My investigation, in this relation, revealed many important facts concerning the prevalence of the opium habit, and I was surprised to learn the amount of this potent drug, and its tincture, that is sold at country grocery stores; but that the consumption of this article is great, and increasing, was no surprise to me when I ascertained how easily the article could be obtained notwithstanding the State law that bottles containing the tincture should be labeled and not disposed of to irresponsible persons.

On the Testing of Lard for Cotton-Seed Oil and Beef Stearin.

THE following paper on this subject was read by John Pattison, F.I.C., at a recent meeting of the Society of Chemical Industry:

As much attention has recently been drawn to the prevalence of lard adulteration, I thought it would interest some of our members if I described briefly some of the methods by which these adulterations are detected and measured.

Although chemists have only lately been able to speak with certainty as to these adulterations, it has for some years been well known that lard, which ought to consist only of the fat of the pig, is very largely adulterated with cotton-seed oil and beef stearin, and occasionally with water. Some of the American lard packers are the greatest offenders in this respect; but they are not the only offenders, for well authenticated cases are known in which both English and Irish prepared lards have been found to contain similar adulterations.

To detect cotton-seed oil and beef stearin in lard and to form an estimate of the quantity, the following tests are chiefly relied on: Some form of the nitrate of silver tests for cotton seed oil, the microscopical appearance of the crystals formed from an ethereal solution of the lard to detect beef stearin, the iodine absorption equivalent, and the specific gravity. Useful information is also afforded by an examination of the color, taste, smell, and consistence of the lard.

The Nitrate of Silver Test.-This is based on the reducing action of cotton seed oil upon nitrate of silver imparting a color to the lard. I have been unable to obtain constant or trustworthy results with this test as applied by Becchi [see, however, regarding this, AMER. DRUGG., 1888, 110], who, I believe, first proposed it, nor have I been more successful with the more complicated modification of Milliau, which consists in applying the test to the fatty acids separated from the lard, nor with the several other modifications of this test which have been published. I obtain, however, very regular and certain results by adding an alcoholic solution of nitrate of silver to an ethereal solution of the lard. The method is as follows: 40 drops of the melted lard are placed in a test-tube, and dissolved in 10 C.c. of ether, and to the solution 2 C.c. of an alcoholic solution of nitrate of silver (1 of nitrate of silver to 100 of alcohol) are added. The tube and its contents are left to stand for five or six hours in a place protected from light. If the lard contains cotton-seed oil, the silver is reduced and imparts a maroon color to the solution-the depth of the color depending on the proportion of cottonseed oil the sample contains. By comparing this color with the colors produced in solutions of pure lard to which known percentages of cotton-seed oil have been added, a close approximation to the amount of cotton-seed oil in the sample can be obtained. Five per cent of cotton-seed oil in lard can be readily detected by this method.

Test for Beef Stearin.-The positive evidence of the presence of this substance in lard is best obtained by examining under a microscope the crystals formed from an ethereal solution of the lard, as proposed by Dr. Belfield, of Chicago. For this purpose I use the ethereal solution of the lard mentioned in the last paragraph. Should crystals not form in the cold solution, the cork of the tube is removed and a loose plug of cotton wool is substituted. The solution is then left to evaporate spontaneously until crystals form. It is sometimes necessary to redissolve the crystals, if they have been formed rapidly, by warming the solution, and sometimes adding a little more ether, so as to obtain crystals which have been slowly formed. Some of the crystals are then removed by a pipette, placed under a microscopic slide, and examined. The crystals of beef stearin form curved tufts somewhat of the shape of the short tail of the horse. The terminals should be pointed and hair-like. Lard crystals are usually found in oblong plates, occasionally radiated, and have oblique terminals.

The Iodine Absorption Test.-This was first described by Hübl, whose method is given in the J. Soc. Chem. Ind., 1884, page 641 [and in most works of reference]. According to my experience with lards of known purity, I find the iodine absorption equivalent of pure lard when tested by Hübl's method, to vary from 57 to 63 per cent, and cotton-seed oil to vary from 105 to 116 per cent. Were the lards to be examined for only mixtures of cotton seed oil and lard, it would be easy to arrive at a fairly close approximation to the actual amounts of each present from this test alone. This, however, is never the case, as probably all lards which contain cotton-seed oil have also had

beef stearin added to make the mixture of a suitable consistency. Beef stearin has an iodine absorption of from 23 to 28 per cent, while beef fat, which may also have been used as an adulterant, has an iodine absorption of about 41 per cent. This, unfortunately, complicates the calculation of percentage amounts of impurity from the iodine absorption equivalents. Most of the adulterated samples, however, have hitherto contained cotton-seed oil in such large quantity, and the iodine equivalent is so high, that a very substantial adulteration can be certified to without taking into account the effect of the beef stearin. When, however, the amount of cotton-seed oil is ascertained by the nitrate of silver test, a near approach to the amount of beef stearin also present can be calculated from the iodine absorption, after making allowance for the influence of the known quantity of cotton-seed oil. If the lard is found to be a mixture of lard and beef stearin or beef fat without cotton-seed oil, the calculation of the proportions of each is simplified; but as at present there are no known means of distinguishing beef stearin from beef fat in lard, it is necessary to calculate from the lower iodine absorption of beef stearin, and thus the amount of beef stearin may be understated. If the iodine absorption of such a lard be found to be 42 per cent, it will be safe to conclude that the lard contains one-half beef stearin and one-half lard, calculating the pure lard iodine equivalent at 61, and that of the beef stearin at 23 per cent, as 61 + 23 ÷ 2 = 42.

