Volume 1 — NEW YORK JOURNAL OF PHARMACY. APRIL, 1852.
Reading edition
REMARKS UPON SOME OF THE PREPARATIONS OF THE PHARMACOPŒIA OF THE UNITED STATES, 1851. BY GEORGE D. COGGESHALL. (Continued from page 44.)
In giving formulæ it is to be supposed that the purpose of a Pharmacopœia is to be practical, responding to the every day wants of the associated professions of medicine and pharmacy. It would seem to be in no case of practical utility to retain a formula that is not used, and of this character I think is the one for “MUCILAGE OF GUM ARABIC.” It does not appear to be employed of the consistence directed except as a paste. Nor is this consistence understood when mucilage of gum arabic is prescribed by physicians, but by some apothecaries a solution of only one eighth, and by others, one fourth the strength is put up. If physicians are expected to prescribe, and apothecaries to compound according to the letter of the Pharmacopœia, this is certainly a daily and unfortunately, owing to the want of a standard, a variable exception. The formula in our Pharmacopœia is substantially the same as in those of London and Edinburgh, while that of Dublin is one half stronger. In the latter three it enters into other officinal preparations, but in every case it is combined with water, which appears to be a needless multiplication of the process, as the proper proportions of gum and water for the whole might as well be directed at once. Nor, is it probably used in {98} extemporaneous prescription without similar addition of water, unless it may be to form pills, for which it is rarely, if ever, well adapted, or employed by the apothecary when it is prescribed, as it makes, with most substances, an intractable mass. I have been told by a highly intelligent and well educated English apothecary, that “it was formerly the practice of English physicians to prescribe one ounce of mucilage of gum arabic with seven ounces of water, (or in that proportion,) making a solution of the strength now commonly used here, and that it had become gradually the practice to direct the whole quantity required, under the term of ‘mucilage of gum arabic,’ with the general understanding that the diluted strength was intended.” As this seems to be now the universal practice in prescribing and putting up mixtures, the officinal directions are practically useless, and lead to the adoption of various proportions by different apothecaries, to produce the mucilage to complete mixtures.
Another circumstance may be noticed. The Pharmacopœia directs the use of powdered gum and of boiling water, whereas gum, in its ordinary condition or coarsely broken, and cold water make a clearer solution. Cold water is directed for the solution of the gum by the Edinburgh process, and in our present formula for “Syrup of Gum Arabic;”—if appropriate for the latter, it is quite as much so for the forming of mucilage. When the gum has been ground in a mill it appears to have been a little charred and forms a somewhat turbid solution; if powdered by hand, and rather more coarsely, its solution is clearer.
Upon the whole it seems desirable that there should be a uniform strength for the mucilage of gum arabic, prescribed by physicians in mixtures, which the officinal preparation evidently is not. Our mucilage does not enter into any other officinal preparations, and if it did, the combination of gum and water had better be made in the general process, as in our almond mixture.
“COMPOUND SPIRIT OF LAVENDER” appears to be but seldom {99} made according to the officinal directions, owing to the difficulty of procuring the simple spirit of lavender. On this account most apothecaries use a proportion of the oil of lavender and of spirit, variable no doubt in different private recipes. The oil makes a decidedly inferior preparation, separating upon admixture with water, and even the best English oil—which is probably never used—is less congenial to the stomach than the distilled spirit. But the difficulty may be overcome, and an excellent preparation, essentially the same and perhaps quite equal in quality and flavor to that of the Pharmacopœia, may be made by the employment of recently dried flowers. The following is the formula I have used for several years, with an entirely satisfactory result:―
Take of Lavender flowers twelve ounces,
Rosemary leaves,
Cinnamon, bruised, each four ounces and a half,
Nutmegs, bruised,
Cloves, bruised, each six drachms,
Coriander seed, bruised,
Red Sanders each three ounces,
Powdered Turmeric one drachm,
Alcohol six pints,
Water five pints and a quarter.
Mix, digest for fourteen days, express and filter.
THE “SYRUP OF GUM ARABIC,” unaccountably withdrawn from the Pharmacopœia in 1840, when it had become a familiar favorite, comes to us again in the new revision, not at all improved by seclusion. It is changed in its proportions, but not for the better, as it now has too little gum and too much sugar in its composition. Of numerous formulæ by which I have made this syrup, I have always found that from our Pharmacopœia of 1830, the best in proportions, consistence and flavor. It is defective however, in one point of construction, and incorrect in the use of boiling water to make the solution of gum. The syrup is probably not better in any essential particular, but it is clearer, and therefore more pleasing in {100} appearance, when it is constructed by making the solutions of gum and sugar separately, that of the gum in half the water cold, and that of the sugar in the remainder of the water boiling, then immediately combining the two and bringing to the boiling point. It may then be easily filtered through flannel.
In preparing “SYRUP OF CITRIC ACID,” it would be preferable to use, in place of the oil of lemon, a tincture made from the outside yellow part of the rind of the fresh fruit, made by covering it with pure alcohol. Two drachms of this tincture are about equivalent to four minims of the oil of lemon.
The formula for “SYRUP OF IPECACUANHA” is one of the most objectionable we have to notice, and the least calculated to answer medical wants in regard to its importance. There is a verbal error, either in the list of components or in the directions, which leads to some confusion. Amongst the former we find “diluted alcohol,” and in the latter, we are told to “macerate the ipecacuanha in the alcohol, &c.” The same error occurs in the edition of 1840. This formula is unnecessarily complex, and yields an inefficient preparation of about half the strength of the wine of ipecac, which it was intended to equal at its origin, about twelve years before its introduction into our Pharmacopœia. Previously to this it had, for six or eight years, been made here of about double the strength of the wine, in accordance with the general plan of forming medicinal syrups, by combining as large a proportion of the remedial agent in them as can readily be done, to obviate at once the necessity of bulky doses, and the exhibition of undue quantities of sugar. I cannot discover the advantage of making a pint of tincture with an ounce of the root, evaporating the filtered tincture to six fluid ounces, filtering again, and then adding water to bring back the measure of a pint. If the object be to get rid of the alcohol, it is an unnecessary exposure of the soluble principles of the ipecac to heat, for half a pint of diluted alcohol, especially with four ounces of water added by way of displacement, would exhaust the root equally well; so that the evaporation need not {101} be carried so far. There is no mention of a water bath, which should be used by all means.
