. Potash and pearlash, though important in their relations to the arts and to domestic economy, are seldom employed in medicine, except in the preparation of the other forms of caustic and carbonated alkali, and the other salts of potassa enumerated in the table. Salesratus is a useful and tolerably pure sesquicarbonate of potassa, prepared by subjecting pearlash to the fumes of fermenting substances from which it absorbs additional carbonic acid. It occupies a position intermediate between the carbonate and bicarbonate, and is much used in baking to furnish the carbonic acid which raises the bread, render- ing it light and porous. Light cakes made with it are generally con- sidered less objectionable by dyspeptics than those made with "yeast. Eecently most of the salaeratus of the shops is an imperfectly car- bonated bicarbonate of soda. Potasses Carbonas. (Salt of Tartar. 2KO,C023HO.) Made by dissolving pearlash in an equal weight of cold water, filtering or decanting to separate insoluble matters, and evaporating, stirring actively so as to form a granular powder, which is very deli- quescent, and usually contains water in the proportion of three equi- valents to every two of salt. It is soluble in its weight of water. It contains traces of sulphate of potassa and chloride of potassium which do not interfere with its medicinal uses; it also contains silica BICARBONATE OF POTASSA. 369 in the form of silicate of potassa, which on absorbing C02 from the air is precipitated. Dose, gr. x to 3ss, largely diluted, as an antacid; externally it is prescribed in lotions containing 3ij to Oj of water. Potassae Bicarbonas. (Bicarbonate of Potassa. KO,H02C02.) Made by passing carbonic acid gas (generated by the action of diluted sulphuric or muriatic acid on chalk or marble) into a solution of carbonate of potassa in about three parts of water unto saturation, then evaporating at a heat not exceeding 160° and crystallizing. This operation may be conducted with an arrangement of bottles such as is shown in Fig. 194, the gas being passed through water to free it from impurities, and then discharged into the solution of car- bonate in a beaker or other suitable containing vessel. The point of saturation may be judged proximately by the bubbles of gas ceasing to diminish in size as they escape through the body of the solution. If the solution is saturated the formation of crystals will commence in the containing vessel as soon as the requisite quantity of the gas has been absorbed. The rationale of the process is that the carbonate of potassa having a strong affinity for carbonic acid is converted into bicarbonate by absorbing an additional equivalent, a reaction which, in this instance, requires one equivalent of water, which gives to this salt a determinate and uniform composition—KO=47.2, 2(CO2=22)=44,HO=9, = 100.2. Bicarbonate of potassa is in large transparent crystals, with a mild alkaline taste, soluble in about four parts of water. The uniformity of this salt fits it for use as a test for the strength of acids, and it is directed in the Pharmacopoeia as the test to ascer- tain the strength of acids, which it neutralizes in the ratio of their strength. The following table exhibits the proportion of bicarbonate of potassa, which neutralizes 100 grains of each of the acids named:— Acetic acid, strong, 60 grains. Diluted 7.5 grains. Diluted nitric acid 20 grains. Diluted sulphuric acid 25 grains. Citric acid, crystallized, 150 grains. Tartaric acid, crystallized, 133.5 grains. Tests.—The bicarbonates, if fully bicarbonated, do not precipitate sul- phate of magnesia, by which they may be known from carbonates. The presence of monocarbonate of potassa is proved by a reddish preci- pitate occasioned with corrosive sublimate. A precipitate by an excess of caustic alkalies shows the presence of earthy or metallic oxides. A residue after treating the salt with nitric acid, evaporating and redis- solving in water, proves the presence of silicic acid; a precipitate in this solution, with silver or baryta salts, indicates muriatic or sulphuric acid. By being calcined, this salt loses 30.7 grains of water and carbonic acid, forming the pure carbonate of the Pharmacopoeia. Uses.—As a medicine, bicarbonate of potassa acts as a direct and efficient antacid, more pleasant and efficient than bicarbonate of soda 24 370 THE ALKALIES AND THEIR SALTS. and more acceptable to the stomach than the carbonate. It readily neutralizes free acid in the stomach.; the excess being absorbed renders the blood and urine decidedly alkaline, and it is hence considered alterative in its action. It is used to liberate carbonic acid, and for making the saline preparations of potassa, is preferred to carbonate, being free from silica. Dose, 9j to 3j. Potassae Carbonas Pura. The ignition of the potash forming pearlash deprives it of organic matter, and brings it more completely into the condition of a carbo- nate. The solution, filtration, and granulation of Fig. 201. this deprives it of some inorganic impurities, but leaves it contaminated with silica. Charging it with a further dose of carbonic acid precipitates this im- purity ; and, finally, calcination at a red heat will drive off the additional dose of carbonic acid and the water of crystallization,'and leave the pure car- bonate. This is directed to be dissolved and granu- lated, by which it will absorb water as in the case of the ordinary carbonate. The only use to which it is applied is as a test, and when absolute purity is required. An iron crucible is directed in the Pharmacopoeia for this purpose, but a porcelain, or a platinum crucible, will serve in small operations. Fig. 201 shows the mode of suspending a crucible of small size over a gas lamp chimney by a bent wire; a similar arrangement may be adopted in using the Eussian or other alcohol lamps. I have illus- trated and described this more fully, because on a small scale it ia readily practicable, and it is frequently difficult to obtain the chemi- cally pure carbonate. Formerly this was directed to be prepared by igniting bitartrate of potassa, hence the name salt of tartar now fre- quently applied to both the carbonates. Sesquicarbonate of Potassa.—Under this name the "Eclectic" practitioners prescribe an alkaline powder prepared by dissolving bicarbonate in water and evaporating "by means of heat raised a very few degrees above the boiling point," till "sufficiently concentrated," the resulting precipitate is then dried by "a gentle heat." It is well ascertained that the bicarbonate of potassa loses C02 by an elevation of temperature, but it is nonsense to claim for it that as thus prepared it is a true sesquicarbonate. This powder is described as being permanent in dry air while the ordinary carbonate is deliquescent. The synonym " vegetable caustic" applied to it in Dr. King's Dispensatory is more properly applied to caustic potassa, KO,HO. Liquor Potassae U. S. P. (Solution of Caustic Potassa) Reduced. Take of Bicarbonate of potassa fifteen troyounces, 3xv. Lime nine troyounces, 3ix. Distilled water a sufficient quantity. Dissolve the bicarbonate in four pints (reduced, fSviij) of distilled water, and heat the solution until effervescence ceases. Then add dis- SOLUTION OF POTASSA. 371 tilled water to make up the loss by evaporation, and heat the solution to the boiling point. Mix the lime with four pints (reduced, fSviij) of distilled water, and, having heated the mixture to the boiling point, add it to the alkaline solution, and boil for ten minutes. Then trans- fer the whole to a muslin strainer, and, when the liquid portion has passed, add sufficient distilled water, through the strainer, to make the strained liquid measure seven pints (reduced, f Sxiv). Lastly, keep the liquid in well-stopped bottles of green glass. Solution of potassa, thus prepared, has the specific gravity of 1.065, and contains five and eight-tenths per cent, of hydrate of potassa. Solution of potassa may also be prepared in the following manner:— Take of Potassa a troyounce (reduced, 3ss). Distilled water a pint (reduced, f 3j). Dissolve the potassa in the distilled water, and allow the solution to stand until the sediment subsides. Then pour off the clear liquid, and keep in well-stoppered bottles of green glass. This preparation, by the first process as above, may be conveniently made with the apparatus ordinarily at hand. An evaporating dish and two beaker glasses, or salt-mouth bottles of sufficient size, and a strainer stretched over a frame or funnel is sufficient. The use of a strainer may be avoided by allowing the precipitated carbonate of lime to subside, and drawing off the liquid with a syphon, or decant- ing it carefully. The second process is chiefly resorted to extemporaneously, and by those who use but small portions; it is only satisfactory where the caustic potassa is of standard quality; as frequently found in drug stores, it is deteriorated by deliquescence and the absorption of car- bonic acid. This solution is a colorless liquid with an intensely acrid taste; sp. gr. 1.065. It should not effervesce with acids or precipitate when mixed with two or three measures of strong alcohol. Metallic impurities are detected, as in the case of bicarbonate of potassa. It has a very strong affinity for carbonic acid, which it continually abstracts from the air. It attacks flint glass, hence the direction to keep it in green glass bottles. Its effect upon the skin is to produce an oily or soapy sensation, due to the destruction of the cuticle; it also destroys or greatly injures vegetable fibre. Its use in medicine is chiefly confined to neutralizing free acid in the stomach and in the secretions. It is applied to the treatment of scrofulous and cutaneous affections, and to the arrest of the uric acid deposits in the urine. The dose is from n^v to f3ss. When given internally, it should be largely diluted with milk. Dr. E. Wilson, of this city, has used it with success in a case of extreme obesity for reducing the accumulation of fat; by pushing the dose, diluted as above, to *lxl three times a day, his patient, a female, lost 48 lbs. weight in a few months, so that from weighing 198 lbs. at the com- mencement of the treatment, she weighed only 150 lbs. at its close. 372 THE ALKALIES AND THEIR SALTS. Potassa U. S. P. ( Vegetable Caustic, Caustic Potassa, Hydrate of Potassa, KO,HO.) This preparation is made from the foregoing by evaporating it in an iron vessel to dryness, fusing it, and running it into moulds. It is usually found in the shops of two qualities—one in sticks somewhat thicker than a quill, of a bluish-gray color and peculiar earthy odor; the other quite white, frequently thinner than the other, and more free from organic impurities. It is so deliquescent as to become moist on exposure for a few minutes to the air, and should be kept well and tightly closed ; sometimes a few coriander seeds are placed with it in the bottle; they keep it dryer, and prevent its contact with the glass, upon which it acts. It is a very powerful caustic, destroying the part to which it is applied, and producing a deep eschar. Its chief use is in opening abscesses, forming issues, &c. One of its chief disadvantages for these applications arises from its deliquescence, which occasions the spread of its corrosive influence to adjacent parts. Potassa cum Cahe U. S. P. Take of Potassa, Lime, of each, a troyounce. Eub them together into a powder, and keep the mixture in a well- stopped bottle. This powder is designed to be applied in the form of paste, made with a little alcohol, but by a modification of the process, a similar article is produced, which is run into sticks, and is found in the shops in that form, resembling common caustic in appearance. It is milder from the dilution with lime, and less deliquescent. Potasses Acetas. (Sal Diureticus. KO,Ac-f 2HO.) Made by neutralizing acetic acid with bicarbonate of potassa. The potassa combines with the acetic acid, liberating the carbonic acid with effervescence; the process is completed by evaporating by a care- fully regulated heat till it fuses and crystallizes, or dries into a powder. This preparation is difficult to prepare in perfection; the finest speci- mens found in this market are imported from France, in foliated satiny masses, unctuous to the touch, and of a pungent saline taste; it is neutral in its reactions, and extremely soluble and deliquescent, so much so, as to be very difficult to manipulate with. In medicine it is used as a diuretic, refrigerant, and alterative. Eecently it is much prescribed in acute rheumatism. The acid it contains being consumed in passing through the system, the alkali is found as carbonate in the urine, which is much increased in quantity. The dose of acetate of potassa is from gr. x to 3ij. Soluble in half its weight of water and in twice its weight of alcohol; the aqueous solution is without action on litmus. Metallic or earthy impu- rities are detected as in the case of bicarbonate of potassa ; hyposulphurous acid is detected by the gray precipitate obtained with a solution of protoni- trate of mercury; the pure salt affords a white precipitate. POTASSAE CHLORAS. 373 The crystallized salt is expensive, and very liable to deteriorate by deliquescence, and when deliquesced is of variable state of hydration, so that some pharmaceutists find it desirable to make the salt in con- centrated solution, and dilute it as required. The following formula, by James T. Shinn, of Philadelphia, is adapted to this purpose:— Take of Carbonate of potassa . . 4 ounces, 6 drachms. Acetic acid . . . . 11J ounces, or sufficient. Add the acid gradually to the carbonate of potassa until efferve- scence ceases, and the liquid is neutral to test paper, and water suffi- cient to make a pint. Each fluidrachm of this solution contains half a drachm of acetate of potassa, and it may thus be "weighed by measure" to suit each prescription presented. A recipe is given among the Extemporaneous Preparations for a ready mode of preparing acetate of potassa in a liquid form, suitable for use. Potasses Citras. (Citrate of Potassa. 3KO,Ci.) (Reduced.) Take of Citric acid, Ix . . . . 3x. Bicarbonate of potassa, oxiv . 3xiv. Water, q. s. (Oij) . . . f siv. Dissolve the citric acid in the water, add the bicarbonate gradually, and when effervescence has ceased, strain and evaporate to dryness, stirring constantly after the pellicle has begun to form till the salt granulates, then rub it in a mortar (wedgewood), pass it through a coarse sieve, and put it in a bottle, which should be kept closely stop- ped. In this process, as in the foregoing, by single elective affinity the base combines with the acid, liberating the gaseous ingredient with effervescence. As citric acid of commerce varies in the precise quantity of water it contains, these proportions may be changed so as to insure complete saturation, though the presence of a slight excess of the acid is not objectionable. The potassa is here added in the full proportion to form a basic salt; there are, however, two other salts of citric acid and potassa having one and two equivalents of the base, respectively. The salt is a granular powder, soluble in twiue its weight of water, from which alcohol precipitates a more concentrated solution, delique- scent, and in its effects refrigerant and diaphoretic. Its dose is from 9j to 3ss. Earthy and metallic oxides are precipitated by alkalies, sulphuretted hydrogen, and ferrocyanide of potassium ; sulphuric and muriatic acids by salts of baryta and silver; tartaric acid by the addition of muriatic acid. Among the diaphoretic solutions, under the head of Extemporaneous Preparations, this salt in various liquid forms is again introduced. Potassae Chloras. (Chlorate of Potassa. KO,C10s.) Chlorate of potassa may be prepared by passing chlorine gas into a solution of potassa or its carbonate ; at first, chloride of potassium and hypochlorite of potassa are formed; with these, a further propor- tion of chlorine produces changes resulting in the conversion of the 374 THE ALKALIES AND THEIR SALTS. hypochloric into chloric acid, which exists in combination with the potassa as chlorate of potassa; this is separated by crystallization from the more soluble chloride of potassium. Six equivalents, each of chlorine and potassa, produce five equivalents of chloride of potas- sium and one of chlorate of potassa, 6Cl + 6KO=5KCl-f K0,C10j. There are modifications of this process by which a larger yield and greater economy of materials are produced. The process now be- lieved to be most in use is by the reaction of solutions of chloride of potassium and hypochlorite of lime (bleaching salt), which produces chloride of calcium and chlorate of potassa, KC1 +3(CaO,C10)=KO, C105 + 3CaCl. This salt is anhydrous. It appears in heavy crystals of a pearly lustre, sp. gr. 1.989. Its taste is cooling, sharp, resembling that of nitre ; it readily fuses, enters into ebullition, and gives off oxygen, leaving as a residue, when the process is pushed to completion, chloride of potassium. It is soluble in two parts of boiling and sixteen parts of cold water; is very explosive when mixed with inflammable substances (sulphur, charcoal, &c). If dropped in concentrated S03, the chloric acid of the salt is decom- posed into hyperchloric and chlorous acids, which latter suddenly decomposes into chlorine and oxygen, thereby causing a violent explosion. Its cold solution is not affected by any test except such as produce pre- cipitates with potassa (tartaric acid, and chloride of platinum). The pre- sence of saltpetre is detected by the alkaline reaction of the salt after having been exposed to a strong heat. The uses of chlorate of potassa in the arts are as an oxidizing agent in calico printing, and in the fabrication of friction matches and ex- plosive compounds. In medicine, it is much prescribed as an alterative, diuretic, nervine, and antiseptic, and for its asserted effect as an oxidizer of the blood. The great variety of diseases to which it has been applied and its general popularity with the profession, have, of late years, made it a leading article in the shop of the apothecary. It is asserted to be useful in treating diphtheria, a very prevalent and dangerous epidemic. It is mostly given in solution, and its sparing solubility is often quite overlooked by physicians; 3ss to f 3j of water is the limit of concen- tration. Chlorate of soda is more soluble, and has been recommended as a substitute. The dose of chlorate of potassa is from gr. x to 3ss; externally from 3j to 3iij to a pint of water as a urethral injection, mouth-wash, &c. In tubercular affections it is highly recommended by some practi- tioners. Though considered as rather an innoxious remedy, it is capable of producing serious consequences in over-dose, as shown in the case of Dr. Fountain, an esteemed physician of Davenport, Iowa, who had experimented with various doses, till, having exceeded half an ounce with impunity, he ventured upon one ounce at a dose, and fell a victim to his temerity. Sodas Chloras. (Chlorate of Soda. NaO,C105.) By mutual decomposition of strong solutions of chlorate of potassa and bitartrate of soda, bitartrate of potassa is precipitated while chlo- HYPOPHOSPHITE OF POTASSA. 375 rate of soda is retained in solution, from which it crystallizes on evaporation: the mother liquor is best poured off from the first crys- tals formed, which are chiefly bitartrate of potassa; or the crystals are dissolved in the least possible quantity of cold water, so as to leave the crystals of cream of tartar behind. It crystallizes in rhombohedrons, dissolves in alcohol, and in three parts of cold water, and is fusible, evolving some oxygen. It has been recom- mended as milder in its action than chlorate of potassa, and on account of its greater solubility. The salt detonates when fused, if it contains tartaric acid. Chlorate of soda may be used in the dose of gr. xv to f 3ss, in the cases for which chlorate of potassa is prescribed. Phosphate of Potassa. (2KO,HO,PO,.) Of the three phosphates of potassa, that corresponding in composi- tion to the ordinary phosphates of soda and ammonia is the one used in medicine. It may be prepared by boiling glacial phosphoric acid, to change it into SHO^Oj, and then adding two equivalents of carbo- nate or bicarbonate of potassa, or by decomposing bone phosphate of lime with sulphuric acid as in the officinal process for phosphate of soda, p. 379, and adding carbonate of potassa; the proper proportions are given below:— Take of Bone, burnt to whiteness and powdered . Ten parts. Sulphuric acid . . . ' . . .Six parts. Bicarbonate of potassa .... Sufficient. Mix the powdered bone with the sulphuric acid, in an earthen ves- sel ; then add ten parts of water, and stir them well together, digest for three days, occasionally adding a little water, and frequently stirring; then pour on ten parts of boiling water, and strain through linen; set by the strained liquid that the dregs may subside, from which pour off the clear solution, and boil it down to eight parts ; to this add bicar- bonate of potassa previously dissolved in hot water until effervescence ceases; filter and evaporate to dryness. This salt is slightly acid to test paper, though called the neutral phosphate; it is white, amorphous, deliquescent, and freely soluble. It has been given as an alterative in scrofula and phthisis in the dose, 10 to 20 grains, and as an ingredient in some of the compounds used as tonics. Hypophosphite of Potassa. (KO,2HO,PO.) This salt is prepared from the hypophosphite of lime and carbonate of potassa which decompose each other, yielding hypophosphate of potassa and insoluble carbonate of lime which is separated. The pro- portions are as follows :— Take of Hypophosphite of lime, . . . . 6 oz. Granulated carbonate of potassa . . 5f oz. Water.......Sufficient. Dissolve the hypophosphite in a pint and a half and the carbonate in half a pint of water. Mix the solutions and separate the carbonate 376 THE ALKALIES AND THEIR SALTS. of lime on a filter; after draining, pass water through the precipitate till it ceases to dissolve out the soluble salt; then evaporate, stirring toward the last to granulate the salt. Hypophosphite of potassa is a white, opaque, deliquescent salt, very soluble in water and alcohol. Its greater tendency to absorb moisture renders it less eligible for prescription than the soda salt. Its dose is from 3 to 5 grains, and it enters into a number of the syrups of the mixed hypophosphites, though rarely prescribed separately. Potassae Silicas.—The several kinds of glass are mixed silicates: those of soda and lime constitute window glass ; potassa and lime, crown glass, and potassa and lead, flint glass. It is, however, remarkable that the alka- line silicates by themselves are soluble in water and decomposable by acids; this solubility is increased by excess of alkali and by heat, especially by superheated steam. Silicate of potassa is a transparent, vitreous mass, deliquescent and solu- ble in water; it is formed by fusing together silica and carbonate of potassa. Soluble glass is now manufactured on a large scale in Philadelphia, for use as an impervious coating to casks, as an ingredient in soaps, and for many economic uses. It has been asserted to be a powerful solvent for arthritic calculi, composed of urate of soda ; the dose is 10 to 15 grains twice daily, dissolved in much water. Potassae Picras, vet Carbazotas, Picrate of Potassa.—This salt is ob- tained by neutralizing picric acid with potassa or its carbonate, and crystal- lizing from hot water. It appears in fine yellow needles of a persistent bitter taste, which are insoluble in alcohol, not very soluble in cold water, requiring 260 parts at 60° F., but dissolves with facility in boiling water; it contains no water of crystallization. It has been used by Braconnot as a substitute for quinia in intermittent fevers with good success ; the dose is stated to be from two to five grains, in pills or powders on account of its sparing solubility. Group 3.—Alkaline Salts, starting with Common Salt. Sodii chloridum, NaCl. Obtained by evaporation of certain natural spring waters. Sodae sulphas, NaO,S03 -f- 10HO. By the action of sulphuric acid on common salt. Sodae carbonas, NaO,C024- 10HO. By calcining sulphate with carbon, chalk, &c. Sod* carbonas exsiccata, NaO,C02. By simple calcination of carbonate. Liquor sodae, NaO,HO+ Aq. By treating carbonate with lime ; sp. gr. 1.071. Soda, NaO,HO. From carbonate of soda by lime. (Evaporating the former.) Sodse bicarbonas, NaO + HO,2C02. Bypassing gaseous C02 into a box containing effloresced crystals of the carbonate. Sodae phosphas, 2NaO,HO,P03+ 24HO. By neutralizing superphosphate of lime with carbonate of soda, filtering and evaporating. Soda: hypophosphis, NaO,2HO,PO. By precipitating hypophosphite of lime with NaO,CO„. Liquor sodae chlorinatae. By treating carbonate, in solution, with chlorinated lime. Sodce hyposulphis, NaO,S202-j- 5HO. From sulphur and carbonate of soda by combus- tion, &c. Sodai acetas, NaO,Ac, 4" 6HO. An intermediate salt in the preparation of acetic acid. Sodae. citras, HO,2NaO,Ci. By saturating citric acid with NaO,C02. Liquor sodae tartro-citratis. By combining bicarbonate of soda with T and Ci. Sodae valerianas, NaO,Va. An intermediate salt in the preparation of other valeri- anates. Sodae benzoas, NaO,Bz. By neutralizing benzoic acid with NaO, C02. Sodae sulphovinas, N0,C4HsS209 + 2HO. From sulphovinate of baryta by NaO,S03. Ammoniae benzoas, NH40, Bz " " NH3. WASHING SODA. 377 Sodii Chloridum. (Common Salt. NaCl=58.8.) Common salt is a native mineral substance found in various parts of the world, and, in solution, a constituent of numerous springs, from which it is readily obtained by evaporation. It is also one of the products of the evaporation of sea water. It is found, in commerce, in crystals called rock salt, or usually in a granulated or fine dry powder. It is soluble in about three parts of water; nearly insoluble in alcohol, and contains no water of crys- tallization ; its chief use, that of a condiment and antiseptic, is well known. It is an emetic in large doses; externally stimulant. Salt baths, with or without friction, are useful appliances of the physician. Tests.—Adulterations with lime or magnesia are shown by a precipitate with carbonate of soda; metallic salts by sulphuretted hydrogen or ferrocy- anide of potassium ; sulphates by a baryta salt. Sodas Sulphas. (Glauber's Salts. NaO,SO3,10HO=161.3.) It is produced from the residuum in making muriatic acid and chlorinated lime, and is one of the most abundant and cheap articles of chemical manufacture. It exists in sea-water, and in many spring waters. It is usually in very large white efflorescent crystals. Neu- tral, very soluble, with a bitter, nauseous, and saline taste; its compo- sition is one equivalent of soda, one of sulphuric acid, and ten of water; the water, which forms 55 per cent, of its weight, is nearly all lost in effloresced specimens. Its dose, as a cathartic, is §ss to 3j (one- half when effloresced), though chiefly used as a purge for horses in much larger quantities. It is the principal ingredient in the so-called Cheltenham salts. It has been prescribed in doses of 3ss in dysen- tery. The presence of chlorides may be detected by nitrate of silver, of metallic salts, as above. It is not often adulterated. Sodas Carbonas. (Sal Soda. Washing Soda. NaO,CO2,10HO= 143.8.) Carbonate of soda is found native, and is also extracted from the ashes of sea plants, in which case it is called barilla, or kelp; it is, however, chiefly produced on a very large scale by calcining sulphate of soda with small coal and chalk, which, by the abstraction of oxy- gen, reduces it into sulphuret, and then from the presence of the chalk into carbonate of soda and sulphuret of calcium, NaS-f CaO,C02=CaS + NaO,C03. The carbonate is separated by digestion wiih hot water, evaporated, further carbonated, redissolved, and crystallized. The chief use of carbonate of soda is in the arts and in domestic economy as a detergent, and in the preparation of numerous officinal and other carbonates and salts of soda. It is extremely soluble in water, and efflorescent, and contains 62 per cent, of water of crystallization, which may be dissipated by heat. The presence of common salt is detected by supersaturating with nitric acid and adding solution of nitrate of silver; sulphate of soda by solution of nitrate of baryta. It is not commonly adulterated. Dose, as an antacid, gr. x to 3ss. 378 THE ALKALIES AND THEIR SALTS. Sodce Carbonas Exsiccata. (Dried or Calcined Carbonate of Soda. NaO,CO,=53.) Take of Carbonate of soda a convenient quantity. Expose it to heat in a clean iron (or porcelain) vessel until it is thoroughly dried, stirring constantly with an iron (or porcelain) spa- tula, then rub into powder. This is the form in which carbonate of soda is most conveniently given in powder or pill. It is a milder antacid than the correspond- ing salt of potassa. The dose of dried carbonate of soda is gr. v to xv. It enters into the composition of some tonic and antacid pills. Liquor Sodae U. S. P. (NaO,HO in Aq.) Take of Carbonate of soda twenty-six troyounces. Lime eight troyounces. Distilled water a sufficient quantity. Dissolve the carbonate in three pints and a half of distilled water, and heat the solution to the boiling point. Mix the lime with three pints of distilled water, and, having heated the mixture to the boiling point, add it to the solution of the carbonate, and boil for ten minutes. Then transfer the whole to a muslin strainer, and, when the liquid portion has passed, add sufficient distilled water, through the strainer, to make the strained liquid measure six pints. Lastly, keep the liquid in well-stopped bottles of green glass. Solution of soda has the specific gravity 1.071, and contains five and seven-tenths per cent, of hydrate of soda. A colorless liquid, having an extremely acrid taste, and a strong alkaline reaction. It causes no effervescence when added to a diluted acid, and yields no precipitate with bichloride of platinum. When saturated with diluted nitric acid, it gives no precipitate, or only a slight one, with carbonate of soda, chloride of barium, or nitrate of silver. This is a new officinal in the Pharmacopoeia of 1860, in which it is placed under the general head Liquores. In the process and rationale it scarcely differs from solution of caustic potassa. The carbonate of soda of commerce is considered of sufficient purity to yield on the abstraction of the carbonic acid a solution of caustic soda, adapted to medicinal and ordinary chemical uses. It is directed in the formula for preparing valerianate of soda. Its employment in medicine will be as an antacid and antilithic; it is well adapted to replace solution of potassa, being somewhat milder in its action. Dose, *lv to 3ss, largely diluted with milk. Soda. (Caustic Soda. NaO,HO=40.3.) Hydrate of caustic soda is prepared from its solution precisely like caustic potassa; it is seldom used in medicine, but is employed in some chemical operations, where the presence of potassa is not admis- sible, and in the manufacture of hard soaps. Under the name of concentrated lye this form of alkali has been introduced into com- merce in small iron boxes for domestic use. SUPERCARBONATE OF SODA. 379 Sodas Bicarbonas. (Supercarbonate of Soda. NaO,HO,2C03=84.) The best process for preparing this salt is a modification of that originally proposed by Dr. Franklin E. Smith, of Bellefonte, Pa. The crystallized carbonate partly effloresced, or a mixture of the crystal- lized and dried, in proper proportion, is placed in a wooden perforated box, and carbonic acid gas (generated by the action of dilute sulphu- ric acid on marble) is passed into it. Owing to the strong affinity of the monocarbonate for a further dose of carbonic acid, the bicarbonate is generated in this simple way. Another process consists of stirring together chloride of sodium, dissolved in three times its weight of water, and carbonate of ammonia, which has chiefly passed into bicar- bonate—equal weights; the two salts decompose each other, producing bicarbonate of soda which is sparingly soluble, and precipitates in crystalline grains and muriate of ammonia, which remains in solution, NH40,H02CO? and NaCl=NaO,H02C02 and NH4C1. As met with in the shops, bicarbonate of soda is a dry, white powder, slightly alka- line, permanent in the air, soluble in thirteen parts of cold water, de- composed by a boiling temperature. The commercial article I have generally found to contain some sesqui or monocarbonate. The taste betrays this, as also the fact of its readily precipitating carbonate of magnesia_ from a cold solution of Epsom salts, which well-made bicar- bonate will not; also the formation of a reddish precipitate with cor- rosive sublimate. This impurity, the result of defective preparation, although not very important, renders this remedy less agreeable, and, in view of its employment in effervescing powders, &c, less effective. The proportion of carbonic acid given off from bicarbonate of soda by treating it with acids exceeds 50 per cent., so that it is one of the most productive articles for this purpose. It enters into effervescing soda, Seidlitz, yeast, and some other powders, in which tartaric acid is employed to decompose it; the proportion being thirty-five parts of the acid to forty of the bicarbonate. Soda salesratus is now employed in immense quantities as an adul- teration of the proper salaeratus, and as a substitute for bicarbonate of soda; it is, generally, an imperfect substitute for the officinal bicar- bonate of soda. Bicarbonate of soda is used in medicine as a mild antacid; it is very cheap, though, I think, inferior to bicarbonate of potassa for the purpose. Dose, 9j to 3j in carbonic acid water, if at hand. (For effervescing powders, see Extemporaneous Prescriptions.) Sodas Phosphas. (2NaO,HO,PO, -i- 24H0= 359.) Phosphate of soda is formed by digesting bone-ash (phosphate of lime) in sulphuric acid, thus liberating phosphoric acid. The superior affinity of sulphuric acid for the lime causes them to unite at the expense of the phosphoric acid, which is thus liberated; the sulphate of lime being separated, carbonate of soda is added to the phosphoric acid till neutralized, and by crystallizing, the pure phosphate of soda is pro- duced in large, transparent, efflorescent crystals. It is a tribasic salt, consisting of one equivalent of phosphoric acid, two of soda, and one of water, and twenty-four of water of crystalli- 380 THE ALKALIES AND THEIR SALTS. zation. The enormous proportion of water, 62.3 per cent, of its weight, is a remarkable property of this salt. It dissolves in four times its weight of cold water and fuses in its water of crystallization when moderately heated. It is insoluble in alcohol. The solution has an alkaline reaction and does not effervesce with acids. The precipitates with nitrate of silver (yellow), chloride of barium, and acetate of lead are all soluble in nitric acid. The presence of lime is fouud by a white precipitate with oxalate of ammonia. Sometimes it contains arseniate of soda, which is detected by saturating the solution with gaseous sulphuretted hydrogen, heating slightly, and after- wards carefully adding pure phosphoric acid, when sulphuret of arsenic will be precipitated. Phosphate of soda is a mild saline cathartic and diuretic. Dose, from 3ij to oj, and is chiefly recommended by its taste, which resembles that of common salt. Hypophosphite of Soda. (NaO,2HO,PO.) This is prepared by double decomposition between hypophosphite of lime and crystallized carbonate of soda. Take of Hypophosphite of lime . . 6 oz. Crystallized carbonate of soda . 10 oz. Water.....A sufficient quantity. Dissolve the hypophosphite in four pints of water, and the carbon- ate in a pint and a half, mix the solutions, pour the mixture on a filter, and lixiviate the precipitate of carbonate of lime, after draining, with water, till the filtrate measures six pints. Evaporate this liquid care- fully till a pellicle forms, and then stir constantly, continuing the heat till it granulates. In this state the salt is pure enough for medical use; but if desired in crystals, treat the granulated salt with alcohol sp. gr. .835, evaporate the solution till syrupy, and set it by in a warm place to crystallize. Hypophosphite of soda crystallizes in rectangular tables with a pearly lustre, is quite soluble in water and in ordinary alcohol, and deliquesces slightly when exposed to the air. It is given with the other salts of hypophosphorous acid as a tonic, especially applicable to phthisis. Dose, 5 grains three times a day. Liquor Sodas Chlorinates U. S. P. (Labarraque's Disinfecting Solution) Reduced. Take of Chlorinated lime twelve troyounces . . sj. Carbonate of soda twenty-four do. . . 3ij. Water twelve pints.....Oj. Dissolve the carbonate of soda in three pints of the water, with the aid of heat. Triturate the chlorinated lime, a little at a time, with small portions of the water, gradually added, until a smooth, uniform mixture is obtained. Mix this intimately with the remainder of the water, and set the mixture aside for twenty-four hours. Then decant the clear liquid, and, having transferred the residue to a muslin strainer, allow it to drain until sufficient liquid has passed to make, with the decanted liquid, eight pints. Mix this thoroughly with the solution of carbonate of soda, transfer the mixture to a muslin strainer, HYPOSULPHITE OF SODA. 381 and allow it to drain, adding water, if necessary, towards the close, until eleven pints and a half of liquid have passed. Lastly, keep the liquid in well-stopped bottles, protected from the light. The necessity for the aid of heat in dissolving the carbonate of soda may be overcome by the use of the mortar and pestle, as directed in the chapter on Solutions. The solution of the chlorinated lime is conveniently accomplished by mixing it with some clean sand and packing it rather loosely into a funnel with a pledget of cotton in the neck, then pouring the water upon it. In the absence of a precipi- tating jar in which to mix the solutions, wide-mouthed bottles may be substituted, being well adapted to allow the precipitated carbonate of lime to subside. Labarraque's is a transparent liquid, of a greenish-yellow color, having a slight odor of chlorine, and a sharp, saline taste. Its specific gravity is 1.045; it contains an excess of carbonate of soda. Its value will be chiefly dependent on the quality of the chlorinated lime used; if this is moist and has a faint odor, it will make inferior Labar- raque's solution. It rapidly decolorizes solution of indigo, and pro- duces a copious, light-brown precipitate with solution of sulphate of iron. It owes its therapeutic and antiseptic properties to con- taining hypochlorous acid, which is readily liberated on the addition of even a weak acid, and, on exposure to. the air, by the absorption of carbonic acid. It is used in malignant fevers as an antiseptic and stimulant, and to correct fetid eructations and evacuations; it is a favorite addition to gargles in ulcerated sore-throat. One of its prin- cipal uses is to purify the air in sick-rooms, in which case it acts by decomposing sulphuretted hydrogen, against which gas, when inhaled, it is also an antidote. The dose is f3ss, diluted with water or mucil- age. In gargles, f|ss or f§j may be used in Oss. A demand for this solution has grown out of the now fashionable art of skeletonizing and bleaching leaves and seed-vessels of plants. A solution of chloride of lime serves a good purpose for bleaching skeletonized plant structures which are deprived of their chlorophyl, but for ferns, which are to be bleached without any previous process, solution of chlorinated soda has been found greatly superior. Sodae Hyposulphis. (Hyposulphite of Soda. NaO,SaOa-f 5Aq. = 124.) This salt, which is very extensively used by photographers for the solu- tion of the unaltered iodide of silver, may be economically prepared by the following process : 16 oz. finely-powdered crystallized carbonate of soda are mixed with 5 oz. flowers of sulphur, and heated in a porcelain dish with constant agitation, until it takes fire and burns to sulphite of soda; this is dissolved in water and boiled with sulphur, by which another equivalent of this element is taken up, so as to form the hyposulphite Na0-j-S02-f S = NaO -f S203; it is then evaporated to crystallization. The crystals are large, colorless, rhombic prisms, of a cooling, afterwards bitterish, somewhat alkaline, sulphurous taste, and easily soluble in water ; the solution gradually deposits sulphur, leaving sulphite of soda, or if in contact with the air, hold sulphate of soda, in solution. It has been recommended in various diseases as a resolvent, alterative, and sudorific, and also as a solvent for biliary concretions ; 3ss to 3j of it 382 THE ALKALIES AND THEIR SALTS. is given in the course of a day in solution or preferably in syrup. Exter- nally it has been employed as a bath in quantities of from 1 to 4 ounces dis- solved in the necessary quantity of water, and with the subsequent addition of 3 fluidounces of diluted sulphuric acid for each ounce of the salt, so as to liberate the hyposulphurous acid which immediately decomposes into sulphur and sulphurous acid. Sodae Acetas. NaO,A"c^ + 6Aq. = 136.3. This is officinal in the list being formed by double decomposition between acetate of lime obtained by neutralizing the acid from the destructive dis- tillation of wood, with carbonate of soda, as explained under the head of Acetic acid. It is made officinal with a view to the preparation of acetic acid by its decomposition; it is also made as follows:— Acetate of lead is decomposed by carbonate of soda, a precipitate of carbonate of lead is formed, and the acetate of soda remains in solution; or such a solution is obtained by neutralizing acetic acid with carbonate of soda; it is then evaporated to crystallization. The salt crystallizes in prisms of a saline, bitter taste, which effloresce in warm dry weather, and are fusible and very soluble in water. It has been used for the same purpose for which acetate of potassa is employed, and is said to be rather milder in its action ; the dose is 9j to 3ij- Metals are detected in the solution of this salt by sulphuretted hydrogen and ferrocyanide of potassium ; sulphuric acid (sulphate of soda) by the characteristic precipitate with acetate of baryta. Sodae Citrus. (Citrate of Soda. 2NaO,HO,Ci=236.4.) Citric acid being a tribasic acid furnishes three salts with soda, of which the most desirable appears to be that, the composition of which is given above. It is easily made by adding two equivalents of bicarbonate of soda to one of citric acid, evaporating and crystallizing. These proportions would indi- cate approximately one ounce of bicarbonate of soda to ten drachms of citric acid. It forms needles of a pleasant sub-acid taste. If the basic citrate is prepared the proportion of bicarbonate should be increased to one and a half ounce, and the salt would then correspond more nearly with the officinal citrate of potassa. Its taste is free from bitterness, and it is recom- mended as a pleasant saline cathartic. Dose, six to twelve drachms. Solution of Tartro- Citrate of Soda. Tartro-citrate of soda has been recommended, in solution, as furnishing a more permanent and cheaper purgative lemonade than the justly celebrated citrate of magnesia. I have had but little experience with it, but propose the following as a practicable formula for its preparation :— Take of Tartaric acid......Jvj. Bicarbonate of soda.....3vss or q. 8. Water........f|xss. Dissolve the acid in the water, and add the soda salt till it is nearly neu- tral, then filter and add— Simple syrup......f Jiss. Tincture of fresh lemon peel . . . . f 3ss. And lastly— Citric acid, Bicarbonate of soda, of each .... 3j. Cork and bottle immediately and securely. Dose, one bottle, as a cathartic. TARTRATES. 383 Sodas Valerianas. NaO,Va= 124.3. Vahrianate of soda is made by saturating solution of caustic soda with valerianic acid, as produced by the distillation of amylic alcohol or fusel oil from a mixture of sulphuric acid and bichromate of potassa, by which it is converted into valerianic acid, which combines with the soda. The valerianate is obtained dry by evaporation and fusion, and being broken, is in soft white crystalline pieces, very soluble, deliquescent, with the odor of valerianic acid, and a taste at first styptic and afterwards sweetish; it melts without loss at 285°, and concretes on cooling. If 100 grains of the salt, dissolved in 600 grains of water heated to 200°, be mixed with a solution of 100 grains of sulphate of zinc in the same quantity of water, crystals of valeri- anate of zinc will be formed on the surface of the mixture before it cools. Its use is to prepare the other valerianates by double decompo- sition. It should be soluble in absolute alcohol. (See Acidum Valeri- anicum) Sodae Sulphovinas. ]STaO,C4H3Sa07+2Aq. Sulphovinate of soda is prepared by mixing about equal parts of concen- trated sulphuric acid and strong alcohol, and heating afterwards by means of a water bath ; water is then added, and carbonate of baryta to saturation; the solution of sulphovinate of baryta is then exactly decomposed by a solu- tion of sulphate of soda, and the filtrate evaporated to crystallization. It crystallizes in hexagonal tables, is deliquescent and very soluble in water; it fuses at 18t°, and is decomposed above 212° ; its taste is pleasantly saline and sweet. This salt has been recommended for delicate constitutions afflicted with weakness of the digestive organs and fiatuleucy. The dose, as a laxative, is from half an ounce to one ounce. The impurities might be baryta, detected by sulphuric acid, or sulphato of soda, detected by chloride of barium. Sodae Benzoas. (Benzoate of Soda. NaO,Bz=144.) If benzoic acid is saturated with carbonate of soda, the solution yields, on evaporation and cooling, needles, which are little soluble in alcohol. It has been recommended in cases of gout on account of benzoic acid being changed by the animal economy into hippuric acid. Group 4.—Alkaline Salts, starting with Crude Tartar. Crude argots, or tartar. Deposited in the casks during the ripening of wines. Potassae bitartras, KO,HO,T. Purified by repeated recrystallizations, &c. Potassae et sodae tartras, KO,NaO,T+8HO. Boiling carb. soda with bitartrate. Potassae tartras, 2KO,T. Boiling carbonate of potassa with bitartrate. Potassae et boracis tartras, KO,NaO/T -f 2(KO,B03/T~) -f 3HO. Boiling borax with bi- tartrate : deliquescent. Potassx boracico-tartras, KO,B03,T. Boiling boracic acid with bitartrate; permanent. ^ Crude argols are imported from the wine-producing countries of two kinds, the red and the white tartar of commerce. Eecently tartar has been produced, though not in large quantities, in the vicinity of Cin- cinnati, Ohio. It consists of potassa combined with an excess of tar- taric acid, some tartrate of lime, coloring matters, &c., the lees and 384 THE ALKALIES AND THEIR SALTS. settlings of the wine which have separated during the conversion of the sugar of the grape-juice into alcohol, and collected as a mass on the bottom and sides of the casks. Potasses Bitartras. (Cream of Tartar. KO,HO,T-f Aq.= 188.2.) Cream of tartar is made by treating argols with hot water, mixing with clay, which absorbs the coloring matters, purifying by crystalli- zation, and reducing to powder. It is a white somewhat gritty pow- der, of an agreeable acid taste, sparingly soluble in the mouth, soluble in 184 parts of cold water, and in 18 parts of boiling water, which deposits it on cooling. It consists of one equivalent of potassa, one of water, and one of tartaric acid, though formerly considered as its name implies a bitartrate; the combined water contained in it is capa- ble of being replaced by other bases, as in the two salts which follow, and in the tartrate of iron and potassa, and the tartrate of antimony and potassa, described in subsequent chapters. Cream of tartar in doses of 3ss to 3j, and in smaller quantities, ia a very common and well-known hydragogue cathartic, refrigerant, and diuretic. It is usually given diffused in water, being sparingly soluble. Tests.—It is very liable to adulteration, which may be detected by its solubility as above, and by the following tests :— It should be completely soluble in liquor potassae and liquor ammoniae. Tartrate of lime, which should not exceed five per cent, in a commercially pure specimen, is discovered in the neutralized solution by a white precipi- tate with phosphate of soda, or neutral oxalate of ammonia. Sulphuric acid, sulphate of lime, alum, and sulphate of potassa by an insoluble precipitate, in cold solution, with chloride of barium. Metals (copper, iron, &c), by precipitates with sulphuretted hydrogen and ferrocyanuret of potassium. Potasses et Sodas Tartras. (Rochelle Salt. KO,NaO,T + Aq.=282.5.) Rochelle salt is prepared by combining one equivalent of carbonate of soda with one of bitartrate of potassa. The soda of the carbonate uniting with the excess of tartaric acid of the bitartrate to form a neu- tral salt, carbonic acid is evolved. The crystals of this salt are usually large, transparent, slightly efflorescent, of a saline not very unpleasant taste, and soluble in five parts of water. It is incompatible with most acids and acidulous salts, which by combining with the soda throw down bitartrate of potassa. It is commonly sold in pow- der, and combined with one-third its weight of bicarbonate of soda, constitutes the so-called Seidlitz mixture. It is a mild and pleasant purgative. Dose, from 3ij to 3j. Tests.—The presence of tartrate of lime, except in small quantity, ren- ders the solution, in 2£ to 3 parts of cold water, milky. Lime, metals, and sulphuric acid are detected as in cream of tartar; in the latter case, after acidulating with nitric acid. Potasses Tartras. (Solubh Tartar. 2KO,T=226.4.) Soluble tartar is a salt in which the excess of tartaric acid in bitar^ trate of potassa is combined with potassa; by boiling one equivalent PREPARATIONS OF AMMONIA. 385 of the carbonate of that alkali with one equivalent of bitartrate, the carbonic acid escapes; the reaction closely resembles that last de- scribed, substituting potassa for soda. Tartrate of potassa is either in white crystals, or a granulated powder slightly deliquescent and freely soluble; it is less agreeable to the palate than the foregoing, which it resembles in medical properties and uses. The dose is from 3j to .vj. Tests.—A solution in 2 parts cold water, shows the presence of tartrate of lime if milky. Lime is detected by phosphate of soda or neutral oxalate of ammonia. Metals (iron, copper, tin), by ferrocyanide of potassium and sulphuretted hydrogen, the latter after acidulating with muriatic acid. Sulphuric and muriatic acids are found in the solution acidulated with nitric acid by the precipitate with nitrate of baryta and nitrate of silver. Potassae et Boracis Tartras. KO,NaO,T + 2(KO,B03"T) + 3Aq. The tartarus boraxatus of the German Pharmacopoeias is prepared by dis- solving 3 parts of crystallized pure cream of tartar in a solution of 1 part borax in 5 parts water, and evaporating with constant agitation to dryness. It is soluble in 2 parts of water, deliquescing in the air, and has a mild, agreeably sour taste. Its medicinal properties are similar to those of the other neutral tartrates. In its solution metallic oxides, lime, and mineral acids are detected as above. Potassae Boracico- Tartras. KO,BOs,T. The tartarus boraxatus or tartras borico-potassicus of the French Codex, as originally made by Soubeiran, is prepared by dissolving 1 part of bo- racic acid and 4 of cream of tartar, in 24 parts of water, and evaporating to dryness at or near the boiling point, so as to prevent the premature sepa- ration of the excess of bitartrate of potassa. The salt resembles the fore going in appearance and properties, except that it keeps in the air without attracting moisture. Borax in solution precipitates the mucilage of gum Arabic, Iceland moss salep, &c. ; it colors curcuma paper brown, and dissolves in 2 parts boiling, and 12 cold water. Moistened with S03, it colors the flame of alcohol green. GrROUP 5.—Alkaline Salts—Preparations of Ammonia. Ammoniae murias, NH3,HC1 = NH4,C1. Neutral, odorless, much used in the arts. " sulphas, NH40,S03 + HO. Manufactured from gas liquors. " et magnesias sulphas. A constituent of the B03 lagoons in Tuscany. " phosphas, 2(NH40)HO,P05. By precipitating solut. of phosphate of lime with carbonate of ammonia. " hypophosphis, NH3,2HO,PO. By precipitating hypophosphite of lime with carbonate of ammonia. " nitras, NH40,N05 = NH3,HO,N05. By heat furnishes NO. Aqua ammoniae. Aqueous solution of caustic ammonia, sp. gr. .960. " ammoniae fortior. " " " sp. gr. .900. Spiritus ammoniae. Alcoholic solution of " " sp. gr. .831. " ammoniae aromaticus. Ale. solut. of carb. of ammonia with aromatics. Ammoniae carbonas, 2NH32HO,3C02. Hard, translucent, and pungent. Ammoniae bicarbonas, NH3HO,2C02. White, pulverulent, odorless. Liquor ammoniae acetatis. Neutral and mild solution of, NH3HO,Ac. Ammoniae citras, 3NH40,Ci. In solution a diuretic. Ammoniae valerianas, NH40,Va. Antispasmodic. Used in solution. Ammoniae benzoas, NH3,HO,Bz. Used in gout. Ammonii sulphuretum, NH3 -\- HS = NH4S. Test liquid forming sulphurets of metals. 25 386 THE ALKALIES AND THEIR SALTS. Ammonias Murias. (NH3HC1«=53.4.) Muriate of ammonia, sal ammoniac, or chloride of ammonium, is in the list of the Pharmacopoeia; it is prepared on a very large scale in England from the residuary products of the destructive distillation of coal, and from other empyreumatic products containing ammonia. It is in white, translucent, fibrous masses, which are convex on one surface and concave on the other; it has a pungent saline taste, but no odor. It cannot be conveniently powdered by contusion or tritu- ration, and is best reduced, in a small way, by dissolving, evaporating, and granulating at a moderate heat. It is a very soluble salt, being dissolved by less than three parts of cold water, and in alcohol: it is incompatible with strong acids, which liberate muriatic acid, and with alkalies, which disengage ammonia, as in some of the processes which follow. It is frequently prescribed, especially by German practitioners, as a stimulating alterative in catarrhs, combined with expectorants. Dose, from gr. v to xx. Tests.—The reactions of ammonia are similar to those of potassa ; bichlo- ride of platinum produces a yellow precipitate ; tartaric acid a crystalline white precipitate, which is somewhat more soluble than cream of tartar. The characteristic test to distinguish its salts from the potassa salts, is the evolution of ammonia on triturating them with hydrated lime, or with caustic potassa; ammonia is recognized by its peculiar odor and the white fumes occasioned on the approach of a rod moisteuedwith muriatic acid. The salts of ammonia, except those with fixed mineral acids, are volatilized by a red heat. Muriate of ammonia should be perfectly white, and entirely dissipated by heat. Copper, lead, and tin are detected by sulphuretted hydrogen; iron by ferrocyanide of potassium; sulphuric acid by chloride of barium. Ammoniae Sulphas. NH40,S03-fAq, = 75. This salt, which is seldom met with in the shops, is now manufactured on a large scale both in Philadelphia and in New York, from the washings of coal gas. It is a very soluble salt, chiefly produced from the otherwise useless residuary liquids obtained from the gas works, and is chiefly consumed in the manufacture of ammonia alum and of ammonia on a large scale. It is also available for the preparation of carbonate of ammonia and the solutions of caustic ammonia, though it is said to impart to these products a more empyreumatic odor than the muriate. Ammoniae et Magnesias Sulphas. NH40,S03+MgO,S03-f 6Aq. ? This is a new commercial source of the preparations of ammonia, derived from the boracic acid lagoons in Tuscany. It crystallizes out of the solutions formed in the purification of the boracic acid in England. This double sulphate is readily made available in the preparation of the salts of ammo- nia, and is said to yield products devoid of the empyreumatic odor so per- ceptible in the ammonia salts obtained from the gas liquor products. Ammoniae Nitras. NH4O,NO5=80. Nitric acid is saturated with carbonate of ammonia and evaporated. It occurs in prisms which are deliquescent, and have a cooling saline taste. If thrown in a red-hot crucible it burns with a yellow flame, and has therefore, received the uarae of nitrum fiammans. When not too suddenly AMMONI.fi CARBONAS. 387 heated it is decomposed exactly into 4H0 and 2N0, oxide of nitrogen or "laughing gas." It is given in similar complaints with saltpetre and nitrate of soda, in doses ranging from 10 grains to 2 scruples. Aqua Ammonias U. S. P. (Preparations), and Aqua Ammonias Fortior U. S. P. (List). Solution of ammonia (spirits of hartshorn), arid stronger solution of ammonia, are obtained from muriate of ammonia by the action of quicklime, which, combining with the acid, liberates the caustic alkali in the form of gas, NH3,HCl+CaO, = NH3HO + CaCl. The gas is passed by suitable contrivances into water, which absorbs it with avidity, especially if refrigerated. The usual commercial strength is somewhat below that of the offi- cinal aqua ammoniae, which has the sp. gr. 960. The strongest, marks 900, and contains twenty-six per cent, of the gas. It should be handled with great caution in warm weather, serious accidents being liable to occur from its sudden and violent effervescence. Both of these preparations are used externally, the latter rarely, in various combi- nations for immediate vesication. They are too caustic to be given by the stomach unless largely diluted and modified by emollient or mucilaginous excipients. The dose of the officinal aqua ammonias (not fortior), or of spiritus ammoniae, is "lx to xxx. Several liniments and lotions introduced under the appropriate heads contain one or other of these preparations. Spiritus Ammonias U. S. P. The composition of spirit of ammonia is similar to the foregoing, except that alcohol is used as the solvent for the gas; it has nearly the strength of the officinal solution of ammonia, and is made by passing a stream of the caustic gas into a vessel of alcohol surrounded with ice-cold water. Its only advantage over aqua ammoniae is for admixture with tinctures, which would be incompatible with an aque- ous liquid. It should be kept in small and well-stopped bottles, and like the aqueous solutions of this volatile gas, should be kept in a cool part of the premises, and dispensed with special reference to pre- venting waste by evaporation. For internal use the aromatic spirit of ammonia is preferred; they should be carefully distinguished from each other. Ammoniae Carbonas. 2NH8,3COa+ 2HO= 118. Carbonate of ammonia (sesquicarbonate) is prepared by treating a mixture of muriate or sulphate of ammonia and chalk (soft carbonate of lime). When muriate of ammonia is used chloride of calcium and carbonate of ammonia are formed ; the latter, being volatile, sublimes, and is collected in a colorless almost transparent sublimate, with powerful pungent odor and acrid taste. This may be considered as a compound of protocarbonate and bicarbonate of ammonia, one equi- valent of each, or as a sesquicarbonate. No less than twelve different compounds of ammonia, carbonic acid 388 THE ALKALIES AND THEIR SALTS. and water are described by Rose. The officinal salt is translucent, or white, usually in irregular lumps from the breaking of a large dome-shaped mass at first obtained; it is very hard, and on that ac- count liable to fracture a glass bottle in which it is placed; pungent, soluble in about 4 times its weight of cold water and freely in weak alcohol; its taste is sharp and penetrating; by exposure to the air it undergoes a change into bicarbonate, which is unsuited to many uses. The stimulant and antacid properties of this salt are very well known; it is given in various modes of combination, some of which will be 'noticed under the head of Extemporaneous Preparations. Its dose is gr. v. Hydrated Protocarbonate of Ammonia.(?)—Smelling salts are frequent- ly made directly from the powdered sesquicarbonate, or from the mix- ture of about five parts of granulated muriate of ammonia and seven parts of carbonate of potassa with a little water of ammonia and appro- priate flavor. The hydrated protocarbonate of ammonia is, however, preferable for the purpose, and may be conveniently made by mixing 2 parts of commercial (sesqui) carbonate of ammonia in coarse powder with one part of the strongest water of ammonia, in a well- stoppered bottle, and stirring them together occasionally for a week, then setting the mass aside to solidify, after which it may be powdered, perfumed, and transferred to pungents for sale. Spiritus Ammoniae Aromaticus U. S. P. (Spirit Sal. Volat) Take of Carbonate of ammonia a troyounce. Water of ammonia three fluidounces. Oil of lemon two fluidrachms and a half. Oil of nutmeg forty minims. Oil of lavender fifteen minims. Alcohol a pint and a half. Water a sufficient quantity. Dissolve the carbonate in the water of ammonia, previously mixed with four fluidounces of water. Dissolve the oils in the alcohol, mix the two solutions, and add sufficient water to make the whole measure two pints. This is a very convenient new formula, superseding the former pro- cess which, requiring the use of a retort and receiver, was seldom practised by the apothecary, but it furnishes a less pleasant prepara- tion than the old process. It will be observed that besides the neu- tral carbonate, it contains a small proportion of caustic ammonia. This is necessary to make it correspond in pungency to the old prepa- ration. It is believed that the formula now offered for this valuable remedy will add greatly to its uniformity, while, at the same time, it places it among the preparations readily made in the shop. Few of our medicines have a wider and more useful sphere than this well-known antacid and stimulant; combined with tinctures and other neutral preparations, it is found to add to their diffusibility, while in doses of from "ixx to f 3j it meets some very common indications in disease AMMONIA VALERIANAS. 389 Ammoniae Bicarbonas. NH^HO^COjj-f Aq=74. Bicarbonate of Ammonia.—By long exposure to the air, particularly in small fragments, the sesquicarbonate loses its pungency, falls into powder, and by the loss of gaseous ammonia becomes converted chiefly into bicarbo- nate. By the use of a small quantity of water, protocarbonate maybe dis- solved out of the commercial carbonate and the less soluble bicarbonate remain. The use of this is as a milder and less stimulating diaphoretic and antacid. Dose, gr. x to 9j In using carbonate of ammonia for its direct stimulating effect, care should be taken that it is free from the pulverulent, white bicarbonate ; and where it has deteriorated by the formation of this on the surface of the lumps, they should be scraped away, and cracked, till the vitreous looking hard portion is reached. For saturating acids in the formation of neutral salts, the bicarbonate will answer a good purpose. Liquor Ammonies Acetatis U. S. P. (Solution of Acetate of Ammonia. Spirit of Mindererus) Take of Diluted acetic acid . . . Two pints. Carbonate of ammonia . . A sufficient quantity. Add the carbonate of ammonia gradually to the acid until it is saturated, and filter. (U. S. P.) Diluted acetic acid, elsewhere stated, is made by adding one fluid- ounce of acetic acid to seven fluidounces of water, making eight. It will be found convenient and desirable to consume, in making this preparation, the bicarbonate or the partially bicarbonated sesquicar- bonate, which falls readily into powder, and is almost useless for other purposes. By making it in a tincture-bottle in which toward the last the stopper is kept, the solution will be made to absorb a large amount of carbonic acid gas, and to sparkle when decanted. The point of saturation may be determined proximately by the taste, and it is generally not desirable to continue adding the carbonate of ammonia till it is perfectly saturated, as it is far more agreeable to be a little acid than alkaline. This solution should always be made in small quantities, and is generally better to be prepared when required. There is no necessity for filtration if the ingredients are perfectly pure and free from contamination with dust. It is very much prescribed as a mild stimulant and diaphoretic. Dose, f3j to f^ss. As an antidote to alcoholic liquids given while the patient is intoxicated, from fjss to flj. _ Ammoniae Citras. (Citrate of Ammonia. 3NH40,Ci. =243.) This salt is seldom met with in commerce, but in the form of solution made by saturating lemon juice with carbonate of ammonia, it furnishes a stimulating diaphoretic similar to solution of acetate. The dose of the salt is from 3ss to 3J- Ammonies Valerianas. !NH40,Va=119. Take of Valerianic acid four fluidounces. From a mixture, placed in a suitable vessel, of muriate of ammonia, in coarse powder, and an equal weight of lime, previously slaked and in powder, obtain gaseous ammonia, and cause it to pass, first through a bottle filled with pieces of lime, and afterwards into the valerianic 390 THE ALKALIES AND THEIR SALTS. acid, contained in a tall, narrow glass vessel until the acid is neu- tralized. Then discontinue the process, and set the vessel aside that the valerianate of ammonia may crystallize. Lastly, break the salt into pieces, drain it in a glass funnel, dry it on bibulous paper, and keep it in a well-stopped bottle. (U. S. P.) Valerianate of ammonia is a white salt in the form of quadrangular plates, having the disagreeable odor of valerianic acid, and a sharp, sweetish taste. It deliquesces in moist air, but effloresces in a dry atmosphere, and is very soluble in water and in alcohol. It is decomposed by potassa with evolu- tion of ammonia, and by the mineral acids with separation of the valerianic acid, which rises to the surface in the form of an oil. This is a new officinal preparation in the edition of 1860. The for- mula is an improvement on that of B. J. Crew, by which the gaseous acid and volatile alkali were brought together, so as to crystallize in a receiver. Few remedies have had so large a share of popularity, for several years past, as this diffusible stimulant and antispasmodic. It is used in neuralgia, hysteria, and other nervous disorders in a dilute solution, proposed by Pierlot, and published under another head; and also more recently in the form of elixir of valerianate of ammonia. Ammoniae Benzoas. NH3,HO,Bz = 139. The neutral salt has been employed in medicine ; it is obtained by dis- solving benzoic acid in strong ammonia by the aid of heat, not quite to saturation. It is very soluble in water, deliquescent in the air, loses am- monia and becomes solid again. In common with benzoate of soda, it has been used iu gout, also, as an antispasmodic, though in the latter case the activity may be due to the empyreumatic oil which it retains. A corres- pondent of the "London Lancet" recommends it in anasarca with albu- minuria following scarlatina. The dose for a child of six years was 5 grains three times a day.' Ammonii Sulphuretum. (Hydrosulphate of Ammonia. NH4S + HS.) Water of ammonia saturated with hydrosulphuric acid gas. It is a yellowish liquid, of a disagreeable fetid smell, which is much used in analytical chemistry for the detection of some of the metals. It has been recommended as a sedative and in diabetes in the dose of five or six drops largely diluted with water. It has also been applied to the removal of nitric acid stains, with some caustic potassa, scraping off the colored portion and washing with very dilute S03. Callus and indurated skin may be removed in a similar manner. Phosphate of Ammonia. 2(NH40)HO,P05= 133. This has a similar composition to the other medicinal alkaline phosphates. It may be made by saturating a strong solution of phos- phoric acid with ammonia, evaporating, and setting the solution aside that crystals may form; or by saturating the excess of acid in super- phosphate of lime with carbonate of ammonia, and procuring the salt by evaporation and crystallization, previously adding ammonia to a slight alkaline reaction. It is a white salt in efflorescent, rhombic prisms, losing water and ammonia, very soluble in water, but inso- luble in alcohol. It was formerly much in vogue as a remedy for gout and rheumatism. Dose, 10 to 40 grains. ON THE EARTHS AND THEIR PREPARATIONS. 391 Hypophosphite of Ammonia. NH32HO,PO = 75. This is prepared from hypophosphite of lime and sulphate or carbonate of ammonia. Take of Hypophosphite of lime . . . 6 oz. Sesquicarbonate of ammonia (translucent) T.23 oz. tv i ?at^r ' , '. ,.....A sufficient quantity. _ Dissolve the lime salt in four pints of water, and the ammonia salt in two pints of water, mix the solutions, drain the resulting carbonate of lime and wash out the retained solution with water. The filtrate should then be evaporated carefully to dryness, then dissolved in alcohol, filtered, evapora- ted, and crystallized. This salt is deliquescent in the air, very soluble in alcohol and water and when carefully heated evolves ammonia, leaving hydrated hypophosphorous acid. It is used for the same purposes as the other alkaline hypophosphites in a dose of 4 to 5 grains three times a day. CHAPTER V. ON THE EARTHS AND THEIR PREPARATIONS. The earths are distinguished from the alkalies by the insolubility of their carbonates; and the fact that the carbonates of some have an alkaline reaction, and of others have not, has given rise to the dis- tinction between the class of alkaline earths, to which baryta, lime and magnesia belong, and earths, including alumina, and several of less importance to the physician and pharmaceutist. The order in which they are treated in this work is as follows :— 1st. Preparations of baryta. 2d. Preparations of lime. 3d. Preparations of magnesia. 4th. Salts containing alumina. 5th. Cerium and its oxalate. Baryta. BaO=76.7. # Like the alkalies and other earths, baryta has a metallic base, which is the white readily oxidizable metal Barium. This alkaline earth is not itself used in medicine, but is the base of several officinal preparations. _ Test for Baryta.—The best and most reliable test for baryta is the pre- cipitate which its solutions throw down with free sulphuric acid and all solu- ble sulphates, even with sulphate of lime. Sulphate of baryta is insoluble in acids and alkalies. 392 ON THE EARTHS AND THEIR PREPARATIONS. 1st Group.—Of Earths—Preparations of Baryta. Barytse carbonas, BaO,C02. Native witherite. Soluble in strong acids. Barii chloridum, BaCl,2Aq. Poisonous ; used only in solution. Liquor barii chloridi, 3j to f §iij water. Dose, five drops. Barii iodidum, Bal. Poisonous ; an alterative in scrofula and morbid growths. Barytae Carbonas. BaO,C02=98.7. Carbonate of baryta is a rather rare mineral, being chiefly imported from Sweden, Scotland, and the North of England in masses of a light grayish color and fibrous texture. It is soluble in muriatic acid with effervescence, forming salts, which, if soluble, furnish in solution the best tests for sulphuric acid, throwing down a white precipitate insoluble in boiling nitric acid. The solution in muriatic acid is not colored nor precipitated by ammonia, nor hydrosul- phuric acid, and when sulphuric acid is added in excess, the solution yields no precipitate with carbonate of soda. Barii Chloridum. BaCl + 2Aq. = 122.2. When muriatic acid is added to carbonate of baryta the muriatio acid displaces the carbonic, with effervescence, and with the baryta forms chloride of barium and water, BaO,C02 and HCl,=BaCl, + HO and C02. By evaporation, the chloride may be obtained in flat, four- sided crystals, which lose their water of crystallization below 212° F. It is a white, freely soluble, permanent salt, with a bitter acrid taste, and imparts a yellow color to flame. Its solution is not affected by ammonia or hydrosulphuric acid. When sulphuric acid is added in excess, no further precipitate is produced by the addition of carbonate of soda. If the crys- tals deliquesce the presence of another earthy chloride may be inferred. It is poisonous, as are all the other baryta salts ; it is chiefly used in medicine in the form of Liquor Barii Chloridi U. S. P. Take of Chloride of barium.....Ij. Distilled water......foiij. Dissolve the chloride in the water, and filter if necessary. This solution is almost too strong for convenient use; it is stated to be deobstruent and anthelmintic. The dose is about five drops, but it is very rarely prescribed. It is, however, much employed as a test for sulphuric acid or any soluble sulphate. Barii Iodidum. Bal = 195. Is obtained by dissolving carbonate of baryta in hydriodic acid, forming iodide of barium, and water with the evolution of carbonic acid, or by add- iug to an alcoholic solution of iodine finely-powdered sulphuret of barium, and evaporating the filtrate by a moderate heat. Sulphur is precipitated, which is separated by filtration. It occurs in colorless, deliquescent needles, which are decomposed by the carbonic acid of the atmosphere. It is very poisonous, and has been recom- mended as a discutient and alterative in scrofulous diseases, internally, in the dose of one-eighth, to a grain twice daily, and externally in ointments containing 20 to 30 grains to the ounce. PREPARATIONS OF LIME. 393 2d Group.—Of Earths—Preparations of Lime. Marmor (Marble). Native hard carbonate of lime. Creta (Chalk). Native soft carbonate of lime. Creta praeparata, CaO,C02. Levigated and elutriated, nodules. Dose, gr. x to 3j- Testa (Oyster-shells). The shell of Ostrea edulis. Testa praeparata. Levigated and elutriated, small nodules. Dose, gr. x to Jj. Calx, CaO. Lime recently prepared by calcination. Liquor calcis. Lime-water, contains 9.7 grs. to Oj. Calcii chloridum, CaCl. Dissolving carbonate in HC1, and evaporating. Liquor calcii chloridi. One part of CaCl in 2.5 of the solution. Dose, xr\ xxx to f?j. Calcis carbonas praecipitata. From CaCl by adding NaO,C02. Very fine white powder. Calx chlorinata, CaO,C10+CaCl+CaO+CT. Bleaching salt. Disinfectant. Calcis phosphas praecip., 3CaO,P05. Calcined bones precipitated from solution in HC1. Syr. calc. phosphat. Durand. 2 gr. phosph. lime to f 3J"f~4 gr. phosph. acid. " " Wicgand. 5 gr. phosph. lime to f^j-f-muriatic acid. Calcis hypophosphis, CaO,2HO,PO. By boiling lime and phosphorus. Syr. calc. hypophos. Procter. 3£ gr. hypophosphite to f 3j- Syr. hypophos. comp. Parrish. 5 gr. mixed lime, soda, and potassa salts to f3j ■ Liq. calcis bicarbonatis. Solution of the carbonate in carbonic acid water. Calx saccharatum. A syrup containing caustic lime in union with sugar. Calcis sulphis. By saturating CaO, HO with S0o. Calcii iodidum, Cal. An alterative and poisonous remedy. Calcii sulphuretum. Used in sulphur baths, &c. Marmor and creta are the names given in the list to two native unorganized forms of carbonate of lime, while testa is applied to the shell of the common oyster. Besides these, there is another form of hard carbonate of lime, called limestone, which, though not officinal, is employed for the preparation of lime. Creta Praeparata and Testa Praeparata. CaO,CO2=50. Carbonate of lime for use in medicine requires to be prepared by mechanical processes adapted to furnishing a pure and fine article. Chalk and oyster-shell are subjected to the process of elutriation; being powdered and diffused in water, to allow of the subsidence of crystalline particles, the turbid liquid is drawn off' into other vessels, allowed to settle, and dried, by being dropped from a suitable orifice on to a drying slab, thus presenting the carbonate in nodules or small pyramidal amorphous masses, readily falling into a very fine impal- pable, white powder. In this way prepared chalk and prepared oyster-shell are produced. The precipitated carbonate of lime is very differently prepared, by means of a chemical process, described, along with the medical properties of the carbonate, on page 395. Tests for the determination of Lime.—Soluble salts of lime impart to alcohol a yellowish-red color. The neutral salts are precipitated— By carbonates and phosphates of the alkalies ; the white precipitates are soluble in muriatic and nitric acids. By oxalic acid ; the precipitate soluble in muriatic and nitric acids ; not in ammonia or excess of oxalic acid. Sulphuric acid and soluble sulphates throw down a precipitate of sul- phate of lime from concentrated solutions, soluble in much water and in diluted acids. Only in very concentrated solutions does a precipitate take place by caustic potassa. 394 ON THE EARTHS AND THEIR PREPARATIONS. Calx. (Lime. CaO = 28.) Lime is the oxide of a light metal called calcium, Ca=20. This oxide exists to a very great extent in the mineral kingdom, being the most familiar of the so-called alkaline earths. It is obtained from the soil by plants, and through them becomes incorporated into the struc- ture of animals, entering specially into their bones, shells, and teeth. Lime itself is prepared from the carbonate, mostly from limestone, by calcining along with carbonaceous matters. Sometimes with wood, furnishing wood-burnt lime; and at other times with coal, fur- nishing a more common article. The action of an intense heat drives off' the carbonic acid which escapes, leaving the lime in its caustic state. On the addition of water, lime becomes slaked, a high heat is produced, and it is found to have absorbed one equivalent of water, =CaO, 110=37. Lime is less soluble in hot than in cold water, is fusible before the blowpipe, and entirely soluble in muriatic acid. Silicic acid remains undissolved on • the addition of this acid. Phosphate of lime, if the solution is acid, is thrown down on neutralization with ammonia. Alumina, magnesia, oxide of iron, are thrown down from this solution by a slight excess of ammonia. Liquor Cahis U. S. P. (Lime Water) Take of Lime . . . v. . Four ounces. Water.....One gallon. Upon the lime first slaked with a little water, pour the remainder of the water, and stir them together, then immediately cover the vessel, and set it aside for three hours. The solution should be kept stand- ing upon the undissolved lime in stopped glass bottles, and poured off clear when required for use. Lime is soluble to a limited extent, and more so in cold than in hot water. The proportion contained in lime-water is from nine to ten grains to the pint; its dose is from f.^ss to f.sij. It is particularly useful, in small doses, to allay irritation of stomach and nausea, and, as an astringent antacid, is adapted to .dyspepsia, accompanied with acidity of stomach and diarrhoea. Its taste and caustic properties are best disguised by admixture with milk; and a mixture of lime-water and milk is much used as food for infants. Tests.—Lime-water of full strength is rendered turbid on application of heat. If prepared from lime obtained from common limestone, it is apt to contain caustic soda, from the decomposition, by lime, of some silicate of soda; it is recognized by passing carbonic acid (exhaled air) into it until the lime is precipitated, when the alkaline reaction will not have disappeared. Calcii Chloridum. CaCl = 55.5. The chloride is prepared by dissolving chalk or marble in muriatic acid, and evaporating to dryness, after which it may be fused. It is then a white, amorphous mass or powder, with an acrid, bitter, saline taste, very soluble in water and alcohol, and so deliquescent as to he used for drying gases, and for depriving various liquid substances of water. It is also capable of crystallizing, when it absorbs six equi- CALCIS CARBONAS PR^ECIPITATA. 395 valents of water = CaCl, 4- 6Aq. If the heat does not exceed 300° in evaporating to dryness, the salt will have the composition CaCl-f 2Aq. Metallic oxides, if present, may be detected by precipitates in the solution with ammonia and sulphuretted hydrogen. A precipitate by solution of sulphate of lime would indicate baryta. , Liquor Calcii Chloridi U. S. P. Solution of chloride of calcium is directed, in the Pharmacopoeia, to be made by obtaining the chloride as above, and dissolving it in water in about such proportion that 2.5 parts of the solution shall be equal to one part of the salt. The officinal process is as follows :— Take of marble, in small pieces, six troyounces; muriatic acid twelve troyounces; distilled water a sufficient quantity. Mix the acid with half a pint of distilled water, and gradually add the marble. Towards the close of the effervescence apply a gentle heat, and, when the action has ceased, pour oft' the clear liquid, and evaporate to dry- ness. Dissolve the residue in one and a half times its weight of dis- tilled water, and filter through paper. It is rarely prepared or prescribed, although considered a deob- struent and alterative remedy, adapted to scrofulous diseases and goitre. Dose, uixxx to f5j. Calcis Carbonas Preecipitata. CaO,CO2=50. Is prepared by adding carbonate of soda in solution to the solu- tion of chloride of calcium as above, till effervescence ceases. By double decomposition, carbonate of lime is formed and precipitated as a white powder, while chloride of sodium remains in solution and is separated by washing. The fineness of this precipitate is dependent upon the degree of concentration and the temperature of the solutions. If dilute and cold, the result would be the formation of a crystalline powder destitute of that softness and miscibility with liquids which adapts it to convenient use. The Pharmacopoeia, therefore, directs strong solutions and a boiling temperature at the time of mixing them. When properly made, this is a fine white powder, free from gritti- ness, insoluble in water, but soluble without residue in diluted muria- tic acid, with abundant disengagement of carbonic acid. It is used as an antacid, with astringent properties, adapting it especially to diar- rhoea. Dose, from gr. x to 3j- As compared with prepared chalk, with which it is identical in composition, this is a far handsomer preparation, and, though less dis- tinctly amorphous, and, therefore, not so thoroughly suspended in liquid forms of preparation, it is preferred for most prescription pur- poses. It is also well substituted for chalk in dentifrice. Tests.—Sulphate of lime, which is an occasional adulteration, may be de- tected by washing the preparation with distilled water, in which, after filtra- tion, chloride of barium and oxalic acid will produce precipitates. Phosphate of lime is left behind on treatment with diluted acetic acid; it is dissolved by muriatic acid, in which solution the phosphoric acid is proved by perchloride of iron and acetate of potassa in excess. 396 on the earths and their preparations. Calx Chlorinata. (Chlorinated Lime) Under the name of chloride of lime, or bleaching powder, this sub- stance is extensively manufactured and used as a bleaching agent. It is made from slaked" lime by subjecting it to an atmosphere of chlorine gas till completely saturated, and has a complex and variable compo- sition, being a mixture of hypochlorite of lime, CaO.CIO, chloride of calcium, CaCl, and lime, CaO,HO. It is a grayish-white, lumpy pow- der, having the odor of chlorine, which it gives off on exposure to the air. It is deliquescent, absorbing both moisture and carbonic acid from the air. For the full advantage of the liberation of chlorine the addition of an acid is necessary, though the spontaneous evolution of that gas is usually relied on for common disinfecting purposes. The chief popu- lar use of chlorinated lime is as a disinfectant about cesspools, sewers, and places rendered offensive and unwholesome by the products of < decomposition. It is also used in the manufacture of chloroform and for the pre- paration of liquor socles chlorinates, which is used as a substitute for it for internal and external use in medicine. Tests.—A very moist consistence argues the presence of a considerable proportion of chloride of calcium, and is an indication of inferiority. It is only partially soluble in water, and wholly soluble in muriatic acid; its solution quickly destroys most vegetable colors. The Pharmacopoeia gives the following test which shows an amount of chlorine available for disinfecting and medical purposes, of at least twenty- five per cent., and indicates a good commercial quality. When forty grains, triturated with a fluidounce of distilled water, are well shaken with a solution of seventy-eight grains of crystallized sulphate of protoxide of iron, and ten drops of sulphuric acid in two fluidounces of dis- tilled water, a liquid is formed which does not yield a blue precipitate with ferridcyanide of potassium (red prussiate of potash). This test is based on the oxidation of the iron under the influence of chlo- rine to sesquioxide ; but aside from other objections, the difficulty of keep- ing the sulphate of iron entirely unaltered, renders this test inaccurate; a better result is obtained by treating thirty-six grains chloride of lime with fifty-three grains ferrocyanide of potassium, and after heating to the boiling point, testing with a salt of sesquioxide of iron, which must not furnish a blue precipitate. By the influence of chlorine, the ferrocyanide is changed into ferridcya- nide of potassium ; if less than 25 per cent, of chlorine is present, a part of the ferrocyanide remains unaltered, and reacts with the chloride of cal- cium, the resulting ferrocyanide of potassium and calcium is taken up by boiling water, and throws down a precipitate of Prussian blue with sesqui- salts of iron. Calcis Phosphas Prescipitata. 3CaO,POs= 156. This salt is made by calcining bones and dissolving them in muriatic acid, from which solution, on the addition of ammonia water, the phos- phate is precipitated. After washing and drying it is a white insoluble powder, free from odor and taste; soluble in muriatic, acetic, and phosphoric acids. SYRUPS OF PHOSPHATE OF LIME. 397 This phosphate is used as a remedy for scrofulous diseases, defective nutrition, &c. Dose, from gr. x to 3ss, repeated three times a day. It forms the basis of several of the phosphatic preparations now so popular; it is said to be essential in animals, as well as plants, to the formation of cells, and seems to be useful in certain pathological states of the system, characterized by defective nutrition. Tests.—It is insoluble in water, soluble in nitric, sulphuric, hydrochloric, and carbonic acids; its solution in nitric acid is precipitated by oxalate of ammonia ; the neutralized nitric solution should give a yellow precipitate of phosphate of silver. Carbonate of lime, if present as an adulteration, is detected by its effer- vescing with acids. Sulphate of lime is left behind on dissolving "the salt in muriatic acid; the residue dissolves in much distilled water, and yields the characteristic precipitate with baryta and its salts. The granular and rather insoluble character of this powder, as found in commerce, renders it less efficient than desirable, and has led to the preparation of the following syrups, which contain it in a soluble form. See, also, Compound Syrup of Phosphates among the preparations of iron. Durand's Syrup of Phosphate of Lime. Take of Precipitated phosphate of lime . .128 grains. Glacial phosphoric acid . . 240 ' " Sugar, in coarse powder . . 710z. (offic.) Distilled water..... 4 fluidounces. Essence of lemon ..... 12 drops. Mix the phosphate of lime with the water in a porcelain capsule, over a spirit or gas lamp, or in a sand bath ; add gradually the phosphoric acid until the whole of the phosphate of lime is dissolved. To this solution add sufficient water to compensate for the evaporation, then dissolve the sugar by a very gentle heat, and, when perfectly cold, add the essence of lemon. The syrup of phosphate of lime, thus prepared, is colorless, transparent, of an acid taste, and contains two grains of the phosphate of lime and nearly four grains of phosphoric acid to each teaspoonful. When diluted by the patient previously to its being taken, it forms a phosphoric lemonade not unpleasant to the taste. Dose, a teaspoonful. In a paper in the "American Journal of Pharmacy," vol. xxvi. p. 112, noticing the above, T. S. Wiegand remarks upon the acidity of the prepa- ration as an objection to its use in some cases, and proposes the following modified recipe, containing muriatic acid instead of phosphoric acid, a much smaller proportion being required to constitute a permanent solution. Wiegand's Syrup of Phosphate of Lime. R.—Calcis phosphatis praecip......gj. Acidi chlorohydrici . . . . . . f^iv. Aqua?, q. s. ft........f^vij. Sacchari, q. s. ft.......fjxij. Dissolve the phosphate of lime, previously mixed with an ounce of water by means of the acid, filter, then add the remaining water to this ; add the sugar until the bulk is increased to twelve fluidounces, and strain. Dose, a teaspoonful. 398 ON the earths and their preparations. Calcis Hypophosphis. (Hypophosphite of Lime. CaO,2HO,PO = 86.) When phosphorus is boiled with milk of lime it gradually disap- pears, with evolution of spontaneously inflammable phosphurettcd hydrogen, which explodes as it reaches the atmosphere with the forma- tion of water and phosphoric acid. When the strong odor of phos- phuretted hydrogen ceases to be given off, the liquid contains, besides the excess of lime, nearly half of the phosphorus as phosphate of lime, and the remainder, deducting the considerable portion which has escaped into the air as phosphuretted hydrogen, is hypophosphite of lime. When the process is conducted in a flask, it requires a constant ebullition of the liquid to prevent the explosion consequent upon the entrance of the atmospheric air. To avoid this result, it has been found safer to employ a deep, open vessel. The constant evolution of gas and vapor, which keeps a froth on the surface, excludes the atmos- phere in a great degree, so that the yield is not much diminished, whilst the safety and easiness of the process are greatly increased. The process should be conducted under a hood with a strong draught, or in the open air, to avoid the disagreeable fumes which are evolved. Take of Lime, recently burned . . . .4 lbs. av. Phosphorus . . . . . . 1 lb. " Water...... . 5 gals. Slake the lime with a gallon of the water, put the remainder in a deep boiler, and as soon as it boils add the slaked lime, and mix to a uniform milk. The phosphorus is now added, and the boiling is kept up constantly, adding hot water from time to time, so as to preserve the measure as nearly as may be, until it is all oxidized and combined, and the strong odor of the gas has disappeared. The mixture froths much, and but little of the phosphorus reaches the surface. Then filter the solution through close muslin, wash out that portion retained by the calcareous residue with water, and evaporate the filtrate till reduced to six pints. The concentrated liquid should now be re-filtered to remove a portion of carbonate of lime which has resulted from the action of the air on the lime in solution, and again evaporated till a pellicle forms, when it may be crystallized by standing in the drying- room, or the heat may be continued with stirring till the salt granu- lates, when it should be introduced into bottles. Scheffer prepares it by a modification of this process, which, he says, saves the great waste occurring in the above, and has the advantage of libe- rating very little of the offensive gas produced by it. He first oxidizes the phosphorus by fusing it under water, and pumping atmospheric air into it; the phosphorus burns somewhat, and swells up, having become partially converted into oxide of phosphorus, P30, and now combines with milk of lime without boiling, most readily at 130° F., the gas given off being chiefly hydrogen, and not, as in the other case, the offensive compound of phos- phorus and hydrogen, the production of which is so great an annoyance in the neighborhood of chemical manufactories. Hypophosphite of lime is a white salt with a pearly margarin-like lustre, and crystallizes in flattened prisms. It is soluble in six parts of cold water, and in not much less of boiling water; slightly soluble in diluted alcohol, but insoluble in alcohol of sp. gr. .835. parrish's syrup of the hypophosphites. 399 This is the most important of the salts of hypophosphorous acid; it is the source from which the acid itself and most of its medicinal salts are made. Immense quantities of it have been prescribed since it was first proposed by Dr. Churchill as a remedy in phthisis, and though the sanguine expectations, enkindled by its first announcement, have not been realized, it has assumed a prominent place among the reme- dies adapted to cases of nervous and general debility and ill health. Its dose is five grains three times daily, in sugar and water. Syrup of Hypophosphite of Lime. (Procter.) Take of Hypophosphite of lime .... 1 ounce. Water........H fluidounces. White sugar......12 troyounces. Fluid extract of vanilla . -L fluidounce. Dissolve the salt in the water, filter, add the sugar, dissolve by aid of heat, and add the vanilla. • The dose is from a teaspoonful (three and a half grains) to a tablespoonful (fourteen grains), according to the circum- stances of the case, three times a day. Parrish's Syrup of the Hypophosphites.'1 The presence of preparations of iron in these compounds was not called for by the original discoverer of their therapeutic value, who considers the alkaline and earthy hypophosphites as superior to any of the ordinary hsematogens, and in practice I believe the following very simple prepara- tions have been found fully equal to those in which iron is introduced with an excess of hypophosphorous acid. Take of Hypophosphite of lime.....giss. " soda .... gss. " potassa .... gss. Sugar...... . tbj, 12 oz. (com.) Hot water.......Oj fgiv. Orange-flower water ..... fgj. Make a solution of the mixed salts in the hot water, filter through paper, dissolve the sugar in the solution by the aid of heat; strain and add the orange-flower water. Dose, a teaspoonful, containing nearly five grains of the mixed salts. The glycerole of hypophosphites has the same composition as the forego- ing, except that the solution is formed with a less proportion of wrater, to which a smaller portion of sugar is added, and the quantity made up with glycerin. We modify the flavor, also, by the use of a little oil of bitter almonds, to distinguish it from the corresponding syrup. Some pharmaceutists omit the sugar altogether, and propose this course in making all glyceroles, using glycerin as the solvent, as well as for its nutritive and remedial properties. I do not find this to furnish a pleasant preparation to take, as the saline ingredients have, perhaps, as strong a taste in this form as in an aqueous solution, and in view of the acridity of glycerin as usually met with, I think a teaspoonful a pretty large dose, unless diluted more than is usual with such preparations as glycerole of the hypo- phosphites which is frequently taken directly from the bottle. The cheaper kinds of glycerin must be avoided in this preparation, as from contact with the salts or other causes they are apt to acquire very offensive properties. 1 See preparations of Iron, Procter's Syrup of Hypophosphites, &c. 400 ON THE EARTHS AND THEIR PREPARATIONS. Liquor Calcis Bicarbonatis. * This bicarbonate cannot be obtained in the dry state. It is often con- tained in spring water, to which it imparts the property of reacting as acids on litmus and as alkalies on logwood paper. A solution of this salt has been used in England, under the name of Maugham's Carrara water, which is made by dissolving Carrara marble, or any other pure carbonate of lime, in water, saturated with carbonic acid. It has been used as an antacid absorbent, alterative and a mild astringent in a number of diseases, particularly in various forms of dyspepsia. The dose of this water is one or two wineglassfuls and more, to the amount of about two quarts per day. Calx Saccharatum, Syrupus Calcis. Trousseau used the following proportions for producing a solution of lime by the aid of sugar. 1 part of slaked lime, 10 parts water and 100 parts syrup, are boiled together for a few minutes, strained and diluted with four times the weight of simple syrup. This syrup has an alkaline taste and reaction, and is the solution of a chemical compound of sugar and lime. It is used for the same purposes as lime-water, but on account of its causticity it is necessary to dilute it con- siderably. It is given to children in the quantity of 20 to 30 grains during the day ; adults take from 2 to 3 drachms during the same time. Dr. John Cleland, in the " Edinburgh Medical Journal," August, 1859, recommends a formula for this preparation as follows :— Slake 8 ounces of quicklime, rub it up with 6 ounces of white sugar, add one pint of water, stir some time till the hard, stiff masses which the sugar and lime are liable to run into are, as much as possible, dissolved, then filter. This solution contains 18 grains of lime in every ounce by weight, and al- together about 106 grains of solid matter to the ounce. It should be kept in a well-stopped bottle, and given in the dose of from 20 to 60 minims in a glass of water two or three times a day, after eating. This is stated to be a powerful antacid and tonic, adapted to cases of obstinate dyspepsia, con- nected with too little secretion of gastric juice as well as to those with too great secretion. It is said to be particularly serviceable to gouty constitu- tions ; though of less use in hysterical and anemic cases. So far from in- creasing constipation, it is stated gradually to remove that symptom. Calcis Sulphis. (Sulphite of Lime. CaO,SOa=60.) Neutral sulphite of lime is prepared by passing gaseous sulphurous acid over hydrate of lime, spread upon hurdles to the depth of one or two inches, or preferably, according to another manufacturing chemist of Prague, by passing the gas into the lime in a barrel, which is made to revolve, by which the contact between it and the lime is increased ; the color of the lime id changed from white to a pale yellow in from four to eight hours, and the salt is then removed. It is soluble in about 800 parts of water, and on the addition of most acids, liberates sulphurous acid (S02), which is its principal use. Added to cider in the proportion of a few ounces to a barrel it liber- ates this acid, and arrests the process of fermentation, a desideratum in this branch of manufacture ; the sparing solubilitv of the salt and of the precipitate formed, adapts it to the end in view; no foreign odor or taste is imparted to the cider. This salt, as also the bisulphite and hyposulphite, of lime, which are more soluble, has been recommended in the purulent stage of consumption as checking the absorption of purulent matter and favoring the cicatrization of vomica?. MAGNESIA SULPHAS. 401 » Calcii Iodidum. Cal=146.8. The iodide may be prepared by dissolving lime or carbonate of lime in hydriodic acid, or by digesting a solution of iodide of iron with hydrate of lime, filtering and evaporating the filtrate to crystallization. It is a deliquescent salt, easily soluble in water, and has a bitter taste. It has been used in scrofulous affections internally, in doses ranging from £ to 2 grains three times daily, and externally in ointments, containing 2 drachms or less to the ounce. Calcii Sulphuretum. (Impure Sulphide of Calcium.) If lime diffused in water is decomposed by a current of sulphuretted hydrogen, a solution results, which on evaporation yields a white soft mass, of a sulphurous odor and taste. It has been used as a depilatory by applying a paste formed with water to the parts, and washing it off after about a quarter of an hour. The similar compound, prepared by dissolving sublimed sulphur in boiling milk of lime, and diluting the solution, has been employed for the cure of itch, by washing the body with such a solution, or by adding a sufficient quantity to a bath. The sulphur springs generally contain more or less of this sulphuret, which, with hydrosulphuric acid, forms the most active of their constituents. 3d Group.—Of the Earths, &c. Preparations of Magnesia. Magnesise sulphas, MgO,S03-f-7HO, from native carbonate, &o. Dose, §j. " _ carbonas, 4(MgO,C02HO),MgO,2HO, from sulphate, by NaO,Cor Magnesia carbonas ponderosum, from the same in more concentrated solutions. " bicarbonas. Fluid magnesia, solution, with gaseous C02. Magnesia, MgO. By calcining the carbonate. Dose, ^j. Liquor magnesse citratis, §j of the salt in fgxij bottle. Magnesias, citras, 3MgO,CI. By fusing citric acid and adding MgO. Prepared citrate of magnesia. Effervescing powder, mixed citrate, bicarb, potassa, &c. Moxson's effervescent magnesia, contains MgO,S03-f-7HO. Magnesia acetas. In solution with orange syrup. " et potass, borotartras. Soluble and mild salt. Magnesii sulphuretum. Gelatinous, alterative. Dose, 5 to 30 grains. Magnesia, like baryta and lime, has for its base a metal, magnesium. This has a brilliant gray color, and a sp. gr. of 2.2. It is rarely met with except in the cabinet of the chemist. Tests for the detection of Magnesia.—Magnesia is precipitated by the fixed alkalies and their carbonates. The precipitate is soluble in ammonia; so also is the precipitate occasioned by oxalate of ammonia; phosphate of soda in conjunction with ammonia causes a crystalline white precipitate of 2MgO,NH40,P05, which is insoluble in ammonia and ammoniacal salts, but dissolves easily in acids. Magnesias Sulphas. (Epsom Salt. MgO,S03 + 7HO=123.) Epsom salt is chiefly prepared from magnesian limestone, called by mineralogists dolomite, and from a native carbonate of magnesia called magnesite brought from the island of Eubcea. By the action of sul- phuric acid the magnesia is converted into the soluble sulphate, and the mineral being in excess, the addition of a little freshly precipitated 26 402 ON THE EARTHS AND THEIR PREPARATIONS. magnesia carries down with it the iron and manganese, so that the sulphate is nearly pure, and by stirring as it passes into a solid con- sistence is obtained in acicular crystals. At the Jarrow chemical works, South Shields, England, where Epsom salt is produced to the extent of one thousand tons annually, the material employed is the impure sulphate of magnesia, which crystallizes from the residual liquors of the Yorkshire Alum Works. Epsom salt in crystals is soluble in an equal weight of water; it contains over 50 per cent, of water of crystallization, and effloresces slowly by exposure, becoming white and pulverulent. Its sensible properties are familiar to most. In doses of from gss to gj, Epsom salt is a brisk saline cathartic; in small doses, a laxative and diuretic. It is much combined with senna, senna and manna, &c, in well-known and very disagreeable infusions. Tests.—Its solution is not colored nor precipitated by ferrocyanuret of potassium, and gives off no hydrochloric acid on the addition of sulphuric acid. The Pharmacopoeia also directs the following test of this salt: 100 grains dissolved in water and mixed with sufficient boiling solution of car- bonate of soda completely to decompose it, yield a precipitate of carbonate of magnesia, weighing, when washed and dried, 34 grains. Magnesias Carbonas. 4(MgO,C02HO)MgO,2HO=242. The carbonate, called also magnesia alba, is usually made from sul- phate of magnesia, by adding carbonate of soda, and boiling the mixed solutions. Sulphate of soda and carbonate of magnesia result from the play of affinities; the former is soluble and is washed out, while the latter is collected, pressed into oblong squares, called bricks, dried at a moderate heat, and wrapped in paper for sale. It is very light, pulverulent, insoluble, tasteless, soft, though somewhat granular and variable in these respects. It is a compound of about one equivalent of bihydrate of magnesia and four of hydrated carbonate of magnesia, or, according to others, contains three equivalents of the hydrated carbonate and one of mono-hydrated magnesia 3(Mg0,C02 Hr-HO)-|-MgO,HO. It is used as an antacid and laxative, but requires to be given in a larger dose than the calcined; lump magnesia is often carried about by those who use it habitually for heartburn and acidity of stomach. By boiling it with pure water, this does not acquire an alkaline reaction, nor yield a precipitate with chloride of barium or nitrate of silver. It is wholly dissolved with effervescence by diluted sulphuric acid, and the solu- tion is not precipitated by oxalate of ammonia. Heavy Carbonate of Magnesia. This is the result of a similar process to the foregoing, except that the solutions are much more concentrated, or are boiled together until effervescence ceases. It is heavier than the common carbonate, though very similar in composition, and is found in a white rather dense powder, preferred from its small bulk. Carbonate of magnesia is used chiefly as an antacid, in doses of 9j to 3j, though liable to the objection of liberating carbonic acid gas in the stomach, producing eructations and distension. MAGNESIA. 403 Bicarbonate of Magnesia. Is a salt quite soluble in wrater, but which is not permanent, and exists only in solution. The so-called fluid magnesias, of which Murray's, Dinneford's, and Husband's, are the best known, are solu- tions of this salt. They are conveniently prepared by passing a stream of carbonic acid gas into freshly precipitated hydrated carbo- nate of magnesia, or preferably by forcing the gas into a strong foun- tain, such as is used for carbonic acid water, containing the freshlv precipitated carbonate. The quantity contained in these solutions is necessarily small, and they have a tendency to deposit the salt as they lose the free carbonic acid; their usefulness is limited to the case of children, and to the treatment of acidity of stomach in adults. The taste is more alkaline and disagreeable than that of the insoluble car- bonate, or of magnesia itself. According to Graham, the crystals deposited from such solutions are compounds of mono-carbonate of magnesia with one, two, or four equivalents of water. Magnesia. MgO, = 20. Usually prepared by calcining the carbonate at a high heat, until it presents a peculiar luminous appearance, called brightening. This preparation is very various in its physical properties, owing to the various modifications of the process for its preparation; it will not be necessary in this work to describe these. The reader is referred, for an account of some interesting experiments made in my laboratory by Thos. H. Barr, of Terre Haute, la., and by Thos. Weaver, of Phila- delphia, in the "American Journal of Pharmacy," vol. xxvi. p. 193, and vol. xxviii. p. 214. Common calcined magnesia is a very light white powder, almost insoluble and tasteless, but imparting a sensation of grittiness to the tongue, which renders it a disagreeable medicine to most persons. It should be entirely soluble in diluted muriatic acid, without effervescence. The presence of lime would be shown by a white precipitate in a neutral solution, with sul- phuric or oxalic acid, by which acids magnesia is not precipitated. When moistened it changes turmeric paper brown, but water which has been boiled on it should not be alkaline, nor give a precipitate with chloride of barium or nitrate of silver. The best varieties in commerce are the English ponderous magnesia, sold in bulk, and Henry's, Husband's, and Ellis's, sold in bottles. The ponderous is not much used in this country; it has the advan- tage of smallness of bulk, but lacks the extreme softness of the bottled article. Henry's leaves nothing to desire; it is very heavy, soft and smooth, and is highly esteemed among the more wealthy classes; its price, which is enhanced by the payment of duty, almost puts it out of the reach of the middle and poorer classes. Husband's is some- what cheaper and equally good, though, as would be inferred from the ascertained composition, it requires a little larger dose. Ellis's is the most recent make; it maintains the same price in bottles as the last named, and approaches it in quality. . This is also obtainable by the pound at a somewhat reduced price. 404 ON THE EARTHS AND THEIR PREPARATIONS. The following abridgment of Barr's table of the composition of these three kinds will show the relative purity of the specimens examined :— Henry's. Husband's. Ellis's. Sp. gr. 3.404. Sp. gr. 3.326. Sp. gr. 3.386. Magnesia......94.40 84.306 94.04 Water........50 11.400 .80 Sulphate of magnesia and soda, iron, &c. 5.81 3.608 4.41 The dose of magnesia as a cathartic is about 5j, or, of the common kind, near a tablespoonful, of the heavy kinds, about a teaspoonful; as an antacid, smaller doses are used. The following excellent process for a dense and soft magnesia is that of my late pupil, Thomas Weaver, of Philadelphia. Take of Sulphate of magnesia .... Siv and 3ij. Bicarbonate of soda .... liij. Nitric acid, Carbonate of soda, Water, of each ..... Sufficient. Dissolve the sulphate of magnesia in six ounces of water, add a few drops of nitric acid, and boil for fifteen or twenty minutes; then add sufficient carbonate of soda, dissolved in a little water, to produce a slight precipitate, and continue boiling for some time, filter, and set aside to cool. Triturate the bicarbonate of soda with about eight ounces of cold water and add it to the cold solution of sulphate of magnesia; after frequent agitation filter, transfer to a porcelain capsule and boil quickly till reduced to a small bulk, collect the precipitate, wash thoroughly, and when nearly dry transfer to a crucible free from iron, and calcine at a low heat just approaching to redness. The first part of this process is designed to separate traces of iron as sesqui- oxide, which it accomplishes most effectually and economically, and the last, to decompose the sulphate at such a temperature as to insure a soft and heavy product. Elevation of the heat above redness seems to produce the grittiness characteristic of common qualities of magnesia. Liquor Magnesias Citratis. In presenting a formula for this very popular cathartic beverage, I shall depart from the usual custom of following the Pharmacopoeia. It is to be regretted that from taking the officinal directions of 1850 many pharmaceutists have been so unsuccessful as to give up the pre- paration of the solution, and purchase a less active preparation, so that its manufacture is thrown very much into a few hands. One druggist in Philadelphia has frequently sold a gross of bottles of the citrate per day, on an average, for thirty days in succession. The recipe below is that I have used for some years; it is original with myself, and I believe seldom fails to furnish a satisfactory article. To make one doa. To make one bottle. Take of Citric acid . . .Six (offic.) 3vj. Magnesia . . . 3ij 4- 3v, or sufficient 3j 4- gr. xlv. Syrup of citric acid . 12 fluidounces f oj. Water ... 1 gallon, or sufficient f Sxss. LIQUOR MAGNESIJE CITRATIS. 405 Make an acid solution of citrate of magnesia with the citric acid, magnesia, and 3 pints of the water (f liv in making a single bottle); to this add the lemon syrup, and divide the whole among 12 f gxij bottles (or put into one bottle if the smaller quantity), fill these with the remainder of the water, adjust the corks, and add to each bottle about 9ij of crystallized bicarbonate of potassa. The quantity of magnesia here indicated is adjusted to an article of average purity ; sometimes this weight is found too much and must be diminished to 95 or 100 grains; if, on the other hand, the magnesia is rather poorly calcined, and contains some carbonate, it may be best to increase the proportion from 105 to 110, or even 120 grains to the bottle, though this must be done with great caution, as the slightest excess may occasion the precipitation of a large amount of the hydrated citrate. The strong solution as at first prepared will not keep without precipitation, so that it is necessary to bottle and dilute it without much delay. If the preparation is not decidedly acid, it will be disagreeable to take, and will possess no advantage over the common saline cathartics, but if too strongly acid, it will be almost equally objectionable. The bicarbonate of potassa has the great advantage of neutralizing a portion of the acid, while it forms a very soluble and agreeable salt. If carbonate of magnesia were used to liberate the gas, the tendency to deposit would be increased, which is the greatest practical difficulty with this solution. The size of the bottle is another point to be observed; it must not fall short of f 3xij. The so-called pint-inks are very suitable; porter bottles will do to substitute for them. Bottles are made for the pur- pose both with and without the name of the preparation blown in the glass, which are very convenient. The new officinal process, U. S. P. 1860, directs the same ingredients as in the above recipe of our own, but directs 450 grains of citric acid to 120 of magnesia, so that a larger proportion of the salt is contained in each bottle, doubtless involving a greater liability to precipitate, while, as far as my observation goes, there is no advantage gained by increasing the cathartic power of this solution. Although the above recipes are perfectly satisfactory for one or two dozen bottles when they are to be sold in a few weeks, it does not answer the purpose of the wholesale manufacturer, or the pharma- ceutist who prepares it for use on shipboard. We are indebted to F. Stearns, of Detroit, for the following practical recipe adapted to these purposes. Precipitate sulphate of magnesia by adding to it a hot solution of carbonate of soda (12 lbs. of the carbonate suffices for 10J lbs. of the sulphate), wash the precipitated carbonate of magnesia upon a linen filter, drain, and having ascertained the amount of water contained in a sample of known weight by drying and calcining it, introduce the moist hydrate into a suitable apparatus; and to every 1.280 grains of anhydrous magnesia the moist hydrate contains, add one gallon of clean soft water (allowing of course for the water already mechanically combined with the hydrate), then subject the whole to the action of / 406 OF THE EARTHS AND THEIR PREPARATIONS. carbonic acid gas under a pressure of ten atmospheres for 24 hours, or until the magnesia is dissolved. Having drawn it off, filter and prepare the solution of the citrate as follows: introduce into f Ixij strong bottles, ten and a half fluid- ounces of the solution, and one and a half ounce of lemon syrup, not acidulated, and having the corks ready and softened, introduce into each 366 grains of citric acid in crystals, cork and wire immediately. A bottling machine greatly facilitates this operation. Each bottle of the solution as made by either of these recipes holds a full cathartic dose; divided portions may be taken for its refrigerant and aperient effects, the cork being always carefully secured, and the bottle inverted in the intervals of taking the doses. Soluble Citrate of Magnesia. Citrate of magnesia is insoluble in water as precipitated from a solu- tion, but is more soluble if made by the direct union of its constituents in a dry condition. The proportion employed must be varied accord- ing to the purity of the magnesia and the condition of the acid. Citric acid is what is called a tribasic acid, having three equivalents of basic water (see Organic Acids); as found in commerce, it is liable to con- tain, in addition, either one or two equivalents of water of crystal- lization, so that its saturating power is not uniform. The basic citrate (3MgO,Ci) is the neutral and soluble salt aimed at, and the proportion contained in the following recipe will furnish it in a tolerably eligible form with the use of the commercial acid and magnesia. Take of Citric acid (crystallized) .... 100 grains. Calcined magnesia . . . . .35 grains. Water _.......15 drops. Dissolve the acid in the water, and its water of crystallization by the aid of heat, then stir in the magnesia; a pasty mass will result, which soon hardens, and may be powdered for use. The chief practi- cal difficulty in the process results from the great comparative bulk of the magnesia, and the very small quantity of the fused mass with which it is to be incorporated. A portion of the magnesia is almost unavoidably left uncombined, and the salt is, consequently, not neutral. This uncombined magnesia should be dusted off the mass before pow- dering it. Care must be taken to avoid a high temperature which renders the salt less soluble. M. E. Eobiquet suggests the following formula and manipulation. Take of Citric acid.......351 parts. Carbonate of magnesia . . . . 21£ parts. Boiling water......10f parts. Powder the citric acid and dissolve it in the boiling water. When the solution is cold and before it crystallizes pour it into a wide earthen vessel, and by means of a sieve distribute the carbonate of magnesia evenly and rapidly over its surface without stirring; the reaction takes place slowly; when it ceases, beat the mixture rapidly so long as it retains its pasty consistence. PREPARED CITRATE OF MAGNESIA. 407 According to this authority the elevation of temperature occurring during this process is due to a change in the molecular condition by which the salt becomes insoluble; for this reason he recommends that the dish should be placed in a vessel of cold water, and that the salt should be dried at a temperature not exceeding 70° Fahr. By a modification recently proposed the citric acid and magnesia are triturated together into a powder, and laid away to combine gra- dually under the influence of atmospheric moisture; I have found this process to yield a soluble, though not rapidly soluble, salt. The citrate prepared by these several processes is slowly soluble when first made; it becomes less readily soluble by keeping, and is liable to run into masses which are hard and unmanageable. The granular powder made in Paris and London, and sold as citrate of magnesia, is composed as follows, according to X. Landerer:— Take of Bicarbonate of soda.....360 grains. Citric acid . Tartaric acid Sulphate of magnesia Oil of lemon 20 grains. 300 grains. 72 grains. 5 grains. The tartaric acid and bicarbonate of soda are heated in a porcelain dish just to fusion, allowed to cool, and then mixed with the other in- gredients. It will be seen that this preparation is very incorrectly named, as are most of those sold under similar designations. The prepared citrate of magnesia, of Charles Ellis, Son & Co., is made from the salt as prepared by fusion, combined so as to furnish an effer- vescing draught, which though not clear contains the undissolved por- tion so nicely suspended as to be taken without inconvenience. The recipe is as follows:— Take of Powdered citrate of magnesia . . . 3iv. Powdered sugar ...... Sviij. Powdered citric acid ..... .liiss. Powdered bicarbonate of soda . . . Siij. Oil of lemons ...... ^ix. Combine the acid and sugar and rub into a fine powder; dry all the water of crystallization from the acid over a water bath. Add the citrate of magnesia and oil of lemon, and mix intimately: then add the bicarbonate of soda and triturate the whole into a fine powder, which must be preserved in a bottle properly excluded from the air. The dose for an adult is from one to three tablespoonfuls mixed in a tumbler of water and drank in a state of effervescence. 408 OF THE EARTHS AND THEIR PREPARATIONS. Moxon's Effervescent Magnesia. The following, from Gray's Supplement, is for a popular though rather disagreeable aperient:— Take of Carbonate of magnesia . . . 3,j. Sulphate of magnesia . . . . §ij. Tartrate of potassa and soda . . . 3ij. Bicarbonate of soda . . . . . 3ij. Tartaric acid ...... sij. To be perfectly freed from the water of crystallization, and mixed and kept in a well-corked bottle. Dose, from a teaspoonful to a tablespoonful dissolved in water and drank immediately. Acetate of Magnesia.—This is very deliquescent and difficult to crystallize; in the dry state it is generally known as a gummy mass. It has been proposed as a substitute for citrate of magnesia. Eenault recommends to dissolve 120 parts of carbonate of magnesia in acetic acid and evaporate to 300 parts, which solution, when wanted for use, is to be mixed with three times its weight of orange or some other agreeable syrup. It is more agreeable if, like citrate of magnesia, it contains a quantity of free carbonic acid. Garrot recommended a syrup of acetate of magnesia, prepared by dissolving 10 parts calcined magnesia in 50 parts acetic acid, and add- ing 150 parts of some agreeable fruit syrup. Of similar composition is the elixir of acetate of magnesia, prepared by dissolving 10 parts calc. magnesia in 40 parts acetic acid, and adding 40 parts alcohol and 70 of an aromatic syrup. Magnesii Sulphuretum.—If a boiling solution of sulphate of mag- nesia is mixed with a concentrated solution of sulphuret of potassium, a white gelatinous mass is precipitated, which, on account of its weaker taste and smell, and milder action, has been recommended for internal use, instead of the true sulphurets of magnesium. Its dose is 5 to 10 grains for children; it operates slightly as a laxative. Magnesias et Potasses Borotartras.—100 parts of borotartrate of po- tassa, 24 parts carbonate of magnesia, and 600 parts of water are to be gradually mixed and evaporated. Dissolved with citric acid it has been recommended as a purgative, for which purpose Garrot has pro- posed the following proportion: borotartrate of magnesia and potassa 3j, citric acid 3ss, lemon syrup iij, water §x. 4th Group.—Of Earths—Salts containing Alumina. Alumen (Potassa-alum), KO,S03 -\- Alg03,3S03 -\- 24Aq. Manufactured from alum earths. Aluminae et ammonise sulphas (Ammonia-alum), NH3,HO,S03 -f- Al2O33S03-|-24Aq. From sulphate of ammonia, &c. Alumen exsiccatum. Deprived of its water of crystallization by heat. Alumina, A1203,3H0. Precipitated by alkalies from alum. Aluminae sulphas, Al203,3S03-f 18HO, by dissolving alumina in S03, and crystallizing. Aluminae acetas, Al203,Ac-}-HO ? SULPHATE OF ALUMINA AND POTASSA. 409 Aluminum is the name of the metallic radical of the earth alumina, a white, faintly bluish metal, which has recently attracted attention from the discovery of an economical process for its extraction. Its extraordinary lightness, beauty of color, and indifference to the oxi- dizing influences of the atmosphere, causing it to be recommended as fitted to displace silver, and even platinum, for many purposes in the arts. Experience has not, however, justified its early promise, and it remains among the rare metals. Alumina, ALO3, is an earth without alkaline properties, existing largely in the mineral kingdom, and the chief constituent of clay. It may be artificially prepared from alum as follows:— Dissolve alum in six times its weight of boiling water, add solution of carbonate of soda in slight excess, agitate for a few minutes, filter and wash the precipitate with distilled water, the product is hydrate of alumina. It may be further purified by dissolving in diluted mu- riatic acid, precipitating with ammonia, and again washing with water; dried on bibulous paper, it retains three equivalents of combined water, but by a high heat it becomes anhydrous. Pure ammonia alum, by calcining to a white heat, becomes converted into anhydrous alumina. The hydrated precipitate is freely soluble in diluted acids and in caustic potassa solution. Alumina is much used as a base for coloring matters, as in the lake pigments. In medicine it is used as an antacid and astringent, with which it combines the properties of an absorbent; it has been used in purulent and catarrhal affections of the eye. The dose is five to twenty grains three or four times daily. Tests for Alumina.—Alumina is recognized by being precipitated white by fixed alkalies, redissolved by an excess of the same, and re-precipitated by chloride of ammonium. Compounds of alumina, ignited upon charcoal before the blowpipe, and then moistened with a little protonitrate of cobalt and ignited again, yield an unfused mass of a deep sky blue color. Alumen (Alum). Sulphate of Alumina and Potassa. KO,S03 + N\2Ov SO+24110=474.6. This complex salt is found in commerce in large crystalline masses, very cheap and abundant, being largely produced for use in the arts. Formerly it was produced from a peculiar ore or schist occurring largely in many parts of the world, and had the composition given above as that of potash alum. The alum now most common is ammonia-alum, which is officinal under the name Aluminae et Ammonias szdphas; this is made by the use of sulphate of ammonia, as prepared from the residuary liquor of the gas-works, instead of a salt of potassa, as in the old processes, and its composition is as shown in the syllabus, its combining number = 453.4. The properties of the two are so similar that they are seldom distin- guished from each other. Where this is desirable, it may be readily accomplished by heat, which dissipates the sulphuric acid and ammonia from ammonia alum, leaving pure alumina, while in the case of potassa alum, potassa is a constituent of the residue and will dissolve on the 410 ON THE EARTHS AND THEIR PREPARATIONS. addition of water, and may be detected by its appropriate tests. Am- monia alum will also give an odor of ammonia if moistened and triturated with potassa or lime. Alum is slightly efflorescent in dry air from the loss of a portion of its large amount of water of crystallization; it is soluble in about 15 times its weight of cold water; it is incompatible with alkalies and their carbonates, and, also, with vegetable astringents. Its uses as an astringent, emetic, and antispasmodic are well known; its dose is from 2 to 10 grains, given to children for whooping cough; from 20 to 30 grains as an emetic in croup, repeated if necessary, and from 3ss to 5j as a purge in lead colic. As a common astringent wash and*gargle it is used in solutions of various proportions, from 5 to 30 grains to the ounce. Alumen Exsiccatum U. S. P. (Dried Alum) Take of alum, in coarse powder, four troyounces. Expose it in a suitable vessel to a temperature not exceeding 450°, until the residue weighs two troyounces and one hundred and twenty grains; then reduce it when cold to fine powder. Dried or burnt alum differs from the crystallized salt in containing no water; 474.5 grains of the crystals should yield 258 grains of the anhydrous salt, which is consequently nearly doubled in strength. Care should be taken not to push the heat so far as to drive off a por- tion of the sulphuric acid. Dried alum is less soluble in water than alum, but no portion of it should be wholly insoluble. Dried alum is used exclusively as an external application, as a mild escharotic; it is often reduced in the process of desiccation almost to pure alumina, and in this dry condition is preferred by some phy- sicians, being an excellent absorbent. Iron alum, iron and ammonia alum, chrome alum, and manganese alum are compounds in which the alumina is substituted by other bases. (See Preparations of Iron and Manganese) Aluminas Sulphas. (Sulphate of Alumina. A1203,3S03 + 18H0=333.4.) This salt is made officinal in the last edition of the U. S. Pharma- copoeia among the preparations. It is to be made by dissolving equal parts of ammonia alum and carbonate of soda in separate portions of boiling water, mixing them and digesting till the evolution of carbonio acid ceases. The alumina thus precipitated is to be collected, washed and dissolved in sulphuric acid, somewhat diluted, and evaporated at a moderate heat to dryness. It is in thin flexible plates of a pearly lustre, sweet and astringent taste, and acid reaction. Soluble in twice its weight of cold water, but not in alcohol. Its chief use is as an antiseptic, in foul ulcers, &c. A solution of one pound in two pints of water is used to preserve dead bodies; as a lotion it may be used in a somewhat less concentrated form. Under the name of benzinated solution of alumina, Mentel proposed the following preparation as a styptic, and, largely diluted with water, as an injection in leucorrhcea and various ulcerated affections: eight ounces of sulphate of alumina are dissolved in sixteen ounces of water,' CERIUM. 411 and saturated with hydrated alumina; six drachms of selected benzoin balsam is digested with it for six hours, then cooled and filtered. It has an agreeable odor, and a balsamic astringent taste. This solution contains 2A1203,3S03, and is precipitated by a large quantity of water, A1203,S03, being separated while the neutral salt remains in solution. Alumines Acetas. (Acetate of Alumina. Al203,3Ac.) A solution of this salt is obtained by saturating acetic acid with hydrated alumina, and cannot be evaporated without the loss of acetic acid. It has a faint smell of acetic acid and a sweetish taste, and possesses antiseptic properties. It has been used medicinally on account of its astringent properties, in diarrhoea and gleet in doses of a half to one drachm within twenty- four hours, and as an injection in various affections requiring astrin- gent applications. Fifth Group.—Cerium and its Oxalate. Cerium. Ce = 47.26. This metal is associated with lanthanum and didymium in cerite, allanite, and a few other rare minerals. The most abundant of these is cerite, which is found in Sweden; it contains the oxides of the three metals, together with silicic acid, lime, copper, bismuth, molybdenum, and oxide of iron. The metal is a gray powder, which acquires the metallic lustre by pressure, decomposes water slowly at ordinary temperatures, quickly at the boiling heat. It forms two oxides, pro- toxide CeO, and sesquioxide Ce203, the former of which enters into its medicinal salt. Cerii Oxalas. 2CeO,C406+6HO = 236.54. To prepare this salt the mineral cerite is to be powdered and formed into a paste with sulphuric acid in a porcelain dish, the dish is then to be heated until the mass ceases to swell up, and no longer absorbs additional S03HO, which must be added cautiously. This mass, being now dried and powdered, is placed in a Hessian crucible in which it is exposed to the heat of an an- thracite fire until it has assumed a pale brownish-red color. It is now to be lixiviated with hot water and subsequently with diluted nitric acid, and the solution treated with sulphuretted hydrogen to precipitate the heavy metals. Some hydrochloric acid is now added to hold in solution the oxalate of lime to be formed and then oxalic acid is added to throw down the oxalates of cerium, lanthanum, and didymium. This precipitate is to be washed with warm water, then transferred to a mortar and formed into a paste with one half the weight of the mineral in carbonate of magnesia, which paste is to be dried on a porous fire-brick, then rubbed fine and calcined in an open stove until the powder has assumed the color of cinnamon. In this condition it contains the cerium in the form of peroxide, which readily dissolves in con- centrated nitric acid to be carefully added in a beaker, and heated by a water bath. After freeing the solution of some of the excess of N05 by evapora- tion and diluting it with water, it is to be added to boiling water containing a little more than £ per cent, of oil of vitriol. There should be about a quart of water to every ounce of the mineral worked. A yellow precipitate of basic sulphate of sesquioxide of cerium 2(Ce203)S03+6 Aq is formed, 412 IRON AND MANGANESE. while a little of the neutral sulphate of the same oxide and all the lanthanium and didymium remain in solution. The yellow basic sulphate is now washed, dissolved in sulphuric acid and then reduced to a protosulphate by the addi- tion of a few crystals of hyposulphite of soda. The liquid is now finally precipitated by oxalic acid, and yields oxalate of protoxide of cerium. This is the process of Prof. F. F. Mayer, of New York. (See "Am. Journ. Pharm.," 1860.) In the "Med. Times and Gazette," Sept. 11, 1859, Prof. Simpson, of Edinburgh, published a description of the use of this salt as a remedy for obstinate vomiting in pregnancy, since which time it has been extensively prescribed in Europe and in the United States as a sedative tonic to the stomach, resembling in some degree the salts of bismuth, though with pecu- liar and, perhaps, specific application to the cure of obstinate vomiting, and although, of course, in many cases it has disappointed the expectations of practitioners, it has, I think, justified the claim made for it, that it will arrest obstinate vomiting in a greater number of cases than any other single remedy. The dose is from one to two grains three times a day in pills. Oxalate of cerium is a white powder, insoluble in water but soluble in SOjHO, by which it is distinguished from the other insoluble oxalates of the earths. Its solution yields a precipitate with caustic alkalies, even in pre- sence of chloride of ammonium, which is not soluble in an excess of the pre- cipitant. A shade of pink or rose color indicates the presence of didymium, and perhaps few commercial specimens of the oxalate of cerium are entirely without this impurity. CHAPTER VI. IRON AND MANGANESE. Ferrum. (Iron.) Fe=28. This indispensable metal is too well known to require a description of its sensible properties. It has a specific gravity of 7.7; though not acted on by the dry atmosphere or by pure water, it is rapidly oxidized by water containing carbonic acid, hence the production of protocarbonate of iron with evolution of hydrogen; the subsequent conversion of this into hydrated sesquioxide constitutes the ordinary phenomenon of rusting. Its purest common form is that of wire, or preferably card teeth. The filings (Ferri Eamenta), when obtained as a residuum from the manufactories, are apt to be contaminated with other metals. They are also liable to rust, which is objectionable in some instances. The salts of iron used in medicine are numerous, including salts of the protoxide, of the sesquioxide, and of the black or magnetic oxide, and also halogen salts. The salts of protoxide, FeO, are now generally termed by chemists ferrous salts, and are accordingly named ferrous sulphate, ferrous carbonate, &c, while the salts of the peroxide (ses- quioxide), Fe20;j, are named ferric salts, as ferric sulphate, ferric oxalate, &c, and the salts of the black oxide, which may be regarded as a IRON AND MANGANESE. 413 compound of the proto and sesquioxide (FeO,Fe203), are named ferroso- ferric salts, and the chlorides, iodides, &c, follow the same rule. This rule, which gives simplicity and accuracy to the nomenclature of this and of the other metals, is not yet adopted in the Pharmacopoeia, and the terms are only employed in this work as synonyms. The officinal names of the halogen and analogous compounds are likewise different in some instances from those adopted by modern chemists, for while the compounds of chlorine are called chlorides, those of sulphur have the termination uret; the cyanogen compounds, formerly terminated in the same way, are in the recent edition called cyanides and ferrocyanides. Iron is conveniently recognized in its protosalts (ferrous salts) by the following tests. They have a pale-green color in solution, potassa and soda throw down a white hydrate, which changes by exposure to the air to gray, green, bluish-black, and then to the red sesquioxide. Alkaline carbonates affect them similarly. They are not precipitated by sulphuretted hydrogen, as many metallic salts are, but give a black precipitate with alkaline sul- phurets. They give a nearly white precipitate when free from sesquisalts, with ferrocyanide of potassium; by exposure this becomes blue; by ferrid- cyanide an intense blue is immediately produced. Tannic acid only blackens these salts when they contain sesquisalts. The sesquisalts of iron (ferric salts) have generally a yellowish-brown tint, but by dissolving an excess of ferric oxide become brownish-red. Alka- lies and alkaline carbonates throw down a red-brown precipitate of hydrated sesquioxide; sulphuretted hydrogen converts them into protosalts with pre- cipitation of sulphur ; ferrocyanide of potassium throws down Prussian blue, but the ferridcyanide has no effect, except upon protosalts. Tannic acid produces a bluish-black precipitate, the basis of common black ink; in the presence of some vegetable acids no precipitate occurs with alkalies, and no blackening with tannic acid if the acid is in excess. Perhaps no class of remedies, certainly none derived from the mineral kingdom, are so universally esteemed for tonic and astrin- gent properties as the salts of iron, and accordingly pharmaceutists have expended much ingenuity and skill in improving their quality and extending their number, till they have become leading articles of materia medica, while some of them, by being formed into solutions, tinctures, wines, syrups, and elixirs, are rendered unusually eligible for common use. In presenting the numerous preparations of iron used in medicine in the form of syllabi and in detail, various methods of classifying them have suggested themselves, but none which seemed to offer suffi- cient advantages to compensate for the increased complexity necessa- rily given to the subject by the attempt. The natural division into oxy-salts and the halogen compounds seemed the only one which could be profitably introduced, and I have accordingly grouped the fifty-six preparations which follow under these two heads, consulting convenience and their natural relations to each other in the subordi- nate arrangement. 414 IRON AND MANGANESE. Syllabus of Preparations of Iron. (See Second Group—Halogen Compounds.) 1st Group.—Oxysalts and Preparations from them. Name. Composition, &c. Dose. Ferri Sulphas . Ferri Sulphas Exsiccata . Ferri Subcarbonas . Pilulae Ferri Carbonatis . Ferri Carb. Effervescentes . Ferrum Redactum . Liquor Ferri Tersulphatis Liquor Ferri Subsulphatis Ferri Oxidum Hydratum . Ferri et Quiniae Sulphas . Ferri et Ammoniae Sulphas Liquor Ferri Citratis Ferri Citras Ferri et Ammoniae Citras . Ferri et Quiniae Citras Ferri et Strychnioe Citras . Ferri et Zinci Citras Ferri et Magnesias Citras . Syrupus Ferri Citratis Syr. Ferri Protocitratis Ferri Phosphas Syr. Ferri Superphosphatis Syr.Ferri et Ammon.Phosph. Syr. Ferri et Calcis Phosph. Ferri Pyrophosphas . Syr. Ferri Pyrophosphatis . Ferri Hypophosphis (Proto) " ' (Sesqui) Syr. Ferri Hypophosphitis « Comp. Ferri Lactas Ferri Acetas Liquor Ferri Acetici. Tr. Ferri Acetat. ^Ethereus Tinct. Ferri Acetici Ferri Tannas . Ferri Yalerianas Ferri et Potassae Tartras Ferri et Ammoniae Tartras Ferri Prototartras Liq. Ferri Nitratis . Syr. Ferri Protonitratis Liq. Ferri Hyperchloratis FeO,S03,7Aq FeO,S03,Aq FeO,C02-t-Fe,03,2Aq ? Not found in commerce. Used in phthisis. (Thompson.) (Procter.) Greenish-white grains. Only in solution. Sp. gr. 1.143. Agreeable. (Rademacher.) Black, insoluble. Dark red, amorphous. Reddish-brown scales. Crystals or powder. Sp. gr. 1.06, pale amber. PRECIPITATED CARBONATE OF IRON. 415 Ferri Sulphas. (Ferrous Sulphate, Copperas, Green Vitriol FeO,S03+7Aq=139.) Prepared by dissolving iron wire in diluted sulphuric acid. One eq. of iron decomposing one of water, combines with its oxygen, and forms protoxide, which last unites with one eq. of sulphuric acid to form sulphate of protoxide of iron, Fe + HO-f S03=FeO,S03-f H The hydrogen is liberated in a gaseous form, and may be collected for experiment. ^ Green vitriol, or copperas of commerce, which is used in the arts, is an impure sulphate, containing peroxide; it is pre- pared from the native sulphuret, and may be purified by digestion with iron and recrystallization. When pure, sulphate of iron is in light bluish-green rhomboidal prisms having an astringent, styptic taste. It dissolves in about one and a half times its weight of cold water ; is insoluble in alcohol; when exposed to air and moisture it oxidizes, and becomes covered with a brownish-yellow per- salt, It effloresces in dry air, becoming white on the surface. The presence of copper may be detected by placing a clean polished spa- tula in the solution ; if copper is present, it will be precipitated with its characteristic color on the surface of the iron. Ferri Sulphas Exsiccata.—Owing to the large amount of water in these crystals, the salt is inconvenient to dispense, in combination with vegetable substances, in the form of powder or pill; and hence, in the U.S. Pharmacopoeia, is directed to be exposed to a heat increased to 300°, till it ceases to lose weight, and is converted into a dry whitish mass, which is to be reduced to powder. By this it loses six equiva- lents of water, and is consequently much stronger than the crystal- lized salt _(FeO,S03+7Aq= 139 — 6Aq = 54=85). In addition to the "bsematic" virtues common to the iron salts, sul- phate is decidedly astringent. It is prescribed internally in cases attended with immoderate discharges, and is also used in injections though less frequently than sulphates of zinc and copper. Dose, in crystals, 5 grains; dried, 3 grains. This is one of the cheapest and best of disinfectants, especially when mixed with lime, which, by neutralizing a portion of the sul- phuric acid, liberates the oxide of iron, and this, by its affinity for additional oxygen, destroys effete matter. Ferri Subcarbonas. (Precipitated Carbonate of Iron.) Made by decomposing sulphate of iron by means of an alkaline carbonate, as the carbonate of soda. The sulphuric acid unites with the soda to form sulphate of soda, which remains in solution, while the carbonic acid unites with protoxide of iron to form protocarbonate of iron, which precipitates. When first formed, it is a bulky green- ish, almost white, precipitate, which may be converted, by admixture with honey and sugar, into Vallette's mass; but when dried in air, it becomes much darker, and finally brown, from more or less conver- sion into the sesquioxide and loss of carbonic acid. If the drying is carried on at a temperature not exceeding 80° F., this change is only partial, and the preparation effervesces when thrown into acids, and m IRON AND MANGANESE. has a brown color. This is a much more soluble form, and to be pre- ferred to the bright red-colored powder obtained by heating. It should be wholly dissolved by dilute muriatic acid with slight efferves- cence, forming a solution from which the oxides of iron are completely precipitated by an excess of ammonia; the liquid remaining should not be colored by hydrosulphuric acid or ferrocyanide of potassium. The subcarbonate of iron is one of the most popular of the chaly- beate salts. It has, to a less extent, the medical properties attributed to iron reduced by hydrogen, with a more agreeable effect from swal- lowing it. The carbonate is not astringent, and produces little or no action upon the mucous membranes of the alimentary canal. Dose, gr. v to 9j. Pilules Ferri Carbonatis XJ. S. P. ( Vallette's Mass) Take of sulphate of iron eight troyounces; carbonate of soda nine troyounces; clarified honey three troyounces; sugar, in coarse pow- der, two troyounces; boiling water two pints; syrup a sufficient quantity. Dissolve the salts separately, each in a pint of the water, a fluid- ounce of syrup having been previously added to each pint. Mix the two solutions, when cold, in a bottle just large enough to hold them, close it accurately with a stopper, and set it by that the carbonate of iron may subside. Pour off the supernatant liquid, and, having mixed water, recently boiled, with syrup in the proportion of a pint to the fluidounce, wash the precipitate with the mixture until the washings no longer have a saline taste. Place the precipitate on a flannel cloth to drain, and having expressed as much of the water as possible, mix it immediately with the clarified honey and sugar. Lastly, by means of a water bath, evaporate the mixture, constantly stirring, until it is brought to the weight of eight troyounces. This valuable preparation is made by nearly the same process as the foregoing, except that the bulky greenish precipitate thrown down by the carbonated alkali, instead of being dried in contact with the air, is mixed with a suitable proportion of saccharine ingredients, to protect it from contact with atmospheric oxygen and to embody it in a pilular mass; it is well adapted to use as a vehicle for tonics, especially dry powders, in the form of pill. Much that is met with in commerce is too soft even for this use; made strictly by the officinal directions it will be found a convenient pilular mass, though becoming softer by exposure. The dose is ten grains to a scruple. Syrupus Ferri Protocarbonatis. The formula given under this head in the late edition of this work was extracted from the journals without having been sufficiently tried. Subsequent experience has proved that it is too imperfect to justify its republication, and the efforts made to improve it have not as yet been successful in producing a permanent syrup, containing a sufficient proportion of the ferruginous salt to be available. A good formula for a liquid preparation of the protocarbonate of iron is still one of the pharmaceutical desiderata. IRON BY HYDROGEN—QUEVENNE'S IRON. 417 Effervescing Carbonate of Iron. Take of Tartaric acid .... 3 troyounces Bicarbonate of soda 5 Sulphate of iron .... 10 drachms. Powdered white sugar . 14 Citric acid..... 2 Mix the sulphate of iron with the sugar and part of the tartaric acid. Mix the citric acid with the remainder of the tartaric acid and bicarbonate. Stir the two mixtures together and thoroughly unite them by sifting; then put the whole into an open metallic vessel, in a water bath, and stir until it is well granulated. These proportions are designed to furnish four grains of protocarbonate of iron in every drachm and a half (teaspoonful) of the powder, which must be kept dry in a well-stopped bottle, and will furnish an elegant chalybeate preparation, adapted to being dissolved in a glass of water and taken during the effervescence produced. Ferrum Redactum. Fe=28. (Ferri Pulvis U. S. P. 1850. Iron by Hydrogen— Quevenne's Iron) Prepared by passing a stream of hydrogen over the washed and calcined subcarbonate (dry sesquioxide) contained in a wrought iron reduction tube of four inches in diameter heated to low redness, con- tinuing the flow of hydrogen till vapor of water is no longer given off and till the reduction tube has cooled; the oxygen of the oxide combines with hydrogen, forming water, and leaves the metal in soft masses of impalpable iron, which, on trituration, yield the Quevenne's iron of commerce. It is an impalpable powder, of a steel-gray color, soluble in sulphurio acid diluted with 60 parts of water, with rapid evolution of hydrogen which should not be contaminated with sulphur. It oxidizes when exposed to damp air, and should be kept in bottles. It is usually contaminated with a little carburet, black oxide, and occasionally sulphuret of iron. These impurities give it a dull black color. When well prepared, it will burn on the application of a lighted taper; and a small portion of it, struck on an anvil with a hammer, forms a scale having a brilliant metallic lustre. Reduced iron possesses in a high degree the property of restoring to the blood this essential ingredient, when it is deficient. From its extreme fineness, it is readily soluble in the stomach, and the chief objection to its use is that occasionally it produces eructations of hydrogen; or if it contains sulphuret or carburet of iron, sulphuretted or carburetted hydrogen is evolved. This, like other iron preparations, is apt to produce astringent effects, though less so than the persalts; hence the occasional use of mild purgatives during its administration. It also blackens the stools. It is usually given in the dose of one or two grains three times a day. Given in lozenges, made with chocolate, its taste is ' The above formula is that of Dr. T. Skinner, as published in the London " Che- mist and Druggist," Nov. 1861. See also Formula of Prof. J. M. Maisch, Proc. of Am. Ph. Assoc. 1856, p. 55. 27 418 IRON AND MANGANESE. pretty well disguised. In pills it is either combined with the tonic extracts or given alone. Liquor Ferri Tersulphatis U. S. P. (Solution of Tersulphate of Iron) Take of Sulphate of iron, in coarse powder, twelve troyounces. Sulphuric acid two troyounces and sixty grains. Nitric acid a troyounce and three hundred and sixty grains. Water a sufficient quantity. Mix the acids with half a pint of water in a capacious porcelain capsule, and, having heated the mixture to the boiling point, add the sulphate of iron, one-fourth at a time, stirring after each addition until effervescence ceases. Then continue the heat until the solution ac- quires a reddish-brown color, and is free from nitrous odor. Lastly, when the liquid is nearly cold, add sufficient water to make it measure a pint and a half. This process consists in the conversion of the sulphate of protoxide of iron, FeO,S03-f 7 Aq, into the tersulphate of sesquioxide, Fe203,3S03, which is in solution in the preparation when finished; The addition of nitric acid to a salt of an oxide having so great a tendency to pass into a higher state of oxidation effectually changes its composition, and the additional sulphuric acid added is for the complete saturation of the resulting sesquioxide. In Monsel's solution which follows, the proportions are varied so as to secure an excess of sesquioxide, and a less caustic and acid solution. This preparation is made officinal chiefly for the extemporaneous preparation of the hydrated sesquioxide of iron, and for use in effect- ing the formation of other sesqui-salts of iron by double decomposition. It is a light reddish-brown liquid, nearly devoid of odor, and of an acid and extremely styptic taste. Its specific gravity is 1.320. It mixes with water and with alcohol in all proportions without decomposition. A fluid- ounce of it should yield, on the addition of ammonia in excess, a bulky reddish-brown precipitate, which is free from black discoloration, and which, when washed, dried, and ignited, weighs sixty-nine grains. Liquor Ferri Subsulphatis IT. S. P. (Monsel's Solution) Take of Sulphate of iron, in coarse powder, twelve troyounces. Sulphuric acid a troyounce and thirty grains. Nitric acid a troyounce and three hundred grains. Distilled water a sufficient quantity. Mix the acids with half a pint of distilled water in a capacious porcelain capsule, and, having heated the mixture to the boiling point, add the sulphate of iron, one-fourth at a time, stirring after each addi- tion until effervescence ceases. Then keep the solution in brisk ebul- lition until nitrous vapors are no longer perceptible, and the color assumes a deep ruby-red tint. Lastly, when the liquid is nearly cold, add sufficient distilled water to make it measure twelve fluidounces. After all that has been heretofore published on the preparation of Monsel's solution, this new recipe of the Pharmacopoeia of I860 commends itself to favor as simple, and readily practicable. It is a HYDRATED OXIDE OF IRON. 419 stronger solution than the solution of tersulphate of iron, and differs from it in containing an excess of the sesquioxide, so that it is less irritating and produces its styptic and haemostatic effect without caus- ing sloughing; dentists use it as an application to spongy gums and bleeding surfaces, and to produce that contraction of tissues which it is often so desirable to hasten. Perhaps no application is so efficient to arrest hemorrhage, or so useful in treating bleeding from bone, from erectile tissues, or from haemorrhoids; it is also used with success in the treatment of varices. Monsel's solution is an inodorous, syrupy liquid, of a ruby-red color, and of an extremely astringent taste, without causticity. Its specific gravity is 1.552. It mixes with water and with alcohol in all proportions without decomposition, and yields, with ammonia,'a bulky reddish-brown precipitate. It is used internally in a dose of 5 to 10 drops for hemorrhages, and where an astringent is indicated. Persulphate of Iron. 2Fe203,5S03. (?) The salt is so very deliquescent as to be considered ineligible for use in any other form than that of solution, and when dried on plates of glass, as the citrate of iron is obtained, it is often difficult to remove on account of its adhesion. It is recommended to dry it by artificial heat in a stove, or, by Dr. Lawrence Smith (see "Am. Journ. Phar- macy," 1863, page 203), to concentrate the solution to the sp. gr. 1.60, and form it into shallow plates from one-quarter to one-sixteenth of an inch in depth, mixed with a little of the dry salt previously desiccated and powdered, and place it near escaping steam (as from a steam jacket) at a temperature of 75° to 100° F. Under these circumstances he finds the salt to become dry and pulverulent with very little disposition to deliquesce. If produced in this way it would, undoubtedly, be much used as a direct application in the form of powder. It has a yellow color, and forms a clear solution, on standing, with water. Ferri Oxidum Hydratum. Fe203+ 2HO= 98. (Hydrated Oxide of Iron. Ferri Sesquioxidum Hydratum. Hydrated Ferric Oxide.) This is made by adding ammonia in excess to the solution of ter- sulphate as above. The alkali neutralizes the sulphuric acid and throws down the oxide of iron as a reddish-brown precipitate. This, if designed for use as an antidote for arsenic, is to be collected on a strainer, water being passed through it to dissolve out the sulphate of ammonia, and then squeezed out, and the moist brown magma trans- ferred to a wide-mouth bottle and kept under a super-stratum of water. It has been ascertained, however, that by long standing, under these circumstances, the hydrated oxide loses wholly or in part its power of neutralizing arsenious aeid, hence the necessity of keeping the solution of persulphate and reserving the addition of ammonia till the emergency requiring its use shall occur. As will appear in several of the recipes which follow, the hydrated sesquioxide comes in play in making some of the persalts of iron; it is also an eligible medicine for producing the usual tonic effects of the iron preparations, and may be dried at a temperature not exceeding 180° F., without losing its constitutional water; at a red heat it becomes anhydrous. 420 IRON AND MANGANESE. Its dose in the form of magma is f5j ; as an antidote Oss every five or ten minutes till a large excess has been given. Ferri et Quiniae Sulphas. Take of Sulphate of iron . . .125 grains. Sulphuric acid . . . .14 minims. Nitric acid . . . .25 minims, or sufficient. Water.....A sufficient quantity. Dissolve the sulphate of iron with the sulphuric acid in the water and boil it, adding the nitric acid gradually, till it ceases to produce a dark color; when cold, add— Sulphate of quinia . . .A troyounce, in water, with sufficient sulphuric acid to form a solution; set this aside that crystals may form, which may require several months. It is in colorless octohedrons of a strongly bitter taste, and nearly in- soluble in water. The salt combines the virtues of iron and quinia, and may be pre- scribed in doses of from one to five grains. It is stated to be more astringent than the citrates of these bases, and perhaps does not pos- sess advantages to compensate for its great cost. Ferri et Ammonias Sulphas. Fe203,3S03 4- NH40,S03, -f 24Aq=482. (Ammonio-ferric Alum) Take of Solution of tersulphate of iron . 2 pints. Sulphate of ammonia . . 4 troyounces and a half. Heat the solution of tersulphate of iron to the boiling point, add the sulphate of ammonia, stirring until it is dissolved, and set the liquid aside to crystallize. Wash the crystals quickly with very cold water, wrap them in bibulous paper, and dry them in the open air. U. S. P. This salt is in elegant violet-tinted crystals of a more or less octo- hedral form; soluble in one and a half parts of water at 60°, and in less than its weight of boiling water; potassa added to the solution gives a reddish-brown precipitate; when rubbed with potassa and moistened, the salt emits the odor of ammonia. Its peculiar merit consists in its marked astringency without the stimulating properties of some of this class of salts. It is easily assimilated when taken in- ternally. Dose, 3 to 6 grains, and while it controls excessive dis- charges, is often useful in correcting their cause. It is, perhaps, more employed as an injection in leucorrhcea than for any other use, the proportions prescribed for this purpose may vary from half an ounce to an ounce to the pint. It has a wide range of application, and may be applied as alum is in the form of powder diluted with sugar. Though called an alum, this salt contains no alumina; it is similar to the double sulphate of potassa and iron, which is called iron alum, though this is more soluble. Liquor Ferri Citratis U. S. P. Take of Citric acid, in coarse powder, five troyounces and three hundred and sixty grains. Solution of tersulphate of iron a pint. Water of ammonia, Distilled water, each, a sufficient quantity. CITRATE OF IRON AND AMMONIA. 421 Dilute the solution of tersulphate of iron with two pints of distilled water, add a slight excess of water of ammonia, with constant stirring transfer the precipitate formed to a muslin strainer, and wash it with water until the washings are nearly tasteless. When the precipitate is drained, put half of it in a porcelain capsule on a water bath, heated to 150°, add the citric acid, and stir the mixture until the precipitate is nearly dissolved. Then add so much of the reserved precipitate as may be necessary fully to saturate the acid. Lastly, filter the liquid, and evaporate it, at a temperature not exceeding 150°, until it is re- duced to the measure of a pint. The above process, which occurs under the head Liquores in the Pharmacopoeia, consists in the precipitation of hydrated sesquioxide of iron, washing the magma with water, and combining it with an equivalent of citric acid forming a clear solution, which is to be evapo- rated to a pint for each eight troyounces of the contained salt. This solution is convenient to keep on hand for dispensing, and for com- pounding the various liquid preparations containing the citrate. This salt is more soluble when freshly prepared than when old, and although it is slowly and imperfectly soluble in cold water, under ordinary cir- cumstances, it is readily obtained and kept in this concentrated solu- tion, which, being of known strength, may be readily diluted to the point desired. Ferri Citras. Fe203,Ci=245. (Citrate of Sesquioxide of Iron. Ferric Citrate) Of the several citrates of iron, the acid citrate of the sesquioxide is most commonly used. It is made by evaporating the officinal solu- tion as above, to the consistence of a syrup, and spreading it on glass or porcelain plates, where it speedily dries in thin layers, which are separated and broken into fragments. If evaporated at too higli a temperature, it is apt to become adhesive, and cannot be separated in scales. It is in beautiful garnet-red colored plates, slightly soluble in cold water, readily in boiling, and has an acid ferruginous taste. Dose, gr. iij to v. Ferri et Ammonies Citras. (Citrate of Iron and Ammonia) Take of solution of citrate of iron a pint; water of ammonia six fluidounces. Mix the solution of citrate of iron with the water of ammonia, evaporate the mixture at a temperature not exceeding 150° to the consistence of syrup, and spread it on plates of glass so that in drying the salt may be obtained in scales. U. S. P. This salt differs but little from the foregoing; the presence in it of a notable proportion of citrate of ammonia renders it more soluble than the acid citrate ; it is in garnet-red translucent scales ; it does not change the color of litmus or turmeric, and does not yield a precipitate with ferrocy anide of potassium. It may be distinguished from the acid citrate by giving otf ammonia on the addition of solution of potassa; they both throw down hydrated sesquioxide of iron on this addition. 422 IRON AND MANGANESE. Ferri et Quinies Citras. (Citrate of Iron and Quinia.) Take of solution of citrate of iron ten fluidounces; sulphate of quinia a troyounce; diluted sulphuric acid, water of ^ammonia, dis- tilled water, each, a sufficient quantity. Triturate the sulphate of quinia with six fluidounces of distilled water, and, having added sufficient diluted sulphuric acid to dissolve it, cautiously pour into the solution water of ammonia, with constant stirring, until in slight excess. Wash the precipitated quinia on a filter, and, having added it to the solution of citrate of iron, maintained at the temperature of 120° by means of a water bath, stir constantly until it is dissolved. Lastly, evaporate the solution to the consistence of syrup, and spread it on plates of glass, so that, on drying, the salt may be obtained in scales. U. S. P. In this very simple and practicable formula sulphate of quinia is directed to be dissolved by the aid of sulphuric acid,_ and the organic alkali is then precipitated from it by ammonia; this is then combined with the excess of citric acid in the acid citrate of iron, and the mixed salt dried in scales in the usual way. This very popular preparation, as met with in commerce, is of un- certain strength, partly in consequence of there having been, until the publication of the recent edition of the Pharmacopoeia, no authoritative formula for its preparation; the composition of the officinal article, founded on the relative doses of its two principal ingredients, is five grains of citrate of iron to one of citrate of quinia. It has the bitter taste of the quinia, and is best adapted to use in the form of pill. It is in thin transparent scales, varying in color from reddish-brown to yellowish-brown, with a tint of green, according to the thickness of the scales. It is slowly soluble in cold water, more readily so in hot water, but insoluble in ether and officinal alcohol. Ammonia, added to the aqueous solution, deepens its color to reddish-brown, and causes a whitish curdy precipitate of quinia, but no sesquioxide of iron is thrown down. The dose is gr. ij to gr. v. Ferri et Strychnies Citras. (Citrate of Iron and Strychnia) Take of solution of citrate of iron Oij; strychnia gr. x. Digest the strychnia with the solution, stirring till it is dissolved, filter if necessary, evaporate to a syrupy consistence, and pour it out upon glass to dry into scales. Dose, 3 grains. This proportion was suggested by Prof. Procter, as giving a suitable dose of the strychnia with the dose of iron salt usually prescribed; the proportion is 1 grain in 49 of the salt. C. A. Heinitsh, of Lan- caster, Pa., and Jos. Abel, of Pittsburg, Pa., have since recommended a preparation of about half the proportion of strychnia. 1 part to 100 of citrate of iron. Used in atonic dyspepsia, chorea, and sup- pressed menstruation. Dose, 3 to 6 grains. Ferri et Zinci Citras. If carbonate of zinc is added to a solution of citric acid, it begins to precipitate an insoluble salt before the point of saturation is attained; this precipitate being collected before it contains an excess of carbo- PROTO-CITRATE OF IRON. 423 nate, and ammonia, and citrate of iron added, a dark green solution is formed, which, concentrated and dried on glass, gives brownish-green scales, very soluble in water. The quantity of citrate of iron may be varied from tfye equivalent proportions, to four parts of citrate of iron and one of citrate of zinc, with a similar product. The latter proportion exists in the " modified wine of iron," of which a formula is given under the appropriate head. Dose of the double citrate, 1 to 3 grains. Ferri et Magnesias Citras. It appears in greenish-yellow scales, which are obtained by dissolv- ing freshly-precipitated sesquioxide of iron in citric acid, saturating with carbonate of magnesia, and evaporating. It has a sweetish, slightly ferruginous taste, and is soluble in water. It is used in some cases as a mild chalybeate, which is easily assimi- lated, and is given in doses of from three to twelve grains. Syrupus Ferri Citratis. (Syrup of Citrate of Magnetic Oxide of Iron) Take of Citric acid......3 v. Sulphate of iron.....|j. Water,....... Solution of ammonia, of each . . . Sufficient. Sugar.......gviij. By the process given for liquor ferri tersulphatis, convert one- half of the sulphate of iron into sulphate of the sesquioxide; mix this in solution with the remaining 5gs of the sulphate, and add the solution of ammonia until it ceases to throw down a precipitate of the black or magnetic oxide. Having collected and washed this, add it to the citric acid, dissolved in f 3j of water, heat to about 150° F. and filter; dilute the filtered liquid with water to make fEv; in this dissolve the sugar and a clear dark-colored syrup will be the result. This contains 3j of the salt to f ,?j (by calculation), and is a very eligible preparation in the dose of m„xx to f3j. Syrupus Ferri Protocitratis. (Syrup of the Proto- Citrate of Iron) Take of Sulphate of iron.....3iiiss. Carbonate of soda.....3iv. Sugar, Water, of each ..... Sufficient. Citric acid...... Sss. Simple syrup......fliv. Dissolve the sulphate of iron and carbonate of soda in equal por- tions of water, and add the one to the other in a beaker or precipitat- ing glass. Wash the precipitated protocarbonate of iron with water, in which a small portion of sugar has been dissolved, and add it to a concentrated solution of the citric acid; evaporate to a greenish, deli- quescent mass, and dissolve in the syrup. This is a greenish-brown liquid, containing nearly 3j of the salt to f Ij. Dose, "Ixxx to f 5j. It is liable to deposit the salt by long keeping. 424 IRON AND MANGANESE. The syrup of citrate of iron of Beral is a saccharine solution of the citrate of ammonia and sesquioxide of iron. Ferri Phosphas. ( Common Phosphate of Iron) The officinal phosphate of iron is formed by double decomposition between solutions of two equivalents of sulphate of protoxide of iron and one equivalent of phosphate of soda. Its composition as thus prepared is variable, being a mixture of phosphate of protoxide of iron, and phosphate of sesquioxide in different proportions. Witt- stein gives a very full account of it, with specific directions for its preparation. As first precipitated it is white, and is then stated to be nearly pure phosphate of protoxide, 2FeO,HO,P05; the reaction is thus represented, 2(Fe0,S05) -f 2NaO,HO,P05 = 2FeO,HO,P05 + 2(NaO,S03); the soluble sulphate of soda being washed away and the salt dried, it is found to have acquired a slate color, more or less green, the protoxide of iron having become partially changed, as before stated, into sesquioxide, and combined with phosphoric acid. It is soluble in acids like phosphate of lime, but not in water. Phosphate of iron has long been in use in medicine for the general purposes to which the ferruginous salts are applicable, though until the recent introduction of several preparations containing it in solu- tion, it has been little known to practitioners. Dose, gr. v to x. Phosphate of sesquioxide of iron, Fe203,POs-f 4HO, is the white pre- cipitate occasioned by phosphate of soda in sesquisalts of iron ; it has been used in medicine in cases like the foregoing, and in similar doses. (See Pyrophosphate of Iron) Syrup of Superphosphate of Iron. This syrup is prepared by adding freshly precipitated phosphate of iron to saturation in a boiling solution of glacial phosphoric acid. On concentrating and cooling it congeals into a soft mass which is freely soluble in water in all proportions, and free from inky taste. The syrup is made from this, by dissolving five grains in each flui- drachm of simple syrup. Dose, a fluidrachm or less. Syrup of Phosphate of Iron and Ammonia. (Joseph Eoberts.) Take of Sulphate of iron . . .278 grains. 359 grains. 396 grains. Sufficient. 5| ounces. Sufficient. Phosphate of soda Glacial phosphoric acid Liquor ammoniae Sugar Water Dissolve the phosphate of soda and the sulphate of iron separately. Mix the solutions, and wash the resulting precipitate of phosphate of ir6Vi. Then to one-half the phosphoric acid dissolved in one ounce of water, add water of ammonia until it is saturated. To the other half of the phosphoric acid dissolved in a like quantity of water, add the moist phosphate of iron and dissolve by a gentle heat, then add the solution of phosphate of ammonia and the sugar, and evaporate to COMPOUND SYRUP OF PHOSPHATES. 425 seven fluidounces. This preparation contains 4| grains of phosphate of iron, 4| grains of phosphate of ammonia, and 3| grains of phos- phoric acid, to a fluidrachm or teaspoonful. It is remarkable for holding the ferruginous phosphate permanently in perfect solution. The dose is a teaspoonful or less. Parrish's Compound Syrup of Phosphates. Take of Protosulphate of iron . . . 3x. Phosphate of soda . . . . 3xij. Phosphate of lime .... 3xij. Phosphoric acid, glacial . . . 3xx. Carbonate of soda . . . , 9ij. Carbonate of potassa . . • 3j- Muriatic acid, Water of ammonia, of each . . Sufficient. Powdered cochineal . . . 3ij- Water ...... Sufficient. Sugar......Ibij gviij, offic. Orange-flower water . . • f gj- Dissolve the sulphate of iron in f gij of boiling water, and the phos phate of soda in f giv of boiling water. Mix the solutions, and wash the precipitated phosphate of iron till the washings are tasteless. Dis- solve the phosphate of lime in four fluidounces of boiling water with sufficient muriatic acid to make a clear solution; when cool precipi- tate it with water of ammonia, and wash the precipitate. To the freshly-precipitated phosphates, as thus prepared, add the phosphoric acid previously dissolved in water; when clear add the carbonates of soda and potassa, previously dissolved in water, and muriatic acid to dissolve any precipitate. Now dilute with water till it reaches the measure of twenty-two fluidounces, add the sugar, and towards the last, the cochineal; dissolve by the aid of heat, strain, and when cool add the orange-flower water. As thus made, each teaspoonful contains about 2\ grains of phos- phate of lime, 1 grain of phosphate of iron, with fractions of a grain of phosphates of soda and potassa, besides free phosphoric and hydro- chloric acids. The solution is perfect, the taste agreeably acid, and the flavor pleasant. The disposition to precipitate a bulky sediment of the insoluble phosphates is one of the greatest annoyances in this preparation, when made on a large scale, and can be obviated best by substituting hydrochloric acid for a suitable portion of the phosphoric acid used, taking care to separate the liquid into two portions, and adding the carbonate of soda and potassa to that consisting exclusively of the phosphoric acid solution, lest portions of chloride of sodium and chloride of potassium should be formed and contaminate the resulting solution. Owing to the uncertain strength of phosphoric acid of commerce, being a mixture of the monobasic, bibasic, and tribasic acids, as de- scribed under that head, and always being contaminated with earthy phosphates, there is some uncertainty about the proportions to be employed in the above formula. These considerations have induced 426 IRON AND MANGANESE. the trial of a method by double decomposition, which should always furnish a uniform strength of acid from a cheap and accessible source. E. Scheffer, of Louisville, Ky., has proposed to take 49.25 drachms of phosphate of lime, 34.125 monohydrated sulphuric acid, diluted with three times its weight of water, put them in a thin dish and heat on a water bath for half a day. By this process only 37.25 drachms of phosphate of lime will be decomposed by the sulphuric acid which combines with the lime of these 37.25 drachms to form sulphate of lime, while the phosphoric acid is set free and holds the other twelve drachms of phosphate of lime in solution. After it has cooled, the magma is pressed, macerated with fresh water, and again pressed, and the liquid evaporated if necessary to twenty fluidounces, cooled, and filtered. The phosphate of iron and carbonate of potassa and soda are now added as in my own recipe, and the whole made into a syrup secundum artem. The washing of the precipitated sulphate of lime is best performed in a funnel, the water being thrown upon the middle in a kind of reservoir formed by raising the precipitate on the sides of the funnel; the last portions are collected separately and evaporated until, with the stronger portion, they have the desired measure. Dr. Joseph G. Eichardson, of Philadelphia, has proposed to use citric acid as the solvent for the phosphates in the compound syrup, this substitution, though probably modifying the therapeutic proper- ties of the preparation, furnishes it in a very agreeable form. His recipe from the " American Journal of Pharmacy," vol. xxx. p. 19, was published in the second edition of this work. Under the synonym of "Chemical Food," this preparation has attained a wide popularity with the medical profession, both in the United States and in Great Britain. When skilfully made, it is one of the most agreeable, as it is certainly one of the most efficient of the chemical nutritive tonics, which in accordance with improved methods of treating chronic diseases, have become so desirable to the physician. The excess of acid, though in a few cases disagreeing with the sto- mach, is perhaps generally useful in promoting the efficiency of the medicine, as a tonic, to the digestive function; it may be avoided when objectionable, by presenting the ,insoluble phosphates in a hy- drated form, as suggested by Prof. Procter, thus:— Syrups of the Undissolved Phosphates. Take of Protosulphate of iron (cryst.) . . . 3ij. Chloride of calcium (fused) . . . 3isg. Phosphate of soda (cryst.) . . . . 3vij. Syrup of ginger, Distilled water, of each . . . . f giv. Triturate the chloride of calcium with the phosphate of soda and three fluidounces of the water, till the decomposition is complete and a smooth mixture is obtained, then add the syrup, and finally the sul- phate of iron, previously dissolved in a fluidounce of the water. The resulting mixture consists of the hydrated phosphates of iron and PYROPHOSPHATE OF IRON. 427 lime, with about two drachms of sulphate of soda, and a little common salt, the whole suspended and rendered palatable by the syrup. Ferri Pyrophosphas. 2Fe203,3bP05 + 2NH40,Ci + 13Aq= 719.2. Take of phosphate of soda seven troyounces and a half; solution of tersulphate of iron seven fluidounces, or a sufficient quantity; citric acid two troyounces; water of ammonia five fluidounces and a half, or a sufficient quantity; water a sufficient quantity. Heat the phosphate of soda, in a porcelain capsule, until it under- goes the watery fusion, and continue the heat until it becomes dry. Transfer the dry salt to a shallow iron capsule, and heat it to incipient redness, without fusion. Then dissolve it in three pints of water, with the aid of heat, and, having filtered the solution and cooled it to the temperature of 50°, add solution of tersulphate of iron until this ceases to produce a precipitate. Stir the mixture thoroughly, and pour it upon a muslin strainer, and, when the precipitate has drained, wash it with water until the washings pass nearly tasteless, and trans- fer it to a weighed porcelain capsule. To the citric acid, contained in a suitable vessel, add water of am- monia until the acid is saturated and dissolved. Then add the solu- tion to the precipitate in the weighed capsule, stir them together, and evaporate until the liquid is reduced to sixteen troyounces. Spread this on plates of glass or porcelain, so that, on drying, the salt may be obtained in scales. Lastly, preserve it in a well-stopped bottle, protected from the light. U. S. P. When the officinal phosphate of soda is heated to redness it under- goes a change, the phosphoric acid it contains being converted into bibasic phosphoric acid, so that by recombination it will furnish a different class of salts; the first step in the above formula is designed to produce this change. After expelling the water of crystallization, the heat is raised to incipient redness to expel the water of hydra- tion (basic water), pyrophosphate of soda being produced; this is anhy- drous, and soluble with difficulty unless by heat; when crystallized from its solution it combines with ten equivalents of water. In mak- ing the salt directly from pyrophosphate of soda the quantity should be about three troyounces of the anhydrous, or five troyounces of the crystallized salt, instead of seven troyounces and a half of ordi- nal phosphate of soda ordered in the recipe. It now remains to form the bibasic salt of iron; by precipitating solution of tersulphate of iron with the pyrophosphate of soda, taking care to opeiate at a temperature below 50° F., we obtain a gelatinous precipitate, which has the property of dissolving with facility in citrate of ammonia; this ingredient, as formed by the direct union of its elements, is accord- ingly added and the solution evaporated, till of suitable consistence to be spread on plates of glass to dry; as thus prepared it is in thin apple-green scales, having a slightly saline (not metallic) taste, wholly and freely soluble in water; it consists of about one-half pyrophos- phate of iron, one-third citrate of ammonia, and the remainder water. The composition given at the head of this article is inferred by Dr. Squibb from the ingredients and proportions used in its preparation, 428 IRON AND MANGANESE. and is not the result of analysis, a remark which applies to other for- mulae given in this and similar works. Much of the pyrophosphate of iron that is met with in commerce is imperfectly soluble. This preparation has come into very extensive use within the past few years, having been first brought into view as a remedial agent by M. Eobiquet. The officinal formula is a modification of that of Dr. Squibb, published in the "Am. Journ. of Pharm.," 1860, p. 36; to which accurate and reliable chemist we are indebted for much that is known of its properties. It is remarkably well adapted to those delicate conditions of the system in which iron is so often indicated, and has the great merit of being free from the ferruginous taste. The presence of the citrate of ammonia sometimes reproduces a tendency to diarrhoea in cases of great susceptibility of the mucous membrane, as in late stages of phthisis; it may then be combined with astringents, but generally the absence of astringency is a great recommendation of this salt. The dose is five grains. Syrup of Pyrophosphate of Iron. The difficulty of procuring the pyrophosphate perfectly soluble, or rather the fact that the article as found in commerce is so generally deficient, makes it desirable that the pharmaceutist should prepare the syrup from the ingredients as given in the officinal formula for the salt; that the process may be shortened where it is intended to convert the salt into the form of syrup, Dr. Squibb recommends that the solu- tion resulting from the addition of the solution of citrate of ammonia to the magma of freshly precipitated pyrophosphate of iron, as evapo- rated ready for drying on glass, should be added to simple syrup; the following proportions sufficiently approximate the required dose. Take of Solution of pyrophosphate of iron . . 2 fluidounces. Syrup.......1 pint. Mix them; (add flavor to taste.) Dose, a fluidrachm. If a pure and soluble article of the pyrophosphate of iron in scales is at hand, it may be dissolved in simple syrup in the proportion of sixteen grains to the fluidounce, which will nearly correspond with the above. Hypophosphites of Iron. There are two hypophosphites of iron in use in the preparations which follow, hypophosphite of sesquioxide (ferric hypophosphite), Fe20.j,3PO, as suggested by Prof. Procter, and hypophosphite of pro- toxide (ferrous hypophosphite), FeO,2HO,PO, proposed by W. S. Thompson, of Baltimore. The first named is prepared by precipitat- ing a solution of hypophosphite of soda or ammonia with solution of sesquisulphate of iron. It is necessary to avoid the presence of an alkaline carbonate, or the precipitate will be contaminated with free sesquioxide of iron. After washing the gelatinous precipitate thrown down by the mixed liquids, which must be done with care, as in this SYRUP OF HYPOPHOSPHITES. 429 state it is soluble, it may be dried into an amorphous, tasteless white powder, freely soluble in hydrochloric and hypophosphorous acids. The hypophosphite of protoxide of iron is present in two of the syrups for which recipes are given below, and is recommended in this form of preparation by being more permanent than the sesquisalt, which, as observed by W. S. Thompson, continually tends to pass into proto-salt in saccharine solution; the proto-salt is also more soluble; it is, I believe, not met with in commerce in a solid form. Syrup of Hypophosphite of Iron. (Containing Ferrous Hypophosphite) Take of Protosulphate of iron . . . 185 grains. Carbonate of soda . . . 240 " Hypophosphorous acid (sp. gr. 1.036) 3 J ounces. Water......A sufficient quantity. Sugar......12 ounces. Dissolve the sulphate of iron and carbonate of soda, each separately in four fluidounces of water, and mix the solutions. Wash the preci- pitated carbonate of iron thoroughly with sweetened water, and drain it on a muslin filter; then transfer to a dish, add a small portion of water, heat gently, adding hypophosphorous acid till it forms a clear solution; then add water till it reaches eight fluidounces, and add the sugar and flavor to taste. The dose of this is a fluidrachm. Thompson's Syrup of Hypophosphites. (Containing Ferrous Hypophos- phite) Take of Hypophosphite of lime .... 256 grains. Hypophosphite of soda . . . .192 " Hypophosphite of potassa . . . 128 " Protosulphate of iron, crystallized . . 185 " Carbonate of soda ..... 240 " Hypophosphorous acid, sp. gr. 1.036 . . 3 J fl. ounces. Sugar ....... 12 ounces. Dissolve the protosulphate of iron and carbonate of soda, each sepa- rately, in four fluidounces of water, and mix the solutions. Wash the precipitated carbonate of iron thoroughly with sweetened water, and drain it on a muslin filter. Having placed the salts of lime, soda, and potassa in a suitable porcelain dish, add about two fluidounces of water, and one fluidounce of hypophosphorous acid; heat the mixture gently, and add the moist carbonate of iron, in small portions, from time to time, alternately with the hypophosphorous acid, until the solution is complete. Add water enough to make the whole measure ten fluidounces; pour it into a bottle containing the sugar and agitate as before. Dose, a fluidrachm.—Journ. and Trans, of Maryland Col- lege of Pharm., June, 1858. \ 430 IRON AND MANGANESE. Procter's Compound Syrup of Hypophosphites. (Containing Ferric Hypophosphite) Take of Hypophosphite of lime .... 256 grains. Hypophosphite of soda .... 192 " Hypophosphite of potassa . . . 