The Specific Gravity Test is also a useful corroboration of the other tests, for cotton-seed oil is higher in density than lard or stearin. It is customary to take the gravity at a temperature of 210° Fahr. as compared with water at 60° Fahr., and this is best done with a Westphahl balance. At 210° Fahr. pure lard has a gravity varying from 0.860 to 0.861, cotton-seed oil is 0.868, and beef stearin 0.857. Lard adulterated with cotton-seed oil is usually comparatively high in gravity. Some adulterated samples which have come under my notice have had a gravity of 0.8635.

Mr. Jones, of Wolverhampton, has suggested in the Analyst for September last a qualitative test for cotton-seed oil based on the stiffening effect which such oil imparts to a mixture of lard when sulphur chloride is added to it. This is a useful corroborative test.

Should the lard contain water, this is readily ascertained by the crackling effect produced when a portion of the lard is thrown on a red-hot fire, or into a red-hot platinum dish. Its amount is determined by drying at 212° Fahr. a known weight of the lard in a flat-bottomed straight-sided dish until it ceases to lose weight.

It is satisfactory to be able to state that, in this district at any rate, the cotton-seed oil adulteration of lard is now seldom or never met with. This is owing to the prompt action which the authorities have taken in the matter, and also no doubt to the desire of wholesale dealers to avoid purchasing such lard now that they know of the existence of the adulteration. There are still many samples to be met with which contain very large admixtures of beef stearin and beef fat.-After J. Soc. Chem. Ind., 1889, 30.

Testing the Purity of Reagents.
[Continued from page 44.]*

11. Acidum Sulphuricum purissimum. Spec. grav. 1.840. Clear and colorless. On evaporating 10 Gm. in a platinum vessel, no weighable residue should remain.

Test for Nitric Acid: To 100 Gm. of the acid add one drop of solution of indigo previously diluted with 10 vol. of water, and then add 100 ̊C.c. of water. Even on longer standing the color should not be discharged.

The author has made careful comparative trials of the tests for nitric acid, by means of brucine, diphenylamine, and indigo, and found the latter to be the most delicate. On adding 1 milligramme of absolute nitric acid to 1 kilogramme of sulphuric acid, and testing 100 Gm. of this in the manner directed above, upon addition of 100 Gm. of water the color was completely discharged after a few

minutes.

The diphenylamine and brucine reactions are often used when examining drinking water for nitrates, but they give reliable results only when certain conditions are carefully observed.

A. Wagner (Zeitsch. f. anal. Chem., 1881, 329) gives the following directions for the diphenylamine method: Put 1 C.c. of the solution suspected to contain nitrates, or, if sulphuric acid is to be tested for nitric, put 1 C.c. of pure distilled water into a small porcelain capsule, add a few crystals of diphenylamine, and then add, by means of a platinum spoon holdingC.c., two such spoonfuls in succession. The first spoonful causes the diphenylamine to melt, and the addition of the second causes it to be dissolved. If traces of nitric acid are present, a blue color will develop after a while, which soon changes to yellow. In the same manner, a red color is obtained with brucine. The author (Dr. Krauch) has, however, sometimes failed to obtain these reactions, though performing them exactly as prescribed. A deviation from the prescribed method will often lead to other results. A. Vogel, for instance,

*After: Krauch. Dr. C., " Die Prüfung der chemischen Reagentien auf Reinheit," 8vo, Darmstadt, 1888.

reports that he has never yet seen any "pure" sulphuric acid which did not give a rose-red tint with brucine. It seems next to impossible for the manufacturers of pure sulphuric acid to supply a product which will, under all circumstances, stand the brucine and diphenylamine reaction. On the other hand, it may well be demanded that it shall stand the indigo test.

Tests for reducing substances: To 60 C.c. of water add 15 C.c. of sulphuric acid, and one drop of a normal solution of permanganate of potassium (1 C.c. corresponding to 0.0056 Gm. of iron). A distinct red tint should be produced.

Metals. On diluting the acid [gradually] with 5 times its volume of alcohol [the acid to be dropped into the latter], no cloudiness should occur even on protracted standing (abs. of lead).

On diluting 10 C.c. of the acid with water, supersaturating with ammonia, the liquid should neither be rendered greenish by sulphide of ammonium, nor cloudy by oxalate of ammonium (abs. of other metals).

Test for Arsenic: Into a flask of the capacity of 200 C.c., fitted up for Marsh's test, are put 20 Gm. of zinc, absolutely free from arsenic, and then enough of the acid previously diluted with 3 parts of water. No arsenical mirror should be noticeable after half an hour's reaction.

The author adds that sulphuric acid free from arsenic is very commonly found in the market, but acid containing lead and substances oxidizable by permanganate is not of

uncommon occurrence.