We should prefer, if we could, to make all preparations which the Pharmacopœia contains, in accordance with it. But when a preparation has been in such general and favorite use, for several years, as to be considered indispensable before it becomes officinal; and in such form is reduced to a third or a fourth of what is felt to be an eligible strength, not only without any compensating advantage, but with the positive disadvantages of greatly diluting its remedial influence, and increasing the quantity required to be taken of a nauseous medicine, there is naturally an unwillingness to yield well settled convictions of utility, and replace an important remedy, that has proved quite satisfactory, with a preparation believed to be of comparatively little value. It is not probable that, in New York, the present officinal syrup of ipecacuanha, can ever supersede the efficient and reliable one we have so long been accustomed to, nor answer the wishes and expectations of the medical profession. I append the formula proposed in a paper read before the Board of Trustees in 1835, seven years before one for this syrup appeared in our Pharmacopœia. I have not found cause to change it in any respect. It affords about three pints of syrup, which keeps well for years at the ordinary temperatures of the shop, and of dwellings; the proportion of sugar proves to be just what is wanted for a proper consistence without crystallization, and, as a medicine, it gives entire satisfaction to the prescriber. It is as follows:―
Take of Ipecacuanha, bruised, six ounces,
Alcohol one pint and a half,
Water one pint,
Mix, to form a tincture. Digest for ten days, filter, and add one pint of water, by way of displacement, evaporate in a water bath to two pints, add immediately:
Refined sugar three pounds and a quarter.
And bring to the boiling point.
The “COMPOUND SYRUP OF SQUILL” is presented in the {102} Pharmacopœia with two processes for its preparation. The first is liable, though in a less degree, to the same objection which has rendered the original form, given by Dr. Coxe, obsolete, that it produces a turbid syrup, and one that will not keep. The second process is better, but scarcely adequate, I should think, to extract the full strength of the roots so well as by the employment of a greater proportion of alcohol, and longer digestion. The following produces three and a half pints of syrup from the same materials, apparently stronger than if the boiling, which is only for a few minutes, were continued down to three pints, retaining a portion of honey, for the sake of the flavor, and with as large an addition of sugar as the syrup will bear without crystallization. The proportion of tartar emetic is, of course, the same:
Take of Seneka, bruised,
Squills, bruised, each four ounces.
Alcohol,
Water each two pints.
Mix, to form a tincture. Digest ten days, filter, and add twelve ounces of water, by way of displacement, evaporate by water bath to two pints, add:
Sugar fifteen ounces,
Honey eighteen ounces,
Boil to three pints and a half, in which dissolve while hot:
Tartar emetic fifty-six grains.
“SYRUP OF TOLU,” made after the London formula, is a more elegant and better flavored preparation than can be made by any combination of the tincture. So decided is the superiority of the London process, that it is rather surprising the other Pharmacopœias should not adopt it. An apothecary who does, will hardly be satisfied with the tincture-made syrup afterwards.
The “TINCTURE OF ACONITE ROOT” is desired by our physicians of full saturation. The “strong tincture,” to which we have been accustomed for several years, is that of Fleming’s process, viz: sixteen ounces of the root to a pint and a half of alcohol. {103}
The “COMPOUND TINCTURE OF CARDAMOM” is now first introduced into our Pharmacopœia, with a change from the pleasant tincture we have been in the habit of making after the London or Edinburgh formula, by increasing the proportion of cardamom, from two drachms and a half to six drachms, and reducing the caraway one fifth, which makes a tincture not near so pleasant to the taste, owing to the strong predominance of the cardamom flavor, which is rather harsh when in too great excess. As this tincture is of little medical importance by itself, and chiefly used as an agreeable adjunct to mixtures, the proportions which have been found to answer so well may still be considered preferable.
There are other cases, no doubt, in which apothecaries will find it expedient to vary the processes of carrying out formulæ, not with a view of altering the strength of preparations, but arriving at substantially the same results or better ones, from the same materials, by improved application of skill. Whoever can, by superior method, more fully develope the qualities of a substance to be acted upon, than has hitherto been done, or change the character of a preparation from perishable to permanent, from uncertain to definite, from slovenly to elegant, can accomplish something for the benefit of his art, and render it so much the more useful to the community. Most of the improvements in pharmacy have been effected by the practical apothecary, and rendered available by him, in advance of the Pharmacopœia.
NOTES IN PHARMACY. BY BENJAMIN CANAVAN.
The fact in the natural kingdom, that “nothing is destroyed,” suggests an equally true axiom, as applied to the moral world, that “nothing is useless;” and, with this impression, I am induced to send the following trifles to the New York Journal of Pharmacy, which, if not unacceptable, it will give me pleasure to repeat “pro re natâ.” {104}
PIL. FERRI COMP.—This very much neglected pill, which is the prototype and should have precluded the necessity of Vallet’s preparation, I would beg leave to introduce, for the purpose of recommending, or rather verifying an improvement which I have sometimes adopted, in the mode of compounding it, differing from the officinal directions for so doing. We are told to “rub the myrrh with the carb. sodæ; then add the sulph. ferri, and again rub them; lastly, beat them with the syrup so as to form a mass.” I do not hesitate to say that no amount of trituration or skill, with which I am acquainted, will enable the manipulator by this means to make the mass properly, either in a chemical or pharmaceutical point of view.—In a note the editor of the United States Dispensatory informs us: “It is said the salt of iron will be better preserved, if the operator should dissolve the sulphate of iron in the syrup with a moderate heat and then add the carb. sodæ, stirring! till effervescence ceases;” this is correct in principle; but the same object is attained, and the only way by which the pill ought or can be properly prepared, is by triturating separately, and to solution the two salts in the necessary quantity of syrup, mixing, and again triturating until perfect decomposition is induced, and by incorporating the myrrh, form into a mass without delay. In this way you insure the existence of the intended proto carb. ferri in the pill, which is not, or only partially the case when prepared by any other process. I would remark, en passant, that this pill presents us with the very perishable proto carb. in the most permanent form, retaining, when properly prepared, its chemical integrity unimpaired, indefinitely, and is therefore superior in this important respect to the quickly changeable mist. ferri comp., the presence also of a larger proportion of myrrh being often a decided advantage.
EXTRACTA LIQUIDA OPII.—It has been suggested, and I believe attempted, to introduce certain preparations with the above titles, as substitutes for the demi-nostrum, known as “McMunn’s Elixir of Opium,” which has been very extensively used, and enjoyed high favor, but of which the exact nature {105} and mode of preparation are not generally understood, and which, either from having become too antiquated for this novelty hunting age, or its success having tempted the cupidity of avaricious persons, or from whatever cause, has been for some time diminishing in popularity, and subjected to many complaints. In all preparations of this potent drug, with which I am acquainted, ancient or modern, the great object has been, to get rid of the narcotine, which has been more or less accomplished by various processes. At present an aqueous fluid extract is said to supply the desideratum. This is merely a modification of the watery extract of all the Pharmacopœias, and is no doubt as good, but no better preparation. The denarcotised tincture is superior to all of them, and the very small quantity of spirit contained in an ordinary dose, is scarcely an objection, and is only little more than is necessary to preserve the extract; but if deemed otherwise, a fluid extract may be prepared from denarcotised opium, entirely free from the peccant alkaloid, and possibly the evaporation necessary to the process, may dissipate some noxious volatile property, which would exist in a tincture, and which it is most probable the opium possesses, from the fact, among others, that old opium is much less prone than new to cause disagreeable after effects. It has been supposed that meconic acid has been the evicted principle; but this is doubtful. However, the action of heat is useful, and I think a “fluid extract of denarcotised opium,” would perhaps be found to be as free as possible from objectionable effects.
