Specimen 2. Calomel condensed by air.-This is crystalline, and nearly colourless. Specimen 3. Calomel condensed by air. This specimen is in the form of powder, but too coarse for medicinal use. fectly white. It is per Specimen 4. Hydro-sublimed calomel, prepared by Howards and Kent's steam process.-This is in extremely fine powder, and perfectly white. Specimen 5. Calomel, as usually sold by Messrs. Howards and Kent, and having a slightly yellowish tinge. Mr. Howard, in a letter which accompanied the specimens, observes, that "Dr. Gardner's paper illustrates the difference which the mechanical state of a substance may produce in its medicinal effects. It is, however, quite a mistake to suppose that calomel is necessarily or generally in finer powder when white; it may be, and sometimes is, very coarse, and yet white, as the specimens which I send will serve to show. "It is a curious fact, that the hydro-calomel, which is in a far more impalpable powder than any other, is objected to by some as not sufficiently active, except in increased doses, four grains being about equal to three, although it has been found to answer extremely well in many cases, more particularly in the diseases of children." ON SYRUP OF POPPIES. BY MR. THOMAS SOUTHALL. HAVING found great difficulty in obtaining an elegant preparation of syrup of poppies, by the process directed in the London Pharmacopoeia, we have tried various means of improving it, and think we have succeeded in doing so by extracting the virtues of the poppy by percolation with cold water, and, as far as we can judge, without impairing in any degree the efficacy of the syrup. The capsules, from which the seeds have been separated, are weighed, and then dried, by which they lose from ten to fifteen per cent. They are then bruised, and passed through a sieve of ths-inch mesh. They are next macerated in a mash-tub, several portions of cold water being added, and stirred with them, to ensure the whole being uniformly moistened. About an hour afterwards, the infusion is drawn off from the bottom of the vessel, more water being poured on the surface; after which the infusion is allowed to run off during the day. The quantity of water used is about the same as that which is directed in the Pharmacopoeia. The infusion is evaporated as it is drawn off, to nearly the consistence requisite for making the syrup, and allowed to stand during the night. The clear portion is poured off the following morning, the remainder strained through a calico bag, and the sugar is dissolved in the clear liquor with as much heat as is requisite for the purpose. The medicinal properties of the poppies appear to be extracted effectually by means of cold water, while the syrup is brighter and of better quality, on account of the absence of the starch, which is dissolved in it, if boiling water is used in making the infusion. The poppy capsule appears to contain both albumen and starch, and when the former is solidified, and the latter converted into a jelly by the application of boiling water, the medicinal principles of the poppies are extracted with more difficulty. Syrup of poppies, as usually prepared, is very liable to fermentation; this I attribute chiefly to the presence of the starch, which is favourable to this kind of decomposition, and which, by increasing the density of the fluid to a consistence approaching to that of a jelly, obstructs the separation of the fæces by decantation or filtration. The Chairman enquired, whether any Member present had tried the effect of cold water in preparing the infusion of poppy capsules for the syrup. Mr. Redwood submitted to the meeting a sample of syrup of poppies, prepared by Mr. Deane, of Clapham, several months ago, which appeared to be in excellent condition, and possessing the flavour of the poppy in great perfection. It had been prepared by cold infusion, evaporated in vacuo, at a low temperature, the sugar being added at the end of the process, with such an elevation of temperature as was just sufficient to effect its solution. Mr. Heathfield stated, that he was in the habit of employing tepid water in the preparation of infusions generally, especially in the case of substances containing starch. He had adopted the same plan with success in making syrup of poppies. Mr. Pedler adverted to the circumstance that poppies, as well as many other vegetables, contained albumen as well as starch; the latter being insoluble in cold water, while the former was coagulated by the application of a boiling temperature. He therefore suggested, in reference to Mr. Deane's process, that although it might be desirable to prepare the infusion with cold water, in order to prevent the solution of the starch, the liquor, when strained, should be boiled, so as to get rid of the albumen. Mr. Knight, of Foster Lane, exhibited an apparatus for the extemporaneous manufacture of soda-water, a representation of which is subjoined. A B are two distinct earthenware vessels joined together, and cemented inside a strong iron cylinder; in the lower one, B, the gas is generated, and the upper one, A, contains the water or other liquor to be aërated. The vessel B is separated by a partition into two parts; the lower one contains the carbonate of soda, and the upper dilute sulphuric acid. Through a little aperture, c, a small quantity of the latter flows out at every vibration of the cylinder on to the carbonate of soda, thereby generating carbonic acid gas, which passes through the hole e, in the top of the lower vessel, rushes up the large conical tube i, when it is forced down the smaller one k, into the second large