Test for Ammonia: Dilute 2 Gm. of the acid with about 30 C.c. of water, supersaturate with potassa (3 to 4 Gm.), and then add 10 to 12 drops of Nessler's solution. No distinct yellow or reddish-brown color should make its appearance.

The author states that the presence of 1 milligramme of ammonia in 100 Gm. of the acid, when the before-mentioned test is used, is shown by the development of a yellow color and turbidity.

Test for Halogens: Dilute 2 Gm. of the acid to 30 C.c., and add a few drops of nitrate of silver. No change should occur.

The author states that crude sulphuric acid [referring more particularly to the home product] usually contains arsenic, hydrofluoric acid, lead, iron, titanium, nitric oxide, nitrous and nitric acids, and selenium.

12. Acidum Sulphuricum Fumans (H,SO. ÷ SO,). Fuming or Nordhausen Sulphuric Acid.

An oily liquid, sometimes slightly colored and not quite clear, fuming on exposure to air.

Test for Nitric Acid: To 20 Gm. of the acid are added 4 or 5 drops of diluted indigo solution (1 : 10), and the acid then added to 20 C. c. of water. The liquid must show a distinct blue tint even after some minutes' standing.

The author states that the methods quoted under No. 11-except the indigo method in the form here prescribed -are not applicable to this preparation. It seems that a fuming sulphuric acid standing the indigo test is rather rare. The commercial article usually discharges the indigo color quite rapidly. As the acid is used in mixture with pure sulphuric acid, in Kjeldahl's nitrogen assay, it is necessary to make a blank trial to ascertain the amount of nitrogen compounds present in the acid.

13. Æther Purissimum. Spec. grav. 0.722-0.720. Boiling point: 34-36° C. (93.2-96,8° F.).

It should be colorless, of a neutral reaction, and should not possess a disagreeable odor. On slowly evaporating 50 Gm. of ether, no residue should remain.

If 30 C.c. of ether are poured upon 5 Gm. of pure caustic potassa, and the mixture kept for a few days in a dark place, being occasionally agitated, no brown flakes should separate.

14. Æther Purissimum. Anhydrous, distilled over Sodium (C8H10O).

Spec. grav. 0.718-0.720. Boil. point: 34-36° C. (93.296.8° F.).

The reactions mentioned under the preceding apply also here. Water agitated with the ether should show neither an acid nor an alkaline reaction.

Absence of Water: Pour 15 C.c. of the ether into an absolutely dry test-tube, and then add a piece of metallic sodium of about the size of a pea. Not more than a very faint development of gas should occur, and the sodium must retain its metallic lustre even after six hours.

In ether which has not been distilled over metallic sodium, this test causes a fragment of sodium to be coated with a distinct yellowish-white coating of sodium hydroxide.

Note by the Author.-In the literature, the following tests have been proposed to test for the presence of water in ether: 1. Addition of an equal volume of bisulphide of carbon, which should produce no cloudiness (Beilstein). 2. Agitation with dry [completely dried? or air-dry? Dr. K.] tannin, which should remain pulverulent and not become liquid (Hager). 3. Addition of paper rendered blue by cobaltic chloride, which must not change its color (Napier).

The author also tried the addition of anhydrous copper sulphate, which becomes blue or green in presence of

water.

The author found that ether having a spec. grav, of

"Ether purissi

0.725 did not stand any of these tests. mum" (No. 13) stood all but the sodium test. That which was distilled over sodium stood all the tests. Both kinds of pure ether (Nos. 13 and 14) should be kept protected from the light.

15. Alcohol Methylicum Purissimum (CH.O). Spec. grav. 0.796. Boil. point: 64-66° C. (147.2-150.8" F.). Clear and colorless.

On evaporating 50 Gm., no residue should remain. Test for Acetone: Mix 1 C.c. with about 10 C. c. of soda solution, of double normal strength; then add about 5 C.c. of double normal iodine solution. No cloudiness should occur (Kraemer's method).

On gradually mixing 2 C.c. of methylic alcohol with 2 C.c. of sulphuric acid, no yellow color should be developed. (Note by the Author.) Methylic alcohol often contains acetone, acetate of methyl, methyl-acetal, aldehyde, propione, and allyl alcohol. Occasionally it is found so much contaminated with acetone that it will yield a considerable amount of iodoform with solutions of iodine and soda.

Ethyl alcohol is detected according to Riel and Ch. Bardy (Compt. rend., 82, 768. Berl. Berichte, 1876, 638) as follows: Heat the wood spirit with sulphuric acid, add water, and distil. To the distillate add sulphuric acid and permanganate of potassium, afterwards hyposulphite of sodium, and finally a dilute solution of fuchsine. If ethyl alcohol was present, the liquid acquires a violet color. 16. Ammonii Fluoridum Purissimum (NH.Fl.). To be tested like Acidum Hydrofluoricum fumans (No. 5, page 44).

The author states that he has found in a specimen of this salt sold as "purissimum" nearly per cent of lead. On heating 10 Gm., a residue of 2 to 3 milligrammes is usually left behind, and is hardly avoidable. But lead should certainly be absent.

17. Ammonii Molybdas Purissimus. (3(NH),0,7M0O. + 4H2O or MO7O24(NH4)6.)

Large, colorless crystals.