ETHER HYDROCHLORIC; CHLORINAT: or ether hydrochlorique chlorè, as the French have it, is another change, rung by M. Mialhe of Paris, with the transcendental compounds of carbon and chlorine. It is a mongrel preparation, intermediate between hydrochloric: ether and chloroform, professing to have the advantage of not irritating the skin like the latter. If this be so, experience will tell, and also whether the irritation is not proportionable to the effect. With regard to such a refinement of an already infinitesimally delicate class of preparations, I should suppose it would be {106} desirable to effect the object aimed at by them, by if possible some more palpable method, as for instance diluting chloroform either with hydrochloric ether or alcohol, to the necessary mildness, or by interposing between it and the skin, a thin moist layer of some substance, as bibulous paper, which would not interfere with the rigefacient effect of evaporation, and would prevent any injury arising from actual contact.
INDELIBLE INK. BY M. GUILLER, OF PARIS.
Hitherto the various inks prepared for marking linen, have but imperfectly answered the end proposed. Some produced yellowish marks; others though blacker at first, disappeared either partially or entirely after several washings.
Again, others, in separate bottles, necessitated two distinct operations, and were thus attended with inconvenience, from the possibility of mistakes or forgetfulness, from the care required, and also from the time taken up in the operation.
In view of these difficulties, and to meet a demand constantly occurring in commerce, and in all kinds of manufactures, as well as in hospitals, and civil and military administrations, we have applied ourselves to the composition of an ink free from all these objections, and perfectly easy and certain in its application.
We shall subjoin some formulæ for the manufacture of marking inks, which represent particular improvements, as can be verified by trying them.
Formula, No. 1,
Nitrate of silver, 11 grammes,
Distilled water, 85 grammes,
Powdered gum arabic, 20 grammes,
Sub-carbonate of soda, 22 grammes,
Solution of Ammoniæ, 20 grammes.
Dissolve the 22 parts of sub-carbonate of soda in the 85 parts of water; put into a marble mortar the gum, and pour on {107} it very gradually the solution of the sub-carbonate, stirring it with the pestle to cause it to dissolve.
In the mean time, you will have dissolved the 11 parts of nitrate in the 20 parts of liquid ammonia. Mix the two solutions; put the whole in a matrass and expose it to heat. The mass which was of a dirty grey color, and half coagulated, becomes clear and brown, and when arrived at the boiling point, it becomes very dark, and sufficiently limpid to flow readily in the pen. This ink, made without heat like the two following forms no sediment, the ebullition thickening it, and besides giving the ink a very dark color, disengages the ammoniacal vapors, which attenuate the odor of the ammonia in it.
Formula No. 2,
Nitrate of silver, 5 grammes,
Water, 12 grammes,
Gum, 5 grammes,
Sub-carbonate of soda, 7 grammes,
Solution of Ammoniæ, 10 grammes.
Mix as in No. 1; put the whole into a matrass and evaporate until the liquor has acquired a very dark brown tint, which will take place when it has lost about 5 per cent. of its bulk; a more complete evaporation would form a precipitate, as the vapors would draw off too much of the ammonia.
This ink will be found excellent for marking, the character will be very black, and it will be found especially useful for applying with the stamp.
Formula No. 3,
Nitrate of silver, 17 grammes,
Water, 85 grammes,
Gum, 20 grammes,
Sub-carbonate of soda, 22 grammes,
Solution of Ammoniæ, 42 grammes,
Sulphate of copper, 33 grammes.
First dissolve the 22 parts of sub-carbonate in the 25 parts of water, and the 15 of nitrate in the 42 of ammonia.
This done, put into the marble mortar the 20 parts of gum with the sixty parts of water which remain, stir it {108} with the pestle, and pour on it the solution of sub-carbonate, after which, pour the whole into the solution of the nitrate; finish by adding the 33 parts of the solution of sulphate of copper.
The greater quantity of ammonia is explained by the presence of the sulphate to be dissolved.
This composition differs from the others in having a blue tinge, due to the solution of copper.
It will be readily seen that these relative qualities, given as formulæ for the production of suitable inks, may vary according as it is desirable to produce a thicker or thiner ink, or according to the material on which it is to be used, observing that if, on the one hand, the ammonia acts as a solvent, and facilitates the composition of an ink which can be used without a previous preparation; on the other hand, the evaporation of a part of the ammonia by heat, gives to the liquid a dark color which renders the writing immediately black; again, the boiled liquid greases less, and thus penetrates and spreads better on the linen without making a blot.
As to the mode of using, whether with a pen or a stamp proceed as usual, namely: pass a hot iron over the writing, to cause it more completely to penetrate the material.
ON VALERIANIC ACID AND ITS SALTS. BY MR. J. B. BARNES.
Considerable attention having of late been directed to this class of compounds, perhaps a few practical observations relating to their manufacture, &c. might be of interest to the readers of The Annals of Pharmacy.
Although some of the combinations of valerianic acid with bases, and the properties of those salts, have been described in the books on chemistry, yet I believe I may lay claim to the priority of the preparation of an extensive series of the combination of valerianic acid with bases. {109}
Valerianic acid, it is well known, occurs preformed in certain plants; and it is equally well known, that it can be produced in the laboratory by artificial means. This very fact is of great interest to the investigating chemist, as it encourages him in the belief that he will, sooner or later, be able to produce artificially, not only acids, which are known to exist in the animal and vegetable kingdoms; but that he will so far imitate Nature in her wonderful processes, as to produce the vegetable alkaloids, morphia, quina, &c., by the combination of their elements.
The acid employed in the preparation of this series, for which I have had the honor of being awarded a Prize Medal by the Jurors of the Great Exhibition, was prepared, in principle, the same as that directed to be used by the Dublin Pharmacopœia in the preparation of valerianate of soda, namely, the oxidation of Fusel oil by means of chromic acid. The formula I employed is as follows:―
Take of
Bichromate of potash, 2 parts.
Oil of vitriol, 3 parts.
Water, 4 parts.
Pure Fusel oil, 1 parts.
The bichromate of potash is to be finely powdered and dissolved in the water; the solution being put into a glass retort, the oil of vitriol is gradually added, and, when quite cold, the fusel oil is carefully added; the contents of the vessel must be constantly agitated, and at the same time kept immersed in cold water. The deep green liquid is now distilled from a sand bath; the distillate is mixed with caustic soda, or potash, and separated from the oily fluid floating on the surface; the valerianate of soda is evaporated to a convenient degree of concentration, introduced into a retort, decomposed with dilute sulphuric acid, and distilled; the liberated valerianic acid is finally dried over chloride of calcium.
