114 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 



[August i, 1885. 



oiJs obtained from bark sent to England for manu 

 facture, I see that the average loss on red bark 

 is about 1 per cent, of the total alkaloids; there- 

 fore the 2,000 lb. would yield to Government 

 if sent to England 801b. of mixed alkaloids obtained of 

 course by a far better process than I am working, but al.so 

 more expensive. The cost charged to Government of work- 

 ing quinine barks in England comes to about 1 shilling per 

 pound on the bark used exclusive of the freight and other 

 charges. The following is drawn up by me from the Govern- 

 ment papers of the 18th October 1881 ; — 

 Cost of bark to Government as per return of 



Plantations, 9 annus 6 pies per pound. £ s. d. 



Cost of 6, 104 It) bark ... ... 259 lU 8 



Freight charges, &c. ... ... 30 6 8 



Return JVcight ... ... 27 4 8 



Manufacture charges ... ... 272 18 



Total ... 590 

 from which 295 lb of mixed crystallized alkaloids were 

 obtained, that showing the cost of crystalline feljrifuge to 

 them at 40s per pound, of which cost the expenses alone 

 were about 2'2s 5d per pound. The 2,000 lb of bark sent to 

 us would, therefore, it sent to England, have produced to 

 the Government about SO lb but I think less of mixed 

 crystalline alkaloids at a total cost of about ±;200, of which 

 120 would be expenses. If the Government therefore 

 would make any arrangement by which they let us have a 

 defini.e supply of certain barks we could undertake to 

 supply a definite proportion of alkaloids, and charge them 

 much" less than tlif price they at present pay. The per- 

 centage of alkaloids obtained by the Bengal Government 

 is about 21 per cent, and I expect the proportion of alkaloids 

 in the b.irkused is 5|- per cent on the average. This febrifuge 

 docs not not contain more than 7 per ceut of quinine, and 

 also contains about 16 per i:ent of various impurities. We 

 could d> better than this and, I think, might undertake to 

 give about 3g to 4 per cent or mixed alltaloidsand charge 

 them either so much a pound on the bark worked, or 

 so much a pound on the alkaloid delivered. In the above 

 calculations I have left out the question of araorplious 

 liquors, which would be handed over to the Government 

 when produced as done by the English manufacturers. In 

 the above I have calculated on emplo\ing a ditferent pro- 

 cess from that used in England but from my experience 

 of the climate I see no reasnn why the same process as 

 used at home could not be worked here if required. At 

 present I am working up all the bark 1 have in hand by 

 the old soda process, and the amount of alkaloid I shall 

 obtain will be much less than by the process originally 

 intended to he u.sed, but still will be a guide. 



The letter fr^m Me.ssrs. Arbuthuot &Oo. with the enclosures 

 and the samples of qniidne were forwarded to the Director 

 of the Government Cinchona Plantations for full report, 

 that the latter might be carefully examined by ilr. 

 Hooper. 



Mr. M. A. Lawson, Director of Government Cinchona 

 Plantations, Parks, and Gardens, Nilgiris, reported to 

 Government, on 1st Mav : — 



"With ro-pect to G. O., Mis. No. 1,716 dated 1st April 

 1S85, I have the honor to inform you that the three 

 samples of cinchona alkaloids, which were s.nt by Dr. 

 Cleaver to Messrs. Arbu huot & Co., have be. n carefully 

 examined by Mr. Hooper, and I forward, herewith, 

 a copy of his report on their analyses. From this 

 report it will be seen that sample No. I. which was for- 

 warded by Dr. Cleaver as being sulphate of quiuine, ceu- 

 taius no less than 37'90 parts of sidplnite of oinchonidine 

 out of 102-07 parts. This large amount of cinchoni due 

 would, in the pr' sent -iogmatie state of the market, jire.-itly 

 impair the commercial value of this preparation, though, 

 as Mr. Hooper very accurately points out. its medicinal 

 excellence would not be interlered with. Analyses of Dr. 

 Cleaver's .sample No. 2 are compared by Mr. Hooper with 

 analy.^es which he has recently made of samples of febrifuge 

 obtained from the Government laboratory m Sikkim; and from 

 this comparis{in it will he seen tlutt while Dr. Cleaver's 

 febrifuge contains no quinine, that frem the Si kkim laboratory 

 coutaiiM-d 6 97 per cent. On the other haml. Dr. Cleaver's 

 febrifuge (Contains '3.'>-(!2 per cent of ciuchoiudine, while that 

 from the Sikkim laboratory contain<d only 1578 per cent. 