Test for Phosphoric Acid: On dissolving 10 Gm. of the salt in 25 C.c. of water and 15 C. c. of water of ammonia (sp. gr. 0.910), a clear solution should be produced. On mixing this with 150 Gm. of nitric acid of sp. grav. 1.200, the liquid, even after standing two hours in a moderately warm place, should not deposit a yellow precipitate.

This test is very delicate. One milligramme of absolute phosphoric acid was added to 100 Gm. of the salt, and when the latter was tested as above directed, a distinct yellow precipitate was produced. At the same time it is just as well to follow the directions usually given, viz.: that after an acid solution of molybdate of ammonium has been prepared for analytical purposes, it be put aside for several days at a temperature of 35° C., so that, if any phosphoric acid is present, it be surely deposited.

17. Argenti Nitras Purus.

Test for Nitrate of Potassium and Chloride of Silver: Dissolve 0.5 Gm. of the salt in 0.5 Gm. of water, add 20 C.c. of absolute alcohol, and shake a few minutes. The solution should be clear.

General Test for Impurities: Dissolve 2 Gm. in about 60 C.c. of water, warm the solution to 70° C., gradually precipitate the silver with the requisite quantity of hydrochloric acid, allow the precipitate to deposit, filter while warm, wash the precipitate, evaporate the filtrate to dryness and ignite it at a low red heat. Only traces of residue should remain.

Note. When exact results are wanted, a larger quantity should be taken in operation. Mr. H. Roessler, of Frankfurt-on-Main, informed the author that he used the following process: 100 Gm. of nitrate of silver are dissolved in distilled water, and the silver precipitated with hydrochloric acid. The filtrate is first concentrated in a porcelain capsule, then again diluted with some water, the liquid warmed and filtered and the filtrate evaporated to dryness. The residue finally remaining is gently ignited over a gas flame, and weighed. At the same time, a volume of distilled water, equal to that used in the preceding operation, is mixed with about 100 C.c. of purest nitric acid (sp. gr. 1.200) and 50 C.c. of hydrochloric acid (sp. gr. 1.190) a porcelain capsule, the whole evaporated, gently ignited, and the residue weighed. The latter is deducted from the residue obtained from the silver salt.

in

Detection of Cochineal Color in Foods.

To detect cochineal color (or carmine) in foods, E. Lagorge directs to dissolve the substance in water or dilute alcohol, and if not already slightly acid, to acidify it with 1 or 2 drops of acetic acid, care being taken to avoid a decided excess of acid. The solution is then shaken with amyl alcohol, which extracts the coloring matter. The alcohol is poured off and evaporated with sufficient water on a water-bath. A few drops of a 3% uranium acetate solution are added to the water and a bluish-green color or precipitate shows the presence of cochineal. The addition of an acid gives the solution an orange color. To detect it in wine the latter is shaken with a mixture of equal volumes of amyl alcohol and benzene or, what is better, toluene, otherwise normal ingredients of the wine are dissolved and the action becomes indistinct. After shaking, the alcohol solution is poured off into a test tube and 2

C.c. of distilled water and 1 drop of uranium acetate solution are added and the contents of the tube thoroughly shaken. A bluish green color in the water shows presence of cochineal.

If ammoniacal cochineal has been added to the wine, the color of the lake passes from a violet red to a violet blue. Besides cochineal, some other substances give lakes with uranium oxide. Natural wine gives a yeast color, Campeachy extract gives violet, and Holland wine violet blue. The difficulty in removing the coloring matter from these wines renders the reaction with uranium acetate useless with them.-Chem. Zeit. and J. Anal. Chem.

On the Reactions, Solubility, etc., of Glass. AN important paper by Dr. F. Mylius, of the Imperial German Bureau of Physics and Technology, published in the February number of the Zeitschrift f. Instrumentenkunde, contains some facts which are but little known or entirely new, and some of which help to account for phenomena often encountered by those who handle much glassware filled with liquid or solid products.

The object of the author's paper was rather an abstract one, namely, to discuss the methods best adapted to determine the technical value of glass.

Heretofore it has been customary to use, for this purpose, Rudolph Weber's process, which consists in exposing the glass in question, during twenty-four hours, to an atmosphere of hydrochloric acid vapors, and afterwards to the air. According to the quality of the glass, the latter will become coated with more or less of a film of chlorides produced by the acid vapor.

While this test is quite reliable when used by a practised eye, it is often uncertain in the hands of less experienced persons. For this reason a color-test, if feasible, would be highly desirable. And, in fact, such a one is subsequently described by the author. He first recalls the fact that certain color tests had been used before. Thus it is known that when powdered glass is added to a red solution of litmus, this will turn blue. In like manner will powdered glass exercise an alkaline reaction upon phenolphtalein and hæmatoxylin, imparting a purple color to a colorless solution of either of these reagents. The author has, however, discovered a new method, by "dyeing" the glass with a peculiar variety of eosine.

The method is based upon the fact that glass is decomposed by water in ethereal solution. It has been shown by Rieth, Weber, and the author that glass has the power of absorbing water from hydrated ether.