It is also obtained by the oxidation of oil of valerian, by means of an alkali. It is formed from fats, by treating them {110} with fuming nitric acid; from animal nitrogenous matters, both by putrefaction and on decomposing them with strong nitric acid; and also if leucine be treated with caustic potash, or allowed to putrefy, it becomes converted into valerianic acid (no other acid being formed), ammonia and hydrogen being evolved.
It is most easily obtained in a state of absolute purity by the action of spongy platinum and atmospheric air upon potatoe Fusel oil.
Valerianic acid is composed of C10 H9 O3, H O. It possesses a well known characteristic odour, an acrid burning taste, and produces a white spot on the tongue. It boils at 348° Fahr., and dissolves in 26 parts water; it also forms a second hydrate.8
Combinations with the Alkalies.
The potash salt was prepared by saturating the acid with liquor potassæ, and evaporating carefully until aqueous vapour ceased to be given off: it should be, while still warm, cut up and preserved in well stoppered bottles. It does not crystallize, but forms a semi-transparent colorless mass, very much resembling phosphorus in appearance. It (probably from its compactness) produces when sharply struck with any hard body a metallic sound, somewhat like that occasioned when a bell of camphor is struck in a similar manner. It is deliquescent, and very soluble.
The soda salt was prepared in the same manner as the potash salt, cut up into pieces while warm, and preserved in stoppered bottles: it is in snow-white masses composed of minute crystals; it is deliquescent, and very soluble. The ammonia salt was prepared by saturating the acid with strong liquor ammoniæ, and evaporating at a temperature not exceeding 100° Fahr., until crystals appeared on the surface of the liquid. When it was set aside for further crystallization, the mother liquor was allowed to drain off, the crystals were placed upon bibulous paper, and finally dried in vacuo, over oil of vitriol. They are {111} of a tabular form; when held between the fingers for a moment, they become liquid. They are deliquescent and dissolve readily in water.
Combinations with the Alkaline Earths.
The baryta salt was prepared by adding the acid to carbonate of baryta in excess, which had been previously mixed with water; a gentle heat was applied, and, when the disengagement of carbonic acid had ceased, the excess of carbonate was filtered off; the filtrate was evaporated very carefully, until aqueous vapour ceased to be given off, it remained a transparent gummy mass, readily soluble in water.
The strontia, lime, and magnesia salts were prepared in the same manner as the baryta salt. The two former are crystalline, and do not deliquesce by exposure to the atmosphere; they are soluble. The lime salt crystallizes in nacreous plates; it effloresces when exposed to the atmosphere; it is beautifully white.
The magnesia salt would not crystallize, therefore it was evaporated to dryness, at a temperature not exceeding 120° Fahr. It forms a light white soluble powder, sweet to the taste, and strong in the characteristic odour of valerianic acid.
Combinations with Metallic Oxides.
The alumina, chromium, and nickel salts were prepared by the direct combination of the hydrates of those bases with the acid.
The alumina and chromium salts are in powder, and are soluble.
The nickel salt is in crystalline masses, of an apple-green color, soluble in water.
The cobalt salt was also prepared by the direct way; the flocculent blue precipitate, obtained by precipitation from nitrate of cobalt, by means of caustic potash, after being well washed, was dissolved in valerianic acid, filtered and very carefully evaporated to dryness; it occurs in masses of a rose color, and is soluble.
The manganese salt was also prepared in the direct way by {112} mixing an excess of the hydrated oxide with water and the acid, allowing them to remain in contact for some time, filtering and evaporating at a temperature not exceeding 120° Fahr., until crystals appeared on the surface of the fluids; it was set aside, and after a while, the crystals were separated from the mother liquor. The latter being again evaporated, another crop of crystals was obtained; it occurs in glistening scales of a flesh color, and dissolves very readily in water.
The valerianate of protoxide of iron was prepared by the double decomposition of valerianate of baryta and proto-sulphate of iron; it can only be kept in a state of solution, as least the heat and exposure to the air converts it immediately into the peroxide salt.
The valerianate of peroxide of iron, was prepared by bringing together neutral cold solutions of perchloride of iron and valerianate of soda, the precipitated valerianate was thrown upon a filter, well washed, to separate the chloride of sodium, and dried without heat on a porous tile; it occurs as a bright red loose powder, perfectly soluble in alcohol.
The valerianate of zinc was prepared according to the directions in the Dublin Pharmacopœia; it occurs in small smooth crystals, somewhat like boracic acid; it is soluble in water and alcohol.
The lead salt was prepared by decomposing freshly precipitated carbonate of lead with the acid, filtering and evaporating at a low temperature. In due time, crystals made their appearance in the fluid; but (probably from the temperature being too high) they subsequently disappeared; and, upon further evaporation, it remained in the form of a syrup.
The silver salt was produced by the double decomposition of nitrate of silver, and valerianate of soda. The valerianate of silver being very insoluble, was precipitated as a white powder; after washing with cold water, it was dried in the dark on a porous tile. By exposure to the light, it becomes black.
The salt of the suboxide of mercury was also prepared by double decomposition. It is a loose, yellowish white powder. {113}
The salt of oxide of mercury was prepared by agitating together, the yellow hydrate of the oxide with water and valerianic acid. After some time, I obtained a colorless liquid, which, upon evaporation at a temperature not exceeding 100° Fahr., yielded crystals which, however, speedily fell into a red powder. I therefore again repeated the operation, omitting the application of heat; the solution was set aside, when in the course of two or three weeks, I obtained this salt in prismatic white crystals.
The bismuth salt was obtained by the addition of valerianate of soda, to a solution of bismuth in nitric acid, which was nearly saturated with carbonate of soda. It occurs as a loose white powder.
The copper salt was obtained by double decomposition, and occurs as a beautiful green powder.
The cadmium salt was prepared in the same manner as the zinc salt. It occurs in crystalline scales, resembling in form that of zinc, but larger.
Combinations with Organic Bases.
The valerianate of oxide of ethyle (valerianic ether) was obtained by distilling, together, alcohol, oil of vitriol, and valerianic acid; it was well washed, dried over chloride of calcium, and re-distilled. It is an oily liquid, with a penetrating smell of fruit, and of valerian; of specific gravity, 0,894. (Otto). It is miscible with alcohol and ether: it has an agreeable, cool, and aromatic taste.
I prepared the valerianate of quina, both by double decomposition, and by direct combination of the base with the acid.
That by double decomposition, was prepared by adding to a warm solution of neutral sulphate of quinine, a warm solution of valerianate of baryta; the mixture was allowed to stand for a while, and filtered to separate the insoluble sulphate of baryta; the filtrate was evaporated at a temperature of about 100°, until crystals made their appearance, when it was set aside for {114} further crystallization. The crystals obtained by this process are in silky tufts and perfectly white.