128 " Hypophosphite of iron'(recently precipitated) 96 " Hypophosphorous acid solution . q. s. or 240 " White sugar......9 ounces. Extract of vanilla.....I ounce. Water.....A sufficient quantity. Dissolve the salts of lime, soda, and potassa in six ounces of water; put the iron salt in a mortar, and gradually add solution of hypophos- phorous acid till it is dissolved; to this add the solution of the other salts, after it has been rendered slightly acidulous with the same acid, and then, water, till the whole measures twelve fluidounces. Dissolve in this the sugar, with heat, and flavor with the vanilla. Dose, a flui- drachm. Without flavoring, this syrup is not unpleasant. Among the preparations of lime and of manganese the reader will find other eligible combinations containing hypophosphorous acid, and, in fact, the above are less prescribed than those which do not contain iron. The acid ingredient itself being possessed of those " hasmatogen" properties which are sought in this class of tonics. Ferri Lactas. FeOL + Aq? Take of lactic acid a fluidounce; iron, in the form of filings, half a troyounce; distilled water a sufficient quantity. Mix the acid with a pint of distilled water in an iron vessel, add the iron, and digest the mixture on a water bath, supplying distilled water, from time to time, to preserve the measure. When the action has ceased, filter the solution, while hot, into a porcelain capsule, and set it aside to crystallize. At the end of forty-eight hours, decant the liquid, wash the crystals with a little alcohol, and dry them on bibu- lous paper. By evaporating the mother-water in an iron vessel to one-half, filtering while hot, and setting the liquid aside, more crystals may be obtained. ( U. S. P.) By this new officinal process the iron filings are oxidized into pro- toxide of iron which combines with the lactic acid yielding this salt, which, being rather insoluble, separates in greenish-white crystalline crusts or grains of a mild, sweetish, ferruginous taste, soluble in forty- eight parts of cold, and twelve of boiling water, but insoluble in alcohol. Exposed to heat it froths up, gives out thick, white, acid fumes, and be- comes black, sesquioxide of iron being left. If it be boiled for fifteen 1 This quantity, 96 grains, of hypophosphite of iron is obtained when 128 grains of hypophosphite of soda, dissolved in two ounces of water, is decomposed with a slight excess of solution of tersulphate of iron, and the white precipitate well washed on a filter with water. ACETATE and tannate of IRON. 431 minutes with nitric acid of the specific gravity of 1.20, a white granular deposit of mucic acid will occur on the cooling of the liquid. Lactate of iron has the advantage of less solubility than some of the other salts, and hence a less powerful taste; it is regarded as a superior preparation, on the supposition that all the combinations of iron are converted into lactates upon their entrance into the stomach. It has been incorporated with flour in the preparation of bread, and is well adapted to the form of lozenge, of chocolate drops, &c. The lactate has been found beneficial in chlorosis, and the kindred forms of disease, in which iron is indicated, and is said to possess a marked influence upon the appetite. Dose, gr. j to gr. v, repeated at suitable intervals. Ferri Acetas. (Acetate of Iron) The Dublin Pharmacopoeia directs a tincture of this salt, prepared by double decomposition between tersulphate of iron and acetate of potassa, in alcoholic solution, and removing the crystalline precipitate of sulphate of potassa; it has a deep-red color, and a strong ferruginous taste. A much pleasanter preparation is the Tinctura ferri acetatis estherea, of the Prussian Pharmacopoeia, which, as a first step, orders an aque- ous solution of this salt, Liquor ferri acetatis, prepared by dissolving fresh sesquioxide of iron in acetic acid, so that the solution contains 8 per cent, of iron, or 11.43 of oxide of iron, and has a sp. gr. of 1.143. To make the ethereal tincture, nine ounces of this liquor, two ounces strong alcohol, and one ounce (all by weight) of acetic ether, are mixed. It is a very agreeable preparation, and largely employed in Europe in doses of about 3ss. Duflos has proposed a basic acetate as an antidote to arsenious and arsenic acid, especially when combined with alkalies. It is prepared by completely saturating acetic acid with sesquioxide of iron. The solution contains Fe203,Ac, and in cases of poisoning by arseniates or arsenites, is to be freely used, largely diluted with warm water. Rademacher's tinctura ferri acetici is prepared by boiling an intimate mixture of 2 oz. 7 dr. protosulphate of iron, 3 oz. acetate of lead, 6 oz. of distilled water, and 12 oz. wine-vinegar, in an iron vessel, and, after cooling, adding 10 oz. alcohol. This mixture is set aside for several months, and when it has assumed a deep red color, is filtered and preserved. Age improves this tincture in taste and smell. It is used in the same cases as other mild ferruginous preparations, in doses of from thirty to sixty drops. Ferri Tannas. (Tannate of Iron, Ferric Tannate.) All sesquisalts of iron, if not too acid, are precipitated by tincture of galls or tannic acid; the precipitate is of a bluish-black color, insoluble in water, and tasteless. It has been highly recommended as a chalybeate, which is well adapted to weak stomachs. Dose, in chlorosis, ten grains or more. 432 IRON AND MANGANESE. A syrup has been proposed, containing 2 J drachms citrate of iron, 1 drachm extract of galls, to 4 ounces raspberry syrup, and twelve ounces simple syrup. The dose is a tablespoonful several times a day. Ferri Vahrianas. ( Valerianate of Iron) Fe20.j,3Va. This preparation is made by the decomposition of valerianate of soda by tersulphate of iron; it is a dark red amorphous powder, having a faint odor and taste of valerianic acid. It is insoluble in cold water, decomposed by hot water, and is soluble in alcohol. In hysterical affections complicated with chlorosis, it is prescribed in doses of about a grain repeated several times a day. Ferri et Potassae Tartras. K0,Fe20j,T4- Aq? (Tartrate of Iron and Potassa) This double salt is directed to be prepared by heating together, to 140° F., hydrated sesquioxide of iron from one pint of solution of tersulphate with seven troyounces of bitartrate of potassa in four pints of water. The excess of tartaric acid in the latter salt is saturated by the ferric oxide, forming an uncrystallizable salt. This is ob- tained by evaporation in a thick, syrupy liquid, which is poured on plates of glass to dry. As thus prepared, it forms ruby-red scales, having the physical characters of the citrate; soluble in seven times its weight of water, and becoming damp on exposure. In solution it does not change the color of litmus, and, at common tem- peratures, does not yield a precipitate with potassa, soda, or ammonia. Ferrocyanide of potassium does not render it blue until an acid be added. Its astringency is much less than that of the ferruginous prepara- tions generally, and its stimulating influence less obvious. From its slight taste and ready solubility, it is one of the best preparations for children. Dose, gr. x to xx. Ferri et Ammonias Tartras. NH3,Fe203T-f Aq ? (Ammonio-Tartrate of Iron.) This double salt resembles the foregoing; it is prepared by satu- rating 6 troyounces of tartaric acid* in solution with carbonate of am- monia, then adding 6 troyounces additional of the acid; hydrated sesquioxide of iron from two and a half pints of the solution of ter- sulphate is now precipitated and washed and added to the solution of bitartrate of ammonia, which is kept at the temperature of 150° until it has ceased to take up the oxide. It is then filtered and evaporated to the consistence of syrup and spread on plates of glass so that on drying the salt may be obtained in scales. These are transparent garnet-red, with a "saccharine taste." It is much more soluble than the tartrate of iron and potassa, being slowly dissolved by little more than its weight of water, but is insoluble in alcohol and ether. It is neutral to test paper, not precipitated by the fixed alkalies, nor ren- dered blue by ferrocyanide of potassium. When incinerated it yields twenty-nine per cent, of sesquioxide of iron. Ammonio-tartrate is one of the best preparations of iron for com- SOLUTION of nitrate OF IRON. 433 mon use, especially adapted to children; it is, however, less prescribed than the ammonio-citrate. Dose, gr. x to gr. xx. Ferri Prototartras. 2FeO,T,-f 4Aq. ? (Prototartrate of Iron. Ferrous Tartrate) Is obtained as a crystalline powder, by digesting iron filings with tartaric acid in solution. It is little soluble in water, has a mild fer- ruginous taste, and contains 13 per cent, water of crystallization. It may be used like the other mild forms of iron. Liquor Ferri Nitratis U. S. P. (Solution of Nitrate of Iron. Ferric Nitrate) Take of Iron in the form of wire, cut in pieces, two troyounces and a half. Nitric acid five troyounces. Distilled water a sufficient quantity. Mix the iron with twelve fluidounces of distilled water in a wide mouthed bottle; add to the mixture, in small portions at a time, with frequent agitation, three troyounces of the nitric acid, previously mixed with six fluidounces of distilled water, moderating the reaction by setting the vessel in cold water, in order to prevent the occurrence of red fumes. When the effervescence has nearly ceased, agitate the solution with the undissolved iron until a portion of the liquid, on being filtered, exhibits a pale-green color. Then filter the liquid, and, having poured it into a capacious porcelain capsule, heat it to the tem- perature of 130°, and add the remainder of the nitric acid. When the effervescence has ceased, continue the heat until no more gas escapes, and then add sufficient distilled water to bring the liquid to the measure of thirty-six fluidounces. This improved formula from the Pharmacopoeia is designed to fur- nish a permanent solution not liable to precipitate the bulky subni- trate upon standing, which, as made by the old process, was invariably the case. The acid is now directed to be weighed instead of being measured, so that an apparent variation exists in the proportion; this, however, is nearly the same as in the old process, the differences in the old and new formula being in the mode of oxidizing the iron and forming the salt. The protonitrate is first formed by the addition of diluted acid to the iron immersed in a large quantity of water, keeping down the temperature by a cold water bath; an additional portion of nitric acid is then added after filtration, and the solution heated, which peroxidizes the iron and forms pernitrate, Fe^^NOj. The liquid has a pale amber color, and a sp. gr. between 1.060 and 1.070; it does not afford a blue precipitate with ferridcyanide of potassium. A fluidounce of it should contain from 8 to 10 grains of anhydrous sesquiox- ide of iron, combined with nitric acid. It is used as an astringent in diarrhoea, and in hemorrhages from the bowels, uterus, &c, in individuals of pale and feeble constitutions. As a remedy in dysentery, it probably has no superior. A physician 28 434 IRON AND MANGANESE. of considerable experience writes: " I regard it as much a specific as quinine is for ague." Dose, "Iv to xv. Syrupus Ferri Protonitratis. (Syrup of Ferrous Nitrate) Take of Iron wire (card teeth), in pieces . Two ounces. Nitric acid (sp. gr. 1.42) . . . Three fluidounces. Water......Thirteen fluidounces. Sugar, in powder .... Two pounds. Put the iron in a wide-mouthed bottle, kept cool by standing in cold water, and pour upon it three fluidounces of water. Then mix the acid with ten fluidounces of water, and add the mixture in portions of half a fluidounce to the iron, agitating frequently until the acid is saturated, using litmus paper. When all the acid has been combined, filter the solution into a bottle containing the sugar and marked to contain thirty fluidounces. If the whole does not measure that bulk, pour water on the filter until it does. When all the sugar is dissolved' strain, if necessary, and introduce the syrup into suitable vials, and seal them. It requires a particular course of manipulation to dissolve iron in nitric acid, without a large portion passing to the higher stage of ox- idation. _ This manipulation is adopted in the first part of the formula for solution of pernitrate of iron as above, and in this formula, the iron is used in excess; care is taken to prevent its peroxidation by the large dilution of the acid, and the refrigeration of the liquid. As thus obtained the solution has a light-greenish color when filtered, and is precipitated of a greenish color by ammonia. It is necessary for the solution to stand on the iron for several hours after the last addition of acid. This preparation is, I believe, used for nearly the same purposes as the foregoing, though perhaps less distinctly astringent. Dose, niv to xv. Liquor Ferri Hyperchloratis. (Solution of Per chlorate of Iron) This salt has been recommended in certain forms of disease, on ac- count of the large quantity of oxygen it contains. It is prepared by dissolving sesquioxide of iron in hyperchloric acid. This acid is ob- tained by distilling from perchlorate of potassa and sulphuric acid, or by the decomposition of the perchlorate with fluosilicic acid. (See Works on Chemistry.) The solution contains Fe203,3C107. It is given in mucilaginous liquids, in doses of about ten drops. CHLORIDE OF IRON. 435 Preparations of Iron. (See First Group, page 414.) 2d GROUP.— Compounds of Iron with Hahgens and Sulphur. Name. Composition, &c. Dose. Description, &c. Ferri chloridum . Fe2Cl3+12Aq gr. j to V Orange-yellow crystals Tinct. ferri chloridi gr. 59Fe2Cl3tof^j r^XV Yellowish-brown. Spt. ferri chlorati aethereus . m„xxx Prussian Ph. Syrupus ferri chloridi 15 gr. to f§j m Ferrum ammoniatum 15 per cent. Fe2Cl3 gr. v to x Orange-colored grains. Ferri ferrocyanidum 2Fe2,3(Cy3Fe) do. Pure Prussian blue. " Ferri hydrocyanatum" . ? gr-j Poisonous. Ferri iodidum Fel + Aq ? gr. ij to v Decomposes in air. Syrupus ferri iodidi gr.vij,FeI,tof3J TT\xx Light-green color. Ferri bromidum FeBr gr. ij to v Brick-red powder. Syrupus ferri bromidi TT\XX Greenish syrup. Liquor ferri bromidi . (Gillespie's) ttlv to x See Bromine. Ferri sulphuretum . FeS gr. v £ In baths. Ferri et potassii sulphuretum . FeS,2KS3+KS202 gr. v Ferri Chloridum. Fe2Cl34-12Aq=270.5. (Chloride of Iron) Take of iron, in the form of wire and cut in pieces, two troyounces; muriatic acid twelve troyounces; nitric acid a troyounce, or a sufficient; quantity. To eight troyounces of the muriatic acid, introduced into a two- pint flask, add the iron, and apply a gentle heat until the acid is saturated and effervescence has ceased. Filter the solution, add to it the remainder of the muriatic acid, heat the mixture nearly to the boiling point in a four-pint porcelain capsule, and add nitric acid in successive portions until red fumes are no longer evolved, and a drop of the liquid ceases to yield a blue precipitate with ferridcyanide of potassium. Transfer the liquid to a smaller capsule, evaporate it by a gentle heat, on a sand bath, until reduced to eight troyounces and three hundred and sixty grains, and set it aside, covered with glass, for several days, in order that it may form a solid, crystalline mass. Lastly, break this into pieces, and keep the fragments in a well-stopped bottle, protected from the light. ( U. S. P.) This is a new officinal preparation made by a simple and readily practicable process; by the action of muriatic acid upon metallic iron protochloride results, which, by heating with nitric acid, is converted into sesquichloride (N05 yielding two equivalents of 0 to two equiva- lents of HC1, evolve two equivalents of CI which converts FeCl into Fe2Cl3). A gentle heat is directed to prevent the evaporation and de- composition of a portion of the dissolved chloride. The salt as ob- tained by this process is in yellow crystalline masses, very deliquescent and inconvenient to weigh or manipulate with. It is wholly soluble in water, alcohol, and ether. Its solution in water affords with ammonia a brown precipitate of hydrated sesquioxide of iron, and does not yield a blue one with ferridcyanide of potassium (red prussiate of potassa). Perchloride of iron has been very highly recommended, especially by the French surgeons, for both internal and external use as an 436 IRON AND MANGANESE. astringent. Internally it is used, chiefly in the form of syrup in intestinal hemorrhages, and as a local haemostatic it has been chicily used in a solution, known as Pravaze's solution, for which an elaborate formula was published in the last edition of this work. By the above officinal process we may prepare the salt with great facility, and from the salt, the solution. The strength of the solution is, moreover, greatly varied for different purposes—from Rx to 3ij to each f .?j. For internal use gr. j to gr. v may be administered in a spoonful of syrup. In cases of obstinate local hemorrhage it is recommended to apply the soft, deliquesced salt by means of a brush of spun glass, the pointed and softened end of a stick, or other suitable appliance. Solution of Perchloride of Iron.—The Prussian Pharmacopoeia di- rects an aqueous solution of sesquichloride of iron, which contains ten per cent, of its weight of iron; this is probably never used internally, but kept as a convenient solution for readily obtaining the peroxide of iron, and for the preparation of the following:— Spiritus Ferri Chhrati JEthereus; Bestucheff's Nervine Tincture; Lamotte's Golden Drops.—-It is prepared by mixing one part (by weight) of solution of perchloride of iron with one and a half parts strong alcohol, and one-half part of ether, exposing the mixture in well- corked white bottles to the sun until it becomes colorless, and subse- quently allowing it to oxidize again in contact with the air until it has obtained a yellowish color. It probably contains some chloric ether and acetic acid, and nearly the whole of the iron as a protosalt. This remedy acquired much celebrity during the last century, and is still much used in Europe as a mild ferruginous preparation, agreeably modified by the presence of ether. Its medium dose is "Ixxx. Syrupus Ferri Chloridi. Take of Chloride of iron .... Half a troyounce. Simple syrup .... One pint. Mix, (flavor to taste). Dose, a teaspoonful, as a tonic and astringent adapted to weak and relaxed conditions of the stomach and bowels, and to ansemic symp- toms generally. Tinctura Ferri Chhridi U. S. P. (Muriated Tincture of Iron) Take of Iron, in the form of wire and cut in pieces, three troyounces. Muriatic acid seventeen troyounces and a half. Alcohol three pints. Nitric acid, Distilled water, each, a sufficient quantity. Introduce the iron into a flask of the capacity of two pints, pour upon it eleven troyounces of the muriatic acid, and allow the mixture to stand until effervescence has ceased. Then heat it to the boiling point, decant the liquid from the undissolved iron, filter it through paper, and, having rinsed the flask with a little boiling distilled water, add this to it through the filter. Pour the filtered liquid into a cap- sule of the capacity of four pints, add the remainder of the muriatic FERROCYANIDE OF IRON. 437 acid, and, having heated the mixture nearly to the boiling point, add a troyounce and a half of nitric acid. When effervescence has ceased, drop in nitric acid, constantly stirring, until it no longer pro- duces effervescence. Lastly, when the liquid is cold, add sufficient dis- tilled water to make it measure a pint, and mix it with the alcohol. This is a greatly improved formula in the Pharmacopoeia of 1860. It is a modification of that of Dr. B. E. Squibb, published in the second edition of this work, and furnishes a more uniform preparation than the tincture of the former Pharmacopoeias, in which subcarbonate of iron was dissolved in muriatic acid. By the present recipe protochlo- ride of iron is formed (as in the process for chloride of iron, as above), and by digesting with nitric acid a further decomposition is produced, resulting in the production of the sesquichloride; this is then dissolved in alcohol and diluted till each fluidounce represents 58.9 grains of the salt, equal to 29 grains of Fe203, which each fluidounce should yield on analysis. This preparation is too well known to require much comment; it is a yellowish-brown liquid, having a harsh, acid, styptic taste, and an agreeable ethereal odor. Its specific gravity is 0.990. In prescribing this tincture it should be remembered that the drops are very small, so that, although its dose is from ten to twenty minims, twice that number of drops may be given. It should not be pre- . scribed with strong mucilage, which it has the property of gelatiniz- ing. It is most frequently presented alone, dropped into water. It is one of the most popular of the iron preparations. Besides the properties which are common to these, it is astringent, used in passive hemorrhages, and a diuretic which adapts it to a variety of cases. It is also one of the best solvents and vehicles for sulphate of quinia. Ferrum Ammoniatum. (Ammoniated Iron. F'lores Martiahs) Subcarbonate of iron is mixed with muriatic acid in a glass vessel; water and sesquichloride of iron are formed; a solution of the latter is then evaporated along with a solution of muriate of ammonia; a mixture of the two salts is the result, in about the proportions of fifteen per cent, of the former to eighty-five of the latter. It is met with in the shops in the form of small orange-colored pul- verulent grains, sometimes quite crystalline, having a feeble odor and a styptic saline taste. It is deliquescent and soluble in diluted alcohol and water. It also sublimes almost without residue. In consequence of the small proportion of iron present, it is little esteemed as a chalybeate, and has been omitted from the last edition of the Pharmacopoeia. The large amount of muriate of ammonia con- tained in it renders it alterative, and in large doses aperient. It has been used with advantage in amenorrhoea, scrofula, &c. Also as a deob- struent in glandular swellings. Dose, gr. iv to x. Ferri Ferrocyanidum. (Ferrocyanide of Iron. Prussian Blue. 2Fe23(Cy3Fe)=430.) Obtained by a double reaction ensuing upon mixture of solutions of ferrocyanide of potassium and solution of tersulphate of iron. 438 IRON AND MANGANESE. It is an insipid, inodorous substance, in porous cakes, of a rich vel- vety blue color. Insoluble in water, alcohol, and diluted mineral acids; diluted muriatic acid after boiling on it should yield no precipi- tate on the addition of ammonia; alkalies decompose it, leaving ses- quioxide of iron, and dissolving an alkaline ferrocyanide. Eed oxide of mercury, boiled with Prussian blue, affords the soluble cyanide of mercury, with an insoluble mixture of oxide and cyanide of iron. Tonic and sedative. It has been recommended in intermittent and remittent fever; also in epilepsy and facial neuralgia. Dose, gr. v-xv. • Hydrocyanate of iron is the name given to a preparation manufac- tured and sold by Tilden & Co. It appears to be a mixed compound, of the ferrocyanide of potassium, and ferrocyanide of iron, probably made by adding an excess of cyanide of potassium to protosulphate of iron in solution, and either omitting washing it, or wrashing imper- fectly. The dose is smaller than the foregoing ; J gr. to 1 gr. An accident resulting fatally is said to have occurred by the sub- stitution of this for the officinal ferrocyanide. Ferri Iodidum. Fe,I -f- Aq. (Iodide of Iron. Ferrous Iodide) Take of Iodine.......3ij. Iron filings . . . . . . 3J. Distilled water ..... Oiss. Mix the iodine with Oj water, in a glass or porcelain vessel, and gradually add the iron filings, stirring constantly. Heat the mixture gently, until of a light green color. Filter, and pour upon it the re- maining Oss of water, boiling hot. Evaporate the filtered liquor at a temperature not exceeding 212°, in an iron vessel, to dryness. Keep in a closely stopped bottle. One eq. of iron is here made to unite directly with one eq. of iodine, forming a protiodide, Fel. It is in the form of amorphous masses, containing a small but variable portion of water, exceedingly deliquescent, and possessed of a styptic, chalybeate taste. It is partially soluble in water imparting to a solution the odor and taste of iodine. By exposure to the atmosphere, it decomposes into free iodine and sesquioxide of iron. It should be remembered that the proportion of iron, in the iodide, is small, and that it is a comparatively powerful preparation. Dose, gr. j to ij. Owing to its liability to decompose and its extraordinary deliquescence, it has been omitted from the late edition of the Phar- macopoeia, and is rarely prescribed, except in the form of the syrup next described, or in that of piluke ferri iodidi, introduced among Extemporaneous preparations. SYRUPUS FERRI IODIDI. 439 Syrupus Ferri Iodidi U. S. P. Liquor Ferri Iodidi, U. S. P. 1850. Take of Iodine two troyounces. Iron, in the form of wire and cut in pieces, three hundred grains. Distilled water three fluidounces. Syrup a sufficient quantity. Mix the iodine, iron, and distilled water in a flask of thin glass, shake the mixture occasionally until the reaction ceases, and the solu- tion has acquired a green color and lost the smell of iodine. Then, having introduced a pint of syrup into a graduated bottle, heat it by means of a water bath to 212°, and, through a small funnel inserted in the mouth of the bottle, filter into it the solution already prepared. When this has passed, close the bottle, shake it thoroughly, and, when the liquid has cooled, add sufficient syrup to make the whole measure twenty fluidounces. 'Lastly, again shake the bottle, and transfer its contents to two-ounce vials, which must be well stopped. The present officinal formula for this preparation differs from the foregoing chiefly in containing a larger proportion - of sugar, which entitles it to the name of a syrup instead of that of solution as here- tofore. It is an instance of the direct union of two elements at ordi- nary temperatures by contact, which is rendered less rapid and more complete by the intervention of water. The use of heat, to promote the union of iron and iodine, is unne- cessary; the reaction, which is the same as that in the process for making the solid iodide, will take place satisfactorily in the cold. The result is a solution of the protiodide of iron, which is preserved by admixture with syrup; it is a transparent liquid, of a pale-green color, deposits no sediment by keeping, and does not tinge solution of starch blue. Mixed with sulphuric acid it becomes brown, and the mixture emits violet vapors when heated. The use of sugar as a preservative of this compound is an impor- tant improvement, introduced about the year 1830, and has brought this important salt within the reach of the practitioner in a very per- manent and eligible form. Iodide of iron produces the valuable effects of the ferruginous salts, in addition to those of iodine; it is peculiarly applicable to the treatment of scrofulous diseases in anasmic patients, and is very much prescribed. This syrup contains about 7| grains of salt to f 5j. Dose, "ixx to xl. It dissolves small proportions of the iodides of mercury, copper, &c., and is incompatible with most chemical agents, but may be mixed with the syrups and fluid extracts of the vegetable alteratives, or, what is perhaps better, prescribed in a separate vial, to be dropped into the syrup at the time of taking it. A preparation is sometimes prescribed in Philadelphia under the name of Dr. Hays's Syrup of Iodide of Iron: the formula is published in the "Amer. Journ. of Med. Sciences," for 1840, p. 449. It is made from 400 grains of iodine, and 160 of iron, and 2 ounces of sugar to f£iv. Dose, "iv. 440 IRON AND MANGANESE. Ferri Bromidum. (Bromide of Iron). FeBr= 106.4. This salt is obtained by adding bromine to iron filings, in excess, under water, and submitting them to a moderate heat. When the liquid assumes a greenish-yellow appearance, it is filtered and evapo- rated rapidly to dryness in an iron vessel. Bromide of iron is a brick red, very deliquescent salt, of an acrid styptic taste, and requires to be kept closely stopped in glass vials. This bromide has been used quite extensively in Pittsburg, Pa., as a tonic and alterative, and is consid- ered by some physicians a highly efficacious preparation. Syrup of Bromide of Iron. Take of Bromine...... 200 grains. Iron filings ...... 85 grains. Water ...... 4| fluidounces. Sugar ...... 3 ounces. Make a solution in the manner directed for preparing the offioinal syrup of iodide of iron. Dose, "Ixx, three times a day, gradually increased. (See " Medical Examiner," vol. vii. p. 162.) For the preparation of a solution of bromide of iron with excess of bromine, see Bromine. Sulphurets of Iron. Several sulphurets have been proposed, as stimulating alteratives, and as antidotes against the poisonous action of arsenic, lead, mercury, and other metals, which are precipitated by hydrosulphuric acid. As this latter acid may be set free by the intestinal acids, and in larger quantities has itself a poisonous action, the free use of these sulphurets seems to require care. Ferri sulphuretum, called black sulphuret of iron, is prepared by fusing together iron and sulphur. If well prepared, it has a yellowish- gray or blackish color, without odor or taste, and is wholly soluble in diluted acids, with evolution of sulphuretted hydrogen. It is chiefly used for the preparation of this gas, but has been given in scrophulous and chronic skin diseases, in doses of 5 or 10 grains, twice a day. Ferri et potassii sulphuretum, prepared by fusing together equal parts of iron filings and carbonate of potassa, with J part of flowers of sulphur, is a brown mass of the odor of sulphuretted hydrogen. It has been recommended as an antidote against arsenic, and also as a powerful alterative in doses of 5 grains, and in larger doses, diluted, in cases of poisoning; externally it has been employed as an addition to baths in the quantity of 1 to 3 ounces. Manganese. Mn=27.7. This is a metal resembling iron in its therapeutical as well as in some of its chemical properties. It forms several oxides, of which the protoxide, MnO, is present in its most important oxysalts, which have a rose color, or are colorless. The salts of protoxide of man- ganese are not incompatible with vegetable astringents, which is their chief pharmaceutical merit. PREPARATIONS OF MANGANESE. 441 Tests for Protoxide of Manganese.—The salts in which protoxide of manganese forms the base are recognized as follows :— Sulphuretted hydrogen produces in alkalies and sulphuret of ammonium, in neutral solutions, a flesh-colored precipitate of MnS, turning to brown in contact with air, soluble in acids. Alkalies cause a whitish precipitate of MnO,HO ; carbonates of the alkalies a similar precipitate of MnO,COa. By exposure to the air, they are partly oxidized, and turn brown. Carbonate of soda, fused with compounds of manganese in the outei flame before the blowpipe, assumes from NaO,Mn03, a green color, turning to a turbid blue green after cooling. Preparations of Manganese. Manganesii oxidum nigrum, Mn02. Native impure mineral. Manganesiee sulphas, Mn0,S03,-|-4Aq. Pale rose-colored crystals, soluble. Manganesias carbonas, MnO,C02-|-Aq. Whitish insoluble powder. Manganesias acetas, MnO,Ac. By dissolving carbonate in Ac. Manganesice lactas, 2MnO,L-|-10Aq. Dose, gr. j. Rose-colored cryst. Manganesiae Phosphas, 3MnO,P05-l-4Aq. Dose, gr. j. to v. White insoluble powder Syr. Manganesias Phosphatis, gr. v to f5j. Dose, fsjj. Syr. Manganesias Hypophosphites. Dose, f§ss contains 2J grs. of the saP. Manganesii chloridum, MnCl-f-4Aq. Milder than sulphate. Dose, gr. v Syrupus manganesii iodidi. Contains 5J to each f§j. Dose, TT^x. Syrupus ferri et manganesii iodidi. Same strength as Syr. Fer. Iod. Potassae permanganas, KO,Mn207. Purple crystals, or green powder. The native impure form of manganese in commerce, that of black oxide, is used to prepare all the rest; it is imported in lumps and in powder, and should have a dark, shining, crystalline appearance; its combining number is 43.67. Manganesias Sulphas. (Sulphate of Manganese. Manganous Sulphate.) MnO,S03 + 4Aq= 111.7 This salt may be prepared as follows:— Mix in a sand crucible the black oxide of manganese with sulphuric acid until of a thick pasty consistence. Cover with a smaller crucible and expose the mixture to a red heat for half an hour. At the end of this interval, remove the crucible from the fire, and when cool reduce the dark brown mass to a coarse powder. Introduce this into a crucible, and saturate as before with sulphuric acid. Again apply heat and continue it till white vapors cease to be expelled. _ The mass remaining contains the sulphate, which may be obtained impure by solution and evaporation. To purify this from iron, the following directions are given: The filtered solution is to be heated in a porce- lain capsule, and when nearly boiling, drop into it carbonate of man- ganese in small portions at a time until all the iron shall have been precipitated and the liquid changes from a dark red to a pale rose tint. Now evaporate and crystallize. Some processes recommend the heat- ing of black oxide with carbon previous to adding the sulphuric acid, others direct the addition of the moist carlonate to diluted sulphuric acid. These crystals are of a pale rose color, containing when formed 442 IRON AND MANGANESE. below 42° F. 7Aq, between 42° and 68° 5Aq, and between 68° and 86° 4HO; they have a styptic taste, are freely soluble in water, and may be given as a tonic in a dose of gr. v; as a cholagogue cathartic, 3j to 3ij is required. The solution is not disturbed by tincture of nutgall, but affords with caustic alkalies a white precipitate, which soon becomes brown by exposure to the air. Hydrosulphate of ammonia throws down a flesh-colored precipitate, and ferrocyanide of potassium, a white one. Carbonate of Manganese. (MnO,C02 -f Aq= 102.) This is made by precipitating sulphate with a carbonated alkali, or directly from the native black oxide, as follows:— Take of black oxide of manganese Ibj, in powder, put it in a porce- lain dish on a sand bath or other source of heat; pour on it muriatic acid Oij, and stir well. Chlorine is evolved, which makes it necessary to operate in the open air or under a chimney. Muriatic acid should be added until it is nearly dissolved. To get rid of free muriatic acid and sesquichloride of iron, add carbonate of soda, boiling, after each addition, as long as the carbonate precipitated is contaminated with iron, or until a portion of the solution tested with yellow prussiate of potassa does not produce a blue color. The solution of chloride of manganese, being now separated from the oxide of iron by filtration, will furnish, on the addition of an excess of carbonate of soda, a bulky white precipitate, which, being washed in cold boiled water and dried, constitutes carbonate of manganese. It is a white or pale rose-colored powder, insoluble in water, and liable to pass into a higher state of oxidation; it may be given in powder, dose, gr. v, or in the form of saccharine powder, or made into a mass with honey. Manganesiee Acetas. MnOAc. ? By dissolving the carbonate in acetic acid and evaporating, color- less or rose-colored prisms are obtained, which are permanent in the air, have an astringent metallic taste, and are soluble in alcohol, and in three and a half parts of water. It is considered one of the mildest medicinal salts of manganese, and is given in a dose of five grains. Manganesias Lactas. 2MnO,L -f lOAq. Prepared by dissolving carbonate of manganese in lactic acid, and evaporating; it crystallizes in four-sided prisms of a pale rose-color, is efflorescent, and dissolves in twelve parts of cold water. It has been used together with lactate of iron in doses of one grain, in chlorosis. Phosphate of Manganese. 3MnO,P05-f-4Aq. This salt is prepared by mixing solutions of sulphate of manganese four parts, and phosphate of soda five parts, washing the precipitated phosphate till the sulphate of soda is completely removed, and drying at a moderate heat. It is a white, nearly insoluble powder, and may be made into pills or lozenges, and given in a dose of from one to five grains. IODIDE OF IRON AND MANGANESE. 443 Siss, gr. xvij. liiss or q. s. f3iv. ffvij. f^xiiss. Syrup of Phosphate of Manganese. Take of Sulphate of manganese (in crystals) Phosphate of soda .... Muriatic acid..... Water, q. s., to make .... Sugar, q. s., to make, with the foregoing, Dissolve the salts separately, each in half a pint of water, and add the solution of phosphate of soda to the solution of sulphate of man- ganese, as long as it produces a precipitate, which wash with cold water, and dissolve by means of the muriatic acid; dilute till it mea- sures seven fluidounces, then add ten troyounces of sugar, or suffi- cient to make up the bulk of twelve and a half fluidounces. Each f3j contains five grains of the salt. The following have also been occasionally supplied for physicians' prescriptions. Syrup of Hypophosphite of Manganese. Take of Sulphate of manganese Hypophosphite of lime Water Sugar Orange-flower water Dissolve the hypophosphite and sulphate in separate portions of water and mix; then wash the precipitate, evaporate the filtrate to one pint, dissolve in this the sugar by the aid of heat, and add the orange- flower water. Dose, a tablespoonful, containing 2 J grains of hypophos- phite of manganese. Syrup of Iodide of Manganese. Take of Sulphate of manganese Iodide of potassium Sugar Water, Syrup, of each.....Sufficient. Dissolve the sulphate and iodide each in f 3iij of cold water, to which f3ij of syrup have been added, mix them in a glass-stoppered bottle, and, after the crystals of sulphate of potassa cease to precipitate, throw the solution on a filter of fine muslin, and allow it to pass intc a pint bottle containing the sugar; add sufficient water to the filter to bring up the measure of the resulting syrup to exactly a pint. This con- tains about 3j of the iodide to each f 3j. Dose, ttl x. 240 grains. 160 " Sufficient. ftij. f^ss. 3ij, 3nj. Ixij. 444 IRON AND MANGANESE. 630 210 100 4800 q. s. Syrup of Iodide of Iron and Manganese. (Procter.) This preparation nearly represents the officinal solution of iodide of iron, and is used for the same purposes, and in the same doses. Take of Iodide of potassium .... 1000 grains. Protosulphate of iron Protosulphate of manganese . Iron filings (free from rust) White sugar (in coarse powder) Distilled and boiled water Triturate the sulphates and the iodide separately to powder, mix them with the iron filings, add half a fluidounce of distilled water, and triturate to a uniform paste. After standing a few minutes, again add half a fluidounce of distilled water, triturate, and allow it to rest fifteen minutes. A third addition of water should now be made and mixed. The sugar should then be introduced into a bottle capable of holding a little more than twelve fluidounces, and a small funnel, prepared with a moistened filter, inserted into its mouth. The magma of salts should then be carefully removed from the mortar to the filter, and when the dense solution has drained through, distilled or boiled water should be carefully poured on in small portions, until the solution of the iodides is displaced and washed from the magma of crystals of sul- phate of potash. Finally, finish the measure of twelve ounces, by adding boiled water, and agitate the bottle until the sugar is dissolved. The solution of the sugar may be facilitated, when desirable, by stand- ing the bottle in warm water for a time, and then agitating. Each fluidounce of this syrup contains fifty grains of the mixed anhydrous iodides in the proportion of three parts of iodide of iron to one part of iodide of manganese, and the dose is from ten drops to half a fluidrachm. For paper on the preparations of manganese and iron, including effervescing powders, lozenges, pills, chocolate, and syrup, see " Am. Journ. Pharm.," vol. xxv. p. 174; also vol. xxii. p. 297. Potasses Permanganas. KO,Mn207. (Permanganate of Potassa. Chameleon Mineral) This salt, which is sometimes called hypermanganate of potassa, may be made by mixing equal parts of very finely-powdered deutoxide of manganese and chlorate of potassa with rather more than an equal part of caustic potassa, dissolving in a little water, evaporating to dry- ness, and exposing to a temperature just short of redness. The mass, on treatment with hot water, yields a deep purple solution of this salt, which on evaporation crystallizes, or, if evaporated to dryness, the salt is obtained as a dark green powder. The crystals are purple, and dissolve in 16 parts of water. The uses of this preparation are, internally as a remedy in diabetes, dose three grains three times a day, gradually increased, and externally as a caustic and " deodorizer" in treating foul ulcers. It is applied in powder, dusted on to the part, or in solution, from one to ten grains to the ounce. For the remarkable relations of this salt to ozone, and its uses as a deodorizer, see page 333. PREPARATIONS OF COPPER, ZINC, NICKEL, ETC. 445 Chloride of Manganese. MnCl, +4HO,= 99.17. The residuary liquid obtained in preparing chlorine, by dissolving binoxide of manganese in hydrochloric acid, consists of chloride of manganese contaminated with sesquichloride of iron; to free it of this it should be boiled to expel the excess of the acid, and then boiled with a magma of carbonate of manganese, which precipitates the whole of the iron salt. It crystallizes in thick tables of a rose color, soluble in water and alcohol; its medical properties are little known, but probably bear relation to those of the sulphate, similar to that of the corresponding salts of iron. Its dose is five grains. CHAPTER VII. preparations of copper, zinc, nickel, and cadmium. Cuprum. Cu=32. (Copper.) The properties of metallic copper are generally familiar; it is found native in large masses near the shores of Lake Superior, whence the United States are chiefly supplied. It furnishes, by oxidation and combination with acids, some important medicines, which are also, in excessive doses, corrosive poisons. The best antidote is white of egg, milk, or other bland liquid; magnesia will aid in the case of sulphate, by decomposing that salt. Copper is apt to contaminate stewed fruit, from the use of copper vessels in their preparation: it may be de- tected by immersing a clean spatula in the suspected liquid, which deposits a film of metallic copper. Reactions.—The presence of copper is also detected by the following re- actions of the solutions of its oxide. Potassa causes a blue precipitate, and its carbonate a pale green, soluble in an excess of the precipitant in the presence of some organic bodies. If grape sugar is present the clear solution on boiling precipitates red suboxide of copper. Ammonia precipitates them greenish, an excess redissolves the precipitate with a beautiful blue color. Sulphuretted hydrogen and sulphuret of ammonium produce a black or deep brown precipitate, soluble in NOs. Iodide of potassium causes a white precipitate of CuaI; free iodine is liberated at the same time. Ferrocyanide of potassium causes a brown-red precipitate soluble in alkalies. 446 preparations of copper, zinc, nickel, etc. Copper Preparations. Cupri sulphas, CuO,S03-f-5HO. Blue vitriol. Dose, tonic, £ gr., emet., gr. v. " carbonas, CuO,C02-r-CuO,HO. Pale green powder. Dose, gr. v. " oxidum, CuO. Black color. Dose, \ to 1 gr. " nitras, CuO,N05+3HO. Blue deliquescent crystals. Dose, \ to \ gr. " chloridum, CuCl,-f-2HO. Green soluble needles. Dose, ,^ to \ gr. Cuprum ammoniatum, CuO,S03,HO-|-2NH3. Blue amorphous moist powder, or pris- matic crystals. Dose, £ gr. Cupri subacetas, 2CuOAc-)-6HO.(?) Verdigris ; amorphous green masses. Externally. Cupri acetas, CuO,Ac+HO. "Distilled verdigris," crystals. The neutral acetate. Cuprum aluminatum. Lapis divinus. Cupri Sulphas. CuO,S03-t-5HO, = 124.4. (Blue Vitriol. Blue Stone) Four methods are in use for obtaining this salt. 1st. By evaporat- ing the waters which flow through copper mines, and which hold it in solution. 2. Boasting copper pyrites, lixiviating the residuum to dissolve the sulphate, and evaporating so as to obtain crystals. Both the S and the Cu of the pyrites abstract O from the air, and become, the one SO^ and the other CuO; and these uniting form sulphate of copper. 3d. Another mode is to sprinkle plates of copper with sul- phur, which are next heated to redness and plunged into water; the sheets are entirely corroded; a sulphuret is formed, which, by the action of heat and air, gradually passes into a sulphate; this is dis- solved in water, and crystals obtained by evaporation. 4th. By dissolving the scales, obtained in the process of annealing sheet cop- per, in diluted sulphuric acid, evaporating and crystallizing. The salt is in large, rhombic, blue crystals, with a styptic metallic taste; it contains five equivalents of water. It effloresces slightly in dry air; soluble in water, precipitated by ammonia, but redissolved in an ex- cess, forming a rich blue solution. The impurities contained in it, when in crystals, seldom affect its value as a medicine. Sulphate of copper is much used as a tonic and astringent (dose gr. J to gr. |), and as a prompt and powerful emetic in five grain doses; as an injection in gonorrhoea, &c, it is dissolved in water in the pro- portion of 2 to 8 grains to fIj. A crystal polished by trituration on a damp cloth, is applied as an astringent to inflamed or granulated eyelids, and to the troublesome ulceration of the mouth which is so common. This method of modifying the shape and surface of this crystal is quite preferable to scraping it with a knife. Tests.—If sulphate of copper contains iron, its precipitate with ammonia leaves a brown residue on being dissolved in an excess of the precipitant. Zinc is detected by the white precipitate produced by sulphuretted hydro- gen in a solution previously precipitated by potassa. Cupri Carbonas. CuO,C02-f CuO,HO. (Hydrated Subcarbonate of Copper. Mineral Green.) Sulphate of copper is precipitated by carbonate of soda; the pre- cipitate is a pale green tasteless powder, which is to be washed and dried at a moderate temperature. AMMONIO-SULPHATE OF COPPER. 447 It has been used in neuralgia in doses amounting to about one drachm (?) in twenty-four hours. It is wholly soluble in muriatic acid; the solution yields no precipitate with chloride of barium. Cupri Oxidum. CuO,=39.6. If the carbonate or the nitrate of copper is heated to redness, until it ceases to lose weight, the salt is converted into the protoxide, which is of a fine black color. This oxide, which is also much employed in elementary organic analysis, has been recommended in preference to the carbonate in doses of \ to 1 grain three or four times a day, and for indurated glands, in ointments containing 1 drachm to the ounce. It is wholly soluble in dilute muriatic acid, and the solution, after precipi- tating the copper by sulphuretted hydrogen, and filtering, leaves no residue on evaporation. Cupri Nitras. CuO,NOi+3HO= 120.6. Nitrate of copper is obtained by dissolving copper, its oxide or car- bonate, in nitric acid, and evaporating to crystallization, when it crys- tallizes in deep blue prisms, which are deliquescent and soluble in alcohol. Dissolved in mucilaginous liquids it has been given in doses of \ grain; it is used externally as an injection in gonorrhoea and similar complaints. In substance or in concentrated solution it has been employed as a caustic in ulcerated throat, in syphilis, &c.; from the deliquescent nature of the salt, care is necessary to prevent its spreading. The solution yields no precipitate with nitrate of baryta (S03), nitrate of silver (HC1), sulphuric or muriatic acids (lead, &c). Cupri Chloridum. CuCl= 67.25. Muriatic acid dissolves oxide or carbonate of copper; the solution by evaporation yields green needles, which are easily soluble in alco- hol and water. It has been occasionally used as a powerful alterative in doses com- mencing with x'g grain. Cuprum Ammoniatum. CuO,S03,HO,2NH3. (Ammoniated Copper. Ammonio-Sulphate of Copper) Sulphate of copper, half a troyounce, and carbonate of ammonia, six drachms, are rubbed together in a glass mortar until effervescence ceases; the ammoniated copper is wrapped in bibulous paper, and dried with a gentle heat. When thus rubbed together, these salts give out part of their water of crystallization, by which the mixture becomes moist, and, at the same time, a portion of the carbonic acid of the sesquicarbonate escapes, producing effervescence, and the com- pound assumes a deep azure blue color; it should be kept in a well- stopped bottle. Its composition, as thus prepared, may be stated as above or thus, 448 PREPARATIONS OF COPPER, ZINC, NICKEL, ETC. NCuH 0 SO 4- NH^HO, with a variable excess of carbonate of am- monia.3 A salt of the above composition is obtained in beautiful blue crystals from a solution of sulphate of copper, precipitated and redis- solved by ammonia; if alcohol is poured over the surface and set aside the water is gradually abstracted by the alcohol and the salt crystallizes. It may be considered pure if it has the proper color, and dissolves in twice its weight of water without residue. Ammoniated copper is regarded as a tonic and antispasmodic. It is occasionally prescribed in combination with assafoetida in pill. Dose, | gr. repeated. Cupri Subacetas. (Mrugo. Impure Subacetate of Copper. Verdigris) Made by exposing copper plates to the action of the fermenting refuse of the wine-press, or to pyroligneous acid, when this salt forms on the surface. It is obtained in powder, or amorphous masses, or consisting of very minute crystals, of variable color, with a peculiar metallic odor, and styptic metallic taste; it is resolved by water into a soluble neutral acetate, and insoluble tris-acetate; when treated with sulphuric acid it gives off acetic acid fumes; from the solution, ammonia precipitates the oxide, but redissolves it when in excess. Verdigris, as it occurs in commerce, is of variable composition and shade of color. The light green appears to be a mixture of various basic salts, while that of a greenish-blue color has the composition 2CuO,Xc-f 6HO (Berzelius). It is used exclusively in the shape of ointment. Verdigris ought to be nearly soluble in dilute acetic acid, and the solution, if precipitated by ammonia, must be wholly taken up by the excess of it. Capri Acetas. CuO(Ac) 4- Aq= 99.75. (Neutral Acetate of Copper) The neutral acetate is prepared by dissolving the above in dilute acetic acid and evaporating to crystallization. It is met with in com- merce under the name of distilled verdigris, and occurs in dark green crystals, soluble in 5 parts of boiling water. Eademacher uses a tincture of this salt prepared by double decomposition from 3 ounces sulphate of copper, and 3f ounces acetate of lead, to 30 ounces (weight) diluted alcohol. But it is scarcely ever prescribed. Cuprum Aluminatum. (Lapis Divinus. Lapis Ophthalmicus St. Yves) The European Pharmacopoeias have a preparation under this name and synonyms, and the Prussian Pharmacopoeia directs sulphate of copper, nitrate of potassa, and alum, of each two ounces, to be fused by a moderate heat in a copper or earthen vessel, and after mixing in one drachm powdered camphor, the mass is poured out upon a cold slab and kept in well-stoppered bottles. It is used externally. NATIVE IMPURE CARBONATE OF ZINC. 449 Zincum, Zn=32. (Zinc.) This metal occurs in nature in two principal forms : as a sulphuret blende, and as a carbonate or silicate, calamine, from which the metal is extracted, by distilling them with carbonaceous matters. The purest zinc found in commerce is that produced in Bethlehem, Penn- sylvania, from the native ore, found in great abundance in that vicinity. It is a bluish-white crystalline metal, soluble in dilute hydrochloric and sulphuric acids, with evolution of hydrogen, also in nitric acid; melted and dropped into water, it constitutes granulated zinc. It is used in pharmacy for the preparation of the sulphate, acetate, and chloride, which are officinal, and other salts. From its salts, oxide of zinc is precipitated by alkalies and their carbo- nates, white, soluble in an excess of alkali. Sulphuretted hydrogen, from neutral or alkaline solutions, white. Sulphuret of ammonium, white ; the last two are insoluble in alkalies, soluble in acids. Ferrocyanide of potassium, white, insoluble in dilute HC1. Preparations of Zinc. Calamina. Native, impure carbonate of zinc. A gray coarse powder. Tutia. A product of smelting lead ores containing zinc. Slate colored. Zinci sulphas, ZnO,S03-f-7Aq. Small, white, efflorescent crystals. Emetic gr. x. " carbonas praecipitatus, 3ZnO,C02-f-3Aq. (?) A pure white, very light powder. " oxidum, ZnO. A pure, white powder, not effervescing with acids. " acetas, ZnO,Ac-f-3Aq. Micaceous, freely soluble crystals. " chloridum, ZnCl. White, translucent plates or masses. Very deliquescent. " cyanidum, ZnCy. White powder, insoluble, poisonous. Gr. £ toj. " ferrocyanidum, (2KCy-fFeCy)-f3(2ZnCy-f-FeCy)-f-12HO. " iodidum, Znl. White, deliquescent, caustic. " lactas, 2ZnO,L-r-6HO. White, styptic, crystals or plates. " valerianas, ZnO,Va. White, pearly scales, soluble in alcohol. Dose, gr. j toij. Calamina. (Calamine. Native Impure Carbonate of Zinc) This mineral is found abundantly in Germany, England, and the United States. It is, however, as recently procured, very impure, and seldom contains a considerable proportion of carbonate of zinc. For use, it must be brought to the condition of an impalpable powder, when it constitutes calamina praeparata (of the former Pharmacopoeias). It is in the form of a pinkish or gray powder, of an earthy appear- ance. It should be almost entirely soluble in sulphuric acid, and the precipitate thrown down by ammonia and potassa should be redis- solved by these reagents. The calcination of calamine drives off a quantity of C02 and water, so that little remains except oxide of zinc and earthy impurities. The precipitated carbonate or oxide of zinc may be substituted with advantage. It is only used externally as a dusting powder and exsiccant, or in the form of cerate as a mild astringent. 29 450 PREPARATIONS OF COPPER, NICKEL, ZINC, ETC. Tutia. (Impure Oxide of Zinc. Tutty) This oxide is formed during the smelting of lead ores containing zinc; it is, as I have seen it, usu'ally in little nodules, like those of prepared chalk, of a bluish or slate color. It is said to be much adul- terated, some specimens factitious, and is very properly substituted by the officinal oxide of zinc. Zinci Sulphas. ZnO,S034-7HO=143. (Sulphate of Zinc. Wiite Vitriol.) Prepared by dissolving zinc in dilute sulphuric acid, evaporating and crystallizing. Water is decomposed in the presence of the acid and metal, hydrogen is liberated, the zinc oxidized, and the oxide formed combines with the sulphuric acid. A cheaper process now practised in the IT. S. A. Laboratory con- sists in dissolving zinc white, a nearly pure oxide of zinc, in dilute sulphuric acid and crystallizing. Usually in small, four-sided colorless prisms of the same form as sulphate of magnesia, possessing a disagreeable, metallic, styptic taste, soluble in 2\ times their weight of water, insoluble in alcohol, slightly efflorescent, precipitated, and again redissolved by ammonia. When heated, it dissolves in its water of crystallization, and by prolonged ignition, the acid is all expelled, and oxide of zinc is left. Six equiva- lents of water are expelled at 212° F., one equivalent remaining as constitutional water. A hydrate containing only 2 equivalents of water is precipitated as a white powder, when a concentrated solution of sulphate of zinc is mixed with sulphuric acid. (Kuhn.) Iron is detected by a bluish precipitate with ferrocyanuret of potassium; copper by the dark precipitate with sulphuretted hydrogen; magnesia by the residue left on dissolving it in caustic potassa. In small doses this salt acts as an astringent and tonic; in large doses as a quick, direct emetic; externally, as a powerful astringent. It is used as a tonic, chiefly in diseases affecting the nervous system, and when gradually increased, tolerance soon becomes established; sometimes it is given as an astringent in chronic passive discharges. As an emetic, it is used when the rapid emptying of the stomach is desired without the production of much depression, as in narcotic poisoning. Externally, in solutions of different strengths, it is em- ployed as a lotion or injection, in ophthalmia, gleet, &c. Dose, gr. ss to ij in pill. As an emetic, gr. x. The strength of a solution for external employment, may be from gr. j to x to f sj water. Zinci Carbonas Prascipitata. 8ZnO,C02+3Aq. ? (Precipitated Carbonate of Zinc) Solutions of carbonate of soda and sulphate of zinc, equal parts, art mixed together; a double decomposition takes place; sulphute of soda is formed in solution, and carbonate of zinc is precipitated as a white flocculent powder, resembling magnesia; it should be frequently washed till the washings are tasteless; the powder is dried by a gentle heat. It must be wholly soluble in diluted acids; impurities are then ACETATE OF ZINC. 451 detected as with oxide. Chemists disagree in regard to its composi- tion ; that stated above agrees with some of the best authorities. Uses same as those of calamine. In the form of the officinal cerate, it is much used as a dressing for burns. Zinci Oxidum. ZnO=40.3. (Oxide of Zinc. Flowers of Zinc) This is made by exposing the precipitated carbonate to a low red heat, by which C02 is driven off, and the residue is the oxide of zinc, or by the combustion of the metal in a stoneware crucible, collecting the oxide as it ascends, or a hydrate may be obtained by precipitating a soluble salt with a caustic alkali. In the solution in nitric acid, the following impurities may be detected:— Lead or copper, by a black precipitate with sulphuretted hydrogen; cad- mium, tin, antimony, or arsenic, by a yellowish precipitate by the SAme reagent; earthy oxides, by the white precipitate with carbonate of ammonia, insoluble in an excess of the precipitant; sulphuric and muriatic acids, by baryta and silver salts; iron, by a bluish precipitate with ferrocyanide of potassium. It is a white or yellowish-white powder, becoming yellow at a high heat, and recovering its whiteness on cooling, without odor or taste; insoluble in water, but soluble in diluted hydrochloric and other acids without effervescence, and in ammonia and potassa. Oxide of zinc is a tonic, especially to the nervous system; also somewhat astringent; used in chorea, epilepsy, and neuralgia. Locally, it is slightly astringent and desiccant, and constitutes an excellent application to excoriated surfaces, and to chapped or cracked nipples. An ointment of oxide of zinc is officinal. Zinci Acetas. ZnO,Ac +3Aq. ? (Acetate of Zinc) It may be procured in either of the following ways: 1. By dissolv- ing oxide of zinc in acetic acid, and crystallizing the saturated solu- tion. 2. By double decomposition between a solution of sulphate of zinc and a solution of acetate of lead. 3d. The officinal process, granulated zinc 3ix, is added to a solution of 3xij of acetate of lead in water Oiij, and agitated occasionally till no precipitate is formed on the addition of iodide of potassium. The familiar experiment of forming the " zinc," or lead-tree, leaves this salt in solution. In concen- trating the solution to one-fifth its bulk, previously to crystallizing, a little of the acetic acid is apt to be dissipated, and should be replaced by dropping in a small excess of the acid. Should the crystals be discolored they should be dissolved, the solution heated to ebullition, and successive portions of freshly precipi- tated carbonate of zinc dropped in until the liquid filters colorless; it may then be acidulated with acetic acid and again set aside to crys- tallize. When carefully crystallized, it is in the form of very handsome pearly or silky hexagonal crystals, which effloresce in a dry air. As found in the shops, it is sometimes in white micaceous scales; very soluble in water, moderately soluble in alcohol, and has an astringent metallic taste. When heated, it fuses and gives out an inflammable vapor, having the odor of 452 PREPARATIONS OF COPPER, NICKEL, ZINC, ETC. acetic acid; the mineral acids decompose it with the liberation of acetic acid vapors. It is used as a topical remedy, in the form of collyrium, in ophthal- mia, and as an injection in gonorrhoea, gleet, leucorrhcea, &c. Zinci Chhridum. ZnCl=68. (Chloride of Zinc. Butter of Zinc) Take of Zinc, in small pieces, . . Two troyounces and a half. Nitric acid (sp. gr. 1.42), Prepared chalk, each . . Sixty grains. Muriatic acid, Water, each . . .A sufficient quantity. To the zinc, in a glass or porcelain vessel, add gradually sufficient muriatic acid to dissolve it; then strain, add the nitric acid, and eva- porate to dryness. Dissolve the dry mass in water, add the chalk, and, having allowed the mixture to stand for twenty-four hours, filter and again evaporate to dryness, fuse the mass and pour it out on a tile or flat stone, and when it is hard break it in pieces. This beautiful preparation is well prepared by the above process of the Pharmacopoeia. The chloride of zinc being first formed by the action of the muriatic acid on the metal, the next step is to separate the iron derived from the muriatic acid, and from the zinc; this is done by the use of nitric acid, which peroxidizes the iron, and, on evaporation to dryness, dissolving, treating with chalk, and filtering, the peroxide is left behind. Another method, which is effectual in removing iron, is to add to the solution a little freshly-precipitated hydrated carbonate of zinc; filter and evaporate. The final concentration of the liquid requires care, as, by pushing the heat too far, the chloride is decomposed, and contains a portion of insoluble subchloride or oxide; on the other hand, care must be taken to free it entirely of water, otherwise it will not harden into solid and dry masses. The proper point is ascertained by dipping into it a glass rod, on which it should thicken into a hard, dry condition. There are two ways of finishing this operation. In one case, the mass, in its fused condition, is poured on to a dry marble slab, and, when nearly cool, is broken into fragments, and put immediately into dry salt- mouth bottles, usually of Ij capacity. Another plan is to warm the bottles thoroughly in a sand bath, and drop the fused mass, a little at a time, into them ; if in the proper condition, the separate concretions will not run together, but remain in a convenient shape for removal from the bottle when required. Chloride of zinc, as thus prepared, is white, crystalline, and semi-trans- parent, rapidly absorbing water, if exposed to the air; soluble in alcohol and water. If a large amount of sediment is present in the aqueous soli tion, it may be inferred that, by the intense heat employed in its concentra- tion and fusion, a portion has been reduced to the condition of oxide as above. The addition of a little dilute HC1 will dissolve this sediment. From the use of chalk in the officinal process, the salt is contaminated with a little CaCl, which is an unimportant impurity. A mixture of chloride, with a sufficient quantity of oxide of zinc, forms a good filling for teeth, becoming very hard by time. ZINCI IODIDUM. 453 It is used as a powerful escharotic, and as a remedy for toothache. In solution, it is an antiseptic, especially adapted to dissecting-room purposes; it is convenient to employ a solution of zinc in muriatic acid, without either purifying or concentrating it. The following solution is a good antiseptic for this purpose:— Take of Zinc . . . . . . . lb iv. Hydrochloric acid.....ft> iv or q. s. Water.......9 quarts. Dissolve, avoiding excess of acid. The solution contains about one part of chloride of zinc in twelve. Zinci Cyanidum. ZnCy=58.3. (Cyanuret of Zinc) Prepared by double decomposition between solutions of cyanide of potassium and sulphate of zinc, or by conducting gaseous hydro- cyanic acid into a solution of acetate of zinc. The latter is the best process. It is a brilliant white powder, insoluble in water, soluble in dilute mineral acids; it is tasteless and inodorous, but, when triturated, the odor of prussic acid is given off. It combines the properties of hydrocyanic acid with those of zinc, and has been used in epilepsy, chorea, and similar diseases, in doses of one-half to one grain. It is wholly soluble in muriatic acid, precipitated white by carbonate of ammonia, dissolved again in an excess ; and in this solution, no precipitate is caused by phosphate of soda; a white precipitate by sulphuret of hydrogen. Zinci Ferrocyanidum. Ferrocyanuret of Zinc. (2KCy4-FeCy)4-3 (2ZnCy + FeCy)-f-12Aq. This salt has sometimes been mistaken for the cyanide of zinc, and care is necessary to distinguish them, as the cyanide is poisonous in the medicinal doses of the ferrocyanide. This is prepared by precipi- tating sulphate of zinc by ferrocyanide of potassium. It is a white powder, similar in appearance to the former, but little soluble in boiling muriatic acid. It has been used in similar com- plaints in doses of two grains and more. It may be considered pure, if it is of a purely white color, and yields nothing to cold muriatic acid. Zinci Iodidum. = Znl, = 158.6. Two parts iodine, one part zinc, and four parts water, are digested until the color of iodine has disappeared; after filtration, it is evapo- rated until, when poured upon a cold slab, it hardens; a little iodine has then been expelled. It is in white, very deliquescent pieces, forming a turbid solution with water and alcohol. It should be wholly soluble in carbonate of ammonia. It is caustic and poisonous, and used only externally in aqueous solution, or in ointments, containing gr. xv to xxx to the ounce. 454 PREPARATIONS OF COPPER, NICKEL, ZINC, ETC. Zinci Lactas. 2ZnO,L + 6Aq= 215. (Lactate of Zinc) The lactate is prepared by dissolving carbonate of zinc in lactic acid, or by double decomposition between hot concentrated solutions of lactate of potassa or lime and chloride of zinc. It crystallizes in four-sided prisms, of an acid reaction, and a sour styptic taste ; they require 58 parts of cold water for solution, and are nearly solu- ble in alcohol. It is used in epilepsy in doses of two grains three times a day, gra- dually increasing the dose. Zinci Valerianas. ZnO,Va= 133.3. (Valerianate of Zinc) Prepared, according to the U. S. Pharmacopoeia, by decomposing two troyounces and seven drachms of sulphate of zinc with two and a half troyounces of valerianate of soda in solution at 212° F. Od evaporation, crystals of the valerianate collect on the surface, and are skimmed off, washed with cold water to separate adhering sulphate of soda, and dried; a second evaporation secures a second crop of crystals. The salt is in pearly scales writh a faint valerian odor, astringent metallic taste ; soluble in 160 parts of water, and in 60 of alcohol of the sp. gr. .833. Its solutions have an acid reaction, and become turbid when heated and clear again on cooling. When the salt is distilled with sulphuric acid, the distil- late added to a concentrated solution of acetate of copper does not disturb its transparency. It is a good deal prescribed, perhaps as much so as any other salt of valerianic acid, being adapted to a variety of nervous affections. Dose, gr. j to ij in pill, repeated at intervals. Cadmium. Cd=56 Cadmium is a rare metal which usually accompanies the zinc ores; it was discovered in 1817 as an impurity in medicinal preparations of zinc. It has a white tin color, a high metallic lustre, is very malleable, and oxidizes slowly in the air; its specific gravity is 8.6. Its salts are isomorphous with the corresponding salts of zinc. Its compound with oxygen is oxide of cadmium, CdO=64. Tests for Oxide of Cadmium.—Sulphuretted hydrogen and sulphuret of ammonium cause a bright yellow precipitate, insoluble in an excess; am- monia a white precipitate, easily soluble in excess ; potassa and the alkaline carbonates a white insoluble precipitate ; zinc precipitates the metal. The compounds of cadmium when mixed with oxalate of potassa and exposed to the inner flame of the blowpipe, produce a brownish-yellow incrustation without any metallic globules. Preparations of Cadmium. Cadmii sulphas, Cd0,S03+4H0, colorless crystals, soluble in water. Cadmii iodidum, Cdl, soluble in alcohol and water. SULPHATE OF NICKEL. 455 Sulphate of Cadmium. CdO,SO3+4Aq=140. The metal cadmium is dissolved in nitric acid, diluted with an equal bulk of water, by the aid of heat, carbonate of soda is then added (three parts to two of the NOs used), which precipitates the carbonate of cadmium; this is washed until the water passes tasteless and dis- solved in sulphuric acid, diluted with water; it is then evaporated and set aside to crystallize. Sulphate of cadmium is in colorless, prismatic crystals, efflorescent in the air, and very soluble in water. Its solution, even when rendered decidedly acid, yields, on the addition of hydrosulphate of ammonia, a yellow precipi- tate, insoluble in an excess of the precipitant. It is used almost exclusively in nervous and inflammatory diseases of the eye and ear, in solutions containing a grain to an ounce or two of rose-water, or in ointments, about five grains to a drachm of oint- ment ; for injections to the ear, somewhat stronger. Iodide of Cadmium. Cdl= 182.3. This salt has been proposed as a substitute for iodide of lead, the intense yellow color of which is sometimes objectionable, as liable to discolor the skin. It is prepared by dissolving iodine with granu- lated cadmium under water, and evaporating the solution, when the salt crystallizes in colorless six-sided tabular crystals, soluble in alco- hol and water, and fusible on the application of heat. It is exten- sively used in photography. C. L. Heinitsh, of Lancaster, proposes an ointment containing 9j of the salt to 5J of lard, flavored with oil of neroli. He triturates the iodide with 20 drops of ether till in fine powder, then mixes with the lard. Nickel. Ni=29.6. This is a rare metal obtained from an ore of arsenic found in West- phalia. It is fixed in the fire, and is hence left behind after the distil- lation of arsenic, and when purified is found in commerce as a white, hard, malleable magnetic metal, capable of receiving a lustre rivalling silver, sp. gr. 8.82 ; it is not oxidized by the air, and is little attacked by acids, except in the presence of nitric acid which dissolves it freely; it forms two oxides, a proto and sesquioxide, the medicinal sulphate being a salt of the protoxide; the protosalts are all of a green color. Nickel is recognized by the following tests : Caustic alkalies give a pale apple-green precipitate, insoluble in excess, but soluble in solution of carbo- nate of ammonia, yielding a greenish-blue liquid. Ammonia gives a similar precipitate, soluble in excess, and yielding a deep purplish-blue solution. Ferrocyanide of potassium gives a greenish-white precipitate. Sulphuretted hydrogen occasions no change in solutions of nickel containing free mineral acids, but in alkaline solutions gives a black precipitate. Niccoli Sulphas. (Sulphate of Nickel. NiO,SO34-7Aq=140.5.) This salt is formed by dissolving carbonate or oxide of nickel in dilute sulphuric acid, and gently concentrating by evaporation so that crystals may form. 456 ON LEAD, SILVER, BISMUTH. It is in emerald-green prismatic crystals, efflorescent, soluble in 3 parts of cold water, insoluble in alcohol and ether. It has a sweet, astringent taste, composition NiO,SOa-f 7Aq; crystallized at a higher temperature it con- tains only 6Aq. This salt w used as a tonic. Prof. Simpson employed it successfully in a case of obstinate periodic headache. The dose is from | grain to 1 grain, three times a day, given in the form of pill or simple solution. Cobalt. Co=29.5. This metal is found, like the foregoing, in ores of arsenic, and the crude mineral, sold as fly-stone by druggists, appears to be an ore containing cobalt and arsenic. The metal itself is white, brittle, strongly magnetic, unchanged in the air, feebly acted on by dilute hydrochloric and sulphuric acids. Solutions of the salts of cobalt are known as follows : Solution of ammo- nia gives a blue precipitate, slightly soluble in excess, with a brownish-red color. Solution of potassa a blue precipitate, turning to violet and red when the liquor is heated. Sulphuretted hydrogen produces no change in acid solutions, but with ammonia gives a black precipitate. Melted with borax before the blowpipe, it gives a bead of magnificent blue color. Protoxide of Cobalt. CoO, = 37.5. This is the only compound used in medicine; it is a powder of an ash-gray color, and has been employed as a remedy in rheumatism. It is formed by precipitation from the nitrate or chloride with carbo- nate of soda, washing and igniting. Its chief use is in forming beau- tiful blue colors in glass, enamels, &c. Its dose as an emetic is 10 grains, as an alterative much less. CHAPTER VIII. ON LEAD, SILVER, BISMUTH. Plumbum. Pb=103.6. (Lead.) Metallic lead is not used in medicine, nor is it officinal for use in preparing any of its salts. It is abundantly diffused in the form of galena, a native sulphuret, which is extensively worked in this country for the production of the metal. Exposed for a long time to its influ- ence, individuals exhibit symptoms of slow poisoning, called lead colic. In over-doses its salts are poisons. Lead is a soft bluish-colored metal, very malleable and fusible; its properties are familiar to most. It forms five oxides, of which the one most important in a pharmaceutical point of view is the protoxide. The lead salts show the following reactions:__ A brown or black precipitate by sulphuretted hydrogen and sulphuret of preparations of lead. 457 ammonium ; a white precipitate by muriatic acid and soluble chlorides, solu- ble in much water; a yellow precipitate by iodide of potassium, soluble in boiling solutions of alkaline chlorides and iodides ; a yellow precipitate by chromate of potassa, scarcely soluble in dilute nitric acid ; a gray metallic precipitate by tin and zinc; a white precipitate by ferrocya.nuret of potassium. Preparations of Lead. Plumbi oxidum (litharge), PbO. Yellow or reddish flakes or powder. Emplastruin plumbi. See fixed oils, also plasters. Plumbi oxidum rubrum, 2(or 3)PbO-|-PbOr Red lead. Bright red powder. Plumbi acetas, PbO,Ac,+3Aq. Matted acicular crystals whitish by efflorescence. Liquor plumbi subacetatis, 2 (or 3) PbO,Ac in Aq. A clear heavy liquid, depositing white carbonate. Liquor plumbi subacet. dilutus. f 5"j liq. plumb, subacet. to Oj. Plumbi carbonas, 2PbO,C02-f-PbO,HO. ? A heavy, white, opaque powder. Plumbi nitras, PbO,N05. White crystals, soluble in water, disinfectant. Plumbi iodidum, Pbl. A bright yellow amorphous powder, used in ointment. Plumbi chloridum, PbCl. Flat needle-shaped crystals, used externally. Plumbi tannas (cataplasma ad decubitum). Plumbi Oxidum Semivitreum. PbO= 111.5. (Semivitrified Oxide of Lead. Litharge.) This, which is a common variety of protoxide of lead (PbO), is gene- rally obtained as a secondary product in the cupellation of argentiferous galenas, when the oxide becomes fused* or semivitrified, and is driven off in hard particles of a scaly texture. English litharge is the best. It is in the form of small red or orange red scales, devoid of smell or taste ; soluble, or almost entirely so, in dilute nitric acid. It is occasion- ally contaminated with iron and copper, and contains a little carbonic acid. If carbonate of lead is present, effervescence takes place with dilute nitric acid; this solution has a green color if copper, and a yellow or brownish color if iron is present. It is chiefly used for its effect on fixed oils, with which it combines, and hence occasions paint, to which it is added, to dry and harden rapidly. (See Emplastrum Plumbi.) Plumbi Oxidum Rubrum. Pb304= 342.8. (Red Lead. Minium) The yellow protoxide of lead, which is commercially known by the name of massicot, and which differs from litharge in its mode of preparation and properties, though similar in composition, is introduced into a reverberatory furnace, there calcined for 48 hours, heated to redness and allowed to cool slowly. Or the hot massicot is cooled by being sprinkled with water, and after levigation heated in closed tin boxes to redness; the slower the product is allowed to cool, the finer will be the color. It is a heavy scaly powder of a bright red color, which appears yellow when rubbed upon paper. Before the blowpipe upon charcoal it is wholly reduced to the metallic state ; exposed to the light it is blackened somewhat, by being partially reduced. Its chief use is as a red paint; it enters into the composition of a few ancient plasters. (See Emplastra) 458 ON LEAD, SILVER, BISMUTH. Plumbi Acetas. Pb,0,Ac + 3Aq=189.6. (Saccharum Saturni. Sugar of Lead) Made by dissolving litharge in acetic acid, evaporating the solution, and crystallizing; also by the direct action of vinegar upon sheets of lead partially exposed to the air, so as to become oxidized, when the oxide being dissolved in the acid, the salt may be obtained in spongy masses composed of interlaced acicular crystals, possessing an acetic odor, and sweet metallic taste; exposed to the air it effloresces slightly, is soluble in twice its weight of cold water, and less of boiling water, communicating a turbidness to the solution from taking up CO^, which water generally holds; this turbidness may be removed by the addi- tion of a little acetic acid or vinegar. It is precipitated as a white carbonate by carbonate of soda, a yellow iodide by iodide of potassium, and a black sulphuret by sulphuretted hydro- gen. It is also incompatible with all acids, and with numerous soluble salts. If sugar of lead contains iron, ferrocyanide of potassium will cause a bluish precipitate; if copper is present, the precipitate will have a reddish color. Sugar of lead is very extensively employed, both internally and externally. It ranks as a sedative astringent, checking morbid dis- • charges, diminishing the natural secretions, and is capable by various combinations of filling a variety of indications in disease. One of the chief uses of this salt is as an ingredient in preparations for the hair which are designed to produce a gradual change of color, while by its astringency, it promotes the healthy and increased growth of the hair. The too free use of these applications is believed to have produced serious cephalic disease. Dose, gr. ss to iij in pill, care being taken not to induce its poisonous effects. Externally, it is used in solution from gr. j to gr. viij to f 3j as a sedative, astringent, and desiccant to inflamed parts. Liquor Plumbi Sub.acetatis U. S. P. 2PbO,Ac= 274.2 in Aq. (Solution of Diacelate of Lead. Goulard's Extract. Strong Lead Water) Reduced. Take of Acetate of lead.....3xvj Sij. Semivitrified oxide of lead, in fine powder sixss 3ixss. Distilled water.....Oiv Oss. Boil them together in a glass or porcelain vessel for half an hour, occasionally adding distilled water so as to preserve the measure, and filter through paper; keep the solution in closely-stopped bottles. By the action of litharge on acetate of lead, an additional equivalent of the oxide enters into the composition of the salt, forming diacetate which remains in solution, while a basic acetate is separated on the filter. This is one of the simple preparations readily prepared, even by the country practitioner. The litharge should be in very fine powder before' commencing the process, and care should be taken, by con- stant stirring, to prevent its caking, and the consequent fracture of the vessel; an evaporating dish will be found convenient, and in filtering, a covered funnel will be useful; the filter should be strengthened by LEAD WATER—WHITE LEAD. 459 a small filter set into the funnel at its narrowest part, in which the plaited filter may rest. Solution of subacetate of lead is a clear colorless liquid, sp. gr. 1.267, with an alkaline reaction, and sweet, metallic astringent taste ; agrees with the acetate in most of its properties, except that it precipitates arabin and numerous coloring matters and organic principles not precipitated by PbO, Ac. It is remarkable for its great affinity for carbonic acid, which occasions a precipitate of carbonate of lead, merely on exposure to the air. If this solution should be contaminated with copper, this metal will be re- moved by immersing a strip of bright metallic lead in it. Diluted with water, it is applied as a sedative lotion to sprains, bruises, &c. (See Ceratum, and Linimentum Plumbi Subacetatis) Liquor Plumbi Subacetatis Dilutus U. S. P. (Lead Water) Take of Solution of subacetate of lead . . f3iij. Distilled water.....Oj. Mix them. The water containing carbonic acid will produce a precipitate of carbonate of lead, which exposure to the air will increase so that the preparation is liable to become inert, and should be mixed when re- quired. Lead-water is generally regarded as a very weak preparation, and but for its popular employment as a cooling wash, might be made much stronger, as may be readily done by extemporaneous prescrip- tion. The proportion indicated in the last edition of the Pharma- copoeia is f 3iij to Oj ; previously it had been f^ij to Oj. Plumbi Carbonas. 2(PbO,C02) + PbO,HO=387.8. (?) (White Lead) This important substance, which, as ground in oil, is extensively used as a pigment, is obtained by two methods: 1. By passing a stream of C02 through a solution of subacetate of lead. The C02 combines with the excess of PbO, and precipitates as PbOjCO^ while a neutral acetate of lead remains in solution; this is boiled with a fresh addition of PbO, and again brought to the condition of subace- tate, and treated as before with COa. This plan is pursued by the French and Swiss manufacturers. 2. Our own manufacturers cast the lead into thin sheets, which are then rolled into cylinders, five or six inches in diameter, and seven or eight high; each cylinder is placed in an earthen pot, containing Oss vinegar, the lead being supported by projecting pieces from contact with the vinegar. Strata of these pots are arranged in sheds, with refuse stable materials, which are giving off CO^ and have a certain elevation of temperature due to fermentation. At the end of six weeks, the stacks are unpacked, and the sheet lead is found almost entirely converted into a flaky, white, friable substance, which is the white lead. This is separate, and re- duced to fine powder. Carbonate of lead is a heavy, opaque sub- stance, in powder or friable lumps, insoluble in water, of a fine white color, great opacity, inodorous, and nearly insipid. The analyses of Mulder and others, of different specimens of white lead, show that it con- tains various proportions of carbonate, PbO,C02, and hydrated oxide, PbO,HO, so that its combining proportion is not uniformly as above. 460 ON LEAD, SILVER, BISMUTH. Carbonate of lead, to furnish a cheaper paint, is often mixed with sul- phate of baryta, lime, or lead, or with carbonate of lime (chalk); the last impurity will remain behind when the article is dissolved in caustic potassa; the former are all insoluble in diluted nitric acid, which readily dissolves the carbonate of lead. This is regarded as the most poisonous of the lead salts; it is em- ployed externally as a dusting powder in excoriations of children, and as an astringent and sedative dressing to ulcers and inflamed sur- faces. (See Unguentum Plumbi Carbonatis) Plumbi Nitras. PbO,NOs= 165.6. (Nitrate of Lead) Litharge is dissolved in nitric acid, by the aid of heat; the liquid filtered, and set aside to crystallize; the PbO unites directly with the NO,, to form the nitrate, which is an anhydrous salt, in beautiful white, nearly opaque, octahedral crystals, permanent in the air, of a sweet astringent taste, soluble in water and alcohol. It is an effectual disinfectant, decomposing sulphuretted hydrogen, and the hydrosulphurets contained in putrescent animal fluids. Ledoyen's Disinfecting Fluid, which is greatly esteemed abroad, is a solution of this salt in water 3j to f .sj. It may be made directly by dissolving carbonate of lead, or litharge, in diluted nitric acid, to saturation, and will be found extremely useful in sick chambers, where the alvine discharges are fetid and infectious. Plumbi Nitras Fusa.—If nitrate of lead is fused at a temperature not high enough to decompose much of it, it may be moulded like Aunar caustic, and applied in a similar manner. Plumbi Iodidum. Pbl= 229.9 (Iodide of Lead) Take of nitrate of lead, iodide of potassium, each, four troyounces. Distilled water a sufficient quantity. With the aid of heat, dissolve the nitrate of lead in Oiss, and the iodide of potassium in Oss of the distilled water, and mix the solutions. Allow the precipitate formed to subside, and having poured off the supernatant liquid, wash it with distilled water, and dry it with a gentle heat. (U. S. P.) This process may be readily accomplished with the apparatus usu- ally pertaining to a country practitioner's outfit; in fact, it is one of the easiest processes of the Pharmacopoeia. The two salts, dissolved separately, may be mixed in a wide mouth bottle, and the precipitate collected in a plain filter. Iodide of lead is a bright yellow, heavy, tasteless, inodorous powder, which dissolves in 1235 parts of cold and 194 parts of boiling water, and in acetic acid and alcohol. A hot saturated solution on cooling deposits the salt in brilliant golden scales. It fuses and sublimes yellow, but soon gives off violet vapors from decomposition. It may be considered pure for medi- cinal use if two grains of it dissolve in one fluidounce of boiling water, and separate on cooling in brilliant crystalline powder. This preparation is supposed to have the resolvent properties of iodine, combined with those peculiar to lead, and hence it is used in ointment to reduce indolent tumors, scrofulous and syphilitic. PREPARATIONS OF SILVER. 461 Plumbi Chloridum. PbCl= 139.1. Chloride of lead is obtained by precipitating a soluble lead salt, and may be crystallized from its hot solution in anhydrous flat needles, soluble in 135 ^arts of cold water. It has been recommended as preferable to chloride of zinc in some dis- eases, especially cancer; externally as fomentations by dissolving from one- half to one drachm in a quart of water and in ointments containing about 9j or 3ss to the ounce. Plumbi Tannas. (Tannate of Lead.) Under the name of cataplasma ad decubitum, the Prussian Pharmaco- poeia prepares tannate of lead in the following manner: 2 oz. oak bark boiled with a sufficient quantity of water down to eight ounces, is mixed with two ounces of solution of subacetate of lead, the precipitate separated by filtration, and used while still moist, mixed with two drachms of alcohol. The tannate of lead is also prepared by precipitating tannic acid or an infusion of galls by acetate of lead. The precipitate is much darkened dur- ing washing and drying ; it is made into an ointment by mixing one drachm of it with an ounce of lard or other unctuous ingredient. Argentum. Ag= 108. (Silver.) This well-known metal is placed in the list of the Pharmacopoeia on account of its use in preparing the several salts. It is found most abundantly as sulphuret combined with copper, lead, and antimony; the argentiferous galena, already referred to as furnishing litharge, is the most abundant source of silver. Its physical properties are sufficiently familiar. It is very malleable and ductile; its hardness is between that of copper and gold; sp. gr. 10.475 to 10.500. Silver is freely soluble in nitric acid, and dissolves in sulphuric acid by the aid of heat. Its surface is rapidly tarnished by sulphuretted hydrogen. Its nitric acid solution should be nearly colorless, and when treated with an excess of chloride of sodium, should give a white precipitate entirely soluble in ammonia, the liquor filtered from the precipitate with excess of H,C1, should not be discolored by sulphuretted hydrogen. The alkaline carbo- nates, oxalates and ferrocyanides precipitate solutions of silver white, the -- alkaline arsenites and phosphates yellow. The arseniates red—the fixed alkalies brown—on the surface of metallic copper or zinc it is thrown down as pure silver. All silver salts are more or less blackened by the influence of light, hence their use in photography. Preparations of Silver. Argenti nitras, AgO,N05 (crystals). Colorless ; soluble in water; staining the skin. Argenti nitras fusa. In sticks ; thickness of a quill usually wrapped in paper. Argenti oxidum, AgO. An olive brown insoluble powder; soluble in ammonia. Argenti cyanidum, AgCy. A white, odorless, tasteless, insoluble powder. Argenti chloridum, AgCl. White curdy precipitate changing color. Argenti iodidum, Agl. Pale yellow, less soluble in ammonia. Argenti Nitras. AgO,NO5=170. (Crystallized Nitrate of Silver.) This salt is made by dissolving silver in nitric acid, evaporating the solution, and crystallizing. The crystals are anhydrous and colorless. 462 ON LEAD, SILVER, BISMUTH. Its purity is proven by precipitating its solution in distilled water with muriatic acid; the filtrate on evaporation must leave no residue. It is soluble in its weight of water, stains the skin black, and, when moistened and applied, acts as a caustic, which is its chief use. The crystallized article is preferred for solution, being less liable to be adulterated, and to decompose by the action of light, than the fused and wrapped article. Internally it is given in pill with a tonic ex- tract, preferably extract of quassia, as an astringent and alterative affecting the nervous system. When administered a long time it is capable of staining the whole surface of the body blue or lead color. Dose, gr. £ to gr. j. Argenti Nitras Fusa. AgO,N03= 170. (Lunar Caustic) This is made as the preceding, except that instead of crystallizing it, the evaporation is carried further, and after becoming dry it is fused, and when it runs like oil is poured into moulds. It is thus obtained in sticks of suitable sizes for application as a caustic; it is, however, crystalline in structure, and very brittle. When the sticks have cooled, they are wrapped tightly in paper, in which they are sold. The crystals are more economical to the purchaser from having less paper weighed with them. The heat applied in the fusion and the contact with organic matter reduces a portion to the metallic condition, so that it has a gray color, and is not entirely soluble. The fusible nature of this salt enables us to introduce it readily into silver catheters and other surgical instruments, and also, by a very ready expedient, to point the sticks and alter them in size thus:— Heat a half dollar held in a pair of pincers over a lamp, and apply to it the end of the stick of caustic, rotating it at such an angle as to give the requisite sharpness; if the coin is hot enough, the caustic will fuse at the point and take the shape desired. The extensive use of the nitrate and its high price lead to the admixture of nitrate of potassa, especially with the fused article; this adulteration may be detected as described in the case of the crystallized article, or by passing a stream of sulphuretted hydrogen into its solution till it ceases to throw down sulphuret of silver, then filtering and evaporating ; there should be no residue. If 17 grains of the nitrate are dissolved in water, it should pre- cipitate entirely the chlorine of 6 grains of common salt. The following is an elegant method of testing approximately the amount of silver in a speci- men of nitrate of silver:— Into a good velvet bottle cork insert a handle, which may be of wire, and in the opposite end cut a small cavity sufficient to hold 15 grains of the nitrate, which is to be weighed and pressed securely in; now apply a spirit lamp flame, which will ignite the end of the cork and melt the nitrate. The fused nitrate, by contact with the heated carbon, will be reduced, sud- denly bursting into an intense flame of a peach blossom hue. On the sub- sidence of the flame there will be found a mass of spongy silver, which, when washed and dried, should weigh about 9.5 grains, thus: AgO,NOs=170& Ag = 108. As 170:108:: 15: 9.53. Chloride of silver is much introduced of latter years for the purpose of rendering the fused nitrate less brittle. This admixture should CYANIDE OF SILVER. 463 always be distinctly announced on the label. It renders the salt only partially soluble in water and opaque white, instead of translucent. The stain of nitrate of silver on the fingers and on articles of clothing is sometimes very inconvenient; it may generally be removed by a little cyanide of potassium, or by moistening the part with tinc- ture of iodine and immediately applying ammonia, and then washing it off. So numerous are the incompatibles of nitrate of silver that it should generally be prescribed in pill, and singly except with some vegetable excipient, as white turpentine. It generally forms a white cloud, with the purest undistilled water, from the presence of chlorides, and in water containing organic matter after a time throws down a brown precipitate. Argenti Chloridum. AgCl= 143.5. When a silver salt is brought in contact with muriatic acid, or a solution of a chloride, the result is always a white curdy precipitate of chloride of silver, which is insoluble in nitric acid, but dissolves freely, without residue, in ammonia. It has been used in syphilis, epilepsy, dysentery, and other diseases, in doses from one to three grains several times a day. Argenti Iodidum. Ag,I=234.36. It is a pale yellow precipitate, caused in solution of silver by hy- driodic acid or iodides; insoluble in nitric acid, and nearly insoluble in ammonia. It has been used in similar complaints to those in which the chlo- ride is prescribed, when the modified effect of an iodide is desired. The dose is one or two grains. Argenti Oxidum. AgO s-116. (Protoxide of Silver) Take of nitrate of silver four troyounces; distilled water half a pint; solution of potassa a pint and a half, or sufficient. Dissolve the nitrate of silver in the water, and add the solution of potassa as long as it produces a precipitate; wash this repeatedly with water, until the washings are nearly tasteless. Lastly, dry the precipitate, and keep it in a well-stopped bottle, protected from the light. (U.S. P.) This is an olive-brown powder, nearly insoluble in water, but soluble in ammonia and in acids. It may be considered pure if it is wholly soluble in ammonia and in nitric acid, and if the latter solution, when treated like the nitrate, leaves no residue, and if on being precipitated by chloride of sodium in excess, the supernatant liquid is not discolored by HS. It is used instead of nitrate of silver for the tonic effects of the silver salts. Dose, gr. ss to gr. ij. Argenti Cyanidum. AgCy=134. (Cyanide of Silver) The salt is elsewhere described in connection with its use in prepar ing hydrocyanic acid. It is a tasteless, white powder, insoluble in 464 ON LEAD, SILVER, BISMUTH. water, soluble in ammonia and in cyanide of potassium; and when decomposed by muriatic acid, the solution must not contain any fixed matter. When heated, it yields cyanogen and metallic silver. Bismuthum. Bi=213. (Bismuth.) This is a metal, of a pinkish-white color, found native; very brittle; fuses readily, and crystallizes; soluble in diluted nitric acid, and the nitrate is precipitated by water. It is chiefly prepared in Germany, whence it is exported; it generally contains both arsenic and copper, to free it from which the following dry process is recommended: Heat to redness, in a covered crucible, a mixture of oxide or subni- trate of bismuth, with half its weight of charcoal, or mix sixteen ounces of the metal, powdered with two ounces of carbonate of soda, and two drachms of sulphur; mix, fuse for an hour, and separate the metal from the scoriae. Bismuth is used in the composition of type metal, solder, pewter, and fusible metals. The following proportions yield useful alloys, adapted to baths, and to taking impressions of plaster casts, &c. The alloy of 8 parts bismuth, 5 lead, 3 tin, melts at 202° F. That com- posed of 2 bismuth, 1 lead, 1 tin, melts at 200.75° F. It is little affected by the air ; burns when strongly heated ; sp. gr. 9.8 to 9.9. Sulphuretted hydrogen gives a black precipitate with its salts; the nitric solution is not precipitated by sulphuric acid. Chromate of potassa gives a yellow precipitate, differing from that of lead by being soluble in NOs, and insoluble in KO. By alkalies a white precipitate is thrown down, insoluble in an excess ; by carbonate of potassa, white ; by ferrocyanuret of potassium, white ; by iodide of potassium, brown ; by iron, zinc, copper, cad- mium, tin, and lead, in the metallic state. The soluble salts of bismuth are remarkable for a dazzling white precipitate, produced on throwing their solu- tion into a large amount of water. Preparations of Bismuth. Bisrunthi subnitras, Bi03,N05+Aq. Insoluble powder. Dose, gr. v to 3J. Bismuthi subcarbonas, Bi03,COr Insoluble powder. Dose, gr. v to 3ss. Bismuthi valerianas. Remedy in neuralgia. Dose, gr. ss to gr. ij. Bismuthi tannas, BiO,Tan. Insoluble powder. Dose, gss. Bismuthi Subnitras. Bi03Noi+Aq=300.' Take of bismuth, in pieces, two troyounces; nitric acid, carbonate of soda, each, ten troyounces; water of ammonia six fluidounces; dis- tilled water a sufficient quantity. Mix four troyounces and a half of the nitric acid with four fluid- ounces of distilled water, in a capacious glass vessel, and, having added the bismuth, set the whole aside for twenty-four hours. Dilute the resulting solution with ten fluidounces of distilled water, stir it tho- roughly, and, at the end of twenty-four hours, filter through paper. 1 Although this composition is that usually attributed to this salt, Becker finds that it may have the formula Bi03N05+2Aq, or 5Bi03,4N05-r-9Aq, according to its mode of preparation. SUBNITRATE OF BISMUTH. 465 Dissolve the carbonate of soda in twenty fluidounces of distilled water with the aid of heat, and filter the solution through paper. To this, when cold, slowly add the solution of nitrate of bismuth, with constant stirring. Transfer the whole to a strainer, and, after the pre- cipitate has been drained, wash it with distilled water until the wash- ings pass tasteless, and drain again as completely as possible. Then place the moist precipitate in a capacious vessel, gradually add the remainder of the nitric acid, and heat nearly to the boiling point. When the solution has become cold, slowly add to it distilled water, with constant stirring, until the further addition of this liquid begins to produce a permanent milkiness. Then set the solution aside, and, at the end of twenty-four hours, filter through paper. To the filtered liquid, previously diluted with four pints of distilled water, slowly add the water of ammonia, with constant stirring. Transfer the whole to a strainer, and, after the precipitate has been drained, wash it with two pints of distilled water, drain it again, and press out as much of the liquid as possible. Lastly, dry it upon bibulous paper with a gentle heat, and rub it into powder. ( U. S. P.) The simple formula formerly adopted for this preparation has been so greatly modified in the present officinal directions, that it is deemed proper to introduce them, as above, in detail. The addition of diluted nitric acid to bismuth results in the oxidation of the metal at the expense of the acid, giving off red fumes; the oxide formed dissolves in the remainder of the acid; this is a solution of ternitrate of teroxide (Bi03,3NOs). Formerly the preparation was finished by throwing this into water, by which four equivalents were resolved into three of basic, generally called .subnitrate (Bi03N05), and one of the " nine nitrate," Bi039NOj, the latter remaining in solution, while the officinal salt went down as a heavy white, insoluble powder. The modified process now inserted in the Pharmacopoeia directs the pre- cipitation of the solution of the ternitrate with carbonate of soda, by double decomposition, yielding nitrate of soda in solution and insolu- ble subcarbonate of bismuth, which, by washing, is obtained pure ; and is then dissolved in a fresh portion of nitric acid; in this way, the arse- nic which may have been contained in the first solution is separated in a soluble form by the addition of the carbonated alkali and the subsequent washing. The solutions are directed to be diluted till precipitation commences, and exposed for twenty-four hours by which the remaining arseniate of bismuth, which is rather insoluble in dilute acid solutions, is separated; the precipitate is then removed by filtra- tion, and the subnitrate obtained by the addition of distilled water, and then ammonia. This last named addition increases the precipi- tate by neutralizing any excess of nitric acid, which otherwise holds in solution much of the bismuth. Subnitrate of bismuth is a heavy, white powder, of a somewhat satiny appearance. It has a faintly acid odor and taste, and, when moistened on litmus paper, a decidedly acid reaction. It is entirely soluble, without effervescence, in nitric acid, and the solution yields no precipitate with dilute sulphuric acid. Upon being heated to redness it loses twenty per cent, of 30 466 ON LEAD, SILVER, BISMUTH. its weight. When mixed with dilute sulphuric acid in excess, and subjected to Marsh's test, it yields no arsenic, or merely a trace. Subnitrate of bismuth is a sedative and antispasmodic of very use- ful and peculiar properties; its chief use is in gastro-intestinal affec- tions, diarrhoea, and nausea. The dose is one to six or ten grains. It is also employed as a cosmetic, from its white and satiny appearance. The presence of arsenic, in the commercial varieties and in specimens prepared by the old process, is believed by some physicians to have a bearing upon its therapeutic properties, and perhaps to add to its efficiency. Bismuthi Subcarbonas. Bi0.3,C02=259. Take of bismuth, in pieces, two troyounces; nitric acid eight troy- ounces and a half; water of ammonia five fluidounces; carbonate of soda ten troyounces; distilled water a sufficient quantity. Mix four troyounces and a half of the nitric acid with four fluid- ounces of distilled water in a capacious glass vessel, and, having added the bismuth, set the whole aside for twenty-four hours. Dilute the resulting solution with ten fluidounces of distilled water, stir it tho- roughly, and, after twenty four hours, filter through paper. To the filtered liquid, previously diluted with four pints of distilled water, slowly add the water of ammonia, with constant stirring. Transfei the whole to a strainer, and, after the precipitate has been drained, wash it with two pints of distilled water, drain it again, and press out as much of the liquid as possible. Then place the precipitate in a proper vessel, add the remainder of the nitric acid, and heat nearly to the boiling point. When the solution has become cold, slowly add to it distilled water, with constant stirring, until the further addition of this liquid begins to produce a permanent milkiness. Then set the solution aside, and, at the end of twenty-four hours, filter through paper. Dissolve the carbonate of soda in twenty fluidounces of distilled water, with the aid of heat, and filter the solution through paper. To this, when cold, slowly add the solution of nitrate of bismuth, with constant stirring. Transfer the whole to a strainer, and, after the pre- cipitate has been drained, wash it with distilled water until the wash- ings pass tasteless. Lastly, press the precipitate so as to free it as far as possible from water, dry it on bibulous paper with a gentle heat, and rub it into powder. (U. S. P.) The elaborate process of the Pharmacopoeia for this new remedy has been transferred entire as above, so as to furnish the pharmaceutist, who is disposed to follow it through its several steps, a pure prepara- tion. It will be seen that the first part of the process is nearly that formerly used for the preparation of subnitrate of bismuth with the addition of ammonia in the first precipitation; this is a useful addition as aiding the more complete separation of the subnitrate. A solution of this freshly precipitated subnitrate, in additional nitric acid, by the aid of heat, is the next step in the process; this solution of nitrate is now diluted till it begins to be milky, and then set aside for twenty-four hours (still longer is to be preferred) in order that any arsenic present ANTIMONY AND ARSENIC PREPARATIONS. 467 may be precipitated as arseniate of bismuth; it is now filtered and gradually added to a solution of carbonate of soda, which, by double decomposition, yields nitrate of soda, which remains in solution, and subcarbonate of bismuth which precipitates as a white insoluble pow- der ; by washing and drying, this is obtained ready for use. Subcarbonate of bismuth is a white or yellowish-white powder, without taste or smell, insoluble in water, but soluble, with effervescence, in dilute nitric acid. Upon being heated to redness, it loses nine and a half per cent. of its weight. When mixed with dilute sulphuric acid in excess, and sub- jected to Marsh's test, it yields no arsenic or merely a trace. The carbonate is a new officinal preparation originally introduced as a purer and more uniform salt than the subnitrate, more soluble in the juices of the stomach, and adding to the peculiar sedative and ab- sorbent properties of that salt a decided antacid property. The dose is from five to thirty grains, given in powder or pill. Bismuthi Valerianas. Prepared by adding gradually an aqueous solution of ternitrate of bis- muth (Bi033N03), prepared as in the process for subnitrate or carbonate, to valeriante of soda ; the white precipitate is washed with water containing a small quantity of valerianic acid, and dried by a very gentle heat. It has been brought to the notice of the medical profession as a remedy for neuralgic affections, in doses of from one-half to two grains three or four times a day. Bismuthi Tannas. Tannate of bismuth is prepared by first precipitating the oxide of bis- muth from a solution of 44 parts of the crystallized nitrate by an excess of caustic soda, this precipitate is collected on a cloth and carefully washed, it is then triturated in a mortar with 29 parts of pure tannic acid. The mag- ma is then diluted with water, the whole is thrown on a cloth, washed, and then dried either in the open air or in a slightly heated closet. This is a yellowish, insoluble, nearly tasteless powder, which has been in- troduced as a remedy for obstinate diarrhoea. The dose mentioned in the journals is 30 grains. CHAPTER IX. ANTIMONY AND ARSENIC PREPARATIONS. Antimony. Sb=120.24.1 This metal, which was one of the first introduced into medicine, is imported from France under the name of Regulus of Antimony; it is a brittle metal, usually of a lamellated texture, of a bluish-white color; its Latin name, Stibium, as abbreviated Sb, furnishes its symbol. 1 The combining number formerly given for this metal 129 has been reduced by recent authorities. 468 ANTIMONY AND ARSENIC PREPARATIONS. It forms three combinations with oxygen, teroxide, Sb03, antimonious acid, Sb04, and antimonic acid, Sb05. Teroxide and the tersulphuret enter into the officinal compounds. Tests for Antimony.—In its soluble salts, antimony is recognized by the following tests:— # . < . Sulphuretted hydrogen and sulphuret of ammonium cause in acid solutions an orange-colored precipitate ; alkalies and their carbonates, a white, bulky one; zinc, a black powder of the metallic antimony; zinc and sulphuric acid evolve antimoniuretted hydrogen, SbH3, which burns with a bluish- green color ; on a porcelain cup, held in the flame, a black spot of very little lustre is deposited ; if the antimoniuretted hydrogen is passed through a tube, the middle of which is heated to redness, a bright metallic mirror is formed in the cooler part of the tube ; this mirror will disappear if a stream of dry sulphuretted hydrogen is passed through the tube, while the metallic mirror is heated, and sulphuret of antimony of a reddish or blackish color will make its appearance ; this disappears entirely if through the tube be passed a stream of dry muriatic acid gas, by which chloride of antimony is carried over and may be condensed in water, there to be recognized by the precipitates with the above tests. Before the blowpipe, oxide of antimony, when mixed with carbonate of soda and cyanide of potassium, yields globules, and a white pulverulent and crystalline incrustation of the oxide. Antimonic Acid.—Its salts are insoluble with the exception of antimoniate of potassa, which is a test for soda salts. This antimoniate may be recog- nized by yielding precipitates with the soluble salts of all other bases; these precipitates, when mixed with chloride of ammonium and heated, are decom- posed into water, chloride of antimony, chloride of the metallic base and ammonia; the chloride of antimony is volatile. For the quantitative de- termination of antimonic acid, H. Rose uses the antimoniate of soda, and calculates from the remaining chloride of sodium the equivalent quantity of antimonic acid. If insoluble antimoniates are boiled with muriatic acid, with the addition of some tartaric acid, terchloride of antimony enters into solution, there to be recognized like the salts of oxide of antimony. Preparations of Antimony. Antimonii sulphuretum, SbS3. Native black sulphuret, or crude antimony. Antimonii sulphuratum, Sb03-f-5SbS34-16Aq. (?) Reddish-brown powder. Antimonii oxysulphuretum, Sb034-2SbS3. Dark-brown powder. Kermes mineral. Sodii et antimonii sulphuretum, 3NaS-f-SbS5-j-18Aq. Colorless crystals. Antimonii quinque sulphuretum, SbS5. Orange-colored powder. Golden sulphur. Calcii et antimonii sulphuretum. Mixture of Sb03,SbS3,CaS. Light-brown powder. Antimonii chloridum, SbCl3. Colorless or yellowish liquid (butter of antimony). Antimonii oxidum, Sb03. Antimonic oxide, antimonious acid. White inodorous powder. Potassa antimonias, KO,Sb05-|-HO. White insoluble powder. Antimonii et potassae tartras, Sb03,KO,T-j-3Aq. Translucent crystals. Vinum antimonii. Gr. ij to f^j white wine=^ gr. to f^j. Pulvis antimonialis. Variable mixture of Sb03,Sb05 with CaO,P06, &c. Antimonii Sulphuretum. SbS3=168. (Black Sulphuret of Antimony) This drug should be procured in powder somewhat purified by fusion and levigated, in which condition it is kept by the druggists; it may then be considered as tolerably pure SbS3. OXYSULPHURET OF ANTIMONY. 469 It should be soluble in boiling muriatic acid, giving off sulphuretted hydrogen, terchloride remaining in solution. The solution yields a white precipitate when added to water, and the resulting liquid, after filtration, affords an orange-red precipitate with sulphuret of ammonium. It often contains arsenic, which may be found out by fusing it in small quantities with pure saltpetre, and testing the solution with nitrate of silver; antimoniate of silver is white, the arseniate has a reddish-brown color. Antimonii Sulphuratum U.S.P. Sb034-5Sb,S1-|-16Aq. Antimonii Sulphuretum Prescipitatum U. S. P. of 1850. (Precipitated Sulphuret of Antimony. Sulphurated Antimony) This officinal salt is made by boiling black sulphuret of antimony, six troyounces, with solution of potassa, four pints, diluted with twelve pints of water, straining it, and, while yet hot, dropping into it diluted sulphuric acid as long as it produces a precipitate, which, being washed with hot water, and dried, and rubbed into a fine powder, constitutes the officinal precipitated sulphuret. In this process, the alkali decomposes a portion of the black sul- phuret, forming sulphuret of potassium, and holds in solution both the undecomposed tersulphuret and the teroxide liberated by the alkali. On the addition to this of an acid, the sulphuret of potassium being decomposed and the excess of potassa neutralized, the mixed tersulphuret and teroxide are thrown down, so that this powder has the complex composition represented in the syllabus. According to Liebig it is amorphous hydrated tersulphuret of antimony, which loses part of its water by drying, the other part is only given oft' by ex- posure to a temperature of 480°. This powder is of a color varying from brownish-red to reddish-brown, insoluble in water, but nearly soluble in solution of potassa, and in twelve times its weight of muriatic acid, by the aid of heat; this solution, when added to water, deposits a white powder. It is used as an alterative and diaphoretic, especially in combination with calomel and guaiacum, as in Plummer's pill, or with extract of conium or hyoscyamus in the treatment of chronic rheumatism. As its action depends very much upon the amount of acid in the stomach, it is of varying activity. Its dose is from gr. j to iij, twice a day. Antimonii Oxysulphuretum U. S. P. (Oxysulphuret of Antimony. Kermes Mineral) 2SbS3 + Sb03 (?). The various processes heretofore published for this preparation are now superseded by the introduction into the U. S. Pharmacopoeia of 1860 of the following formula:— Take of sulphuret of antimony, in very fine powder, a troyounce; carbonate of soda twenty-three troyounces; water sixteen pints. Dissolve the carbonate of soda in the water previously heated to the boiling point, and, having added the sulphuret of antimony, boil for an hour. Then filter rapidly into a warm earthen vessel, cover this closely, and allow the liquid to cool slowly._ At the end of twenty- four hours, decant the supernatant liquid, drain the precipitate on a filter, wash it with boiled water previously allowed to become cold, 470 ANTIMONY AND ARSENIC PREPARATIONS. and dry it without heat. Lastly, preserve the powder in a well-stopped bottle, protected from the light. ( U. S. P.) By the long boiling of the native sulphuret of antimony with car- bonate of soda, the sulphuret is partially decomposed, forming, as in the foregoing process, sulphuret of potassium and teroxide of antimony; after filtering to separate the undecomposed sulphuret of antimony, the solution is allowed to cool slowly and then precipitates the kermes, which has a tolerably uniform composition, containing, as stated above, a much larger proportion of the teroxide than the sulphurated anti- mony which is precipitated by the aid of an acid. Oxysulphuret of antimony is a purplish-brown, tasteless powder, soft and velvety to the touch, wholly and readily soluble in muriatic acid with evolu- tion of hydrosulphuric acid gas, and partly soluble in a hot solution of potassa, leaving a residue soluble in tartaric acid. The dose, in view of this various composition, may be stated at from gr. | to gr. iij. It is a more active preparation than the foregoing. Sodii et Antimonii Sulphuretum. 3NaS,-f SbS5+18Aq. (Antimonio- Sulphuret of Sodium.) This double salt, which is officinal in the Pharmacopoeias of Slesvie-Hol- stein, Saxony and others, is remarkable for its readiness to crystallize with an unvariable composition, and for its use in the preparation of golden sulphur. It was discovered by Scjilippe. It is prepared by slaking 2 parts of burned lime in an iron vessel, and dis- solving in it 2 parts of sulphur by boiling with 40 parts of water; the clear liquid is decomposed by 6 parts of crystallized carbonate of soda; the fil- trate boiled with 2 parts of finely-powdered black sulphuret of antimony, evaporated, a little caustic soda added and crystallized. Another method is to fuse for half an hour a mixture of equal parts of anhydrous sulphate of soda, sulphuret of antimony, and a quarter part of charcoal, and after separating the metal and powdering the mass, boiling it in water and crystallizing as above. It occurs in colorless or yellowish tetrahedrons, easily soluble in water, insoluble in alcohol, and decomposed by acids, alkalies and metallic salts. It contains 45.29 per cent, of SbSs. Golden Sulphuret of Antimony. SbS5=200. (Golden Sulphur. Quinque Sulphuret of Antimony.) Antimonii sulphuretum aureum, as formerly prepared, was deposited on the addition to the solution from which kermes has been precipitated, of an acid; it thus varied in composition and in color according to the degree of change which has taken place spontaneously, and the consequent proportion of sulphur thrown down with the antimonial sulphuret and oxide. As now prepared, it is of a uniform composition, being the quinque sul- phuret of antimony, which contains 61.8 per cent, metallic antimony. The sulphuret of antimony and sodium, as above, is dissolved in 6 parts of distilled water, and the solution gradually added to a mixture of TV strong sulphuric acid and 10 of water; the precipitate is well washed and rapidly dried. It is a dark orange-colored powder, nearly tasteless and inodorous, in- soluble in water and alcohol; by alkalies it is decomposed, an antimonio- sulphuret being dissolved and antimoniate of alkali left behind ; it is soluble OXIDE OF ANTIMONY. 471 without residue in sulphuret of ammonium. The quinque sulphuret of anti- mony is given in doses of £ to 1 grain. Calcii et Antimonii Sulphuretum. Mixed Sb03+SbS3+CaS. This soluble sulphuret, as used by Hufeland, was an uncertain preparation, containing sulphuret of antimony and calcium, sulphate and antimoniate of lime. It was prepared by exposing to a red heat a mixture of carbonate of lime, sulphur and sulphuret of, or metallic, antimony. No double sulphuret with calcium has yet been obtained resembling the foregoing antimonio-sulphuret of sodium. Duflos proposes to mix intimately 1 part of Liebig's kermes with 4 parts of sulphuret of calcium, by which process a brownish powder is obtained, almost entirely soluble in water, and decomposed by acids into sulphuretted hydrogen, and a bright red sulphuret of antimony. It is a mixture of the two sulphurets with oxide of antimony, and has no claims to the rank of a chemical compound. It has been used in various skin diseases, &c, in larger doses than the other antimonials. Antimonii Chloridum. SbCl3=226.7. (Butter of Antimony.) In accordance with the Prussian Pharmacopoeia, this preparation is made by dissolving 1 lb. of black sulphuret of antimony in 4 lbs. of crude muri- atic acid. These proportions are nearly those of our Pharmacopoeia, in the preliminary process for oxide of antimony. Sulphuretted hydrogen is evolved, which makes it necessary to operate in the open air, or conduct the gas into water or a chimney. After filtration, it is evaporated to 1| lb., and a mixture added of f lb. muriatic acid, and 1| lb. water. It is a colorless or yellowish liquid, sp. gr. 1.4, free from arsenic and lead, and is decomposed by water, oxide of antimony with some chloride being precipitated ; this precipitate was formerly employed in medicine under the name of Pulvis Algerothi. Chloride of antimony has been used as a caustic, producing a white scab with little pain ; it may be made into ointments containing one drachm to the ounce, or if intended for diseases of the eye, from 10 to 15 grains to an ounce. Antimonii Oxidum. Sb03=144. (Oxide of Antimony. Teroxide of Antimony. Antimonic Oxide. Antimonious Acid.) Take of sulphuret of antimony, in very fine powder, four troy- ounces ; muriatic acid eighteen troyounces; nitric acid a troyounce and one hundred and twenty grains; water of ammonia a fluidounce and a half; water, distilled water, each a sufficient quantity. Introduce the sulphuret into a flask, of the capacity of two pints, and, having added the muriatic acid, digest, by means of a sand-bath, until effervescence ceases. Then, having removed the flask from the sand- bath, add the nitric acid gradually; and, when nitrous acid vapors cease to be given off, and the liquid has grown cold, add to it half a pint of water, and filter. Pour the filtered liquid gradually into twelve pints of water, constantly stirring, and allow the precipitate to subside. Decant the supernatant liquid, and wash the precipitate twice by de- cantation, using, each time, eight pints of water. Then transfer it to a muslin filter to drain, and, after the draining is completed, wash it with water until the washings cease to have an acid reaction. Next introduce it into a suitable vessel, and subject it to the action of the 472 ANTIMONY AND ARSENIC PREPARATIONS. water of ammonia for two hours; at the end of which time, transfer it to a moistened muslin filter, and wash it with distilled water as long as the washings produce a precipitate with nitrate of silver. Lastly, dry the precipitate upon bibulous paper with the aid of a gentle heat. {U.S. P.) ., ., . This new officinal process is designed to furnish a pure oxide of antimony, for use in making tartar emetic, and for separate^ employ- ment in medicine. The sulphuret being digested with muriatic acid forms chloride of antimony, with the liberation of hydrosulphuric acid gas which should be conducted into a flue, or the process should be conducted in the open air. (SbS3 + 3HCl=SbCl3+3HS.) The addi- tion of nitric acid aids the complete decomposition of the sulphuret, and oxidizes the iron to ferric oxide. By pouring the solution into a large quantity of water, it is decomposed, oxide of antimony contami- nated with some undecomposed chloride being precipitated, which chloride of iron and other foreign chlorides remain in solution. This precipitate, formerly called oxychloride or powder of Algeroth, is directed to be washed and treated with water of ammonia, which de- composes any chloride, converting the whole into the teroxide, which is insoluble in excess of ammonia, and being collected, washed, and dried, is a permanent and uniform product. Oxide of antimony is a grayish-white powder, insoluble in water, but readily and wholly soluble in muriatic and tartaric acids. It fuses at a dull red heat, forming a yellowish liquid, which concretes, on cooling, into a crys- talline mass of a pearl-color. Its solution in tartaric acid in excess gives no precipitate with nitrate of silver or with ferrocyanide of potassium. Oxide of antimony is adapted to supersede the more uncertain pre- cipitated sulphuret and oxysulphuret, and probably will be found a good substitute for small doses of tartar emetic, as an alterative and sedative. The dose may vary from ^th of a grain to one grain. It is most frequently prescribed in the following :— Tyson's Antimonial Powder, No. 1. Take of Oxide of antimony......2 grains. Phosphate of lime......18 grains. Mix well. Tyson's Antimonial Powder, No. 2. Take of Oxide of antimony......2 grains. Phosphate of lime, Sulphate of potassa, of each, .... 9 grains. Mix well. These powders are used in doses of from 5 to 10 grains. Potassae Antimonias. KO,SbOs4-Aq. Formerly preparations were employed in medicine under the name of anti- monium diaphoreticum non-ablutum and ablutum, which were of variable composition. A preparation similar to the last named is officinal in the Prussian Pharmacopoeia, which is nearly pure antimoniate of potassa. It is prepared by throwing into a red-hot crucible, small quantities of an inti- mate mixture of 1 part metallic antimony and 2 parts nitrate of potassa, continuing the heat for half an hour, and washing with water. VINUM ANTIMONII. 473 It is a white inodorous and tasteless powder, which is a diaphoretic in doses of \ to 1 grain. Antimonii et Potassae Tartras. SbO3KO,T102Aq or 3Aq (?). Antimonii Potassio Tartras. (Tartar Emetic) This preparation, as its name implies, is a double salt, consisting of the oxide of antimony, and potassa, united with tartaric acid. The first step in its preparation is the precipitation of teroxide of anti- mony, SbOj, by the new officinal process already detailed. Four parts of the oxide are then to be boiled with five of bitartrate of potassa in water till the combination is complete, and the solution after filtration is set aside to crystallize. The oxide unites with the tartaric acid of the bitartrate, forming a double tartrate of oxide of antimony and potassa, in the same way that oxide of iron is combined, so as to form with the bitartrate, the double tartrate of iron and potassa, &c. (See, also, Sodes et Potasses Tartras, and Potasses Tartras) Different modes of expression are adopted to explain the formation of these salts, according to the atomic weight adopted for tartaric acid; if C4H205 be assumed, then cream of tartar is a bitartrate, and the explanation as above given is correct; but assuming the formula C8H4010 to be correct, then it is regarded as a bibasic acid, and the formula as stated in the syl- labus is the true one, one equivalent of oxide of antimony and one of potassa being combined with each equivalent of tartaric acid. Tartar emetic crystallizes in beautiful colorless, rhombic, octahedral crys- tals, which effloresce and become opaque by exposure to the air. It is wholly soluble in 20 parts (14 parts Graham) of cold water. Its solution does not yield a precipitate with chloride of barium, or, if very dilute, with nitrate of silver. Hydrosulphuric acid gas causes an orange-red precipitate. The watery solution is remarkable for decomposing rapidly, forming algae. The Pharmacopoeia gives this test: A solution containing one part in forty of water is not disturbed by an equal volume of a solution of eight parts of acetate of lead in thirty-two of water and fifteen of acetic acid. If arsenic should be present, it may be discovered by fusing a sample of the tartar emetic with pure nitrate of potassa, and testing the neutralized solution with nitrate of silver, which by producing a reddish-brown precipi- tate, shows a contamination with arsenic. It is insoluble in alcohol and incompatible with acids, alkalies, and alkaline carbonates. Astringent solutions precipitate the antimony in an insoluble form. Internally administered, tartar emetic, in doses of gr. ij to iv, is a powerful emetic; in doses of gr. T'g to \, it is a diaphoretic and ex- pectorant; gr. \ to gr. j, is a decided sedative. It is very much pre- scribed, and in a great variety of diseases, both alone and combined with other remedies. Externally, it is applied in ointment to raise a peculiar pustular eruption. (See Unguentum Antimonii) This salt is now largely used in the process of dyeing with aniline colors; combined with tannin it serves the purpose of fixing them upon cotton fabrics. 474 ANTIMONY AND ARSENIC PREPARATIONS. Vinum Antimonii U. S. P. (Antimonial Wine) Take of Tartrate of antimony and potassa thirty-two grains. Boiling distilled water a fluidounce. Sherry wine a sufficient quantity. Dissolve the salt in the distilled water, and while the solution is hot add sufficient sherry wine to make it measure a pint. Dose, as an expectorant diaphoretic, "ix to xxx, at intervals; its chief use is to furnish a convenient method of giving very divided doses of the salt; f3j contains \ grain. Pulvis Antimonialis. (Pulvis Jacobi. James' Powder.) This is directed to be made by mixing black sulphuret of antimony with horn shavings, throwing into a red-hot crucible, and stirring till vapor no longer rises, then rubbing the residue to powder and heating it to redness for two hours. Reduced to a fine powder, the resulting compound is consti- tuted chiefly of a mixture in variable quantities of teroxide of antimony (Sb03), antimonic acid (SbOs), with phosphate of lime. It is a white, in- odorous, tasteless, insoluble powder, which was formerly much in use as an alterative and diaphoretic, and was officinal previous to 1830. Tyson's antimonial powder, No. 2 (p. 472), resembles James' powder in its proper- ties, and may be substituted for it by physicians in their prescriptions. Its dose is gr. iij to gr. x, every three or four hours, in fevers. Arsenicum=75. This metal, which is made officinal on account of its use in prepar- ing its iodide, exists in nature in combination with nickel and cobalt. Owing to its volatile and oxidizable character, it is conveniently col- lected as arsenious acid, during the smelting of these ores. When pure, metallic arsenic is brittle and granular, steel-colored, but usually dull and blackish on the surface; density, 5 to 5.96. When heated, it sublimes, giving off a garlicky odor, and if exposed to the air in the condition of vapor, absorbing oxygen and passing into arsenious acid. AS03. It forms, by higher oxidation, arsenic acid, As05; and also combines readily with sulphur. Pure metallic arsenic may be readily obtained by mixing, in a suit- able reduction tube, arsenious acid with three parts of black flux or charcoal, and applying heat, when the metal will be sublimed. Arsenic may be detected in minute quantities; though its detection re- quires many nice and difficult manipulations. It is well for the inexperienced to avoid the responsibility of such exami- nations in important cases, as there are many precautions necessary to an accurate and definite result. The following are the most important reactions :— Tests for Arsenious Acid.—Nitrate of silver produces a yellow precipi- tate, soluble in nitric acid and ammonia; sulphate of copper causes a yel- lowish green precipitate ; alkaline arsenites with an excess of alkali, throw down, when boiled with a few drops of sulphate of copper, a red precipitate of suboxide of copper, oxidizing at the same time the arsenious to arsenic acid ; sulphuretted hydrogen and sulphuret of ammonium cause in acid so- lutions a yellow precipitate of AsS3, soluble in alkalies, their carbonates, bicarbonates, aud sulphurets, nearly insoluble in muriatic acid, decomposed WHITE ARSENIC. 475 and dissolved by nitric acid, and depositing a metallic mirror, if mixed with carbonate of soda and suddenly subjected to an intense heat in a glass tube through which a current of perfectly dry hydrogen passes. Compounds of arsenious acid, if subjected to the influence of water, zinc, and sulphuric acid, yield arseniuretted hydrogen, AsH3, which burns with a bluish color, the flame at the same time giving off white vapors of garlic odor, which condense upon cold objects. Upon a porcelain dish held in the flame, metallic arsenic will be deposited in blackish-brown spots, of a bright metallic lustre. Arseniuretted hydrogen passed through a tube heated to redness, yields a bright metallic mirror; this, in a feeble stream of sulphu- retted hydrogen is converted into yellow sulphuret of arsenic, which is not affected by a current of muriatic acid gas. Compounds of arsenious acid, if mixed with carbonate of soda and cyanide of potassium, and heated to redness in a glass tube, through which a slow stream of dry carbonic acid passes, yields in the colder parts a beautiful metallic mirror ; this is a most delicate test for arsenious acid. Before the blowpipe upon charcoal, arsenious acid, whether free or in compounds, is reduced and reoxidized, thus producing a characteristic gar- lic odor. Tests for Arsenic Acid.—Sulphuretted hydrogen and sulphuret of ammo- nium cause in acid solutions a yellow precipitate of AsSs; nitrate of silver produces a reddish-brown precipitate, sulphate of copper a greenish-blue ; sulphurous acid reduces it to arsenious acid ; before the blowpipe, with cyanide of potassium and with zinc and sulphuric acid the reactions are as above. Preparations of Arsenic. Acidum arseniosum, As03. White opaque, sometimes translucent, masses. Liquor potassae arsenitis, AsO, and KO^CO^+Aq, each 64 grs. to Oj; gr. iv AsOs to fgj. Liquor sodae arsenitis, As03 and NaO,C02, 60 grains, each, to Oj; gr. 3| As03 to f gj. Acidum arsenicum, As05; not used in medicine. Ammoniae arsenias, 2NH40,HO,As05 ; colorless rhombic prisms. Liquor ammonias arseniatis, gr. j to f §j ; Biette's arsenical solution. /Sodas arsenias, 2NaO,HOAs05-}-24Aq; isomorphous with phosphate of soda. Liquor sodas arseniatis, gr. j to f,^j ; contains one-seven-hundredth As. Ferri arsenias, 2FeO,As03-r-2Fe203,AsO,r|-12Aq ; dark green powder. Arsenici iodidum, As3I. A soluble orange-red salt. Liquor hydrargyri et arsenici iodidi. Asl3 and Hgl2, of each 70 grains to Oj. Acidum Arseniosum. As03=99. (White Arsenic) As before stated, this compound is a collateral product in the smelting of cobalt ores. These ores, which are worked extensively in Bohemia and Saxony, furnish the supplies of arsenic to commerce. It comes in broken masses, with a conchoidal fracture, sometimes translucent, and sometimes, especially when old, opaque, white, or buff-colored. Soluble in about 100 parts of cold water; more soluble in boiling water, which, on cooling, deposits octahedral crystals; its solubility varies very much, however, the opaque variety being the most soluble. It should be preferred for chemical uses in mass, as the powder is liable to adulteration. In medicine, it is used as an altera- tive and febrifuge. Dose, ^ to £ grain. Externally it is occasionally applied to cancerous affections. Arsenious acid is well known to be a violent corrosive poison, and 476 ANTIMONY AND ARSENIC PREPARATIONS. being cheap and abundantly sold as a poison for rats and for other purposes, is apt to be taken accidentally or with criminal design. Its sale is restricted in most of the States by law. The best antidote is hydrated peroxide of iron, which, as described in its appropriate place, should be given in tablespoonful doses, repeated every ten minutes, till a large excess has been given. Liquor Potasses Arsenitis U. S. P. (Fowler's Solution.) Take of Arsenious acid, in small fragments, Bicarbonate of potassa, each, sixty-four grains. Distilled water a sufficient quantity. Compound spirit of lavender, half a fluidounce. Boil the arsenious acid and bicarbonate of potassa in a glass vessel (or porcelain capsule) with twelve fluidounces of distilled water, till the acid is entirely dissolved; to the solution, when cold, add the com- pound spirit of lavender, and afterwards sufficient distilled water to make it fill exactly the measure of a pint. This very popular medicine is so simple in its mode of preparation as to be conveniently made by the country practitioner. It will be found to facilitate its completion, to triturate the arsenic into a fine powder before introducing it into the flask or capsule. The officinal recipe now directs bicarbonate of potassa, KO,2C02 + Aq, but it is more common to use the granulated carbonate 2(KO,C02) 3(110), which is usually contaminated with a little silica, and is not uniform in its combining proportion by reason of its deliquescence. Fowler's Mineral Solution has a characteristic reddish, almost opalescent appearance, a faint odor of lavender, and very little taste; by some it is stated to be a solution of arsenious acid in the alkaline solution; by others, a solu- tion of arsenite of potassa. This is a very common alterative and antiperiodic medicine, used in lepra and other cutaneous aft'ections, and much employed in intermittent fever. Four grains of arsenious acid are contained in each fluidounce. Dose, m,iij to xv. Liquor Sodas Arsenitis. (Harle's Solution.) This preparation is very similar to Fowler's solution ; the principal differ- ence being the substitution of soda for potassa. 30 grains, each, of arseni- ous acid and dried carbonate of soda are digested with six ounces of distilled water, and after solution, sufficient cinnamon water is added to make the whole measure eight fluidounces. It is used for the same purposes and in the same doses as Fowler's solution. Arsenic Acid. As05=115. If arsenious acid diffused in water is heated, and nitric acid in small quan- tities added until nitrous acid fumes cease to be given off, the solution con- tains arsenic acid. An addition of muriatic acid to the water accelerates the reaction, but is not indispensably necessary. When evaporated to dryness and fusion without carrying the heat too high, arsenic acid appears as a colorless or white vitreous mass, free from water of crystallization, deliquescent, and sometimes forming crystals containing water. It is exceedingly poisonous, has not been used in medicine in its free state, but the following compositions have been prescribed. IODIDE OF ARSENIC. 477 Ammonias Arsenias. (Arseniate of Ammonia.) To prepare the dry salt, a concentrated solution of arsenic acid is mixed with strong solution of ammonia until a precipitate commences to appear; on setting aside, colorless oblique rhombic prisms are deposited; they are , efflorescent in the air, and lose ammonia. It is a very poisonous salt, exhibiting in a high degree the alterative effects of arsenic; the dose is 5X? to -^ grain. Liquor Ammoniae Arseniatis. (Biette's Arsenical Solution.) One grain of arseniate of ammonia is dissolved in one ounce of water; the dose is 20 minims to half a drachm. Sodas Arsenias. 3Na0,As05-f 24H0. (Arseniate of Soda.) A diluted solution of arsenic acid is saturated with a solution of carbo- nate of soda, and evaporated to crystallization. It is isomorphous with the corresponding phosphate of soda, like it crystallizes with 24 and 14 equiv. of water, and is efflorescent. It is not used in medicine except in solution, as follows. * Liquor Sodas Arseniatis. (Pearson's Arsenical Solution.) Arseniate of soda is allowed to effloresce by exposure to the air; after it ceases to lose weight, it is dissolved in distilled water in the proportion of one grain to the ounce. This solution contains rather more arsenic than Biette's liquor; it is con- sidered milder, and given in the same doses; in minute doses, it is asserted to be a reliable remedy against salivation. Ferri Arsenias. (Arseniate of Iron.) Arseniate of soda or ammonia produces in the solution of protochloride of iron a white precipitate, which, during washing and drying, assumes a dirty green color by being converted into a ferrosoferric salt. In cancer, psoriasis, &c, it has been given in doses of y1^ to ^ grain, usually combined with phosphate of iron; externally it is used in ointments containing about half a drachm to an ounce. Arsenici Iodidum. Asl3=454. (Iodide of Arsenic) Take of Arsenic (the metal) sixty grains. Iodine three hundred grains. Bub the arsenic in a mortar until reduced to a fine powder, then add the iodine, and rub them together till they are thoroughly mixed. Put the mixture into a small flask or test-tube, loosely stopped, and heat it very gently until liquefaction occurs, then incline the vessel in different directions in order that any portion of the iodine which may have condensed on its inner surface may be returned into the fused mass. Lastly, pour the melted iodide on a porcelain slab, and when it is cold break it into pieces and keep it in a well-stopped bottle. (U.S. P.) This is an orange-red crystalline solid, readily reduced to powder, entirely soluble in water, and wholly volatilized by heat. It is seldom prescribed extemporaneously, being little known to practitioners, al- though doubtless capable of valuable therapeutic applications. 478 MERCURY, GOLD, AND PLATINUM. It is made officinal for the purpose of furnishing a ready means of forming the solution which follows:— Liquor Arsenici et Hydrargyri Iodidi U. S. P. (Donovan's Solution) Take of Iodide of arsenic, Bed iodide of mercury, each, thirty-five grains. Distilled water half a pint. Rub the iodides with half a fluidounce of the water, and when they have dissolved, add the remainder of the water and filter. Of course, the mixed powder should be entirely dissolved. Donovan's solution is a clear, very pale straw-colored, or colorless liquid, with a slightly styptic taste. It should not be prescribed with other chemical preparations, as a general rule. It is a powerful alte- rative, said to be particularly adapted to the treatment of venereal diseases. Dose, "Iv to xx. Each f gj contains about £ grair of arse- nic estimated as arsenious acid. CHAPTER X. MERCURY, GOLD, AND PLATINUM. Hydrargyrum. Hg=200 vel 100. (MERju&r.) Mercury is obtained chiefly from its bisulphuret, native cinnabar by distillation with lime; sometimes it is met with in its metallic state, and rarely, combined with chlorine. Verj rich cinnabar is found in California, from which a considerable proportion of our mercury is ob- tained ; the mines of New Almaden ale ne have produced in a single year 30,000 flasks of 76 J lbs. each. The chief uses of mercury are for the extraction of noble metals, the making of vermilion, silvering mirrors, the manufacture of barometers and thermometers, and the preparation of its salts used in medicine. When pure, mercury is a brilliant white, metallic liquid, becoming solid at —39° F., boiling at 662° F.; sp. gr. 13.5; entirely vaporized by heat; when small globules of it are rolled slowly on a sheet of paper, not a particle should adhere. It dissolves many metals, as tin, bismuth, zinc, silver, and gold, forming amalgams with them. It may be separated from these when they contaminate it, by distillation. It is not attacked by muriatic nor by cold sulphuric acid, though the latter acid, at a boiling temperature, forms with it a persulphate, some- times called bipersulphate. Nitric acid oxidizes and dissolves it, form- ing two nitrates. Mercury forms numerous salts, a number of which are officinal preparations. In the two classes of salts formed by the suboxide (protoxide) and protoxide (deutoxide) of mercury, these oxides are recognized in the following way:— Tests for the Suboxide (Protoxide).—Sulphuretted hydrogen and sul- TESTS FOR THE BINOXIDE. 479 phuret of ammonium cause a black precipitate, insoluble in diluted acids; alkalies cause a black precipitate ; muriatic acid throws down a white pre- cipitate of calomel; iodide of potassium a greenish-yellow, darkened by excess of precipitant; protochloride of tin precipitates the metallic mercury. Tests for the Protoxide (Red Oxide).—Sulphuretted hydrogen and sul- phuret of ammonium at first produce a white precipitate, which on the fur- ther addition of the precipitant turns yellow, orange, brown, and black; fixed alkalies in the absence of ammonia, cause a reddish-brown precipitate, which is yellow with an excess of the precipitant; the precipitate caused by ammonia is white ; protochloride of tin at first throws down calomel; when in excess, the metal is reduced. The following convenient test for the mercurials is very delicate, and well adapted to pill masses, &c. :— On to a copper coin brightened with a little NOs, a small portion of the suspected substance is placed and moistened with a drop or two of water into a pasty consistence ; a small fragment of KI is added to it, and on washing it a mercurial stain will remain. Numerous so-called "vegetable," and other "quack" pills will be found to show the presence of calomel in this way. The reaction in the case of blue mass is less rapid, though equally certain. The combining number adopted by modern chemists for mercury is 100; that which the leading pharmacologists of this country have adopted heretofore is 200; this discrepancy has been guarded against throughout the Pharmacopoeia by the adoption of officinal names, which would be equally applicable in either case. It will be seen that practically there is no difference in the proportions employed, in the preparations, nor in their testings; the results are the same, though the chemical names, and the explanations of the reactions, are differ- ent. Adopting 200 as the equivalent number, corrosive sublimate would be HgCl^ bichloride of mercury, instead of HgCl, protochloride, which is the view of its composition adopted by Graham, Gmelin, Brande, and Taylor, and all the recent authors I have consulted. In adopting in the following syllabus and in the text the views of the authorities named, I am aware I am in danger of confusing the student, who may study either of the editions heretofore issued of our National Dispensatory, but, on the other hand, the present work will be in harmony with the text-books on chemistry now most in use, and with the chemical nomenclature likely to come into universal use in future. 480 MERCURY, GOLD, AND PLATINUM. Syllabus of Mercurial Compounds. Off. Name. Compositions, &c. Uses. Doses. Hydrargyri chloridum corro- HgCl Alterative, an- t\ t0 1 8r- sivum tiseptic, &c. Hydrargyri chloridum mite Hg2Cl Cathartic and alterative. TV to 20 grs. " sulphas flava 3(HgO)S03 Emetic and er-rhine. Emetic, 3 grs. " iodidum rubrum Hgl Alterative in syphilis, &c. A to \ gr. " iodidum viride Hg2I u i to 1 gr. | to i gr. " iodidum flavum Hg4I3 (( Iodide of calomel a A t° i 8r- Biniodide of calomel u A to i gr. Potassii et hydrargyri iodidum KI,2HgI u rV to i gr. Syrup of iodohydrargyrate of Alterative. gtt. xx to xxx. Syrup of iodohydrar gyrate of Hgl+Fel2+Aq << f3i- potassium and iron Hydrargyri bromidum HgBr « tV t0 4 gr- " sub-bromidum Hg2Br Cathartic and alterative. ^ to 6 grs. " cyanidum HgCy Alterative. tV t0 & sr- " sulphuretum ru- HgS Alterative fu- brum migations. " sulphuretum ni- Mild alterative. gr. v to 5j. grum " oxidum rubrum HgO Externally, sti-mulant. " " nigrum Hg20 Alterative, sia-lagogue, &c. | to 3 grs. " acetas 2(Hg20)A^ Alterative. £ to 1 gr. " protonitratis liquor Hg20,NO. in Aq <( gtt. iij. " binitratis liquor HgO.N05 in Aq it " phosphas 2(Hg20)HO,P05 << £ to 2 grs Hydrargyrum ammoniatum HgNH2,HgCl Externally in ointment. " cum creta 3 parts Hg+5pCaO,C02 Antacid and al-terative. £ to 3 grs. Hydrargyri Chloridum Corrosivum. HgCl=136. (Chloride, Perchlo- ride, Bichloride of Mercury, Mercuric Chloride. Corrosive Sublimate) By the action of boiling sulphuric acid on mercury, the persulphate (HgO,S03), is first formed. When this is heated with common salt, mutual exchange takes place, and chloride of mercury and sulphate of soda, the former of which sublimes, are produced. The changes are represented in the formula HgO,S03-f NaCl=HgCl4-NaO,SOs. Corrosive sublimate is in heavy white crystalline masses, of a styptic and metallic taste ; soluble in about sixteen parts of cold and three of boiling water, in three parts of alcohol, and four of ether ; it melts and entirely sublimes when heated. Its watery solution, precipitated by alkalies or lime- water, throws down the red or yellowish binoxide. (See Yellow Wash.) When this precipitate is heated, it gives off oxygen, and runs into globules of metallic mercury ; a solution of corrosive sublimate precipitates albumen, and forms with it a definite insoluble compound, to which property its use as an antiseptic is due. MERCUROUS CHLORIDE—CALOMEL. 481 It is a very powerful irritant; when taken in large doses, it causes burning at the epigastrium, vomiting and purging; applied to the skin, it is corrosive. It is less apt to produce salivation than the other preparations of mercury, and in very small doses it is useful as an alterative in chronic aft'ections, syphilitic or not; externally it may be used as a lotion, gargle, injection, or ointment, in chronic skin diseases, ulcerated sore throats, and chronic discharge, from mucous membranes. Dose, ^g gr- to ^ gr. in solution, or pill with crumb of bread. The solution for external use is usually made in the proportion of £ or I gr. to f 3j of water. It is much used in solution with muriate of ammonia, which increases its solubility, as a poison for bedbugs ; the proportions to be used are one ounce of corrosive sublimate, half an ounce of muriate of ammonia to two pints of water. When taken in poisonous doses, recourse should be had immediately to albuminous liquids; eggs, if at hand, should be administered freely, or a thin paste of wheat flour or milk, care being taken to evacuate the bowels and to carry off' completely the precipitated material, which, though comparatively insoluble, is by no means inert. Hydrargyri Chloridum Mite. Hg2Cl, = 236. (Subchloride or Bichloride of Mercury. Mercurous Chloride. Calomel) To prepare this, the persulphate of mercury first formed, as ex- plained under the chloride, is afterwards, by being rubbed with a second equivalent of the metal, reduced to a condition capable of forming, when heated, the subsulphate (Hg20,S03); and this, by the action of the common salt, is converted into the subchloride of mer- cury, sulphate of soda being produced at the same time, Hg20S034- NaCl= Hg2Cl + NaO,S03. Calomel, when sublimed, occurs in cakes, with a crystalline struc- ture ; but as a drug, it is met with in the form of a white, or yellowish- white, heavy powder, without odor or taste; sublimes with heat; treated with potassa, it is blackened, from the precipitation of the pro- toxide, which, when heated, runs into metallic globules. Under the name of English or hydro-sublimed calomel, a preparation is found in commerce, which is preferred by some physicians to the kind made in the manner described above ; it is prepared in accordance with Wcehler's suggestion, by conducting the calomel vapors during the process of subli- mation into a chamber through which steam is passed ; or, as proposed by Dann, by condensing the calomel in a current of cold atmospheric air. Any corrosive sublimate present iu the vapors, is washed out by the condensed water of Wcehler's process. Calomel must be entirely free of corrosive sublimate ; if treated with alcohol or boiling water, the filtrate must yield no precipitate with sulphu- retted hydrogen and nitrate of silver. Calomel is entirely volatile; most foreign admixtures are left behind on heating upon platina foil. By the action of nitric and muriatic acids, calomel is slowly con- verted into corrosive sublimate; soluble chlorides, and even continued boiling with water or alcohol, alone have a similar action. Chlorine, hypochlorites, iodine, iodides, hydrocyanic acid, and cyanurets, de- compose calomel; the chlorides producing corrosive sublimate ; it 31 482 MERCURY, GOLD, AND PLATINUM. should therefore not be prescribed at the same time with muriate of ammonia or nitro-muriatic acid, which last is specially indicated in torpor of the liver; symptoms of violent gastric irritation have been unexpectedly produced from neglecting this precaution. The peculiarities of calomel, as a mercurial agent, are, that it pro- duces little local irritation; it acts as a purgative by increasing the secretion of bile and other intestinal fluids, and hence is much relied on in affections of the liver, and obstructions to the portal circulation. It is much combined with other remedies, being greatly modified in its effects by judicious combination with sedatives, cathartics, astrin- gents, &c. Dose, as a purgative, 5 grs. to 9j ; to produce ptyalism, J grain to 1 grain, frequently repeated. It has become customary to administer exceedingly minute quantities of this preparation, so low as the 2'?th of a grain repeated every hour or two, the constitutional effects being perceptible after a grain has been given in this way. I am informed that its power to salivate is greatly increased by long trituration with sugar of milk, perhaps on account of the extremely fine division to which it is thus brought, and of some chemical change not yet inves- tigated. Hydrargyri Sulphas Flava. 3(NgO)S03 (Turpeth Mineral) The persulphate of mercury formed by the action of boiling sul- phuric acid on the metal, and mentioned in the two preceding formulas, is readily decomposed by reducing it to powder and submitting it to the action of warm water, which changes its composition and proper- ties, producing a yellow-colored insoluble subsalt, 3(HgO)S03. This is used almost exclusively as an errhine, variously diluted with snuff) powdered liquorice root, lycopodium, &c. Hydrargyri Iodidum Rubrum. Hgl=226. (Iodide, Biniodide or Red Iodide of Mercury. Mercuric Iodide) Take of Corrosive chloride of mercury . A troyounce. Iodide of potassium . . . Ten drachms. Distilled water . . . .A sufficient quantity. Dissolve the chloride of mercury in a pint and a half of water by trituration in a mortar, adding small quantities of this solvent at a time, and pouring it into a precipitating jar, till the salt is completely taken up; then dissolve the iodide of potassium in half a pint of hot water by shaking them together in a vial. Now pour the solution of iodide into the solution of chloride contained in the precipitating jar, both liquids being hot at the time of mixing them ; this will produce immediately a brilliant scarlet-colored precipitate of biniodide of mer- cury, leaving in solution the very soluble chloride of potassium. Now fold a plain filter, and having poured off the supernatant liquid from the precipitated biniodide, throw the latter on the filter in a funnel and wash it by adding repeatedly fresh portions of pure water. Wrap the filter up in soft paper, and lay it away with a weight on it, in a warm place to dry. GREEN IODIDE OF MERCURY. * 483 Binoxide of mercury is a beautiful scarlet-colored powder (in fine crys- tals, if the boiling hot solution has been allowed to cool slowly) ; insoluble in water, but soluble in alcohol, and in solutions of iodide of potassium and chloride of sodium. It is wholly sublimed by heat, condensing in scales which are at first yellow, but afterwards red. The two iodides of mercury resemble the two chlorides in their relative medicinal activity. This is, like corrosive sublimate, a powerful poisou. It is conveniently given in pill, but perhaps more frequently in solution of iodide of potassium with or without the addition of vege- table alterative preparations. Dose, T'g to ^ gr. Hydrargyri Iodidum Viride. Hg2I=326. (Sub Iodide, Protiodide, or Green Iodide of Mercury) Take of Mercury,......A troyounce. Iodine ...... Five drachms. Stronger alcohol .... Sufficient. Rub the mercury and iodine together, adding half a fluidounce of stronger alcohol to form a soft paste, and continue the trituration till the ingredients are thoroughly incorporated. Stir the mixture occa- sionally, and, at the end of two hours, triturate again, with consider- able pressure, until it is nearly dry. Then rub it up with stronger alcohol, gradually added, until it is reduced to a uniform thin paste; and, having transferred this to a filter, wash it with stronger alcohol until the washings cease to produce a permanent cloudiness when dropped into a large quantity of water. Lastly, dry the iodide in the dark with a gentle heat, and keep it in a well-stopped bottle, protected from the light. (U.S. P.) By this process, though a slight excess of mercury is used, a small quantity of the red iodide is formed, which is directed to be removed by dissolving it out with the alcohol. The mercury is conveniently weighed by balancing a small paper pill-box on the scales, and giving to one side of it a little" crimp, as shown in Fig. 202; so that a small stream of the metal may be poured out conveniently. The accurate adjust- Fig. 202. ment of the quantity is troublesome. The iodine also requires care in weighing, owing to its corrosive action on the metals. The most convenient method is to balance a pair of watch-glasses by filing away the heavier of the two, or by pasting on to the lighter a small piece of tin foil, and then to lay them away for weighing corrosive substances. In the absence of this, a piece of thick and well glazed writing-paper may be put on to each plate and balanced. If the scales are kept in a case, as shown in the first chapter, they should be taken out whenever iodine is to be weighed on them, as the vapor becoming diffused through the air inside the case will corrode the metal. Subiodide of mercury is a greenish-yellow powder, insoluble in water, alcohol, or solution of chloride of sodium, but soluble in ether. Officinal stronger alcohol, when shaken with it and separated by filtration, gives but a transient cloudiness on being dropped into water, and when evaporated from a porcelain surface leaves only a faint red stain. Heated quickly, it Q 484 . MERCURY, GOLD, AND PLATINUM. sublimes in red crystals, which afterwards become yellow by age ; it is con- verted into teriodide, which has a yellow color, and is believed to be more active. It is used as an alterative, usually in pill. Dose, | gr. to 1 gr.; it is incompatible with iodide of potassium, which converts it into binio- dide with separation of mercury. Hydrargyri Iodidum Flavum. Hg4I,. (Yellow Iodide of Mercury.) Owing to the instability of the protiodide of mercury, it is not very reliable as a medicine for internal use ; as a substitute for it, a yellow iodide has been proposed, which is unalterable by exposure and age. It ismade by precipitating protonitrate, or some other protosalt of mercury, by iodide of potassium, to which one-sixth of its weight of iodine has been previously added. It is a bright lemon-yellow powder, insoluble in water and alcohol; it sub- limes when heated in red crystals, which turn yellow on cooling. It is de- composed by hydriodic acid and by iodides which are incompatible with it. It is given in doses of one-eighth to one-quarter grain. Iodides of Calomel. Boutigny has proposed for medicinal use two preparations which have been called respectively iodide and biniodide of calomel (subiodide and iodide). The former is prepared by heating four equivalents of calomel in a retort until it commences-to sublime, when gradually two equivalents of iodine are added. The salt appears to be a mixture of two equivalents of calomel, one of iodide, and one of chloride of mercury. The biniodide of calomel is prepared in a similar manner from equal equiva- lents of calomel and iodine, and must therefore contain one equivalent each of bichloride and biniodide of mercury. Gobley (see "Am. Journ. Pharm.," xxx. 168) prepares these iodides by triturating the material together, introducing it into a retort, and heating it in a sand bath to fusion. It is evident that the two preparations must be of different intensity in their medicinal properties. They have been given in doses of one-sixteenth to one-eighth grain, and employed externally in the proportion of a scruple to half a drachm in one ounce of ointment. Potassii et Hydrargyri Iodidum. KI,2HgI. (Iodohydrargyrate of Potassium.) A hot solution of iodide of potassium dissolves three equivalents of bin- iodide of mercury, one of which crystallizes out on cooling, afterwards yellow prisms are separated having the composition stated in the syllabus; they are soluble in alcohol and ether, but decomposed by water. It is said to be less apt to produce salivation than other mercurial prepa- rations. It is given in doses of one-twelfth to one-eighth grain, and in ointment of the same strength as the other mercurial iodides. ^ When in- tended for use in solution, it has been recommended to make it extempo- raneously with an excess of iodide of potassium, or dissolve it in a solution of this iodide. One of its most useful applications is to the testing of organic alkalies, which see. Syrup of Iodohydrargyrate of Iron. This preparation is recommended to be made by dissolving one part of red iodide of mercury in three thousand parts of the officinal syrup of iodide of iron. The dose is from twenty to thirty drops as an alterative tonic. CYANIDE OR CYANURET OF MERCURY. 485 Syrup of Iodohydrargyrate of Potassium and Iron. J. E. Young, of Williamsburg, N. Y., offers this preparation, made by combining sixty-four grains of iodine in three drachms of water with iron, and filtering the solution into three and a half fluidounces of syrup ; two grains of red iodide of mercury and one and a half grain of iodide of potas- sium are dissolved in one dracnm of water and added to the syrup, the whole to measure four fluidounces. Some orange-flower water may be added to improve the flavor. The dose is a teaspoonful. Hydrargyri Bromidum. HgBr=n8. (Bromide or Bibromide of Mercury.) This corrosive poison is prepared by combining two parts of bromine with five parts of mercury under water. It crystallizes from water in white shining scales, from alcohol in needles ; is soluble in water, more so in alcohol and ether, and sublimes when heated. In its action it is stated to be analogous to corrosive sublimate, and is employed in the same doses. Hydrargyri Bromidum. Hg2Br=278. (Sub-bromide or Bromide of Mercury.) Nine parts of bromide of mercury are mixed with five parts of mercury and sublimed, or a subsalt of mercury is precipitated by bromide of potas- sium. It appears as a soft white powder or in thin prismatic crystals, insoluble in water and alcohol, but decomposed by the continued action of bromides or iodides. It is said to resemble calomel in its action, and is given in medium doses of four to five grains. Hydrargyri Cyanidum. HgCy=126. (Cyanide or Cyanuret of Mercury) Take of Ferrocyanide of potassium five troyounces. Sulphuric acid four troyounces and one hundred and twenty grains. Red oxide of mercury, in fine powder, Water, each, a sufficient quantity. Dissolve the ferrocyanide of potassium in twenty fluidounces of water, and add the solution to the sulphuric acid, previously diluted with ten fluidounces of water, and contained in a glass retort. Distil the mixture nearly to dryness into a receiver, containing ten fluid- ounces of water and three troyounces of red oxide of mercury. Set aside two fluidounces of the distilled liquid, and to the remainder add, with agitation, sufficient red oxide to destroy the odor of hydrocyanic acid. Then filter the solution, and, having added the reserved liquid, evaporate the whole in a dark place, in order that crystals may form. Lastly, dry the crystals, and keep them in a well-stopped bottle, pro- tected from the light. ( U. S. P.) In white prismatic crystals, wholly soluble in water. When muriatic acid is added to the solution, hydrocyanic acid is evolved, made evident by its odor, and bichloride of mercury is left, which is entirely volatilized by heat. When cyanide of mercury is heated, cyanogen is given off, and a blackish matter is left containing globules of mercury. 486 MERCURY, GOLD, AND PLATINUM. Cyanide of mercury is, like the chloride, a powerful poison, differ- ing from that remedy in producing no epigastric pain in its operation. Some practitioners prefer it to chloride in the same doses, and for the same purposes. Its solution should not be precipitated by muriatic acid or caustic potassa. Hydrargyri Sulphuretum Rubrum. HgS=116. (Red Sulphide or Sulphuret of Mercury. Artificial Cinnabar) When melted sulphur is brought in contact with mercury, direct union ensues; and if the compound is afterwards sublimed, it consists of dark scarlet, shining, crystalline masses, forming, when powdered, a beautiful scarlet color known by the name of vermilion. It is insolu- ble in water and alcohol, volatilizes entirely when heated alone, but with potassa it is reduced to metallic globules. When the fumes are brought into contact with the surface of the body, the drug acts as a topical alterative, and becomes absorbed, affecting the system the same as other mercurials. It is used as a fumigator in some syphilitic skin diseases; 3ss, thrown on a hot iron, and placed beneath the patient wrapped in a blanket, will effect the object. The vapor should not be allowed to enter the lungs. Hydrargyri Sulphuretum Nigrum. Black Sulphide of Mercury. (Ethiops Mineral.) Made by rubbing equal parts of mercury and sulphur together till the globules disappear and a powder is formed. This was formerly officinal, but has been omitted from the Pharmacopoeia in its late revision. Ethiops is an insoluble black powder which is rarely used for any purpose. It may be safely given in doses of from gr. v to 3j, though marked by no very active properties. Hydrargyri Oxidum Rubrum. HgO=108. (Peroxide of Mercury. Mercuric Oxide. Red Precipitate.) Prepared by dissolving, with heat, mercury, flbiij, in a mixture of nitric acid, Ibij, and water, Oij ; evaporating the liquor, and triturating what remains to a powder. This is put into a very shallow vessel, and heated till red fumes cease to arise, the nitrate is decomposed by heat, nitrous acid fumes being disengaged and oxide of mercury re- maining. Red oxide is in orange-red, shining, crystalline scales; when strongly heated, it yields oxygen and metallic mercury, without the production of red fumes. It is insoluble in water, but soluble in nitric and hydrochloric acids. It is used only externally, as a stimulant and escharotic; it is much applied as an ointment to the eye; as an escharotic, in powder, alone, or mixed with sugar, to specks in the cornea, over chancres, and fun- gous ulcers. The directions of our Pharmacopoeia enjoin great care in reducing the red oxide of mercury to a very fine powder; as it is very apt to be gritty from containing crystalline portions. The preparation is produced, uniform, smooth and satisfactory by the following formula of T. S. Weigand:— LIQUOR HYDRARGYRI NITRATIS. 487 Take of Bichloride of mercury .... 550 grains. Caustic potassa, in solution . . .116 " Dissolve the chloride in one pint of boiling water, and pour the solution into the solution of caustic potassa, diluted with two pints of water; wash with water till there is no taste, and dry on a porous tile; the powder is smooth, dense, and well suited for the purpose of admixture with fatty matters. Hydrargyri Oxidum Nigrum. Hg2O=208. (Dioxide of Mercury, Mer- curous Oxide, Black Oxide of Mercury) Made by triturating calomel with a solution of caustic potassa. Protoxide of mercury precipitates, while chloride of potassium remains in solution, and is removed by washing. This preparation has been omitted from the last edition of the U. S. Pharmacopoeia. Black oxide of mercury is in powder, which becomes olive-colored by the action of light. It is wholly dissipated by heat, metallic globules being sublimed. It is insoluble in water, but is wholly dissolved by acetic acid. As a medicine, it is like calomel in its action, and is sometimes substituted for it, but is said to be liable, from occasionally containing deutoxide, to operate harshly. 5ij, placed on a hot iron, answers the purposes of a mercurial vapor bath. Triturated with lard, it substi- tutes mercurial ointment. Its dose, as an alterative, is a quarter to a half grain daily; as a sialagogue, gr. j to iij, three times a day, in pill. Hydrargyri Acetas. HgaO,T = 259. (Acetate of Mercury. Mercurous Acetate.) This salt crystallizes from a hot solution of protoxide of mercury in acetic acid, or from a mixture of the hot solutions of the protonitrate of mercury and acetate of potassa. It separates in soft scales, is slightly oxidized by the air, and blackened by the light while moist. It is used in similar complaints as the other mercurial salts, in the dose of one-sixth of a grain to one grain. Liquor Hydrargyri Nitratis. HgO,NOs with NOs, in Aqua. U. S. P. Take of mercury three troyounces; nitric acid five troyounces; dis- tilled water six fluidounces. Dissolve the mercury, with the aid of a gentle heat, in the acid, previously mixed with the distilled water. When reddish vapors cease to arise, evaporate the liquid to seven troyounces and a half, and keep it in a well-stopped bottle. In this process part of the nitric acid is decomposed, furnishing oxygen to the mercury, and the oxide of mercury combines with the acid to form the nitrate of protoxide, formerly regarded as binitrate of deutoxide of mercury in solution. The nitric acid is designedly present in considerable excess. This solution is made officinal for the preparation of citrine ointment; it is too concentrated for use except with great care as a caustic. It is used in cancerous and other malignant affections, and is similar to, though not identical with, the preparation formerly in use under the name of Acid Nitrate de Mercure. 488 MERCURY, GOLD, AND PLATINUM. It is a transparent, nearly colorless, acid liquid, having the specific gravity 2.165. It is not precipitated by the addition of distilled water ; the diluted solution affords, with potassa, a dirty-yellow precipitate, and with iodide of potassium, a bright-red one, soluble in an excess of the precipitant. When dropped on a bright surface of copper, the diluted solution instantly deposits a coating of mercury. Liquor Hydrargyri Subnitratis. HgaO,N05-f 2HO in Aq. The Prussian Pharmacopoeia contains a solution of the protonitrate of mercury, prepared by digesting mercury in excess with nitric acid and water, equal parts, and diluting the solution until it has the specific gravity of 1.1, and contains in twelve parts one part of mercury. It is used in venereal diseases in the medium dose of two drops. If the solution should contain binoxide, this may be detected by precipi- tating it with chloride of sodium, and testing the filtrate with sulphuretted hydrogen, which will produce a yellowish precipitate changing to black. Hydrargyri Phosphas. 2(HgaO)HO,PO,= 49*7. (Mercurous Phosphate. Subphosphate of Mercury.) A solution of a subsalt of mercury is precipitated by phosphate of soda, and the precipitate well washed. It is a white crystalline powder, insoluble in water, and has been employed in doses of about one grain, once or twice a day. There is also a mercuric phosphate which is not used in medicine, having the composition 2(HgO)HO,P05. Hydrargyrum Ammoniatum. HgCl,HgNH2= 252. (Mercuric Amido- Chloride. White Precipitate of Mercury) When ammonia is added to a solution of corrosive sublimate, a peculiar compound, and not the oxide of mercury, is precipitated. This is a white, amorphous powder, in irregular masses, frequently bear- ing the impression of the fabric on which it is drained and dried. It is de- composed and dissipated by heat; is insoluble in water, but decomposed by continued washing; dissolves in hydrochloric acid without effervescence; and, when heated with potassa, gives off ammonia, and becomes yellow from the formation of the red oxide of mercury. Acetic acid which has been digested with it does not yield with iodide of potassium either a yellow or blue precipitate; it is not blackened when rubbed with lime-water. It is a compound of amidogen or amide (NIIa) with chloride of mercury. This salt is never used internally; it is applied externally, to chronic skin affections in the form of ointment. (See Unguenta) Hydrargyrum cum Creta. (Mercury with Chalk. Gray Powder) Made by triturating three parts of mercury with five parts of pre- pared chalk, till it loses its fluidity and metallic lustre, and the whole assumes the form of a dark-gray powder. This process is one of great labor; and other modes of preparation have been employed. Those which oxidize part of the mercury into red oxide are objectionable, as rendering this mild powder drastic and violent in its action. It is much less used than blue mass, which it resembles in its action. The proportion of mercury is larger than in blue mass, but it is said to be equally mild when well made. Dr. AURUM—GOLD. 489 J. C. Beck, of Cincinnati, has examined a specimen containing 15 per cent, of red oxide of mercury. A good substitute is formed by mix- ing powdered blue mass with prepared chalk, extemporaneously. It is described as a gray powder, partly dissipated by heat. When a small portion is treated with dilute acetic acid in excess, it is partly dis- solved, nothing remaining but mercury in the form of minute globules, visi- ble by the aid of a magnifying glass. The solution, on the addition of muriatic acid, is rendered opalescent; and, when filtered after this addition, and treated with hydrosulphuric acid, does not yield a black precipitate. Its chief use is in treating the complaints of children, the chalk neutralizing acid in the stomach, while the mercury increases the biliary secretion. Dose, for a child, from half a grain to three grains. For other mercurial preparations, see Pills and Ointments. Aurum. (Gold.)= 98.33. Gold is a soft metal, of a peculiar yellow color, and a lustre which is not affected by exposure to the air or heat; it is extremely malle- able, being readily drawn into very fine wire, or beaten into leaves of 2^0 o-ijth Qf an inch in thickness, or, if plated on to silver, not exceeding the one twelve-millionth part of an inch. Its specific gravity is 19.5; its fusing point 1300° F. Commercially the quality of gold is designated by the term carat, which expresses its fineness, not weight; pure gold is 24 carat; 23 carat gold contains 23 parts of gold to one of alloy, 18 carat gold 18 of gold to 6 of alloy. At the mint the proportion of pure gold is expressed by thousandths. Ameri- can coin is 900 thousandths, 900 parts pure gold to 100 of alloy. To find the carat of a specimen of known percentage of pure gold, multiply the weight of pure gold by 24, and divide the product by the weight of the mass. American coin is of 21.6 carats, thus— 900x24_316 1000 To find the percentage of pure gold in gold of known carat, multiply the weight by the carat and divide by 24, thus— 1000x21.6_900 24~ Gold is not attacked by acids, except by nitromuriatic acid, which solution is the starting point for all preparations of gold. It combines with oxygen in two proportions, forming a suboxide, AuO, and a peroxide, Au03. Gold leaf, like silver leaf, is used for coating pills containing nau- seous or strong-smelling substances. Tests for Peroxide of Gold.—Sulphuretted hydrogen and sulphuret of ammonium cause a black precipitate, soluble in sulphuretted alkaline sul- phurets ; potassa produces a reddish-yellow precipitate ; ammonia a preci- pitate of a similar color, which is fulminating gold ; protochloride with a little perchloride of tin, throws down a purple red precipitate, insoluble in muriatic acid. 490 mercury, gold, and platinum. Preparations of Gold. Auri pulvis, Au. Obtained by precipitation or by mechanioal division. Auri oxidum, Au03. Anhydrous blackish brown powder, easily decomposed by heat. Auri chloridum, AuCl3. Yellow or reddish ; crystalline, combining with metallio chlorides. Sodii et auri chloridum, NaCl,AuCl3-(-4Aq. Yellow crystals, not deliquescent. Auri iodidum, Aul3. Dark green ; readily decomposed, combining with iodides. Auri cyanidum, AuCy. Yellow, crystalline, insoluble; combining with alkaline cyanides. Auri Pulvis. (Pulverized Gold.) When solution of gold in nitromuriatic acid is mixed with a solution of protosulphate of iron, a pulverulent precipitate of a cinnamon-brown color is produced, which is metallic gold, aurum praecipitatum. By filing pure gold, may likewise be obtained, in a pretty fine powder, auri limatura; or by rubbing gold leaf with sulphate of potassa to a fine powder, and dissolv- ing out the potassa salt, aurum prazparatum. Gold, in its metallic form, is supposed to act as a tonic and alterative, and to be considerably milder than any of its compounds. Its dose is one-half to one grain two or three times a day. Auri Oxidum. AuaO3=220.66. (Sesquioxide or Teroxide of Gold.) Chloride of gold, or the solution of gold in nitromuriatic acid, is treated with magnesia, the precipitate washed with water, and then decomposed by nitric acid, which extracts the magnesia, and a reddish-yellow powder is obtained, which, on drying, turns chestnut brown. It is somewhat irritating, but has the general properties of powdered gold; in scrofula, syphilis, &c, it has been used in doses of one-tenth to one-half grain twice a day. Liquor Auri Nitro-muriatis. This is a solution of six grains of chloride of gold in one ounce of nitro- muriatic acid, which has been used as a caustic in cancerous affections; it produces a whitish scab. A stronger solution has been employed for syphilitic and scrofulous ulcers. Auri Chloridum. Au3Cl3=303.16. (Sesquichloride or Terchloride of Gold.) This salt is contained in the solution of gold in nitromuriatic acid, from which it is obtained by evaporation to dryness, and constant stirring towards the end of the process. Care should be taken in the evaporation not to waste the salt, which is volatile. It is a reddish crystalline powder, very deliquescent; soluble in water, alcohol, aud ether. Metals, many metallic salts, and organic compounds, reduce the gold from its solution. It is caustic, producing much irritation ; when given for some time it is apt to salivate; it is very poisonous. The dose is one-twentieth to one- eighth grain once a day, and very cautiously increased to several doses a day. Variously diluted with chloride of sodium this salt is used in the photo- graphic art. Sodii et Auri Chloridum. NaCl,AuaCl3=4Aq. (Chloride of Sodium and Gold.) This double salt is obtained by preparing from three and a half parts of pure gold the perchloride, dissolving it in water, and mixing therewith one PLATINUM. 491 part pure anhydrous chloride of sodium. On evaporating this solution, long four-sided prisms are obtained, which are of a yellow color and un- changeable in the air. This salt is officinal in some pharmacopoeias, most of which, however, direct an excess of chloride of sodium, and to rub the evaporated mass into a fine powder. Of the preparations of gold, this double chloride is most employed. Its action is similar to that of the perchloride, but much milder. The dose is one-twelfth to one-quarter grain a day of the pure salt. Auri Iodidum. AuJ3. (Iodide of Gold.) If a solution of perchloride of gold is gradually added to iodide of potas- sium, the resulting precipitate is at first redissolved on agitation, a soluble double iodide being formed ; subsequently the iodide of gold is precipitated, leaving the supernatant liquor free of color. It is a dark-green powder, easily soluble in hydriodic acid. It must be kept in well-stoppered bottles, as in contact with the air it gradually loses iodine until metallic gold is left behind. Like other preparations of gold, it is of an alterative effect, but on account of its spontaneous decomposition, it is not very reliable; the dose is about one-sixteenth of a grain. Auri Cyanidum. AuCy. (Cyanide of Gold.) The cyanide of gold which has been used in medicine appears to be the protocyanide. The percyanide is in white tabular crystals, fusing at 112°, giving off hydrocyanic acid and cyanogen, and is easily soluble in water, alcohol, and ether. That employed medicinally is insoluble in those liquids, but soluble in alkaline cyanides, ammonia, and sulphuret of ammonium ; properties which agree with the protocyanide of gold. It is prepared by dissolving fulminating gold, obtained by precipitating a solution of seven parts of gold by ammonia, in a hot solution of six parts of cyanide of potas- sium, and treating the solution with muriatic acid in excess, which leaves the proto-cyanide as a yellow crystalline powder. It is stated to be one of the mildest compounds of gold, and has been used as an alterative, resolvent, and emmenagogue, in doses of one-twelfth to one- half grain once or twice a day. All the above preparations of gold are also used externally in ointments, and in cases of syphilis for frictions on the gums and tongue. For the latter purpose, they are generally mixed with twice or three times their weight of some inert powder, and the friction is commenced with about one-sixth grain of the mixture a day, and gradually increased ; the milder preparations are used in somewhat larger proportions. The quantity employed in ointments varies with the nature of the case, the preparation used, and with the effect desired ; from two to twenty grains are employed to an ounce of ointment. Platinum. Pt= 98.68. This metal is remarkable for its resistance to chemical agents, and for its infusibility. It is soft, of a silver-gray color; very malleable and ductile, though inferior in these respects to gold. Its valuable physical and chemical properties render it indispensable for the pre- paration of the necessary utensils for a chemical laboratory. Platinum dissolves in nitromuriatic acid; with oxygen it unites in 492 MERCURY, GOLD, AND PLATINUM. two proportions, forming an oxide, PtO, and a binoxide, Pt02; with the halogens and sulphur it forms compounds of 'corresponding com- position. Tests for Binoxide of Platinum.—Platinum in solution is recognized by the following behavior towards reagents : Sulphuretted hydrogen and sul- phuret of ammonium cause a blackish-brown precipitate of PtSa, insoluble in .muriatic and nitric acid, soluble in alkaline sulphurets and potassa. In the presence of chlorides, or of free muriatic acid, potassa and ammonia produce a crystalline yellow precipitate, soluble in alkalies. Solutions con- taining free muriatic acid are changed by protochloride of tin to a deep brownish-red color. Platini Bichloridum. PtCl3=169.?5. Bichloride of platinum is obtained by dissolving the metal in aqua regia, and evaporating to dryness. It is a red crystalline mass, turning brown by expelling the water of crystallization ; deliquescent; soluble in water and alcohol; it is much used as a test for the inorganic and organic alkalies, with which it forms yellow double chlorides. It is poisonous, producing convulsions and death in overdoses. In doses of one-eighth to one-fourth grain, given in mucilaginous liquids, it has been employed like chloride of gold in syphilis, epilepsy, &c, also externally, about fifteen grains to one ounce of ointment. Sodii et Platini Chloridum. NaCl-f PtCla-(-6Aq=228.25. By mixing solutions of bichloride of platinum and chloride of sodium, yellow prisms are obtained by evaporation, which are soluble in water and alcohol. Its effects are similar to the former, only milder, and it is given in some- what larger doses. PART IV. PHARMACY IN ITS RELATIONS TO ORGANIC CHEMISTRY. CHAPTER I. LIGNEOUS FIBRE AND ITS DERIVATIVES. Organic chemistry refers to the properties and composition of sub- stances which have been formed in vegetables and animals under the influence of life, and of their derivatives; the vast variety of these compounds and the fact that their differences are not so much in the variety of their ultimate constituents as in the number of atoms of these and their peculiar and inexplicable modes of combination, makes their study almost a distinct branch of chemical science. The greater number of vegetable substances used in medicine come into the hands of the pharmaceutist in a crude condition, and the first scientific inquiry in connection with their modes of preparation relates to the action of solvents upon them, which requires an investigation of their chemical characteristics. All plants are composed of organic proximate principles, which, when further resolved, are found to consist of carbon, oxygen, and hydrogen; when the two latter elements are combined in the propor- tion in which they exist in water, they are termed carbohydrates; others consist of carbon and hydrogen only, while another class is distinguished by containing also nitrogen, and some of these phos- phorus and sulphur. The predominance of one or other of these proximate principles in any group of animal or of vegetable products, usually adapts its in- dividual members to certain modes of preparation and use in medicine, and constitutes a strong feature of resemblance among them. This characteristic Is still more marked when associated, as it often is, with similar botanical relations, but even in the absence of _ these it is very apparent: substances which owe their utility to containing starch, are naturally associated as farinaceous, while the gums are well and fami- liarly classed together. So with the aromatics, containing essential oils and resins; the narcotics, containing vegetable alkalies, &c. The proximate principles of plants are capable of division into two main classes, these are: First. Those which are nutritious, and are generally diffused throughout the vegetable kingdom, including a few obtained from animals also; this class consists of cellulose, starch, gums, sugar, fixed oils and fats, and the nitrogenized or protein com- pounds Second. Those which are generally not nutritious, but medi- v ' (493) 494 LIGNEOUS FIBRE, ETC. cinal or poisonous, and are less diffused, being in some instances con- fined to a very few families of plants; these are the crystallizable and uncrystallizable neutral principles, the vegetable acids and alkalies, the essential oils and resins, &c. In treating of these principles, and some of the important drugs in which they are found, the organic materia medica will be brought into view in a diff'erent aspect from that under which it is usually studied. Cellulose= C24H20O20= C12H10O10, Lignin. This is an inert, colorless, sometimes translucent, tasteless, inodor- ous, organized substance, which is present in the cell walls of all plants, and is the basis of woody fibre. It is insoluble under ordinary circumstances in all solvents, but by long continued boiling with diluted sulphuric acid it becomes " crum- my," and finally is converted into soluble cellulose, dextrin; for its behavior with cold diluted sulphuric acid; see Parchment Paper cold concentrated sulphuric and muriatic acids render it gelatinous and finally dissolve it. This solution contains dextrin, a modified lignin which is soluble in water, and another form precipitated by water. Schweizer's solvent for lignin is an ammoniacal solution of oxide of copper, the solvent action of which is in proportion to the amount of copper it contains, but decreases with age in consequence of the absorption of carbonic acid, and is prevented by acids, salts, or sugar. Acids precipitate the lignin in an amorphous condition, drying to a horn-like mass. These solutions are precipitated by the addition of salts, gum Arabic, dextrin, and alcohol. The substances belonging under this head, and allied compounds, are soluble in Schweizer's solvent in the following order : silk, cotton, paper, linen, animal bladder, and wool, the latter requiring the aid of heat; muslin dissolves readily ; starch is insoluble, but forms a paste when aided by heat; gun-cotton is insoluble in this solution. With pure cellulose a solution of iodine in iodide of potassium and chlo- ride of zinc, produces a blue color, which appears also after brisk boiling with strong potash lye, on the addition of iodine. When boiled with solution of potassa, lignin is decomposed into numerous acid compounds, containing from one to four equivalents of carbon; fusing hydrate of potassa, forms with lignin oxalic acid. Pharmaceutical manipulations are chiefly directed.to get rid of lignin by freeing from it, by the aid of various menstrua, those active principles which it incloses, excluded from external influences, and safely locked up in their natural repositories till needed for the relief of suffering or the restoration of health. Lignin is officinal under the name of gossypium, cotton, which, in its condition of raw cotton, or carded cotton, is much used in surgery, and forms the basis of the singular and interesting compounds known as gun-cotton, pyroxylin, and the other modifications of prepared cotton entering into collodion and blistering collodion. Another form of lignin, which is of interest to the surgeon, is that of patent lint, prepared from the fibres of the flax plant (Linum usita- tissimum), or from old white linen cloth scraped so as to make it soft PARCHMENT PAPER. 