The hygroscopic tendency of glass is in direct proportion to its proneness to suffer decomposition. A piece of glass placed in hydrated ether absorbs the more water the poorer it is. The quantity of alkali which is thereby set free or capable of reaction may be used as a measure of decomposition, and may actually be measured colorimetrically by converting it into a colored salt by means of eosine (which is an acid). If the eosine is contained in the ethereal solution, a portion of it is deposited in the glass, and the quantity is equivalent to the amount of the alkali. The reaction may be represented by the following scheme: I. Na,O(SiO2)x + H2O = 2Na HO + SiO2. Glass Water Soda (alkali) Silicic acid II. 2NaHO + C20 H&I,Os = C20H.Na,I,O, + 2H2O. Eosine Eosine-soda salt Water

Soda

It has been found that the following method is most suitable in practice:

Saturate commercial ether at the ordinary temperature with water by agitation, remove the ethereal layer, and in 100 C.c. of it dissolve 0.1 Gm. of iodine-eosin. Filter the solution and preserve it in well-closed bottles [of hard glass]. It will keep for any length of time.t

When glass is to be examined colorimetrically, pieces of it are laid in the solution, or the latter is poured into tubes or vessels made from it.

Every kind of glass becomes coated, by protracted exposure to the air, with more or less of a layer of decomposition products, chiefly carbonates of alkalies. Before applying the test, this must be carefully removed by washing with water, alcohol, and ether.

When the test is performed, and the varieties of glass to be tested are available in shape of tubes, a series of these are cleaned as just described, then fused up at one end, and a quantity of the colored reagent poured into each. They are then hermetically sealed and set aside for twenty-four hours, when the liquid is removed and the tubes rinsed out with pure ether.

The eosine solution used has a bright orange-red tint, and the colored coats produced in glass-tubes of different quality vary from a pale purple orange, through pale purple, pink, and reddish, to perfect colorlessness, according to the quality of the glass.

The soft kind of glass, such as that containing lead (crystal glass), assumes the most deep purplish tint of all. The more difficultly fusible kinds, which are generally

Physikalisch-Technische Reichsanstalt (charged with the inspection and verification of standards of weight, measure, light, sound, heat, etc.).

+ Ordinary eosine is a bromated substitution-product of fluorescein, and that which is soluble in water and used for red inks is usually the sodium salt of this body. This kind of eosine will not answer the above purpose. Bromated fluoresceine (not combined with a base) may be used, but the iodated compound is preferable, on account of the finer color. Iodine-eosine is to be had in the market, for instance, from C. A. F. Kahlbaum, of Berlin.

known as "hard glass" (Bohemian), become much less tinted. The most resistant of all Bohemian kinds of glass is that made by Kavalier, which is scarcely tinted at all. Good qualities of bottle glass as well as window glass are likewise scarcely affected by the eosine solution.

Testing the Purity of Creosote.

In view of the increased importance which creosote has recently acquired in medicine, W. Brandes, of Hanover, reviews some of the pharmacopoeial and other tests which have been relied upon for recognizing its purity, and makes some suggestions for their improvement.

The German Pharmacopoeia allows the specific gravity to vary between 1.030 and 1.080 (the U. S. Pharmacopoeia, between 1.035 and 1.085). This appears to be too large a variation. The caustic soda test of the Germ. Pharm. (which is not used by the U. S. Pharm.) is thus modified by the author, after Hartmann and Hauers:

Mix 4 C.c. of water, 4 C.c. of solution of soda (15%), and 2 C.c. of creosote. The resulting liquid must be perfectly clear and of a light yellow color. Any turbidity would indicate the presence of indifferent oils, and a brown color would show that other constituents of coal-tar are present.

Creosote is mainly composed of guajacol and creosol.* Pure guajacol has the spec. grav. 1.117 at 15° C.; pure creosol, the spec. grav. 1.089 at 13° C. From this it follows that a good creosote should have a high spec. grav. Now, as the value of a creosote should depend upon the percentage of the above two bodies contained in it, and more particularly the former, a test should be applied which permits their estimation. This may be done by adopting the method of Hlasiwetz, depending upon the fact that both guajacol and creosol form potassium salts which are difficultly soluble in alcohol. To execute the test, prepare a solution of 50 Gm. of caustic potassa (purified by alcohol) in 200 Gm. of pure alcohol of 96% Tralles. Then agitate 10 C.c. of this solution with 1 C.c. of creosote. If the latter is rich in the two bodies mentioned, it will quickly solidify to a crystalline mass.

Mr. Brandes recommends the insistance upon a spec. grav. of at least 1.070 to 1.080, in order to insure the rejection of products containing but little of the important ingredients.

Regarding the collodion test of the pharmacopoeia, the author says that care should be taken not to use collodion having an acid reaction, and to use a perfectly dry testtube.

The glycerin test is very reliable, any phenol present being readily shown.

The author also mentions a test recommended by Hartmann and Hauers, which is as follows:

On shaking 2 C.c. of creosote, 4 C.c. of petroleum benzin, and 4 C.c. of a cold saturated solution of caustic baryta together, the benzin solution should not acquire a blue or muddy color, and the aqueous portion should not become red. Either coloration would show that other (objectionable) constituents of beechwood-tar are present.