The valerianate of quina, made by the direct combination of the acid with the base, was effected by triturating, in a mortar, freshly precipitated quina, with water and valerianic acid, until the quina had disappeared. It was then exposed in shallow dishes, to a current of air; when sufficiently evaporated, octohedral crystals were formed. Valerianate of quina in both forms dissolves readily in water.
When a solution of valerianate of quina is evaporated at a temperature of 130°, it does not crystallize, but has the appearance of an oil.
From the different appearances of this salt, it is highly probable that they each differ in composition. This phenomena is worthy of a thorough investigation.
The morphia salt was prepared in the direct way. It crystallizes in silky tufts; it dissolves readily in water.
Although but three of the salts of valerianic acid are employed in medicine, namely, those of peroxide of iron, oxide of zinc, and quinine, there appears to me no reason why those of potash, soda, ammonia, teroxide of bismuth, and oxide of ethyle, (valerianic ether), should not be employed by the physician.
In conclusion, I must express my sincere thanks to Mr. Savory, for his kindness in having placed at my disposal the materials necessary for the preparation of this series.
ESSENCE OF PINE APPLE.
The above essence is, as already known, butyric ether, more or less diluted with alcohol; to obtain which pure, on the large scale and economically, the following process is recommended:―
Dissolve 6 s. of sugar and half an ounce of tartaric acid, in 26 s. of boiling water. Let the solution stand for several days; then add 8 ounces of putrid cheese broken up with 3 s. {115} of skimmed and curdled sour milk, and 3 s. of levigated chalk. The mixture should be kept and stirred daily in a warm place, at the temperature of about 92° Fahr., as long as gas is evolved, which is generally the case for five or six weeks.
The liquid thus obtained, is mixed with an equal volume of cold water, and 8 s. of crystallized carbonate of soda, previously dissolved in water, added. It is then filtered from the precipitated carbonate of lime; the filtrate is to be evaporated down to 10 s., when 51⁄2 lbs. of sulphuric acid, previously diluted with an equal weight of water, are to be carefully added. The butyric acid, which separates on the surface of the liquid as a dark-colored oil, is to be removed, and the rest of the liquid distilled; the distillate is now neutralized with carbonate of soda, and the butyric acid separated as before, with sulphuric acid.
The whole of the crude acid is to be rectified with the addition of an ounce of sulphuric acid to every pound. The distillate is then saturated with fused chloride of calcium, and re-distilled. The product will be about 28 ounces of pure butyric acid. To prepare the butyric acid, or essence of pine apple, from this acid, proceed as follows:—Mix, by weight, three parts of butyric acid with six parts of alcohol, and two parts of sulphuric acid in a retort, and submit the whole, with a sufficient heat, to a gentle distillation, until the fluid which passes over ceases to emit a fruity odor. By treating the distillate with chloride of calcium, and by its re-distillation, the pure ether may be obtained.
The boiling point of butyric ether is 238° Fahr. Its specific gravity, 0,904, and its formula C12 H12 O4, or C4 H5 O + C8 H7 O3.
Bensch’s process, above described, for the production of butyric acid, affords a remarkable exemplification of the extraordinary transformations that organic bodies undergo in contact with ferment, or by catalytic action. When cane sugar is treated with tartaric acid, especially under the influence of heat, it is converted into grape sugar. This grape sugar, in the {116} presence of decomposing nitrogenous substances, such as cheese, is transformed in the first instance into lactic acid, which combines with the lime of the chalk. The acid of the lactate of lime, thus produced, is by the further influence of the ferment changed into butyric acid. Hence, butyrate of lime is the final result of the catalytic action in the process we here have recommended.
ON A REMARKABLE SPECIMEN OF DECOMPOSED CHLOROFORM. BY JONATHAN PEREIRA, M.D., F.R.S., Physician to the London Hospital.
In July of the present year I received from Mr. Grattan, apothecary of Belfast, a specimen of chloroform, accompanied with a note, from which the following is an extract:―
“Some weeks prior to October 25, 1851, I received from my friend Dr. M’Killen a small bottle of chloroform which he had had of me two or three months previously, and which he stated was subject to very singular changes of color, despite the stopper never having been removed.
At the time he handed it to me the fluid exhibited a delicate pink tint, as though colored with cochineal, and was put aside in a glass case in my shop, of which I kept the key myself. The case was exposed to the diffused light of a large shop window but not to the direct rays of the sun.
Conceiving that the chloroform had by some unobserved means or other become accidentally colored, I took very little interest in the matter, and was not surprised to find it fade gradually, and in a short time become perfectly colorless—and I made a note to that effect upon the 25th of October, {117} concluding that there must have been some error of observation on the part of Dr. M’Killen.
On the 16th of November, however, it again began to change, and the enclosed notes were made, from time to time, as I happened to have opportunity of noticing it.
I tried it under different conditions of light and temperature, without their exerting apparent influence upon it, and being unable to form the slightest conjecture as to the cause or nature of the molecular disturbance which produces these chromatic changes, have taken the liberty of forwarding it to you, should you consider it worthy of attention.
It is at present colorless, and the stopper fast in; and I would only suggest that, before removing the stopper, it might be well to observe for yourself whether changes similar to those I have noticed may not occur again.
1850. Oct. 25. Perfectly colorless. Nov. 16. Faint Pink. 18. Fading. 25. Faint pink, as on the 16th. 26. Dirty-looking, neutral tint, without any pink. Dec. 17. Pink again. 21. Ditto, and deeper. 27. Perfectly colorless, after having passed through various shades of pink.
1851. Jan. 10. Again pink. 11. Faint neutral tint. Feb. 19. Perfectly colorless. On shaking the vial, observed a deposit on its sides, like small crystals, but cannot say that they were not there before. 21. Pink and deeper than ever. March 10. Deep pink. 12. Faint pink. 13. Colorless. 28. Colorless. May 16. Colorless. No change having occurred between the 13th March and 16th May, concluded too hastily that the property of changing its color, upon whatever cause dependent, had been lost, for on 17. It again became faintly pinked. 19. Deeper pink. 22. Fading. 24. Fading. 31. Colorless. June 13. Again pink. 16. Ditto. 17. Colorless. July 2. Ditto, up to present date, when it again became pink. 3. Deeper. 5. Still very deep. 7. Fading 13. Perfectly colorless.
The foregoing changes of color were not influenced by any change of temperature between 27° and 86° Fahr., nor by exposure to, nor seclusion from light. The stopper being fast, atmospheric pressure cannot have been connected therewith. Whether it may have been influenced by electrical changes, am not prepared to say.” {118}
The specimen of chloroform sent me by Mr. Grattan was, in July, quite colorless, and on the sides of the bottle a few minute crystals were observed. The stopper of the bottle was, however, so firmly fixed in that I could not remove it, and I, therefore, placed the bottle on the mantel-shelf in my library exposed to diffused light, for the purpose of observing the changes which its contents would undergo.