one 7, which acts as a second gas-purifier; it is then forced down the other small tube, and issues from a number of minute holes at o, rising through the water contained in the vessel A. The vibration of the machine agitates the water, and occasions the gas to be absorbed almost as quickly as it is produced. A quarter of an hour is generally sufficient to complete the process. The pressure-gauge, h, indicates the number of atmospheres of gas the water contains. It will be observed, that there is no communication whatever be tween the lower vessel, where the gas is generated, and the upper one containing the water, except through the gas-pipe i. The Chairman, before closing the meeting, thought it right to remind the members, that this was the first meeting since the Society had obtained a Charter of Incorporation, by virtue of which, it had become acknowledged by the law of the land, and thereby its political position was materially altered. The preamble of the Charter stated, that Her Majesty, with the consent of her advisers, had been induced to grant this boon, believing that the association would be the means of advancing the arts of Chemistry and Pharmacy, and of thus contributing to the welfare of the public. Now, whatever might have been the motives which had induced Members to join this association, it must be remembered that they were pledged to do all in their power to elevate the profession to which they belonged, and to show themselves, in this way, deserving of the favour conferred upon them. He hoped it would not be thought by any of them, that having arrived at this satisfactory point, their work was done. He for one did not think so, and he trusted that no man did; but on the contrary, he felt called upon to employ every means in his power to carry out the great end the Society had in view. The Pharmaceutical meetings would doubtless be the means of advancing the great object of the Institution, and this ought to be a stimulus to a frequent and regular attendance. The Council were most anxious, always, to cater for the entertainment and improvement of the members, but they must look to the members themselves for the means of so doing. He was very happy to say that competent judges had spoken favourably of the papers that had been read at the meetings from time to time. He hoped that the Members of this Society would always be disposed to speak and to act towards other corporate bodies with due deference and respect, and he also hoped, since the government of the country, in their wisdom, had thought proper to recognize this Society as an integral part of the medical profession, that other corporate bodies-more especially the College of Physicians would manifest the same disposition towards the Society. This meeting would bear witness that he was a strong advocate for strict observance of all the formulæ contained in the Pharmacopoeia; but it was no more than right to expect that those formulæ should be of a scientific character and founded on the best practical experience, and whilst he and the members of this Society would be quite willing and anxious to pay deference and respect to those who, by their education and station, were supposed to be best able to superintend the arrangement of the remedies, in his opinion, practical matters were best understood by practical men, such as he hoped would ever be found among the members of the PHARMACEUTICAL SOCIETY. OTHER ORIGINAL COMMUNICATIONS. ILLUSTRATIONS OF THE PRESENT STATE OF BY RICHARD PHILLIPS, F.R.S., &c., Honorary Member of the Pharmaceutical Society. THE preparation which I shall next notice, as having submitted to examination, is the Spiritus Ammoniæ Aromaticus; it is not, indeed, a medicine of the greatest importance, but as a domestic remedy it ought to contain the proper quantity of carbonate of ammonia, and being employed in preparing the tinctura guaiaci composita, it should have the requisite quantity of spirit. The specific gravity of this medicine, when prepared according to the Pharmacopoeia, I find to be 0.911; having obtained some from five different Chemists, three of whom reside many miles from London, I ascertained the specific gravity of the samples to be as under: No. 1............ 0.910 No. 2............ 0.882 No. 3............ 0.888 No. 4............ 0.913 Contrary to what I expected, some of these specimens were of less density than the college preparation; and it will be seen from the annexed statement of proportional strengths, that the density cannot be satisfactorily assumed as a standard of comparison. To determine the comparative quantities of carbonate of ammonia which the above specimens contained, I added to equal portions of them a given weight of fragments of marble, and equal volumes of dilute hydrochloric acid, of ascertained solvent power: the larger the quantity of marble dissolved, the less would be the quantity of carbonate of ammonia; and I found the comparative strengths, with regard to carbonate of ammonia, to be as follows: College preparation (assumed as) = 100 No. 1. = 120 = 100 = 120 = 38 ......101 I may here observe, that I ascertained some time since that the carbonate in the Spiritus Ammonia Aromaticus is a neutral salt, consisting of one equivalent each of acid and alkali; and it is on this account more pungent than the sesquicarbonate of ammonia. Upon the whole, with the exception of No. 4, the specimens of this preparation which I have examined, are less imperfect than any others previously submitted to examination, the variation in strength, with the exception above made, not being in greater proportion than six to five. |