When this test is applied to different samples of creosote, it will be found that the mixture finally separates, either in three layers: baryta solution, creosote, benzin; or in two layers: baryta solution, and solution of creosote in benzin. This different behavior is thus accounted for: Pure guajacol is insoluble in benzin, but pure creosol is soluble in this menstruum. When there is a certain proportion of both present, the creosol will aid the partial solution of guajacol. But when the latter materially predominates, or when the creosote contains phenol or cresol, the guajacol is not dissolved at all, and remains, mixed with the phenol or cresol, as a separate layer.

The author recommends to make the test with alcoholic potassa, which is mentioned above, officinal in about the following form:

On agitating 10 C.c. of alcoholic solution of potassa (prepared by dissolving 1 part of potassa purified by alcohol in 4 parts of pure alcohol of 96%), with 1 C.c. of creosote, the mixture should congeal, after a while, to a firm, crystalline mass, which should become, after half an hour's standing, so firm that it cannot be disturbed even by strong agitation.-After Archiv d. Pharm.

Poisoning by Citrate of Caffeine.-Mr. T. Geraty, M.R.C.S., of Nottingham, describes a case of poisoning by caffeine, the sufferer being a lady, who took a dessertspoonful (equal to 200 grains) of pure citrate of caffeine in mistake for the granular effervescent form of the drug. A quarter of an hour after the reception of the poison there was semi-unconsciousness, grave depression, extreme pallor, all the muscles completely relaxed, and a decided inclination to sleep; pulse slow, soft, and very compressible; respiration slow and sighing. Emesis was induced by apomorphia and stimulants administered, but it was more than one hour before consciousness was recovered and the faintness passed away.-Chem. and Drugg.

*Guajacol is the methyl-ether of pyrocatechin-OH.CH.OCH,. Creosol is the methyl-ether of homo-pyrocatechin-OH.C,H,(CH3.OCH,. Creosol must not be confounded with cresol, which is a generic name for three isomeric bodies (difficult to separate) contained in coal-tar, and also in certain wood-tars, and which have the composition OH.CH.CH,. Beechwood-tar contains both cresol and creosol.-ED. AM. DR.

Almond Meal. -Blanched sweet almonds, ripe and dry beans, of each 18 oz.; orris root, 8 oz. ; white Castile soap, 6 oz.; spermaceti, 1 oz.; dried carbonate of sodium, 1 oz.; oils of bergamot, lavender, and lemon, of each 6 drachms. Beat or grind to a fine powder, and keep from the air. To be used with a little water, in place of soap, to clean, whiten, and soften the skin.-Dr. Cir, after Cooley.

Espey's Cream.-The following is said to produce a mixture resembling this preparation:-Quince seed, 1 drachms; boracic acid, 4 grains; glycerin, 2 fl. oz.; alcohol, 3 fl. oz.; carbolic acid, 10 grains; cologne water, 2 fl. drachms; oil of lavender, 20 drops; glycerite of starch, 2 oz.; water, sufficient to make 1 pint. Dissolve the boracic acid in 8 fl. oz. of water, macerate the quince seed in this for three hours, and press through a cloth; add the glycerin, carbolic acid and glycerite of starch, and mix thoroughly; mix the cologne water and oil of lavender with the alcohol, and add to the mucilage, mixing the whole well.-Dr. Cir.

Bituminated Iodoform is a compound of iodoform and tar lately introduced as an antiseptic by Dr. Ehrmann, of Vienna. It is in the form of transparent, brown, metallic scales, easily pulverized, and is thought to diminish the volatility of the iodoform.

Camphorated Naphthol.-Crystallized carbolic acid is liquefied when mixed with an equal weight of camphor, and this property has been utilized in forming a liquid to be used as a painless cautery. Mr. Duquesnelle says that both alpha- and beta-naphthol possess similar properties, a mixture of ten parts of the latter with twenty parts of camphor producing a syrupy, colorless liquid, insoluble in water, but miscible in all proportions with fixed oils. To insure rapid solution, the substances must first be finely powdered.-Pharm. Jour.

Goose-grease is recommended by Percy Wells as a basis for ointments. It should be mixed with cocoa-butter, and in this form is very readily absorbed. Mr. Wells melts 3 pounds in an enamelled pan. When the small amount of membrane it contains forms a mass, it is to be strained through fine muslin and, while hot, pound of cocoa-butter is added. The mixture is then to be stirred more and more vigorously as it cools, a wooden spoon being preferable to a knife or rod for this purpose. By being benzoated, it may be kept for a long time without change.-Pharm. Journ.

The Largest Scale in the world is said to be that which has recently been completed in Krupp's steel-works at Essen. Its load-capacity is 100,000 kilos (nearly 100 tons); The fee for its official verification and "sealing" amounted to 111 mark and 50 pfennige.

Fertilizer for House Plants.-It is reasonable to suppose that plants grown in the house may require the use of fertilizers quite as urgently as plants grown out of doors, if, indeed, the need is not more urgent, owing to the artificial life which they lead, and the deprivation of surroundings which nature furnishes. The cultivation of house plants is sufficiently common to warrant the attention of druggists to this want, and we give below a formula for a fertilizer which can be sold in packages to be added to the requisite proportion of water:

Carbonate of Potassium, Phosphate of Potassium, Carbonate of Magnesium, Silicate of Sodium, of each 1 part; Nitrate of Potassium, 2 parts; Sulphate of Iron, 3 parts. To be added to 2,000 parts of Water.