In the course of a few weeks it began to acquire a pinkish or amethystine tint, as described by Mr. Grattan. This slightly augmented in intensity for a few days, and then became somewhat paler. But for several weeks, during which it remained in the same situation, it never became colorless, though the intensity of the color was frequently changing.
The color of the liquid was precisely that of a weak solution of permanganate of potash.
Some weeks ago I placed the bottle in a dark cupboard, and at the expiration of about three weeks found that the liquid had become quite colorless. As the stopper was still immovable, I was obliged to cut off the neck of the bottle to get at the contents. I found that the chloroform had undergone decomposition, and had acquired a powerful and irritating odor, somewhat allied to, but distinct from, that of hypochlorous acid. The vapor yielded white fumes when a rod moistened with solution of ammonia was brought in contact with it, blue litmus paper was reddened but not bleached by it. A few drops of the liquid were placed on a watch glass and volatilized by a spirit lamp; they left scarcely any appreciable residue.
The crystals which lined the bottle were then examined. They were few in number, and not larger than pins’ points. They were white, and when examined by the microscope, were found to be six-sided pyramids, like the crystals of sulphate of potash. Some of them were heated to dull redness in a test tube, without undergoing any appreciable change. When heated on the point of a moistened thread in the outer cone of the flame of a candle, they communicated a violet-white tinge to the flame, characteristic of a potash-salt. They readily {119} dissolved in water, and the solution did not yield any precipitate on the addition of a solution of nitrate of baryta, showing that the salt was not a sulphate. The solution was boiled with nitric acid, and then treated with a solution of nitrate of baryta, but no precipitate was observed. Nitrate of silver produced in the aqueous solution of the crystals a white precipitate, soluble in ammonia, but insoluble in nitric acid.
Whether these crystals were in any way connected with the change of color which this sample of chloroform underwent, I am unable to determine; but I suspect not. I am anxious, however, to draw the attention of others to the subject, in the hope that larger specimens of the salt may be obtained for examination. For at present the circumstances under which chloroform frequently undergoes decomposition are very obscure. Except in this instance, I have never met with, nor heard of, any sample of chloroform which underwent these remarkable changes of color.
The chloroform was transferred into another bottle, on the sides of which a few minute crystals are now formed. But since the removal of the stopper the pink color has not re-appeared.
I have written to Mr. Grattan to obtain, if possible, further information respecting this specimen of chloroform. But he tells me he has not any more of the sample, and has no means of ascertaining by whom it was made, as about the time it was purchased of him he had in his shop parcels from London, Edinburgh and Dublin, as well as a small quantity prepared in Belfast, and he is quite unprepared to say from which of them it was taken.
I suspect that the pink color of the chloroform must have been due to the presence of manganese. If so, was this metal derived from the chloride of lime used in the manufacture of chloroform? Mr. Squire informs me that he has occasionally found the solution of chlorinated soda to become of a pinkish hue after being prepared a few days (not immediately), and that he has attributed it to some manganese carried over with the {120} chlorine gas, as he does not remember having observed this change when the gas had been passed through water before entering the solution of carbonate of soda.
If this suspicion should prove well founded, it is obvious that the purity of the chloride of lime employed in the preparation of chloroform deserves the attention of the manufacturer.
Postscript.—Subsequently to the reading of this paper before the Pharmaceutical Society, I have received from Mr. William Huskisson, jun., a specimen of pink chloroform, which, he informs me, owes its remarkable color to the presence of manganese, derived from peroxide of manganese employed in the purification of chloroform, as recommended by Dr. Gregory, (see Pharmaceutical Journal, vol. ix., p. 580.)
Mr. W. Huskisson, jun., tells me, that he has observed in his specimen neither the alterations of color nor the crystals met with in the specimen sent me by Mr. Grattan.
The chairman stated, that he had never, in the various specimens of chloroform, of which his firm had always a large quantity in stock, observed the pink color described by Dr. Pereira, nor had he ever seen any crystals deposited in the bottles, but he would have a more minute examination made with the view of ascertaining whether such existed. When the chloroform was first drawn over, and before it was purified, it frequently possessed more or less of a brown color, but this was quite distinct from the character described in the paper which had just been read.
Mr. D. Hanbury observed, that the use of manganese had been suggested in the process for purifying chloroform, and its presence might in this way be accounted for.
Mr. Barnes thought it desirable that the decomposed chloroform should be examined for formic acid. Although constantly subject to decomposition, no satisfactory explanation of the nature of the change had yet been afforded.
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REPORT PRESENTED TO THE ACADEMY OF MEDICINE OF PARIS, ON THE SUBSTITUTION OF AN ARTIFICIAL IODURETTED OIL FOR COD LIVER OIL. By a Commission composed of Messrs. Gibert, Ricord, Soubeiren and Guibourt.
On the 20th of August, 1850, the Academy appointed a commission, composed as above, to whom was submitted a memoir, by M. Personne, entitled, “Researches on the Cod-liver and Skate Oils; and on the preparation of an ioduretted oil, by which they may be replaced as Medicinal Agents.” A note was also submitted to us on the same subject, from M. Deschamps, and another from M. Marchall, the latter of which claimed for the author priority in the employment of ioduretted oil of almonds, as a substitute for cod-liver oil.
We proceed now to report the results of our examinations of these communications, and of the investigations to which the enquiry has led.
Cod-liver oil has long been the object of a considerable commerce arising principally from the decided superiority which it possesses over other animal oils, for the preparation of chamois leather; but it has only been within about twenty years that it has been used in medicine. It was first employed as a remedy for rheumatic pains, then for bronchial affections, and subsequently as a remedy for scrofula and consumption. It now constitutes one of the medicinal agents most extensively used, and one of those, on the action of which medical men place the greatest reliance, as a remedy capable either of curing very formidable diseases, or of retarding their fatal termination.
The most important memoir which has been published on cod-liver oil is that of Dr. Jongh, in which three kinds of oil are described as met with in commerce, which are called the black, the brown, and the white cod-liver oil. These oils are represented to consist, principally, of oleic and margaric acids, and glycerine, and, as accessory bodies, of butyric acid, acetic {122} acid; some principles appertaining to the bile, a non-azotised yellow or brown coloring matter, called gaduine, iodine, phosphorus, and some inorganic salts. In France, Messrs. Girardin and Preisser have been engaged in comparing the effects of the oil obtained from the cod with that obtained from the ray; and they advocate the superiority of the latter for medicinal use. But this superiority seems to depend, in part, on the circumstance, that the oil obtained from the livers of the ray, being carefully prepared by the pharmaciens, and being transparent, and of a light yellow color, proves less offensive to the patients than the cod-liver oil of commerce, which is generally thick, of a dark color, and has a disagreeable flavor. This, however, is scarcely admitted at the present time. Moreover, it appears from recent observations, that the above characters cannot be much depended upon for distinguishing the two kinds of oil, in consequence of their being so variable.