495 and woolly; much of the lint of commerce contains a certain portion of cotton fibre, which the manufacturers assert is not injurious for the purposes for which it is used. Paper may be mentioned under this head as one of the most im- portant forms of lignin. Wrapping paper is referred to among the necessary articles of an outfit. This is produced of various qualities, but the pharmaceutist who aims at a high reputation should not be parsimonious in the purchase of an article, by the quality of which his character for neatness is so likely to be estimated. Parchment paper is a useful modification of ligneous fibre, prepared by exposing common unsized paper to the action of a mixture of two parts by measure of strong sulphuric acid and one of water for no longer time than is taken in drawing it through the acid, and imme- diately washing in water containing a little soda or ammonia. If the acid varies much from the proper strength, the paper will be charred or else changed into dextrin, and if too long exposed the latter change will take place. It is tough, firm, impervious, and though very similar to parchment, not, like it, decomposed by heat and moisture. It is not a compound of lignin, but consists of fibre changed in its chemical and physical properties. Water does not filter through parchment paper, but passes gradually through it by endosmotic action. In this passage through the paper, it carries with it all dissolved compounds which are crystallizable, while those which appear in an amorphous condition do not penetrate. These latter have been called by Graham colloids, the former crystal- loids, and the process, which is well adapted for separating minute quantities of the latter from the first group, dialysis. The crystalloids do not dialize with the same rapidity, and the process may therefore be employed for approximately separating two or more crystallizable substances of different dializing power. One of the most beautiful exhibitions of ligneous fibre is the skele- ton separated from leaves by the maceration and decay of the cellular structure, and the purification and bleaching of the remaining fibrous portions. No ornament is more chaste and elegant than a bouquet of these, and it being within the capacity of any person of taste to produce them, the art is well adapted to occupy the leisure of ladies. See " The Phantom Bouquet," a small work by the author, published by J. B. Lippincott & Co., Philadelphia. The most reliable tests for distinguishing cotton from linen, are : 1, boiling with concentrated solution of potassa, which colors linen in two minutes deep yellow ; cotton remains nearly white ; 2, strong sulphuric acid destroys cotton in one-half to two minutes ; 3, olive oil renders cotton transparent, but not linen ; 4, tincture of madder dyes cotton light yellow, linen yellowish- red ; 5, cotton fibres appear, under the microscope, as flat, ribbon-like joints, frequently spirally turned and with large channel; linen fibres are straight, long, slender tubes. Wool and silk may be distinguished from the above vegetable fibres and all other carbohydrates by perchloride of tin, which bleaches the latter on heating. The following principles may be considered as peculiar forms of lignin:— 496 LIGNEOUS FIBRE, ETC. Peculiar Forms of Lignin. Medullin, the pith of plants after it is freed from all soluble compounds. Fungin, the skeleton of fungi. Pollenin, the pollen granules freed from all soluble matter; it still contains some nitrogen. Collodium U. S. P. (Ethereal Solution of Prepared Cotton.) Braconnot discovered in 1833 that cotton, linen, and starch might be converted into a substance remarkable for its ready combustibility. This observation attracted little attention until Prof. Schonbein, in 1845, made some practical applications of this substance, from which it received the name gun-cotton; its chemical names are xyloidin, pyroxylin and nitrocellulose. Its solution in ether was first recommended as an adhesive substance adapted to the wants of the surgeon, in an article in the "Boston Medical and Surgical Journal" under date of March 22, 1848, by S. L. Bigelow. He then stated that he had accidentally discovered its remarkable adaptation to the rapid union of wounds by the first in- tention, and had tested its efficacy by a number of experiments, which induced him to make it public. The next number of the same journal, issued one week later, contained an article on the same subject, by John P. Maynard, of Dedham, Mass., in which he claims to have been the first to use the preparation as an adhesive plaster, and proceeds to detail its advantages, as proved by a number of experiments made by himself, and by numerous physicians and surgeons in Boston. On the first introduction of the article in Philadelphia, my lamented friend, W. W. D. Livermore, then in my employ, and myself, jointly pursued a series of experiments in its preparation, the result of which we announced in a paper published in the "American Journal of Pharmacy," vol. xx. p. 181, stating the best formula that we had tried for the preparation of this solution. It prescribed the mixing of equal portions of nitric and sulphuric acids, and the maceration in it of clean bleached cotton for twelve hours. The proper strength of the nitric acid was then known to be a matter of importance, the acid of 1.5 sp. gr. furnishing the most satisfactory results. This cotton, after washing and thorough drying, was to be dissolved in a certain proportion of ether, free, or nearly free, from water. The recipe was accompanied by such practical suggestions as our experiments led to, and although some of the views advanced in that paper were afterwards adandoned, the recipe, with slight modifications, has continued to give satisfaction to this time, and is substantially that now most approved by some leading manufacturers. Other essays soon appeared on the subject in our own and foreign journals, among which, that of M. Mialhe, recommending immersing cotton in a mixture of nitrate of potassa and sulphuric acid was most approved, and his formula found favor with the committee of revision of the U. S. Pharmacopoeia for 1850. In the fourth number of the "Am. Journ. of Pharm.," 1849,1 pub- lished the result of some further experiments upon the new adhesive solution, giving a modified formula, which was recommended, as allow- COLLODIUM. 497 mg the preparation of a larger quantity at one time, and with far less trouble; as avoiding the exposure of the operator to corrosive acid fumes, while stirring the cotton with the semi-fluid mass, which, in the other case, makes it necessary to work either in a well-ventilated apartment, or in the open air; and as facilitating the washing of the product, which comes out from the mixed acids with no solid crystal- line ingredient contaminating it, and may be purified with the utmost facility. The proportions then indicated were as follows: Fuming nitric and sulphuric acids, of each, four fluidounces; clean cotton half an ounce; ether three pints, and alcohol sufficient. The cotton was directed to be thoroughly saturated with the acids, previously mixed and allowed to become cool, and macerated for twelve hours. The nitrated cotton being then removed, was to be washed in a large quantity of water and freed from water by successive washing in alcohol and dissolved in the ether. Few subjects claimed more attention in the chemical and pharma- ceutical journals for some years than this, and in view of the great utility of the employment of a film of the collodion in photography, its manufacture soon became an important branch of business. In the previous editions of this work the principal essays on the subject were noticed in detail, but it has not been deemed important to add to the foregoing, except to call attention to an elegant expedient directed in the formula, suggested by the late W. W. D. Livermore: to drain off the water by pressure, and then to macerate the cotton a few minutes in alcohol, which, by its affinity for the water, rapidly extracts it, and then may be sufficiently separated by expression, as it is not incompatible with the ethereal solution, which, in fact, it im- proves. Rhen's patent, for this process of washing prepared cotton for col- lodion dates long since this suggestion, and even since its public an- nouncement by me in the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy. The present officinal process for collodion is a modification of that of Mialhe, directing the maceration of the cotton in the mixed nitrate of potassa and sulphuric acid for twelve hours (instead of four minutes as originally prescribed) and adopting Livermore's process of washing by alcohol instead of the dangerous drying by heat as before indicated. The officinal formula is given in detail as one of the practicable pro- cesses for collodion, although there are others in use, especially by photographers, which may serve their purposes better. Collodium U. S. P. (Collodion) Take of Cotton, freed from impurities, half a troyounce. Nitrate of potassa, in fine powder, ten troyounces. Sulphuric acid fifteen troyounces and a half. Stronger ether twenty-one fluidounces. Stronger alcohol a sufficient quantity. Add the sulphuric acid to the nitrate of potassa in a glass or porce- lain vessel, and stir them together until they are uniformly mixed. When the temperature of the mixture is below 122°, add the cotton, 32 498 LIGNEOUS FIBRE, ETC. and, by means of stout glass rods, imbue it thoroughly with the mix- ture. Then cover the vessel closely with a glass or porcelain lid, and allow it to stand for twenty-four hours. Transfer the cotton to a larger vessel, and wash it, first with cold water until the washings cease to have an acid taste, and then with boiling water. Press it as dry as possible with the hand, pack it tightly in a conical percolator, and pour upon it stronger alcohol, until the remaining water is displaced; then again press it as dry as possible with the hand. Mix the stronger ether with six fluidounces of stronger alcohol in a suitable bottle, and, having added the moist cotton to the mixture, agitate occasionally until it is dissolved. The cotton, prepared for solution by this formula, and dried at 212°, weighs three hundred and thirty-six grains. Collodion may also be made by dissolving fifty-six grains of cotton, prepared as above, and dried at 212°, in a mixture of three fluidounces and a half of stronger ether and a fluidounce of stronger alcohol. Straining and expressing collodion are often necessary when it con- tains a large amount of undissolved fibre, as the last portions in a bottle from which the clear liquid has been from time to time de- canted ; a slight precaution may save the operator a great deal of trouble and mortification from his hands becoming coated with it be- yond remedy. When about to squeeze the strainer, or to thrust the hands into the liquid for any purpose, be careful to have a towel at hand, and instantly, on removing them, wipe them thoroughly dry before time is allowed for evaporation and the consequent deposit of the pellicle. This plan will be found effectual. The contraction of the collodion pellicle in drying is a decided ob- jection to its use in some surgical cases. C. S. Band was the first to propose Venice turpentine as an addition to obviate this effect. Rand's Modified Collodion. Take of Prepared cotton......3ij. Venice turpentine . . . . . • 5ij- Sulphuric ether......f^v. Dissolve, first, the cotton in the ether; add the turpentine, and, by slight agitation, complete the solution. The resulting collodion, when applied to the skin, forms a transpa- rent pellicle, more difficult to remove than that of ordinary collodion. Being more pliable, it yields to the motion of the skin, and will not crack even after several days' application. It might be supposed that the turpentine would render it more irritating, but this does not seem to be the case, owing to the absence of that mechanical stimulus so powerfully displayed in ordinary collodion. The addition of two drachms of mastic to the above may be at times advisable, if the pel- licle be required of great toughness and strength; but it dries more slowly, and remains opalescent longer than that containing Venice turpentine alone. This preparation is more suitable for the purpose of a varnish than as an application to the skin, and is especially adapted to coating labels on vials, which it renders impervious to cold and hot water and alcohol. Castor oil has also been found to be an excellent addition to collodion for the prevention of this contraction. Properties.—Collodion is a colorless, opalescent liquid, of a syrupy PRESERVATION OF COLLODION. 499 consistence, becoming thinner by age, with a strong odor of ether; when applied to a dry surface, it evaporates spontaneously, yielding a transparent pellicle without whiteness, possessed of remarkable adhe- siveness and contractility, and quite impervious to moisture or to the action of any ordinary solvents, ether and alcohol excepted. A piece of linen or cotton cloth covered with it, and made to adhere by evaporation, to the palm of the hand, will support, after a few minutes, without giving way, a weight of from 20 to 30 pounds. Its adhesive power is so great that the cloth will sometimes be torn before it loosens. Collodion is frequently not a perfect solution of cotton; but contains, suspended and floating in it, a quantity of vegetable fibre which has escaped the solvent action of the ether. The liquid portion may be separated from these fibres by decantation or straining, but this is a disadvantage for surgical use. In the evaporation of the liquid, these undissolved fibres, by felting with each other, appear to give a greater degree of tenacity and resistance to the dried mass, .without destroying its transparency; and the Pharmacopoeia directs that the layer of fibrous matter should be re-incorporated by agitation before the collodion is used. Mode of Preservation.—Collodion is one of those liquids which, owing to extreme volatility, it is objectionable to use from a large bottle, not only from the waste by evaporation every time the stopper is drawn, and the consequent inspissation of the liquid; but, also, from the explosive nature of the vapor of ether when it comes in contact with flame; it should, therefore, be put up in small vials, from which it may be used with economy and safety. Formerly the manufacturers usually put it in ground stoppered vials, of one or two ounce capacity; but an improvement has been made in the substitution for these of cork stoppered, one ounce vials. Cork, by its elasticity, can be made to fit the neck of a vial more tightly than the best glass stopper, and is, therefore, less liable to be thrown out on an elevation of temperature of the contained volatile liquid. Collodion is generally applied by the aid of a camel's-hair brush, but if one of these is allowed to dry, after being immersed in the liquid, it is apt to be too stiff to use again. To obviate this disadvantage, a contrivance, such as is shown in the FiS- 203- accompanying figure, is resorted to; it consists of a long jgj| f l] vial, with a cork stopper, which is perforated with the ^ jjj> smallest cylinder of the cork borer, or with the rat-tail J111^ file, and into this perforation a thin piece of wood with a | | turned cap about the diameter of the cork is tightly in- serted ; this plug of wood has the diameter of the quill of a camel's-hair brush of medium size, and it is long enough 1 to project below the cork, so that the quill will fit on to it JL and be secure. The bottle being now nearly filled and fjp the cork inserted, the brush will dip into the collodion, k^^^J and, by constant immersion, will keep moist and always collodion viai. ready for use. Where, from exposure, a part of the ether has evaporated, the addi- 500 LIGNEOUS FIBRE, ETC. tion of more ether will serve to redissolve the gelatinous residue, unless it has dried beyond a certain point, at which it is apt to become quite insoluble. Uses of Collodion.—-The chief use of this interesting liquid is in pho- tography, which has already extended so as to become one of the most important of the modern arts. In medical practice its principal application is to ordinary superficial sores, as cuts and abrasions of the skin, and also to some skin diseases, where the indication is to protect the part from external irritating influences, and where violent itching is one of the most troublesome symptoms. Prof. Simpson, of Edinburgh, recommends it for sore nipples, which it completely pro- tects, without interfering with the sucking of the infant; for this pur- pose, Rand's preparation would be best suited. It was first principally recommended for the application of bandages, and is used in France as a substitute for dextrin in permanent splints, which, by its use, may be applied over a less extended surface without diminishing the strength and permanence of the dressing. In cases of burns, where the cuticle has been removed and the symptoms of acute pain allayed by suitable applications, collodion is capable of one of its most useful applications, though for this purpose its contractility should be obviated by adding Venice turpentine or castor oil, as before indicated. By combining collodion with the ethereal tincture of chloride of iron, a compound is produced which is said to furnish a much more resisting and pliable, though thinner pellicle, and one adapted to the treatment of erysipelas. Collodion Tinctura Presparat. (London Skin Hospital.) Take of Collodion.......One ounce. Palm oil.......10 grains. Alkanet root......To color it. Mix. Causticum Hydr. Bichhridi. (London Skin Hospital.) Take of Corrosive sublimate .... One drachm. Prep, collodion.....6 drachms. Mix. The composition of collodion has excited much discussion, and some inge- nious hypotheses. The discovery of Prof. Leidy, of this city, of a beautiful crystalline deposit in inspissated collodion, and a similar and independent observation in London, are among the most remarkable facts bearing upon the composition and chemical relations of the group of principles to which lignin belongs. The action of nitric acid on cotton appears to result in the substitution of nitrous acid for hydrogen, or nitric acid for water, in the formula of cotton. According to Porret and Teschemacher, the formula for true pyroxylin (gun- cotton) is CiaHs08+4N05, or C13H80ls+ 4N04. According to this formula 2 equivalents of water in the cotton are replaced by 2 of nitric acid, and this compound is combined with two equivalents of nitric acid. Gladston, " Pharm. Journal," xi. 481, gives the composition of the soluble prepared cot- ton thus, C^H^O^NO,. If this is correct, the inference is warranted that MEDICATED COLLODION. 501 3 equivalents of nitric acid enter into this compound, and it seems probable that there is a relation not yet fully established between the explosiveness of the product and the amount of nitric or nitrous acid entering into its com- position. That there is also a relation between explosiveness and solubility is established by the experience of practical men ; the real pyroxylin is in- soluble in ether, and there seems every grade of solubility between this and the specimens; extremely soluble even in alcohol containing no ether. M. Bechamp, Professor in the school of pharmacy at Strasburg, has suc- ceeded in reproducing cotton from pyroxylin, by heating it at the tempera- ture of 212° with a concentrated solution of protochloride of iron. The chloride deepens in color, and very soon there is a disengagement of pure nitric oxide. When this has ceased, and the cotton has been washed with hydrochloric acid, to remove the peroxide of iron impregnating it, the cotton is found to have lost tbe-properties of pyroxylin. In the same way amidon has been produced from xyloidin. Iodinal Collodion. (J. T. Shinn.) Take of Iodine......Half an ounce. Canada balsam .... Half an ounce. Collodion.....A pint. Dissolve the iodine and balsam in the collodion. Used as a substitute for iodine ointment. Belladonnal Colhdion. (J. T. Shinn.) Take of Select belladonna leaves, powdered Eight ounces. Ether......Twelve fluidounces. Alcohol (95 per cent.) . . . Sufficient. Canada balsam .... Half an ounce. Collodion wool (prepared cotton) . A drachm. Macerate the leaves in the ether with four fluidounces of alcohol, for six hours, pack in a percolator, and pour on alcohol till a pint of tincture is obtained; in this dissolve the cotton and balsam. This is a desirable substitute for belladonna plaster. A similar preparation may be made, free from color, by dissolving atropia in collodion. Aconital Collodion may be made from aconite root by a similar formula. Collodium cum Cantharide U. S. P. (Cantharidal Colhdion. Blistering Colhdion) Take of Cantharides, in fine powder, eight troyounces. Cotton, prepared by the process for collodion, and dry, one hundred grains. Stronger ether a pint and a half. Stronger alcohol a sufficient quantity. Introduce the cantharides into a cylindrical percolator, and, having pressed them firmly, gradually pour on ike ether. When fifteen fluid- ounces have passed, set aside the liquid in a close vessel, and continue the percolation with stronger alcohol until half a pint more of liquid is obtained. Set this in a warm place for spontaneous evaporation, and, when it is reduced to a fluidounce, mix it with the reserved liquid. Then add the cotton to the mixture, and agitate occasionally until it is dissolved. Lastly, keep the solution in a well-stopped bottle. 502 LIGNEOUS FIBRE, ETC. By this formula, blistering collodion can be readily and uniformly produced by any one having the prepared cotton at band ; this may be purchased of dealers in photographic materials, or made by the process for collodion; when made with reference to this preparation the drying may be dispensed with and washing by alcohol resorted to, seventy-two grains of cotton being about equivalent to the one hundred grains of prepared cotton in the recipe. The great merit of blistering collodion is its applicability to circum- scribed surfaces, the fact that it requires no covering of any kind, and that it cannot be improperly removed by the patient, as in cases of insanity, &o. Its action is greatly hastened by repeating the applica- tion till the coating is thick, and covering the pellicle before it is dry with a piece of oiled silk or bladder. Products of the Distillation of Wood. By the distillation of wood in close vessels, a variety of interesting compounds are produced, which are useful in the arts and in medicine. Of these, charcoal (carbo ligni), acetic acid, pyroacetic and pyroxylic spirit, and creasote, may be mentioned as of special interest to the physician, and a short notice of each is appended. Carbo Ligni, Wood Charcoal, and Carbo Animalis, Animal Charcoal. The former of these two kinds of charcoal is used in medicine, while the latter is most employed in chemical processes as a decolor- izing agent. Willow charcoal, the variety preferred in this country, is chiefly obtained from the manufacturers of gunpowder, who devote much attention to the production of a pure and fine powdered article. In Europe the charcoal obtained from the linden tree, Tilia Europsea, is usually employed in medicine. A charcoal prepared from areca nuts is much esteemed as a dentifrice in England. Charcoal is wholly insoluble, tasteless, and inodorous; it absorbs moisture and gases from the air, and a small portion of it consists of the incombustible saline materials of the wood, from which it may be freed by digestion in diluted muriatic acid, although this precaution is not necessary as a preparation for medicinal use. The dose of powdered charcoal as an absorbent disinfectant, is about a teaspoonful; as an aperient, a tablespoonful, or less, mixed with magnesia. Animal charcoal, or bone-black, is made from bones by calcination, and, besides carbon, contains phosphate and carbonate of lime in abundance; these important constituents have much to do with the peculiar porosity which gives to this substance the power of absorb- ing coloring matters and gases, and adapts it for the various uses in the arts and in pharmaceutical chemistry to which it is applied. It is not very convenient to use in fine powder, and is hence generally prepared in a granular condition. Carbo animalis purificatus U. S. P., is among the preparations designed to be made by the apothecary. It is prepared by digesting a pound ACIDUM ACETICUM. 503 of animal charcoal with twelve fluidounces each of muriatic acid and water, for two days, at a moderate heat, pouring off the liquid and washing the charcoal thoroughly with water. This is adapted to many uses to which the crude powder would be unsuited, owing to its saline ingredients. In the preparation of the alkaloids, gallic acid, and numerous other chemical substances, animal charcoal is used to absorb the associated coloring matters; but it should not be forgotten that the same pro- perty which adapts it to take up the coloring matter also occasions, to some extent, the absorption of the alkaloid or other principle, so that the loss by the decolorizing process is sometimes considerable, unless means are resorted to for the subsequent extraction of the absorbed portions. To its absorbent property animal charcoal owes its utility as a dis- infectant and antidote to the powerful vegetable poisons, which, as proved by Dr. B. H. Rand, may be rendered innoxious in their effects by a large admixture of this inert but porous powder. Acidum Aceticum. Ac=C4Hj03 + Aq. The acid liquid distilled over when charcoal is prepared from wood, in close cylinders without access of air, contains this valuable acid in a very impure state. By subjecting this to further distillation, the liquid is collected which is known as wood vinegar, or pyroligneous acid. By saturating this acid with lime, acetate of lime is produced, which, by decomposition with sulphate of soda, furnishes sulphate of lime and acetate of soda; the latter salt being crystallized in a state of purity, yields, by distillation with sulphuric acid, pure hydrated acetic acid in solution in water. The officinal acetic acid is directed in the Pharmacopoeia to have a specific gravity of 1.041, which, however, is a less satisfactory assur- ance of its strength than its saturating power, which is such that 100 grains saturate 60 of crystallized bicarbonate of potassa, and contain 36 grains of monohydrated acid. The monohydrated acid, HO, C4H303 (glacial), is prepared by the careful distillation of one equivalent of fused acetate of soda with two of sul- phuric acid and placing the distillate on ice, the congealed product is then suffered to drain by inverting the bottle; the crystals constitute the glacial acid. It is a very caustic, deliquescent substance, having the specific gravity 1.067; it contains about 98 per cent, of acetic acid, is volatile, colorless, inflammable, and dissolves camphor, resins, volatile oils, &c. Its chief use is in perfumery for forming a very pungent perfume for smelling bottles. Acetic acid of about the officinal strength is now so cheaply and abundantly produced for use in the arts, that it is placed in the Phar- macopoeia among the articles of materia medica; the process above given is selected from a variety in common use. Acetate of lead is also one of its sources of production. Acetic acid is also produced by the oxidation of alcoholic liquids, especially cider and wine, and in this impure and diluted form is called vinegar (Acetum U. S. P.); in chemical works it is generally classed among the derivatives of alcohol. 504 LIGNEOUS FIBRE AND ITS DERIVATIVES. Much of the vinegar of commerce is largely adulterated or sophisticated, although, according to the experiments of W. W. D. Livermore, the use of sulphuric acid is less commou than has been supposed. Of sixteen speci- mens of commercial vinegar obtained from different sources, none were adul- terated with sulphuric acid. Tested for malic acid, gum, and extractive matter, believed to be always present in cider vinegar, all but two gave evi- dence of containing one or more of these products by throwing down a pre- cipitate with subacetate of lead, soluble in nitric acid. The strength of the different specimens was ascertained by him as follows. The numbers represent the number of grains of bicarbonate of potassa satu- rating 100 grains of vinegar :— No. 1 " 2 9 grains. 4 " No. 10 . " 11 . . 4 grains. " 3 8 " " 12 . . 8 " " 4 4TV " 13 . • • 8A" " 5 u 7 6 " 8 " « 14 . " 15 . • • 5ft" . 8-8 " " 8 " 9 8 7" 6 " " 16 . 7 s « The normal saturating power is about 7^- grains of the bicarbonate to 100 grains of vinegar. Acetone, or Pyroacetic Spirit, CfiHfi02, and, Methylic Ahohol, Pyroxylic Spirit, or Wood Naphtha, C2H402. These are products of the distillation of wood, which are separated from the acid liquors, after they are saturated with lime, by simple distillation and repeated fractional rectification. It is very difficult, however, to obtain them in a perfectly pure state by this process. Acetone is formed by the dry distillation of acetates, and is rendered pure by rectification over lime, and finally over chlo- ride of calcium. They are both colorless, or slightly yellow, inflammable, volatile, pungent liquids, closely resembling each other in sensible and medical properties, nearly always impure, and generally confounded with each other in commerce; they may be known apart by their reactions with chloride of calcium. Impure wood naphtha yields, with binoxalate of potassa and sulphuric acid, a crystallizable ether, which by distillation with water decomposes into oxalic acid and pure methylic alcohol. Treated with bichromate of potassa, acetone yields acetic and carbonic acids, while methylic alcohol furnishes formic acid. While pyroacetic spirit does not dissolve or mix with a saturated solution of chloride of calcium, pyroxylic spirit instantly mixes when dropped into it. The normal specific gravity of each is about the same, .792 to .798; but, as found in commerce, they oftener reach.820 to .846. Under the name of methylic spirit, hydrated oxide of methyl (C2H30,HO), pyroxylic spirit is extensively used in England as a cheap substitute for alcohol, and is sometimes substituted for it in the preparation of chloroform. Dr. Hastings, of London, introduced it several years ago as a remedy for consumption, and both this and pyroacetic spirit are sometimes prescribed, though not so much its CREASOTUM. 505 formerly, in connection with cough medicines. Dose, about 10 to 40 drops. Creasotum. (Creasote. Kreosot) This is a secondary empyreumatic product of destructive distillation which the Pharmacopoeia describes as being obtained from tar. As found in commerce, it is an oily liquid obtained indiscriminately from various kinds of tar, especially that from bituminous coal, and varies in composition. Creasote is colorless and transparent, having a high refractive power and oleaginous consistence. Its odor, when diffused, is peculiarly smoky, its taste burning and caustic; its specific gravity is about 1.057. It is freely soluble in alcohol, ether, acetic acid, caustic potassa, and in water to the extent of six or ten drops to the ounce. The article now generally sold as creasote is imported from Ger- many, and is much cheaper than the kind which formerly came from England, and was obtained from wood tar. The present article, which is remarkable for readily assuming a brown color on exposure to the light and air, is prepared from coal tar. It has a specific gravity of 1.062, and boils at 386°. In an article on this subject, in the " New York Journal of Pharmacy," Oct. 1853, Professor Edward N. Kent has given a method of manufacture and purification which has proved successful in his hands, and expresses the opinion that carbolic acid, as he considers it, is creasote in a purer form than that obtained from wood tar. Recent investigations render it probable that creasote, though not identical, is homologous with phenylic acid, and it is proba- ble that it consists of several analogous alcohols. (See Phenylic Acid) Under the name of Carbolic Acid a crystalline substance resembling creasote, but asserted to be less odorous, has been introduced into commerce by F. Crace Calvert, of Manchester, England. It is, per- haps, more freely soluble in water than ordinary creasote, and is well adapted to use as an antiseptic. The principal use of creasote internally is to check nausea ; for this purpose, about two drops may be dissolved in an ounce of water, and a little gum and sugar added. Dose, a tablespoonful (equal to one drop), frequently repeated. Dropped upon a fragment of cotton, after dilution with alcohol, ether, or chloroform, and inserted into the cavity of a tooth, it relieves toothache when the pain is occasioned by the exposure of the nerve, and is popularly regarded as the most certain remedy. Very painful and distressing accidents are liable to occur from attempting to drop this liquid into the cavity of a tooth from a vial. As an external caustic, creasote may be applied, undiluted, with a camel's-hair pencil; but it is usually prepared in the form of ointment (Unguentum creasoti), or in solution in water (Aqua creasoti). In he- morrhages, it acts as a most efficient styptic, and is successfully applied in solution, in the proportion of about six drops to the ounce of water. Creasote is one of the remedies which the apothecary is most fre- quently called upon to apply. Large quantities are also consumed by dentists. 506 ON FARINACEOUS AND SACCHARINE PRINCIPLES. CHAPTER II. ON FARINACEOUS, MUCILAGINOUS, AND SACCHARINE PRINCIPLES. Starch, C^H^O^ having the same composition as cellulose, differs from it widely in physical properties; it exists in a granular form in various parts of plants, especially in seeds, tu- Fig. 204. bers, and bulbous roots, in minute cells, which may be distinguished by a microscope of mode- rate power. The size and shape of the granules have been made special subjects of investiga- tion by pharmacologists, and their study has been found to aid in the recognition of the diff'erent varieties of fecula, and in detecting adulterations. The envelop of these starch granules is insoluble in cold water, but is rup- tured by the application of heat, so that the contents are exposed and become dissolved. Hence starch is said to be insoluble in cold, but starch gmuuiesasseenuader soluble in hot water. But a solution may be a microscope. effected with cold water, if the envelop of the granules has been torn by continued trituration with sand or other gritty substances. Certain salts, such as chloride of zinc, produce a perfect solution of starch in the cold. By the action of heat, and a very small proportion of strong infusion of malt, starch is converted into dextrin, a soluble principle isomeric with it, interme- diate between the gums and grape sugar, and so.named from its power of causing the plane of polarization to deviate to the right. This is also formed from cellulose by the action of diluted acids, which also ultimately convert it into grape sugar. One of the most striking characteristics of starch is its reaction in cold solution with iodine, with which it forms a rich blue-colored iodide, which loses its color by _ heat. These two substances thus become tests for each other. With bromine it produces an orange-colored precipitate, which cannot be dried without decomposition. Nitric acid converts starch into oxalic acid, and by heating starch with potassa in excess oxalate of potassa is produced. For an elaborate account of starch and its iso- meric principles, Inulin, from Inula Helena and other sources, Liche- nin, from Cetraria Islandica, &c, see Gmelin's " Handbook of Chemis- try," Cav. Soc. edition, vol. xv. All the cereal grains owe their utility as articles of food to the presence of starch mingled with a due proportion of a nitrogenized principle, gluten. In many drugs, starch exists to an extent which interferes with their convenient preparation for use in medicine, while it is an important element in certain demulcent and nutritious articles used in medicine, as food for infants, &c. SYLLABUS OF AMYLACEOUS MEDICINES. 507 Syllabus of Starches, Amylaceous Medicines, &c. Amylum, starch; the fecula of Triticum vulgare and Zea mays. Maranta, arrowroot; the fecula of Maranta arundinacea. Canna, tous-les-mois; the fe- cula of Canna edulis, &c Curcuma arrowroot. Sago; the prepared pith of Sagus rumphii, &c. Tapioca ; the fecula of the root of Janipha manihot. Avenae farina, oatmeal; the meal of Avena sativa. Hordenm, barley ; the decorti- cated seeds of Hordeum dis- tichon, &c. Oryza, rice ; the seeds of Oryza sativa, deprived of the hulls. Cetraria, Iceland moss ; Cetra- ria Islandica. Chondrus, carrageen; Chondrus crispus. Inula, elecampane ; the root of Inula helenium. Symphytum officinale, comfrey; the root. Lappa, burdock; the root of Lappa major. Iris Florentina, orrisroot; the rhizoma of Iris Florentina. The fecula from maize is an excellent substitute for arrowroot, and has almost entirely replaced wheat starch. In Europe the fecula of the potato is largely used as starch: it yields a transparent jelly with muriatic acid, and is used for adulterating arrow- root ; sulphuric acid evolves a disagreeable odor.— Proc. A. Ph. Ass., 1862, 168. Bermuda arrowroot, the best; next the Jamaica, Li- beria, Florida, and Georgia. Must be well pre- served from moisture and odorous drugs. See paper by Dr. R. Battey in " Proc. of A. Ph. Ass.," 1858, 332; and by E. T. Ellis, ibid., 1862, 212. It yields an opaque jelly with concentrated muriatic acid. The starch granules are very large, and exhibit a glistening or satiny appearance. The jelly is very tenacious, but not very translucent. Comes from the island of St. Kitts". Rare with us. From the East Indies. Used, in England, only for adulterations. Dietetic and nutritive, in small granules prepared by the aid of heat. Dietetic and nutritive, coarse irregular grains pre- pared by the aid of heat, partially soluble in cold water. Contains the husk ground with the seed. Relieves constipation ; easily digested and very nutritive. Demulcent, nutritive, and slightly astringent. See Decoctum hordei. Bland, nutritive, demulcent, and somewhat astrin- gent. By long boiling forms a jelly. Contains lichenin and a bitter principle; the latter may be removed by an alkali; the residue may be used as a dietetic. Contains carrageenin, mucilage, and various salts. Contains, like the root of other composite, inulin, bitter principle, and mucilage. A domestic expec- torant. See Inula. See Inula. Contains starch, resins, and volatile oil. Used as an infant and toilet powder, and as an ingredient in dentifrice. Gums. Gums differ from starch chiefly in the absence of the granular con- dition, and their partial or complete solubility in cold water. They are obtained from certain plants in amorphous masses, mostly exuding spontaneously or upon a puncture of the bark. A solution of gum is not affected by iodine, but precipitated by alcohol. Oxidized by nitric acid, they produce mucic acid; but when continually boiled with di- luted acids, a kind of dextrin and, finally, sugar is formed. 508 ON FARINACEOUS AND SACCHARINE PRINCIPLES. There are probably numerous kinds of gums, but on account of their simi- larity in physical and chemical properties they are difficult to recognize and to separate from allied compounds. They have been classed into gums which are soluble, and gums which mostly swell up in cold water. The following are the types of these two classes :— Arabin=CiaH11011, is derived largely from the acacias; it is extremely soluble in water, forming a clear and colorless though viscid solution, almost free from taste, which is coagulated by borax and precipitated by silicate of potassa, also, like most organic acids, coloring principles, &c, by sub- acetate of lead. Incinerated it yields about three parts of ashes, which some chemists assert are the bases of the salt arabin, the acid of which is obtained by decomposing the aqueous solution with muriatic acid and pre- cipitating by alcohol, and is insoluble in the latter menstruum only in the presence of a mineral acid. Bassorin=CiaH10O10, is an insoluble variety, swelling with water and dis- solving in alkalies. This predominates in gum tragacanth, and, according to some, in salep. Those bodies which are usually termed Mucilages belong to one of these two classes; they are met with in many seeds (flax seed, quince seed), leaves (buchu), &c, and some kinds are precipitated by neutral acetate of lead. Cerasin, the insoluble ingredient in cherry-tree gum much resembles bas- sorin, if it is not identical with it. Mezquite is a name proposed for a gum, to which attention has been called by Dr. Geo. Shumard, produced abundantly in Texas and New Mexico- parts of our own country as yet but little explored ; it is extremely soluble, and differs from Arabin principally in not being precipitated by subacetate of lead. All the above compounds are carbohydrates of the composition C^H^O,,,,, or C^H^O^; the group of pectin compounds, though not strictly belonging to the above, is however nearly allied to the gums. Gum is associated in some plants with resin; and gum resins, a re- markably natural class of drugs, will be hereafter referred to in treating of resins. Variously associated with other proximate principles, gum is present in a great variety of vegetables, and like starch, it plays an important part in the physiology of the plant; it enters as an element into a great number of articles, both of food and medicine. In its important relations to the art of prescribing and compounding medicines, we shall have occasion to refer to it frequently throughout the subsequent parts of the work, and now introduce it only for the purpose of calling attention to a few drugs containing it. Pectin and Pectic Acids.—Many plants contain, in different organs, es- pecially in succulent roots and acidulous fruits, a body called pectose, which, through the influence of a peculiar ferment called pectase, the organic acids and light and heat, undergoes a change into other bodies of the same rela- tive combinations. Pectin, parapectin, and metapectin . C^H^Oaj-fSHO. Pectosic acid.....C32H30O3S+3HO. Pectic acid.....C.^H^O^-f 2HO. Parapectic acid .... C2,HI5Osl-f 2HO. Metapectic acid .... C8H507+2HO. SUGARS. 509 The unripe fruits contain only pectose ; while ripening, pectin and para- pectin, and, subsequently, metapectic acid, are formed, so that the change of the consistence of fruits is less dependent on a change of the cellulose, than owing to this transformation. Green fruits exhale oxygen in daylight; with the alteration of pectose, the formation of sugar sets in, carbonic acid is exhaled, the green color disappears, and the free acids (citric, malic, tar- taric, &c.) become neutralized by potassa, lime, &c, or their taste is masked by the increase in the quantity of sugar. Pectin is the cause of the gelatinizing of the juices of currants, raspber- ries, &c, and of gentian, dandelion, rhubarb, and other roots. The salts of the above acids are uncrystallizable ; those with the metallic oxides are mostly gelatinous precipitates, while those with alkalies are soluble in water, but gelatinize on cooling. Syllabus of Gums and Mucilaginous Medicines. Acacia, gum Arabic; the exu- Mild expectorant and demulcent, used in form of dation of Acacia vera, &c. mucilage (1 part to 2 water), also as syrup and powder as a vehicle. Tragacantha, the exudation of Consists chiefly of bassorin; Mucilago tragacanthae Astragalus verus. (=j to aquse Oj) ; a useful paste. Salep, the tubers of Archis Five grs. of the powder render one ounce of hot water mascula, &c. highly mucilaginous. See Castillon's Powders. Ulmus, elm bark; the inner Contains much mucilage, the fine powder as a mild bark of Ulmus fulva. expectorant and vehicle for bitter medicines ; the coarser powder for poultices. Sassafras medulla, the pith of Forms with water a rich mucilage ; used in eyewashes Sassafras officinale. and in Jackson's pectoral syrup. Cydonium, quince seed; the Rarely used internally; externally in inflamed eyes seed of Cydonia vulgaris. and for bandoline. Sesami folium, benne ; the Grown in gardens ; used as a mild astringent in the leaves of Sesamum orientale. summer complaint of children. Althaea (radix), marshmallow ■} root. j Contain starch, mucilage, and asparagin; highly Althaeae fores, marshmallow } demulcent. Syrup best prepared from cold infu- flowers; from Althsese offici- I sion. nalis. J Althaea rosea, hollyhock; the Similar in properties to former. flowers. Linum, flaxseed; the seeds of Internally in the form of infusion, diuretic, and de- Linum usitatissimum. mulcent; externally, the meal, for poultices ; the oil readily becomes rancid in the powder. Papaver, poppy heads; the ripe Demulcent, not considered narcotic when ripe. capsules of Papaver somnife- rum. Buchu, the leaves of Barosma Mucilage associated with essential oil; diuretic, used crenata, &c. in infusion and fluid extract. Sugars. Sugars are of many kinds, closely allied to each other and to the foregoing ternary principles, in composition. They are distinguished by a sweet taste, and a more or less distinctly crystalline form. They are mostly soluble in water and somewhat soluble in alcohol. 510 on farinaceous and saccharine principles. Syllabus of Sugars. (1.) True Sugars. Composition CuHOx. (Carbohydrates) a. Directly fermentable. (Group of Glucose.) Grape sugar, Glucose C12H12012+2Aq Fruit sugar, uncrystal-lizable sugar s. Chula-riose. C12H12012 In grapes, the fruit of Ro-«saceae, &c, in diabetic urine—from starch by the action of sulphuric acid—the granular depo-sit of honey. In fruits, the liquid portion of honey, &c. Deviates polarized light to right;' soluble in 1^ parts cold water, insoluble in absolute alcohol; with N05, yields oxalic acid. Rotating left; easily soluble in water and diluted alcohol. 6. Not directly fermentable by yeast. (Group of Cane Sugar.) a.. Fermenting readily with yeast by being converted into fruit sugar. Cane sugar O12H10O10-fHO Melitose C12H12012+2Aq In sugar-cane, Chinese sugar-cane, corn-stalks, beets, sugar maple, se-veral palms, numerous ripe fruits, &c. In Australian manna from Eucalyptus mannifera. Rotating right; easily soluble in water, little in alcohol; yields oxalic acid, with N06. Rotating right; crystallizes in needles; reactions similar to cane sugar. &,. Fermenting with difficulty in contact with yeast, but readily after treatment with dilute acids. Melezitose C^H,,©,, Mycose C12H„0ll+2Aq Trehalose C12HnOn+2Aq Lactin, sugar of milk C12H10O10+2Aq In the exudation of the larch, Larix communis (Fr. me'Uze) In ergot. In Trehala, an oriental ex-crescence of a species of Echinops. In milk. Rotating power right; sweet like glucose ; very soluble in water, almost insoluble in alcohol; yields oxalic acid by N06. Rotating power right; easily so-luble in water, almost insolu-ble in alcohol. Resembling the former; soluble in hot alcohol; with N05 yields oxalic acid. Rotating power right; very hard prisms ; soluble in 6 parts cold water, insoluble in ether, slightly soluble in alcohol; by dilute acids, converted into lactose, and then easily fermen-table ; yields mucic and some oxalic acid with N03. 1 Polarization of light, which is stated as characteristic in the case of the several sugars, consists of a change produced upon light by the action of certain media and surfaces by which it ceases to present the ordinary phenomena of reflection and trans- mission. Instruments employed to exhibit this change are called polariscopes. By the use of these, differences may be readily detected between substances which are nearly identical in chemical properties. SUGARS. 511 (2). Saccharoids. Composition ClflHxOx. (Carbohydrates.) Not fermentable with yeast or after boiling with S03. Eucalyne C12H120I2+2HO Inosite (Phaseomannite) C12H12012+4HO Scyllite Sorbin, sorbite C12H12012 0 Phloroglncin CioHkOo In Australian manna ac- companying melitose. In muscular flesh, and in the unripe kidney bean, Phaseolus vulgaris. See Dr. L. C. Lane's process in " A. J. Ph.," ix. 492. In the kidneys and liver of some fishes. In the berries of Sorbus aucuparia. Product of decomposition of Phloretin and querci- trin. Uncrystallizable; even after treat- ment with S03, not susceptible of fermentation: reduces alka- line tartrate of copper. Efflorescing; soluble in water, little soluble in alcohol; not altered by diluted acids ; with concentrated NO., nitroinosite; evaporated with dilute N05, and moistened with NH3 and CaCl is colored rose-red. Resembles inosite; but is less sweet, less soluble, and dis- solves unaltered in hot N05. Rotating power left; soluble in £ water, little in boiling alcohol; hard crystals, not altered by diluted S03 ; yields oxalic acid with N05; reduces oxide of copper. Sweet prisms ; very soluble in water and alcohol. (3.) Pseudo-Sugars of the Composition CnHxOx Not fermenting. Mannite C^H.-O. Dulcose, Dulcite C,2H14012, or CMHM0H+2HO Qnercite C,2H)2O,0 Pinite C12Hl2Ol0 Melampyrite C,2H15013 In manna, mushrooms, &c. From an unknown plant in Madagascar. In acorns. In Pinus Lambertina. In Melampyrum nemoro sum; Scrophularia no dosa, &c. No rotating power; soluble in 5 parts cold water, scarcely in cold alcohol, with N05 yields saccharic and oxalic acids; N05, at a low temperature, pro- duces a fermentable sugar. No rotating power; easily solu- ble in water, with difficulty in alcohol; yields mucic, oxalic, and racemic acid with NO-. Sublimes in needles ; with nitric acid, yields oxalic acid. Rotating power right; very sweet; readily soluble in water ; near- ly insoluble in boiling alcohol. No rotating power; soluble in 25 parts water, 1362 parts alcohol; not altered by diluted S03; with NOs, mucic and oxalic acids. 512 ON FARINACEOUS AND SACCHARINE PRINCIPLES. 6. Of other Compositions. Glycerin C6H-Ofi+IIO Erythromannite Cl2H,5Ol2,orCsH10O8 Phycite C)2HI3012 Glycyrrhizin C36H24Ou Panaquilon C24H25018 Orcin, Orcite CMH„04+2Aq Beta orcine C34HI8°6 ? The basic principle of fats. Product of decomposition of erythrin. [n Protococcus vulgaris Algae. [n Glycyrrhiza glabra, and echinata. In Panax quinquefolium. By boiling certain lichens or their constituents. By dry distillation of usnic acid. Oily liquid ; miscible with wator and alcohol; insoluble in ether; with NO. yields glonoin. Supposed to be identical with phycite. No rotating power ; easily soluble in water, with difficulty in al-cohol : witli NO. oxalic acid. Uncrystallizable and yellowish; slightly soluble in cold water and alcohol; precipitates most metallic salts ; combines with bases, acids, and salts. Amorphous, yellow, readily solu-ble in water and alcohol ; inso-luble in ether; precipitated by tannin. Sweet prisms, very soluble in al-cohol and water; precipitated by 2PbO,~Ac and Fe.CL,; yields oxalic acid by NOs; deep red by air, water and ammonia (orceine). : Soluble in water, alcohol and ether; red by NH3,HO and air. REMARKS ON THE SUGARS. Cane sugar is mostly prepared from the juice of the sugar cane; considerable quantities are made in Europe from beet root. The juice is boiled with quicklime, strained, and reduced by evaporation to a thick syrup, when the whole is cooled and granulated in shallow ves- sels; it is now raw sugar of commerce. By purification or refining, which is accomplished by the aid of animal charcoal, it is obtained as loaf, or more commonly as broken-down or crushed sugar—the con- dition in which it is mostly preferred for use in pharmacy. In the granulation of raw sugar, the uncrystallizable portion which remains is drawn off and constitutes molasses of commerce. Molasses, by careful manipulation, is made to yield a further portion of sugar, and then constitutes sugar-house molasses, or, as it is called abroad, treacle. Cane sugar is one of the sweetest of the sugars; when pure it is white or crystallized in translucent double oblique prisms, soluble in alcohol but not in ether. It is soluble in £ its weight of water; its solution heated in contact with salts of copper, mercury, gold, and silver, de- composes them. Its watery solution with yeast undergoes the vinous fermentation, the cane sugar being previously converted into fruit sugar. Lump sugar is permanent in the air, and phosphorescent in the dark when struck or rubbed. Its tendency to crystallize or form a translucent candy is prevented by the addition of cream of tartar and acids, or acid salts, generally fruit sugar and subsequently grape sugar being formed. By the application of a heat of 320° F. it melts and cools to a glassy amorphous mass (barley sugar); long boiling diminishes its tendency to crystallize and increases its color. REMARKS ON SUGARS. 513 Rock candy is a very pleasant form of cane sugar, prepared by crys- tallizing it slowly upon a string from a strong solution; it is preferred for coughs from the slowness with which it dissolves in the mouth, and is very often used to sweeten mucilaginous and acid drinks used in catarrhs. The peculiar brown coloring matter called caramel, C12Hg09, is pro- duced by heating sugar to a temperature of 425°, until it fuses, evolves the vapors of water and turns to a deep brown color; it then consists of unaltered sugar, caramel, and a bitter substance called assamar; it is freely soluble in water, and has a bitter and not disagreeable empy- reumatic taste. It is much used to color liquors, as in the fabrication of brandy, and is a useful addition to soups. For the effect of heat on cane sugar, as observed by Gelis and Pohl's method for preparing pure caramel, consult " Proceed. Am. Ph. Ass.," 1862, 165. Sugar combines with bases, forming saccharates, which are uncrys- tallizable, and those of the alkalies deliquescent. Saccharate of lime is used in medicine under the name of Syrupus Calcis. (p. 400.) Common salt combines with sugar to a deliquescent crystallizable compound. The alkaline saccharates precipitate the soluble salts of lead, copper, silver, and mercury. Fruit sugar.—Whether the sweet fruits all contain the same sugar is uncertain; the absence of crystalline forms and the difficulty of freeing one from another impede the investigations; its rotating power is greatly influenced by different degrees of temperature. Grape sugar is found in grapes and in different fruits associated with fruit sugar. It constitutes also the sugar of diabetes. The most economical method of obtaining it is by acting on starch or lignin with diluted sulphuric acid; it may be obtained in an impure state, by scraping off the white powder deposited on old raisins, and much purer by drying the deposit of honey upon brick tiles. As already stated, by the action of diluted acids upon lignin and starch, they are converted into a soluble form called dextrin, and ulti- mately pass into grape sugar ; this change may be produced by long boiling alone; it is also produced in starch by nitrogenized ferments, especially by that peculiar substance known as diastase. By the same means, cane sugar is spontaneously converted into fruit sugar, and this into alcohol, and ultimately into acetic acid; and, in fact, the alco- holic and acetic liquors of commerce are produced in this way from the various starchy and saccharine vegetable ■ products used in their manufacture. Glucose combines with alkalies in the cold, but these compounds are decomposed by heat. Sugar of milk is not manufactured in this country, but is chiefly imported from Switzerland, where it is made on a large scale from whey; it is crystallized upon sticks or strings in masses not unlike stalactites in appearance. The greatest consumption of this is by the homceopathists, who use it as a vehicle for almost all their medicines in the form of powders and pillets. It is said by them to have the least action upon the system of any substance they have experimented with; and hence its employment as a diluent for the infinitesimal 33 514 ON FARINACEOUS AND SACCHARINE PRINCIPLES. doses, which, according to their theory, are increasingly powerful in proportion to their dilution. Its physical condition of hardness or re- sistance to mechanical action adapts it to develop the latent efficiency of those medicines which they assert are only rendered active by long attrition. (See the observations of Dr. E. Luboldt on its fermentation, in " Am. J. Ph.," 1861, 409.) Mannite may be prepared by several processes:— First. By digesting manna in boiling alcohol, and filtering while hot. As the liquid cools it precipitates the mannite in tufts of slender color- less needles; these may be purified if necessary by re-solution and crystallization. Second. By mixing manna with cold water in which the white of an egg has been beaten, boiling for a few minutes, and straining the so- lution through linen while hot, the strained liquid forms a semi-crys- talline mass on cooling; this is to be pressed strongly in a cloth, then mixed with its own weight of cold water and again pressed, then mixed with a little animal charcoal dissolved in boiling water, and filtered while hot into a porcelain dish over the fire; the solution is now to be evaporated till a pellicle forms, and set aside to crystallize in large transparent quadrangular prisms. Third. By dissolving manna in water, precipitating gummy and coloring matters with subacetate of lead, removing lead from the fil- trate by carefully dropping into it sufficient sulphuric acid, though not in great excess, evaporating and crystallizing. Mannite fuses between 320 and 330° F., and crystallizes again at about 284°. In sealed tubes mannite may be heated to 482° without altering, except that a small portion turns into mannitan=C12HlaO10 (anhydrous man- nite), which may be obtained by many processes calculated to abstract the water of crystallization: it is a neutral syrupy sweetish substance, scarcely liquid, insoluble in ether, slowly soluble in anhydrous alcohol, freely soluble in water; in contact with air it absorbs water, liquefies and crystallizes to ordinary mannite. Though mannite is not fermentable under ordinary circumstances, it may be converted into fermentable sugar, by leaving it in contact under peculiar circumstances with animal tissues. (See "Am. Journ. of Pharm." vol. xxix. p. 450.) Tests for the Sugars and other Carbohydrates. Under this head the several processes for testing the presence of sugar are introduced ; they are particularly applicable to grape sugar and to the ex- amination of urine. When urine has a high specific gravity, and other symptoms of diabetes appear, the physician finds it of the utmost importance to make a chemical examination. The pharmaceutist is very liable to be called on for this, and will find it an advantage to be supplied with a reli- able urinometer (see Specific Gravity), a test rack and tubes, and the neces- sary chemical reagents. Separation of pure sugar is usually difficult; free acids and bases must be avoided during the evaporation. The microscope furnishes the best criterion; the taste is no proof whatever. Fermentation sets in directly on the addition of yeast (see Syllabus); sometimes treatment with dilute S03 is advisable, but never necessary with urine; the amount of C02 evolved indicates the quantity of sugar. To TESTS FOR SUGARS AND OTHER CARBOHYDRATES. 515 rely on the formation of yeast cells may become deceptive through similar though different vegetations. Polarized light would, to a certain extent, indicate the kind of sugar, but many substances have similar optical behavior. Moore's Test.—Boiling with concentrated potash lye produces, with grape and milk sugar, a yellowish-brown and ultimately a deep brown color ; with cane sugar only after its transformation into glucose. Supersaturating with an acid liberates a peculiar odor of burning sugar. Heller's Test.—The urine is mixed with solution of caustic potassa, the mixture divided in two test-tubes of equal width, one of which is heated to boiling. The presence of sugar is indicated by a darker color, which is ascertained by comparison with the unheated liquid. Lehmann's Test.—The solution of the saccharine matter in 90 per cent. alcohol, yields, with a solution of KO,HO in absolute alcohol, a sticky or flocculent precipitate, readily soluble in water and reducing an alkaline solution of CuO. Horsley's Test.—Five or six drops of diabetic urine produce a deep sap- green coloration in a boiling solution of chromate of potassa containing free alkali. Trommer's test is based on the reduction by grape sugar of oxide of cop- per to suboxide, in an alkaline solution, and is applied by mixing the urine or other saccharine liquid with some caustic potassa in a test-tube, and then adding a diluted solution of sulphate of copper, drop by drop, and with constant agitation, until the occasioned precipitate just commences to remain undissolved; the mixture is then raised to the boiling point, and if it con- tains grape sugar, deposits the orange-red hydrated suboxide of copper. But many substances like uric acid, some vegetable acids, hematoxylin, alkapton ("Proc. Am. Ph. Asso." 1862, p. 173), reduce CuO under the same circumstances ; kreatine, peptone, protein compounds, and some alkaloids interfere with the separation of the Cu20. Fehling's Quantitative Test for Grape Sugar is an improvement on the method originally suggested by Barreswill. The test liquid is prepared by dissolving 40 grammes of crystallized sulphate of copper in 160 grammes of distilled water, and mixing this solution with 160 grammes of neutral tartrate of potassa dissolved in a little water ; from 600 to 100 grammes of solution of caustic soda, specific gravity 1.12, are then added, and sufficient water to make the whole measure at 60° F. (15° C.) 1154.4 cubic centi- metres. As one equivalent of glucose (C^H^O^) reduces 10 equivalents of oxide of copper to suboxide, 1 litre of the above solution requires 5 grammes, or 10 cubic centimetres .05 gramme of grape sugar. The saccharine solution is diluted until it contains not over 1 per cent, of grape sugar. 10 cubic centimetres of the test are diluted with 4 cubic cen- timetres of water, heated to boiling, and the saccharine liquid gradually added until it ceases to produce a red precipitate of suboxide of copper; the quantity of the liquid used contained .05 gramme of sugar. The quan- tity of sugar may likewise be calculated from the amount of suboxide of copper obtained, which is separated by filtration, well washed and dried. 10 equivalents of protoxide (CuO) yield 5 equivalents of suboxide (Cu20) ; the weight of equivalent of the latter being 71.2, 5 equivalents weigh 71.2 X5=356 ; the equivalent of grape sugar (CJS^OJ weighs 180, and if we express the ascertained weight of suboxide of copper by s, the weight of grape sugar*»# is calculated by the following proportion—356 : 180=s : x or by adding one-half and Tj5 part of the weight of the suboxide. Fehling's test is not affected by pectin, tannin, or mucilage, but when 516 ON FARINACEOUS AND SACCHARINE PRINCIPLES. several weeks old it is acted on by acetic, tartaric, oxalic, and the aromatic acids. In small well-corked vials, if protected from contact with the air, it keeps well for some time, but it is always safest to prepare it when wanted for use; the copper solution may be kept ready for mixing with a freshly prepared solution of the tartrate, and with the caustic soda, preserved iu well-stoppered vials. Free uric acid reduces the test liquid, which fact must not be lost sight of in analysis of urine, which ought to be used quite fresh. Cane sugar and starch cause no reaction with the test, but when they have been previously converted into grape or fruit sugar by a continued boiling with diluted sulphuric acid, the oxide of copper will be reduced, and from the ascertained quantity of grape sugar 95 per cent, indicates the weight of cane sugar (C^II^O,,), and 90 per cent, that of starch (C13H10O10). The test is likewise applicable to milk sugar, which reduces for each equiva- lent 7 equivalents of oxide of copper, so that 1 litre of the test liquid re- quires 7.143 grammes of sugar of milk for its reduction. Boettger's Test.—A tablespoonful of urine and of soda solution, contain- ing one part of crystallized carbonate of soda to three parts of water, is boiled with as much officinal nitrate of bismuth as will cover the point of a knife ; glucose imparts a grayish or black color to the nitrate. Albumen ia to be previously separated by coagulation; cane sugar and all organic sub- stances usually present in urine are without action. Mulder's Test.—Indigo is dissolved in strong sulphuric (better Nord- hausen) acid, the liquid over-saturated with carbonate of potassa, to render it alkaline. This, when used, is sufficiently diluted to be of a light blue color, and boiled ; if now a trace of grape, or fruit sugar be added, the blue color is changed to green and purple; from a larger proportion of sugar, the color passes through red into yellow. If afterwards the liquid is shaken, the purple passes through green into blue, but the yellow through the above shades into green or greenish blue. Cane sugar is not affected. Vogel's test is the same as Mulder's, litmus being substituted for indigo. Loewenthal's Test.—60 grms. tartaric acid, 240 gnus, crystallized NaO, C02, 5 grms. crystallized Fe2Cl3 and 500 CCM. hot water yield a solution remaining yellow on boiling, but turning brown with a trace of glucose and separating with a more voluminous precipitate. Peligot's quantitative determination of cane sugar is based on the solution of lime in sugar; 2C1.3H,i011 dissolve 3CaO, the quantity of which is deter mined by measure analysis with S03. If glucose is present, a second assay is made with boiled solution of the saccharate ; the grape sugar is destroyed by boiling and the result indicates cane sugar; the difference between the second and first assay expresses the grape sugar. Runge's Test. —Very dilute S03 evaporated with the' suspected solution by a water bath to dryness, scarcely colors grape sugar; with cane sugar a black spot is produced; a similar spot also with starch and some other com- pounds. Pettenkofer's Test.—Bile and concentrated S03 produce, with sugar, a red color. Maumene's.—Chlorine at a temperature at and above boiling water causes a brown color, deepening to black on drying. Carbohydrates, like lignin, hemp, linen, cotton, starch, &c, suffer a similar decomposition. A strip of white woollen, merino (which is not altered), is saturated with a solution of perchloride of tin and dried; a single drop of a saccharine or similar solution put on the strip, and heated over a lamp to a little above the boiling point of water, instantly effects a black stain. Even ten drops of diabetic urine in ten cubic centimetres of water produce a brownish-black color. GLUCOSIDES. 517 0. Schmidt's Test.—3PbO, Ac and XH3, produce in solution of cane and grape sugar, white precipitates; on boiling the latter only changes the color to red. Sugar in Urine.—It has been ascertained by Professor Briicke, and cor- roborated by Dr. Bence Jones, that grape sugar is a normal ingredient of urine, and it is, therefore, necessary to determine its quantity in disease ; for this purpose Fehling's test is applicable, the inaccuracy of which arising from the presence of uric acid may be removed by precipitating the urine with oxalic acid or with ¥V °f its measure of muriatic acid of 1.10 specific gravity, setting it aside for twenty-four hours in a cool place, after which time it contains but traces (.0001 p.) of uric acid. Owing to the ammonia contained or readily formed in urine, which keeps some suboxide of copper in solution, Trommer's test does not show the small proportion of sugar in healthy urine, but it generally reacts with the urine of pregnant or nursing women. Minute quantities of sugar are not indicated by Boettger's test, if the black color of bismuth should be owing to the formation of sulphuret; a black coloration will, in this case, also be obtained by digesting the urine with levigated litharge. Heller's test is the most reliable for detecting very small proportions of sugar, but in a deeply colored urine, the change produced by boiling may not be visible, and another experiment with Boettger's test be advisable. Glucosides.—This term is applied to those organic principles which, by a peculiar decomposition, are resolved into grape sugar (glucose) and an altered or new principle. This change may be effected: 1. By the action of mineral acids at a boiling temperature. 2. By heat- ing the glucoside with alkaline solutions or baryta water. 3. By the action at mean temperatures of nitrogenized principles associated with the glucosides in the plants producing them, or otherwise; and, 4. By yeast and saliva. Many of the vegetable acids and neutral principles described in this work might be classified as glucosides, but as this peculiarity in their chemical characters is less obvious and charac- teristic than others by which they are generally classified, it has not been thought best to form them into a distinct class, but by way of illustration and for convenient reference the following syllabus of some principles capable of this classification has been prepared. Syllabus of some Glucosides. Glucoside. Process. Product beside Glucose. Beaction. Gallo-tannic acids By acids1 Gallic acid CMHMOM+8H0,=3C14H(l01(r|-C„H „(>,,,. Arbutin do.a Hydrokinone CMH««>14-r2H0, = 01,H(!04+CwHI,O11." Colocynthin do. Colocynthein Amygdalin By emulsin & water Oil of bitter almond and hydrocyanic acid C40N,Ha,<»1B + 4HO, = 2CiaHwOla+C„HB0, -fC2NH. ^sculin By acids JEsculetin C60HraO3,+:UIO.=2C19H6O8+2CIJT12O1,. Convallarin do. Convallaretin 2<'34H„O11+2I10=2fMIlM()(l-)-0iaH12O1,. Daphnin do. Daphnetin CmH„t>M+4HO=CmH140I8+2C11H„01.2. Datiscin do. Datiscetin CJ2Hm02<+C3cH10On+C12U12Oia. Digitalin* do. Digitaletin CMH4S< >30-i-U-IO, -CjeHjsl >J0_f_2( :iaHu01T Glycyrrhizin do. Glycyrretin C48H36Ol8-j-2II0=C3sHQ60s+C12UwO12. Cfl6Hlt0M4-2H0=Cl4H6O4+CiaHiaOM. Helicin Acids, emulsin, al- Salicylous acid kalies, or yeast Jalapin By acids Jalapinal C„H«O1,J.iiH0,C„NslOJ;3CI1H11O1,. Populin do. Beuzoicacid, saliretin C1oH2OO16+2HO=0,4Hsn44CI4H6f)s4-C1,HI10. T Salicin By emulsin Saligenin C28Hia014+2H0=C14,H8u4-(-012H12O12. Solania By acids Solanidifi C26NHTOO„+6HO,=CsoNH40<>2+3CI2H12O12. Thujin do. Thujetin C40H2202„+HO=C28HM016+C12H12oI2. Xanthorhamnin do. Khamnetin C«H220M+6H0=C22H10O1CIO Ho0, Amylo-valerianic ether C10HnO,C, H903 Amylo-acetic ether C)0HuO,C4H3O3 Formed by the fermen- tation of potatoes and grain; contained in whisky. In valerian ; by distilling 10 p. KO,2Cr03, 15 p S03 and 2 p. fusel oil. The oil floating on the distillate in preparing Val. By distilling 2 p. KO,Ac, 1 p. S03, and 1 p. fusel oil, and rectifying over lime. Colorless liquid ; odor penetrating, ex- citing to coughing ; taste burning ; sp. gr. .818; boiling point 270O; crystallizes at—40F.; inflammable ; soluble in alcohol and ether in all proportions, little in water. Colorless oily liquid; odor of valerian and old cheese ; taste burning acid; sp. gr. 937 ; boiling point 347°; in- flammable ; soluble in 30 p. water, in all proportions in alcohol and ether ; dissolves camphor and some resins. Colorless oily liquid ; odor of apples; sp. gr. .88 ; boiling point 370°. Colorless liquid ; odor of pears ; sp. gr. 857 ; boiling point 2720; decomposed byKO. 544 FERMENTATION, ALCOHOLS AND ETHERS. Butyric Acid. But. = HO,C8H703. As obtained by the saponification of butter, some difficulties are presented in freeing it of caprylic, caprinic, and vaccinic acids; it is therefore best to prepare it artificially by butyric fermentation, for which purpose 100 parts of starch sugar, or cane, or milk sugar, are dissolved in water, and set aside in a warm place, with 10 parts of old cheese ; or a mixture of 100 parts of sugar 150 parts milk, and 50 parts of powdered chalk, are allowed to ferment in a warm place; if diluted with water, fermentation takes place readily. After the cessation of the evolution of gas, the liquid, on evaporation, fur- nishes butyrate of lime, 10 parts of which are to be dissolved in 40 parts of water and distilled with 3 or 4 parts of muriatic acid; from the distillate the acid is separated by saturating it with chloride of calcium, the oily liquid is rectified, and that portion coming over at 327° is preserved as pure con- centrated butyric acid. Ahohol Amylicum U. S. P. (Fusel Oil = C10H12O2.) To obtain this in a state of purity from the ordinary grain fusel oil, which may be obtained at distilleries, the crude fusel oil is agitated with an equal bulk of solution of table salt, the water removed and the oil distilled with about its own weight of water; the potato fusel oil distils with the vapors of water, and the receiver contains water holding the last traces of alcohol in solution, upon which the amylic alcohol floats. An oily, nearly colorless liquid, having a strong, offensive odor, and acrid, burning taste. Its specific gravity is 0.818, and its boiling point between 268° and 272°. It is sparingly soluble in water, but unites in all propor- tions with alcohol and ether. It does not take fire by contact with flame, and, when dropped on paper, does not leave a permanent greasy stain. The inhalation of its vapor and its internal administration are poisonous, producing coughing, nausea, vomiting, vertigo, fainting, prostration of the lower extremities, convulsions, asphyxia, and death. Ammonia has been recommended to counteract these deleterious effects. It is not used in medicine, except rarely as an external irritant in rheumatic and other painful affections, but has attained considerable importance in the arts, chiefly for the artificial production of perfumes and fruit essences, and for the preparation of valerianic acid by the use of oxidizing agents. Artificial Fruit Essences. The artificial fruit essences now so largely employed for making artificial fruit syrups, and as flavors for culinary purposes and confectionery, belong to this class of ethers; they are solutions of compounds of organic acids with ordinary ether and amylic ether, in deodorized alcohol. But little practical information has been published with reference to their preparation, the manufacturers keeping their processes secret, in consequence of which the quality of the essences, as they occur in commerce, varies exceedingly. The following processes for some of the most prominent of these essences, in connection with the foregoing syllabi, will be found to facilitate their pre- paration, which, to be successful, must be conducted with care and with close attention to the results of experience. Jargonelle pear essence is an alcoholic solution of amylo-acetic ether, as given in the syllabus, in proportions indicated by convenience. ESSENCES. 545 Bergamot pear essence is a solution of five parts of amylo-acetic ether, one and a half parts of acetic ether, in from 100 to 120 parts of alcohol. Apple oil consists of an alcoholic solution of one part of amylo-valeri- anic ether dissolved in six or eight parts of alcohol. Pine-apple essence consists of one part of butyric ether dissolved in eight or ten parts of alcohol; or the potassa soap of butter is dissolved in alcohol, and this solution distilled with an excess of sulphuric acid. Prepared by the latter process, the odor is somewhat modified by the presence of capronic, caprylic, and caprinic ethers. Banana essence consists of a mixture of amylo-acetic ether, and some butyric ether dissolved in alcohol. Essence of raspberries is usually made by mixing acetic ether with an alcoholic essence of orris root. Quince Essence.—In making this essence pelargonic acid has to be prepared as a first step. This acid is contained in the oil of Pelargonium roseum, from which it may be obtained by combining it with potassa, but more advantageously it is made from oil of rue, by heating it in a retort with nitric acid previously diluted with an equal measure of water, remov- ing from the fire as soon as the reaction commences, afterwards boiling with cohobation until nitrous acid vapors cease to be evolved ; the oily acid is then removed, washed with water, combined with potassa, and a neutral strong smelling oil separated, after which the solution of pelargonate of potassa is decomposed by sulphuric acid. Pelargonic acid is now sufficiently pure for the preparation of the ether; it still contains a resinous substance, from which it may be purified by recti- fication, combining with caustic baryta, and decomposing the crystallized salt with diluted sulphuric acid. Pelargonic acid, by a continued digestion with alcohol, is converted into pelargonic ether, which is obtained purer and in a shorter time, by saturating an alcoholic solution of pelargonic acid with muriatic acid gas, washing the separated ether with water, and drying it over chloride of calcium. If the pure ether is sought this may be recti- fied ; it consists of C4H50,C1SH1703. The pelargonic, also called cenanthic, ether, dissolved in alcohol consti- tutes the essence of quince. An impure pelargonic ether is said to be used in England for imparting to potato spirit the flavor of whisky. Fusel oil of wine was supposed to be cenanthic ether, and has been fre- quently confounded with pelargonic ether. According to late investiga- tions of Fischer, it is a mixture of caprinic, caprylic, and other allied ethers. Probably, however, the fusel oil contained in the different wines varies in the kinds and proportions of the ethers. This fusel oil is the cause of the persistent smell of all or most wines, and is quite distinct from their bouquet, which in some wines is wanting altogether. It is obtained by careful dis- tillation of the ferment of wines mixed with half its measure of water, a little cenanthic acid may be removed by agitation of the distillate with some carbonate of soda, the liquid is then heated, the ether rises to the surface, and is obtained free of water by standing over chloride of calcium. The bouquet of wines which is formed after fermentation is, probably, due to the presence of acetic, butyric, valerianic, and other ethers ; but our knowledge of its true chemical nature is very limited. Most alcoholic liquors are subject of adulteration and sophistication, for which purposes some of the artificial ethers are used, usually together with sweet spirits or alcohol freed from fusel oil. Thus formic ether is used to impart to alcohol the flavor of arrack, and constitutes the chief ingredient in what is called essence of arrack ; and butyric, valerianic, and caprylic ethers enter into the composition of the so-called essence of rum. 35 546 FIXED OILS AND FATS. CHAPTER V. FIXED OILS AND FATS. The fixed oils and fats form so natural a group, that they may be conveniently classed together, though both of vegetable and animal production. They resemble the preceding groups of ternary organic principles in being nutritious in the sense in which that term applies to non- nitrogenized principles. The very large proportion of carbon they contain peculiarly adapts them to maintain, by combustion in the lungs and capillaries, the heat required in the various processes of the economy. In medicine, they are used for this in connection with certain demulcent, alterative, and cathartic properties, pertaining to particular individuals of the group. They constitute the chief vehicles for medicines to be applied externally, whether in ointments in which the oil is usually not decomposed, or in liniments and plasters, in some of which a decomposition of the oil is intentionally effected. The fixed oils enter largely into the food of animals, and of the human race; they are accumulated particularly in the fruit and seeds of plants, and exist associated with other nutritive materials, in the straw and stalks as well as the seed of the cereal grasses. The following proportions of fixed oils have been ascertained to exist in the several substances named: in Indian corn, 8.8 per cent.; oats, 6.9 ; fine wheat flour, 1.4; bran from wheat, 4.6; rice, 0.25; hay and straw from 3 to 5; olive seeds, 54; flaxseed, 22; almonds, 46; walnuts, 50; cocoa-nut, 47; yelk of eggs, 28; cow's milk, 3.13 per cent. Adulterations.—The chief adulterations to which the fixed oils are subject, are mixtures of the finer and more expensive kinds with the cheaper. These may be detected by variations of the specific gravity from the normal standard, though as the several oils only vary from .865 to .970 sp. gr., this means of detection becomes a matter of con- siderable nicety. It has been proposed to apply this test at the tem- perature of boiling'water, but we have too little data to make this generally available. The sp. gr. of each of the fixed oils mentioned in this work, as far as known, is given in the syllabus which fol- lows. The odor of oils, if carefully observed, will be found a good means of detecting their adulterations, especially when heat is applied. A known pure sample being obtained, may be heated in a spoon and compared with a quantity of the suspected oil similarly heated. The presence of fish oil in the vegetable oils is detected by passing a stream of chlorine through them. The pure vegetable oils are not materially altered, but a mixture of the two turns dark brown or black. CHEMICAL HISTORY. 547 On adding a drop of concentrated sulphuric acid to about ten drops of a fixed oil, coloration is produced, varying with the different oils; fish oils turn reddish or violet; rape seed and oil of black mustard greenish-blue; olive oil yellowish, then greenish; linseed oil dark brown and black. Solubility in alcohol is another fact which is useful in determining the genuineness of oils. Castor oil is soluble in its own weight of alcohol of .820 sp. gr. Croton oil dissolves in the same proportion in alcohol of .796 sp. gr. Olive oil is nearly insoluble. Oil of almonds dissolves in 25 parts of cold and 6 parts of boiling alcohol. The boiling point of fixed oils varies from 500° to 600° F., so that we might detect the admixture of the volatile oils, hydro-carbons from coal, &c, by raising the temperature and noticing the point at which ebullition commences, and the nature of the distillate. Chemical History.—The vegetable and animal fats are mixtures of differ- ent proximate constituents, each of which consists of a fatty acid and a base, analogous in behavior to the ethers treated of in the last chapter, with the difference that it requires three equivalents of acid for saturation. Sepa- rated from its acid it combines with water so that its alcohol glycerin is obtained. The ether which exists in the fats has been called by Berzelius oxide of lipyle, and has also received the name of oxide of glyceryje; glycerin being its hydrated oxide. When a fixed oil is" treated with an alkali, the latter combines with the fatty acids and forms a soap. Soaps, therefore, are salts, the acids of which are derived from the fixed oils ; if the base is an alkali they are soluble in water, and to a certain extent also in alcohol; the soaps of the alkaline earths and the metallic oxides are insoluble in both menstrua ; the term soap is for this reason not commonly applied to those compounds, and the Pharmaco- poeia recognizes one of them, the lead soap, by the name of Emplastrum Plumbi. The acids which are present in the natural fats are mostly homologous compounds of the general formula CnHn04. The first two of the series, formic acid, CaH204, and acetic acid, C4H404, are thin liquids, readily solu- ble in water and alcohol; the next two, propionic, CBH604, and butyric acid, C8H804, are oily liquids, soluble in water, but separated from their solutions by chloride of calcium, and boil at 287° and 314°. 6 respectively. The fol- lowing acids of the series are oily and but sparingly soluble in water :— Valerianic acid CloH10O4. In valerian root, and the fat of the dolphin ; boils at 347°. Capronic " C12H1204. In cow butter, and cocoa-nut oil; boils at 388°. CEnanthylic " C14tl,404. Formed in the oxidation of castor oil, &c, besides other products ; boiling point 425. Caprylic " CI6Hl604. In cow butter, cocoa-nut oil, human fat, and in the fusel oil of rye, rice, and beet-root spirit; boiling point 457°. Pelargonic " C18H1804. In pelargonium, roseum, and by the oxidation of oil of rue ; boiling point 500°. All the above liquid acids possess a strong odor; some of them having been sufficiently treated of in the last chapter, and others being reserved for the chapter on Organic Acids, we may pass to a series of the solid fatty acids, which, with the exception of the first, are destitute of odor. 548 FIXED OILS AND FATS. Caprinic acid C,nH2nO,. In cow and goat butter, cocoa-nut oil, various fusel oils, &c. ; fusible at 80O.5. Laurinic " C24H2404. Laurostearic acid. In the fruit of Laurus nobilis, in cocoa-nut oil, pichurim beans, and in spermaceti; fusible at 110O.5. Myristic " C28H2804. In the expressed oil of nutmegs ; fusible at 126°.8. Palmitic " C^H^O^ In palm oil, in Chinese wax, tallow, suet, in human fat, butter, lard, olive oil, cocoa-nut oil, wax, spermaceti; j| of myrtle wax is this acid ; by fusing oleic acid with HO, KO ; fusible at 143Q.6. Margaric " C34H3404. Is a mixture of 10 p. stearic and 90 palmitic acid. Stearic " C36H3604. In suet, lard, cocoa-nut, oil and most other animal and vege- table fats ; fusible at 156°.6. In the fruit of Arachis hypogaea ; fusible at 167°. Arachic " C,nH.n04 It will be observed that the members of the series commencing with capri- nic acid differ from the next following by C4H4; whether there are any natural fatty acids between those mentioned in the syllabus has not been de- finitely settled. Some other fatty acids, containing more C than the above, have been discovered, but it is asserted that they have not been obtained in a pure state ; we name only Behenic acid C44H4404. (?) Cerotinic " C34HM04. (?) In Behen oil from Moringa aptera. In beeswax, in the free state, and in Chinese wax; fusible at170O. Besides these acids there occur others in fats of the composition CnHn^04; the series is not nearly as complete as the foregoing, and it is uncertain even whether the first one mentioned in the syllabus really belongs to it. The fol- lowing comprises the few that are known :— Carbonic acid C90.. Acrylic " Crotonic " Damaluric " Moringic " Hypogseic " C6H404. C8H604. CI4H12°4 ^30 "28^4 (?) Geadic Oleic Elaic ;; c32h30o4. (?) C»BHo.O.. Balaenic " C38H3604. Erucic " C^H.o0.. =(2C02). Gaseous. By the oxidation of acrolein ; liquid. In croton oil; not acrid nor purgative ; liquid. In the urine of man, the cow, and the horse; liquid. In the oil of Moringa aptera; solid at 320. Physetic acid. In the oil of Arachis hypogaea and the liquid fat of the Cetaceae; fusible at 93°. By N03 from the former; fusible at 100O. In the fat of most animals, and in all undrying vege- table oils ; solid at 25° ; oxidizes readily. From oleic acid by N03; inodorous, tasteless; fusible at llio. In the oil of Balaena rostrata ; solid at 40°. Sinapic acid. In the oil of mustard ; fusible at 93°. A few other acids of a different composition are met with in some fixed oils, among which we mention— Olinic acid Compos. (?) In the drying oils, linseed, nut, hemp-seed, poppy-seed oil, &c. Ricin-oleic acid C38H3606. In castor oil; solid at about 15<>. Most of these acids are combined, as has been stated above, with the ether of a triatomic alcohol, the oxide of glyceryle ; but some fatty bodies contain, either besides this or altogether, other bases, of which the following syllabus will give a view; they are the ethers of monatomic alcohols :— Oxide of cetyle C32H330. In spermaceti with palmitic acid (cetin). " ceryle C54H550. In Chinese wax with cerotinic acid. " metyle C60H61O. In beeswax, the portion insoluble in boiling alcohol, with palmitic acid (myricin). LEAD PLASTER—GLYCERIN. 549 The compounds of the fatty acids with the oxide of glyceryle are by common consent, called by the name of the acid, changing the termination •cintotn. Thus myristinis C6H303,3CasH3703; palmitin, C6Hs03,3C32H,t03; stearin CflH 0 3C H 0 ; arachin, C6H503,3C40H3903; olein, C6H,03 aya^U,. All these fats contain three equivalents of acid, but others with two and one equivalent have been obtained artificially ; they are desig- nated in organic chemistry by prefixing to the former the word tri to the next di, and to the last mono. Ordinary stearin is, according to'the diemical nomenckture, tristearin; the artificial distearin has the formula ^6ti,u3,i±U,Z^s6tiS50^ and the monostearin C6H,03 2HO C H 0 To obtain these acids in a pure state is usually a matte? of difficulty • fractional precipitation must be frequently resorted to. ' Emplastrum Plumbi U. S. P. (Lead Plaster) , Take of Oxide of lead, in fine powder, thirty troyounces. Olive oil fifty-six troyounces. Water a sufficient quantity. Sift the oxide of lead into the oil, contained in a suitable vessel of a capacity equal to twice the bulk of the ingredients. Then add half a pint of boiling water, and boil the whole together until a plaster is formed; adding from time to time, during the process, a little boiling water, as that first added is consumed. 5 This is. made usually on a large scale by manufacturing pharmaceu- tists, some of whom make it, with its kindred preparations, their lead- ing or exclusive article of manufacture. The process requires that olive oil (lard oil does not produce a nice product) should be boiled with finely-powdered oxide of lead (litharge1) and water for a long time, until they unite into a mass of a soft solid consistence which is tenacious, and readily rolled upon a wet marble slab into rolls of suitable size, which are allowed to harden bv macera- tion ma trough of cold water and subsequent exposure to the air • one gallon of oil yields about twelve pounds of plaster. Lead plaster is usually found in commerce, in rolls of various sizes from half an ounce to half a pound in weight, called simple diachylon or lead plaster; sometimes, though rarely.it is spread upon cotton cloth by machinery, and sold by the yard like adhesive plaster cloth it is milder and less irritating in its action upon highly inflamed sur- faces, though less adhesive than that well-known and useful application ■Postponing to another chapter the practical details in regard to these' and the numerous compounds into which they enter, it will be appro- priate m this place to introduce to notice, what was formerly a resi- duary product of the manufacture of lead plaster, but is now made directly from fixed oils. Glycerin. C6H503+3HO. Glycerin is a colorless, odorless, sweet liquid, resembling svrup having a sp. gr-. of from 1.25 to 1.273 ; it may be classified among pseu- do sugars, see page 512; but in chemical behavior it is a triatomic alco- hol of the_hypothetical radical glyceryle, C6H5. Glycerin is separated from oils in the process of their saponification, and may be obtained 550 FIXED OILS AND FATS. by evaporation from the water in which lead plaster has been made, care being taken to precipitate any lead held m solution, by sulphu- retted hydrogen, and to drive off the excess of this gas by heat. There are several qualities of glycerin in our markets; the cheapest is made from the waters from which soap has been separated; that which is collected as a residuary product from the plaster manufac- ture has been almost superseded by that distilled from fats by highly heated steam. , . i n . ^ . , Of the latter, which is the best variety, that imported from Prices Candle Co., London, and that made by Henry Bower, of Philadelphia, are to be preferred; they are both destitute of odor, and have nearly the requisite specific gravity. These articles are believed to be made from palm oil, while that obtained from the refuse of the manufacture of stearin candles, from lard, is seldom destitute of an odor when heated, which is fatal to its use for a large number of the purposes to which it is designed. . „ ■ j. j -a. When made by distillation, glycerin is often contaminated with acroleine, a peculiar volatile principle to which it owes its acridity. Some specimens have a saline taste, evincing important impurities in view of the uses to which it is applied. A recipe for the preparation of o-lycerin is given by Dorvault in " L'Ofncine:" a convenient quan- tity0 of a fixed oil or fat is to be saponified by milk of lime, then the liquid is separated from the insoluble lime soap, and sufficient diluted sulphuric acid added to precipitate as sulphate the excess of lime held in solution. Evaporated by a water bath, and treated with strong alcohol, glycerin is obtained. The lime soap, which is here a residuary product, can be made available for furnishing, by decomposition with sulphuric acid, stearic and palmitic acids, to be used in the soap and candle manufacture. The following description of glycerin is from the U. S. Pharmaco- poeia :— A colorless, inodorous, syrupy liquid, of a sweet taste, and having the specific gravity of 1.25. It is soluble in water and in alcohol, but not in ether. Exposed to a full red heat, it takes fire, and burns with a blue flame. It is destroyed by distillation in contact with air, but may be dis- tilled unchanged with steam. It combines with potassa and baryta, and also with sulphuric acid. When diluted with water, it affords no precipi- tate with hydrosulphate of ammonia or ferrocyanide of potassium. It is, of recent time, much employed as a substitute for oils, having a remarkable property of soothing irritable conditions of the mucous surfaces, and at the same time mixing in all proportions with water, and with most aqueous mixtures. It is a most useful application in the dry and parched condition ot the mouth so often present in disease, to which it may be applied either by painting it over the dry surface with a brush, or by swal- lowing it diluted with water. For a certain form of deafness resulting from dryness of the tympanic membrane it is one of the best of reme- dies. It is used in certain scaly skin diseases, as lepra. It is a usetuj application to sore nipples, also to burns and excoriated surfaces, and is added to poultices to keep them moist. Its substitution for almond SOAPS. 551 and olive oil, in the preparation of delicate ointments, is seldom pro- ductive of advantage; it must be remembered that it is not perfectly miscible with the fixed oils. It is not liable to become rancid as oils are, and it imbibes the essential oils from plants digested in it with remarkable avidity, so that it is well adapted to the preparation of liniments and lotions; it is also miscible with soaps. From its remark- able solvent power over chemical agents it is much used in pharmacy, and the name glyceroles is applied to solutions containing it. Glycerin is an excellent vehicle for subacetate of lead, which, on admixture with common oils, as in Goulard's cerate, is always converted into a compound of the oil-acid with oxide of lead; and, on admixture with water, as in lead-water, immediately begins to be decomposed, depo- siting carbonate of lead, so that the solution in a short time becomes inert. Glycerin is miscible in all proportions with liquor plumbi sub- acetatis, and under the name of Linimentum plumbi subacetatis, a for- mula is inserted which I think an improvement on any of the old preparations of lead. Nitro-Glycerin or Glonoin. C6H.(N04)306-f 3Aq. This compound, which for years past has attracted some little attention as a remedy for headache, is prepared by adding ^ oz. anhydrous glycerin, with constant agitation, to a mixture of 2 oz. sulphuric and 1 oz."fumigating nitric acid, pouring it into 50 oz. water and washing it upon a filter. It is a colorless oil possessing a sweet taste, sp. grav. 1.28, soluble in 180 p. water and very readily soluble in alcohol and ether; when heated it fre- quently explodes ; even at ordinary temperature nitrous acid is sometimes evolved and the residue consists of oxalic acid and glyceric acid. A drop of the acid brought in contact with the lips, or even the vapors produce the most distressing headache. It is said to have been prescribed by homoeo- pathic practitioners. As before mentioned, only the alkaline soaps are soluble in water and alcohol; their consistence varies with the alkali, the potassa soap being the softest, the soda soap invariably harder than the former. The following list comprises those which are most usually employed in medicine, though occasionally the soap of a finer oil than olive oil, like the cocoa-nut oil soap, or some highly odorized one, like Windsor soap, is preferred. Soaps used in Medicine. Sapo, Castile soap. From olive oil and soda; white or mottled ; used a9 an antacid, excipient in pills, linimentum saponia camph. Ph. U. S. 1860. Sapo Vulgaris, Common Soap. From animal oil and soda; used externally only in the preparation of opodeldoc, linim. saponis cam- phor. Ph. U. S. 1850. Sapo viridis, S. niger, S. mollis, From potassa and various animal and vegetable fats ; Soft, green or biack soap. used in itch. Emplastrum plumbi, Lead From litharge and olive oil; forms the basis of most plaster. plasters. (See Emplastra.) Of the soaps, perhaps none is more really useful for ordinary domestic and for surgical purposes than the genuine Castile soap, 552 FIXED OILS AND FATS. abundantly and cheaply supplied in our markets. Palm soap ig second only to this in its emollient properties. The introduction of suet (soap-fat) is a common means of increasing the frothing proper- ties of soap, and the foregoing being quite destitute of this ingredient are unsuited to use in shaving. Soluble glass, silicate of alkali, is now introduced into the cheap soaps of commerce, by which an im- mense saving of the fatty ingredient is attained, and the use of resin, formerly employed for the same purpose, is substituted. In the U. S. Pharmacopoeia of 1860, only Castile soap is officinal; it is designated Sapo. Soap made with soda and olive oil, Sapo vul- garis. Common soap, formerly officinal for the preparation of solid opodeldoc, has been dismissed'with that preparation. Soap made with vegetable oils is generally soluble in cold alcohol, that made with suet and animal oils is insoluble in alcohol except by the aid of heat. List of the Principal Fixed Oils and Fats used in Medicine. Oleum olivse (sweet oil or olive oil). Oleum amygdalae dul- cis. Oleum sesami (benne oil). Oleum crachidis (groundnut oil). Oleum lini (flaxseed oil). Oleum behen (behen oil). Oleum berlholetiae (Bra- zil nut oil). Oleum theobromae (but- ter of cocoa, oil of chocolate nuts). Oleum fagi (Beech oil). Oleum lauri (bayberry oil). Oleum cocois (cocoa-nut oil). Oleum gossypii (cotton seed oil). Oleum macidis (solid). Oil of mace. Oleum myripticae. Oleum palmae (solid). Palm oil. Oleum papuveris (poppy oil). 1. Vegetable Oils. From the fruit of Olea Europfea, by expression, sp. gr. .9109 to.9176 ; a light yellow ; nearly inodorous ; of sweet oily taste ; in ointments, plasters, for culinary purposes, and perfumery. From kernels of fruit of A. communis by expression, sp. gr. .917. Solid at —120 ; light yellow ; very bland ; in ointments and perfumery. From the seeds of Sesamum indicum and orientale. From kernels of fruit of Arachis hypogaea by expression, sp. gr. .874. ? From the seed of Linum usitatissimum, sp. gr. .9347; its soaps are very soft; in liniments ; rarely internally; much used in the arts. From the fruit of Moringa aptera ; in ointments and pomades. From kernels of fruit of B. excelsa, sp. gr. .917. From roasted seeds of Theobroma cacao, sp. gr. .892. Solid at 80°. For ointments, suppositories, and soaps. From the fruit of Fagus sylvatica; very bland soap, soft; in Germany as substitute for olive oil. Expressed from the fruit of Laurus nobilis; green; buty- raceous, granular ; very fragrant; taste bitter, aromatic; in ointment. From the kernel of the Cocos nucifera ; white; of sweet taste ; yields an excellent soap. From the seeds of Gossypium herbaceum ; refined, sp. gr. .921. From the arillus of the fruit of Myristica fragrans ; resem- bles the next. Expressed from the nutmeg of Myristica fragrans ; reddish; aromatic odor and taste ; in ointment and perfumery. Obtained from the fruit of Elas guineensis ; orange yellow ; consistence of butter ; agreeable odor ; turns easily rancid. From the seeds of Papaver somniferum, sp. gr. .9243; light- yellow ; nearly inodorous ; is a drying oil, used for culi- nary purposes, and as adulteration for olive oil. REMARKS ON THE FIXED OILS. 553 Oleum oil.) Oleum oil). ricini (castor tiglii (croton Cera Japonica (Japan wax). From seeds of Ricinus communis, sp. gr. .9612; nearly colorless or yellowish; used as purgative. From the seeds of Croton tiglium, sp. gr. .947 to .953 ; light to dark yellow; readily soluble in alcohol; very acrid and drastic ; blisters the skin. Said to be obtained from the fruit, and leaves of Rhus suc- cedanea; white ; hard ; fracture conchoidal. 2. Animal Oils. Prepared fat of Sus scrofa, the hog. From cream by mechanical agitation. The prepared suet or fat, from Ovis aries. The olein separated from lard by expression, sp. gr. .9003. From the bones of Bos domesticus, the ox. Adeps (lard). Butyrum (butter). SSevum (mutton suet). Oleum adipis (lard oil). Oleum bubulum (neat's foot oil.) Oleum cetacei (sperma- ceti oil). Oleum Halicorx (du- gong oil). Oleum morrhuae (cod- liver oil). From the cavity in the upper jaw of Physeter macroce- phalus. From the Halicora dugong and Australis ; recommended aa a substitute for cod-liver oil. From the livers of Gadus morrhua, sp. gr. .9230 to .9315. 3. Allied Bodies not Containing Glycerin. Cera flava (beeswax). Cera alba (white wax). Cera Chinensis (Chinese Wax). Cetaceum (sperma- ceti). The substance used by the bees for constructing their cells ; used in ointments, cerates, plasters, and in the arts. Beeswax bleached by the sunlight; used like the former. According to St. Julien, prepared by Coccus ceriferus, like beeswax; used in the arts. In the head, of Physeter macrocephalus ; in ointments and the arts. Remarks on the Fixed Oils. Of the foregoing list several are quite bland, agreeable, and desti- tute of active properties; of these oleum sesami, ohum. papaver is, oleum arachidis, ohum cacao, oleum olives, oleum amygdalae, may be substi- tuted for each other, and are adapted too for internal use. Olive oil, of the finest quality met with in commerce, virgin oil, salad oil, has a pale yellow or greenish color, and a very faint and agreeable odor; its taste is bland and pleasant, though sometimes a little acrid; its specific gravity, at 77° F., is stated at .9109, .9176 at 59° F. It is soluble in one and a half times its weight of ether, but almost insoluble in alcohol; it generally contains a solid deposit of stearin and palmitin in cold weather, which is readily fused by a slight eleva- tion of temperature. The best generally comes in bottles which hold from f Sxij to f Jxxiv, or in small flasks covered by wicker work, which, after they are emptied, come in play for small chemical opera- tions. The common impure oil is generally rancid, acrid, and dis- agreeable, and often abounds in green coloring matter; it is obtained by expressing at an elevated temperature or by boiling the expressed residue with water and skimming off the oil. The detection of adulterations in olive oil is a matter of no great difficulty to the connoisseur, as any admixture of inferior oils affects the taste per- ceptibly. The following are, however, more generally applicable. Pure olive oil, when shaken in a vial half filled, gives a bead which rapidly disappears, but if adulterated the bubbles continue longer before they burst. Pure olive'oil completely solidifies if immersed in ice, but if one third of 554: FIXED OILS AND FATS. poppy oil is present it does not freeze at all at the temperature of ice. When carefully mixed with one-twelfth part of its volume of a solution of four ounces of mercury, in eight fluidounces and six drachms of nitric acid, sp gr 1 5 it becomes a firm fat in three or four hours, without any separa- tion of liquid oil. The other edible oils do not solidify with acid nitrate of mercury and the hardness of this mass is dependent on the purity of the oil Animal oils solidify with this nitrate, but if olive oil is mixed with them it floats on the surface of the coagulum and may be decanted. And when heated this coagulum exhales the well-known odor of rancid fats. A few drops of it treated with a little nitric acid containing some nitrous acid readily solidifies, the oleic acid being converted into the solid isomeric elaic acid ; if adulterated by a drying oil, it remains soft or solidifies much slower. Pelouze has investigated the subject of the acidification of fixed oils, and coufirms the fact already known, that foreign substances with which fatty bodies are contaminated exert an action upon them similar to that which a ferment exerts upon saccharine fluids, setting free fatty acids. He has also found that when oleaginous seeds are crushed so as to break up their cells and bring their contents into close contact, the neutral fatty bodies contained in them are spontaneously converted into fatty acids and glycerin. This phenomenon is analogous to what takes place in the grape, the apple, and other fruits, the sugar contained in which is converted into alcohol and car- bonic acid as soon as the cells which separate it from the ferment are de- stroyed When extracted immediately, these oils are perfectly free from any traces of acid. The difference in quality between good and bad olive oil is thus explained, the former being extracted before the lapse of time has allowed of this peculiar fermentative action. Almond oil is procured from the kernels by expression, the best in our wholesale market being imported in jugs from England. Some few pharmaceutists in the United States have presses, with which they prepare this elegant product in great purity and perfection. It has about the specific gravity of olive oil, and is without its green tinge of color, so that it generally makes a whiter ointment. Almond oil is soluble in 25 parts of cold and 6 parts of boiling alcohol. In sell- ing and prescribing it, care should be taken that it be not confounded with the essential oil of bitter almond. The name has been changed in the late edition of the Pharmacopoeia to Oleum Amygdalae Duhis. It is well known that some wholesale drug houses fraudulently sub- stitute for this valuable oil, oil of poppy seed, which has little over half its money value; the fraud may be detected by mixing upon a glass or porcelain slab a few drops of the suspected oil with about an equal number of drops of nitric acid; the oil of poppies, being a dry- ing oil, retains its fluidity, while the almond oil soon becomes hard. Oil of Benne Seed.—Sesamum orientale has been produced in this country, and is recommended as a desirable production to add to our agricultural resources. The plant grows well, particularly in the South, and has been estimated to yield ten bushels of the seed to the acre; the yield of oil approaches two and a half gallons to the bushel. The seeds should be planted as soon as the frost is out of the ground in drills three feet apart, and six inches distance along the drills. Poppy seed oil is imported in casks in considerable quantity from Germany, where it is frequently employed as a substitute for sweet oil oils. 555 for table use, and by some practitioners is preferred to oil of almonds. In this country it is made use of for the same purposes, and is besides often fraudulently substituted for, or mixed with olive and almond oil, which see. Oil of Groundnuts.—A fine oil is now extensively made both in France and in this country, by expressing groundnuts between hot plates in the same way that linseed oil is prepared. Its chief use, as far as I can learn, is to adulterate almond and olive oils. It is remark- ably free from unpleasant properties, and if thrown into commerce under its own proper name, would no doubt answer many purposes in the arts, in medicine, and in domestic economy. Oil of groundnuts has been employed in place of neat's-foot oil for citrine ointment, which, however, is apt to be too soft when thus prepared. Oleum Theobromas.—Cacao butter, the solid oil of chocolate nuts, softens, without quite fusing, at the temperature of the body; its odor and taste are peculiarly agreeable, and besides its application to chapped lips, its extensive use in suppositories and its occasional em- ployment as a coating to pills, it has been given internally as a substi- tute for cod-liver oil and other fats; it is liable to adulteration with solid animal fats, and I have met with specimens containing wax in considerable proportion. Oleum adipis, ohum lini, oleum bubulum, oleum bertholeties, oleum myristices expressum, oleum macidis, oleum cocois, oleum palmes, ohum cetacei, and oleum gossypii, are seldom used for any internal form of administration, but in common with olive and almond oil have their special adaptations and uses in the arts, and for topical applications in medicine. Lard oil, which is a tolerably pure form of olein when freshly and skilfully prepared, is, however, seldom met with in commerce free from a disagreeable rancid odor; on this account it is rarely employed in medicine. It is said to be largely exported for fraudulent admixture with olive oil. Linseed or flaxseed oil, is chiefly used to mix with the carbonates of lead and zinc in the manufacture of the pigments known as white lead and white zinc; it is sometimes substituted for this use by a variety of inferior oils, which possess similar drying or oxidizing pro- perties. Boiled linseed oil, particularly if litharge or acetate of lead is mixed with it in boiling, is remarkable for the rapidity with which it dries into a hard varnish-like material. This oil is sometimes used as a " healing" cathartic in doses of one or two ounces, for which pur- pose the cold expressed oil is preferable. Neat's-foot oil, as usually met with, is so offensive that it is only used in one officinal preparation, in which it is often substituted by lard or lard oil—unguentum hydrargyri nitratis. It may be made pure and good enough for internal use, and in England it is said to be employed for frying fritters ; it does not thicken by age. Oil of brazil-nuts (oleum bertholetise), when properly made, is of a 556 FIXED OILS AND FATS. bright amber color, has the peculiar smell and taste of the nut, and congeals at 24° F. Dr. Donnelly, of Philadelphia, has used it as a substitute for olive oil in plasters and ointments, and found it to be well adapted for such purposes, one gallon of oil requiring six pounds of litharge to saponify, and yielding a good plaster of a rich cream color, and 12 oz. of a superior glycerin. Expressed oil of nutmegs, as it occurs in commerce, is of the consist- ence of suet, and has a mixed white and yellow color, and a strong odor of nutmegs; it is prepared in the East India Islands by exposing the bruised nutmegs contained in a bag to the vapors of boiling water and subjecting it to pressure between heated plates. It is entirely soluble in boiling ether; leaves nearly one-half behind on being treated with cold ether; the residue is white, pulverulent, inodorous. It is chiefly used for external applications where a mild stimulant is required. Expressed oil of mace is now very seldom met with in commerce; it is prepared in a manner similar to the above, has the consistency of butter, a reddish color, and an agreeable strong odor and taste of mace. Cocoa-nut oil is obtained by expression from the kernel of the cocoa- nut ; it is of the consistence of suet between 40° and 50°, and semi- fluid between 75° and 85°; it is liable to have a peculiar odor owing to the presence of caprylic and capronic acids in small quantities, of which the greater part may be removed by digesting the oil for several hours with coarsely-powdered charcoal, and filtering through paper in a warm place. It has been proposed as a substitute for lard, especially in ointments which contain much vegetable matter, or aque- ous mixtures, of which it is able by trituration to take up one-third more than lard. Its keeping well without getting rancid admirably adapts it for such purposes, and also for hair oil; it is readily ab- sorbed by the skin and, therefore, is not so apt to stain the garments and bedclothes. Burnett's cocoaine is understood to be chiefly com- posed of this oil. Palm oil is consumed largely in the manufacture of soap, to which it imparts its peculiar odor and yellow color; of this, however, it is deprived by exposure to air and light. It is a very extensive article of commerce in England, entering into many of the cheaper varieties of soap, and in pharmacy being used in the manufacture of plasters, certain pomades and ointments, and in the manufacture of glycerin by distillation. It is a soft solid, melts at 117|° F., sp. gr. .968. Spermaceti oil is the clearest and thinnest of the whale oils; it is remarkably adapted for greasing heavy machinery, for which purpose it is in great demand; it is also a fine oil for burning, but is rarely used in medicine or pharmacy, except by those few practitioners who believe it a good substitute for cod-liver oil. Cotton seed oil is obtained by expression as a very dark, almost black, tenaceous oil, which, until the introduction of certain processes for its purification and bleaching, was deemed of no commercial CASTOR OIL. 557 value; it has since become a very large article of commerce, and is used in the arts for many of the purposes to which the bland fixed oils are applicable, and also for the adulteration of olive oil and the other more expensive oils. It has been used successfully in several officinal ointments. (See " Am. Journ. Pharm.," 1861, page 208.) Oleum ricini, oleum tiglii, oleum morrhues, and oleum halicoras, are medicinal, and used as internal remedies. Castor oil is a viscid, transparent, light yellow-colored oil, specific gravity .9575, at 77°. Its taste and smell, when of a fine quality, are very slight, though its extreme viscidity renders it disagreeable. It is peculiar in being miscible with absolute alcohol, in all proportions, and in rendering other oils, mixed with it in certain proportions, also soluble; it also dissolves some alcohol, but this property diminishes with the strength of the alcohol. The principal kinds found in the commerce of the United States are, the American oil, which is pro- duced principally in the Western States and comes in casks; a variety said to be expressed principally in New York from seeds imported from the East Indies; and the East India oil, which, is imported in tin cans from Bombay and Calcutta. The latter article is, I think, gene- rally the best, either from the agitation to which it is subjected in the hold of the vessel during a long voyage, a great part of the time in the tropics, producing a separation of its albuminous ingredient, and thus clarifying it, or from some peculiarity in its preparation. A can of this oil is often found cloudy near the bottom, while the upper por- tion may sometimes be racked off remarkably clear and free from odor and taste. The English castor oil, so much esteemed here, has been selected from the best East India oil and submitted to filtration, and after- wards bleached by exposure to the sun. The blue tinge of color of bottles in which it is sold, by neutralizing the yellow rays reflected from the oil, give it the appearance of great freedom from color. (See Pharmaceutical Notes of Travel, by the author, " Am. Journ. Pharm.," vol. xxx. p. 114.) The Palma Christi, which produces the valuable seed yielding this oil, is a beautiful annual plant, readily cultivated in our climate from the seed. It grows to the height of from six to ten feet, and is one of the most ornamental of annuals for garden or lawn. The seeds are powerfully acrid and cathartic. The activity of these and the oil depends upon an acrid principle, said to be resinoid, which is invariably present in it, and is modified by the bland demulcent properties of the oil, rendering it one of the most useful of cathartics. The leaves of Palma Christi have come into use within a few years as an application to the mammae, with a view to promote the flow of milk; an extract prepared from them is spread upon cotton cloth and applied to the mammae; an infusion is recommended for the same purpose, to be taken internally. Great quantities of castor oil are consumed in the preparation of applications for the hair, it being now generally preferred to bear's oil, which was formerly much in vogue for this purpose. For greas- 558 FIXED OILS AND FATS. ing the hair, it should have a small admixture of alcohol to diminish its viscid properties, while for hair restoratives, such as are called katharion, tricopherous, &c, the alcohol is in larger proportion, the oil being added to diminish the drying and crisping properties of the spirits used. Eecipes for preparations of this composition are given in the chapter on Perfumery and Toilet Preparations. Croton oil, like the foregoing, is the product of the seeds of one of the family Euphorbiacese. It is imported in bottles holding about twenty ounces. Its powerful irritant and drastic cathartic properties, in doses of from one to two drops, are well known. In applying it as a local irritant for producing a pustular eruption, it is usually di- luted with twice the quantity of olive oil; it should then be carefully and conspicuously marked for external use. Pure croton oil is soluble in about its own bulk of very strong alcohol, but in two or three days nearly all the oil separates. One of the most ready ways of testing its quality is to try its effect upon the skin; if pure, the speedy appearance of the eruption may be anti- cipated. (See Am. Journ. Pharm., 1860, p. 306.) Cod-liver oil, as supplied to the American market, is largely pre- pared upon our New England coast, and that of Newfoundland, in connection with the cod fisheries. Three different commercial varie- ties are produced, which vary in quality according to the skill and care expended in their preparation. Pale cod-liver oil is prepared in New England by cutting up the fresh livers and throwing them into water in a large tank arranged for the application of heat. A fire being kindled, the oil rises to the surface and is skimmed off; by standing, even after being barrelled, a deposit separates which allows of the clear oil being racked off. It is abundant in our markets within a few years, being used exclusively in medicine, and commanding a price, by the gallon, of from $2 to $3. The other most common variety is the dark brown oil. The livers being thrown into a heap exposed to the sun, are thus allowed to be- come decomposed, and the oil is collected as it flows out from the corrupting mass. The dark brown oil is rancid, having a disagreable empyreumatic odor, and a taste which is bitter, besides being acrid, as in the other case. It is used extensively by curriers. Its price ia usually about $1 per gallon. The pale brown cod-liver oil is intermediate in its properties between the foregoing; it is by some preferred to either, and by several cus- tomers with whom I have met is said to disagree less with the stomach. This variety is not so common in commerce. Many dealers do not procure it at all. I have obtained it by the gallon at from $1 25 to $1 75 per gallon. There are all grades of quality between the finest and commonest oils. The large admixture of other fish than the cod in the produce of the New England fisheries and the consequent admixture of the livers, has induced a very general opinion that the Newfoundland oil, as representing the oil of the livers of the cod exclusively, is to be pre- ferred. This is the kind of oil sold chiefly in England, and upon COD-LIVER AND DTJG0NG OILS. 559 which the reputation of the oil was mainly founded in the first in- stance. Excellent cod-liver oil is made in London from the livers of the fresh fish brought to that market. The firm of Allen and Han- burys supply their extensive demand from this source. The livers are placed in a large iron pan over a coal fire, and heated to about 180° F., stirring constantly until they break down into a uniform pulpy liquid mass; this is immediately transferred to calico bags, whence the oil drains out. After filtration, while still warm, the oil is ready for use. In this state the oil separates, at the temperature of 60° F., a considerable deposit, which it is the practice of some to remove by- filtration, while others allow it to remain as probably quite as efficient as the more fluid part. The composition of cod-liver oil, as inferred from the analysis of Dr. De Jongh, is similar to that of other fatty oils, with the exception of a peculiar organic substance of biliary origin called by him gaduin, and also some of the constituents of bile, with traces of iodine, bro- mine, &c. More recently, Dr. F. L. Winckler has investigated its chemical nature, and regards this oil as an organic whole of a peculiar chemical composition, differing from that of all other fatty oils hitherto em- ployed as medicines. According to this eminent chemist, some gly- cerin is replaced by oxide of the organic radical, propyle (C^), a compound of which exists also in ergot and in the liquor of pickled herring. From this Dr. Winckler infers that cod-liver oil cannot be substituted by any other officinal oil. Propylamine (NH^CgH^, a pro- duct of the reaction of ammonia on cod-liver oil, is also found by Winckler in normal urine and sweat; and, viewing its formation as probable by the reaction in the system by which cod-liver oil is assimi- lated and burnt up in the lungs, he founds upon this his theory of the utility of cod-liver oil in medicine. The amount of iodine in cod-liver oil does not exceed .05 per cent. and is too insignificant to be of great medicinal activity; sometimes other oils have been substituted for it by dissolving iodine in them. True liver oils all give Pettenkofer's reaction; a drop of sulphuric acid produces a violet color, with the biliary constituents contained in the oil. Dugong Oil.—This oil is obtained from two herbivorous cetaceous animals, the family Manitidae, the one, Halicore Dugong, an inhabi- tant of the Indian Seas, the other, Halicore Australis, occurring off the northwest coast of Australia. Specimens of this oil from Ceylon are solid, while from Australia more fluid, though with a deposit of stearin. Both have a tallow-like taste and no fishy smell, and have been used to substitute cod-liver oil. I am not aware that any speci- mens have reached the United States as yet. In addition to the foregoing, no less than thirty-seven fixed oils and fats are found in the shops of the various nations of Europe, many of which were formerly officinal. Some of these are now called for bv the more ignorant classes under the impression that special virtues attach to the fats of diff'erent animals and fishes. Goose grease is much 560 ON VOLATILE OILS, CAMPHORS AND RESINS. esteemed as an application to chapped hands, and to be applied by in- unction for rheumatic and other pains; it is preserved in many fami- lies for this use. Bear's oil has a great reputation for the hair, and is undoubtedly a good application and less liable to become rancid than some other oils. It is met with in considerable quantities in the west- ern cities, but it is needless to remark that very few of the hair prepa- rations labelled bear's oil are even contaminated with this ingredient. Catfish oil, sturgeon's oil, porpoise oil, and rabbit fat, are all occasionally in demand, but seldom kept by the druggist or pharmaceutist; it is within the recollection of the writer that cod-liver was equally a rara avis. CHAPTER VI. on volatile oils, camphors, and resins. Volatile or Essential Oils. This important and interesting class of proximate principles con- tains an immense number of individuals which are distinguished from each other more by striking sensible and physical than by chemical peculiarities. By far the largest number are derived from plants, in which they exist ready formed, although some are the products of a spontaneous fermentative action set up among principles contained in the plants in the presence of water. Volatile oily products of the de- structive distillation of organic substances, the rational composition of which is not known, are likewise conveniently classed with vola- tile oils. Those which may be designated as definite chemical com- pounds, such as creasote, may be more appropriately treated of under the head of the several sources from which derived. Natural volatile oils are mostly prepared by mixing plants or parts of plants containing them, with water, and, after maceration for a certain length of time, subjecting the mixture to distillation. The distillate is usually milky, and on standing separates, most of the oil rising to the top, or, in a few instances, subsiding, while the water continues charged to satura- tion with the oil. Although the boiling point of these oils is much above that of water, most of them are readily volatilized in contact with steam at 212°, and are hence conveniently prepared by distilla- tion as above. The unpleasant odor at first perceived in the distillate was form- erly believed to be empyreumatic, but is now said to be due to por- tions of tin dissolved from the neck of the still or the condensing worm, and to disappear with the subsequent oxidation of this metal, and its separation as a flocculent precipitate; this is often mistaken for an algaeric vegetation. Some highly odoriferous plants which yield by this process sparse and unsatisfactory results, are found to impart their volatile oils better ON VOLATILE OR ESSENTIAL OILS. 561 by digestion with fixed fatty bodies, which, when treated with strong alcohol, yield the volatile oils to that solvent, forming essences; nu- merous oils or essences used in perfumery are prepared in this 'way. Others are prepared by direct expression from the structures contain- ing them, as the oils obtained from the rind of the lemon and berga- mot fruits; while others are obtained, with associated resins and cam- phors, by the use of ether; in the Pharmacopoeia several of these are grouped under the head Oleoresina; see page 232. The volatile oils are mostly soluble in water to a very limited ex- tent ; and dissolve a small proportion of water, which separates at low temperatures. They are mostly soluble to an unlimited extent in an- hydrous alcohol, ether, and the fixed oils. _ The perfume of most plants is due to the gradual elimination, diffu- sion, and oxidation, in very minute quantities, of their volatile oils. Every one must have noticed that in the moist morning and evening atmosphere, the odor of flowers is greatly enhanced, a phenomenon which is partly due to the power of vapor of water to aid in the dif- fusion of the volatilized oils, and probably partly to an increased tend- ency to oxidization in contact with aqueous vapor. According to Liebig, the perfume of essential oils is strong in proportion to their tendency to oxidize in the air, though their degree of volatility has also an important bearing on this property. Their odor is generally strong in proportion to the oxygen in their composition. Certain oils containing no oxygen may be temporarily deprived of their charac- teristic odors by distillation from freshly-burnt lime in an apparatus exhausted of air or filled with carbonic acid gas. The odor of essen- tial oils is apt to be less delicate or grateful after they have been iso- lated than when spontaneously exhaled by the plant, and by time and exposure many of them not only lose their delicacy of flavor, but be- come less limpid, assuming a darker color and more resinoid consist- ence. In the process of drying certain plants at a moderate heat, the oil seems to improve in flavor, while very little of it is dissipated, so that the aromatic seeds, as of fennel and caraway, the unexpanded flowers of clove, &c, as found in commerce, yield full proportions of essential oils, and of finer quality than the imported oils obtained from them when fresh. Valerian is an instance of the smell being greatly increased hy age, owing to the oxidation of the oil. In judging of the odor of a volatile oil the diffusion of a very small quantity in the air is preferable to applying the nose directly to the vial. Inexperienced persons will sometimes fail to recognize the re- semblance of the oil or essence to the plant from which derived from neglect of this; a drop rubbed upon the hand and moistened by the breath will generally develop the characteristic odor. Solutions of essential oils in alcohol often disappoint the expectation of amateurs from the predominance of the odor of the spirit, which, as the most volatile ingredient, first salutes the olfactory nerve, and yet these solu- * tions may be suited to the purposes in view, imparting a lasting per- fume after the alcohol has evaporated. , It is the custom of perfumers to dilute the alcoholic solutions of essential oils, colognes, toilet waters and spirits with as large a proportion of water as is compatible with 36 562 ON VOLATILE OR ESSENTIAL OILS. the complete solution of the oil. (See chapter on Distilled Products and Perfumery.) In medicine, the essential oils, as existing naturally in plants and extracted by fnenstruae, or as isolated for separate use, are in the highest degree useful and important; they and their immediate derivatives, the camphors and resins, furnish remedies of the following therapeutio classes : stimulants, arterial and nervous—in the latter class the sul- phuretted oils are especially important—rubefacients, carminatives, emmenagogues, parturients, diuretics, anthelmintics, sedatives, and a few of them are used with great advantage as remedies in hemor- rhages and for important alterative effects in the secretions. The most familiar use made of volatile oils in ordinary prescriptions is with reference to their aromatic and corrective properties in combination with other remedies. Upon their employment in this connection, see chapter on the Art of Prescribing. Chemical History.—Notwithstanding the admitted crude and imperfect preparation of the volatile oils of commerce, and the fact that they consist of different proximate principles varying in their relative proportions to each other, and therefore in the results of their analyses ; yet much light has been thrown upon their chemical history by the labors of chemists. Volatile oils may be classed as 1. Carbo-hydrogens or camphenes; 2. Oxygenated oils; 3. Nitrogenated oils; 4. Sulphuretted oils; and 5. Empy- reumatic oils. The natural volatile oils belonging to the first class all have the composition C„,,H16, and from nearly all of the second class by fractional distillation a liquid of the same composition may be obtained, having, with few exceptions, a lower boiling point and being thinnner, and of less specific gravity than that portion distilling at a higher temperature ; the former is called elseopten; the latter, stearopten ; it usually contains oxygen, and frequently has the com- position of ordinary camphor, C^H^O^ oxide of camphene; or its composi- tion corresponds with a hydrate of camphene, C^II^O,, (Borneo camphor), C20H2OO4 (juniper camphor), C20TTM06 (lemon camphor). A similar hydrate may be obtained from turpentine and most other camphenes by treating them with a mixture of nitric acid and alcohol, when terpin, 0^11^+6110, crystallizes, which in vacuo loses 2110. By the action of hydrochloric acid gas on the camphenes, a combination of the two is effected, which may be liquid or solid ; if the latter, it is crys- talline, and from its resemblance to camphor has been called artificial cam- phor. The behavior of a number of the camphenes towards polarized light has been observed; most of them deviate its plane to the left; the carbo- hydrogen of oil of lemon is an exception, turning the polarized light towards the right. All pure volatile oils are believed to be colorless, though a few have not as yet been obtained entirely destitute of color, while a few are so readily influenced by air and light, as, after rectification, to assume coloration in a short time (oil of cinnamon and cassia). There are very few colored oils which cannot be freed from color by rectification or fractional distillation; oleum matricarise and anthemidis have a blue color; oleum millefolii an indigo blue ; oleum absinthii a deep brown color ; oleum sem. nigellae, whicb is of a brownish color, has the property of fluorescencing with a blue color, which may also be observed in its alcoholic and ethereal solutions. The volatile oils, by absorbing oxygen from the atmosphere, assume a deeper color, which passes through yellow, reddish or greenish, to brown, CHEMICAL HISTORY. 563 those to which a color naturally belongs, also undergo this change, generally passing through green to brown. This change, as a general rule, takes place very slowly with the natural carbo-hydrogens ; oxygenated oils change more quickly, usually in proportion to the oxygen they contain. With the deepening of the color, the fluidity of the volatile oils is lessened owing to a resinification taking place, some gradually assuming the consistence of resins; at the same time the odor is altered and rendered more or less unpleasant. The less stearopten oils contain, the less are they influenced by change of temperature, while from all a few crystals may be obtained in the cold, un- less they have been entirely deprived of the water dissolved by them, in minute quantities during their preparation. As the carbo-hydrogens are not solidified by a low temperature, a change in the amount of the stearopten must necessarily alter the freezing and melting points of the volatile oils, the latter of which is always several degrees above the former. G. H. Zeller, from his own observations with oils prepared by himself, gives the following :— Oleum anisi solidifies at 43o to 660 F " stellati arnicse flor. foeniculi (mostly elaeopten) " (rich in stearopt.) matricariae petroselini rosae geran " 540 to 590 bel. -f 50 at 41o to 450 " 100 to 5° " 36Q to 500 ' " 88° liquefies at 680 to 720 F. '• 1-3.50 » » 1000 » » " 210 « " « 210 « " " 100O " The boiling point is variable from the same cause ; volatile oils commence to boil at comparatively low temperatures, when elaeopten with little stear- opten distils over ; gradually the boiling point rises and the distillates con- tain more of the stearopten ; the boiling point of any pure compound of the volatile oils is stationary. The relations between certain essential oils, organic acids and neutral principles found in plants, constituting regular series of chemical compounds, though not as yet discovered to extend to any great number of them, are among the most curious and interesting developments of modern chemistry. The following syllabus embraces most of these :— Benzyle Bz .... Hydruret of Bz, oil of bitter almond Oxide of Bz, anhydrous benzoic acid " crystallized " Cynnamyle, Ci . Hydruret of Ci, oil of cinnamon Oxide of Ci, cinnamic acid . Cumyle ..... Hydruret of cumyle, oil of cumin Oxide " cuminic acid Thymyle, Th . . . . Hydruret of Th, " cymale, cymin,' Oxide of Th, oil of thyme . " Carvol," oil of caraway " Carvacrol," creasote of camphor Rutyle, Rut .... Hydruret of Rut, oil of rue . Salicyle, Sal .... Hydruret of Sal (spirous acid)2 . Helicin-(-2 aq. .... Saligenin ..... Salicin-|-2 aq. .... Salicylic acid .... Salicilate of oxide of methyle, oil of gaultheria C14H502- CI4H 0,-f H. C,4H502+0. C.4H5°2+0+HO. C1RH702. Ci8H702+H. C18H702-fO. C20H,,O2. C20H11°2+H- C20H„O2-fO. ^20" I3- C20HI3+H- C^+O.+ HO. C20HMO2. C20Hi.Ar ^20 19^2' C20H19O2+H.' C,4H50,. Cl4Hs04+H. C14H6044-C,2HI20,2 (sugar). C|4H604+H2. C14H80,+ClsHl2Ol2. ' Cl4H.04+0+HO. C14HA+C2H30. 1 The aldehyde of caprinic acid. i Oil of spiraea (see Acids). 564 ON VOLATILE OR ESSENTIAL OILS. Adulterations and Tests. Essential oils are liable to be adulterated with fixed oils, with alcohol, and with other and cheaper essential oils. The mode of detecting these adulte- rations is as follows :— With Fixed Oils.—Oils thus adulterated leave upon bibulous paper a greasy spot, which remains even after long-continued heating over the flame of a lamp. Sometimes, owing to the essential oil being partially resinified, it leaves a mark which is devoid of transparency and possesses a peculiar gloss, while the stain from a fixed oil is transparent, and, when completely absorbed by the paper, devoid of a distinct gloss—besides, when soaked in alcohol and heated, the resinous stain can be wiped off, while the fatty stain cannot be removed. When a mixture of volatile and fixed oils is distilled with water, the volatile oil passes over while the fixed oil remains, and may be saponified with alkali. On dissolving the volatile oil in strong alcohol, in the proportion indicated in the syllabus, the greater part of the fixed oil remains undissolved. Small proportions of fixed oils may escape detection,' if soluble to *any extent in alcohol, and this difficulty is increased by the in- creased solubility of the fixed oils from admixture with essential oils. With Alcohol.—When the proportion of alcohol is considerable, the greater part of it may be extracted by water, the liquid becoming turbid, and the oil finally separating. When the quantity of the adulteration is small, it is better to shake it with olive oil, which dissolves the essential oil, and separates the alcohol in a layer floating on the surface. The quantity of alcohol is shown approximately by shaking the adulterated oil with an equal bulk of water in a minim measure or test-tube graduated for the pur- pose, and observing the diminution of its volume. Into a graduated tube, two-thirds filled with the oil, some pieces of chloride of calcium may be in- troduced, and a gentle heat applied for a few minutes with agitation. If no alcohol is present, the lumps of chloride of calcium appear unaltered on cooling ; if it contains alcohol, they will show a disposition to coalesce, and if it is in considerable proportion, a fluid layer will separate at the bottom, on which the oil will float. This is especially applicable to oil of lemon, of which 480 grains, mixed with 15 of alcohol, liquefies 3 grains of chloride of calcium. The suspected oil being agitated with dry acetate of potassa, if dissolved, on mixture with sulphuric acid, and heating, the odor of acetic ether is evolved, recognizable by its odor. Nitric acid, added to oil of bitter almonds, will only give off nitrous fumes in case of its adulteration with alcohol. With other Essential Oils.—One means of detecting these common adul- terations is by rubbing a small quantity upon the hand and noticing the odor before and after it is dried, or in setting fire to a small portion and blowing it out again, when the foreign odor may generally be perceived. If, on agitating the suspected oil with its own bulk of strong alcohol, it is not completely dissolved, probably oil of turpentine, or some other sparingly soluble oil, is present. Most carbohydrogens require over 10 parts of alco- hol, of .85 sp. gr., to dissolve them. Oil of savine is soluble in 2 parts of alcohol of this strength, which affords a means of detecting its adulteration by oil of turpentine. Oils of copaiva, cubebs, and the empyreumatic oils, are recognized by the absence of a violent fulminating reaction with iodine. The natural carbohydrogens prevent the reaction of the oxygenated oils ADULTERATIONS AND TESTS. 565 with a proportionate amount of nitroprusside of copper which must, there- fore, be used in very small quantity only. This reagent is prepared, according to Wittstein, by the following pro- cess : 10 ounces nitric acid, sp. gr. 1.20 is stirred into 4 ounces powdered ferrocyanuret of potassium, afterwards digested on a water bath until the filtered solution is precipitated with a slate color by a protosalt of iron ; the liquid is then diluted with twice its measure of water, neutralized with carbonate of soda, heated to the boiling point, filtered, and precipitated with sulphate of copper ; the precipitate is well washed and dried at a moderate heat. The color imparted to oxygenated oils, so far as examined, is character- istic and striking : For ol. cajeputi viride, olive green ; ol. caryoph., pink, violet, cherry red, reddish brown, opaque ; ol. cassia?, hyacinthine, deep brown, red ; ol. chenopodii, instantly brown, red ; ol. millefolii, pale blue, dark green; ol. monardae, colorless, green, brown, black, ol. myrciae, greenish, greenish-brown to brown-black. The others are yellow or brown, combined with yellow and red. (See " Proceed. Am. Pharm. Association," 1858, p. 344.) Nitric acid reacts energetically with but few volatile oils, unless heat be applied, but oxidizes them slowly. The biliary essential oils are converted into a hard or brittle resin, with the exception of oleum sabinae, which yields merely a liquid of about the consistence of olive oil. The oxygenated oils, on the other hand, are usually converted into a thick liquid or soft resinous mass; ol. absinthii, aurantii corticis, calami, cari, caryophylli, cassiae, matri- cariae, menthae crispae, origani vulgaris, petroselini and Valeriana? yield with this reagent, without the application of heat, hard and even brittle resin, in some instances with the evolution of vapors of N04. Sulphuric acid produces with but few volatile oils any characteristic reaction ; it usually renders them more consistent; but converts them very rarely into a dark resin ; the color of the acid, after the reaction has ceased, is generally of various shades of brown, or reddish-brown. The color of the following oils is finally changed to blue or violet by S03, ol. absinthii, caryophylli, and Valeriana?; to olive-green, ol. cinnamomi Chinens.; to blood-red, ol. anisi stellati, origani vulg., and petroselini; to carmine red or purple, ol. cinnamomi Ceylon, cumini, foeniculi, majorana?, salvia?, serpylli, and th/mi. The sulphuric acid turns to a pure red, blood-red, or purple color, with ol. anisi, anisi stellati, calami, cassiae, foeniculi, macidis and serpylli. Iodine applied in fine powder reacts very differently with the various essential oils, but this reaction is greatly modified by their age, being gene- rally less energetic in proportion to their resinification and with the diminu- tion of temperature, so that different results are obtained at our medium summer heat, and in winter at the moderate temperature at which our rooms are usually maintained. The binary oils are fulminating in a high degree with iodine, except ol. copaiba?, cubebae and elemi, which are but moderately acted upon. Of the oxygenated oils, those of the Aurantiaceae fulminate with iodine; also ol. lavandulae, macidis, origani vulg., petroselini and spicae. Ethereal solution of iodine exerts, as a general rule, a less powerful ac- tion upon the volatile oils than iodine in substance. Bromine fulminates with many oils most violently; the reaction is fre- quently so forcible as to throw out of the vessel most of its contents. An ethereal solution of bromine is better adapted for this purpose, because the reaction with the oils is sufficiently slow to notice any changes in their color 566 "* ON VOLATILE OR ESSENTIAL OILS. and consistency. (See "Proc. Am. Ph. Ass.," 1858, p. 344, and 1859, p. 338, where this subject is fully treated of by Prof. J. M. Maisch.) In examining volatile oils for their purity, it is advisable to take into consideration all their physical properties and their behavior with various reagents; the greater or smaller amount of either stear- opten or elseopten will modify, to a certain extent, their physical and chemical properties. To restore old and resinified volatile oils Curieux recommends a strong solution of borax, which is mixed with animal charcoal, and then agitated with the oil; the latter separates free from resin, and with the original odor. For large quantities the simplest process is, probably, redistillation with water, and sometimes with a little alkali. A process successfully applied by Charles Bullock, of Philadelphia, to oil of lemon consisted of mixing the oil with a solution of per- manganate of potassa, in the proportion of an ounce of the salt to eight ounces of water; this quantity is sufficient for four pounds of the oil. The mixed oil and solution being agitated together for a long time, the oil was decanted, mixed with fresh water, and warmed gently till it floated perfectly clear on the surface. Carbo-Hydrogen Essential Oils. The most simple essential oils are those which consist of carbon and hydrogen alone. Some of these are frequently associated with the oxygenated essential oils. The coniferse, leguminosa?, and piperacea? yield nearly all that are known. Although these are so similar in composition, they are as dissimilar in many of their properties as they are unlike the members of the oxygenated group. As already stated, when absolutely pure and exposed to no oxidizing influences, they are quite inodorous, and it is impossible in this state to distinguish oil of lemon from oil of turpentine, or oil of juniper from oil of neroli. As soon as they are exposed to ordinary external influences, however, they develop their characteristic odors and become less limpid and free from color. Left in contact with about an equal volume of alcohol and one part of nitric acid they gradually absorb water and separate an indifferent crystallizable hydrate, which has been called terpin. By nitric acid they are converted into hard resins, and sulphuric acid colors them, mostly of various shades of red; nearly all fulminate with iodine, or like the oils of cubebs and elemi evolve at least vapors. With hydrochloric acid gas they yield either solid or liquid compounds. As a class, they are the least soluble in alcohol and in water, and have the lowest specific gravity. Several of them are among the most useful of vegetable stimulants. The composition of the carbo-hydrogen essential oils is C20H16, or C10H8, or some multiple of C5H4; they are therefore called terebenes or camphenes, and may be regarded as the radical of camphor, as the following table shows:— Camphene . . . C20HI6. Camphor, from Camphora Borneo camphor . . C20H16-f-2HO. officinarum . . . C20H16Or Terpin (Juniper camphor) C20Hlt.-j-4H0. Camphoric acid . . C^H^. Lemon camphor . . C^H^-i-6HO. CARBO-HYDROGEN essential oils. 567 So far as examined, these carbo-hydrogens are not altered in appear- ance on being boiled with nitro-prusside of copper, a reagent before adverted to as of much interest in connection with the oxygenated essential oils; they even have the power to prevent a certain quan- tity of this body from acting on the oxygenated oils. Notwithstanding their isomerism, their odor, boiling point, and optical behavior vary considerably. It is frequently only by the last two means that we are enabled to conclude on the purity of these volatile oils. Berthe- lot has shown that by the fractional distillation of ordinary oil of turpentine different portions may be obtained, being alike in odor and composition, but having a somewhat different boiling point, deviating polarized light with a different degree and entering with hydrochloric acid into combinations of a slightly different character. The following syllabus contains those binary oils which are obtained as such directly from the plants, or merely by a simple rectification of the crude product. Syllabus of Plants yielding Carbo-Hydrogen Essential Oils. Dipteraceae. Dryobalanops camphora, Borneo camphor tree. In the cavities of the trunk. Terebinthaceae. Amyris elemifera, Elemi tree— oleoresin. Balsamodendron myrrha, myrrh —gum resin. Boswellia serrata, East India Olibanum tree—gum resin. Hedwigia balsamifera, Mountain balsam—oleoresin. Leguminosae. Copaifera (various species)— oleoresin. Piperaceas. Piper cubeba, cubeb—fruit. Piper nigra, black pepper—fruit. Conifer ae. Abies canadensis, hemlock spruce fir—boughs. Juniperus communis, juniper— fruit, tops and wood. Juniperus sabina, savin—leaves. Oleum camphorae, sp. gr. .92 to .945 ; the natural oil contains camphors ; solid with HC1. 01. elemi; yield 13 per cent. ; colorless; sp. gr. .852 ; odor agreeable terebinthinate ; with HC1 a liquid and solid compound. 01. myrrhae ; yield 2 to 2] per cent. ; colorless or yel- lowish ; taste aromatic camphoraceous ; used in toothache. 01. Olibani; yield 4 to 5 per cent.; colorless ; sp. gr. .866 ; odor terebinthinate ; contains very little 0; explodes when heated with N03. 01. Hedwigiae ; yield 11 per cent.; yellowish ; odor terebinthinate; by N03 flesh-colored and carmine. 01. Copaibse ; yield 40 to 80 per cent. ; colorless ; sp. gr. .87 to .91; with 20 to 30 p. alcohol a tur- bid solution; C20H|6+2HC1 solid; yields terpin slowly ; fulminates slightly with I. 01. cubebae ; yield 5 to 15.5 per cent. ; colorless ; sp. gr. .92 to .93; with 27 alcohol opalescent; with I yellow and gray vapors; by S03 brown- red. 01. Piperis nigrse; yield 1 to 3 per cent. ; sp. gr. .86 to .89 ; no solid compound with HC1. Oil of hemlock or spruce ; yield 1 oz. per 8 lb. See "Am. Journ. Ph.," 1859, 29. 01. Juuiperi; yield of fruit \ to 1\ per cent. ; color- less ; sp. gr. .85 to .91; 3C20Hl?-f2HCl is liquid ; yields terpin very slowly; with 12 p. alcohol turbid ; very fulminating with I. 01. sabinae; yield 1 to 5 per cent.; colorless ; sp. gr. .89 to .94; soluble in 2 p. alcohol, with more opalescent; compound with HC1 not solid ; yields terpin after several months ; with N05 thin bal- sam ; with I very fulminating. 568 ON VOLATILE OR ESSENTIAL OILS. Juniperus Virginiana, Red cedar 01. Juniperi Virginianae ; colorless ; soluble in 1 p. —leaves. alcohol, turbid with 2.] p. alcohol and more ; dissolves I without reaction. Pinus pumilio, Mountain pine— 01. templinum ; colorless or pale yellow; sp. gr. oleoresin. -85 ; turbid with 10 p. alcohol. Pinus palustris and other species 01. terebinthinae ; colorless ; sp. gr. .86 to .90 ; clear of pine—oleoresin. solution with 10 to 12 parts alcohol; fulminates violently with I; with HC1 a solid and liquid compound. The leaves of various species of Pinus yield a volatile oil containing C20Hl6 and oxygenated compounds. Oxygenated Oils. Besides carbon and hydrogen, these essential oils contain oxygen, either in both the elaeopten and stearopten or only in the latter. The elseopten is usually a carbohydrogen, and then mostly of the compo- sition C20H16; it is but rare that the stearopten, or camphor as it has been called, as in the case of oil of rose, is a carbo-hydrogen. Many important members of this class are obtained from the natural fami- lies Umbelliferae, Labiatse, Lauracese, and Compositae, but they are very widely diffused in other divisions of the vegetable kingdom. In some instances oils belonging to different groups are obtained from different parts of the same plant, thus the oils obtained by distilling the oleoresinous exudations of the Conifers are carbo-hydrogens, while the leaves and young branches by distillation with water frequently yield different volatile oils containing oxygen; the oils from the leaves, bark, and fruit of several species of Eosacea? contain hydro- cyanic acid, and possess decidedly sedative and even poisonous pro- perties, while the flowers of the same plants and all parts of the her- baceous Eosacea? are destitute of any volatile nitrogenized principle. Of the complex series derived chiefly from the Cruciferse, and con- taining sulphur, one only, that of garlic, numbers oxygen among its elements. Only three of the oxygenated oils, those of cinnamon, gaultheria, and bitter almond, have as yet been produced by chemical processes from other vegetable principles. This extraordinary attain- ment of modern chemistry leads to the inference that many others of this class are capable of artificial production. Being composed of two or more different liquids, their formulas should give the composition of these compounds; many, however, are little known. The empirical formulae will never convey a correct idea of the composition of these oils, inasmuch as each individual oil varies much when obtained from fresh or dried plants, from plants grown in a rich or poor soil, and even collected in different seasons; the stearopten, the oxygenated part, varies so much in quantity or pro- portion as to sensibly affect the specific gravity, the boiling point as well as the freezing and melting point; all these characters, when given of an oil, belong to a particular one, and may be modified in another oil of like purity. With the action of reagents, for the same reasons, there are certain final results, nearly alike for the same pure oil, differing though it may in the proportion of its components, or in the degree of its oxi- oxygenated oils. 569 dation; the intermediate changes by a reagent from the pure rectified oil to the final result, which are sometimes interesting and character- istic, may be lost or greatly modified on account of the resinification. The oxygenated volatile oils, though heavier than the carbo-hydro- gens, are, with a few exceptions, lighter than water; their specific gravity ranges from .82 to 1.09. (See Chemical History, &c.) The oxygenated oils, like the carbo-hydrogens, are mostly local and general stimulants : some of them are of the kind called carminatives, used to expel wind in colic; others are stomachics, promoters of digestion; a few, from their influence upon the nervous centres, rank as antispasmodics. Not a few are chiefly valued as perfumes, whether for the toilet or in pharmacy. Most of the spices, as nutmeg, mace, pimento, cloves, contain oxy- genated oils, which, in connection with peculiar camphoraceous or resinous ingredients, give them their value as condiments or seasoners. The herbs used in soups and stuffings, and rendering savory many otherwise tasteless dishes, all contain essential oils, and most of them of this series. It will be observed that none of the essential oils rank as narcotics, except in overdoses, though those of camphor, valerian, serpentaria, &c., as before stated, are used as cerebro-spinal stimulants and antispasmodics; the peculiar oil of tea (Thea Bohea) is probably concerned in producing its agreeable exhilarant effects. As a class of essential oils, the oxygenated are the most soluble in alcohol and water, and enter into the Aquas (Medicates) and Spiritus introduced among the Galenical preparations. In the following syllabus, all the oxygenated oils will be found under the heads of their respective plants, arranged in systematio order, together with their most striking characteristics and uses. 570 ON VOLATILE OR ESSENTIAL OILS. Syllabus of Plants Yielding Oxygenated Oils, &c. (Mostly dicotyledons, but few monocotyledons.) Dicotyledons. Ranunculaceae. Nigella sativa—small fennel flower Magnoliaceae. Drimys Winteri—Winter's bark Illicium anisatum—Star anise Resedaceae. Reseda odorata—Mignonette Violaceie. Viola odorata—Sweet violet Tiliacese. Tilia Eurppaea—European linden Aurantiacese. Citrus aurantium—Sweet orange " limetta—Bergamot lemon " limonum—Lemon " lumia " medica—Citron " vulgaris—Seville orange seed bark seed flowers flowers 16 oz. yield 4 scr. ; pure oil is opalescent; dissolves in 30 p. ale. ; N05 with heat and S03 color violet. 16 oz. yield 10 to 20 grs. C20HI6 and C2nH1202; the latter solid below 50°, melts at 62°, boils at 430O. (See Umbelliferae.) Sold for oil of anise; yield 1.5 to 3.5 per cent. ; sp. gr. .97 to .98 ; soluble in 5 alcohol. Very minute; extracted by a fat oil for use in perfumery. Blue; delightful fragrance; yield very small; for the use in perfumery ex- tracted by a fixed oil. Camelliaceae. Thea Bohea.—Tea Geraniaceae. Pelargonium radula, Roseum Rutaceae. Diosma crenata—Buchu " crenullata, serratifolia flowers Yield exceedingly small; oil thin, color- less, very fragrant. leaves, The oil obtained from orange leaves is flowers, called essence de petit grain ; that from and the flowers of Citrus vulgaris is the real peel of oil of neroli, though probably the flowers fruit of other species are mixed with them before distillation ; oil from the peel is mostly C20H]6; all contain C20H18O2. Their sp gr. is between .82 and .90, and they all fulminate with iodine. Ol. aurantii for. yield from fresh flowers 2 to 4 per cent; soluble in 1 to 3 alco- hol, with more opalescent. Ol. aurantii corticis yield 2.8 per cent, from fresh peel; with 7 to 10 parts alcohol a slightly turbid solution. Ol. bergamottae yield 2 to 3 per cent.; solu- ble in half alcohol, with more opalescent. Ol. limonis yield 1.7 to 2.1 percent.; with 10 alcohol turbid. (See "Am. Journ. Phar." 1858, 136, and 1860, 543.) leaves Small proportion; lemon-yellow, light, congeals readily ; exhilarant; combined with theinia said to be diuretic and dia- phoretic. flowering Yields Turkish oil of geranium; distilled herb at Cannes and in Algeria ; resembles rose in odor; most species of Pelargonium are sweet scented. leaves leaves 16 oz. yield 51 to brown, diuretic. grains; yellowish- OXYGENATED OILS. 571 Gallipea cusparia—Angustura bark Ruta graveolens—Rue herb Leguminosae. Genista Canariensis—Canary rose- wood wood Rosaceae. Cydonia vulgaris—Quinoe- peel Rosa centifolia—Hundred-leaved petals rose Rosa sempervirens — Evergreen rose, and other species. Sanguisorba officinalis—Common root burnet Spiraea ulmaria lobata, filipendula, herb &c.—Meadow sweet Myrtaceae. Caryophyllus aromaticus—Cloves flower- buds Eugenia pimenta—Allspice fruit Melaleuca cajeputi—Cajeput leaves Myrtus communis—Common myr- leaves & tie flowers Myrcia acris—Sweet bay leaves Canellaceae. Canella alba—Canella, White cin- bark namon Crassulacese. Rhodiola rosea—Rose root root Umbelliferse. Anethum graveolens—Dill. fruit Angelica Archangelica—Angelica root Apium graveolens—Celery fruit Apium petroselinum—Parsley herb Athamantum aureoselinum— herb Mountain parsley Carum carui—Caraway fruit 16 oz. yield 7 to 23 grs. Is principally C20H20O2; stim. antispasmod. emmenagogue; yield from dry plant .34 per cent. ; sp. gr. .85 to .91; soluble in 1 alcohol, with more, flocculent. 80 lbs. yield from 9 to 16 drachms of oil. Oil of rhodium. 16 oz. yielded by expression 4 grs. ' 1001b rose leaves yield less than 3 dr.; sp. gr. .83 to .87 ; below 86© it as- sumes the consistence of butter ; the odor not altered by S03 ; with 100 al- cohol turbid ; the inodorous stearopten I is C8H16. Color blue; cordial. C20H16 and hydruret of salicyle Cl4H604; boiling point 380° ; sp. grav. 1.173. CgoHjg and caryophyllic acid C20H15O6; boils at 470O F.; yield 7.8 to 2.5 per cent. ; sp. gr. 1.03 to 1.06 ; soluble in 1 p. alcohol. (See "Am. Jour. Phar." 1862, 25.) Yield as much as 6 per cent.; compos. like oil cloves C20HI6 and C20H13O5. C2oHi6+2HO> green; sp. gr. .91° to .97; stimul. antispasm.; soluble in 1 part alcohol. ("Am. Jour. Phar." 1861, 545.) Very fragrant; lOOffi fresh leaves yield 2£ to 4£ oz. Sp. gr. near .97 ; little soluble in alcohol; contained in bay rum. (See "Amer. Jour. Phar." 1861, 296.) C20HI6 odor of cajeput, and oxygenated portions, perhaps caryophyllic acid; yield .57 per cent. lib yields 1 dr., substitute for oil of rho- dium. Carminative; soluble in 1440 parts of water, and all proportions of alcohol; sp. gr. .88 to .95 ; yield 1.5 to 6 per cent. 16 oz. yield £ to 1 drachm, contains CT0HsO2. Colorless or yellowish, agreeably aromatic. C0H16 and CI2H802. Herb yields f, the fruit 3 per cent. ; sp. gr. 1.02 to 1.14; soluble in 2£ to 3 p. alcohol; fulmin- ates with I. Occasionally used as di- uretic. C20H16 and little O; odor reminding of juniper; sp. gr. .843. C„0H16 and carvol C20HI4O2; yield 2.7 to 9 per cent. ; sp. gr. .90 to .97 ; soluble in 1 p. alcohol. Carminative. 572 ON VOLATILE OR ESSENTIAL OILS. Cicnta virosa—Water hemlock Coriandrum sativum—Coriander Cuminum cyminum—Cumin Daucus carota—Carrot Fceniculum vulgare—Fennel Galbanum officinale—Galbanum Imperatoria ostruthium—Master- wort Levisticum officinale—Lovage Osmorhiza longitylis — Sweet cicely Phellandrium aquaticum—Water dropwort Pimpinella anisum—Anise " saxifraga " nigra Caprifoliaceae. Sambucus nigra—Common elder Valerianeai. Valeriana officinalis—Valerian Compositor. Achillea millefolium—Yarrow Anthemis nobilis — English cha- momile Arnica montana—Arnica Artemisia absinthium ■ wood • Worm- fruit root fruit' root flowers root herb and flowers flowers flowers root Artemisia dracunculus—Tarragon " contra, Judaica and san- tonica (Semen contra, S. cynae) Dahlia pinnata—Dahlia Identical with oil of cumin seed. 16 oz. yield £ to 1 dr., sp. gr. .85 ; C20H,a andC20Hl8O2. Cymol C20H14and cuminol C20HuO2; yield 1.2 to 3.9 ; sp. gr. .90 to .97 ; soluble in 3 p. alcohol; acrid. 16 oz. yield 30 grs.; diuretic, stimulant. Composition like oil of anise ; but C20H12O2 still liquid at 140, boils at 440O; yield 2 to 6 per cent. ; sp. gr. .89 to 1.—; soluble in 2 to 4 p. alcohol. Taste and smell like resin, camphorous; sp. gr. .912; used internally and ex- ternally in ointments, &c. C„0H16 and hydrur. angelyle C10H8O2; boiling commences at 335°; taste aroma- tic, burning. Yield about .25 per cent. Has the odor and taste of anise ; probably identical with oil of anise. 16 oz. yield from 2 scr. to 2 dr.; golden yellow; taste sweetish, afterwards burning. Like oil of star anise (see Magnoliaceae); yield 1.4-3 per cent. ; sp. gr. .97-1 ; soluble in 5 alcohol. Golden yellow, thin ; odor like parsley, not agreeable ; taste bitter acrid. Light blue, changing to green ; otherwise like former. Yield small; thick, mild stimulant. Borneen C20H16 and valerol C12H10O2; the latter oxidizes in the air to a resin and valerianic acid ; antispasmodic; yield .35 to 1.8 ; sp. gr. .87 to .97 ; soluble in 1 alcohol. (See "Am. J. Pharm.," 1859, p. 414; 1862, p. 329.) 16 oz. yield 5 to 13 grs.; sp. gr. .9 ; color blue or deep green; tonic and anti- spasm. 16 oz. yield 22 to 55 grs.; spec. gr. .908; hydrur. angelyle C10H8O2, angelicic acid C ,0H8O4 and C20Hlti. Color blue or green. lib yellow yields about 3 grs.; sp. gr. .90; butyraceous ; yields 4 scruples ; yellow- ish ; odor reminding of cloves; sp. gr. .987 by NOs grass-green. herb and Comp. C20H1602: Crude oil brownish-green ; flowers yield 4 to 1.1 per cent. ; soluble in 1 p. alcohol; sp. gr. .88 to .97. herb Composition like oil anise, C20H)2O2 liquid; boils at 400O. flower Spec. grav. .91 to .97 ; dissolves in an buds equal part of alcohol, not anthelmintic ; bitter; Cl8H,302 (?). Tubers Strong odor; sweetish, burning taste; when kept with water, it becomes hea- vier than it. OXYGENATED OILS. 573 Erechthites weed hieracifolia—Fire- herb root flowers flower- ing herb herb Erigeron Canadense — Canadian fleabane Erigeron Philadelphicum—Phila- delphia fleabane Inula helenium—Elecampane Matricaria chamomilla — German chamomile Matricaria parthenium—Feverfew Osmitopsis astericoides — (Cape of Good Hope) Tanacetum vulgare—Tansy Ericaceae. Gaultheria procumbens—Winter- green Ledum palustre—Labrador tea Jasminese. Jasminum grandiflorum and fra- grans—Jessamine Verbenacese. Aloysia citriodora—Lemon-scent- ed verbena Labiatas. Hedeoma pulegioides — Penny- royal Hyssopus officinalis—Hyssop Lavandula spica—Spike lavender|herb and flowers leaves flowers herb Lavandula vera—True lavender Marrubium vulgare—Horehound Melissa officinalis—Lemon balm Mentha aquatica—Watermint herb and flowers herb Soluble in 9 p. alcohol; occurs sometimes in American oil of peppermint. (See Stearns' paper in "Proc. Amer. Ph. Ass.," 1858; also "Am. Jour. Ph.," 1860, p. 105. Spec. grav. .845. Anti-haemorrhagic. Yield very small. ■ " 16 oz. yield from | to one dr. Resembles oil of anthemis ; cslor blue; yields 4 to 9 per cent. ; 5C20HI64-6HO ; sp. gr. .92 to .94; soluble in 8 to 10 p. alcohol. 8 per cent, from fresh herb; C20H|6 and C2oHi6°2 ; greenish or straw yellow; light, odor strong camphoraceous. Greenish-yellow; odor reminding of cam- phor and cajeput; taste burning, acrid ; sp. gr. .931 ; C20H|6 and C20H„O2. Yellow or greenish, taste warm, bitter; the oil from the flowers has an acid reaction; yield .5 to .8 per cent.; sp. gr. .91 to .95 ; soluble in 1 p. alcohol. Comp. C20H]6 and methylsalycic acid Ci6H806; boiling point 412°. 1£ per cent. ; C20HI6 and oxygenated oil; pale-yellow; odor and taste aromatic, hot. Yield very small; extracted by a fixed oil, from which alcohol takes it up; very fragrant; used in perfumery. Small proportion; very fragrant; in com- merce usually substituted by lemon- grass oil. Carminative, emmenag., spec. grav. .948. Odor persist, arom. ; taste hot, camphor's ; yield 1 to If per cent.; sp. gr. .89 to .98; soluble in 1 to 4 p. alcohol, with more opalescent. Oleum spicae, similar to and sold for cheap oil of lavender; that usually kept is fictitious, princ. turpentine; the fresh plant yields .8 to 1.75 per cent. ; sp. gr. .81 to .98 ; soluble in 1 p. alcohol; fulminates with iodine. C20H16O2 and C15H1402; the lightest oil from selected flowers is most fragrant; yield 3 to 4.7 per cent. ; sp. gr. .87 to' .95 ; soluble in 1 p. alcohol; fulminates with iodine. Very small quantity. Used for flavoring medicines, also in per- fumery ; yield .04 to .3 per cent. ; sp. gr. .85 to .97 ; soluble in 5 to 6 p. alco- hol. This and other species of mentha are often mixed with peppermint in distilling the oil; yields nearly 1 scr. to the pound. 574 ON VOLATILE OR ESSENTIAL OILS. Mentha crispa—Curled-leaved mint Mentha piperita—Peppermint Mentha pulegium—Europ. penny- royal Mentha viridis—Spearmint Monarda punctata—Horsemint Nepeta cataria—Catnep " citriodorata — Lemon cat- mint Ocymum basilicum—Sweet basil Origanum creticum—Spanish hop Origanum majorana—Sweet mar- joram Origanum vulgare—Origanum Rosmarinus officinalis—Rosemary Salvia officinalis—Sage Satureja hortensis—Summer sa- vory Thymus serpyllum—Lemon thyme Thymus vulgaris—Garden thyme Borraginac.ese. Heliotropium peruvianum and grandiflorum—Heliotrope Convolvulaceae. Convolvulus scoparius and flori- bundus—Rosewood herb herb and seeds flowering herb flowers Not so cooling as peppermint; freezing in the cold; yield 1 to 2.3 per cent.; sp. gr. .87 to .97 ; soluble in 1 p. alcohol. C,0H20O2 and menthen C20H18; boiling point 365°; best distilled by steam ; yield .8 to 1.3 per cent. ; sp. gr. .84 to .97 ; soluble in 1 to 3 p. alcohol: more, opalescent; see Stearns' paper in " Proc. Am. Ph. Ass.," 1858, and "Am. Journ. Ph.," 1860, 105. C20HIB and C20Hl6O2 ; 1001b fresh herb yield rather less than lib ; sp. gr. .927 ; boils at 3950. Spec. grav. .91; C32H280 ? (Kane); boiling point 320O ; 10016 fresh herb yield 3 oz.; soluble in less than 1 p. alcohol. C0H21O and thymol C20H14O2 ; solid at 40° F; rubefacient. 16 oz. fresh herb yield 9 grs.; carminative. 16 oz. yield 7. Sandarac. From Juniperus communis in warmer cli- mates, and from Thuja arti- culata ; sp. gr. 1.05 to 1.09 ; small grains, pale yellow, transparent; faint odor. Composition and Properties. Soft indifferent resin. Copaivic acid C40H30O4; crystallizable from solution in petroleum. Acid resin soluble in cold alcohol. Indifferent resin C40H33O, cryst. from hot alcohol, sol. 2 per cent, volatile oil. 1. Resin, soft, fusible in water-bath, sol. in 72 per cent, alcohol, and oil of turpentine, C40H32O5. 2. Resin, soft, fusible below 2120 F., sol. in alcohol, ether, and oil of tur- pentine, isomeric with No. 1. 3. Resin, white, not so readily fusible, soluble in alcohol and ether, C40H31O3. 4. Resin, white, still less fusible, sol. in alcohol, solution of potassa, insol. in alcohol and ether. 5. Resin, insol. in all menstrua, C40H31O2. Acid, C40H28O6, crystallizes in rhombic prisms. Convolvulin, rhodeoretin, C42H33Oa Neutral resin soluble in alkalies, asso- ciated with chlorophylle. Different resins, wax, gluten, coloring matter. One resin (C40H31O6) dissolving easily, and another with difficulty in cold alcohol—a third insoluble in cold al- cohol, but crystallizes from hot alco- holic solution (C45H3504). Dammarane = C40H3)O6 ; soluble only in absolute alcohol and oil of turpentine. 57 per cent, dammaric acid, C40H30O6, soluble in alcohol. Resin soluble in cold alcohol. Dammarine insoluble in cold alcohol. 75 per cent. C40H31O6, easily soluble in alcohol. C40H31O5, not easily soluble in alcohol. C^HjoOg, soluble in boiling alcohol. Stimulant, less active than the oil. Used in var- nishes. See page 283 and Neut. princip. Narcotic. See Extracta. In varnishes, cements, &c. Acrid, cathar- tic,vesicant, &c. Obso- lete. In varnishes. do. 584 ON VOLATILE OR ESSENTIAL OILS. Name, Origin, &c. Composition and Properties. Uses. Resina. From Terebinthina. Fossil Resins. Succinum. Amber; sp. gr. 1.065 to 1.070 ; colorless to deep yellow ; tasteless ; aro-matic odor when heated. Asphaltum. Colopholic acid, taken up by cold 70 per cent, alcohol. Pinic, amorphous silvic acid, taken up by cold alcohol of 70 per cent. Silvic acid, C40H30O4, crystallizes from hot alcohol. Two resins, volatile oil, succinic acid, and bitumen, by action of NG5 artifi-cial musk. Most probably the product of oxidation of oleum petrae. Many bituminous resins are mixtures of asphaltum and petroleum. In plasters, soaps, ce-ments, &c. For ol. suc-cini, var-nishes, &c. In varnishes, roofing, &c. II. Natural Oleoresins. Name, Origin, &c. Composition and Properties. Uses. Terebinthacex. Elemi. From Amyris elemi- 60 per cent, acid resin sol. in alcohol, Stim. in oint- fera and Zeylanica ; sp. gr. 20 per cent, indifferent resin crystal- ments. 1.055; yellowish white; lizing from sol. in hot alcohol. fused at 245Q. 10 to 13 per cent, volatile oil. Cyprian turpentine. From Volatile oil. Stimulating. Pistacia terebinthus. The Resin soluble in cold alcohol. turpentine of the ancients. Soft resin insoluble in cold alcohol. Opaque, very thick, green- ish-yellow ; odor of fennel. Leguminosx. Copaiba. Sp. gr. .916 to .997. 31 to 80 per cent, volatile oil. Diuretic, From various species of 1.6 per cent, soft brown resin. stimulant. Copaifera. Copaivic acid, see Resins Proper. Conifer x. Terebinthina. From Pinus About 17 per cent, volatile oil. Stim. emmen- palustris, and other species Resina U. S. P. agogue. of Pinus ; gray, bitter, not transparent. Terebinthina Gallica. French Like the foregoing. do. or Bordeaux turpentine. The resin contains pimaric acid C40H30O4, Thin, yellowish, pellucid. which, when heated in alcohol, be-comes silvic acid. Terebinthina Veneta. From About 20 per cent, volatile oil. In stimulat- Larix Europaea. Venice tur- Resins and succinic acid. ing exter- pentine ; nearly colorless, nal reme- transparent. dies. Terebinthina Canadensis. 40 per cent, resin sol. in alcohol. Cement in From Abies balsamea. Bal- 33.4 sub resin sol. in alcohol with diffi- microscopy. sam of fir. culty. 18.6 per cent, volatile oil. Strasburg turpentine, Tere- 35 per cent, volatile oil. Stimulant. binthina Argentoratensis. Abietinic acid, abietin, indifferent resin, From Abies pectinata ; pale succinic acid. yellow, transparent, agreea- ble odor. Common olibanum. From Volatile oil. Stimulating; Pinus Abies. Resin fusible at 2120. for fumiga- « « u 2930. tions. RESINS. III. Gum Resins. 585 Name, Origin, &c. Composition and Properties. Guttiferx. Gambogia. From Stalagmitis cambogioides and several species of Garcinia. Brown or reddish yellow. Terebinthacex. Myrrha. From Balsamoden- dron myrrha; red-brown ; semi-transparent. Bdellium. From Balsamo- dendron Africanum ; red- ish-gray; semi-transparent. Olibanum. From Boswellia serrata and an Amyris (?) yellowish; semi-transpa- rent. Umbelliferx. Galbanum. From Bubon gal- banum, Ferula ferulago and Galbanum ; in grains or cakes ; nearly opaque. Assafoetida. From Ferula assafoetida. Sagapennm. From Ferula Persica. Ammoniacum. From Dorema ammonium ; sp. gr. 1.207 ; yellow, white internally. Opopanax. From Pastinaca opopanax ; reddish; inter- nally yellow and red mar- bled. Asclepiadex. Scammonium, Smyrna. From Periploca secamone ? Convolvulacex. Scammonium, Aleppo. From Convolvulus scammonia. 19.5 per cent. gum. 80 per cent, gambogic acid. 40.81 per cent., Arabin. 44.76 per cent, resin. 2.18 per cent, volatile oil. 59 resin, C40H31O5,9.2 gum, 30.6bassorin and volatile oil. 4 per cent. (Stenhouse) volatile oil, gum at least 2 resins, one of which = CjnH,,Ofi. 66.86 per cent, resin, C40H27O7. 19.28 to 27.3 per cent. gum. 1.3 per cent, mucilage. 6.34 per cent, volatile oil. 26 per cent, gum, 4.6 per cent, sulphu- retted volatile oil, 47.2 to 66 per cent. resin, 11.6 per cent, bassorin, malates, acetates, sulphates, and phosphates. 50 per cent, resin, 32 per cent, gum, 3.7 per cent, sulphuretted volatile oil, 3.48 mucilage. 22 per cent. gum. 72 per cent, resin, C40H24O8. 42 per cent, resin 33 per cent ~ 4 ! per cent. gum. per cent, starch, 4 extractive, cent, sulphuretted vol. oil. 6 per An adulterated resin of Convolvulus scammonia ? Convolvulin, resin, wax, extractive, gum, sugar, starch. Commercial ar- ticle from 5 to 80 per cent, resin. Powerful ca- thartic. Yellow water color. Astringent & emmena- gogue. Obsolete. For fumiga tion. Stim., anti- spasmodic. Antispasmo- dic. Stim. like as- safoet. Stim. expec- torant. Antispasmo- dic. Obso- lete. Cathartic ? Cathartic. 586 ON VOLATILE OR ESSENTIAL OILS. TV. Balsams. (Containing Bz or Cin.) Name, Origin, &c. Styracere. Benzoinum. From Styrax benzoin ; sp. gr. 1.063. Styrax Calamita. From Sty- rax officinalis ; grains 01 masses ; blackish-gray. Leguminosx. Balsamum Peruvianum. Sp. gr. 1.14 to 1.16; from Myro- spermum Peruiferum. White Peruvian Balsam. From the fruit and seeds of the former by expression. Balsamum tolutatum. From Myrospermum toluiferum. Composition and Properties. Balsamineoz. Styrax. Semifluid juice Liquidambar orientale.1 of Gum wax, semifluid juice of Liquidambar styraciflua. Benzoic acid, Cl4H604, average 15 per cent. ; sometimes mixed with more or less cinnamic acid. a. Resin, C70H42O14, soluble in ether, not in KO,C02. b. Resin, C30H20O5, soluble in KOC02,uot in ether. c. Resin, C40H22O9, soluble in alcohol, not in ether. Benzoic acid, volatile oil, resins. Cinnamic acid, CI3H804, 6.94 per cent. Oil or cinnameine, 69 per cent. Styracine (metacinnameine) crystallizes in prisms. 23.1 per cent, resin, C^H^Oy. Not fully analyzed, myroxocarpin C48H35 06 ; crystallizable, very . indifferent resin. Resin, 88 per cent. Cinnamic acid, 12 per cent. Volatile oil, 0.2 per cent. Cinnamic acid; styrol (cinnamen) C16H8 Styracine C18H90,C]SH703. Cinnameine, C14H70,C18H703. 2 resins. Cinnamic acid. (?) Styracine. (?) Resin. (?) As an expec- torant and stimulant, externally. For fumiga- tions ; rare- ly used here. Stimulating expectorant. Similar to for- mer. Stimulating expectorant. do. Little used as yet. (See Syrups.) REMARKS ON THE RESINS, OLEORESINS AND BALSAMS. As shown in the syllabus, most of the resins proper are used exclu- sively in varnishes, and in the various modifications of stimulating and rubefacient applications. Amber is employed in medicine exclusively for the products of its decomposition. Oil of amber produced from it by distillation is a powerful rubefacient, with antispasmodic effects. Guaiacum may be classed as a resin, though, owing to the presence of a peculiar acid somewhat resembling benzoic and cinnamic, it may oe entitled to a place among balsams, should that group be extended to embrace a wider range of resinous substances. Eecent investiga- tions of Kosmann show it to be a glucoside, splitting with acids into glucose and guaiaretin. Burgundy pitch and the so called hemlock gum (Pix Canadensis) are well known ingredients of strengthening and rubefacient plasters, which will be considered under the appropriate head. Elemi is a popular substitute for common resin in an unofficinal ointment much prescribed by surgeons. 1 According to Hanbury, London Pharm. Journ., 1857. RESINS. 587 Of the oleoresins, the various turpentines differ in their proportion of resin to oil and their consequent consistence. White turpentine of commerce, though exuding from the tree in a liquid form, is always found nearly or quite solid, while balsam of fir and Venice turpentine continue more or less fluid at ordinary temperature. The former of these is much used for mounting objects for the microscope, and for cementing ambrotypes upon glass, its perfect transparency and great adhesiveness adapting it to these uses. The latter is perhaps rarely met with in our commerce, being substituted by a factitious article, said to be composed of about 2-i lbs. of resin to the gallon of oil of turpentine. The genuine is esteemed as a useful ingredient in the finest qualities of sealing-wax. Copaiva, which is very commonly called balsam copaiva, is highly esteemed for its stimulating effects on the mucous surfaces; it is vari- ously combined with mucilage or with alkali in prescriptions mentioned under the appropriate head, and is prescribed in the Pharmacopoeia in the form of pill mass to be made with magnesia. (See Pilules) Most of the gum resins are possessed of decided medicinal effects; ammoniac, benzoin and tolu, are chiefly used as stimulating expecto- rants. Assafoetida, galbanum and sagapenum (the latter almost obso- lete), are distinguished by powerful effects on the nervous system. Myrrh is peculiarly adapted to the relaxed conditions of the system, consequent on pulmonary and uterine affections ; it is well suited to combinations with iron, and is directed in several emmenagogue pills, and in the officinal Mistura ferri composita. Among the gum resins we have two drastic cathartics, gamboge and scammony; and among the resins proper, podophyllin, resin of jalap, and euphorbium. Olibanum is almost exclusively used for fumigation, being employed alone and combined with cascarilla, and benzoin, as incense, in the ceremonies of the Eoman Catholic church. The balsams vary in their consistence. Benzoin is solid, hard, and brittle; Peruvian balsam (formerly called Myroxylon) is fluid; Tolu is intermediate, being a very soft and readily fusible solid. The best storax is liquid. The true solid storax is little used, though directed in some of the old recipes. A fictitious article is met with in com- merce, which is sold for Styrax calamita, and is prepared at Trieste, by coarsely grinding the bark of the storax tree and mixing it with liquid storax. Our native "gum wax," as it has been called, has a very strong resemblance to storax, its consistence being semifluid, and its color and odor almost identical. Several products of scientific interest have been discovered by the analy- sis of the balsams. Styracin, the resin of styrax, is obtained by treating the balsam with caustic soda in solution, dissolving the residue in alcohol and ether, and crystallizing ; when acted on with nitric acid this yields the same products of decomposition as cinnamic acid. By distillation of the soda solution left in its preparation, styrole is obtained, while cinnamic acid is left in the residue. Styrol has the composition ClHHs, and styracin is a compound of cinnamic acid with oxide of cinnamyle, which bears the same relation to hydrated cinnamic acid as common ether does to acetic acid ; its aldehyde, C1SH802, is the oil of Chinese and Ceylon cinnamon. An analogous compound is cinnameine, or cinnamate of oxide of tolyle, the alcohol of 588 ON ORGANIC ACIDS. which is tolylic or benzalcohol, C14H8Oa, which by oxidation is first converted into its aldehyde oil of bitter almonds, C14H603, and subsequently into ben- zoic acid, C14H604. Styracine and cinnameine are therefore compound ethers, the former cinnamo-cinnamic, the latter cinnamo-tolylic ether. (See "Gregory's Chemistry.") Tests of Purity. Guaiacum.__Entirely soluble in 85 per cent, alcohol and less so in ether; gives a blue color to mucilage of gum Arabic, and milk, and turns green or blue with oxidizing agents. Maslich.—Softens by chewing, not entirely soluble in alcohol, wholly taken up by ether, chloroform and oil of turpentine, not by fixed oils. Copal.—Readily fusible, soluble in rectified oil of turpentine. See syl- labus for behavior to alcohol and ether. Jalap Resin and Scammonium.—By the action of alkalies under the in- fluence of heat, they are converted into convolvulic and rhodeoretinic acid, which is soluble in water. The solution of the resins in alkalies may be rendered slightly opalescent by sulphuric acid, but is not precipitated. Copaiva.__If adulterated with fixed oil, this may be detected by the stain produced on paper; pure copaiba, after the evaporation of the volatile oil by the application of a little heat, leaves a resinous stain, which has a greasy margin if the copaiva was adulterated with fixed oil. Or, the balsam is boiled for several hours in an open vessel with water to drive off the volatile oil; pure balsam leaves a brittle resin, which is soft or semi-fluid from an adulteration of fixed oil. Fixed oils, except castor oil, may be detected by their insolubility in 90- per cent, alcohol; pure balsam furnishes a clear solution. An adulteration with turpentine (oleoresin) is easily detected by the odor produced by the evaporation of the oils, on dropping the suspected balsam upon a hot brick. Balsamum Peruvianum.—The surest ,way to find an adulteration with castor oil, is to distil about 20 grammes until about 10 grammes have passed over, and the residue begins to become charred. The distillate which sepa- rates into an aqueous and oily stratum, is agitated with caustic baryta, the oil removed, and agitated with a concentrated solution of bisulphite of Boda. Genuine balsam Peru on dry distillation furnishes products, which with bisulphite of soda do not form a crystalline combination. The crys- tals obtained by this process from its admixture with castor oil, on being recrystallized from alcohol, have the odor of cenanthol, and the composition C14H130,S03-f NaO,S02. Larger quantities of castor oil decrease the specific gravity of the balsam ; other oils are detected by their insolubility in alcohol. CHAPTER VII. ON ORGANIC ACIDS. Organic Acids are distinguished as a class by characteristic pro- perties. They combine with inorganic and organic alkalies, some of them in several different proportions, according to the number of FRUIT ACIDS. 