 Therapeutically considered the two febrifuges are probably 



of equal value. Of Dr. Cleaver's third sample Mr. Hooper 

 says that, " although labelled crystalline febrifuge, it is 

 really nothing more than an unbleached preparation of quin- 

 ine and cinchonidine sulphates, alraost identical in compos- 

 ition with sample No. 1." Dr. Cleaver, in his letter to 

 Messrs. Arbuthnot& Co., and also in a letter to myself states 

 that he has labored under considerable difficulties in manu- 

 facturing these febrifuges owing to his not having received 

 certain necessary chemicals and apparatus. It is therefore 

 to be presume*l that, under more favorable circumstances 

 his account of the composition of the samples which he has 

 sent would have been more exact ; and I have no doubt that, 

 if a factory were to be established under his (hrectiou a 

 febrifuge of a high character mig'ht be turned out at a rea- 

 sonable cost. In an interview which I had with you the other 

 day, I told you th^it Government had in stock a large quant- 

 ity of "red bark," which, though low in the amount of sulph- 

 ate of quinine, contained a large amount of "total," and I 

 pointed out that the prices oifered for these barks were 

 wholly unreraunerative; and I urged that Government should 

 not sell these barks, but undertake the manufacture of a febri- 

 fuge from them. This manufacture might be carried on 

 by Government themselves, or it might be entrusted (under 

 agreement) to some sut-h firm as that which it is proposed to 

 establish at Calicut. If Mr. Hooper goes to Madras and super- 

 intends the manufacture of 1,000 lb. of bark into liquid extract, 

 he will be in a position to inform Government very exactly as 

 to the cost of its production, and Government would after- 

 wards be able to negotiate equitably as to tlie terms they 

 would concede to private enterprise. 



ENCLOSURE. 



Extract from letter from D. Hooper, Esq., Government 

 Quinologist, to the Director of Government Cinchona Plant- 

 ations, Parks, and Gardens, Ckitacamund, dated Ootacamund 

 1. St May, 1885 ;— The Director of the Cinchona Plant- 

 ations hashandcd me three samples of cinchona alkaloids pre, 

 pared by Dr. E. Cleaver at Ca icut. In accordance with in- 

 structions contained in G.O. Mis. No. 1.716, 1 have submitted- 

 them to a thorough examination, and have the honor to re- 

 port upon as follows : — No. 1 sample was labelleil " sulphate 

 of quinine " and was of good appearance, white and crystal- 

 line. It had the following composition: — 



Sulphate of quinine ... 64'17 



Sulphate of cinchonidine... 3790 



102-07 

 The quantity of cmchnnidine present is comparatively 

 large, but it should be pointed out that all commercial 

 samples of sulphate of quinine invariabl.y contain some 

 amouut of this other alkaloid, which has similar medical pro- 

 perties. Sample No- 2 was '' febrifuge," the dried antl 

 powdered alkaloids of retl cinchona bark. Tlie color com- 

 pares favorably with that of other makers, and it is almost 

 entirely soluble in dilute acids. The analysis is quoted I'elow, 

 and, for comparison, the analysis of some Sikkim febrifuge, 

 received last month from Calcutta, is also given — 



Calicut Sikkim- 

 Quinine ... ... None 6'97 



Cinchonidine ... ... 35-62 lOTS 



Qvunidine ... ... Trace 1'24 



Cinchonine ... ... 4429 60-63 



Amorphous alkaloids ... ... 10-82 8-12 



Moisture, ash and coloring matter ... 9-27 7-26 



100-00 lOO'OO 

 This febrifuue. Mr. Cleaver states, is made from branch 

 bark, which is usually poor. The process, however, for 

 its manufhCtm-e is cheap, and it contains a fair quantity 

 of crystallis.ible alkaloids equally valuable in fever with 

 ciuiuine itself. Sample No. 3, although labelled "crystal- 

 line febrifuge." is nn unbleached i)ri,^pax-ation of quiuine 

 and cinchonidine .sulphates, almost ideniical in composition 

 with sample " No. 1 '' 



On the 2".'nd IM 'y INlr. JI. A. Lawson forwarded a copy 

 of the analysis of the twenty bales, or 2,000 lb., of hark 

 supplied to Dr. Cleaver on the 2nd Decemljer 1.S84. 

 Enclosuke. 



Report on the analyses of cinchona hark supphed to Dfi 

 Cleaver, 