Treatment of Phthisis by Hot Air.- When Dr. Weigert published his results in the treatment of phthisis by inhalation of hot dry air, a good deal of scepticism was excited in the scientific world, and Weigert was not able to bring the details of his cases before the medical society to which he had intended to communicate them. Prof. Kohlshütter, of Halle, read a paper the other day before a medical society in which he confirmed the theoretical exactness of Weigert's announcement by stating that air heated to 350° F. could be inhaled by phthisical patients without any bad effects, while the influence of the inhalations on the tubercle bacillus seemed to be really destructive. The professor considers that the treatment is worthy of serious examination -a testimony which created no small sensation among his audience.-Chem. and Drugg.

A New Tænicide.-M. Thiel has examined the bark of a tree known as the "moussena," the Acacia anthelmintica of Baillon, growing principally in Abyssinia, and having a high reputation as a destroyer of tapeworm. It is said to be more active than kousso and to have a less disagreeable taste. The bark is the only part of the tree employed medicinally, and this is taken in the form of powder, in doses of from 1 oz. to 2 oz., alone or mixed with honey and stirred up in milk. The Abyssinians mix the powder with flour, and make bread with it, and take a sufficient quantity of the bread with butter or honey three hours before the first meal in the morning. The same evening or the next day the worm is generally expelled in fragments. M. Thiel has found in the bark a substance whose chemical characteristics resemble saponin, and he calls this "moussenine."-J. de Med. de Par. and Chem. News.

The

Morrhuol.-Morrhuol is being pushed forward. process of manufacture consists, it seems, in extracting cod-liver oil with alcohol (90 per cent), and distilling the extract. The residue is a sharp-tasting, very bitter aromatic oil, which contains bromine, iodine, and phosphorus in some quantity, and which crystallizes at normal temperatures. The product is put up in capsules of 3 grains each, which are declared to correspond in therapeutical virtue to about 14 drachms of cod-liver oil. Brown oil is said to yield from 4.5 to 6 per cent, pale oil 2.5 to 3 per cent, and white oil 1.5 to 2 per cent of morrhuol.—Chem. and Drugg.

Salol in Cholera.-MR. ERNEST HART (editor of the Brit. Med. Jour.), on his recent visit to Paris, called at the private pathological laboratory of Professor Cornil, and among those working in the laboratory he found M. Lowenthal, of Lausanne, who was studying the action of salol on the comma microbe of cholera, and who insisted on the toxic influence of this substance on cultivations of the cholera bacillus previously revivified, and rendered very toxic by the action of pancreas, pancreatic juice, or pancreatin. When two tubes are taken, both containing a nutritive mixture to which pancreatic juice has been added, and also cholera bacillus cultivations, if to one be added a quantity of salol exceeding 10 centigrammes, the vegetation of the cholera bouillon was immediately arrested. According to the conclusions which he is disposed to draw from this research, salol may possibly become the preventive and curative agent of Asiatic cholera, but it must be tried in clinical practice before this conclusion can be definite.-Chem. and Drugg.

Use of Antipyrin or Antifebrin.-Many medical writers have reported the efficacy of both antipyrin and antifebrin in headache. The best method of administration, according to Dr. Carter and others, appears to be to give 5 grains (of either) every hour, until the pain begins to moderate. A relief is usually experienced after the first, but certainly after the second dose. It has, however, been noticed that the continued administration of antipyrin produces in some person a weakness of the heart's action, and for this reason Dr. Carter and some other authorities usually prefer antifebrin.

The Cod-Liver Oil Fisheries of Norway.-The continuous stormy weather during the whole fishing season of 1888 (between January and April) prevented the Lofoten fishing-boats from going out, and had it not been that fish ran into a small fjord named Ostnaesfjord, near Brettesnaer, it would have been one of the worst fishings for some years back. As soon as it was found that the fish had gone into this fjord, several thousands of boats flocked thither, with the result that in five weeks they took about 18,000,000 fish, bringing up the total number taken on the inner side of the Lofoten to 29,500,000, against 31,000,000 the previous year.

A Prize for Alkaloidal Assay-Methods.-The Belgian Academy of Medicine has, among other prize subjects of purely medical interests, proposed the following which concerns the pharmaceutical chemists: "To indicate from deductions based on personal and original investigations a precise and easy method for estimating alkaloids in medicaments and pharmaceutical preparations." The prize offered is 500f. Memoirs must be sent before December 15th, 1889, and bear no designation but a motto which is to be repeated on a sealed envelope containing the name of the writer. The essays may be written in either Latin, French, or Flemish. No work already published in whole or in part is to be admitted to the competition.—Chem. and Drugg.

Picrotoxin an Antidote to Morphine.-Messrs. Böhringer & Sons call attention to interesting preliminary experiments made by Professor Arpad Bokai which go far to show that picrotoxin, the active principle of Cocculus indicus, is probably the best antidote for morphine poisoning. Picrotoxin is said to prevent paralysis of the centre of respiration, by which death from morphine is caused. It has also exactly the opposite effect of morphine on the pressure of blood. Professor Bokai has promised further communications on this subject.-Chem. and Drugg.