589 equivalents of basic water combined with them. Thus, citric is a tribasic acid, containing three equivalents of basic water; tartaric bibasic, containing only two; and benzoic monobasic, containing but one equivalent besides the water of crystallization. These acids are found in nature both free and in combination. Some are very commonly diffused throughout the vegetable kingdom, as tannic; others exist exclusively in one family of plants, as meconic acid in the Papaveraceae. Some, although existing naturally, are capable of artificial production from other organic material, as oxalic and valeri- anic. This whole class, and that of organic alkalies, have a much closer relation to inorganic compounds than the neutral crystalline and uncrystallizable principles. They all contain oxygen, and are destitute of nitrogen in their composition; an exception, however, is hydrocyanic acid, which in all its chemical relations bears a close resemblance to the inorganic hydre-acids. The organic acids are capable of numerous changes during the processes of life in the organisms by which they are produced, or after their introduction into the circulation of other living animals or vege- tables. These changes are the result of obscure processes of nature, and of conditions and functions of the organs, which we are unable to imitate by art. Chemistry, however, has in some instances arrived by artificial means, at close imitations of nature, and has produced changes which furnish connecting links between compounds, having apparently no relation to each other. Of the organic acids, those occurring in plants are by far the most important as medicines, and of the very few animal acids employed, most, though formerly regarded as exclusively belonging to the animal kingdom, have subsequently been discovered to be direct products of decomposition of vegetable principles, and are even generated by certain plants in their normal processes of growth and assimilation. In the present chapter the numerous acids are thrown together in groups, either from their diffusion in certain classes of vegetables, from the harmony of some of their physical or chemical relations, from their associations with other organic principles, or from the value attached to them as medicinal agents. The organic acids, in this work, are classified as follows :— 1st Group—Fruit Acids. 2d a Derivatives of the Fruit Acids. 3d ii Acids representing the Medicinal Virtues of plants. 4th ii Acids combined with Vegetable Alkalies. 5th ii Acids derived from Essential Oils. 6th it Astringent and allied acids. 7th ii Acids of animal origin. 8th it Acids pertaining to coloring matters. First Group.—Fruit Acids. These acids occur in the fruits of many plants of the families Aurantiacea3, Kosacese, Grossulariese, in grapes, tamarinds, in short, in all succulent acidulous fruits, and at certain periods of their maturity, 590 ON ORGANIC ACIDS. in a free state, with the exception of oxalic acid, which is compara- tively seldom met with in an uncombined state, though widely diffused, wholly or partly neutralized by certain vegetable alkalies, or inor- ganic bases. They are all agreeable refrigerants, and, as such, have a very extensive use; combined with alkalies or magnesia, they act in large doses as laxatives; oxalic acid and its compounds are poisonous, unless in minute doses. Acetic acid, HO,C4H303. Occasionally in plants, product of fermentation. Oxalic " 2HO,C406+4Aq. In rhubarb, sorrel, many officinal roots, herbs and barks. Tartaric " 2HO,C8H4Ol0. In grapes, tamarinds, &c, obtained from wine deposits. Uvic " 2HO, C8H4O104-2Aq. In the deposit of some grape juices. Malic " 2HO,C8H408. In apples, sumach berries, the berries of mountain-ash, &c. Citric " 3HO,C12H5011-f-2Aq. In lemons, oranges, currants, gooseberries, toma- toes, &c. Acetic acid has been already referred to as produced in the destructive distillation of wood, and also as a product of the spontaneous change which takes place in articles of the saccharine and amylaceous group by the cata- lytic action of ferments. (See p. 503.) Oxalic acid is an instance of an important vegetable acid existing ready formed in plants, and also capable of artificial production. Most of the oxalic acid of commerce is obtained by the action of nitric acid on sugar or starch, the organic principle being oxidized at the expense of the acid. Nitrous acid fumes and carbonic acid gas are evolved, and oxalic acid is formed, which is collected and crystallized, and most extensively used as a bleaching agent. If nitric acid has been employed in sufficient quantity, no saccharic acid is formed; the nitrous acid evolved is employed in the manufacture of sulphuric acid or for other purposes where oxidation is re- quired. It is not officinal. The alkaline oxalates are soluble, but the other salts are mostly insoluble in water. Oxalic acid and its salts are decomposed by a red heat, into car- bonic acid and carbonic oxide, without leaving any charcoal. If heated with sulphuric acid the same decomposition takes place. Carbonic oxide CO is inflammable. If mixed with sand and heated, dry oxalic acid yields formic acid, and but little carbonic acid is given off if the temperature is well regulated. The precipitates formed by it with baryta and lime are soluble in nitric and muriatic acids. The silver precipitate dissolves in nitric acid and ammonia. Insoluble oxalates, boiled in concentrated solu- tion of carbonate of soda, are decomposed, oxalate of soda being held in solution. Acidum Tartaricum. T = 2HO,C8H4OI0. Tartaric acid is prepared from bitartrate of potassa -or cream of tartar, by the addition of carbonate of lime, whereby insoluble tar- trate of lime is formed with the excess of acid of the bitartrate, and neutral tartrate of potassa left in solution. The solution is decom- posed with chloride of calcium, which forms an additional quantity of tartrate of lime. Lastly, the insoluble tartrate of lime is purified by washing, and decomposed by sulphuric acid, which liberates the tartaric acid. This, on evaporation, crystallizes in colorless crystals, with a tendency to the form of oblique rhombic prisms (citric acid occurs in right rhombic prisms). It has a sour taste, resembling, though not identical with, that of citric acid. It is soluble in an ACIDUM TARTARICUM. 591 equal weight of water, from which solution alcohol throws down no precipitate. This is rather a stronger acid than citric, and 100 grains saturate 133.5 grains of bicarbonate of potassa. It is most usually sold in powder. Its principal use is in preparing effervescing and refrigerant drinks, and as a substitute for citric acid. Liebig has obtained tartaric acid artificially by the oxidation of sugar of milk and gum by nitric acid; besides mucic, oxalic, and sac- charic (C12H10O16) acids are formed, the latter of which appears to be converted into tartaric acid; both these acids have identical reactions with potassa and lime salts. The salts used medicinally are the tartrates of potassa, soda, am- monia and iron, the bitartrates of potassa, soda, and ammonia, and the double salts of potassa and soda, potassa and ammonia, potassa and boracic acid, potassa and borate of soda, potassa and iron, and ammonia and iron; treated of under the several heads of their bases. Tartaric acid may be recognized by the copious white crystalline precipi- tate it furnishes on adding it in excess to any neutral salt of potassa. The precipitate formed by both this and citric acid with acetate of lead should be soluble in nitric acid. Neutral tartrates are precipitated on the addition of acetate of potassa and free acetic acid ; the precipitate by chloride of calcium is soluble in cold caustic potassa, separates on boiling, and redissolves on cooling ; the preci- pitate by lime-water dissolves in free tartaric acid, and in chloride of am- monium and tartrate of lime crystallizes out after some time. If not carefully prepared, the following impurities may be present; heavy metals, detected by sulphuretted hydrogen, sulphuric acid by chloride of barium, muriatic acid by nitrate of silver, oxalic acid by a solution of sul- phate of lime. Solutions* of tartaric acid and its salts are decomposed by oxygen like citric acid; by oxide of manganese it is converted into formic and carbonic acids. The following well-marked varieties of tartaric acid have been distin- guished :— 1. Dextrotartaric acid, the ordinary tartaric acid, which in the free state and combined with certain inactive bases turns polarized light to the right. If its salt with cinchonia is heated to 338° F., in five or six hours it has been changed for the greatest part into 2. Paratartaric, uvic or racemic acid, which also occurs naturally in cream of tartar from certain localities. It and its salts have a neutral behavior towards polarized light. Its double salt with ammonia and soda is obtained in crystals, one-half of which show a hemiedric form to the right, the other half the same form to the left; the former contain dextrotartaric, the latter the laevotartaric acid. From a solution of paratartrate of cinchonicia crys- tals of the lsevotartrate, and from a solution of paratartrate of quinicia, the dextrotartrate is deposited first, leaving the greatest part of the salts with the opposite acid in solution. 3. Laevotartaric acid may be obtained as just stated ; it deflects polarized light to the left. 4. Inactive tartaric acid is obtained by heating paratartrate of cincho- nicia to 338° F. It has no action on polarized light, and cannot be resolved into the right and left tartrate. 5. Metatartaric acid. By melting dry powdered dextrotartaric acid in an 592 ON ORGANIC ACIDS. oil bath ; the change takes place in a few seconds at 340° to 356° F. The acid is hygroscopic ; its lime salt is soluble. 6. Isotartaric or tartralic acid. If the heat in the last process has been applied too long, the product contains this acid also. The lime salt is syrupy, uncrystallizable, and by boiling is resolved into metatartaric acid and metatartrate of lime. All of these acids are of the same composition, C^O^, and, excepting the last, are bibasic. Pyrotartaric Acid, 2HO,C10H606.— Tartaric acid yields by dry distilla- tion at between 350° F. and 370° F. water, carbonic and pyrotartaric acids, scarcely any secondary products. This acid is very soluble, fusible, and not precipitated by neutral lead salts. Malic Acid, Mal=2H0,C8H408, is prepared from the juice of the fruit of Sorbus aucuparia, or of Rhus glabrum, and typhinum by precipitating with sugar of lead, recrystallizing, and decomposing by hydrosulphuric acid. The juice of the rhubarb plant, after being clarified by isinglass, and evaporated to the consistence of syrup, yields about 3£ per cent, of crystallized bimalate of potassa. The acid crystallizes in four and six-sided needles and prisms, is deliquescent, and dissolves in water and alcohol. Though malic acid is present in many pharmaceutical preparations, none of its salts have been used in medicine with the exception of an impure malate of iron, which, in Europe, is still largely employed as a mild chaly- beate, under the name of Extractum ferri pomatum ; malate of manganese has likewise been somewhat used. The acid and its salts are not precipitated by lime-water; chloride of cal- cium occasions a precipitate soluble in acids ; the precipitate by acetate of lead melts in boiling water, assuming the appearance of resin fused in water. Malic acid has acquired some importance as a material for the preparation of succinic acid. Menispermic or coccalinic, solanic, and probably also nicotic, igasuric (in nux vomica and Ignatia beans), fungic (in boletus, helvella, &c), and others are identical with malic acid. The results of the decomposition of malic acid by various influences are as follows :— 1. If heated with an excess of potassa to 300° F., it is converted into oxalic and acetic acids. 2. By quick dry distillation it is converted into equisetic or pyromalic acid, C8H6010 = C8H408+ 2HO. 3. If heated in an oil bath to 300° F., until vapors cease to be emitted, it has been con- verted into fumaric or paramalic acid. 4. Neutral malate of lime, C8H4CaaO10, if kept under water, particularly by the action, as ferment, of beer yeast or old cheese, is converted into succinic, acetic, and carbonic acids, 3CsH6010 = 2C8H606+C4H404+4COa-f2HO. 5. If by this fer- mentation hydrogen is evolved with the carbonic acid gas, another change takes place, butyric acid being formed, 2C8H6010 = C8H8O4+8COa+4H0. 6. By long contact, no butyric, acetic, or succinic acid is obtained, but another product of decomposition ; lactic and carbonic acids—2CgHlO10:-» C12HiaOia+4C03. Acidum Citricum. Ci=3HO,C12H5Ou + Aq. This is procured from lime or lemon-juice by neutralizing the acid with chalk, and from the citrate of lime thus formed liberating the citric acid by means of sulphuric acid. It is in large transparent crystals without color, with a strong, but agreeable acid taste, very soluble in water and in weak alcohol, deli- DERIVATIVES OF THE FRUIT ACIDS. 593 quescing in moist weather. Specific gravity 1.6. As usually ob- tained in crystals, it consists of one equivalent of the tribasic acid + one (sometimes two) equivalent of water of crystallization. It is not sold in the form of powder. According to the IT. S. Pharmaco- poeia, 100 grains of crystallized citric acid will saturate 150 grains of bicarbonate of potassa, which is on the supposition of one equivalent of water of crystallization being present. Its principal consumption is in the preparation of so-called lemon syrup, and solution of citrate of magnesia. To make artificial lemon-juice, add citric acid 3ixss to water Oj; fresh oil of lemon nij ; and sugar 3j- This solution is much employed in making effervescing draughts. (See Potassae Citras) There are not many salts of citric acid used in medicine, but most of them very extensively; they are the citrates of potassa, magnesia, iron, quinia, caffeina, and morphia, and the double salts of ammonia and iron, of potassa and iron, and strychnia and iron. Citric acid and its salts are precipitated on being boiled with an excess of lime-water ; the greater part of the precipitate redissolves on cooling ; neutral citrates are precipitated by chloride of calcium. Citric acid is scarcely ever adulterated or impure ; if tartaric acid should be present, it may be detected by a concentrated solution of citrate of potassa, which yields a white crystalline precipitate of bitartrate of potassa if tartaric acid is present; if potassa is employed instead of the citrate, care must be taken to leave the liquid strongly acid ; oxalic acid by a solu- tion of sulphate of lime, and sulphuric by a diluted solution of chloride of barium; in both the last cases the appearance of a precipitate is promoted by nearly neutralizing the acid with an alkali. The solution of citric acid and of its salts is decomposed by the influence of oxygen, with the formation of mould, and a slimy precipitate of appa- rently organic structure. On fusing the acid with hydrate of potassa, it is converted into oxalic and acetic acids, CiaH11Ou-f 2HO = C4H3Os+2C4H404. Second Group.—Derivatives of the Fruit Acids. The acids placed in this group may be artificially obtained from the fruit acids; they are also found in a number of vegetables and vegetable products, and two of them are productions of animal organ- isms. Of their number, three have been more or less used in medicine, the others, as yet, are not employed either in medicine or in the arts. Formic acid, HO,C2H03. In ants, nettles, ergot, the leaves of some pines, old tur- pentine, &c. Volatile liquid ; odor penetrating, sting- ing ; produces severe inflammation. Its salts all solu- ble in water, decomposed by HO,S03 into 2CO and HO ; reduces the oxides of Ag,llg,Au, &c. Succinic " 2HO,C8H406. In amber, wormwood, Melampyrum nemorosum, Lactuca sativa. Colorless, inodorous crystals, soluble in 5 p. boiling water and 1£ p boiling absolute alcohol; scarcely soluble in ether; not decomposed by cold NO.,CI or Cr03 ; the insoluble salts dissolve in acetate of potassa. Aconitic " 3HO,C„H,09. In various species of Aconitum, Delphinium, yarrow, Equisetum, limonum, &c. Colorless granules ; readily soluble in water, alcohol, and ether; the crystallized Ca salt little soluble; the lead and silver salts are white flocculent precipitates ; colors salts of Fe203 red; identical with equisetic acid. 38 594 ON ORGANIC ACIDS. Fumaric acid, 2HO,C8H206. In Fumaria (fumitory), Corydalis bulbosa, Glauciurn luteum and Iceland moss. Colorless scales ; soluble in 200 p. water, more in alcohol and ether ; crystallizing from hot N05 ; not precipitated by alkaline earths ; pre- cipitates Ag salts completely; the lead salt soluble in boiling water without fusion. Lactic " 2HO,C12H10O,0. From milk, many fermented vegetable juices, &c. Color- less uncrystallizable syrup; sp. gr. 1.215 ; little solu- ble in ether, in all proportions of alcohol and water; the salts are insoluble in ether, sparingly soluble in cold water and alcohol. Formic Acid.—Chloroform and iodoform are compounds of the same radi- cal, formyle, C2H, of which formic acid is the hydrated oxide; it is pre- pared artificially from tartaric acid, starch, lignin, fibrin, grape sugar, sugar of milk, &c, by distilling them with the black oxide of manganium and sulphuric acid. The following proportions are recommended : 1 part of sugar, 2 water, 3 manganese, and 3 sulphuric acid diluted with 3 water; or, 1 starch, 4 water, 4 manganese, and 4 sulphuric acid. The acid is to be gradually added in a large retort, capable of holding fifteen times the quantity of the whole mix- ture ; after the violent reaction has subsided, heat is applied, and distilled to near dryness; the distillate is saturated with carbonate of lead, the solu- tion evaporated to crystallize, so as to leave acetate of lead in the mother liquor ; the crystals are distilled with sulphuric acid and water, equal parts. A solution of formic acid in alcohol is still occasionally employed abroad as a rubefacient under the name of spiritus formicarum, prepared by dis- tilling 4 pounds of alcohol from 2 pounds of ants. Succinic Acid.—Spermaceti, tallow, or margaric acid, if for several days digested, without boiling, with nitric acid of medium strength, yields, on evaporation, succinic acid. It is also prepared by fermentation of impure malate of lime as follows : Suspend old cheese, 1 part, in water, and digest with the lime salt, 12 parts, and 40 parts of water, at a temperature below 112° F., for four to six days, until gas ceases to be emitted ; the precipitate is now washed, dilute sulphuric acid added to neutralize the carbonate of lime, the same quantity of acid added and boiled until the precipitate has lost its sandy nature ; the liquid is filtered off and evaporated until a pellicle is formed, when the lime is precipitated with sulphuric acid, and the filtrate further evaporated ; the crystals may be recrystallized and purified with ani- mal charcoal. It may also be obtained from amber by distillation. A solution of succinate of ammonia is the only preparation medicinally employed, and it is questionable whether its invigorating action in low states of the nervous system is not mostly due to the oils with which it is associa- ted. The Prussian Pharmacopoeia gives the following directions for pre- paring it. Liquor Ammoniae Succinatis.—Rub to 1 ounce succinic acid, 1 scruple rectified oil of amber, dissolve in 8 ounces distilled water, and add 1 ounce (containing 15 grains of Dippel's animal oil), or a sufficient quantity, of pyro-oleous carbonate of ammonia. Aconitic Acid.—It is obtained by heating citric acid for several hours with muriatic acid, evaporating and extracting by ether. By distillation, the following three new acids may be obtained, all of which have the composition 2HO,C10H4O8; itaconic, citraconic, and mesaconic or citracantic acids. Fumaric or Paramaleic Acid.—By precipitating the clarified juice of Fumaria officinalis with acetate of lead, decomposing the washed precipitate MEDICINAL ACIDS. 595 by sulphuretted hydrogen, and recrystallizing the acid from hot water, or by heating malic acid to 300°. Maleic or mafuric acid «=2HO,C8H20B, isomeric with fumaric acid, i3 obtained by distillation of malic acid, or by heating fumaric to 400°. It differs from the latter by being readily soluble in water, distilling at 350°, and by the insolubility of its lead salt, which, being curdy at first, becomes crystalline on standing. By fermentation, fumaric and maleic acids are converted into succinic acid. Acidum Lacticum, Lactic Acid. 2HO,C12H10O10. This acid is contained in many old extracts as a product of fermenta- tion of their saccharine constituents, or of malic acid. For medicinal use it is prepared by the so-called lactic fermentation. The following process of Wackenroder is one of the most simple: 25 parts sugar of milk, 20 parts finely powdered chalk, 100 parts skimmed milk, and 200 parts water are digested at about 75°; in six weeks the chalk will be dissolved, the whole is then heated, but not to boiling; the cheese is strained off, pressed, the decanted liquid is clarified by albu- men and evaporated to let the lactate of lime crystallize; the recrys- tallized salt is decomposed either by sulphuric or by the exact quantity of oxalic acid. The acid and its iron salt are officinal, and have been of late much used in medicine. It is a syrupy liquid of a sour taste, sp. gr. 1.212. The diluted acid must not be precipitated by chloride of barium—absence of sulphuric acid ; by sulphate of lime—absence of oxalic acid ; by sulphu- retted hydrogen—absence of metallic oxides; or after neutralization with ammonia, by oxalate of ammonia—absence of lime—90 grains of the offici- nal lactic acid are saturated by not less than 75 grains of bicarbonate of potassa. Third GROUP.—Acids representing wholly or in part the Medicinal Virtues of Plants. The acids arranged in this group have very few chemical properties in common; they are interesting to the physician because they are wholly or in part the active principles of the plants in which they have been generated. If those grouped in division a be excepted, the acid properties of most of these acids are not very decided; some of them are unable to decompose the carbonates, and quite a number have been long taken for neutral principles. Of the whole number, phloridzic and santonic acids only have been employed in medicine in their isolated condition; chrysophanic acid is attracting considera- ble attention as the active principle of our most popular cathartics. (a) Connected with Volatile Oils and Resins. Angelicic acid, HO,C10H7O3. In the root of angelica, masterwort, &c. Long color- less prisms, without water of crystallization, odor aromatic, boiling point 3740 ; little soluble in cold water, easily in boiling water, alcohol, ether, oil of turpentine, and fixed oils. Guaiacic " C H806. In the resin and wood of guaiacum ; colorless scales of vanilla odor, green with Fe2Cl3, but not blue by CI. 596 ON ORGANIC ACIDS. (b) Mostly Bitter Acids, some Poisonous. Hederic acid, C,5H1304. Picrotoxic " C20H12O8. Phloridzic " C24H1B014-fl2Aq. Chrysophanic acid, C28H10O8. Santonic acid, C30H18O6. (Santonine.) Caincic acid, 2HO,C32H24Ol2+3Aq Polygalic " C36H2402 Cetracic " 2HO,C36H14014 ? Anacardic " C44H3207. Digitalic " (?) Digitaleic " (?) Comic " (?) In the seed of common ivy. Insoluble in water and ether; without odor, of acrid taste ; colored pur- ple by concentrated sulphuric acid. The salts are mostly gelatinous. In Cocculus Indicus. Colorless prisms ; extremely bitter ; very poisonous. In the bark of many fruit trees, especially the apple tree. Yellowish silky needles, easily soluble in alcohol and boiling water ; little in ether and less in cold water ; inodorous, taste bitter, and some- what astringent; fuses at 220°, solid again at 2660, and liquid at 320O. In rhubarb root, senna, dock root, Parmelia parie- tina, &c. Golden yellow needles of metallic lustre, inodorous, nearly tasteless, nearly insoluble in cold water, soluble in alcohol and ether, and in sulphuric acid without decomposition, in alkalies with a dark red color; its salts are very change- able. In Levant wormseed, from artemisia santonica, &c. Flat hexagonal or feathery prisms, little soluble in cold, soluble in 250 p. boiling water, in 75 p. ether, in 43 p. cold, and 3 p. boiling alcohol; the ethereal and alcoholic solutions are intensely bit- ter ; light colors it yellow, but recrystallization yields it white again ; the alcoholic solution color- ed carmine red by alkalies. In cahinca root. Chiococca angiafugse. Fine silky needles ; inodorous ; tasteless, with an astringent aftertaste; little soluble in ether and water, readily in alcohol; yields kinovin (see neutral prin.) and glucose by alkalies and dilute acids; the salts uncrystallizable. In the root of Polygala amara and senega. White amorphous powder, without odor, tasteless, after- wards very acrid, astringent in the throat, sternu- tatory, little soluble in cold water, the solution foams like soap-water; easily soluble in alcohol, insoluble in ether ; with concentrated sulphuric acid in contact with air it changes yellow,_ red, dissolves, then blue, grayish, colorless; poison- ous, producing difficulty of breathing, vomiting, &c. The salts are uncrystallizable. In Iceland moss. Very thin needles, intensely and purely bitter, nearly insoluble in water, soluble in boiling alcohol, little in ether; destroyed by mineral acids, and by boiling its solution in alco- hol or its soluble salts. In cashew nuts. White, crystalline, fusible at 79°; inodorous; taste aromatic ; turns rancid and liquid in air. In the herb digitalis. Needles of a peculiar odor; not volatile-, soluble in water, alcohol, less in ether; its salts soluble but change when dissolved. Green needles; taste bitter, acrid, odor aromatic; little soluble in water, more in alcohol and ether, ' salts yellow or green, insoluble except the alka- line solutions, frothing (from saponin ?) In the rootbark of Cornus Florida. Stellate silky scales ; bitter; soluble in water and alcohol; precipitated by 2PbO, Tc and AgO,N03 BITTER ACIDS. 597 Angelicic acid may be obtained by the action of potassa on oil of chamo- mile, iraperatorin and peucedanin ; it is more advantageously prepared by exhausting 12 parts of angelica root with 1 part hydrate of lime and suffi- cient water, evaporating, distilling with the addition of sulphuric acid, and redistilling the distillate after saturation with potassa and decomposing with sulphuric acid ; large crystals appear after some time, valerianic and acetic acids remain in solution. Its salts are crystallizable, and its compound with ether has the odor of rotten apples. It is decomposed by excess of caustic potassa into acetic and propionic acids. Guaiacic Acid is obtained by dissolving the resin in 1 p. alcohol, filtering, precipitating with concentrated KO, washing and decomposing by HC1. The resin of guaiacum yields by dry distillation guaiacene, a light volatile oil which is an oxide of a camphene, and has the composition of guaiacic acid minus 2CO2=C10H8O2. Hederic Acid.—The seeds are freed of fat by ether, afterwards exhausted by boiling alcohol; on cooling, the acid separates in colorless needles or tablets. Picrotoxic Acid, Picrotoxin.—After the fixed oil of cocculus indicus is expressed, the acid crystallizes from the decoction of the residue with diluted muriatic acid. Phloridzic Acid, Phloridzin.—It crystallizes from the tincture of apple- tree bark, prepared with warm diluted alcohol. It yields formic acid on being treated with sulphuric acid and oxide of manganese; by diluted acids phloretin and sugar, C^H^O^-f- 2HO=C12H60, + CMHttOir It has been used with asserted success as a substitute for quinia in the treatment of intermittent fevers. Chrysophanic Acid.—Synonyms of this acid in various states of purity, are parietinic acid, rhein, rhabarbarin, rheumin, rhabarbaric acid, rhaponticin, rumicin, lapathin. It is prepared by extracting rhubarb or Parmelia parie- tina with weak alkaline alcohol, precipitating by carbonic acid, dissolving in 50 per cent, alcohol containing a little caustic potassa, precipitating by acetic acid, dissolving in boiling alcohol, mixing the filtrate with water and recrystallizing from alcohol. Investigations performed by Professor Schroff, tend to show that the cathartic principle of rhubarb is chrysophanic acid, which is modified in its action by the other constituents of the root, so that while powdered rhubarb acted within twelve hours, Geiger's rhabarbarin purged in nineteen, Brandes' rhein in twenty, and pure chrysophanic acid in twenty-four hours; on the other hand he found the duration of the activity of rhubarb to be about twenty-four hours, that of rhein and rhabarbarin three, and of chrysophanic acid five days; during this time eight grains of the latter produced twelve thin yellow evacuations, without the least griping. The acid prepared from Parmelia parietina shows no difference from that prepared from rhubarb. The quickness of action of rhubarb, in pharmaceutical preparations must be due to excipients or adjuvants which render the chrysophanic acid soluble. The active vegetable principle of senna, likewise appears to be chryso- phanic acid, combined in such a way as \o be easily soluble in water, nearly insoluble in strong alcohol, and supported in its action by a large amount of saline constituents, viz : sulphates, phosphates, and tartrates of alkalies and alkaline earths; the senna extract prepared with strong alcohol has no ca- thartic properties. Dr. Martius has not succeeded in completely isolating chrysophanic acid from senna, but the reactions indicate its presence as well 598 ON ORGANIC ACIDS. as the presence of two or three other bodies first discovered in rhubarb namely, aporetin, phaeoretin, and probably erythroretin. Winkler's cathartin, found in the ripe fruit of Rhamnus catharticus, is also believed to be identical with this acid in an impure state. Chrysophanic acid, when taken internally, passes into the urine, where it may be easily recognized by its striking a characteristic red color with alkalies. The same reaction takes place after the administration of rhubarb and senna; with the latter given in the form of infusion or aqueous extract, this reaction would often take place after fifteen minutes and last until twelve hours after the evacuations had taken place. The root of Rumex obtusifolius, and probably other species, owe their laxative properties to chrysophanic acid. (See Amer. Journ. of Pharm. xxxi. 153.) Santoninum U. S. P. (Santonin, Santonic Acid.) This is directed to be prepared from Levant Wormseed (Santonica), 48 troy ounces (3 lbs. 5 oz. com.); lime recently slaked and in fine powder, 18 troy ounces (1 lb. 3 J oz. com.); animal charcoal, diluted alcohol, alcohol and acetic acid, of each sufficient. The process is as follows : Digest the wormseed and lime with twelve pints of diluted alcohol for 24 hours and express. Eepeat the digestion and expres- sion twice with the residue, using the same quantity of diluted alco- hol. Mix the tinctures, and reduce the mixture to eight pints by dis- tilling off the alcohol. Then, having filtered, and evaporated to one- half, gradually add acetic acid until in slight excess, stirring during the addition, and set the whole abide for forty-eight hours. Place the resulting crystalline mass upon a funnel loosely stopped, wash it with water, and dry it. Next, boil the dry residue with ten times its weight of alcohol, and, having digested the tincture for several hours with animal charcoal, filter it while hot, and add sufficient hot alcohol, through the filter, to wash the charcoal thoroughly; then set it aside in a dark place to crystallize. Lastly, dry the crystals on bibulous paper in the dark, and keep them in a well-stopped bottle, protected from the light. By evaporating the mother-water, more crystals may be obtained. This is a new officinal, which being made exclusively from a Euro- pean seed, is itself, perhaps, chiefly imported. Santonic acid is much employed as a very reliable vermifuge, and often exhibited to children in the form of confection or troches. Dose for children, \ to 1 grain 2 or 3 times daily. It has been used in 2 to 5 grain doses in retention of urine. Its chief recommendation, as a vermifuge, consists in the smallness of its dose, and its comparative tastelessness. It is thus described in the Pharmacopoeia. A colorless substance, crystallizing in shining, flattened prisms, without smell, and nearly tasteless when first put into the mouth, but afterwards bitter. It is not altered by the air, but becomes yellow on exposure to light. It melts when heated, and forms, on cooling, a crystalline mass. When heated somewhat above its melting point, it rises unchanged in dense, white, irritating vapors. Nearly insoluble in cold water, it is dissolved by 250 parts of boiling water. It is soluble in 43 parts of cold and 3 parts of boil- ing alcohol, and in 75 parts of ether—its alcoholic and ethereal solutions are intensely bitter. ACIDS COMBINED WITH ALKALOIDS. 599 The santonates are decomposed by being boiled with water. The potassa salt is uncrystallizable. The soda salt, which on account of its solubility has been proposed as a substitute for the acid, is obtained by digesting its alco- holic solution with carbonate of soda, evaporating, redissolving in strong alcohol and crystallizing. Large crystals are obtained by evaporating spon- taneously its concentrated aqueous solution. Its composition is NaO,HO, CsoHisOe+f Aq, and it therefore contains 74 per cent, santonic acid. Caincic acid, on which the strong diuretic virtues of cahinca root depend, is obtained by treating the alcoholic extract with water, filtering, adding milk of lime gradually until all bitterness has disappeared, and treating the precipitated cahincate of lime with alcoholic oxalic acid. This acid was among the rare products exhibited by Merck in the World's Fair of 1862. Polygalic Acid, Senegin, Polygalin.—The root is extracted with alcohol, evaporated to syrupy consistence, and this treated with ether to separate fat; after some time a precipitate forms which is collected on a filter, dis- solved in boiling alcohol, treated with animal charcoal, and filtered. '(See the paper by Prof. Procter in "Proc. Am. Ph. Ass.," 1859, p. 297.) Cetraric Acid.—Iceland moss is extracted by boiling alcohol and carbonate of potassa, the liquid acidulated with muriatic acid and mixed with four or five volumes of water. The precipitate consists principally of cetraric and lichenstearic acids. It is dissolved in eight or ten times its quantity of boiling weak alcohol and filtered, on cooling the lichenstearic acid crystal- lizes in quadrangular plates, afterwards the cetraric acid in needles; the needles are separated from an amorphous body, and several times recrys- tallized. Anacardic acid is obtained from the pericarp of cashew-nuts by treating the ethereal extract with water, to separate tannic acid, dissolving in alcohol, and digesting with hydrated oxide of lead ; the anacardate of lead is de- composed by sulphuretted hydrogen. The impure acid is purified by wash- ing, recombining with lead, and decomposing by diluted sulphuric acid. Digitalic Acid.—The alcoholic extract of the aqueous extract of digitalis, is treated with ether, which dissolves the acid and digitalin; caustic baryta precipitates digitalate of baryta, which by decomposition with sulphuric acid yields the acid. , Digitaleic Acid.—The precipitate of the aqueous extract by acetate of lead is washed, decomposed by carbonate of soda, the filtrate precipitated by muriatic acid, recrystallized from hot alcohol. Comic acid or Cornine is prepared by Geiger by exhausting the aqueous extract of Cornus Florida with ethereal alcohol, agitating the solution with some HO,PbO and evaporating the filtrate spontaneously. (See Maisch's paper in "Proc. Am. Ph. Asso.," 1859, p. 315.) Fourth Group.—Acids combined with Vegetable Alkalies. It has not yet been ascertained of all alkaloids in what combina- tions they occur naturally. The large number of vegetable acids in existence, and the difficulties often attending their complete isolation, make the recognition of an acid in its natural association a matter of no ordinary difficulty, and have led to the proposal of many new names for acids long before known, before their identity with those before discovered had been established beyond doubt. The greater the difficulty in isolating an acid, or the more widely diffused it is throughout organic nature, the greater will be its liability to receive 600 ON ORGANIC ACIDS. Meconic 3HO,C14HO„4-6Aq. constantly new names from plants hitherto not subjected to a com- plete analysis. It is only necessary to refer for illustration to malic acid, which has been named at various times after quite a number of plants; under that head, attention has been drawn to various acids, mostly connected with alkaloids, which, by later investigations, have been proved to be malic acid. Of acids treated of in the second group, the following would likewise belong to this fourth group; fumaric acid, in Glaucium luteum combined with glaucina; aconitic acid in Aconitum napellus combined with aconitia. Meconic and kinic acids are important on account of some of their reactions. Chelidonic acid, 3HO,C14H092Aq. In celandine with lime, sanguinarina and che- rerythrina. Colorless needles, soluble in water and alcohol; purple by warm S03; the salts colorless ; the tribasic salts lemon- yellow. In opium with morphia. Colorless pearly scales or prisms ; taste faintly acid and as- tringent ; little soluble in cold water and ether, soluble in hot water and alcohol. Sesquisalts of iron are colored deep red by a trace of acid, the coloration is not affected by boiling, dilute acids, or chloride of gold (difference from sulphocyanide) ; this test is characteristic of the presence of opium. In cevadilla seed, with veratria. Four sided needles ; sublimable, soluble in alcohol and boiling water. The veratrates of the alka- lies are crystallizable and soluble in water and alcohol. In Colombo root, with berberine. Straw-yellow powder nearly insoluble in water, little in ether, easily in alcohol; the latter solution precipitated by PbO, Ac but not by CuO,Ac. In Peruvian bark with quinia, cinchonia, in seeds of coffee with caffeina. Oblique rhom- bic prisms, soluble slowly in 2£ parts cold water, little in alcohol, scarcely in ether; most salts are soluble. Heated over its melting point, decomposed into benzoic and phenylic acids, salicylous acid, hydrokinone and benzol; with Mu02 and S03 converted into kinone, carbonic and formic acids. Chelidonic Acid.—Celandine contains, while young, chiefly malic acid; when in flower, malic acid has disappeared, and the juice contains chelidonic acid. To prepare it, the juice is coagulated by heat, the filtrate, after being acidulated with nitric acid, is precipitated by nitrate of lead, which must not be added in excess ; the precipitate is decomposed by hydrosulphuric acid, the free acid combined with lime, the salt recrystallized, decomposed by car- bonate of ammonia, and afterwards by muriatic acid. Meconic Acid.—The meconate of lime obtained on the manufacture of morphia is dissolved in dilute muriatic acid, and heated to 195°, when, on cooling, acid meconate of lime crystallizes, which is treated again in the same way ; meconic acid now crystallizes, is purified by repeated crystallizations, combined with ammonia or potassa, and lastly precipitated by muriatic acid. Komenic acid, ClaH4O10=C14H4Ot4—2C02, by heating meconic acid to 390°, or by boiling its solution, particularly with dilute muriatic acid. Hard warty crystals, colorless, insoluble in absolute alcohol, slight acid taste; bibasic. Veratric Columbic Kinic HO,C18H907. C.„H,,0, 2HO,C28H20O20+2Aq. ACIDS DERIVED FROM ESSENTIAL OILS. 601 Parakomenic acid, C12H4O10, in small quantity, on the dry distillation of the former. Feathery needles, very acid taste ; bibasic. Pyromeconic acid, C10H406=C1?H4010—2C02, by the dry distillation of meconic or komenic acid. Crystallizes in colorless, lustrous needles, scales, or octohedrons ; fuses at 257° ; sublimes at 212° completely, is easily solu- ble in alcohol and water; monobasic, a weak acid. All these derivatives of meconic acid show its characteristic coloration with sesquisalts of iron. Veratric Acid.—The alcoholic tincture of cevadilla seed is acidulated with sulphuric acid and precipitated by lime, the filtrate is distilled and de- composed by an acid. Columbic Acid.—The alcoholic extract of columbo root is treated with lime, and the lime salt decomposed by muriatic acid. Kinic Acid.—The bark is exhausted by acidulated water, the alkalies precipitated by a little lime, more lime precipitates the cinchotannic acid and coloring matter, the filtrate is evaporated, the crystals of kinate of lime decolorized with animal charcoal, and decomposed by oxalic acid. This acid, which has been prepared from huckleberry leaves, occurs pro- bably in many plants, since the extract of coffee leaves and seed, Paraguay tea, Ligustrum vulgare, Hedera helix, various oaks, elms, and ashes yield with Mn03 and S03 the following compound. Kinone, C12H40„ golden-yellow prisms, odor of iodine, fusible, volatiliz- able, little soluble in cold water, soluble in alcohol and ether ; with sulphu- retted hydrogen it turns immediately red, precipitates floccules, which, after drying, are olive green. Hydrokinone, C12Hfl04, by dry distillation of kinic acid, or from kinone by the action of sulphurous or hydriodic acids. Colorless prisms, inodorous, fusible, volatile ; easily soluble in water and alcohol. Oxidizing agents precipitate needles of Green hydrokinone, C12HB04-f C12H404, of a beautiful green metallic lustre; fusible, but decomposed on volatilizing, little soluble in water, more in alcohol. Fifth Gkoup.—Acids derived from or yielding Essential Oils. But few of the numerous essential oils naturally contain acids, and have, in consequence thereof, an acid reaction; most oils, however, on exposure to the atmosphere, become.oxidized, and while they assume a thicker consistence, their chemical nature is partly changed, and they now, in alcoholic solution, impart a red color, more or less de- cidedly, to blue litmus paper—they have become resinified. A similar change takes place by subjecting the essential oils to the influence of nitric or chromic acid, or other strong oxidizing agents. Thus the essential oils yield a large number of acids, mostly of a nature which may be termed resinous. The compounds from which essential oils are generated in the plants are not known; but several principles have been discovered and isolated, which under various circumstances are split into two or more bodies, one of which has all the characteristics of an essential oil. But one of these principles is of an acid nature, the others will be found under the head of neutral principles. _ The following embraces those acids only that are important in a medicinal point of°view, or interesting on account of their relation to other proximate principles. 602 ON ORGANIC ACIDS. (a) Acids occurring in the freshly-distilled Crude Oils. Hydrocyanic acid, HC2N. Salicylous acid, HO,C14H503 Methyl-salicylic acid, HO,C, H705. Caryophyllic acid, HO,C20H, 0,. In the volatile oils of amygdaleae and pomecese. See Nitroqenated Oils. The anhydrous acid is colorless, limpid, crystallizes at 5° F. ; sp. gr. .69 ; decomposed on keeping ; extremely poisonous. The volatile oil of herbaceous plants of the genus Spiraea ; oily liquid, colorless or reddish, of an agreea- ble aromatic odor and burning taste; sp. gr. 1.17; it freezes at 5° F., and boils at 340° F. The oxygenated part of oil of wintergreen ; colorless or reddish-yellow oil of a well-known odor; sp. gr. 1.18; boiling point 252°. The oxygenated part of oil of cloves; colorless oil, of 1.079 sp. gr.; boiling point 484°; odor and taste of cloves ; resinifies in contact with the air. The caryo- phyllates of alkalies and alkaline earths are crystal- lizable; metallic salts are either precipitated or colored blue, violet, or green. (b) Products of Oxidation by the Atmosphere. Valerianic acid HO,C10H9O3 Benzoic Cinnamic HO,C14H503 HO,CISH703 From valerol in oil of valerian and valerian root; color- less oily liquid, of a disagreeable odor of valerian and old cheese, and a similar acid taste; its sp. gr. is .937 ; its boiling point 347° F.; it is inflammable, dissolves in 30 parts cold water, and in all propor- tions of alcohol and ether ; it dissolves camphor and some resins. In old oil of bitter almonds, benzoin, with cinnamic acid; inodorous needles or scales ; when sublimed from benzoin of a faint balsamic odor; taste slight, afterwards acrid ; fusible at 2480 ; boiling at 4620; soluble in 200 p. cold and 25 boiling water; more in alcohol and ether. In old oil of cinnamon, storax, Tolu, Peru balsam, &c. Resembles the former in physical properties. Color- less prismatic and scaly crystals, melting at 264° F., boiling and distilling at 6550 F. ; little soluble in cold water (less than benzoic acid), easily soluble in alcohol. (c) Acids obtainable by artificial oxidation of Volatile Oils. Anisic acid, H0,C16H705. Pelargonic acid, H0,C18H17O3. Rutinic or caprinic acid, HO, ^onrj-ioV/o. Angelicic acid, HO,C,0H7O3 From oil of anise and fennel by oxidation with 6 p. KO,2Cr03 and S03; large colorless prisms, nearly in- soluble in cold water, easily in boiling water, in alco- hol, and ether. Melts at 347° F., sublimes at higher temperature in white needles ; distilled over baryta, is decomposed into carbonic acid and anisol, Cl6Hs06 =2C024-C,4H802. Its salts are crystallizable. From oil of rue by diluted N05, and in oil of rose gera- nium ; colorless oil, of a peculiar odor; crystallizes in cold weather and boils at 500° ; its compound with ether is interesting for its agreeable odor of quinces. (See Pelargonic Ether.) From oil of rue by N05, and in the butter of cows and goats, in cod-liver oil, cocoanut oil, and some fusel oils ; white crystalline masses, of a peculiar " buck's odor, easily soluble in alcohol and ether. From oil of chamomile by KO. (See Third Group.) HYDROCYANIC ACID. 603 (d) Acids obtained from Empyreumatic Oils. Phenylic acid, HO,C12H50. In coal tar; from salicylic and kinic acids, and some 4 resins ; in castor, and the urine of many domestic animals. Long colorless needles, melting at 95°, boiling at 369° F. ; not very soluble in water, in all proportions in alcohol and ether, soluble in concen- trated acetic acid. By nitric acid it is converted into picric acid. Carbazotic " HO,C12H2 By N05 from salicin and its derivatives, from coumarin, (N04)3O2. phloridzic, and phenylic acids, silk, indigo, and coal tar ; yellow scales or octahedrons, soluble in 86 parts of water of 60°, easily soluble in alcohol and ether, explosive when suddenly heated; it colors the skin yellow, is very bitter, and is a dye for silk and wool, but not for cotton. Its salts are yellow, crystalliza- ble, very bitter, soluble, and explosive by heating. Ferrocyanide of Potassium and Hydrocyanic Acid. Hydrocyanic or prussic acid, as formed by a reaction between amyg- dalin and emulsin, and as an ingredient in the volatile oils distilled from many plants belonging to the natural family of Eosacese, has already been referred to (see Nitrogenated Volatile Oils; also Amyg- dalin), but for pharmaceutical use, the acid is prepared artificially, and the U. S. Pharmacopoeia gives two processes, the starting-point for each being the decomposition of ferrocyanide of potassium by sul- phuric acid. Potassii ferrocyanidum, U. S. P., yellow prussiate of potassa, is only made on a large scale from animal matter free of bones. This is either first subjected to dry distillation in order to gain part of the nitrogen as ammonia, and the remaining charcoal, which is highly charged with nitrogen, is fused together with small fragments of iron and potash; or the first part of the process being omitted, the animal matter is at once subjected to a red heat in conjunction with potash and iron. After long-continued heating and stirring, a combination has been effected, the fused mass now containing cyanide of potassium, which, when dis- solved in water, combines with finely-divided iron, and crystallizes into large yellow tabular prisms, which have a sweetish bitter taste, are soluble in four parts of cold water, and insoluble in alcohol. They are composed of two equivalents of cyanide of potassium, one of cyanide of iron, and three of water =2KCy+FeCy+3HO. The water of crystallization is given off in a dry, warm atmosphere, and the crystals be- come white and pulverulent. This salt has an extensive use in the arts, and is employed for the preparation of ferrocyanide of iron, hydrocyanic acid, and all its compounds. This salt is little used in medicine ; it is not poisonous, but in very large doses is apt to produce vertigo, coldness, and fainting ; it has been recom- mended as an alterative, antiphlogistic, and tonic astringent in the dose of from ten to twenty grains internally, and externally, in an eye-salve, com- posed of from five to twenty grains to one drachm of cacao-butter. The commercial salt, though not chemically pure, is sufficiently pure, if it is well crystallized, and dissolves in two parts of boiling water. Argenti Cyanidum U.S.; Cyanide of Silver.— According to the 604 ON ORGANIC ACIDS. Pharmacopoeia, the hydrocyanic acid, produced from two troyounces of ferrocyanide of potassium, as below, is conducted into a solution of two ounces of nitrate of silver. The cyanide of silver is precipitated as a white, tasteless, inodorous pow- der, which is darkened by the light, is insoluble in diluted_ nitric acid, but decomposed by it at a boiling temperature. It is soluble in ammonia, and in cyanide of potassium, and consists of one equiv. of cyanogen, and one of silver =AgCy. It is used, sometimes externally in ointments as an anti- syphilitic. Acidum Hydrocyanicum Dilutum, IT. S. P.—From the above two salts the Pharmacopoeia gives two distinct processes, the first of which is intended for making hydrocyanic acid in larger quantities, while the second process is given for its extemporaneous preparation, and is particularly applicable for the use of the physician. First Process. — Take of ferrocyanide of potassium Iij, sulphuric acid giss, distilled water q. s. Mix the acid with distilled water f giv, and pour the mixture when cool into a glass retort. To this add the ferrocyanide of potassium, previously dissolved in distilled water, fix. Pour of the distilled water fgviij into a cooled receiver; and, having attached this to the retort, distil by means of a sand-bath, with a moderate heat, f Ivj. Lastly, add to the product, distilled water f Iv, or q. s. to render the diluted hydrocyanic acid of such strength that 12.7 grains of nitrate of silver dissolved in distilled water may be accurately saturated by 100 grains of the acid, and give 10 grains of the cyanide of silver, which, corresponding with_ 20 per cent, of its own weight of anhydrous hydrocyanic acid, indicates 2 grains, or 2 per cent.°of it in 100 grains of the officinal acid. The difficulties in this process are twofold: 1st. It is difficult to conduct the distillation in an ordinary uncovered retort on account of the excessive bumping occasioned by the escape of the acid vapor through the mixed liquid and precipitate; and, 2d. It is troublesome to adjust the strength of the distillate to the officinal standard. The first of these difficulties may be overcome by placing the retort in a sand-bath, or setting it upon fine wire-cloth, introducing at the same time in the liquid a piece of thick platinum wire. The precision necessary to be observed in regard to the strength of so powerful a medicine as this, and the impossibility of regulating by the propor- tions employed the amount of the acid generated and absorbed by the water in the receiver, make it necessary to determine its strength 1 by experiment at each operation. This may be accomplished by testing, say 100 grains of the acid distillate with nitrate of silver before^ diluting it, carefully washing the resulting cyanide of silver, drying and weighing it, then calculating the degree of dilution required by the weight of this precipitate. If of proper strength, this would be 10 grains, as above, but in this experiment of course a larger yield would be obtained. The equation would then be as fol- lows : As the known weight of the precipitate from acid of standard strength, is to the weight of cyanide obtained from the distillate, so is the quantity of the acid weighed to the quantity to be obtained by dilution. Suppose the precipitate to have weighed 11.5 grains—then HYDROCYANIC ACID. 605 10 :11.5 :: 100:115 ; or to every 100 grains of the distillate 15 grains' of water must be added, to make the officinal diluted hydrocyanic acid. For ascertaining the strength of liquids containing hydrocyanic acid, by volumetric analysis, see a paper by Dr. W. H. Pile, in '•' A. J. Ph.," 1862, p. 130, where also a neat graduated tube, made for this purpose, is figured. The process is Liebig's, and is based on the formation of a soluble double cyanide of potassium and silver, before chloride of silver is formed. The plan recommended to the inexperienced is, to saturate the acid which comes over by the officinal process without special reference to the quantity of water in the receiver, with nitrate of silver, as stated above, to form the officinal cyanide of silver, and further proceed, after carefully washing and drying the product, by the second process of the Pharmacopoeia, as follows:— Second Process for Diluted Hydrocyanic Acid. Take of Cyanide of silver . . . Fifty grains and a half. Muriatic acid . . . Forty-one grains. Distilled water . . . One fluidounce. Mix the muriatic acid with the distilled water, add the cyanide of silver, and shake the whole in a well-stoppered vial; when the insolu- ble matter has subsided, pour off the clear liquid and keep it for use. In preparing this medicine, a slight excess of muriatic acid is not objectionable, giving it greater stability. The only apparent objection to this process is its expensiveness ; this is, however, less than would at first appear. The reaction between muriatic acid and the cyanide results in the production of hydrocyanic acid and chloride of silver, thus—AgCy + HCl=HCy + Ag01. Now, the chloride of silver is convertible into pure metallic silver by the introduction into it while in the condition of a moist powder, of a strip of zinc, which abstracts the chlorine, the chloride of zinc becoming dissolved, and the pure silver remaining as a gray-colored spongy mass or powder, which, on being washed and treated with nitric acid, yields the soluble nitrate ready for any further use. The practitioner, who wishes to be prepared for every demand of his practice, may, with advantage, supply himself with a suitable fIj vial, containing 50J grains cyanide of silver, to which the mixed muriatic acid and water may be added when the occasion arises. The diluted acid prepared as above is a colorless liquid occasionally having, from the presence of iron, a slight blue tint, of a peculiar odor and taste; it is entirely volatilized by heat, and decomposes under the influence of light. It is usually put up in one ounce ground-stoppered vials, wrapped in dark blue or black paper and sometimes inclosed in a tin case. It contains two per cent, of anhydrous HCy. Its use in medicine has been avoided by some practitioners, on account of the violent poisonous character of the anhydrous or concentrated acid; but in the diluted form, in which it is officinal, it is no more dangerous than many other remedies constantly prescribed, and, notwithstanding the alleged variable strength of the commercial article, I believe it 606 ON ORGANIC ACIDS. will be found as nearly uniform as most other pharmaceutical prepa- rations prepared by manufacturers. As a sedative and antispasmodic, it is a favorite with some practi- tioners, who employ it simply mixed with mucilage, or with the galenical preparations of digitalis, valerian, &c. It should not be prescribed with strong alkaline, ferruginous, or other metallic salts. In this country, no stronger hydrocyanic acid is used than the officinal; in other countries, however, its strength varies materially. The acid of the London, Dublin, and Prussian Pharmacopoeias is of about the same strength as our own, that of the Edinburgh Pharmacopoeia contains about 3^ per cent., Scheele's acid 5 per cent., and some European pharmacopoeias even a much larger proportion of anhydrous acid. The dose of our officinal acid being nyj to m„v, is so small that there is no necessity for employing a stronger acid in formulas, which would be liable to lead to dangerous mis- takes ; besides, it must be remarked that strong acids are very prone to spontaneous decomposition, while that of the officinal strength, if not ex- posed to the light or to a continued high temperature, keeps well for a con- siderable time. Of course the vials are to be well-stoppered on account of the volatility of the acid. Potassii Cyanidum U. S. P.; Cyanide of Potassium.—This salt may be mentioned in this place, as having all the medicinal properties of hydrocyanic acid; it is given as a substitute for it. It is prepared by fusing ferrocyanide of potassium with carbonate of potassa until effervescence ceases, when the clear liquid is poured off the preci- pitated oxide of iron, and, immediately after cooling, put into well- stoppered bottles. It is then in white fused masses of a powerful caustic taste, and a composition which is expressed by the formula KCy, but thus prepared it is contaminated by carbonate and cyanate of potassa. The pure cyanide is equal to § of its weight of hydrocyanic acid, the officinal to somewhat less. The dose is y'g grain, which, with proper care, may be gradually increased to \ grain; it is given dis- solved in alcohol or water. It is a useful chemical agent for removing the stains of nitrate of silver and durable ink, and its utility as a solvent for metallic oxides is well known in electro-metallurgy and photography. Salicylous or spirous acid is artificially obtained by oxidation of salicin or populin and by fermentation of helicin. 3 parts salicin are mixed with 3 parts bichromate of potassa, and 24 parts water ; to this 4^ parts sul- phuric acid in 12 parts water are added, and after the reaction has ceased, heat is applied, and distilled as long as with the water an oily liquid comes over, which is taken up by ether and left after its evaporation. The salicylites, when kept moist, are decomposed, acquiring a rose odor; this reaction has been proposed for the formation of an artificial rose-water. If salicylous acid is heated with potassa, it is converted into salicylic or spiric acid, 2HO,CMH404, which is of importance as the acid contained in the following. Methyl-salicylic acid, or oil of wintergreen, HO,C3H30,C14H404= Cl6H808, is the oil obtained by distillation with water from Gaultheria pro- cumbens. By distillation with an excess of baryta it is converted into car- ACIDUM BENZOICUM. 607 bolate of oxide of methyle, while by the dry distillation of an alkaline or earthy salicylate, a carbonate and carbolic acid is formed, C14H608=2CO -f ClaH603 (carbolic acid). Caryophyllic or Eugenic Acid.—If oil of cloves is treated with solution of potassa or soda, and the light carbohydrogen distilled off, the acid may be easily separated by a mineral acid. Acidum Valerianicum U. S. P. This important acid, which is developed spontaneously by the oxi- dation of valerol, one of the ingredients of oil of valerian, is also met with in the root of Angelica archangelica, in the inner bark of Sam- bucus niger, in assafoetida, &c, and is artificially obtained by the oxi- dation of protein compounds, some fatty acids, and particularly of amylic alcohol or fusel oil. The Pharmacopoeia prepares it from valerianate of soda by dissolving 8 troyounces in 3 fluidounces of water and decomposing it by 3\ troyounces of sulphuric acid; the oily layer is repeatedly agitated with strong sulphuric acid until its specific gravity is reduced to below .950, when it is distilled and only that portion preserved which is not over .9-10 sp. gr. If agitated with water it takes up from 20 to 25 per cent, water without losing its oily condition, and is now converted into the bihy- drate, HO,C10H9O3+2Aq, which has a specific gravity of .950 and boils at 270°. The salts have an unctuous touch, and are inodorous when perfectly dry, but mostly have the odor of the acid ; they revolve when thrown upon "water in a crystallized state, like the butyrates. Most of them are soluble in water or alcohol, or in both liquids, and have a sweet taste. The following salts have been used medicinally: the valerianate of am- monia, zinc, iron, bismuth, morphia, quinia and atropia. See the several heads for descriptions of these. Acidum Benzoicum U. S. P. This, with cinnamic acid, is considered characteristic of the class of medicines called balsams. The two acids are closely allied in their chemical nature, as has been already shown ; they are also related to salicylic and allied acids. For medicinal use it is readily obtained from benzoin by sublima- tion. For this experiment, which is an interesting one to the pharma- ceutical student, the following simple directions are to be observed. Select an iron or tinned iron pan or cup—a common pint cup, without a handle, will answer—and, having covered the bottom with some powdered benzoin mixed with sand, stretch over the top of it a piece of porous paper, which may be secured at the edge by a string, but preferably by glue or some firm paste. Now fold a tall conical or straight-sided cap of the diameter of the pan, and tie it, or cement it securely round the upper edge, and set the whole in a sand bath, or over a slow and well-regulated source of heat, leaving it for several hours. On removing the cap, it will be found to contain brilliant white feathery crystals of benzoic acid. The residue in the cup, by being again powdered, mixed with sand, and heated, will yield another, though a less abundant and less beautiful crop of crystals. 608 ON ORGANIC ACIDS. The process of Scheele consists in boiling the balsam with hydrate of lime, and treating the benzoate of lime thus formed with muriatic acid. Thus procured, benzoic acid has but little odor, and is ill adapted to the uses to which it is usually applied in medicine and pharmacy. Sometimes the process of sublimation is resorted to at first, and from the residue the remaining acid is extracted by Scheele's process, after which the whole is mixed. The virtues of the acid are, partly at least, dependent on the odorous principles with which it is associated. Its salts have no smell if prepared from the chemically pure acid, but they retain some of the odor of the offi- cinal acid if prepared from it. Of the salts only the benzoates of ammonia and of soda have been occasionally employed. Benzoic acid, if distilled with caustic potassa in excess, is converted into carbonic acid and benzol, C14H604=2C02-f C12H6; in the animal organism it is changed into hippuric acid, from which it may be reproduced on boil- ing with muriatic acid ; hippuric acid occurs naturally in the urine of her- bivorous animals, and from this source the German article, occasionally met with in our commerce, is derived; it has frequently a peculiar urinous odor, and quite a different appearance from the sublimed article, having been crystallized from an aqueous solution. Detection of Impurities.—All fixed impurities are left behind on volatil- izing some of the acid; hippuric acid is detected by its odor, by leaving charcoal on heating, and by evolving ammonia on heating it with lime; cinnamic acid imparts the odor of bitter almonds to the distillate, with bichromate of potassa and sulphuric acid. Benzoin is frequently met with in commerce, which contains little or no benzoic acid, it being partly or wholly replaced by cinnamic acid; though unfit for the preparation of benzoic acid by sublimation, it may still be of excellent quality for other pharmaceutical preparations, and for the use of perfumers. Cinnamic Acid.—To prepare this acid, liquid storax is first distilled with water, to obtain styrol, afterwards treated with carbonate of soda (residue is styracin) ; the solution is evaporated, decomposed by muriatic acid, the cin- namic acid after washing recrystallized, and the last impure portions are treated again with soda. In a similar way it is obtained from Tolu balsam (here the residue is Toluol.). With excess of baryta or lime it is converted into carbonic acid and cinnamen (C]GH8) ; with bichromate of potassa and sulphuric acid into oil of bitter almonds (principal distinction from benzoic acid), and by distillation with hypochlorite of soda into a chlorinated volatile oil of agreeable odor. When fused with hydrate of potassa it is decomposed into acetic and benzoic acids. Carbolic or Phenylic Acid, Phenylic Alcohol, Spirol Salicon.—Coal tar is distilled, the product between 300° and 400° is saturated with strong solution of potassa, the oil is removed, the salt decomposed by muriatic acid; the carbolic acid washed with water, dried with chlo- ride of calcium, rectified, cooled to about 12° F., the liquid decanted, and the crystals quickly dried. It crystallizes with solid potassa, and distilled with it is not decomposed. (See Creasote, p. 505.) As before stated, carbolic acid is generally sold for creasote, which, it appears, is a name applied by chemists to various empyreumatic liquids; the following is given as the principal differences of wood creasote from phenylic acid: it remains liquid at 17° F., boils at 397° F., ASTRINGENT AND ALLIED ACIDS. 609 remains colorless if pure. Strong ammonia dissolves it in the cold; with solid potassa it forms a liquid compound, and some crystalline scales; if distilled with it it is decomposed, and an aromatic oil is obtained: its formula has been given as C24H1405 (Volckel), CMHlft04 (Gorup), C14H802 (Williams). Phenylic acid is a powerful antiseptic, and is conveniently used in watery solutions for arresting the sloughing of wounds and removing the putrescency of gangrenous and other offensive sores. Picric Acid, Carbazotic Acid, Welter's Bitters.—The cheapest method of preparing it is from coal tar, but from indigo it is better obtained in a pure state.—1 part indigo is boiled with 10 to 12 parts of nitric acid, specific "■ravity 1.43, gradually added until nitrous acid ceases to be evolved; the picric acid crystallizes on cooling, and is purified by combining with an alkaloid, and precipitating by nitric acid. •It precipitates gelatine, and the solution of its soda salt is a reagent for potassa, which salt is but sparingly soluble. It has been occasionally used in medicine, and is said to be employed in France in making beer, in place of hops. (See Potassae Picras.) (e) Acids yielding Essential Oils. Myronic acid, Cs0H10NS4Ols, in the form of a potassa salt is contained in black mustard seed, from which it is obtained by exhausting it, first with alcohol, afterwards with water; the last solution is evaporated to a syrup, freed from gum and mucilage by a little alcohol, and evaporated spontaneously to crystallize. The salt is in colorless needles of a cooling taste, readily soluble in water but insoluble in strong alcohol. Its rational composition is probably KO,2S03+ C8H5,CaNSa (oil of mustard) -f- CiaH14014- (sugar). The acid forms a colorless.syrup of acid reaction and bitter taste, soluble in water and alcohol, but insoluble in ether. Myrosin is the ferment of black and white mustard seed, which decomposes the acid thus yielding oil of black mustard. Sixth Group.—Astringent and allied Acids. These acids are widely diffused throughout the vegetable kingdom, occurring, more rarely in annual plants, but are met with in most perennials, generally in the bark, in the leaves, and morbid excres- cences, frequently also in the wood and fruit. They are all with two exceptions uncrystallizable, inodorous, of an astringent taste, and soluble in water and alcohol. The solutions are precipitated by gela- tin and albumen, most metallic oxides and the vegetable alkaloids; iron salts are generally rendered dark green, blue, or black. They are weak acids, and if kept in a moist state, are rapidly changed in con- tact with the air; their salts are quickly darkened while m solution, or, if insoluble, while being washed upon a filter. Owing to this property, their composition and the nature of their changes are, in many cases, still a matter of controversy. Medical Properties.—-The relative utility of tannic and gallic acids, which are too apt to be confounded by physicians, depends upon the fact that the former acts directly upon the mucous membranes with which it comes in contact, arresting hemorrhage or other excessive 39 610 on organic acids. discharge by its direct effect on the gelatin contained in them. It is hence a direct and powerful styptic, while gallic acid, by entering the circulation, produces an astringent and tonic impression upon the more remote organs which cannot be directly impressed. The dose of tannic acid is from two to ten grains, that of gallic acid from five to twenty, several times a day. The former is much used in ointmenta as a substitute for powdered galls, in about one-fourth the quantity, and is also well adapted to astringent injections instead of the less soluble vegetable astringents. Its action is considered somewhat dif- ferent (harsher) than that of the modified forms of tannic acid con- tained in kino, krameria, cinchona, &c. The list which follows contains the names of different vegetable as- tringents owing their activity wholly or in part to gallic or some of the modified forms of tannic acid. List of Vegetable or Tannic Acid Astringents. Acacia cochliacarpa; the bark. Brazil bark; cortex astringens Brasiliensis. Bistorta; root of Polygonum bistorta. Bistort. Carya; bark of C. alba and other species. Hickory bark. Catechu ; extract of wood of Acacia catechu. Catechu. Chimaphila ; leaves of C. umbellata. Pipsissewa. Cinchona ; bark of different species of Cinchona. Peruvian bark. Diospyros ; unripe fruit of D. Virginiana. Persimmon. Bark also used. Epigxa; leaves of E. repens. Trailing arbutus. Galla ; morbid excrescence in Quercus infectoria. Galls. Geranium ; rhizoma of G. maculatum. Cranesbill. Geum ; root of G. rivale. Water averis. Granati fructus cortex ; from Punica granatum. Pomegranate. " radicis cortex; " " " Hamamelis; bark and leaves of H. Virginiana. Witchhazel. Haematoxylon ;. wood of H. Campechianum. Logwood. Heuchera ; root of H. Americana. Alum root. Hippocastanum ; bark of iEsculus H. Horsechestnut bark. Ilex; bark and leaves of Ilex opaca. American holly. Juglans ;l leaves and rind (epicarp) of J. cinerea and other species. Kalmia ; leaves of K. latifolia. Mountain laurel. Kino; inspissated juice of various plants. Kino. Krameria ; root of K. triandra. Rhatany. Matico ; leaves of Artanthe elongata. Matico. Monesia; extract from Chrysophyllum glyciphlseum. Extract of monesia. Prinos ; bark of P. verticillatus. Black alder. Pyrola; leaves of P. rotundifolia and other speoies. Quercus alba; the bark. White oak bark. Quercus glandes; The fruit of various species of Quercus. Acorns. Quercus tinctoria ; the bark. Black oak bark. Rhus; bark and leaves of R. glabrum and other species. Sumach. Rosa Gallica ; the petals. Red rose. Rubus ; root of R. villosus and Canadensis. Blackberry root. Salix ; bark of S. alba and other species. Willow bark. Salvia ; leaves of S. officinalis. Sage. Santalum; wood of Pterocarpus santalinus. Red saunders. Spiraea ; root of Spiraea tomentosa. Hardhack. Statice ; the root of S. Caroliniana. Marsh rosemary. Tormentilla ; the root of Potentilla T. Tormentil. Uva ursi; leaves of Arctostaphylos U. U. Bearberry leaves. Juglans U. S. P. The inner bark of Juglans cinerea is cathartic. ASTRINGENT AND ALLIED ACIDS. 611 Syllabus of Astringent and Allied Acids. Gallotannic acid, C54H22034. ) Acidum tannicum. 5 Gallic acid, 3HO,C,4H307. Pyrogallic, acid HO,CI2H505. Paraellagic or rufigallic, C14H408-f2Aq. Ellagic or bezoaric, C»H,0ItffAq. Tannoxylic, C14H6012. Tannomelanic, C12H406. Metagallic or gallhuminic, Cl2H404. Quercotannic (f). Catechutannic or mimotan- nic. (?) Catechuic or Tanningic (Catechin), C„H907+ 3Aq. Rufocatechuic or rubinic. Catechuinic or Japonic, Ct2H404. Pyrocatechuic or oxy- phenic or Pyrodioric, C12H603+H0. Kino, or coccotannic. Coffeotannic or chlorogenic, C14H807. Viridinic or coffeic,CMH708. Boheatannic, C14H60g-f-Aq. Kinovotannic, C,4H908. Rufikinovic (kinovic red). Cinchotannic, C14H809. Ruficinchonic (Cinchona Red). In galls from Quercus infectoria, and Chinese galls from Distylium racemosum, and in sumach. In uva ursi, sumach, &c.,the seed of mangoes (Mangifera Indica) contain 7 per cent. By destructive distillation of the former. By treating gallic acid with S03 and throwing into water; precipitate sublimes in vermilion red prisms ; little soluble in alcohol and ether. In oriental bezoars (animal calculi) and by decomposi- tion of tannin; deposited by infusion of galls ; yellow- ish crystalline ; inodorous ; tasteless ; insoluble in ether, nearly insoluble in water and alcohol. By KO and tannin at ordinary temperature; lead salt brick-red. By KO and tannin at 2120; lead salt dark brown. By heating gallic or tannic acid to 480O; black, tasteless, insoluble in water, soluble in KO. In oak-bark, black tea, &c ; similar to gallotannic, but yields no gallic or pyrogallic acid. In catechu, probably by oxidation of catechuic acid ; light yellow : precipitates gelatine ; protosalts of iron grayish-green, sesquisalts brownish-green; tartar emetic is not precipitated ; yields no sugar with S03. In catechu; white scales or needles; readily soluble in alcohol, boiling ether and hot water ; not precipitated by starch, gelatine, tartar emetic or vegetable alkalies ; by acetate of lead white, by sesquichloride of iron dark-green; by oxidation catechutannin is formed. (See "American Journal of Pharmacy," xxviii. 326.) In the oxidized alkaline solution of the former. The tannin in krameria yields a similar red acid by spon- taneous oxidation. Product of decomposition by KO ; black. By dry distillation of catechu, kino, rhatany, fustic, &c.; is carbolic acid -f- 20 ; white crystals fusible at 234° • freely soluble in alcohol, ether, and water; reduces oxides of the noble metals; salts of Fe203 colored green ; turning red by NH3. In kino ; readily soluble in alcohol and hot water, scarcely in ether; precipitates sesquisalts of iron, but not tar- tar emetic ; by oxidation red. In coffee, cahinca root, the leaves of Ilex Paraguayensis; colorless needles (?) ; sesquisalts of iron are colored green; protosalts, tartar emetic and gelatine not pre- cipitated ; yields kinone with S03 and MnOa (?). By oxidation of former, or in presence of alkalies ; brown- ish amorphous; solution in S03 carmine, precipitated blue by water ; its solution green ; the lead salt blue. In tea,besides quercotannic acid; deliquescent; fuses at 212Q to a red compound. In Quina nova bark, not precipitated by gelatine, by Fe2Cl3 dark green ; yields, by dry distillation, pyroca- techuic acid. By oxidation of former. Precipitated by sesquisalts of iron green, by tartar emetic, starch, gelatine and albumen; soluble in diluted acids, alcohol, ether, and water. In red cinchona; product of oxidation of the former; various ingredients of bark have received this name; that of H. Hasiwetz is of a chocolate or black color, soluble in alcohol, ether, and alkalies. 612 ON ORGANIC ACIDS. Moritannic, C18HgO10. Rufimoric, C)6H608+HO. Moric (Morin), C18H8010. Quercitritannic (?). Galitannic, C14HgO10. Aspertannic, C14H808. Callntannic, CI4H608+HO. Rhodotannic, C,4H607+ HO. Leditannic, C14H606+3HO. Rubichloric, C14H809. Cephaelic, Ipecacuanhic, C14H806+HO. Pinitannic, C,4H808. Oxypinitannic, C,4H809. Pinicortannic, C16H9On. Cortepinitannic, C,6H707. Cissotannic, C^H^Ojg. Xanthotannic, C28H1804. In fustic, Morus tinctoria ; yellow prisms fusible at 400° ; precipitated by gelatine; by tersulphate of iron green- ish-black ; by sugar of lead yellow, and partly by tartar emetic ; with B03 a gelatinous mass ; solution in alkalies turns dark brown. Brick-red floccules, with alkalies carmine-red solution, with alum, baryta and tin, dark-red lakes; probably identical with carmic acid. In fustic; white, crystalline, with alkalies yellow, with Fe, Cl3 garnet-red; olive-green precipitate with salts of FeO. In quercitron bark ; green with salts of Fe203; quercitric acid is probably nearly allied to it. In Galium verum and aparine ; precipitates Fe2Cl3 dark- green ; sugar of lead chrome yellow; by alkalies brown. In Asperula odorata; readily soluble in water and alcohol, little in ether; colors Fe2Cl3 dark-green: not precipi- tated by albumen, gelatine or tartar emetic. In Calluna vulgaris ; precipitates Fe2Cl3 green, salts of PbO yellow, SnCl2 yelk-yellow ; heated with acids yields calluxanthin. In the leaves of Rhododendron ferrugineum ; amber yel- low ; precipitates salts of PbO chrome yellow; with acids rhodoxanthin. In Ledum palustre; reddish ; readily soluble in water and alcohol; colors Fe2Cl3 green; with acids ledixan- thin. In Rubia tinctorum and Asperula odorata; colorless ; solu- ble in alcohol and water, insoluble in ether ; by HC1 yields Chlorrubine; C12H403 a dark-green powder; soluble in alkalies blood-red. Very bitter; reddish-brown; soluble in water, alcohol, and ether; colors Fe2Cl3 green, on addition of NE, violet or black ; precipitates salts of PbO white. In the leaves of Pinus silvestris and Thuja occidental's; yellow ; soluble in water, alcohol, and ether; no pre- cipitate with gelatine or tartar emetic; colors Fe2Cl8 red-brown ; precipitate PbO yellow. With the former; brownish ; very soluble in alcohol and water; colors Fe2Cl3 intensely green ; precipitate PbO and BaO yellow; not gelatine or tartar emetic. In the bark of Pinus silvestris; reddish-brown; colors Fe2Cl3 dark-green. With the former. Red ; colors Fe2Cl3 intensely green. The red coloring matter of autumnal leaves ; very weak acid. The yellow coloring matter of autumnal leaves ; weak acid, not precipitated by gelatine. Acidum Tannicum. Tan = C54H22034. (Gallotannic Acid) The new officinal process of the Pharmacopoeia directs the macera- tion of powdered nutgall, previously exposed to a damp atmosphere for twenty-four hours, in ether, previously washed with water, sufficient to form a soft paste. This is to be set aside, closely covered, for six hours, then enveloped in a close canvas cloth, expressed powerfully be- tween tinned plates to obtain the liquid portion. The remaining mass is to be again reduced to powder and mixed with sufficient ether, shaken with one-sixteenth its bulk of water to form again a soft paste, then expressed as before. The liquids being mixed are to be spon- taneously evaporated to a syrupy consistence, then spread on glass or tinned plates and dried in a drying closet. TANNIC AND GALLIC ACIDS. 613 Gallotannic acid is also conveniently prepared by the former pro cess, which consists of treating powdered galls in a narrow covered dis- placer, with washed ether. The ethereal tincture which passes sepa- rates, upon standing, into two layers; the lower one is aqueous, thick, and of a light buff or straw color; it contains the tannic acid, which, by the action of the small portion of water in the washed ether, has been dissolved out from the galls. The upper layer or stratum of liquid is limpid and specifically much lighter than the other; it has a greenish color, and contains very little tannin, but a small amount of coloring matter from the galls. To obtain the dry product, the light layer may be poured off and purified by distillation, and combined with water for another operation, while the thick heavier layer is evaporated in a capsule by a carefully regulated heat till dry. If a white and very porous product is desired, the capsule should be inverted towards the end of the evaporation, and the thick syrupy liquid exposed to radiated heat. It is swelled up and whitened as the vapor is disengaged. The whole of the liquid which comes through may be evaporated without the precaution of pouring off the top layer, but the tannin then has a greener tinge. In large manufacturing establishments, apparatus is, of course, constructed for saving all the ether for future use. The first process, as above, though perhaps less eligible for the use of the pharmaceutist in making the acid on a small scale, corresponds more nearly with that in common use by manufacturing chemists. The results are nearly the same by both processes, the yield varying from 30 to 60 per cent, of the galls employed. Gallotannic acid is a yellowish-white powder, or in a porous pulverulent condition; has a strongly astringent taste ; is entirely dissipated when thrown on red hot iron. It is freely soluble in water, alcohol, glycerin, in ether, in the fixed and volatile oils. Its aqueous solution reddens litmus and produces with solution of gelatin a white flocculent precipitate, with salts of sesqui- oxide of iron a bluish-black precipitate, and with solutions of the organic alkalies white precipitates, very soluble in acetic acid. Mohr, Sandrock, and others assert the syrupy liquid (the lower layer as above) to be a concentrated solution of tannin in ether, which is not miscible with ether, except by the intervention of a little alcohol; they therefore reject the employment of aqueous ether, which has a tendency to swell up the pow- dered galls, and retard percolation, and recommend a mixture of 90 per cent. alcohol and ether (one to twenty parts, Guibourt). The concentrated ethereal solution containing 46.5 to 56.2 per cent, of tannic acid (Mohr), and being insoluble in ether, it was suggested in the eecond edition, might be a tannic ether; 13 equivalents of ether = 481 to 1 equivalent of tannin = 618, require exactly 56.2 per cent, of the latter and 43.8 per cent, of the former. Prof. J. M. Maisch was the first to ob- serve this, and Prof. Bolley has since published a similar observation; other chemists still adhere to the older view of the solubility of tannin in ether. See "Am. Journ. Ph.," 1861, 207, 219, 33T, and "Proc. Am. Ph. Ass.," 1862, 158. Acidum Gallicum. Ga = 3HO,C14H307. (Gallic Acid) Gallic acid is made by subjecting a portion of powdered galls to long-continued action of air and moisture in a warm place. This may 614 ON ORGANIC ACIDS. be accomplished in an evaporating capsule loosely covered with paper. The powder is first made into a thin paste with water, and water repeatedly added to this to prevent its drying, until after the lapse of thirty days (U. S. P.), when the whole of the tannic has passed spon- taneously into gallic acid. In extracting this from the moist mass, advantage is taken of the solubility of gallic acid in hot water, and its ready precipitation on cooling; all that is necessary is to press out from the pasty mass its water, and, rejecting this, to digest the remain- ing paste in hot water, and filter the solution while hot through animal charcoal to decolorize it, and a nearly white crystalline powder of gallic acid is obtained. A water-bath funnel, Fig. 166, is used for filtering the solution while hot. Care must be taken in these pro- cesses not to employ vessels of tinned iron, which, by the exposure of a small surface of iron, may blacken the whole product. The amount of gallic acid obtained from galls is about 20 per cent. The ferment inducing the change of tannic into gallic acid, is identical with pectase; emulsin, yeast, albumen, and legumin are without action, on the contrary they retard the influence of pectase. Tannin, according to Strecker, is decomposed into 3 equivalents of gallic acid and one of grape sugar; C5iR!i!i03i4-8H0=3C14H6010-f C13Hla013; but Knop obtained from gallotannin 94 per cent, gallic acid, and Kawalier regards it as a mixture of two compounds, one of which yields gallic, and the other, present only in small proportion, yields ellagic acid. The same decomposition of tannic acid is induced by the influence of diluted sulphuric acid, and the process for obtaining gallic acid can be materially shortened if, instead of exposure to the atmosphere, galls or tannin are treated with dilute sulphuric acid at the boiling point. Otherwise the process remains the same as above given. Gallic acid is soluble in cold water in about the proportion of 4 grains to the ounce. Its salts with the alkalies and alkaline earths are crystallizable; at a boiling temperature, sesquisalts of iron are decomposed by being reduced to protosalts, carbonic acid being given off at the same time. In common with tannin, it is usually given in pills, and used externally in ointments or solution. It is likewise used in hair dyes, an ammoniacal solu- tion of nitrate of silver being afterwards employed to produce the color. Pyrogallic Acid, C13H806=gallic acid CMH6O10—2C03.—The best and cheapest method for preparing it is from the dry aqueous extract of galls in an apparatus suited to subliming benzoic acid, heated in a bath of sand or chloride of zinc, to 400° F., and towards the end of the process a little higher. 100 parts of dry extract yield about 5 parts perfectly pure pyrogallic acid, and the same amount of impure, to be purified by another sublimation. By dry distillation of Chinese galls in small retorts, Liebig obtained a liquid, yielding, on evaporation, 15 per cent, brown crystallized pyrogallic acid. White laminae or needles of a pearly lustre, soluble in 2^ parts water at 55° F., less in alcohol and ether; the solutions do not affect litmus paper; its taste is very bitter; fusible at 240° F., boiling at about 400°, at 480° it is blackened and converted into metagallic acid. Solution of pyrogallic acid, if dropped into milk of lime, produces a characteristic red coloration, changing to brown. Protosulphate of iron produces a bluish-black color, a trace of sesquisalt changes it to a dark green. Sesquisalts of iron color a solution of the acid red; hydrated sesquioxide of iron and a pyrogallate give a dark blue liquid and precipitate. ANIMAL ACIDS. 615 It is much employed in photography on account of its great sensitiveness to light in combination with silver, and for dyeing the hair brown and black. The salts are more soluble than the gallates. Seventh Group.—Acids of Animal Origin. Two acids have been described in the second group, which for a long time were supposed to be exclusively of animal origin, though likewise formed by the decomposition of certain organic compounds of vegetable products; modern chemistry, however, has established the fact that formic and lactic acids are both produced during the natural healthful life of some vegetable organisms, and that the nettles, for instance, owe their powerful irritant effect to the same acid that nature has provided for the defence of ants, wasps, and bees. Vegetable acids, to the exclusion of but a few compounds which from their chemical behavior may be classed with the acids, are desti- tute of nitrogen; the acids arranged in this group all contain nitrogen, one also sulphur, and are produced by the functions of some of the most important organs of the animal economy; they comprise the acids found in the muscles, occurring in urine, and being the active con- stituents of bile. None of them have been used in medicine in a free state; the impure soda salt of one of the biliary acids, however, has been somewhat employed as a substitute for inspissated bile, and others may probably be found useful if attention is drawn to them. Syllabus of Animal Acids. Inosinic acid, HO,Cl0H6N2O10. Uric or Lithic acid, 2H0,C( H2N404+4 Aq. Hippuric acid, HO,C,8H8N06. Cholic or glycocholic acid,HO, C52H42NOn. Hyocholic acid, HO,C54H42 N0o. Sulphocholic, Taurocholic, or choleinic acid, H0,C52H44 NS.A,. In the juice of the meat of most animals and ingre- dieut of culinary and dietetic preparations of meat; strong acid, agreeable taste of broth, decomposed by boiling; precipitated by alcohol in crystalline floc- cules ; insoluble in ether. Free and combined in the urine of birds, reptiles, some molluscs and insects; in the urinary sediment and calculi of man and quadrupeds ; white silky scales or needles ; soluble in 14,000 parts cold and 1800 parts boiling water, insoluble in alcohol and ether. Evaporated with diluted N05, and NH3 added forms murexide. Salts mostly insoluble or sparingly soluble. In the urine of man and herbivorous animals, increased by partaking of benzyle (tolylej compounds. Color- less prisms or needles ; taste bitterish acid ; soluble in alcohol, in 400 parts cold water, less in ether. Salts mostly soluble in boiling alcohol and boiling water; the alkaline salts soluble in the cold. As soda salt in the bile of most animals. Thin white needles ; taste sweetish and bitter; very easily solu- ble in alcohol, less in ether, with difficulty in water; salts soluble in alcohol. Combined with soda, potassa and ammonia in the bile of the hog. Colorless amorphous, fuses in boiling water; little soluble in water, readily in alcohol, in- soluble in ether; alkaline salts soluble in alcohol and water, not in ether, separated from its solutions by NaCl. In small quantity in the bile of the ox, and other ani- mals. Resinous, soluble in little water, turbid by more ; solution dissolves fats, fatty acids and choles- terin. Alkaline salts soluble in alcohol and water, crystallize in contact with ether. 616 ON ORGANIC ACIDS. Inosinic Acid,—The mother liquor of the preparation of creatine is pre- cipitated by alcohol, the crystals in hot solution are decomposed by chloride of barium ; the crystallizing inosinate of baryta decomposed by sulphuric acid, and the'concentrated solution of inosinic acid precipitated by alcohol. Uric acid is readily prepared from guano, by exhausting it first with water, then treating with potassa, precipitating by chloride of calcium, and the filtrate by muriatic acid ; the precipitated acid is to be purified. The quantity of uric acid in urine is determined by precipitating this liquid with an acid ; if no albumen is present, muriatic acid will answer, otherwise acetic, or, better, phosphoric acid is to be used ; the liquid retains of uric acid only .009 per cent, of its weight, which loss is usually made up by the precipitation of coloring matter. Gregory's process for obtaining it is as follows : the fresh urine of cows or horses is mixed with milk of lime in excess, boiled, strained and evapo- rated to | its original measure ; it is then supersaturated with muriatic acid, and the crystallized acid purified by again combining it with lime and de- composing with muriatic acid. The urine of cows contains 1.3, of horses .38 per cent, of hippuric acid; in putrefied urine it is changed to benzoic acid. Boiled with dilute acids or alkalies, it splits into benzoic acid, C14HB04, and glycocoll, C4H5N04. Glycocoll, glycin, or amido-acetic acid, C4H:i(NHJ04, is formed by the action of sulphuric acid or potassa upon gelatine, and is found in hippuric and the nitrogenated biliary acids. It occurs in colorless hard crystals, soluble in 4.3 p. cold water and in boiling diluted alcohol, has a faint acid reaction, no odor, and a sweet saccharine taste; heated with a concentrated alkali, it assumes a bright fire-red color and decomposes. Bile is separated by the liver ; it is a liquid containing about 90 per cent. water, has a strongly bitter taste and a yellowish or brownish-green color, and a neutral or faint alkaline reaction. Its consistence is due to mucus, its coloring matters produce iridescence with nitric acid and its acids, and their acid derivatives yield a purple coloration with sugar and sulphuric acid. We owe most of our present knowledge of the constituents of bile to the researches of Prof. Strecker. The biliary acids are best prepared by precipitating fresh bile with acetate of lead, washing the precipitate with hot alcohol and decomposing the resi- due by sulphuretted hydrogen ; cholic acid is thus obtained. Taurocholic acid is precipitated by subacetate of lead from the mother liquor filtered from the above precipitate by sugar of lead. Hyocholic acid is with less trouble obtained by separating its soda salt with table salt, purifying by alcohol and decomposing by sulphuric acid. Impure cholate of soda, bilin of Berzelius, has been proposed as a substi- tute for ox-gall in doses varying from 5 to 15 grains three or four times daily. It is easily prepared by evaporating fresh ox-gall to one-half, precipitating slimy and coloring matter by alcohol, treating the filtrate with animal char- coal, evaporating and washing with ether. The acids are copulated compounds, and split on treatment with boiling dilute acids or alkalies into their constituents as follows :— Cholic acid, C5,H43N012+2HO=Cholalic acid C4i)H400|0-f Glycocoll C4H-N04. Hyocholic acid, C54H43NOI0+2HO=Hyocholalic " C0H40Og + " C4H.N04. Taurocholic " C5>H45NS2014+2HO=Cholalic " C48H40O10+Taurin C4H7NS206. Taurin or bilasparagin, C4H7NS206, crystallizes in large colorless prisms of a cooling taste ; soluble in 16 p. cold water, little in alcohol; it is one ACIDS PERTAINING TO COLORING MATTERS. 617 of the most stable compounds, not being decomposed by concentrated sul- phuric and nitric acids. When the biliary acids are oxidized by nitric acid, one of the products is cholesteric acid, C1HH10O10, which is likewise obtained by the same pro- cess from l Cholesterin, CMH„Oa+2Aq, which is met with frequently in the body of the higher animals and man, in bile, particularly in the biliary stones in the nerves, brain, blood, yelk, pus and other morbid excretions. It forms white shining scales, is inodorous and tasteless ; insoluble in water, dilute acids and alkalies, but soluble in alcohol, ether, and solutions of soap and the bili- ary acids. To detect it when present in small proportions and particularly when associated with fats, is not without difficulty ; in the latter case the formation of a lead soap and its exhaustion by ether or boiling alcohol are advisable. Eighth Group.—Acids pertaining to Coloring Matters. The organic coloring matters are chemical compounds, the charac- ter of which is not clearly ascertained, except in a few instances. All those substances which in their dry state or in solution are remarkable for decided coloration, may be called coloring principles; sanguinarina and hydrastia have been thus classified ; they are, however, alkaloids, and will be treated of in their proper place. Of the coloring matters in the following lists, many of those placed in division a have acid properties so decided as to expel carbonic acid; the acid properties of others are not so easily recognized, as they frequently dissolve in acids and alkalies with different colors, and in such solutions are readily affected by atmospheric oxygen, particularly at high tempera- tures. But as far as the latter property is concerned, they are not the only acids changed in this way; the whole group of tannins and their derivatives _ are equally unstable, and probably even more so, than many coloring acids. Most of those which follow are precipitated by acetate or subacetate of lead, and may be obtained in a free state by decomposing such precipitates, diffused in alcohol, by sulphuric acid or sulphuretted hydrogen. Compounds may be formed with alumina, if their mix- ture with a solution of alum is precipitated by ammonia; such colored precipitates are called lakes. (a) Acids from Phanerogamic Plants. Carthamic acid, C14HgOw In Carthamus tinctorius ; amorphous ; carmine red, with carthamin. a green metallic lustre ; little soluble in water; solu- ble in alcohol. Carthaxanthic acid, Yellow extract; soluble in water ; brown in contact with C24H,0I5. air. Crocic acid, C48H4303), In saffron, and in the fruit of Gardenia grandiflora; bril- polychroite. liantly red ; by N0S green, by S03 indigo blue (testa for saffron) ; soluble in water, more in alkalies, by hot diluted acids split into crocetin, C24H230M, and sugar. Rottleric acid, C^HjgOg, In the hairy covering of the fruit of Rottlera tinctoria; rottlerin. brilliant yellow crystals ; red by alkalies. Chrysophanic acid, C2SH10O8. In senna, rhubarb, &c. (See also Rluunnin.) 618 ON ORGANIC ACIDS. Xanthorhamnic acid, Rhamnoxanthic acid, C2ittvf>i2,franyulin. Gentisic acid, C28H10O10. Santalic acid, C30H|4O|0, santalin. Ruberyihric acid, C72H40O40. Oxylizaric acid, C18H606-|- HO, purpurin. Anchusic acid, C35H20O8. Brazilic acid, C^H^O,^ brazilin. Bixic acid (?). Carotic (?) C36H2402, Caro- tin. Quercitric, or Rutinic acid, Quercetin, C)6H160M. Luteolic acid, C40H14O6 (?) luteolin. Thujic acid, C^H^O^, thujin. Mangostic acid, C40H22O10, Mangostin. Gambogic acid, C40H18O21 Pipizaic acid, C30H20O6. Scoparic acid, C21H1101C scoparin. Hixanthic acid, C^H^Ojj. In the fruit of Rhamnus tinctoria; crystalline; readily soluble in water and hot alcohol ; insoluble in ether; by boiling with dilute acids yields rhamnetin, C^H^O,,,, and sugar. (See Quercitric Acid.) In the root and bark of Rbamnus frangula; lemon yel- low crystalline powder ; insoluble in water and ether; soluble in 160 p. hot alcohol; in S03 with a ruby, iu alkalies with a purple color. Loao or Chinese green is the A1203 compound of Rhamnus chlorophorus and utilis. Sap green is prepared from the unripe berries of Rham- nus cathartica. In gentian root. Yellow needles ; not bitter; soluble iu alcohol. In red saunders, Santalum rubrum; microscopic red crystals ; insoluble in water ; purple by alkalies. In madder, the root of Rubia tinctorum ; yellow prisms; soluble in hot water, alcohol, and ether; with A1203 a bright red lake ; is a glucoside ; yields Alizarin, lizaric acid, C20H6O6. Sublimed in orange-colored prisms ; from solutions, in brownish yellow prisms with 4H0; with alkalies purple, with lime and baryta, blue. From madder by fermentation ; red or orange needles; with alkalies cherry red, with lime and baryta purple precipitates. In anchusa, alkanet root. Deep red ; insoluble in water; the salts purple or blue, bleached by light. In Brazil wood. Yellowish-red prisms ; soluble in alco- hol, ether, and water; by alkalies purple. In annatto from Bixa orellana; red, resinous ; soluble reddish-yellow in alkalies ; indigo-blue in S03. Copper red, microscopic crystals ; no odor or taste; inso- luble in water and ether, slightly in alcohol; soluble in fixed and essential oils; blue by S03 and SO,. In quercitron bark, Ruta graveolens, Capparis, iEsculus, Fagopyrum, and Humulus; crystalline, chrome yellow, bitterish ; soluble in alcohol and alkalies, less in water, little in ether ; as found in the different plants, it ia quercetin with various proportions of the carbohydrate, C12Hl50|3. Crystalline, yellow ; by Fe2Cl3 green ; probably identical with rhamnetin and the following. In French weld from Reseda luteola. Yellow needles by sublimation ; nearly insoluble in water. In Thuja occidentalis; lemon-yellow, astringent; soluble in hot water and alcohol; green by Fe2Cl3 ; it splits into glucose and thujetin, C28H14016; its alcoholic solu- tion by Fe2Cl3 inky, by alkalies green. In the rind of Garcinia Mangostana, golden yellow scales; tasteless ; insoluble in water, soluble in alcohol, ether, and alkalies ; by N05 oxalic acid. In gamboge ; amorphous, yellow ; soluble red in NH3, and yellow in alcohol; precipitated by concentrated solu- tions of alkaline salts, but the precipitate soluble in pure water. In pipizateo root, a Mexican cathartic ; readily soluble in absolute alcohol and ether; its alkaline salts purple and easily soluble in alcohol, ether and water. In Spartium scoparium ; light yellow crystals; tasteless, inodorous ; soluble in alcohol ; easily in alkalies and concentrated acids ; by Ca0,C10 dark-green; precipi- tates by PbO salts. In the leaves of Ilex aquifolium; straw-yellow needles; soluble in hot water and alcohol, insoluble in ether; with PbO yellow lakes. ACIDS PERTAINING TO COLORING MATTERS. 619 Hxmatoxylic acid, C32Hu012, In logwood, from Hsematoxylon Campechianum. Yellow hxmatoxylin. prisms ; taste of liquorice ; little soluble in water ; by moisture and alkalies converted in Ha matein, C32H,oOIO; dark-green, metallic lustre; with bases red, violet or blue. Cuicumic acid (?), curcu- In turmeric, Curcuma longa; yellow powder; slightly min. soluble in water ; soluble in alcohol and ether, brown by alkalies. (b) Acids from Cryptogamic Plants. The natural chromogenic acids from various species of the genera < Lichen, Variolaria, Lecanora, Kosella, Gyrophora, &c, are copulated compounds, colorless, or but slightly colored, and yield by boiling with water, alcohol, or alkalies, orsellic acid, C16H808, and another acid or neutral compound which is usually likewise copulated. The for- mer is, by continuing the process, converted into orcine, C,4H804+2Aq, which by ammonia, moisture and oxygen, yields the coloring matter orceine, C14H7N06 (orceic acid), which, with ammonia, furnishes a deep red, with alkalies a violet or purple solution; this is the coloring principle of cudbear and archil. Erythric acid, C^H^O^,. From Roccella tinctoria; yields CI6Hg08, and erythrin, C24HI6Ol4, which again yields Cl6Hs08, besides Erythro- mannite. Alphaorsellicacid,C32H14Ol4. From a variety of the same; with 2HO yields 2Cl6H80g. Betaorsellic acid,C34H16Ol5. From another variety; yields C16H8084-roccellin, C18Hs07. Evernic acid, C34H16014. From Evernia prunastri; yields Cl6H808+everninic acid C18H)0O8. Gyrophoncacid, CjgH^O^. From Gyrophora pustulata ; intermediate product un- known. Litmus is obtained from Lecanora tartarica and some other lichens by a different process ; its coloring principles are probably derivatives of orcine, or as Kane believes, of roccellin. The following have been distinguished ; all are amorphous and little soluble in water, and yield lakes of blue or purple color; the formulas are those of Kane. Azolitmin, C18H10N010; deep brown red, soluble in alkalies with blue color. Spaniolitmin, light red, insoluble in alcohol and ether, soluble in alkalies blue. Erythrolitmin, C^H^O^, light red, easily soluble in alcohol, not in ether. The hot solution deposits it in soft deep-red granules. Erythrolein, C36H2304, semiliquid; easily soluble in alcohol and ether with dark-red color, in ammonia purple. (c) Azotized Vegetable Coloring Matters. There are but two of this division, which have not the least relation to each other; moreover, one is a complex body never obtained in a state of purity. Indigogen C|6H6N02. In the juice of various plants yielding indigo. Chlorophyll C,8H9N08. The green coloring matter of leaves and herbs. Indigogen, or Indigo white, is contained in the juice of plants yielding indigo in a state of combination with alkalies; owing to its proneness to oxidation, it is difficult to be obtained in a state of purity. During the pro- cess of fermentation of the leaves, it is oxidized and converted into indigo 620 ON ORGANIC ACIDS. blue, other matters being separated at the same time, the whole constituting commercial indigo. The coloring principle upon which the value of indigo depends has been named Indigotin, C16H5XOa; amorphous, subliming in hexagonal prisms, deep blue with a tinge of purple, tasteless and inodorous ; insoluble in nearly all solvents ; yields by dry distillation, anilina, NII3,HCy, and empyreumatic oils. Indigo has been used in epilepsy, taken internally; a portion is found in urine which deposits occasionally a blue pigment, urocyanin, which is at least frequently identical with indigotin. The blue coloring matter of some milk appears to be sometimes the same pigment, and may then be derived from plants containing indigogen. If indigo is exhausted with sulphuric acid, the solution treated with con- centrated solution of acetate of potassa, the precipitate washed with the same solution to remove KO,S03, and finally with alcohol to extract KO, Ac, the residue is Indigosulphate, Sulphocaerulate of potassa or indigocarmine in a pure state. Schnack calls the indigo-white indican, C„H31XO.u ; it splits by cold acids into indigo-blue, Cl6H.NOa, and indiglucin, C18HI0O13. Through vari- ous influences a number of different coloring matters contained in the com- mercial indigo, and other compounds are formed ; among the latter are car- bonic, formic, acetic and propionic acids. Chlorophyll occurs in the green parts of plants in the form of globules or granules composed of a green membrane and semi-liquid matter, envelop- ing a starch granule (Bohm), or it is a transparent colorless membrane, containing a green liquid with some minute granules. It is always accom- panied by protein and waxy matters, and the true coloring principle is pre- sent only in very minute quantity, which renders its separation very difficult. Its chemical relations are, therefore, still somewhat uncertain. Fremy supposes it to consist of phylloxanthin and phyllocyanin, which, being mixed in different proportions, furnish the different shades of green in leaves ; the latter is wanting in the yellow autumnal foliage. The yehow (xanthophyll) and red (erythrophyll) coloring matters of the leaves in autumn are products of decomposition of the chlorophyll; Witt- stein and Ferrein suppose both to be weak tannins. (See Cisso and Xan- thotannic Acid.) Xanthnin and cyanin are said to be the yellow and blue principles furnishing all the innumerable shades of the yellow, blue, green and red colors, which we admire in the petals of flowers ; they are then in combination with one another, with various alka- lies and acids. It has, however, been proved that the flowers of Reseda luteola, Capparis spinosa and Aesculus hippocastanum contain quercitrin, and Hlasiwetz suggests that other than yellow colors may be due to the same glucoside or some deri- vative. (See "Am. Jr. Ph.," 1860, 222.) (d) Ternary Animal Coloring Matters. Carmic acid, CjgH,/)^. In cochineal, and probably in the flowers of Monarda didyma, and identical with rufimaric acid, as by dry distillation oxyphenic acid is obtained ; brownish- purple, friable, freely soluble in water and alcohol, sparingly in ether. Euxanthic or Purreeic acid, In purree, an East Indian pigment from the urine of CHO^^HjgO^. camels after they have eaten the fruits of Mangos- tana mangifera ; yellow shining prisms ; soluble in boiling water, more in hot alcohol and ether: inodor- ous, bitter sweetish taste; salts yellow, crystalline or gelatinous. ACIDS PERTAINING TO COLORING MATTERS. 621 (e) Azotized Animal Coloring Matters. Haematin or Hsematosin, In the blood of all vertebrate animals ; brownish-red ; C^H^NjOgFe. inodorous and tasteless ; insoluble in alcohol, water, and ether, soluble in acidulated alcohol, alkalies, and aqueous solutions of the salts in blood. Urerythrin or Urohaematin ? The coloring matter of human urine; dark-red ; in- soluble in water, acids, and many salts ; soluble in alcohol, ether, chloroform, and warm fresh urine. Biliphaein or Cholepyrrhic The brown coloring matter of bile and biliary concre- acid, C31Hl8N209. tions ; dark-brown with olive-green tinge ; little solu- ble in water, more in alcohol and alkalies. The preparation of these coloring matters is connected with many diffi- culties, and we have even no proof that they can be separated without de- composition ; moreover it is likely that as soon as they are separated from the organism, they commence to undergo alterations under the influence of air and light. The latter two of the above syllabus are believed to be deri- vatives from the coloring matter of the blood. Haematin occurs naturally together with globuline as haemato-globulin, and the detection of blood in physiological and forensic analysis is based partly on the presence of the latter, partly on the separation of the former, or one of its modifications, or the recognition of the iron. Hsematoidine occurs in stagnant blood in the form of red or yellowish-red crystals or is amorphous, and is insoluble in water, alcohol, ether, alkalies, and acids. Hasmin may be prepared from a minute quantity of old or fresh blood, by dissolving it in glacial acetic acid, boiling it for a moment and evaporating a few drops upon glass. It forms red or brown crystals, and is insoluble in water, alcohol, ether, and chloroform, but soluble in potassa. The forma- tion of these microscopic crystals forms now one of the principal tests for recognizing blood. Heller recognizes blood in urine by boiling it when the coagulated albu- men will contain all the haematin. If to the boiling urine some potassa is added the albumen is dissolved, a bottle-green color is produced, and the earthy phosphates settle with a brownish or blood-red color, showing a dichroism in green. Pathological liquids are mixed with some normal urine, and blood spots are previously dissolved in water, in alcohol acidulated with S03, or in a solu- tion of sulphate of soda, when they are treated as before. Blood, if corpuscles cannot be recognized, shows its presence by the odor of burning feathers when heated to near redness, and by the production of Prussian blue when heated with some sodium, and precipitating the solution by a salt of Fe203+FeO. See papers on the subject in "Am. Journ. Pharm.," 1857, 30; 1861, 439; 1862, 331; and "Am. Drugg. Circular," 1860, 260. The brown and yellow biliary coloring matters are recognized in the alco- holic alkaline solution, which turns green on the addition of HCl, and blue by the addition guttatim of NOs. The most reliable test is the change of color which is produced by NOs containing N04; the color passes then through green, blue, violet, red into yellow. 622 ON THE ORGANIC ALKALIES OR ALKALOIDS. CHAPTER VIII. ON THE ORGANIC ALKALIESOR ALKALOIDS. The whole subject of organic chemistry is comparatively new, the discovery of the existence of the vegetable alkalies, the most import- ant class of organic principles, dating back only to 1817, when Ser- turner, a German apothecary, announced the existence of morphia. The study of all classes of organic bodies has since progressed rapidly, many discoveries have been announced, which have been subjected to revision and been superseded by others, and this process is still going on; all that the pharmacologist can expect to do, is to present the actual state of knowledge upon the several subjects under examination, awaiting the progress of analytical and synthetical in- vestigation to confirm existing views, or to present others more in accordance with the requirements of exact science. In the present uncertain state of chemical knowledge in regard to the alkaloids, we shall follow the classification indicated by nature in her morphological developments, and arrange the natural alkaloids as the other classes of organic chemical principles upon a botanical basis; those of animal origin and those produced by artificial processes being grouped separately. The alkaloids as a class, are the most powerful of organic principles, displaying their effects especially on the nervous system, which they so forcibly impress as to constitute many of them virulent poisons; a few, however, seem nearly destitute of active properties. They all contain nitrogen, and by destructive distillation, or by heating with alkalies, evolve ammonia; most of them evince their alkalinity by re- storing the blue color to reddened litmus, and though not always crys- talline or even solid, they combine with acids to form definite salts which are crystalline; they also, like the alkalies proper, form double salts with bichloride of platinum. Most of the alkaloids are sparingly soluble in water, but dissolve freely in alcohol, especially with heat; some dissolve in ether, fixed and essential oils, and almost all in benzine, bisulphuret of carbon, amylic alcohol, and chloroform, which may be used for their extraction. They are nearly all precipitated from solution, whether alone or com- bined as salts, by tannic acid, which is hence, when taken immediately, one of the best chemical antidotes for them, with the exception of those soluble in water; they are mostly precipitated by alkalies, in an ex- cess of which many are redissolved. The vegetable alkalies do not exist free in plants, but are generally combined with peculiar vegetable acids. Certain natural families of plants are distinguished by containing the same or similar alkaloids in their several species, while in other instances the same plant contains ORGANIC ALKALIES OR ALKALOIDS. 623 two or more different alkaloids. Opium contains nine, St. Ignatius' bean and nux vomica three, sabadilla and veratrum three, while the different species of cinchona are known to contain at least four. It is believed that all really poisonous plants contain an alkaloid or neutral characteristic principle. It is remarkable that the development of the active principle is frequently only in one organ of the plant, and only at a certain period of its growth. There is no convenient and scientific classification of the organic alkalies, and their composition which is known, at least empirically, affords no clue to their properties and relations; indeed, their separa- tion from some of the class of peculiar neutral principles, though sanctioned by a well-known chemical distinction, seems forced and un- natural when we compare their physical and therapeutic properties, and is constantly lost sight of by writers. Considering the recent discovery of most of this class, it might be expected that a uniform system of nomenclature would obtain in regard to them. This, however, is only measurably the case; they are most usually named from the generic title of the plants from which first derived, or from some distinguishing property; but by many they are indiscriminately terminated by in or ia. This practice is contrary to the rule adopted by common consent in this country, appropriating to the neutral principles the former, and to the organic alkalies the latter, termination. Even the officinal alkaloids are constantly mis- named from a disregard to this rule. In converting the foreign names into our own Latinized form, some discrepancies arise, as aconitina and aconitia, quinidina and quinidia, applied to the same substances. The symbols used in some works to designate this class of princi- ples are omitted in this as interfering with the convenience of its mechanical execution. In these symbols the first letters of the re- spective names are surmounted by a 4- sign, to designate the organic alkali, as in the case of acids the — sign is employed. A sufficient advantage does not seem to be secured by the use of this abbre- viated method to compensate for its increased complexity and the liability to mistakes on the part of the student. The mode of preparation of the organic alkalies varies with their habitudes, and particularly according to their solubility and that of their native combinations. When the native salt is soluble in water, as meconate of morphia, and the organic alkali is itself insoluble, there is no difficulty in its extraction, the simple addition of a strong mineral alkali to the infusion of the vegetable substance neutralizes the organic acid with which the alkaloid was associated, and it is thrown down in a more or less pure form. It more frequently hap- pens that the native alkaloid salt is not so freely soluble in water, and then a diluted acid is employed for its extraction; so that its salt with an inorganic acid is obtained, and, this being decomposed by an alkali, yields the pure precipitated alkaloid. In a large number of cases, however, these simple methods of extraction are quite useless, and complex processes are necessarily resorted to. Some of these are founded upon the alkaloid being separated from its associated princi- 624 ON THE ORGANIC ALKALIES OR ALKALOIDS. pies by subacetate of lead. Some processes direct ether, benzine or chloroform as the solvent, which separates the alkaloids from the other proximate principles present, and deposits them upon evaporation. The volatile alkaloids are, of course, prepared by appropriate modifi- cations of the process of distillation. It is not intended to go into detail on these processes except in a few cases, as many of the alkaloids are seldom called for, and those in use are prepared almost exclusively on a large scale by chemical manu- facturers. The use of animal charcoal for its powerful absorbent properties, and the subsequent extraction of the_ alkaloid by appropriate solvents, is a process sometimes resorted to with success. Chemical History.—The study of the native organic alkalies has not as yet revealed their actual composition, the empirical formulas only being as- certained by our present means of analysis. From their behavior to tests we know that they have a certain relation to ammonia, and it is by the study of the artificial alkaloids that we are able to form an idea of the real chemical nature of the whole class. By the destructive distillation of many nitrogenated substances, compounds are obtained containing nitrogen, and having the behavior of alkaloids; they are closely allied to ammonia. This base, though generally classed amongst the inorganic compounds, is, in fact, merely the last stage of decomposition of organic nitrogenated bodies, containing only two elements, nitrogen and hydrogen. Like it, the compounds referred to have strong alkaline proper- ties, in some instances even stronger than ammonia, and, as already stated, like the strong inorganic alkalies, readily form crystallizable double salts with bichloride of platinum. The organic alkalies, chiefly on account of their strong affinity for acids, and of their property of evolving ammonia when heated with caustic potassa, have long been viewed by some chemists, especially Berzelius, as compounds of ammonia with other complex bodies ; since the discovery of the artificial alkaloids, and the investigations into their constitution, this view has been somewhat modified so as to consider them as ammonia, in the composition of which one or more equivalents of hydrogen have been substituted by a radical, and since this view of their composition has gained ground the number of the artificial alkaloids has been largely increased, and the probability has been shown of its further increasing to a surprising extent. Among the inorganic compounds, even some metals are capable of replac- ing one or mo.e equivalents of hydrogen to form bases, as in the well-known instances of Cuprum ammoniatum and Hydrargyrum ammoniatum of the Pharmacopoeia ; it now remains to be shown how the elements are grouped in compounds of this nature, and which of the atomic elements or groups may be substituted for the hydrogen in ammonia to form alkaloids. Such substituting compounds we find among the carbohydrogens, such as methyle C„H8, ethyle C4HS, propyle C6H7, butyle CaH9, amyle CWB.1V capryle Ct,H17, phenyle (benzid) C12H5; oxygenated radicals like benzoyle C14HsOs, cumyle C.^H^O.,, &c. ; the elements forming hydracids, bromine, iodine, chlo- rine, cyanogen ; hyponitric acid N04, and a great variety of other elements and groups. The newly-formed compounds have an alkaline character as long as they correspond in composition with ammonia. As a general rule, the compounds with the radicals of the hydracids have a weaker basic character, which be- comes less decided as the number of equivalents of these radicals is increased TESTS FOR THE ALKALOIDS. 625 in the alkaloid ; with three equivalents of an element of the hydracid group, all alkalinity is lost; such compounds, however, do not correspond with am- monia or the oxide of ammonium in composition. The artificial alkaloids, after combining with acids, correspond closely in composition with the am- monia salts. Series of Alkaloids containing Phenyle, C12H5, illustrating the foregoing. Phenylamina (anilina) .... N(CI2H5)H2. Methylanilina...... N(C2H3)(CI2H5)H. Ethylanilina....... N(C4H5)(CI2H5)H. Diethylanilina...... N(C4H-)2(C12H5). Methyl-ethylanilina.....N(C2H3)(C4Hr)(C12H5). « Chloranilina....... N(C,,HS)C1H. Bichloranilina...... NrC^2H5)Cl2. Trichloranilina......N(CI2H4)C13 (not a base). Bromanilina....... N(C12Hs)BrH. Iodinanilina....... N(C12H.)IH. Cyananilina....... N(Cl2H5)CyH.2 Nitranilina....... N(C12H5)(N04)H. But it is not only the hydrogen of NH3 which can be replaced by elements or compounds; even the nitrogen may thus be substituted by elements, the chemi- cal compounds of which show a close analogy to the corresponding com- pounds of N. Phosphorus, arsenic and antimony form with 3H hydrurets, analogous in composition to NH3, but without basic character. When the hydrogen is replaced by any of the alcohol radicals methyle, ethyle, &c, the compounds, like P(C4HS)3, are weak bases, and combined with 1 or 20 have a stronger basic character; the corresponding nitrogen compounds NH30 are still unknown. Strong basic properties are met with in the compounds analogous to NH40, in which 4H are replaced by alcohol radicals; the oxide of stibmethylium, Sb(C2H3)40, for instance, is extremely caustic, de- composes the salts of ammonia and metallic oxides like potassa ; its salts are bitter, not poisonous, and isomorphous with the potassa salts. The chemical behavior of all the organic bases is closely allied to ammo- nia ; if we omit tannic acid, which is not precipitated by NH3, but yields precipitates insoluble in water, not only with the vegetable alkalies but also with most neutral principles (see Chapter IX), there are particularly five reactions characteristic of this class :— 1. The residue of the treatment of uric acid with nitric acid is of a red- dish color, and dissolves in ammonia with a beautiful purple, forming murexid. Precisely similar is the behavior of the organic alkaloids, though from their different composition, this color is somewhat altered ; nicotia produces the purest purple, anilina a more violet color (Schwarzenberg). 2. Their behavior to Sonnenschein's test is alike. Whether free or com- bined with an acid, all alkaloids of the combination of ammonia are precipi- tated by phospho-molybdic acid with various shades of yellow, some pulveru- lent, some flocculent, some voluminous. The following exhibits his results :— The precipitate is :— Light yellow and flocculent with morphia, veratria, jervia, aconitia, emetia, atropia, daturia, ethylamina, diethylamina, triethylamina, methylamina, dimethylamina, trimethylamina, and anilina. Light yellow and voluminous with caffeina, theobromina, conia, nicotia. " " " pulverulent " mercuramina. ' Similar combinations are formed with amyle, butyle, and other carbohydrogens. 2 Chlorine bromine, iodine, kc, in the proportion of two atoms, are less basic, and Where three atoms enter into the compound, it ceases to have basic properties. 40 626 ON THE ORGANIC ALKALIES OR ALKALOIDS. Yellowish-white and flocculent with quinia and cinchonia. " " " voluminous " strychnia. Brownish-yellow and flocculent " narcotina and piperina. " u " voluminous " codeia. Ochre-yellow and flocculent with brucia. Dirty-yellow and flocculent with berberina. Orange-yellow and flocculent with colchicia. Sulphur-yellow and flocculent with sinamina. Lemon-yellow and flocculent with quinolina. " " " pulverulent with solania. 3. Another very important test for the discovery of the alkaloids is Scheibler's phospho-tungstate of soda, a solution containing only ^xsjjvus part of strychnia is rendered opalescent. The reagent is prepared by adding phosphoric acid to tungstate of soda, and has been, as far as experiments performed on dogs are reliable, recom- mended as an antidote to poisonous alkaloids, with which an insoluble com- pound is formed, that cannot be assimilated. These precipitates are all insoluble or nearly so in water, alcohol, ether, and in diluted mineral acids, with the exception of phosphoric. Concentrated nitric, acetic, tartaric, citric, and oxalic acids dissolve them on boiling, separating them again on cooling ; citric acid, however, easily reduces the phospho-molybdic acid. Caustic alkalies, their carbonates, borates, phos- phates, tartrates, and acetates, dissolve the precipitates, some separating again the organic alkali. The oxides of the earthy metals, silver and lead, and their carbonates gradually decompose them, liberating the base. .00007 gramme of strychnia in one cubic centimetre of solution is very plainly pre- cipitated. Asparagin, sinapolin, urea, hydrocyanic, hippuric, uric, and similar acids, and nitrogenous bodies, digitalin, meconiu, and similar organic neutral prin- ciples are not precipitated. 4. Similar in its behavior to the alkaloids is Schultze's test liquid, which is prepared by adding pentachloride of antimony to phosphoric acid; the pre- cipitates are usually white and flocculent and insoluble in diluted acids. 5. The fifth general test for alkaloids is that of Prof. F. F. Mayer, who uses iodo-hydrargyrate of potassium, or rather a solution of corrosive subli- mate in iodide of potassium. It precipitates ammonia only in the presence of free alkali, but the vegetable alkalies are precipitated from neutral alka- line and acid solutions, and the precipitates are soluble in alcohol. In recommending this test for the quantitative determination of alkaloids in pharmaceutical preparations, Prof. Mayer observes that aconitia and ber- berina require, for complete precipitation, 1 equivalent; atropia, strychnia, brucia, narcotina and veratria, 2; morphia and conia 3 ; nicotia 4, and the cinchona alkaloids 6 equivalents of mercury. (See " Proc. Amer. Phar. Ass.," 1862, 238.) For chemico-legal analyses Sonnenschein proposes the following easy way of detecting the alkaloids. The substances are several times exhausted with water strongly acidulated with muriatic acid, evaporated at about 90° F., to a thin syrupy consistence, diluted with water, after standing, filtered ; pre- cipitated by phospho-molybdic acid in excess, the precipitate washed with water on a filter, acidulated with nitric and phospho-molybdic acid, mixed with hydrate of baryta to alkaline reaction, and heated in a flask with a tube attached to collect ammonia and other volatile bases in muriatic acid. The residue is treated with carbonic acid, evaporated, exhausted with alcohol and t-vaporated ; if necessary, recrystallized to purify the bases. The phospho-molybdic acid is prepared by precipitating molybdate of TESTS FOR THE ALKALOIDS. 627 ammonia with phosphate of soda, the yellow precipitate is well washed with water, suspended in water, and dissolved by carbonate of soda, evaporated and heated to expel ammonia ; if reduction should take place, it is moistened with N0S, and again heated to redness; the mass is then dissolved in warm water and mixed with N05 to strong acid reaction, and diluted to ten times the weight of the dry salt; after filtering it has a golden yellow color; it must be preserved against ammoniacal vapors. Besides the method by phospho-molybdic acid as above, the following older method of testing for the alkaloids, first proposed by Stas, has been more frequently tried and found successful. The substance is mixed with twice its weight of pure strong alcohol and a little tartaric or oxalic acid, and heated to 160° to 165° F., after cooling, filtered, washed with strong alcohol, and the liquors evaporated below 95° over sulphuric acid or in a current of air; the remaining aqueous liquid is passed through a wetted filter, to separate fats, and again evaporated to near dryness ; the product is exhausted with cold 95 per cent, alcohol, evaporated, dissolved in very little water, bicarb, soda or potassa added until carbonic acid ceases to be evolved, and agitated with four or six times its measure of rectified ether free from oil of wine. The residue, after evaporation of some of the ethereal solution, shows the presence of either a liquid or solid alka- loid. If the former, the ether is shaken with a little of a strong solution of caustic soda or potassa, decanted, the residue washed with ether, the liquids mixed with a little diluted S03. This ether then contains the animal sub- stances, the water, the salts of nicotia, conia, and ammonia ; sulphate of conia is slightly soluble in ether. The aqueous solution is decomposed by potassa and agitated with ether, the ether evaporated spontaneously; to get rid of all traces of ammonia, the residue is placed for a moment in vacuo over S03. Conia and nicotia may be easily distinguished by their odor ; conia is insoluble, nicotia soluble, in water. In water mixed with conia, a few drops of chlorine water produce a white precipitate. If the alkaloid be solid, the ethereal solution is treated with soda or po- tassa, decanted, washed with much ether, evaporated, dissolved in little alcohol, evaporated, dissolved in water acidulated with S03, evaporated in vacuo or over sulphuric acid, treated with pure carbonate of potassa, then with absolute alcohol, which, on evaporation, yields the alkaloid crystallized. If, after the decomposition by an alkali, the addition of ether is delayed, morphia, which immediately after precipitation is more soluble, becomes crys- talline, and ether then takes up but traces of it; alcoholic ether, however, takes up larger quantities of morphia. Otto therefore advises to add more soda to the washed (with ether) solution to prevent crystallization of mor- phia, then add muriate of ammonia, when, on evaporation, all morphia will crystallize out. The volatile alkaloids, besides being obtained by means of ether, are ob- tained by distilling the aqueous acid solution with soda. Uslar and J. Erdmann obtain the alkaloids in a nearly pure state, by de- composing the acid infusion with an alkali and shaking with amylic alcohol, from which the base is extracted by agitating it with much water acidulated with muriatic acid. This method is recommended for obtaining these bodies for forensic purposes or from the plants containing them. (See "Amer. Jour. Ph.," 1862, 354.) Meconic Acid.—For the detection of opium, it is not necessary to isolate the organic alkalies, since the reaction of meconic acid with sesquichloride of iron is unmistakable evidence of its presence. The substance is treated with alcohol and a few drops of muriatic acid, evaporated, dissolved in water, 628 ON THE ORGANIC ALKALIES OR ALKALOIDS filtered, boiled with excess of magnesia, filtered, acidulated with muriatic acid, and a solution of sesquichloride of iron added; a deep brown red coloration which is not affected by terchloride of gold indicates the presence of meconic acid. 1. Syllabus of Natural Quaternary Alkaloids. Aconitum Napellus. Delphinium staphisagria " consolida. Ranunculacex. J Aconiti folia, U. S. \ " radix, " Staphisagria. Delphinium, U. S. Yellow root. Hydrastis Canadensis. Helleborus niger. Helleborus, U. S. Coptis trifolia. Coptis, U. S. " Teeta. Mahmira. Xanthorrhiza apiifolia. Xanthorrhiza, U. S. Menispermacex. Cissampelos pareira. Pareira, U. S. Anamirta cocculus. Cocculus Indicus. Cocculus palmatus. Calumba, U. S. Coscinium fenestratum. Columbo wood. Menispermum Canadense. Yellow parilla. Anonacex. Codocline polycarpa. Berberidex. Barberry root. Berberis vulgaris. leffersonia diphylla. Podophyllum peltatum. Twinleaf. Podophyllum, U. S. Papaveracex. Papaver somniferum. Opium, U. S. Sanguinaria Canadensis. Chelidonium maju3. Sanguinaria, U. S. Celandine. Glaucium luteum. Horn poppy. herb.) (The Fumariacex. Corydalia fabacea, bulbosa, j Turk c &c_ tuberosa, and formosa. J J Fumaria officinalis. Viola odorata. Anchieta salutaris. Theobroma cacao. Thea Bohea. Paullinia sorbilis. Fumatory. Violacece. Viola, U. S. Byttneracex. Chocolate nut. Camelliex. Chinese tea. Sapindacex. Guarana. j Aconitia, C60H47NOI4. j Napellina, ? Delphinia, C27H46N02. Staphisaina, C^H^NO,, if Hydrastia ? \ Berberina, C40H17NOg. Helleboria, ? I Berberina, C40H17NO8. Cissampelina, C36H2iN06. Menispermina, C18H12N02. Berberina, C40H17NO9. Berberina. f Berberina, C40H,7NO8. \ Berbina. > Berberina. ' Morphia, C^H^NOg. Narcotina, C42H21N014. Codeia, C86H21N06. Thebaia, C38H21N06. j Narceina, C46H29N018. i Opiania, C66HS7N021. Papaverina, C40H21NO8. Phormia, C27H9N07. Opina, ? _ Metamorphia ? ( Sanguinarina, C36H16N08. I Chelidina, C40H20N3O6. [ Puccina ? f Glaucina, ? \ Gaucina, ? I Corydalina, C40H26NOr. Fumarina, ? Viola, ? Anchietia, 1 t Theobromia, Cl4H8N404. [ Theina identical with caffeina. -j (See Celastrinex and Cincho- I nacex.) SYLLABUS OF THE ALKALOIDS. 629 Rutacex. J Harmalina, C26H14N202 Peganum harmala. Harmel rue. \ Harmina, C26H12N202. Xanthoxylum Clava Her- West Indian Prickly )D , , „ TT ATi~ cnlis. ash. VBerbenna,C40H17N08. culis. ash. Celastrinex. Ilex Paraguayensis. Paraguay tea. Leguminosx. Geoffroya Jamaicensis. Jamaica cabbage-tree bark. " Surinamensis. Surinam " " Baptisia tinctoria. Wild indigo. Umbelliferx. Conium maculatum. Conium, U. S. jEthusa cynapium. Fool's parsley. Cucurbitacex. Trianosperma ficifolia. Tayuya. Monimiacex. Atherosperma moschatum. The bark. Erythroxylacex. Erythroxylon Coca. Coca leaves. Caffeina. (See Cinchonacex.) Jamaicina ? Surinamina ? Baptisina ? iConhydrina, C,6HI7N02. (See Conia among the ternary alkaloids.) Cynapia 1 Trianospermia ? Atherospermia, C30H20N05. Cinchonacex. Various Peruvian barks of 1 „. , TT 0 ., r,. . > Cinchona, U. o. the genus Cinchona. J ' Jaen and Cusco bark. Para bark. Pitaya bark. Carthagena bark. Cephaelis ipecacuanha. Coffea Arabica. Unofficinal barks. Ipecacuanha, U. S. Coffee. Compositx. Eupatorium cannabinum. Water hemp. Apocynacex. Strychnos nux vomica. Nux vomica, U. S. " Ignatia. Ignatia, U. S. Oeissospermum Vellosi. ? Pao pereira. Urari or Curare. Arrow poison. Verbenacex. Vitex Agnus castus. Chaste tree. Convolvulacex. Convolvulus Scammonia. Scammonium,?/. S. Solanacex. Solanum dulcamara and Dulcamara, U. S. other species. Atropa belladonna. Belladonna, U. S. Datura stramonium. Hyoscyamus niger albus.) Capsicum annuum. (and Stramonium, U. S. Hyoscyamus, Folium and Semen, U. S. Capsicum, U. S. Euphorbiacex. Buxus sempervirens. Boxwood. Croton tiglium. Croton seed. Euphorbia officinarum. Euphorbium. Lauracex. | Nectandra Rodiei. Bebeeru bark. f Cocaina, C32H20NO8. (See, \ also, Ternary Alkaloids.) f Quinia, C40H24N2O4. J Quinidia, C40H24N2O4. j Cinchonia, C40H24N2O2. ^ Cinchonidia, C40H24N2O2. f Aricia, C40H24N2O6. (Paricia, ? Pitayia, ? Carthagia, ? Emetia, C20H,5NO5. Caffeina, Theina, C16H10N4O4-f 2Aq. Eupatorina, ? ] Strychnia, C42HHN204. > Brucia, C46H26N208. J Igasuria, C^H^NaOg. Pereirina, ? Curaria, f Castina, ? Convolvulina, ? ISolania, ? Dulcamarina, ? f Atropia, C34H23N06. \ Belladonnia, " Daturia, identical with atropia. t Hyoscyamia. Capsicina, ^. Buxina,=Bebeerina. Crotonina, ? Euphorbina, ? f Bebeerina, C38H2N06. \ Sepeerina, ? 630 ON THE ORGANIC ALKALIES OR ALKALOIDS. Piperina, C^H |9NO„ Piperacex. Piper nigrum (longum and ) p. n q f album.) 5 riper> Um *' J Pi Piper caudatum. Cubeba Clusii. ( Melanthacex. Veratrum album sabadilla ( Veratrum album, *7. S. ( Veratria, C^HggNgO,,. JS ' Sabadllla \ Veratrumviride, U.S. \ Sabadillia, C40H26N2O1D- viride Colchicum autumnale. Palmx Cocos lapidea. 40 26 2UI0' (.Sabadilla, U.S. ( Jervia, C60H46N2O6. Colchicum, U. S. Colchicia. ? Apirina. 2. Syllabus of Artificial Quaternary Alkaloids. \ (See Cinchona Alka- loids.) Quinicia, C40H24N2O4. From quinia and quinidia. Cinchonicia, C40H24N2O2. From cinchonia and cinchonidia. Tropia, ? From atropia. Porphyrharmina 1 From harmalina and harmina. 3. Native Ternary Alkaloids. Leguminosx. Spartium scoparium. Scoparius, U. S., Broom. Umbelliferx. Conium maculatum. Conium, U. S., Hemlock. Oicuta virosa. Water hemlock. Chaerophyllum bulbo- j Cowparsley. Rubiacex. Araribe rubra. Erythroxylacex. Erythroxylon coca. Coca leaves. Lobeliacex. Lobelia inflata. Lobelia, U. S. Solanacex. Nicotiana tabacum. Tabacum, U. S., Tobacoo. Euphorbiacex. Mercurialis annua. Rosacex. {Flowers Sorbus ancuparia, Cra- taegus monogyna and oxy- cautha. Chenopodex. Chenopodium vulvaria. Herb. Fungi. Secale cornutum. Ergota, U. S. Sparteina, C15H13N. f Conia, C16H15N. ■I Methylconia, C18H|7N. (. Ethylconia, C20H19N. Cicutina, ? Chjerophyllina, ? Aribina, C^H^N. Hygrina, ? Lobelina. Nicotia, C10H7N4. Mercurialina, ? Secalina, or Propylamina fNCJL, 4. Artificial Ternary Alkaloids. (a) By Decomposition of Native Alkaloids, mostly with Potassa or other Alkalies. Conia, CI6HI5N. From conhydrina by anhydrous phosphoric acid. Ethylamina, C4H6, H2N. From narcotina ; thin colorless liquid, boiling at 663 p.; strong ammoniacal odor; burning with a yellow name ; miscible with water ; stroug base. ACONITIA. 631 Propylamina, CSH7N2. From narcotina and codeia. (See Secalina.) Methylamina, C2H3,H2N. From narcotina, codeia, morphia, caffeina by potassa; a liqne- fiable gas, ammoniacal odor; very soluble in water; burns with a yellow flame • strong base. Piperidina, C10HUN. From piperina by a mixture of soda and lime. (b) From Alkaloids, and in Coal Tar. Lepidina, C20H9N. From cinchonia by potassa ; colorless oil; distils at 500O. Pyridina, C10H.N. Like former ; distils at 2420 ; soluble in water. Lutidina, C14H9N. Like former; distils at 310O; aromatic oil separated from its aqueous solution by heating. Pyrrolina, C8H5N. Like former ; distils at 271° ; agreeable ethereal odor ; colors pine- wood moistened with HCl carmine red ; turns red with N05. Quinolina or Leucolina, C18H7N. From quinia, cinchonia, strychnia, berberina by potassa ; oily ; disagreeable bitter almond odor ; distils at 4620 ; dissolves much water, in which it is little soluble. Picolina, CI2H7N. From piperina and cinchonia by potassa; distils at 2750 ; pine wood is colored yellow. (c) From other Sources. Toluidina, C14H7, H2N. From nitrotoluol by NH3 and HS; from oil of turpentine by N03 and KO ; little soluble in water, easily in other solvents ; liquid at 104O ; boiling at 388°; intensely yellow with pine wood. Anilina, C12H5, H2N. From coal tar ; from indigo by KO, from nitrobenzol by HS and NH4S, &c. ; vinous odor; aromatic taste ; boiling point 360°; by N05 deep blue, yields picric acid. Synonyms crystallin, benzidamin, phenylamin. Aconitia = G60K41'^Ou. (Equiv. 533.) The outlines of the process of the Pharmacopoeia for preparing this alkaloid are as follows: Forty-eight troyounces of aconite root in moderately fine powder are exhausted by alcohol, the alcohol is distilled off until a pint remains behind, which is diluted with a pint of distilled water, to which a fluidounce and a half of dilute sul- phuric acid has been added. The fixed oil and resin, which separates on standing, are now removed from the liquid, and this is evaporated to four fluidounces; this is washed, after cooling, by agitation and decantation, with six fluidounces of stronger ether to remove the remainder of the fixed oil and resin. Stronger water of ammonia is now added in slight excess, and the mixture is three times successively agitated with six fluidounces of stronger ether; the ethereal solutions, after decantation, are mixed, and, in a porcelain capsule, evaporated spontaneously to dryness. The dry residue is reduced to powder and kept in well-stopped bottles. Aconitia, thus prepared, is a yellowish-white powder, without smell, and of a bitter acrid taste, accompanied with a sense of numbness. It melts at a moderate heat, and, at a high temperature, is decomposed and entirely dissipated with the smell of ammonia. It requires 150 parts of cold and 50 parts of boiling water for solution, and is readily dissolved by alcohol, ether, and chloroform. It neutralizes acids, forming with them uncrystalli- zable Baits. By this process aconitia is obtained in an impure state, though sufficiently pure for medicinal purposes. Even when pure it crystallizes with great difficulty. Its salts are readily soluble in water and alcohol, and are pre- cipitated by bichloride of mercury, terchloride of gold, and sulphocyanide of potassium, but not by bichloride of platinum ; solution of iodine pro- 632 ON THE ORGANIC ALKALIES OR ALKALOIDS. duces a brown-red precipitate; concentrated sulphuric acid colors it yellow, afterwards violet; with nitric acid it produces a colorless solution. Aconitia is one of the most virulent of poisons, and extreme caution is necessary if used internally. Externally applied, it produces on the skin a prickling sensation followed by numbness and a feeling of constriction. Its principal use is in cases of _ neuralgia, in ointment made by triturating the alkaloid first with a little alcohol or oil, and then with an unctuous vehicle. From a half to two grains are added to one drachm of the ointment. The galenical preparations of aconite perhaps answer every useful purpose to which aconitia can be applied. Napellina occurs in the genus Aconitum, with aconitia in very small proportion. It may be obtained from the crude aconitia, which is treated with a little ether; the residue is dissolved in absolute alcohol, precipitated by acetate of lead, and the filtrate treated with sulphuretted hydrogen, then with carbonate of potassa, evaporated, exhausted by absolute alcohol, and decolorized by animal charcoal. It is a white electrical powder, of a bitter, afterwards burning taste; pure ether dissolves it with some difficulty. It is distinguished from aconitia by not being precipitated by ammonia from its diluted solution in muriatic acid, and by being more soluble in dilute alcohol and water. Delphinia, C^H^NO^— The alcoholic extract of the seed of Delphinium staphisagria is treated with dilute sulphuric acid, precipitated with an alkali, again dissolved in diluted sulphuric acid, the coloring matter precipitated by a few drops of nitric acid, and the alkaloid by potassa; it is then obtained by evaporation of its solution in absolute alcohol. One pound yields about one drachm. It is a light yellowish or white powder; its taste is burning, acrid, very persistent in the throat; it is soluble in alcohol and ether, fuses at 248° F., and is decomposed at 300°, turning green ; the salts are neutral, bitter, and acrid, some deliquescent. Staphisaina.—If delphinia is dissolved in ether, this alkaloid remains behind as a yellowish, uncrystallizable mass, of an acrid taste, which forms acid salts. Hydrastia may be prepared by treating the aqueous extract of hydrastis with magnesia, and extracting the precipitate with boiling alcohol. Prof. Wayne, of Cincinnati, prepares a cold infusion of the root, removes the berberina by muriatic acid, and precipitates hydrastin by an alkali, recrystallizing it from alcohol. This vegetable alkali was discovered by Alfred B. Durand, of Philadel- phia, in 1850, while investigating the composition of the root of Hydrastia Canadensis. It forms yellow crystals, insoluble in water, sparingly soluble in cold alcohol and ether, soluble in chloroform and boiling alcohol, fusible in heated turpentine; it has an alkaline reaction on litmus; by concentrated nitric acid it is colored deep red. Concentrated sulphuric acid has little action in cold; when heated a purple color is produced; concentrated muriatic acid dissolves it. The salts, which are intensely bitter, have not been obtained in crystals. Hydrastia is stated by the " Eclectics" to be a valuable tonic, which has an especial action on diseased mucous tissues. It is very rarely pre- scribed. Helleboria is obtained by treating the root with alcohol containing one- fiftieth sulphuric acid; the tincture is treated with magnesia, the filtrate acidulated with sulphuric acid, water is added, the alcohol distilled off, BERBERINA. 633 filtered, decomposed with carbonate of potassa, and by shaking with ether, the alkaloid obtained in solution. It is white, crystalline, easily soluble in water, alcohol, and ether; taste bitter and acrid ; not volatile; as it evolves ammonia when treated with potassa, its proper place appears to be among the alkaloids, though its chemical nature is not known. Cissampelina or Pelosina, C36H21N06.—It is prepared by carefully pre- cipitating an infusion of the root made with sulphuric acid water, wash- ing, drying at 212°, and dissolving in absolute ether, which is free from alcohol and water. The yellowish hard semitransparent mass is colored yellow by sunlight; without smell; taste disagreeably sweetish bitter; soluble in alcohol and ether; insoluble in water, but swelling up and combining with it; in this state it has an alkaline reaction. The alkaloid and its salts are rapidly oxidized in a moist atmosphere; ammonia is evolved and they turn yellow; anhydrous alcohol now dissolves the new base pelluteina, C24H21N07, which is insoluble in ether. Menispermina, C18H12NOa, is contained in the shell of Cocculus Indicus To prepare it, the alcoholic extract is first extracted by cold water, then by hot water, from which solution mineral acids precipitate picrotoxic acid in crystals ; the filtrate is precipitated by an alkali, the precipitate extracted with acetic acid, again precipitated, washed with cold alcohol, and the alkaloid extracted by ether. It crystallizes in needles or prisms, has a very bitter taste, fuses at 248° F., is soluble in alcohol, ether, and alkalies, little in water, and is said to be not poisonous. Berberina, C40H17NO8, is one of the most widely diffused organic alka- lies, having been found in several genera and species of not less than five natural orders. It is prepared from the aqueous extract of barberry root by treating it with 82 per cent, alcohol, distilling it off, crystallizing the alkaloid in a cool place, and purifying it by recrystallization. By a similar process it may be obtained in large proportion from Colombo wood, the wood of Coscinium fenestratum, a tree growing in Ceylon. As stated above, berberina is likewise obtained from the infusion of hydrastis by precipitating its muriate by an excess of muriatic acid. The eclectics called this salt a resinoid, and named it hydrastin. Prof. Mahla, of Chicago, proved its true chemical nature. ("Amer. Journal of Sciences and Arts," January, 1862.) For accounts of the presence of berberina and its mode of extraction from other American plants, we have to refer to the interesting papers of Prof. F. F. Mayer ("Amer. Journ. of Pharm.," 1863, p. 97); of J. M. Maisch (Ibid., p. 301 and 303), and of J. D. Perrins (Ibid., p. 456). It crystallizes in fine yellow needles, containing 12 Aq, ten of which are expelled at a temperature of 212°, possesses a strongly bitter taste, is inso- luble in ether, easily soluble in boiling water and alcohol. By concentrated sulphuric acid it is dissolved with an olive-green color; by concentrated nitric acid, red with nitrous acid fumes; ammonia colors it yellowish-brown ; by distillation with lime it yields quinolina. It is a dye for silk, cotton, wool, and linen. Its salts have a yellow color, are crystallizable and precipitated by iodide, bromide, cyanide, ferrocyanide, and sulphocyanide of potassium, by bichloride of mercury and of platinum; the neutral salts are soluble in water, but insoluble in dilute acids. Berberinae Murias (Muriate of Berberina), HO,HCl.—This salt has been used by the "Eclectics" under the name of hydrastin. (See "Amer. Journ. Ph.," 1862, pp. 141, 308, and 360.) It is obtained from the concen- 634 ON THE ORGANIC ALKALIES OR ALKALOIDS. trated infusions of plants containing this alkaloid by precipitating with an excess of muriatic acid and recrystallizing from hot alcohol. It occurs in bright yellow crystals, containing 5 equivalents of water of crystallization, which is expelled at 212°. It has been used as a tonic in doses of 3 to 5 grains. (See page 290.) If berberina is exposed to the influence of nascent hydrogen, a colorless base is obtained, named by its discoverers hydroberberina, C40HaiN08. By oxidizing agents it is readily reconverted into berberina. Berbina (Oxyacanthin).—The bark of barberry root is extracted with alcohol, mixed with one-eighth water, the alcohol distilled off, the filtrate evaporated, berberina crystallized out, the mother liquor precipitated by carbonate of soda, and the precipitate treated with sulphuric acid and animal charcoal. White powder, colored brown by sunlight, bitter; nearly insoluble in water, soluble in alcohol, ether, fixed and volatile oils. The salts are crystallizable, colorless, bitter. Many of the plants in which berberina is found, in a larger or smaller proportion, contain also a colorless or white alkaloid, which is generally soluble in ether. It is uncertain yet whether these alkaloids are alike in the different plants and whether they stand in any relation to berberina. (See the papers of Profs. Mayer and Maisch, above referred to.) The Opium Alkaloids and their Salts. The various kinds of opium, as produced in different localities, always contain morphia, on which the activity of the drug mainly de- pends ; narcotina and other alkaloids are also always present, but some species contain, besides them, one or two alkaloids which have not been found in opium as generally produced. Besides the acid and a neutral principle, there have been discovered nine distinct vegetable alkalies, some of which are still little known. Morphia. C34H19N06 (equiv. 285). Morphia, which is the only one of the opium alkaloids commonly used in medicine, is the most abundant. It is the best known and most familiar of the whole class of vegetable alkalies. There are various processes for its preparation, of which that of the Pharmacopoeia is the simplest for the student who may be disposed to attempt this, by no means difficult experiment. Reduced in quantity to suit the purpose, it is nearly as follows:— Take of Opium, sliced.....gj. Solution of ammonia . » . . fgss. Distilled water, Alcohol, Animal charcoal, in fine powder, of each Sufficient. Macerate the opium with fgvj of water, working it with the hands or a pestle, as described under the head of Tincture of Opium, into a paste (if powdered opium is used, this is unnecessary) ; then digest it for twenty- four hours, and strain. Macerate or digest the residue in the same way, successively, with similar portions of water, and strain; then mix the infu- sions, evaporate to fgviij, and filter. To the concentrated aqueous solution thus obtained add first fgvj of alcohol, and then f3ij of solution of ammo- nia, previously mixed with about f gss of alcohol; cover the vessel and set MORPHIA AND ASSAYS OF OPIUM. 635 it aside. After twenty-four hours pour in the remaining f3y of solution of ammonia, mixed, as before, with alcohol, and again set aside that the mor- phia may crystallize out. The only remaining process is to purify the crys- tals which are formed in the bottom of the vessel. This is done by dis- solving them in boiling alcohol, and filtering, while hot, through animal charcoal. A common flask will serve for the solution, and, for small opera- tions, the application of heat to the funnel will be unnecessary. It may be conveniently arranged over an evaporating dish. The filtered liquid as it falls, will be immediately cooled by contact with the dish, and the extended surface will favor the spontaneous evaporation of the alcohol, so that a small crop of crystals (40 to 60 grains) of morphia may be expected. This is a convenient method of testing, approximately, the value of specimens of opium, in which case it is not necessary to carry out the last part of the directions, but is as well to take the weight of the crystallized alkaloids as at first thrown down. The animal charcoal deprives the pro- duct of color, but is apt to absorb a portion of alkaloid also ; so that, to get the entire yield, the charcoal should be digested in a further portion of alcohol, which should be added to the filtrate. The motive for using alco- hol with the ammonia added to the concentrated liquid in the first instance, is to take up the resinous coloring matters, which would otherwise contami- nate the precipitate. This method, however, can lay no claims to accuracy. Narcotia is ex- hausted by water together with morphia, and ammonia precipitates both these alkaloids, while the third one, codeia, remains in the mother liquor, if this be not too concentrated. Morphia is not entirely insoluble in water, and dissolves more freely in alcoholic liquids, in which narcotina is soluble to a less extent. The precipitate obtained by the above process, therefore, eontains notable quantities of narcotina, while a portion of morphia remains in the alcoholic mother liquor. A better method for assaying opium, which may likewise be used for pre- paring pure morphia on a small scale, is based on its solubility in fixed alkalies. It was originally proposed by Thiboumery and improved by Mohr as follows : One part of opium is exhausted by macerating it with twelve parts of cold water in four successive portions; the infusion is heated to boiling and mixed with hot milk of lime containing one-sixth caustic lime. The mixture is boiled for a few minutes, strained, the residue expressed, the liquid evaporated to two parts, filtered, heated to boiling, and mixed with one-twelfth part of chloride of ammonium. Ammonia is freely given off and the morphia separates in a crystalline state in a nearly white condition, the lime having removed most of the coloring matter. Boussingault and Payen follow a similar method, except that they neu- tralize the alkaline liquor by muriatic acid and precipitate the alkaloid by ammonia. The greatest difficulty with this process consists in the sparing solubility of lime and the possible loss of some morphia by the absorption of some carbonic acid by the lime, if the alkaline solution becomes too concentrated. Herzog substitutes potassa for lime, and perhaps a still greater improvement is the employment of caustic baryta by Prof. F. F. Mayer. Morphia occurs in small but brilliant prismatic crystals, containing 2H0, or nearly six per cent., which are transparent and colorless, intensely bitter when dissolved. It dissolves in about 1000 parts of cold and 400 parts of boiling water, in 14 parts of boiling and 20 of cold alcohol, freely also in solutions of fixed alkalies, while ammonia dissolves but little, and with great facility in dilute acids, which it neutralizes, forming salts ; one hundred parts 636 ON THE ORGANIC ALKALIES OR ALKALOIDS. of chloroform dissolve .57 of morphia. It is insoluble in ether. Heated with caustic potassa, methylamin is evolved. In powder, it strikes a deep blue color with neutral salts of sesquioxide, or with sesquichloride of iron, decomposes iodic acid with liberation of iodine, the yellow or reddish-yellow color being considerably deepened by the addition of a few drops of ammonia, and forms with nitric acid, a red compound passing into yellow ; with nitric containing some sulphuric acid, it strikes a green color ; chlorine colors morphia diffused in water orange, then red, and after solution yellow, and ultimately causes a flocculent pre- cipitate. Morphia may be considered pure, if it is entirely dissipated by heat, if ether takes nothing up, if it is wholly soluble in alcohol, and when its solu- tion in diluted nitric acid is not precipitated by nitrate of silver, nitrate of baryta, phosphate and oxalate of ammonia. Morphia Salts.—These are mostly crystallizable, soluble in water and alcohol and insoluble in ether; their solutions have a very bitter taste and are precipitated by alkalies and their carbonates, sulphocy- anide of potassium and terchloride of gold, in which case the latter is reduced to the metallic state. Concentrated solutions are also precipi- tated by iodide of potassium, phosphate of soda, bichloride of platinum and bichloride of mercury. They are made by forming solutions of the alkaloids in the appro- priate acids and evaporating. Morphias Sulphas.—This is in white feathery crystals, soluble in about 2 parts of hot water. In the United States it is by far the most common of the morphia salts; it contains 5 equivalents of water. Dose, one-eighth to one-fourth grain. Morphias Murias.—This is most used in England, where it is offi- cinal as morphiae bydrochloras. It is soluble in about 20 parts of cold water. Dose, the same as of the sulphate. Morphias Acetos.—By treating morphia with alcohol and acetic acid and precipitating by ether, it is obtained in crystals, but usually it is a white powder, and deficient in the proportion of the acid ingredient, so as to be comparatively insoluble, in which case a few drops of acetic acid to the liquid will make a clear solution. It is very freely soluble in water, less in alcohol, and is much used for external application, though adapted also to the form of powder or pill. Dose, the same as of the foregoing. Morphiae Citras.—In some parts of the United States a solution of this salt is employed. It is prepared by dissolving 16 grains of morphia with 8 grains citric acid and £ grain cochineal in one ounce of water. It is con- sidered 2^ times stronger than laudanum; its dose is 10 drops. Morphiae Valerianas is an unofficinal salt, made by neutralizing the alka- loid with valerianic acid. Its dose is from one-eighth to one-half grain. Narcotina, C4aH21N014 (equiv. 427), is easily obtained by extracting aque- ous extract of opium or crude morphia with ether, which leaves it, on evapo- ration, nearly pure. It crystallizes in colorless crystals, nearly insoluble in water, in fixed alkalies, and in a solution of table salt; it dissolves in 20 parts of hot and 150 parts cold alcohol; its alcoholic solution is very bitter, but has no alkaline reaction ; 100 parts of chloroform dissolve 37.11 parts, and 1 ounce of olive oil 1.2 grain of narcotina ; it is not acted on by sesqui- OPIUM ALKALOIDS AND THEIR SALTS. 637 salt of iron or pure nitric acid, but sulphuric, with but a trace of nitric acid, colors it blood red. Its salts are generally acid and crystallize with difficulty. Narcotina is not narcotic. It has been given as a tonic and antiperiodic, in doses as high as half a drachm, without the production of narcotic symp- toms. The following four homologous varieties of narcotina have been dis- tinguished, which, by treatment with caustic potassa, yield homologous volatile bases:— Normal narcotina, C42H21N014, yields ammonia. Methylic narcotina, C^H^NO^, yields methylamina. Ethylic narcotina, C46H25N014, yields ethylamina. Propylic narcotina, C48Ha7NOM, yields propylamina. Narcotina, by the influence of dilute S03 and hyperoxide of manganese, is decomposed into water, opianic acid, and the following stronger alkaloid. Cotarnina.—Crystallizing in colorless prisms, easily soluble in boiling water, alcohol, ether, and ammonia, intensely bitter, alkaline reaction. The various homologous kinds of narcotina appear to furnish also homologous kinds of cotarnina :— Normal cotarnina, C^HgNOg. Methylic cotarnina, C24HnN06. Ethylic cotarnina, CggH^NOg. Propylic cotarnina, C^H^NOg. Codeia, C36H31N06 (equiv. 299), crystallizes in octohedral or prismatic crystals, with two equivalents of water, soluble in alcohol, ether, and in boil- ing water. It is slowly precipitated by ammonia, more rapidly by potassa, and is insoluble in fixed alkalies ; it is colored yellow by concentrated nitric acid. Its salts are neutral, and have a bitter taste. In doses from one-fifth to one-half grain, it produces a tranquillizing effect, while over two grains produce sleep, with stupefaction, and sometimes with nausea and vomiting. It has been much used of late in cases in which the salts of morphia disagree with the patient. Thebaia, or paramorphia, C38H21N08 (equiv. 311), is contained in the precipitate produced by lime in an infusion of opium, from which it is ob- tained by extracting with muriatic acid, precipitating by ammonia, and crystallizing from ether. The small alkaline crystals have an acrid taste, are little soluble in water, and colored red by sulphuric acid. The solution of its muriate leaves a resinous mass on evaporation. It is very poisonous. Narceina, C46H29N018 (equiv. 463), occurs in very thin prisms, of a bitter and sharp taste, which are fusible at 197.5°, easily soluble in hot water and in alkaline solutions, but insoluble in ether and in concentrated solution of potassa. Its combinations with mineral acids are obtained with some diffi- culty ; they are rendered blue by a little water, colorless by more water, blue again by fused chloride of calcium. Its medicinal effects appear to be directed to the lower portion of the spine, since it decreases the mobility and sensibility of the lower extremities. Opiania, CB6H3(;N2021 (equiv. 628), is contained in Egyptian opium ; it crystallizes in long prisms, which are insoluble in water, but dissolve in much hot alcohol. It has an alkaline reaction, a bitter taste, and is narcotic of the strength and manner of morphia. Nitric acid renders it yellow ; if added to its solution in sulphuric acid, blood-red changing to light yellow. Papaverine C40H21NO8 (equiv. 339), is an alkaloid in small acicular crystals, which turn blue with sulphuric acid ; with muriatic acid in excess it forms'very insoluble colorless prisms, which possess a high refractive power. 638 ON THE ORGANIC ALKALIES OR ALKALOIDS. It is insoluble in water, little soluble in alcohol and ether. It appears to be devoid of narcotic properties. Phormia, or Pseudomorphia, C27H8N07 (equiv. 241), has been obtained by Pelletier only from a few lots of opium; after precipitating the sulphate of morphia by ammonia, and evaporating the mother liquid, white micaceous scales are separated, containing about one-tenth per cent, of SOa; after removing the acid by ammonia, the crystals of phormia are not so lustrous as before, and less soluble in water, it is insoluble in absolute alcohol and ether, somewhat soluble in alcohol of .833 sp. gr., soluble in caustic soda and potassa. Nitric acid colors it red, oxidizing it ultimately to oxalic acid. Neutral salts of sesquioxide of iron render it blue; the blue solution, in sesquichloride of iron, turns green on boiling; on the addition of ammonia, wine-red. It is not poisonous. Opina or Porphyroxin.—Powdered opium is exhausted by cold ether, then by a weak solution of carbonate of potassa, again by ether, codeia, thebaia, and opina are dissolved ; the extract of the last tincture is dissolved in muriatic acid, precipitated by ammonia (codeia remains in solution), the precipitate is treated with alcohol, which, leaving thebaia behind, dissolves opina. It crystallizes in fine needles, soluble in alcohol, ether, and dilute acids ; solutions in mineral acids turn purplish-red on boiling. Metamorphia.—In preparing morphia by Mohr's process, Scharf obtained a new alkaloid to which the above name was given by Wittstein. It crys- tallizes in hard prisms, which dissolve in about 6,000 parts of cold and 70 parts of hot water, in 9 parts of boiling and 330 parts of cold strong alcohol; the last solution has a sharp bitter taste and a slight alkaline re- action. It is insoluble in ether, soluble in potassa, less in ammonia. Nitric acid colors it orange-red and dissolves it yellow ; concentrated iodic acid gradually liberates iodine. Its salts are not precipitated by ammonia. Its action upon the animal economy appears to be closely allied to that of morphia. The following is Merck's test for opium :— The concentrated solution is treated with caustic potassa, and shaken with ether; a strip of paper having been dipped several times in the ethereal solution, is moistened with muriatic acid, and exposed to the vapors of boil- ing water; on account of the opina, the paper will acquire a red color, if opium is present in the liquid. (See also Meconic Acid.) Sanguinarina, or Chelerythrina = CS6H16N08. (Equiv. 310.) This alkaloid is derived from the roots of Sanguinaria Canadensis, Che- lidonium majus, and Grlaucium luteum, by exhausting them with weak sulphuric acid, precipitating by ammonia, dissolving it out by ether, and precipitating by sulphuric acid ; the sulphate is decomposed by ammonia. It is a white, pearly substance, of an acrid taste, very soluble in alcohol, also soluble in ether, in fixed and volatile oils. With acids it forms soluble salts, which are remarkable for their beautiful red, crimson, and scarlet colors. From this it is inferred that a native salt of this alkaloid is the occasion of the brilliant color of the fresh juice of the plant. The alkaloid is poisonous in large doses, but its salts are used in medicine and found to be very useful in doses of fractions of a grain in expectorant remedies. Chelidina, C40H20N3O6.—The precipitate, as above, which is insoluble in ether, is exhausted with dilute sulphuric acid, the solution precipitated by ammonia, and the precipitate crystallized from acetic acid, when colorless flat crystals remain, which are free of acetic acid, have a bitter taste, and dissolve in alcohol, fixed and volatile oils. THEOBROMINA. 639 It forms colorless, acidulous salts, of a purely bitter taste, which are not poisonous. Puccina is the name given by Dr. Gibb to an alkaloid discovered by Prof. E. S. Wayne in the ethereal solution of sanguinarina; its sulphate remains dissolved in ether after sanguinarina is precipitated ; its salts are of a deep red color. (See "Am. Journ. of Pharm.," vol. xxviii. p. 520.) Glaucina is prepared from the juice of the herb of Glaucium luteum, by precipitating it with acetate of lead, treating the filtrate with sulphuretted hydrogen, precipitating it with tannin, decomposing the precipitate by lime, and crystallizing from alcohol. In the horn-poppy it is combined with fumaric acid. It is in pearly scales, of a burning, acrid taste, readily soluble in boiling water, ether, and alcohol. It assumes a red color in the light, dissolves in warm sulphuric acid, with a greenish-blue color, rendered reddish by dilu- tion, and precipitated by ammonia, with a blue color. Its salts are acrid. Picroglaucina, gaucina, is prepared from the root in a similar way. It is in white crystalline scales, of a bitter, nauseous taste, soluble in water, alcohol, and ether, and colored deep green by sulphuric acid. The salts are crystallizable, and of a bitter, nauseous taste. Corydalina, C46H20NOr—The juice of the root is precipitated by acetate of lead, dilute sulphuric acid and ammonia; the last precipitate yields the alkaloid to alcohol. It has also been obtained from the American species, though by a different process. Soft grayish white lumps or powder, colorless prisms or scales, without odor, nearly tasteless, insoluble in water, soluble in ether, alcohol, and alka- lies; of an alkaline reaction, the solutions are greenish-yellow; it melts in boiling water, and is colored greenish-yellow in the light; the salts are solu- ble, very bitter, somewhat crystallizable ; nitric acid, even in dilute solutions, colors corydalina red or blood-red, destroying it at the same time. (See "Am. Journ. of Pharm.," vol. xxvii. p. 205.) Fumarina is similar to the foregoing, but soluble in water and insoluble in ether ; it precipitates solution of gelatine. Violia.—The alcoholic extract is treated with ether, then boiled with sulphuric acid and water, precipitated with oxide of lead, the precipitate treated with alcohol. Similar in its action to emetia ; but differing chemi- cally from it by rendering reddened litmus paper green, and being more soluble in water, less in alcohol, it is insoluble in ether and fixed oils, and is precipitated from the solution of its sulphate by gallic acid. Some violets, however, contain emetia. Anchietia.—In the root of Anchieta salutaris, which is successfully used in Brazil, for the treatment of various skin diseases. The bark of the root is mashed and allowed to ferment, extracted with muriatic acid and water, evaporated and precipitated by ammonia ; by treat- ment with animal charcoal and repeated crystallization from alcoholic solu- tion it is obtained pure. Yield about .42 per cent. Straw-yellow needles, insoluble in ether and water, easily soluble in alco- hol, no smell, taste sharp, nauseous; nitric acid colors it orange-yellow to chrome-yellow ; sulphuric acid violet to blackish. The salts are soluble, crystallizable ; the muriate is colorless, crystallizing from hot water in star-like needles, after which it is insoluble in water. Theobromina, C14HBN404—It is prepared from the chocolate nut, by a process similar to that for obtaining caffeina. It dissolves with difficulty in boiling water, alcohol, and ether; boiling solution of caustic baryta dis- solves it, and it separates again on cooling. It has a slightly bitter taste, 640 ON THE ORGANIC ALKALIES OR ALKALOIDS. is unalterable in contact with the air, is rendered brown on exposure to a heat of 480°, and sublimes at between 554° and 563°, leaving but little charcoal. Its salts resemble those of caffeina. The tannate is soluble in aii excess of tannic acid, in alcohol and boiling water. With chlorine it is converted into methylamina. Prof. Strecker has found that by heating in a sealed tube Theobromina-f- AgO with CaH3I (iodide of methyle) the resulting pro- ducts are Agl +HO + Caffeina. Caffeina, Theina, Guaranina, Psoralein, Cl6H10N4O4.—It is prepared from the hot infusion of tea or coffee by precipitating the tannic acid with subacetate of lead, boiling the mixture, filtering, removing the excess of lead by hydrosulphuric or sulphuric acid, evaporating the clear liquor and recrystallizing the product. A. Vogel, jr.'s, method is as follows : Powdered coffee is extracted by commercial benzol, this is distilled off, leaves an oil and caffeina behind; the oil is removed by a little ether or by water, from which latter liquid the alkaloid crystallizes on cooling. Coffee contains about £ per cent., tea (gunpowder) 1 to 4 per cent., Ilex Paraguayensis (Psoralea glandulosa), .13 per cent, of caffeina. Black tea contains more caffeina than green tea. It crystallizes in needles, losing 2 eq. water of crystallization at 302° F.; it melts at 352° and sublimes at 725° without decomposition ; it is soluble in alcohol, ether, chloroform and hot water, cold water dissolves but little. If boiled with nitric acid, the yellow liquid assumes a purple color. Its salts and double salts are well defined and crystallizable, some are de- composed by water. It produces a crystalline precipitate with nitrate of silver. Tannate of caffeina is obtained as a white precipitate, soluble in ' boiling water. When caffeina is distilled with caustic baryta, the distillate contains am- monia and methylamina, and there remains in the retort a new base caf- feidina, Ct4H12N402, which is not precipitated by solution of ammonia or potassa, but is separated in oily drops by solid KO. Caffeina is not an alimentary, but a poisonous substance, producing death in various animals, by palsying the nervous system. (Dr. Sluhlmann.) Its solution, in citric acid, has been used with considerable success in the treat- ment of sick-headache. (See Extemporaneous Pharmacy.) This solution is frequently regarded as the solution of a citrate, the existence of which, however, is positively denied by Hager. The arseniate of caffeina has been used by Dr. Gastriel, of Cairo, Egypt, as a substitute for quinia in intermit- tents. ("Am. M. Monthly," xvii. 267.) Harmalina, C^H^N^.—The seeds of Peganum harmala (Ruta sylves- tris), a plant of Southern Russia, are used there as a dye, and are said to be inebriating and soporific. The neutralized infusion with acidulated water is saturated with table salt, in which solution the chlorides are insoluble ; the purified salts are precipi- tated by excess of ammonia, when harmina crystallizes first in needles, after- wards harmalina in scales. Colorless scales or octohedrons, nearly tasteless, with difficulty soluble in water and ether. The salts are of a sulphur yellow color, not dyeing; of a purely bitter taste ; precipitated by excess of acids or inorganic salts. By digestion with alcohol another alkaloid, Porphyrharmina, harmala of Goebel, is obtained of a red color, yielding red salts and dyeing. Harmina, C^H^N^a, is a product of oxidation of harmalina ; it crystal- COCAINA. 641 lizes in colorless prisms ; its salts are colorless, but otherwise resemble those of harmalina. Harmina and harmalina are splendid red dyes, if previonsly converted into porphyrharmina. Jamaicina is obtained from the cabbage-tree bark, Geoffroya Jamaicensis also called Andira inermis. The aqueous infusion is precipitated by basic acetate of lead, treated with sulphuretted hydrogen and evaporated. It crystallizes in yellow quadrangu- lar tables, bitter, soluble in water, little in alcohol, melting below the boilino- point of water. The salts are yellow, bitter, some crystallizable; in small doses they produce restlessness, in larger purging. It is said to be vermi- fuge. Surinamina.—-From the bark of Andira retusa (Geoffroya Surinamensis) is prepared similarly to the above. It crystallizes in fine white microscopic needles, without taste or smell, nearly insoluble in cold water and ether soluble in boiling alcohol and boiling water. Baptisina.—The root of Baptisia tinctoria contains an alkaloid which has not been isolated, unless the crystalline principle of B. L. Smedley (" Am Jr. Ph.," 1862, 310) is the pure alkaloid. Cynapia is a scarcely known alkaloid, obtained by Ficinus from fool's parsley. (See Syllabus.) It crystallizes in rhombic prisms, which are solu- ble in water and alcohol, insoluble in ether, and have an alkaline reaction. The sulphate is crystallizable. Trianospermia.—From the root of the Brazilian tayuya de pimenta co- mari, Peckolt separated this alkaloid, which is probably identical with Her- berger's tayuyina. It crystallizes in colorless needles, is inodorous, of a biting taste, insoluble in ether, soluble in alcohol and water, has an alkaline reaction, and furnishes with sulphuric acid a crystallizable salt. It appears to be purgative. Atherospermia, C30H3ONO5, was discovered by Zeyer in an Australian drug. ("Am. Jr. Ph.," 1862, 165.) It is a grayish-white powder, of a bitter taste, changing to yellowish in the sunlight. When carefully heated it gives off the odor of putrid meat and afterwards of herrings ; it probably evolves propylamina. It is nearly insoluble in water; dissolves in 1000 parts of cold and 100 p. boiling ether, in 32 p. cold and 2 p. boiling stronger alcohol, in chloroform, bisulphide of carbon, volatile and fixed oils ; concentrated nitric acid produces a brown-yellow color ; sulphuric acid and chromate of potassa yield slowly a green color of CraOs; from iodic acid it liberates iodine. Cocaina, C3aH20NO8 is obtained from the leaves of Erythroxylon coca by exhausting them with acidulated alcohol, treating with milk of lime, neu- tralizing the filtrate with sulphuric acid, evaporating, diluting with water, filtering from the resin, precipitating by carbonate of soda and exhausting the alkaloid by ether, the last traces of coloring matter can only be removed by washing with alcohol. It crystallizes from its alcoholic solution in colorless prisms; soluble in 704 parts of cold water, in alcohol and ether. The solutions are alkaline to test paper; bitterish ; promote the flow of saliva and produce a feeling of numbness upon the tongue. Its salts crystallize with some difficulty, and show no striking reactions with tests, or peculiar coloration with oxidizing agents. Its precipitate with iodohydrargyrate of potassium (Mayer's test) dissolves in muriatic acid, in which behavior it differs from other alkaloids. Heated with muriatic acid it splits into benzoic acid and a new base, ecgonina, CwH16N08, which is soluble in water. 41 642 ON THE ORGANIC ALKALIES OR ALKALOIDS. For further accounts see the papers of Dr. A. Niemann (" Amer. Ji. Ph.," 1861, 122), of J. M. Maisch (ibid., 496), and of Lossen (ibid., 1862, 406). The Cinchona Alkaloids and their Salts. Quinia. C40H24N2O4. (Equiv. 324.) This alkaloid is prepared from various species of cinchona bark, which contain it in combination with kinic acid and the astringent principle called cincho-tannic acid. These combinations being only partially soluble in water, resort is had to an acid which liberatea the alkaloid in a soluble form. That used in our officinal process foi preparing the sulphate of quinia is muriatic, which is mixed with watei in which the powdered bark is boiled. The very soluble muriate of quinia contained in this decoction is decomposed, giving up its acid to lime, while the quinia is liberated, and, being insoluble, is precipi- tated with the excess of lime added, the water retaining the chloride of calcium resulting from the reaction, and most of the impurities, in solution. The precipitated quinia and excess of lime being now di- gested in alcohol, the former is dissolved, and the impure quinia is obtained by evaporating this alcoholic solution. The remaining part of the process consists in converting this into the officinal sulphate, at the same time rendering it pure. To accomplish this, the amorphous mass is dissolved in diluted sulphuric acid, and filtered through bone black, which contains sufficient carbonate of lime to neutralize the excess of sulphuric acid, and thus facilitate the crystallization of the sulphate as the solution cools. This process requires to be repeated, with the addition of acid, if the charcoal is too alkaline, till a white and pure product is the result. The following is the process for preparing this alkaloid without alcohol, by Herring, who substitutes in place of it, oil of turpentine or benzole:— ' Powdered bark is boiled with caustic soda, to remove extractive, gum and coloring matter, exhausted with diluted sulphuric acid, evaporated at about 120°, filtered, precipitated by caustic soda, washed, redissolved in S03, re- crystallized, treated with animal charcoal, and by fractional crystallizations purified from the other alkaloids. The soda liquor is supersaturated with muriatic acid, evaporated, filtered, treated with hydrate of lime, from which precipitate the alkaloids may be extracted by oil of turpentine or benzole. On adding diluted S03, a solution of the alkaloid is obtained to be purified as above. Quinia occurs in silky needles, or in a crystalline powder, fusible at 194° to an electrical mass, soluble in about 400 parts of water, 60 parts ether, 2 parts alcohol or chloroform, 24 parts of olive oil, also in alkalies, carbonate of ammonia, chloride of calcium, &c. Its solution in concentrated nitric acid turns yellow by heat, the solution in sulphuric acid is colored only at a high temperature. Its salts are mostly crystallizable ; their solutions show a blue fluorescence, and on the addition of fresh chlorine water and a little ammonia, are colored violet, by an excess of NH3 emerald green ; too much chlorine causes a brown color. A solution of quihia in diluted sulphuric acid, mixed with some acetic acid and alcohol, and heated to 130°, yields, after the addition of tincture of iodine, beautiful emerald green crystals of iodosulphate of quinia, Herapath s CINCHONA ALKALOIDS AND THEIR SALTS. 643 salt, which are nearly colorless by transmitted light. The solution of its salts is precipitated by alkalies, their carbonates and bicarbonates ; but if they had been previously sufficiently acidulated with tartaric acid, bicarbonate of soda produces no precipitate. If their solution is treated first with chlorine water, free from hydrochloric acid, and subsequently with finely-powdered ferrocyanide of potassium, a red coloration is produced, while potassa causes a yellow color. Quinia salts are precipitated by ferrocyanide of potassium, the precipitate is dissolved on boiling and by an excess of the precipitant. (Differences from cinchonia.) Quiniae Sulphas, U.S.P.—Of the salts, the neutral sulphate (for- merly called disulphate) is officinal and mostly employed. Its mode of preparation has been given above. It is in feathery white crystals, much interlaced; of its eight equivalents of water, six are given off by exposure to dry air, while the remaining two are driven off at 248°. It dissolves in 740 parts of cold and 30 parts hot water, in 60 parts of alcohol, but scarcely in ether. The addition of a mineral or of certain organic acids renders it easily soluble. (See above, and page 649.) The salts of quinia are all used as tonics; the sulphate, especially, is a well-known antiperiodic and febrifuge; it is said to produce abortion when given during pregnancy. The dose varies from one to twenty grains. It is given in powder, pill, mixture, and solution. (See Extemporaneous Pharmacy) By heating together sulphate of quinia, solution of chlorinated lime, muriatic acid, and ammonia water, a green resinous mass is obtained, which has been called dalleochine or quinine green. Mineral acids dissolve it with a brown, acetic acid with a blue color, the green being restored on neutralization. Its alcoholic solution, diluted with water, dyes silk, woollen, and cotton, the latter after the application of albumen as mordant. Quiniae Valerianas, U. S. P.—Valerianate of quinia was made offici- nal in 1860. It is obtained by dissolving freshly-precipitated quinia in diluted valerianic acid, heated to near the boiling point, and crys- tallizing by cooling; the mother liquors are evaporated below 120°. It combines the tonic properties of quinia with the antispasmodic effects of the valerianates. It is colorless, or white ; crystallizes in rhomboidal tables, and ,has a pecu- liar repulsive odor and bitter taste. When heated it fuses and gives off white vapors. It dissolves in 110 p. cold, and 40 p. of boiling water, and in 6 p. of cold and 1 part of hot alcohol, also in ether. The dose is from one to five grains. The following unofficinal salts are occasionally prescribed:— Quiniae Murias.—The Dublin Pharmacopoeia orders 437 grains of crys- tallized sulphate of quinia (equivalent to 382 grains of the salt dried at 212°) dissolved in 30 ounces of boiling water, to be precipitated by 123 grains of chloride of barium, and the filtrate evaporated until a pellicle forms. Another process is to decompose 1 part of the sulphate in alcoholic solution by 3 parts of chloride of sodium. It crystallizes with 3HO in needles of a pearly lustre, more soluble than the sulphate. Baryta is de- tected by sulphuric acid, sulphate of quinia by chloride of barium. Quiniae hypophosphis. — Introduced to notice by Prof. J. Lawrence Smith, is made with facility by dissolving one ounce sulphate of quinia in 644 ON THE ORGANIC ALKALIES OR ALKALOIDS. water, by the aid of diluted sulphuric acid, then precipitating the alkaloid with ammonia, washing, digesting the quinia in excess, in hypophosphorous acid with heat; after filtering, it is evaporated spontaneously till it crystal- lizes. It may also be made by double decomposition between hypophosphite of baryta and sulphate of quinia. It is in elegant tufts of feathery crystals, soft to the touch, soluble in 60 parts of water, and more so in hot water. It loses water at 300°, melts and turns brown. Dose, one to five grains. Quiniae iodosulphas, Herapath's salt, the preparation of which has been noticed among the tests for quinia, has been used in haemoptysis, tubercu- losis, scrofula, &c, in doses of £ to 3 grains, three or four times a day. (See "Am. Drug. Circ," iv. 285.) Quiniae Hydriodas.—5 parts of effloresced sulphate of quinia dissolved in alcohol and decomposed by an alcoholic solution of 3 parts of iodide of potassium, precipitates sulphate of potassa, and yields, on cooling and eva- porating, hydriodate of quinia in fine crystalline needles. Quiniae antimonias is precipitated by double decomposition of antimo- niate of potassa and sulphate of quinia, and crystallized from hot water or alcohol. It has been administered in periodical diseases in doses of from six to ten grains during apyrexia, and it is stated to be rarely necessary to give it a second time. Quiniae Arsenis.—Quinia is precipitated from 100 parts of its sulphate, dissolved in 600 parts alcohol, and boiled with 14 parts arsenious acid, the filtrate, on cooling, separates needles of this poisonous salt. It may be given with caution in doses from one-quarter to one-half grain several times a day. Sulphate of quinia, iron, and magnesia, as proposed by Dr. Fergus, con- tains 5 parts of the first, 15 of the second, and 80 of the third sulphate, it being merely an intimate mixture of the three. It is claimed for this pre- paration that the adjuvant property of both iron and quinia are remarkably heightened, and that in solution the iron is not oxidized. (?) Quiniae lactas is obtained by saturating, lactic acid with quinia, or by double decomposition of the baryta salt of the former with the sulphate of the latter, and crystallizes in soluble needles. Quiniae tartras is crystallized in needles from the hot solution of quinia in tartaric acid. Quiniae citras is separated in needles from the hot mixture of citrate of soda added to sulphate of quinia until an acid reaction is shown to test paper. (See Citrate of Quinia and Iron.) Quiniae Acetas.