According to Messrs. Girardin and Preisser, these two oils contain iodine in the state of iodide of potassium, and in quantity much less than had been indicated by Dr. Jongh. The latter author gives, as follows, the quantity of iodine in 1,000 parts of oil:―
Black cod-liver oil 0,295 parts of iodine.
Brown cod-liver oil 0,406 parts of iodine.
White cod-liver oil 0,374 parts of iodine.
Messrs. Girardin and Preisser have found in a litre (thirty-five fluid ounces),
Of ray-liver oil 0,180 gramme of iodine.
Of cod-liver oil 0,150 gramme of iodine.
According to M. Gobley, a litre of ray-liver oil, prepared by direct action of the fire, contains twenty-five centigrammes of iodide of potassium. M. Goodley was unable to find phosphorus in this oil.
Such were the principal analytical results known when M. Personne presented his memoir to the Academy. The uncertainty which appeared to attach to the subject, and the {123} variations in the statements of chemists, induced him to put to himself the following questions:―
1st. Do the oils of cod and ray-liver contain iodide of potassium or iodine?
2nd. Do the different sorts of these oils contain the same proportion of iodine?
3rd. Do these oils contain phosphorus, to which their effects may be partly attributed?
For detecting the presence of the iodine, M. Personne saponified the oil with an excess of caustic potassa, incinerated the soap, and treated the product of incineration with strong alcohol. The alcohol was evaporated, the residue dissolved in water, and to this, solution of starch and sulphuric acid were added. The quantity of iodine was estimated by the intensity of the color; it is too small to be estimated by the balance.
Mr. Personne examined in this way the dark brown and thick cod-liver oil, such as is employed in the hospitals of Paris; the transparent and nearly colorless oil of English commerce; and the ray-liver oil prepared by the direct action of a moderate heat, and subsequent filtration. The following are the results:―
1st. The brown cod-liver oil of the hospitals of Paris contains more iodine than the fine white oil of English commerce.
2nd. It also contains more iodine than the ray-liver oil, and, moreover, the quantity present is certainly less than a decigramme of iodine in a kilogramme of oil (1 in 10,000.)
3rd. The residue of the liver, left after the preparation of the oil, contains much more iodine than the oil itself.
With regard to the question as to whether the iodine exists in cod-liver oil in the state of iodide of potassium, or directly combined with the oil, M. Personne, while he admits the difficulty of satisfactorily determining the point, inclines to favor the opinion that the iodine is directly combined with the elements of the oil.
[The different methods which have been suggested for the preparation of the ioduretted oil proposed as a substitute for {124} cod-liver oil are described. A discussion follows of the claims of the authors, whose communications were submitted to the commissioners, for having first introduced the artificial ioduretted oil, which discussion is also omitted here as being uninteresting to our readers. The commissioners next proceed to state the result of the evidence obtained, by the medical members of the commission, of the therapeutical action of the artificial ioduretted oil.]
M. Gibert administered the ioduretted oil for periods varying from several weeks to several months, to patients suffering with eruptive complaints and scrofulous tumors; and, in some instances, found the benefit to be greater than from the use of cod-liver oil, under similar circumstances. He states, that he does not think he has tried it in a sufficient number of cases, and for a sufficient length of time, to enable him to state decidedly what its absolute value is as a specific for eruptive and scrofulous complaints; but the results he has obtained are sufficient to prove, that it is easy of administration and devoid of any injurious quality, and that it possesses a resolutive action, which renders it a valuable remedy for certain chronic eruptions and glandular swellings.
M. Ricord has employed the ioduretted oil for twelve months, in a great number of cases of scrofula, some of which were considered to be of venereal origin. He thus obtained excellent results in the treatment of strumous bubo, tubercular epididymis, and in some cases of scrofulous enlargement of the joints, etc., and other things being equal, curable cases were cured, or relief afforded, much more quickly by the use of the artificial ioduretted oil than by the natural cod-liver oil.
The average dose in which the ioduretted oil was administered was sixty grammes (ij.), which was sometimes raised to 100 grammes (iiiss.) The patient generally took it without inconvenience. It was only in a few instances, where the dose had been raised, that vomiting, colic, and diarrhœa were produced. If the precautions which are necessary in the administration of every remedy be observed, and the degrees of {125} susceptibility of the patients, together with all special conditions, properly studied, it may be affirmed that the ioduretted oil is a medicine of great value and that it presents considerable advantage over the cod-liver oil.—Journal de Pharmacie, in Pharmaceutic Journal.
EDITORIAL.
INTERNAL USE OF ATROPINE. ABRIDGED FROM THE JANUARY NUMBER OF THE LONDON JOURNAL OF MEDICINE.
In the practice of English and American physicians, atropine (atropia) has been hitherto used chiefly as an external application, to dilate the pupil, but, as far as we know, has never been administered internally. In France, the powdered belladonna root has been strongly recommended as affording a reliable and efficient preparation; in this country, the leaves and the extracts and tincture derived from them are alone officinal. Dr. Lusanna, an Italian physician, has ventured upon the internal use of atropia, and, according to our notions, in very large doses. He commences its administration in doses of one-thirtieth of a grain every three or four hours, gradually increasing the dose according to the effect produced. In some instances he went so far as to give one-third of a grain five times a day.
It may be given, according to Dr. L, in solution in alcohol, or in acetic or some other mild acid. Pills and powders, from the difficulty of apportioning the dose he deems unadvisable. The alcoholic solution has a taste somewhat like that of quinine, but feebler, and not particularly disagreeable. The patient soon becomes habituated to the remedy, and the dose has to be increased. In cases of neuralgia he recommends the application of one-fourteenth to one sixth of a grain to a blistered surface, in the form of pomade. Dr. L. carries the administration of atropia so far as to produce what we would call its toxicological effects.
1st. Dilatation and immobility of the pupil. Between fourteen and fifteen minutes after the exhibition of from one-twenty-fourth to one-thirtieth of a grain of atropia, the pupil becomes enormously dilated. If the remedy be persevered in the dilatation passes of, but the iris becomes immoveable, and the pupil no longer contracts on exposure to light. When the remedy is stopped, as the other phenomena produced by its exhibition subside, the pupil again becomes extremely dilated. Previous to this it commences to oscillate, contracting slightly when exposed to strong light, and dilating again in the shade. This indicates that the {126} effects of the remedy are disappearing. The dilatation of the pupil is the last of the phenomena to subside, being sometimes met with eight days, or more after the suspension of the atropia.
2. Disturbance of vision. Objects at first seem hazy and ill-defined, persons are not recognized, and it is impossible to read or write. If the dose be increased, objects seem covered with a dark shade, and vision may be wholly lost. Every fresh dose has a sudden and marked effect in diminishing vision, and on its suspension the disturbance of vision disappears with equal rapidity. In one or two days the sight is perfectly restored.