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IN

EDITORIAL.

N an editorial contained in our last November number, page 216, we threw out a hint, or rather warning, to our European confrères, who are just awakening to the importance of fluid extracts, not to devise new methods or new apparatus for making these preparations, but to employ those which we, on this side of the Atlantic, have found, after nearly forty years' trial, to be most suitable. If our confrères, after such trial, could evolve anything better, we should be only too glad to adopt it. But we were then, and are now even more, convinced that the disregard of our hard-gained and minutely recorded experience, accessible in our literature, would eventually entail much disappointment upon our Continental brotherpharmacists.

We have recently seen an illustration and description of a new percolating apparatus designed by the well-known firm of Schlag & Berend, of Berlin, which bids fair to make the user obtain but a poor opinion of the value of fluid extracts. It consists of a glass percolator, containing a glass diaphragm (fused in) and a glass stop-cock. It is connected by means of glass and rubber tubing with the receiver, which is a Woulff's bottle having a tubulure at the bottom. Cumbrous and complicated as this apparatus is, it might yet be made serviceable by proper management. But the accompanying directions utterly destroy its utility. Among these directions are the following:

"When the apparatus is to be used, put the drug in coarse [!] powder into the percolator, and dampen it with the menstruum, the stop-cock being closed. Connect the other parts of the apparatus, and having caused enough of the menstruum to flow on top, allow to macerate for three days. Now open the glass faucet of the percolator, and allow the percolate to flow off, with suitable regulation of pressure [by means of a reservoir, which we need not describe here]. It is of advantage either to pour back the first percolate so as to pass it through the drug again [!], or at once to evaporate it. When the percolate amounts to four-fifths of the weight of the drug, the operation is continued with fresh menstruum until the drug is exhausted," etc.

It would be difficult to devise a process more thoroughly faulty, or more surely resulting in failure, than this. It

seems our confrères are bound to run the gauntlet of ex perimentation themselves, without benefiting by the experience previously gained by others. Well, we can only look on and wait, remembering that a wilful man must have his way.

Α

TTENTION is called to the fact that the "Digest of Criticisms on the United States Pharmacopoeia, Sixth Decennial Revision (1880)," part I., which has been published by the Committee of Revision, is now off the press and ready for distribution to those who are entitled to receive it under the resolution of the Committee. As the pamphlet is not for sale, and has been printed at the expense of the Committee for the purpose of assisting those who are actually engaged in work preparatory to the next revision, or who are members of Pharmacopoeia Committees, it will be well to quote the following Notice from the pamphlet, as there are already indications that some persons desire the publication merely as a literary curiosity, to be put on their shelves perhaps among "privately printed books," without really intending to make use of it. The number of legitimate applicants is likely to be large enough to exhaust the edition in a short time. Care will therefore be taken not to bestow copies where it will be almost certain that they will be of no use to the revisers of the pharmacopoeia.

The Notice above referred to is as follows:

1. An official copy of this Digest will be sent to all incorporated Medical and Pharmaceutical State Associations, Societies and Colleges, and to similar institutions and bodies, as far as their existence or location is known. 2. Additional copies may be obtained by any of these bodies, for the use of any Committee on Pharmacopoeia, by forwarding the amount of postage, which is 8 cents per copy.* Not more than five copies can be thus obtained at first; but if the number remaining in stock permits, more may afterwards be supplied.

3. Each member of the Committee of Revision will receive five copies.

4. Copies may be sent, free of postage, to such individuals as are known to be engaged in pharmacopoeial work, and whose names are furnished to the Chairman.

5. Copies sent to individuals at their own request, will not be sent carriage-free. The amount of postage (8 cents) must accompany the request.

6. Every recipient of this pamphlet is requested to send to the Chairman of the Committee the titles of any publications which may be known to him to contain valuable and positive contributions to the next revision of the U. S. Ph., and which have not been already abstracted for Part I.

*This was the estimated postage before the pamphlet was bound. The actual postage was 7 cents.

It may be stated here that while the resolution under § 1 distinctly specifies "incorporated bodies," in deference to the fact that only the latter are (with special additions) represented in the decennial pharmacopoeial convention, yet copies of the pamphlet will be also placed at the disposal of non-incorporated bodies, if actively engaged in pharmacopoeial work, so far as the copies on hand will permit.

Part II. is nearly ready for the press, but will be held back for about one month, in order that correspondents may indicate the titles of journals or works not yet made use of. It should be understood that no blame should attach to the Committee for having failed to use any source of information which has not been pointed out to them as deserving of notice.

E are much pleased with the sensible course adopted

W by the Commission of Pharmacy for the State of

Maine, as illustrated by the circular letter which we print elsewhere in this number. Such a frank and reasonable effort to aid candidates for a license to practise pharmacy should find many imitators among other State boards. It is likely to impress every prospective applicant with the belief that while the board intends to enforce the law regulating the practice, it is fairly disposed towards all who are possessed of the essential matters of information which are requisite, and that no one who will take the trouble to inform himself of things which every pharmacist should know needs to fear the ordeal to which he will be subjected.