—Seventeen parts of the effloresced sulphate of quinia is dissolved in boiling water and mixed with six parts of crystallized acetate of soda; acetate of quinia crystallizes in white feathery needles, nearly in- soluble in cold water. (See Remarks in "Am. Journ. Pharm.," xxx. 385.) Quiniae Uras.—One part freshly precipitated quinia, with one and a half of uric acid and one hundred and fifty parts of water are to be boiled together in a glass vessel, filtered while hot, the contents of the filter treated with boiling water, and the filtrate mixed and set by in the cold to crystallize. The salt forms as a white granular mass, the mother liquor yielding a por- tion by evaporation. When dry it is a white powder, with a feeble lustre; under a microscope showing the form of truncated crystals ; soluble in 855 parts of cold water, 1580 parts of alcohol, sp. gr. 823, or 21.25 parts of ether; it consists of quinia 59.34, uric acid 27.47, water 13.19. Quiniae Tannas.—Tannic acid precipitates tannate of quinia from all solutions which have not been too much acidulated; it has little taste on account of its sparing solubility in neutral liquids. Quiniae gallas is obtained by double decomposition between a hot solution QUINIDIA. 645 of sulphate of quinia and gallate of potassa. It is in crystalline granules, or a white powder, almost insoluble in water, soluble in alcohol and dilute acids. Quiniae Kinas.—To obtain this natural salt directly from the bark, the following process is given by Henry and Plisson. The extract is dissolved in 3 parts of water, nearly neutralized by carbonate of lime, then cautiously neutralized by hydrated oxide of lead; from the filtrate the lead is removed by sulphuretted hydrogen, after which the evaporated liquid is treated with alcohol of .842, the alcohol distilled off and the residue repeatedly treated with water and alcohol until nothing is separated by these liquids. It is obtained in white crystalline warts, soluble in 4 parts of water, and 8 parts of alcohol. Quiniae Hydroferrocyanas.—1 part sulphate of quinia, 1| parts ferrocy- anide of potassium, and 7 parts of boiling water yield the salt on cooling, which is to be recrystallized from alcohol. It appears in greenish-yellow needles, which are insoluble in water. Pelouze asserts it to be quinia mixed with some Prussian blue. Dollfuss found it to be C40H24N304-f2(FeCy-f 2HCy) + 6Aq. Quinidia. C40H24N2O44-4Aq. (Equiv. 360.) This name is now generally applied to an alkaloid which is isomeric with quinia, but differs from it in turning polarized light to the right. It occurs, in company with the other alkaloids, in many cinchona barks, particularly those imported from New Grenada. It is obtained from its sulphate by decomposition with ammonia, and crystallizes in shining colorless efflorescing crystals, which are readily re- duced to a white powder ; they melt without decomposition, and, on cooling, concrete into a grayish white crystalline mass. When ignited, they burn with the odor of kinole and the volatile oil of bitter almonds; they have a less intensely bitter taste than quinia. This alkaloid dissolves in 1500 p. cold and 750 parts boiling water, in 3 parts of boiling alcohol and 90 of ether, and its solution turns to a green color like quinia when successively treated with chlorine water and ammonia ; a solution of ether alkaloid even in 700,000 parts of water, according to Herapath, shows a dispersion of light with a bluish milky coloration. Quinidia, treated with tincture of iodine under the same circumstances as quinia, yields crystals which appear garnet red by transmitted light, and bluish red in reflected light. Quinidia is the only cinchona alkaloid yielding, with the solution of an iodide, a nearly insoluble precipitate of hydriodate of quinidia. Quinidias sulphas is more soluble than sulphate of quinia, and remains in the mother liquor after the quinia salt has been crystallized. When the cheaper barks above referred to are manipulated with, this salt is an important pro- duct ; it is largely produced, and, by some, used as a substitute for quinia. As generally found in commerce, it contains cinchonidia, and comes in long, shin- ing white crystals, interlaced, and resembling those of sulphate of quinia. It is soluble in 130 parts of cold water, freely soluble in alcohol, and almost insoluble in ether. It contains six equivalents of water of crystallization. Cinchonia. C^H^O,. (Equiv. 308.) This is a cinchona alkaloid usually accompanying quinia. Huanuco bark contains almost exclusively cinchonia, which, when first isolated from this bark, was called huanucina, under the supposition of its being a distinct alkaloid. It may be obtained from this bark by a process similar to that for the preparation of quinia. It is in white needles, insoluble in alkalies, ethei, 646 ON THE ORGANIC ALKALIES OR ALKALOIDS. and cold water, but soluble in 13 parts of boiling alcohol; chloroform dis- solves 4.3 ; olive oil, 1 per cent, of cinchonia. It is less bitter than quinia and quinidfa, fuses at 330° to an amorphous mass, and at a higher temper- ature partly sublimes without decomposition ; polarized light is deviated to the right. Its salts are generally more soluble than the corresponding salts of quinia; they are precipitated by the caustic alkalies and their carbonates; and in not too diluted solutions the bicarbonates likewise cause a precipitate after the previous addition of tartaric acid. Under similar circumstances cin- chonia does not produce the reaction of quinia with chlorine and ferrocyanide of potassium. The precipitate of ferrocyanide of potassium in cinchonia salts is insoluble in an excess of the precipitant, but crystallizes from its hot solution ; its composition corresponds with the quinia salt. The cinchonia sulphate, if treated with iodine similarly to sulphate of quinia, yields a brick- red deposit. Cinchonies Sulphas, IT. S. P.—If cinchonia occurs in barks with quinia and quinidia, this salt remains behind in the mother liquor after the crystallization of the other sulphates. The Pharmacopoeia of 1860 directs to precipitate this mother liquor by solution of soda, until it becomes alkaline; collect on a filter, wash it with water and dry it. Then wash it with successive small portions of alcohol to remove other alkaloids which may be present. Mix the residue with eight times its weight of water, and having heated the mixture, add gradu- ally diluted sulphuric acid until it is saturated and becomes clear. Then boil the liquid with animal charcoal, filter it while hot and set it aside to crystallize. Lastly, drain the crystals and dry them on bibulous paper. By evaporating the mother liquid more crystals may be obtained. (See page 649.) Sulphate of cinchonia crystallizes in white, shining, short oblique prisms with dihedral summits. It melts at 212°, loses its water of crystallization at a somewhat higher temperature, and is dissipated at a red heat. It dis- solves in 54 parts of cold and much less boiling water, in seven parts of alcohol and very sparingly in ether. Its aqueous solution gives with AuCl3 a yellow precipitate, and with CaCl a white one. Ammonia added to its solution in chlorine water causes a white precipitate. If the salt be rubbed with water of ammonia and then treated with ether, the cinchonia separated by the former will not be dissolved by the latter. On the addition of sulphuric acid it passes into the very soluble acid sulphate. The other salts of cinchonia may be prepared like the corresponding quinia salts; the following have been occasionally used:— Cinchonies murias is in silky prisms, easily soluble in water and alcohol. Cinchoniee hydriodas crystallizes in needles. Cinchonies tannas is a yellowish powder, soluble in alcohol. Cinchonise acetas.—If acetic acid is saturated with cinchonia, on evapo- ration granular or scaly crystals of the acetate are left, which are easily soluble in water. Cinchonidia. C40H24N2O2. (Equiv. 308.) Cinchonidia often constitutes the greatest part of commercial quini- dia ; as it contains no water of crystallization, it is not efflorescent in the air. CHINOIDINE. 647 Its principal peculiarities are: It is sparingly soluble in ether, and water dissolves in 12 parts cold alcohol, deviates polarized light to the left, and gives no reaction with chlorine water and ammonia. By Dr. Herapath's test, viz : treating with iodine like quinia, the resulting iodosulphate of cin- chonidia is so similar in appearance to the corresponding quinia salt, that it can only be distinguished from it by a little difference in the tint caused by transmitted light. Its salts are freely soluble in water and alcohol, not in ether. The base discovered by Wittstein, and called by him cinchonidia, is, according to de Try, a mixture of various alkaloids, but principally of cin- chonia and Pasteur's cinchonidia ; and the huanokina of Erdmann, accord- ing to the same authority, is cinchonia containing some quinidia. Betacinchonia, C4()H24N202, was announced by W. Schwabe as a con- stituent of some chinoidine. It crystallizes in quadrangular prisms, is anhydrous, fuses at 302° F., is scarcely soluble in hot water, soluble in 173 parts of cold and 43 of boiling alcohol, in 378 parts of ether and 268 parts of chloroform, also readily in volatile and fatty oils. Its alcoholic solution deviates polarized light to the right. It is not affected by chlorine water and ammonia. Its salts are all neutral though crystallizing from an acid solution; the precipitate by alkalies is somewhat soluble in excess; after acidulating with tartaric acid, bicarbonate of soda produces no precipitate. Iodosulphate is analogous to herapathite. (See "Am. Journ. Pharm.," 1861, p. 419.) The reactions as stated prove this alkaloid to be closely allied to the two preceding ones, and it is not impossible that it may have been formed from one of them by some chemical influence. 0. Hesse, however, asserts that it is nothing but cinchonia. (Am. Journ. Pharm., 1863, p. 54.) O.r ij cinchonia, C40H24Na04, has been obtained by oxidation from cinchonia by Strecker in the endeavor to prepare quinia artificially. Though of the same composition it lacks its most prominent properties. (Ibid. 58.) Quinicia and Cinchonicia.—The acid sulphates of quinia or cinchonia, if heated for three or four hours to about 250° or 266°, are converted into alkaloids, isomeric with the original bases, the former into quinicia, and the latter into cinchonicia, and but very little coloring matter; the neutral salts suffer partial decomposition at that temperature after melting. Both alka- loids are nearly insoluble in water, soluble in alcohol, easily combine with carbonic acid, displace ammonia from its salts, and deviate the polarized light a little to the right. The optical behavior of the different alkaloids, therefore, is as follows :— Quinia, considerably to left. Cinchonia, considerably to right. Quinidia, " right. Cinchonidia, " left. Quinicia, feebly to the right. Cinchonicia, feebly to the right. Chinoidina or Quinoidina (Chinoidine).—Is a product of alteration of the cinchona alkaloids. Drying of the barks, or exposure of solution of alkaloids to the sun, and the influence of a high temperature appear to favor this alteration. It is prepared by precipitating the mother liquor, from which the sulphates of the other alkaloids have been crystallized, by car- bonate of soda, and extracting with alcohol. It is a reddish-brown, resin-like mass, entering into combination with acids like the unaltered alkaloids. The salts are resinous, uncrystallizable, 648 ON THE ORGANIC ALKALIES OR ALKALOIDS. very bitter. It is isomeric with quinia, and has, therefore, been also called amorphous quinia. Pasteur supposes it to be uncrystallizable quinicia and cinchonicia. From the commercial article the four cinchona alkaloids, quinia excepted, have at various times been prepared. It has strong febrifuge properties, and is very efficient in doses double those of the sulphate of quinia, either in pills or dissolved with a little sul- phuric acid. It may be considered pure if it is entirely soluble in alcohol, and in diluted sulphuric acid. Precipitated extract of bark is the same preparation as the above. It differs from the extractum calisayacum, referred to on page 211, by not con- taining the crystallizable alkaloids. GENERAL REMARKS ON THE CINCHONA ALKALOIDS. Of the remarkable principles above described as existing in cin- chona barks, cinchonia was the first discovered, having been isolated in an impure state as early as 1803, and fully described as an alkaloid by Pelletier and Caventou in 1820. Quinia was discovered soon after by the same chemists. Not until 1833 was the existence of quinidia announced. In that year, Henry and Delondre announced its dis- covery, but afterwards abandoned the idea of its being a distinct prin- ciple ; so that no further attention was bestowed upon it until, about the year 1844, the celebrated German chemist, Winkler, investigated its properties, and conferred upon it the name quinidine, which, to correspond with our nomenclature, is changed to quinidia. Pasteur has since proved that quinidia as it occurs in commerce is generally composed chiefly of another alkaloid to which he gave the name cin- chonidia ; he likewise discovered the artificial isomeric alkaloids qui- nicia and cinchonicia. _ On pages 651 and 652 will be found an account of other alkaloids, discovered in particular barks, and most of them not fully investigated. The former scarcity and high price of sulphate of quinia, occasioned in part by the restrictions placed upon the trade in genuine Calisaya bark by the Bolivian government, had the effect to direct the atten- tion of physicians to other and similar remedial agents; but, notwith- standing the frequent announcement of favorable results from the trial of such, there seems a general disposition to withhold confidence from any but the products of that remarkable family of South Ameri- can trees whose history has been so long connected with the cure of periodical diseases. The introduction into commerce of large quan- tities of cheap cinchona barks from new sources, has been another result of the long-continued scarcity of the older and officinal kinds. Notwithstanding these have been regarded by many with jealousy, and doubts have been entertained of their therapeutic value, the study of their chemical history has shown that some of them are not less rich in alkaloids than the finest monopoly barks, and experiments in regard to the therapeutic value of their characteristic alkaloids have shown a close resemblance in physiological effects to quinia itself. Some Bogota barks are now extensively employed for the manufac- ture of quinia, the price of which has, in consequence thereof, con- siderably decreased; some of these barks, beside the other alkaloids, abound in quinia. CINCHONA ALKALOIDS. 649 Dr. Pepper and other practitioners connected with hospital practice, have used sulphate of quinidia in the same or less doses than the quinia salt, and with equal success; and its value and efficacy are confirmed by the experience of many in private practice. Sulphate of cinchonia, which had been generally overlooked, has been much used of latter time as a substitute for sulphate of quinia; and, although some physicians assert that larger doses of it are re- quired, and that it is more variable and less reliable in its action than the quinia salt, I am told by Dr. Conrad, the Apothecary of Pennsyl- vania Hospital, that in that Institution the three cinchona alkaloids are used indiscriminately and in the same doses. Through Dr. E. P. Thomas I am informed that the cinchonia salt has been used with satisfaction as a substitute for that of quinia in the Philadelphia and Northern Dispensaries, in the Western Clinical Infirmary, and Phila- delphia Hospital, Blockley, where many intermittents are daily under treatment. It has also been successfully experimented with in the French hospitals as a substitute for the quinia salt, and has been lately introduced into the U. S. Army. Quinoidine is sold at a still lower price than either of the crystal- lized products. I am told that the demand for it has not justified manufacturers in preparing all that is produced, for sale. Detection of Adulterations and Impurities in Sulphate of Quinia.— The behavior of the cinchona alkaloids and their salts has been mentioned under their respective heads, and, with the aid of these tests, it is not very difficult to distinguish the alkaloids, when pure, from each other. There is more difficulty experienced in detecting the presence of one alkaloid in another, or in finding out foreign substances sometimes fraudulently mixed with them. The following are the various tests proposed for these purposes. 1. Zimmer's test.—Sixty drops of ether, twenty of ammonia water, and ten grains of the sulphate, previously dissolved in fifteen drops of water and ten drops of diluted sulphuric acid, made of one part, by weight, of sulphuric acid, to five of water, are mixed in a test tube ; the quinia, being soluble in the ether, will not appear, but any admixture of cinchonia, or above ten per cent, of quinidia, will separate as a layer of white powder, between the aqueous liquid and the supernatant ether. If quinidia be present, it will be dissolved by a large addition of ether, while cinchonia will not. If less than ten per cent, of quinidia is present, the mixture will be clear, but the quinidia will soon crystallize, while quinia will, after a while, gelatinize the ethereal solution. 2. Rump's test is said to be even more delicate than the former. Six grains of the sulphate, one-half drachm of ether, two or three drops of ammo- nia water, are well agitated in a test tube ; pure sulphate of quinia will yield a perfectly transparent solution ; if five per cent, of sulphate of quinidia is present, the solution will likewise be clear, but, after a while will become turbid ; ten per cent, of quinidia will leave a portion undissolved ; with less than five per cent., the solution is to be evaporated spontaneously, quinidia will then be left in crystals, but quinia as a gummy mass. 3. Liebig's test.—Fifteen grains of the salt are rubbed with two ounces of ammonia water, this is heated until nearly all odor of ammonia has disap- peared, and agitated with two ounces of ether. If a turbidness remains on the margin of the two liquids, cinchonia is present. 650 ON THE ORGANIC ALKALIES OR ALKALOIDS. The ethereal solution may, besides quinia, also contain quinidia, which, like the above, will be left in crystals on spontaneous evaporation. 4. Kerner's test.—Chemically pure neutral sulphate of quinia is dissolved in distilled water to saturation at a temperature of 15° C. (59° F.) ; 5 c.c. of this solution are precipitated and exactly redissolved by 5 c.c. of ammonia water, sp. gr. 92, and by 7 c.c. of ammonia, sp. gr. .96. For a similarly prepared solution of sulphate of quinidia and cinchonidia from 10 to 13 times this quantity of ammonia is needed to have the same effect, while the precipitate from the cinchonia salt does not redissolve. Accordingly, to test the commercial sulphate of quinia, an excess of it is treated with distilled water of 59° for one-half hour until a saturated solution is obtained ; 5 cubic centimetres of the filtered solution are mixed with 7 c.c. of officinal water of ammonia (or with 5 c.c. of ammonia, sp. gr. .920) ; if the alkaloid is pre- cipitated and redissolved, the quinia salt is pure ; if more ammonia is required for solution, quinidia or cinchonidia is present, and if 100 c.c. ammonia do not effect a clear solution, cinchonia is present. Since sulphate of cinchonia is the most soluble sulphate of all the cinchona alkaloids, and since the sulphates arranged according to their solubility follow in this order : cinchonia, cinchonidia, quinidia, quinia, it is evident that if a commercial sample of sulphate of quinia is treated with an insuffi- cient quantity of water at 59° F., the most soluble sulphates must be dis- solved first, and consequently, the larger the excess of the commercial salt, the more readily will these other alkaloids be discovered in the solution by means of the ammonia water of the above standard strength. (See the very interesting paper in "Amer. Journ. Ph." 1862, 417-429.) 5. The presence in the sulphates of cinchona alkaloids of common adul- terations may be detected as follows :— The sulphates are entirely soluble in cold dilute sulphuric acid, and entirely dissipated by heat. Sulphate of lime may be detected by its insolubility in alcohol, and by remaining, after ignition, on a piece of platina foil. Starch would remain insoluble in dilute acid and in alcohol, and would be recognized by the well-known iodine test. Stearic and margaric acids and resins would float in the acid solution, and be dissolved by ether. Salicine, if more than ten per cent, were present, would show, with concentrated sul- phuric acid, a red color. Phloridzin would be detected as yielding a yellow color with the same reagent, or by the yellow, red, and blue color imparted to it by gaseous ammonia under a bell glass. Sugar or mannite would be blackened by concentrated sulphuric acid. Oxalate of ammonia would be detected by giving off ammoniacal vapors with caustic potassa. Solution of caustic baryta dissolves salicine, phloridzin, gum, mannite, &c, but leaves the alkaloids and sulphate of baryta ; in the solution, after it has been freed from baryta by carbonic acid, these substances may be detected. Besides the foregoing, the following alkaloids have been discovered in various barks. Aricinia, CwHMN206, derived from Arica, the port from whence the bark is sent, is prepared like the other cinchona alkaloids, and crystallizes in white, transparent needles, which gradually develop a bitter, warming, sharp taste, melt between 356° and 374c, are insoluble in water, soluble in ether, alcohol, and ammonia. It is colored green by concentrated nitric acid. The salts are crystallizable, bitter, easily soluble in water and alcohol, insoluble in ether. Paricinia has been discovered in Para bark, by Winckler. It is a white mass, uncrystallizable, electric when rubbed to powder, little EMETIA AND STRYCHNIA. 651 soluble in water, easily soluble in ether and alcohol, and is left, after evapo- ration, as a golden yellow, resinous mass. Its salts are amorphous, resinous. It appears to bear to aricina the same relation as chinoidina to quinia. Pitayia, discovered by Peretti, is prepared from the aqueous extract, which is exhausted by alcohol, evaporated, dissolved in water, and precipi- tated by ammonia, washed with ether, and crystallized from boiling water. It is in colorless prisms, volatile, not bitter. Its salts are bitter and crystallizable. Carthagia, discovered by Gruner, in Carthagena bark, crystallizes in needles, is tasteless, insoluble in water, soluble in alcohol. Its salts are bitter, crystallizable, resembling the quinia salts, but are said to be destitute of febrifuge qualities. Emetia. C^H^NO^ Emetia is the active principle of ipecacuanha, and is also present in the roots of several species of Yiola. The above formula is that of Reich, and if doubled, C40H30NaO10 has a close relation with quinia, namely, C^HOJN„0. + 6H0. The root is extracted by acidulated water, and precipitated by ammonia; to obtain it pure and white, according to Merck, it is dissolved in dilute muriatic acid, precipitated by corrosive sublimate, dissolved in alcohol, de- composed by sulphuret of barium to precipitate mercury, and sulphuric acid to precipitate baryta, diluted with water, the alcohol evaporated, and the sulphate of emetia precipitated by ammonia. It is a white, inodorous powder, not crystalline, of a bitter taste, soluble in alcohol, sparingly so in water, nearly insoluble in ether and fixed oils, fusible at about 120° F. Its native salt existing in the root is taken up by water, wine, and diluted alcohol. It assumes a dirty green color by sul- phuric acid, is converted first into a yellow, bitter, resinous substance, after- wards into oxalic acid. In minute closes it acts as a powerful emetic ; in larger doses it is poisonous. Nearly all its salts are easily soluble in water; the acid salts, according to Liebig, are crystallizable. The commercial emetia is very impure, and not preferable for ordinary use to the various Galenical preparations of ipecac, in which the peculiar astringent and acid principles are associated with the alkaloid. The emetinum impurum of some pharmacopoeias, which is the French emetin coloree, is obtained by exhausting the alcoholic extract of ipecacu- anha with water, neutralizing with carbonate of magnesia, and evaporating the filtrate. Arnicin.—According to the analysis of Prof. Walz ("Am. Journ. Pharm.," 1861, 450) arnica flowers contain no alkaloid, the arnicia being a ternary glucoside, free from nitrogen. Eupatorina is an alkaloid, almost unknown, prepared by Righini from the European water hemp. It is a white powder, of a bitter acrid taste, soluble in alcohol and ether, and insoluble in water. Its sulphate crystal- lizes in needles. The Alkaloids of Strychnos and their Salts. Strychnia U. S. P. C42H22N204. (Equiv. 334.) The Pharmacopoeia directs the rasped seed of nux vomica; but, as their comminution in the dry state is a work of no little difficulty, it is best to first heat them with some water, or expose them to hot steam; they will become thoroughly softened, and, while still warm, may be 652 on the organic alkalies or alkaloids. easily bruised in a warm mortar, or between two iron cylinders; then they are treated with water acidulated with muriatic acid; after con- centration, the muriate thus formed is decomposed by lime, which precipitates the strychnia along with the excess of lime employed, and some impurities. The alkaloid is now dissolved out from the precipi- tate by boiling alcohol, and deposited, on evaporating and coolino-. To purify it still further, it is next converted into a sulphate, boiled with animal charcoal, and precipitated by ammonia. St. Ignatius' bean contains a large proportion of strychnia and less brucia than nux vomica, but is not so abundant and cheap. Strychnia, as thus prepared, is a white or grayish-white powder which may be crystallized by the slow evaporation of an alcoholic solution. It is distinguished by extraordinary bitterness. It is soluble to a limited extent in water, and nearly insoluble in absolute alcohol and ether ; its best solvents are 70 per cent, alcohol, and volatile oils ; chloroform dissolves 20 per cent, and olive oil one per cent, of strychnia. Perfectly pure strychnia is not affected by nitric acid. The following are its most reliable tests : Rub a very little of the powder with a drop of sulphuric acid on a slab, and add a minute quantity of solution of chromate of potassa. A splendid violet color will be produced if it contain strychnia. Or thus : add a little of the powder to a few drops of sulphuric acid containing T^ of nitric ; it will form a colorless solution ; but, on the addition of a little peroxide of lead, a bright blue color will be developed, which will pass rapidly into violet, then gradually into red, and ultimately to yellow. Its solution in sulphuric acid is colored red by chlorous and chloric acids, and by chlorates; a solu- tion of the rose-colored sulphate of manganese causes a violet color, the same color is produced by ferridcyanide of potassium, and this reaction is not affected by the presence of other organic substances. The salts which strychnia forms are mostly crystallizable and soluble. Their solutions are precipitated by fixed alkalies and their carbonates, and the precipitate is insoluble in an excess of the precipitant; the precipitate caused by ammonia dissolves, but afterwards crystallizes from an excess of it. Sulphocyanide of potassium produces a white crystalline deposit; the pre- cipitate with gaseous chlorine is soluble in ether and alcohol. If acidulated with tartaric acid, a white precipitate occurs by bicarbonate of soda. Adulterations with mineral substances are discovered by the residue left after ignition or after solution in boiling alcohol. Brucia is detected by the red color on the addition of sulphuric acid. The following salts have been occasionally used in medicine, chiefly on account of their solubility. They are mostly prepared by neutralizing the acid with strychnia, and evaporating:— Strychnias sulphas contains 7Aq; it crystallizes in prisms and cubes, is efflorescent, and contains 75 per cent, strychnia. It is used, on account of its solubility, in preference to the alkaloid. Strychniae nitras crystallizes in needles of a pearly lustre, which are in- soluble in alcohol. Strychniae murias is in silky needles, easily soluble in alcohol. Strychniae hydriodas is obtained by double decomposition as a white crystalline powder, little soluble in water, more in alcohol, and containing nearly 73 per cent, strychnia. Strychniae iodas is likewise obtained by double decomposition, and crys- tallizes in flat pearly needles, soluble in alcohol, but little in cold water. BRUCIA AND IGASURIA. 653 Strychniae acetas crystallizes with difficulty in white silky needles, very soluble in alcohol and water. Strychniae tannas is a white precipitate, scarcely soluble in water. The medicinal uses of strychnia are those of a tonic, with a special action upon the nerves of motion. It is much employed in a variety of diseases, lately recommended in typhoid fever and spermatorrhoea. Dose, one-twelfth to one-sixth of a grain. In doses exceeding two or three grains, strychnia is one of the most power- ful and fatal of poisons. Immense quantities are sold for the purpose of kill- ing animals, particularly dogs, on whom the most certain and rapidly fatal effect is produced by its use. In cases of poisoning by strychnia, the most prompt and vigorous efforts are necessary to arrest its effects. The jaws must be prevented from becoming permanently closed, as in tetanus. Emetics should be tried, but will seldom act. Tannic acid or other astringents adminis- tered immediately will precipitate the alkaloid in an insoluble form. Chloro- form has been found to arrest the effects of the poison. In one memorable case I saw the life of an individual saved by the application of the poles of a magnetic battery over the stomach, which aroused that organ, and, by excessive vomiting, produced relaxation of the spasm. Brucia. C^H^N^. If strychnia is crystallized from a hot alcoholic solution, the mother liquor contains nearly all the brucia; but it may be entirely freed from strychnia by nitric acid. From the neutral solution, the strychnia salt crystallizes first, leaving brucia in the mother liquor; the acid solution, however, sepa- rates the brucia salt first in hard, four-sided prisms, while the strychnia salt crystallizes afterwards in fine needles. It crystallizes in oblique four-sided prisms, dissolves in 850 parts cold, 500 parts boiling water, is easily soluble in alcohol, insoluble in ether ; vola- tile oils dissolve a small quantity. Chloroform dissolves 56 per cent., and olive oil nearly two per cent. It contains 8 eq. of Aq. The salts are bitter, crystallizable, precipitated by alkalies and alkaline earths, by morphia and strychnia ; an excess of ammonia dissolves its pre- cipitate ; if acidulated with tartaric acid, no precipitate occurs on the addi- tion of bicarbonate of soda; concentrated nitric acid dissolves brucia and its salts to an intensely red fluid, which subsequently acquires a yellowish red, and by heat a yellow tint; if now protochloride of tin or sulphuret of ammonium is added, an intense violet color is produced; concentrated sul- phuric acid colors it at first rose-red, afterwards yellowish-green; chlorine gas causes no precipitate. The red color produced by nitric acid with brucia is so intense that Kerst- ing has proposed a solution of the latter in 1000 water as a test for very minute quantities of the former; one 100,000th part NOs with the brucia solution, over a layer of pure S03, still produces at the margin of the two liquids a rose-red color, changing after a minute to yellow. Of the salts used medicinally, the neutral sulphate crystallizes in needles with 4Aq; the neutral nitrate is a gum-like mass, but the acid nitrate is crystallizable in four-sided prisms. Brucia is a less powerful therapeutic agent than strychnia, being safely employed in doses of from two to four grains. Igasuria. The mother liquors of the former two, after their precipitation by lime, contain this alkaloid. 654 ON THE ORGANIC ALKALIES OR ALKALOIDS. It crystallizes, is very bitter, dissolves in 200 parts boiling water, in weak alcohol, in acids, and alkalies. Sulphuric acid imparts a rose color, which turns yellowish and greenish. The salts are soluble, crystallizable, and poisonous. They are precipi- tated in presence of tartaric acid by alkaline bicarbonates. Schutzenberger has found that what has been called Igasuria is a mixture of various alkaloids, which he purified by fractional crystallization. They are all colorless, intensely bitter, poisonous like strychnia, soluble in boiling water and alcohol, little "in ether; they crystallize in transparent needles or pearly scales, are colored red by nitric acid, lose their water of crystalliza- tion at 212°. Their salts are easily crystallizable. They are distinguished by affixing the letters of the alphabet:— Igasuria, a, C44H26N208+6Aq. Very little soluble. b, CS6H24N2Ol4+6Aq. Little soluble. " c, C36H21N208-f6Aq. Moderately soluble. d, C34H32N206+6Aq. " e, C3tiH26N208-r-6Aq. Soluble. " /> C42H30N2O8-j-6Aq or 8Aq. Moderately soluble. " 9, C42H2SN2012-f 6Aq. Very little soluble. " K C42H26N2012-f6Aq. Moderately soluble. *', C40H26N2O,4+6Aq. Curaria.__The South American Arrow poison is supposed to be obtained from a plant of the family Apocynacese. Boussingault and Roulin discovered in it an uncrystallizable alkaloid, which was afterwards supposed by some chemists to be identical with strychnia, in consequence of the similarity of some of its reactions. This has recently been shown to be a mistake, how- ever ; in its physiological action it is quite the opposite of strychnia, and is regarded by some physicians as almost a perfect antidote to the poisonous effects of that alkaloid. It is amorphous, yellowish, bitter, hygroscopic, soluble in water and alcohol, insoluble in ether and volatile oils. Its salts are uncrystallizable. Pereirina is obtained from a Brazilian bark, known there by the names of pignaciba, pao pente, and pao pereira. It is prepared like the cinchona alkaloids, and lastly dissolved by ether. It is a yellowish-white amorphous, bitter mass, on melting blood-red, has an alkaline reaction, is little soluble in water, soluble in alcohol and ether. Concentrated sulphuric acid dissolves it with violet color, which afterwards turns brown, on diluting with water, olive-green and grass-green. Nitric acid dissolves it with a blood-red color, changing to grayish-brown. The salts are little known, they are precipi- tated" by the oxalates, and are said to have febrifuge properties. Castina is, according to Landerer, contained in the seeds of the " Chaste tree," is crystallizable, bitter, insoluble in water, soluble in alcohol, ether, and dilute acids, and precipitated from the latter solution by alkalies. Convolvulina was obtained by Marquart from Scammony root; its sulphate crystallizes in radiating prisms. Alkaloids of the Solanace^e. Solania.—The following comprises the older statements with regard to this principle :— It is prepared from the potato germs by maceration with water acidulated with muriatic acid, mixing with hydrate of lime, and exhausting the precipi- tate with boiling alcohol; on cooling the greater part is separated. It crys- tallizes in colorless prisms, without odor ; its taste is faintly bitter, nauseous, ATROPIA. 655 causes a persistent acrid feeling in the throat. It has an alkaline reaction, is little soluble in cold water, ether, alcohol, and fixed oils. It is a weak base, its salts are soluble, few crystallizable, and have a bitter taste, with lasting acrimony. Solania, as obtained from the various species of Solanum, according to ' Moitessier, differs to a considerable extent in its physical properties. Va- rious different alkaloids have probably been confounded under this name. Prepared from Solanum dulcamara, it has the composition C4aH35N014, and all its salts are amorphous. Zwenger announced a few years since that solania, a weak base, is split on boiling with dilute acids into glucose and a stronger base, which he called solanidia, C50H40NO2, which is colored intensely red by sulphuric acid. If solania is treated with cold concentrated mineral acids for several days, or if solanidia is boiled with diluted acids, the precipitate contains another alkaloid, solanieda, for which the formula C^H^NO has been found. It is amorphous, yellowish, nearly tasteless, almost insoluble in alcohol, ether, and water. Its salts are deep yellow, amorphous, bitter, and astringent. 0. Gmelin, however, asserts that it contains no nitrogen, but that solanidia forms compounds with acids and with PtCl2. Delffs regards solania as homologous with saponin, smilacin, and salicin. Kromayer states that the solania which is prepared with mineral acids, invariably contains solanidia, the more if treated at an elevated temperature, and the latter can be dissolved by benzin. If potato germs are expressed, the liquid treated with excess of lime, the precipitate exhausted by boiling alcohol, and the gelatinous mass separating on cooling repeatedly pressed and redissolved, colorless acicular crystals are obtained which are insoluble in ether. The expressed germs, treated in the cold with sulphuric acid and afterwards with lime, &c, yield amorphous solania, containing solanidia. Dulcamarina, C6SH3()N027, (?) is said to exist in early spring in the stem of bittersweet besides solania. It is prepared by evaporating the infusion with marble dust, exhausting the extract with strong alcohol, evaporating, removing the lactate of lime, adding ammonia, precipitating with tannin, and treating the precipitate with hydrated oxide of lead and alcohol. Yellowish-white, amorphous, bitter, afterwards sweet, little soluble in water, ether and acids, readily in alcohol. Atropia. C34H23N06. (Equiv. 289.) This alkaloid and its sulphate have been made officinal in the Phar- macopoeia of 1860; it is prepared by the following process:— Powdered belladonna root is exhausted by alcohol; this is distilled off from the tincture, the residue acidulated with sulphuric acid, diluted with water and filtered through paper; the filtrate is decom- posed with potassa and repeatedly agitated with fresh portions of chloroform ; the chloroformic solution is evaporated spontaneously. Thus prepared it is in yellowish needles of a silky lustre, without odor, and of a bitter, acrid, almost metallic taste ; it dilates the pupil more than any other alkaloid ; to act on the pupil, atropia must have entered the cir- culation (Harley). It melts at 212°, is soluble in 200 parts of cold (300 parts at 60° U. S. P.), 50 parts of boiling water, without crystallizing on cooling, by continued boiling it dissolves in 30 parts of water, from which the greater part crystallizes; it dissolves in \\ parts cold alcohol; the solu- ■ tion in 6 parts of boiling ether gelatinizes on cooling into a transparent jelly. Chloroform dissolves 50, olive oil 2.3 per cent, atropia. The salts 656 ON THE ORGANIC ALKALIES OR ALKALOIDS. are crystallizable with difficulty without odor, and with the taste of atropia, they are mostly soluble in water, alcohol and alcoholic ether, not in pure ether ; all are very poisonous. Sulphurir acid dissolves the alkaloid without color, after some time the solution turns red and black. It is colored yellow by chlorine. Nitric acid dissolves it with a pale yellow color, afterwards orange, then colorless. The solution is then still precipitated by tannin, but does not contain any atropia, as the pupil is not dilated. In contact with air a is easily converted into another alkaloid, which Ber- zelius has called tropia. It is very soluble in water, yellowish, not crystal- lizable, of a disagreeable odor, and strong alkaline reaction. According to Ludwig & Pfeiffer, atropia by being boiled with chromate of potassa and diluted sulphuric acid gives off benzoic acid, and on the addition of potassa liberates propylamina. (See "Am. Journ. Pharm.," 1862, p. 33.) Atropies sulphas, U. S. P., is prepared by dissolving the alkaloid in strong ether and neutralizing with sulphuric acid, diluted with a little alcohol;.the sulphate is precipitated as a white crystalline powder. It is very soluble in water and in alcohol, insoluble in ether, neutral to litmus, entirely dissipated by heat. Its uses are as a local anodyne in solu- tion and ointment, 2 to 4 grains to the ounce, and for subcutaneous injection in neuralgia. For dilating the pupil 1 grain is dissolved in four fluidrachms of distilled water, and a drop or two applied to the inner surface of the lid. Dissolved in 100 parts of water one or two drops have been recommended as a local anaesthetic to facilitate the extraction of teeth. The dose internally is ^th of a grain. Atropise valerianas has recently been much recommended in chronic nervous complaints ; it is prepared by dissolving atropia and valerianic acid separately in strong ether, cooling the solutions down to 32°, mixing and crystallizing at between 10 and 15° F. The crystals are soft at 68°, fuse at 90°, and turn yellow by light and air. Dose, the same as of sulphate. Belladonnia is the yellow resin adhering to atropia and preventing it from crystallizing. Crude atropia is dissolved in a weak acid, neutralized by carbonate of potassa to separate a body opalescing in blue, an alkali is added, taking care not to produce a pulverulent precipitate, as long as the precipitate appears oily and resin-like, this is collected on linen, dissolved in an acid, treated with animal charcoal, if necessary again fractionally precipitated, and dissolved in absolute ether. A gum-like mass remains behind, of little bitterness, and a burning, sharp taste ; it melts on heating and decomposes with the smell of hippuric acid ; it is easily soluble in pure and officinal ether, in absolute and dilute alcohol, scarcely soluble in water ; though strongly alkaline, it is less so than atropia; from the sulphate it is precipitated by ammonia as a white powder, which soon becomes resin-like. It was discovered by Hiibschmann. It is most likely a product of decomposition from atropia. Atrosia is the name given by Hiibschmann to a black body, precipitated by ammonia from an aqueous solution of the alcoholic extract of the root; it is insoluble in alcohol, water, and ether, but dissolves in dilute acids with a red color. It is probably the cause of the red color of the juice of the fruit, and may be an alkaloid. Daturia is obtained from stramonium seed by the above process for atropia; it has been proved to be chemically identical with atropia. Its pharmaco-dynamical properties have been studied by Professor Schroff, and carefully, compared with those of atropia. His conclusions are, that their BEBEERINA AND ITS SULPHATE. 657 qualitative action is alike, but that there exists a vast difference in their in- tensity, atropia being nearly twice as powerful as daturia. Is there no doubt at all about their chemical identity ? Hyoscyamia is obtained from the seeds of hyoscyamus by the process for atropia. It crystallizes in needles of silky lustre, when dry and pure without odor ; the moist and impure has a disagreeable narcotic tobacco smell; its taste is acrid, tobacco-like. With a carefully regulated heat it may be distilled. It has a strong alkaline reaction, dissolves very readily in water, alcohol, and ether; and is easily decomposed when in solution. Nitric acid dissolves it without coloration; sulphuric acid colors it brown. Of the salts, some few are crystallizable ; they must be evaporated in vacuo to prevent them from becoming oxidized ; they are soluble in water and alcohol, without smell, and have the taste of the base. Cojisicina is stated by Witting to be contained in the integuments of the seeds of red pepper ; it is said to be a crystalline powder, insoluble in cold water and ether, little soluble in hot water and alcohol. Its sulphate, nitrate, and acetate are crystallizable, soluble in water, insoluble in alcohol, and pre- cipitated by alkalies. Buxina was prepared by Faure from the leaves of boxwood, and de- scribed as a white powder, bitter, sternutatory, soluble in water, alcohol, and ether, and yielding with acids salts, which crystallize with difficulty. Prof. Walz has announced that this alkaloid is identical with bebeerina. (See below.) Crotonina.—Brandes has separated from the seeds of Croton tiglium small crystals, fusible when heated, scarcely soluble in boiling water, soluble in boiling alcohol, with an alkaline reaction. Its phosphate and sulphate are crystallizable. Euphorbina is a colorless, brittle mass, inodorous, bitter, and acrid, in- soluble in water and ether, soluble in alcohol, decomposed by concentrated sulphuric and nitric acids; its salts are amorphous. It was obtained by Buchner and Herberger. Bebeerina, C38H21NOB, is the only alkaloid as yet discovered in the natural order of Lauraceae. The suggestion of Walz that bebeeru bark might be derived from a Euphorbiaceous tree, is merely based on the asserted identity of this alkaloid with buxina, which fact has comparatively little weight since some other alkaloids have been proved to exist in several different families of plants. It is best obtained, in a pure state, from the impure commercial sulphate by precipitating its solution with ammonia, redissolving the washed precipi- tate in acetic acid, adding an excess of acetate of lead, precipitating by potassa, and exhausting the precipitate by strong ether; the yellowish syrup left after the evaporation of the ether is dissolved in absolute alcohol, which solution on being gradually poured into cold water, yields a floccu- lent precipitate, which is free from color after washing and drying. It is amorphous, inodorous, bitter, of an alkaline reaction, fusible at 356°, scarcely soluble in water, readily soluble in ether and alcohol. The salts are bitter, amorphous, precipitated white by sulphocyanide and by iodide of potassium. The commercial Sulphate of bebeerina is in dark-brown glittering slabs, readily soluble in water by the aid of acids. It is esteemed as a tonic and antiperiodic, much prescribed in London in doses of three to ten grains, to the amount of a scruple or a drachm, between the paroxysms of intermittents. 42 658 ON THE ORGANIC ALKALIES OR ALKALOIDS. Sepeerina (from the Dutch name sepeeri for bebeeru) remains behind after the exhaustion of bebeerina by ether. Amorphous, reddish-brown, little soluble in water, soluble in alcohol. The salts are amorphous, of a brown color, and generally obtained in very shin- ing laminae, almost resembling crystalline scales. Piperina, C34H19N06.—Powdered pepper is exhausted by alcohol; this is distilled off, the extract dried with lime in a water bath, whereby the resin becomes insoluble while piperina is taken up by alcohol. It crystallizes in four-sided prisms, colorless when pure, when chewed for some time developing a hot peppery taste, scarcely soluble in water, easily in alcohol, less in ether, the solution is neutral to litmus, and has a burning- pepper taste. It melts at 212°, losing 2 equivalents of water. It dissolves in cold sulphuric acid with a deep red color; concentrated nitric acid de- composes it, the brown mass dissolves in potassa with a red color, and yields on boiling piperidina. By continued boiling with an alcoholic solution of potassa, it splits into piperic acid and piperidina, C^H^NOg-f 2110 = can+cao. (^p). j . ..,, u •, *. i. It has been recommended as an energetic and rapid febrifuge, though chiefly used in combination with quinia. It is given in doses of 2 to 4 grains, but may be increased to 60 grains in 24 hours without injurious effects. Landerer believes that the same alkaloid is also contained in the berries of Schinus mollis, Terebinthacese. (See " Am. Journ. Pharm.,'1 1863, 157.) Piperidina, C10HnN, is probably ethyl-allyl-amina N(C4H5-f C6H5+H). It is a colorless liquid, strongly alkaline, of an ammoniacal and pepper) odor and taste, lighter than water, in which it dissolves in all proportions; boiling point 223° F. ; it precipitates the salts of the metallic oxides. Its salts are crystallizable. Piperic acid, Pip=C24HJ0O8, is nearly insoluble in water, slightly soluble in ether, readily in boiling alcohol; fusible at 300°, partly sublimable at 390° with the odor of coumarin ; sulphuric acid colors it blood-red, and it yields with PC15 vermilion-red crystals. Piperate of Piperidina crystallizes in colorless silky scales, turning yellow in the air, fusible at 248°; piperina cannot be obtained from them. Veratria U. S. P. Veratria is procured from cevadilla seeds by treating thein with alcohol, evaporating the tincture to an extract, and treating this with water acidulated with sulphuric acid; this solution, containing sul- phate of veratria, is next evaporated to a syrupy consistence, decom- posed by magnesia, which is added in slight excess; the precipitated veratria thrown down is now washed and separated from the excess of magnesia by alcohol, from which it is obtained by evaporation, but requires still further purifying with animal charcoal, &c. A pound of the seeds yields about a drachm of veratria. This product is a white, uncrystallizable powder, extremely acrid when diffused in the air, producing excessive irritation of the nostrils. It is freely soluble in alcohol, less so in ether, and almost insoluble in water, but soluble in diluted acids, from which ammonia and solution of tannin throw down white precipitates. Among its most striking peculiarities are the intense red color it assumes on the addition of sulphuric acid, and the yel- low solution it forms with nitric. Veratria, as procured by the officinal VERATRIA, COLCHICIA, ETC. 659 process, is a complex body, and contains two alkaloids, sabadillia and jervia, with some resinous matter. The medical uses of veratria are confined chiefly to gouty and neuralgic affections, in the treatment of which it is used internally in doses of one- twelfth to one-sixth grain, repeated, or externally, in ointment, of about 9j to the ounce ; it has lately also been recommended in typhoid fever. The following is the process for obtaining the alkaloids pure:— Veratria, C64H5aN2Ol6.—Commercial veratria is dissolved in much alcohol, and mixed with water until a precipitate just commences to appear; on spontaneous evaporation, a white, crystalline powder is obtained, mixed with a brown, resinous mass, which can be removed by washing with cold alcohol. The powder, if dissolved in strong alcohol, and evaporated spon- taneously, leaves large, rhombic, colorless prisms, which effloresce in the air, become porcellaneous and pulverulent, are insoluble, but rendered opaque in boiling water, readily soluble in alcohol and ether. Sulphuric acid colors it yellow, then carmine red ; muriatic acid produces a deep violet solution with oily drops on the surface. The acids are completely neutralized, but the solutions do not crystallize on evaporation. Sabadillia, C^H^N^,,, crystallizes in colorless prisms, which are soluble in boiling water, melt at 390° F., and have a very acrid taste. It is easily soluble in alcohol, but does not crystallize from this solution ; it is insoluble in ether, and, from its solution in dilute sulphuric acid, is not precipitated by ammonia. It is not sternutatory. (Hiibschmann.) Jervia, C^H^N^,,.—The precipitate by soda, containing the alkaloids, is boiled with diluted sulphuric acid ; on cooling, the sulphate of jervia is precipitated. The precipitate may be decomposed by carbonate of soda, and recrystallized from alcohol. It is nearly insoluble in water, soluble in alcohol, crystallizes in colorless prisms with 4 Aq, loses its water of crystallization on heating, melts at 375°, and is decomposed at a higher heat. Jervia and its soluble salts are precipitated from their solutions by muri- atic, sulphuric, and nitric acids, forming therewith nearly insoluble salts; they, however, dissolve in alcohol. Colchicia.—According to Aschoff, the root is to be exhausted by cold water, precipitated by basic acetate of lead, the filtrate neutralized by car- bonate of soda, the filtrate precipitated by tannin, this precipitate washed, expressed, dissolved in eight parts alcohol, and digested with freshly pre- cipitated oxide of iron; the filtrate is evaporated, the residue dissolved in a mixture of equal parts of alcohol and ether, evaporated, and again dis- solved in water. The corms gathered in spring yielded but.75 grains, in the fall as high as 6.5 grains from the pound ; the seed 16 grains to the pound. It is a white, amorphous mass, of a bitter, not acrid taste, without odor, when moist of a feeble narcotic odor. It is easily decomposed in aqueous solution, is not sternutatory or hygroscopic, is fusible and inflammable, easily soluble in water and alcohol, less in absolute ether. It has no reaction on vegetable colors. The following is its behavior to reagents :— It is soluble in S03, with a clear yellow color; in NOs, yellow; the un- dissolved colchicia is brownish-red, then violet, brownish-green, brown-red : fuming NO (containing nitrous acid) imparts to it a violet or indigo-blue, afterwards yellow, color. The solution of T colchicia is colored lemon yellow by muriatic acid. Bichromate of potassa and sulphuric acid impart a green color Iodine causes a kermes-colored, gelatinous precipitate, soluble in alcohol and water. Chlorine water a yellow precipitate, soluble 660 ON THE ORGANIC ALKALIES OR ALKALOIDS. with orange color in ammonia. No crystallizable compounds have been obtained with acids, except that J. E. Carter thinks he obtained acrystaUine sulphate. Hiibschmann was unable to saturate two drops of dilute sulphuric acid with colchicia, though he and Carter both found it to act slowly on reddened litmus paper, and on paper colored with rhubarb. Oberlin disputes the existence of a base colchicia, so does Walz, who renders it probable that it is a glucoside. An alkaloid does, however, ap- pear to exist in colchicum, since the infusion yields precipitates, both with Sonnenschein's and Mayer's tests. By external application, several painful cases of rheumatism have been relieved by it. If given internally, one-sixtieth (^) grain three times daily, continued, if necessary, for several weeks, has a most salutary effect in rheu- matic complaints. It opens the bowels even of those who have been suffer- ing from constipation. (See Thesis of J. E. Carter, of Philadelphia, "Am. Journ. Pharm.," vol. xxx. p. 205.) Colchiceine, C3SH33N04.—Oberlin obtained no colchicia by Geiger and Hesse's process, but, on dissolving the product in water, acidulating with muriatic acid, evaporating until of an intense yellow color, a white preci- pitate was thrown down by water, crystallizing from alcohol and ether in pearly lamellae, of an intensely bitter taste, neutral to test paper, nearly in- soluble in water, soluble in alcohol, ether, woodspirit, chloroform, ammonia, and potassa; in ferric chloride with green, in sulphuric acid with yellow, in muriatic acid with pale yellow, in nitric acid with intense yellow color, changing to violet, deep red, light red and yellow. It is very poisonous. It remains to be investigated whether or not it is a product of decompo- sition of colchicia by the influence of muriatic acid. Apirina was obtained by Bizio from the seeds of Cocos lapidea. It is white, inodorous, of a sharp taste, fusible, soluble in 600 p. water, without alkaline reaction ; forms with acids crystalline salts, which are less soluble in hot than in cold water. Tests for Distinguishing the Alkaloids. The following, taken from Dr. A. T. Thompson, conveys in a compact form, the leading facts applicable to distinguishing the alkaloids. Some general characteristics are noticed at the beginning of this chapter, and the particular ones under the several heads. Method of Distinguishing the following Vegetable Alkaloids—Atropia, Brucia, Delphia, Emetia, Morphia, Solania, Strychnia, Veratria—when they are in powder. Treat the powder first with nitric acid, which is colored red by brucia, delphia, morphia, and the strychnia of commerce, but not by pure strych- nia. If the reddened acid become of a violet hue on the addition of pro- tochloride of tin, after the nitric solution has cooled, the alkaline powder is brucia; if the reddened acid gradually become black and carbonaceous, it is delphia. If the powder be soluble without decomposition, and decom- poses iodic acid, evolving free iodine, it is morphia; if it is not fusible, and does not decompose iodic acid, it is strychnia. If the powder greens, in- stead of reddening nitric acid, it is solania; if it is insoluble in ether, and does not redden nitric acid, it is emetia; if it be soluble in ether, and does not redden nitric acid, but melts when heated, and volatilizes, it is atropia,- if it is thus affected by ether and nitric acid, but is not volatilized, it is veratria. TERNARY ALKALOIDS. 661 The Ternary Alkaloids. Sparteina, C1SH13N.—A concentrated decoction of broom is distilled with soda, and several times rectified. It is a colorless oil, which, in contact with water, soon becomes opalescent, and is colored brown by the air; it is heavier than water, smells faintly like anilina, has a very bitter taste, and is narcotic; its boiling point is 550° F. Acids are perfectly neutralized; the salts are soluble, the muriate and nitrate not crystallizable. Conia, C16H15N, is most abundant in the fresh plants gathered before flowering, and in the seed, from which it is obtained by distillation with caustic potassa, purifying the sulphate by dissolving it in alcoholic ether, and again distilling with potassa. Thus obtained it frequently contains methyl and ethyl-conia. Conia is a volatile colorless or yellowish oily fluid (specific gravity .87), with a very characteristic odor resembling that of the urine of the mouse! It boils at 338°, is neutral to test paper when anhydrous, but decidedly alkaline when containing some water. It is soluble in 100 parts of water, floating on its surface when distilled with it. Alcohol dissolves it readily,' as also ether, the fixed and volatile oils. It does not dilate the pupil, but is extremely poisonous. Like other volatile alkaloids of the composition of substituted ammonia, it occasions white clouds when approached with a rod moistened with muri- atic acid. This test, when applied to the extract of conium, after adding to it on a tile a few drops of solution of potassa, is resorted to, in con- nection with the odor, in judging of the quality of that extract. When exposed to the air, conia undergoes oxidation, being converted into a brown resinous matter, ammonia, and butyric acid; butyric acid is also formed by the reaction with nitric and chromic acids. By muriatic acid gas it is colored purple, changing to blue; chlorine produces thick white vapors of a lemon odor. It neutralizes the acids, forming soluble salts, some of which are crystal- lizable, while those with oxygenated acids are mostly decomposed on evapo- ration and leave a gummy residue. Methylconia, C1SH17N, resembles conia in physical and chemical proper- ties, and can be distinguished from it only by elementary analysis. Ethylconia, C^H^N, is very similar, but less soluble in water. In this connection it is proper to mention the quaternary alkaloid, disco- vered by Wertheim, accompanying conia. Conhydrina, C16H17N02, occurs chiefly in the flowers and seed of conium ; to prepare it, the crude conia is neutralized with sulphuric acid, the salt ex- tracted with alcohol to separate ammonia, evaporated, treated with concen- trated caustic potassa, then with ether; this is distilled off, and by very slow fractional distillation in an oil bath, the conia is separated; between 300° and 400° crystals of conhydrina are sublimed. It is in colorless, pearly crystalline lamella?, sublimes slowly below 212°, is soluble in water, alcohol, and ether; by distillation with anhydrous phos- phoric acid, conia is obtained, 2HO being abstracted : NC16H17Oa—2HO = NC16H15. Its action on animals is similar to conia, but much weaker. The salts have not been studied. Cicutina.—The root of Cicuta virosa yields, according to Polex, by ex- hausting with a diluted acid and distillation with an alkali, this alkaloid, which has a very agreeable odor. 662 ON THE ORGANIC ALKALIES OR ALKALOIDS. Chasrophyllina.—Its sulphate was obtained by Polstorf by distilling the fruit of Chaerophyllum bulbosum with potassa, and neutralizing the distillate by sulphuric acid ; iridescent laminae. Aribina, C46H20N, was obtained by Rieth from the Brazilian tree Arariba rubra, and is remarkable for being the first natural vegetable alkali of ternary composition which is solid at ordinary temperature. Hygrina is a volatile base obtained by Lossen from coca leaves; its odor recalls that of propylamina ; it is not poisonous. It is probably a product of decomposition. Lobelina was discovered by the late Professor S. Calhoun, of Philadelphia, in 1834, and first isolated in a state of purity by Professor Procter, in 1812. It is most conveniently obtained by extracting the seed with alcohol acidu- lated with acetic acid, evaporating and treating with magnesia, and then with ether, from which it may be obtained by spontaneous evaporation. It is a liquid lighter than water, and when dropped into that fluid rises to its surface and spreads out like a drop of oil, then gradually dissolves with- out agitation, forming a transparent solution. It is very soluble in alcohol and ether, the latter readily removing it from an aqueous solution; it also dissolves in fixed and volatile oils. It forms crystallizable salts, with numerous acids. It is not obtained on an economical scale for use in medicine. Lobelina, as it exists in the plant combined with lobelic acid, is decomposable by a moderate heat, as also by the action of strong acids. Nicotia, or Nicotina, C10H7N, is prepared in the following manner: The acid infusion of tobacco is evaporated to about one-half, and distilled with caustic potassa ; or tobacco is distilled with milk of lime ; the distillate is neutralized by oxalic acid, crystallized, the crystals washed with ether, de- composed by potassa, and the alkaloid dissolved by ether. By rectification in a current of hydrogen, it may be obtained colorless. It is a colorless, oily liquid, of strong tobacco odor, a burning sharp taste, heavier than water, specific gravity 1.048. It is inflammable, has an alkaline reaction, is soluble in water, and water is soluble in it to some extent; mis- cible with alcohol, ether, and olive oil, scarcely soluble in oil of turpentine. It becomes yellow by keeping, absorbing oxygen from the air, which gradually turns it thick and brown. It boils at 482° F., but volatilizes at a much lower temperature. The vapor which rises is so powerful in its smell and irritating properties that one drop of it diffused in a room renders the atmo- sphere insupportable. The volatility of this principle insures its diffusion, along with empyreumatic products, in tobacco smoke, so that it is inhaled to a certain extent by smokers ; tobacco smoke may be freed from it by passing it over cotton saturated with tannin. It exists in the different commercial varieties of tobacco in about the following proportions : Havana 2 percent., Maryland 2.3, Yirginia 6.87, Kentucky 6.09. Orfila has lately investigated the properties of nicotia, and ascertained with precision its chemical habitudes. These are detailed in a paper copied in the "Am. Journ. of Pharm.," vol. xxiv. p. 142, from the "London Pharm. Journ." See also a paper by Professor Procter in "Proc. of Am. Pharm. Asso.," 1858, p. 295. Its salts have a burning taste of tobacco, are very soluble in water, deli- quescent, and difficult to crystallize. Mercurialina.—By distillation with lime of the herb and seeds of Mer- curialis annua, an oily alkaloid is obtained, which resembles in odor both nicotia and conia; it is readily oxidized and thickens in contact with the air. The salts are mostly soluble in water and alcohol. TERNARY ALKALOIDS. 663 Secalina, CBHaN, or Propylamina, has the atomic composition of (CBHr) H2N, methylaBthylamina C2H3,C4IL,HN, and trimethylamina (C2H3)3N, and is identical with one of them, probably the former, as it may be obtained from propylic narcotina by distillation with potassa. Besides the plants mentioned in the Syllabus, it has been obtained from the ergot of maize, from herring-pickle, crabs, the spirits in which anatomical preparations have been kept, and the urine of man. When artificially prepared, it is best known in medicine as Propylamina, though chemists generally regard it as trimethylamina. Propylamina is most economically prepared from herring pickle by distil- lation with caustic potassa, neutralizing the distillate with muriatic acid, purifying the salt by dissolving it in strong alcohol or alcoholic ether, and again distilling with potassa. It is a colorless liquid of a strong odor of herrings, and a sweetish astrin- gent taste ; it is soluble in water, has an alkaline reaction, produces white vapors with muriatic acid. It is combustible, and mixed with an equal bulk of water it can still be ignited. Its salts are mostly soluble in water and alcohol, and crystallizable. According to Dr. Awenarius, of St. Petersburg, it appears to be a true specific for rheumatic affections, the acute as well as the chronic. He ad- ministered it in mixtures, containing 24 drops of propylamina to 6 ounces of mint-water sweetened with 2 drachms of sugar, and gave it in doses of a tablespoonful every two hours. Whether it is capable of promoting uterine contraction has not been ascertained. Murias Propylamines is the form most used in practice in the United States; it is prepared by crystallizing the product as at first obtained by passing the volatile alkaloid into diluted muriatic acid, as above ; to free it from muriate of ammonia it may be recrystallized from its solution in strong alcohol. It is usually called chloride of propylamin, destitute of the un- pleasant odor of the alkaloid itself, and has been found a useful remedy iu rheumatism, in doses of from 3 to 5 grains. (See Propylamin Cordial.) See papers on this subject by Professor Procter in "Proceedings of the American Pharmaceutical Association," 1857, and "American Journal of Pharmacy," xxxi. 125 and 222. Anilina, Ct2H„H2N, also known by the names of phenylamina, phenamide, kyanole, crystalline and benzidam ; is the only artificial alkaloid which has been used in medicine. It is best prepared, on a small scale, by the process of Bechamp, from 10 p. nitrobenzole, 12 p. iron filings and 10 p. strong acetic acid. The reaction takes place without the application of heat, but to in- sure complete reduction, the spontaneous distillate is returned to the retort and again distilled, when it may be at once combined with sulphuric acid to form the medicinal sulphate. The alkaloid is a colorless oil, of vinous odor and aromatic taste ; spec. grav. 1.2 ; boiling point 360° ; coagulates albumen ; in contact with air turns yellow and resinifies ; separates many metallic oxides from their salts ; colors pine wood yellow; by hypochlorites blue ; by N05 blue, and on heat- ing oxidized to picric acid ; by S03 and KO,Cr03 blue, but of a different shade, as that produced under the same circumstances with strychnia. Within a few years past it has become of great technical importance, since its products of oxidation by various agents have been made use of to dye animal fabrics, like silk and wool. Anilines sulphas is prepared by direct combination ; it dissolves in about 16 parts of water at 60°, slightly in cold alcohol, insoluble in ether; it is 664: ON THE ORGANIC ALKALIES OR ALKALOIDS. colorless and crystalline, but acquires a reddish color, when exposed to the air in a moist state. This salt has gained some reputation since Dr. Turnbull, of Liverpool, announced his success in treating with it a number of cases of chorea; the remedy produces a transient alteration in the color of the skin and lips, which disappears, however, as soon as it is laid aside. (See "Am. Journ. Ph.," 1862, 295.) Alkaloids of Animal Origin. Some animal tissues and liquids contain alkaline substances or are decomposed into such by the influence of various chemical agents. These animal alkaloids, however, are as yet of little importance in a medicinal point of view ; and it remains here merely to draw attention to a few of them which are either contained in culinary and dietetic articles, or are of importance from their presence in various secretions. Creatine, C8H9N304+2 Aq.—Though creatine is a neutral substance, it may be well to refer to it in this place. It is prepared by expressing fresh meat, macerating it several times with water, and subjecting it each time to strong pressure. From the mixed liquids, albumen and fibrin are removed by coagulating with heat, and solution of baryta is added as long as a pre- cipitate occurs ; the filtrate is evaporated at a moderate heat to a syrupy liquid, and set aside to crystallize. The flesh of chickens and game is easy to clarify ; the former contains the largest, fishes the least quantity of creatine. It is in colorless pearly crys- tals without taste or action on litmus ; it is soluble in 75 parts of cold water, and in 100 parts of absolute alcohol. By boiling with baryta it is decom- posed into sarkosina and urea; by evaporating with strong acids, it loses 2HO and is converted into creatinina. Syllabus of Animal Alkaloids and the Products of their Decomposition. Cratinina or Creatinina, C8H7N302. In the urine of calves, in flesh and from creatine by acids ; colorless crystals ; soluble in 11 water, 100 alcohol and much ether; expels NH3 from its salts. Sarkosina, C6H7N04. From creatine by boiling with BaO; rhombic prisms or scales, easily soluble in water, little in alcohol; insoluble in ether; fusible at 2120. Glycina, C4H5N04, Glycocol or amido-acetic acid. In the bile; by treating glue or similar substances with boiling alkalies or acids ; sweet rhombic crystals, easily soluble in water and dilute alcohol, slight acid reaction; combines with acids and with bases. Leucina, Cl2H13N04, or amido-capronic acid. In various organs of all animals except the very lowest, by putrefaction of casein, from glue like glycina. Shilling scales, easily soluble in water, alkalies, and muriatic acid, little in alcohol; insoluble in ether and chloroform ; sublimable ; fused with KO yields valerianic acid. Tyrosina, Cl8HnN06. In the liver, pancreas and other parts of man and many ani- mals ; in American extract of rhatany (Wittstein), by acids or alkalies upon casein, glue, albumen, &c. Silky needles, soluble in acids and alkalies, little in water ; insoluble in alcohol and ether ; combined with S03 it colors Fe2Cl3 violet. Guanina, Cl0H5N5O2. In the excrements of spiders and in small quantity in guano; white powder, insoluble in water, alcohol and ether, somewhat soluble in linie and baryta water; its salts crystallizable ; precipitated by acetic and formic acid. Taurina, C4H7NS206. In the lungs and kidneys of the ox and in bile after decompo- sition by acids or by fermentation ; six-sided prisms, easily soluble in water, little in alcohol; taste cooling; not destroyed by S03 or N05. Urea, C2H4N202. In the blood, urine and eye of the mammalia, particularly the carnivorous ; in many organs of some lower animals. ON NEUTRAL ORGANIC PRINCIPLES. 665 Urea has been proposed as a remedial agent, its mode of prepara- tion is as follows:— Urine is evaporated to a syrupy consistence, mixed with an equal volume of nitric acid, and set aside for twenty-four hours in a cool place; the crys- tals are redissolved in boiling diluted nitric acid to destroy coloring matter, if necessary digested with animal charcoal, and subsequently decomposed by carbonate of baryta. After evaporation, the mass is exhausted by alcohol. For its artificial preparation Liebig gives the following directions: A mixture of four parts finely powdered anhydrous ferrocyanide of potassium, one and a half parts carbonate of potassa, and two parts black oxide of manganese is heated to redness, and constantly stirred until it has ignited ; it is extracted with cold water, the solution mixed with a solution of three parts sulphate of ammonia, evaporated, the sulphate of potassa removed as much as possible, and the residue exhausted with boiling ordinary alcohol. Urea crystallizes in long, colorless prisms, of a cooling taste similar to saltpetre, easily soluble in water and alcohol, insoluble in ether, containing no water of crystallization, and fusing at 248° F.; combines with acids and bases. It has been recommended as a good and reliable diuretic, in doses of from five to ten grains, several times a day, in diabetes, albuminuria, and dropsy. Ureas nitras is precipitated from a concentrated solution of urea by strong nitric acid in anhydrous white shining scales, soluble in eight parts of water, little in nitric acid and alcohol. Its action is said to be similar to ureaj and it has been recommended as a solvent for vesical calculi composed of ammonio-phosphate of magnesia. It contains 52.63 per cent. urea. CHAPTER IX. ON NEUTRAL ORGANIC PRINCIPLES MOSTLY PECULIAR TO A LIMITED NUMBER OF PLANTS, AND POSSESSED OF MEDICINAL PROPERTIES. Formerly, the virtues of most medical plants were attributed to extractive matter, though this, as obtained from various sources and by different analytical processes, was known to vary somewhat in its properties. By the improved means of proximate analysis many of these plants have been found to possess certain well-defined principles, sometimes crystalline and sometimes amorphous, to which appropriate names .. have been given. If alkaline, these names should terminate in ia; if neutral or subacid, in in or ine. This arrangement, which would con- duce to accuracy, if invariably observed, is, however, not adhered to universally, and in Europe is repudiated by some high authorities. The neutral principles are in some instances active, and in others appear to possess little power of affecting the system. Some of them contain nitrogen, while most others consist of merely carbon, hydro- gen, and oxygen. These principles occasionally unite with acids, forming crystalline compounds, which are, however, acid in their pro- perties ; others combining with alkalies and forming crystallizable salts have been considered among the acids. Many of them belong 666 on neutral organic principles. to the so-called copulated compounds, and decompose under the influ- ence of emulsin, albumen, pectase, or when heated with diluted mine- ral acids or alkalies, into glucose or some similar sugar and another compound. They are generally precipitated by tannic acid, and many of them by subacetate of lead. The modes of obtaining these princi- ples are various, and sometimes difficult to follow, though the solu- bilities and chemical peculiarities of each, when ascertained, indicate approximately its mode of extraction. In a work of the design and scope of the present, it will suffice to display the more striking peculiarities of these principles, none of which are officinal, in a syllabus, and to give the processes of extrac- tion and the leading chemical and medicinal characteristics, only in a few cases including the more important and familiar. There are here, as in the case of the alkaloids, no known chemical relations upon which we would be justified in founding a scientific classification of these principles, and here, as in treating of the other proximate principles of plants, we will find the botanical arrangement of the plants themselves to afford the best grouping. The natural families of plants, though arranged upon a purely botanical basis, are found to exhibit remarkable chemical and physiological relations among the products of their individual members ; this agreement, as yet but imperfectly recognized owing to our limited knowledge of the actual composition of organic proximate principles, is probably one of the great universal harmonies of nature, which, in the progress of science, will be more fully developed and made known. Syllabus of Plants and their Neutral Characteristic Principles. (Generally Crystalline.) 1. Ternary Compounds. Ranunculacex. Anemnnin, associated with anemonic acid, rhombic Pulsatilla pratensis. crystals, nearly insoluble in ether; product of the (Anemone pratensis.) decomposition of the acrid oil of Ranunculus scle- ratus. Poisonous. Magnoliacex. Liriodendrin, white scales, or needles ; little soluble Liriodendrou tulipifera. in cold water; soluble in alcohol and ether ; bitter, Magnolia glauca, &c. pungent; partly sublimable. Menispermacex. Columbin, C42H220I4, colorless, rhombic prisms fusible; Cocculus palmatus. Calumba, very bitter; soluble in 30 parts alcohol, in ether, U. S. (The root). volatile oils, acetic acid, and in alkalies ; repreci- pitated by acids, not precipitated by tannin. Asso- ciated with berberina. Papaveracex. Meconin, C20Hl0O8, white acicular crystals, soluble in Papaver somniferum. Opium, 265 parts cold, 18 boiling water, ether, alcohol, and U. S. volatile oils ; acrid. Caryophyllex. Saponin* C36H28024, Struthiin, Githagin, identical; Saponaria officinalis. white powder; soluble in hot water and diluted Gypsophylla struthium. alcohol, insoluble in ether; taste sweetish, after- Agrostemma githago. wards acrid and bitter; frothing in solution ; sternu- tatory ; splits with S03, into sugar and sapogenin, C^ttisOio (Volley), or kinovin (Rochleder). Similar, if not identical, principles occur in numerous plants, the decoctions and tinctures of which have the property of frothing like soap-water. (See Polygalic Acid, Cyclamin, Convallarin, Smilacin, Aphrodassin.) SYLLABUS OF PLANTS. 667 Linacex. Linum catharticum. Purging flax. Aurantiacex. Citrus vulgaris. Aurantii amari cortex, U. S. Citrus aurantium. Aurantii dulcis cortex, U. S. Citrus limonis. Limonis cortex, U. S. Citrus limonum and citrus au- rantium. The seed. Guttiferx. Garcinia mangos tana.1 Bark of the fruit. Zygophyllex. Guaiacum officinale. The wood and bark. Erythroxylex. Erythroxylon cocoa. Leaves. Hippocasta n ex. JEsculus hippocastanum. (Horse chestnut). The bark. The Cotyledons. Various species of iEsculus and barks of the genus Pavia. Rutacex. Gallipea officinalis. The bark. Angustura, U. S. Xanthoxylum piperitum. The fruit. Xanthoxylum fraxineum. Xanthoxylum, U. S. (The bark.) Terebinthacex. Anacardium occidentale, ca- shew nut. Simarubacex. Simaruba excelsa; Quassia, U. S., and Simaruba offici- nalis, Simaruba, U. S. Sapotacex. Crysophyllum glycophlaeum, Mouesia bark. Linin, white powder or silky needles ; sparingly solu- ble in water, more in acetic acid and chloroform; freely in alcohol and ether ; the alcoholic solution intensely bitter and acrid ; by S03 violet. Hesperidin, in the spongy portion of lemon peel, bit- ter; crystalline ; soluble in alkalies and hot alco- hol, little in water ; insoluble in ether and volatile oils ; by Fe2C3 red-brown. Limonin, C42H250]3. From the seed by alcohol, crys- talline, bitter, soluble in KO ; red color with S03; scarcely soluble in ether. Mangostin, C40H22Ol0, golden yellow scales, without smell or taste ; insoluble in water ; soluble in alco- hol and ether, diluted acids and alkalies. Guaiacin, uncrystallizable, bitter, and acrid ; light yellow powder; easily soluble in hot water and alcohol; insoluble in ether ; precipitated by acids. Erythroxylin, volatile needle-shaped crystals, very bitter, probably identical with cajfein. (See Cocaina.) ^Esculin, C42H24026, polychrom, white crystalline powder, without smell, bitter ; little soluble in cold water and alcohol; soluble in alkalies ; insoluble in ether and volatile oils. (See page 674.) Argyrxscin, Cl0SH86O4S, crystallizes from diluted alcohol; silvery in appearance; insoluble in ether ; gelatinizes with warm alkalies, and forms xscinic and propionic acid-; by SU3, yellow solution, blood- red on addition of Aq; by dilute acids splits into sugar and argyrxscetin=CsiH.6202i. Aphrodxsin,C mHssO47, amorphous, colorless, sternuta- tory ; resembles saponin in many respects; splits by alkalies into butyric and xscinic acid, C96H80O46. Paviin similar to sesculin, identical with fraxin. (See Oleacex.) Cusparin, tetrahedral crystals, soluble in alcohol, acids, and alkalies, and in 200 parts water; preci- pitated by tannic acid. Xunthoxylin, volatile, insoluble in water; soluble in alcohol, ether; aromatic resinous taste ; stearop- tene from the oil. Xunthoxylin of Dr. Staples, not investigated, probably identical with xanthopicrin (Dr. Wood). (See Berberina.) Cardol, C42H3104, light-reddish oil, very readily oxi- dizing ; insoluble in water ; easily soluble in alco- hol and ether ; very acrid and blistering. Quassin, C20H,2O6, white opaque granules, or prisms; inodorous, intensely bitter; very soluble in alco- hol, less in ether, slightly in water, not precipitated by tannin. (See page 674.) Monesin, gummy, or white powder ; inodorous, bit- ter and acrid ; readily soluble in water and alcohol, the solutions frothing; little soluble in absolute alcohol and ether ; identical with saponin. 1 ' Used in the East India Islands as a remedy for intermittents. 668 ON NEUTRAL ORGANIC PRINCIPLES. Aquifoliacex. Ilex aquifolium. European holly. The leaves. Ilex opaca. American holly. The fruit. Rhamnex. Rhamnus frangula and cathar- tica. The unripe berries (buck- thorn) . Leguminosx. Cassia fistula. The root. Cassia acutifolia, C. obovata, C. elongata, Senna, U. S. Lupinus albus. White lupine. The seed. Glycyrrhiza glabra. Liquorice. Dipterix odorata, fruit. (Tonka beans.) Melilotus officinalis. Flowers. Cytisus scoparius. Scoparius, U. S. (Broom). Ononis spinosa. The root. Rosacex. Geum urbanum. The root. Quillaya saponaria (Quillaia bark). Brayera anthelmintica (Kousso). Granatex. Punica granatum. Granati rad. cort., U. S. Myrtacex. Caryophyllus aromaticus. Caryophyllus, U. S. (The flower bud.) Ilicin, brown-yellow transparent crystals; bitter; readily soluble in alcohol and water; insoluble in ether ; not precipitated by metallic salts. riipicrin,1 acicular crystals, intensely bitter, slightly acrid ; soluble in water and alcohol, freely in ether ; precipitated by tannin. Rharnnin, volatile, tasteless, yellowish crystals; solu- ble in alkalies with yellow color (Fleury). Caihartin of Winkler, from the ripe fruit. Cathartic dose 1 to 3 grs. (See Crysophanic Acid.) Cassiin, uncrystallizable, bitter; soluble in watei and alcohol; precipitated by mineral acids. Cathartin of Lassaigne and Fenuelle. (See Chryso- phanic Acid.) Lupinine, greenish amorphous, hygroscopic, bitter, insoluble in absolute alcohol and ether. Glycyrrhizin is a glucoside, splitting into glycyretine and sugar (Gorup Besanep). Coumarin, C,8H604.* Colorless, quadrangular prisms ; odor and taste aromatic ; destroyed by S03, byN05 converted into nitro-coumarin and picric acid ; by boiling with alkalies, coumaric acid. C18H8061 lb. tonka beans yield 108 grs. Scoparin, C2,H,,O10, soluble in alkalies ; precipitated by acids ; little soluble in water, more soluble in alcohol, without odor or taste ; oxidized by N03 to picric acid, appears to be the diuretic principle. (Stenhouse.) Ononin, Cb2H34027, colorless needles; inodorous; readily soluble in boiling water and alcohol; inso- luble in ether; red with S03; splits with caustic baryta into formic acid and onospin, C60H34O25, which, with diluted S03 or HCl, yields sugar and ononetin, C48H22013. Onocerin, C,2H|0O, another crystallizable principle,not altered by boiling, as above. Gein, uncrystallizable, bitter; soluble in water, readi- ly in alcohol and ether; with S03 red, with N05 yellow solution ; forms, with alkalies, lime, and lead soluble compounds. Saponin, see Caryophyllacex. Koussin, white or yellowish ; indistinctly crystalline; acrid ; soluble in ether, alcohol and alkalies ; no glucoside. Anthelmintic in doses of 20 to 40 grs. Punicin, acrid, uncrystallizable, oily, powerful errhine. Caryophyllin, C^H |602, yellow prisms, without taste or smell; soluble in ether and boiling alcohol. Eugenin, C24H1506, yellow pearly scales, becomes red with N05 ; isomeric with caryophyllic acid. 1 We propose to retain the name of ilicin for Delschamp's still impure principle as obtained from the leaves of European holly, and suggest the name ilipicrin for the crystalline bitter principle obtained from the fruit of American holly, as obtained by Dillwyn P. Pancoast, a graduate of the Phila. College Pharm. (See " Amer. Journ. Ph.," 1856, p. 314.) 2 Coumarin also exists in Asperula odorata, Rubiacex, Anthoxanthum odoratum, Graminex, and some other herbs. SYLLABUS OF PLANTS. 669 Cucurbitacex. Bryonia alba. Citrullus colocynthis. Colocynthis, U. S. (The fruit.) Cucumis prophetarum. The unripe fruit. Momordica elaterium. Elate- rium, U. S. (Squirting cu- cumber) . Umbelliferx. Petroselinum sativum. The herb. Peucedanum officinale. The root. Imperatoria ostruthium. Athamantum oreoselinum. The root. Rubiacex. Cinchona calisaya and other species. The root bark and wood. Compositx. Artemisia absinthium. Absin. thium, U. S. (The herb.) Angelica archangelica. The root. Cnicus benedictus. Blessed thistle. Mikp,nia Guaco. The leaves. Lactuca virosa. The juice. Bryonin, C96H?0O38, amorphous, very bitter, soluble in water and alcohol; insoluble in ether; splits into sugar, bryoretin C42H35014, and hydrobryoretin C42H37016. Bryonitin, crystals, soluble in alcohol 95 per cent., and ether. Colocynthin, C^H^O^, amorphous, light-yellowish; insoluble in ether, soluble in water and alcohol ; splits with acids in sugar and colocynthein C44H32Ol3. Colocynthitin, obtained in white prisms from the part of the alcoholic extract insoluble in water and cold alcohol; soluble in hot alcohol and ether. Prophetin, C46H360I4, white resinous, little soluble in cold water, more in ether, very soluble in alcohol; intensely bitter; splits with acids into sugar and propheretin. Elaterin, C20H1405, colorless prisms, very bitter, acrid ; insoluble in alkalies, dilute acids, and water; solu- ble in alcohol, little in ether; with S03 red solution. Apiin, C24H140)3, white powder, tasteless ; nearly in- soluble in cold water; gelatinizing from hot solu- tion ; blood red with FeO,S03. Apiol, yellowish, oily, non-volatile, acrid, pungent, heavier than water; soluble in alcohol, ether, chloro- form. Peucedanin, C24H,206, colorless rhombic prisms, without taste or odor; melts at 167° F. ; insoluble in water, soluble in hot alcohol, ether, fixed and volatile oils Splits into angelicic acid, C10H7O3, and oreoselon, C14H5°3- Imperatorin, identical with peucedanin. Athamantin, C24H,,07, colorless needles or prisms, pe- culiar rancid odor on heating, taste rancid, bitter, acrid; melts at 174° F. ; splits into oreoselon, C,4H503, and valerianic acid, C,0H10O4. Kinovin, C60H^O)6, whitish, resinous, intensely bitter; little soluble in water, readily in alcohol and ether ; soluble red in S03. By gaseous HCl splits into mannitan C12H)2Ol0, and kinovic acid C48H3808, which is tasteless, but yields bitter salts. (See page 675.) Absynthin, C40H2SO8 + Aq, granular crystalline ; solu- ble in alcohol and ether, little in water; with KO. brown-red solution ; S03 greenish blue solution, with little water deep blue. Angelicin, amorphous and crystalline ; taste insipid, afterwards aromatic and burning. Cnicin, C28HlgO10, colorless needles; faintly bitter; fusible ; little soluble in cold water and ether, easily in alcohol; with S03 blood-red, HCl green; probably a glucoside. Guacin, yellowish, uncrystallizable, bitter; soluble in ether, alcohol, and boiling water. Lactucin, C^H^, white pearly scales, in the juice combined with lactucic acid ; bitter ; easily soluble in alcohol, scarcely in cold water and ether. Lactucone, C40H24O5, white granules deposited from hot alcohol on cooling ; insoluble in water, soluble in ether. 670 ON NEUTRAL ORGANIC PRINCIPLES. Lactuca sativa. Lettuce. The juice. Lactucarium, U. S. Leontodon taraxacum. Tarax- acum, U. S. (The root.) Tanacetum vulgare. Tanace- tum, U. S., Tansy. (The flowers.) Caprifoliacex. Lonicera xylosteum. The berries. Ericacex. Arctostaphylos uva ursi. Uva ursi, U. S. (The leaves.) Erica, Ledum, Arbutus, Rho- dodendron, &c. The leaves. Oleacex. Olea Europjea (olive-tree). The gum. Fraxinus excelsior. Common European ash. The bark. Ligustrum vulgare. Privet. The bark. Phillyria latifolia (a species of privet). Syringa vulgaris. Lilac. The bark. Apocynacex. Apocynum cannabinum, U. S. Asclepiadex. Asclepias Syriaca. The milky juice. Asolepias vincetoxicum. The root. Gentian ex. Gentiana lutea. Gentiana, U. S. (The root.) Lactucopirin, C„4H32021, brown, amorphous, very bit- ter ; faint acid reaction; readily soluble in water and alcohol; not precipitated by PbO salts. Taraxacin, colorless crystals, bitter, aorid, fusible; soluble in boiling water and alcohol. (Polex.) Tanacetin, yellowish white warts ; very bitter; very soluble in ether, less in alcohol, little in water; with S03 hyacinth-colored solution. Xylostein, crystalline, bitter principle ; by dilute acids converted into sugar and other substances. (The seeds contain a volatile poison.) Arbutin, C24H16014-r-2Aq, bitter, colorless crystals; soluble in boiling water and aloohol, little in ether; glucoside. (See page 675.) Ursin, colorless needles, soluble in alcohol, water, ether, and diluted acids. Dose, one grain. (See page 675.) Urson, C20HI7O2, colorless, silky, tasteless, acicular crystals ; insoluble in water, acids, and alkalies; fusible, inflammable ; orange yellow with S03. Ericolin, C68H55041, brown-yellow, extractive, intensely bitter; by S03 in ericinol and sugar. Olivil, C28Hl8Ol0-j- 2Aq, needles in starlike groups, bit- ter and sweet taste ; melt at 25 0^; soluble in water and boiling alcohol, easily in alkalies, little in ether ; by very dilute N05 red-yellow. Fraxin, C^H^O^, yellowish needles, slightly bitter and astringent; soluble in boiling water and alco- hol ; fluorescent, but blue color disappearing on adding acids; splits with acids into fraxetin, C30H12Ol6, and sugar: identical with paviin. Ligustrin, identical with syringin. Ligustropicrin, analogous to syringopicrin. Ligustron, needles, sublimable with an aromatic odor; bitter; soluble in water, alcohol, and ether; reduces Ag from its solutions in NH3. Phillyrin, C34H31022+3Aq. Crystalline, nearly taste- less, soluble in hot water and alcohol, insoluble in ether. By diluted HCl forms sugar and phillygenin, C42H24012, which is polymeric with saligenin. Re- puted antiperiodic. Syringin, C3SH28O20-|-2Aq. Colorless needles; taste- less ; soluble in water, more in alcohol, not in ether. The solutions in S03 deep blue or violet; splits with acids into sugar and syringenin, C26H]8O10-(-2Aq. Syringopicrin, in all parts of lilac; amorphous, yel- lowish-white ; bitter ; slight acid reaction ; readily soluble in water and alcohol; insoluble in ether; precipitated by tannin. Apocynin, peculiar active principle. Asclepion, C40H34O6, white crystalline mass, odorless, tasteless ; insoluble in water and alcohol, soluble in ether. Asclepin, pale yellow ; readily soluble in water and alcohol; emetic; precipitated by tannin, HgCl2, and subacetate of lead. Gentiopicrin, C40H30O24. Extracted from the aqueous infusion by animal charcoal; crystallizable ; readily soluble in water and alcohol, insoluble in ether; not precipitated by "Tan or 2PbO,~Ac. Splits with acids into sugar and gentiogenin, a brownish-yellow, amorphous body. SYLLABUS OF PLANTS. 671 Menyanthes trifoliata. Herb. (Buck-bean.) Convolvulacex. Ipomcea jalapa.' Jalapa, U. S. (The rhizoma.) Convolvulus Orizabensis. False jalap. Jalap stalk. Convolvulus scammonia. Scammonium, U. S. (The concrete juice.) Solanex. Capsicum annuum, and other species. The fruit. Parisquadrifolia. The herb. Physalis alkekengi. The leaves of the winter cherry. Scrophularinex. Digitalis purpurea. leaves.) (The Gratiola officinalis. hyssop. Scrophularia nodosa. herb. Labiatx. Marrubium vulgare. hound. The leaves. Lycopus Europaeus. weed. Teucrium scordium. mander. The Hore- Bugle Ger- Menyanihin, C66H54032, whitish, amorphous, bitter ; so- luble in alcohol, water, not in ether : with S03 sugar and a volatile oil, menyanthol. Convolvulin, C62H50O32, white or transparent; inodor- ous and tasteless; insoluble in ether and water, soluble in alcohol and acetic acid; resinous ; by S03 amaranth-red. (See page 675.) Jalapin, C68H56032, white, amorphous, resinous ; readily soluble in alcohol and ether, wood spirit, benzol, oil of turpentine and acetic acid ; by S03 amaranth- red. (See page 676.) Scammonin, identical with jalapin. (Spirgatis.) Capsicin, white tufts of crystals; soluble in alcohol and ether. (See page 676.) Paridin, Cl4H1207 or C12H1006-|-Aq. Colorless shining scales or needles, bitterish, acrid ; little soluble in cold water and ether, freely in alcohol; by SO, and P05 red. Physalin, C2gH16Ol0, bitter, amorphous, yellowish; soluble in alcohol, chloroform, and ammonia. Digitalin, or digitasolin, C56H48028, light straw-yellow, amorphous, granular from the alcoholic solution ; very bitter; irritating to the nostrils ; soluble in 125 p. cold, in 42 p. boiling water ; scarcely soluble in ether, more in alcohol; brown and purple in S03, green in HCl, rose-red and brown in NH3; splits with acids into sugar, digitaliretin, C32H2606, and paradigitalirotin, C44H340,4. Digitaletin, Delffi digitalin, C44H380I8 (digitalin minus C12H]0Ol0), white warty crystals, insoluble in ether and cold water, soluble in 222 p. boiling water; without coloration in NH3 and HCl; splits into sugar and digitaliretin. Digitalarin, golden-yellow, resinous, very acrid, solu- ble in ether and NH3 ; in the pure state pearly-white microscopic prisms, C^H^O^ Gratiolin, C40H34O14, bitter, white, crystalline ; soluble in boiling water and alcohol; insoluble in ether ; splits into sugar, gratiolaretin, C34H2806, and gratiole- tin, C34H28Ot6. Gratiosolin, C46H42025, amorphous, yellow; insoluble in ether, soluble in water and alcohol. Products of decomposition numerous. (See "Am. Journ. Ph." 1859, 341.) Scrophularin, crystalline scales, bitter; soluble in water. Marrubiin, crystallizes from ether and alcohol; little soluble in water; intensely bitter, afterwards acrid; with SOn brown-yellow solution ; not precipitated by tannin. Lycopin, pale yellowish ; hard ; very bitter ; soluble in water, easily in alcohol and ether ; insoluble in alkalies. Scordiin, yellow gum-like or white powder; agreeably aromatic and bitter; insoluble in cold water, so- luble in alcohol and ether; red-brown in S05, yel- low in alkalies. 1 Ipomcea jalapa, Nuttall; Ipornoea Schiedeana, Zucrarini ; Ipomcea purga, Schlech- tendal- Convolvulus jalapa, Schiede; Convolvulus purga, Wcnderoth; Convolvulus officinalis, Pelletan; Exogonium purga, Bentham; are all synonyms for true jalap. 672 ON NEUTRAL ORGANIC PRINCIPLES. Primulacex. Cyclamen and Europaeum. Pri- mula officinalis. Cowslip prim-rose. Thym elex. Daphne mezereum. Mezereum, U. S. (The bark.) Laurinex. Laurus nobilis. The leaves. Aristolochex. Aristolochia clematitis. Aristolochia serpentaria, Ser- pentaria, U. S. (The root.) Asarum Europaeum. Euphorbiacex. Croton eleuteria, Cascarilla, U. S. (The bark.) Croton tiglium, Oleum tiglii, U. S. (The oil.) Urticex. Humulus lupulus. (Strobiles.) Plumbaginacex. Plumbago Europaea. Lead- wort. The root. Datisca cannabina. and root. Leaves Cupuliferx. Quercus Robur. The old bark. Betulacex. Betula lenta. Sweet birch. The bark. Salicacex. Populus tremula. Bark and leaves of the aspen. Salix and Populus, several species. The bark. Piperacex. Piper cubeba. Cubeba, U. S. (The berries.) Coniferx. Pinus sylvestris and occidentalis. The or bark. Thuja leaves Cyclamm, C40H24O2n, Arthanatin of Saladin, white amorphous or crystalline, inodorous ; hygroscopic' light brown ; gelatinizes with cold water, afterward* soluble, Irothing; coagulated above 14(iO) but re- dissolving on standing; soluble in alcohol and acetic acid ; insoluble in ether; acrid poison : splits with emulsin into sugar and cyclamiretin, V, H 0 (See "Am. Journ. Pharm.," 1860, p. 155.) " '" l2' Daphnin, C62H34038+8Aq, brilliant colorless prisms soluble in boiling water and alcohol; insoluble iu ether; bitter, astringent, inodorous; splits with acids into sugar and daphnetin, C38H140)8. (See "Am. Journ. Pharm.," Ib61, p. 325.) Laurin, C32H1503, white prisms, odorless; taste acrid and bitter; insoluble in water; soluble in hot alco- hol and ether. Clematitin, C9H506, is extracted by boiling water- uncrystallizable. Serpentariin, uncrystallizable, bitter and acrid; so- luble in water and alcohol. Asarin, yellowish-brown, amorphous, disagreeably bitter, emetic ; soluble in water and alcohol; pre- cipitated by tannin. Cascarillin, white crystals, bitter, inodorous ; slightly soluble in water, readily in alcohol and ether; with S03 deep red, with HCl violet solution. Crotonol, C,8H|404, colorless oil; soluble in alcohol and ether; decomposed by alkalies and boiling water; very blistering. Humulin(impure ?), amorphous, bitter, yellow, inodor- ous ; little soluble in ether, soluble in alcohol, and in 200 parts boiling water. Plumbagin, from the aqueous decoction of the ethereal extract, reddish-yellow scales ; taste sweetish, sharp and burning ; soluble in hot water, alcohol and ether; with PbO carminered compound. Datiscin, C42H22024, colorless, silky needles or scales ; easily soluble in alcohol, less in ether and cold water; very bitter, fusible; soluble in alkalies with yellow color, precipitated by acids; by SO, forms sugar and datiscetin, C30H10Ol2. Quercin, small white crystals, very bitter; soluble in water, acetic acid, and diluted alkalies ; insoluble in absolute alcohol, ether, and volatile oils; by S03 orange. Gaultherin, in the alcoholic extract; appears to be a copulated compound; with acids, or the aqueous infusion of .the bark, yields oil of gaultheria. Populin, C40H22O|6-f- 4 Aq, white crystalline powder, sweetish and acrid taste ; soluble in alcohol, slightly in water ; by boiling with alkali forms salicin and benzoic acid. Salicin, C2gHl80]4, white scales or prisms, very bitter; soluble in water and alcohol; insoluble in ether and volatile oils. (See page 677.) Cubebin, C34H34O10, white crystalline, inodorous, in- sipid, not volatilizable by heat, cryst. from alcohol; nearly insoluble in water, soluble in ether, acetic acid, fixed and volatile oils ; with S03 carmine red ; deposited in oleoresina cubebae. Pinipicrin, C44H5B022, bitter, amorphous, light yellow- ish brown ; soluble in water and alcohol, insoluble in ether, liquid at 212G ; with, dilute S03 a volatile oil, ericinol, C20H16O2, and sugar. SYLLABUS OF PLANTS. 673 Orchidex. Vanilla aromatica. Prepared unripe capsule. Amaryllidacex. Narcissus pseudo-narcissus, N. poeticus and N. Tazetta. Smilacex. Smilax officinalis and other species. The root. Sarsaparilla, U. S. Liliacex. Inspissated juice of Aloe soco- trina and other species. Aloes. Convallaria majalis. Lily of the valley, herb and root. Polygonatum multiflorum. The herb. Scilla maritima. The bulb. Scilla, U. S. Lycopodiacex. Lycopodium chamaecy parissus. The herb. Lichenes. Variolaria amara. Parmelia physodes. Fungi. Boletus laricis (agaric). Vanillin, C20H6O4, colorless four-sided needles, strong vanilla odor, hot biting taste. (See page 678.) Narcitin, white, uncrystallizable; faint odor and taste ; emetic ; soluble in water, alcohol and acids. Smilacin, C|2H34014, sarsaparillin, pariglin, salsaparin parillic acid; colorless needles or scales ; disagreea- ble, bitter, acrid, nauseous taste ; soluble in boiling water, alcohol, and ether, froths in solution, similar to saponin; S03 deep violet; is a glucoside. Aloin, C34H180I4+Aq, sulphur-yellow crystals, in- tensely bitter ; soluble in cold water, alcohol, and alkalies; insoluble in ether, chloroform, benzin, and volatile oils ; by S03 and N05 red; becomes amorphous below 200O. (See page 678.) Convallarin, C34H310,„ colorless prisms; acrid taste ; little soluble in water, the solution frothing ; readily soluble in alcohol and ammonia ; insoluble in ether; splits by acids into sugar and convallaretin, C28H2606. Convallamarin, C^H^O^, white powder; bitter and sweetish ; soluble in water, ammonia, and alcohol; insoluble in ether; by S03 violet; splits by acids into sugar and convallamaretin, C.nH„R0,R. Ihe crystallizable principle resembles and is probably identical with paridin (Walz). Scillitin, bitter needles ; insoluble in water; soluble in alcohol and ether; decomposed by alkalies, emetic, cathartic, and narcotic poison. (Bley). Mandet has separated Skuleine, an irritating poison, and Scillitine, the diuretic and expectorant principle. No process published. Lycopodin, colorless needles ; very soluble in water, alcohol, and ether, probably a glucoside. Picrolichenin, C6Hs03, small, brilliant, rhombic, pyra- midal crystals; very bitter, and said to be febri- fuge ; soluble in alcohol, ether, volatile and fixed oils, S03 and Ac ; scarcely in water. Ceratophyllin. White needles, fusible at 296° F.; taste slightly acrid ; soluble in alcohol and boiling soda solution ; purple with little Fe2Cl3 ; blood-red with chlorinated lime. Laricin, red-brown, bitter resin ; odor sweetish ; solu- ble in ether, alcohol, acetic acid, and alkalies ; in- soluble in oil of turpentine. 2. Quaternary or Nitrogenized Neutral Principhs. Rosacex. The kernels, leaves, and flow- ers of many plants. Leguminosx. Also in malvaceae and aspara- geaB. (Young beans, peas, asparagus, beets, liquorice root, &c.) Amygdalin, C40H27NO22, white scales, or prisms, inodor- ous, agreeably bitter; soluble in water and alcohol; insoluble in ether. (See page 678.) Emulsin. The peculiar vegetable albumen of this species ofplants is a protein compound. (Seep. 521.) Asparagin, althxin, or malamid, N2C8H806-|-2Aq, oc- tohedrons, colorless, inodorous, insipid ; insoluble in ether; soluble in 58 parts water and less alcohol, by fermentation owing to impurities converted into succinate of ammonia, thus :— N2C8H806+2HO+2H=2NH40,C8H406. 43 674 ON NEUTRAL ORGANIC PRINCIPLES. 3. Sulphuretted Neutral Principles. Cruciferx. Sulpho-sinapisin, N2C34H25S2O10, crystallizable ; by the Sinapis alba. The seed. action of a ferment contained in the seed, converted into an acrid bitter principle ; by alkalies, into sina- pic acid, sinkalina, a very strong base, and hydro- sulphocyanic acid ; by acids, sinapina, C32H26N012. 4. Animal Neutral Principles. Cantharis vesicatoria. Cantharidin, Cl0H6O4, prepared by the evaporation of Cantharis, U. S. ethereal or chloroformic tincture of flies; crystallized Cantharis vittata, U. S., and from boiling alcohol; white scaly micaceous crystals, other species. without odor or taste ; when pure insoluble in water, slightly soluble in cold alcohol, soluble in ether, chloroform, benzole, fixed oils, &c, fusible and vo- latile ; soluble in water in its natural state of com- bination. A powerful vesicant. Castor fiber. (Peculiar con- Castorin, crystallizes from the boiling alcoholic tinc- crete substance.) ture, purified by washing with cold alcohol; long Castoreum, U. S. fasciculated prisms, odor of castor, cuprous taste, insoluble in cold water and alcohol, soluble in vola- tile oils and 100 parts of boiling alcohol; Canadian castor contains 7 per cent. Fresh meat. Chickens, game, Creatine, C8H9N304-|-2Aq. (See page 664.) etc. REMARKS ON SOME OF THE NEUTRAL PRINCIPLES. JEsculin or Polychrom, is found besides in the bark of the horse-chestnut tree, also in quassia wood and red saunders. The bark is exhausted by alcohol of eighty per cent., a little evaporated and set aside for several weeks, the powder washed with ice-cold water, and recrystallized from a boiling mixture of one part of ether and five of alcohol. A very dilute solution, containing one-millionth part, opalesces with blue color in reflected light; acids destroy this property, alkalies restore it, chlo- rine destroys it, coloring the solution red. By the action of diluted acids it is converted into sugar and sesculetin. C43H34026+6HO = 2C12H12012-fC18H608. Paviin may be obtained by the slow evaporation of the ethereal tincture in needles grown in star-like groups. Its properties are similar to assculin, but, while this fluoresces with sky- blue color, paviin shows a green color in solution; both usually occur together in the barks of this family; the genus assculus containing assculin, the genus pavia, paviin, in preponderance. These principles, though little known except as scientific curiosities, are worthy a trial as antiperiodics. The bark has long been reputed to possess febrifuge properties. Quassin, the active principle of the intensely bitter wood and barks of the quassias, is best prepared by the following process :— The decoction is precipitated by milk of lime, the filtrate evaporated, the residue dissolved in alcohol, treated with animal charcoal, evaporated and recrystallized from water. 8 lbs. quassia wood yield 1 drachm. In Martinique and other neighboring islands, the wood of Bytteria febri- fuga, Simarubeas, there called false simaruba, is employed for intermittents. Gerardias found its bitter principle to be quassin, of which it contains a much larger proportion than does quassia. CONVOLVULIN. 675 Colocynthin.—The fruit of colocynth, in fine powder, is mixed with and packed upon animal charcoal, displaced with alcohol and evaporated spon- taneously ; a garnet-colored, pulverizable mass, extremely bitter, soluble in water and alcohol, insoluble in ether, remains behind. Active cathartic in the dose of one and a half grain. It is obtained pure by treating the aqueous solution of the alcoholic ex- tract successively with subacetate of lead, sulphuretted hydrogen and tannin; the last precipitate, after dissolving in alcohol, is again treated with lead and sulphuretted hydrogen ; the filtrate is evaporated spontaneously, the residue is well washed with anhydrous ether. (Walz.) Kinovin (formerly erroneously called kinovic acid) was first discovered in the so-called quinquina nova, but afterwards separated from the officinal Peruvian barks. De Vrij found the following quantities in species of cin- chona, cultivated in Java : Cinchona calisaya, wood of the root 2.57 ; bark of the root 1.08 ; wood 1.80 ; bark of trunk .359 ; bark of main branches .690; green branches .849; dry leaves .230. Cinch, lucumsefolia, wood 1.280 ; bark of trunk .420 per cent. It is prepared by exhausting the cinchona barks with boiling water (the bases, kinic and cincho-tannic acids are removed), afterwards with boiling milk of lime (cinchona red remains behind). The filtrate is supersaturated by HCl, and the precipitate purified by again combining with CaO, decolor- izing by animal charcoal and precipitating by HCl. Or the bark is boiled with very dilute NaO or KO, the filtrate saturated by HCl, and the precipitate freed from cinchona red by CaO and treating as before. It is freed from adhering kinovic acid by dilute alcohol or chloroform, which leave the latter insoluble. Arbutin.—An aqueous decoction, is precipitated by acetate of lead, and the filtrate, after treating with HS, evaporated to a syrupy consistence; after some time, prisms of arbutin appear. By emulsin or S03 it is decom- posed into sugar and hydrokinone. C24H180]4+ 2HO = C12Hla012+C12H604. Ursin.—The alcoholic solution of the aqueous extract of uva ursi is repeatedly treated with animal charcoal, and evaporated spontaneously. Colorless needles, soluble in alcohol, water, ether, and dilute acids; neutral reaction. In the dose of one grain, this appears to be powerfully diuretic. The resinoid principles of jalap have already been treated of in their practical relations among the concentrated or resinous extracts ; in this con- nection it will be proper to refer to them as the neutral principles giving activity to that particular family of plants. Convolvulin, formerly called Rhodeoretin.—The tuberous root of Convol- vulus Schiedeanus (Ipomoea Jalapa), after exhausting it with boiling water, is exhausted with 90 per cent, alcohol, water is added until precipitation commences, it is filtered hot through animal charcoal, evaporated, exhausted with ether, the residue dissolved in alcohol, and precipitated by ether. Its solution in alkalies contains convolvulic acid=3HO,C62HM032; it is soluble in water, and is therefore not precipitated by water. Convolvulin, dissolved in anhydrous alcohol, and treated with hydro- chloric acid, is decomposed into an oily, crystallizing body, convolvulinol and sugar. Convolvulic acid, in aqueous solution, treated with dilute S03 suffers the same decomposition. Convolvulinol, C^II^Oy, separated from its alkaline solution, has been converted into convolvulinolic acid, C^H^O^. The above three substances are converted by NOs, into ipomic acid, HO, CioHsOs. 676 ON NEUTRAL ORGANIC PRINCIPLES. Jalapin.—The root of Ipomcea Orizabensis, after exhaustion with boiling water, is treated with alcohol, water added until turbidity commences, boiled with fresh animal charcoal, filtered, precipitated with acetate of lead and a little ammonia, the filtrate treated with sulphuretted hydrogen, distilled, the resin treated with boiling water, and dissolved in ether. Its solution in alkalies and alkaline earths contains jalapic acid = 3110, C68H56°39> which is tribasic. Mineral acids decompose jalapin and jalapic acid into sugar and jalapinol (white crystalline) = CsaH3107. Separated from its combinations with alkalies, it has been converted into jalapinolic acid, =03^^05. Jalapin, jalapic and jalapinolic acid, treated with N0S, are converted into oxalic and ipomic acid, HO,C10H803. Scammonin.—By numerous investigations it was proved that this resinous principle was very analogous to the two preceding, until Spirgatis proved its identity with the cathartic principle of the so-called jalap stalks, the root of Con vol. Orizabensis, and that all differences previously observed are due to impurities obstinately adhering to it. It must be remembered that the pure resin of the officinal jalap, which by pharmaceutists is frequently called jalapin, is the convolvulin of chemists, while jalapin of chemists is produced from an unofficinal plant and is identi- cal, while the former is only homologous with scammonin. Capsicin.—In the winter of 1856 and "7, one of my pupils, H. B. Taylor, of Philadelphia, being about to prepare his thesis for the Philadelphia Col- lege of Pharmacy, pursued a course of experiments upon Capsicum annuum, under my direction, which resulted in the discovery of a crystalline principle, which appears to be the true capsicin, though that name had before been applied to oily or soft resinoid products. The process was as follows: Pow- dered capsicum was treated with anhydrous ether and evaporated, the oleo- resinous product was digested in alcohol of .809 sp. gr., the filtered alcoholic solution was treated with subacetate of lead, which threw down a copious precipitate; this was separated by filtration, and the clear tincture treated with sulphhydric acid ; the precipitated sulphuret of lead was now removed, the solution boiled, again filtered, evaporated, and set aside, on an intensely cold day, to crystallize. On examination, the whole was found to have solidi- fied into a mass of beautiful, nearly white, feathery crystals. Owing to the comparative insolubility of sulphhydric acid gas in alcohol, they were not completely free from lead salt, and were further purified and crystallized, though not with the same facility, from the change of temperature. These crystals seem analogous to a stearoptene ; heated, they first melt, and then take fire, burning with a bright rose-colored flame, and giving off dense, suffocating fumes; heated with sulphuric acid, they blacken, and give off white fumes. The taste is excessively fiery, inflaming all parts with which it comes in contact; the odor is faint. The crystalline sediment which is separated during the spontaneous evaporation of the ethereal tincture of | capsicum is probably the same compound. Digitalin.—The leaves of digitalis contain several neutral principles which are closely allied to each other, are present in commercial digitalin, and are obtained, according to Walz, by one process. The aqueous solution of the alcoholic extract is treated with PbO, the filtrate freed from lead by S03, neu- tralized by NH3, and precipitated by tannin. The precipitate is rubbed to- gether with PbO or subacetate of lead and repeatedly boiled with alcohol; the filtrate is treated with HS and evaporated. The yellowish-white residue is crude digitalin, from which pure ether dissolves digitalacrin; water leaves digitaletin and dissolves digitalin, which is obtained pure by treatment with SALICIN, SALIGENIN, HELICIN. 677 tannin, lead, &c, as before. ■ Digitalin is a powerful poison, given for the same sedative properties as the leaves. It has lately been much prescribed in the form of granules of sugar, which have been saturated with the tincture, so that each shall represent a given quantity of the. medicine. The usual dose is one-thirtieth of a grain. Being among the most powerful of known poisons, it should be used with great care. Kosmann gives to digitalin the formula C94H4,O80. Salicin.—The bark of the following plants contains no salicin : S. alba, Babylonica, bicolor, caprasa, daphnoides, incana, fragilis, Russeliana, triandra, viminalis and Populus angulosa, fastigiata, grandiculata, monilifera, nigra, Virginica; all the other willows contain salicin, and it is probable that all the herbaceous kinds of spirasa, which yield salicylous acid (oil of spiraea), contain it originally. To prepare it the decoction of willow bark is evaporated to three times the weight of the bark employed, digested with oxide of lead, and the filtrate evaporated to syrupy consistence. After several days the crystals are sepa- rated and purified by recrystallization. (Duflos.) Concentrated S03 colors it blood-red ; water decolorizes it again, dissolv- ing a peculiar acid (rufisulphuric acid). Cold diluted S03 or HCl converts it into sugar and saligenin. Ca8Hls014+ 2HO=C12Hia012-fC14H804, saligenin. If treated hot, it is converted into sugar and saliretin, 2C26H18014= 2C,2H12012 -f CasH1204=saliretin. Cold N05 of 1.16 specific gravity converts it into helicin. Ca6Hl8014-f 02= 2HO + C26H16014=helicin. If a more diluted NO., of 1.09 specific gravity, is used, the result is a compound between helicin and salicin, which has been called helicoidin. 2C26Hls014+02=2HO + C33H3402„helicoidin=C26H16014+C26H18014. If salicin is heated with very dilute NO, just to the boiling point, and allowed to cool, or evaporated at a low temperature, salicylous acid is sepa- rated. At the boiling point, nitrosalicylic acid is formed, and by continued influ- ence picric and oxalic acids. Melted with an excess of caustic potassa, it is converted into salicylate and oxalate of potassa. Heated with binoxide of lead, formiate of lead is obtained ; with black oxide of manganese and dilute S03, formic and carbonic acids; with bichro- mate of potassa and S03, carbonic, formic, and salicylous acids. By dry distillation it yields, among pyro products, salicylous acid ; and when taken internally it is found in the urine together with its products of decomposition—saligenin, salicylous and salicylic acids. Saligenin, C14Hs04, pearly crystals, easily soluble in boiling water, alco- hol, and ether, sublimes above 212° ; colored red by concentrated S03; concentrated NOs oxidizes it to picric, diluted N05 to salicylous and nitro- salicylous acids, C14H804-f 20 = C14H604+2HO ; heated with hydrate of potassa, it is converted into salicylic acid and hydrogen, C14H8044-KO,HO =C14H5K06-f 4H. Sesquisalts of iron impart an indigo-blue color. Dilute acids by boiling convert it into Saliretin, C28Hl904=2C14H804—4HO, which is insoluble in water and ammonia, soluble in alcohol, ether, concentrated acetic acid, and fixed alka- lies ; concentrated SOs colors it blood red; concentrated NOs oxidizes it on boiling to picric, not to oxalic acid. Helicin, C^H^O^, white needles, without odor, bitterish taste, insoluble in ether, easily soluble in hot water and alcohol. By synaptase and boiling with alkalies is converted into sugar and salicylous acid, C^H^O,^ 2HO = C11H1,Ott+Cl4H604. 678 ON NEUTRAL ORGANIC PRINCIPLES. Helicoidin is a derivative, having the composition C,2H34028=C1!flH1H014 (helicin)+ C26H18014(salicin). By synaptase is decomposed into sugar, saligenin, and salicylous acid. Salicin was formerly used to adulterate sulphate of quinia, which it resem- bles in appearance. It is tonic and febrifuge, though litte used. Dose, three to thirty grains. Vanillin.—Vanilla of commerce is exhausted with alcohol, evaporated to an extract, this exhausted by ether, which is to be evaporated, heated with boiling water, which, on evaporation, lets fall the principle; recrystal- lized and treated with animal charcoal, it is obtained in colorless four-sided needles, of strong vanilla odor, hot, burning taste; fuses at 195°, volatilizes at 302°; little soluble in cold water, very soluble in hot water, alcohol, ether, and the fixed and volatile oils. Concentrated S03 dissolves it with yellow color ; solution of potassa dissolves it and deposits it again on being neutralized. The crystals observed on the surface of the fresh bean of commerce are found to consist of vanillin, not benzoic acid, as heretofore supposed. Aloin.—This interesting proximate constituent of aloes has been prepared from several commercial varieties, especially from Barbadoes and Socotrine aloes. It was introduced into medicine by T. & H. Smith, of Edinburgh, who are still its principal manufacturers, and it has recently attained com- mercial as well as scientific interest from being pretty extensively prescribed as a mild and pleasant cathartic. Crystals of aloin have been observed in abundance in a variety of Socotrine aloes of semifluid consistence from the evaporation not having been carried as far as usual. Preparation according to Groves.—Aloes is exhausted by boiling water, the decoction acidulated with muriatic acid, filtered, evaporated to a syrupy consistence, and set aside in a cool place to crystallize. The crystals, after a fortnight, are separated and purified by recrystallization from boiling water. Socotrine aloes yields 10 per cent, aloin. These crystals are to be dried by bibulous paper at a moderate heat; when thoroughly dry aloin is permanent in the air, but with moisture and heat conjoined, has a tendency to lose its crystalline form, assuming the amorphous character of aloes. (See Proc. Am. Ph. Assoc, 1860, p. 162.) Its purgative properties have been denied, but the experience of numerous practitioners here and in Europe confirms its utility*as a mild though pretty certain cathartic in doses of from two to three grains. (See Extemporaneous Pharmacy.) Amygdalin.—This interesting principle is obtained from bitter almonds by the following process : Bitter almonds, powdered and expressed, to free them from fixed oil, are to be boiled in successive portions of alcohol till exhausted. The liquors thus obtained are placed in a still, and evaporated at a low heat, the alcohol being recovered. The syrupy residue is then to be diluted with water and mixed with yeast, and subjected to fermentation to separate sugar. Again evaporate, at a moderate temperature, to the consistence of syrup, cool, and add 95 per cent, alcohol. The amygdalin will then precipitate, and may be collected on a strainer; it is then to be purified by repeated resolution in hot alcohol, and crystallization. Any oil it may contain may be separated by shaking the solution with ether before or after the fermentation. One pound of almonds yields at least two drachms of amygdalin. Heat decomposes it, giving off the odor of haw- thorn ; heated with alkaline solutions, it evolves ammonia and* forms arnyg- dalic acid. Amygdalin seems destitute of active properties, except when mixed in DECOMPOSITION OF ORGANIC BODIES. 679 solution with emulsin (see Protein Compounds), producing grape sugar, oil of bitter almonds, and hydrocyanic acid, which is thus explained: NC H 022+4HO=2ClaH12O12+CuH6O3+HNCa. *° 2: On the Decomposition of Organic Bodies. On the foregoing pages the organic compounds have been treated of, and a number of pharmaceutical preparations derived from the organic kingdom. It is well known that such chemical and pharmaceutical compounds are sub- ject to alterations by various influences, the study of which forms a most important part of chemistry. To many of these changes attention has been drawn in the appropriate places, and it remains now, without treating of the same in detail, to present them in a condensed form, conveniently arranged. The decomposition of organic bodies may be treated of under four sepa- rate heads :— I. Oxidation by the Atmosphere.—As a general rule, pure chemical com- pounds are not affected by dry or moist atmosphere, except perhaps to deliquesce or effloresce, or like the salts of some volatile organic acids, as acetic and valerianic, to evolve them in moist air. But oxidation is com- paratively rare, and mostly met with in compounds destitute of oxygen and abounding in hydrogen ; examples are the ternary alkaloids and the carbo- hydrogens of the volatile oils. The influence in promoting the changes taking place among organic prin- ciples of Ozone, the peculiar active form of oxygen, discovered by Schon- bein, and described on page 332, has not yet been fully investigated. It is undoubtedly a potent agent in those important metamorphoses, the study of which constitutes the branch of Organic Chemistry. II. Decomposition into Simpler Compounds.—1. By air and water. Complex organic bodies are subject to oxidation and ultimately break up into the inorganic compounds carbonic acid, ammonia, aud water; if this process of decomposition takes place slowly, it is called decay; if rapidly in the presence of more water and with the evolution of an offensive smell, putrefaction; under similar circumstances, when the product is a useful compound, fermentation ; of this last a distinction is made between vinous fermentation (see page 529) and acid fermentation, the latter being again subdivided in accordance with the acid obtained, and is then called acetic, lactic, butyric, succinic, &c. (see the acids named) ; the presence of a nitro- genated compound is necessary, to act as a ferment. 2. By acids. Of the concentrated acids, the action of sulphuric acid is the most violent; it abstracts water from nearly all organic compounds, leaving a compound with a larger amount of carbon ; or the carbon is oxidized, and the evolved gases contain carbonic oxide, and formic, carbonic, and sulphu- rous acids ; compounds containing amide (NHJ yield ammonia. Glacial phosphoric and arsenic acids have a similar action, but weaker. Diluted acids act differently ; they cause the combination with the elements of water (conversion of starch into sugar, p. 506), very seldom evolve car- bonic acid (conversion of meconic into komenic acid), but very often decora- pose organic bodies into glucose and another compound of different behavior (see Tannic Acids, Salicin, &c.) ; the latter decomposition often takes place also by the influence-of emulsin, synaptase, or similar ferments. (See also Glucosides, p. 517, and Copulated Compounds, p. 666.) 3. By chloride of zinc. Aided by heat, this is capable of abstracting water from organic compounds ; it produces ether from alcohol, &c. 4. By heat. Organic compounds are called volatile if they may be dis- 680 ON NEUTRAL ORGANIC PRINCIPLES. tilled without suffering decomposition; others are decomposed, and the pro- cess is then termed dry or destructive distillation, and the products pyro products. These are, in the commencement of the distillation, highly oxy- genated and of an acid nature (see p. 503), afterwards contain less oxygen, and at last are carbohydrogens (marsh gas, CaH4, olefiant gas, C4H4) or ternary alkaloids (see Artificial Alkaloids); water, tar, and charcoal gene- rally accompany the products of the dry distillation of all complex bodies. Exposure to a continued red or white heat resolves them more or less com- pletely into binary inorganic compounds and the elements. III. Artificial Oxidation.—Many highly oxygenated inorganic com- pounds, when in contact with organic bodies, part with one or more equiva- lents of oxygen, which in its nascent state acts on the organic compound; such is the case with a number of acids, viz., nitric (see Oxalic Acid, p. 590, and Sugars, p. 510), chromic (see Valerianic Acid, p. 607), chloric and iodic acids, with peroxide of manganese (see Formic Acid, p. 594), binoxide of lead (see Tartaric Acid, p 590), and the oxides of the noble metals. Many organic compounds, when in solution together with alkalies, are thereby rendered more prone to oxidation by the atmosphere. IV. "Integration" with Elements or Inorganic Compounds.—A num- ber of the non-metallic- elements may enter the combination of organic bodies as integral parts ; the halogens by direct influence, sulphur by the influence of sulphuric acid or a sulphuric compound (see Artificial Volatile Oils, &c). The integration of N04 has some importance in pharmacy; gun-cotton (p. 496) and glonoin (p. 551) are such compounds. PART Y. EXTEMPORANEOUS PHARMACY. CHAPTER I. ON PRESCRIPTIONS. In assigning a place in tbis work to prescriptions, and to the art of prescribing medicines, it is witb a full appreciation of its intimate connection with therapeutics, a brancb of knowledge with which, as a pharmaceutist, I lay claim to but little practical acquaintance; and yet this subject has bearings which are peculiarly adapted to arrest the attention of one whose daily avocations place him directly between the physician and the patient, and give him favorable opportunities for judging of the pharmaceutical eligibility of combinations, and not unfrequently of their effects. The art of prescribing medicines has so intimate a connection with that of preparing and dispensing them, that a treatise on the latter subject, not embracing the former, would be wanting in its most inter- esting feature to the student of medicine and the physician. In a work like the present, it seems appropriate to approach the art of dis- pensing through a brief general treatise on that of prescribing. It is a common remark of recent graduates of medicine, that one of their greatest difficulties is in writing prescriptions; lacking the means of systematic instruction in this most important practical duty, they are apt to fall into confused and unscientific methods of prescrib- ing, from which no amount of experience entirely rids them. The art of prescribing is the practical application of the knowledge of therapeutics, chemistry, and pharmacy, to the cure of disease. No department of his duties puts the skill of the physician to a closer test; none calls for the exercise, to a greater extent, of that invaluable quality, whether intuitive or acquired, called tact; and yet few depart- ments of medical knowledge are less insisted upon as necessary branches of a med'.cal education. Although the art of prescribing can only be acquired practically, the general principles pertaining to it are capable of classification, and have been fully discussed. The celebrated Pharmacologia of Dr. Paris, of London, published originally in 1812, contains the fullest dissertation in our language upon " the science and art of prescribing." Many of the views taught at that time, however, are now abandoned, and the subject is capable (681) 682 ON PRESCRIPTIONS. of being simplified in accordance with modern improvements in pharmacy. The large number of efficient and permanent Galenical preparations make prescribing comparatively easy to the practitioner who has kept pace with the advance of the times, while the publica- tion of Formularies, in which a variety of preparations of each drug are detailed, has to a certain extent substituted an original and extem- poraneous system of selection and combination of remedies. Medicinal preparations which are kept on hand by the apothecary, to be dispensed alone or used in compounding prescriptions, are called permanent, while those compounded by direction of the practitioner to meet the indications as they arise, in practice, are called extempora- neous. This distinction, however, is far from being well marked. Some of those called permanent are known to deteriorate in a greater or less degree by age, while many classed as extemporaneous will keep an indefinite length of time. For most of the permanent class we have recipes, or prescriptions, published in Pharmacopoeias, Dispensa- tories, or Medical Formularies, while the extemporaneous are usually the product of the skill and ingenuity of the prescriber at the bedside of his patient. Objections lie against the use of established prescrip- tions to the exclusion of those dictated by the emergencies of the case, from the impracticability of adapting any set of formulas to every shade of disease and of idiosyncrasy, and from the impossibility of the practitioner storing in his memory their ingredients, propor- tions, &c.; so that the thorough student does well to acquire a know- ledge of the principles, to regulate the selection and combination of remedies, and to learn the art of prescribing experimentally. A limited number of prescriptions, framed with a view of illustrat- ing these principles and modes of combination, will, with this object in view, be highly useful to the student; but these must be re- garded as stepping-stones to a knowledge of the art of prescribing rather than as embodying that knowledge. The vast extent and variety of adaptation of the Materia medica preclude the possibility of compressing into any series of prescriptions, a complete view of all the modifications attainable on enlightened therapeutical and phar- maceutical principles. Under the head of Galenical preparations, a prominent distinction has been drawn between those which are officinal in the U. S. and British Pharmacopoeias and those which are not; the use of Italics for the unofficinal, calling attention to their comparatively unimportant position, has been a conspicuous feature in the syllabi intended for the use of the student in committing to memory their names, proportions, properties, and doses. In the part of the work which follows, this distinction is regarded as less important, and most of the formulae are introduced less with a view to impress them upon the memory, than to illustrate the pharmaceutical principles on which they are based. The very obvious division of preparations into simple and com- pound needs no other mention than to explain that the addition of a vehicle or menstruum, not added with a view to its medical effect, does not render a preparation compound, in the sense in which that term is THE LANGUAGE USED IN PRESCRIPTIONS. 683 ordinarily applied. Simple rhubarb pills contain rhubarb and soap; while compound rhubarb pills contain rhubarb, aloes, myrrh, and oil of peppermint; and with a view to furnish distinctions between prepa- rations which have very similar composition, the term compound is sometimes useful. The Language used in Prescriptions. In Great Britain and the North of Europe, prescriptions are written in Latin; in France, in the vernacular language. We mostly follow the British custom, although some of our practitioners depart from the usual style, and follow the Pharmacopoeia by inditing their prescriptions in plain English. The relative adaptation of Latin and English for the purpose has long been discussed, and is still a mooted point among physicians and pharmaceutists. It is unnecessary to dwell upon the arguments advanced on either side, and which seem naturally to suggest themselves. The chief desideratum is to secure accuracy without an unnecessary and cumbersome phraseology, and for this purpose the officinal names of all medicines are to be preferred to either of their common and changing synonyms. Many medicines are called by very different names in different parts of the country, and the same name is liable to be applied to either of several different drugs. If snakeroot were ordered, the pharmaceutist might be at a loss whether serpentaria, cimicifuga, asarum, senega, eryngium, or some of the numerous other roots occasionally, or perhaps locally, denominated snakeroots, were desired ; while, if the specific English name, as Virginia, Canada, black or button snakeroots, was applied, the merit of conciseness would be sacrificed. If chamomile were ordered, it would be necessary to specify whether Roman, German, or American; while in Latin, anthemis, matricaria, or maruta would be both short and distinctive. In the foregoing illustrations, however, we have the least forcible instances. There can be no comparison in eligibility between the names sugar of lead and Plumbi acetas, white vitriol and Zinci sulphas, liver of sulphur and Potassii sulphuretum, salt of tartar and Potassae carbonas. The name which expresses the chemical composition of a substance is generally, of all that can be devised, the best; and hence, even in common language, many familiar chemical substances are beginning to be called by their chemical names. Although there is little difference between the English and the Latin chemical names, the latter has the advantage for use in prescription : it is easier of abbreviation, or its abbreviations are more familiar; while the omission of the connecting preposition of, between the two parts of the name, reduces it to a single compound word, rendering it shorter and more quickly written. It is often urged that the Latin used in prescription is, for the most part, quite incorrect, especially when the terminations are attempted ; but gram- matical errors are certainly far less important than either chemical, pharma- ceutical, or therapeutical; and when we consider how few physicians, even among those classically educated, have advantages for keeping up, through- out the busy scenes of their professional career, the knowledge of Latin acquired in their schoolboy days, we can scarcely wonder that many errors of this description occur. Moreover, the language used in prescription, viewed with reference to its abbreviations, signs, and Latinized names of various origin, must be regarded as distinct from the Latin taught in schools, and requires to be studied in connection with scientific nomenclature gene- rally, and, in fact, constitutes a part of the study of Materia Medica and 684 ON PRESCRIPTIONS. Pharmacy. Every officinal drug and preparation has its particular name given to it authoritatively in the Pharmacopoeia, and those not there mentioned may be distinguished by their appropriate botanical or chemical designations. The groundwork of the correct writing of prescriptions is a knowledge of these names; and it matters little whether the physician writes his prescriptions in Latin or English, if he designates each individual article by its officinal name. The propriety of using the officinal Latinized names in a plain English formula may admit of a doubt, but, if sanctioned by custom and authority, might be adopted, and thus the principal objection to the English prescrip- tion would be removed. The officinal name, though framed upon a Latin model, might be separated from the idea of its origin, and used in the pre- scription as a distinctive pharmaceutical term, following the genius of the language in which it is used : in a Latin prescription, its terminations would be varied as the construction of that language requires; and in an English prescription, might follow the rules for the construction of a correct English sentence. We have very many officinal names that are as commonly incor- porated into our language as the English synonyms attached to them, and the objections to considering all the names in the American and British Pharmacopoeias as English words are, it appears to me, not such as to over- rule a custom which, on so many accounts, is to be desired. The officinal names are spoken of in detail in the chapter on the Phar- macopoeia, and the importance of a study of them has been elsewhere re- ferred to; and I repeat, if these were properly mastered by the student, and invariably used to designate the drugs and preparations to which they belong, the framework in which the prescription is inclosed would be, com- paratively, of little importance. There are some cases in which the use of an explanatory synonym in parentheses seems quite necessary, whether the name be Latiniaed or not; and in such cases it should never be omitted for the sake of elegance or attempted correctness of diction. In prescribing the finer kinds of mag- nesia, there is no other resource than to say in parentheses (Henry's), (Husband's), or (Ellis'), as the case may be. Liquor aloes, comp. would be quite indefinite without (Mettauer) appended, and tinct. guaiaci comp. would be misunderstood unless accompanied by the added (Dewees') to ex- plain it. The remarks before made apply to the names of substances designated in prescriptions; the other parts of the prescription, which will be referred to more particularly in the sequel, consist chiefly of abbreviations and signs which custom has long sanctioned, and which are considered to pertain par- ticularly to the Latin prescription, though, as before stated, occasionally, and without any breach of propriety, used in connection with the English. In the prescriptions appended to the several chapters which follow, numer- ous examples are given of both Latin and English prescriptions, and they will be appropriately preceded by the following, taken from Dr. Pereira's " Selecta e Prescriptis." Grammatical Explanation of a Prescription. (1.) R..—Ferri carbonatis, drachmam cum semisse (3jss). (2.) Rhei pulveris, grana quindecim (gr. xv). (3.) Olei anthemidis, guttas quinque (gtt. v). (4.) Conservae rosse, quantum sufficiat ut fiat massula in pilulas viginti divi- denda, quarum sumat aeger tres octavis horis. (1.) Recipe, verb active, imp. mood, 2d pers. sing, agreeing with Tu, understood; from Recipio, Sre, cepi, ceptum, 3d conj. act. Governs an accusative. -GRAMMATICAL EXPLANATION OF A PRESCRIPTION. 680 Drachmam, noun, subst. ace. sing, from Drachma, x, f. 1st decl. Governed by Recipe. Cum, preposition. Governing an ablative case. Semisse, subst. abl. case, from Semissis, is, f. 3d decl. Governed by cum. Carbonatis, subst. gen. sing, from Carbonas, atis, f. 3d decl. Governed by Drach- mam. Ferri, subst. gen. sing, from Fen-um, i, n. 2d decl. Governed by Carbonatis. (2.) Recipe, understood. Ghana, subst. ace. pi. from Granum, i, n. 2d decl. Governed by Recipe, understood. Quindecim, adj. indeclin. Pulveris, subst. gen. sing, from Pulvis, eris, m. 3d decl. Governed by Grana. Rhei, subst. gen. sing, from Rheum, i, n. 2d decl. Governed by Pulveris. (3.) Recipe, understood. Guttas, subst. ace. pi. from Gutta, x, f, 1st decl. Governed by Recipe, understood. Quinque, adj. indeclin. Olei, subst. gen. sing, from Oleum, ei, n. 2d decl. Governed by Guttas. Anthemidis, subst. gen. sing, from Anthemis, idis, f. 3d decl. Governed by Olei (4.) Recipe, understood. Quantum, adverb. Governing the genitive case. Sufficiat, verb impers. potent, mood, pres. tense, from Sufficio, Sre feci, fectum, neut. and act. 3d conj. Conserve, subst. gen. sing, from Conserva, x, f. 1st decl. Governed by Quantum. Ros.e, subst. gen. sing, from Rosa, x, f. 1st decl. Governed by Conservx. Ut, conjunct. Governing a subjunct. mood. Massula, subst. nom. case a, x, f. 1st decl. Fiat, verb. subj. mood, pres. tense, 3d person singular, from Fio,fis,factus sum vel fui, fieri, neut. Governed by Ut, and agreeing with its nominative case Massula. Dividenda, particip. nom. case fern. gend. from Dividendus, a, um (a dividor, t, sus, pass. 3d conj.). Agreeing with Massula. In, preposition. Governing an accusative case. Pilulas, subst. ace. pi. from Pilula, x, f. 1st decl. Governed by In. Viginti, adj. indecl. Quarum, relative pronoun, gen. pi. fem. from Qui, qux, quod. Agreeing with its antecedent Pilulas in gender and number. Governed in the gen. case by Tres. ^Eger, adj. mas. gend. nom. JEger, aygra, cegrum. Agreeing with homo, understood. Sumat, verb, 3d pers. sing. imp. mood, from Sumo, ere, psi, plum, act. 3d conj. Agreeing with homo, understood ; governing an ace. case. Tres, ad. ace. pi. fem. from Tres, tres, tria. Agreeing with Pilulas, understood, and which is governed by Sumat. Horis, subst. abl. plural, from Hora, x, f. 1st decl. ; signifying part of time, and therefore put in the abl. case. Octavis, adj. abl. plur. fem. from Octavus, a, um. Agreeing with horis. Abbreviations.—Mistakes not unfrequently arise from unskilful abbrevia- tions, for, while there can be no objection to shortening many of the long names given to medicines, there is certainly great danger from the inordinate and unskilful exercise of this privilege; the word cat. is an occasional and very poor abbreviation for hydrargyri chloridum mite. Through a careless termination of familiar words, serious accidents are liable to occur. Several years have elapsed since I received a prescription for hydrate potassae 3j, to be dissolved in water f|iij (dose, a teaspoonful), and it was only through a care which has become habitual that I saved a delicate lady in that case from taking large doses of hydrate of (caustic) potassa instead of hydrio- date of potassa. There were no directions for use appended, so that I had not the advantage they give in cases of doubt. The abbreviations allowa- ble in prescriptions might fill some pages if tabulated, but no practical ad- vantage would result from it, while the habit once acquired of writing every word so fully as that it could be mistaken for no other, would quite obviate the evils complained of. 686 ON PRESCRIPTIONS. Symbols or Signs used in Prescriptions. "I. Minim, g1,, part of a fluidrachm. gtt. Gutta, a drop; guttas, drops. 9j. Scrupulus vel scrupulum, a scruple=20 grains. 3j. drachma, a drachm=60 grains. f3j. fluidrachma, a fluid or measured drachm. 3j. Uncia, a troyounce=480 grains. f 5j. Fluiduncia, a fluidounce. Ibj. Libra, a pound, understood in prescriptions to apply to an offi- cinal pound of 5,760 grains. Oj. Octarius, a pint. gr. Granum, a grain ; plural grana, grains. ss. Semis, half, affixed to signs as above. The Latin numerals are employed in prescription—i, ij, iij, iv, v, vi, vij, viij, ix, x, xi, xij, xv, xx, XL, L, C, &c.; and in the directions, when written in Latin, a variety of antiquated terms, explained in Dr. Pereira's little work before mentioned, but requiring too much space for insertion here. Before leaving the subject of the signs employed in prescription, it seems proper to advert to the errors which frequently occur from their careless use, and which have led some practitioners to advocate their entire abandonment. They are, however, too well established in the actual practice of this country and England, and too convenient to be readily supplanted. The angle and curve 3 may be made so care- lessly as to resemble the 9 with a flourish at top, and 3j may look like a 3j, or may be so completely perverted from its recognized shape as to leave the reader in doubt whether a 9 or 3 is intended. Notwithstanding the apparent absurdity of this, there are not a few prescriptions on our files in which the sign intended has been reached only by guessing, or by reasoning upon the known dose of the drug, rather than upon the shape of the sign. A flourishing style of chiro- graphy is nowhere less in place than on a physician's prescription. The numerals are equally liable to error if carelessly made, the difference between j and v, and between iv and iij, and between x and v, is often quite obscured by a neglect of the plain and necessary precautions of accuracy and care. It is not easy to illustrate in print what an examination of the chirography of many prescriptions would make apparent, that the reading of a prescription frequently requires more skill and judgment than compounding it. Method of Writing Prescriptions. The first care to observe in writing a prescription is to have suitable paper and pencil, or preferably, pen and ink. The habit of some of using the margin of a newspaper, the fly-leaf of a school-book, or any piece of flimsy material at hand, for inditing a prescription, upon which may depend the life of the patient, cannot be too strongly con- demned. It indicates a want of care in the physician, which, if car- ried into other duties, would quite unfit him for the responsibilities of his profession. Many physicians adopt the plan of cutting, from time to time, suitable fragments of good paper, which are carried in a pocket-book or wallet, and are always at hand on emergencies. With METHOD OF WRITING PRESCRIPTIONS. 687 a view to economy, the fly-leaves of letters and notices, which would be otherwise wasted, may be pressed out, and appropriated to this object. Some pharmaceutists are in the habit of printing their cards at the head of suitable prescription sheets, and distributing them among physicians with a view to attracting business to their shops ■ a practice more honored in the breach than in the observance. Some physicians provide prescription papers, with their name and address attached, which is not without one advantage—it enables the pharma- ceutist always to trace the prescription readily to its source in case of difficulty. Having the proper prescription paper, the next step is to write at the top the name of the patient; this precaution which is very often neglected, is important for several reasons: 1st. It enables the nurse or attendant to distinguish, by a certain and ready means, between prescriptions designed for different patients; and the name being transferred to the label, there is no excuse for a similar mistake in "administering." 2d. It enables the apothecary, in every case, to avoid the mistake so often made in the hurry of business, of dispens- ing a package of medicine to one of several customers in waiting, which should have been given to another. 3d. It facilitates the re- cognition of the prescription upon the apothecary's file when its renewal is called for; and, finally, it evinces a care which is com- mendable on so important an occasion as prescribing for the sick. The practice of heading a prescription with the generic name of the class of medicines to which it belongs, should be observed when there are two or more in use; as the Gargle, the Liniment, or the Fever Mixture. Frequently, however, this is superseded by giving its desig- nation in the Subscription, accompanied by directions for its use. As a general rule, I would say that all topical remedies should be dis- tinctly marked For external use. Some mistakes have originated from neglect of this precaution which would be most ludicrous if the sub- ject was not often too serious for merriment: for instance, the adminis- tration of an ammoniated liniment, in tablespoonful doses, while a cinchona bark mixture is applied over the seat of rheumatic pain. # It is well, in some cases, to copy on the label the entire prescrip- tion. A physician in large practice, unless he has a very retentive memory, will forget the details of his prescription of the previous day; this precaution is important in prescribing for patients travelling from home. It is often prudent for the physician to direct the apothe- cary to mark the medicine prescribed Poison, or, as is sometimes done, " Use with care;" giving, at the same time, the particular instruc- tions for its use. The prescription may be divided, for the purpose of study, into the fol- lowing parts, each of which will be separately considered: 1. The super- scription. 2. The inscription. 8. The subscription. 4. The signatura. The Superscription consists of a very short abbreviation of the Latin verb Recipe, imperative mood of Recipio, I take, viz: the letter R, which is often printed near the top of the prescription sheet. In French, the letter P is used for Prenez. In English formulas, the R should be substituted by Take of. 688 ON PRESCRIPTIONS. The Inscription is the indication, seriatim, of the names and quanti- ties of the remedies prescribed. The order in which these are written is not a matter of much real importance, as a competent pharmaceutist will, in mixing them, depart from the sequence observed in the pre- scription, if thought best; while the physician will find it more con- venient to follow the order of their therapeutical importance rather than the rotation in which they should be added to the mixture. In the sequel I shall refer to the therapeutical classification of in- gredients, which, in a well-contrived prescription, would be written in the following order: 1. The basis. 2. The adjuvant. 3. The cor- rective. 4. The excipient. 5. The diluent. This is not only the most elegant, but the most natural rotation to be observed. One of the greatest difficulties to the beginner, in connection with this subject, is in determining, as the prescription, proceeds, the appro- priate quantity of each ingredient, so as to have each in due propor- tion, and with its right dose; this becomes easy by the employment of the following Rule for Apportioning Quantities.—Write down the names of the several ingredients first, without regard to quantity ; then having de- termined upon the quantity of the whole preparation, and the dose to be prescribed, the whole number of doses will be readily calculated, and the quantity of each ingredient may be affixed. As doses are, at best, only approximate, we may depart from the precise figures obtained by dividing the whole number of drachms, grains, &c, in the preparation, by the number of doses it will contain, as far as necessary to get even numbers, or convenient fractions of a drachm and ounce. In directing pills, or powders, we have the means of attaining con- siderable accuracy, and may readily direct a combination of ingre- dients to be divided into ten, twenty, or thirty parts, from the very convenient relations of these numbers to the drachm and scruple weights; but it will be found more convenient in dispensing and ad- ministering the preparations, to have six, or twelve, or twenty-four parts ordered, as these numbers have relation to the number of grooves in the pill machine, and to the number of hours in a day. The Table below will assist the beginner in prescribing liquids, and will serve for reference until he becomes accustomed, practically, to this rather difficult part of his duties. Having fixed upon the bulk of his mixture or solution, he will remember that there are about 8 wineglassfuls (each f §ij) in a pint (f 3xvj). 30 tablespoonfuls ( " Oss) in a pint (f Ixvj). 15 tablespoonfuls ( " f 3ss) in half a pint (f Jviij) 12 tablespoonfuls ( " f 3ss) in 6 fluidounces (f 5vj). 20 dessertspoonfuls ( " f3ij) in 6 fluidounces (f'3yj). 15 dessertspoonfuls (" f3ij) in 4 fluidounces (f^iv). 30 teaspoonfuls ( " f 3j) in 4 fluidounces (f 3iv). 15 teaspoonfuls ( " f3j) in 2 fluidounces (f3ij). 8 teaspoonfuls ( " f 3j) in 1 fluidounce (f^j). METHOD OF WRITING PRESCRIPTIONS. 689 We have an illustration of this method of division in the officinal liquor morphias sulphatis, in which one grain of the salt is dissolved in one fluidounce of water; as there are about eight teaspoonfuls in an ounce, one teaspoonful represents about one-eighth grain, which is the dose. In the case of liquids to be given by drops, care must be taken to distinguish between aqueous, alcoholic, and oily liquids. By reference to the table, given in the chapter on Weights and Measures, the relative size of drops pertaining to different liquids will appear; in this con- nection it will be only necessary to refer to that table, and to apply the same general mode of calculation to the apportionment of doses of these. One cause of fallacy, with the student, in prescribing by drops, arises from confounding the size of drops of one ingredient of a prepa- ration with the size of drops of the preparation after it is made. Thus, if a fluidrachm of tincture of veratrum viride were added to seven fluidrachms of an aqueous solution of morphia, or tartar emetic, we should calculate about sixty drops to each fluidrachm, not one hundred and twenty, which would be proper were the alcoholic liquid in much the larger proportion. The subscription has reference to the manner of mixing and divid- ing the medicine. _ In Latin prescriptions, it usually consists of short abbreviations, or signs, which are familiar to pharmaceutists, though in some cases it is written out in full in Latin, and in others in plain English. The verb Misce (imperative mood of misceo, I mix), or the letter M., designed to represent it, constitutes the most common sub- scription. Sometimes, where especial skill or care is required in the preparation, secundem artem, or S. A., is affixed to it; when omitted, however, this is understood. The verb Solve (imperative of solvo, I dissolve) is more appropriate where a simple solution is prescribed; of Macera (imperative of macero), where the process of maceration is directed; where filtration is necessary, write thereafter et cola. When a medicine is directed in very fine powder, the practitioner may make choice of Tere bene (triturate well), or Fiat pulvis subtilissimus (make a very fine powder). It is, perhaps, an improvement on the above to direct more specifically the sort of preparation designed; it gives the pharmaceutist a clue, which is sometimes useful to him in compound- ing, as well as in correcting gross errors. The following terms, with their proper abbreviations and translations, may serve to guide the student in writing his Subscription. They include the appropriate directions for dividing medicines into powders, pills, lozenges, &c, and will appropriately close the notice of this part of the prescription. Fiat pulvis, Ft. pulv. Make a powder. Fiant pulveres xij ; Ft. pulv. xij. Fiat pulvis et divide in chartulas xij; Ft. pulv. et divid. in chart, xij. Fiat pulvis in chartulas xij dividenda ; Ft. pulv. in ch. xij div. Fiant chartulae xij ; Ft. chart, xij. Fiat solutio, Ft. solut. Make a solution. Fiat injectio, Ft. inject. Make an injection (for urethra.) Fiat collyrium, Ft. collyr. Make an eye-wash. Fiat enema, Ft. enema. Make an injection (for rectum.) 44 Make twelve powders. 690 ON PRESCRIPTIONS. Fiat snppositorium, Ft. supposit. Make a suppository. Fiant snppositoria iv . Ft. suppos. iv. Make 4 suppositories. Fiat massa, Ft. massa. Make a mass. Fiant pilulae xij ; Ft. pil. xij. ) „ . . Fiat massa in pilulas xij dividenda ; Ft. mas. in pil. xij div. V ... Fiat massa et divide in pilulas xij ; Ft. mas. div. in pil. xij. J P ■ Fiat infusum, F. infus. Make an infusion. Fiat haustus, Ft. haust. Make a draught. Fiat gargarisma, Ft. garg. Make a gargle. Fiat mistura, Ft. mist. Make a mixture. Fiat emulsio, Ft. emuls. Make an emulsion. Fiat eleetuarium, Ft. elect. Make an electuary. Fiat confectio, Ft. confect. Make a confection. Fiat emplastrum, 6 x 4; Ft. emp. 6x4. Make a plaster 6 by 4 inches. Fiat emp. epispasticum, Ft. emp. epispast. ) Make & bligter> Fiat emp. vesioatorium, Ft. emp. vesicat. $ Fiat unguentum, Ft. ung. Make an ointment. Fiat ceratum, Ft. cerat. Make a cerate. Fiat cataplasma, Ft. cataplasm. Make a poultice. Fiat linimentum, Ft. linim. Make a liniment. Fiant trochisci xxiv ; Ft. troch. xxiv. Make 24 lozenges. Fiat massa in trochiscos xl dividenda ; Ft. mas. in troch. xl div. Make 40 lozenges. The Signatura is rarely written in Latin. It comprises the direc- tions as to the dose and mode of administering the medicine, and is especially addressed to the patient, or those in attendance upon him. This should be distinctly written in familiar language. None of the reasons for the employment of a learned, or technical language, in the other portions of the prescription, apply to this; on the contrary, a due regard to the avoidance of mistakes by the apothecary, and by the patient or his attendant, forbids it. It is very common to omit this part of the prescription entirely, and to depend upon a verbal direction as to the use to be made of the medicine. Sometimes two boxes of pills are ordered for the same patient simultaneously, or at short intervals, without any reliable means of distinguishing them, and when they are to be renewed, the apothecary may confound them, in consequence of the patient sending the wrong box, or through a slight error in his own labelling. Of 500 prescriptions taken indis- criminately from the files of three different dispensing stores, I find 43 per cent, have no definite directions, and a considerable proportion have no signatura. The practice of writing—" To be used as directed"—is equivalent to omitting this part of the prescription, and in labelling, this is adopted by the apothecary in all cases, where the physician has omitted giving any directions. As an example of the results which may follow from this kind of direction, the following incident has been related by a professional friend : Two vials were in the chamber of a patient, each containing a fluidounce of liquid, and each about the same size ; one contained sweet spirit of nitre, and the other blistering collodion. The spirit was to be given in teaspoonful dose? occasionally, and the blistering liquid was of course to be applied externally. At twilight, the nurse, not noticing the difference in the color and consist- ency of the liquids, and finding them both labelled alike, put in the patient's mouth what she should have applied over her chest, thus producing a most distressing inflammation, which long deprived the poor patient of her proper food, and doubtless contributed to exhaust her struggling vitality. SELECTING AND COMBINING MEDICINES. 691 The danger of this kind of mistake is lessened by usino- for anv two prescriptions of very different properties, different kind? of vials • thus, for a preparation to be taken internally, a fluted flint vial and for a liniment, one of the plain German flint, or better still, in the one case a round, and in the other an oval vial. The only remaining part of the prescription to be mentioned, is the addition to the foregoing of the name or initials of the writer, and the date; of these, it may be remarked, that the name in full is on every account preferable. In a large city, where there are hundreds of phy- sicians, it is impossible for pharmaceutists, and much less all their assistants, to become familiar with the handwriting and initials of every one of them, to say nothing of those instances in which two or more have the same initials. Now if this practice of signing prescriptions has any utility at all, it must be that it should be understood by the apothecary, so that if he suspects an error, or requires any explana- tion, he may make the necessary inquiries to correct it, without inter- rogating his customer and exciting alarm. Besides, there are some dangerous substances, and such as are used for criminal purposes, that the druggist is only justified in vending by the sanction of a responsible name, and this name should, therefore, be clearly and intelligibly written. The date of the prescription is almost universally written in nu- merals, at least in Philadelphia; this convenient fashion is probably owing, mainly, to a large number of eminent practitioners of the last generation being members of the Society of Friends, and to the wide diffusion of the peculiarities of this sect in the " Quaker City," and from it, as the centre of medical instruction, to other localities. When the patient is in moderate circumstances, the physician indi- cates that fact to the apothecary by the letter P, in one of the lower corners of the paper. If very poor, P P is written; from a conscien- tious apothecary, either of these marks secures a reasonable reduction in the price charged, and its omission by the physician leads to sus- picion that the patient is not deserving of special charity. CHAPTER II. ON THE ART OF SELECTING AND COMBINING MEDICINES. The study of Materia Medica and Therapeutics is designed to acquaint the student with the uses and powers of remedies, and to prepare him to make a proper selection from these to meet the ever varying phases of diseases. The importance of this kind of knowledge cannot be appreciated until the actual emergencies of practice arise, and the necessity be- comes apparent of an extended and a thorough knowledge of the weapons for combating disease. 692 SELECTING AND COMBINING MEDICINES. A full and recent treatise on Materia Medica should always be within reach of the physician, and one or more of the best medical journals should replenish his library with the most recent discoveries and improvements; nowhere can a professional man less aftbrd to economize than in his books. A very few years suffice to produce important changes, both in the theory and practice of medicine; and the physician who stands still while progress is all around him, can expect no better fate than that of the mechanic, the farmer, or the man of business, who is content with the appliances of the past age in endeavoring to compete with those possessed of the facilities of the present. While a sound conservatism, a becoming deference to those who have gone before us, and to the great medical authorities in our own time, should prevent a hasty departure from established principles or modes of treatment, there is a wide and profitable range for experi- ment in the vast extent and variety of the materia medica, and the combinations of which individual remedies are susceptible. It is true that many skilful physicians employ a very restricted materia medica; there are hundreds in the United States who carry the weapons they use for treating the usual forms of disease, in some twenty or thirty vials, carried about their person or inclosed in a pair of saddle-bags; while, for unusual cases, they keep perhaps as many more on their office shelves. Though the frequent success of such, through skill and experience, cannot be questioned, we can draw no inferences from this fact to disparage the employment of an extended and varied assortment of remedies. To what purpose has the bounty of nature spread everywhere plants of such varied and unsuspected properties; and why is art from the exhaustless mine of nature ever turning up some new product, en- dowed with varied, and, perhaps, health-restoring powers, if the physi- cian, into whose special keeping the business of testing their virtues is given, neglects the injunction, " Prove all things; hold fast that whieh is good?" In the foregoing remarks, I would not be understood as countenanc- ing a departure from the usual materia medica, except where called for by the requirements of practice, and justified by sound discretion; and much less would I encourage any of those innovations upon well- established principles, which have taken shape in the various Paihies, now so prevalent and so lamentably deficient in the indispensable elements of common sense and common honesty. In the selection of medicines, then, let the physician have before his mind the whole materia medica, with a complete knowledge of which he should be equipped from the start. Let him first select an individual from its class, with a view to all its properties, as likely to effect the immediate symptoms he is combating, and the general result of the case; and second, let him select the best preparation of it with reference to efficiency, to safety, to physical properties, and to all other circumstances. When there is a single medicine, which will fully meet the indica- tion, there is no use of mixing it with others, except so far as its pre- THE ART OF COMBINING MEDICINES. 693 paration in eligible form requires, as in the sequel; when there is an officinal preparation, whether simple or compound, which is adapted to the case, it is generally better to prescribe it by its officinal name, than to attempt a similar original combination; thus Pilulae catharticae composites are found to answer a common indication in disease so very frequently, that they have almost superseded extemporaneous prepara- tions of the same, or nearly the same ingredients; this is the case, though to a less extent, of other officinal preparations. A common exception is furnished in Pilules quiniae sulphatis, which are frequently prescribed extemporaneously, in proportions varying from the officinal in order to secure their being freshly prepared, and still more fre- quently, varied somewhat in composition to secure greater solubility or adaptation to the case in hand. Officinal preparations are best selected in emergencies, since they are ready without the delay of compounding them, while most forms of extemporaneous prescription require time for their preparation. Physicians should be somewhat influenced by economical motives, in prescribing for persons of moderate means; preparations which are kept on hand by the apothecary, are cheaper than those which are mixed extemporaneously. In almost every class of medicines, there are those which are very costly; and it is well when they can be substituted by others in prescribing for the poor. Many practitioners are in the habit of directing for such, the sulphate of cinchonia or chinoidine, instead of a salt of quinia; a plan much resorted to by those residing in remote situations, who have to act as their own apothecaries, and find their practice among the poor a source of expense rather than revenue. Tlie Art of Combining Medicines. Notwithstanding the advantage obtained by combining, in a single preparation, the virtues of several medicines, there is, I think, more danger of the inexperienced attempting complications, not sanctioned by sound science, than of erring on the side of simplicity. In the remarks which follow, I shall endeavor to treat methodically, and as briefly as possible, the several advantages to be attained by medicinal combinations, and the means by which they may be most readily and safely fulfilled; and in the series of Prescriptions ap- pended, shall endeavor further to illustrate the subject. In compound prescriptions, we usually recognize one ingredient selected from the materia medica as the most important in a thera- peutical point of view. This is designated as the basfa Sometimes two or three remedies may be combined to form the basis, but if they have different therapeutical effects, they are considered as adjuvants, C0TT6Ctl/D6S &C Although this classification of ingredients is not absolute, it facili- tates the study of the subject, and we proceed to notice— First. The Objects to be attained by adding to the Basis. Dilution —A great many remedies are too strong to be eligible for use without the addition of a menstrum, to increase the dose and to 694 SELECTING AND COMBINING MEDICINES. allow of a more ready division. In giving calomel, in very small alterative doses, it is impossible to apportion it properly without dilu- tion with some suitable substance, such as sugar, sugar of milk, or gum Arabic. In using small doses of tartar emetic, sulphate of morphia, or other soluble salts, in the liquid form, it is usual to dilute them with water. In the case of concentrated liquid preparations, as tinctures of aconite root, nux vomica, &c, a less active liquid should generally be added, so as to bring the strength of the preparation to a less dangerous point, especially when prescribed for ignorant or careless persons. The simple act of dilution may then be regarded as the first, though one of the least important objects in view, in adding to the basis or starting point of the prescription, and the substance so employed, if simply for this end, may be called the diluent. Many prescriptions consist merely of the basis and diluent. To heighten, or give Direction to the Effects of the Basis.—It was form- erly considered that substances of similar therapeutical powers were mutually increased in energy by admixture. This idea is now gener- ally abandoned, except in so far as the powers of medicines may be heightened by combining them with others capable of rendering the system more susceptible to their action, or of giving them specific direction; thus, aromatic stimulants greatly heighten the effects of tonics, and will be found generally combined with them in tonic pre- parations. (See Tonic Tinctures and Prescriptions Nos. 7, 13, and 18.) Ehubarb, by its astringency, modifies the effects of other cathartics, as in Warner's Cordial. We have a further illustration of this in the use of tartar emetic, to give a sedative and diaphoretic direction to saline remedies; and of Dover's Powder, to render extract of colchi- cum more sedative, as in Prescription No. 34. Not to multiply illustrations, many of which will be found in the context, it requires to be mentioned that, in some cases, the adjuvant may be best given at a different time from the basis, or rather, that the two may be most profitably separated. Thus, it is customary to purge a patient affected with intermittent before giving quinia; but few practitioners would combine the cathartic with the antiperiodic. There are sometimes ingredients in a prescription which may be considered either in the light of adjuvants or of vehicles. Thus sul- phuric acid in quinia solutions both adds to the effect, as is commonly considered, and affords a means of solution. So extracts, combined with other remedies, may heighten their action, while affording a con- venient vehicle for making them into a pilular mass. The adjuvant is, however, rarely introduced, practitioners generally relying upon the independent action of one agent, modified, if required, by another, which is used for the next object. To Correct some objeclionabh Property in one or both of the Active In- gredients.—The instances in which this motive for adding to the basis is called into play are fully illustrated in the prescriptions which fol- low. The combination of opium with calomel, in dysentery, is one of the strongest cases in point. The mercurial is, by this means, PROPER INCORPORATION OF THE INGREDIENTS. 695 adapted to conditions of the system in which, if employed singly in the same dose, it might aggravate the symptoms. Certain effects of opium, as a basis, are obviated by correctives, as compound spirit of ether, which is said to diminish its nauseating effect on the stomach. In administering oil of turpentine, or wormseed oil, as a vermifuge, some corrective is needed which will insure a purgative effect, and prevent its undue absorption. Oil of turpentine and laudanum are used as correctives to castor oil, in irritable conditions of the bowels diminishing its purgative effects, and preventing griping. In pre- scribing senna, the custom is almost universal of adding some aromatic seed to the infusipn, to prevent griping. We may frequently make one substance answer the double purpose of a corrective, and diluent or vehicle. In this connection we find the medicated waters useful for liquid preparations; soap for pills; aromatics for powders; and certain stimulating oils in ointments and liniments. It will be observed that the corrective may be either therapeutical or chemical in its operation, or both; while the effect of adding essential oils or opiates to cathartics, is purely therapeutical, that of combining soap with resins, to correct insolubility, is chemical or pharmaceutical. So, in combining mastich, or other insoluble resin with aloes, the effect of that cathartic is diminished and protracted, as in Chapman's Dinner Pill, and the officinal Pilulae Aloes et Mas- tiche. The proper incorporation of the ingredients together is an object of paramount importance in the preparation of medicines. The excipient added for this purpose may be either chemical or mechanical, or both ; it may be connected with the therapeutio plan of the prescription, or may be added solely to make the preparation more agreeable to the taste, and more uniform in consistence. This ingredient is important to be designated by the physician, from the fact that it cannot always be left to the choice of the pharmaceutist, who is ignorant of the thera- peutical indications, though his practical acquaintance with the subjec+ would qualify him to select the best excipient. The rules that sug- gest themselves in regard to the proper incorporation of ingredients together can be best brought into view in connection with the different forms of medicines, which will next be treated of in detail, and in such rotation as experience has shown to be most convenient to the student. 696 ON POWDERS, PILLS, SUPPOSITORIES, ETC. CHAPTER III. on powders, pills, suppositories, &c. Pulveres. (Powders.) In the chapter on Drying and Powdering Drugs, &c, some general views are given on the utility of this form of preparation, but it yet remains to point out in a particular manner the uses of powders in extemporaneous prescribing. 1. The kind of Substances adapted to this Form of Prescription. a. Those medicines which are insoluble ; as calomel, phosphate of lime, subnitrate of bismuth, subcarbonate of iron, magnesia, &c. b. Drugs possessing, in the natural condition, peculiar properties, differing from those which are artificially prepared from them; as cinchona, colomba, &c. c. Those which, in solution, would possess more nauseous or bitter proper- ties than in their undissolved, finely-divided condition; as sulphate of quinia, kino, catechu, &c. They are, for the most part, best suited for making into pills. d. Those which, combined in a liquid form, would be chemically incompa- tible. e. The extracts and blue mass, when dry enough to be reduced to powder. 2. The kind of Substances unsuited to this Form. a Deliquescent substances; as carb. potassa, unless with special precau- tions. b Substances containing a large amount of water of crystallization (unless dried) ; as carbonate of soda. c. Substances, the active principles of which are very volatile; as valerian and assafoetida, unless dispensed in bottles. d. Substances physically unsuited to mechanical division ; as camphor and guaiacum, unless with certain precautions. e. Blue mass, and the extracts in their usual condition, although the former and some of the latter are very convenient in the form of powder. Powders may be prescribed suspended in the form of mixture or draught, always directing the bottle to be shaken before pouring out the dose; or in pill, if their dose is small. They are usually pre- scribed in papers (chartulas), each containing a dose, or in a single large package, the dose being indicated in the directions by some familiar standard of measurement. _ Soluble substances, prescribed in powder, may be directed to be dissolved in water, and the solution taken in appropriate doses, so as to save expense to the patient, or to have the medicine in a more portable form, as in travelling. This, however, is apt to lead to mis- takes unless accompanied by very specific directions. Seidlitz, soda, and citric fever powders are elegant forms for giving single doses of soluble salts. POWDERS. 697 When the dose of an insoluble powder is large, as in the case of magnesia, or of phosphate of lime, and it is to be mixed by the patient or attendant, it is well to direct the particular mode of suspending it in water. The directions for magnesia are as follows:— Put the requisite quantity of clear and cold water (not too much) in a clean glass, and drop into it from the blade of a knife or spoon, the required dose; allow it gradually to mix with the water and sub- side, after which stir it up and drink immediately. This will be found more satisfactory than to pour the water upon the dry powder in the bottom of the glass. _ Powders which are viscid and slightly soluble, are, generally, more disagreeable than those which are not. Rhubarb is much less plea- sant to take in fine powder than when chipped into very small shav- ings or grated, and suspended through a glass of water. Some viscid vehicle seems quite necessary to heavy powders like calomel, or mercury with chalk, as by sinking to the bottom of the spoon from which administered, these are liable to miss of being swallowed. With medicines prescribed in the form of powders, there is no occasion for the use of excipients, as they are not, strictly speaking, incorporated together; where the dose is small, however, an additional substance may be directed for the purpose of dilution, such as sugar, or a mixture of sugar and gum, or liquorice, or arrowroot fecula. In Castillon's Powders, an antacid and astringent, calculated to act as a remedy for the_ diseased condition, are combined with appropriate nutritious ingredients. In Dover's Powder we have an instance of the diluent being made to subserve an important mechanical end; and I am informed by an intelligent pharmaceutist that, in his vicinity, physicians combine sugar of milk with powders in prescription for a like purpose, direct- ing long trituration ; calomel is said by this means to acquire in- creased efficiency where a rapid constitutional effect is desired. Al- though the assertions of homceopathists, in regard to the virtues of trituration are absurd, yet it is quite possible that, in a case like that of calomel, long attrition with a hard substance, in contact with the atmosphere, may produce chemical, as well as physical, changes of importance. The use of adjuvants and correctives is appropriate in the case of powders, equally with other classes of remedies; and, by reference to the prescriptions appended, it will be observed that they are very commonly added. Pilule. Pills are the most popular and convenient of all forms of medicine. In common with powders, they have the advantage of being accu- rately divided, so that the patient is not dependent upon any of the uncertain means of approximate measurement necessary in adminis- tering liquids. They are also more portable. The contact is so slight with the organs of taste, in swallowing, that the most offensive sub- stances can be swallowed in this form with comparatively little incon- 698 ON POWDERS, PILLS, SUPPOSITORIES, ETC. venience. There are, however, a few people who cannot swallow them • this is the case, too, with young children, for whom some other form is preferable. The size of pills is necessarily limited to from four to five grains of vegetable powders, or five to six grains of heavy mineral substances including the excipient, though these quantities are larger than usual. The kind of Substances adapted to the Pilular Form. a. All those suitable to the form of powders, which are given in small doses. b. The gum resins, balsams, and turpentine. c. Substances, the operation of which it is desirable to retard ; as in cer- tain aperient and alterative pills. d. Insoluble substances, which are too heavy to give conveniently suspended in liquids. e. Very disagreeable and fetid substances. /. The vegetable extracts. The kind of Substances unsuited to the Pilular Form. a. Those which operate only in doses exceeding fifteen or twenty grains, or too large for three or four pills. b. Deliquescent salts, and those containing a large proportion of water, unless this be suitably absorbed by associated dry powder. c. Bodies of such consistence as to require an undue proportion of dry or viscid material to make a mass, except such as have a very small dose; as croton oil. d. Yery volatile substances ; as carbonate of ammonia, except with certain precautions. e. Those which are prescribed for immediate effect; as emetics and diffu- sible stimulants. f. Essential oils, in quantity exceeding half a drop to each pill. The formation of a pill mass is sometimes a matter of considerable difficulty, from a want of adhesiveness of the ingredients, or sometimes from the difficulty of incorporating them equally together. Under the head of The Art of Dispensing, some hints upon the mode of overcoming difficulties of this kind will be appropriate. Should the physician indicate the excipient, or leave it optional with the apothecary ? In answering this, we necessarily bring into view the therapeutical relations of this ingredient, and shall find that it may be active or inert, at the option of the prescriber. If the basis be rhubarb or aloes, or a similar vegetable powder, a mass can be readily formed by moisture, without the aid of any adhesive material; if, on the contrary, it be a metallic salt, or an unadhesive vegetable powder, it requires an addition to give it the form of a mass; that addition will add to the bulk of the ingredients prescribed, and perhaps, if the dose be large, will make the pills too bulky; in this case, it is important that the physician should not overlook the excipient, which he may include among the medicinal ingredients, or make due allowance for, in apportioning the quantity to each pill. The following rule for prescribing pills will obviate the disadvan- tage of adding to the size by the use of inert excipients: when the basis is an unadhesive material, one of the other medicinal ingredients should be an extract or a vegetable powder, which will form a mass by moisture alone. PHARMACEUTICAL ADAPTATIONS. 699 Tabular Yiew of Pharmaceutical Adaptations. Medicines adapted to the Form of Powder. INSOLUBLE MINERAL SUBSTANCES, VEGETABLE PRODUCTS, AND SOME SOLUBLE SUBSTANCES. INSOLUBLE ; TOO LARGE DOSES FOR PILLS. Carbo ligni. Magnesia. Calcis phosph. Potass, bitart. Sulphur sublim. Creta ppt. Ferri subcarb. Ferri phosph. and others. Vegetable Powders:— Powd. cinchona. " colomba. " gentian. " rhubarb (coarse). " jalap. " cubebs, and others. IN CERTAIN COMBINATIONS, AND WHEN PILLS ARE OBJECTED TO. Powd. pil hydrarg. " ext. coloc. comp. " opium. " digitalis. " nux vom. " kino. " acid, tannic. " " gallic. " potas. nit. Opium alkaloids. Cinchona " Subnit. bismuth. Calomel, and many others. Diluents for Substances prescribed in Form of Powders. Sugar. Lactin. Mannite. Powd. acacia. " cinnamon. Aromatic powder. Powd. ext. liquorice. " tragacanth. " elm bark, and others. Medicines adapted to Pilular Form. POWDERS GIVEN IN LESS THAN GR. XV DOSES, GUM RESINS, EXTRACTS ; ALSO OLEORESINS AND OILS IN SMALL PROPORTION. UNADHESIVE MATERIALS. Calomel. Pulv. ipecac, et opii. Bismuth, subnit. Morphiae acetas, &c. Strychnia. Pulv. digitalis. " ipecac. Plumbi acetas. Antim. et pot. tart. " sulphuret. Argenti nitras. Argenti oxidum. Ferri pulvis. " subcarb. (other salts). Potas. iodid. Camphor, and others. Difficult to combine, except by Peculiar Treatment:— 01. tiglii. " terebinth. Ferri iodidum. Copaiba, and others. GOOD MEDICINAL EXCIPIENT. Extracta. Pil. hydrarg. " copaibae. " ferri carb. Terebinthina. With Moisture:— Pulv. aloes. " rhei. " kino. " acidi tannici. " opii. " scillae. Bebeerinae, sulph. Ferri citras. Assafoetida, and others. With Alcohol and Tinctures :- Guaiacum. Resinous Extracts, and others. With Dil. S03:— Quiniae sulph. Cinchoniae sulph. Quinidiae sulph. Quinoidina. 