3. Disturbance of Intellect. At first the patient appears dull and stupid, then there is vertigo and confusion of ideas.
4. Hallucinations of sight and hearing. Objects are seen double or greatly magnified; motes and insects flit before the eyes; well known objects assume strange and monstrous forms, or horrible phantoms are seen. The hearing is more rarely affected. Buzzing, tinkling, hissing and whistling are sometimes heard.
5. Anaesthesia. Touch remains apparently perfect, but pain is relieved or blunted. The patient does not seem to suffer from painful tactile impressions.
6. Dryness of the mouth and throat were invariably felt. At first this seemed a purely nervous phenomenon, but if the medication was continued, from the diminution of the salivary secretion it became real.
7. The appetite is early lost, and there is no thirst; but on the cessation of the remedy it returns sharper than ever. Speech is early embarrassed, and the power of swallowing early diminished, becomes finally lost.
8. Delirium alternating with stupor or succeeded by it, is produced by one-tenth of a grain of atropia at the commencement of the treatment, or by one-fourth of a grain later, or by any sudden increase of the dose. The delirium is commonly gay and ridiculous; in one instance only was it mournful. When these phenomena are at all intense, they subside slowly. For several days after the cessation of the medicine, there is confusion and slowness of thought.
9. Redness of the skin was observed in but a single case.
10. Torpor and paralytic tremblings. As the patient gets under the influence of the atropia, the legs become weak and trembling, gradually lose their strength, and he is confined to bed. They may be still agitated by twitching, and convulsive movements.
11. Paralysis of the sphincters of the rectum and bladder. This is the highest point to which, according to Dr. L., the medicative action of atropia can attain. In one case, only, the fæces and urine were passed involuntarily.
The functions of respiration, circulation, and calorification, were never affected by atropia.
After this long catalogue of serious symptoms, Dr. Lusanna rather naively observes, he has never seen any truly alarming results arise from the use of atropia! Should they occur, he recommends wine as the best antidote.
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CULTIVATION OF OPIUM.
—In a late number of the Archives Generales de Medicine, will be found a short notice of a paper, read by M. Aubergier, to the French Academy of Science upon the cultivation of native opium. When the juice is obtained according to the methods described by M. A., the seeds continue to ripen, and the oil they yield pays the expense of cultivation. If the opium then more than repays the expense of the labor necessary to procure it, its production will be a source of profit. Now M. A., by successive improvements in his processes, has been enabled to raise the amount obtained by each laborer from a maximum of 75 to
90 grammes
(1157
1
⁄
2
grs.
to
1389 grs.)
to five times that quantity. The commercial value of the opium will always, therefore, more than repay the cost of manufacture. He farther finds that the proportion of morphia contained in the opium varies. 1st, with the maturity of the capsules from which it is collected, opium collected from capsules nearly ripe yielding less morphia than that obtained from those that are not so near their maturity. 2d, different varieties of the poppy yield an opium varying in the quantity of contained morphia from 15 to 17.833 per cent. Twenty specimens of foreign opium examined by M. A. yielded quantities varying from 2.64 to 13 per cent.
The superiority of some specimens of European opium has been noticed by previous observers, and depends probably on the greater care bestowed on its preparation and on the cultivation of the plant.
CHROMIC ACID AS AN ESCHAROTIC.
Chromic acid has lately been employed in Germany, both in concentrated solution and in substance, as an escharotic. The advantages it possesses are, that it is efficient, manageable, and less painful than the more ordinary applications. The concentrated solution is applied by means of a glass rod, a pencil made of asbestos, or if necessary, an ordinary hair pencil, which, if washed immediately, can be used a second time. The solid chromic acid on account of its penetrating action has to be employed with much care. All organic compounds are first oxydised and then dissolved in an excess of the acid, and this change is accelerated by an elevated temperature. Smaller animals, birds, mice, &c., were so completely dissolved by the acid within fifteen or twenty minutes, that no trace of their bones, skin, hair, claws, or teeth could be discovered. It would thus appear to be not only a gentle and gradual escharotic, but also a complete and rapid solvent.
Dublin Quarterly Jour. of Med. Science, from Wiener Medizinische Wochenschrift
, 1851, No. viii.
PUBLIC HYGEINE.
M. M. Bicourt & A. Chevalier have presented a memorial on the diseases which attack workmen engaged in the manufacture of chromsate of potash. The result of the facts presented in their memorial, proves, 1st. That workmen engaged in the preparation of bi-chromsate of potash, are subject to peculiar diseases. 2d. These diseases attack workmen who do not take snuff, and the mucous membrane of the nose is destroyed. 3d. Workmen who take snuff do not experience the same diseases. 4th. Workmen whose skin is broken
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in any part, suffer severely when the bi-chromsate comes in contact with the abraded surface, and should, therefore, carefully preserve the abrasions from contact with the solution of bi-chromsate. 5th. Workmen lightly clothed are exposed to some inconveniences, but these may be easily avoided. 6th. Animals are, like men, exposed to maladies caused by the bi-chromsate of potash.—
Archives Generales de Medicine.
CHEMICAL TECHNOLOGY;
or Chemistry applied to Arts and to Manufactures, by Dr. T. Knapp, Professor at the University of Giesen; Dr. Edmund Ronalds, Professor of Chemistry at Queen’s College, Galway; and Dr. Thomas Richardson, of New Castle on Tyne. Illustrated with nine engravings and one hundred and twenty-nine wood cuts. Vol. iii. London:
H
YPPOLYTE
B
AILLIERE
,
219 Regent street, and 209 Broadway, New York.
Knapp’s Technology belongs to a class of books characteristic of the present day, and of the highest and most extended usefulness. Giving the practical details of the arts in connection with the scientific principles on which they are founded, it extends the views of the manufacturer and the economist, and places him on the right path for further improvement. To the American it presents the further advantage of ample and precise details of what is being done in Great Britain and on the Continent of Europe. All engaged in pursuits with which chemistry has any connection (and with what is it not now connected?) will find in the various volumes of the Technology, valuable information in regard to their own peculiar avocations, while the variety of its information and the copiousness of its illustrations, gives it a high interest to the general reader.
At a meeting of the College of Pharmacy of the city of New York, held on Thursday, 25th of March, the following gentlemen were elected officers for the ensuing year.
GEO. D. COGGESHALL, President. JOHN H. CURRIE, 1st Vice President. WILLIAM L. RUSHTON, 2d Vice President. OLIVER HULL, 3d Vice President. JAMES S. ASPINWALL, Treasurer. B. W. BULL, Secretary.
TRUSTEES.
WM. J OLLIFFE,
JOHN MEAKIN,
THOMAS B. MERRICK,
EUGENE DUPREY,
R. J. DAVIES,
JUNIUS GRIDLEY,
WM. HEGEMAN,
GEORGE WILSON,
THOMAS T. GREEN.
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