700 ON POWDERS, PILLS, SUPPOSITORIES, ETC. Under the head of Dispensing Medicines, directions will be found for the granulation of powders and the coating of pills in such a way as to diminish their taste. Excipients. It will be proper in this connection to pass in review the several excipients, added with a view to giving body to pill masses, or adapting medicines to the pilular form, and to point out the special adaptations of each. Soap, which is employed in the officinal pills more than any other excipient, is well adapted to combine with resinous substances, the solubility of which it increases, while it acts as an antacid, and per- haps aperient. It has been suggested, that it is incompatible with opium, with which it is prescribed in the officinal pil. opii, as the alkali, especially when present in excess, tends to separate the morphia from its native combination. Camphor is well combined with a mix- ture of soap and honey. Syrup is often used as an excipient, which adds but little to the bulk of a pill mass, and is effectual in some cases, where water alone would not give the requisite tenacity; it does not answer a good purpose, however, with certain metallic salts, which dispose the mass to crumble. Honey and molasses, uncrystallizable forms of sugar, are well adapted to the general purposes of pill making ; masses made with these are not so liable to crumble, and possess the great advantage of remaining moist and soluble for a longer period. On account of the last-named property, honey is directed in the officinal recipe for sulphate of quinia pills. Honey, combined with tragacanth, is a very adhesive excipient for insoluble powders. Gum Arabic is directed to be added, where the requisite adhesive- ness will not result from the use of syrup or honey alone; it is not a very good excipient, whether added in the form of powder, or of a thick mucilage. Pills made with gum are apt to be very hard. Tragacanth forms a less hard and insoluble mass than acacia. The officinal syrup of gum Arabic is made with a special view to use in making pills. Alcohol and essential oils, by softening down resinous substances, facilitate their incorporation together in mass, and, being held by these with considerable tenacity, prevent their rapidly becoming too hard. Lactucarium may be brought to a pilular consistence by the use of a small proportion of chloroform, which rapidly evaporates, leaving the pills of an elegant consistence. Oil of turpentine is well adapted to softening white turpentine, so as to incorporate it with other ingre- dients, as in Otto's emmenagogue pills. These excipients must, how- ever, be added with care, or they will render the mass quite too soft. An important use of essential oils in pills, is to prevent mouldiness, and the disagreeable odor which vegetable powders acquire when moistened; they should be added in very small proportion for this purpose, as they interfere with the adhesiveness of the mass. Crumb of bread furnishes a convenient and tenacious vehicle for substances given in small dose, and which require diluting, rather than combining in a small bulk. PILULE HYDRARGYRI. 701 Confection of rose is adapted to similar uses, though more moist and of a less tough consistence. When made from the Eosa Gallica, it is astringent, and adapted to combining certain vegetable powders be- longing to that class; as usually met with, however, it contains no tannin, being made from our common varieties of rose. Confection of orange-peel, and aromatic confection, are adapted to similar uses. The Officinal Pill Masses.—These may be described in this place as preparations well adapted to use as excipients, though very frequently prescribed singly. Pilules Hydrargyri U. S. P. This is the officinal designation of the preparation commonly called blue mass, which is directed in the Pharmacopoeia to be divided into pills of three grains each; as usually kept by physicians and drug- gists in an undivided state, it is more appropriately called Massa pilul. Hydrargyri, mercurial mass. It is prepared by drug millers and chemical manufacturers, by triturating together, in appropriate me- chanical contrivances, mercury, conserve of rose, liquorice root in powder, and some viscid material, as powdered althea root, in such proportion that three parts by weight of the mass shall contain one of mercury, thoroughly divided, and partly oxidized. The process now adopted in the U. S. Army Laboratory and else- where, consists of the rapid and continuous shaking of the mercury with a portion of honey in a strong bottle till it is extinguished, and the subsequent incorporation of the mixture with the powdered rose petals and liquorice root. The shaking is done by securing the bottle upon a wooden upright frame worked by the steam engine. In a few hours the semifluid mass is ready to mix with the dry powders, which is done by mixing in a kettle and successively passing the mass between rollers, frequently folding the thin sheets together till they are uni- formly mixed. To my former pupil, Thomas Weaver, the reader is indebted for the fol- lowing good extemporaneous process for the preparation of a small quan- tity of this pill mass. Its importance as a practical improvement will be appreciated by those who have attempted to prepare blue mass with the pestle and mortar by the officinal process:— Extemporaneous Blue Mass. Take of Mercury.........Ij. Powdered liquorice root ...... Iss. " rose leaves.......3VJ- Honey.........3VJ- Triturate the honey, liquorice root, and mercury, rapidly together for three minutes, or until all the globules of mercury disappear, then add the rose leaves, and work the whole into a uniform mass; if it is too stiff, moisten with a little water. Powdered Blue Mass. Take of Mercury.........Ij- Powdered liquorice root......Ij. " rose leaves . . • • • • • 3VJ- Simple syrup........f*ij- Triturate the mercury, one-fourth of the powdered liquorice root, and the 702 ON POWDERS, PILLS, SUPPOSITORIES, ETC. simple syrup rapidly together for three minutes, or until the globules disap- pear, and then incorporate the powdered rose leaves, and the remainder of the powdered liquorice root, and spread the whole out to dry in a warm place. Reduce this to powder. From specimens of blue mass which have been dried at a moderate heat, a very convenient powder may be prepared, which is well suited for conver- sion into the pilular form, and into compound powders. Blue mass is, perhaps, the most popular, as it is the mildest form of mercurial preparation; it is well adapted to use in pill or powder, either combined, as in several prescriptions which follow, or singly, in doses of from one to ten grains. Blue mass, when designed to act on the liver without producing a cathartic effect, may be combined with opium or a pure astringent. It is frequently, however, combined with vegetable cathartics, to in- crease its tendency to operate on the Jpowels. Perhaps a majority of the mild cathartic pills, prescribed by practitioners and those sold as universal remedies, contain this useful ingredient; and, in fact, blue pills are very commonly known and taken by those who prescribe for themselves for what is popularly known as "biliousness," and various forms of liver complaint. Pilulae Ferri Carbonatis U. S. P. Yallette's Mass is a very mild and soluble preparation of iron, made by incorporating freshly-precipitated protocarbonate of iron with honey, or some mixed saccharine vehicle, and by evaporation con- centrating into a pilular mass. This may be taken by itself, in a dose of from ten to thirty grains, or may be used as an adjuvant or vehicle to other medicinal substances, particularly dry powders, as in those numerous cases where iron, in small doses, is indicated along with bitter tonics. (See Preparations of Iron) Pilules Copaibes U. S. P. Copaiba mass, although seldom employed as a vehicle, is not un- suited to this use; it is directed to be made by incorporating one drachm of calcined magnesia with two troyounces of copaiva, a recipe by which it is very difficult to get a sufficiently solid mass. The copaiva must be thick and resinoid, and the magnesia recently cal- cined, or the required thickening will not occur. The introduction of wax and some vegetable powder will be found an improvement. The dose is from five to ten grains. The Extracts. This class, which is well adapted to the pilular form, should not be overlooked in prescribing dry ingredients; some one extract can usu- ally be selected which will meet a therapeutical indication, while it serves the purpose of an excipient. Thus, in sedative or narcotic pills, we have the choice of five or six extracts to incorporate with any unadhesive or other material, so as to gain efficiency without too large a bulk. In directing a tonic remedy in this form, extract of gentian, quassia, cinchona, or nux vomica will ASTRINGENTS. 703 come in play. While as a vehicle, for the mercurials in cutaneous or syphilitic diseases, extract of conium, or of sarsaparilla, may be used. The use of the cathartic extracts, and of extract of taraxacum for similar purposes, is too common to need comment. We have an elegant and efficient compound, made on this principle, in the so-called Dr. Yanoe's Gout Pills. Formulary of Officinal and other Powders and Pills. In the following officinal and extemporaneous prescriptions, some of which are selected from standard works, others from the prescription files of the dispensing establishment over which I preside, and a few of which I venture to offer for trial, the most approved methods of compounding medicines in the form of powders and pills are indicated. Astringents. No. 1.—Powders used in Obstinate Diarrhoea. Each Powder. Take of Alum......3ij 20 grs. Kino......3ss 5 grs. Mix and reduce to a very fine powder, and distribute this into six papers. Dose, one every two or three hours. Alum and kino are incompatible in liquid form, and hence, when asso- ciated together, should always be prescribed in powder. The dose is too large for the pilular form. No. 2.—Pills of Tannic Acid. Each Pill. Take of Tannic acid . . . . ' gr. xij 1 grain. Confection of rose . . . gr- vj | grain. Make a mass and divide into twelve pills. Dose, one every two hours. The above may be made into powders by substituting an aromatic, as- tringent, or inert powder for the confection. No. 3.—Astringent and Sedative Powders. Each Powder. Take of Tannic acid.....9j 2 grs. Acetate of morphia . . gr. j TV gr. Sugar......gr. x 1 gr. Oil of caraway ^lj trace. Triturate together, and distribute into ten papers. Dose, one every three hours. Five grains of opium may be substituted for the morphia salt, or by the substitution of sufficient syrup for the sugar, the whole may be made into the pilular form. No. 4.— Chalk Powders. Each. Take of Prepared chalk 3ij 15 grs. Gum Arabic, in powder Sugar, each 3j 7J grs. Cinnamon, in powder . . . gi\ x 1| grs. Triturate together into a uniform powder, and divide into eight doses. 704 ON POWDERS, PILLS, SUPPOSITORIES, ETC. Chalk mixture spoils by keeping, in hot weather, and is, moreover, much more bulky than an equal quantity of the ingredients in the above form, which is especially convenient for travellers. Opium, kino, or other remedies adapted to increase or modify its action, may be added in powder. One of the very best additions for a common form of diarrhoea is that of powdered blue mass, of which gr. xvj to 3ss may be added to the above. No. 5.—Antacid Powders with Opium and Blue Mass. Each. Each. gr-ij ¥gr- gr. ss i « 2? gr-j tV gr- nj i " Dose, one every two Take of Precipitated carbonate of lime . . 3j 6 grains. Tincture of opium . f$j 6 minims. Pulv. pil. hydrarg.....gr. x 1 grain. Triturate in a mortar and expose till it is dry, then divide into ten powders. Dose, one every three hours until the symptoms are checked. No. 6.—Powders for the Diarrhoea of Infants. Take of Acetate of lead Opium..... Camphor .... Sugar .... Triturate, and divide into twelve papers. or three hours. For adults, the whole quantity prescribed may be taken at one dose. The child should be kept quiet, and fed upon arrowroot, flour boiled in milk, or a mixture of barley-water and cream. No. 7.—Pilul. Plumbi Acet. ( University College, London) To each. Take of Acetate of lead . . Six grains. \ gr. Muriate of morphia . Three grains. \ gr. Extract of hyosciamns Twenty-four grains. 2 grs. Mix, make into twelve pills. Tonics and Aromatics. No. 8.—Anti-Intermittent Powders. Each, Take of Powdered cinchona . . . Ij 3j. serpentaria . . . 3ij gr. xv. Sulphate of quinia . . . gr. viij ot. j. Mix and distribute into eight papers. Dose, one every hour, com- mencing eight hours before the expected paroxysm. The sulphate of quinia may be omitted, but is useful when the bark is not of the finest quality. The serpentaria may be substituted by more powerful stimulants, as cloves, or capsicum, or oil of black pepper; to obviate costive- ness, a saline cathartic may be added. No. 9.—Pilules Quiniae Sulphatis U. S. P. Reduced. Each. Take of Sulphate of quinia . . Ij 9ij 1 gr. Powdered gum Arabic . . 3ij gr. x \ gr. Clarified honey . . . q. s. q. s. Mix the sulphate of quinia and gum Arabic, then beat them with tonics and aromatics. 705 clarified honey so as to make a mass, and divide into 480 pills (reduced quantity 40), of which the dose in intermittents is one every hour, between the paroxysms. These officinal pills are less used than formerly for the full antiperiodic effect of the sulphate of quinia, as it is now customary to give larger doses, less frequently repeated, and the officinal pills are found less convenient than pills or powders, of three, four, or five grains each. Sulphate of quinia may be made into pills by the following pro- cess, which has been called Parrish's. (See paper by the author, in the " American Journal of Pharmacy," vol. xxv. p. 291.) No. 10.—Pills of the Soluble Sulphate of Quinia. Each. Take of Sulphate of quinia . . . 9j gr. v. Aromatic sulphuric acid . . "I xij nuij. Drop the acid upon the sulphate on a tile or slab, and triturate with a spatula, until it thickens and assumes a pilular consistence, then divide into four pills. Persons not accustomed to this process sometimes allow the sulphate to become too dry and unadhesive to mould into pills. This is from not seizing the proper moment just as the mass has ceased to be too soft, and before it becomes dry; it is then quite plastic, and becomes particularly so by con- tact with the warmth and moisture of the thumb and fingers. A drop of syrup or honey, which should always be at hand on the counter, by being added at the proper moment, will prevent this hardening. The five grain quinine pill made in this way, is not larger than many pills in common use ; soluble quinine pills may be conveniently made of two, three, four, or five grains. The large number of combinations in which sulphate of quinia is associ- ated with other remedies cannot be here noticed; to some of these, as in combining the other alkaloids with it, the elixir of vitriol process is well adapted; in other cases it is inadmissible. If an extract in small quantity, or a vegetable powder, is to be added to the mass, it should be incorporated with the quinia salt, when by trituration on the slab it begins to thicken into a paste. Sulphate of quinia will make a very good pill mass by using one grain of glacial phosphoric acid, or a quarter of a grain of tartaric acid, to each grain of the quinia salt. No. 11.—Pills of Sulphate of Cinchonia. Each. Take of Sulphate of cinchonia . . dj gr-j- Powdered tragacanth . . gr. ij gr. tV Triturate together, and add sufficient honey to make a mass, which divide into twenty pills; these pills are esteemed about equal to those of sulphate of quinia in most cases. No 12.—Pills of Sulphate of Quinidia. Each. Take of Sulphate of quinidia . . • 9j -# gr.j- Powdered tragacanth. . . gr. ij gr. TV- Triturate together, and add honey sufficient to make a mass, which 45 706 ON POWDERS, PILLS, SUPPOSITORIES, ETC. divide into twenty pills. These are esteemed about equal to sulphate of quinia pills of the same proportion. No. 13.—Pills of Chinoidine. Each. Take of Chinoidine.....3j 3 grains. Aromatic sulphuric acid . . *ri v or q. s; trace. Soften the chinoidine with the acid, in a mortar, and divide into twenty pills. Each pill is esteemed about equal to a one grain quinia pill. No. 14.—Powders of Iron and Quinia. Each. Take of Subcarbonate of Iron . 3j 5 grs. Sulphate of quinia . . . gr. vj § gr. Aromatic powder . . . . gr. xij 1 gr. Triturate together, and distribute into twelve powders. Dose, a powder three times a day before meals. The proportion of sulphate of quinia should be increased when it is to be employed in convalescence from intermittents. No. 15.—Pills of Proto- Carbonate of Iron and Quinia. Each. Take of Sulphate of quinia . 9j 1 gr. Pill mass of carbonate of iron 3j 3 grs. Mix, and make into twenty pills. Dose, one twice or three times a day. In this class of prescription, designed for anaemic conditions, the sulphates of cinchonia and quinidia, and of bebeerina, may generally be substituted for that of quinia without disadvantage. No. 16.—Pills of Quevenne's Iron. Each. Take of Eeduced iron . . . . gr. CC 2 grs. Manna......gr. C 1 gr. Triturate into a mass and divide into 100 pills. Manna is an excellent excipient for Ferrum Redactum, and will answer in less proportion, if very small pills are desired ; when not at hand, it may be substituted by honey and a little gum Arabic, or tragacanth. In a number of cases it will be desirable to introduce adjuvants, which may be in the form of extract. Extracts of conium, of aconite, cinchona, nux vomica, and quassia, are favorite adjuvants with Quevenne's iron. No. 17.—Pulvis Aromaticus U. S. P. Take of Cinnamon, in fine powder, Ginger, in fine powder, each, two troyounces. Cardamom, deprived of the capsules, and in fine powder, Nutmeg, in fine powder, each, a troyounce. Rub them together until they are thoroughly mixed. In this preparation, the dry powders of cinnamon and ginger, if triturated with the oily nutmeg, grated, and the cardamom, coarsely powdered, enable us to reduce them to a fine condition ; the whole should be passed through a sieve. By trituration with honey, syrup of orange-peel, and saffron, this furnishes Confectio aromatica. TONICS AND AROMATICS. 707 Jgr- Jgr- igr- gr. xij J gr. gtt. vj. % TtL. Sufficient q. s. No. 18.—Dr. Mitchells Tonic Pills. Each. Take of Extract of quassia gr. xxxyj 3 grs. Extract of conium, . . \ gr. Subcarbonate of iron, of each gr. iij ^ gr. Make into a mass with a few drops of solution of arsenite of potassa (if required); then divide into twelve pills. Dose, a pill twice or three times daily. No. 19.—Tonic and Aromatic Pills. (Dr. Parrish, Senior.) Each. Take of Sulphate of quinia gr. vj \ gr. Powdered capsicum, Mace, .... Powdered cloves, Carbonate of ammonia, each Oil of caraway Confection of rose . Form a uniform tenacious mass, and divide into twenty-four pills. No. 20.—Pills used in Obstinate Intermittents. (Dr. Chapman.) Each. Take of Sulphate of copper gr. iij I gr. Powdered opium gr. iv ^ gr. " gum Arabic . . gr. viij § gr. Syrup ..... Sufficient. Make a mass, and divide into twelve pills. Dose, one every three hours. No. 21.—Pilules Ferri Composites U. S. P. Each. Take of Myrrh, in fine powder . . 3ij 1| gr- Carbonate of soda ... ) FeO,C02 Sulphate of iron, of each . 3j f t5s gr- Syrup.....q. s. q. s. Rub the myrrh first with the carbonate of soda, and afterwards with the sulphate of iron until they are thoroughly mixed; thenbeat them with syrup so as to form a pilular mass to be divided into eighty pills. This pill is similar in composition to Griffith's Iron Mixture. Supposing a reaction to take place between the salts present, proto-carbonate of iron would be produced, which, with the myrrh, forms an admirable remedy in chlorosis ; a lump of fresh myrrh is to be preferred to the powdered article of commerce. No. 22.—Pilules Ferri Iodidi U. S. P. (Blancard's Pills.) Take of Iodine half a troyounce. Iron, in the form' of wire and cut in pieces, one hundred and twenty grains. Sugar, in fine powder, a troyounce. Marshmallow, in fine powder, half a troyounce. Gum Arabic, in fine powder, # Reduced iron, each, sixty grains. Water ten fluidrachms. Mix the iodine with a fluidounce of the water in a thin glass bottle, 708 ON POWDERS, PILLS, SUPPOSITORIES, ETC. add the iron, and shake them together until a clear, green solution is obtained. Mix the powders in a small porcelain capsule, and filter upon them, through a small filter, first the solution previously heated, and afterwards the remainder of the water in order to wash the filter Then, by means of a water bath, with constant stirring, evaporate the whole to a pilular consistence, and divide the mass into three hundred pills. Dissolve sixty grains of balsam of Tolu in a fluidrachm of ether shake the pills with the solution until they are uniformly coated, and put them on a plate to dry, occasionally stirring them until the drying is completed. Lastly, keep the pills in a well-stopped bottle. These pills, as prepared by the above new officinal formula, are devoid of the smell of iodine ; and distilled water, rubbed with them and filtered, does not color solution of starch, or gives it only a slight blue tint. No other form of iodide of iron is so easily taken or so permanent. No. 23.—Permanent Iodide of Iron Pills. (Extemporaneous process of I. Coddington.) Take of Iodine.......50 grains. Iron, reduced by hydrogen . . . 25 grains. Water.......30 minims. Althaea powder.....60 grs. or q. s. Triturate the iodine in the water and add the iron gradually; when the color becomes a dark gray and there ceases to be any indication of free iodine to starch water, add the althaea powder, taking care not to make the mass too stiff. Then roll it into 60 pills containing 1 grain of iodide of iron each, with an excess of iron. Iodine and iron may be combined in melted cocoa butter, which should be kept melted till the union is complete, and then made into pills, coated with sugar or some vegetable powder. No. 24.— Compound Pills of Iodide of Iron. (Prescribed by Dr. Buckler, of Baltimore.) Each pill. Take of Iodide of potassium . . . . 3ij 2 grains. Iodide of iron.....3j 1 grain. Iodine.......gr.vj ^ " Extract of conium . . . . 3j 1 " Triturate the iodide of potassium, iodide of iron, and iodine together with a few drops of water to the consistence of a soft paste, then add powdered gum Arabic in the proportion of half a grain to each pill, and rub into a smooth paste. Incorporate with the whole the extract of conium, and make into a soft mass, with a mixture of equal parts of finely powdered elm bark and liquorice root. Then divide into » sixty pills. No. 25.—PUls of Chloride of Iron. (J. T. Shinn.) Take of Tincture of muriate of iron .... flij. Evaporate nearly to dryness, and add— Powdered althaea root.....3ss. Triturate into a pill mass, and divide into 240 pills, each of which represents about ten drops of the tincture. They should be kept and dispensed in vials. nervous stimulants; antispasmodics. 709 No. 26.—Powder for Chronic Indigestion and Gastric Irritability. Each. B.—Bismuthi subnitratis . . . . 3j 10 grs. Pulveris rhei ...... 5 grs. 4" aromatici, of each . . . 3ss 5 grs. Misce et divide in chart, vj. Signa.—Take one before each meal. Nervous Stimulants ; Antispasmodics. No. 27.—Pilulae Assofcetides U. S. P. Reduced. Each. Take of Assafoetida . . . liss gr. xxxvj gr. iij. Soap, in fine powder . Iss gr-«xij gr. j. Beat them together with water, so as to form a pilular mass, to be divided into 240 pills. (The reduced quantity into 12 pills.) Dose, one to four pills. No. 28.—Pilulas Ahes et Assafcetidae U. S. P. Reduced. Each. Take of Socotrine aloes, in fine powder ) gr. IJ Assafoetida .... > gr. xvj gr. 1J Soap, in fine powder, each . Iss ) gr. IJ Beat them together with water, so as to form a pilular mass, to be divided into 180 pills. (Reduced, 12 pills.) Dose, one to four pills. No. 29.—Pilules Golbani Composites U. S. P. Reduced. Each. Take of Galbanum, . . gr. IJ. Myrrh, each . . 3yj each gr. xviij gr. IJ. Assafoetida . . 3ij gr- vj gr. J. Syrup . . . Sufficient Sufficient gr. 3J. Beat them together, so as to form a pilular mass, to be divided into 240 pills. (Reduced 12 pills.) Dose, one to three pills. No. 30.—Dr. Ottos Antispasmodic Powders. Take of Black mustard seed, Powdered sage, Powdered ginger, equal parts by measure. Mix thoroughly. Dose, in epilepsy, three teaspoonfuls, for three mornings in succession ; discontinue three ; then give as before. To be moistened with water or molasses. No. SI.—Pills of Nitrate of Silver. Take of Nitrate of silver......9j. Turpentine (terebinthina, U. S) . . . 3j- Triturate, with the addition of a few drops of oil of turpentine if necessary, to make a uniform pilular mass, which divide into thirtv pills. Dose, in typhoid fever and epilepsy, one pill every three or four hours. 710 ON POWDERS, PILLS, SUPPOSITORIES, ETC. Arterial Stimulants. This class of remedies is least adapted to the pilular form of any in the materia medica. No. 32.—Powders or Pills of Carbonate of Ammonia, &c. Take of Muriate of ammonia (granulated), Dried carbonate of soda, each . . . 9ij. Powdered capsicum.....9j. Triturate into a uniform fine powder, and divide into ten papers, which should be wrapped in tinfoil. By the aid of moisture, these powders are made to react with each other and develop carbonate of ammonia. To make into pills, add a portion of firm and rather dry conserve of rose. Divide into twenty pills, and keep them in a vial. A solution of mastich in ether is a good varnish for coating these and similar pills: they should be as dry as possible before using this varnish. Cerebral Stimulants, or Narcotics. No. 33.—Pilulae Opii U. S. P. Reduced. Each. Take of Opium in fine powder . 3j gr. xij gr. j. Soap, in fine powder . gr. xij gr. iiss gr. \. Beat them together into a mass with water, and divide into 60 pills. (Reduced, 12.) Old opium pills are sometimes in request, from their being better re- tained by an irritable stomach, and from the fact that by their more gradual solution, they affect more favorably the diseases of the lower intestine. The best way to make pills to be kept for this purpose is to select a portion of the solid mass in its natural and plastic condition, and to divide it, without admixture, into the required number of pills ; these, as they contract and harden, will become compact and of slow solubility. No. 34.—Pills of Camphor and Opium. Each. R.—Camphoras......gr. xxiv gr. 2. Pulveris opii.....gr. vj gr. J. Alcoholis......gtt. vj trace. Confectionis rosse . . . . q. s. q. s. Misce, et fiant, secundum artem, pilulae xij. Dose, from one to two pills. No. 35.—Anodyne Pills. Each. Take of Acetate of morphia . . . gr. j gr. J. Extract of hyoscyamus . . gr. iv gr. J. _ Triturate into a mass, and divide into eight pills. Dose, one pill, repeated if necessary. These are very small, and are not astringent in their effects on the bowels. RHEUMATISM and gout pills. 711 No. 36.—Pulvis Morphias Attenuatus. R.—Morphiae sulphatis......gr. j. Sacchari lactis.......gr. v. Misce. One grain is designed to be an equivalent to one grain of opium; it furnishes a convenient form for administering small doses of morphia in prescription. No. 37.—Pills of Extract of Indian Hemp. R.—Ext. cannabis, Pulv. saponis, aa.......gr. xx. Triturate the extract with the soap in a warm mortar till a good mass is formed, then divide into forty pills. Dose, one to three pills. Rheumatism and Gout Pills. No. 38.—"Dr. Vance's Rheumatism and Gout Pills." Each. R.—Extracti colchici acetici . . . 3ss gr. 1£. Pulveris ipecacuanhas comp. . . 3iss, gr. vj gr. iv. Misce et divide in pilulas xxiv. Signa.—Take two at night and one before breakfast and dinner. This is a most valuable combination, having been found efficacious in a great many cases, both chronic and acute. Similar combinations are used in the several London hospitals, as follows : King's College, to each pill, acet. ext. colch. 1 grain; to Dover's powder, 3 grains. St. George's, acetic ext. colch. 1 gr. ; to Dover's powder, 2J grains. Middlesex, acetic ext. colch. 2 grs.; to Dover's powder, 3 grains. - London Hospital, acet. ext. colch. J gr.; Dover's powder, J gr. (See Squire's Hospital Pharmacopoeia.) No. 39.—Lartiques Gout Pills. Each. R.—Extracti colocynthidis compositi . . 3iss, gr. vj gr. 4. colchici acetici . . . gr. x gr. §. digitalis . . . . gr. v gr. *-. Misce, fiat mass, in pilulas xxiv dividenda. Take two for a dose. This is the common recipe in Philadelphia ; according to Wittstein each of the French Lartique's pills contains 2 grains of powdered colchicum seed. No. 40.—BecquereVs Gout Pills. Each pill. Take of Sulphate of quinia . . 2 drachms 2J grains. Extract of digitalis . . 15 grains T3^ " Powd. colchicum seed . . 2 scruples f " Mix and divide into 50 pills. Dose, 1 to 3 pills for several days These pills are stated to have removed attacks of acute gout in seven or eight hours. No. 41.—Pil. Colchici c. Hydrarg. (King's College, London.) Each. R.—Acet. ext. colchicum ... 24 grains 2 grs. Mercurial mass . . . -36 grains 3 grs. Mix. Make 12 pills. 712 on powders, pills, suppositories, etc. " Excito-Motor Stimulants." No. 42.—Powders given in Uterine Hemorrhages. Each. Take of Ergot, freshly powdered . . 5j gr. 10. Alum, in powder . . . . 9j gr. 3J. Mix and divide into six equal parts. Arterial Sedatives. No. 43.—Powders of Nitre and Tartrate of Antimony. Each. Take of Tartrate of antimony and potassa . gr. j gr. r'5< Nitrate of potassa ... gr. 2 J. Sugar, each.....3ss gr. 2J. Triturate into powder, and distribute equally into twelve papers. Emetics. No. 44.—A Prompt and Efficient Em,etic. Each. R.—Pulveris ipecacuanhas .... 3ss gr. xv. Antimonii et potassas tartratis . . gr. ij gr. j. Misce et divide in pulveres ij. Signa.—Take one in a little mo- lasses, or sugar and water, and follow it by a draught of warm water. If one powder does not produce the effect, the second may be taken soon after. Sometimes calomel is added to emetic powders, and both a purgative and emetic effect are produced. Emetics, as such, are never given in pill. Cathartics and Laxatives. To this class belong six of the pills, and two of the compound pow- ders of the Pharmacopoeia. No. 45.—Pilules Rhei U. S. P. Reduced. Each. Take of Rhubarb, in powder . 3yj gr. xxxvj gr. 3. Soap . . . . 3ij gr. xij gr. 1. Beat them with water, so as to form a mass, to be divided into 120 pills. (Reduced, into 12 pills.) The following recipe will make an elegant rhubarb pill without the use of soap, which is objectionable as imparting a disposition to be- come mouldy, and produce an unpleasant odor when damp. Each. Take of Powdered rhubarb . . . gr. xlviij gr. iv. Comp. tincture of cardamon . gtt. xlviij gtt. iv. Triturate into a mass, and divide into twelve pills. cathartics and laxatives. 713 No. 46.—Pilulas Rhei Composites U. S. P. Reduced. Each. Take of Rhubarb, in powder . Ij gr. xxiv 2 grs. Aloes " . 3yj gr. xviij IJgrs. Myrrh " .Iss gr. xij 1 gr. Oil of peppermint . . f3ss nuj £ "l. Beat them with water, so as to form a mass, to be divided into 240 pills. (Reduced, into 12 pills.) No. 47.—Pilulae Aloes U. S. P. Reduced. Each. Take of Aloes, in powder ... 2 grs. Soap, each . . . . Ij 9j 2 grs. Beat them with water, so as to form a mass, to be divided into 240 pills. (Reduced, 20 pills.) No. 48.—Pilulae Ahes et Myrrhae U. S. P. Reduced. Each. Take of Aloes, in powder . . Iij ( gr. xxiv 2 grs. Myrrh " . , . Ij gr. xij 1 gr. Saffron " . .Iss gr. vj J gr. Syrup, sufficient quantity q. s. Beat the whole together so as to form a mass, to be divided into 480 pills. (Reduced, twelve pills.) A tonic and emmenagogue cathartic. Saffron may be reduced to powder by heating it in a capsule till it becomes crisp, then triturating in a mortar. No. 49.—Dr. Chapman's Dinner Pills. Reduced. Each. Take of Powdered aloes . . 1J gr. " mastich, of each 3ij gr. xviij IJ gr- " ipecac. . . Biv gr. xij 1 gr. Oil of caraway . . TTlxij "iij Trace. Mix and make into mass with water, and divide into eighty pills. (Reduced quantity, twelve pills.) These pills are much used in habitual costiveness; the presence of the mastich protracts the solvent action of the fluids upon the aloes, so that one pill, which is a dose, taken before dinner, will produce a gentle operation the next morning. No. 50.—Pilulas Aloes et Mastiches U. S. P. (Lady Webster's Pills.) Take of Socotrine aloes, in fine powder, a troyounce and a half. Mastich, in fine powder, Red rose, in fine powder, each, half a troyounce. Beat them together with water, so as to form a pilular mass, to be divided into 400 pills. This is a new officinal preparation, which has long been known as a popular remedy for costiveness. One or two taken before dinner will usually produce an evacuation on the following day. Each. gr. xij 1 gr. gr. xxiv 2 grs. gr-ij e gr. gr-j A gr. Each. 9jj lgr. 9iv 2 grs, gtt. xij J dr. 9ij 1 gr. 714 ON POWDERS, PILLS, SUPPOSITORIES, ETC. No. 51.—Dr. Mitchell1 s Aperient Pills. R.—Pulveris aloes .... " rhei .... Hydrarg. chlor. mit. . Antim. et potas. tart. Misce, fiant pilulae No. xij. One acts as an aperient, two or three as a cathartic. No. 52.—Laxative Tonic Pills. (Dr. Parrish, Sen.) Take of Powdered Socotrine aloes . " rhubarb .... Oil of caraway..... Extract of gentian .... Make into forty pills. Dose, two before dinner. No. 53.—Pulvis Aloes et Canelles U. S. P. (Hiera Picra) Reduced. Take of Socotrine aloes, in fine powder . . I xij I iss. Canella, in fine powder, . . . liij 3iij. Rub them together until they are thoroughly mixed. Hiera picra is generally macerated in some kind of spirit, and taken in draughts as a stomachic laxative. No. 54.—Pulvis Jalapes Compositus U. S. P. Take of Jalap, in fine powder,.....Ij. Bitartrate of potassa, in fine powder, . . Iij. Mix them. This is a mild laxative, given in doses of gr. xv to 3ss. Sulphur and bitartrate of potassa are much associated in about equal bulks. No. 55.— Calomel and Jalap Powder. R.—Hydrargyri chloridi mitis . . . . . gr. xv. Pulveris jalapae . . . . . . . 9j. Misce.—To be given at a dose. In the same way rhubarb is very commonly associated with calomel. No. 56.—Pulvis Rhei Compositus U. S. P. For one dose. Take of Rhubarb, in fine powder, four troyounces . gr. xv. Magnesia, twelve troyounces . . . . gr. xlv. Ginger, in fine powder, two troyounces . . gr. viiss. Rub them together until they are thoroughly mixed. This is a new officinal compound powder, which is well adapted to use as a laxative and antacid. Charcoal and magnesia are much used for a similar purpose. No. 57.—Neutralizing powder. Take of Bicarbonate of soda, Powdered rhubarb, " mint (the herb) .... Equal parts. Rub the mixed ingredients through a sieve of sixty meshes to the linear inch. Dose, a teaspoonful as an antacid remedy in diarrhoea and dyspepsia. CATHARTICS AND LAXATIVES. 715 No. 58.-—Pulveres Effervescentes Aperientes U. S. P. (Seidlitz Powders.) Each powder. Take of Bicarbonate of soda, in fine powder, a troyounce 9ij. Tartrate of potassa and soda, in fine powder, three troyounces......3ij. Tartaric acid, in fine powder, four hundred and twenty grains. ...... gr. xxxv. Mix intimately the bicarbonate of soda with the tartrate of potassa and soda, and divide this mixture into twelve equal parts. Then divide the tartaric acid into the same number of equal parts. Lastly, l£eep the parts severally of the mixture and of the acid in separate papers of different colors. Directions for Use.—Take two glasses with about a gill of cold water in each, dissolve in one the contents of the blue, and in the other of the white paper—mix and drink immediately. No. 59.—Pills for Habitual Costiveness. (Dr. E. Cutter, Woburn, Mass) R.—Pulv. ipecacuanhas......gr. x. Hydrag. chlor. mit.......gr. iij. Ext. taraxaci.......9ij. Misce.—Ft. pilulae No. xxx. Dose, one three times a day. A mild and effectual remedy for a very common symptom. No. 60.—Pilules Cathartices Composites U. S. P. Reduced. Each. Take of Compound extract of colocynth, Iss gr. xvj IJ gr. Extract of jalap, in fine powder, 1 gr. Mild chloride of mercury, each 3iij gr- xij 1 gr. Gamboge, in powder, . . 9ij gr. iiss J gr. Mix the powders together; then with water form a pilular mass, to be divided into 180 pills. (Reduced, twelve pills.) These well-known and popular pills are very easy to make, if the extracts, both of colocynth and jalap, are of proper consistence, or powdered, before being incorporated with the other ingredients ; but if the extract of jalap is of a tough consistence, which it frequently reaches by partial drying, it is almost impossible to incorporate it with the other ingredients. Powdered extract of jalap, when obtainable, may be kept in a salt-mouth bottle like any other powder, and a few drops of moisture will form it into a plastic mass. The tough extract should be further dried and powdered, or may be softened by heating and triturating in a capsule with diluted alcohol. Under the name of Anti-bilious pills, this preparation, of more or less perfect quality, is vended in great quantities over the country, and by its admirable combination of cathartic properties, is well adapted to supersede as a popular remedy, the numerous nostrums advertised and sold for similar purposes. No. 61.__Pills of Colocynth and Hyoscyamus. (Middlesex Hospital, London) Each. R.__Extracti colocynthidis compositae . 3sa 3 grs. " hyoscyami . . . • 9j 2 grs. ^__Ft. pilulas x. Dose, one to three pills. gr. ij aacu. J grain. gr. xviij 3 graii/is. gr. iv f gram- 716 on powders, pills, suppositories, etc. No. 62.—Tonic Pills of Podophyllin. Take of Podophyllin . Powd. rhubarb " capsicum . Mix and make into six pills. Dose.—One or two. To produce ptyalism podophyllin should be combined with opium in small doses frequently and continuously. No. 63.—Modified Cathartic Pills. (E. Parrish.) » Each. Take of Gamboge, in powder . . five grains \ grain. Podophyllin, in powder . two grains T'fl grain. Aloes, in powder . . . thirty grains IJ grains. Calomel .... twenty grains 1 grain. Ginger, in powder, Capsicum, in powder, each . two grains TV grain. Fluid extract of podophyllum, sufficient. Mix the dry powders and triturate with the fluid extract into a pilular mass; divide this into twenty pills. The object of this formula, prepared for a physician in the West, is to furnish an " Antibilious pill," the ingredients of which are readily obtainable, genuine, and of good quality. The difficulties met with by practitioners in procuring the costly extracts of colocynth and of jalap of standard quality, have led to inquiries for a modified formula with cheap and common materials. No. 64.—Pills of Aloin and Podophyllin. Each. Take of Aloin......gr. xxiv 1 grain. Podophyllin.....gr. xij J grain. Oleoresin of ginger . . . ^l iv J minim. Triturate the solid ingredients into a uniform powder, add the oleo- resin or piperoid of ginger, make a mass, and divide into twenty-four pills. Dose, from one to three. No. 65.—Dr. Alberlys Small Antibilious Pills. Each. R.—Calomelanos . . . . gr. x |gr, Pulv. gambogiae. . . . gr. v J gr. Misce et fiant pilulas xxx. Dose, two or three pills. No. 6Q.—Pills of Croton Oil. Each. Take of Croton oil . . . . tt\, iv K I- ' Crumb of bread . . . gr. xvj gr. j. Make into sixteen pills. Croton oil and castor oil are both capable of forming soaps with caustic soda, which, being purified by solution in alcohol, and solidified in moulds, are eligible cathartic preparations. DIURETICS, EXPECTORANTS, AND DIAPHORETICS. 717 Diuretics and Expectorants. These classes of medicines are very little given in the form of pill or powder. No. 67.—Pilulas Scillas Composites U. S. P. Reduced. Each. Take of Squill, in fine powder . 3j gr- vj J gr. Ginger do. . 3ij gr- xij 1 gr. Ammoniac do. . 3ij gr- xij 1 gr- Soap, in fine powder . 3iij gr- xviij IJ gr. Syrup, a sufficient quantity q. s. Mix the powders, then beat them with the syrup so as to form a pilular mass, to be divided into 120 pills. (Twelve pills for the reduced quantity.) Soap and syrup seem a poor kind of mixture, especially as either would be a sufficient excipient without the other. No. 68.—Aromatic Pills. (Mutters) Take, of Oil of copaiva, " cubebs, " turpentine, each.....f 3j- Magnesia.......f 3\j- Mix, and form sixty pills. * Some recipes direct 4 grains of powdered opium to this number. They would be improved in a pharmaceutical aspect by substituting copaiva and Venice turpentine for the oils of copaiva and turpentine. The dose is two pills three times a day in gonorrhoea. M. Ricord prescribes tar and copaiva combined; they are said to neutralize each other's noxious tastes and to be less liable to disagree with the patient than copaiva alone. The proportions of this mixture are 275 parts of copaiva to 35 of tar and 25 of magnesia. No. 69.— Compound Copaiva Pills Take of Copaiva.......3ij- Powdered cubebs......3iijss. Wax........3J-. By a gentle heat melt the wax, then add the copaiva and immedi- ately afterwards sift in the cubebs, stirring thoroughly. While it is yet warm roll out and divide into 100 pills. Diaphoretics, &c. No. 70.—Pulvis Ipecacuanha Compositus U. S. P. (Dover's Powder) (Pulvis Ipecacuanhae et Opii, U. S. P. 1850.) Take of Ipecacuanha, in powder . . . . gr.j. Opium, dried and in fine powder, each 3j gr. J. Sulphate of potassa . . • 3j gr- ynj. Rub them together into a very fine powder. Dose, ten grains, the reduced quantity in the above recipe. This valuable preparation is too well known to require much comment; it is used in a great variety of cases in which a sedative diaphoretic is mdi- 718 ON POWDERS, PILLS, SUPPOSITORIES, ETC. cated. It should be remembered that the opium is to be dried before being weighed, otherwise the powder will be deficient in strength. It should also be well and thoroughly triturated from containing hard crystals to an almost impalpable powder. It is said to be less liable to nauseate in the form of pills, which may be made with some suitable extract or with honey, to con- tain 3 to 4 grains of the powder. Alteratives. No. 71.—Pilules Antimonii Composites U. S. P. (Plummer's Pills.) Each. Take of Sulphurated antimony, J grain. Mild chloride of mercury, each, one hundred and twenty grains . (3ij) J grain. Guaiac, in fine powder, 1 grain. Molasses, each, half a troyounce . (Iss) 1 grain. Rub the sulphurated antimony first with the mild chloride of mer- cury and afterwards with the guaiac and molasses so as to form a pilular mass. To be divided into 240 pills. This is a new officinal, though long known and much employed in England, where it is known as the compound calomel pill. Sulphurated antimony is the new name given to the precipitated sulphuret of former Pharmacopoeias. Dose of the pills, from one to two twice a day, as a powerful alterative. No. 72.—Compound Pills of Iodide of Mercury. Each. Take of Green iodide of mercury . . gr. x J gr. Resin of guaiacum . . . 9ij 2 gr. Extract of conium . . ' . 3ss IJ gr. Triturate the resin of guaiacum into a mass with a little alcohol, then incorporate with it the extract of conium and iodide of mercury, and divide into twenty pills. These pills are alterative, and may be used in scrofulous and skin diseases. Extract of sarsaparilla may be added to, or substituted for, some of the other ingredients. No. 73.—Alterative Powders of Calomel. Each R.—Hydrargyri chloridi mitis . . . gr. j T'5 Sacchari...... gr. xj -i Misce, fiat pulvis in chartulas xij dividenda. Signa.—Take one every hour (or two hours\ till the gums are touched. When there is a disposition to undue purging, from gr. ss to gr. ij of powdered opium may be added to the above quantities. No. 74.—Pil. Hydrarg. Bichhrid. (Westminster Hospital.) One pill. Take of Corrosive sublimate . . Three grains. J grain. Muriate of ammonia . . Four grains. \ grain. Crumb of bread . . Sufficient. Mix. Make into 24 pills. Dose, one pill three times a day. LAXATIVE CAKE—GRANULES. 719 E MMENAGO GUES. No. 75.—Dr. Ottos Emmenagogue Pills. Take of Dried sulphate of iron . . . . gr. xlviij. Aloes, in powder.....gr. xij. Turpentine......gr. xxxij. Oil of turpentine.....gtt. x or q. s. Make a mass, and divide into thirty pills. Dose, two, three times a day. Prescribed originally by the late Dr. J. C. Otto, and very frequently by the late Dr. Isaac Parrish. A similar recipe is often directed by Dr. Pepper, in the Pennsylvania Hospital Clinique. The cautious addition of oil of turpentine insures an adhesive and plastic mass. Numerous pills containing aloes, myrrh, and iron, given under the head of tonics and cathartics, are much used as emmenagogues. (See also Hooper's Female Pills, among the patent medicines.) Trochisci.—Lozenges. In addition to the description of this class of preparations at page 271, &c, I append the following as an example of the mode of pre- scribing them extemporaneously:— No. 76.—Prescription for Diaphoretic Lozenges. Each. R.—Pulv. ipecac. . . - . . . . gr. vj £ or. Potassae citrat......3j 2J gr. P. ext. glycyrrh., 4 gr. Pulv. acacias, a a.....3j; 9ij 4 gr. Tinct. Tolutani.....gtt. vj \ drop. M.—Ft. trochisci xxiv. Dose, for a child, one every two hours. The mode of dividing this mass after rolling it into a rectangular sheet may be to cut it equally into six oblong sheets, each of which may be cut into four equal parts by a spatula, the surface being dusted with powdered liquorice or sugar. Panis Laxans. Laxative Cake. This preparation, which is somewhat used abroad, has not, I believe, been introduced into the United States. It is prepared by painting the under side of small biscuits with an alcoholic solution of jalap resin, 2 grains of the resin to each, and covering the surface with a thin layer of a mixture consisting of white of egg, sugar, and a little tragacanth, beaten together. The dose is 2 or 3 cakes for a grown person, 1 for a child of 6 to 8 years. The substitution of resin of po- dophyllum would be an improvement on the score of cheapness. Granules or Pellets. Thi? species of preparation was introduced into practice by the homoeopathic practitioners and, as applied to some powerful remedies, has been introduced into regular practice. Sugar granules are made by the confectioner. They are medicated by the pharmaceutist as follows: The dose to be contained in each granule is first determined; the required quantity of the medicinal substance is now dissolved in 720 ON POWDERS, PILLS, SUPPOSITORIES, ETC. strong alcohol or ether, sufficient to moisten the requisite quantity of pellets; these being now counted out are to be agitated with the solu- tion in a shallow dish till it is equally divided among them and until the solvent has evaporated. The granules are liable to vary somewhat in the quantity of the absorbed solution, and it is therefore important that the agitation be continued without intermission until no trace of moisture can be detected; the employment of the strongest alcohol or ether is necessary, so that a larger amount of the solvent may be employed without liquefying the sugar. Such medicines only are pre- pared in this way as are given in very small doses, and the vegetable alkalies and neutral principles are particularly adapted to it. Gene- rally, more than one of the granules contain the full dose of the medi- cine. It has become customary to have them contain the one-hun- dredth, one-fiftieth, one-twentieth, or the one-sixteenth part of a grain of the medicinal compound. Suppositories. These are rounded, generally elongated, masses, designed to be in- serted into the rectum for the purpose of affecting the. lower intestine, or, by absorption, the system generally. The only officinal preparation generally prescribed in the form of suppository, is—■ No. 77.—Pilulae Saponis Composites U. S. P. Take of Opium, in fine powder, sixty grains. Soap, in fine powder, half a troyounce. Beat them together with water, so as to form a pilular mass. The foregoing and simple soap suppositories are formed by cutting the mass and rolling it into convenient shapes. Suppositories are also prepared from honey, by boiling down this substance till it becomes sufficiently hard to retain its shape. There are also formulae given in the books for several anthelmintic, anti-hemorrhoidal, astringent, em- menagogue, laxative, and vaginal suppositories, as well as for bella- donna, calomel, cicuta, mercurial, and quinine suppositories. From Gray's "Supplement to the Pharmacopoeia," the following formula for an anthelmintic suppository, taken from the "Codex Medic. Hamburg," 1845, is selected. No. 78.—Take of Aloes......3vj. Common salt .... liss. Spanish soap .... liss. ^ Starch......gviij'. Mix and make into a mass with honey, and then form into cones of the required size. No. 79.—Anthelmintic Suppositories. Take of Aloes, in powder.....Iss. Chloride of sodium.....3iij. Flour........Iij. Honey.......Sufficient. Form into a firm paste, and make into twelve suppositories. Used in the treatment of ascarides. suppositories. 721 Medicated Suppositories of Cocoa-butter. Since the recent general introduction of suppositories in Philadel- phia, attention has been increasingly turned to the use of cocoa-butter, as a vehicle for all the remedies prescribed in that form; this fat is, however, rather too soft for such use without admixture. Dorvault directs about an eighth part, by weight, of wax to be added, to im- part the proper hardness. Common tallow, mixed with the same pro- portion of wax, serves as a cheap, though perhaps inferior substitute. In the chapter on Dispensing, full directions are given for the prepa- ration of these. The following proportions are used in Philadelphia, but the medi- cinal ingredients may be mixed and varied to any extent. Cocoa-butter alone, and combined with Extract of opium, Acetate of morphia, £ to 2 grains. g- to £ grain. Extract of belladonna, £ to 1 grain. Tannic acid, Acetate of lead, Monsell's salt Santonine, Sulphate of quinia, Podophyllin, Mercurial ointment, 3 to 5 grains. 3 to 5 grains. 1 to 3 grains. 1 to 3 grains. 1 to 5 grains. 1 to 2 grains. 5 grains. Some pharmaceutists issue catalogues of suppositories with num- bers affixed to each formula, by which it is designed they shall be prescribed; there seems no advantage in this method to compensate for its liability to lead to confusion and mistakes. (See paper on this subject by E. Parrish and W. C. Bakes, "Am. Journ. Pharm.," 1861, p. 5; also paper by W. C. Bakes, 1863, p. 228; also the Chapter on the Art of Dispensing.) In the occasional instances in which it is desirable to thrust the sup- pository some distance above the external orifice of the rectum, the instrument here figured may be used; it is made of syringe-metal, or Fig. 205. 00=g Tube and piston for introducing suppositories. of wood. A. B. Taylor, in the "Am. Journ. Pharm.," vol. xxxiii. p. 202, has figured a metallic piston, called a " suppositer," adapted to introduce suppositories, having a smaller cylindrical termination at the base of the cone, such as he prepares, but it is not adapted to the ordinary shaped cones. 46 722 EXTEMPORANEOUS SOLUTIONS, MIXTURES, ETC. CHAPTER IV. LIQUID PREPARATIONS, SOLUTIONS, MIXTURES, &c. The term mixture is applied strictly to those liquids in which in- soluble substances are suspended, but, in a more general sense, to all liquid medicines not included in one of the several classes of solutions, infusions, tinctures, &c. In the present chapter I shall for convenience include all extemporaneous preparations prescribed for internal use in the liquid form, endeavoring to adopt such a classification as will aid the student in acquiring a knowledge of the principles which should guide the practitioner in their composition. The hints given toward the preparation of ingredients into the form of pills are generally quite reversed in the case of mixtures, which should mostly be composed of substances in part or entirely soluble, or by their lightness readily diffusible in water. In mixtures, the use of excipients is not limited, as in the other case, by the necessity of not exceeding a certain bulk, but they may be freely added with a view to improving the composition physically, pharmaceutically, and therapeutically, and within certain pretty wide bounds, while the range of medicinal agents prescribed is enlarged by the addition of a great number of fluids, as the fixed and essential oils, ethers, solutions of ammonia, &c. There are reasons, however, which make the art of combining in the liquid much more difficult than in the solid form. In the presence of water, the great neutral solvent, the chemical affini- ties of various saline ingredients are fully brought into play, which, when in a dry or even a plastic condition, are without action upon each other; again, the physical difficulties to be overcome in this form of preparation are greater than in the foregoing, because the variety of materials to be combined is increased. The proper suspension of fixed and essential oils, for instance, is a matter of no little skill, and the division and diffusion of various powders require judgment and skill only attainable by a familiarity with their physical properties. There is also in the introduction of excipients and adjuvants, great scope for the exercise of ingenuity, to improve not only the flavor, but the appearance of mixtures. Next to a considerable range of practice in the composition of mix- tures, I know of no better way to become familiar with the subject, than by a study of a syllabus like that here presented, together with a number of approved formulas, such as are grouped together in this chapter. MEDICINES SUITED TO LIQUID FORM. 723 Medicines suited to Liquid Form. MOST SOLUBLE SALTS, LIGHT INSOLUBLE POWDERS, EXTRACTS, GUM RESINS, FIXED AND ESSENTIAL OILS, AND ALL THE GALENICAL SOLUTIONS. INSOLUBLE. FORMING ELIGIBLE SOLUTIONS WITH WATER. Alumen. Ammon. murias. Antim. et potass, tart. Barii chloridum. Calcii chloridum. Calcis hypophosphis. Ferri sulphas. " et pot. tartras. " pyrophosphas. Manganesii sulphas. Magnesiae sulphas. Potassae acetas. " bicarbonas. " carbonas. " citras. " chloras. " hypophosphis. " tartras. Potassii bromidum. " iodidum. Morphia? acetas. " murias. " sulphas. Soda? bicarbonas. " boras. " carbonas. " hypophosphis. " sulphas. " et pot. tartras. Sodii chloridum. Sodae phosphas. Acidum citricum. " tartaricum. " tannicum. MIXING WITH WATER, BUT NOT FORMING CLEAR SOLUTIONS. Diffused by agitation :— Magnesia. Potassae bitart. Sulphur praecip. Pulv. cinchonae. " ipecac. Calcis phosphas. Quiniae sulph. Miscible by trituration alone:— Extractum aconiti. belladonna?. conii. hyoscyami. stramonii. taraxaci. krameria. glycyrrhiza?. Confectiones. Assafoetida. Ammoniacum. Guaiacum. Myrrha. Scammonium. Suspended by the aid of viscid excipients:— Copaiba. 01. amygdalae. " ricini. " olivae. Olea essentia. Ferri protocarb. Best combined with a fixed oil or yelk of e99:— Ext. Cannabis Indica?. Camphora. 01. terebinthinae. Chloroformum. REQUIRING CERTAIN AD- DITIONS TO FORM ELIGI- BLE SOLUTIONS. Quiniae sulphas. Cinchonia? sulphas. Quinidiae sulphas. Chinoidine. Iodinium. Hydrarg. iodid. rub. Requiring viscid sub- stances, as correctives or vehicles. Ammonia? carbonas. Hydrarg. chlorid. corros. Plumbi acetas. Potassii cyanuretum. Potassa. BEST FORMED INTO SO- LUTION IN MAKING THE CHEMICAL COMPOUNDS. Ammoniae acetas. Magnesiae citras. Acid, phosphoric. Potassae arsenis. " bitartras. Arsenici et hyd. iod. Potassa. Ferri citras. " nitras. " phosphas. 724 EXTEMPORANEOUS SOLUTIONS, MIXTURES, ETC. For preparations adapted to use as vehicles or correctives of the unpleasant taste, and other properties, especially of saline substances see page 727. Of the most numerous class in the syllabus, those which form eligi- ble solutions without the addition of any chemical or other excipient, it should be remarked that many are so well adapted to combinations with other medicinal or corrective substances as to be rarely pre- scribed alone. Thus, muriate of ammonia is nearly always prescribed with expectorant remedies in cough mixtures. The bicarbonate and carbonate of potassa, and of soda with prophylactics, as in hooping- cough mixtures, or with stimulants, as in ordinary carminative and antacid remedies; acetate of potassa is much used with other diuretics. Alum and borax are best adapted to gargles and astringent washes, in which other medicines, not incompatible, may be combined. Bro- mide and iodide of potassium are instances of mineral substances, often combined with vegetable alteratives, which increase their effect and take off at the same time their very unpleasant sensible properties. In the formulas which follow, these modes of combination are illus- trated as well as those of the less soluble substances displayed in the other groups of the syllabus. The part of this work devoted to pharmaceutical chemistry con- tains the mode of preparing those solutions, the medicinal ingredients of which are developed spontaneously in the process of preparation. Chemical and Pharmaceutical Incompatibles. The subject of incompatibles is, it appears to me, too much of a stum- bling-block to the student. A moderate amount of chemical knowledge will serve to guard the practitioner against the use of incompatibles entirely, while the observance of a few simple rules will be sufficient to protect from glaring errors in this respect. In the list of substances incompatible with each other, as published in the older works, perhaps a majority are not likely to be ordered, on account of any fitness they have for each other in their therapeutical relations, while it is well known that some of the most popular of prescriptions are framed with the especial design of producing precipi- tates, which, being diffused in the resulting liquid, aid its general effect. # Authors have given too absolute a sense to the term incompatible, by giving sanction to the idea that all substances which form insoluble precipi- tates are incompatible with each other. An insoluble compound is not ne- cessarily inert, but, as experience abundantly proves, is frequently the best and most eligible form for a medicine. The reactions which occur in the organism are not to be judged of by ordinary chemieal laws, as manifested in the laboratory of the chemist. The difference of action between the animal solvents under the influence of the life force, and those employed by the chemist with the mechanical means at his command, are too well known and appreciated to require extended notice. Living beings can dissolve, appropriate, and circulate in their fluids, sub- stances which, to ordinary agencies, are most intractable and insoluble. Corrosive sublimate, when precipitated by albumen, gluten, and casein, is presented in the most insoluble form possible, and yet this mode of combina- tion is highly recommended by the French as being more easily endured by the stomach, while the alterative effect is both mild and certain. This mode of procedure is stated by Dorvault to be adapted to a number of mineral CHEMICAL INCOMPATIBILITY. 725 salts, such as lead, tin, zinc, copper, silver, platinum and gold, all of which form, with albuminous substances, compounds insoluble in water and ordi- nary solvents, but soluble in the liquids of the alimentary canal, by the aid of which they are placed in condition very suitable for medicinal action. These facts are applicable to toxicology. When in a case of poisoning from vegetable alkalies, tannin, or an astringent decoction is given ; or, after the use of a poisonous dose of arsenious acid, we give hydrated peroxide of iron; or, after corrosive sublimate, albumen; an insoluble compound is formed in each case, and yet it does not follow that these compounds are inert, but only that their immediate effects are destroyed, and their absorp- tion diminished; indeed it has been proved that, in cases of poisoning, where antidotes had been used successfully, the urine contained both the poison and antidote five or six days after they were taken. The practice of administering purgatives and emetics for the complete evacuation of poisons, even after neutralization, is founded on the fact that they are still capable of slow absorption. In connection with this subject, it may be well to mention the fact that when active metallic substances, as, for instance, the salts of mercury and of antimony, are taken for some time continuously, they seem to be deposited in the alimentary canal in an insoluble form, so that, by administering a chemical preparation which forms with them soluble salts, they sometimes display their activity to an alarming and even dangerous extent. The rationale of the use of iodide of potassium, after the long-continued use of mercurials, is, that it forms an iodide of mercury, which it dissolves and carries off through the secretions; salivation is sometimes induced, unex- pectedly, in this way. It is stated that patients, who have used antimonials, are sometimes nauseated by lemonade made from tartaric acid, owing to the formation of tartar emetic from the undissolved oxide of antimony. These facts are not without interest, in connection with the subject of prescribing. Considering it necessary, as a general rule, to avoid the association of substances which, by contact, may produce unknown or ill-defined com- pounds, or compounds different from those intended to be administered, I proceed to state briefly the most important rules relative to incompatibles:— Conditions resulting in Chemical Incompatibility.1 1. Whenever two salts, in solution can, by the exchange of their bases and acids, form a soluble and an insoluble salt, or two insoluble salts, the decomposition takes place—the insoluble salt is precipitated, or, rarely, by combining with the soluble salt, gives birth to a double salt. 2. If we mix solutions of two salts which cannot create a soluble and an insoluble salt, a precipitate will not be formed, though often there will be decomposition. 3. In mixing any salt and a strong acid, a decomposition is very apt to take place ; salts containing feeble acids, especially carbonic and acetic, are always decomposed by strong acids. 4. Alkalies in contact with the salts of the metals proper, or of the alka- loids, decompose them, precipitating their bases. 5. Metallic oxides, in contact with acids, combine with them and form salts the properties of which are sometimes unlike either the acid or the oxide. 6. Vegetable astringents precipitate albumen, gelatin, vegetable alkalies, and numerous metallic oxides, and with salts of iron produce inky solutions. 7. Glucosides, such as santonin and colocynthin, should not be prescribed with free acids or with emulsin. 1 See also the 1st chapter on Inorganic Chemioals, page 315. 726 EXTEMPORANEOUS SOLUTIONS, MIXTURES, ETC. 8. The condition most favorable to chemical action is a solution of the salts in concentrated form without the intervention of viscid substances, so that when the indications require the employment of two substances which are incompatible, it is well to form a dilute solution of one of them in a mucilaginous or syrupy liquid before adding the other. In this way the decomposition may often be averted. In the table appended, some preparations are mentioned which, as a general rule, the practitioner should avoid combining with other chemical substances ; they are best given in simple solution, or some of them, with the addition of the Galenical preparations, or simple saccharine or mucila- ginous excipients:— Acidum hydrocyanicum. " nitro-muriaticum. Liquor hydrarg. et arsen. iodid. " potassae arsenitis. " calcis. " barii chloridi. " calcii chloridi. " iodinii compositus. " potassae. " ferri citratis. " ferri nitratis. " morphia? sulphatis. Tinct. ferri chloridi. Tinct. iodinii. Antimonii et potassae tartras. Potassii cyanidum. " brotnidum. " iodidum. Ferri et pot. tartras. Quiniae sulphas. Cinchonia? sulphas. Quinidia? sulphas. Morphia? sulphas. " murias. " acetas. " valerianas. Zinci acetas. Potassae acetas. In addition to what has been said, it seems proper to notice what will be more particularly brought into view in commenting on the formulas which follow; the intentional use of medicines, in one sense incompatible, for the purpose of producing new and more desirable compounds. The proto-car- bonate of iron is in this way produced from the sulphate and a carbonated alkali; the acetate of ammonia by the addition of acetic acid to a solution of the carbonate. In the same way black and yellow wash are extempora- neously prepared by adding to lime-water, calomel and corrosive sublimate, respectively. The association of sulphate of zinc and acetate of lead fur- nishes a familiar illustration of the same fact; the resulting precipitate of sulphate of lead, occurring as an impalpable powder or magma, is favorable to the therapeutic object in view. Laudanum is quite incompatible with subacetate of lead; but one of the most popular of lotions contains these ingredients associated, so that it is not correct to say that these substances are incompatible in a medical sense, however, in a purely chemical point of view, they may be considered so. Pharmaceutical incompatibles are those in which a disturbance of a solution takes place in a way not considered strictly chemical. Observation has satisfied me that these are very commonly associated, both in pills and liquid preparations. If we add tincture of Tolu to an aqueous solution, the resin of the Tolu separates almost entirely as a coagulum, and collects on the side of the bottle, thus being lost as a medicinal ingredient of the preparation, besides rendering it very unsightly. The same remark applies to tincture of myrrh added to solution of astringent salts, and to other resin- ous tinctures prescribed in connection with aqueous liquids. On the admixture of tincture of guaiacum with the spirit of nitric ether, the resinous tincture gelatinizes into a mass, and is unfit for use. The addi- tion of tincture of cinnamon to infusion of digitalis after filtration, as directed in the Pharmacopoeia, occasions a precipitate. EXCIPIENTS USED IN MIXTURES. 727 List of Pharmaceutical Incompatibles. Comp. infusion of cinchona, with comp. infusion gentian. Essential oils with aqueous liquids in quantities exceeding one drop to f |j. Fixed oils and copaiva, with aqueous liquids, except with excipients. Spirit of nitric ether with strong mucilages. Infusions generally with metallic salts. Compound infusion of gentian with infusion of wild cherry. Tinctures made with strong alcohol, with those made with weak alcohol. Tinctures made with strong alcohol, with infusions and aqueous liquids. Excipients used in Mixtures. The consideration of excipients will bring into view the best modes of overcoming some pharmaceutical incompatibilities. In the form of mixture the following liquids are used as diluents:— Water. Compound infusion of rose. The medicated waters. Emulsion of almonds. Syrups. Honey of rose. As excipients or constituents in a stricter sense— Powd. acacia,") . -, . , Many of the extracts. 0 ' V mixed or singly. v n * Sugar, j & J Yelk of egg. Powd. tragacanth. White of egg. Confections. As flavoring agents with viscid ingredients as above— Oil of caraway. Tincture of Tolu. " cinnamon. " ginger. " cloves. Spirits of aniseed. " gaultheria. " lemon. " sassafras. " nutmeg. " bitter almond, &c. " the mints. As flavoring and coloring agents with or without viscid ingre- dients- Tincture of cinnamon. Comp. tincture of gentian. Aniseed cordial. Fluid extract of vanilla. Tincture of cardamom. Ginger syrup. Compound tincture of cardamom. Tolu syrup. Compound spirit of lavender. Curacoa cordial. Tincture of fresh orange-peel. Fruit syrups, &c The diluents are useful by enabling us to divide the doses of an active medicine to almost any extent; they correspond to the sugar, gum, aromatic powder, &c, prescribed for a similar purpose with powders, and with conserve of rose and other bulky additions used in pill masses. The immense utility of excipients, and flavoring agents generally, will be best illustrated by the examples which follow. The skilful employment of these adds greatly to the success of the prescnber. The necessity of limiting the assortment of prescriptions given, and the importance of including in them a considerable variety of medi- cinal agents will forbid the illustration of all the numerous points in this connection, and much is necessarily left to the ingenuity of the learner. 728 EXTEMPORANEOUS SOLUTIONS, MIXTURES, ETC. EXTEMPORANEOUS SOLUTIONS, MIXTURES, &o. Astringents. No. 80.—Mistura Cretes IT. S. P. (Chalk Mixtures, or Chalk Julep) Take of Prepared chalk......Iss. Sugar, Powdered gum Arabic, each . . . 3\j- Cinnamon water, Water, each.......f liv. Eub them together until they are thoroughly mixed. To this, which is a popular antacid astringent, the addition is often made of Tincture of kino, or some similar vegetable astringent, either with or without Tincture of opium. In the absence of cinnamon water, two drops of the oil of cinnamon for each ounce of that water, ordered, may be added to the dry ingredients. As the mixture does not keep very well, it is a con- venient plan for the physician and pharmaceutist to keep the powders ready mixed, and add the water when required. Chalk mixture is given in an adult dose of a tablespoonful. No. 81.—Blue Mass and Chalk Mixture. Take of Mercurial mass, in powder .... 3ss. Prepared chalk......3j- • Gum Arabic, in powder, Sugar, of each......3ss. Tincture of opium.....nixxx. Aromatic syrup of rhubarb . . . . f Ij, f5vj. Triturate into a uniform mixture. Dose, f 3j to stimulate the secretion of bile and check diarrhoea. Tincture of kino or other astringents may be added. It should be shaken before being administered. No. 82.—Carbonate of Bismuth Mixture. Take of Carbonate of bismuth.....3ij. Cinnamon water, Syrup of gum Arabic, each . . . . flij. Mix them. Dose, a teaspoonful in cholera infantum, or for an adult f Iss. No. 83.—Parrishs Camphor Mixture. (Dr. Parrish, Sen.) R.—Aquae camphorae......fljij. Spirit, lavandulae compos......f Ij. Sacchari........3j- Misce. Give a tablespoonful every two hours in diarrhoea and cholera morbus, adding ten drops of laudanum where there is much pain. This preparation, which was originally prescribed in 1832, has been found so generally useful and safe that it has become a standard remedy, and is prepared and sold by all druggists in Philadelphia, and prescribed extensively throughout the United States. TONICS. 729 No. 84.—Hope's Camphor Mixture. R.—Aquae camphoras......f liv. Acidi nitrosi ....... ^ixxx. Tincturae opii.......nixx. Misce. Dose, a tablespoonful every two hours in diarrhoea and dysentery. This formula was originally made public, after twenty-six years' experience of its use in dysentery, by Thomas Hope, Esq., surgeon, Chatham, in the "Edinburgh Medical and Surgical Journal," January, 1824. Dr. Hope was in the habit of directing nitrous acid, not nitric, which he says he has "not found to produce any good effect." I have been careful to follow his formula literally, and have for the purpose prepared nitrous acid by the pro- cess given on p. 353 ; though nitrous readily passes into nitric acid by con- tact with water, this reaction does not occur in presence of an excess of nitric acid. Few remedies have a more general and wide spread reputation than this ; it is now frequently prescribed, more than sixty years after- its virtues were originally discovered. Tonics. No. 85.—Fever and Ague Mixture. &.— Powdered red bark......3iij- Confection of opium, Lemon-juice, each ...... 3iss. Port wine ........ f liij. Mix by trituration in a mortar. Dose, three tablespoonfuls morning, noon, and night, the day the fever is off. Some recipes direct powdered serpentaria in addition to the above. Though not an elegant, this is a most efficient and valuable combination. No. 86.—Solution of Acetate of Chinoidine. Take of Chinoidine .... One ounce. Acetic acid .... One fluidounce. _ Water.....Twenty-nine fluidounces. Make a solution. Each fluidrachm contains about two grains of chinoidine, and serves as a dose. This is a cheap form of cinchona preparation, used with success in the Moyamensing Dispensary, Philadelphia. No. 87.—Mistura Ferri Composita U. S. P. (Griffith's Myrrh Mixture.) Take of Myrrh, Sugar, of each . . . • • • 3j- Carbonate of potassa . • ■ • gr. xxv. Triturate together into a fine milky mixture with Eose water......f Ivnss. Then add Spirit of lavender (simple) . . . f Iss. Sulphate of iron, in coarse powder . . 9j. Pour the mixture immediately into a bottle, which must be well stopped. 730 LIQUID PREPARATIONS, SOLUTIONS, MIXTURES, ETC. Dose, a tablespoonful, as a tonic in phthisis, and in anaemic cases gene- rally. The strict phraseology of the Pharmacopoeia has been departed from above in the hope of rendering the pharmaceutical points in the preparation more clear. The sulphate of iron and carbonate of potassa here used, form by double decomposition sulphate of potassa and protocarbonate of iron, which latter floats in the milky mixture of myrrh and sugar, giving it a green color. This is in very small proportion, so that in each fgss dose, there is not more than gr. ss. This preparation is, however, a very useful and elegant one. (See Pil. Ferri Carbonatis and Pil. Ferri Composite.) No. 88.—A good Preparation of Iron and Cinchona. (Substitute for Tinctura Cinchona? Ferrata.—See p. 154.) B.—Tinct. cinchonas comp......f liv. Ferri citratis.......3j- Acidi citrici.......gr. xv. Triturate the citric acid and citrate of iron together, and dissolve in the tincture of cinchona and quassia. Liq. ferri citratis f 3ij (see p. 420) may be used as a substitute for the rather insoluble dry salt. The dose is a teaspoonful, containing two grains of citrate of iron. The citric acid breaks up any tannate of iron as soon as formed, and although there is a liability to considerable precipitate of cinchonic red, and probably of the alkaloids, but very little iron is thrown down. No. 89.—A Concentrated Solution of Quinia and Iron. R.—Quiniae sulphatis......9j. Tr. ferri chloridi......f 3iiss. Ft. solutio. One grain of sulphate of quinia is contained in every 7| minims (about 15 drops) of the solution, which is an appropriate dose ; it may be made with three times the proportion of quinia salt. To prescribe it in a more diluted form, add water f^ij, and syrup of orange-peel (or other suitable flavor) f3iij. The dose will then be a teaspoonful, equivalent to 1 gr. of the quinia salt. Dr. Gilbert, of Philadelphia, informs me that he finds this a very useful remedy in cases of carbuncle, accompanied by an atonic condition and ery- sipelatous tendencies. No. 90.—A Bitter Tonic for Dyspepsia. R.—Tinct. cinchonae comp......f liv. Tincturae nucis vomicae.....f 3j. Misce. A teaspoonful three times a day in a little sugar and water. This is one of the best combinations of its kind, though its effect should be carefully watched and its use omitted when symptoms of muscular con- traction appear. ARTERIAL AND NERVOUS STIMULANTS. 731 No. 91.—A Tonic Cholagogue. R.—Quiniae sulphatis.......jij, Extracti leptandrae......3j. Tinctura stillingiae.......f liv. Extracti podophylli......> jiij# Olei sassafras, " gaultheriae, aa......gtt. x. Theriaci q. s. ut ft. f Iviij. Misce. Dose, a teaspoonful three times a day. This formula, by Dr. Mayes, of South Carolina, is said nearly to repre- sent the celebrated Osgood's Cholagogue so extensively used in the Yalley of the Mississippi and elsewhere. No. 92.—Mixture of Quinia, for children. R.—Quiniae sulphatis, pulv......jss. Acaciae pulveris ....... 3ss. Syrupi zingiberis......f liv. Ft. mistura. Sig.—A teaspoonful, containing a grain of the quinia salt, three times a day. The method of prescribing sulphate of quinia dissolved by the aid of aro- matic sulphuric acid, develops its taste to the utmost, while, on the contrary, by suspending it in a very viscid liquid as above, the contact with the organs of taste is less perfect, and if followed immediately by a cracker or piece of bread the bitterness is not inconveniently experienced. When not contra- indicated a few grains of tannic acid may be added to obtund the bitterness. Arterial and Nervous Stimulants. No. 93.— Carbonate of Ammonia Mixture. Each dose contains Take of Carbonate of ammonia, Powdered gum Arabic, Sugar, each Comp. spirit of ether, . " tinct. of cardam., each Water..... Make a mixture. Dose, a tablespoonful every two or three hours. A stimulant in low con- ditions, as in the last stages of disease. No. 94.—Oil of Turpentine Mixture. R—Olei terebinthinae......f3iij. " olivae........f3v. Pulv. acaciae, Sacchari, aa.......3ij- Tincturas opii......."iL. Aquae cinnamomi . . . . . f Ivss. Mix the oil of turpentine with the olive oil, and triturate these with gr. x. gr. x. . 3iss gr. x. "Ixv. ' f3ij »n,xv. . fliijss. 732 LIQUID PREPARATIONS, SOLUTIONS, MIXTURES, ETC. the gum and sugar, previously incorporated with a little cinnamon water, then dilute with the remainder of the cinnamon water, add the laudanum and shake the vial till they are well mixed. Oil of turpentine does not readily form an emulsion with gum and sugar unless mixed with some fixed oil, though the yelk of an egg may be success- fully substituted for all other excipients. Dose of the above mixture f3j (a teaspoonful) containing n^iv of the oil of turpentine and ny of laudanum. No. 95.—Mistura Assafostides U. S. P. (Milk of Assafoetida) Take of Assafoetida.......3ij- Water........Oss. Eub the assafoetida with the water gradually added until they are thoroughly mixed. A good extemporaneous way to prepare this very popular antispasmodic, is to form a wine of assafoetida, as directed by Henry N. Rittenhouse, by triturating Iss of the gum resin with Pyx wine. The gum resin should be carefully selected, so as not to require straining; this wine will keep, and is converted into the mixture by adding to water in the proportion of 3j (by weight) to each flj. James T. Shinn, of this city, proposes the following mode of pre- paration, which, while it keeps well, enables the practitioner to double the strength of the mixture if desired, or by dilution to furnish it of the officinal strength. Take of Assafoetida.......Iss. Diluted acetic acid.....flij. Water........fliv. Sugar........liv. Triturate together into a mixture. To make milk of assafoetida dilute with an equal portion of water. Milk of assafoetida is much prescribed and extensively used as a domes- tic remedy. Dose, from f3j to fjss. No. 96.— Chloroform Mixture, without Camphor. Take of Chloroform, Fixed oil of almonds, of each . . 2 fluidrachms. Powdered gum Arabic, Sugar, of each.....2 drachms. Orange-flower water .... a fluidounce. Water.......2 J fluidounces. Make a mucilage with the gum Arabic and sugar and about half a fluidounce of the water, then add the chloroform and almond oil, pre- viously mixed together—triturate into a uniform milky liquid and gradually dilute with the remainder of the water and the orange- flower water. Dose, a teaspoonful, containing about ten drops of chloroform. The liability of chloroform to separate from mucilaginous excipients is, in this case, obviated by combining it with almond oil, which may be substituted by good olive oil, and furnishes an excellent mixture. (See Elixir Chloro- formi, page 167.) NARCOTICS AND NERVOUS SEDATIVES. 733 No. 97.—Mistura Chloroforms LT. S. P. (with Camphor.) Take of Purified chloroform half a troyounce. Camphor sixty grains. The yelk of one egg. Water six fluidounces. Eub the yelk in a mortar, first by itself, then with the camphor, previously dissolved in the chloroform, and, lastly, with the waterj gradually added, so as to make a uniform mixture. j This new officinal preparation contains about ten minims of chloroform and four grains of camphor to each tablespoonful, which would be the maxi- mum dose. No. 98.—An Anodyne Mixture. (Dr. Jos. Parrish, Sen.) Take of Spt. aetheris comp., Spt. lavandulae comp., aa f3j. gtt. xl. flj- fliij. 3ij. Spt. ammoniae aromat. Liq. morphiae sulphatis Aquae ... Sacchari Misce. Sig.—A small teaspoonful every hour until relieved. This old recipe possesses unusual interest, from having been prescribed for a gentleman in Philadelphia who had it renewed at one establishment, at intervals, for nearly 30 years. , No. 99.—Mixture of Cannabis Indica. R.—Ext. Cannabis Ind....... Olei Olivae . . . . . Ft. solutio et cum, Acaciae pulv., Sacchari, aa ....... Aquae cinnamomi...... Misce, secundem artem. Dose, a teaspoonful, representing one grain of the extract. Narcotics and Nervous Sedatives. gr. xvj. f3j- 3ss. flij. No. 100.—Liquor Morphias Sulphatis U. S. P. Reduced. gr. viij Oss gr-j. flj- Take of Sulphate of morphia . Distilled water .... Dissolve the morphia in the distilled water. This is an illustration of the most convenient method of giving small doses of soluble substances ; here the proportions are so adjusted, that each teaspoonful shall represent | gr. of morphia, which is a rather small dose. A favorite prescription for after-pains in obstetric practice, is a solution of sulphate of morphia in camphor water, in the same proportion as the above. Dose, the same. 734 liquid preparations, solutions, mixtures, etc. Arterial and Nervous Sedatives. No. 101.—A Sedative, Diaphoretic Combination. In each, fSj. R.—Vini antimonii,.......Xlviij. Spt. aetheris nit., aa . . . f Iss Xlviij. Tinct. digitalis.....f 3j "iij. Syr. acidi citrici.....f I iij. Misce. Sig.—Take a teaspoonful every three or four hours. No. 102.—Remedy in Pulmonary and Catarrhal Diseases, &c, unattended by Fever. R.—Acidi hydrocyanici......gtt. xl. Vini antimonii.......f Iss. Syrupi tolutani.......f liss. Mucil. acaciae.......flij. M., fiat mistura, capiat cochl. parvum ter quarterve die. This, with several similar combinations of hydrocyanic acid, is highly recommended by Dr. Horace Green, and published by him among his selec- tions from favorite prescriptions collected from distinguished American physicians, in a scrap-book kept for the purpose. Rendered much more dilute, this is recommended as one of the best of remedies for hooping-cough. No. 103.— Creasote Mixture. Take of Creasote....... gtt. xvj. Powdered gum Arabic . . . . 3j- Sugar........3ss. Water........flij. Triturate the creasote with the gum and sugar, then gradually add the water and triturate to a uniform mixture. Dose, a teaspoonful containing one drop of creasote, used in bronchitis, phthisis, &c, and to check vomiting. Creasote is soluble in water to the extent of Tt\,v to flj, and for external use is best made into a suitable solu- tion by shaking up with water. No. 104.—Aqua Creasoti U. S. P. Take of Creasote, a fluidrachm. Distilled water, a pint. Mix them, and agitate the mixture until the creasote is dissolved. Cathartics. No. 105.— Castor Oil Mixture. Take of Gum Arabic, in powder, and Sugar, of each, 3iij; Oil °f mint, gtt. iv. Triturate into a uniform powder, and add water f 3yj, or sufficient to bring the mucilage to the consistence of castor oil, then add, by degrees, Castor oil flj, continuing the trituration till it combines into a perfect emulsion, with a uniform milky appearance; should this fail to appear, add a little more water, or, if the mucilage is evidently too CATHARTICS. 735 dilute, a little more gum, care being taken to produce the uniform milkiness. Dilute this by adding water sufficient to make f liv. This will make a perfect castor oil emulsion. If oil of turpentine is to be incorporated with it, let it be added to the mixed gum and sugar, before introducing the water and oil, or let it be first perfectly mixed with the castor oil. If laudanum, or some carminative and coloring adjuvant is desirable, it may be added at the time of bottling. In no case should the oil be intro- duced into the bottle until combined with the other ingredients, as a portion will then adhere to the sides, and be imperfectly incorporated with the gum. Each tablespoonful of this mixture contains f 3j of oil, and may be given every hour till the desired effect is produced. Several demulcent mixtures—as those of olive oil, almond oil, &c.— may be made upon this model. Copaiva mixture, introduced among the diuretics, may have a similar composition. The proportion of gum and sugar to the oily ingredient (3iij each, to flj) should be re- membered, as it applies equally to the other cases named. No. 106.—Extemporaneous Cream of Tartar Draught. Take of Tartaric acid......3ix. Water . . . . . . . . fgvj. Make solution and label No. 1. Bicarb, potassa . . . . . • 3yj. Water........flyj. Make solution, and label No. 2. Mix from one to two tablespoonfuls of No. 1 with the same quantity of No. 2, and drink immediately. In this way, the bitartrate of potassa is obtained in solution, although, if allowed to stand a few minutes, the liquid will deposit the salt in a white crystalline powder. R.- No. 107.—A Charcoal and Blue Mass Mixtu? -Carbo ligni . Sodae bicarb. 3j. 3ss. Mass. pil. hydrarg.......gr. viij. Syrupi rhei aromat.......flij. Aquae.........flij. Triturate together into a uniform mixture. Dose, a tablespoonful. This was furnished by Dr. John D. Griscom, who finds it to meet a very common indication in general practice. No. 108.—A Magnesia Mixture for Children. Take of Magnesia (Husband's) .... Powd. gum Arabic .... Triturate together, and add Aromat. syrup of rhubarb . Fennel water..... A teaspoonful is an appropriate dose. To this mixture may be added, gr. xv of mercurial mass, which should be triturated with the powder, and, if required, the addition of say t^viij 3j- 3ss. f3iij. fliss. 736 LIQUID PREPARATIONS, SOLUTIONS, MIXTURES, ETC. of laudanum, or f3j of paregoric. The precaution of shaking up before administering should not be overlooked. Eefeigerants and Antacids. No. 109.—Mistura Potasses Citratis. (Liquor Potassae Citratis U. S. P. 1850. Neutral Mixture, or Saline Draught) Take of Lemon-juice, fresh.....Oss. Bicarbonate of potassa . . . . q. s. Add the bicarbonate gradually to the lemon-juice till the acid is completely saturated, then strain through muslin. No. 110.—Liquor Potassae Citratis U. S. P. 1860. Take of Citric acid.......gSSj Bicarbonate of potassa .... 3vss. Water........Oss.' # Dissolve the acid and bicarbonate in the water, and strain the solu- tion through muslin. In preparing Mistura potassa? citratis, the use of fresh lemons is indispens- able, and it is to provide for the occasional scarcity of these that the officinal Liquor potassae citratis is prescribed. Oil of lemon, which was formerly directed in this preparation, is now omitted, and this and sugar, when con- sidered desirable, should'be prescribed with the solution. Care must be taken in adding the bicarbonate to use a glass rod, porcelain spatula, silver spoon, or similar utensil, which will not corrode or impart a metallic taste to the preparation. It will also facilitate the operation of saturating the acid to triturate the crystals of bicarbonate in a dry mortar into a powder before adding it, little by little, to the liquid. The delay of filtering through paper may be very much obviated by using a fine muslin strainer, or by plugging the base of a glass funnel with some cotton, and pouring the liquid through it into the containing vial; it is an object to conduct this operation quickly, so as to retain and bottle up, as much as possible, the carbonic acid gas libe- rated in the reaction. In making the solution both citric acid and the bicarbonate are directed to be weighed beforehand, and then the whole amount being added there will be no doubt as to the exact saturation of the acid ; this is not practica- ble in the lemon-juice process, as there is no certainty as to its strength. In saturating lemon-juice it is well to cease adding the bicarbonate before it becomes perfectly saturated, or rather to err on the side of acidity than that of alkalinity. A slight excess of alkali may render the mixture quite dis- agreeable, while, on the other hand, the excess of acid should be extremely small. This subject may be concluded by presenting the following additional formulas for similar preparations :— Reduced. No. 111.—Take of Citrate of potassa . . . 3vj siij. Water . l . . . .Oss fliv. Sugar.....3SS gr. xv. Oil of lemon . . . n\,j gtt. j. Make a solution. Here there is no effervescence, and, consequently, no carbonic acid in the solution. In other respects it is the best recipe, because so readily made. The sugar may be omitted or not, at pleasure, but seems to me to improve REFRIGERANTS AND ANTACIDS. 737 it. The substitution of carbonic acid water for common water is an improve- ment in making this preparation. The following recipe is that of my friend, Ambrose Smith :— No. 112.—To Make Effervescing Neutral Mixture Extemporaneously. Reduced. Take of Bicarbonate of potassa . . liij 3yj. Citric acid .... Iij,3iij Iss,9ij,gr.v. Sugar.....giss 3iij. Oil of lemon . . . gtt. xvj "liv. Mix thoroughly and reduce to a uniform powder, and keep in a well-stopped bottle. To make neutral mixture, dissolve 3yj, 9j in Oss water (3iij, gr. x to f liv); this proportion, however, is somewhat less than the strength of the lemon-juice saturated with bicarbonate of potassa, and is considered an improvement, in view of the free and constant use of the preparation. No. 113.—Effervescing Draught. Take of Bicarbonate of potassa.....3ij to 9ij. Water........fliv. Make a solution. Directions.—Take a tablespoonful of lemon-juice diluted with a table- spoonful of water, and add to it in a tumbler a tablespoonful of this solution, then drink immediately. No. 114.—Effervescing Draught without Lemon-Juice. Take of Bicarbonate of potassa.....3ij; 9ij- Sugar........3j- Water........fliv. Make a solution and label No. 1, the alkaline solution. Take of Citric acid.......3ij. Oil of lemon......"I j. Water...... _ . . fliv. Make a solution and label No. 2, the acid solution. Directions.—To a tablespoonful of No. 1, add a tablespoonful of water, and to the mixture, in a clean tumbler, add a tablespoonful of No. 2; drink immediately. No. 115.—Effervescing Fever Powders. Take of Citric acid, dried and powdered, 3v. Divide into twelve parts, wrapped in white writing paper. Take of Bicarbonate of potassa, dried and powdered, 3viss. Divide into twelve parts, wrapped in blue paper. _ Inclose these white and blue powders alternately in a tin box. Directions.__Dissolve the contents of a white paper in a tumbler, one- third full of cold water, then stir in the contents of a blue paper and drink immediately. . , . ,, . A dose is usually given every two or three hours during the prevalence of the fever. 47 738 LIQUID PREPARATIONS, SOLUTIONS, MIXTURES, ETC. The various forms of citrate of potassa, which are now described, constitute favorite remedies in fever; sometimes spirit of nitric ether, tartar emetic, tincture of digitalis, tincture of veratrum viride, or other remedies are added to them. The effervescing draught is said to be the best way to give altera- tive or sedative doses of tartar emetic when the stomach is irritable. No. 116.—Liquid Substitute for Dover's Powder. R.—Vin. ipecac........."Ixyj. Tinct. opii........"Lxiij. Spirit, aetheris nit........£3j. Misce. Sig.—Take at one dose diluted with water at going to bed. Antacids. No. 117.—A Mild Antacid for Young Infants. R.—Sodae bicarb. ........3ss. Aquae menthae.......fliv. Ft. solutio. Prescribed by Dr. Meigs and others. Dose, a teaspoonful, as an innocent substitute for the numerous carminatives. No. 118.—Aromatic and Antacid Corrective of Indigestion. R.—Sodae bicarbonatis.......9iv. Infus. gentianas comp.......fliiss. Aquae menthae pip.......fliij. Tinct. cardamomi comp......flss. Misce. Dose, a tablespoonful as required. The above makes a handsome preparation; it was furnished me by my friend Dr. J. J. Levick. No. 119.— Carbonated Soda Powders. For making a draught of soda water extemporaneously. Take of Bicarbonate of soda gr. xxiij. Fold in a blue paper. Tartaric acid . . gr. xx. Fold in a white paper. Directions for use.—Dissolve the powders contained in the white and blue papers in separate tumblers, each nearly half full of water, then mix their contents and drink immediately. A little syrup may be added to one or both of the glasses before mixing. These are usually put into boxes containing twelve of each kind of powders. (See Seidlitz Powders,^. 715.) Yeast Powder. A substitute for yeast in making batter cakes, having the advantage of making the batter perfectly light and ready for baking without delay, and greatly diminishing the liability to become sour. Many dyspeptics, who cannot tolerate fresh light cakes when made with yeast, can eat them with impunity when raised in this way. Fold in a blue paper, Bicarbonate of soda . . . 120 grs. " in a white paper, Tartaric acid . . . .100 grs. Directions for use.—Put the contents of a white and blue paper into taraxacum mixtuees. 739 separate teacups filled with water, and stir until perfectly dissolved Mis a sufficient quantity of batter for six or eight persons a little thicker than usual, to allow for the liquid in which the powders are dissolved; and when ready for baking stir in well the contents of one teacup, then add the other and stir it well, and commence baking immediately. A more economical way, and sufficiently accurate in view of the harmless- ness of the ingredients, is to keep supplies of the bicarbonate of soda and tartaric acid m separate bottles, which will insure their perfect dryness, and then when wanted for use take a small teaspoonful of each, and dissolve as above. The equivalent weights of these ingredients have very nearly tho same bulk. If bitartrate of potassa is substituted for tartaric acid, it must be used in about twice the quantity, and being insoluble, must be suspended in water and thoroughly stirred in. Demulcents and Diuretics. No. 120.—Mistura Amygdalae U. S. P. (Emulsion of Almonds) Take of Sweet almonds half a troyounce . . . |ss. Gum Arabic, in fine powder, thirty grains . 3ss. Sugar one hundred and twenty grains . . 3ij. Distilled water eight fluidounces . . . flviij. Having blanched the almond, beat it with the gum Arabic and sugar, in a mortar, until they are thoroughly mixed, then rub the mixture with distilled water, gradually added, and strain. The almonds may be conveniently blanched by soaking them in warm water- until the skin is softened and then separating the kernels by rubbing them between two cloths or pressing each between the thumb and fore-finger. This elegant emulsion is often varied by the use of one-fourth the quantity of bitter almonds. By diluting the officinal syrup of almonds a substitute is obtained. It is a very bland and nutritious demulcent, taken ad libitum or used as a vehicle for other medicines. As a demulcent nutrient in pul- monary consumption, it has been found a useful domestic remedy. No. 121.—Emulsion of Fluid Extract of Cubebs. Take of Fluid ext. of cubebs . . . .120 drops. Yelk of egg......one. Sugar, powdered.....two drachms. Mint water sufficient to make three fluidounces. Triturate the fluid extract with the powdered sugar and yelk of egg, and then dilute with the water. Direct a teaspoonful four times a day. This may be made by substituting 3U powdered gum Arabic, and 3J sugar for the yelk of egg. It is a fine stimulant to the mucous surfaces, adapted to catarrhs, &c., as well as to urinary diseases. The dose is f 3j, containing gtt. v of the oleoresin of cubebs. Taraxacum Mixtures. These useful cholagogue and laxative preparations may be made by the addition of fluid extract of taraxacum to any other ingredients desirable to incorporate with it, either for the purpose of increasing its action on the bowels, on the liver, or on the kidneys, as the case may require. The solid extract is also adapted to being incorporated in mixtures by trituration with about four times its weight of water. 740 liquid preparations, solutions, mixtures, etc. No. 122.—Alkaline Copaiva Mixture. R.—Copaibae, Liq. potassae, aa . . . . f 3ij. Pulv. acaciae, " sacchari, aa. . . . 3ij- Aq. menth. virid. . . q. s. ut fiat fliv. Mix the copaiva and solution of potassa, add the water, and tritu- Tate with the gum and sugar. In this prescription, which is prescribed by my friend, Dr. William Hunt, the copaiva is combined into a soap with the alkali, and would be perfectly suspended without the aid of gum and sugar, which are added to obtund the acrid taste. Of course, oil of cubebs, tincture of opium, and other adju- vants, may be added if required. The usual method of suspending copaiva is similar to that given in Prescription No. 105. The dose is a tablespoonful, containing n^xv of copaiva. No. 123.—Extemporaneous Solution of Acetate of Potassa. Take of Acetic acid .... f 3yj. Water.....fliij. Bicarb, potassa 3iijss, or sufficient to form a neutral solution. This is designed to obviate the necessity of weighing the very deliquescent acetate of potassa, and will contain, to each f3j, about ten grains of the salt, which is an appropriate dose. The admixture of fluid extract of tarax- acum, or of buchu, or of spirit of nitric ether, or comp. spirit of juniper, will be appropriate in certain cases. No. 124.—Benzoated Alkaline Mixture. R.—Potassae bicarbonat...... Acid, benzoic....... Aquae........ Syr. aurant........ Misce. . 3iij- . 3j. . flv. . flj- Sig.—One tablespoonful three times a day, after meals. Prescribed by Dr. Ellwood Wilson in torpid conditions of the kidneys and albuminuria. No. 125.—Scudamore's Mixture for Gout. Take of Sulphate of magnesia Mint water Vinegar of colchicum Syrup of saffron . Magnesia Mix. fix. flj. flj. 3ij, 9ij. ^ Dose, one to three tablespoonfuls every two hours till four to six evacua- tions are procured in the twenty-four hours. This recipe is often varied by the substitution, of a less proportion, of the wine of colchicum for the vinegar, the omission of the syrup of saffron, &c. The above is, I believe, the original prescription. expectorants. 741 No. 126.—Dewees' Cohhicum Mixture. Take of Wine of colchicum seed . . . .gtt xxx Denarcotized laudanum.....gtt' xxv ^Sfr........gr.xxx.' Water . ? %\ Mix. .....I3J< To be taken at night in one draught. No. 127.—Dr. Atlees Prescription for Neuralgic and Rheumatic Symptoms. Take of Ethereal tincture of guaiacum . . f gj. of colchicum . . . f 3yj. " of cannabis Ind. . • f 3ij. Mix. Dose, twenty-five to thirty drops every four hours, on sugar. Expectorants, &c. . No. 128.—Mistura Ammoniaci U. S. P. (Lac Ammoniac) Take of Ammoniac.......jij. Water _........Oss. Eub the ammoniac with the water, gradually added, until they are thoroughly mixed. Dose, a tablespoonful as a stimulating expectorant. No. 129.—Mistura Glycyrrhizae Composita U. S. P. (Brown Mixture) Reduced. Take of Liquorice, in fine powder Gum Arabic, in fine powder . Sugar, in coarse powder, each . Iss. 3j- Camph. tincture of opium . • f Iij f Iss. Wine of antimony .... flj f 3ij. Spirit of nitrous ether . . . f Iss f 3j. Water......flxij fliij. Eub the liquorice, gum Arabic and sugar with the water, gradually added; then add the other ingredients, and mix the whole together. The dose of this very popular cough medicine is a tablespoonful, or for children f3j. No. 130.—A Coryza Mixture of Cubebs, &c. Take of Fluid extract of cubebs . . • • f 3j- Sulphate of morphia.....gr. iss. Syrup of senega, Syrup of wild-cherry, of each . . . flij. Mix. Dose, a teaspoonful occasionally. Cubebs, by its excellent effects upon the mucous surfaces, is well adapted to the treatment of chronic coughs, coryza, and sore throat. 742 liquid preparations, solutions, mixtures, etc. No. 131.—A Balsamic Expectorant Mixture. R.—Syrupi tolutanus, " ipecacuanhas, aa.....flj. Pulv. acaciae.......3j- Tinct. opii camph., " lobeliae, aa.......f 3iij. Aquae.........Ij. Triturate the gum and water together, and add the other ingredi- ents in the vial. Dose, a teaspoonful. This was furnished by Dr. S. W. Butler, of Philadelphia Hospital, Blockley, who has prescribed it with satisfaction. No. 132.—Tolu Cough Mixture. R.—Syr. scillae........flj. Pulv. acaciae, Sacchari, aa . . . . . . , . 3iij- Aquae.........flvj. Tinct. tolutana.......f 3ij. Misce secundum artem. Dose, f 3j. No. 133.—Mixture of Acetone, Tar, &c. Take of Acetone.......f 3j. Camph. tinct. of opium, Antimonial wine, of each . . . .flj. Wine of tar (Jew's beer) .... flij. Mix. Dose, a teaspoonful. Prescribed in asthma by Dr. Washington L. Atlee. No. 134.—Spermaceti Mixture. Take of Spermaceti.......3ij- Olive oil.......3j. Powd. gum Arabic.....Iss. Water........fliv. Triturate the spermaceti with the oil, until reduced to a paste, then add the gum, and lastly the water, gradually. Dose, f 3j. No. 135.—Cochineal Hooping- Cough Mixture. Take of Carbonate of potassa......9j. Powdered cochineal......9ss. Sugar.........3j. Water.........fliv. Make a mixture. Dose for children, f 3j, every two or three hours. An old and very popular remedy. No. 136.—For Hooping-Cough. (By Golding Bird.) R.—Aluminis........gr. xxiv. Ext. conii....... Aq. anethi (vei foeniculi) . . . , Syrupi papaveris..... Sig.—For an adult, a dessertspoonful every six hours gr. xij. fliij. flij.-M. FIXED oils. 743 The use of simple tincture of belladonna in doses of from 1 to 5 drops, three times a day, is useful in most cases of hooping-cough. Fixed Oils. The taste of fixed oils may be best destroyed by adding a few drops of oil of bitter almonds to a pint of the oil, though this will not re- move rancidity, which when present is the greatest obstacle to their being acceptable. The mode of administering the fixed oils may here claim attention; by observing to prevent their contact with the mouth in swallowing, the chief objection to them is obviated. This may be variously accom- plished by enveloping them in the froth of fermented liquors, or by pouring them into a glass partially filled with iced water, or an aroma- tized water, so that no portion of the oil shall touch or adhere to the sides of the glass. When carbonic acid water is convenient, it fur- nishes, with sarsaparilla syrup, one of the best vehicles for castor or cod-liver oil; there should be but little water drawn, but it should be thrown up as much as possible into froth. There is no doubt that oil mixtures, though less conveniently taken, are more rapid and more active in their effects than the oils themselves, and the following, with the castor oil and copaiva mixtures, Nos. 105 and 122 will illustrate their best modes of preparation. No. 137.—Mixture of Cod-Liver Oil. Take of Cod-liver oil, six fluidounces. Lime-water, nine fluidounces. To the lime-water, in a pint bottle, add the oil, and shake them; flavoring ingredients may be added at pleasure. No. 138.—Mistura Olei Morrhuee Amarae. (St. Mary's Hospital.) To one ounce. Take of Cod-liver oil . . . .flj 1 drachm. Powd. gum Arabic . . . 3ij, 9ij 1 scruple. Spirit of peppermint . . . f 3j 5 minims. Infusion of quassia . . . flvij 7 drachms. Make an emulsion as directed in the case of castor-oil mixture, p. 734; dilute and add the other ingredients. No. 139.—Mistura Olei Amygdalae. (London Consumption Hospital.) In one ounce. Take of Oil of almonds . . . .flj 1 drachm. Solution of potassa . . . "Ixl 5 minims. Water......fSvij 7 drachms. Combine the alkaline solution with the oil, and dilute. Olive oil may be substituted in this formula, and neat's foot oil with a slight increase in the proportion of solution of potassa. A medicated water, as mint or bitter-almond water, may be used in part or entirely substituting water. 744 liquid preparations, solutions, mixtures, etc. No. 140.—Mistura Olei Cocos Nucis. (London Consumption Hospital.) Reduced. Take of Cocoanut oil . . . . Ij 3yj 100 grs. Spirit of ammonia . . f 3 iij 20 min. Water......flyj 6 drachms. Mix. Alteratives. Alterative preparations are often made by the addition of the various iodine, mercurial, and other alterative salts, to the Galenical prepara- tions of sarsaparilla, conium, &c. As a general rule, these salts are incompatible with each other; those which are insoluble are conveni- ently prescribed with iodide of potassium, which is, in fact, one of their most natural associated solvents. (See Syrups.) No. 141.— Cod-Liver Oil and Red Iodide of Mercury. Take of Eed iodide of mercury . . . . gr. viij. Cod-liver oil......Oj. Triturate together. This forms a clear solution, and each tablespoonful dose contains \ gr. of the red iodide of mercury ; it is a combination occasionally indicated. Iodine itself is sometimes given in the oil, and from £ to | gr. to flj makes a good addition in certain cases. Anthelmintics. No. 142.—Anthelmintic Syrup} Take of Syrup of rhubarb......fliv. Fluid extract of sennae......f 3ij. Oil of chenopodium......f 3ij. Mix them. Dose a teaspoonful three times a day. No. 143.—Emulsion of Pumpkin-Seeds. Take of Pumpkin-seeds, fresh......gviij. Sugar.........gij. Gum Arabic, in powder.....|ss. Water.........Oj. Blanch the seeds, beat them into a mass with the sugar, then add the gum Arabic, and gradually the water. Dose, a pint in the course of the day, for tapeworm. The use of the seeds of Cucurbita pepo (pumpkin) in tapeworm originated in the United States. I believe the first account of their properties was pub- lished by Dr. Jones, of Boston ; their use has now extended to Europe and to Algeria, where .they have been recently reported on favorably by M. Tarneau, a military surgeon. The form of electuary is perhaps better than the emul- sion prescribed above. It is directed to be made by depriving ten drachms of the seed of their husks, pounding them in a mortar with sufficient sugar into a paste, and adding to this a small cup of milk; to be taken at one dose, following with a dose of castor oil in two hours. 1 See also Prescription No. 94, Oil Turpentine. styptic powders, lotions, etc. 745 Jellies. Jellies made of fixed oils have the advantage of diminishing the adhesion of these to the mouth, which is their most disagreeable pro- perty. Cod-liver oil and castor oil jellies, as patented by Queru, of New York, enjoy a large sale, and are much prescribed by physicians. Without interfering with this patent, the physician may prescribe jellies of any of the fixed oils or of copaiva by the following recipe, contrived with the aid of my colleague, Wm. C. Bakes:— Take of The fixed oil, an ounce. Honey and syrup, of each, half a fluidounce. Powd. gum Arabic two drachms. Eussian isinglass forty grains. Orange-flower water six fluidrachms. Dissolve the isinglass, by the aid of heat, in half an ounce of the orange-flower water, replacing the water as it evaporates, triturate the other ingredients with the remainder of the orange-flower water into a homogeneous mass, in a warmed mortar, then form an emulsion by adding the solution of isinglass, stir as it cools and set aside to gela- tinize. The orange-flower water may soon become distasteful, and should then be substituted by other flavors, of which bitter almond most completely disguises the fishy taste of cod-liver oil. CHAPTER V. styptic and depilatory powders, lotions, collyria, injections, enemas, gargles, baths, inhalations and fumigations. Styptic Powders. The persulphate of iron (Monsell's salt), described under the head of Preparations of Iron, is perhaps best adapted to arresting hemor- rhage. The following may be instanced as a combination suited to the same purpose. R.—Eesinae pulv., Aluminae exsiccat., Acaciae pulveris, aa partes aequales. M. et in pulv. trit. Causticum Depilatorium. (London Skin Hospital.) Mix—Orpiment........3b Quicklime.......|}ss- Starch ' ' ' \ ' ' ' ' 5lX' Triturate together into a fine powder. Lotions. Soluble salts, chiefly of the astringent class, dissolved in distilled water, or in distilled rose-water, designed for external application, con 746 STYPTIC and depilatory powders, etc. stitute lotions, or washes ; these are to be applied to the surface, usually upon a folded piece of muslin or lint, chiefly for cooling and astringent purposes. Lead-water (page 459) is the only officinal lotion. Vinegar and water, or water alone, is applied for the same purposes. In va- rious chronic skin diseases, lotions containing sulphuret of potassium, chloride of zinc, corrosive chloride of mercury, borax, solution of chlorinated soda, and other chemical agents, are employed. Glycerin, by its solubility in water, and its emollient properties, is well adapted to this form of application. The recipes appended are selected as illustrations of this class; they are generally well-known preparations. No. 144.—Creasote Lotion. R.—Creasoti...... . . gtt. x. Aceti ........f3ij. Aquae ........flij. Misce. Applied to phagedenic ulceration, chancres, and a variety of sores. No. 145.— Yellow Wash. (Aqua Phagedesnica) R.—Hydrargyri chloridi corrosivi . . . . gr. xvj. Liquoris calcis.......flviij. Misce. The binoxide of mercury is precipitated as a yellow powder, and diffused through the liquid; sometimes the proportion is diminished to gr. j in each flj. It is a very popular application to certain affections and to venereal sores No. 146.—Black Wash. R.—Hydrargyri chloridi mitis.....3j. Liquoris calcis".......fjiv. Misce. ^ Protoxide of mercury is here thrown down by the lime as a black preci- pitate, though there is quite an excess of calomel. It has similar applica- tions to the foregoing. Granville's Counter-irritant or Antidynous Lotions. No. 147—The mild :— R.—Liquoris ammonias fortioris.....flj. Spiriti rosmarini.......f^vj. Tincturae camphorae ...... jgij. Misce. No. 148.—The strong:— R.—Liquoris ammoniae fortioris.....f*5x. Spiritus rosmarini......f^iv. Tincturae camphorae......f^ij. Misce. These preparations will blister in periods varied from two to ten minutes. by saturating with them a piece of linen folded five or six times over a coin, and pressing it upon the part. Over more extended surfaces, a similar method is adopted by protecting the lotion from evaporation. COLLYRIA. 747 No. 149.—Lotion for Chilblains. Take of Muriate of ammonia..... Water........ Muriatic acid....... Alcohol........ Apply morning and evening. No. 150.—Dr. Thomas's Nipple Wash. Take of Alum........ Tincture of galls...... Triturate together until as nearly dissolved as possible. No. 151.—Clemens' Almond Lotion. Take of Gum Senegal . Boiling water Strain, and when cold add- Tinct. benzoin Alcohol . Corrosive chloride of mercury Iss. liv. Sj- fliss. Sj. liv. Cong. j. flij. flij. 3j, 9j Dissolve the corrosive chloride in the alcohol, before mixing with the other ingredients. No. 152.—Milk of Roses for Chapped Hands. Take of Almonds, blanched.....Ij. Beat to a paste, and mix with— Eose-water.......flvj. Heat to about 212° F., and incorporate with— White wax.......Ij Almond oil.......Iij. White Castile soap.....Ij. Melt together and thoroughly incorporate, then add— , Honey water ....... flij. Cologne water......flj. Oil of bitter almond.....gtt. iv. Oil of rose geranium.....gtt. v. Glycerin.......flss. After washing the hands with warm water and Castile, or other mild soap, apply the milk of roses, and rub it thoroughly in, then wipe them with a dry towel. Milk of roses is adapted to being put up in rather wide-mouth vials, and is directed to be applied to chapped hands, or other excoriated parts. Collyria. Collyria are lotions or applications to the eye, called eye-washes. They are generally composed of astringent salts, as sulphate or acetate of zinc, sulphate of copper, or of iron or nitrate of silver, the propor- tion seldom exceeding gr. viij to flj. 748 styptic and depilatory powders, etc. No. 153.—Thomas's Eye- Water. Take of Sulphate of zinc, Chloride of sodium, each.....9j. Eose-water (distilled).....f gj. Make a solution, and apply, suitably diluted, to inflamed eyes. The infusion of sassafras-pith is a good addition to this and similar eye- washes. The aqueous extract, or the wine of opium, is much used in collyria. No. 154.—Collyrium Atropies Sulphatis. (Guy's Hospital.) R.—Atropiae sulphatis.......gr. iij. Aquae.........flj. Ft. solut. A substitute for solutions of extract of belladonna for dilating the pupil. Injections. Injections are solutions intended to be thrown into the external ear, the urethra, bladder, vagina, &c. They resemble the foregoing class in composition and in strength. In gonorrhoea, the use of injections of the astringent metallic salts is very common, as also of vegetable astringents. No. 155.—Injectio Argenti Nitratis. (Westminster Hospital.) Take of Nitrate of silver six grains. Diluted nitric acid five minims. Distilled water four ounces. Make a solution. No. 156.—Campbell's Injection for Gonorrhoea. R.—Zinci sulph.........3ss. Plumbi acet.........3j- Tinct. opii, " catechu, aa.......flij. Aquae rosae........f Ivj. Misce. This is an instance in which chemical incompatibles are mixed advisedly so as to produce a very fine precipitate, which being diffused in the liquid and deposited on the mucous membrane of the urethra, favors the thera- peutic effect intended. An improved form of glass penis syringe, has an enlargement of the tube, which enters the urethra, at the extreme end so as to fill the whole diameter of the tube and prevent the backward flow of the liquid, while the rounded end is less liable to produce irritation than a more pointed termination. Enemata. _ The custom of injecting tepid water and various bland and medi- cinal liquids into the rectum, for the relief of costiveness, has become GARGLES. 749 very common of latter years, and the forms of apparatus contrived are numerous and ingenious, constituting a considerable article of trade with druggists and apothecaries. The forms of self-injection apparatus made by Davidson, Mattson, and others, consisting of a gum-elastic bag designed to be grasped in the hand, and, by alternate contraction and expansion, to draw the fluid from a basin and throw it through a flexible tube and metallic injection-pipe into the rectum or vagina, has almost superseded the old kind which worked with a piston. A French pattern, however, which consists of a cylinder and piston working by a spring, designed to be wound up to its utmost tension, and then, on the opening of a faucet, to throw the whole contents in a continu- ous stream through the flexible tube and pipe, is preferable to any other in use, having the single objection of expense. The only valve in this instru- ment is in the piston, and is so simple and durable as to remove one of the most common objections to cylinder injection apparatus. Medicated enemata are much used for the relief of painful flatulence and for relaxing spasm. The following are adapted to this object:— No. 157.—Enema Terebinthinae. Take of Oil of turpentine......f Iss. Castor oil ......flj. Gum Arabic ......Iss. Water .......Oss. Make an emulsion, secundum artem. In the above the white of an egg may be substituted for the gum with advantage. No. 158.—Enema Assafcetides. (St. Bartholomew's Hospital.) Mix Tincture of assafoetida half a fluidounce. Decoction of barley one pint. Gargles. Gargles and Mouth-washes are applications much used in the treat- ment of, so-called, sore-throat, and in scorbutic affections of the gums, which are exceedingly common, and are popularly treated by counter- irritation, and by the use of astringent and stimulating gargles. In- fusions of capsicum, of vegetable astringents, and of sage, with the addition of alum, borax, or sulphate of zinc, and almost invariably honey, are the prevailing remedies of this class. The following recipes may be given:— No. 159.— Gargarysma Sodas Chhrinates. Take of Solution of chlorinated soda .... flss. Water........«1]j- Mix. No. 160.— Gargarysma Acidi Tannici. (London Consumption Hospital.) Take of Tannic acid.......1 drm. Honey........2 drms- Water........4 ounces. Mix. 750 styptic and depilatory powders, etc. No. 161.—Gargh and Mouth- Wash. R.—Sodae boratis........3j- Aquae rosae........flij. Mellis......... flj. Misce et adde Tincturae myrrhae......flss. " capsici.......f^ij. Sig.—Use as a gargle every two or three hours, diluted with water. No. 162.— Gargh of Alum. R.—Aluminis ........ Iss. Infusi lini . .....Oss, Mellis........q. s. Fiat gargarysma. Baths. Baths are either hot, warm, tepid, or cold, or consist in the applica- tion of vapor merely. They are variously medicated for the treat- ment of diseases of the skin, and for producing general or local revul- sive effects. The production of artificial sea-water is a desideratum for bathing, and may be accomplished either by the evaporation of sea-water to a granular powder, to be dissolved in water as occasion requires, or approximately by the use of the following formula:— No. 163.—Artificial Sea-Water. (Balneum Marinum) Mix—Chloride of sodium . . . Two pounds. Chloride of calcium Chloride of magnesium Sulphate of magnesia Sulphate of soda . Iodide of potassium To be dissolved in 30 gallons of water for a single bath. No. 164.—Iodine Bath. (Balneum Iodinii) Take of Iodine.....Two drachms. Solution of potassa . . . Two ounces. Water.....Thirty gallons. Used in the Skin Hospital, of London. Inhalations, Fumigations, Disinfectants, &c. Inhalation has lately been a good deal resorted to as a remedy in chronic catarrhs, bronchitis, incipient phthisis, &c. I have repeatedly prepared the apparatus and furnished the ingredients for the follow- ing:— No. 165.—Prescription for Inhalation. Into an inhaler of glass put Infusum humuli, U. S., fliv at a tem- perature of about 120° F., and add Liq. iodinii compositus, "ixx. Three ounces. One and a half ounce. Three ounces. Six ounces. One drachm. inhalations, FUMIGATIONS, disinfectants, etc. 751 Inhale from five to ten minutes, morning and evening. In acute cases, this is found to give great relief, and by continued application pro- duces most happy restorative effects. In place of Lugol's solution, it has been suggested to use an ethereal or chloroformic tincture of iodine, adding a little iodide of potassium to prevent precipitation on adding it to the hop-tea, or other aqueous liquid. In the London Consumption Hospital the following formula is used:— No. 166.—Take of Chloric ether ... 30 minims. Tincture of hyoscyamus . . .30 minims. Infusion of hops (or water) . . 8 ounces. Mix, and inhale. In several cases under my observation the use of powdered cubebs, a teaspoonful to each charge of warm water, a fresh portion being added each time, inhaled three times every day, has had an excellent effect Kg- 206' in treating bronchial affections. Fig. 206 exhibits a simple form of inhaling apparatus. An ordinary wide- mouth packing bottle is fitted with a cork which is perforated by the cork- borer or rat-tail file (see Figs. 185 and 186, page 319), so as to admit of two tubes, the smaller for the ingress of air passing nearly to the bottom of the bot- tle, while the larger, which is bent to be applied to the mouth, may have its ori- gin just below the bottom of the cork. A little cork may be put into the top of the small tube when not in use. In replenishing the inhaler, before each operation, the cork is removed. The tube may be bent by softening it over inhaler. the flame of an alcohol lamp or gas furnace, and holding it in such a position that its own weight will cause it to bend gradually and uniformly to the required curve. Fumigations. In various affections it is desirable to have the medicines act on the skin in the form of vapor or gas. For such fumigations, sulphuretted hydrogen is generated by decomposing sulphuret of potassium or cal- cium with muriatic or nitric acid; nitrous fumes by nitrate of potassa, or of soda and sulphuric acid; chlorine from chlorinated lime by muriatic acid, or by adding to a mixture of three parts of chloride of sodium and one of black oxide of manganese two parts of sulphuric acid. These are chiefly used for skin diseases, and as antiseptics and disinfectants. Alcoholic fumigations are made by setting fire to half or one ounce of alcohol in an ordinary plate; acetic fumigations, by gradually 752 CERATES, OINTMENTS, AND LINIMENTS. adding vinegar to a hot brick; ammoniacal fumigations, by throwing carbonate of ammonia upon a hot brick, or adding spirits of hartshorn to boiling hot water; such fumigations are generally applied in rheu- matic and similar affections. Fumigations are applied either to a part or to the whole body; the simplest mode of doing it is to envelop the patient in a blanket, while sitting upon a cane-seat chair, and then prepare them under the chair in the proper manner. The fumes or vapors are then allowed to reach the affected parts of the body. The head is not subjected to this treatment unless in the case of vapor baths designed also to reach the lungs. Disinfectants. Aromatic fumigations are much employed for correcting the bad odor of sick rooms; aromatic resins and balsams are used for this purpose. In the Chapter on Perfumery and Toilet Articles some preparations adapted to this use are referred to. Disinfectants which operate on chemical principles are, however, much more effectual. Prof. R. E. Rogers has directed for some of the hospitals a mixture of lime and sulphate of iron in such proportion that the protoxide of iron is rapidly reduced on exposure to the air, and by its disposition to pass rapidly into sesquioxide readily decomposes effete matters with which it comes in contact rendering them innoxious. Under the heads of Chlorine and Bromine in Part III., some of these chemical disinfectants are described. M. Agata, of London, has patented a process for calcining common cockle and other shells found on the sea-shore until they are friable and readily powdered ; this powder he mixes with half the quantity of sulphate of iron, thus producing an inodorous powder resembling ochre, which is designed to be mixed in the proportion of one part to a hundred with any feculent matter which it is designed to deodorize. When used for urine two per cent, of common tar is to be added. Dr. Crace Calvert has recently called attention to the immense utility of carbolic acid (coal tar creasote) as an antiseptic; he states that the addition of two or three drops of this acid to a pint of freshly made urine will pre- serve it from any marked chemical change for several weeks. (See Ozone, p. 332.) CHAPTER VI. CERATES, OINTMENTS, AND LINIMENTS. These classes of preparations are widely separated in the Pharma- copoeia, where an alphabetical arrangement is adopted, but they so closely resemble each other in a pharmaceutical point of view as to be naturally associated in a work like the present. The difference between a cerate and an ointment is in their relative firmness and fusibility; the former is designed to be adhesive at the temperature of the body, so as to be applied in the form of a dressing CERATES, OINTMENTS, ETC. 753 or sort of plaster; the latter is intended to be rubbed upon the surface or applied by inunction; this distinction is, however, not absolute, and the two classes nearly approach each other in properties; the name cerate is derived from cera, wax, and most of the cerates, as also some of the ointments, contain this ingredient. The medicinal ingredients which enter into these classes of prepa- rations are very numerous; indeed, almost every kind of medicine capable of exercising a topical effect may be prescribed in this form. The unctuous ingredients used in ointments are chiefly bland and unirritating fats and fixed oils, with more or less wax; the reader is referred, for some account of these, to pages 546-560. The preparation of inodorous grease is accomplished by repeated washing with water; this maybe done on a slab a little on the incline, a stream of water being set to trickle over it; the surface of the grease is then constantly renewed by an operator working a muller over it in the same way that a color-maker grinds paints in oil. The firmer kinds, such as suet, require more powerful mechanical arrangements for washing them, and in fact in France this purifying of fats is a separate branch of business, the perfumers being the chief consumers of these elegant products. Of the different ingredients of cerates and ointments lard and suet resemble each other in most of their properties, except that the latter is more solid and fuses at a higher temperature, while spermaceti is still more firm, almost brittle in consistence, and fuses with still less facility; it is recommended by a beautiful pearly whiteness which it imparts, to a certain extent, to its oily combinations. Wax is more tough in consistence and still less fusible, its chief use being to give body to cerates and the stiffer ointments. The uses of resin and turpentine are twofold, to give body to the cerates into which they enter, and to render them useful as stimulants and fit vehicles for other stimulating substances. The greatest practical difficulty with ointments arises from their tendency to become, rancid by keeping, particularly in warm climates; this is best overcome by observing to free them from moisture by the application of well regu- lated heat till the adhering water is entirely evaporated, and to keep them in well-covered jars. The ointment jar, Fig. 207, is made for the purpose, but as the lid is not air tight, a piece of stout tin foil, or of bladder, or of waxed paper, should be stretched over the top before covering it with the lid. Ointments made with the fixed oils and a suitable proportion of wax, suet, or cocoa-butter, are less liable to rancidity than those made with lard, and the introduction into the latter of small portions of balsams and some essential oils, seems to have a favorable effect upon this tendency; and it is observed that the resinous ointments are not liable to it. 48 Ointment jar. 754 CERATES, OINTMENTS, AND LINIMENTS. Classification. For the purposes of study, the cerates and ointments may be thus classified:— 1st. Those adopted to use as vehicles for medicinal substances. 2d. Those prepared by the fusion of their medicinal ingredients together. 3d. Those prepared from the first, or from lard alone, by mechanical incorporation with some active medicinal agent. 4zth. Those in which the unctuous ingredient is decomposed in the process of preparation. So great a variety of ointments and cerates have been made officinal, that there seems less occasion for departing from the national stand- ards than in the other classes of extemporaneous preparations. Of these classes, all which are officinal in the U. S. Pharmacopoeia, are displayed according to the above classification in the following Syllabi, and the leading points of interest in connection with them are given further in detail; the working formulas from the Pharmacopoeia are given, and the unofficinal, which are deemed of sufficient importance for insertion, are described in connection with the appropriate formu- las for their preparation. First Group.— Cerates and Ointments, much used as Vehicles for Medicinal Substances. Ceratum saponis. { 2 *™**l^^ P- *Wte } Firmest « healing" dressing. Ceratum adipis. 1 part white wax, 2 lard. Firmer " healing" dressing. Ceratum cetacei. { l \'^oih^' 3 White ™X'} Firm « healing" dressing. Unguentum adipis. 1 part white wax, 4 lard. Softer " healing" dressing. Tiw i,n„» ma!8 / Almond oil, sp. ceti, white wax, 1 0 ,., . .., .. „, ung. aquae rosae. < rose-water. \ softest" healing" dressing. Unguentum benzoini. 1 p. benzoin, 16 lard. Vehicle, consistence of lard. Ceratum resin*. { 5 ^ resin> 8 ^> 2 V*11™ } Stimulant dressing. Preparation and Uses. All these are simple in their mode of preparation; the ingredients are to be placed in a skillet, or capsule, and brought to the melting point, care being taken not to burn them, which may be known by the melted mass giving off the odor and appearance of smoke. When there is a great difference in the fusing points, the least fusible shall be placed over the fire first, and the others added afterwards, so as to involve no unnecessary application of heat. Then the whole is to be stirred or triturated together till thickened by cooling into a homoge- neous soft mass; it may now be set away to harden by further cooling. With a view to the whiteness and smoothness of the product it is best that the melted ingredients should be poured while fluid, though not too hot, into a mortar, in which they should be triturated with a pestle till firm. If spermaceti is an ingredient, the mortar should be warmed to obviate its tendency to separate in a granular condition on contact with a cool surface; when rose-water is added, as in the case FIRST GROUP—PREPARATION. 755 of cold cream, it is well to warm it a little, otherwise it may chill the spermaceti to its solidifying point and deposit it in a granular condition before the mixed oil and wax are sufficiently stiffened to be homogeneous with it. The use of a mortar in the preparation of cerates and ointments of this class is often obviated by stirring the melted preparation in the vessel in which it was heated, or that to which it is transferred for keeping, with a wooden spatula, till it thickens beyond the danger of separation; but, on the whole, the use of the mortar is most approved. Some pharmaceutists keep a marble or large wedgwood mortar for the special purpose ; it is so difficult to remove every trace of grease that it is not desirable to use the same mortar for this use and the general purposes of the shop. When the mortar is to be warmed an ounce or two of alcohol may be poured into it and burned. When a marble slab or tile is used it may be warmed over a slow and diffused gas flame or the furnace, shown in Fig. 154, without the wire gauze attachment, or laid a few minutes on a heated stove. The first five preparations on the above list are distinguished by different degrees of firmness and fusibility; they are all perfectly bland and unirritating, and are used for their property of protecting the part to which applied from external irritating causes and from the drying action of the air. Ceratum saponis, as now directed to be made by the improved pro- cess of the Pharmacopoeia, is an elegant application to exposed sur- faces, requiring to be spread on some suitable fabric; it is too firm to be conveniently incorporated with medicinal ingredients, except by the aid of heat, but would be a very suitable vehicle for some of the alterative and mild astringent remedies, if softened at the time of their admixture. Simph cerate, ceratum adipis, cerate of lard, like the foregoing, is almost exclusively applied to blistered or other exposed surfaces for the complete exclusion of the atmosphere and the prevention of desic- cation during the process of healing; it is not adapted to use as a vehicle for medicinal substances to be applied by inunction, nor can it be conveniently mixed with powders at ordinary temperatures. From overlooking this fact, the mistake is constantly made by physicians of prescribing simple cerate as the vehicle for iodine, the mercurials, &c.; and in view of this, some of the apothecaries vary the propor- tions, putting in one-fourth instead of one-third wax; this partially unfits it for the use for which it is mainly designed, to furnish a firm dressing which will not fuse entirely at the temperature of the body. Simple ointment, now named ointment of lard, is designed for the pur- pose just mentioned as not suited to the cerate, that of furnishing, in warm weather, a good vehicle for medicines in the form of ointment. In the winter, it is frequently substituted by lard, when that vehicle can be obtained fresh and sweet. It is not unusual to add to simple cerate and simple ointment, when fused in the process of preparing them, a little rose-water, and sometimes a very small portion of borax, 756 CERATES. OINTMENTS, AND LINIMENTS. which renders them very white without interfering with their remedial qualities. Spermaceti cerate is intermediate between the foregoing, and has the advantage of being made without the use of lard, which is sometimes difficult to procure of good quality, and always objectionable for use about the face; it is an elegant preparation, though dependent for its whiteness and sweetness upon the quality of the olive oil employed in making it. It is a perfectly bland and unirritating application, better adapted to use as a healing dressing than as a vehicle for more active medicines. Ointment of rose-water, commonly called " cold cream," is an appli- cation adapted to chapped or excoriated skin, and may be used as a substitute for lard as an excipient for medicines to be applied by in- unction ; an unofficinal formula, containing wax instead of spermaceti, is given among the working formulas, which is highly approved among some connoisseurs. Benzoated lard is the name applied to the new officinal Unguentum benzoini, adapted to substitute lard in seasons and in situations in which commercial lard would become rancid; its pleasant balsamic odor also recommends it in preference to ordinary lard; it is, how- ever, not white, and on that account less elegant than the ointment of rose-water or glycerin ointment. Resin cerate or basilicon, though included in the series, is not, like the others, free from irritating properties; it is much used as an appli- cation to burns and chilblains, and as a dressing to blistered surfaces with a view to keep up the discharge; it is also a very suitable vehicle for stimulating applications in the form of powder incorporated by the aid of heat. The resin present is also usful by preventing the tendency to rancidity to which unctuous ingredients are liable. Second Group.—Those in which the Medicinal Substances are mixed with the Unctuous Ingredient by Fusion and Digestion. n 4. f Resin, suet, yellow wax, turpen- "t 8(. „,„,.„ Cerat. resm* comp. | tine, flaxseed oil. } Stimulating. Unguent, picis liq. Tar and suet equal parts. Stimulating antiseptic. r . ,, .,. /Canth. 12 parts; lard 10 parts ; \Epispastic (Blistering Ce- ^eratum cantharidis. j yeL wax> resin? each ? partSi j- rate)# REMARKS. Compound resin cerate, or Deshler's salve, is both firmer and more stimu- lating than basilicon, though used for similar purposes in burns, scalds, &c.; it is too firm for ready incorporation with dry powders, and is mostly used by itself. An inconveniently tough consistence is one of the disadvantages attendant upon this preparation, though when it has been suitably spread, it forms a very good and adhesive application. Tar ointment, which is made by melting suet, and, while it is fluid, stirring into it an equal weight of tar until it cools and thickens, is used in scald head and various scaly eruptions with excellent effects. BLISTERS AND BLISTERING CERATES. 757 Blisters and Blistering Cerate. Ceratum cantharidis is conveniently made by the working formula appended by melting together lard, wax and resin, and sifting into the fused mass powdered Spanish flies, continuing the heat for half an hour, and then removing from the fire and stirring till cool; the active principle of the flies, cantharidin, is extracted to a great extent by this digestion in the grease, and the powder itself is also retained and adds to the effect of the preparation. This is sometimes kept in jars, and sometimes, by increasing the proportion of wax and resin a very little, is made firm enough to roll out into rolls like other plasters. Blistering cerate, when ordered in prescription as a cerate to be dispensed by weight and spread at the bedside of the patient, is ordered by its officinal name; when designed to be spread as a plaster, it is called Emplastrum epispasticum, the size being generally conveyed thus, 3x6 (meaning three inches wide by six long), or any other size desired, or a pattern may accompany, giving the shape and size. Some- times the purpose for which it is required is expressed, and the precise size and shape are left to the pharmaceutist; at others, it is left optional with the attendant whether to spread the blister himself, or to have it spread at the shop by a prescription like the following: R.—Cerati cantharidis q. s., ut fiat emplastrum epispasticum 3x6. Besides the familiar Ceratum cantharidis, the Pharmacopoeia now recognizes a preparation under the name Ceratum extracti cantharides, in which an alcoholic extract of the flies is mixed with resin, wax, and lard; it is a more elegant preparation, but is as yet but little prescribed. It is well adapted to dilution with simple cerate in the proportion of one part to four or eight as a stimulating dressing to blistered surfaces for maintaining their discharge and preventing healing. (See Work- ing Formulas) The best material on which to spread a blister is adhesive plaster cloth; if a wide margin is left, it is readily made to adhere by warming the margin over a lighted lamp, and pressing it carefully on to the part. It should also be so incised from the edges inward as to be readily adapted to the inequalities of the surface to which applied. Kid or split sheepskin, or even thick glazed paper, also answer a good pur- pose, in which case the margin is made very narrow, and three or four strips, about half an inch wide, of adhesive plaster are warmed and drawn over the outside to hold it in its place. _ Blisters to be applied behind the ears are much prescribed; in spreading these care must be taken to have them the reverse of each other, or, after they are spread, it may be found they both fit the same ear It is well, in the case of these, to leave the margin much the widest at the part furthest from the ear and below, where the hair will not interfere with its adhesion. . . . The mode of spreading blisters is too simple to require comment; m cold weather or when the cerate is very stiff, I use the thumb, which makes a smooth and very neat surface; a spatula slightly warmed answers very well. After the blister is spread, it is well to paint over its surface with ethereal tincture of cantharides, which increases its 758 CERATES, OINTMENTS, AND LINIMENTS. activity, or to lay a piece of tissue paper over its whole surface, and coat this with the ethereal tincture. It is considered a good precaution to remove the blister as soon as it has thoroughly reddened the skin, and then to apply a cataplasm of bread and milk, elm bark, or ground flaxseed, to raise the skin. A blistering plaster usually requires from six to twelve hours to raise the skin. The different blistering tissues are, I believe, all made by extracting can- tharidin from the flies with ether or oil of turpentine, and forming it into a plaster, which is then spread on paper, silk, or other suitable fabric. The proportions indicated by Mohr and Redwood are as follows : To one part of the yellowish oily residue left after the evaporation of the ether from ethereal tincture of flies, add two parts of melted white wax and spread a thin layer over the surface of paper. The following formula is from the "London Pharm. Journ.," 1860 :— Take of Cantharidin . . . . . . . . j . White wax........3J- Olive oil ......... 3T- Melt together. With a brush paint it over some white bibulous paper and hang it up to dry in a current of air. Take a piece of pink paper of the form and size required ; the under colored side paint over with a weak solution of India rubber (or gutta-percha), cut the cantharidin paper to the form and size of the pink paper, less a margin, and while the pink paper is still sticky place the other upon it. Before applying, this blister should be held over the steam escaping from a vessel of hot water. Third Group.—Cerates and Ointments, in which the Medicinal Ingre- dients are incorporated by trituration with the Unctuous Ingredients. Cerat. sabinse. Ung. gallae. Ung. acidi tannici. Ung. veratriae. Cerat. zinci carb. Ung. zinci oxidi. Ung. antimonii. Ung. hydrargyri. Ung. hydrar. ammon. Ung. hydr. oxid. rub. Ung. iodinii. Ung. iodinii comp. Ung. potassii iodid. Ung. plumbi carb. Ung. sulphuris. Ung. belladonnae. Ung stramonii. Ung. tabaci. Ung. creasoti. ( Eth. ext. from 1 p. savin ( 4 parts resin cerate. ( 1 part powdered galls. ( 7 parts lard. 5ss+Aq. f5ss to § j lard. 9j to §j lard. ( 1 part ZnO,C02. ( 5 parts oint. of lard. 1 part ZnO, 6 parts lard. {1 part tart. ant. et potass 4 parts lard. ( 2 parts mercury. ( 1 each lard and suet. ( 1 part HgCl,HgNH2. ( 12 parts simple ointment. ( 1 part HgO (fine powder) ( 8 parts ointment of lard. (1 part I; £ part KI. \ 24 parts lard -\- Aq. ( 1 part I; 2 parts KI. ( 32 parts lard. ( 1 part KI + 1 part Aq. ( 8 parts lard. ( 1 part PbO,C02 ( 6 parts ointment of lard. 1 part S to 2 lard. 1 part extract, 8 lard. 1 part extract, 8 lard. ( Aqueous ext. from 1 part ( to 16 parts lard. f 5ss to lard ^j. } Stimulating dressing applied to blisters. {• Astringent, used in piles. do. do. An anodyne in neuralgia. J- Mild astringent and desiccant. Mild astringent and desiccant. ^ Vesicant, producing pustular J eruptions. ) Alterative, used to produce ) mercurial impression. } Alterative, desiccant. > Stimulating, alterative. > Discutient, alterative. I Discutient, alterative. Discutient, alterative. } J- Astringent and desiccant. Specific in itch. Anodyne. do. do. Antiseptic, mild escharotic. FOURTH GROUP. 759 It would extend this chapter beyond convenient limits to dwell in detail upon each of these numerous officinal triturated ointments. They may be made in a mortar with the use of the pestle, or on a tile or slab with a spatula. The medicinal ingredients of a dry substance should be invariably in a very fine powder before incorporating it with the ointment. (See chapter on Dispensing) This condition may be attained without the necessity of soiling a mortar, by the use of a muller. Iodine is a crystalline substance which cannot be conveniently reduced to fine powder, and is therefore directed to be dissolved by the use of iodide of potassium and a few drops of water. In a few instances it is found necessary to soften the unctuous ingre- dients beforehand by a moderate heat, applied either to the spatula or by warming the tile; the combustion of a little alcohol on the surface of a tile will give it the requisite warmth without the risk of fractur- ing it by the application of heat from beneath. The use of the narcotic extracts in the preparation of ointments is a recent improvement, and may be extended to all medicines of that class, including opium, which in aqueous extract, possesses advantages over the powdered drug. Belladonna and stramonium ointments, as shown in the syllabus, are made by trituration from the extracts, taking care to soften the extract by triturating with water before adding the simple ointment or lard. This process is only adapted to small quantities to be speedily used, it will separate in warm weather by the softening of the lard, and is liable to be gritty on account of the formation of crystals of oxalate of potassa in the extracts. Aconite ointment is made in the same way and in the same propor- tion, 3j to 3j. Red precipitate ointment (ung. hydr. oxid. rub.) is a very important preparation, being most extensively used as an eye-salve and the basis of many of the popular medicines of that description. By tritura- tion, the oxide becomes changed to an orange-colored powder, which imparts a similar hue to the ointment; it is variously diluted to meet the case for which prescribed; when it becomes rancid it assumes a red color, or changes to blue, and should be thrown away. Fourth Group.—In which the Fatty Ingredient is Chemically Changed. Ung. hydrargyri nitratis. A powerful stimulant, "sub-caustic," and alterative. Cerat. plumbi subacetatis. A cooling sedative application. This group, containing one each of the officinal classes unguenta and cerata, has been reduced by the transfer of ceratum saponis, by the substitution of an improved process, to the first group. Citrine Ointment—-The first named is made by adding an acid solu- tion of nitrate of mercury to a mixture of lard and neat's foot oil heated to 200°, an effervescence occurs, sometimes inconveniently, and by stirring with a wooden or horn spatula the ointment subsides in the form of a beautiful citrine-colored mass of convenient consistence, which is much esteemed as a "sub-caustic" application. The oil un- 760 CERATES, OINTMENTS, AND LINIMENTS. dergoes a change in this process, being, as is supposed, partially con- verted into elaidin and elaic acid, and the nitrate of mercury being reduced to a yellow sub-nitrate. Owing to circumstances not fully understood this preparation varies much in consistence and in color, sometimes too by age it is changed to a dark color by the deposition of sub-oxide of mercury, when fusion for a short time with a little nitric acid will restore the color. Goulard's cerate of sub-acetate of lead is a very desirable cooling ap- plication, but of all the officinal ointments is the most prone to change, a sort of lead soap is formed by the action of the solution of sub- acetate upon the melted oily mixture. The preparation should have a rich, yellowish-green tinge, derived from the olive oil, and a pleasant odor of camphor, without rancidity. If perfectly excluded from the air it will keep pretty well, but should be made in small quantity. When of a white color and rancid odor it should be invariably rejected as worse than worthless. (See Extemporaneous Process) working formulas for preparing the cerates and ointments. Cerata. Ceratum Adipis U.S.P. (Cerate of Lard) Ceratum Simplex, U. S. P. 1850. Take of Lard eight troyounces. White wax four troyounces. Melt them together, and stir the mixture constantly until cool. Ceratum Cantharidis U. S. P. (Blistering Cerate) Take of Cantharides, in very fine powder, twelve troyounces. Yellow wax, Eesin, each, seven troyounces. Lard ten troyounces. To the wax, resin, and lard, previously melted together, and strained through muslin, add the cantharides, and, by means of a water bath, Keep the mixture in a liquid state for half an hour, stirring occa- sionally. Then remove it from the water bath, and stir it constantly until cool. Ceratum Cetacei U. S. P. (Cerate of Spermaceti.) Take of Spermaceti a troyounce. White wax three troyounces. Olive oil five troyounces. Melt together the spermaceti and wax; then add the oil previously heated, and stir the mixture constantly until cool. Ceratum Extracti Cantharidis U. S. P. (Cerate of Extract of Cantharides.) Take of Cantharides, in fine powder, five troyounces. Stronger alcohol two pints and a half, or a sufficient quantity. Eesin three troyounces. Yellow wax six troyounces. Lard seven troyounces. Moisten the cantharides with stronger alcohol, pack them in a cylin- WORKING FORMULAS. 761 drical percolator, and gradually pour on stronger alcohol, until the liquid passes nearly colorless. Evaporate the filtered liquid, by means of a water bath, to the consistence of a soft extract. Mix this with the resin, wax, and lard, previously melted together, and keep the whole at the temperature of 212° for fifteen minutes. Lastly, strain the mixture through muslin, and stir it constantly until cool. Ceratum Plumbi Subacetatis U. S. P.1 ( Goulard's Cerate) Take of Solution of subacetate of lead two fluidounces and a half. White wax four troyounces. Olive oil eight troyounces. Camphor thirty grains. Mix the wax, previously melted, with seven troyounces of the oil. Then remove the mixture from the fire, and, when it begins to thicken, gradually pour in the solution of subacetate of lead, stirring con stantly with a wooden spatula until it becomes cool. Lastly, add the camphor dissolved in the remainder of the oil, and mix them. Ceratum Resinae U. S. P. (Basilicon Cerate) Take of Eesin ten troyounces. Yellow wax four troyounces. Lard sixteen troyounces. Melt them together, strain the mixture through muslin, and stir it constantly until cool. Ceratum Resinae Compositum U. S. P. (Deshhr's Salve) Take of Eesin, Suet, Yellow wax, each, twelve troyounces. Turpentine six troyounces. Flaxseed oil seven troyounces. Melt them together, strain the mixture through muslin, and stir it constantly until cool. Ceratum Sabines U. S. P. ( Cerate of Savine) Take of Savine, in fine powder, three troyounces. Eesin cerate twelve troyounces. Ether a sufficient quantity. Moisten the savine with ether, pack it firmly in a cylindrical per- colator, and pour on ether until the filtered liquid passes nearly color- less. Evaporate this spontaneously to the consistence of syrup, add the concentrated liquid to the resin cerate, softened by a gentle heat, and mix them thoroughly. Ceratum Saponis U. S.P. (Soap Cerate). Take of Soap plaster two troyounces White wax two troyounces and a half. Olive oil four troyounces. Melt together the plaster and wax, add the oil, and, after continuing the heat a short time, stir the mixture until cool. ' See remarks on page 760, and Extemporaneous Process, page 766. 762 CERATES, OINTMENTS, AND LINIMENTS. Ceratum Zinci Carbonatis U. S. P. Substitute for Ceratum Calaminap, Pharm. 1850. Take of Precipitated carbonate of zinc two troyounces. Ointment of lard ten troyounces. Mix them. i Unguenta. Unguentum Acidi Tannici U. S. P. Take of Tannic acid thirty grains. Water half a fluidrachm. Lard a troyounce. Eub the acid first with the water, and then with the lard, until they a re thoroughly mixed, avoiding the use of an iron spatula. Unguentum Adipis U. S. P. ( Unguentum Simplex, Pharm. 1850.) Take of Lard eight troyounces. White wax two troyounces. Melt them together with a moderate heat, and stir the mixture con- stantly while cooling. Unguentum Antimonii U. S. P. (Tartar Emetic Ointment) Take of Tartrate of antimony and potassa, in very fine powder, ' one hundred and twenty grains. Lard a troyounce. Eub the powder with a little of the lard, then add the remainder, and thoroughly mix them. Unguentum Aquas Rosas U. S. P. (Cold Cream.) Take of Oil of sweet almond three troyounces and a half. Spermaceti a troyounce. White wax one hundred and twenty grains. Eose water two fluidounces. Melt together, by means of a water bath, the oil, spermaceti, and wax; then gradually add the rose water, and stir the mixture con- stantly while cooling. Unguentum Belladonnas U. S. P. (Ointment of Belladonna) Take of Extract of belladonna sixty grains. Water half a fluidrachm. Lard a troyounce. Eub the extract first with the water until rendered uniformly soft, then with the lard, and thoroughly mix them. Unguentum Benzoini U. S. P. (Benzoated Lard.) Take of Benzoin, in moderately coarse powder, a troyounce. Lard sixteen troyounces. Heat them together, by means of a water bath, for two hours, with occasional stirring; then strain without pressure, and stir the product constantly while cooling. 1 See unofficinal formula page 765, also remarks on page 756. MERCURIAL OINTMENTS. 763 Unguentum Creasoti U. S. P. (Ointment of Creasote) Take of Creasote half a fluidrachm. Lard a troyounce. Mix them. Unguentum Galles U.S.Y. (Gall Ointment.) Take of Nutgall, in very fine powder, a troyounce. Lard seven troyounces. Mix them. Unguentum Hydrargyri1 U. S. P. (Ointment of Mercury) Take of Mercury twenty-four troyounces. Lard, Suet, each, twelve troyounces. Eub the mercury with a troyounce of the suet and a small portion of the lard until the globules cease to be visible, then add the re- mainder of the lard, and of the suet softened with a gentle heat, and thoroughly mix them. Unguentum Hydrargyri Ammoniati U. S. P. ( White Precipitate Ointment) Take of Ammoniated mercury, in very fine powder, forty grains. Ointment of lard a troyounce. Mix them. Unguentum Hydrargyri Nitratis* U. S. P. (Citrine Ointment) Take of Mercury a troyounce and a half. Nitric acid three troyounces and a half. Neatsfoot oil twelve troyounces. Lard four troyounces and a half. Dissolve the mercury in the acid, then heat together the oil and lard in an earthen vessel, and when the temperature reaches 200°,_ re- move the mixture from the fire. To this add the mercurial solution, and, with a wooden spatula, stir constantly so long as effervescence continues, and afterwards occasionally until the ointment stiffens. Unguentum Hydrargyri Oxidi Rubri U. S. P. (Red Precipitate Ointment) Take of Eed oxide of mercury, in very fine powder, sixty grains. Ointment of lard a troyounce. Add the oxide of mercury to the ointment previously softened with a gentle heat, and thoroughly mix them. This ointment should have a distinctly orange-color, and should be free from rancidity and grit. ' This ointment is usually made by manufacturers on a large scale, as it sometimes contains only one part of mercury to two or three of the unctuous ingredients. When ordering H the physician should specify « one-half mercury" Its uses are numerous, Z of the chief of which is that of inducing the mercurial impression by its applica- tion to the thighs, armpits, &c. The numerous curious synonyms applied to this oint- ^^^^07111 n^alwLyf'at hand, and I am in the habit of substituting bnttPr for it and the lard, making a uniformly sweet and elegant ointment. The mtno acid should be of the full officinal strength, sp. gr. 1.42. 764 CERATES, OINTMENTS, AND LINIMENTS. Unguentum Iodinii U. S. P. (Ointment of Iodine) Take of Iodine twenty grains. Iodide of potassium four grains. Water six minims. Lard a troyounce. Eub the iodine and iodide of potassium first with the water, and then with the lard until they are thoroughly mixed. Unguentum Iodinii Compositum U.S.P. (Compound Ointment of Iodine.) Take of Iodine fifteen grains. Iodide of potassium thirty grains. Water thirty minims. Lard a troyounce. Eub the iodine and iodide of potassium first with the water, and then with the lard until they are thoroughly mixed. Unguentum Picis Liquides U.S. P. (Tar Ointment.) Take of Tar, Suet, each, twelve troyounces. Mix the tar with the suet previously melted with a moderate heat, and, having strained the mixture through muslin, stir it constantly while cooling. Unguentum Plumbi Carbonatis U. S. P. (Ointment of Carbonate of Lead.) Take of Carbonate of lead, in very fine powder, eighty grains. Ointment of lard a troyounce. Add the carbonate of lead to the ointment previously softened with a gentle heat, and thoroughly mix them. Unguentum Potassii Iodidi U. S. P. (Ointment of Iodide of Potassium) Take of Iodide of potassium, in fine powder, sixty grains. Water a fluidrachm. Lard a troyounce. Dissolve the iodide of potassium in the water, and mix the solution with the lard. Unguentum Stramonii U. S. P. (Ointment of Stramonium) Take of Extract of stramonium sixty grains. Water half a fluidrachm. Lard a troyounce. Eub the extract first with the water until rendered uniformly soft, then with the lard, and thoroughly mix them. Unguentum Sulphuris U. S. P. (Ointment of Sulphur) Take of Sublimed sulphur a troyounce. Lard two troyounces. Mix them. GLYCERIN OINTMENT AND COLD CREAM. 765 Unguentum Sulphuris Iodidi U.S. P. (Ointment of Iodide of Sulphur.) Take of Iodide of sulphur thirty grains. Lard a troyounce. Eub the iodide of sulphur, first reduced to a fine powder, with a little of the lard, then add the remainder, and thoroughly mix them. Unguentum Tabaci U. S. P. (Ointment of Tobacco) Take of Tobacco, in fine powder, half a troyounce. Lard eight troyounces. Water a sufficient quantity. Moisten the tobacco with a little water, introduce it into a conical glass percolator, and, having pressed it firmly, pour water upon it until four fluidounces of filtered liquid have passed. Evaporate this to the consistence of a soft extract, and mix it thoroughly with the lard. Unguentum Veratries U.S.P. (Ointment of Veratria.) Take of Yeratria twenty grains. Lard a troyounce. Eub the veratria with a little of the lard; then add the remainder and thoroughly mix them. Unguentum Zinci Oxidi U.S.P. (Ointment of Oxide of Zinc) Take of Oxide of zinc eighty grains. Lard a troyounce. Mix them. Selections from Unofficinal Cerates and Ointments. Glycerin Ointment. (J. H. Eckey.) Take of Spermaceti.......Iss. White wax.......3j-_ Oil of almonds......f 3ij. Glycerin.......f-!j- Melt the wax and spermaceti with the oil of almonds at a moderate heat; put these into a wedgewood mortar, add the glycerine and tri- turate until cold. Glycerine can only be incorporated with fats when they are softened to about its consistence; it is not, like an oil, a solvent for fats. This is a bland and pleasant application, which if desired may be appropriately perfumed to render it more popular. Cold Cream. Take of White wax Oil of almonds Eose-water Borax Oil of roses (Dr. L. Turnbull's Eecipe.) 3J. fgiv. 3ss. "iv. Let the wax be melted and dissolved in the oil of almonds by a gentle heat then dissolve the borax in the rose-water and add the solution to the heated oil, stirring constantly till cool; then add the 766 CERATES, OINTMENTS, AND LINIMENTS. oil of roses, stirring. It is well to warm the rose-water a little, or to add it to the ointment before it is much cooled, thus preventing any granulation of the wax. Thus prepared, cold cream is a beautiful snow-white, smooth, bland oint- ment, about the consistence of good lard, and an admirable substitute for that excipient. It is too soft for a convenient lip salve, and the following is preferred :— Rose Lip Salve. Take of Oil of almonds......liij. Alkanet.......3ij- Digest with a gentle heat and strain; then add— White wax.......liss. Spermaceti . . . . . . . Iss. Melt with the colored oil and stir it until it begins to thicken, then add— Oil of rose geranium.....gtt. xxiv. This may be put into small metallic boxes for the waistcoat pocket. Ehmi Ointment. Take of Elemi (resin).......3ij. Simple cerate.......Iij. Eesin cerate ......Iss. Peruvian balsam......Iss. Fuse together and mix thoroughly. It is much prescribed by Prof. Pancoast, of the Jefferson Medical College, as an elegant substitute for resin cerate. The London Pharmacopoeia contains another formula, which nearly agrees with the following of the Prussian Pharmacopoeia:— Take of Elemi, Turpentine, Suet, Lard, each, equal parts. Fuse, and mix. Extemporaneous Cerate of Subacetate of Lead. R.—Liq. plumbi subacetatis ..... f 3ijss. Linimenti camphoras ...... 3ss. Cerati adipis.......3xij. Mix together on a tile. An excellent combination of this, attributed to Dr. Parrish, Senior, is as follows:— Compound Cerate of Lead. R.—Cerat. plumbi subacet., Cerat. simp., aa...... .Iss. Hydrarg. chlor. mit., Pulveris opii, aa.......3j, Mix. Used in cutaneous eruptions of local character. UNOFFICINAL OINTMENTS. 767 Improved Tobacco Ointment. Take of Tobacco leaves......I v. Yinegar........Oij. Digest the leaves in the vinegar till evaporated to Oss; strain and express the liquid, then evaporate by moderate heat to about fliij; triturate this with Extract of belladonna.....Ij. Then take Camphor in powder.....3viss. Eesin cerate ......Iviss. Mix these by fusion at a moderate heat, and incorporate them with the mixed extracts of tobacco and belladonna. This is a very superior stimulating and anodyne application, first published by Wm. J. Allinson, of Burlington, N. J. Garlic Ointment. Take of Fresh garlic......2 or 3 cloves. Lard ....... Ij. Digest at a moderate heat for half an hour and strain; a useful application to the chest in croup. • Ung. cantharidis, dismissed from the late edition of the Pharmaco- poeia, is made by the use of boiling water as the solvent, and the aque- ous extract is incorporated with the resin cerate, which, as in the case of savine ointment in the last group, is used as a vehicle. These two ointments are chiefly used for the same purpose, as stimulating appli- cations to blistered surfaces. Care must be taken to distinguish, in prescriptions, between the cerate and ointment of cantharides ; the former being blistering cerate, and the latter only a stimulating dressing for blisters. Aconitia Ointment. Take of Aconitia .......gr. xyj. Olive oil.......5ss. Triturate together, and then incorporate with Lard........pj- A good substitute for this very expensive preparation, will be found among the liniments. No. 145.__Tetter Ointment prescribed by the late Dr. S. G. Morton. Take of Calomel, Alum (dried), in powder, Carbonate of lead, Oil of turpentine, each .... 3y- Simple ointment......3 iss. Triturate the powders together till they are impalpable and thoroughly mixed, then incorporate them with the oil and cerate. This is one of the very best ointments of its class, as proved by trials during a series of years. The mode of using it is to apply it at night, wash off with pure Castile soap in the morning, wipe dry, and dust with pure starch. 768 CERATES, OINTMENTS, AND LINIMENTS. Tetter Ointment prescribed by Dr. Physic. R.—Hydrarg. ammoniat. Hydrarg. chlor. corros. Alcoholis Plumbi acetatis Adipis 9j- gr. x. f3j- 3ss. Ij- 3iss. 3vj. 3j- 5 iss. Iviij. Triturate the corrosive chloride with the alcohol, add the white pre- cipitate and sugar of lead, and make an ointment, to be applied twice daily. A Salve resembling "Becker's Eye Balsam." Take of Calamine Tutty, of each Eed oxide of mercury Camphor, in powder' Almond oil White wax Fresh butter . Eeduce the mineral substances to a very fine powder, and incor- porate with the oil in which the camphor has been dissolved with the wax and butter previously melted together. The butter must be deprived of salt, if present, by washing with warm water. The reputation of Becker!s Eye Balsam is widely extended. Compound Iron Ointment. Take of Common iron rust......liijss. Powdered red oxide of mercury . . . Ij, 3j. Make into an impalpable powder, and add to Washed lard.......Iij. For the cure of chronic inflammation of the eyelid (conjunctiva), parti- cularly of a scrofulous character, eruptions on the face and body of young children, &c. Unguentum Cretes. (Westminster Hospital.1) Take of Prepared chalk......3ij. • Olive oil.......3iss. Lard........3ivss. Mix. Ung. Picis c. Sulphure. (Middlesex Hospital.1) R.—Sulphur and tar, of each.....2 drachms. Hydro-sulphuret of ammonia .... 5 minims. Prepared chalk.......1 drachm. Lard to make.......7 drachms. Mix. Unguentum Ferri Chhridi. (Haemostatic Ointment.1) R.—Ferri chloridi.......3ij. Axungia........Ij. Misce. T From Squire's Pharm. of London Hospitals. UNOFFICINAL OINTMENTS. 769 Ointment of Cod-Liver Oil. Take of Fresh cod-liver oil......7 parts. White wax, Spermaceti, of each.....1 part. Melt together, stirring as it cools. This is used in ophthalmia and opacity of the cornea, either alone or combined with a little citrine ointment, also as a friction or dressing for scro- fulous indurations and sores, in rheumatism, stiff joints, and several skin diseases. It is said to have been used in porrigo or scald-head when other remedies have failed. Ointment of Croton Oil. Take of Croton oil.......tflxxx. Lard (softened)......Ij. Mix well. Rubefacient and counter-irritant in rheumatic and other diseases. When rubbed repeatedly on a part it produces redness and a pustular eruption. Hufeland's Stimulating Ointment. Take of Beef gall.......3iij- White soap.......3bj- Althea ointment......Ij. Petroleum ....... 3ib Mix by the aid of heat, and as it cools add Powd. carbonate of ammonia .... 3ss. " camphor ...... 3j- Triturate together. Althea ointment is still officinal in most European Pharmacopoeias ; but some have discontinued it for the use of the mucilaginous decoc- tions of marshmallow root and flaxseed. Bavarian and Greek Pharma- copoeias order, instead of it, an ointment of yellow wax and lard, colored by turmeric. The following embraces the directions of the French Codex of 1839 :— Take of Powdered fcenugreek.....2 parts. Olive oil.......32 " Digest for six hours, strain and add— r Yellow wax.....8 parts. Burgundy pitch . . . . 4 " Turpentine.....4 " Strain, and stir until cool. Pile Ointment. Take of Acetate of morphia.....gr- v. Tannic acid.......3ss. Liniment of subacetate of lead . . . fjss. Simple ointment......3vij. Triturate the tannic acid first with the liniment, and then incorpo- rate it with the ointment. 49 770 CERATES, OINTMENTS, AND LINIMENTS. Linimenta U. S. P. (Liniments.) These are fluid or semifluid preparations designed to be smeared upon the surface, and either covered by lint or rubbed on until par- tially absorbed. The officinal members of this class are displayed in the following syllabus. The Officinal Liniments. Group 1.—In which the Oily Ingredient is partially Saponified. Linimentum ammoniae (Volatile liniment.) Linimentum calcis Linimentum saponis. j Ammonia water, f §j. \ Olive oil, Iij. f Lime-water, f I viij. \ Flaxseed oil, §vij. f Castile soap, §ij. (Camphor, |j. Oil rosemary, f gij. Alcohol, Oj. Water, flij. > Stimulating, rubefacient. I " Healing," or demulcent. 1 | The soap dissolved in the di- }- luted alcohol by heat, and the stimulants added. J Group 2.—Oily Mixtures. Linim. cantharidis. ■' camphorae. " chloroformi. Linim. terebinthinae. (Kentish's ointment.) ( Cantharides, Ij. \ Oil turpentine Oss. f Camphor 1 p. \ Olive oil 4 p. J Chloroform, §iij. \ Olive oil, §iv. f Resin cerate, ftj. \ Oil turpentine Oss. {• Digested and strained. |Tri Triturated in a mortar. y Shaken together. 1 Semifluid, by fusing the ingre- J dients together. REMARKS ON THE LINIMENTS. Volatile liniment is a powerful stimulant, much used as a counter- irritant in sore throats, and also in rheumatism. Lime liniment is applied with the most happy effects to recent scalds and burns ; it is one of the most useful of preparations in the apothe- caries' daily routine of minor surgery. Soap liniment is a useful application for similar purposes with vola- tile liniment, but less active; it is also readily removed by washing, containing no oil which is not saponified. Opodeldoc, formerly officinal under the name of Linimentum Saponis Camphorata, but dismissed from the last edition, is used as an applica- tion to sprains, rheumatic pains, &c.; it is put up in small wide-mouth vials, into which the finger is inserted, to soften and extract it, and differs from officinal soap liniment chiefly in being made from animal oil soap, which thickens into a soft mass when it cools. Liniment of Spanish flies, though usually applied as a local irritant and rubefacient, is capable of use as a vesicant, being applied on lint, and covered to confine its vapor. Camphor liniment is well adapted as a vehicle of many substances applied in the form of stimulating liniment; it is well combined with aq. ammoniae, as in Linim. Ammonias Camphorata, p. 771. Kentish's ointment, though so different from lime liniment, is used in nearly the same cases; it is applied to recent burns, until the peculiar inflammation, called " the fire," subsides. formulas for liniments. 771 Working Formulas for the Liniments. Linimentum Ammonia U. S. P. ( Volatile Liniment) Take of Water of Ammonia a fluidounce. Olive oil two troyounces. Mix them. Linimentum Cahis U. S. P. (Lime Liniment) Take of Solution of lime eight fluidounces. Flaxseed oil seven troyounces. Mix them. Linimentum Camphorae U. S. P. (Liniment of Camphor) Take of Camphor three troyounces. Olive oil twelve troyounces. Dissolve the camphor in the oil. Linimentum Cantharidis U. S. P. (Liniment of Cantharides) Take of Cantharides, in fine powder, a troyounce. Oil of turpentine half a pint. Digest the cantharides with the oil for three hours in a close vessel, by means of a water bath, and strain. Linimentum Chloroformi U. S. P. (Liniment of Chloroform.) Take of Purified chloroform three troyounces. Olive oil four troyounces. Mix them. Linimentum Saponis U. S. P. (Soap Liniment.) Tinctura Saponis Camphorata, Pharm. 1850. Take of Soap, in shavings, four troyounces. Camphor two troyounces. \ Oil of rosemary half a fluidounce. Water four fluidounces. Alcohol two pints. Mix the alcohol and water, digest the soap with the mixture, by means of a water bath, until it has dissolved; then filter, and, having added the camphor and oil, mix the whole thoroughly together. Linimentum Terebinthinae U. S. P. (Kentish's Ointment.) Take of Eesin cerate twelve troyounces. Oil of turpentine half a pint. % Add the oil to the cerate previously melted, and mix them. Unofficinal Liniments. Linimentum Ammonias Camphorata. Take of Camphor liniment......2 parts. Water of ammonia.....1 part. Mix. An improvement on volatile liniment, having the additional advantage of camphor. 772 CERATES, OINTMENTS, AND LINIMENTS. Liniment prescribed in Catarrhal Croup. Take of Camphor...... Oil of turpentine..... Make a solution. • 3ij, 9ij. . f3j. 3j- f5j. Liniment of Tannin. Take of Tannic acid...... Glycerin ...... Make a solution. This is adapted to the treatment of sore nipples and engorgements of the neck of the uterus; it may be diluted with water at pleasure. Linimentum Plumbi Subacetatis. Mix Solution of subacetate of lead, Glycerin, of each.......flj. This is designed to enable the physician to apply subacetate of lead in a concentrated form, and to facilitate its dilution with neutral liquids, without its becoming so readily decomposed. Linimentum Aconiti Radicis. (Prof. Procter.) Take of Aconite root, in powder . . . .liv. Glycerin.......f3ij. Alcohol........q. s. Macerate the aconite with half a pint of alcohol for 24 hours, then pack it in a small displacer, and add alcohol gradually, until a pint of tincture has passed. Distil off f Ixij, and evaporate to f 3xij; to this add alcohol 3ij and the glycerin. This is intended to substitute ointment of aconitia as an external anaes- thetic application. Cut a piece of lint of the required size, and saturate it with the liniment; when applied, it should be covered with oiled silk, should be used with great care, and never on an abraded surface. It is a powerful poison. Linimentum Hyperici. (Red Oil) Take of Flower of hypericum (fresh), a convenient quantity. Olive oil, sufficient to cover it. Macerate in the sun for fourteen days, express and strain. A well-known popular application to recent bruises and sprains. The flowers of hypericum (St. John's wort) are also used internally in the form of tincture and infusion. Milk of Roses for Chapped Hands, &c. Take of Almonds, blanched ... . Ij. Eose-water . fiviij. / White wax • 3J- Almond oil . ^j. White Castile soap • 3j. Honey .... • 3ij. Cologne . . f^j.. Oil of bitter almond . . gtt. iv Oil of rose geranium . gtt. v. Glycerin . flss. FORMULAS FOR UNOFFICINAL LINIMENTS. 773 Blanch the almonds and beat to a paste, adding the rose-water, heat this to about 212° and incorporate with the white wax, almond oil and soap melted together, then add the other ingredients. Directions.—After washing the hands with warm water and castile or palm soap, apply the milk of roses, rubbing it thoroughly in, then wipe the hands with a dry towel. Arnica Liniment. ( Glycerole of Arnica) Take of Arnica flowers, bruised . . . .4 ounces. Glycerin ...... 1 pound. Digest at a moderate temperature on a water bath, express and strain, or preferably, with Smith's steam displacer, displace the gly- cerin by steam pressure. For this preparation, the cheap impure glycerin of commerce answers an excellent purpose. Linimentum Sulphuris. R.—Sulphur, prsecip., Almond oil, Lime-water. Triturate the sulphur with the oil and add lime-water in slight excess; shake it thoroughly together and dispense in a wide-mouth vial. This is designed as an improvement on sulphur ointment. Glycerin Lotion. Take of Eose-water......1 pint. Quince seed......2 drachms. Macerate, strain, and add— Glycerin . . . . . . . 1 lb. This is an elegant application to chapped hands, and may do very well for a hair dre'ssing. Rose-water may be substituted by orange-flower water, or other aqueous perfume. Liniment of Iodide of Potassium. Take of Common soap ... . Ij, 3yj. Alcohol .... Iodide of potassium . Water .... Oil of garden lavender Dissolve the soap in the alcohol by the means of a gentle heat, and filter, if it is not perfectly transparent; then add the oil of lavender and the iodide of potassium dissolved in the water, mix, and bottle while warm. The strength of this liniment is about one drachm to the ounce. Gelatinized Chloroform. Take of Chloroform, . White of egg, of each . • ' \ ±5v?* ,, Put them into a wide-mouth, two ounce vial, shake it, and allow it to stand for three hours. This is applied as a local anaesthetic with remarkable success. flviiiss. liss. • fliss. 3ss. 774 PLASTERS, PLASMATA, AND CATAPLASMS. CHAPTER VII. plasters, plasmata, and cataplasms. Empl astra. (Plasters.) These are external applications of a consistence thicker than cerates, and of such tenacity and adhesiveness at the temperature of the body that when warmed and applied they will adhere firmly. They are used for two principal objects: 1st, to furnish mechanical support and to protect the part from the air; and, 2d, to convey medicinal effects, especially of a stimulant and discutient character. In the chapter on Fixed Oils, the subject of the preparation and properties of lead plaster, oleo-margarate of lead, is fully presented. This preparation is the basis of most plasters, though a considerable number are made from resinous substances which are treated of under the appropriate head on pages 481 to 588. In accordance with the general plan of this work a syllabus is pre- sented embracing the composition of the officinal plasters, and remarks upon them, and the working formulas from the Pharmacopoeia are appended with selections from unofficinal formulas. Some practical directions for their preparation, and the mode of spreading them fol- low. Emplastra.—Syllabus of Officinal Plasters. Emp. plumbi. (See Emp. resinae. Emp. saponis. Emp. belladonnas. Emp. opii. Emp. assafoetidae. Emp. galbani comp. Emp. hydrargyri. Emp. ammoniaci. Emp. ammoniaci hydrarg. page 549.) Diachylon plaster. I 1 part p. resin. \ 6 parts lead plaster. ( 1 part soap. \ 9 parts lead plaster. I 1 part ale. extract. \ 2 parts resin plaster. f 1 part ext. opium. -I 3 parts B. pitch. (.12 parts lead plaster. (2 parts assafoetida. 2 parts lead plaster. 1 part galbanum. 1 part yellow wax. f 8 parts galbanum. j 1 part turpentine. j 3 parts B. pitch. 136 parts lead plaster. !3 parts mercury. 1 part olive oil. 1 part resin. 6 parts lead plaster. j G. resin, purified by dil. \ acet. acid. ("Ammoniac Ibj. cum J Mercury §iij. 1 Olive oil 3j- I, Sulphur gr. viij. Adhesive plaster. Very mild and less adhesive. Anodyne in neuralgia, &c. Anodyne. Antispasmodic. Stimulant, antispasmodic. Discutient; alterative. Stimulant; resolvent. Discutient; stimulant. WORKING FORMULAS FROM THE PHARMACOPEIA. 775 I Red strengthening, roborant plaster. I Strengthening plaster. I Strengthening, anodyne. j. Stimulant, roborant. I Warming plaster. "1 Counter irritant producing J "pustulation." REMARKS ON THE OFFICINAL PLASTERS. Lead plaster associated with soap is rendered less adhesive and more bland in its characters, furnishing an emollient preparation, Soap plaster, often confounded with soap cerate. By mixing with resin, lead plaster is rendered more adhesive, and some- what more irritating, this is Resin plaster, a very familiar preparation, and, when spread on cotton cloth, constitutes Adhesive plaster cloth. Some elegant plaster cloths are also prepared in which this excellent " body" is incorporated with mercury, belladonna, opium, &c, and spread upon cotton, linen, or silk fabrics. These should be kept in tin cans, and when disposed to crackle, should be held to the fire till fused on the surface, and then laid away to cool thoroughly before being again rolled up. The skilful association of the medicinal substances prescribed in the offi- cinal plasters, is accomplished mainly by fusion and stirring together. Bel- ladonna and Aconite plasters are made by incorporating the alcoholic ex- tracts with resin and lead plaster, the extracts being softened and added as the plasters thicken by cooling. Opium plaster by the direction of the last Pharmacopoeia is made from aqueous extract of opium. In Mercurial plaster the globules of mercury are extinguished by the use of resin, and in Plaster of ammoniac with mercury a little sulphur and oil are used to extinguish the mercury before associating it with the ammoniac. Ammoniac plaster is peculiar in its mode of preparation ; it consists of the pure gum-resin as dissolved in vinegar, strained and evaporated. Assa- foetida and other imperfectly soluble gum resins are purified by solution in alcohol, and evaporation to bring them to a suitable condition for incorpo- ration into this form. A small proportion of these plasters sold by manu- facturers come up to the officinal standard. Working Formulas from the Pharmacopeia. Emplastrum Resinae U. S. P. (Adhesive Plaster) Take of Eesin, in fine powder, six troyounces. Plaster of lead thirty-six troyounces. To the plaster, melted over a gentle fire, add the resin, and mix them. Emp. ferri. Emp. picis Burgundies. Emp. picis canadensis. Emp. arnicae. Emp. picis cum canth. Emp. antimonii. 1 part Fe203,-f FeO,COr 8 parts lead plaster. 2 parts B. pitch. I 12 parts B. pitch. 11 part y. wax. 12 parts Canad. pitch. 1 part y. wax. ( 1 part ale. ext arnica. \ 2 parts resin plaster. 7 parts B. pitch. 1 part cerat. canth. J 1 part tart, antim. 14 parts B. pitch. 776 PLASTERS, PLASMATA, AND CATAPLASMS. Emplastrum Saponis U.S.P. (Soap Plaster) Take of Soap, sliced, four troyounces. Plaster of lead thirty-six troyounces. Water a sufficient quantity. Rub the soap with water until brought to a semiliquid state; then mix it with the plaster, previously melted, and boil to the proper con- sistence. Emplastrum Belladonnas U. S. P. (Plaster of Belladonna) Take of Alcoholic extract of belladonna a troyounce. Resin plaster two troyounces. Add the extract to the plaster, previously melted by means of a water bath, and mix them. Emplastrum Galbani Compositum U.S.P. (Compound Plaster of Galbanum.) Take of Galbanum eight troyounces. Turpentine a troyounce. Burgundy pitch three troyounces. Plaster of lead thirty-six troyounces. To the galbanum and turpentine, previously melted together and strained, add first the Burgundy pitch, and afterwards the plaster, melted over a gentle fire, and mix the whole together. Emplastrum Hydrargyri U. S. P. (Plaster of Mercury.) Take of Mercury six troyounces. Olive oil, Resin, each, two troyounces. Plaster of lead twelve troyounces. Melt the oil and resin together, and, when they have become cool, rub the mercury with them until globules of the metal cease to be visible. Then gradually add the plaster, previously melted, and mix the whole together. Emplastrum Opii U.S.P. (Plaster of Opium) Take of Extract of opium a troyounce. Burgundy pitch three troyounces. Plaster of lead twelve troyounces. Water a sufficient quantity. Mix the extract with three fluidounces of water, and evaporate, by means of a water bath, to a fluidounce and a half. Add this to the Burgundy pitch and plaster, melted together by means of a water bath° and continue the heat for a short time, stirring constantly that the moisture may be evaporated. Emplastrum Ammoniaci U. S. P. (Plaster of Ammoniac) Take of Ammoniac five troyounces. _ Diluted acetic acid half a pint. Dissolve the ammoniac in the diluted acetic acid, and strain; then evaporate the solution by means of a water bath, stirring constantly, until it acquires the proper consistence. WORKING FORMULAS FROM THE PHARMACOPEIA. 777 Emplastrum Ammoniaci cum Hydrargyro U. S. P. (Plaster of Am- moniac with Mercury) Take of Ammoniac twelve troyounces. Mercury three troyounces. Olive oil sixty grains. Sublimed sulphur eight grains. Heat the oil, and gradually add the sulphur, stirring constantly until they unite; then add the mercury, and triturate until globules of the metal cease to be visible. Boil the ammoniac with sufficient water to cover it, until they are thoroughly mixed; then strain through a hair sieve, and evaporate, by means of a water bath, until a small portion taken from the vessel hardens on cooling. Lastly, add the ammoniac, while yet hot, gradually to the mixture of oil, sulphur, and mercury, and thoroughly incorporate all the ingredients. Emplastrum Assafcetides U. S. P. (Plaster of Assafoetida) Take of Assafoetida, Plaster of lead, each, twelve troyounces. Galbanum, Yellow wax, each, six troyounces. Alcohol three pints. Dissolve the assafoetida and galbanum in the alcohol by means of a water bath, strain the liquid while hot, and evaporate to the con- sistence of honey; then add the plaster and wax, previously melted together, stir the mixture well, and evaporate to the proper consistence. Emplastrum Ferri U.S.P. (Strengthening Plaster) Take of Subcarbonate of iron three troyounces. Plaster of lead twenty-four troyounces. Burgundy pitch six troyounces. Add the subcarbonate of iron to the plaster and Burgundy pitch, previously melted together, and stir them constantly until the, mixture thickens on cooling. Emplastrum Picis Burgundices U. S. P. (Burgundy Pitch Plaster) Take of Burgundy pitch seventy-two troyounces. Yellow wax six troyounces. Melt them together, strain, and stir constantly until they thicken on cooling. Emplastrum Picis Canadensis U. S. P. (Hemlock Pitch Plaster.) Take of Canada pitch seventy-two troyounces. Yellow wax six troyounces. Melt them together, strain, and stir constantly until they thicken on cooling. Emplastrum Arnicas U. S. P. (Arnica Plaster.) Take of Alcoholic extract of arnica a troyounce and a half. Resin plaster three troyounces. Add the extract to the plaster, previously melted by means of a water bath, and mix them. 778 PLASTERS, PLASMATA, AND CATAPLASMS. Emplastrum Picis cum Cantharide U. S. P. (Warming Plaster) Take of Burgundy pitch forty-eight troyounces. Cerate of cantharides four troyounces. Melt them together by means of a water bath, and stir constantly until the mixture thickens on cooling. Emplastrum Antimonii U.S.P. Take of Tartrate of antimony and potassa, in fine powder, a troy- ounce. Burgundy pitch four troyounces. Melt the pitch by means of a water bath, and strain; then add the powder, and stir them well together until the mixture thickens on cooling. Unofficinal Plasters. Logan's Plaster. Take of Litharge, Carbonate of lead, of each 1 lb com. Castile soap . . . . . . 12 oz. com. Fresh butter.....4 oz. Olive oil......2| pints. Powdered gum mastich . . .2 drachms. Mix the soap, oil, and butter together; then add the oxide of lead and boil it gently over a slow fire for an hour and a half, or until it has a pale brown color, stirring constantly; the heat may then be increased and the boiling continued, till a portion of the melted plaster being dropped on a smooth board is found not to adhere, then remove it from the fire and add the powdered gum mastich. Emplastrum Universalis. A plaster is officinal in several of the European Pharmacopoeias under different names, which appears to be identical with Keyser's Universal plaster, sold extensively in this country as a nostrum. The following is the formula of the Prussian Pharmacopoeia; the proportions are by weight:— Take of Red lead, in very fine powder . . . Iviij. Olive oil.......3xvj. Boil them in a proper vessel with constant agitation until the whole has assumed a blackish-brown color, then add— Yellow wax.......giv. And after this has been melted and well mixed, Camphor.......3ij. Previously dissolved in a little olive oil. Now pour it out into suitable boxes, or into paper capsules, to be cut into square cakes when cold. THE SPREADING OF PLASTERS. 779 Dewees' Breast Plaster. (A Modified Formula) Take of Lead plaster.......3iij. Ammoniac plaster.....gss. Logan's plaster......giss. Spermaceti, Camphor, of each......3ij. Melt the plasters together, then add the spermaceti and camphor, and remove from the fire. Pancoast's Sedative Plaster. Take of Extract of belladonna, Mercurial plaster, Lead plaster.....Equal parts. Mix by fusion and trituration. Plaster for Mammary Abscess. (Dr. Ellwood Wilson.) Take of Belladonna plaster.....1 part. Logan's plaster......2 parts. Melt them together and spread upon chamois leather. (See page 781.) Spreading of Plasters. Plasters are spread on skin of various kinds and finish, on cotton cloth of different qualities, and rarely on silk and paper; of those spread upon skin, the size is indicated in prescription, by the number of inches in each direction, or, when irregular shapes are ordered, by a pattern furnished the pharmaceutist. The spreading of plasters, which was formerly an important part of the business of the apothecary, has now, like many other opera- tions of his art, been monopolized by manufacturers, who, by making this single branch of manufacture a speciality, acquire facility for the production of cheap and salable varieties. Machine spread strength- ening plasters are immensely popular outside the profession for a great variety of ailments, and they are undoubtedly better adapted to meet the public demand for cough remedies, and "pain eradicators," than the great majority of the "pectoral syrups," "hot drops," and anodynes, so extensively vended. Recently, the manufacturers have prepared specific kinds of plasters, and sold them under appropriate names as Burgundy pitch, hemlock, and warming plasters, so as to put them within the range of physicians' prescriptions. Some of them should make the series of officinal plasters in appropriate sizes and com- pounded of the best ingredients and strictly according to the Pharma- copoeia ; there would certainly be a demand for them, as apothecaries seldom 'covet the labor of preparing them extemporaneously. In Prof. Procter's edition of Mohr and Redwood's Pharmacy, a machine for spreading the ordinary strengthening plasters is figured; it consists of a block of bard wood, about 12 inches long, eight inches wide, and three and a half inches high ; the upper surface is curved from end to end, a tinned, iron or steel frame cut out of the size and shape of the plaster to be spread is secured to the block by a hinge-joint, and when the end is brought down and fastened by hasps, it presses evenly and with force over the convex sur- face • a frame accompanies it for marking out the pattern on the leather, which is to be cut previously to being put on the machine. 780 PLASTERS, PLASMATA, AND CATAPLASMS. Another part of the apparatus is a bar of cast-steel an inch square, per- fectly smooth, the ends drawn out and mounted with wooden handles; this is to be warmed gently by an alcohol lamp or by immersion in hot water previously to being used to smooth the surface of the plaster for which it is designed. The material, being melted in a copper skillet, is poured on the skin, properly secured on the curved surface by the steel frame, and smoothed by the warmed smoothing iron till of uniform thickness, the excess of plaster being pushed on to the frame and afterwards removed ; the plaster is then removed and laid away to harden. Skill in the use of this apparatus can only be acquired by experience ; but the most obvious precautions in this, as in the case of extemporaneous plasters, depend on the proper regu- lation of the temperature, both of the melted plaster when poured on, and of the smoothing iron applied ; if too hot, the skin will be penetrated and the plaster will show on the unspread side, beside, in most instances being deteriorated ; if not hot enough the plaster will be laid on too thickly, and with an unpolished surface. Plasters to be spread extemporaneously of various sizes and patterns may be melted in a small metallic vessel over a gas or spirit lamp, and poured directly upon the skin, properly secured upon a flat sur- face, with several thicknesses of paper under it, then smoothed with a small plaster iron, moderately heated, or a large spatula, which skil- fully managed answers equally well; or the plaster may be, as is per- haps more common, fused by the heat of the plaster iron upon a piece of stout paper, transferred from this to the skin, and then smoothed by the gradually cooling iron. Figs. 208 and 209 show plaster irons of the kinds adapted to differ- ent sizes and kinds of plasters, the larger sizes being suitable to spread a large plaster of slowly fusible material. When the heat necessary Fig. 208. to melt the plaster is derived from the iron, it should be first warmed to such temperature as that, while it will occasion the plaster to flow, it will not scorch it. The iron should also retain sufficient heat till the operation is complete, to impart a FiS» 209' smooth surface to the stiffened plaster. /The small iron will do well to spread a warming plaster, belladonna plaster, or the similar easily fusible kinds. The pattern of the plaster is usually cut out of a piece of smooth, stiff hard- a ~b ware paper, which is then pasted on to the skin with a good deal of flour or tragacanth paste, so that it shall not dry and adhere too firmly to the skin before its removal is allowable. When the plaster is pro- perly smoothed over the leather the paper pattern is torn up, and leaves a clean neat edge of the prescribed shape; where the material BREAST PLASTERS. 781 is brittle, it may be requisite that the warm plaster-iron should be passed around the edge while removing the paper pattern. The margin of plasters should be at least half an inch wide where the material is very fusible and adhesive, thus saving much annoyance to those re- quiring to use them; in a few instances, however, as in the case of soap plasters to be applied to bed sores, any required extent of the skin may be spread, and portions of the required size and shape may be cut off as needed; this plaster not being liable to " run," requires no margin. The material on which plasters are spread, may be varied according to their use. Resinous plasters or warming plasters to be applied to the back or breast, as counter-irritants and mechanical supports, are spread on thick sheepskin, while opium and belladonna plasters, which are generally smaller and frequently applied about the face, may be spread on kid, split skin, or cotton cloth, and if they have precisely the consistence proper for this kind of application, they are less cum- brous and disagreeable than those spread on kid. I have found ad- vantage in spreading the large circular plasters to be applied over the breast of the female on the kind of skin called "chamois," which is more flexible and yielding, though equally durable with the differ- ently dressed " sheepskin." Breast Plasters.—The frequent demand for stimulating, emollient, and sedative applications to the mammas of females, as preventives or remedies for mammary abscess, has given rise to several combina- tions, described on page 779; it now remains to indicate a suitable pattern for this kind of plaster. The usual shape prescribed is that of a circle, about 8 inches in diameter, with a hole in the middle, the diameter should be varied with the size of the mammas, and the hole should in no case be less than an inch in diameter, so as to allow ample room for the nipple to project and even for the infant to be nursed if required. In order to supply these to physicians in distant localities, who have not facilities for spreading them or ready resort to competent pharmaceutists, I Fig. 210. Fig. 211. Pattern for breast plasters. Mammary abscess plaster. 782 PLASTERS, PLASMATA, AND CATAPLASMS. have made the pattern shown in the drawings. The diameter of the spread plaster is 7 inches, the margin 1 inch, the orifice for the nipple is placed nearer to one side, in conformity with the shape of the enlarged mammae, and the fact that the hardness is apt to be on the under, swagging portion. This hole has the diameter of 1-^ inch, besides a very narrow margin. The strip remaining unspread is designed to be cut open on the dotted lines, Fig. 211, adapting the plaster to the curved shape of the breast and to breasts of different sizes. The pattern of tinned iron, Fig. 210, is designed to be tacked over the smooth skin to facilitate the spreading of these plas- ters, which are of various materials, the most highly esteemed composition being that given on page 779, as recommended by Dr. Ellwood Wilson. In some cases the simple Logan's plaster is spread, for others tobacco ointment, and for others Deshler's salve. The plasters proper are best spread on chamois skin, but ointments and cerates will, perhaps, do better on highly glazed cotton cloth, which, as it is less elastic and flexible than the skin, may require to be somewhat nicked to adapt it to the convex surface for which it is designed. Annular Corn-Plasters.—Under this name is prepared a very con- venient application to corns. Adhesive plaster is spread on thick buckskin, and then, with a punch, cut into small round plasters, about | inch in diameter, then with another punch a small hole is cut in the middle. Applied over a sore corn, it protects from the pressure of the shoe and gives great relief. White felt and amidou plasters, imported from England, have the same shape and general character of these; they consist of a gelati- nous preparation, similar to that used in making court-plaster, spread upon peculiar thick material of great softness and elasticity. Plaster Chth.—The method of spreading plaster on muslin or cotton cloth, for sale by the yard, requires the use of peculiar apparatus, which is kept with great secrecy by the few manufacturers who pos- sess them, and I do not know of their being heretofore figured in works on pharmacy. This material is not so well adapted as sheep- skin to plasters which require to be spread thickly or which are very volatile or easily deteriorated by exposure; it has been, until recently, employed almost exclusively in spreading adhesive plaster for the surgeon and for popular use. Since procuring the apparatus figured on the next page I have used it for belladonna and mercurial plasters, and find it applicable to almost any of the kinds having lead plaster as a basis which from their convenience of application and comparative cheapness, when spread in this way, are well adapted to popular employment. The frame of this machine is of cast iron; its construction will be obvious from a study of the drawing; the cotton cloth is wound tightly on to the roller on the extreme right, by the aid of the crank and passed under the iron rod beneath, and is thence drawn by a gentle and uniform motion under the receptacle for the plaster which is shown near the left end of the machine; this consists of a marble slab at bottom, and two movable heavy steel knives fitting into grooves in the ends, and pressing by their weight upon the cloth passing under them; this pressure is designed to be so adjusted as to occasion the proper thickness of plaster to be left smoothly deposited upon the PLASTER CLOTH. 783 cloth as it is drawn from under them; this thickness will also be much influenced by the heat and consequent fluidity of the melted plaster. Fig. 212. iS x ^ 7 Machine for spreading plaster cloths. One of the steel knives is shown in the lower figure, removed from its position, with the tin vessel in which it is designed to be warmed by the application of hot water previous to being used. The muslin selected for spreading must be first "calendered," a pro- cess of smoothing between hot rollers which gives it a perfectly smooth and close surface, and prevents the melted plaster from being too much absorbed. The art of using the machine consists in securing the proper degree of smoothness and fluidity of the plaster, upon which the thickness of the coat left upon the cloth will depend, and in the steadi- ness with which the cloth is drawn through the machine.^ Any irregu- larity in this motion will occasion variations in the thickness and a streaked appearance across the plaster; variations are produced longi- tudinally by any deflection or irregularity of surface of the scraping and smoothing irons, or by any solid particles present in the melted plaster On the whole, it appears to be the conclusion of all who attempt the spreading of plaster cloth, that the operation is too diffi cult to justify any in undertaking it whose demand for the plaster will not be such as to make it a frequent operation. Probably those who practise plaster spreading on a large scale have expedients for regu- lating the flow of the melted plaster, the pressure of the smoothing irons° and the steady movement of the cloth, which are not present m the machine above described. A description of plaster-cloth is imported from England under the name of doeskin, the tissue of which is much thicker and has a nap on the unspread surface; it is not unlike canton flannel. Its superi- ority consists in its greater body and thickness, adapting it to some applications to which ordinary muslin is less suited. 784 plasters, plasmata, and cataplasms. Plasmata.1 Under the name of glyceroles, glycamils and plasmata, some un- officinal preparations of the consistence of pomades have been intro- duced into medicine within a few years. They are made by heating starch and glycerine together; the glycerine may be previously medicated, and the preparation thus adapted to therapeutical applica- tions, or medicinal substances in powder may be incorporated mechani- cally with the starch, and thus suspended in the preparation. They do not vary with changes of temperature as ointments do, and are not liable to become rancid or change in their chemical composition, though their consistence becomes thinner by time. The following are intro- duced as among the most useful formulas of this class:— Plasma. (G. F. Schacht.) Take of Glycerine one fluidounce. Starch, in powder, seventy grains. Mix the powdered starch with the glycerine and gradually heat the mixture to about 240°, constantly stirring. This constitutes a basis from which may be produced preparations corres- ponding with most of the cerates and ointments of the Pharmacopoeia. Plasma of Tar. (Glycerole de Goudron.) Take of Glycerine one ounce. Purified tar half a drachm. Powdered starch half an ounce. Heat the starch with the glycerine and tar, stirring them together. This application is recommended as an astringent and resolvent, without producing irritation ; it allays itching, dries up excoriations, and dissipates cutaneous phlegmasia. Plasma Belladonnas. (London Opthal. Hosp.2) With Extract of Belladonna.....30 grains. Glycerine .......1 ounce. Starch ....... 1 drachm. Make a plasma secundum artem. Plasma Plumbi. (C. S. Tilyard.) Take of Glycerine two fluidounces. Sol. sub. acetate of lead three fluidrachms. Camphor ten grains. Bermuda arrowroot one and a half drachm. Rub the arrowroot into a fine powder, and having mixed the gly- cerine and extract of lead, stir it into the mixture. Pour the whole into a capsule and heat over a spirit lamp cautiously, constantly stir- ring until it becomes transparent, and assumes the consistence of paste. Having powdered the camphor by means of a few drops of alcohol, rub a little of the plasma with it in a mortar until well incorporated, then add the remainder and stir a few minutes. 1 See " Pharm. Journ. and Trans.," Feb. 1858, and "Amer. Journ. Pharm.," 1858, p. 252. 2 From Squire's Pharmacopoeia of the London Hospitals. CATAPLASMS. 785 When first made it is viscid and ropy, but in a day or two loses these properties and becomes at the ordinary temperature (say 60° F.) of the consistence of soft ointment. Glycamyl Sinapis. (M. Grimault.) Take of Glycerin......13 drachms. Starch.......2 drachms. Volatile oil of mustard . . .80 drops. Mix them by the aid of heat. This preparation is designed as an extemporaneous sinapism ; it is an ele- gant though costly substitute. Glycerine.Pomade of Iodide of Potassium. (M. Thirault.) Take of Glycerine......1000 parts. Animal soap ...... 50 " Powd. iodide of potassium . . . 130 " Dissolve in a water bath, pour immediately into a warm mortar and triturate briskly for a quarter of an hour. It may be aromatized at pleasure. It is a permanent preparation; the iodine salt is in solution and in a favor- able condition for absorption. It neither colors the skin nor the linen. Basis for Topical Applications. (M. Startin.) Take of Gum tragacanth.....\ ounce. Glycerine......1 ounce. Lime-water......2 ounces. Rose-water sufficient to form a soft jelly. This is an elegant material, said to be less deliquescent than the Plasmata of Schacht. Cataplasms. The following is introduced as a specimen of the unofficinal class of cataplasms, to which mustard plaster and the numerous varieties of poultices belong. Cataplasma Lini. (Flaxseed Poultice) Take of Flaxseed meal four ounces. Boiling water sufficient. Stir them together into a suitable mass. The oil existing naturally in the flaxseed meal serves to render this a very emollient application. Some physicians prefer a mixture of flaxseed meal with cake meal (from which the oil has been extracted) for the purpose. Cataplasma Sinapis. (Mustard Plaster or Sinapism) Take of Mustard flour four ounces. Wheat or rye flour three ounces. _ Boiling water half a pint or sufficient. Stir the whole into a soft mass upon a suitable dish. The strength of the sinapism is varied by changing the relative propor- tions of the ingredients. For children there should be about half the pro- Portion of mustard. Care should be taken to remove it before a blister is created. 50 786 ON DISPENSING AND COMPOUNDING PRESCRIPTIONS. Spice Plaster. (Dr. Parrish, Sen.) Take of Powd. capsicum, " cinnamon, " cloves, each.....2 ounces. Rye meal, Spirits, Honey, of each . . . . . Sufficient. To be made into a cataplasm by trituration on a plate, and spread- ing upon a close fabric. It should be made up extemporaneously when required. CHAPTER VIII. ON DISPENSING AND COMPOUNDING PRESCRIPTIONS. All the processes described in the previous practical parts of this work are subservient to the important operations of supplying or ad- ministering remedial agents to the public, called dispensing, and the art of compounding extemporaneous prescriptions of physicians. The formulas given in the last chapter have been introduced mainly with a view to acquainting the ph}^sician and pharmaceutist with the best forms for combining the leading remedies; the act of compound- ing these is a difficult branch of knowledge, only acquired by an habitual training of the faculties of observation and reflection, and the attainment of a certain manual dexterity and expertness of mani- pulation, of more or less importance in every practical pursuit, and indispensable in this. The ordinary process of handing out medicines to the applicants over the counter involves responsibilities connected with no other branch of trade, and calls for the exercise of constant vigilance to guard against the least thoughtlessness or inattention, and to fortify the mind against the many distracting influences constantly present in a place of business. To these must be added occasional vexatious evidences of ignorance or carelessness on the part of physicians, to overcome which, the pharmaceutist must tax the utmost resources of his art, while many evidences of ignorance, prejudice, and perversity on the part of his customers and his rivals in business, call for all his patience, self control, and conscientiousness. It is thus apparent that the subject of this chapter constitutes the most difficult practical branch of pharmacy, for, in addition to the variety and extent of knowledge required for the performance of the various duties involved in it, a salesman and dispenser of medicines must possess rare personal qualities to render him popular and suc- cessful in his calling. ^ Neatness, agility, and readiness of manner, combined with uniform watchfulness and care in all the important manipulations required of him, will inspire confidence, and secure patronage; while slothfulness, PHYSICIAN'S DISPENSING OFFICE. 787 negligence, and indifference to what may seem petty details, will in- variably inure to the disadvantage of their possessor. As the art of dispensing can only be acquired by practical experience at the counter, its numerous and varied details cannot be taught successfully in books. Authors, at best, can only lay down general rules, and set forth leading principles in regard to what must become the subject of daily experience to be of real utility. In the hints which are here offered, I have chiefly in view the country practitioner, whose necessities compel him to undertake the business of dispensing and compounding, and the student of medicine and pharmacy, who would seek to obtain from books the leading topics on which to found his practical and experimental routine of studies. The Furniture of the Physician's Dispensing Office. In the first preliminary chapter, most of the forms of apparatus required by the country practitioner in dispensing were described and fully illustrated, and in the succeeding parts of the work, many useful implements, chiefly employed in manufacturing processes, have been introduced in connection with their uses and modes of construction; a few will be illustrated along with the manipulations yet to be treated upon. It will be observed that many of these forms of apparatus are by no means indispensable, and that all the processes described through- out the work can be performed with but few and cheap implements. The dispensing office should have a counter of size proportioned to its anticipated use, with a closet in it, and a few drawers; it should be placed very near to the bottles containing the medicines. The physi- cian will require no more than a table of perhaps six or eight feet long, unless his dispensing business exceeds the requirements of his own medical and surgical practice, but this should be made of about three feet in height, solid, and with a heavy top of hard wood, or otherwise covered with oil cloth. The counter should contain a pair of large scales and the prescrip- tion scales and case (Fig. 25, p. 41), which, however, should be so placed as not to be jarred by the contusion of substances with the pestle and mortar, and may very appropriately be placed on an adja- cent shelf or table appropriated exclusively to them, and quite within reach in manipulating at the counter. A closet or shelves under the counter may be appropriated to mor- tars and pestles, funnel, &c.; one shallow drawer with divisions should be appropriated to papers, cut for dispensing, as below described; an- other to labels, pill poxes, powder boxes, corks, scissors &c, each in a separate apartment; another may contain the pill machine and tile, the spatulas, and plaster iron; a place must be appropriated to a towel, and a tank, or, preferably, a hydrant with a sink should be near at hand • a few deep drawers will be found useful for containing the drugs' bought in packages, and for which no bottles are provided. On the top of the counter, the cork presser, the twine reel, and the alcohol lamp and graduated measure, may be appropriate ornaments. If oracticable to have another counter for small manufacturing ©por- tions it would be well to avoid cumbering the dispensing counter with'a gas furnace, but otherwise the arrangements described in pp. 788 ON DISPENSING AND COMPOUNDING PRESCRIPTIONS. 186 and 187 will be convenient; gas may be led by a flexible tube from the pendant or side-light nearest at hand, and will be very con- venient for heating purposes. It is well to have immediately under the top of the dispensing counter, two slides, on which most of the manipulations are performed; one of these should be kept exclusively for powders, and the other used indiscriminately, to save the top from being soiled. The stock of medicines should be arranged in a case, or on shelves, within a few feet of the counter. In the appendix will be found the dimensions necessary for the outfits there published. The shelves should be somewhat more extended than the actual dimensions re- quired at first, to allow for additions from time to time, and care should be taken in making these additions to have the glass ware cor- respond with the original stock. In the first preliminary chapter, the whole subject of glass ware and tin boxes is fully displayed. The books of reference, which should be ample—and if the pro- prietor himself, and those under his instructions, would keep pace with the advance of the times, should include the " American Journal of Pharmacy," and "American Druggist's Circular," bound from year to year—should be in a neighboring case ; this might be advantage- ously arranged to contain also a skeleton, and the surgical, dental, and obstetric instruments, bandages, splints, &c. The bougies and cathe- ters should be in a tin case, so also the adhesive plaster, blistering tissue, gum-elastic bougies, nipple shields, &c. It is to be regretted that the proper arrangement and garnishing of the dispensing office should be generally considered of so little im- portance by practitioners at the commencement of their career; it is apt to have more effect upon the future success of the physician than he can appreciate in advance. Fig. 213 exhibits the back view of the dispensing counter in my own shop—it is fourteen feet long, thirty-two and a half inches wide, and three feet high. The top is covered in part with marble and in part with oil cloth; a large glass show case occupies the left hand end, but not the whole width, the bottom being 7 inches below the top level of the counter. The whole structure is movable, being in three parts, so accurately fitted together as not to show a seam or crack at the junction. A sink and hydrant are fitted to the left hand end, which joins the curved mineral water counter, its chief :ise is in connection with this branch of the business; the washing of bottles, implements, &c, being accomplished in a large sink in the operating counter back. The prescription scales are in a case near the right hand end of the counter over the oak slide for folding powders, and near the drawers for boxes, pill tiles, &c, and the larger scales are near the middle over the paper and label drawers. A small mahogany desk with writing materials, and containing in a drawer blank labels, slips, blanks for prescriptions, &c, is placed on the counter immediately adjoining the prescription scales, and is found a great improve- ment on our former method of carrying every prescription and label to the large desk, used for the accounts and the general writing purposes of the establishment. Fig. 213.—PHARMACEUTIST'S DISPENSING COUNTER. 1. Closet 20 in. wide by 14 deep, containing ex- tracts and ointments in 4 oz. and ffiss jars ; the arrangement of the shelves on each side and across the back of the case allows of 60 jars; this is protected by a door not shown in the drawing. 2. Open shelves for mortars and pestles, ointment slabs, adhesive plaster, plaster irons, &c. 3. Slide consisting of two shelves, into which the paste-pot is secured. 4. Open space for towels. 5, 6, 7, 8. Drawers for prescription vials from f ^ij to f^xij, separated by partitions across the drawers up to the shoulders of the vials. 9, 10, 11. Cork drawers, with partitions so as to contain a variety of sizes. 12, 13. Syringes and gum-elastic wares. 14. The till, conveniently arranged to hold the sales book, the petty cash book, &c. 15. The drawer for postage and revenue stamps. (To this point the two top drawers are made short to allow of the show case which is set in to the depth of 7 inches on the front of the counter.) Cut paper for packages. 17. Capping and fancy papers. 18, 19. Sheepskins, chamois, &c. 16 20. Sand paper and syringes. The series containing 21, 22, and 23, are drawers for cut and uncut labels. 24, 25, 26, 27. Pill, powder, and ointment boxes, and jars, assorted. 28. Large uncut paper. 29, 30. Two pill machines. 31. Pill tiles. 32. Tool drawer. 33, 34. Uncut castile soap. Over 2, 24, and 16, are slides of oak and cherry, for folding ponders and large packages, and for containing the ointment slab and tiles in use. -4 OO 790 ON DISPENSING AND COMPOUNDING PRESCRIPTIONS. A drawer in the little counter-prescription desk is found the most con- venient place for a small blotter for common retail charges, also a price- book and memorandum book of wants, a counterfeit detector and book for entering sales of poisons in compliance with the law. In prescription stores, a few rows of f^iv and f^ij ground stoppered bottles and extract jars are frequently placed in a case on the counter, within reach of the operator when using the scales ; these are filled with the medi- cines most called for in small quantities, and entering into usual extempo- raneous prescriptions. The following list embraces most of those articles eligible for this posi- tion :— IN 4 [ OZ. SALT-MOUTH BOTTLES. IN 2 OZ. SALT-MOUTH BOTTLES. Potass, iodidum. Antim. et potass, tart. " bicarbonas. " sulphuretum. " chloras. Iodinium. Quinia? sulphas. Hydrarg. chlor. mit. Cinchon. sulphas. " cum creta. Quinidia? sulphas. Pulv. pil. hydrarg. Acid, tannicum. " ext. jalapa?. Acid, gallicum. " " coloc. comp. Pulv. rhei. Ferrum redactum. ' aloes. Ferri citras. ' acacia?. " et quinia? citras. ' sacchari. " pyrophosphas. ' ext. glycyrrhiza?. " valerianas. ' glycyrrhiza?. Argenti nitras. ' saponis. Cupri sulphas. ' aromaticus. Zinci sulphas. ' cort. aurant. " valerianas. ' althea?. " acetas. Plumbi acetas. Pulv. digitalis. Magnesia (Husband's). " scilla?. Calc. carb. prsecip. " camphora?. Creta praeparata. " opii. Pulv. ammon. muriat. " hydrarg. oxid. rub. " ipecac, comp. Bismuthi subnitras. " ipecacuanha?. " subcarbonas. " gambogia?. Potassii bromidum. Fig. 2 14. Fig. 215. The poisonous articles, such as hy Bottle with drop machine. Bottle for moisten- ing pill masses. cyanic acid, strychnia, the salts of mor- phia, and strychnia, aconitia, atropia, and emetia, may be kept on a small shelf inside the scale case, or in a sepa- rate case under lock and key, not easily accessible. Small labels will be found in the physician's books of labels which are adapted to this part of the counter or shop furniture. Among the little conveniences, it is well not to overlook a corkscrew, and some stout wire for use in cleaning bot- tles, which should be hung on a tack, DISPENSING. 791 in an accessible place. With an eye to convenience and to furnishing a manipulating counter, one or more bottles of water for moistening pill masses may be suitably disposed on it; much will depend on the size of the top, and care must be taken not to crowd the space to be used in manipulation. For replenishing the salt-mouth bottler in use at the dispensing counter a suitable wide-mouth funnel should be pro- vided. Numerous implements, such as a funnel and retort stand for filtration, sieves and strainers, infusion mug, saucepan for decoctions, capsules for melting cerates and plasters, suppository moulds, and sil- vering and gilding globes, may all be required occasionally in com- pounding prescriptions and should be conveniently accessible, perhaps in and upon an adjacent counter devoted to ordinary pharmaceutical work. There is a difference of sentiment and a varying practice in regard to compounding prescriptions, behind a case or screen, or in full view of cus- tomers ; the practice has gained ground of latter years of conducting all the operations of compounding at a screened counter, and holding intercourse with the customers only at the time of receiving the prescription and hand- ing out the preparation. It is observable that where this is the practice there is often less care bestowed upon the cleanliness and nicety of the operation, than where the whole is subjected to the scrutiny of a customer, who, though perhaps no pharmaceutist, may be a critical observer of the neatness and expertness of manipulations. Too much care can hardly be bestowed upon the accuracy of the weighings and the completeness of the admixture of the ingredients prescribed, and the circumstances attending their being compounded and dispensed should all be calculated to carry out the instructions of the physician and to win the confidence of the patient and his friends. Dispensing. The peculiar qualities and great variety of the drugs and prepara- tions called for by his customers require of the dispenser of medicines considerable experience and aptness to understand the numerous in- quiries, besides a retentive memory to recall the localities of the dif- ferent, and sometimes rare, articles in his shop, with their cost and selling price. This difficulty is increased by the fact that ignorant people and children often apply to him for medicines, the names of which are only imperfectly known to them, and he is compelled to form a notion of their requirements after a series of questions, which may or may not be skilfully put and cheerfully answered. Every dispenser of medicines, and especially every young man who has yet to win a reputation, should cultivate habits of politeness and deference even to the poor and ignorant, and to aid him in this let him remember how little opportunity the public generally have had to acquaint themselves with drugs, which were for so many centuries wrapped in an obscure nomenclature, and considered as falling within the special province of a single profession, priding themselves upon the secrecy and even mystery of their craft. This reflection should also induce the pharmaceutist to seek occasions in the course of his daily contact with the public to interest inquiring minds in the com- 792 ON DISPENSING AND COMPOUNDING PRESCRIPTIONS. mercial, botanical, and chemical history of the articles he dispenses, and to explain their uses, and even in conversation with the least in- telligent to remove the rough edge of their ignorance, by well directed remarks and explanations. This course is not only useful to the cus- tomer but serves to interest and improve the dispenser, and to raise him in the esteem of those, the meanest of whom may have it in their power to add to or detract from his reputation and his business. One of the most common annoyances to the apothecary arises from the idea, which not unfrequently finds expression, that he is charging an undue profit upon his articles; this is a natural conclusion in the mind of the purchaser of drugs from their wide difference between the relative prices charged for small and larger quantities. Many answers to comments on his prices will suggest themselves to the in- genious salesman, but to make these conclusive he must show by the precision and judgment with which he conducts his business, and by the neatness and exactness which he brings to bear upon every little package he sends out, that he regards his vocation not as a common trade, merely to buy and sell and get gain, but that as a man of science and a careful conservator of the interests of his customer, as well as his own, he amply earns all the pecuniary advantages which his busi- ness is supposed to bring. Dispensing of Solids. The business of dispensing involves the manipulation of weigh- ing, measuring, wrapping, and labelling. These require little descrip- tion or comment here. The usual practice with pharmaceutists is to weigh all solid articles upon the paper in which they are to be wrapped, and where great nicety is required, as in the case of very costly articles, to balance the paper with a piece of like size upon the opposite plate of the scale. Avoirdupois weights are used in all ordinary dispensing operations. Some liquids which would soil a graduated measure, such as copaiva, Venice turpentine, Canada balsam, and the fixed oils, are usually weighed in the vessel in which they are to be dispensed, this may be a bottle, gallipot, ointment box, tumbler, or other con- venient vessel with a wide mouth; in other cases the quantity is con- veniently determined by the size of the vial, the retail prices of liquids being usually graduated according to their liquid measure. Folding and Dispensing of Powders.—The first operation taught students in the school of practical pharmacy is this; there are thou- sands who have felt the want of such instruction all their lives. The paper usually purchased for folding packages of medicine is called "white druggists' wrapping paper;" its size is called double medium, each sheet being about 38 x 241 inches. This sheet cut into 2 sheets 24J x 19 = the medium size. The medium sheet is thus con- veniently divided for dispensing purposes:— Into 4 sheets 12 x 9J inches suitable for \ fb papers 6 " 9| x 8 " " \ ft, papers! 12 " 61 X 6£ « " 1 oz. papers. Fig. 216 shows a \ ft) paper. To fold a package, this is laid upon PACKAGES AND POWDERS. 793 Fig. 216. Paper for package. the scale plate and filled with an appropriate quantity; of a moder- ately heavy article, like Epsom salts or cream of tartar, this will be 4 oz.; of a light article, like senna or chamomile, say 1 oz. The paper is placed before the operator in the direction here shown; a little crease is made on the nearest end so as to form a flap into which the furthest edge is fitted, and the whole turned over upon the containing substance so as to form a crease when laid evenly down upon it, at the middle or near the furthest side, according as a wide or narrow bundle is desired. The oval cylinder is now loosely closed up at one end by turning it over, and is held up with the crease toward the operator, the thumb pressing it firmly to prevent its bulging. Now, with the forefinger, the upper end of the cylinder is pressed in against the containing sub- stance, and the two sides of the paper being rolled into the position they naturally take, the whole upper flap is laid down immediately above the containing substance and pressed into a firm and even crease. The package is now inverted, the other end is opened out, rolled in, and folded over in like manner. The next operation is to label the package; this requires very little paste, only sufficient should be applied to prevent its slipping about: the label is put immediately in line with the crease, unless this is too low down, and then it connects the crease with the part below. The next operation is to tie the package, which is done by laying it on the flat or labelled side and passing the string first across it and then lengthwise, securing it by a bow- knot at the edge where it was first creased. When the package is large or quite oblong, the string is made to pass twice across it and once lengthwise. The string used should be thin and free from fuzz; linen is the best material. The ball of tying string may be put into a small apartment of the drawer and gradually unwound as required, or it may be used from a reel. Small powders for containing but a single dose of medicines should be put up in glazed writing paper. The kind called flat-cap is eco- nomical and adapted to the purpose. A sheet of flat-cap will furnish sixteen of the most common size, or nine of the larger or Seidlitz powder size Fig. 218 represents the shape of these. A little crease is made along the long side into which the opposite edge is laid, and the paper being folded over is laid down in the crease just beyond the middle or at the middle, according to the width desired. The ends are now folded over a spatula so as to make flaps of equal length, and the package or powder, as it is called, is complete. In dispensing Fig. 217. Paper package. 794 ON DISPENSING AND COMPOUNDING PRESCRIPTIONS. simple powders, I use small envelopes, Fig. 220 ; there are several sizes, which leave nothing to desire. Fig. 218. Fig. 219. Fig. 220. i___ / Paper for powder. "Powder." Envelope for powder. Powders are often directed in considerable numbers, frequently, as in Prescription No. 73, twelve at once; in this case, it is important to have the powders all of one length, so as to fit in a little box, called a powder-box or lozenge-box. Gauges for folding powders are sold by dealers in druggists' sundries; their use is twofold—to regulate the length of the powder, and to facilitate the folding; the two end creases are made by simply pressing the paper over the blades between the thumb and finger. The expense of these is saved by cutting a piece of tin of the required width, and tacking it on to one corner of the slide appropriated to powders. With a penknife, the board may be cut out to the thickness of the tin, so that the paper will slip readily on to the tin, and be turned over by the thumb and finger; this is substituted on the counter shown in Fig. 213 by a small wooden powder gauge screwed on to the face of the slide appropriated to dispensing powders; a great many powders can be folded in a few minutes by the use of this simple contrivance which takes up no room and is never out of the way when wanted. Powders are often dispensed in bulk to be divided by the patient according to some standard of proximate measurement, for instance, as much as will lay on a sixpence, or may be taken up by the point of a penknife, or will fill a salt spoon; this has the advantage of economy in cases where the treatment is likely to be continued for a long time, but as a general rule, it is better that the doses should be divided by the pharmaceutist, whose eye becomes accustomed to the least deviation from accuracy in dividing. The pharmaceutical tyro should practise weighing successively definite quantities of the more commonly prescribed medicines, and laying them out on appropriate papers so as to become proficient in dividing them by the eye. When dispensed in bulk with a view to being taken at intervals in approximate doses, powders should be put into vials with tolerably wide mouths, or into turned wooden boxes, such as are used for tooth powders, not into ordinary paper packages. Volatile or deliquescent powders, whether in bulk or divided in separate papers, should be dispensed in wide-mouth vials well corked—the same is true of char- coal and magnesia, which are otherwise apt to be scattered over sur- rounding objects and wasted. The Dispensing of Liquids.—By attention to the liability of liquids to ferment, or to part with volatile active principles, or to deteriorate by exposure to atmospheric influence, the pharmaceutist will learn DISPENSING OF SOLIDS. 795 that advantages almost invariably result from the selection of well- stoppered pint and quart tincture bottles for the dispensing shelves in preference to half gallons and gallons. These bottles are necessarily frequently opened, admitting air and allowing of evaporation, and they are exposed to bright light, which is one of the most potent causes of chemical change; bottles of these sizes are also much more conve- nient to handle than larger ones, and by having suitable funnels at hand, may be replenished as often as required from stock bottles kept in the cellar or other appropriate depository. Under the head of solution, in the second part of this work, and of the liquid forms of medicines in the fifth part, and, indeed, throughout all the practical parts, I have endeavored to impress such facts connected with the preparation and use of this class of medicines as would be most useful to the student, and I may conclude the subject here by reference to the selection of vials, corking, labelling, &c. Of the several varieties of vials shown on page 18, the kind best adapted to the purposes of the country physician and to the great majority of phar- maceutists is the German flint, Fig. 221; it has the advantage over the flint vial of being cheaper, and stronger; while it is far better than the common quality of green glass. The manufacturers of green glass make many of their vials without lips, from the fact that dealers in handling and re- packing the lipped vials suffer loss from these being much broken about the lip. A vial is, however, of little use for many of the purposes of the physician without a good, rather broad, and thin lip, which will allow of the pouring of the liquid from it without its running back and down the outside. This is especially true of small vials from which Ger drops are to be administered. Many of the large dispensing establishments have adopted their own dis- tinctive and uniform styles of vials, which are made in moulds of all the sizes required for ordinary dispensing, and are certainly more recherche and characteristic than any that could be found in commerce. Other leading stores, not seeking any peculiarity in their style of vials, are content to pur- chase the best productions of the New England Glass Company, who pro- duce glassware probably unsurpassed in elegance by any in the world. Numerous manufactories in other parts of the United States, especially in Pittsburg, Pa., are largely concerned in supplying flint glass prescription ■ and dispensing vials fit for the best class of customers in our country. With a view to economy of time, the sink for washing vials, the vials themselves, the labels and corks, will be conveniently located near the front of the shop, and it is very desirable that an assortment of these necessary articles for dispensing liquids shall be always within reach of the counter clerks, in a condition for immediate use. The mode of disposing the assortment of washed vials differs in different establishments; some hang them while yet moist on nails or pegs with the mouth inclined downward that they may drain and be free from liability to collect dust, until wanted for use. This method takes more space than is generally at command, and seems to be less desirable than keeping them in a partitioned drawer. The sink should have shelves or racks arranged over it for draining recently washed articles, and the vials should not be put into the drawer for use till dry. In 796 ON DISPENSING AND COMPOUNDING PRESCRIPTIONS. Fig. 222. Tapering and straight corks. the Preliminary Chapter, page 53, the variable quality of corks is referred to, and it is only necessary again to call attention to the great advantage in this as in most other purchases of select- ing the best, and especially those of the kind called homoeopathic, which are fitted with much greater facility to the vials. There is no economy in procuring cheap corks, as prices are pretty exactly according to quality, and of the inferior qualities a large number are quite unfit for use. The cork drawer should not be too near the fire, as they are deteriorated by long-continued drying The cork should always be adjusted to the bottle before putting the liquid into it, so that if it should not fit, it may not be injured by contact with the liquid, and may be thrown in with the corks again. The neat appearance depends chiefly on its being clean and havino- a clear fresh surface at top; this may generally be attained by the use of a sharp knife, care being taken not to cut it off so short as to be in- convenient to extract again. The practice of capping over the cork with a piece of fancy paper or damp kid gives a handsome finish to the preparation, and secures it from being opened by children or others who may be sent for the medicine; but in small sales it scarcely repays for the time consumed. Heavy and good quality tin foil is a beautiful capping for corks, and may be applied without a string to secure it; it will take the im- pression of a stamp with considerable distinctness. With a view of capping operations, a small pair of scissors, different from those adapted to the general purposes of the counter, will be almost indispensable. The fashion of stamping the cork at top with a dye upon sealing wax has lately become quite general; "to accomplish it with facility and neatness a small spirit lamp, Fig. 223, or a similar lamp made with a vial and glass tube should be provided; the flame of alcohol is best for the purpose, because not liable to smoke the wax. A stamp should be provided with the name or initials, or some appropriate device, or trade mark, which will give character to the preparation dispensed, and indicate its origin. The cork presser Fig. 224, is now so common and well known as scarcely to require mention; in using it, care should be taken to press the whole length of the cork, otherwise, if it is rather dry, it may be cracked at the point where the pressure of the machine ceases, and hence will break off in attempting to remove it from the bottle. It is best adapted to the larger sized corks, and is quite unsuitable to be applied to "homoeopathic corks." Fig. 223. Spirit lamp. Fig. 224. Cork presser. physician's blank labels. 797 | For Take a teaspoonful every as directed. Dr. hours, For. Take a teaspoonful times a day, as directed. Dr________________ Fnr Take a tablespoonful times a day, as directed. Dr Powders. Take one every hours, as directed. Dr. Powders. Take one times a day, as directed. Dr. ----- Take Dr. drops times a day, as directed. ------ \ Take Dr. drops every hours, as directed. A.S DIRECTED. Dr______________ 798 ON DISPENSING AND COMPOUNDING PRESCRIPTIONS. Labelling medicinal preparations is very much neglected by country practitioners, frequently for want of facilities; it is, however, too im- portant a matter to be overlooked in any well-ordered dispensary. A small sheet of blank labels may be procured for a trifling sum, adapted exactly to the wants of the particular individual, or the druggist should have thein printed for his customers. I have for several years sold sets somewhat like that on the preceding page, which by filling up the blanks serve most the purpose of the physician. The apothecary will of course have, besides his ordinary printed slip labels, suitable prescription labels, with his business card and an appropriate space for filling up with the names of drugs, or with directions and the number and date of the pre- scription, for future reference. Few things add more to the reputation of the apothecary than the neatness and elegance of his labels, both in printing and chirography. Some pharmaceutists prefer to gum all their labels so that they will adhere by moistening alone; this is done by a solution of dextrine in water painted over the sur- face and allowed to harden, or by a mixture of one part of sugar to two of white glue, dissolved in five parts of water by heat, and applied while yet warm. Fig. 225. Paste bottle and brush. One ounce. Two fluidounces. Two fluidrachms. Fig. 225 shows a convenient wide-mouth bottle, which may be of f^ij or f Jiv capacity, with a perforated cork into which a plug is inserted, extending half an inch below the cork, on to which is glued a camel-hair brush, always dipping into the paste ; this little vial may be supplied with paste from another and larger bottle. The paste may be made by either of the following processes :— Paste containing Glycerin. Take of Gum Arabic..... Boiling water ..... Glycerin ..... Make a solution. Paste preserved with Acetic Acid. Take of Powdered gum Arabic, Powdered tragacanth, of each . . -Iss. Water.......giss or sufficient. Acetic acid ...... n^xx. Mix them. If tragacanth paste is made stiff enough, it will keep without the addition of an antiseptic. When not previously prepared, the labels require to be pasted at the time they are applied; this may be accomplished by laying them successively upon a piece of soft paper, which must be renewed as soon as it becomes somewhat daubed, or by laying them on a piece of smooth and hard wood, which should be cleaned and dried once every day. When the label is ap- plied to the glass, it should be covered by a piece of paper somewhat larger than itself, and tightly and uniformly pressed till quite smooth; it is a mis- take to put a thick coating of paste on the paper, as it then spreads on to the surrounding parts of the vial, soiling them, and in drying shrinks and wrinkles the label. When filled and properly corked, the vial should be DISPENSING OF PILLS. 799 carefully wiped off and wrapped in a piece of white paper. The ifb size, page 793, is suitable for a fgiv vial. A good pen, with a fine point, suitable for filling up the blanks on the labels, and a desk, should be within convenient reach; also a blank book or file on which to preserve the prescription for future reference, the day book or blotter, the book of "wants," in which each article is to be entered for purchase or preparation, before it is entirely out, and a note-book of facts and experiences, which, if diligently kept, will, by lapse of time, become a valuable heirloom of the office or shop. Reading the Prescription. The first process, on receiving a prescription to be compounded, is to read and thoroughly to understand it; this can be done, in many cases, only after some study and consequent delay, which if perceived by the applicant may occasion distrust and a suspicion that something wrong is contained in it; to obviate the appearance of a misunder- standing, it is a good plan to commence by preparing a label; this is done with the prescription before the eye of the writer, and allows time for thoroughly studying it and deciphering, as far as practicable, the obscure parts, before attempting to compound it. After the prepara- tion has been completed and labelled, the prescription should be care- fully reviewed and the several articles, as added, recalled so as to insure its correctness before sending it out freighted, as it may be, with the issues of life or death to the sufferer for whom it has been pre- scribed ; there are few errors occurring from carelessness which would not be obviated by this precaution. If there should be an obvious error in a prescription which might lead to serious consequences, it would become the duty of the pharmaceutist either to supply the medicine, so modified as to be safe, and to fulfil the intention as nearly as he can arrive at it, or, on a plea of necessary delay, to obtain an opportunity to have the error corrected by the physician himself. The maintenance of a spirit of professional comity between the physician and pharmaceutist, by which each is bound to screen the other from unjust censure, while they mutually endeavor to protect the community from the dangers unavoidably attendant upon the ad- ministration of remedies, is the only true basis of their successful co- operation. Preparation and Dispensing of Pills. The advantage of this form of preparation having been fully detailed in Chapter IV., the substances best adapted'to it having been enume- rated, and the general principles on which they should be compounded having been treated of, it remains now to convey such information upon the mode of mixing and forming pill masses as can be put into a brief description, premising that of the manual processes of phar- macy, none more distinctly require to be learned by experience. To form a pill mass, the ingredients in the form of powder being weighed, are placed in a mortar, or on a tile, and thoroughly mixed; two° spatulas being at hand, a small addition of some excipient, as already pointed out, is to be made, care being taken not to add an ex- 800 ON DISPENSING AND COMPOUNDING PRESCRIPTIONS. cess, which the inexperienced are apt to do. The little bottle, Fig. 215, page 790, is made for the use of the analytical chemist in moistening substances with a single drop of a reagent; it will be useful to con- tain water for the purpose named. The drop guide, Fig. 214, or a similar extemporaneous contrivance, will answer the same purpose. Many pill masses are spoiled by getting a few drops too much water accidentally into them; they should always be very thoroughly tritu- rated before the addition of fresh portions of liquid. The use of extracts in making pills has already been adverted to as aiding in their pharmaceutical eligibility; but the toughness of cer- tain resinous extracts, as extract of jalap, is one of the greatest causes of difficulty in the manipulation. The extract seems sometimes to have dried to just that condition which forbids the idea of reducing it to powder, or softening it to the proper consistence of an excipient, and therefore it cannot be successfully incorporated with other extracts, or with dry powders. Under these circumstances the aid of heat should be called in; a mortar being warmed upon the stove, the ex- tract may be introduced into it and thoroughly softened by tritura- tion, or if still too tough, being broken up, the mass may be subjected to drying, until, on cooling, it is so brittle as to be readily reduced to powder, and then incorporated with the other ingredients and rendered plastic by suitable excipients. Another difficulty in manipulating with extracts is owing to their sometimes being too soft to form a mass of sufficient firmness with the other ingredients prescribed; in this case it is, perhaps, generally best to spread the extract in a thin layer upon the tile and warm this till a portion of the moisture being evaporated it assumes the proper consistence. Care is, of course, necessary not to deteriorate the ex- tract by burning, or the evaporation of any volatile principles. The warmth, moisture, and flexibility of the hand may frequently be brought into requisition with materials that refuse to soften and ad- here, though generally it is desirable to avoid working the mass in the hands in presence of the customer; when the materials are readily miscible, the whole process may be con- Fig. 226. veniently performed in the mortar, and the removal of the mass completely effected by the use of the pestle and spatulas. Some 'pharmaceutists prefer the use of the pill tile and spatula for the whole mani- .pulation, and I have observed that some of the most successful pill makers avoid the use of the mortar almost entirely; on the other hand the greater force imparted to trituration by the convex surface of the pestle upon the concave mortar, and the facility it affords in thoroughly powdering and mixing the ingredients seem to me to indicate the superiority of this old fash- ioned method; the force of early trami ng and of habit in this as in most other cases has a controlling influence. PREPARATION OF PILLS. 801 Fig. 227. _ In using thepill tile, Fig. 226, for mixing the mass, an implement is required which will facilitate the powdering of crystals, dry ex- tractive, and resinous materials, and powders, which have agglutinated. Fig. 227 shows a muller, made of glass for this purpose; the flat bottom surface is ground to adapt it to trituration; it is not used in forming the mass, but is well suited to the preparation of the dry materials. With a view to securing both tenacity and firmness in a pill mass, it seems essential that the several ingredients should combine the property of fluidity with that of hard- ness or insolubility. A solid substance, like aloes or almost any of the resins or gum resins, can readily be formed into pills with a little alcohol or some appropriate tincture, but for want of a substance insoluble in this excipient the pills will be apt to fail of that firmness of consistence which results from the combination of solid with liquid particles; soap is in this case a better excipient, being less of a solvent for the resinous particles, and possessing a body which prevents the softening and flat- tening out of the pills. Whenever practicable, it is best for the pharmaceutist to use the excipient prescribed by the physician, but there is nothing to prevent his adding inert excipients, when necessary, according to his own judgment, and the frequent absence of any specific directions on the subject makes it necessary for him to choose the best excipient to insure smallness of bulk, adhesiveness and firmness in the mass; ex- perience and a careful study of the subject, as presented in Chapter IV, will aid in this selection. Pills may be divided with a spatula, by the eye, or by the aid of a graduated tile; a great many pharmaceutists use this altogether, but it has always appeared to me it must be from want of familiarity with the use of the pill machine, Fig. 228. If the mass is plastic, it may Fig. 228. Fig. 229. Pill roller. Brass pill machine. be rolled between the smooth surfaces, or by use of the pill roller, Fio-. 229, into a perfect cylinder equally thick at both ends, and by then adjusting the cutting surfaces, the whole mass will be immediately turned into the appropriate number of pills, which, if about the size 51 802 ON DISPENSING AND COMPOUNDING PRESCRIPTIONS. appropriate to the machine, will be so round as to require no further rolling. In large dispensing establishments, several machines are sometimes kept adapted to different sizes, one for pills of opium or Quevenne's iron, another for compound cathartic or aloetic pill, and another for compound rhubarb and other large pills. In the IJ. S. Army laboratories immense numbers of pills are made with these machines by female operatives. There is a practical hint in relation to the use of the pill machine which should be mentioned in this con- nection ; it is, that the cutting surfaces will sometimes only work on each other perfectly in one way; every roller is, therefore, marked with a star, a little brass tack, a number, or some other designation, and a corresponding one is made on the machine, indicating in which direc- tion the roller is to be worked on the machine in cutting. From not being aware of this precaution, many abandon the use of a machine, which is one of the greatest of conveniences in pharmacy. In the machines made by Wurtz the rollers work equally well in both directions. Pills should not be put away for dispensing purposes until well dried on a tray, an open box lid, or paper folded at the edges for the purpose. There are several kinds of pill boxes described on page 54, of which the best is that made of paper with projecting top and bottom piece, Fig. 64. Pills containing volatile ingredients should be dis- pensed in a small wide-mouth vial. Such are made for this purpose. Fig. 230 shows a bottle arranged to contain lycopodium, powdered liquorice root, or sifted arrowroot, one or more of which may Fig. 230. be kept at hand in dispensing pills, both for the dusting of the pill machine, and for filling boxes in which they are dis- pensed. One of these bottles may have powdered gum Ara- bic also, so as to add that ingredient conveniently to pill masses in process of their manufacture. The mode of con- struction will scarcely need a remark ; a perforated cork, short piece of tube, and gj or gij vial, constitute the apparatus. Coating of Pills.—Though the least repulsive form of medicine, yet pills, especially when they contain bitter and nauseous ingredients, are disagreeable to some, and many ways have been devised to render them more attractive and pleasing to the eye and to hide the odor and taste of drugs Dusting bottle. given in this form. Since the issue of the former editions of this work the ancient practice of coating pills with silver and gold leaf has been revived. The apparatus I have had constructed for this purpose is shown in Fig. 231. It consists of two hemispheres of hard Fig. 231. wood fitting by a screw and highly polished on their inner surface. In rolling the pills care is taken to use no dusting powder of any kind and to have them moderately damp, otherwise to moisten them with a little syrup. They are then introduced into the Apparatus for silvering pills. hollow sphere along with the requisite quantity of silver or gold leaf, it is tightly closed by screwing the separate parts together and a rapid motion is communicated to it; in a few seconds the pills are removed with a clean COATING OF PILLS. 803 and bright coating. One dozen pills of average size require one sheet of foil and larger numbers in proportion. Some difficulty is experienced in giving a handsome coating to pills of Quevenne's iron, on account of their black color; this can be obviated by the use of a large proportion of foil, which may be objectionable as interfering with their solubility, notwithstand- ing the extreme tenuity of the foil. The taste of the pills is of course dis- guised in proportion to the completeness of the coating; in dispensing no powder is necessary, the tendency of the fresh pills to adhere to each other being obviated. This apparatus may be substituted by using a gallipot laid against the palm of the hand, or by two porcelain capsules fitted to each other, the opening at the lips being covered by the thumb, but there is a saving in the use of an apparatus as above figured; any portion of the foil not adhering to one charge of pills will be ready for the next, besides an advantage which is gained by the leverage of the handle. The former belief that a coating with metallic leaf, if sufficient to hide the taste and smell of the pills, would interfere with their solubility, has been very much modified by recent experience. The pharmaceutist should assure himself of the genuineness of his gold-leaf, as Dutch metal, which is so often substituted for it, contains both copper and zinc. A coating with gelatin is one of the most elegant and efficient expedients for disguising the odor and taste of pills ; this is accomplished by preparing a solution of one part of gelatin in two of water, by a water bath heat; and having prepared the pills, pretty firm and dry and free from any powder mi their surface, they are dipped into the gelatin by means of long pins, which are then placed in a position to allow the pills to dry without contact with each other. On being removed from the pins any superfluous gelatin is clipped off with scissors and the holes touched with gelatin from the point of a camel's hair brush if deemed necessary. This coating is smooth and glossy, and when the pills are kept dry leaves nothing to desire ; it effectually excludes all deteriorating influences, and pills thus covered may be kept for an indefinite time without losing their medicinal properties ; they, moreover, have an elegant appearance from the transparent nature of their surface, which may be colored to suit the fancy, by introducing into the solution of gelatin a sufficient quantity of coloring matter, which is soluble in water. Sugar-coated pills are now very popular and widely diffused. Their method of manufacture is much better understood by confectioners than by pharma- ceutists : the coating of objects with a glossy saccharine covering is, in fact, a prominent part of their business. On a large scale the sugar coating is managed by constantly rotating the moistened pills in a mixture of starch and sugar contained in a copper pan suspended at considerable distance above a small charcoal fire; they thus acquire a smooth and glossy surface, familiar to us in pills from most of the leading pharmaceutical manufacturers. There are several ways in which a similar coating may be effected at the prescription counter; in all cases, very finely-powdered." dusted» sugar ,B requisite ; some use a mixture of sugar and gum Arabic which must be intimate and rubbed to the very finest powder. Upon a pill tile, six or eight ni Is receive a thin covering of mucilage of gum Arabic or tragacanth by beino- rolled in it quickly by means of the fingers ; they are then immediately transferred to another tile, upon which a thin layer of the saccharine powder haTbeen dusted, and the sugar is made to adhere by giving the pills a rotary motion with the ends of the fingers, slightly pressing on them. Thf.covering of sugar may also be satisfactorily made by using the silver- ing globe the inside of which has been highly polished. Some of the 804 ON DISPENSING AND COMPOUNDING PRESCRIPTIONS. powder is sprinkled into the hemisphere, and, after the introduction of the pills previously moistened with mucilage as before, an even coating is effected by giving the box a quick circular movement. The pills are afterwards allowed to dry in a box, and may be made somewhat smoother by rolling them in finely-powdered starch. If thus treated, a good white coating is obtained, which, however, lacks smoothness and elegance if compared with the confectioners' manufacture, but answers all the required purposes. If it appears desirable, the sugar may be previously colored by incorpo- rating a few grains of carmine with it, or rubbing with it some good saffron to a very fine powder, if a yellow color is desired ; the latter fades if exposed to the light. Pills may be extemporaneously coated with sugar by first moistening them with a strong solution of balsam of Tolu in ether, throwing them immediately into a box containing sugar in very fine powder, and shaking the box for a few minutes; the application may be repeated if the first coating is not suffi- ciently thick. The ethereal solution has the advantage of extreme vola- tility and of not dissolving the ordinary constituents of pills, but should it prove objectionable on account of a solvent action on the pills it may be substituted by mucilage as before indicated. Furlefs process, patented in England, is directed to be performed with two saucers, the inner surface of one is coated with albumen, prepared by well agitating the white of an egg, the other contains a fine powder, com- posed of equal parts of sugar and tragacanth. The pills are placed in the first saucer and are made to revolve in it by a series of horizontal circular motions; this speedily coats them with a thin film of albumen ; then they are quickly transferred to the other saucer in which they are again caused to revolve and become coated with the mixed powder of sugar and tragacanth. The peculiar tenacious consistence of the albumen tends to prevent the pills from getting a very thick coating, but it is sufficient if continuous to lix a thin surface of the powder sufficient to form a thin but firm and tough coat- ing when dry. The quantity of albumen to place in the saucer must be learned by experiment; it should not be in excess, lest the pills get too heavy a coating and dry too slowly. Albumen has the merit of ready solu- bility in the stomach, and seems to be well adapted to the object in view. In an elaborate article on coating pills, Bernard S. Proctor, of New Castle on Tyne, England, has given the results of no less than forty-five experi- ments, which go to show that the process is in the main advantageous. He prefers those processes in which the pills are first rolled in a mixture of alco- hol and water, or in lac varnish, and then in an appropriate powder. Roll- ing first in tincture of lac and then in a mixture of three parts of French chalk and one of resin, gave a coating not liable to absorb moisture, and possessing most of the requisites sought. He recommends that the quantity of tincture should not exceed 4 or 5 minims to a dozen pills, and it is evi- dently an important precaution in any of the processes to moisten the pills as little as practicable to secure a continuous coating. The covering with sugar is perferred generally in the United States, it prevents the smell and taste from manifesting themselves for a number of days ; but, if freshly-made pills have been thus coated, the evaporating moisture, in penetrating through the sugar, may carry some soluble matter with it and gradually discolor the covering; in a similar way, odorous prin- ciples will penetrate to the surface, and finally impart their smell; sugar- eoated assafoetida pills, though at first nearly free from odor, develop it on keeping. PREPARATION OF MIXTURES. 805 Sugar pellets or granules, variously medicated, have been very much pre- scribed within a few years. They have gained favor with physicians from their portability, and with many patients on account of their very small size, which adapts them to be taken more readily and easily than ordinary pills, Sugar granules are made by the confectioner, of white sugar, sometimers artificially colored. They are medicated in the following way : The dose to be contained in each granule is first determined ; the medicinal substance is then weighed out in such a quantity as may be evenly divided into the proper doses ; it is now dissolved in strong alcohol or ether, sufficient to moisten the requisite quantity of pellets, which are to be constantly agitated in a shallow dish so that the solution may become evenly divided among them, until the solvent has evaporated. It is evident that, prepared in this way, the globules may vary somewhat in the quantity of the absorbed solution, and it is therefore important that the agitation be continued without intermission until no trace of moisture can be detected ; the employment of the strongest alcohol or ether is neces- sary, so that a larger amount of the solvent may be employed without lique- fying the sugar. Only such medicines are adapted to this mode of prepa- ration as are given in very small doses, and the vegetable alkaloids and some neutral principles are particularly adapted to it. Generally, more than one of the granules contain the full dose of the medicine. It has become cus- tomary to have them contain the one-hundredth, one-fiftieth, one-twentieth, or the one-sixteenth part of a grain of the medicinal compound. Preparation of Mixtures.—In the Chapter on Liquid Preparations, page 722 to 727, a list is given of medicines best adapted to this form, and a pretty full account of the principles which should govern the prescriber in the exercise of this part of his duties. The study of such a treatise by physicians would save many blunders which fall under the observation of pharmaceutists; it would also add to the facilities of the physician for combating disease, and to the comfort of those compelled to undergo medical treatment. The preparation of mixtures and other liquid extemporaneous pre- parations involves the exercise of greater judgment and skill, because of the frequent unskilfulness of prescribers. The experienced phar- maceutist will frequently have opportunities to correct apparent in- compatibilities without materially varying from the prescription, and in this as in other forms of prescription it will sometimes be his privi- lege to detect and obviate errors which might be of serious import. Let him never allow a preparation to pass from his hands without a careful consideration as to whether a mistake of his own or of the prescriber has escaped his notice. The ingredients contained in mixtures are generally both solid and liquid, and of the solids some are soluble and others diffused in the liquid'only by admixture; the object of the pharmaceutist should be the intimate blending of all the ingredients so that every dose when taken shall be of the same composition. In most of the formulas in- volving any difficulties as given in the previous chapter, the mode of admixture has been indicated, but a large number will fall into the hands of the pharmaceutist, in which the mode of incorporating the ingredients together will be left entirely to his judgment. If all the ingredients prescribed are liquids, or if the only solid is 806 ON DISPENSING AND COMPOUNDING PRESCRIPTIONS. freely soluble, they may be all introduced directly into the bottle, pre- viously prepared, and the whole may be mixed by agitation. The most ready mode of dissolving crystals is explained in the first part of this work, in the Chapter on Solutions, page 97, and the distinction to be observed between those substances readily soluble by agitation and those requiring the triturating action of the pestle and mortar. With a view to obviating the liability to precipitation from mixing either chemical or pharmaceutical incompatibles, it is desirable, first, to make as dilute solutions as the precipitation will allow, of any chemi- cal substances ordered; second, to incorporate with these the syrups or viscid excipients, if any such are prescribed, before mixing them. In this way the play of incompatibilities is diminished by the twofold influence of dilution and viscidity, and the .liability to unsuspected chemical changes, the fear of which occasions such trepidation to the inexperienced prescriber, will be greatly lessened. As a general rule the mortar and pestle should be used in case of incorporating an insoluble substance in powder with a liquid; the plan of mixing by agitating in a vial is seldom perfectly successful, and where these are suspended by the aid of gum and sugar it is best to have them thoroughly triturated together as powders before adding the liquid ingredients. Emulsions are, mixtures of oils, fats or resins with water, generally promoted by alkalies, gum or gum and sugar, and white or yelk of egg. Numerous examples of this kind of preparation are given among the foregoing prescriptions. Mistura Assafcetidae and Mistura Ammo- niaci are instances of what might be called natural emulsions, the conditions of an insoluble resinous ingredient and a soluble gum being present in the gum-resin prescribed. In Copaiva Mixture, No. 122, Castor Oil Mixture, No. 105, Chloroform and Oil of Almond Mixture, No. 96, Emulsion of Cannabis Indica, No. 99, and others, we have instances of artificial emulsions in which an oily ingre- dient is properly suspended. The instructions for making each of these are so specific that they can scarcely fail to realize a successful com- bination and furnish a clue to similar preparations. It may happen that an emulsion constructed on this plan will partially separate into layers and need shaking before being taken; but if properly made it will never have the oil floating in globules upon the surface. There can be no doubt of the increased action of emulsionized oils over those in which the oil globules have not been broken up, though on the other hand it is less easy to take a dose of oil emulsionized than floating on the surface of water or enveloped in the froth of porter or sarsaparilla mead. It is generally customary to weigh the fixed oils or copaiva in dispensing them, but if this is done when they are to be made into emulsions it should not be done in the bottle in which they are to be dispensed. The adhesion of the oil to the glass will interfere with its complete separation into an emulsion, and a portion of this adhering oil will contaminate the emulsion when made and be apparent in each dose drawn from the vial. In the elegant emulsions of almonds, No. 120, and of pumpkin seeds, No. 143, the fixed oils present in the seeds are naturally associated with mucilaginous ingredients which PREPARATION OF MIXTURES. 807 French porcelain mortar. Fig. 233. emulsonize them with water without the addition of any foreign ingredient. Volatile oils, especially oil of turpentine and oil of copaiva, require the admixture of fixed oils in order properly to incorporate them with viscid materials, or they may be mixed with yelk of eggs, an admirable natural mixture of a fixed oil with albumen. For making emulsions I prefer the French pattern porcelain mortar, Fig. 232 ; in this a thick mucilage is first made and the oil added, while by tri- turation the combination is effected completely and satisfactorily. It is noticeable that emulsions are usually quite incompatible with neu- tral or acid salts, though rather im- proved by some alkaline salts, as borax, by carbonated alkali and by caustic ammonia. They are also incompatible with any considerable proportion of alcohol, though moderate quantities of the tinctures, made with diluted alcohol, may be added after they are fully diluted. If spirit of nitric ether is prescribed, associated with gum Arabic, it is well to dilute the mucilage to the greatest extent allowable before adding the spirit, otherwise there is danger of the precipitation of the gum. In making neutral mixture the use of fresh lemon- juice is prescribed, and when the juice of the lemon is separated by expression with a "lemon squeezer," or otherwise a strainer, Fig. 234, is a useful appliance. It is sometimes quite impracticable to filter this preparation while* the patient waits, and the Pharmacopoeia directs that it should be strained through muslin. In the compounding of mix- FiS- 234, tures and of other forms of liquid preparations, as well as in the or- dinary operations of dispensing, one or more graduated measures mm?*. M will be required; these should always be at hand in a desig- nated place, cleaned ready for use; the duty of placing them there should devolve upon one person in the shop, or upon each one after using them, as may best suit the general regulations. For convenience in measuring oils and copaiva it is well to keep a separate graduated glass, and the small round bottom graduate used for medicine chests, Fig. 233, will serve a good purpose, being easily cleaned and of sufficient capacity for the purpose. Measure fixed oils. Strainer. 808 ON DISPENSING AND COMPOUNDING PRESCRIPTIONS. In measuring liquids the pharmaceutist draws from the tincture bottle both for dispensing directly and mixing in prescription, and the habit should be fixed, of holding the stopper by the little finger, while holding the measure with the thumb and forefinger. The measure must be held opposite the eye to measure the quantity with accuracy, and, after it has been done, the stopper is immediately to be replaced and the bottle set back on the shelf. The whole process is well shown in Fig. 235. The liability to mistakes in compounding is greatly increased by the accumulation of bottles on the counter; and it should Fig. 235. be the habit to replace each bottle immediately, and to note the label as it is taken down and as it is put back; if a drop of liquid remains on the lip after decanting, it should be collected on the point of the stopper before putting it in again, and thus prevented from running down the side. Much also depends on the method of restoring the stopper as to the facility with which it can be withdrawn again. Syrups, when allowed to remain in quantity between the ground stopper and neck of the bottle, dry and harden so as to be withdrawn with great difficulty: the same is true of alkaline solutions and resinous tinctures to a still OINTMENTS AND CERATES—SUPPOSITORIES. 809 worse degree. In handling the bottles it is important that the stopper and neck should be somewhat cleared of adhering liquid before restor- ing the stopper in its position. In the case of alkaline solutions it has been recommended to coat the stopper with parafine, which is not acted on by alkali and prevents the adhesion complained of. The modes of removing adhering stoppers—by the well-directed force of the thumb and fingers, by sudden strokes of a spatula handle or mallet, by soaking the stopper in any appropriate solvent collected on the lip, and by the various modes of heating the neck of the bottle —will suggest themselves to the ingenious manipulator, and will doubtless meet with varying success. Ointments and Cerates.—No part of the duties of the pharmaceutist is considered so disagreeable as that which involves those manipulations with fatty matters, necessary to bring them to the condition of oint- ments and cerates. The only practical details which I deem it neces- sary to insist upon, are: 1st. The importance of fineness of all medi- cinal substances incorporated in ointments and cerates. 2d. The necessity of proper precautions to avoid rancidity in ointments; and 3d, cleanliness as absolutely essential to success in this department of the business. Upon the first point no remarks are necessary other than to call attention to it in connection with the special directions contained in each formula. The solid ingredients of ointments should never appear through them as distinct specks; their consistence should be uniformly smooth. Whenever an ointment is rancid it should be thrown away —this is an invariable rule—and in order to prevent rancidity occur- ring they should be kept in well-glazed and well-covered jars, a piece of tin foil being interposed between the top of the ointment and the jar. The ointment closet should be in a cool place; large quantities, if kept on hand, should be in the cellar. The youngest apprentice, who has generally the duty of " cleaning up," should be early instructed to keep the ointment slab or tile free from grease; this he may do by having a bottle of solution of caustic potassa near at hand and dropping a little on to the slab after it has been thoroughly rubbed with porous paper, and then washing it off with water; a little tincture of soap or of the officinal soap liniment will also aid much in cleaning the slab. Greasy spatulas should never be thrown with others into water to be cleaned, soft paper is the best material for cleaning them, and in all the cleaning processes it should be remembered that water rather interferes with than facilitates the removal of grease. Suppositories.—Few pharmaceutical preparations have been consi- dered so difficult as these, but this has chiefly arisen from the absence of specific and accurate directions for their preparation, and of suitable moulds in which to form them. The attempt to form pure cocoa- butter into suppositories is hardly ever completely 'successful, and combination with wax as directed by Dorvault (see page 721) is now found to be inferior to the admixture of a small proportion of sper- maceti, which has the merit of congealing much more rapidly than wax and hence favors the rapid and complete solidifying of the cones. 810 ON DISPENSING AND COMPOUNDING PRESCRIPTIONS. 236. The proportion of spermaceti may be varied according to the haste with which they are to be completed, and the exposure to heat to which they are liable afterward. In summer one-fifth of the whole may be spermaceti, in winter one-sixth. There are two ways suggested for medicating suppositories ; the most ready method is to introduce the medicinal ingredients, in powder or mass, into a conical opening in the base of the finished and hardened cone, which is then closed up by replacing into the orifice sufficient of the hardened cocoa-butter; the other and preferable process is to mix the dried and pow- dered ingredients with a portion of the melted fat by thorough trituration, and then to add the remainder, taking care to stir the mixture until it has sufficiently cooled and thickened to prevent the subsidence of the powder, and then to form it into moulds. Some extracts may be incorporated very satisfactorally by rubbing them with a spatula on a tile, first with a drop of water, then with a little of the melted cocoa-butter. The aqueous extract of opium, which is much pre- scribed in this form of preparation, is best dried on a clear dry day upon a pill tile, reduced to a very fine powder and triturated with sufficient melted cocoa-butter, so that five grains of the mass contains one of the extract; in this state it is not affected by the weather, and is readily distributed, either alone or with acetate of lead, tannin, Monsell's salt, or other astringents. Substances soluble in cocoa-butter may be incorporated into the form of suppositories with great facility, by digesting them in the melted cocoa- butter previously to adding the spermaceti. Where there is liability to the presence of crystals of nitrate of potassa, as in old extracts, or where any insoluble portion would interfere with the perfect smoothness of the suppository, the melted material should be strained before moulding it. Fig. 236 shows a metallic mould of the proper size to make a suppository of twenty-five grains weight, the size pre- ferred for adults, although sixty grains each has been some- times prescribed. There does not seem to be any advantage in a large excess of the vehicle, and by having the cones of uni- form size, their preparation is greatly facilitated. Fig. 237 is designed to show the arrangement of suppository moulds, with a view to their being readily chilled ; this may be made of tin, the moulds fitting into a diaphragm which sets upon the surface of some iced water; when the suppository has quite hardened it will fall out by inverting the mould and striking it suddenly on a slab or tile. These moulds sometimes require cleaning, which is readily done by wrapping a piece of soft paper around the plug used for making paper cones, Fig. 238, and turning it several times in the mould. In the absence of these metallic moulds, paper cones will answer a good purpose ; as their size is important the following directions are given : a piece of glazed paper, not too thick, is cut into oblong pieces, 2£ inches long by 1^ wide, and rolled into a cone, which should be If inches long and ^ an inch at the base ; the free end of the paper is se- cured by a tip of sealing wax, which should be run around the base, and upon hardening retains the shape of the stick and keeps the cone from flattening; at the extreme point of the cone an eighth of an inch may be clipped off and the opening sealed up, though this Fig. 237. Suppository moulds in refrige- rator. MANAGEMENT AND DISCIPLINE OF THE SHOP. 811 is omitted by some of the best manipulators. A little wooden form we have had turned for folding the paper moulds upon is shown in Fig. 238 ; by having a shoulder on this to mark the base of the cone it may be trimmed with the point of a pair of fine scissors, following that Fig. 238. line. After the requisite number of these cones has been made, the object is next to arrange them with the open end in a proper position to be filled; this is conveniently done in a box lid or other shallow vessel filled with flaxseed; sand is objectionable from its liability, if accidentally thrown into the cone, to produce irrita- tion when the suppository is applied. My friend, Ferris Bring- hurst, of Wilmington, Del., to whom I am indebted for some valuable hints upon this subject, uses a wooden stand with coni- cal excavations, into which the paper moulds fit; this he sets in the ice chest in summer, or the open air in winter. The paper Formforpa. should not be removed from the suppository until it has become per moulds. thoroughly hardened, and by this means it will acquire a clean polished surface. The time required to prepare and cool sufficiently a dozen or more suppositories is from half an hour to an hour. The physician pre- scribing them should bear this in mind and not anticipate their being fur- nished by the apothecary immediately, unless of standard kinds known to be kept on hand. The chief points to be observed to insure successful manufacture of this useful form of preparation are, first, the complete incorporation of the me- dicinal ingredient, in an impalpable powder, with the melted mixture of cocoa-butter and spermaceti; second, the chilling of the melted mass to such point that while it will flow from the cup or capsule it will not allow the rapid subsidence of the suspended powder; third, when using metallic moulds to have them so refrigerated in advance as to harden the supposito- ries almost immediately on contact. Management and Discipline of the Shop. The requirements of modern pharmacy call for greater discrimina- tion than formerly, in the selection of youths as apprentices; these should possess a liberal education, a knowledge at least of the elements of the Latin language, and, what is more important, some preliminary knowledge of and taste for the natural and physical sciences, especially botany and chemistry. No lad should be allowed to undertake the duties and responsibilities of the drug business whose faculties of observation and reflection have not been awakened by previous train- ing, and who does not bring to the pursuit a desire and a capacity to render himself master of it. Much of the success of the pharmaceutical store will be dependent upon the discipline maintained among those to whom the details of the business are necessarily intrusted, and the difficulties surrounding the proper management of the business will increase as it extends and involves the employment of more numerous apprentices or other em- ployees unless the general duties of all are specifically laid down, and the particular duties of each well defined and insisted upon _ The rules which follow were prepared by my valued friend, the late Henrv C. Blair, a man of many estimable traits of character and of high standing as a pharmaceutist; they were designed for a store employing three apprentices, and as originally prepared were so 812 ON DISPENSING AND COMPOUNDING PRESCRIPTIONS. admirable that I have inserted them with but little alteration. Al- though, of course, they require modifications to suit the circumstances of different establishments, their general tenor is adapted to all, and the high tone of professional and moral rectitude they require, renders them worthy the acceptance of every apprentice who would deserve the approval of his employer, and of every employer who desires the best interests of his apprentice. RULES OF A PHARMACEUTICAL STORE. General Regulations of the Store. 1. Business hours will include the time between breakfast and 6 o'clock P. M., except when special duty may require it otherwise. During business hours all hands must be on their feet, and must be employed either in waiting on the counter or at some regular store duty. 2. As waiting on the counter is a duty which requires most know- ledge and experience, the Senior apprentice must always serve where there is one customer; when two, the first Junior apprentice will assist, and when three the second Junior will aid. The Senior apprentice must always take that part of the duty which requires most knowledge and skill. This order of duty must never be deviated from if circumstances will at all admit of it. 3. Never put up an article without you are certain it is right. 4. In every instance, customers must be waited on with promptitude, and in case one only is present and several articles are wanting, or a prescription, or in any instance where assistance will expedite, the first Junior, and the second, if necessary, will aid. Every other duty must give way to that of waiting on the counter except when serious detriment would be the consequence. 5. Every person entering the store, whether pauper or president, infant or adult, white or colored, must be treated with courtesy and kindness. 6. Boisterous mirth and a sullen temper are to be equally avoided as productive of neither business nor business character. The acqui- sition of a uniformly cheerful temperament is an attainment worth far beyond the price it usually costs. 7. There are to be no masters and no servants. Each one is to feel conscious of the fact that the performance of the duties assigned to him are just as necessary and as important as what pertains to any other hand in the store. All useful employment is honorable. Indo- lence is a disgrace. 8. An afternoon of every week will be devoted to cleaning the store, in which all must share as occasion offers. As neatness, order, cleanliness and accuracy are necessary and not mere accomplishments in a Pharmaceutist, all are required to practise them constantly. RULES OF A PHARMACEUTICAL STORE. 813 9. Every apprentice will be expected to become a graduate of the College of Pharmacy, and will be furnished with tickets for the lectures of the College and every opportunity for availing himself of the honor of the degree of that Institution. To deserve this degree, will require a severe economy of leisure hours, and their application to the study of those books which relate to the theoretical and practical knowledge necessary to make an accomplished Pharmaceutist. 10. Apprentices need but few social acquaintances, and they should be very select. While the occasional visit of a well-behaved young friend will be countenanced, lounging in the store will not be tolerated. 11. Each apprentice will have at his disposal an afternoon and evening every week, and every other Sunday. The afternoon will comprise the time between 12 o'clock, at noon, and 6 o'clock P. M., and the evening between 6 o'clock P. M., and the closing of the store. These privileges will not be interfered with unnecessarily. A vaca- tion of two weeks, every year, will be allowed each apprentice. 12. No apprentice residing in the house, will be allowed to be absent at night after the closing of the store without special permission. 13. It is not the wish of the proprietor of the store that any of his apprentices should extol an article beyond its merit to advance his pecuniary interest, or to say or do aught in the performance of his duty that he would not be willing that others should say or do to him under the same circumstances. 14. As all are presumed to be members of the proprietor's family, their intercourse will be characterized with the courtesy becoming young gentlemen. Ndbond of apprenticeship will be required except the honor of the individual. Should the party wishing to leave before the allotted time expires have a good reason for so doing, the proprietor will not probably object, and should his cause be a bad one, and be persisted in, the proprietor will certainly not offer a hindrance to his going. 15. A cheerful compliance with the foregoing rules is confidently expected, and the repeated infraction of a known regulation of the store will be cause for a dismissal. Specific Duties of the Senior Apprentice. 1. To see that the specific duties of his Juniors are promptly and well performed. 2. To wait on the counter in the morning before breakfast, that they may not be hindered in the performance of their duties. 3. In case of the absence of either of his Juniors, to take the place of his first Junior. 4. He is to take charge of the books. 5. To take knowledge of, and properly note any articles that may 814 ON DISPENSING AND COMPOUNDING PRESCRIPTIONS. be needed for the store, including goods to be purchased, and prepa- rations to be made. 6. To see that the drawers, shelves and cases are well supplied with such articles as are kept on hand in quantity. 7. To keep a note-book of what is necessary to be done in the ordi- nary business of the store, and to designate employment for his Juniors. 8. In the absence of the Proprietor, to take entire charge of the store, and to be alone responsible for its business. Specific Duties of the First Junior Apprentice. 1. It will be his duty to dust the counters and desks thoroughly every morning. This service must be performed before breakfast, and repeated as often through the day as necessary. 2. In case of the absence of the second Junior apprentice he is to perform his duties. 3. He is to paste the prescriptions in the book kept for that purpose or to file or copy them, once every week. 4. He will copy the bills into the bill-book once every week. 5. It will be his duty to keep the drawers well supplied with paper for wrapping purposes, including the various sizes of cut paper. 6. It will be his duty to clean the scales, large and small, once every week, and oftener, if necessary. Specific Duties of the Second Junior Apprentice. 1. He is to open the store in the morning, make the fire, and attend to it through the day, sweep out the store, wash the mortars, &c, keep the mineral water counter clean, and the syrup bottles filled. These duties are to be performed in part before breakfast. 2. It will be his duty to take entire charge of the labels, keeping a register of those needed, and having the drawers always well sup- plied with labels trimmed for use; also to have the proper drawers well provided with clean vials and with pill, powder, and ointment boxes. 3. It will be required of him to do such errands as the business of the store may demand, and to close the store at night. APPENDIX. ON THE MANAGEMENT OF A SICK CHAMBER. The following hints on the management of the sick chamber are chiefly from the pen of a lady of intelligence and experience. Although addressed especially to nurses, they should be carefully studied by practitioners of medicine, upon wmoni the responsibility of giving direction to the conduct of the sick chamber mainly devolves. Ventilation. Few persons who are in the habit of visiting the sick, can have failed to notice the great difference in the state of the air, in chambers where cleanli- ness and good management have been in exercise, and those wherein the value and importance of neatness, and the careful admission of a free cur- rent of fresh air have been overlooked. If, then, temporary visitors are sensible of the difference, how much more deeply interested must the suffer- ing patient be in the attainment of a free and healthy atmosphere. Cleanliness. Since it is often difficult to get a sick room swept, it may be desirable, if it can be done unheard, to get at least a part of the carpeting away now and then, that it may be well shaken. A few tea-leaves may be thrown over a part of the room at a time, and very quietly taken up with a hand-brush And in those cases which are not at all critical, and where anything damp can be admitted into the room with impunity, a mop, which, after being dipped in water, has been well trundled, may be just used for a few minutes to remove the flue from under the bed ; or it may be very carefully passed over a carpet, if nailed down. Change of Posture, Arrangement of the Bed, &c. It is scarcely to be believed, until experienced, the relief from suffering which a change of posture produces ; neither is it generally thought of, how much alleviation could be attained in many instances, even by the fresh cord- ing of the sacking, with special attention to a level position ; a hard bed or mattress, for a suffering invalid, is not recommended, but an arrangement for a level position will often afford great comfort. The sacking first tightly corded (but splines instead of sacking are much better), then a straw pal- liasse, which, if not newly made, ought to be raised by a fresh supply of straw'in the middle, where a heavy pressure may have rendered it uneven ; over this, a good feather bed, which ought to be gently pressed and made level, then a mattress, composed first of a thick bed of horsehair, and well overlaid with excellent long wool; it ought to have room for the bed-post at each of its four corners, so that it may not only be turned daily from side to side but also from the head to the feet; indeed, it is better, as it regards 816 APPENDIX. even the straw palliasse, to adopt such a plan as may admit of the turning of it, and, as it is heavy and unyielding, it is better to have the corners cut out at each of its two parts, making a small oblong of the same material and height, to tie on in the middle; or an inconvenient aperture might be made there. The proper arrangement of pillows is of no small importance, and in cases of fever a change of pillows is desirable; this, too, furnishes an opportunity for putting on fresh pillow-cases. Make circular cushions, in the form of a ring, of old linen and stuffed with bran. A patient, obliged by disease to lie continually on one side, will find great relief to the ear or prominent bones by these "ring cushions." Cleanliness of the Person. Wash and refresh the patient whenever suitable, also brush the teeth and hair—the latter may be bathed with bay rum, lavender water, cologne, &c. All this, subject to the strength of the patient, and the permission of the medical attendant. It may be deemed needless to give the above hint, but it cannot be doubted that by far too many lose the full enjoyment and benefit of a thorough attention to the cleanliness of the person. Washing Cups and Glasses. An appropriate table, not liable to injury, is a great convenience in a sick room ; so is a small wicker basket, with compartments to hold the different bottles of medicine and articles of diet. It may be also useful to have a couple of baskets with compartments to hold glasses or cups, one of these being sent out with the things which need washing, and always ready to be exchanged. Preservation of Ice. In our hot summers, one of the greatest practical difficulties in nursing arises from the spoiling of articles of food prepared for the sick or for infants, and which must be kept at hand for use, especially during the night; it is also a desideratum to have ice at hand for cooling dfinks, &c. A good contrivance for this purpose is made by I. S. Williams, of Philadelphia. It consists of a double can, the inside of galvanized iron, and the outside of tin, with an air-chamber between ; near the bottom is a diaphragm, below which a piece of ice is placed, and a bowl or other utensil is arranged to set upon this, and to be conveniently lifted out by a wire handle. This answers a good purpose. Change of Linen. A frequent change of linen is a great comfort and benefit, in most cases. Let the bed linen be frequently changed (when suitable), and, in serious cases of fever, it may be useful to untuck the bottom of the bed and gently shake the upper clothes, so as to let the warm and impure air pass away. Let the sheets and blankets be of full size, that they may be tucked thoroughly under the mattress, or whatever is at the top. It is a comfort to the patient to have all straight and smooth under him, and nurses are recommended to attend to this more than once in a day. Change of Boom. In some particular cases of long and depressing sickness, a change of room, conducted with great prudence, may be found a powerful aid towards recovery. On removing the patient into another room, this ought, if in the spring, APPENDIX. 817 autumn, or winter, and even in part of the summer, to be very carefully prepared with not only a good fire, but an attention to the doors and win- dows, that all be shut, and the temperature brought to that of the room about to be left. When at any time a patient's room is to be aired, the curtains should be drawn closely round the bed. Just raising the window for an inch or two will be useful, if it be for a short time ; but, rather than run any risk to the invalid, throw on an additional blanket. Avoidance of Noise and Excitement. Much conversation is often injurious, and whispering offensive. Place a pan covered with sand underneath the fire to receive the cinders, and have a second ready to make an exchange when this is taken up. Let the num- ber of the visitors in the room be chiefly confined to those whose services are effective, and let all wear shoes with list or cloth soles or slippers. The rustling of silk gowns may prove an annoyance to those who are in a very weak state, also the rattling of cups, stirring the fire, &c. Those only who have suffered from severe illness, can well judge of the importance of preserving a quiet mental atmosphere ; how little those suffering with languor and pain are competent to sustain the pressure which a tale of woe may impose. The subject of conversation should be much guarded, while a cheerful demeanor, and innocently lively manner, may help to assuage or lessen the sense of distress. Sitting up. Let the linen-horse be timely placed before the fire, with every article likely to be needed ; and, if the clothes are to be put on and washing in- cluded, let the hot water and all be ready, so as to avoid the least bustle. Spread a blanket on the floor for the patient to walk over. Neatness. An increased delicacy of the stomach and sense of nicety, are the concomi- tants of disease, and, therefore, the nurse and all around should be particu- larly careful, not only as to the neatness of their own persons, but that every dose of medicine, and all food, be presented in the most tempting, clean, and delicate way. To promote this, it may be desirable, in long illnesses, to have at hand a variety of small vessels of different sizes. Protection from Light, and from the Blaze of Fire and Candle. Diseases are so variable in their effects, that no minute plan is suggested for any particular case. However cheering the light of the sun in many instances, there are affections where a judicious nurse would be called upon to screen the invalid from the blaze of day. She should remember that, by a little arrangement of shutters and curtains, a room may still be made cheer- ful by a sort of subdued light; while in some distressing affections of the head, &c, from severe fever, the patient can hardly be too much indulged by the darkening of the room. In such a case, the blaze of the fire must greatly augment suffering. Screens ought to be at hand, as well for that as for the candle. The nursery lamp, shown on page 181, will be found useful not only to keep a screened light at hand, but also for warming soups, beef- tea or other articles of nourishment. Important that the Nurse be taken care of. The nurse who is much engaged in night service, ought to be carefully spared in the day; she must have rest, or she cannot long hold out. When 52 818 APPENDIX. sitting up at night, some strong coffee or tea, ready made, should be pre- pared,.that it may be warmed and taken without the least disturbance to the sick person. Some nurses make a great noise with the clattering of tea-things, which ought to be avoided. Gentleness and Kindness. All who surround the patient should be kind, gentle, and patient; not a sound of harshness, or evidence of discord should reach his ear. Any dis- cussion as to whether this or that be best, should be avoided in his presence. Some persons, with the greatest desire to do right, do too much, and, with- out intending it, interrupt a sufferer by unimportant questions and inquiries, and by moving about the room, when they would often do a much greater service by sitting quietly beside the bed, attending to requests emanating from the patient, whose feelings and preferences should always be consulted and accorded with, if not interfering with medical directions, or being in themselves palpably improper and injurious. There is, perhaps, scarcely any situation in which the call is greater upon the Christian virtues than in a sick chamber, for it very often happens that disease makes a great impres- sion upon the nervous system, and pain and suffering disturb the accustomed placidity of the invalid, who, with every desire to bend patiently under the affliction, may now and then seem scarcely able to appreciate the kindest efforts to minister to his need. To avoid Unreasonable Interruption. Particularly guard the sufferer who has jnst fallen asleep. The person having the chief responsibility should be instructed to pass the feathery end of a quill through the keyhole, whenever sleep or any other cause renders interruption unsuitable; and this sign should be strictly regarded. It is far better than risking disturbance to the patient by trying a locked door. Tie the quill to the handle of the door, that it be not lost. A Dying-bed. Let no one annoy the patient by sitting on the bed, or indulging in earnest expressions of surprise or grief. All around ought to be still; no calling out, "Oh, he's dying," &c. It should be carefully ascertained that the body be placed in the easiest posture. The bed-curtains should be, in most cases, gently undrawn, and the least possible interruption given to the admission of fresh air. All but those who are fanning the patient, or perhaps moistening the parched mouth or otherwise promoting his comfort, should be careful to keep at a distance from the bed, and be quietly seated. It is believed that few can tell the suffering often inflicted on the dying by the thoughtless bustle of attendants and even friends. The speaking in a loud tone, the setting down of even a glass or vial, may often cause distress. No sound should disturb, beyond an occasional and necessary whisper, the solemn period of dissolution. Preparations used as Articles of Diet for the Sick and Convalescent. Arrowroot Pap. Take of arrowroot one large tablespoonful; water, one pint. First mix the arrowroot well into a paste with a little of the cold water; bring the remainder of the water to a boiling heat; then stir in the arrowroot; let it boil a few minutes; sweeten it with loaf sugar. APPENDIX. 819 The preparation of arrowroot pap with milk renders it richer and more nutritious, though sometimes not allowable. The application of direct heat to preparations of this description, alwavs involves the danger of scorching them, and the intervention of a water bath is found to prevent the accident. The apparatus known as Hecker's farina boiler, figured on page 191, is made for the purpose, and is a useful utensil in any family. Arrowroot Pap, with Milk. Put in a saucepan, to boil, one pint of milk; stir very smoothly, into a cup of cold milk, a dessertspoonful of arrowroot; when the milk boils, stir in the arrowroot; continue to stir until it is cooked, which will be in five or ten minutes ; then remove it from the fire, and sweeten to the taste. Toast Water. Cut a slice of stale bread half an inch thick, a finger length long ; cut off the crust, and toast it quite brown, but not scorched; while hot, put it into a half pint pitcher ; pour over half a pint of boiling water; cover it tightly, and when cool pour it off and strain. Mulled Wine. Put cinnamon or allspice (to the taste) into a cup of hot water to steep; add three eggs, well beaten, with sugar ; heat to a boil a pint of wine ; then put in the spice and eggs, while boiling, and stir them until done, which will be in three minutes. Jelly for Invalids. Cut a penny roll into thin slices ; toast them to a light brown ; then boil gently in a quart of water until it jellies ; strain it upon a few shavings of lemon-peel; sweeten, and add, if liked, a little wine and nutmeg. Eggnog. Take the yelks of eight eggs; beat them with six large spoonfuls of pul- verized loaf sugar; when this is a cream, add the third part of a nutmeg. grated ; into this stir one tumblerful of good brandy, and one wineglass of good Madeira wine ; mix them well together; have ready the whites of the eggs, beaten to a stiff froth, and beat them into the mixture; when all are well mixed, add three pints of rich milk. Panada. Cut two slices of stale bread half an inch in thickness ; cut off the crust; toast them a nice brown ; cut them into squares of two inches in size ; lay them in a bowl, sprinkle a little salt over them, and pour on a pint of boil- ing water; grate a little nutmeg. Tapioca. Soak two tablespoonfuls of very clean tapioca in two teacups of cold water over night; in the morning, add a little salt, one pint of milk, or water if milk cannot be taken ; simmer it until quite soft; stir well while cooling; when done, pour into a bowl, and, if allowed, add sugar, a spoon- ful of wine, and a little nutmeg. It ice Jelly. Take of rice, one-quarter of a pound ; white sugar, half a pound ; water, one quart. Boil these well together, carefully stirring them till the whole 820 APPENDIX. becomes a glutinous mass. Strain off into a dish or form. When cool, it is fit for use. This preparation may be flavored with rose-water, orange- flower water, or lemon-juice, as may best suit the palate of the patient, or as directed by the physician. Iceland Moss Jelly. Take of Iceland moss, two ounces; water, one quart. First wash the moss in some cold water ; then put it into the quart of water, and boil slowly till very thick, adding white sugar till sufficiently sweet, then strain through a cloth. When cold, it will be fit for use, and may be eaten with spices, if allowed. Irish moss jelly may be prepared in the same way. Sago Jelly. Take four tablespoonfuls of sago, one quart of water, juice and rind of one lemon ; sweeten to the taste. Mix all the ingredients well together; let it stand for half an hour; then put it on to boil, till the particles are entirely dissolved ; it should be constantly stirred. It is very much improved by the addition of wine. Calves' Feet Jelly. Boil two calves' feet in one gallon of water, down to a quart; then strain it, and, when cold, skim off all the fat; take up all the clear jelly. Put the jelly into a saucepan, with a pint of wine, half a pound of loaf sugar, the juice of four lemons, the white of six or eight eggs beaten into a froth. Mix all well together. Set the saucepan upon a clear fire, and stir the jelly till it boils. When it has boiled ten minutes, pour it through a flannel bag till it runs clear. Essence of Beef. This is prepared from lean meat, by cutting it into small pieces, adding a little salt, then introducing into a wide-mouth bottle, corked tightly, and heating it gradually by immersing in a kettle of water, to wdiich heat is ap- plied till it boils. After a few hours digesting in this way, the juice is drawn off, and constitutes the most concentrated form of nourishment. Beef Tea. Take of lean beef one-quarter of a pound, a pint and a half of water, salt sufficient to season it. When it begins to boil, skim it five minutes; then add two blades of mace ; continue the boiling ten minutes longer, when it will be ready for use. (See LiebigJs Broth, page 525.) Chicken Broth. Clean half a chicken; on it pour one quart of cold water, and a little salt; put in a spoonful of rice ; boil two hours very slowly, and tightly covered ; skim it well; just before using it, put in a little chopped parsley. Chicken Jelley. Cut up a chicken; put it into a stone jar; break all the bones; cover very closely ; set the jar into boiling water ; keep it boiling three hours and a half; strain off the liquor; season with salt and a very little mace. Rice Jelly. Boil a quarter of a pound of the best rice flour, with half a pound of loaf sugar, in a quart of water, until the whole becomes one glutinous mass; strain off the jelly, and let it stand to cool. This is nutritious and light. APPENDIX. 821 Slippery Elm Bark Jelly. Four large spoonfuls of the bark, chipped ; pour on it one quart of cold water; let it stand all night; stir it, and let it settle ; the next morning pour off the water; slice the rind of a lemon very thinly, and, with the juice, put it in the water strained ; let it simmer, very gently, fifteen minutes; then sweeten, and pour in a mould to cool and harden; take out the rind before putting it in the mould. Wine WJiey. Boil a pint of new milk ; add to it a glass or two of white wine; put it on the fire until it just boils again; then set it aside till the curd settles ; pour off the clean whey ; sweeten to the taste; cider serves as well as wine to curdle milk, if it is good country cider. Corn Meal, or Oatmeal Gruel. Put in a clean saucepan one pint of water to boil; when boiling, mix of oatmeal two large spoonfuls, in a half pin* of milk, and a little salt; stir this into the boiling water ; stir it well; let it simmer thirty minutes; then strain it through a hair-sieve ; if the patient can bear it, stir in a large spoonful of the best brandy after it is strained and sweetened, and add a little .grated nutmeg ; if corn meal is used, stir the dry corn meal into the boiling water; two large spoonfuls to a pint of boiling water, and a half new milk; season as the other. Vegetable Soup. Take two white potatoes, one onion, a piece of well-baked bread. Put these into a clean stewpan, in one quart of water ; boil them down to a pint; throw into the vessel some parsley or celery; cover the vessel closely; remove it from the fire, and allow the herbs to steep, while the liquor is cooling, under cover; season to the taste. Castilloes Powders. Take of Powdered tragacanth, Powdered sago, Powdered salep, Sugar, each, one ounce ; Prepared oyster-shell, two drachms. Mix them thoroughly, and fold into papers containing each one drachm. Directions.__Mix a powder with four tablespoonfuls of cold milk in a bowl Then' transfer it to a milk-pan, and, while stirring, pour upon it gradually one pint of boiling milk, and boil for a quarter of an hour. Sugar may be added, to the taste. 822 APPENDIX. FIFTY DOLLAR OUTFIT FOR A PHYSICIAN COMMENCING PRACTICE IN THE COUNTRY. The following list of Medicines and Preparations was designed to be put up in substantial Ground Stoppered Bottles, neatly and uniformly labelled, so as to form a compact Cabinet of Materia Medica, for Forty- Three Dollars, and with the Apparatus and Implements attached for Fifty Dollars. The advance in prices consequent on the War prevents its being sold at that price at the date of the present Edition. 8 oz. Acacia. £ pint Acidum aceticum. 3oz. ' citricum. 2oz. ' muriaticum. 3oz. ' nitricum. 5 pint ' 1 sulph. arom. 1 oz. ' tannicum. 2 pints Alcohol. 4 oz. Alumen. 4 oz. Ammoniae carbonas. 4 oz. " murias. 1 pint " Aqua. £ pint Ammoniae spiritus arom. 1 oz. Antim et potass, tart. £ oz. Argenti nitras cryst. "I £ oz. " " fusa. | 4 oz. Assafoetida. 8 oz. Camphora. 2 oz. Cardamomum. 4 oz. Ceratum cantharidis, 3 oz. Chloroformum. 2 oz. Collodium. | pint Copaiba. 1 oz. Creasotum. 6 oz. Creta praeparata, or ) 4 oz. Calcis carb. praecip. J 4 oz. Cupri sulphas. 2 oz. Ergota (whole or pow- dered). £ pint iEther (Letheon). 1 oz. Extractum aconiti. 1 oz. Extractum belladonnas. 1 oz. Extractum colocynth comp. pulv. 2 oz. Extractum gentianae. 1 oz. Extractum hyoscyami. 1 oz. Extractum jalapae pulv. 8 oz. Extractum Valerianae fluid. 8 oz. Ferri subcarbonas. 1 oz. Ferrum redactum. £ pint Ferri chloridi tinct. 4 oz. Fceniculum. 8 oz. Gentiana contus. 4 oz. Hydrarg. massa., 4 oz. " chlorid mit. 2 oz " oxid. rub. 2 oz. " cum creta. 1 oz. Iodinium. £ pint Liquor hydrarg. et arsen. iodid. £ pint Liquor potassae arse- nitis. 3 oz. Magnesia. 2 B5 " sulphas. £ oz. Morphiae sulphas. 2 oz. Myrrha. £ oz. Oleum cinnamomi. h oz h oz. 1 pint 1 pint h oz, 6 oz 3 oz 12 oz. 3 oz. 4 oz. 6 oz. 2 oz. Potassii iodidum. 6 oz. Pulvis acaciae. 3 oz. " aloes, Soc. IMPLEMENTS. limonis. menthae pip. ricini. terebinthinae. tiglii. Plumbi acetas. Potassae bicarb. bitartras. citras. chloras. nitras. ext. glycyr- Scales and weights. f§iv. Grad. Meas. 1 Mortar and pestle. 1 Pill tile. 2 Spatulas. £ gross vials. German flint. f $ doz. f gviij. \ doz. f§vj. 1£ doz. f §iv. IJ doz. f gij. l| doz. f |j. 1 doz. flss. 4 oz. Pulvis rhizae. 1 oz. Pulvis gambogiae. 1 oz. " ipecacuanhas. 3 oz. Pulvis ipecacuanhae comp. 1 oz. Pulvis opii. 4 oz. " rhei (E. Ind.). 2 oz. " scillae. 6 oz. " sodae boratis. 8 oz. Quassia. 1 oz. Quiniae sulphas. 4 oz. Rheum. 6 oz. Sapo (Castil. alb.). 4 oz. Senega. 4 oz. Serpentaria. 1 lb Sodae bicarb. 8 oz. Sulphur sublim. 1 pint Spiritus setheris nit. J pint Spt. aetheris comp. 1 pint Spiritus lavand. comp. £ pint Syrupus ipecacu- anhae. £ pint Syrupus scillae. J pint " rhei arom. 1 pint Tinctura cinchonae comp. 1 pint Tinctura opii. 1 pint " " oamph. 4 oz. Unguentum hydrarg. (J mercury). 4 oz. Unguentum hydrarg. nitratis. \ pint Vin. colchici rad. 2 oz. Zinci oxidum. 6 oz. " sulphas. 1 Funnel. 1 qr. Wrap'g & filtering paper. 1 gr. Vial corks. 2 papers Pill boxes. 2 yds. Adhesive plaster in tin case. APPENDIX. 828 ONE HUNDRED DOLLAR OUTFIT. Catalogue of Medicines and Pharmaceutical Preparations, designed to be put up in Ground Stoppered Bottles, Japanned Tin Cans, and Covered White Ware Jars, uniformly and correctly labelled, and formerly fur- nished ready packed for transportation, for Seventy-five Dollars. With a suitable selection of Implements and Apparatus for One Hun- dred Dollars. The price at the date of this Edition has advanced. 1 lb Acacia. £ fc " pulvis. 1 pint Alcohol. £ pint Acidum aceticum. 1 oz. " benzoicum. 4 oz. " citricum. 1 oz. " hydroc. dil. 4 oz. " muriaticum. 4 oz. " nitricum. £ pint " sulph. arom. 1 oz. " tannicum. 4 oz. Aloe pulvis (Soc). 8 oz. Alumen. 4 oz. Ammoniae carbonas. 1 pint " aqua. 4 oz. " murias. J pint " spt. arom. 4 oz. Antim. et potass, tart. \ oz. Argenti nitras cryst. | oz. " " fusa. 4 oz. Assafoetida. 1 oz. Bismuthi subnitras. 8 oz. Camphora. 4 oz. Cardamomum. 6 oz. Creta praeparata, or 4 oz. Calc. carb. praecip. 6 oz. Chloroformum. 8 oz. Cinchona rub. pulv. 1 oz. Cinchoniae sulphas. 1 oz. Creasotum. 8 oz. Ceratum cantharidis. 8 oz. " resinae. 8 oz. " simplex. £ pint Copaiba. 1 lb Cubebae pulv. 2 oz. Collodium. 1 oz. " cantharidal. 4 oz. Ergota. 1 B5 iEther. 1 oz. Extract, aconiti. 1 oz. " belladonna?. 1 oz. " conii. 1 oz. " hyoscyami. 2 oz. " coloc. c. pulv. 2 oz. " jalapae pulv. 1 oz. " nucis vomicae. 1 oz. " quassia. 8 oz. " taraxaci. 1 lb " sennae fluid. 1 B5 " spigel. et sen- nae fluidum. | pint Ext. Valerianae fluid. 4 oz. Ferri carb. massa (Vallet). 8 oz. Ferri subcarb. 1 oz. " citras. £ pint " sesqui sulph. sol. (with directions for pre- paring hydrated peroxide when required). 1 oz. Ferrum redactum. 8 oz. Fceniculum. 1 oz. Gambogiae pulv. 1 lb Gentiana contus. 4 oz. Glycyrrhiza ext. pulv. 4 oz. " rad " 2 oz. Glycerina. £ lb Hydrarg. massa. J tb " chlor. mit. 1 oz. " cum creta. 2 oz. " oxid. rub. 1 oz. " iodidum. 1 oz. Iodinium. 4 oz. Ipecacuanhae pulvis. 4 oz. Jalapae pulvis. 8 oz. Juniperus. 2 oz. Kino. 4 oz. Liquor iodinii comp. £ pint " hyd. et ars. iod. \ pint " potass, arsenit. 1 lb bot. Magnesia. \ lb Magnesiae carb. 5 lb " sulphas. 6 oz. Manna. \ oz. Morphiae sulphas. \ oz. " acetas. \ oz. " murias. 4 oz. Myrrha. 1 oz. Oleum anisi. 1 oz. " cinnamomi. 1 oz. " limonis. 1 oz. " menthae pip. 1 bot. " olivae. 1 pint " ricini. 1 pint " terebinthinae. 1 oz. " tiglii. 2 oz. Opii pulvis. 8 oz Plumbi acetas. 2 oz. " carbonas. 2 oz. Potassa (caustic). 4 oz. Potassae bicarbonas. 2 ib " bitartras. 4 oz. Potassae citras. 4 oz. " nitras. 8 oz. " sulphas. 2 oz. Potassii iodidum. 3 oz. Pulvis ipecac, comp. 8 oz. Quassia. 1 oz. Quiniae sulphas. 6 oz. Rheum (E. Ind.). 4 oz. Rhei pulvis. 4 oz. Sapo (Castil.). 8 oz. Sarsaparilla. 2 oz. Scillae pulv. 8 oz. Senna (Alex.). 8 oz. Senega. 8 oz. Serpentaria. \\ lb Sodae bicarbonas. 4 oz. " borat. pulv. 8 oz. " et potass, tart. 4 oz. " phosphas. 8 oz. Spigelia. \ oz. Strychnia. 4 oz. Sulphur praecip. 3 lb " sublim. nt Spt. amnion, arom. nt " setheris comp. nt " " nitrici. nt " lavand. comp. nt Syrup, ipecacuanhae. nt Syrupus ferri iodid. nt Syrupus pruni virg. nt " rhei aromat. nt " scillae. nt " senegae. oz. Tinctura aconiti rad. pint " cinchonae c. pint " digitalis. pint " ferri chloridi. pint " opii. pint " " camph. pint " zingiberis. lb Ung. hydrarg. Ib " " nitratis. lb " simplex. Ib Uva ursi. lb Valeriana. pint Vinum antimonii. pint " ergotae. pint " colchici rad. oz. Veratria. oz. Zinci oxidum. oz. " sulphas. 824 APPENDIX. TWENTY-FIVE DOLLAR OUTFIT. The following Sixty-One articles were designed to be put up in Ground- Stoppered Bottles, and Queensware Jars, neatly labelled, and packed for transportation, for Twenty Dollars, and the list of Implements at- tached for Five Dollars. An advance on this price would be charged at the date of the present edition. 2 oz. Acidum citricum. 4 oz. " sulph. arom. 8 oz. Alcohol. \ oz. Argenti nitras. 2 oz."Camphora. 4 bz. Ceratum cantharidis. 3 oz. Chloroformum. 2 oz. Collodium. 4 oz. Copaiba. 3 oz. Creta praeparata, or 2 oz. Calcis carb. praecip. 3 oz. Cupri sulph. 8 oz. JEther (Letheon). 1 oz. Extract, aconiti. 1 oz. " belladonnae. 1 oz. " coloc. c. pulv. 1 oz. " gentianse. 1 oz, " hyoscyami. 1 oz. " jalapae pulv. 8 oz. " sennse fl'd. 1 oz. " Valerianae fl'd. 3 oz. Ferri subcarb. Scales and weights. 4 oz. Grad. measure. 1 Mortar and pestle. 1 doz. 1 oz. Vials. oz. Ferri pulvis. oz. " chlor. tinct. oz. Hydrarg. massa. oz. " chlorid. mit. oz. " oxid. rub. oz. Aqua ammoniae. oz. Liquor iodinii comp. oz. " hydr. et arsen. iodid. oz. Liquor potassae arseni- tis. oz. Morphiae sulph. oz. Myrrha. oz. Oleum limonis. oz. " cinnamomi. oz. Pil. cathart. comp. oz. Plumbi acetas. oz. Potassae bicarb. oz. " citras. oz. Pulvis acaciae. aloes, Soc. oz. 1 doz. J oz. £ doz. 2 oz. J doz. 4 oz. 2 Spatulas. IMPLEMENTS. Vials. oz. Pulvis ext. glycyr- rhizae. oz. Pulvis ipecacuanhae. oz. " " comp. oz. " opii. ob. " rhei. oz. Quiniae sulphas. oz. Sapo, Castil. oz. Sodae bicarb. oz. Spt. aether, nit. oz. " ammon. arom. oz. " aether comp. oz. " lavand. comp. oz. Syrup, ipecac. oz. " rhei ar. oz. " scillae. oz. Tinct. opii. oz. " zingiberis. oz. Ung. hydrarg. nit. oz. Vin. antimon. oz. Vin. colchici R. oz. Zinci sulph. 2 papers Pill boxes. % gross Vial corks. 1 case Adhesive plaster. 1 Funnel. 1 Pill tile. This collection will conveniently fill a case twenty-one inches wide, and four feet high, having seven shelves, to be filled as follows :— 1st with Ointment Jars and Implements. 2d " 7 8 oz. Tincture Bottles. 3d " " " 4th " 9 4 oz. S. M. Bottles. 5th for 9 4 oz. S. M. Bottles. 6th "94 oz. Tincture Bottles. 7th " 11 2 oz. G. S. Bottles. RECIPES FOR SOME OF THE MORE IMPORTANT POPULAR MEDICINES. Dolby's Carminative. The published recipes for this, as found in the formularies, are not those used generally by druggists. Some of the ingredients in the original recipes are procurable with difficulty, and add so much to the expense of the prepa- ration, that by common consent they are left out. The formula, as given by the College of Pharmacy, is nearly identical with that which I have used for a number of years, and I give it below. APPENDIX. 825 . . . • Ivj 75. . 5ii 3.125 • Sxvj 200. . fS"j op. 37.5 . Ov 1000. Take of Carbonate of magnesia Carbonate of potassa Sugar . Tincture of opium . Water . Oils of caraway, Fennel, and peppermint, of each . . n^x. (To the above may be added— French brandy . . . . . fgiv. Prepared chalk ..... gij.) Triturate together the essential oils, sugar, magnesia (and prepared chalk, if added), then add the water, and afterwards the remainder. Dalby's carminative contains one grain of opium to about an ounce. Dewees"1 Carminative. Take of Carbonate of magnesia .... . . Ijss. Sugar ....... . 3 iij. Tincture of assafoetida .... . fliij. Tincture of opium..... . flj- Water ....... . Oiss. Triturate together until they are mixed. Bateman's Pectoral Drops. Parts. Take of Diluted alcohol..... Cong, j 1000. ^ed sanders, rasped .... Iss 31.25. Digest for twenty-four hours, filter, and add— Opium, in powder ..... Iss 31.25. Catechu, in powder .... Iss 31.25. Camphor ...... Iss 31.25. Oil of anise ...... f3J 7.81. Digest for ten days. This preparation contains about one grain each of opium, catechu, and camphor, to the f gss, corresponding in strength with tinctura opii campho- rata, U. S. P. Godfrey's Cordial. Parts. fgvj op. 34.5 Oiv fiviij Oviss 3v m 367.8 46. 551.7 Take of Tincture of opium Molasses (sugar-house) Alcohol Water.... Carbonate of potassa . Oil of sassafras . Dissolve the carbonate of potassa in the water, add the molasses, and heat over a gentle fire till they simmer, remove the scum which rises, and add the laudanum and oil of sassafras, having previously mixed them well together. This preparation contains a little over one grain of opium to the ounce, and is about half the strength of the foregoing. -1000. 57.5 11. ' Substituted by Caramel giij. 826 APPENDIX. Balsam of Honey. Take of Balsam Tolu Benzoic acid Honey Opium (powd.) Cochineal . French brandy Mix, and digest together for a few days, then filter. Composition Powders. (Thompsonian.) Take of Powd. bayberry root " ginger " cayenne . " cloves Mix, by passing through a sieve. No. 6.—Hot Drops. (Thompsonian.) Take of Capsicum (powd.) ..... Myrrh (contus.) ...... Alcohol ........ Si- 5 iss. Ivj- 3ij- 3J- Oiij. • ifess. Ij- Ij- Ij- liv. Oij. Displace. B.- -01. Sulphurat. . Petrol. Barbadens. 01. succin. (crude) 01. terebinth. 01. lini Haarlem Oil. Oiij. Oj. Oiss. Oviij. Oiv.—Mix. Turlington's Balsam of Life. The officinal tinctura benzoini composita is sold under this name, but the druggists who put it up in the peculiar and very odd shaped vials, in which it was originally vended in wrappers descriptive of its virtues, use various recipes for making it. The following is that published by the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy, and used in many of the best establishments. The original recipe for this, as filed in the office of rolls in London, contained twenty-eignt ingredients. Take of Alcohol •. .......Oiv. Benzoin Liquid storax Socotrine aloes Peruvian Balsam Myrrh Angelica Balsam Tolu Extract of liquorice Digest for ten days and strain. 3VJ. Iij- Iss. Ij- Iss. ?ij- Iij- Iij- Opodeldoc. Take of Common soap (sliced) 3 ounces. Camphor an ounce. Oil of rosemary, Oil of origanum, each, a fluidrachm. Alcohol a pint. Digest the soap, by means of a sand bath, with the alcohol till it is dis- solved, then add the camphor and oils, and when they are dissolved pour the liquid into wide-mouth two ounce bottles. APPENDIX. 827 British Oil. Take of Oil of turpentine . " flaxseed " amber " juniper Petroleum (Barbadoes) (American) Mix them well together. fliv. Oiij. Oj. fgss. Iij- gij. Whitehead's Essence of Mustard. R— 01. terebinth..... . Oxij. Camphorae ..... 01. succin. rectif. . 1^ lbs. com. . fgiv. Sem. sinapis, pulv. (Flava) Digest for seven days, filter, and add— Tr. curcuma .... 16 oz. com. . q. s.—Add color Hooper's Female Pills. Take of Aloes .... . gviij 400. Dried sulphate of iron, . or Crystallized sulphate of iron Extract of black hellebore • • !?• 3iss I 2oo. Iij. 100. M}vrh .... Soap ..... Powd. canella . Iij. 100. . gij. 100. . . gj- 50. " ginger . . gj. 50. 1000. Beat them well together into a mass with syrup, or water, and divide into pills, each containing two and a half grains. Richards' Chalk Mixture. Take of Precip. carbonate of lime, Mix. Sugar, Comp. spt. lavender, Tinct. kino, of each Essence of cinnamon Water Tincture of opium 1 ounce. 15 drops. 3 ounces. 1 drachm. Marshall's Pills. Take of Comp. extract of colocynth, Mercurial mass, Powdered aloes, " Castile soap, " rhubarb, of each Make into five grain pills 1 drachm. 828 APPENDIX. Anderson's Scots' Pills. Take of Aloes Soap Colocynth Gamboge . Oil of anise 1000 parts. Let the aloes, colocynth, and gamboge, be reduced to a very fine powder, then beat them and the soap with water into a mass of a proper consistence, to divide into pills, each containing three grains. I xxiv 787 liv 131 Ij 33 Ij 33 flss 16 Worm Tea.1 Take of Senna, Manna, Spigelia, of each .... . Iss Fennel seed ..... • 3J- Worm seed..... . 3ss Savine ...... . • 9ij. Bitartrate of potassa .... • • 9ij- Make into one package. Directions.—Pour on to this a quart of boiling water, and let it digest for ten or fifteen minutes ; of the clear liquid sweetened, give to children two years old and upwards, a small teacupful warm, morning, noon, and night, on an empty stomach. It may be given three or four days successively, if necessary. Ginger Beer. Take of Race ginger (bruised) . Bitartrate of potassa . Mix them. Four ounces. Three " Directions.—Add to these ingredients five pounds of loaf sugar, two lemons (sliced), and five gallons of boiling water. Let it stand twelve hours ; then add a teacupful of yeast to the mixture, and bottle immedi- ately and securely. In a day or two it will be ready for use. Pipsissewa Beer. The virtues of this excellent alterative diuretic are obtained in an agreea- ble form, by the following process :— Take of Pipsissewa (chimaphila, U. S. P.) Water ..... Boil, strain, and add— Brown sugar .... Powdered ginger Yeast..... Set it aside till fermentation has commenced ; Dose, a small tumblerful three or four times a day. In the same way, sarsaparilla, sassafras, uva ursi, substances, may be made into Cerevisiee, or beers. Six ounces. One gallon. One pound. One-half ounce. A sufficient quantity. then bottle it for use. and other medicinal 1 See page 85. INDEX. Abbreviations in prescription, 685 Absyntbin, 669 Abuse of opium, 172 Acacia, 509 Aceta, 162 Acetated tincture of opium, 169, 175 Acetate of alumina, 411 ammonia liq., 385, 389 chinoidine solution, 729 cinchonia, 646 copper, 446, 448 iron, 431 lead, 458 magnesia, 408 manganese, 442 mercury, 487 morphia, 636 potassa, 368, 372 mixture, 740 quinia, 644 soda, 376, 382 strychnia, 653 zinc, 451 Acetic acid, 503, 533 dilute, 163 ether, 533 extract of colchicum, 206 fermentation, 530 Acetone, 504 mixture, 742 Acetum, 162, 503 colchici, 164 lobelise, 164 opii, 174, 176 sanguinarise, 164 scillae, 164 Acid, acetic, 503, 533, 590 camphorated, 307 diluted, 163 aconitic, 593 acrylic, 548 alphaorsellic, 619 anacardic, 596, 599 ancbusic, 618 angelicic, 595, 597, 602 anisic, 602 antimonious, 471 arachic, 548 arsenic, 475, 476 arsenious, 346, 475 aspertannic, 612 Acid- balaenic, 548 behenic, 548 benzoic, 563, 602, 607 betaorsellic, 619 bixic, 618 boheatannic, 611 boracic, 346, 351 brazilic, 618 butyric, 543, 544 caincic, 596, 599 callutannic, 612 camphoric, 566 caprinic, 548, 563 carbazotic, 603, 609 carbolic, 505 carbonic, 346 processes, 325 water, 347 carmic, 620 carthamic, 617 carotic, 618 carthaxanthic, 617 caryophillic, 602 catechuinic, 611 cathechuic, 611 catechutannic, 611 cephaelic, 612 cerotiric, 548 cetraric, 596, 599 chelidonic, 600 chloragenic, 611 chlorohydric, 346, 351 chloro-hydrocyanic, 346, 361 cholic, 616 chromic, 346, 351 chrysophanic, 596, 597, 617, 668 cinchotannic, 611 cinnamic, 563, 602, 608 cissotannic, 612 citrici 592 coccalinic, 592 coccotannic, 611 coffeic, 611 coffeotannic, 611 columbic, 600 convolvulinotic, 675 copaivic, 583 cornic, 596, 599 cortepinitannic, 612 crocic, 617 crotonic, 548 curcumic, 619 Acid— cuminic, 563 damaluric, 548 dextrotartaric, 591 digitalic, 596, 599 digitoleic, 596, 599 elaic, 548 ellagic, 611 equisetic, 595 erucic, 548 erythie, 619 eugenic, 607 euxanthic, 620 evernic, 619 formic, 540, 593, 594 fumaric, 594 fungic, 592 gallitannic, 612 gallic, 517, 611, 613 gallotannic, 517, 611, 612 gambogic, 618 geadic, 548 gentisic, 618 glycocholeic, 616 guaiacic, 595, 597 gyrophorie, 619 haematoxylic, 619 hederic, 596, 597 hippuric, 615 hydriodic, 358 diluted, 346, 359 hydrochloric, 346, 351 hydrocyanic, 602, 603 diluted, 604 hydrosulphuric, 346, 360 hydrothianicum, 360 hyocholic, 615, 616 hypogseic, 548 hypo-phosphorous, 343, 346, 360 ilixanthic, 618 inosinic, 615 ipecacuanhic, 612 japonic, 611 kinic, 600, 601 kinotannic, 611 kinovic, 612 komenic, 600 lactic, 594, 595 laurinic, 548 laevotartaric, 591 leditannic, 612 luteolic, 618 mafuric, 595 malic, 592 ( 829 ) 830 INDEX. Acid— maleic, 595 mangostic, 618 margaric, 548 meconic, 600, 627 menispermic, 592 metngallic, 611 metapectic, 508 metatartaric, 591 methyl-salicylic, 602, 606 moric, 612 moringic, 548 moritannic, 612 muriatic, 346, 351 diluted, 346, 352 myristic, 548 myronic, 609 nitrate de mercure, 487 nitric, 346, 352 diluted, 346, 353 nitro-muriatic, 346, 354 diluted, 346, 354 nitroso-nitric, 346 oleic, 548 olinic, 548 orrubinic, 611 orsellic, 619 oxalic, 590 oxylisaric, 618 oxypinitannic, 6l2 oxyphonic, 611 palmitic, 548 paraellagic, 611 parakomeric, 600 paramaleic, 595 parapectic, 508 paratartaric, 591 parallic, 673 pectic. 508 pectoric, 508 pelargonic, 545, 602 phenylic, 603, 608 phloridzic, 596, 597 phosphoric, 345 dilute, 346, 358 glacial. 346, 357 phosphorous, 343 phosphor-molybdic, 625 physetic, 548 picric, 609 picrotoxic, 596, 597 pinitannic, 612 pinicortannic, 612 pipizaic, 618 polygalic, 596, 599 pyrocatechuic, 611 pyrodeoric, 611 pyrogallic, 611, 614 pyromeconic, 600 pyrotartaric, 592 purreeic, 620 quercitric, 618 quercotannic, 611 racemic, 591 rhamnoxanthic, 618 rhodotannic. 612 rhodanic, 361 rhubarbaric, 597 ricin-oleic. 548 rottleric, 617 ruberythric, 618 rubichloric, 612 Acid— ruficinchonic, 611 rufikinovic, 611 rufimoric, 612 rufocatechuic, 611 rutinic, 605 salicylous, 602, 606 salicylic, 563 santalic, 618 santonic, 596, 598 scoparic, 618 solanic, 592 spirous, 563, 606 stearic, 548 succinic, 593, 594 sulpho-cholic, 615 sulpho-hydrocyanic, 346, 361 vinic, 532 sulphuric, 346, 355 aromat., 346, 356 dilute, 346, 355 sulphurous, 346, 356 tannic, 517, 611, 612 tanningic, 611 tannomelanic, 611 tannoxylic, 611 tartaric, 590 taurocholic, 616 thujic, 618 uric, 615, 616 uvic, 591 valerianic, 543, 602, 607 veratric, 600, 601 viridinic, 611 xanthorhamnic, 618 xanthotannic, 612 Acids, animal, 615 astringent, 609 combined with vegetable alkalies, 599 from cryptogamic plants, 619 from ess. oils, 602 from phanerogamic plants, 617 fruit, 589 derivatives of, 593 inorganic, 345 organic, 588 mineral, 346 Aconitia, 628, 631 liniment, 772 ointment, 767 Acroleine, 550 Adapter for eth. displacement, 138 Adeps, 553 Adhesive plaster, 775 Adjuvants, in prescription, 694 for syrups, 283 iErugo, 448 ^Esculin, 517, 667, 674 jEsculetin, 517 JEtherea, 532, 533 Alberty's antibilious pills, 716 Albumen, 520 Albuminous principles, 519 Alcohol, 532, 533 blast lamp. 179 diluted, 140 Alcohol— lamps, 177, 178 butylic, 543 methylic, 504 Alcoholic fermentation, 530 Aldehyde, 533 Aleuron, 521 Allyle, 577 Alkalies and salts, 361 Alkaline solution, Physick's, 127 mixture benzoated. 740 Alkaloids, 622 animal, 664 chemical history of, 624 containing phenyle, 625 tests for, 625 Almond lotion, 747 oil, 552, 554 mixture, 739 syrup, 239, 246 Alnuine, 285 Aloetic pills, 713 Aloe and assafoet. pills, 709 Aloin, 673, 678 pills, 716 Alteratives, 718, 744 Althaea flor., 509 rad., 509 ointment, 769 Althaein, 673 Alumen, 408, 409 exsiccatum, 408, 410 Alumina, 408 Aluminae acetas, 408, 411 sulphas, 408, 410 Aluminium, 408 Aloes, tincture, 141, 146 Alum gargle, 750 iron, 420 Amber, 584, 586 oil of, 579 Amidou plasters, 782 Amidochloride, mercury, 488 Ammoniac mixture, 741 plaster, 777 Ammoniacum, 585 Ammoniae acetat. liq., 385, 389 aqua, 385, 387 aqua fort., 385, 387 arsenias, 475, 477 benzoas, 376, 385. 390 bicarbonas, 385, 388 carbonas, 385, 387 citras, 385, 389 hypophosphis, 385, 391 et magnes. suiph., 385,386 murias, 385, 386 nitras, 385, 386 phosphas, 385, 390 protocarbonas, 388 sulphas, 3S5, 386 spiritus, 335, 387 aromaticus, 385, 388 valerianas, 385, 389 Ammonia alum, 409 Ammoniated copper, 447 mercury, 488 iron, 437 tinctures, 145 Ammonii iodidum, 338 INDEX. 831 Ammonii— sulphuretum, 385, 390 Ammonio-citrate of iron, 421 Ammonio-ferric alum, 420 Ammonio-tartrate of iron, 432 Ampelopsin, 285 Amylic alcohol, 543, 549 Amylo acetic ether, 543 valerianic ether, 543 Amygdalin, 517, 673, 678 Amylum, 506, 507 Anchietia, 628, 639 Anderson's Scots' pills, 828 Anemonin, 581, 666 Angelica oil, 571 Angustura oil, 571 Angelicia, 669 Anilina, 631, 663 Animal alkaloids, 664 charcoal, 502 oils, 553 Anime, 583 Aniseed oil, 572 Annular corn plasters, 782 Anodyne pills, 710 Antacid for indigestion, 738 infants, 738 Antacids, 738 Anthelmintics, 720, 744 Anthelmintic species, 85 suppositories, 720 syrup, 744 Anthemis, infusion, 123 syrup, 251 Antidote to acids, 346 Antibilious mixture, 735 pills, 715, 716 Antidynous lotions, 746 Antimonial powder, 468, 474 Tyson's, 472 pills, 718 ointment, 758, 762 wine, 102, 159, 474 Antimoniate of potassa, 468, 472 of quinia, 644 Antimon. chloridum, 468, 471 et calcii sulphuretum, 471 et potassae tartras, 468, 473 et sodii sulphuretum, 468, 470 oxidum, 668, 471 oxy-sulphuretum, 468, 469 quinque-sulphuretum,470 sulphuratum, 468, 469 sulphuretum, 468 aureum, 470 praacip., 469 Antimony, 467 Antiseptics added to syrups, 238 Antispasmodics, 709 Aperient pills, 714 Mettauer's, 126 Aphrodaesin, 667 Apiin, 669 Apiol, 571, 669 Apirina, 630, 660 Apocynin, 285, 670 Aporetin, 598 I Apotheme, 193 Apothecaries' weight, 44, 63 Apparatus for coating pills, 802 for distillation, 295, 321 for percolation, 129 evaporation, 190, 197 for lozenges, 271 for straining, 103, 104 Apple oil, 545 Application of radiated heat, 197 Apportioning quantities in prescribing, 688 Aqua acidi carbonici, 347 amygdalae amarae, 114 calcis, 394 camphorae, 115 chlorini, 335 cinnamomi, 115 creasoti, 116, 734 destillata, 299 foeniculi, 115 fortis, 346, 352 menth. pip., 115 virid., 115 phagedaenica, 746 rosae, 300 tiliae, 117 Aquae (syllabus), 101, 114 medicatae, 113, 300 Aromatic powder, 706 Arabin, 508 Arbor vita;, oil. 576 Arbutin, 517, 670 Archil, 619 Argand burner for gas, 183 Argenti chloridum, 461, 463 cyanidum, 461, 463, 603 iodidum, 461, 463 oxidum, 461, 463 nitras, 461 fusa, 461, 462 Argentura, 461 Argols, 383 [ Argyraescin, 667 Aribina, 630, 661 Aricina, 650 Army scales, 43 Arnica, oil of, 572 plaster, 777 liniment, 773 Arnicin, 651 Aromatics, 704 Aromatic blackberry syrup, 264 confection, 268 pills, 717 powder, 96, 706 spirit of ammonia, 385, 388 sulphuric acid, 346, 356 syrup of rhubarb, 240, 248 tincture of rhubarb, 156 vinegar, 307 Arrangement of bed, &c, 815 Arrowroot, 507 boxes, 38 pap, 818 I Arseniate of ammonia, 475, 477 of iron, 475, 477 Arseniate— of soda, 477 Arsenici iodidum, 475, 477 Arsenite of potassa, 475, 476 quinia, 644 soda, 475, 476 Arsenicum, 474 Art of combining medicines, 693 selecting medicines, 692 Arterial sedatives, 712, 7M4 stimulants, 710, 731 Arthamantin, 669 Artificial camphor, 562 fruit essences, 544 oxidation, 325, 679 raspberry syrup, 265 Saratoga water, 350 sea water, 750 Asarin, 581, 672 Asarum, oil of, 575 Asclepidin, 285 Asclepin, 670 Asclepion, 670 Ascletine, 285 Asiatic tincture, 157 Asparagin, 673 Asphaltum, 584 oil of, 579 Assamar, 513 Assafoetida, 585 enema, 749 mixture, 732 oil of, 577 pills, 709 plaster, 777 syrup, 254 tincture, 145, 147 wine, 732 Assays of opium, 635 Astringents, 610, 703, 728 Astringent gargle, 749, 750 liniment, 772 powders for diarrhoea, 703 tablets, 278 Athamanthin, 669 Athamantum aureoselinum. oil, 571 Atherospermia, 629, 641 Atlee's remedy for neuralgia, 741 Atropia, 629, 655, 656 collyrium, 748 Atwood's alcohol, 535 Aubergier's syrup. 256 Auri chloridum, 490 cyanidum, 491 et sodii chlorid., 490 iodidum, 491 oxidum, 490 pulvis, 490 Aurum, 489 Automatic washing box, 328 A vena farina, 507 Avoirdupois weight, 64 Azolitmin, 619 Azotized coloring matters, 619 B Balneum Marinum, 750 iodinii, 750 832 INDEX. Balsam of fir, 584 of honey, 826 Peru, 586 Tolu, 586 Turlington's, 826 Balsams, 586 Banana essence, 545 Bandoline, 313 Baptisin, 285 Baptisina, 629 Barks, collection of, 82 Barley sugar, 512 water, 195 Barii chloridum, 392 liquor, 101, 392 iodidum, 392 Barosma, 509 Barosmin, 285 Barytae carbonas, 392 Basilicon, 756, 761 Basis for topical applications, 785 Bassorin, 508 Bateman's drops, 825 Baths, 750 steam, 192 water and sand, 189 Baume's hydrometer, 77 Bayberry oil, 552 Bay rum, oil in, 571 Bay tree oil, 575 Bdellium, 585 Bear's oil 560 Bebeerina, 629, 657 Becker's eye balsam, 768 Becquerel's gout pills, 711 Bed pan, 55 Beech oil 552 Beef, essence of, 820 marrow pomade, 313 tea, 820 Beer, ginger, 828 pipsissewa, 828 small, 531 tar, 161 Behen oil, 552 Belladonnia, 629, 656 Belladonna ointment, 762 Benne leaves, 509 oil, 552, 554 Benzoated tincture, 304 alkaline mixture 740 Benzoated lard. 754, 756, 762 Benzoate of ammonia, 390 soda, 376, 383 Benzoic acid, 563, 602, 607 Benzoin, 586 Benzyle, 563 Berberina, 628, 633 Berbina, 628, 634 Berzelius' lamp, 179 Bestucheff's tincture, 436 Betaorcine, 512 Biborate of soda 363, 365 Libromide of mercury, 480, 485 Bicarbonate of ammonia, 385, 388 of lime, 400 of magnesia, 403 of potassa, 368, 369 of soda, 376, 379 Bichloride of mercury, 480 of platinum, 492 Bichromate of potassa, 363, 364 Bicyanide of mercury, 480, 485 Biette's solution, 477 Bile, 527 acids, 621 Biliphasin, 621 Biniodide of mercury, 480, 482 Bird lime, 581 Bismuthi subcarbonas, 466 mixture, 728 subnitras, 464 tannas, 464, 467 valerianas, 464, 467 Bismuthum, 464 Bisulphate of potassa, 363, 365 Bisulphuret of mercury, 480, 486 Bitartrate of potassa, 383, 384 Bitter almond oil, 577 tincture of iron, 154 tonic for dyspepsia, 730 wine of iron, 162 Bittern, 339 Black antimony, 468 Blackberry brandy, 264 syrup, 264 Black draught, 127 drop, 170 oxide of mercury, 487 sulphuret of antimony, 468 of mercury, 486 wash, 746 Blank labels, 797 Blancard's pills, 707 Blast lamp, 179 Blistering cerate, 756, 757 collodion, 501 tissues, 758 Blue mass, 701 mixture, 728 ointment, 758, 763 vitriol, 448 Board for making lozenges, 271 Bone, 527 Bone black, 502 Bonjean's ergotine, 212 Boettger's test for sugar, 516 Borax, 363, 365 Borotartrate of magnesia, 408 potassa, 383, 385 Botanic styptic, 310 Bottles, American, 35 furniture, 33 German, 33, 34 graduated receiving, 132 labelling of, 798 oil, 36 packing, 37 prescription, 52 salt-mouth, 33 specia, 37 specific gravity, 72, 73 tincture, 35, 36 uniformity in, 70 Bouquet of wine, 545 | Bowers' glycerine, 550 | Boxes, pill, 55 Boyer's drug mill, 92 Brandy, 531 Brass pill machine, 50 Brazilin, 618 Brazilnut oil, 552, 555 Breast plasters 779 British oil, 826 Broken bottle displacer, 131 Bromide of iron, 440 solution, 339, 440 syrup, 440 mercury, 485 potassium, 339 Bromine, 339 chloride, 339 Broth, chicken, 820 Brown mixture, 741 stout, 531 Brucia, 629, 653 Bryonin, 669 Bryonitin, 669 Buchu, 509 fluid extract, 219 comp., 227 oil of, 570 Buckler's pills of iod. iron, 708 Bunsen burner, 187 Burdock, 507 Burettes, 67 Burgundy pitch, 586 plaster, 777 wine, 531 Burnet's cocoaine, 556 Burnt alum, 410 Burton ale, 531 Butter, 522 of antimony, 471 milk, 524 of cocoa, 555 of zinc, 453 Butyric alcohol, 543 ether, 543 Butyrum, 522 Buxina, 629, 657 C Cadmii iodidum, 454, 455 sulphas, 4j4, 455 Cadmium, 456 Caffeina, 629, 640 Caisin, 669 Cake meal, 88 Calamine, 449 cerate, 762 Calamus, oil, 576 Calcii chloridum, 393, 394 iodidum, 393, 401 sulphuretum, 393, 401 Calcination, 323 Calcined magnesia, 401 Calcis bicarbonas, 393, 400, 403 aqua, 394 carbonas praecipitat., 393, 395 hypophosphis, 393, 398 syrup, 393, 399 Calcis— liquor, 394 phosphas, 396 syrupus, 397 sulphis, 393, 400 syrupus, 400 Calisaya extract, 211 Calomel, 481 iodides of, 484 powders, 718 Calomel and jalap powder, 714 Calves' foot jelly, 820 Calx, 393, 394 chlorinata, 393, 396 saccharatum, 393, 400 Campbell's injection, 748 Camphenes, 562 Camphorated tincture of opi- um, 168, 174 Camphors, 562, 579 Camphor and opium pills, 710 liniment, 770, 771 mixture, Hope's, 729 Parrish's, 728 tincture, 301, 303 water, 115 Canada balsam, 584 Candy, 279 cough, 280 rock, 513 Canna, 507 Canella, oil, 571 Cane sugar, 510 Cantharidin, 674 Caoutchouc, 581 Caoutchene, 579 Capsicina, 629, 657 Capsicin, 671, 676 Capsicum oil, 234 syrup, 262 Capsule, 51 Caramei, 513 Caraway oil, 571 Carbo animalis, 502 purificatus, 502 ligni, 502 Carbonate of ammonia, 385. 387 mixture, 731 powders, 710 pills, 710 bismuth, 466 baryta, 392 copper, 446 iron mass, 702 lead, 459 lime, 393 magnesia, 401, 402 manganese, 441, 442 potassa, 368 soda, 377 powders, 738 zinc, 449, 450 Carbolic acid, 505 Carbonic acid, 346 processes, 325 water, 347 Cardamom oil, 576 Cardol, 667 Carminative, Dalby's, 824 Caro, 522 Carota radix, 518 58 INDEX. Carotin, 618 Carrageenin, 506 Carrageen, 507 paste, 270 syrup, 252 Carrara water, 400 Carrot oil, 572 Carvacrol, 563 Carvol, 563 Carthagia, 651 Cartier's hydrometer, 75 Caryophyllin, 580, 669 Cascarilla, oil of, 575 Cascarillin, 672 Case for pamphlets, 55 Casein, 520 Cassia fistula, 518 Castillon's powders, 821 Cassiin, 668 Castile soap, 551 Castina, 629, 654 Castorin, 674 Castor oil, 552, 557 mixture, 734 Cataplasma ad decubitum, aromat., 786 lini, 785 sinapis, 785 Cataplasms, 785 Catechin, 611 Catechu, 610 lozenges, 279 Catfish oil, 560 Cathartic pills, 716 comp., 715 Cathartics, 712, 734 Cathartin, 668 Caulophyllin, 286 Caustic collodion, 500 depilatory, 745 lunar, 562 potassa, 368, 372 soda, 376, 378 Ceanothine, 286 Celery oil. 571 Cellulose, 494 Centigrade thermometer, 189 Cera alba, 553 chinensis, 553 flava, 553 Cerasin, 286, 508 Cerates and ointments, 752 Ceratophyllin, 673 Ceratum adipis, 754, 755, 760 cantharidis, 756, 760 cetacei, 754, 756, 760 extract cantharides, 757, 760 plumbi subacet., 759, 761, 766 resina?, 754, 756, 761 comp., 756, 761 sabinae, 758, 761 saponis, 754, 755, 761 simplex, 754, 755, 760 zinci carb., 758 Cerebral stimulants, 710, 762 Cereum, 411 oxalate of, 411 Cetaceum, 553 Cetraria, 507 Chalk, prepared, 393 838 Chalk- lozenges, 274 mixture, 728 powders, 703, 704 ointment, 768 Chameleon mineral 444 Champagne wine, 531 Chamomile, oil of, 572 Chaerophyllina, 630, 661 Chapman's dinner pills, 713 Charcoal, 502 dentifrice, 308 mixture, 735 toothpaste, 309 Cheese, 524 Chelerythrina, 638 Chelidina, 628, 638 Chelonin, 287 Chemical food, 425 processes, 315—330 Chenopodium, oil, 575 Cherry-laurel water, 117 Cherry syrup. 264 Chicken broth, 820 jelly, 820 Chilblain lotion, 747 Chimaphilin, 287 Chinoidina, 211, 647 pills, 706 Chlorate of potassa, 368, 373 tablets, 278 soda, 368, 374 Chloric ether, 540, 542 Chloride of ammonium, 386 antimony, 471 barium, 392 solution, 392 bromine, 339, 341 calcium, 393, 394 solution, 393, 395 copper, 447 gold, 490 iodine, 339 iron, 435 solution, 436 syrup, 436 tincture, 436 pills, 708 lead, 461 lime, 396 manganese, 445 mercury, 480 platinum, 492 silver, 463 soda, solution, 376, 380 sodium, 377 sodium and gold, 490 zinc, 452 Chlorinated lime, 393, 396 soda, solution, 380 Chlorine, 333 water, 335 Chlorohydric acid, 351 Chloroform, 540 gelatinized, 773 liniment, 770, 771 mixtures, 732, 733 paregoric, 167 Chulariose, 510 Chlorophyll, 619, 620 Chocolate iron drops, 275 Choleinate of soda, 528 834 INDEX. Chondrus, 507 Chromate of potassa, 363, 364 Cholagogue, 731 Chondrin, 526 Chondrogen, 526 Cholesterin, 617 Cholepyrrhin, 621 Cider mixture, 531 Cimicifuga, extract, 212 Cimicifugin, 287 Cinchona alkaloids, 642 remarks on, 648 decoctions, 194 infusions, 124 extracts, 208, 648 fluid extract, 218, 220 red, 611 tinctures, 143, 149 Cinchonia, 629, 645 salts of. 646 pills, 705 Cinchonicia, 647 Cinchonidia, 629, 646 Cincinnati wine, 531 Cinnabar, 486 Cinnamon oil, 575 Cinnamyle, 563 Circulatory displacement, 99 Cissampelina, 628, 633 Citrate of ammonia, 385, 389 iron, 421 iron and ammonia, 421 iron and magnesia, 423 iron and quinia, 422 iron and strychnia, 422 iron and zinc, 422 iron, syrups, 423 magnesia, prepared, 408 soluble, 466 solution, 404 morphia, 636 potassa, 368, 373 quinia, 644 soda, solution, 376, 382, 737 Citric acid, 592 Citrine ointment, 759, 763 Citromels, 258 Claret wine, 531 Classification of materia me- dica, 84 of solutions, 100 Clauder's elixir, 126 Clematitin, 672 Clemens' almond lotion, 747 Clothes-wringer press, 121 Coating of pills, 802 Cobalt, 456 protoxide, 456 Cocaina, 629, 641 Cocoa butter, 552, 555 Cocoanut oil, 556 Codeia, 628, 637 Cod-liver oil, 553, 558 mixture, 743 ointment, 769 with biniod. mere, 744 Coddington's iodide of iron pills, 708 Coins, U. S., 64 Coffee syrup, 265 Colchiceine, 660 Colchicia, 630, 659 Cold cream, 756, 762, 765 Collagen, 525 Collinsonin, 287 Collection of plants, 87 Collodion, 102, 496, 497v aconital, 501 belladonnal, 501 blistering, 501 cantharidal, 501 caustic, 500 composition of, 503 iodinal, 501 preservation of, 499 Rand's, 498 tinctura praep., 500 uses of, 500 Colloids, 495 Collyria, 747 Collyrium atropiae, 748 Colocynthein, 517 Colocynthin, 517, 669 Colocynthitin, 669 Cologne water, 304 Colombin, 666 Colophene, 579 Comfrey, 507 Commercial weights, 64 Common salt, 377 Comparative value of weights, 63, 65 Composition powders, 82 Concentrated extracts, 285 Condenser, Liebig's, 318 Confection, almond, 267 aromatic, 268 black pepper, 269 for piles, 269 opium, 268 orange peel, 267 rose, 267, 268 senna, 268 Conhydrina, 661 Conia, 630, 661 Conserves, 267 Continuous percolation, 134 Convallamaria, 673 Convallarin, 517, 673 Convallaretin, 517 Convolvulina, 629, 654 Convolvulin, 671 Cooper's gelatin, 526 Corn fecula, 507 meal gruel, 821 plasters, 782 Copaiva, 584, 587 mass, 702 mixture, 740 pills, 717 resin, 583 Copal, 583, 588 Cordial, curacao, 166 Godfrey's, 825 propylamin, 167 Coriander oil, 572 Cornine, 596, 599 Corn plaster, 782 Corrosive sublimate, 480 in collodion, 500 pills, 718 Corydalia, 288 Corydalina, 628, 639 Coryza lozenges, 275 mixture, 741 Corks, 53, 796 Cork borer, 319 presser, 796 Cornine, 287 Cotarnina, 637 Cotton seed oil, 552, 556 Cough candy, 280 lozenge, Jackson's, 277 Parrish's, 277 Wistar's, 276 Coumarin, 668 Counter for dispensing, 789 Court-plaster, 527 Cowrie, 583 Cow's milk, 523 Coxe's gelatin, 526 hive syrup, 250 Cream of tartar, 383, 384 draught, 735 Cream, 523 cheese, 524 syrups, 266 Creasote, 505 lotion, 746 ointment, 763 mixture, 734 water, 116, 734 Creatina, 664, 674 Creta, 393 Crotonia, 629, 657 Crotonol, 672 Crystallin, 520 Croton oil, 552. 558 ointment, 769 pills, 716 Crucible, hessian, 324 jacket, 180 platinum, 324 porcelain, 324 Crystallization, 329 Crystalloids, 495 Cubeb lozenges, 275 mixture, 628 Cubebin, 672 Cultivation of med. plants, 84 Cumyle, 563 Curacao cordial, 166 Curcuma arrowroot, 507 Cudbear, 619 Cupri acetas, 446, 448 carbonas, 446 chloridum, 446, 447 nitras, 446, 447 oxidum, 446, 447 subacetas, 446, 448 sulphas, 446 Cuprum, 445 aluminatum, 446, 448 ammoniatum, 446, 447 Cumin oil, 572 Curaria, 629, 654 Curcuma arrowroot, 507 Curcumin, 619 Curd, 524 Currant wine, 531 Curve for gas tube, 182 Cusparin, 667 Cuttle fish powder, 309 Cyanide of gold, 491 mercury, 485 INDEX. 835 Cyanide of— potassium, 606 silver, 463, 603 zinc, 453 Cyclamin, 762 Cydonia, 509 Cynapia, 629, 641 Cypripedin, 288 Cyprian turpentine, 584 D Dahlia, oil of, 572 Dalby's carminative, 824 Dammar, 583 Daphnin, 517, 672 Daphnetin, 517 Datiscetin, 517 Datiscin, 517, 672 Daturia, 629, 656 Death-bed, 818 Decimal weights, 65 Decoction, 192, 194 bittersweet, 194 cetraria, 195 chimaphila, 194 cinchona flav., 194 rub., 194 cornus floridse, 194 dulcamara, 194 haematoxyli, 194 hordeum, 195 Iceland moss, 195 logwood, 194 oak bark, 194 pipsissewa, 194 process of, 195 quercus alba, 194 sarsaparilla comp., 195 senega, 194 uva ursi, 194 Decoloration, 326 Decomposition of organic bo- dies, 679 Dehydration, 322 Delphinia, 628, 632 Demulcents, 739 Dentifrice, charcoal, 308 Hudson's, 308 Depilatories, 745 Deshler's salve, 756, 761 Destructive distillation, 322 Desiccation of plants, 81 Dewees' breast plaster, 779 carminative, 825 colchicum mixture, 741 tincture of guaiac, 156 Dextrin, 506 Diacetate of copper, 448 Diastase, 531 Diabetic sugar, 513 Dialysis, 495 Diaphoretic mixture, 734 Diaphoretics, 717 Diet for the sick, 818 Digestion, 122 Digitalin, 517, 671, 676 Digitaletin, 517, 671 Digitaliretin, 671 Digitalaurin, 671 Dill oil, 571 Diluents in prescriptions, 694 for powders, 699 Diluted acetic acid, 163 alcohol, 140 hydrocyanic acid, 604 muriatic acid, 352 nitric acid, 354 phosphoric acid, 358 sulphuric acid, 355 Dioscorein, 288 Dippel's animal oil, 579 Discipline of the shop, 811 Disinfectants, 752 Disinfecting preparation, U. S. A., 333 Dispensatory, U. S., 57 Dispensing counter, 789 Dispensing liquids, 794 medicines, 786 office, 787 solids, 792 Displacement apparatus, 129 applied to hot liquids, 136 volatile liquids, 131 by ether, 138 by steam, 137 continuous, 134 history of, 127 points to be observed, 128 process of, 132 steam, 137 Distillation of alcohol, 534 apparatus, &c, 295, 299 321 destructive, 322 fractional, 322 of wood, 502 process of, 295 Distilled oils, 300, 560 waters, 116, 300 Diuretics, 739 Donovan's solution, 478 Dover's powder, 717 liquid substit., 738 Dried alum, 410 sulphate of iron, 415 Drimys winteri, oil, 570 Drop machine, 71, 790 Drops, tables of, 69 Drug mill, 92 Drugs, drying of, 87 garbling of, 86 powdering of 88 Dugong oil, 553 Dulcamarina, 629, 655 Dulcite, 511 Dulcose, 511 Durand's table of drops, 69 Durand's syrup of phosphate lime, 397 Dusting bottle for pills, 802 of powders, 88 Duties of apprentices, 813, 814 B Earths and their preparations, 391 Eau de Cologne, 304 Eclectic remedies. 281 Eeyonina, 641 Edinburgh ale, 531 Effervescent magnesia, 408 Effervescing carbonate of iron, 417 draught, 737 fever powders, 737 Egg, 523 Eggnog, 819 Elaeopten, 562 Elaterin, 669 Elecampane, 507 oil of, 573 Elective affinity, 315 Electuaries, 267 Elements, non-metallic, 330 Elemi, 584 ointment, 766 Elder flower water, 117 wine, 531 Elixir, calisaya, ferro phos- phorated, 165 calisaya 165 chloroformic, 167 cinchona, ferrated, 165 clauderi, 126 opium, 169 valerianate ammonia, 166 vitriol, 356 Elixirs and cordials, 165 Ellis' calisaya extract, 211 magnesia, 403 Elm bark, 509 Emetia, 629, 651 Emetics, 712 Emetinum impurum, 651 Emmenagogues, 719 Emmenagogue pills. Otto's, 719 Emplastra, 774 Emplastrum adhassivum, 775 ammoniaci, 774, 777 antimonii, 775, 778 arnicae, 775, 777 assafcetidas, 774, 777 belladonnas, 774, 776 calefaciens, 777 epispasticum, 757 ferri, 774, 777 galbani comp., 774, 776 hydrargyri, 774, 776 cum ammon., 777 opii, 774, 776 picis Burgundicae, 775, 777 Canadensis, 775, 777 cum cantharide, 775, 778 plumbi, 549, 774, 775 resinae, 774, 775 saponis, 774, 776 universalis, 778 Emulsin, 521, 673 Emulsion, castor oil, 734 copaiba, 740 cubebs, 741 pumpkin seeds, 744 Emulsions, preparation of, 806 Emydin, 521 Enema assafoetidae, 749 terebinth, 749 Enemeta, 748 836 INDEX. Envelopes for powders, 794 Ericolin, 670 Erigeron, oil of, 573 Ergotin, 212 Erythrolimin, 619 Erythromannite, 512 Erythroretin, 598 Erythroxylin, 420 Essence, aniseed, 302 apples, 545 arrack, 545 bananas, 545 beef, 820 bergamot pear, 545 ginger, 154 jargonelle pear, 544 lemon, 302 millefleurs, 306 mint, 303 mustard, 312 Whitehead's, 827 patchouly, 307 peppermint, 302 petit grain 570 pine apple, 545 quinces, 545 raspberries, 545 Essences. (See Oils.) for perfumery, 305 Essential oils, 560 Ether, 532 Ether acetic, 533 butyric, 543 chloric, 542 formic, 540 nitric, spir., 532 cenanthic, 545 pelargonic, 545 sulphuric, 532 Ethereal oil, 532, 533, 537 Ethereal solution of cotton 497 spirit of chloride of iron, 436 tinctures, 156 Ethiops mineral, 486 Ethylamina, 630 Ethyl conia, 630, 661 Eucalyne, 511 Eugenin, 607, 669 Euonymin, 289 Eupatorin, 289 Eupatorina, 651 Euphorbin, 289 Euphorbina, 629, 657 Euphorbium, 583 Eupion, 579 Eupurpurin, 289 Evaporation, 196 apparatus, 197 dish, 51, 196 process, 196 Excipients in pill mass, 700 mixtures, 727 Excito-motor stimulants, 712 Expectorants, 741 Extemporaneous percolator, 138 pharmacy, 681 Extract, beef, 525 Extracta, 196, 215 fluida, 215, 232 Extractive matters, 193 oxidized, 193 Extracts as excipients, 698 concentrated, 285 Mohr's processes, 201 physical properties of, 213 preparation of, 199 resinoid, 280 syllabus, 199, 201, 203, 205 uses of, 214 Extract aconite, 201, 206 alcoholic, 203, 206 anthemis, fluid, 230 arnica, 207 belladonna, 200, 207 buchu, fluid, 219 compound, 227 butternut, 205, 210 calisaya, 211 calves' feet, 526 cannabis, 203, 207, 583 cimicifuga, 212 fluid, 217, 220 cinchona, fluid, 218, 220 flav., 204, 208 Wetherill's, 211 precip., 211, 648 colchicum, acet., 206, 215 root, fluid, 216, 220 seed, fluid, 216, 220 colocynth, 204, 209 comp., 211 conium, 200 alcoholic, 206 fluid, 216, 221 cornus Florida, fluid, 232 cubebs, fluid, 234 digitalis, alcoholic, 203, 206 dulcamara, 204, 208 fluid, 218, 221 ergot, 212 fluid, 216, 221 galls, fluid, 229 gentian, 205, 209 fluid, 216, 221 ginger, 217, 236 haematoxylon, 205, 210 hellebore, 204, 209 henbane, 201, 207 hops, 212 horehound, 232 hydrangea, fluid, 227 hyoscyamus, 199 alcoholic, 201, 207 fluid. 216, 222 ignatia amara, 203, 207 Indian hemp, 209 ipecacuanha, fluid, 216, 222 jalap, 204 fluid, 228 juglans, 205, 210 krameria, 205, 210 lactucarium, fluid, 231 lettuce, 212 liquorice, 213, 518 lobelia, acetic, 211 fluid, 229 logwood, 205, 210 lupulin, 211 Extract— lupulinse, fluid, 217, 222 may-apple, 204, 208 marrubium vulgare, fluid, 232 musk root, 231 nux vomica, 203, 207 opium, 205, 210 Pareira brava, 212 pepper, fluid. 234 pink root, fluid, 218, 225 podophyllum, 204, 208 poppy heads, 212 pruniVirg.,fluid,218,223 ferrated, 230 quassia, 205, 209 rhatany, 205, 210 rhubarb, 204, 209 fluid, 218, 223 and senna, fluid, 228 sanguinaria, fluid, 230 sarsaparilla, fluid, 218, 224 Scutellaria laterifolia, fluid, 232 seneka, 204, 208 senna, fluid, 218, 224 serpentaria, fluid, 216, 224 spigilea, fluid, 218, 225 senna, fluid, 218, 225 sumbul, fluid, 231 stramonium, 200, 206 taraxacum, 205, 210 fluid, 216, 225, 229 uva ursi, 212 fluid, 218, 226 valerian, 203, 206 fluid, 217, 226 veratrum viride, fluid, 217 226 white walnut, 205, 210 wild cherry, 218, 223, 230 zingiberis, fluid, 217, 236 Eye-washes, 747 F Fahrenheit thermometer, 188 Farinaceous principles, 506 Fats, 546 Fecula, corn, 50 Fehling's test for sugar, 515 Fel bovinum, 527 Fermentation, 529 Fermentum cerevisiae, 530 Ferrated elixir cinchona, 165 Ferri acetas, 414. 431 liquor, 431 tinctura, 431 arsenias, 477 bromidum, 440 bromidi liquor, 435, 440 syrup, 435, 440 carbonat. effervescent.. 414, 417 pilulae, 414, 416, 702 citras, 414, 421 liquor, 414, 420 syrup, 414, 423 chloridum, 435 INDEX. 837 Ferri chloridi— syrup, 435, 436 tinct., 435, 436 unguentum, 768 et ammonia citras, 414, 421 phosphas, 414, 424 sulphas, 414, 420 tartras, 414, 432 et calcis phosphatis, 414, 425 et magnesiae citras, 414, 423 et manganes. iodidi, syr., 444 et potassae tartras, 414, 432 et potassii sulphuretum, 435, 440 et quiniae citras, 414, 422 sulphas, 414, 420 et strychniae citras, 414, 422 et zinci citras, 414, 422 ferrocyanidum, 435, 437 filum, 414 hydrocyanat., 435, 438 hypochloratis liq., 414, 434 hypophosphis, 414, 429 syrup, 414, 430 comp., 414, 430 iodidum, 435, 438 iodidi, syrup, 435, 439 lactas, 414, 430 nitratis, liquor, 414, 433 oxidum hydratum, 414, 419 perchloratis, liquor, 434 persulphatis, liquor, 414, 418 persulphas, 419 phosphas, 414, 424 phosphat., syrupus, 414, 421 protocarbonatis, syrup, 414, 416 protocitrat., syr., 414,423 protonitratis, syrup, 414, 434 prototartras, 414, 433 pulvis, 417 pyrophosphas, 414, 427 syrup, 414, 428 ramenta, 414 sesquioxidum, 419 subcarbonas, 414, 415 subsulphatis, liquor, 414, 418 sulphas, 414, 415 exsiccat., 414, 415 sulphuretum, 435, 440 superphosphat., syr., 414, 424 tannas, 414, 431 tartras, 433 tersulphatis, liquor, 414, 418 valerianas, 414, 432 Ferrocyanide of iron, 435, 437 potassium, 603 zinc, 453 Ferrc, phosphorated elixir Calisaya, 165 Ferrum redactum, 414, 417 ammoniatum, 435, 437 Ferruginous chocolate drops, 275 Ferulyle, 577 Fever and ague mixture, 729 powders, effervescing, 737 Fibrin, 520 Ficus, 518 Filter, construction of, 107 for volatile liquids, 112 support, 110 Warner's oil, 105 Filtering paper, 107 Filtration, 106 hot liquids, 191 Fineness of powder, 94 Fireweed, oil of, 573 Fish's patent lamp, 181 Fixed oils, 546 Flask, 52 and safety tube, 321 Flaxseed, 509 meal, 88 poultice, 785 oil, 552, 555 Flavoring syrups, 259 Flesh, 522 Flemming's tinct. aconite, 155 Flint vials, 53 Flores martiales, 437 Flowers, collection and dry- ing, 82 of sulphur, 343 of zinc, 451 Fluid extract buchu, 219 comp., 227 capsicum, 234 chamomile, 230 cimicifuga, 217, 220 cinchona, 218, 220 colchicum root, 216, 220 seed, 216, 220 conium, 216, 221 cornus florida, 232 cubebs, 234 " dogwood, 232 dulcamara, 218, 221 ergot, 216, 221 galls, 229 gentian, 216, 221 ginger, 216, 226 hemlock, 216, 221 horehound, 232 hydrangea, 227 hyoscyamus, 216,222 ipecacuanha, 216,222 jalapa, 228 lactucarium, 231 lobelia, 229 lupulin, 217, 222 pepper, 234 pink root, 218, 225 senna, 218, 225 prunus Virginiana, 218, 223 rhubarb, 218, 223 and senna, 228 sanguinaria, 230 Fluid extract— sarsaparilla, 218, 224 comp., 218, 224 Scutellaria, 232 senna, 218, 224 serpentaria, 216, 224 spigelia 218, 225 comp., 218, 325 sumbul, 231 taraxacum, 216, 225, 229 uva ursi, 218, 226 valerian, 217, 226 veratrum viride, 217 226 wild cherry, 218, 223 ferrated, 230 Fluid extracts, 215 general remarks, 216, 217, 218 syllabus of, 216, 217, 218 unofficinal, 227 Folding of powders, 792 Folia sesami, 509 Formyle, terchloride, 540 Fowler's solution, 476 Fractional distillation, 322 Frangipanni, essence, 306 powders, 310 Fraserin, 290 Fraxin, 670 French gelatin, 526 hand furnace, 177 porcelain mortar, 48 Fruit acids, 589 their derivatives, 593 essences, 544 syrups, 262 Fumarina, 628, 639 Fumigations, 751 Fumigating powder, 311 pastilles, 311 Funnels, 57, 110 in displacement, 131 Fungin, 496 Furnaces, 177 gas, 186 Furniture bottles, 33 of the office, 787 Furnley's process, 804 Fused nitrate of silver. 462 lead, 460 potassa, 372 Fusel oil, 543, 544 of wine, 545 G Gaduin, 559 Galangle oil, 576 Galbanum, 585 oil of, 572 pills of, 709 Galenical pharmacy, 81 Gallate of quinia, 645 Gallic acid, 613 Gall ointment, 763 Gallipot, 40 Gamboge, 585 Garbling drugs, 86 838 INDEX. Garden thyme, oil, 574 Gargarysma acid, tannic, 749 sodae chlorinat., 749 Gargles, 749 Garlic ointment, 767 Gas for fuel, 181 furnaces, 182, 186 burners, 182 stove, 183 tube, flexible, 182 Gasogene, 348 Gaucina, 628, 639 Gaultherin, 672 Gaultheria, oil of, 573 Gein, 668 Gelatin, 525, 526 Gelatinized chloroform, 774 Gelsemin, 270 Generation of heat, 176 Gentiopicrin, 670 Gentiogenin, 670 Geranim, 290 Geranium, oil of, 570 Gerhard's tonic tea, 85 Gill mug, 69 Gin, Holland, 531 Ginger beer, 828 drops, 280 lozenges, 275 oil of, 576 syrup, 239, 250 Githagin, 666 Glacial phosphoric acid, 357 Glass mortars, 48 Glauber's salt, 377 Glaucina, 628, 639 Gliadin, 521 Glonoin, 551 Glucose, 510 Glucosides, 513, 517 Gluten, 521 Glue, liquid, 525 Glycerin, 512, 549 lotion, 773 ointment, 765 Glyceroles, 259 Glycerole of arnica, 773 of hypophosphites, 399 of lactucarium, 259 Glycamyl sinapis, 785 Glycina, 664 Glycocoll, 664, 616 Glycyrrhiza, 518 Glycyrrhizin, 512, 517, 668 Glycyrretin, 517 Godfrey's cordial, 825 Gold. (See Aurum.) Golden sulphur, 470 Gooseberry wine, 531 Goose grease, 559 Goulard's cerate, 759, 760, 765 extract, 458 Graduated measures, 45 pill tile, 50 receiving bottles (dis- placement), 132 Graduation of hydrometers,76 Grahame's process of displace- ment, 128 Granville's lotion, 746 Grammar of prescription, 684 Granulation, 93, 330 Granules, 719 Gratiolin, 671 Gratiosolin, 671 Grape sugar, 510, 513 Gray powder, 488 Green iodide of mercury, 483 Griffith's myrrh mixture, 729 Groundnut oil, 552, 555 Gruel, 821 Gruff, 89 Guacin, 669 Guaiacin, 667 Guaiacum, 582, 588 Guanina, 664 Guaranina, 640 Guiding rod, 112 Gums, 507, 508 Gum Arabic, 509 paste, 246 resins, 585 solution of, 134 wax, 586 Gun cotton, 496 Gutta percha, 581 solution, 544 Haarlem oil, 826 Haematin, 621 Haematosin, 621 Haemaglohulin, 520 Haematoxylin, 619 Haemorrhoid electuary, 269 Hair dye, Twiggs', 313 oil, 312 restorative, 312 wash, 312 Hamamelin, 290 Handling of tincture bottles, 808 Harle's solution, 476 Harmalina, 629, 640 Harmina, 629, 640 Hartshorne's chloroform pare- goric, 167 Harris' sifting machine, 95 Hays' syrup iodide of iron,439 Heading of prescriptions, 687 Heat as applied to pharmacy, 176 measurement, 188 Heavy oil of wine, 532 carbonate of magnesia, 402 Hecker's farina boiler, 191 Helenin, 581 Helicoidin, 678 Heliotrope, 574 Helicin, 517, 563, 677 Helleboria, 628, 632 Heller's test for sugar, 515 Helonin, 290 Hemlock gum, 686 plaster, 777 Herbs, collection and drying of, 82 Shakers', 83 Hesperidin, 667 Hiera picra, 714 History of collodion, 496 History— of percolation, 127 Hive syrup, 250 Hock wine, 531 Hodgson's graduated measure, 68 Hoffmann's anodyne, 533, 537 Holland gin, 531 Hollyhock, 509 Honey, 258 balsam of, 826 Hooping-cough mixture, 742 Hooper's pills, 827 Hop, oil of, 576 Hope's camphor mixture, 729 Horsley's test for sugar, 515 Hot drops, 826 Hudson's tooth powder, 308 Hufeland's ointment, 769 Hull's automatic washing box, 328 Humulin, 672 Hydrargyri acetas, 480, 487 bibromidum, 480, 485 bromidum, 480, 485 binitratis liq., 480, 488 chloridum corros., 480 mite, 480, 481 cyanidum, 480, 485 et potass, iodid., 484 iodidum flavum, 480, 484 rubrum, 480, 482 oxidum nigrum, 480, 486 rubrum, 480, 486 viride, 480, 483 phosphas, 480, 488 pilulae, 701 protonitratis, liq., 480,487 sesqui iodidum, 484 sub-bromidum, 480, 485 sulphas flav., 480, 482 sulphuretum nigrum, 480, 486 rubrum, 480, 486 unguentum, 763 Hydrargyrum, 478 ammoniatum, 480, 488 cum creta, 480, 488 Hydrastia, 628, 632 Hydrastin, 290 Hydrated oxide of iron, 419 Hydrate of potassa, 368, 372 Hydriodate of cinchonia, 646 of potassa, 337 of quinia, 644 of strychnia, 652 Hydrochloric acid, 351 Hydrocyanic acid, 604 Hydroferrocyanate of quinia, 645 Hydrokinone, 517, 675 Hydrometers, 75, 78 Hygienic vinegar, 307 Hygrina, 630, 662 Hyoscyamia, 629, 657 Hyperchlorate of iron, 434 Hypermanganate of potassa, 444 Hypophosphite of ammonia, 385, 391 iron, 429 syrup, 429 INDEX. 839 Hypophosphite— of lime, 398 syrup, 399 manganese, syrup, 443 potassa, 375 quinia, 643 soda, 376, 380 Hypophosphites, syrup, 399, 429, 430 Hyposulphite of soda, 381 I Ice, preservation of, 816 Iceland moss, 507 jelly, 830 paste, 271 Ichthidin, 521 Ichthin, 521 Ichthulin, 521 Ichthyocolla, 526 Igasuria, 629, 653 Ignition, 324 Ilicin, 668 Ilipicrin, 668 Illicium anisatum, oil, 570 Imperatoria ostruthium oil, 572 Imperatorin, 669 Implements, 40 Incineration, 324 Incorporation of ingredients, 695 Incompatibles, 724 of infusions, 122 of opium, 171 pharmaceutical, 724 Indian hemp, 733 Indigo, 620 white, 619 Indigogen, 619 Infusion mug, 118, 119 Infusions, 123 Infusum cinchonas, 124 gentianae comp., 125 picis liquidae, 125 pruni Virgin., 124 rosae comp., 124 taraxaci, 124 Valerianae, 125 Inhalations, 750 Inhaler, 751 Injections, 748 Inosite, 511 Integration, 680 Inula, 507 Inulin, 506 Iodate of strychnia, 652 Iodide of arsenic, 477 of ammonium, 335, 338 of barium, 392 of cadmium, 454 of calcium, 401 of calomel, 484 of gold, 491 of iron, 438 pills, 707 syrup, 439 and manganese, syrup, 444 Iodide— of lead, 460 of manganese syrup, 443 of mercury, 483 pills of, 718 red, 482 of potassium, 335, 337 liniment, 778 pomade, 785 ointment, 764 of silver, 463 of sodium, 335, 338 of sulphur, 344 ointment, 765 of zinc, 453 Iodine, 336 bath, 760 ointments, 764 preparations, 335 tinctures, 335, 338, 339 solution, 335, 339 Iodoform, 540 Iodohydrargyrate of potass., 484 Iodosulphate of quinia, 644 Ipecacuanha lozenges, 275 Iridin, 291 Irin, 581 Iris florentina, 507 Irish moss, 507 Iron. (See Ferrum.) alum, 420 chocolate drops, 275 lozenges, 274 mortar, 48 ointment, 768 Isinglass, 526 plaster, 527 J Jackson's ammonia lozenges, 277 pectoral lozenges, 277 syrup, 255 Jalapin, 283, 517, 671 Jalapinal, 517 Jamaicina, 629 James' powder, 474 Japan wax, 552 Jargonelle pear essence, 544 Jars, ointment, 40 specia, 37 Jenks' kitchen press, 119 Jervia, 630, 659 Jew's beer, 161 Jellies, 745 Jelly, calves'-foot, 820 chicken, 820 for invalids, 819 Iceland moss, 820 rice, 820 sago, 820 slippery elm, 821 strainer, 104 Jessamine, oil of, 573 Juglandin, 291 Jujube paste, 269 Juniper camphor, 562 K Kentish's ointment, 770, 771 Keratin, 525 Kermes mineral, 469 Kerner's test for quinia, 650 Keyser's universal plaster, 773 Kinate of quinia, 645 Kindness to the sick, 818 Kino, 610 Kinovin, 669 Kitchen ranges, 176 Koussin, 668 Krameria, 610 syrup, 247 Kreasot, 505 L Labarraque's solution, 380 Labdanum, 582 Labels, 39 blank, 797 Labelling, 799 Lac, 583 Lactate of iron, 430 manganese, 442 quinia, 644 zinc, 454 Lactic acid, 595 fermentation, 530 Lactin, 510, 513, 518 Lactinated powders, 97 Lactometer, 524 Lactucin, 669 Lactucone, 669 Lactucopicrin, 670 Ladanum, 582 Lady Webster's pills, 713 Lamotte's golden drops, 436 Lamp chimney displacers, 130 Lamps, Berzelius', 179 kerosene, 181 Russian, 179 spirit, 177 Language of prescriptions, 683 Lapis divinus, 448 infernalis, 541 ophthalmicus St. Yves, 448 Lapathin, 597 Lappa, 507 Lard, 553, 555 Lard oil, 553, 555 Laricin, 673 Lartique's pills, 711 Laudanum, 168 Laurin, 672 Lavender water, 306 essence of, 301 Laxatives, 712 Laxative cake, 719 tonic pills, 714 Lead. (See Plumbi.) cerate, 761, 766 plaster, 549, 775 water, 459 Leaves, collection and drying of, 82 Ledoyen's disinfectant, 460 Ledum palustre, oil of, 573 840 INDEX. Legumin, 520 Lehmann's test for sugar, 51£ Lemon balm, oil of, 573 camphor, 562 grass, oil, 576 syrup, 239, 247, 259 thyme, oil, 574 Lepidina, 631 Leptandrin, 291 Leucina, 664 Lichenin, 506 Liebig's quinia test, 649 broth, 525 condenser, 318 Lignin, 494 Ligustropicrin, 670 Ligustrin, 670 Ligustron, 670 Lilac, oil of, 575 Lily of the valley, oil, 576 Lime, 393 bicarbonate, 400, 403 carbonate, 393 chlorinated, 396 hypophosphite, 398 liniment, 770, 771 phosphate of, 396 sulphite, 400 syrup of, 400 water, 394 Limonin, 667 Linden, oil of, 570 Liniment, aconite root, 772 ammonia, 770, 771 camphorat., 770 arnica, 773 astringent, 772 camphorated, 770, 771 camphor, 770, 771 cantharis, 770, 771 chloroform, 770, 771 for croup, 772 hypericum, 772 iodide of potassium, 773 lime, 770, 771 soap, 102 sulphur, 773 turpentine, 770, 771 subacet. lead, 772 Linin, 667 Linum, 509 Linseed oil, 555 Lint, 494 Lip salve, 766 Liquid preparations, Ac, 723 substitute for Dover's powder, 738 Liquores, 101 Liquor ammoniae, 102 acetatis, 101,385, 389 arseniatis, 102 fortior, 102, 385, 387 auri nitromuriatis, 490 barii chlor., 101, 392 calcii chlor., 101, 395 calcis, 101, 394 ferri acetatis, 431 bromidi, 339. 341 hyperchloratis, 434 iodidi, 101 citratis, 102 nitratis, 102 Liquor ferri— subsulphatis, 414,418 tersulphatis, 102 guttae-perchae, 542 hydrarg. nitratis, 102, 487 protonitratis, 487 subnitratis, 488 et arsen. iodid., 102, 478 iodinii comp., 101, 335. 339 magnesiae citratis, 101 morphiae sulphatis, 101, 733 plumbi nitratis, 460 subacet., 102, 458 dilutus, 102, 459 potassae, 101, 368, 370 arsenitis, 102, 476 citratis, 101, 736 sodae, 101, 376, 378 arseniatis, 477 arsenitis, 476 chlorinata, 101, 376, 380 tartro citratis, 376, 382 Liquorice extract, 213 Liriodendrin, 666 Lisbon diet drink, 195 wine, 531 Litharge, 457 Lithia, 363, 367 carbonate, 363, 367 Litmus, 619 Lobelina, 630, 662 Loewenthal's test for sugar, 516 Logan's plaster, 778 London porter, 531 Lotions, 245 Lotion, creasote, 746 for chilblains, 747 glycerin, 773 Granville's, 746 Lovage, oil, 572 Lozenges, ammonia, 277 astringent. 278 catechu, 279 chalk, 273, 275 cough, 276, 277 cubebs, 273 diaphoretic, 719 ginger, 273 ipecac, 273 iron, 273, 274 Jackson's, 277 magnesia, 243, 274 mint, 273 pectoral, 277 peppermint, 273 phosphatic, 278 soda, 273, 274 Spitta's, 275 wild cherry, 279 Wistar's, 273 Lugol's solution, 339 Lunar caustic, 461 Lupulin, 291 Lupinine, 668 Luteolin, 618 Lutidina, 631 Lycopodin; 673 Lycopin, 291, 671 Lye, medicated, 127 M Maceration, 118 McGlensey's gas lamp, 187 Machine for spreading plas- ters, 783 Mackay'sext. calves'feet, 526 Macrotin, 287 Madeira wine, 531 Magendie's solution, 170 Magnesia, 403 lozenges, 274 mixture, 735 Magnesiae, acetas, 408 bicarbonas, fluid, 403 carbonas, 401, 402 citras, 406 liq., 404 et potassae borotartras, 408 sulphas, 401 Magnesii sulphuretum, 408 Malaga wine, 531 Malamid, 673 Malmsey wine, 531 Malt, 530 liquors, 531 Management of the shop, 811 sick room. 815 Manganese, 440 acetate. 441, 442 and iron iodide, syr., 44V 444 carbonate, 441, 442 chloride, 441, 445 hypophosphite, syr,, 441, 443 iodide, syrup, 441, 443 lactate, 441, 442 oxide, 441 phosphate, 441, 442 syrup, 441, 443 sulphate, 441 Mangostin, 618, 667 Manna, syrup of, 257 Manna, 518 Mannite, 511, 514, 518 Maranta, 507 Marble, 393 Marmor, 393 Marrow pomatum, 313 Marrubium vulgare, oil, 573, 671 Marshall's pills, 827 tooth powder, 308 Marshmallow ointment, 769 paste, 270 Mass, Vallette's, 416, 702 copaiva, 702 Mastich, 582, 588 Matricaria, oil of, 573 Maumene's test for sugar, 516 Meal, flaxseed, 88 oat, 507 Meat, 525 Measurement of heat, 188 approximate, 68 INDEX. 841 Measure for oils, 807 Measures, 63 graduated, 45, 67, 68 tin, 46 tables of, 566 Meconin, 666 Medicated cough candy, 280 lye, 127 waters, 113 Medicines adapted to liquid form, 723 to form of powders, 699 to form of pills, 699 to be kept on prescription counter, 790 Medulla sassafras, 509 Medullin, 496 Mel, 258, 5]8 rosae, 258 sodae boratis, 258 Melampyrite, 511 Melezitose, 510 Melitose, 510 Menispermin, 292 Menispermina, 628, 633 -Menyanthin, 671 Merck's opium test, 638 Mercurial mass, 701 ointment, 758, 763 plaster, 776 Mercurialina, 630, 662 Mercury. (See Hydrargy- rum.) with chalk, 488 Meta albumen, 522 morphia, 628, 638 pectin, 5U8 Methylamin, 631 Methyl conia, 630, 661 Methylic alcohol, 504, 540 Method of writing prescrip- tions, 68 Metrical measure, 67 Metrology, 61 Mettauer's aperient, 126 ethereal tinctures, 156 Mezquite gum, 508 Mialhe's tooth powder, 309 Mignonette, oil, 570 Mill, drug, 92 Millefleur, essence, 306 Milk, 522, 523 of assafoetida, 732 of roses, 747, 772 solidified, 524 sugar of, 510, 518 Mineral acids, 346 water, 347 artificial, 350 coolers, 349 syrups, 265 Minim measure, 68 Mint lozenges, 275 oil of, 574 water, 155 Mistura. (See Mixtures.) aloes comp., 126 ammoniaci, 741 amygdalae, 739 assafoetidfe, 732 chloroformi, 731, 733 creasoti, 734 Mistura— cretee, 728 ferri comp., 729 glycyrrhizae comp., 741 olei amygdalae, 743 olei cocos nucis, 744 olei morrhuae, 743 potassee citratis, 737 Mitchell's lamp, 178 aperient pills, 714 tonic pills, 707 Mixture, acetone, Ac, 742 anodyne, 733 antacid and aromat., 738, 740 alkaline, benzoated, 740 alterative, 744 antifever, 729, 731 balsamic expectorant, 742 blue mass and chalk, 728 brown, 741 chalk, 728 Richard's, 827 charcoal, 735 camphor, Hope's, 729 Parrish's, 728 cannabis Indica, 733 carb. ammonia, 731 castor oil, 734 chloroform, 732, 733 cider, Parrish, 127 cod-liver oil, 743, 744 colchicum, Dewees', 741 Scudamore's, 740 cholagogue, 731 cochineal, 742 copaiva, 740 coryza, 741 cough, 742 creasote, 734 cubebs, 739, 741 diaphoretic and sedative, 734 fever and ague, 729 for gout, 740, hooping-cough, 742 neuralgia, 741 iron and myrrh, 729 and cinchona, 730 and quinia, 730 magnesia, 735 neutral, 736, 737 oil of turpentine, 731 pulmonary and catarrhal, 734 pumpkin seed, 744 quinine, 731 sedative and diaphoretic, 734 spermaceti, 742 taraxacum, 739 tolu, 742 tonic, for dyspepsia, 730 turpentine, 731 Mixtures, preparation of, 805 Moistening bottle, 790 Molasses, 518 Monesin, 667 Monsel's sulphate of iron, 418 Moore's test for sugar, 515 Morin, 612 Morphia, 628, 634 Morphia— powders, 711 salts of, 636, solution, 101, 733 Mortars, 48 porcelain, 48 wedgewood, 47 Moschus artificialis, 579 Moss, Iceland, 507 paste, 291 Mould for pastilles, 311 Moulded bottles, 35 Mouth-wash, 309, 750 Moxon's magnesia (efferves.), 408 Mucilaginous principles, 508 Mucin, 521, 522 Mulder's test for sugar, 516 Mulled wine, 819 Muriate of ammonia, 385, 386 cinchonia, 446 morphia, 636 quinia, 643 strychnia, 652 Muriated tincture of iron, 436 Muriatic acid, 351 Musk, extract, 308 tincture, 308 Mustard plaster, 785 Mutter's pills, 717 Mycose, 510 Myrica acris, oil, 571 gale, oil, 576 Myricin, 292, 521 Myrosin, 521, 609 Myrrh, 584 mixture, 729 Myrtus communis, oil, 574 N Napellina, 628, 632 Naphtha, wood, 504 Narceina, 628, 637 Narcitin, 673 Narcotics, 710, 733 Narcotina, 628, 636 Neat's foot oil, 553, 555 Neatness in sick room, 817 Nectar, syrup, 266 Nervous sedatives, 733 stimulants, 709, 731 Neutral acetate of copper, 448 mixture, 736 principles, 666 spirits, 531 Neutralizing powder, 714 Nickel, 455 sulphate, 455 Nicotia, or nicotina, 630, 662 Nicotianin, 581 Nigella sativa, oil, 570 Nipple wash, 747 Nitrate of ammonia, 385, 386 bismuth, 464 copper, 448 iron, solut., 433 lead, 460 potassa, 363 silver, 461 bottle, 34 842 INDEX. Nitrate of— soda, 364 strychnia, 652 urea, 665 Nitric acid, 346, 352 ether, 532 Nitro glycerine, 551 Nitromuriatic acid, 354 Nitroprusside of copper, 565 Nitrous acid, 353 ether, 532 Noble's tonic elixir, 156 Nomenclature, officinal, 58 of acids, 345 system of, 58 Numerals used in prescription, 686 Nurse to be cared for, 817 Nutmegs, expressed oil, 553, 556 volatile oil, 575 0 Oatmeal, 507 gruel, 821 03nanthic ether, 545 Oil bottle, 36 British, 827 can, 36 Haarlem, 826 Oil of apples, 545 amber, 579 asarum, 235 assafoetida, 577 banana, 545 benne, 552, 555 bergamot, 570 betula, 579 butter, 525 cajeput, 571 capsicum, 234 caraway, 571 cardamon 235 catnip, 574 chocolate nuts, 553 cinnamon, 575 cloves, 571 eggs, 523 ergot, 235 garlic, 577, 578 ginger, 235 groundnuts, 555 horsemint, 573 hyssop, 573 jargonelle pear, 544 jessamine, 573 lavender, 573 lemon, 570 male fern, 235 mustard, 577 neroli, 570 nutmeg, 575, 578 olive, 552, 553 orange, 570 orange flower, 570 origanum, 574 parsley, 235 pennyroyal, 573, 574 peppermint, 574 pimenta, 571 Oil of— rhodium, 571 rosemary, 574 sage, 574 sassafras, 575 spearmint, 573 spike, 573 spiraea, 563, 571 summer savory, 574 thyme, 574 verbena, 573 wine, 532, 537 wormseed, 575 wintergreen, 573, 606 Oils. (See Oleum.) artificial, 578 carbo-hydrogen (sylla- bus), 5G7 empyreumatic, 578 essential, 560 adulteration of, 564 fixed, 546 nitrogenated (syllabus), 577 oxygenated (syllabus), 570 sulphuretted (syllabus), 577 volatile, 560 Ointment. (See Unguentum.) aconitia, 767 chalk, 768 citrine, 763 cod-liver oil, 769 croton oil, 769 elemi, 766 for piles, 769 for tetter, 767, 768 garlic, 767 glycerin, 765 iron, 768 jars, 40 red precipitate, 758, 763 stimulating, 769 tar, 7(i4, 768 tobacco, 765, 767 white precipitate, 758, 763 Ointments, preparation of, 809 how kept, 753 Olea destillata, 561 Oleaginous mixtures, 743, 744 Olein, 548 Oleoresins, 232 asarum Canad., 235 black pepper, 232, 234 capsicum, 232, 234 cardamon, 235 cubebs, 232, 234 ginger, 232, 235 lupuline, 232, 234 male fern, 235 parsley, 235 pepper, 232, 234 Oleum adipis, 553, 555 aethereum, 532, 537 amygdalae, 552, 554 amaraa, 577 arachidis, 552, 555 behen, 552 bertholetise, 552, 555 bubuli, 553, 555 cadinum, 579 Oleum— cacao, 552, 555 camphorae, 567 cari, 571 cetacei, 553, 556 chenopodii, 57a cocois, 552 copaiba?, 567 cubebaj, 567 elemi, 567 fagi, 552 gossypii, 552 Hedwigiae, 567 juniperi, 567 virginianae, 568 lauri, 552 lini, 552, 555 macidis, 552, 556 morrhuae, 553, 558 myristica', 552 olibani, 567 olivae, 552, 553 palmae, 552, 556 papaveris, 552, 554 piperis nigrae, 567 ricini, 553, 557 sabinae, 567 sesami, 552, 554 succini, 579 templinum, 568 terebinthinae, 568 theobromae, 552 tiglii, 553, 558 Olibanum, 584, 585 Olive oil, 552 Olivil, 670 Onoeerin, 668 Ononin, 668 Opiana, 628, 637 Opina, 628, 637 Opium, extract, 210 abuse of, 172 alkaloids, 634 eaters, 172 elixir, 169 Galenical solutions of, 168 incompatibles of, 171 pills, 710 plaster, 776 preparations of, 167 tinctures of, 168 treatment of poisoning by, 171 vinegar of, 170 wine of, 170 Opodeldoc, 826 Opopanax, 585 Orange blossom, 305 flower syrup, 239, 246 water, 116 syrup, 246 wine, 531 Orchis mascula, 509 Orcine, 512, 619 Organic acids, 588 chemistry, 493 Orgeat syrup, 246 Orris root, 507 oil of, 576 Oryza, 507 Os, 572 Osseine, 525 INDEX. 843 Osmitopsis astericoides, 573 Otto's antispasmodic powder, 709 emmenagogue pills, 719 Outfits for physicians,$100,823 $50,822 $25,824 Ovum, 522, 523 Oxalic acid, 590 Oxalate of cerium, 411 Ox gall, 528 Oxidation, 325, 679 Oxides, reduction of, 325 Oxidized extractive, 193 Oxide of antimony, 471 bismuth, 464 cobalt, 456 copper, 447 gold, 490 iron, 419 lead, 457 manganese, 541 mercury, 486 silver, 463 zinc, 451 Oxyacanthin, 634 Oxygen, 330 Oxymel, 258 of squill, 258 Oxysulphuret of antimony, 469 Oyster shell, 393 Ozone, 332 Ozonides, 333 Packages, 40 folding of, 793 Packing bottle, 37 Palma Christi oil, 557 Palm oil, 552, 556 Pamphlet case, 55 Panada, 819 Panaquilon, 512 Panis laxans, 719 Pancoast's sedative plaster, 779 Pancreatin, 522 Papaver, 509 Papaverina, 628, 637 Paper, envelope, 54 filtering, 54 parchment, 495 wrapping, 54, 793 Para albumen, 522 Parafline, 579 Paramorphia, 637 Parchment paper, 495 Parapectin, 508 Paregoric, 168 Pariglin, 673 Paricina, 650 Paridin, 671 Parrish's camphor mixture, 728 cathartic pills, 716 chemical food, 425 cider mixture, 127 cough lozenges, 277 fluid extract of buchu,227 gas furnace, 186 Parrish's— syrup of hypophosphites, 399 phosphates, 425 table of drops, 70 Paridin, 673 Parviin, 667, 674 Parsley oil, 571 Pastes, 269 Paste, 798 carrageen, 270 charcoal, 309 Iceland moss, 271 jujube, 269 marshmallow, 270 Ward's, 269 Pastile mould, 311 Patchouly, essence of, 305,307 Paviin, 674 Peach water, 117 Pearl ash, 368 barley, 507 Pearson's solution, 477 Pectic acid, 508 Pectin, 508 Pectoral drops, 825 lozenges, Jackson's, 277 syrup, 256 Pelargonic ether, 545 Peligot's test for sugar, 576 Pellets, 719 Pelosina, 633 Peppermint lozenges, 275 water, 115 Pepsine, 528 Percolation, 127 continuous, 134 with ether, 138 hot liquids, 136 Pereirina, 629, 654 Perfume for mouth wash, 309 of plants, 561 Perfumed hair oil, 312 Perfumery and toilet articles, 303, 314 Permanganate of potassa,441, 444 Pernitrate of iron, solution, 433 Peroxide of iron, 419 of mercury, 486 Persulphate of iron, 419 solution, 418 Peruvian balsam, 586 adulteration of, 588 Pese Esprit, 76 Pettenkofer's test for sugar, 516 Petroleum, 579 Peucedanin, 669 Phantom bouquet, 495 Pharmaceutical incompati- bles, 724, 726 still, 297 Pharmacopoeia U. S., 56 Pharmacy, extemporaneous, 681 proper, 81 Phaseomannite, 511 Phenylic acid, 505 alcohol, 608 j Philicome, 313 Phillandrium aquaticum, 572 Phillyrin, 670 Phloridzin, 597 Phloroglucine, 511 Phormia, 628, 638 Phosphate of ammonia, 385, 390 iron, 424 lime, 396 syrup, 397 manganese, 442 mercury, 488 potassa, 375 soda, 377 Phosphatic lozenges, 278 Phosphoric acid, 343 oxide, 343 Phosphorous acid, 343 Phosphorus, 341, 342 tests, 343 Photagene, 579 Phycite, 512 Phyllirin, 670 Physaliu, 671 Physick's alkal. solution, 127 tetter ointment, 768 tinct. of iron, 154 strainer, 104 Phytolacca, 292 Picolina, 631 Picrate of potassa, 368, 376 Picroglaucina, 639 Picrolichenin, 673 Picrotoxin, 597 Pierlot's solution, 167 Pile confection, 209 ointment, 7k9 Pill boxes, 54 machine, 50, 801 roller, 50, 801 tile, 50, 800 Pills. (See Pilulas.) acetate of lead, 704 Alberty's, 716 aloetic, 713 alin and podophyllin, 716 anodyne, 710 antibilious, 715, 716 aperient, 714, 716 aromatic, 717 astringent, 707 Becquerel's gout, 711 blue, 701 camphor and opium, 710 cannabis, 711 carbonate of ammonia, 710 Chapman's dinner, 713 chinoidine, 706 chloride of iron, 708 coating of, 802 colchicum, comp., 711 and mercury, 711 copaiva, 717 colocynth and hyoscya mus, 715 corrosive sublimate, 718 croton oil, 716 dispensing of, 799 emmenagogue, 719 excipients for, 700 t 844 INDEX. Pills- extract of hemp, 711 for intermittents, 707 gelatin coated, 803 gout, 711 for habitual costiveness, 715 Hooper's, 827 iodide of iron, '708 mercury, 718 iron, 706 and quinia, 706 Lady Webster's 713 Lartique's, 711 laxative tonic, 714 Mitchell's aperient, 704 tonic, 707 nitrate of silver, 709 podophyllin, 716 rhubarb, 712 rheumatism, 711 sugar coated, 802 sulphate of cinchonia, 705 quinia, 704, 705 quinidia, 705 tannic acid, 703 tonic and aromatic, 707 Vance's rheumatism, 711 Pilulae, 697 aloes, 713 et assafoetidae, 709 et mastiches, 713 et myrrhae, 713 antimonii, comp., 718 assafoetida, 709 calomelanos comp., 718 catharticae compositae,715 colchici c. hydrarg., 711 copaibae, 702 ferri carbonatis, 416, 702 compositae, 707 iodidi, 707, 708 comp., 708 galbani compositae, 709 hydrargyri, 701 'chloridi corros., 718 opii, 710 plumbi acetas, 704 podophyllin, 716 quiniae sulphatis, 704, 705 rhei, 712 comp., 713 saponis compositae, 720 scillae, compositae, 717 Pineapple essence, 545 syrup, 265 Pinipicrin, 672 Pinite, 511 Piperidina, 631, 658 Piperina, 630_, 658 Piperoid of ginger, 235 Pipsissewa beer, 828 Pitayia, 651 Plants, collection of, 81 cultivation, 84 Plasma belladonnas, 784 iodide of potassium, 785 lead, 784 mustard, 785 tar, 784 Plaster, adhesive, 775 annular corn, 782 Plaster— arnica, 777 breast, 779, 781 cloth, 782 court, 527 lead, 549, 775 Logan's, 778 mammary abscess, 779 sedative, 779 spice, 786 strengthening, 777 universal, 778 Plasters, 774 spreading of, 779 Platinum, 491 bichloride, 492 chloride of sodium, 492 Plumbum, 456 Plumbi acetas 457, 458 carbonas, 457, 459 chloridum, 457, 461 iodidum, 457, 460 liquor, 457, 458 nitras, 457, 460 fusa, 460 oxidum rubrum, 457 semivitreum, 457 subacetatis dilutus, 459 tannas, 457, 461 Plumbagin, 672 Plummer's pills, 718 Podophyllin, 283 pills, 716 Podophyllum, extract of, 208 Poisoning by opium, treat- ment, 177 Polarization, 510, 515 Pollenin, 496 Polychroite, 617 Polychrom. 674 Polygalin, 599 Pomade of iodide of potas- sium, 785 Poppyseed, oil of, 522, 554 Populin, 292, 517, 672 Porcelain cup, 51 funnel, 51 mortar, 48 Porphyrharmina, 640 Porphyroxin, 638 Port wine, 531 Potash, 368 Potassa, 368, 372 c. calce, 368, 372 Potassae acetas, 36S, 372 antimonias, 472 arsenitis liquor, 476 bicarbonas, 368, 369 bichromas, 363, 364 . bisulphas, 363, 365 bitartras, 383, 384 boracico-tartras, 383, 385 carbazotas, 376 carbonas, 368 carbonas, purus. 368, 370 chloras, 368, 373 chromas, 363, 364 citras, 368, 373 etboracis tartras, 383, 385 et sodae tartras, 383, 384 hydras*. 368, 372 hypophosphis, 375 Potassae— liquor, 368, 370 nitras, 363 permanganas, 444 phosphas, 375 picras, 368, 376 silicas, 368, 375 sulphas, 363, 365 tartras, 363, 384 Potassii bromidum, 339, 341 cyanidum, 606 et hydrarg. iodid., 484 ferrocyanidum, 603 iodidum, 337 Potato starch, 507 Powder, gray, 488 Powdered blue mass, 701 gold, 490 Powdering camphor, 91 drugs, 86 gum resins, 92 Powders, lactinated, 97 and pills, 696 anti-intermittent, 704 antispasmodic, 709 astringent, 703 calomel, alterative, 708 calomel and jalap, 714 710 Castillon's, 821 chalk, 703, 704 composition, 826 Dover's 717 dusted, 88 effervescing fever, 737 emetic, 712 ergot, comp., 712 for diarrhoea, 704 for gastric irritability, 709 for indigestion, 769 fumigating, 311 iron and quinia, 706 morphia (diluted), 711 neutralizing, 714 nitre and tart, antimony, 712 officinal, 96 of carbonate of ammonia, paper for, 793 precipitated, 93 rhubarb and magnesia, 714 sachet, 310 seidlitz, 715 soda, 738 styptic, 745 uterine hemorrhages, 712 yeast, 738 Pravaze's solution, 436 Precipitate, red, 486 white, 488 Precipitated carbonate of iron, 415 lime, 393, 395 zinc, 450 extract of bark, 211, 648 phosphate of lime, 393, 396 sulphur, 344 sulphuret of antimony, 469 Precipitation, 328 INDEX. 845 Precipitating jar, 329 Prepared oyster shell, 393 Preparation of chlorine, 326 lozenges, 271 mixtures, 805 ointments, 809 pills, 799 svrups, 237 diet, 818 Prescription, abbreviations used in, 685 labels for, 797 scales, 142 Prescriptions, 681 divisions of, 687 grammatical exp. of, 685 language used in, 683 numerals and signs, 686 writing of, 686 Preserved taraxacum juice, 229 Press, 119, 120 clothes wringer, 121 Price's glycerin, 550 Process of displacement, 127, 132 ■ distillation, 295 evaporation, 196 Processes, carbonic acid, 325 requiring heat, 192 Procter's, syrup of hypophos- phites, 399, 430 iodide of iron and manga- nese, 444 phosphate of lime, 399 table of drops, 69 Proof, alcohol, 534 Prophetin, 669 Propyle, 559 Proof spirits, 140 Propylamina, 630, 663 cordial, 167 Protein, 519 Protein principles, 519, 520 Protiodide of mercury, 483 Proto-carbonate of iron, syr- up, 416 citrate of iron, syrup, 423 nitrate of iron, 434 Prunin, 292 Prunum, 518 Prussian blue, 437 Prussiate of potassa, 603 Pseudomorphia, 638 Psoralein, 640 Ptelin, 293 Puccina, 628, 639 Pulveres U. S. P., 96 Pulvis aloes et canellae, 96, 714 antimonialis, 468, 474 aromaticus, 96, 706 auri, 490 effervescentes aperientes. 715 jalapae comp., 96, 714 jacobi, 474 ipecac, comp., 96, 717 morphiae atten., 711 rhei comp., 96, 714 Pumpkin seed emulsion, 744 Punicin, 668 Purpurin, 618 Putcha pat, 305, 307 Pyin, 522 Pyridina, 631 Pyrine, 579 Pyroacetic spirit, 504 Pyrophosphate of iron, 427 soda, 427 Pyroxylic spirit, 504 Pyroxylin, 496 Pyrroiina, 631 Quassin, 667, 674 Quercetin, 618 Quercin, 672 Quevenne's iron, 417 Quince essence, 545 oil of, 571 seed, 509 Quinicia, 647 Quinidia, 629, 645 sulphate, 645 pills, 706 Quinia, 629, 642 salts of, 643, 645 pills, 704, 704 solution with iron, 730 tincture comp., 155 Quinoidina, 647 Quinolina, 631 Quinque sulphuret'antim., 470 R Rabbit fat, 560 Rademacher's tincture of ace- tate of iron, 431 Raisins, 518 Rand's collodion. 498 Raspberry essence, 545 syrup, 263, 265 vinegar, 264 Rationale of percolation, 135 of sp. grav. formula, 77 Rat-tail file, 319 Reaction of ess. oils with iodine and nitro-prusside of copper, 565 Reaumur's thermometer, 289 Receivers, 317 Rectification of alcohol, 534 Red iodide of mercury, 482 oil, 772 oxide of lead, 457 phosphorus, 342 precipitate, 486 ointment, 758, 763 sulphuret of mercury, 486 Reduced iron, 417 Reduction of oxides, 325 Refrigerants, 736 Regulation of heat, 190 Remarks on Pharmacopoeia, 56 Resin cerate, 756 Resin of jalap, 283, 583 of podophyllum, 283 scammony, 283 Resinoid extracts, 280 Resins, 581 Retorts, glass, 316, 318 tin, 296 Rhabarbarin, 597 Rhamnin, 668 Rhamnitin, 517 Rhaponticin, 597 Rhein, 293, 597 Rheumin, 597 Rhodeoretin, 675 Rhodium, oil of, 571 Rhubarb and magnesia, pow- ders, 714 pills, 712 comp., 713 tinctures, 152 Rhusin, 293 Rice, 507 jelly, 820 Richard's chalk mixture, 827 Richardson's syr. phosphates, 426 Roasting, 324 Roborant plaster, 777 Rochelle salt, 384 Rock candy, 513 Roots, collection of, 81 Rose, essence of, 305 geranium, 315 leaf tablets, 278 lip salve, 766 oil of, 571 root oil, 571 water, 114, 106 wood, 574 Rosin, 581 Rottlerin, 617 Rue, oil of, 571 Rules for avoiding incompati- bles, 725 apportioning quantities, 688 of pharmaceutical store, 812 Rum, 531 Rumicin, 597 Rumin, 293 Rump's quinia test, 649 Runge's test for sugar, 516 Russian isinglass, 526 lamp, 178 Rutyle, 563 Sabadillia, 630, 659 Saccharates, 513 Saccharine principles, 512 Saccharometer, 78 Saccharum, 509, 518 saturni, 458 Sachet powders, 310 frangipanni, 310 marechale, 310 millefleur, 310 heliotrope, 311 Saffron oil, 576 Sagapenum, 585 Sago, 507 jelly, 820 Salep, 509 846 INDEX. Salicin, 517, 563, 672, 677 Salicon, 608 Salicyle, 563 Saligenin, 517, 563, 677 Saliretin, 517, 677 Saline draughts, 736 Sal ajratus, 368 ammonia, 385, 386 diuretic, 368, 372 Epsomense, 401 prunelle. 363, 364 Rochelle, 384 soda, 377 Salsaparin, 673 Saltpetre, 363 Salts, Epsom, 401 Rochelle, 384 Salve, Becker's eye, 768 Sambueus nigra, oil, 572 Sandarac, 583 Sand bath, 189 Sanguisorba officinalis, oil, 571 Sanguinarin, 294 Sanguinarina, 294, 628, 638 Santalin, 618 Santonin, 596, 598 Saponin, 666, 668 Saratoga water, artificial, 350 Sarkosina, 664 Sarsaparilla syrup, 249 syrup for mineral water, 262 syrup (Williams'), 254 Sarsaparillin, 673 Sassafras pith, 509 Saturation, 99 Sauterne wine, 531 Savin, cerate, 758, 761 Scales, 41, 42, 43 Scammonin, 676 Scammonium, 585 Scheffer's process for hypo- phosphites, 398 for phosphates, 426 Scheibler's test, for alkaloids, 626 Schmidt's test for sugar, 517 Schonbein's test for ozone, 332 Scillitin, 673 Scillitine, 673 Scordiin, 671 Scparin, 618, 668 Scott's pills, 828 Screen for gas lamps, 183 Scrophularin, 671 Scudamore's mixture, 740 Scutellarine, 293 Scyllite, 511 Sea water, 750 S.-calina, 630, 663 Secrets medicated. 280 Sedative mixture, 734 plaster, 775 Seeds, collection of, 80 Seidlitz mixture, 715 powders, 715 Sel de Vichy, 363, 366 Selection of medicines, 671 Senecin, 294 Senecionine, 294 Senegin, 599 Sepeerina, 629, 658 Serum lactis, 522 vinosum, 821 Sessamum orientale, 509 Sesquicarbonate of ammonia, 387 Sesquichloride of iron, 435 Sesamum, 509 Sevum, 553 Shakers' herbs, 83 Shaw's gas furnaces, 185 Shellac, 586 Sherry wine, 531 Sick-room, management, 815 Sieves, 95 fineness of, 94 Sifting, 95 Signatura, 690 Signs in prescription, 686 Silicate of potassa, 368, 375 Silver. (See Argentum.) Silvering pills, 802 Simple syrup, 238 Siphon, 105 Skuleine, 673 Slipper. 55 Smilacin, 294, 673 Smith's steam displacer, 137 Soap, 551 cerate, 754, 755, 761 liniment, 770, 771 plaster, 776 pills, 720 Soda, caustic, 376, 378 liquor, 376, 378 lozenges, 274 powders, 738 Sodae acetas, 376, 382 arsenias, 477 benzoas, 376, 383 bicarbonas, 376, 379 boras, 363, 365 carbonas, 376, 377 exsiccata, 376. 378 chloras, 368, 374 chlorinatae gargarysma, 749 liquor, 376, 380 choleinas, 528 citras, 376, 382 et antim. sulphuret, 470 et potassae tartras, 384 hypophosphis, 376, 380 hyposulphis, 376, 381 nitras. 363, 364 phosphas, 376, 379 phospho-tungstas, 626 sulphas, 376, 377 sulphovinas. 376, 383 tartro-citrns, 382 tungstas, 363, 366 valerianas, 376, 383 Sodii chloridum, 376, 377 et auri chloridum, 490 et platini chloridum, 492 iodidum, 338 Soft soap, 551 Solania, 517, 629, 654 Solanidin. 517 Solidified milk, 524 Solubility, 98 Soluble citrate of magnesia, 406 Soluble tartar, 384 Solution (how accomplished}, 99 alkaline, 127 disinfecting, 101, 460 Donovan's, 102, 478 Fowler's, 102, 476 Labarraque's, 101, 380 Ledoyan's, 460 Lugol's, 101, 339 Magendie's, 170 of acetate of ammonia, 101, 389 of iron, 431 of chinoidine, 729 of potassa, 111, 740 of ammonia, 102, 387 of bicarbon. of lime, 400 magnesia, 403 of carbonate of potassa, 101 of chloride of barium, 101 392 calcium, 101, 395 of chlorinated soda, 101, 380 of citrate of iron, 102, 420 magnesia, 101, 404 potassa, 101, 736 of cream tartar, 735 of gun-cotton, 102, 496 of gutta percha, 542 of iodide of iron, 101,439 of iodine comp., 101, 339 of perchloride of iron, 436 of pernitrate of iron, 102, 433 of persulphate of iron, 102, 418 of potassa, 101, 370 of quinine and iron, 730 of soda, 378 of sulph. morphia, 101, 170, 733 Piertot's, 167 Pravaze's, 436 Sonnenschein's test for alka- loids, 626 Sorbin, 511 Sorbite, 511 Soup, vegetable, 821 Spaniolitmin, 619 Sparteina, 630, 661 Spatulas, 49 Specia jars, 37 Species, 85 anthelmintic, 85 St. Germain, 85 Specific gravity, 71 bottles, 72, 73 of liquids, 75 of water at different tem- peratures, 74 Specimen bottles, 33 Spermaceti, 553 cerate, 754, 756, 760 mixture, 742 oil, 553, 556 Spice plaster, 786 Spiced syrup of rhubarb, 248 INDEX. 847 Spirea, oil of, 563, 571 Spirit lamps, 177, 179, 796 neutral, 531 Spirit of ether, acetic, 533 chloric, 534 comp., 537 nitric, 537, 538 of ammonia, 102, 385, 387 aromatic, 102, 385, 388 of aniseed, 301, 302 of cinnamon, 301 of camphor, 301, 302 of chloride of iron, 436 of juniper, 301, 303 of lavender, 301, 303 comp., 301 of lemon, 301, 302 of mindererus, 389 of mint, 301, 303 of mustard, 312 of nutmeg, 301 of peppermint, 301, 302 of wood, 504 Spirits, syllabus of, 301 Spiritus chloroformi, 540, 542 formicae, 540 frumenti, 533 salis dulcis, 533 Spirol, 608 Spitta's lozenges, 275 Spoonfuls, 69 Spreading of plasters, 779 Spritz, 327 Squire's infusion pot, 119 Staphisaina, 620, 632 Starch, 506 Steam bath, 192, 198 Steam displacement, 137 Stearin, 549 Stearoptene, 562 Still, copper, 290 pharmaceutical, 297 Stillingin, 294 Stimulants, 712, 731 Stoves, gas, 183, 186 Straining, strainers, 103, 807 Strasburg turpentine, 584 Strawberry syrup, 263 Strengthening plaster, 777 Struthiin, 666 Strychnia, 629, 651 salts of, 652 Styptic, 745 Styracin, 587 Styrax, 586 Styrole, 587 Subacetate of lead, 458 copper, 448 Sub-borate of soda, 363, 365 Subcarbonate of bismuth, 466 iron, 415 Sublimation, 323 Subnitrate of bismuth, 464 Subscription, 689 Subsulphate of mercury, 482 Succinum, 584, 586 Succus taraxaci paratus, 229 Suet, 553 Sugar, 509, 512 cane, 510, 512 coated pills, 802 Sugar— diabetic, 513, 517 ergot, 510 fruit, 510, 513 granules, 805 grape, 510, 513 in urine, 517 manna, 511 milk, 510, 513, 518 of lead, 458 pellets, 805 Sulphate of alumina, 410 alumina and potassa, 409 ammonia and iron, 420 cadmium, 454 cinchonia, 646 copper, 440 iron, 415, 418 and ammonia, 420 and quinia, 420 magnesia, 401 manganese, 441 mercury, 482 morphia, 636 nickel, 455 potassa, 363, 365 quinia, 643 and iron, 420 quinidia, 645 soda, 376, 377 strychnia, 652 zinc, 449, 450 Sulphide of allyle, 577 Sulphite of lime, 400 Sulphocyanide of allyle, 577 Sulphosinapisin, 674 Sulphovinate of soda, 383 Sulphovinic acid, 532 Sulphur, 343 iodide of, 343, 344 precipitated, 343, 344 ointment, 764 Sulphurated antimony, 469 Sulphuret of ammonium, 390 antimony, 469 and calcium, 470 and sodium, 470 calcium, 401 iron, 440 and potassium, 440 magnesium, 408 mercury (black), 486 (red), 486 Sulphuretted oils, 577 Sulphuric ether, 539 Suppositories, 720 anthelmintic, 720 medicated, 720 moulds, 809 Surinamina, 629, 641 Sweet oil, 552, 553 basil, oil, 574 bay, oil, 571 Cicily, 572 gale, oil, 576 marjoram, oil, 574 violet, oil, 570 Sweet spirit, 531 of nitre, 538 Swift's drug mill, 93 Sydenham's laudanum, 170 Symbols in prescription, 086 Symphytum officinale, 507 Syntonin, 520 Syphons, 105 Syringenin, 670 Syringe pattern displacer, 131 Syringin, 670 Syringopicrin, 670 Syrup, acetate of magnesia, 408 allium, 244 almond, 238, 246 anthelmintic, 744 anthemis, 257 aurantium, 246 florum, 246 assafoetida, 254 bittersweet, 253 blackberry, 264 aromat., 264 root, 240, 249 comp., 252 bromide of iron, 440 capsicum, 262 carrageen, 252 chamomile, 251 cherry, 264 chimaphila, 251 citrate of iron, 423 citric acid, 238, 245 coffee, 265 cream, 266 dulcamara, 253 factitious cream, 266 French rose, 238, 248 frostwort, 253 fruit, 263, galls, 257 garlic, 244, 245 gillenia, 254 ginger, 238, 250, 261 gum Arabic, 238, 245 helianthemum, 253 hive (Coxe's), 250 hypophosphites, comp., 399, 429, 430 hypophosphite of iron, 429 lime, 399 manganese, 443 iodide of iron, 100, 439 manganese, 443 and iron, 444 iodohydrarg. potassa and iron, 484 ipecac, 240, 247 Jackson's pectoral, 277 krameria, 243, 247 liquidambar, 252 lactucarium, 240, 247 lemon, 238, 247, 259 lime, 400 manna, 257 morphia, 255 nectar, 266 orange-peel, 246, 260 flower, 238, 246 orgeat, 246, 263 pectoral, Jackson's, 256 phosphate of iron, 424 and ammonia, 424 lime, 397 manganese, 443 848 INDEX. Syrup— phosphates comp., 425 undissolved, 426 pine-apple, 265 pipsissewa, 251 poppy, 255 proto-carbonate of iron, 416 proto-citrate of iron, 423 proto-nitrate of iron, 434 prunus Virginiana, 243, 248 * pyro-phosphate of iron, 428 raspberry, 264, 265 rhatany, 243, 247 rhubarb, simple, 240, 248 spiced, 240, 248 rose, 238, 248 rubus, 249 sarsaparilla, 240, 249, 262 Williams', 254 senega, 240, 250 simple, 244, 238 squills, 244, 249 comp., 240, 250 strawberry, 263 sulphate of morphia, 255 superphosphate of iron, 424 sweet gum bark, 252 Tolu, 238, 250 uva ursi, 251 vanilla, 265 wild cherry, 243, 248 zingiber, 250 Syrups, 236, 258 straining of, 263 syllabus, 238, 240, 243 Table of drops, 69, 70 specific gravity, 47, 79 weights, 63, 65, 66 Tablets, astringent roseleaf, 278 chlorate of potassa, 278 of wild cherry, 279 Tannate of bismuth. 467 cinchonia, 646 iron. 431 lead', 461 quinia, 644 strychnia, 653 Tanacetin, 670 Tannic acid, 612 pills of, 703 Tansy, oil of, 573 Tapioca, 507 preparation of, 819 Tar beer, 161 ointment, 756, 764, 768 Taraxacin, 670 Taraxacum juice, preserved, 229 mixtures, 739 Tartar, 383 emetic, 94, 473 ointment, 762 Tarragon oil, 572 Tartaric acid, 590 Tartarus boraxatus, 385 borico potassicus, 385 Tartrate of antimony and po- tassa, 473 iron and ammonia, 432 and potassa, 432 potassa, 383, 384 and soda, 383, 384 quinia, 644 Tartro-citrate of soda, 382 Tartromel, 258 Taurina, 664 Tea scales, 43 oil of, 570 spoonful, 69 Teneriffe wine, 531 Terebinthina, 585 Teroxide of antimony, 471 gold 490 Terpen, 562 Testa, 523 praeparata, 393 Tests for albumen, 521 alkaloids, 625, 660 alumina, 409 ammonia, 386 antimony, 468 arsenic, 474, 475 baryta, 391 bichromate of potassa, 365 bismuth, 464 borax, 306 cadmium, 454 cobalt, 456 copper, 445 diabetic sugar, 514 essential oils, 564 fusel oil, 535 gold, 489 grape sugar, 514 iron, 413 lead, 456 lime, 393 magnesia, 401 manganese, 440 meconic acid, 627 mercury, 478, 479 muriatic acid, 352 nickel, 455 nitrate of potassa, 363 nitric acid, 353 opium, 638 ozone, 332 phosphoric acid, 387 phosphorus, 343 platinum, 491 potassa, 363 quinia, 649 resins, 588 silver, 461 soda, 363 sulphate of potassa, 365 sulphuric acid, 365 zinc, 449 Tetter-ointment, 767, 768 Thebaia, 628, 637 Theina, 628, 640 Theobromina, 628, 639 Theriaca, 518 Andronica, 268 Thermometers, 188 Thomas' eye water. 748 nipple wash, 747 Thompson's syrup of hypo- phosphites, 429 Thujin, 517, 618 Thujetin, 517 Thymyle, 563 Tie-over jars, 40 Tiles, pill, 50 Tin oil cans, 36 Tin herb cans, 38 Tincturae, 139 Tinctura aconiti folii, 141, 146 (Flemming's), 155 radicis, 142, 146 aloes, 141, 144, 146 et myrrhae, 145, 146 arnicae, 141, 142, 146 assafoetidae, 145, 147 belladonnae, 141, 147 benzoini comp., 145, 147 calumbae, 143, 147 camphorae, 301, 303 cannabis, 142, 147 aetherea. 157 cantharidis, 142, 148 aetherea, ] 56 capsici, 142, 148 cardamomi, 142, 148 comp., 142,148 castorei, 145, 148 catechu, 143, 148 cinchonas, 143, 149 cinchonae, comp., 143,149 ferrata, 154 cinnamomi, 142, 149 colchici, 141, 149 aetherea, 157 colombae, 143, 147 conii, 141, 149 cubebae, 112, 149 aetherea, 156 digitalis, 141, 150 ferri acetatis, 431 amara, 154 chloridi, 102 gallae, 143, 150 gentianae comp., 143 guaiaci, 145, 150 aetherea, 157 ammoniata, 145, 150 (Dewees'), 156 hellebori, 144, 150 humuli, 143, 151 hyoscyami, 141, 151 iodinii, 102, 335, 339 comp., 102, 335, 339 jalapae, 144, 151 krameriae, 143, 151 kino, 141, 151, 143 lobeliae, 141, 151 lupulinae, 145, 152 matico, 156 moschi, 156 myrrhae, 145, 152 nucis vomicae, 142, 152 ol. menth. pip. ,302, 303 vir., 302, 303 opii, 168, 174 acet., 169 camph., 168, 174 INDEX. 849 Tinctura— deodorata, 169 quassiae, 143, 152 quiniae composita, 155 rhei, 144, 152 aromatica, 156 et sennae, 144, 152 sanguinariae, 144, 152 saponis camphorata, 770, 771 scillae, 141, 153 serpentariae, 142, 153 stramonii, 141, 153 strychniae, 155 tolutana, 145, 153 Valerianae, 142, 153 ammoniat., 145, 153 veratri viridis, 142, 154 zingiberis, 145, 154 Tincture, Asiatic, for cholera, 157 bottles, 36 benzoated, 304 of iron, bitter, 154 of musk, 156 Tinctures, ammoniated, 145 astringent and tonic group, 143 Bestecheff's, 436 cathartic group, 144 ethereal, 156, 157 narcotic groups, 141, 142 opium, 169, 174 resinous group, 145 saturated, 142 stimulant group, 142 stomachic group, 144 tonic, 143 unofficinal, 154, 156 volatile, 145 Toast water, 818 Tobacco knife, 91 ointment, 765 Toilet waters, 305 Tolu mixture, 742 syrup, 239, 250 tincture, 145, 153 Toluidina, 631 Tonic and aromatic pills, 707 elixir, 156 pills and powders, 704, 707 tea, Gerhard's, 85 Tonics, 704, 729 Tooth-powder, 308 Torrefaction, 324 Tous les mois, 507 Tragacanth, 509 Treacle, 518 Treatment of poisoning by opium, 171 Trehalose, 510 Trianospermia, 629, 641 Trillein, 295 Tripod, 52 Trochisci, 271. (See Lozen- ge* •) Trochisci, officinal, 250 unofficinal, 250, 719 Trommer's test for sugar, 515 Tube for suppositories, 721 Tuberose, oil, 576 54 Tungstate of soda, 363, 366 Turlington's balsam, 826 Turpentine, 584 Cyprian, 584 enema, 749 liniment, 770, 771 mixture, 731 Strasburg, 584 Venice, 584 Turpeth mineral, 482 Tutia—tutty, 449, 450 Twiggs' hair dye, 313 Tyrosina, 664 Tyson's antimon. powder, 472 U Ulmus, 509 Uncrystallizable sugar, 510 Unguenta. (See Ointments.) Unguentum alii, 767 aconiti, 759 aeonitiae, 767 acid tannic, 758, 762 adipis, 754, 755, 762 altheae, 769 antimonii, 758, 762 aquae rosae, 754, 756 belladonnae, 758, 762 benzoini, 754, 756, 762 creasoti, 758, 763 cretae, 768 elemi, 766 ferri chloridi, 768 gallae, 758, 763 hydrargyri, 758, 763 ammon, 758, 763 nitratis, 759, 763 oxid. rub., 758, 763 iodinii, 758, 764 comp., 758, 764 picis liquidae, 756, 764 cum sulphure, 768 plumbi carb., 758, 764 potassii iodidi, 758,. 764 simplex, 754, 755 stramonii, 759, 764 sulphuris, 758, 764 iodidi, 765 tabaci, 765 comp., 767 veratriae, 758, 765 zinci oxidi, 758, 769 United States coins, 64, 489 Universal plaster, 778 Urate of quinia, 644 Urea, 664 Urerythrin, 621 Urinometers, 78 Urohaematin, 621 Ursin, 670 Urson, 670 Uva passa, 518 Valerianate— of elixir, 167, 389 of iron, 414 of morphia, 636 of quinia, 643 of soda, of zinc, 454 Vallette's mass, 416 Vance's rheumatism pills, 711 Vanilla syrup, 265 Vanillin, 673, 678 Vegetable acids, 588 alkaloids, 628 caustic, 372 soup, 821 Venice turpentine, 584 Ventilation of sick room, 815 Veratria, 630, 658 ointment, 765 Verbena water, 306 Verdigris, 448 Vermilion, 486 Vials, 52 Vibernin, 295 Vichy salt, 363, 366 Vinaigre de cologne, 307 Vina medicata, 158 Vinegars, 162, 307, 503 Vinegar, aromatic, 307 of blood root, 164 of colchicum, 164 of lobelia, 164 of opium, 170 raspberry, 264 Vinous fermentation, 529 Vinum aloes, 159 antimonii, 102, 159, 474 album, 158 aromatic, 160 colchici rad., 159 seminis, 159 ergotae, 160 ipecacuanhae, 160 opii, 170, 175 picis, 161 pruni Virg., 160 rhei, 160 rubrum, 150 tabaci, 160 Violia, 628, 639 Violet mouth wash, 309 Virginia snake root, oil, 575 infusion, 123 tincture, 142, 153 Viscous fermentation, 530 Viscin, 581 Vitellin, 521 Vitriolated tartar, 365 Vitriol, blue, 446 green, 415 oil of, 355 white, 450 Vogel's test for sugar, 516 Volatile liniment, 770, 771 oils, 560 tinctures, 145 Valerianic acid, 543, 607 Valerian oil, 572 Valerianate of ammonia, 385 of bismuth, 467 W Ward's paste, 269 Warming plaster, 778 850 INDEX. Warner's oil filter, 104 Wash, black, 746 nipple, 747 yellow, 746 Washed ether, 532 Washing box, Hull's, 328 of chemicals, 327 soda, 377 Water bath, 190 chlorine, 335 Cologne, 304 lavender, 306 ozone, 333 rose, 106, 114 verbena, 306 Waters, medicated, 113 Wax, 553 Japan, 553 Wedgewood mortars, 67, 90 Weights, apothecaries', 44, 62 avoirdupois, 63 commercial, 63 cup, 64 decimal, 65 officinal, 62 Welter's bitters, 609 Whey, 524 Whiskey, 531, 533 White arsenic, 475 felt corn plaster, 782 lead, 459 of egg, 523 precipitate, 488 ointment, 758, 763 vitriol, 450 Whitehead's essence of mus- tard, 827 Wiegand's retort stand, 198 syrup of phosphates, 397 Wigger's ergotine, 212 Wild cherry fluid extract, 223 syrup, 243, 248 tablets, 279 water, 117 wine, 160 Williams' sarsaparilla, 254 Willow charcoal, 502 Wine, see Vinum, 158 assafoetida, 732 of iron, bitter, 162 citrate of iron and quinia, 162 colchicum root, 159 seed, 159 iron, 161 bitter, 162 mulled, 819 opium, 170 pepsin, 162 port, 158 sherry, 158 tar, 161 whey, 821 wild cherry bark, 160 wineglassful, 69 Wistar's lozenges, 276 Wooden, pill machine, 50 Wood charcoal, 502 naphtha, 504, 540 Woolf's bottles, 326 Wormwood, oil, 572 Worm tea, 86, 828 Xanthorhamin, 517 Xanthoxylin, 667 Xanthopicrin, 667 Xyloidin, 496 Xylostein, 670 Yarrow, oil of, 572 Yeast, 530 powders, 738 Yellow iodide of mercury, 484 prussiate of potash, 603 sulphate of mercury, 482 wash, 746 Yelk of egg, 523 Zedoary, oil of, 576 Zimmer's quinia test, 649 Zinci acetas, 449, 451 carbonas impurus, 449 praecip., 449, 450 chloridum, 449, 452 cyanuretum, 449, 453 ferrocyanuretum, 449,453 iodidum, 449, 453 lactas, 449, 454 oxidum, 449, 451 impurus, 450 sulphas, 449, 450 valerianas, 449, 454 Zincum, 449 Zymome, 521 BLANCHARD & LEA'S MEDICAL AND SURGICAL PUBLICATIONS. TO THE MEDICAL PROFESSION. The greatly enhanced cost of materials and labor has at length obliged us to make a small increase in the price of some of our books, and we have been forced m a lew instances to change the style of binding from leather to cloth, in conse- quence of the increased difficulty of procuring a full supply of the superior quality ot leather which we require for our publications. We have made these changes with reluctance, and can only hope that we may not be forced to further modifi- cations by a continued increase of cost. For the present, therefore, the prices on this Catalogue are those at which our books can generally be furnished by booksellers, who can readily procure for their customers any which they may not have on hand. Where access to bookstores is not convenient, we will forward them at these prices, free by mail, to any post office in the United States. In all cases the amount must accompany the order, as we open accounts only with dealers ; we assume no risks of the mail, either on the money or the books, and we can supply nothing but our own publications. Gentlemen desirous of purchasing will, therefore, find it more advantageous to deal with the nearest bookseller whenever practicable, or to send orders throuo'h their merchants visithig the larger cities. BLANCHARD & LEA° Philadelphia, July, 1864. %* We have recently issued an Illustrated Catalogue of Medical and Sci- entific Publications, forming an octavo pamphlet of 80 large pages, containing specimens of illustrations, notices of the medical press, &c. &e. It has been pre- pared without regard to expense, and will be found one of the handsomest speci- mens of typographical execution as yet presented in this country. Copies will be sent to any address, by mail, free of postage, on receipt of nine cents in stamps. Catalogues of our numerous publications in miscellaneous and educational litera- ture forwarded on application. I3P The attention of physicians is especially solicited to the following important new works and new editions, just issued or nearly ready:— Bowman's Medical Chemistry, a new edition,......See page 4 Bowman's Practical Chemistry, a new edition, Bennett on the Uterus, sixth edition, .... Bumstead on Venereal, second edition, Barclay on Medical Diagnosis, third edition^ Brande and Taylor's Chemistry,..... Daltou's Human Physiology, 3d edition, Dunglison's Medical Dictionary, a revised edition, Ellis'Formulary, new edition,..... Erichsen's System of Surgery, a revised edition, . . Flint on the Heart, . . . . ' . Gross's System of Surgery,second edition,. Gray's Anatomy, Descriptive and Surgical, 2d edition, Hamilton on Fractures and Dislocations, second edition, Hodge's Obstetrics,....... Meigs' Obstetrics, fourth edition, .... Parrish's Practical Pharmacy, a new edition, Stille's Therapeutics and Materia Medica, . Simpson on Diseases of Women,..... Salter on Asthma,........ Slade on Diphtheria, new edition .... Sargent's Minor Surgery, new edition, Watson's Practice of Physic,..... Wilson on the Skin, filth edition,..... 4 4 5 5 b' 11 12 13 14 14 16 17 18 19 21 25 27 27 27 27 28 30 31 NO INCREASE OF PRICE. TWO MEDICAL PERIODICALS, FREE OF POSTAGE, Containing about Fifteen Hundred large octavo pages, FOIi FIVE DOLLARS PER AMWUM. THE AMERICAN JOURNAL OF THE MEDICAL SCIENCES, subject to postage, when not paid for in advance, -......$5 00 THE MEDICAL NEWS AND LIBRARY, invariably in.advance, - -100 or, both periodicals mailed, free op postage (as long as the existing rates are maintained), to any post-office in the United States, for Five Dollars remitted in advance. 2 BLANCHARD & LEA'S MEDICAL It will be observed that notwithstanding the great increase in the cost of production, the subscrip- tion price has been maintained at the former very moderate rate, which has long rendered them among the CHEAPEST OF AMERICAN MEDICAL PERIODICALS. The publishers trust that this course will be responded to by the profession in a liberal increase to the subscription list. THE AMERICAN JOURNAL "OF THE MEDICAL SCIENCES, • Edited by ISAAC HAYS, M. D., is published Quarterly, on the first of January, April, July, and October. Each number contains about two hundred and seventy large octavo pages, handsomely and appropriately illustrated, wherever necessary. It has now been issued regularly for more than forty years, and it has been under the control of the present editor for more than a quarter of a century. Throughout this long period, it has maintained its position in the highest rank of medical periodicals both at home and abroad, and has received the cordial support of the entire profession in this country. Its list of Collaborators will be found to Contain a large number of the most distinguished names of the pro- fession in every section of the United States, rendering the department devoted to ORIGINAL COMMUNICATIONS full of varied and important matter, of great interest to all practitioners. As the aim of the Journal, however, is to combine the advantages presented by all the different varieties of periodicals, in its REVIEW DEPARTMENT will be found extended and impartial reviews of all important new works, presenting subjects of novelty and interest, together with very numerous BIBLIOGRAPHICAL NOTICES, including nearly all the medical publications of the day, both in this country and Great Britain, wit* a choice selection of the more important continental works. This is followed by the QUARTERLY SUMMARY, being a very full and complete abstract, methodically arranged, of the IMPROVEMENTS AND DISCOVERIES IN THE MEDICAL SCIENCES. This department of the Journal, so important to the practising physician, is the object of especial care on the part of the editor. It is classified and arranged under different heads, thus facilitating the researches of the reader in pursuit of particular subjects, and will be found to present a very full and accurate digest of all observations, discoveries, and inventions recorded in every branch of medical science. The very extensive arrangements of the publishers are such as to afford to the editor complete materials for this purpose, as he not only regularly receives ALL THE AMERICAN MEDICAL AND SCIENTIFIC PERIODICALS, but also twenty or thirty of the more important Journals issued in Great Britain and on the Conti- nent, thus enabling him to present in a convenient compass a thorough and complete abstract of everything interesting or important to the physician occurring in any part of the civilized world. To their old subscribers, many of whom have been on their list for twenty or thirty years, the Sublishers feel that no promises for iAe future are necessary; but those who may desire for the rst time to subscribe, can rest assured that no exertion will be spared to maintain the Journal in the high position which it has occupied for so long a period. By reference to the terms it will be seen that, in addition to this large amount of valuable and practical information on every branch of medical science, the subscriber, by paying in advance becomes entitled, without further charge, to THE MEDICAL NEWS AND LIBRARY, a monthly periodical of thirty-two large octavo pages. Its "News Department" presents the current information of the day, while the ".Library Department" is devoted to presenting stand- ard works on various branches of meclcne. Within a few years, subscribers have thus received, without expense, many works of the highest character and practical value, such as " Watson's Practice," "Todd and Bowman's Physiology," "Malgaigne's Surgery," "West on Children," " West on Females, Parti.," "Habershononthe Alimentary Canal," " Simpson on Females," &c. The work selected for the year 1864, commencing in the number for January, is CONSUMPTION; ITS EARLY AND REMEDIABLE STAGES. BY EDWARD SMITH, M. D., Assistant Physician to the Brompton Consumption. Hospital, &c. The special experience of the author in the treatment of this disease invests his work with a practical authority which cannot but render it satisfactory to subscribers. It will thus be seen that for the small sum of FIVE DOLLARS, paid in advance, the subscriber will obtain a Quarterly and a Monthly periodical, EMBRACING ABOUT FIFTEEN HUNDRED LARGE OCTAVO PAGES, Those subscribers who do not pay in advance will bear in mind that their subscription of Five Dollars will entitle them to the Journal only, without the News, and that they will be at the expense of their own postage on the receipt of each number. The advantage of a remittance when order- ing the Journal will thus be apparent. Remittances of subscriptions can be mailed at our risk, when a certificate is taken from the Post- master that the money is duly inclosed and forwarded. Address BLANCHARD & LEA, PHiLAr>ri.pxiA. 'AND SCIENTIFIC PUBLICATIONS. 3 ASHTON (T. J.), Surgeon to the Blenheim Dispensary, &c.' ON THE DISEASES, INJURIES, AND MALFORMATIONS OF THE RECTUM AND ANUS; with remarks on Habitual Constipation. From the third and enlarged London edition. With handsome illustrations. In one very beautifully printed octavo volume, of about 300 pages, extra cloth. $2 50. The most complete one we possess on the subject, the excellent advice given in the concluding para- Medico-Chtrurgtcal Review. graph above, would be to provide himself with a V\ e are satisfied, after a careful examination of opy of the book from which it has been taken, and the volume, and a comparison of its contents with diligently to con its instructive pages. They may those of its leading p redecessors and contemporaries, sec u re to him many a triumph and fer vent blessing__ that the best way for the reader to avail himself of Am. Journal Med. Sciences. ALLEN (J. M.), M. D., Professor of Anatomy in the Pennsylvania Medical College, &c. THE PRACTICAL ANATOMIST; or, The Student's Guide in the Dissecting- ROOM. With 266 illustrations. In one handsome royal 12mo. volume, of over 600 pages, extra cloth. $2 25. . We believe it to be one of the most useful works upon the subject ever written. It is handsomely Illustrated, well printed, and will be found of con- venient size for use in the dissecting-room.—Med. Examiner. However valuable may be. the "Dissector's Guides" which we, of late, have had occasion to notice, we feel confident that the work of Dr. Allen is superior to any of them. We believe with the author, that none is so fully illustrated as this, and the arrangement of the work is such as to facilitate the labors of the student. We most cordially re- commend it to their attention.—Western Lancet. ANATOMICAL ATLAS. By Professors H. H. Smith and W. E. Horner, of the University of Pennsyl- vania. 1 vol. 8vo., extra cloth, with nearly 650 illustrations. |3P See^SMiTH, p. 26. ABEL (F. A.), F.C.S. AND C. L. BLOXAM. HANDBOOK OF CHEMISTRY, Theoretical, Practical, and Technical; with a Recommendatory Preface by Dr. Hofmann. In one large' octavo volume, extra cloth, of 662 pages, with illustrations. $4 00. ASHWELL (SAMUEL), M.D., Obstetric Physician and Lecturer to Guy's Hospital, London. A. PRACTICAL TREATISE ON THE DISEASES PECULIAR TO WOMEN. Illustrated by Cases derived from Hospital and Private Practice. Third American, from the Third and revised London edition. In one octavo volume, extra cloth, of 528 pages. $3 00. The most useful practical work on the subject in I The most able, and certainly the most standard the English language. — Boston Med. and Surg, and practical, work on female diseases that we hav« Journal. I yet seen.—Medico-Ckirurgical Review. ARNOTT (NEILL), M. D. ELEMENTS OF PHYSICS; or Natural Philosophy, General and Medical. Written for universal use, in plain or non-technical language. A new edition, by Isaac Hays, M. D. Complete in one octavo volume, leather, of 484 pages, with about two hundred illustra tions. $2 50._________________ BIRD (GOLDING), A. M., M. D., Ac. URINARY DEPOSITS: THEIR DIAGNOSIS, PATHOLOGY, AND THERAPEUTICAL INDICATIONS. Edited by Edmund Lloyd Birkett, M. D. A new American, from the last and enlarged London edition. With eighty illustrations on wood. In one handsome octavo volume, of about 400 pages, extra cloth. $3 00. It can scarcely be necessary for us to say anything to the extension and satisfactory employment of our of the merits of this well-known Treatise, which so, therapeutic resources. In the preparation of this admirably brings into practical application the re- - Bults of those microscopical and chemical re- searches regarding the physiology and pathology of the urinary secretion, which have contributed so much to the increase of our diagnostic powers, and | lllciapcuiiiLi i^uui^i/o. xi. ui^ p. tpjjciicLLlwu UI LUIS new edition of his work, it is obvious that Dr. Gold- ing Bird has spared no pains to render it a faithful representation of the present state of scientific knowledge on the subject it embraces;—Britishand Foreign Med.-Ckir. Review. : BENNETT (J. HUGHES), M.D., F. R. S. E., Professor of Clinical Medicine in the University of Edinburgh, &c. THE PATHOLOGY AND TREATMENT OF PULMONARY TUBERCU- T OSIS and on the Local Medication of Pharyngeal and Laryngeal Diseases frequently mistaken for or associated with, Phthisis. One vol. 8vo.,extra cloth, with wood-cuts, pp.130. $125. BARLOW (GEORGE H.), M.D. Physician to Guy's Hospital, London, &c. A MANUAL OF THE PRACTICE OF MEDICINE. With Additions by D. c p^nTF M D., author of" A Practical Treatise on Diseases of Children," &c. In one hand- fome octavo volume, extra cloth, of over 600 pages. $2 75. We recommend Dr. Barlow's Manual in the warm- e8t manner as a most valuable vade-mecum. We nivehadfrequent occasion to consult it, and have found it clear, concise, practical, and sound__Bos- ton Med. and Surg. Journal. 4 BLANCHARD & LEA'S MEDICAL BUDD (GEORGE), M. D., F. R. S.. Professor of Medicine in King's College, London ON DISEASES OF THE LIVER. Third American, from the third and enlarged London edition. In one very handsome octavo volume, ex ra cloth, with four beauti- fully colored plates, and numerous wood-cuts. pp. 500. $3 50. Has fairly established for itself a place among the classical medical literature of England.—British and Foreign Medico-Chir. Review. Dr. Budd's Treatise on Diseases of the Liver is now a standard work in Medical literature, and dur- the text the most striking novelties which have cha- racterized the recent progress of hepatic physiology and pathology; so thatalthoughthe size of the book is not perceptibly changed, the history of liver dis- eases is made more complete, and is kept upon a level ing the intervals which have elapsed between the wl , Pr.°gress of modern science. It is the best successive editions, the author has incorporated into Ts on™1Ie™-es of the„Liver in any language.— r "" | London Med. Times and Gazette. BUCKNILL (J. C), M. D., and DANIEL H TUKE M D Medical Superintendent of the Devon Lunatic Asylum. Visiting Medical Officer to the YorkRetreat A MANUAL OF PSYCHOLOGICAL MEDICINE; containing the-History,' Nosology, Description, Statistics, Diagnosis, Pathology, and Treatment of INSANITY With a Plate. In one handsome octavo volume, of 536 pages, extra cloth. S3 50. I he increase of mental disease in its various forms, and the difficult questions to which it is constantly giving rise, render the subject one of daily enhanced interest, requiring on the par of SonP yY^nttlCrStantly Sreater/«»tt«*y with this, the most perplexing1 branch of his profes- sion Yet until the appearance of the present volume there has been for some years no work ac- Z ffif Zlt\?Untl\lTeSenU"? the results of recent investigations in the Diagnosis and Pro? iw5„Ty' /?■ the greatly imPrOT*d methods of treatment which have lone so much fn aheviating the condition or restoring the health of the insane. ^ BENNETT (HENRY), M. D. A PRACTICAL TREATISE ON INFLAMMATION OF THE UTERUS ITS CERVIX AND APPENDAGES and on its connection with Uterine Wsease 8^' igZt££7o£?£T ^J^.f°gliSiieditl0n- lQ °ne octavo volume, of aboutS BROWN (ISAAC BAKER), Surgeon-Accoucheur to St. Mary's Hospital, &c ON SOME DISEASES OF WOMEN ADMITTING OF SURGICAL TREAT. MENT. With handsome illustrations. One vol. 8vo., extra cloth, pp. 276. $160 Mr. Brown has earned for himself a high reputa- tion in the operative treatment of sundry diseases and injuries to which females are peculiarly subject We can truly say of his work that it is an important addition to obstetrical literature. The operative suggestions and contrivances which Mr. Brown de- scribes, exhibit much practical sagacity and skill, and merit the careful attention of every surgeon- accoucheur.—Association Journal. We have no hesitation in recommending this book to t.ie careful attention of all surgeons who make female complaints a part of their study and practice. —Dublin Quarterly Journal. BOWMAN (JOHN E.). M.D. PRACTICAL HANDBOOK OF MEDICAL CHEMISTRY Edited bv O L.Bloxam. Third American, from the fourth and revised English Edition In (.no np»t »i™.' royal 12mo.,extracloth;wilhnumerousillustrations. pp. 35?. $rT$a3££fflBZ°iSx{ Of this well-known handbook we may say that ;--" -'-- it retains all its old simplicity and clearness of ar- rangement and description, whilst it has received from the able editjr those finishing touches which the progress of chemistry has rende red necessary.__ ect m view lucidly detailed and explained. And W?th Ti Ji k, 1B, n°t merely a reP"nt «>f ^e last. ]Z t% lau fa™'iar from ong acquaintance W1th each page of the former lhem'aSf„thhJ? "*"• ^°°k' W6 ^ P^ be™de them another presenting so many acceptable im- provements and udditioua.-Dublin Medical PreTs. London Med. Times and Gazette, Nov. 29, 1862 Nor is anything hurried over, anything shirked ; open the book where you will, you find the same careful treatment of the subject manifested, ana the best process for the attainment of the particular ob- BY THE SAMS AUTHOR. INTRODUCTION TO PRACTICAL CHEMISTRY, INCLUDING .ANA LYSIS. Third American, from the third and revised London edittorJ JSi numetouTmus" trations. In one neat vol., royal 12mo., extra cloth. $175. (Just Ready ) lhis favorite little manual has received a very thorough and careful revision ot .v.» v. j r competent editor, and will be found fully broughf up to le prV.S'Snd'SSrf ^ScM™ Many portions have been rewritten, the subjects of the blow-niDe and vnlnm^tr,v Iv! i ■ *cience> ceived special attention, and an additional chapter has bee^pZded Studies of r& ^k rC" istry will therefore find it, as heretofore, a most convenient andcondenSdtext-booPk »„H J,?^"1' the operations of the laboratory. ^uuen.ea text-book and guide in BEALE ON THE LAWS OF HEALTH IN RE- LATION TO MIND AND BODY. A Series of Letters from an old Practitioner to a Patient. In one volume, royal 12mo., extra cloth, pp. 296, B0 cents. BUSHNAN'S PHYSIOLOGY OF ANIMAL AND VEGETABLE LIFE; a Popular Treatise on the Functions and Phenomena of Organic Life. In one handsome royal 12mo. volume, extra cloth, with over 100 illustrations, pp.234. 80 cents. BUCKLER ON THE ETIOLOGY,PATHOT ORV AND TREATMENT OF PIBSO-BRONCIH * TIS AND RHEUMATIC PNEUMONIA In one 8vo. volume, extra cloth, pp. 150. $1 25 Bhinun ^t?ttURJNE(MANUALS ON). BY JOHN WILLIAM GRIFFITH G Ow£li REESE AND ALFRED MAJ&WICK? o£ thick volume, royal 12mo., extra cloth, with plates, pp.460. $1 25. ' B »2™'^ C"NICAL LECTURES ON SUR- GERY. 1 vol. 8vo. cloth. 350 pp. 8125. AND SCIENTIFIC PUBLICATIONS.' D BUMSTEAD (FREEMAN J.) M. D., Lecturer on Venereal Diseases at the College of Pnysicians and Surgeons, New York, &c. THE PATHOLOGY AND TREATMENT OF VENEREAL DISEASES, including the results of recent investigations upon the subject. Second edition, thoroughly re- vised and much improved. With illustrations on wood. In one very handsome octavo volume, of about 700 pages. $4 50 (Now Ready.) By far the most valuable contribution to this par- ticular branch of practice that has seen the light within the last score of years. His clear and accu- rate descriptions of the various forms of venereal disease, and especially the methods of treatment he proposes, are worthy of the highest encomium. In these respects it is better adapted for the assistance of the every-day practitioner than any other with which we are acquainted. In variety of methods proposed, in minuteness of direction, guided by care- lul discrimination of varying forms and complica- tions, we write down the book as unsurpassed. It is a work which should be in the possession of every practitioner.—Chicago Med. Journal. Nov. 1661. The foregoing admirable volume comes to us, em- bracing the whole subject of syphilology, resolving many a doubt, correcting and confirming many an entertained opinion, and in our estimation the best, completest, fullest monograph on this subject in our language. As far as the author's labors themselves are concerned, we feel it a duty to say that he has not only exhausted his subject, but he has presented to us, without the slightest hyperbole, the best di- gested treatise on these diseases in our language. He has carried its literature down to the present moment, and has achieved his task in a manner which cannot but redound to his credit.—British American Journal, Oct. 1861. We believe this treatise will come to be regarded as high authority in this branch of medical practice, and we cordially commend it to the favorable notice of our brethren in the profession. For our own part, we candidly confess that we have received n.any new ideas from its perusal, as well as modified many views which we have long, and, as we now think; erroneously entertained on the subject of syphilis. To sum up all in a few words, this book is one which no practising physician or medical student can very well afford to do without.—American Med. Times, Nov. 2, 1861. The whole work presents a complete history of venereal diseases, comprising much interesting and valuable material that has been spread through med- ical journals within the last twenty years—the pe- riod of many experiments and investigations on the subject—the whole carefully digested by the aid of the author's extensive personal experience, and offered to the profession in an admirable form. Its completeness is secured by good plates, which are especially full in the anatomy of the genital organs. We have examined it with great satisfaction, and congratulate the medical profession in America on the nationality of a work that may fairly be called original.—Berkshire Med. Journal, Dec. 1861. One thing, however, we are impelled to say, that we have met with no other book on syphilis, in the English language, which gave so full, clear, and impartial views of the important subjects on which it treats. We cannot, however, refrain from ex- pressing our satisfaction with the full and perspicu- ous manner in which the subject has been presented, and the careful attention to minute details, so use- ful—not to say indispensable—in a practical treatise. In conclusion, if we may be pardoned the use of a phrase now become stereotyped, but which we heie employ in all seriousness and sincerity, we do not hesitate to express the opinion that Dr. Bumsteail's Treatise on Venereal Diseases is a " work without which no medical library will hereafter be consi- dered complete."—Boston Med. and Surg. Journal, Sept. 5, 1861. BARCLAY (A. W.>, M . D., Assistant Physician to St. George's Hospital, &c. A MANUAL OF MEDICAL DIAGNOSIS j being an Analysis of the Signs and Symptoms of Disease. Third American from the second and revised London edition. In one neat octavo volume, extra cloth, of 451 pages. $3 25. {Just Ready.) The demand for a second edition of this work shows that the vacancy which it attempts to sup- ply has been recognized by the profession, and that the efforts of the author to meet the want have been successful. The revision which it has enjoyed will render it better adapted than before to afford assistance to the learner in the prosecution of his studies, and to the practitioner who requires a convenient and accessible manual for speedy reference in the exigencies of his daily duties. For this latter purpose its complete and extensive Index renders it especially valuable, offering facilities for immediately turning to any class of symptoms, or any variety of disease The task of composing such a work is neither an easy nor a light one; but Dr. Barclay has performed it in a manner which meets our most unqualified approbation. He is no mere theorist; he knows his work thoroughly, and in attempting to perform it, has not exceeded his powers.—British Med. Journal. We venture to predict that-the work will be de- servedly popular, and soon become, like Watson^s Practice, an indispensable necessity to the practi- tioner.— N. A. Med. Journal. An inestimable work of reference for the young practitioner and student.—Nashville Med. Journal. We hope the volume will have an extensive cir- culation, not among students of medicine only, but practitioners also. They will never regret a faith- ful study ofitspages.—CincinnatiLancet. An important acquisition to medical literature. It is a work of high merit, both from the vast im- portance of the subject upon which it treats, and also from the real ability displayed in -ts elabora- tion. In conclusion, let us bespeak for this volume that attention of every student of our art which it so richly deserves — that place in evttry medical library which it can so well adorn.- • Peninsular Medical Journal. BARTLETT (ELISHA), M. D. THE HISTORY, DIAGNOSIS, AND TREATMENT OF THE FEVERS OF THE UNITED STATES. A new and revised edition. By Alonzo Clark, M. D., Prof. of Pathology and Practical Medicine in the N. Y. College of Physicians and Surgeons, &c. la • one octavo volume, of six hundred pages, extra ploth. Price $3 75. stood deservedly high since its first publication. It will be seen that it has now reached its fourth edi- tion under the supervision of Prof. A. Clark, a gen- It is a work of great practical value and interest. containing much that is new relative to the several diseases of which it treats, and, with the addition. of the editor, is fully up to the times. The distinct- ive features of the different forms of fever are plainly nriri forcibly portrayed, and the lines of demarcation ^arefullv and accurately drawn, and to the Ameri- can practitioner is a more valuable and safe guide than any work on fever extant.—Ohio Med. and Surg Journal. This excellent monograph on febrile disease, has tleman who, from the nature of his studies and pur- suits, is well calculated to appreciate and discuss the many intricate and difficult questions in patho- logy. His annotations add much to the interest of the work, and have brought it well up to the condi- tion of the science as it exists at the present day in regard to this class of diseases.—Southern Med. and Surg. Journal. 6 BLANCHARD & LEA'S MEDICAL BRA ofDhE LWN!-,TM') °' C' L'« AND ALFRED S. TAYLOR, M. D., F. R. S. Of her Majesty's Mint, &c. Professor of Chemistry and Medical Jurisprudence in Guy's Hospital. f™E?df, May^ise-a1)6 handsome 8vo-volume of 696 PaSes> extra clotl>- $1 00. •.nliiKf beren en8a?eJd in teaching Chemistry in this Metropolis, the one for a period of forty, alreadv pS"ilv,t pe"°d °f tblrty, yearS) i1,1"18 aPPeared to us tha«. >" spite of the nmnbt-r of books already existing, there was room for an additional volume, which should be especially adapted for mfnH ?h«t tSttnt,T' , ¥ePaimS "ch ,a volume *°r the Press> we ^ve endeavored to bear in fh* tl ■ v bt"d.e.nt,in the Pr,,sent daY has much to learn, and but a short time at his disposal for the acquisition of this learning."—Authors' Preface. «^iu ior rhim^tPr»!inghtlli8 v°Iu1me'.its PassaSe th,rough ,he Press has been superintended by a competent chemist, who has sedulously endeavored to secure the accuracy so necessary in a work of this nature. No notes or additions have been introduced, but the publishers have been favored by the mserted S°me correctlons and regions of the first twenty-one chapters, which have been duly .hinenh;Prt0greSS^efiaf^enCue aS Chemistry, Ihe latest work always has the advantage of presenting Jlsb]et aS m°flfieud ^ the results of the lalest investigations and discoveries. That this advan- iwfi T ? ? m°,St of' and lhat the work Po^esses superior attractions arising from its on^En£^3<£p^: and 'UCld alTanSement> are manifested by the unanimous testimony inbtift^fiTih^HfL10 t°-ete^th^ th,B b00k I and left at the affectation, mysticism, and obscurity in De, literally, the Handbook m Chem strv nf tho ^>,i,.i, ^„„„„j„ „---i„._ ' L ' = _., 4'..":"' will be, literally, the Handbook in Chemistry of the student and practitioner. For clearness of language accuracy of description, extent of information, and freedom from pedantry and mysticism of modern chemistry, no other text-book comes into competition with it. The result is a work which for fulness of matter, for lucidity of arrangement, for clearness of style, is as yet without a rival. And long will it be without a rival. Tor, although with the necessary advance of chemical knowledge addenda will be re- quired, there will be little to take away. The funda- mental excellences of the book will remain, preserv- ing it for years to come, what it now is, the best guide to the study of Chemistry yet given to the world.— London Lancet, Dec. 20, 1862. Most assuredly, time has not abated one whit of the fluency, the vigor, and the clearness with which they not only have composed the work before us, but have so to say, cleared the ground for it, by hitting right which pervade some late chemical treatises. Tbus conceived, and worked out in the most sturdy, com- mon sense method, this book gives, in the clearest and most summary method possible, all the facts and doc- trines of chemistry, with more especial reference to the wants of the medical student.—London Medical Times and Gazette, Nov. 29, 1862. If we are not very much mistaken, this book will occupy a place which none has hitherto held amoDg chemists ; for, by avoiding the errors of previous au- thors, we have a work which, for its size, is certainly the most perfect of any in the English language. There are several points to be noted in this volume which separate it widely from any of its compeers- its wide application, not to the medical student only, nor to the student in chemistry merely, but to every branch of science, art, or commerce which is in any way connected with the domain of chemistry.—£o»- donMed. Review, Feb. 1863. BARWELL (RICHARD,) F< R. C. S.. Assistant Surgeon Charing Cross Hospital, * » pJv^r^^^ Smith give it a positive rogy,willfullyunderstandhowvastagstoreofknow- h™ilf%.$yfl&lg>!?I *hl«* we «toubt not leSge he is able to bring to bear upon so comprehen- kLw not where the .tnde«f ^- Inde<;1' we sive a subject-as the revelations of the microscope: suchi* complete^ and saH«f^°nrJ™??1?™ T11- find and even those who have no previous acquaintance scopic facts beam* unnn nh°^I,lleCtl05 of micr°- with the construction or uses of this instrument me^PinP »« i.»«„?og- P. Physiology and practical will find abundance of information conveyedin™lear ?ndI thU of iU\r f m*Pr°f- ^'H1, B aPPendix; and simple languagc.-iUerf. Times aid ^^\^Jt%&^^^^^^^^^ AND SCIENTIFIC PUBLICATIONS. 7 CARPENTER (WILLIAM B.), M. DM F. R. S., Examiner in Physiology and Comparative Anatomy in the University of London. PRINCIPLES OF HUMAN PHYSIOLOGY; with their chief applications to Psychology, Pathology, Therapeutics, Hygiene, and Forensic Medicine. A new American, from the last and revised London edition. With nearly three hundred illustrations. Edited, with addi- tions, by Francis Gurney Smith, M. D., Professor of the Institutes of Medicine in the Pennsyl- vania Medical College, &c. In one very large and beautiful octavo volume, of about nine hundred large pages, handsomely printed, extra cloth, $5 00; strongly bound in leather, with raised bands, $6 00 To eulogize this great work would be superfluous. We should observe, however, that in this edition the author has remodelled a large portion of the former, and the editor has added much matter of in- terest, especially in the form of illustrations. We may confidently recommend it as the most complete work on Human Physiology in our language.__ Southern Med. and Surg. Journal. The most complete work on the science in our language.—Am. Med. Journal. The most complete work now extant in our lan- guage.—N. O. Med. Register. The best text-book in the language on this ex- tensive subject.—London Med. Times. A complete cyclopaedia of this branch of science. —JV. Y. Med. Times. The profession of this country, and perhaps also of Europe, have anxiously and for some time awaited the announcement of this new edition of Carpenter'* Human Physiology. His former editions have for many years been almost the only text-book on Phy- siology in all our medical schools, and its circula- tion among the profession has been unsurpassed by any work in any department of medical science. It is quite unnecessary for us to speak of this work as its merits would justify. The mere an- nouncement of its appearance will afford the highest pleasure to every student of Physiology, while its perusal will be of infinite service in advancing physiological science.—Ohio Med. and Surg. Journ. For upwards of thirteen years Dr. Carpenter's work has been considered by the profession gene- rally, both in this country and England, as the most valuable compendium on the subject of physiology in our language. Thisdistinctionit owes to the high attainments and unwearied industry of its accom- plished author. The present edition (which, like the last American one, was prepared by the author him- self), is the result of such extensive revision, that it may almost be considered a new work. We need hardly say, in concluding this brief notice, that while the work is indispensable to every student of medi- cine in this country, it will amply repay the practi- tioner for its perusal by the interest and value of its contents.—Boston Med. and Surg. Journal. This is a standard work^the text-book used by all medical students who read the English language. It has passed through several editions in order to keep pace with the rapidly growing science of Phy- siology. Nothing need be said in its praise, for its merits are universally known j we have nothing to say of its defects, for they only appear where the science of which it treats is incomplete.—Western Lancet. The most complete exposition of physiology which any language can at present give.—Brit, and For. Med.-Chirurg. Review. The greatest, the most reliable, and the best book on the subject which we know of in the English language.—Stethoscope. BY THE SAME AUTHOR. ELEMENTS (OR MANUAL) OF PHYSIOLOGY, INCLUDING PHYSIO- LOGICAL ANATOMY. Second American, from a new and revised London edition. With one hundred and ninety illustrations. In one very handsome octavo volume, leather, pp. 566. $3 50. In publishing the first edition of this work, its title was altered from that of the London volume?, by the substitution of the word " Elements" for that of " Manual," and with the author's sanctioai the title of "Elements" is still retained as being more expressive of the scope of the treatise. BY THE SAME AUTHOR. PRINCIPLES OF COMPARATIVE PHYSIOLOGY. New American, fror* the Fourth and Revised London edition. In one large and handsome octavo volume, with oves three hundred beautiful illustrations, pp. 752. Extra cloth, $5 25. This book should not only be read but thoroughly studied by every member of.the profession. None are too wise or old, to be benefited thereby. But especially to the younger class would we cordially commend it as best fitted of any work in the English language to qualify them for the reception and coin- prehension of those truths which are daily being de- veloped in physiology.—Medical Counsellor. Without pretending to it, it is an encyclopedia of the subject, accurate and complete in all respects— a truthful reflection of the advanced state at which the science has now arrived.—Dublin Quarterly Journal of Medical Science. A truly magnificent work—in itself a perfect phy- siological study.—Banking's Abstract. This work stands without its fellow. It is one few men in Europe could have undertaken; it is one no man, we believe, could have brought to so suo» cessful an issue as Dr. Carpenter. It required for its production a physiologist at once deeply read in the labors of others, capable of taking a general, critical, and unprejudiced view of those labors, and of combining the varied, heterogeneous materials at his disposal, so as to form an harmonious whole. We feel that this abstract can give the reader a very imperfect idea of the fulness of this work, and no idea of its unity, of the admirable marner in which material has been brought, from the most various sources, to conduce to its completeness, of the lucid- ity of the reasoning it contains, or of the clearness of language in which the whole is clothed. Not the profession only, but the scientific world at large, must feel deeply indebted to Dr. Carpenter for this great work. It must, indeed, add 1 argely even, ta his high reputation.—Medical Times. BY the same author. (Preparing.) PRINCIPLES OF GENERAL PHYSIOLOGY, INCLUDING ORGANIC CHEMISTRY AND HISTOLOGY. With a General Sketch of the Vegetable and Animal Kingdom. In one large and very handsome octavo volume, with several hundred illustrations. by the same author A PRIZE ESSAY ON THE USE OF ALCOHOLIC LIQUORS IN HEALTH AND DISEASE scientific words. New edition, with a Preface by D. F. Condie, M. D., and explanations of In one neat 12mo. volume, extra cloth, pp. 178. 50 cents. BLANCHARD & LEA'S MEDICAL CONDIE (D. F.), M. D., &.C. A PRACTICAL TREATISE ON THE DISEASES OF CHILDREN. Fifth edition, revised and augmented. In one large volume, 8vo., extra cloth, of over 750 pages. J53 75. In presenting a new and revised edition ot this favorite work, the publishers have only to state that the author has endeavored to render it in every respect "acomplete and faithful exposition of the pathology and therapeutics of the maladies incident to the earlier stages of existence—a full and exact account of the diseases of infancy and childhood." To accomplish this he has subjected the whole work to a careful and thorough revision, rewriting a considerable portion, and adding several new chapters. In this manner it is hoped that any deficiencies which may have previously existed have been supplied, that the recent labors of practitioners and observers have been tho- roughly incorporated, and that in every point the work will be found to maintain the high reputation it has enjoyed as a complete and thoroughly practical book of relerence in infantile affections. A few notices of previous editions are subjoined. We pronounced the first edition to be the best work on the diseases of children in the English language, and, notwithstanding all that has been published, we still regard it in that light.—Medical Examiner. The value of works by native authors on the dis- eases which the physician is called upon to combat, will be appreciated by all; and the work of Dr. Con- die has gained for itself the character of a safe guide tor students, and a useful work for consultation by those engaged in practice.—N. Y. Med. Times. .This is the fourth edition of this deservedly popu- lar treatise. During the interval since the last edi- tion, it has been subjected to a thorough revision by the author; and all new observations in the pathology and therapeutics of children have been included in the present volume. As we said before, we do not know of a better book on diseases of chil- dren, and to a large part of its recommendations wa yield an unhesitating concurrence.—Buffalo Med. Journal. Perhaps the most full and complete work now be- fore the profession of the United States; indeed, w« may say in the English language. It is vastly supe- rior to most of its predecessors.—Transylvania Med. Journal. Dr. Condie's scholarship, acumen, industry, and practical sense are manifested in this, as in all his numerous contributions to science.—Dr. Holmes's Report to the American Medical Association. Taken as a whole, in our judgment, Dr. Condie's Treatise is the one from the perusal of which the practitioner in this country will rise with the great- est satisfaction.—Western Journal of Medicine and Surge ry. One of the best works upon the Diseases of Chil- dren in the English language.—Western Lancet. We feel assured from actual experience that nc physician's library can be complete without a eopj of thiswork.—N. Y. Journal of Medicine. A veritable paediatric encyclopaedia, and an honoi to American medical literature.—Ohio Medical and Surgical Journal. Wefeel persuaded thatthe American medical pro- fession will soon regard it not only as a very good, but as the very best "Practical Treatise on the Diseases of Children."—American Medical Journal In the department of infantile therapeutics, the work of Dr. Condie is considered one of the best which has been published in the English language. —The Stethoscope. CHRISTISON (ROBERT), M. D., V. P. R. S. E., &c. A DISPENSATORY; or. Commentary on the Pharmacopoeias of Great Britain and the United States; comprising the Natural History, Description, Chemistry, Pharmacy, Ac- tions, Uses, and Doses of the Articles of the Materia Medica. Second edition, revised and im- proved, with a Supplement containing the most important New Remedies. With copious Addi- tions, and two hundred and thirteen large wood-engravings. By R. Eglesfeld Griffith, M. D. In one very large and handsome octavo volume, extra cloth, of over 1000 pages. $3 50. COOPER (BRANSBY B ) F R S. LECTURES ON THE PRINCIPLES AND ' PRACTICE OF SURGERY. In one very large octavo volume, extra cloth, of 750 pages. $3 00. COOPER ON DISLOCATIONS AND FRAC- TURES OF THE JOINTS.—Edited by Bransb* B. Cooper, F. R.S., &c. With additional Ob- servations by Prof. J. C. Warren. A new Ame- rican edition. In one handsome octavo volume, extra cloth, of about 500 pages, with numerous illustrations on wood. $3 25. COOPER ON THE ANATOMY AND DISEASES OF THE BREAST, with twenty-five Miscellane- ous and Surgical Papers. One large volume, im- perial 8vo., extra cloth, with 252 figures, on 36 plates. $2 50. COOPER ON THE STRUCTURE AND DIS- EASES OF THE TESTIS, AND ON THE THYMUS GLAND. One vol. imperial 8vo., ex- tra cloth, with 177 figures on 29 plates. $2 00. COPLAND ON THE CAUSES, NATURE, AND TREATMENT OF PALSY AND APOPLEXY. In one volume, royal 12mo., extra cloth, pp.326. 60 cents. CLYMER ON FEVERS; THEIR DIAGNOSIS, PATHOLOGY, AND TREATMENT. In ono octavo volume, leather, of 600 pages. $1 50. COLOMBAT DE L'ISERE ON THE DISEASES OF FEMALES, and on the special Hygiene of their Sex. Translated, with many Notes and Ad- ditions, by C. D. Meigs, M. D.; Second edition, revised and improved. In one large volume, oc- tavo, leather, with numerous wood-cuts. pp. 720. $3 50. CARSON (JOSEPH), M. D., Professor of Materia Medica and Pharmacy in the University of Pennsylvania. SYNOPSIS OF THE COURSE OF LECTURED ON MATERIA MEDICA AND PHARMACY, delivered in the University of Pennsylvania Whh three Lectures on the Modus Operandi of Medicines. Third edition, revised. In one handsome octavo volume. (Now Ready.) $2 2d. __________________ CURLING (T. B.), F.'R.S., Surgeon to the London Hospital, President of the Hunterian Society, A;c. A PRACTICAL TREATISE ON DISEASES OF THE TESTIS, SPERMA- TIC CORD, AND SCROTUM. Second American, from the second and enlarged English edi- tion. In one handsome octavo volume, extra cloth, with numerous illustrations, pp.420. $2 00 AND SCIENTIFIC PUBLICATIONS. 9 CHURCHILL (FLEETWOOD), M. D., M. R. I. A. ON THE THEORY AND PRACTICE OF MIDWIFERY. A new American from the fourth revised and enlarged London edition. With Notes and Additions, by D. Francis JjOndie, M. D., author of a "Practical Treatise on the Diseases of Children," foe With 194 illustrations. In one very handsome octavo volume, of nearly 700 large pages, extra cloth, $3 75. This work has been so long an established favorite, both as a text-book for the learner and as a re.liab e aid in consultation for the practitioner, that in presenting a new edition it is only necessary to call attention to the very extended improvements which it has received. Having had-the benefit of two revisions by the author since the last American reprint, it has been materially enlarged, and Dr. Churchill's well-known conscientious industry is a guarantee that every portio'n has been tho- roughly brought up with the latest results of European investigation in all departments of the sci- ence and art of obstetrics. The recent date of the last Dublin edition has not left much of novelty for the American editor to introduce, but he has endeavored to insert whatever has since appeared, together with such matters as his experience has shown him would be desirable for the American student, including a large number of illustrations. With the sanction of the author he has added in the form of an appendix, some chapters from a little "Manual for Mid wives and Nurses," re- cently issued by Dr. Churchill, believing that the details there presented can hardly fail to prove of advantage to the junior practitioner. The result of all these auditions is that the work now con- tains fully one-half more matter than the last American edition, with nearly one-half more illus- trations, so that notwithstanding the use of a smaller type, the volume contains almost two hundred pages more than before. No effort has been spared to secure an improvement in the mechanical execution of the work equal to that which the text has received, and the volume is confidently presented as one of the handsomest that has thus far been laid before the American profession; while the very low price at which it is offered should secure for it a place in every lecture-room and on every office table. A better book in which to learn these important points we have not met than Dr. Churchill's. Every page of it is full of instruction; the opinion of all writers of authority is given on questions of diffi- culty, as well as the directions and advice of the learned author himself, to which he adds the result of statistical inquiry, putting statistics in their pro per place and giving them their due weight, and no more. We have never read a book more free from professional jealousy than Dr. Churchill's. It ap- pears to be written with the true design of a book on medicine, viz: to give all that is known on the sub- ject of which he treats, both theoretically and prac- tically, and to advance such opinions|pf his own as he believes will benefit medical science, and insure the safety of the patient. We have said enough to convey to the profession that this book of Dr. Chur- chill's is admirably suited for a book of reference for the practitioner, as well as a text-book for the student, and we hope it may be extensively pur- chased amongst our readers. To them we most strongly recommend it. — Dublin Medical Press To bestow praise on a book that has received such marked approbation would be superfluous. We need only say, therefore, that if the first edition was thought worthy of a favorable reception by the medical public, we can confidently affirm that this will be found much more so. The lecturer, the practitioner, and the student, may all have recourse to its pages, and derive from their perusal much in- terest and instruction in every thingrelating to theo- retical and practical midwifery.—Dublin Quarterly Journal of Medical Science. A work of very great merit, and such as we can confidently recommend to the study of every obste- tric practitioner.—London Medical Gazette. Few treatises will be found better adapted as a text-book for the student, or as a manual for the frequent consultation of the young practitioner.— American Medical Journal. Were we reduced to the necessity of having but ine work on midwifery, and permitted to choose, we would unhesitatingly take Churchill.—Western Med. and Surg. Journal. It is impossible to conceive a more useful and elegant manual than Dr. Churchill's Practice of Midwifery.—Provincial Medical Journal. Certainly, in our opinion, the very best work on he subject which exists.—N. Y. Annalist. No work holds a higher position, or is more de- serving of being placed in the hands of the tyro, the advanced student, or the practitioner.—Medical Examiner. Previous editions have been received with mark- ed favor, and they deserved it; but this, reprinted from a very late Dublin edition, carefully revised and brought up by the author to the present time, does present an unusually accurate and able expo- sition of every important particular embraced in the department of midwifery. * * The clearness, directness, and precision of its teachings, together with the great amount of statistical research which its text exhibits, have served to place it already in the foremost rank of works in this department of re- medial science.—N. O. Med. and Surg. Journal. In our opinion, it forms one of the best if not the very best text-book and epitome of obstetric scienco which'we at present possess in the English lan- guage.—Monthly Journal of Medical Science. The clearness and precision of style in which it is written, and the great amount of statistical researeh which it contains,have served to place it in the first rank of w6rks in this departmentof medical science. —N. Y. Journal of Medicine. This is certainly the most perfect system extant. ft is the best adapted for the purposes of a text- book, and that which he whose necessities confine *iim to one book, should select in preference to all >thers.—Southern Medical and Surgical Journal. BY THE same author. (LatelyPublished.) ON THE DISEASES OF INFANTS AND CHILDREN. Second American Edition, revised and enlarged by the author. Edited, with Notes, by W. V. Keating, M. D. In, one large and handsome volume, extra cloth, of over 700 pages. $3 50. In preparing this work a second time for the American profession, the author has spared no labor in giving it a very thorough revision, introducing several new chapters, and rewriting others, while every portion of the Volume has been subjected to a severe scrutiny. The gfTorts of the American editor have been directed to supplying such information relative to matters peculiar to this country as might have escaped the attention of the author, and the whole may, there- fore be safely pronounced one of the most complete works on the subject accessible to the Ame- rican Profession. By an alteration in the size of the page, these very extensive additions have been accommodated without unduly increasing the size of the work. BY THE SAME AUTHOR. ESSAYS ON THE PUERPERAL FEVER, AND OTHER DISEASES PE- CULIAR TO WOMEN. Selectedfrom the writings of British Authors previous to the close of the Eighteenth Century. In one neat octavo volume, extra cloth, of about 450 pages. $2 50. 10 BLANCHARD & LEA'S MEDICAL CHURCHILL (FLEETWOOD), M. D., M. R. I. A., ice. ON THE DISEASES OF WOMEN; including those of Pregnancy and Child- bed. A new American edition, revised by the Author. With Notes and Additions, by D Fran- cis Condie, M.D., author of "A Practical Treatise on the Diseases of Children." With nume- rous illustrations. In one large and handsome octavo volume, extra cloth, of 768 pages. $3 50. This edition of Dr. Churchill's very popular treatise may almost be termed a new work, so thoroughly has he revised it in every portion. It will be found greatly enlarged, and completely brought up to the most recent condition of the subject, while the very handsome series of illustra- tions introduced, representing such pathological conditions as can be accurately portrayed, present a novel feature,- and afford valuable assistance to the young practitioner. Such additions as ap- peared desirable for the American student have been made by the editor, Dr. Condie, while a marked improvement in the mechanical execution keeps pace with the advance in all other respects which the volume has undergone, while the price has been kept at the former very moderate rate. It comprises, unquestionably, one of the most ex- act and comprehensive expositions of the present state of medical knowledge in respect to the diseases of women that has yet been published.—Am. Journ. Med. Sciences. This work is the most reliable which we possess on this subject; and is deservedly popular with the profession.—Charleston Med. Journal, July, 1857. We know of no author who deserves that appro- bation, on "the diseases of females," to the same extent that Dr. Churchill does. His, indeed, is tha only thorough treatise we know of on the subject; and it may be commended to practitioners and stu- dents as a masterpiece in its particular department. —Tht Western Journal of Medicine and Surgery. As a comprehensive manual for students, or a work of reference for practitioners, it surpasses any other that has ever issued on the same subject from the British press.—Dublin Quart. Journal. DICKSON (S. H.), M. D., Professor of Practice of Medicine in the JefTerson Medical College, Philadelphia. ELEMENTS OF MEDICINE; a Compendious View of Pathology and Thera- peutics, or the History and Treatment of Diseases. Second edition, revised. In one large and handsome octavo volume, of 750 pages, extra cloth. $3 75. The steady demand which has so soon exhausted the first edition of this work, sufficiently shows that the author was not mistaken in supposing that a volume of this character was needed—an elementary manual of practice, which should present the leading principles of medicine with the practical results, in a condensed and perspicuous manner. Disencumbered of unnecessary detail and fruitless speculations, it embodies what is most requisite for the student to learn, and at the same time what the active practitioner wants when obliged, in the daily calls of his profession, to refresh his memory on special points. The clear and attractive style of the author renders the whole easy of comprehension, while his long experience gives to his teachings an authority every- where acknowledged. Few physicians, indeed, have had wider opportunities for observation and experience, and few, perhaps, have used them to better purpose. As the result of a long life de- voted to study and practice, the present edition, revised and brought up to the date of publication, will doubtless maintain the reputation already acquired as a condensed and convenient American text-book on the Practice of Medicine. DRUITT (ROBERT), M.R.C.S., &c. THE PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE OF MODERN SURGERY. A new and revised American from the eighth enlarged and improved London edition. Illustrated With four hundred and thirty-two wood-engravings. In one very handsomely printed octavo volume of nearly 700-large pages, extra cloth, $3 75. A work which like Druitt's Surgery has for so many years maintained the position of a lead- ing favorite with all classes of the profession, needs no s-pecial recommendation to attract attention to a revised edition. It is only necessary to state that the author has spared no pains to keep the work up to its well earned reputation of presenting in a small and convenient compass the latest condition of every department of surgery, considered both asa science and as an art; and that the services of a competent American editor have been employed to introduce whatever novelties may have escaped the author's attention, lor may prove of service to the American practitioner. As several editions have appeared in London since the issue of the last American reprint, the volume has had the benefit of repeated revisions by the author, resulting in a very thorough alteration and improvement. The extent of these additions may be estimated from the fact that it now contains about one-third more matter than the previous American edition, and that notwithstanding the adoption of a smaller type, the pages have been increased by about one hundred, while nearly two hundred and fifty wood-cuts have been added to the former list of illustrations. , A marked improvement will also be perceived in the mechanical and artistical execution of the work, which, printed in the best style, on new type, and fine paper, leaves little to be desired as regards external finish; while at the very low price affixed it will be found one of the cheapest volumes accessible to the profession. This popular volume, now a most comprehensive work on surgery, has undergone many corrections, improvements, and additions, and the principles and the practice of the art have been brought dovvn to the latest record and observation. Of the operations in surgery it is impossible to speak too highly. The de?criptions are so clear and concise, and the illus- trations so accurate and numerous, that the student can have no difficulty, with instrument in hand, and book by his side, over the dead body, in obtaining a proper knowledge and sufficient tact in this much neglected department of medical education.—British and. Foreign Medico-Chirurg. Review, Jan. I960. In the present edition the author has entirely re- written many of the chapters, and has incorporated the various improvements and additions in modern surgery. On carefully going over it, we find that nothing of real practical importance has been omit- ted ; it presents a faithful epitome of everything re- lating t) surgery up to the present hour. It is de- servedly a popular manual, both with the student and practitioner.—London Lancet, Nov. 19, 1859. In closing this brief notice, we recommend as cor- dially as ever this most useful and comprehensive hand-book. It must prove a vast assistance, not only to the student of surgery, but also to the busy practitioner who may not have the leisure to devote himself to the study of moTe lengthy volumes__ London Med. Times and Gazette, Oct. 22,1859. In a word, this eighth edition of Dr. Druitt's Manual of Surgery is all that the surgical student or practitioner could desire. — Dublin Quarterly Journal of Med. Sciences, Nov. 1859. AND SCIENTIFIC PUBLICATIONS. 11 •DALTON, JR. (J. C), M. D. Professor of Physiology in the College of Physicians, New York. A TREATISE ON HUMAN PHYSIOLOGY, designed for the use of Students and Practitioners of Medicine. Third edition, revised, with nearly three hundred illustrations on wood. In one very beautiful octavo volume, of 700 pages, extra"cloth, $4 75. (Just Ready, The rapid demand for another edition of this work sufficiently shows that the author has suc- ceeded in his efforts to produce a text-book of standard and permanent value, embodying within a moderate compass all that is definitely and positively known within the domain of Human Physiology. His high reputation as an original observer and investigator, is a guarantee that in again revising it he has introduced whatever is necessary to render it thoroughly on a level with the advanced science of the day, and this has been accomplished without unduly increasing the size of the volume. No exertion has been spared to maintain the high standard of typographical execution which has rendered this work admittedly one of the handsomest volumes as yet produced in this country. It will be seen, therefore, that Dr. Dalton's best I own original views and experiments, together with efforts have been directed towards perfecting his a desire to supply what he considered some deficien- work. The additions are marked by the same fea- tures which characterize the remainder of the vol- ume, and render it by far the most desirable text- book on physiology to place in the hands of the student which, so far as we are aware, exists in the English language, or perhaps in any other. We therefore have no hesitation in recommending Dr. Dalton's book for the classes for which it is intend- ed, satisfied as we are that it is better adapted to their use than any other work of the kind to which they have access.—American Journal of the Med. Sciences, April, 1861. It is, therefore, no disparagement to the many books upon physiology, most excellent in their day, to say that Dalton's is the only one that gives us the science as it was known to the best philosophers throughout the world, at the beginning of the cur- rent year. It states in comprehensive but concise diction, the facts established by experiment, or other method of demonstration, and details, in an understandable manner, how it is done, but abstains from the discussion of unsettled or theoretical points. Herein it is unique; and these characteristics ren der it a text-book without a rival, for those who desire to study physiological science as it is known to its most successful cultivators. And it is physi- ology thus presented that lies at the foundation of correct pathological knowledge; and this in turn is the basis of rational therapeutics; so that patholo- gy, in fact, becomes of prime importance in the proper di^harge of our every-day practical duties. —Cincinnati Lancet, May, 1861. Dr. Dalton needs no word of praise from us. He is universally recognized as among the first, if not the very first, of American physiologists now living. The first edition of his admirable work appeared but two years since, and the advance of science, his cies in the first edition, have already made the pre- sent one a necessity, and it will no doubt be even more eagerly sought for than the first. That it is not merely a reprint, will be seen from the author's statement of the following principal additions and alterations which he has made* The present, like the first edition, is printed in the highest style of the printer's art, and the illustrations are truly admira- ble tor their clearness in expressing exactly what their author intended.—Boston Medical and Surgi- cal Journal, March 28, 1861. It is unnecessary to give a detail of the additions j suffice it to say, that they are numerous and import- ant, and such as will render the work still more valuable and acceptable to the profession as a learn - ed and original treatise on this all-important branch of medicine. All that was said in commendation of the getting up of the first edition, and the superior style of the illustrations, apply with equal force to this. No better work on physiology can be placed in the hand of the student.—St. Louis Medical and Surgical Journal, May, 1861. These additions,while testifying to the learning and industry of the author, render the book exceed- ingly useful, as the most complete expose of a sci- ence, of which Dr. Dalton is doubtless the ablest representative on this side of the Atlantic.—Neva Orleans Med. Times, May, 1861. A second edition of this deservedly popular work having been called for in the short space of two years, the author has supplied deficiencies, which existed in the former volume, and has thus more completely fulfilled his design of presenting to the profession a reliable and precise text-book, and one which we consider the best outline on the subject of which it treats, in any language.—N. American Medico-Chirurg. Review, May, 1861. DUNGLISON, FORBES, TWEEDIE, AND CONOLLY. THE CYCLOPAEDIA OF PRACTICAL MEDICINE: comprising Treatises on the Nature and Treatment of Diseases, Materia Medica, and Therapeutics, Diseases of Women and Children, Medical Jurisprudence, &c. &c. In four large super-royal octavo volumes, ol 3254 double-columned pages, strongly and handsomely bound, with raised bands. $ 14 00. * * This work contains no less than four hundred ahd eighteen distinct treatises, contributed by ■ixty-eight distinguished physicians, rendering it a complete library of reference for the country practitioner. The most complete work on Practical Medicine •xtant; or, at least, in our language.-B«#«io Medical and Surgtcal Journal. For reference, it is above all price to every prac- titioner.— Western Lancet. One of the most valuable medical publications of the day—as a work of reference it is invaluable.— Western Journal of Medicine and Surgery. It has been to us, both as learner and teacher, a work for ready and frequent reference, one in which modern English medicine is exhibited m the most advantageous light.—Medical Examiner. The editors are practitioners of established repu- tation, and the list of contributors embraces many of the most eminent professors and teachers of Lon- don, Edinburgh, Dublin, and Glasgow. It is, in- deed, the great merit ot this work that the principal articles have been furnished by practitioners who have not only devotee especial attention to the dis eases about which they have written, but have also enjoyed opportunitiet for an extensive practi- cal acquaintance with them and whose reputation carries the assurance of their competency justly to appreciate the opinions ot others, while it stamps their own doctrineswitr high and just authority.— American Medical Journal. AND MEDICAL TREATMENT OF CHILD REN. The last edition. In one volume, octavo, extra cloth, 548 pages. $2 80 HFWEES'S COMPREHENSIVE SYSTEM OF MIDWIFERY. Illustrated by occasional eases BTiri manv engravings. Twelfth edition, with the i t-iuiiciuui,™^™. •«"" »«thor's last improvements and corrections In DEWEES'S TREATISE ON THE DISEASES oneoctavovolume, extra cloth, of 600pages. «320. OF FEMALES. Tenth edition. In one volume, DEWEES'S TREATISE ON THE PHYSICAL! octavo extra cloth, 532 pages, with plates. §3 00. 12 BLANCHARD & LEA'S MEDICAL DUNGLISON (ROBLEY), M.D., Professor of Institutes of Medicine in the Jefferson Medical College, Philadelphia. NEW AND ENLARGED EDITION. MEDICAL LEXICON; a Dictionary of Medical Science, containing a concise Explanation of the various Subjects and Terms of Anatomy, Physiology, Pathology, Hygiene Therapeu ics, Pharmacology, Pharmacy, Surgery, Obstetrics Medical Jurisprudence Denfistrv &c. Notices of Climate and of Mineral Waters; Formulas for Officinal, Empidcal and SS Preparations, &c. With French and other Synonymes. Revised and v^Ts^eZfS In one very large and handsome octavo volume, of 992 double-columned pages, in ImSlto£' strongly bound m leather. Price $4 00. v 8 ' "1UU11 iyp« i Especial care has been devoted in the preparation of this edition to render it in everv respect worthy a continuance of the very remarkable favor which it has hitherto enjoyed The S £ n 7IFTEEN llTge> ed}UT> u"d •thC cons,antly ^creasing demand, show that it is regardedbv the profession as the standard authority. Stimulated by this fact, the aithor has endeavofed in the present revision to introduce whatever might be necessary « to make it a satisfactory and de" ira! We-if not md.spensable-lexicon, in which the student may search without disappointment for every term that has been legitimated in the nomenclature of the science." To «Km]°h this fr^.WTtK^ b?S f°Vpnd requisite, and the extent of the author's labors mayTe^mated from the fact that about Six Thousand, sub ects and terms have been introduced throulhomren- derm* the whole nfimber of definitions about Sixty Thousand, to accommodateSThe num- J h°irgeS n beeync,reased by nearly a hundred, notwithstanding an enlargement n the™ ze of the page. The medical press, both in this country and in England, has pronounced the work in* S^l^nZ^1 StUdeDtS "* PraCtitioners'and the P^»t improved editTonwm not lose The publishers have endeavored to render the mechanical execution worthv of a volume of such universal use in daily reference The greatest care has been exercisedTo obtain theTtvpograDhS accuracy so necessary m a work of the kind. By the small but exceedingly clear ty™Pempfoved an immense amount of matter is condensed in its thousand ample pages, while theffiS5 & found strong and durable. With all these improvements and enlargements, the priceTs blelkem a t the former very moderate rate, placing it within the reach of all pnceju» Deen Kept This work, the appearance of the fifteenth edition of which, it has become our duty and pleasure to announce,is perhaps the most stupendous monument of labor and erudition in medical literature. One would hardly suppose after constant use of the pre- ceding editions, where we have never failed to find a sufficiently full explanation of ever> medical term, that in this edition " about six thousand subjects and terms have been added,"-with a careful revision and correction of the entire work. It is only neces- sary to announce the advent of this edition to make it occupy the place pf the preceding one on the table o/ every medical man, as it is without doubt the best and most eomprehensive work of the kind which has ever appeared.—Buffalo Med. Journ., Jan. 1858. The work is a monument of patient research, skilful judgment, and vast physical labor, that will perpetuate the name of the author more effectually than any possible device of stone or metal. Dr. Dunglison deserves the thanks not only of the Ame- rican profession, but of the whole medical world__ North Am. Medico-Chir. Review, Jan. 1858. A Medical Dictionary better adapted for the wants of the profession than any other with which we are acquainted, and of a character which places it far above comparison and competition.—Am. Journ. Med. Sciences, Jan. 1858. We need only say, that the addition of 6,000 new terms, with their accompanying definitions, may be said to constitute a new work, by itself. We have examined the Dictionary attentively, and are most happy to pronounce it unrivalled of its kind. The erudition displayed, and the extraordinary industry which must have been demanded, in its preparation and perfection, redound to the lasting credit of its author, and have furnished us with a volume indis- pensable at the present day, to all who would find themselves au niveau with the highest standards o<" medical information.—Boston Medical andSureical Journal, Dec. 31, 1857. Good lexicons and encyclopedic works generally are the most labor-saving contrivances which lite- rary men enjoy; and the labor which is required to produce them in the perfect manner of this example is something appalling to contemplate. The author tells us in his preface that he has added about six thousand terms and subjects to this edition, which before, was considered universally as the best work of the kind in any language.—Silliman's Journal, March, 1858. ' He has razed his gigantic structure to the founda- tions, and remodelled and reconstructed the entire pile. No less than six thousand additional subjects and terms are illustrated and analyzed in this new edition, swelling the ^rand aggregate to beyond sixty thousand ! Thus is placed before the profes- sion a complete and thorough exponent of medical terminology, without rival or possibility of rivalry —Nashville Journ. of Med. and Surg., Jan.1858. It is universally acknowledged, we believe, that this work is incomparably the best and most com- plete Medical Lexicon in the English language. The amount of labor which the distinguished author has bestowed upon it is truly wonderful, and the learning and research displayed in its preparation are equally remarkable. Comment and commenda- tion are unnecessary, as no one at the present day thinks of purchasing any other Medical Dictionary than this.—St. Louis Med. and Surg. Journ., Jan. It is the foundation stone of a good medical libra- ry, and should always be included in the first list of books purchased by the medical student— Am. Med. Monthly, Jan. 1858. A very perfect work of the kind, undoubtedly the most perfect in the English language—ikfed.and Surg. Reporter, Jan. 1858. It is now emphatically the Medical Dictionary of the English language, and for it there is no substi- tute.— N. H. Med. Journ., Jan. 1858. It is scarcely necessary to remark that any medi- cal library wanting a copy of Dumdison's Lexicon must be imperfect.—Cin. Lancet, Jan. 1858. We have ever considered it thebestauthority pub- lished, and the present edition we may safely sav has no equal in the world.—Peninsular Med. Journal, Jan. looo. * The most complete authority on the subject to be foundin any language—Va. Med. Journal, Feb. '58. BY THE SAME AUTHOR. THE PRACTICE OF MEDICINE. A Treatise on Special Pathology and The- rapeutics. Third Edition. In two large octavo volumes, leather, of 1,500 pages. $8 CO. AND SCIENTIFIC PUBLICATIONS. 13 DUNGLISON (ROBLEY), M.D., Professor of Institutes of Medicine in the Jefferson Medical College, Philadelphia. HUMAN PHYSIOLOGY. Eighth edition. Thoroughly revised and exten- sively modified and enlarged, with five hundred and thirty-two illustrations. In two large and handsomely printed octavo volumes, extra cloth, of about 1500 pages. $7 00. # In revising this work for its eighth appearance, the author has spared no labor to render it worthy a continuance of the very great favor which has been extended to it by the profession. The whole contents have been rearranged, and to.a great extent remodelled; the investigations which of late years have been so numerous and so important, have been carefully examined and incorporated, and the work in every respect has been brought up to a level with the present state of the subject. The object of the author has been to render it a concise but comprehensive treatise, containing the whole body of physiological science, to which the student and man of science can at all times refer with the certainty of finding whatever they are in search of, fully presented in all its aspects; and on no former edition has the author bestowed more labor to secure this result. We believe that it can truly be said, no more com- plete repertory of facts upon the subject treated, can anywhere be found. The author has, moreover, that enviable tact at description and that facility and ease of expression which render him peculiarly acceptable to the casual, or the studious reader. This faculty, so requisite in setting forth many graver and less attractive subjects, lends additional charms to one always fascinating.—Boston Med. wnd Surg. Journal. The most complete and satisfactory system of Physiology in the English language.—Amer. Med. Journal. The best work of the kind in the English lan- guage.—Silliman's Journal. The present edition the author has made a perfect mirror of the science as it is at the present hour. As a work upon physiology proper, the science of the functions performed by the body, the student will find it all he wishes.—Nashville Journ. of Med. That he has succeeded, most admirably succeeded in his purpose, is apparent from the appearance of an eighth edition. It is now the great encyclopaedia on the subject, and worthy of a place in every phy- sician's library.—Western Lancet. BY the same author. (A new edition.) , • GENERAL THERAPEUTICS AND MATERIA MEDICA; adapted for a Medical Text-book. With Indexes of Remedies"and of Diseases and their Remedies. Sixth Edition, revised and improved. With one hundred and ninety-three illustrations. In two large and handsomely printed octavo vols., extra cloth, of about 1100 pages. $6 00. In announcing a new edition of Dr. Dunglison's General Therapeutics and Materia Medica, we have no words of commendation to bestow upon a work whose merits have been heretofore so often and so justly extolled. It must not be supposed, however, that the present is a mere reprint of the previous edition: the character of the author for laborious research, judicious analysis, and clearness of ex- pression, is fully sustained by the numerous addi- tions he has made to the work, and the careful re- vision to which he has subjected the whole.—N. A. Medico-Chir. Review, Jan: 1858. BY the same author. (.A new Edition.) NEW REMEDIES, WITH FORMULAE FOR THEIR PREPARATION AND ADMINISTRATION. Seventh edition, with extensive Additions. In one very large octavo volume, extra cloth, of 770 pages. $3 75. The work will, we have little doubt, be bought and read by the majority of medical students; its size, arrangement, and reliability recommend it to all; no one, we venture to predict, will study it without profit, and there are few to whom it will not be in some measure useful as a work of refer- ence. The young practitioner, more especially, will find the copious indexes appended to this ediiion of great assistance in the selection and preparation ot suitable formulae.—Charleston Med. Journ. and R*' view, Jan. 1858. One of the most useful of the author's works.— Southern Medical and Surgical Journal. This elaborate and useful volume should be found in every medical library, for as a book of re- ference, for physicians, it is unsurpassed by any other work in existence, and the double index for diseases and for remedies, will be found greatly to snhance its value.—New York Med. Gazette. The great learning of the author, and his remark- able industry in pushing his researches into every source whence information is derivable,have enabled him to throw together an extensive mass of facts and statements, accompanied by full reference to authorities; which last feature renders the work practically valuable to investigators who desire to examine the original papers.—The American Journal of Pharmacy. ELLIS (BENJAMIN), M.D. THE MEDICAL FORMULARY: being a Collection of Prescriptions, derived from the writings and practice of many of the most eminent physicians of America and Europe. Together with the usual Dietetic Preparations and Antidotes for Poisons. To which is added a^n Append, on the Ender.mic use of Medicines, and on the use of Ether and Chloroform The Ih^V^nmnamed with a few brief Pharmaceutic and Medical Observations. Eleventh edition, SStaU? 3ncTmuch emended by Robert P. Thomas, M D., Professor of MateriaMe- dfcaki the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy. In one volume, 8vo., of about 350 pages. $2 50. (Just Ready.) On no previous edition of this work has.there been so complete and thorough a revision. The Pvien"ive Changes in the new United States Pharmacopoeia have necessitated corresponding alter- , n are happy to announce a new and improvea 51""this one of the most valuable and useful ed^that have emanated from an American pen T°r ,,id do credit To any country, and will be found [t would do creau o y > , medic ne; lt is ; ,m An oreAit to any country, ana win uo .*/«..~ 0J lxs Kllm lu a„y Kniguagc. ...^ „„„...„...-------- [t would do creau u> * tiUoner's of medicine; it is t0 aboutseventy pages, and no effort has been spared of daily useraiiie . i than ^ digpensal0. w include in them M the recent improvements. A better ^ted t°^ J ^ Journal. work of this kind appears to us indispensable to the nee.-Southern s country practi- physician, and there is none we can more cordially ^rc^s^ IrUmmend.-.*. Y. Journal of Medicine. 16 BLANCHARD & LEA'S MEDICAL GROSS (SAMUEL D.), M. D., Professor of Surgery in the Jefferson Medical College of Philadelphia, &c. Enlarged Edition. Preparing for early publication. A SYSTEM OF SURGERY: Pathological, Diagnostic, Therapeutic, and Opera- tive. Illustrated by over Twelve Hundred Engravings. Third edition, much enlarged and carefully revised. In two large and beautifully printed royal'octavo volumes. (In Press.) The exhaustion within five years of two large editions of so elaborate and comprehensive a work as this is the best evidence that the author was not mistaken in his estimate of the want which existed of a complete American System of Surgery, presenting the science in all its necessary details and in all its branches. . That he has succeeded in the attempt to supply this want is shown not only by the rapid sale of the work, but also by the very favorable manner in which it has been received by the organs of the profession in this country and in Europe, and by the fact that a translation is now preparing in Holland—a mark of appreciation not often bestowed on any scien- tific work so extended in size. The author has not been insensible to the kindness thus bestowed upon his labors, and in revising the work for a third edition he has spared no pains to render it worthy of the favor with which it has been received. Every portion has been subjected to close examination and revision; any defi- ciencies apparent have been supplied, and the results of recent progress in the science and art of surgery have been every where introduced; while the series of illustrations has been still further enlarged, rendering it one of the most thoroughly illustrated works ever laid before the profession. To accommodate these very extensive additions, "the form of the work will be altered to a royal octavo, so that notwithstanding the increase in the matter and value of the book, its size wi.l be found more convenient than before. Every care will be taken in the printing to render the typographical execution unexceptionable, and it is confidently expected to prove a work in every way worthy of a place in even the most limited library of the practitioner or student. Has Dr. Gross satisfactorily fulfilled this object? A careful perusal of his volumes enables us to give an answer in the affirmative. Not only has he given to the reader an elaborate and well-written account of his own vast experience, but he has not failed to embody in his pages the opinions and practice of surgeons in this and other countries of Europe. The result has been a work of such completeness, that it has no superior in the systematic treatises on sur- gery which have emanated from English or Conti- nental authors. It has been justly objected that these have been far fromcomplete in many essential particulars, many of them having been deficient in some of the most important points which should characterize such works. Some of them have been elaborate—too elaborate—with respect to certain diseases, while they have merely glanced at, or given an unsatisfactory account of, others equally important to the surgeon. Dr. Gross has avoided this error, and has produced the most complete work that has yet issued from the press on the science and practice of surgery. It is not, strictly speaking, a Dictionary of Surgery, but it gives to the reader all the information that he may require for his treatment of surgical diseases. Having said so much, it might appear superfluous to add another word; but it is only due to Dr. Gross to state that he has embraced the opportunity of transferring to his pages a vast number of engravings from English and other au- thors, illustrative ot the pathology and treatment of surgical diseases. To these are added several hun- dred original wood-cuts. The work al together com- mends itself to the attention of British surgeons, from whom it cannot fail to meet with extensive patronage.—London Lancet, Sept. 1,1860. Of Dr. Gross's treatise on Surgery we can say no more than that it is the most elaborate and com- plete work on this branch of the healing art which has ever been published in any country. A sys- tematic work, it admits of no analytical review; but, did our space permit, we should gladly give some extracts from it, to enable our readers to judge of the classical style of the author, and the exhaust- ing way in which each subject is treated.—Dublin Quarterly Journal of Med. Science. The work is so superior to its predecessors in matter and extent, as well as in illustrations and Btyle of publication, that we can honestly recom- mend it as the best work of the kind to be taken home by the young practitioner.—Am. Med. Journ. With pleasure we record the completion of this long-anticipated work. The reputation which the author has for many years sustained, both as a sur- geon and as a writer, had prepared us to expect a treatise of great excellence and originality; but we confess we were by no means prepared for the work which is before us—the most complete treatise upon surg.ery ever published, either in this or any other country, and we might, perhaps, safely say, the most original. There is no subject belonging pro- perly to suTgery which has not received from the author a due share of attention. Dr. Gross has sup- plied a want in surgical literature which has long been felt by practitioners; he has furnished us with a complete practical treatise upon surgery in all its departments. As Americans, we are proud of the achievement; as surgeons, we are most sincerely thankful to him for his extraordinary labors in our behalf.—N. Y: Review and Buffalo Med. Journal. BY THE SAME AUTHOR. ELEMENTS OF PATHOLOGICAL ANATOMY. Third edition, thoroughly revised and greatly improved. In one large and very handsome octavo volume, with about three hundred and fifty beautiful illustrations, of which a large number are from original drawings, extra cloth. $4 75. The very rapid advances in trie Science of Pathological Anatomy during the last few years have rendered essential a thorough modification of this work, with a view of making it a correct expo- nent of the present state of the subject. The very careful manner in which this task has been executed, and the amount of alteration which it has undergone, have enabled the author to say that " with the many changes and improvements now introduced, the work may be regarded almost as a new treatise," while the efforts of the author have been seconded as regards the mechanical execution of the volume, rendering it one of the handsomest productions of the American press. We most sincerely congratulate the author on the successful manner in which he has accomplished his proposed object. His book is most admirably cal- culated to fill up a blank which has long been felt to exist in this department of medical literature, and as such must become very widely circulated amongst all classes of the profession. — Dublin Quarterly Journ. of Med. Science, Nov. 1857. We have been favorably impressed with the gene- ral manner in which Dr. Gross hasexecuted his task of affording a comprehensive digest of the present state of the literature of Pathological Anatomy, and have much pleasure in recommending his work to our readers, as we believe one well deserving of diligent perusal and careful study.—Montreal Med. Chron., Sept. 1857. BY THE SAME AUTHOR. A PRACTICAL TREATISE ON FOREIGN BODIES IN THE AIR-PAS- SAGES. In one handsome octavo volume, extra cloth, with illustrations, pp. 468. $2 75. AND SCIENTIFIC PUBLICATIONS 17 GROSS (SAMUEL D.), M. D., Professor of Surgery in the Jefferson Medical College of Philadelphia, &c. A PRACTICAL TREATISE ON THE DISEASES, INJURIES, AND MALFORMATIONS OF THE URINARY BLADDER, THE PROSTATE GLAND, AND THE URETHRA. Second Edition, revised and much enlarged, with one hundred and eighty- four illustrations. In one large and very handsome octavo volume, of over nine hundred pages, e"xtra cloth, $4 75. Philosophical in its design, methodical in its ar- rangement, ample and sound in its practical details, it may in truth be said to leave scarcely anything to be desired on so important a subject.—Boston Med. and Surg Journal. Whoever will peruse the vast amoilnt of valuable practical information it contains, will, we think, agree with us, that there is no work in the English language which can make any just pretensions to be its equal.—N. Y. Journal of Medicine. "A volume replete with truths and principles of the atmost value in the investigation of these diseases.— American Medical Journal. GRAY (HENRY), F. R. S., Lecturer on Anatomy at St. George's Hospital, London, &c. ANATOMY, DESCRIPTIVE AND SURGICAL. The Drawings by H. V. Carter, M. D., late Demonstrator on Anatomy at St. George's Hospital.; the Dissections jointly by the Author and Dr. Carter. Second American, from the second revised and improved London edition. In one magnificent imperial octavo volume, of over 800 pages, with 388 large and elaborate engravings on wood. Price in extra cloth, $7 00. The speedy exhaustion of a large edition of this work is sufficient evidence that its plan and exe- cution have been found to present superior practical advantages in facilitating the study of Anato- my. In presenting it to the profession a second time, the author has availed himself of the oppor- tunity to supply any deficiencies which experience in its use had shown to exist, and to correct any errors of detail, to which the first edition of a scientific work on so extensive and complicated a science is liable. These improvements have resulted in some increase in the size of the volume, while twenty-six new wood-cuts have been added to the beautiful series of illustrations which form so distinctive a feature of the work. The American edition has been passed through the press under the supervision of a competent professional man, who has taken every care to render it in all respects accurate, and it is now presented, without any increase of price, as fitted to maintain and extend the popularity which it has everywhere acquired. With little trouble, the busy practitioner whose knowledge of anatomy may have become obscured by want of practice, may now resuscitate his former anatomical lore, and be ready for any emergency. It is to this class of individuals, and not to the stu- dent alone, that this work will ultimately tend to be of most incalculable advantage, and we feel sat- isfied that the library of the medical man will soon be c'onsidered incomplete in which a copy of this work does not exist.— Madras Quarterly Journal of Med. Science, July, 1861. This edition is much improved and enlarged, and contains several new illustrations by Dr. Westma- cott. The volume is a complete companion to the dissecting-room, and saves the necessity of the stu dent possessing a variety of" Manuals."—The Lon- don Lancet, Feb. 9, 1861. » The work before us is one entitled to the highest praise, and we accordingly welcome it as a valu- able addition to medical literature. Intermediate in fulness of detail between the treatises of Siiar- pey and of Wilson, its characteristic merit lies in the number and excellence of the engravings it contains. Most of these are original, of much larger than ordinary size, and admirably executed. The various parts are also lettered after the plan adopted in Holden's Osteology. It would be diffi- cult to over-estimate the advantages offered by this mode of pictorial illustration. .Bones, ligaments, muscles, bloodvessels, and nerves are each in turn figured, and marked with their appropriate names; thus enabling the student to comprehend, at a glance, what would otherwise often be ignored, or at any rate, acquired only by prolonged and irksome ap- plication. In conclusion, we heartily commend the work of Mr. Gray to the attention of the medical profession, feeling certain that it should be regarded as one of the most valuable contributions ever made to educational literature,—N. Y. Monthly Review. Dec. 1859. In this view, we regard the work of Mr. Gray as far better adapted to the wants of the profession, and especially of the student, than any treatise on anatomy yet published in this country. 11 is destined, we believe, to supersede all others, both as a manual of dissections, and a standard of reference to the student of general or relative anatomy. — N. Y. Journal of Medicine, Nov. 1859. In our judgment, the mode of illustration adopted in the present volume cannot but present many ad- vantages to the student of anatomy. To the zealous disciple of Vesalius, earnestly desirous of real im- provement, the book will certainly be of immense value; but, at the same time, we must also confess fhat to those simply desirous of "cramming" it will be an undoubted godsend. The peculiar value of Mr. Gray's mode of illustration is nowhere more markedly evident than in the chapter on osteology, and especially in those portions which treat of. the bones of the head and of their development. The studaof these parts isthus made one of comparative ease*f not of positive pleasure: and those bugbears of the stildent, the temporal and sphenoid bones, are shorn of half their terrors. It is, in our estimation, an admirableand completetext-bookfor the student, and a useful work of reference for the practitioner; its pictorial character forming a novel element, to which we have already sufficiently alluded.—Am. Journ. Med. Sci., July, 1859. GIBSON'S INSTITUTES AND PRACTICE OF SURGERY. Eighth edition, improved and al- tered. Withthirty-fourplates. In two handsome octayo volumes, containing about 1,000 pages, leather, raised bandi. $6 50. SARDNER'S MEDICAL CHEMISTRY, for the use of Students and the Profession. In one royal l'2mo. vol., cloth, pp. 396, with wood-cuts. $1. GLUGE'S ATLAS OF PATHOLOGICAL HIS- TOLOGY Translated, with Notes and Addi- tions, by Joseph Leidy, M. D. In one volume, very large imperial quarto, extra cloth, with 32ti copper-plate figures, plain and colored, $5 00. HUGHES' INTRODUCTION TO THE PRAC- TICE OF AUSCULTATION AND OTHER MODES OF PHYSICAL DIAGNOSIS. IN DIS- EASES OF THE LUNGS AND HEART. Se- cond edition 1 vol. royal 12mo., ex. cloth, pp. • 304 $1 00. HOLLAND'S MEDICAL NOTES AND RE- FLECTIONS. From the third London edition. In one handsome octavo volume, extra cloth. $3. HORNER'S SPECIAL ANATOMY AND HIS- TOLOGY. Eighth edition. Extensively revised and modified. In two large octavo volumes,.ex- tra cloth, of more than 1000pages, with over 300 illustrations. $6 00. 18 BLANCHARD & LEA'S MEDICAL HAMILTON (FRANK H.), M. O., Professor of Surgery in the Long Island College Hospital. A PRACTICAL TREATISE ON FRACTURES AND DISLOCATIONS. Second edition, revised and improved. In one large and handsome octavo volume, of over 750 pages, with nearly 300 illustrations, extra cloth, $4 75. (Just Ready, May, 1863.) The early demand for anew edition of this work shows that it has been successful in securing the confidence of the profession as a standard authority for consultation and reference on its import- ant and difficult subject. In again passing it through the press, the author has taken the opportu- nity to revise it carefully, and introduce whatever improvements have been suggested by further experience and observation. An additional chapter on Gun-shot Fractures will be found to acapt it still more fully to the exigencies of the time. Among the many good workers at surgery of whom America may now boast rot the least is Frank Hast- ings Hamilton; and the volume before us is (we say it with a pang of wounded patriotism) the best and handiest book on the subject in the English lan- guage. It is in vain to attempt a review of it; nearly as vain to seek for any sins, either of com- mission or omission. We have seen no work on practical surgery which we would sooner recom- mend to our brother surgeons, especially those of '* the services," or those whose practice lies in dis- tricts where a man has necessarily to rely on his own unaided resources. The practitioner will find in it directions for nearly every possible accident, easily found and comprehended; and much pleasant reading for him to muse over in the after considera- tion of his cases.—Edinburgh Med. Journ. F eb. 1861. This is a valuable contribution to the surgery of most important affections, and is the more welcome, inasmuch as at the present time we do not possess a single complete treatise on Fractures and Dislo- cations in the English language. It has remained for our American brother toproduce a complete treatise upon the subject, and bring together in a convenient form those alterations and improvements that have been made from time to time in the treatment of these affections. One great and valuable feature in the work before us is the fact that it comprises all the Improvements introduced into the practice of both English and American surgery, and though far from omitting mention of our continental neighbors, the author by no means encourages the notion—but too prevalent in some quarters—that nothing is good unless imported from France or Germany. The latter half of the work is devoted to the considera- tion of the various dislocations and their appropri- ate treatment, and its merit is fully equal to that of the preceding portion.—The London Lancet.M&y 5, 1860. It is emphatically the book upon the subjects of which it treats, and we cannot doubt that it will continue so to be for an indefinite period of time. When we say, however, that we believe it will at once take its place as the best book for consultation by the practitioner; and that it will form the mojt complete, available, and reliable guide in emergen- cies of every nature connected with its subjects; and also that the student of surgery may make it his text- book with entire confidence, and with pleasure also, from its agreeable and easy style—we think our own opinion may be gathered as to its value.—Boston Medical and Surgical Journal, March 1, 1860. The work is concise, judicious, and accurate, and adapted to the wants of the student, practitioner, and investigator, honorable to the author and to the profession.—Chicago Med. Journal, March, 1860. We regard this work as an honor not only to its author, but to the profession of our country. Were we to review it thoroughly, we could not convey to the mind of the reader more forcibly our honest opinion expressed in the few words—we think it the best book of its kind extant. Every man interested in surgery will soon have this work on his desk. He who does not, will be the loser.—New Orleans Medical News, March, 1860. Dr. Hamilton is fortunate in having succeeded in filling the void, so long felt, with what cannot fail to be at once accepted as a model monograph in some respects, and a work of classical authority. We sincerely congratulate the profession of the United States on the appearance of such a publication from one of their number. We have reason to be proud of it as an original work, both in a literary,'and sfi- entific point of view, and to esteem it as a valuable guide in a most difficult and important branch of study and practice. On every account, therefore, we hope that it may soon be widely known abroad as an evidence of genuine progress on this side of the Atlantic, and further, that it may be still more widely known at home as an authoritative teacher from which every one may profitably learn, and aa affording an example of honest, well-directed, and untiring industry in authorship which every surgeon may emulate.— Am. Med. Journal, April, 1860. HODGE (HUGH L.), M.D., Professor of Midwifery and the Diseases of Women and Children in the University of Pennsylvania, &c. ON DISEASES PECULIAR TO WOMEN, including Displacements of the Uterus. With original illustrations. In one beautifully printed octavo volume, of nearly 500 pages, extra cloth. ,$3 25. We will say at once that the work fulfils its object capitally well: and we will moreover venture the assertion that it will inaugurate an imnroved prac- , tice throughout this whole country. The secrets of the author's success are so clearly revealed that the attentive student cannot fail to insure a goodly por- tion of similar success in his own practice. It is a credit to all medical literature; and we add, that the physician who does not place it in his library, and who does not faithfully con its pages, will lose a vast deal of knowledge that would be most useful to himself and beneficial to his patients. 'It is a practical work of the highest order of merit; and it will take rank as such immediately.—Maryland and Virginia Medical Journal, Feb. 1661. This contribution towards the elucidation of the pathology and treatment of some of the diseases peculiar to women, cannot fail to meet with a favor- able reception from the medical profession. The character of the particular maladies of.which the work before us treats; their frequency, variety,and obscurity; the amount of malaise and even of actual Buffering by which they are invariably attended; their obstinacy, the difficulty with which they are overcome, and their disposition again and again to recur—these, taken in connection with the entire competency of the author to render a correct ac- count of their nature, their causes, and their appro- priate management—his ample experience, his ma- tured judgment, and his perfect conscientiousness— invest this publication with an interest and value to which few of the medical treatises of a recent date can lay a stronger, if, perchance, an equal claim.— Am. Journ. Med. Sciences, Jan. 1861. Indeed, although no part of the volume is not emi- nently deserving of perusal and study, we think that the nine chapters devoted to this subject, are espe- cially so, and we know of no more valuable mono- graph upon the symptoms, prognosis, and manage- ment of these annoying maladies than is constituted by this part of the work. We cannot but regard it as one of the most original and most practical works of the day ; one which every accoucheur and physi- cian should most carefully read; for we are pcr- Buaded that he will arise from its perusal with new ideas, which will induct him into a more ra'tional practice in regard to many a suffering female, who may have placed her health in his hands.—British American Journal, Feb. 1661. The illustrations, which are all original, are drawn to a uniform scale of one-half the natural size. AND SCIENTIFIC PUBLICATIONS. 19 HODGE (HUGH L.), M. D., Late Professor of Midwifery, &c, in the University of Pennsylvania. PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE OF OBSTETRICS. -In one large quarto volume; of over 550 pages, with one hundred and fifty-eight figures on thirty-two beautifully exe- cuted lithographic plates, and numerous wood-cuts in the text. $13 00 (Now Ready.) This work, embodying the results of an extensive practice for more than forty years, cannot fail to prove of the utmost value to all who are engaged in this department of medicine. The author's position as one of the highest authorities on the subject in this country is well known, and the fruit of his ripe experience and long observation, carefully matured and elaborated, must serve as an invaluable text-book for the student and an unfailing counsel for the practitioner in the emergencies which so frequently arise in obstetric practice. The illustrations will form a novel feature in the work. The lithographic plates are all original, and to insure their absolute accuracy they have all been copied from photographs taken expressly for the purpose. In ordinary obstetrical plates, the positions of the foetus are represented by dia- grams or sections, of the patient, which are of course purely imaginary, and their correctness is scarcely more than a matter of chance with the artist. Their beauty as pictures is thereby increased without corresponding utility to the student, as in practice he must for the most part depend for his | diagnosis upon the relative positions of the foetal skull and the pelvic bones of the mother. It is, therefore, desirable that the points upon which he is in future to rely, should form the basis of his instruction, and consequently in the preparation of these illustrations the skeleton has alone been used, and the aid of photography invoked, by which a series of representations has been secured of the strictest and most rigid accuracy. It is easy to recognize the value thus added to the very full detai's on the subject of the Mechanism of Labour with which the work abounds It may be added that no pains or expense will be spared to render the mechanical execution of the volume worthy in every respect of the character and value of the teachings it contains. HABERSHON (S. O.), M. D., Assistant Physician to and Lecturer on Materia Medica and Therapeutics at Guy's Hospital, &c. PATHOLOGICAL AND PRACTICAL OBSERVATIONS ON DISEASES OF THE ALIMENTARY CANAL, (ESOPHAGUS, STOMACH, CAECUM, AND INTES- TINES. With illustrations on wood. In one handsome octavo volume of 312 pages, extra cloth $2 00. HOBLVN (RICHARD D.), M. D. A DICTIONARY OF THE TERMS USED IN MEDICINE AND THE COLLATERAL SCIENCES. A new American edition. Revised, with numerous Additions, by Isaac Hays, M. D., editor of the " American Journal of the Medical Sciences." In one large royal 12mo. volume, leather, of over 500 double columned pages: $1 75. use ; embracing every department of medical science down to the very latest date.—Western Lancet. Hoblyn's Dictionary has long been a favorite with To both practitioner and student, we recommend this dictionary as being convenient in size, accurate in definition, and sufficiently full and complete for ordinary consultation.—Charleston Med. Journ. We know of no dictionary better arranged and adapted. It is not encumbered with the obsoleteterms of a bygone age, but it contains all that are now in us. It is the best book of definitions we have, and ought always to be upon the student's table.— Southern Med. and Surg. Journal. JONES (T. WHARTON), F. R. S., Professor of Oplithalmic Medicine and Surgery in University College, London, &C THE PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE OF OPHTHALMIC MEDICINE AND SURGERY. With one hundred and seventeen illustrations. Third and revised Ameri- can, with additions from the second London edition. In one handsome octavo volume, extra cloth, of 455 pages. $3 00. Seven years having elapsed since the appearance of the last edition of this standard work, very considerable additions have been found necessary to adapt it thoroughly to the advance of ophthal- mic science. The introduction of the ophthalmoscope has resulted in adding greatly to our know- ledge of the pathology of the diseases of the eye, particularly of its more deeply seated tissues, and corresponding improvements in medial treatment and operative procedures have been introduced. All the«e matter* the editor has endeavoured to add, bearing in mind the character of the volume as a condensed and practical manual To accommodate this unavoidable increase in the size of the work, its form has been changed from a duodecimo to an octavo, and it is presented as worthy a continu- ance of the favour which has been bestowed on former editions. • A complete series of " test-types" for examining the accommodating power of the eye, will be found an important and useful addition. JONES (C. HANDF1ELD), F.R.S., 8c EDWARD H. SIEVEK1NG, M.D., Assistant Physicians and Lecturers in St. Mary's Hospital, London. A MANUAL OF PATHOLOGICAL ANATOMY. First American Edition, Revised With three hundred and ninety-seven handsome wood engravings. In one large and beautiful" octavo volume of nearly 750 pages, extra cloth. $3 75. a= « concise text-book, containing, in a condensed obliged toglean fromagreat number of monographs, rfrl » como'ete outline of what is known in the and the field was so extensive that but few cultivated a ™,'in nf Pathological Anatomy,it is perhaps the it with any degree of success. As a simple work Z t..Jr>rk in the English language. Its great merit of reference, therefore, it is of great value to the best w»» completeness and brevity, and in this student of pathological anatomy, and should be in C°nrfict it supplies a great desideratum in our lite- every physician's library.—Western Lancet. rlture Heretofore the student of pathology was 20 BLANCHARD & LEA'S MEDICAL KIRKES (WILLIAM SENHOUSE), M.D., Demonstrator of Morbid Anatomy at St. Bartholomew's Hospital, &c. A MANUAL OF PHYSIOLOGY. A new American, from the third and improved London edition. With two hundred illustrations. In one large and handsome royal 12mo. volume, extra cloth, pp. 586. $2 00. and its carefully cited authorities. It is the most convenient of text-books. These gentlemen, Messrs. Kirkes and-Paget, have the gift of telling us what We want to know, without thinking it necessary to tell us all they know.—Boston Med. and Surg. Journal. For the student beginning this study, and the practitioner who has but leisure to refresh his memory, this book is invaluable, as it contains all that it is important to know.—Charleston Med. Journal. This is a new and very much improved edition of Dr. Kirkes' well-known Handbook of Physiology. It combines conciseness with completeness, and is, therefore, admirably adapted for consultation by the busy practitioner.—Dublin Quarterly Journal. One of the very best handbooks of Physiology we possess—presenting just such an oiitline of the sci- ence as the student requires during his attendance. upon a course of lectures, or for reference whilst preparing for examination.—Am. Medical Journal. Its excellence is in its compactness, its clearness, KNAPP'S TECHNOLOGY ; or, Chemistry applied to the Arts and to Manufactures. Edited by Dr. Ronalds, Dr. Richardson, and Prof. W. R. Johnson. In two handsome 8vo. vols., extra cloth, with about 500 wood-engravings. $6 00. LAYCOCK'S LECTURES ON THE PRINCI- PLES AND METHODS OF MEDICAL OB- SERVATION AND RESEARCH. For the Use of Advanced Students and Junior Practitioners. In one royal 12mo. volume, extra cloth. Price $1. LALLEMAND AND WILSON. TREATISE ON THE CAUSES, SYMPTOMS, AND A PRACTICAL TREATMENT OF SPERMATORRHOEA. By M. Lallemand. Translated and edited b Henry J McDougall. Third American edition. To which is added-----ON DISEASE OF THE VESICULiE SEMINALES; and their associated organs. With special refer- ence to the Morbid Secretions of the Prostatic and Urethral Mucous Membrane. By Marris Wilson, M. D. In one neat octavo volume, of about 400 pp., extra cloth. $2 25. LA ROCHE (R.), M.D., &c. YELLOW FEVER, considered in its Historical, Pathological, Etiological, and Therapeutical Relations. Including a Sketch of the Disease as it has occurred in Philadelphia from 1699 to 1854, with an examination of the connections between it and the fevers known under the same name in other parts of temperate as well as in tropical regions. In two large and handsome octavo volumes of nearly 1500 pages, extra cloth. $7 00. From Professor S. H. Dickson, Charleston, S. C, September 18,1855. A monument of intelligent and well applied re- search, almost without example. It is, indeed, in itself, a large library, and is destined to constitute the special resort as a book of reference, in the subject of which it treats, to all future time. We have not time at present, engaged as we are, by day and by night, in the work of combating this very disease, now prevailing in oar city, to do more than give this cursory notrbe of what we consider as undoubtedly the most able and erudite medical publication our country has yet produejd. But in view of the startling fact, that this, the most malig- nant and unmanageable disease of modern times, has for several years been prevailing in our country to a greater extent than ever before; that it is no longer confined to either large or small cities, but penetrates country villages, plantations, and farm- houses ; that it is treated with scarcely better suc- cess now than thirty or forty years ago; that there is vast mischief done by ignorant pretenders to know- ledge in regard to the disease, and in view of the pro- bability that a majority 6f southern physicians will be called upon to treat the disease, we trust that this able and comprehensive treatise will be very gene- rally read in the south.—Memphis Med. Recorder. BY THE SAME AUTHOR. PNEUMONIA; its Supposed Connection, Pathological and Etiological, with Aur tumnal Fevers, including an Inquiry into the Existence and Morbid Agency of Malaria. In one handsome octavo volume, extra cloth, of 500 pages. $3 00. J.AWRENCE (W.), F. R. S., Sec. A TREATISE ON DISEASES OF THE EYE. A new edition, edited, with numerous additions, and 243 illustrations, by Isaac Hays, M. p., Surgeon to Will's Hospi- tal, &c. In one very large and handsome octavo volume, of 950 pages, strongly bound in leather with raised bands. $7 00. LUDLOW (J. LJ, M. D. A MANUAL OF EXAMINATIONS upon Anatomy, Physiology, Surgery, Practice of Medicine, Obstetrics, Materia Medica, Chemistry, Pharmacy, and Therapeutics. To which is added a Medical Formulary. Third edition, thoroughly revised and greatly extended and enlarged. With 370 illustrations. In one handsome royal 12mo. volume, of 816' large pages, extra cloth, $2 75. We knew of no better companion for the student | crammed into his head by the various professors to during the hours spent in the lecture room, or tore- whom he is compelled to listen.—Western Lancet, fresh, at a glance, his memory of the various topics | May, 1857. AND SCIENTIFIC PUBLICATIONS. 21 LEHMANN (C. G:) PHYSIOLOGICAL CHEMISTRY. Translated from the second edition by George E. Day, M. D., F. R. S., &c, edited by R. E. Rogers, M. D., Professor of Chemistry in the Medical Department of the University of Pennsylvania, with illustrations selected from Funke's Atlas of Physiological Chemistry, and an Appendix of plates. Complete in two large and handsome octavo volumes, extra cloth, containing 1200 pages, with nearly two hundred illus- trations. $6 00. The work of Lehmann stands unrivalled as the most comprehensive book of reference and informa- tion extant on every branch of the subject on which it treats.—Edinburgh Journal of Medical Science. The most important contribution as yet made to Physiological Chemistry.—Am: Journal Med. Sci- ences, Jan. 1856. BY THE SAME AUTHOR. MANUAL OF CHEMICAL PHYSIOLOGY. Translated from the German, • with Notes and Additions, by J. Cheston Morris, M. D., With an Introductory Essay on Vital Force, by Professor Samuel Jackson, M. D., of the University of Pennsylvania. With illus- trations on wood. In one very handsome octavo volume, extra cloth, of 336 pages. $2 25. LYONS (ROBERT D.), K. C. C, Late Pathologist in-chief to the British Army in the Crimea, &c. A TREATISE ON FEVER; or, selections from a course of Lectures on Fever. Being part of a course of Theory and Practice of Medicine. In one neat octavo volume, of 362 pages, extra cloth; $2 00. (Just Issued.) This is an admirable work upon the most remark- ] Lyons' work on Fever to the attention^of the pro- able and most important class of diseases to which mankind are liable.—Med. Journ. of N. Carolina. May, 1861. fession. It is a work which cannot fail to enhance the author's previous well-earned reputation, as a diligent, careful, and accurate observer.—British We have great pleasure in recommending Dr. Med. Journal, March 2,1861. *__________________ MEIGS (CHARLES D.), M. D., Lately Professor of Obstetrics, &c. in the JefTerson Medical College, Philadelphia. OBSTETRICS: THE SCIENCE AND THE ART.. Fourth edition, revised and improved. With one hundred and twenty-nine illustrations. In one beautifully printed octava volume, of seven hundred and thirty large pages, extra cloth, $4 00. From the Author's Preface. « [n this edition I have endeavored to amend the work by changes in its form ; by careful cor- rections of many expression?, and by a few omissions and some additions as to the text. "The Student will find that I have recast the article on Placenta Prasvia, which I was led to do out of my desire Jo notice certain new modes of treatment which I regarded as not only ill founded as to the philosophy of our department, but dangerous to the people. » In changing the form of my work by dividing it into paragraphs.or sections, numbered from 1 to 959, I thought to present to the reader a common-place book of the whole volume. Such a table of contents ought to prove both convenient and useful to a Student while attending public lectures. A work which has enjoyed so extensive a reputation and has been received with such general favor, requires only the assurance that the author has labored assiduously to embody in his new edition whatever has been found necessary to render it fully on a level with the mos advanced state of the subiect. Both as a text-book for the student and as a reliable work of reference for the pr^ctWoner! h is therefore to be hoped that the volume will be found worthy a continuance of the confidence reposed in previous editions. BY the same author. (Just Issued.) WOMAN- HER DISEASES AND THEIR REMEDIES. A Series of Lec- tures to his Class. Fourth and Improved edition. In one large and beautifully printed octave volume, extra cloth, of over 700 pages. $4 00. In other respects, in our estimation, too much can- not be said in praise of this work. It abounds witft beautiful passages, and for conciseness, for origin- ality, and for all that is commendable in a work on the diseases of females, it is not excelled, and pro- bably not equalled in the English-language. On the whole, we know of no work on the diseases ot wo- men which we can so cordially commend to the student and practitioner as the one before us.—Uitio Med. and Surg. Journal. The body of the book is worthy of attentive con- sideration, and is evidently the production of a clever, thoughtful, and sagacious physician. IK. Meigs's letters on the diseases of the external or- gans contain many interesting and rare cases, and rnany instructive observations. We take our leave of Dr Meigs, with a high opinion of his talents and originality.—The British and Foreign Medico-Chi- rurgical Review. Everv chapter is replete with practical instruc- tion and bears the impress of being the composition of an acute and experienced mind. There is a terse- ness and at the same time an accuracy in his de- scription oi symptoms, and in the rulesfor diagnosis, which cannot fail to recommend the volume to the attention of the reader.—Ranking's Abstract. It contains a vast amount of practical knowledge. by one who has accurately observed and retained the experience of many years.—Dublin Quarterly Journal. Full of important matter, conveyed in a ready and agreeable manner.—'St. Louis Med. and Surg. Jour. There is an off-hand fervor, a glow, and a warm- heartedness infecting the effjrt of Dr. Meigs, which is entirely captivating, and which absolutely hur- ries the reader through from beginning to end. Be- sides, the book teems with solid instruction, and it shows the very highest evidence of ability, viz., the clearness with which the information is pre- sented. We know of no better test of one's under- standing a subject than the evidence of the power of lucidly explaining it. The most elementary, as well as the obscurest subjects, under the pencil of Prof. Meigs, are isolated and made to stand out in such bold relief, as to produce distinct impressions upon the mind and memory of the reader. — The Charleston Med. Journal. 22 BLANCHARD 00. The profession is too well acquainted with the re- putation of Rokitansky's work to need our assur- ance that this is one of the mostprofound, thorough, and valuable books ever issued from the medical Dress It is sui generis, andhas no standard of com- parison It is only necessary to announce that it is issued in a form as cheap as is compatible with its si ye and preservation, and its sale follows as a matter of course. No library can be called com- petewithout it.-Buffalo Med. Journal. An attempt to give our readers any adequate idea of the vast amount of instruction accumulated in these volumes, would be feeble and hopeless. The effort of the distinguished author to concentrate in a small space his great fund of knowledge has so charged his text with valuable trutlis, mat'any attempt of a reviewer to epitomize is at once para- lyzed, and must end in a failure__Western Lancet. As this is the highest source of knowledge upon the important subject of which it treats, no real student can afford to be without it. The American publishers have entitled themselves to the thanks of the profession of their country, for this timeous and beautiful edition.—Nashville Journal of Medicine, 26 BLANCHARD & LEA'S MEDICAL RIGBY (EDWARD), M.D., Senior Physician to the General Lying-in Hospital, Ac. A SYSTEM OF MIDWIFERY. With Notes and Additional Illustrations. becond American Edition. One volume octavo, extra cloth, 422 pages. $2 50. BY THE SAME AUTHOR. ON THE CONSTITUTIONAL TREATMENT OF FEMALE DISEASES. In one neat royal 12mo. volume, extra cloth, of about 250 pages. $1 00. . RAMSBOTHAM (FRANCIS H.), M. D. TJE PRINCIPLES AND ^ACTICE OF OBSTETRIC MEDICINE AND SURGERY, in reference to the Process of Parturition. A new and enlarged edition, thoroughly revised by the Author. With Additions by W. V. Keating, M. D., Professor of Obstetrics, &c, ii the Jefferson Medical College, Philadelphia. In one .large and handsome imperial octavo volume, of 650 pages, strongly bound m leather, with raised bands; with sixty-four beautiful Plates, and numerous Wood-cuts in the text, containing in all nearly 200 large and beautiful figures. $6 50. From Prof. Hodge, of the University of Pa. m?£ \he ^meric*n Public, it is most valuable, from its intrinsic undoubted excellence, and as bein« our county ^ UlSh Midwifery • Its circulation will, I trust, be extensive throughou* It is unnecessary to say anything in regard to the utility of this work. It is already appreciated in our country for the value of the matter, the clearness of its style, and the fulness of its illustrations. To the physician's library it is indispensable, while to the student as a text-book, from which to extract the material for laying the foundation of an education on obstetrical science, it has no superior__Ohio Med. and Surg. Journal. The publishers have secured its Buccess by the truly elegant style in which they have brought it out, excelling themselves in its production, espe- cially in its plates. It is dedicated to Prof. Meigs, and has the emphatic endorsement of Prof. Hodge, as the best exponent of British Midwifery. We know of no text-book which deserves in all respects to be more highly recommended to students, and we could wish to see it in the handsof every practitioner, for they will find it invaluable for reference.—Med. Gazette. RICORD (P.), M. D. A TREATISE ON THE VENEREAL DISEASE. By John Hunter, F R S With copious Additions, by Ph. RICord, M.D. Translated and Edited, with Notes,'bv Freeman J. Bumstead. M. D., Lecturer on Venereal at the College of Physicians and Surgeons New York Second edition, revised, containing a resume of Ricord's Recent Lectures on Chancre In one handsome octavo volume, extra cloth, of 550 pages, with eight plates. $3 50. Every one will recognize the attractiveness and value which this work derives from thus presenting the opinions of these two masters side by side. But, it must be admitted, what has made the fortune of the book, is the fact that it contains tne "most com- plete embodiment of the veritable doctrines of the Hdpital du Midi," which has ever been made pub- lic. In conclusion we can say that this is incon- testablythe best treatise on syphilis with which we are acquainted, and, as we do not often employ the phrase, we may be excused for expressing the hope that it may find a place in the library of every phy- sician.— Virginia Med. and Surg. Journal BY THE SAME AUTHOR. RICORD'S LETTERS ON SYPHILIS. Translated by W. P. Lattimore M D- In one neat octavo volume, of 270 pages, extra cloth. $2 00. ' BOYLE'S MATERIA MEDICA AND THERAPEUTICS; including the Preparations of the Pharmacopoeias of London, Edinburgh, Dublin, and of the United States With many new medicines. Edited by Joseph Carson, M D. With nineVeighUllustra ions' In one large octavo volume, extra cloth, of about 700 pages. $3 00. illustrations. SMITH (HENRY H.), M. D., AND HORNER (Wl LLI AM E ) M D AN ANATOMICAL ATLAS, illustrative of the Structure of the Human Body. figuTes/S'oo.1^6 lmperial °CtaV°' eXtm d°th' Wilh ab0Ut Sbc hundred and fifty beautiful The plan»of this Atlas, which renders it so pe- culiarly convenient for the student, and its superb artistical execution, have been already pointed out. We must congratulate the student upon the comple- tion of this Atlas, as it is the most convenient work ofthekmd that has yet appeared ; and we must add, the very beautiful manner in which it is "got up>> is so creditable to the country as to be flatterine to our national pride.—American Medical Journal SHARPEY (WILLIAM), M. D., JONESQUAIN, M. D.. AND RICHARD QUAIN, F. R. Si, 8cc. ' Ew^Av fANA^MY. Revised, with Notes and Additions, by Joseph Leidy, M D., Professor of Anatomy m the University of Pennsylvania. Complete in two lLe S volumes, extra cloth, of about thirteen hundred pages. With over 500 iUustradoTs $f 00? SOLLY ON THE HUMAN BRAIN; its Structure, Physiology, and Diseases. From the Second and much enlarged London edition, in one octave volume, extra cloth, of 500 pages, with 120 wood- cuts. $2 00. BKEY'S OPERATIVE SURGERY. In one very handsome octavo volume, extra cloth, of over 650 pages, with about one hundred wood-cuts. S3 25 SIMON'S GENERAL PATHOLOGY, as conduct lve to the Establishment of Rational Principles tor the prevention ano Cure of Disease. In one octavo volume, extra cloth, of 212 pages $1 25 AND SCIENTIFIC PUBLICATIONS. 27 STILLE (ALFRED), M.D., Professor of the Theory and Practice of Medicine in the University of Pennsylvania THERAPEUTICS AND MATERIA MEDICA; a Systematic Treatise on the Action and Uses of Medicinal Agents, including their Description and'History. Second Edition, tuoroughly revised. In two large and handsome octavo volumes, (hi Press.) This work is designed especially for the student and practitioner of medicine, and treats the various articles of the Materia Medica from the point of view of the bedside, and not of the shop or of the lecture-room. While thus endeavoring to give all practical information likely to be useful with respect to the employment of special remedies in special affections, and the results to be anticipated from their administration, a copious Index of Diseases and their Remedies readers the work emi- nently fitted for reference by showing at a glance the different means which have been employed and enabling the practitioner to extend his resources in difficult cases with all that the experience of the profession has suggested. The speedy demand for another edition of this work shows that it has acceptably filled an acknow- ledged want. No exertion of the author will be wanting to render it worthy a continuance of the favor with which it has been received, while an alterairon in- the typographical arrangement will accommodate the additions without increasing unduly the size of the volumes. Rarely, indeed, have we had submitted to us a work on medicine so ponderous in its dimensions as that now before us, and yet so fascinating in its contents. It is, therefore, with a peculiar gratifi- cation that we recognize in Dr. Stille the posses- sion of many of those more distinguished qualifica- tions which entitle him to approbation, and which justify him in coming before his medical brethren as an instructor. A comprehensive knowledge, tested by a sound and penetrating judgment, joined to a love of progress—which a discriminating spirit of inquiry has tempered so as to accept nothing new because it is new, and abandon nothing old because it is old, but which estimates either accorc ing to its relations to a just ldgic and experience—manifests itself everywhere, and gives to the guidance of the author all the assurance of safety which the diffi- culties of his subject can allow. In conclusion, we earnestly advise our readers to ascertain for them- selves, by a study of Dr. Stille's volumes, the great value and interest of the stores of knowledge they present. We have pleasure in referring rather to the ample treasury of undoubted truths, the real and assured conquest of medicine, accumulated by Dr. Stille in his pages ; and commend the sum of his la- bors to the attention of our readers, as alike honor- able to our science, and creditable to the zeal, the candor, and the judgment of him who has garnered the whole so carefully.—Edinburgh Med. Journal. The most recent authority is the one last men- tioned, Stille. His great work on " Materia Medi- ca and Therapeutics," published last year, in two octavo volumes, of some sixteen hundred pages, while it embodies the results of the labor of others up to the time of publication, is enriched with a great amount of original observation and research. We would draw attention, by the way, to the very convenient mode in which the Index is arranged in this work. There is first an " Index of Remedies;' next an "Index of Diseases and their Remedies." Such an arrangement of the Indices, in our opinion, g reatly enhances the practical value of books of this kind. In tedious, obstinate cases of disease, where we have to try one remedy after another until our stock is pretty nearly exhausted, and we are almost driven to our wit's end, such an index as the second of the two just mentioned, is precisely what we want.—London Med. Times and Gazette, April, 1861. We think this work will do much to obviate the reluctance to a thorough investigation of this branch of scientific study, for in the wide range of medical literature treasured in the English tongue, \!uwork as a handy and convenient manual for surgeons engaged in active duty, has induced the publishers to render it more complete for those purposes by the addition of a chapter on gun-shot wounds and other matters peculiar to military*surgery. ' In its present form, there- fore with no increase in price, it will be found a very cheap and convenient vade-mecum for con- sultation and reference in the daily exigencies of military as well as civil practice. We consider that no better book could be placed in the hands of an hospital dresser, or theyoung sur- geon, whose education in this respect has not been perfected. We most cordially commend this volume as one which the medical student should most close- ly study, to perfect himself in these minor surgical operations in which neatness and dexterity are so much required, and on which a great portion of his reputation as a future surgeon must evidently rest. And to the surgeon in practice it must prove itself a valuable volume, as instructive on many points Which he may have forgotten.—British American Journal, May, 1862. The instruction given upon the subject of Ban- daging, is alone of great value, and while the author modestly proposes to instruct the students of medi- cine, and the younger physicians, we will sny that experienced physicians will obtain many exceed- ingly valuable suggestions by its perusal. It will be found one of the most satisfactory manuals for re- ference in the fields or hospital yet published; thor- oughly adapted to the wants of Military surgeons, and at the same time equally useful for ready and convenient reference by surgeons everywhere— Buffalo Med. and Surg. Journal, June, 1862. ■ SMITH (W. TYLER), M. D., Physician Accoucheur to St. Mary's Hospital, &c °o^™™sRI?I0N' *$? THE PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE OF UUblLTKIOS. In one royal 12mo. volume, extra cloth, of 400 pages. $1 25. . tvtt . ™™-~ . ,- " BY THE SAME AUTHOR. o^SSS^a^^1811 on the pa™ology and treatment ^Zk?o^omt5o74tn7l%T illUStrationS' In one ™y ^-opie octavo volume, TANNER (T. H.), M. D., Physician to the Hospital for Women, &c A MANUAL OF CLINICAL MEDICINE AND PHYSICAL DIAGNOSIS To which is added The Code of Ethics of the American Medfcaflssoeiation Second American Edition. In one neat volume, small 12mo., extra cloth. $100 TAYLOR (ALFRED S.), M. D., F. R S Lecturer on Medical Jurisprudence and Chemistry in Guv's Ho'smral MEDICAL JURISPRUDENCE Fifth American, from the seventh improved and enlarged London edition. With Notes and References to Ampri™, „ ■ . improvea Hartshorne.M.D. InonelargeSvo.volume^xtrT^ This standard work having had the advantage of two revisions at thP han^ „r!u '.. the appearance of the last American edition, will be banl^onZulr^dLR "iV"* 8mce pletely to the present state of the science. As a work of Sivi i d brought up com- position both as a text-book for the student,tndlacompenoTouS™o mT ""^l" *•• can at all times refer in cases of doubt or difficulty. u"lpt,"al0Ub lreause to which the practitioner No work upon the subject can be put into the hands of students either of law or medicine which will engage them more closely or profitably; and none could be offered to the busy practitioner of either calling, for the purpose of casual or hasty reference, that would be more likely to afford the aid desired. We thereforerecommend it as the best and safest manual for daily use—American Journal of Medical Sciences. It is not excess of praise to say that the volume ------. T,---- ,'----- ""J ""■" "ic VU1UUIC before us is theverybest treatise extant on Medical Jurisprudence. In saying this, we do not wish to be understood as detracting from the merits of the excellent works of Beck, Ryan, Traill, Guy, and others; but in interest and value we think it must be conceded that Taylor is superior to anything that has preceded it.—N. W. Medical and Surg. Journal It is at once comprehensive and eminently prac- Americanand British legal medicine. It should be s onePof '?S£n °f/Very Ph>'sicia»> a- the subject pubHc a we?L7nd 'ncreasin?.importance to Jthe K thC »tot""°»-Bt. LouisMed. i„ J HS.Wurk of Dr- Trior's is generally acknow- ledged to be one of the ablest extant on the I» ofmedical jurisprudence, it is certainly one ofthe most attractive books that we have met wkh ■ sun plying so much both to interest and Instruct' that we d0 „„t hesitate to affirm that afterTaX™' commenced its perusal, few could be prevailed unon £itio"J an th? eomflet^ U" In ^ ?"t hoZZ ,'1°"'all,thu newiy ob^rved and accurately re- corded facts have been inserted, including-much th^logTaHeselrc^ ON POISONS, IN RELATIo¥to1iEDICAL JURISPRTTDFT*™ A*m •MEDICINE. Second American; from a second and rfvised Lon^m 5r , E AND octavo volume, of 755 pages, extra cloth. $4 00. revised London edition. In one large Mr. Taylor's position as the leading medical jurist of England has mnforMj u • nary advantages in acquiring experience on these subjects nearlv »n ?„ d ? him extraor*- referred to him for examination, as an expert whose tesHmnnvi **T °f moment being The results of his labors, therefore, as gutteredtogether £ TL i generallyaccepted as finaL stned, and presented in the clear and mteSle styleforV^X^™' ^^ Weighed and as an acknowledged authority, and as a guJe t S to^S^ ?£%£%£ "^ riXT-pTU-TOrntJV T ** T* SAME"AUTH°R AND WM. BRANDS. tUJJiMlblKI. In one volume 8yp. See "Brande " p. 6. AND SCIENTIFIC PUBLICATIONS. 29 TODD (ROBERT BENTLEY), M. D., F. R. S., Professor of Physiology in King's College, London; and WILLIAM BOWMAN, F. R. S., Demonstrator of Anatomy in King's College, London. THE PHYSIOLOGICAL ANATOMY AND PHYSIOLOGY OF MAN. With about three hundred large and beautiful illustrations on wood. Complete in one iarg-e octavo volume, of 950 pages, extra cloth: Price $4 75. Itis more concise than Carpenter's Principles, and more modern than the accessible edition of Muller's Elements; its details are brief, but sufficient: its descriptions vivid; its illustrations exact and copi- ous ; and its language terse and perspicuous.— Charleston Med. Journal. A magnificent contribution to British medicine, and the American physician who shall fail to peruse it, will have failed to read one of the most instruc- tive books of the nineteenth century__jv. O. Med. and Surg. Journal. TODD (R. B.) M. D., F. R. S., &c. CLINICAL LECTURES ON CERTAIN DISEASES OF THE URINARY ORGANS AND ON DROPSIES. In one octavo volume, 284 pages, extra cloth. $2 00. BY THE SAME AUTHOR. CLINICAL LECTURES ON CERTAIN ACUTE DISEASES. In one neat octavo volume, of 320 pages, extra cloth. $2 00. TOYNBEE (JOSEPH), F. R. S., Aural Surgeon to, and Lecturer on Surgery at, St. Mary's Hospital. A PRACTICAL TREATISE ON DISEASES OF THE EAR; their Diag- nosis, Pathology, and Treatment. Illustrated with one hundred engravings on wood. In one very handsome octavo volume, extra cloth, $3 50. Surgery, it is without a rival in our language or any other.—Charleston Med. Journ. and Rev., Sept. 1860. The work of Mr. Toynbee is undoubtedly, upon the whole, the most valuable production of the kind in any language. The author has long been known by his numerous monographs upon subjects con- nected with diseases of the ear, and is now regarded as the highest authority on most points in his de- partment of science. Mr. Toynbee's work, as we have already said, is undoubtedly the most reliable guide for the study of the diseases of the tar in any language, and should be in the library of every phy- sician.— Chicago Med. Journal, July, 1860. The work is a model of its kind, and every page and paragraph of it are worthy of the most thorough study. Considered all in all—as an original work, well written, philosophically elaborated, and happi- ly illustrated with cases and drawings—it is by far the ablest monograph that has ever appeared on the anatomy and diseases of the ear, and one of the most valuable contributions to the art and science of sur- gery in the nineteenth century.—N. Amer. Medico- Chirurg. Review, Sept. 1860. We are speaking within the limits of modest ac- knowledgment, and with a sincere and unbiassed judgment, when we affirm that as a treatise on Aural WILLIAMS (C. J. B.), M.D., F. R. S., Professor of Clinical Medicine in University College, London, &c. PRINCIPLES OF MEDICINE. An Elementaly View of the Causes, Nature, Treatment, Diagnosis, and Prognosis of Disease; with brief remarks on Hygienics, or "the pre- servation of health. A new American, from the third and revised London edition. In one octavo volume, extra cloth, of about 500 pages. $3 25. (Now Ready.) WHAT TO OBSERVE AT THE BEDSIDE AND AFTER DEATH, IN MEDICAL CASES. Published under the authority of the London Society for Medical Observation. A new American, from the second and revised London edition. In one very handsome volume, royal 12mo., extra cloth, fl 00. To the observer who prefers accuracy to blunders | One of the finest aids to a young practitioner wo and precision to carelessness, this little book is in- have ever seen.—Peninsular Journal of Medicine. valuable.—N. H. Journal of Medicine. I WALSHE (W. H.), M. D., Professor of the Principles and Practice of Medicine in University College, London, &c. A PRACTICAL TREATISE ON DISEASES OF THE LUNGS; including the Principles of Physical Diagnosis. Third American, from the third revised and much en- larged London edition. In one vol. octavo, of 468 pages, extra cloth. $2 50. The present edition has been carefully revised and much enlarged, and may be said in the main to be rewritten. Descriptions of several diseases, previously omitted, are now introduced; an effort has been made to bring.the description of anatomical characters to the level of the wants of the practical physician ; and the diagnosis and prognosis of each complaint are more completely considered. The sections on Treatment and the Appendix have, especially, been largely ex- tended.— Author's Preface. BY THE SAME AUTHOR. V " A PRACTICAL TREATISE ON THE DISEASES OF THE HEART AND GREAT VESSELS, including the Principles of Physical Diagnosis. Third American, from the third revised and much enlarged London edition. In one handsome octavo volume of 420 pages, extra cloth. $2 50. The present edition has been carefully revised ; much new matter has been added, and the entire work in a measure remodelled. Numerous facts and discussions, more br less completely novel, will be found in the description of the principles of physical diagnosis; but the chief additions have been made in the practical portions of the book. Several affections, of which little or no account had been given in the previous editions, are now treated of in detail.—Author's Preface. 30 BLANCHARD & LEA'S MEDICAL New and much enlarged edition. WATSON (THOMAS), M.D., Sec, Late Physician to the Middlesex Hospital, &c. LECTURES ON THE PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE OF PHYSIC. Delivered at King^s College, London. A new American, from the last revised and enlarged Lnglish edition, with Additions, by D. Francis Condie, M. D., author of « A Practical TreatW on the Diseases of Children," &c. With one hundred and eighty.five illustrations on wood. In one very large and handsome volume, imperial octavo, of over 1200 closely printed pages in small type; extra cloth, $5 00; strongly bound in leather, with raised bands, $6 00. th^.at hhC high rePutatIon of this work might be fully maintained, the author has subjected it to a thorough revision; every portion has been examined with the aid of the most recent researches hi™ L ° Sy' &f'n r6tulJtS °{ IIK)dern investigations in both theoretical and practical subjects .have been carefully weighed and embodied throughout its pages. The watchful scrutiny of the editor has likewise introduced whatever possesses immediate importance to the American pWic aj m relation to diseases incident to our climate which are little known in England, as well as those points in which experience here has led to different modes of practice; and he has also addedI lar^dv o the series of illustrations, believing that in this manner valuable assistance may be conveyed to \t SnVn ^f ?e VhC te,Xt , The WOrk *iU' th<^ore, be found thoroughly on a levefwith the most advanced state of medical science on both sides of the Atlantic i«™im! tlUT w.hlch;^ work has received are shown by the fact that notwithstanding an en- bargement in the size of the page more than two hundred additional pages have been nicest™ to accommodate the two large volumes of the-London edition (which sells at ten dollars), whhn the compass of a single volume, and in its present form it contains the matter of at least three ordinary octavos Believing it to be a work which should lie on the table of every physician and be ,n the hands of every student, the publishers have put it at a price within the reach of SmaknJ t one of the cheapest books as yet presented to the American profession, while at the samTtimi tie beauty of its mechanical execution renders it an exceedingly attractive volume The lecturer's skill, his wisdom, his learning, are equalled by the ease of his graceful diction, his elo- quence, and the far higher qualifies of candor, of courtesy, of modesty, and of generous appreciation of merit in others.—AT. A. Med.-Chir. Review. Watson's unrivalled, perhaps unapproachable work on Practice—the copious additions made to which (the fourth edition) have given it all the no- velty and much of the interest of a new book — Charleston Med. Journal. . Lecturers, practitioners, and students of medicine will equally hail the reappearance of the work of Dr. Watson m the form of a new—a fourth—edition We merely do justice to our own feelings, and, we are sure, of the whole profession, if we thank him for having, in the trouble and turmoil of a large practice, made leisure to supply the hiatus caused by the exhaustion of the third edition. For Dr Watson has not merely caused the lectures to be reprinted, but scattered through the whole work we find additions or alterations which prove that the author has in every way sought to bring up his teach- ing to the level of the most recent acquisitions in science.—Brit, and For. Medico-Chir.Review The fourth edition now appears, so carefully re- vised, as to add considerably to the value of a book already acknowledged, wherever the English lan- guage is read, to be beyond ail comparison the best systematic work on the Principles and Practice of Physic in the whole range of medical literature. Every lecture contains proof of the extreme anxiety of the author to keep pace with the advancing know- ledge of the day One scarcely knows whether to admire most the pure, simple, forcible English— the vast amount of useful practical information condensed into the Lectures—or the manly, kind* hearted, unassuming character of the lecturer shin- ing through his work.—Lond. Med. Times. Thus these admirable volumes come before the profession in their fourth edition, abounding in those distinguished attributes of moderation, judgment, erudite cultivation, clearness, and eloquence, with which they were from the first invested, but y.et richer than before in the results of more prolonged observation, and in the able appreciation of the latest advances in pathology and medicine by one of the most profound medical thinkers of the day__I London Lancet. New and much enlarged edition. WILSON (ERASMUS), F. R. S A SYSTEM OF HUMAN ANATOMY, General and Special. A new and re- SlfoTof Aannatfommy ^iSj^SSH g££ erf,?" f G?h«T^ "• and ninety-seven engravings on wood. In one Targe nK i,i a^''11 three ^Undred over 600 large pages; extra cloth, $3 75 8 exquisitely printed octavo volume, of The publishers trust that the well earned reputation so Ions- eninwH w t»,;0 , i than maintained by the present edition. Besides a y^thor^l^oil^Z^h ™? h* T"5 most carefully examined by the editor, and the efforts of hot h hZfl t 1- e a"thor>" has been everything which increased experience inVt^^nt^^^M^r^ t0- lnlrodu™g text-book for those seeking to obtain or to renew-an ^ouainlance w ^h H render »» complete amount of additions which it has thus received may be esSedfmm i^T? it^Ty" The edition contains over one-fourth more matter than the iLt Ser?ngaTml|LtvL ^1the J>1reseu* page requisite to keep the volume within a convenient sizThe fait™ hi, YP and an enlarged caution to obtain entire accuracy in the text andhaV Ll, 1 , *' exercised the utmost tions, of which there are about one h^dS'aS fi^mWttol&^n^ of iUu««, banging distinctly before theeye of the student everyt^SiZ^^Z^Ze '' ^ f^n±Lb^I^7imended_t0_the,stud-t ^ no less beauty of its mechanical execution, and the clear- ---'-j.—:----— "- »" .ui. oraucill as ho less distinguished by its accuracy and clearness of de- scription than by its typographical elegance. The wood-cuts are exquisite.—Brit, and For. Medical Review. .An elegant edition of one of the most useful and accurate systems of anatumical science which has been issued from the press The illustrations are really beautiful. In its style the work is extremely concise and intelligible. No one can possibly take up this volume without being struck with the great wh?chath1f™rk °f th,e ,Vtally importantsconce Lancet S° fully and easily >"folds.- stulYt&^J^/.1 8yStem «°w«*»tfOT AND SCIENTIFIC PUBLICATIONS 31 rt„ ^T_ WILSON (ERASMUS), F. R. S. ON DISEASES OF THE SKIN. Fifth American, from the Fifth enlarged London edition. In one handsome octavo volume, of nearly 700 large pages, with illustrations on wood, extra cloth $4 00. (Now Ready, May, 1863.) . • Ti!liSirClafS1uS}1 WOrk' which for twenty years has occupied the position of the leading authority in the English .language on its important subject, has just received a thorough revision at the hands ol the author, and is now presented as embodying the results of the latest investigations and expe- rience on all matters connected with diseases of the skin. The increase in the size of the work shows the industry of the author, and his determination that it shall maintain the position which it has acquired as thoroughly on a level with the most advanced condition of medical science. A few notices of the last edition are appended. The writings of Wilson, upondiseases of the skin, are by far the most scientific and practical that have ever been presented to the medical world on this subject. The presenteditionisa great improve- ment on all its predecessors. To dwell upon all the great merits and high claims of the work before us, seriatim, would indeed be an agreeable service; it would be a mental homage which we could freely offer, but we should thus occupy an undue amount of space in this Journal. We will, however, look at some of the more salient points with which it abounds, and which make iiincompuraoiy superior to allother treatisesonthesubjectof dermatology. No mere speculative views are allowed a place in this volume, which, without a doubtjWill.for a very long period, be acknowledged as the chief standard work on dermatology. The principles of an enlightened and rational therapeia are introduce'd on every ap- propriate occasion.—Am. Jour. Med Science. When the first edition of this work appeared; about fourteen years ago, Mr. Erasmus Wilson had already given some years to the study of Diseases of the Skin, and he then expressed his intention of devoting his future life to the elucidation of this branch of Medical Science. In the present edition Mr. Wilson presents us with the results of his ma- tured experience, and we have now before us not merely a reprint of his former publications, but an entirely new and rewritten volume. Thus, the whole history of the diseases affecting the skin, whether they originate in that structure or are the mere mani- festations of derangement of internal organs, is brought under notice, and the book includes a mass of information which is spread over a great part of the domain of Medical and Surgical Pathology. We can safely recommend it to the profession as the best work on the subject now in existence in the En- ' glish language.—London Med. Times and Gazette No matter what other treatises may be in the libra- ry of the medical attendant, he needs the clear and suggestive counsels of Wilson, who is thoroughly posted up on all subjects connected with cutaneous pathology. We have, it is very true, other valuable works on the maladies that invade the skin; but, compared with the volume under consideration, they are certainly to be regarded as inferior lights in guid- ing the judgment of the medical man.—Boston Med. and Surg. Journal, Oct. 1857. The author adopts a simple and entertaining style. He strives to clear away the 'complications of his subject, and has thus produced a book rilled with a vast amount of information, in a form so agreeable as to make it pleasant reading, even to the uninitiated. More especially does it deserve our praise because of its beautiful and complete atlas, which the American publishers have successfully imitated from the origi- nal plates. We pronounce them by far the best imi- tations of nature yet published in our country. With the text-book and atlas at hand, the diagnosis is ren- dered easy and accurate, and the practitioner feels himself safe in his treatment. We will add that this work, although it must have been very expensive to the publishers, is not high priced. There is no rea- son, then, to prevent every physician from obtaining a work of such importance, and one which will save him both labor and perplexity.— Va. Med. Journal. As a practical guide to the classification, diagnosis, and treatment of the diseases of the skin, the book is complete. We know nothing, considered in this as- pect, better in our language; it is a safe authority on all the ordinary matters which, in this range of dis- eases, ' engage the practitioner's attention, and pos- sesses the high quality — unknown, we believe, to every older manual, of being on a level with science's high-water mark; a sound book of practice.—London Med. Times. ALSO, NOW READY, A SERIES OF PLATES ILLUSTRATING WILSON ON DISEASES OF THE SKIN; consisting of twenty beautifully executed plates, of which thirteen are exquisitely colored, presenting the Normal Anatomy and Pathology of the Skin, and containing accurate re- presentations of about one hundred varieties of disease, most of them the size of nature. Price in cloth. $4 50. In beauty of drawing and accuracy and finish of coloring these plates will be found equal to anything of the kind as yet issued in this country. The value of the new edition is enhanced by an additional colored plate. We have already expressed our high appreciation of Mr. Wilson's treatise on Diseases of the Skin. The plates are comprised in a separate volume, which we counsel all those who possess the text to purchase. It is a beautiful specimen of color print- ing, and the representations of-the various forms of skin disease are as faithful as is possible in plates of the size.—Boston Med. and Surg. Journal, April 8, 1858. The plates by which this edition is accompanied reave nothing to be desired, so far as excellence of delineation and perfect accuracy of illustration are concerned.—Medico-Chirurgical Review. Of these plates it is impossible to speak too highly. The representations of the various forms of cutane- ous disease are singularly accurate, and the color- ing exceeds almost anything we have met with.— British and Foreign Medical Review. Also the TEXT and PLATES done up in one handsome volume, extra cloth, price $8 00. BY THE SAME AUTHOR. THE DISSECTOR'S MANUAL; or, Practical and Surgical Anatomy. Third American from the last revised and enlarged English edition. Modified and rearranged, by William Hunt, M. D., Demonstrator of Anatomy in the University of Pennsylvania. In one large and handsome royal 12mo. volume, extra cloth, of 582 pages, with 154illustrations. $2 00, BY THE SAME AUTHOR. ON CONSTITUTIONAL AND HEREDITARY SYPHILIS, AND ON SYPHILITIC ERUPTIONS. In one small octavo volume, extra cloth, beautifully printed, with four exquisite colored plates, presenting more than thirty varieties of syphilitic eruptions, f 2 25, BY THE SAME AUTHOR. HEALTHY SKIN; A Popular Treatise on the Skin and Hair, their Preserva- tion and Management. Second American, from the fourth London edition. One neat volume, royal 12mo., extra cloth, of about 300 pages, with numerous illustrations. $1 00 j paper cover, 75 cents. 32 BLANCHARD & LEA'S MEDICAL PUBLICATIONS. WINSLOW (FORBES), M.D., D. C. L., 8cc. ON OBSCURE DISEASES OF THE BRAIN AND DISORDERS OF THE MIND; their incipient Symptoms, Pathology, Diagnosis, Treatment, and Prophylaxis In one handsome octavo volume, of nearly 600 pages, extra cloth. $3 50. We close this brief and necessarily very imperfect notice of Dr. Winslow's great and classical work, by expressing our conviction that it is long since so important and beautifully written a volume has is- sued from the British medical press.—Dublin Med. Press, July 25, 1860. We honestly believe this to be the best book of the season.— Hanking's Abstract, July, 1860. The latter portion of Dr. Winslow's work is ex- clusively devoted to the consideration of Cerebral Pathology. It completely exhausts the subject, in the same manner as the previous seventeen chapters relating to morbid psychical phenomena left nothing unnoticed in reference to the mental symptoms pre- monitory of cerebral disease. It is impossible to overrate the benefits likely to result from a general perusal of Dr. Winslow's valuaole and deeply in- teresting work.—London Lancet, June 23,1860. It contains an immense mass of information.— Brit, ami For. Med.-Chir. Review, Oct. 1860. WEST (CHARLES), M. D., Accoucheur, to and Lecturer on Midwifery at St. Bartholomew's Hospital, Physician to the Hospital for Sick Children, &c. LECTURES ON THE DISEASES OF WOMEN. Second American, from the second London edition. In one handsome octavo volume, extra cloth, of about 500 naees- price $3 00. *^ ' *%* Gentlemen who received the first portion, as issued in the " Medical News and Library," can now complete their copies by procuring Part II, being page 309 to end, with Index, Title matter &c, 8vo., cloth, price $1. We must now conclude this hastily written sketch with the confident assurance to our readers that the work will well repay perusal. The conscientious, painstaking, practical physician is apparent on every page.—N. Y. Journal of Medicine. We know of no treatise of the kind so complete and yet so compact.—Chicago Med. Jour. A fairer, more honest, more earnest, and more re- liable investigator of the many diseases of women and children is not to be found in any country.— Southern Med. and Surg. Journal. We have to say of it, briefly and decidedly, that it is the best work on the subject in any language j and that it stamps Dr. West as the facile princeps of British obstetric authors.—Edinb. Med. Journ. We gladly recommend his Lectures as in the high- est degree instructive to all who are interested in obstetric practice.—London Lancet. Happy in his simplicity of manner, and moderate in his expression of opinion, the author is a sound reasoner and a good practitioner, and his book is worthy of the handsome garb in which it has ap- peared .— Virginia Med. Journal. We must take leave of Dr. West's very useful work, with our commendation of the clearness of its style, and the industry and sobriety of judgment of which it gives evidence.—London Med Times. Sound judgment and good sense pervade every chapter of the book. From its perusal we have de- rived unmixed satisfaction.—Dublin Quart. Journ. BY THE SAME AUTHOR. LECTURES ON THE DISEASES OF INFANCY AND CHILDHOOD Third American, from the fourth enlarged and improved London edition. In one handsome octavo volume, extra cloth, of about six hundred and fifty pages. $3 00. The three former editions of the work now before us have placed the author in the foremost rank of those physicians who have devoted special attention to the diseases of early life. We attempt no ana- lysis of this edition, but may refer the reader to some of the chapters to which the largest additions have been made—those on Diphtheria, Disorders of the Mind, and Idiocy, for instance—as a proof that the work is really a new edition; not a mere reprint. In its present shape it will be found of the greatest possible service in the every-day practice of nine- tenths of the profession.—Med. Times and Gazette, London, Dec. 10, 1859. All things considered, this book of Dr. West is by far the best treatise in our language upon such modifications of morbid action and disease as are witnessed when we have to deal with infancy and childhood. It is true that it confines itself to such disorders as come within the province of the phy- sician, and even with respect to these it is unequal as regards minuteness of consideration, and some diseases it omits to notice altogether. But those who know anything of the present condition of paediatrics will readily admit that it would be next to impossible to effect more, or effect it better, than the accoucheur of St. Bartholomew's has done m a single volume. The lecture (XVI.) upon Disordtrs of the Mind in chilaren is an admirable specimen of the value ot the later information conveyed in the Lectures of Dr. Charles West.—London Lancet, Oct. 22, 1859. ' Since the appearance of the first edition, about eleven years ago, the experience of the author has doubled; so that, whereas the lectures at first were founded on six hundred observations, and one hun- dred and eignty dissections made among nearly four- teen thousand children, they now embody the results of nine hundred observations, and two hundred and eighty-e^htpost-mortem examinations made amone nearly thirty thousand children, who, during the past twenty years, haye been under his care — British Med. Journal, Oct. 1,1859. BY THE SAME AUTHOR. AN ENQUIRY INTO THE PATHOLOGICAL IMPORTANCE OF ULCER- ATION OF THE OS UTERI. In one neat octavo volume, extra cloth. $1 00. WHITEHEAD ON THE CAUSES AND TREAT- MENT OF ABORTION AND STERILITY. Second American Edition. vo extra cloth, pp.308. $ In on« volnmt, oota- ! 25. H0V2 imti( NLM023327968