June, 1920] PHARMACOGNOSY 407 



2S0O. Rubby, H. H. To safeguard the distribution of crude drugs. Druggists Circ. 63: 

 311-312. 1919. — The author discusses present conditions of the crude drug trade, showing 



that the broker w ho may sell more belladonna in a day than all t lie retail pharmacists handle 

 in a year is under no legal requirement to demonstrate his ability to distinguish belladonna 

 from burdock or poke, while the other is so required. Hi- suggests a change in the law that 



would require all brokers in crude drugs to employ trained and licensed pharmacogno 



who would be held personally responsible by t he State for the results of t heir determinatl D . 

 — Oliver A. Far well. 



2801. Anonymous. The tonka beans of commerce. Sci. Amer. Suppl. 87: 78. 1919. — 

 The tonka tree (Dipleri$ odorala), one of the well-known forest trees of Colombia, Venezuela, 

 the Guianas and Brazil, is variously known also as sarapia, serrapia, tonca, tonqua and ton- 

 quin. The tonka tree finds its best development along the ('aura Uiver, a large tributary of 

 the Orinoco in Venezuela. Little is known regarding its occurrence in Colombia and Brazil, 

 and it is only sparingly scattered throughout the forests of Trinidad and the Guianas. The 

 tree is rarely cut for the wood it yields, chiefly because of the logging difficulties involved, 

 but also because the fruit of the tree has a commercial value. The tree reaches a height of 

 15 feet and upward, and may attain a diameter of 3 feet. The wood is very hard, heavy, 

 strong, tough and durable. It has a fine texture and is cross-grained, can be polished and in 

 this state is very valuable for cabinet work and interior finish. Large pink flowers in showy 

 terminal panicles are produced during June, July and August. The fruit is an elliptical flat- 

 tened pod about 2 inches long and contains a seed which is known in the trade as the tonka 

 bean. The seeds owe their value to a crystalline substance (cumarin), which has a fragrance 

 resembling that of new mown hay. It is used as a flavoring material in tobacco, snuffs, cigars, 

 fcocoa, ice creams, confectionery, toilet soaps, hair dressings, cosmetics, flavoring extracts, 

 etc. The oil expressed from the cotyledons of the seeds has a clear yellow color and is used 

 as a therapeutic in medicine. The pulverized seeds form an ingredient used in the prepara- 

 tion of sachet powders. — Chas. H. Otis. 



2802. Fatjll, J. H. Pineapple fungus or enfant de pin or wabadou. Mycologia 11: 

 267-272. 1919. — The history of Fomes officinalis as a medicinal plant is discussed. — H. R. 

 Rosen. 



2803. Lind, J. Apoteker C. Heerfordts Herbarier. [The herbarium of the chemist C. 

 Heerfordt.] Bot. Tidsskr. 36: 1-19. 1917— See Bot. Absts. 4, Entry 1742. 



ANATOMICAL AND HISTOLOGICAL CHARACTERS 



2804. Konda, Mantaro. Untersuchung iiber die Dicke der Reiskleieschicht. Investiga- 

 tions on thickness of rice husks [Oryza saliva L.]. Ber. Ohara Inst. Landwirtsch. 

 Forsch. 1: 219-229. 1917. — The author has examined 56 kinds of rice with microscopic mea- 

 surements of husk thickness. Thickness is greater in the earlier stages of development than 

 when the grain is mature. The outer layer (embryo and endosperm) is very thick in the 

 earlier stages of growth, especially during the "milk" period, but becomes thinner at matur- 

 ity; the inner layer (perisperm and aleurone) behaves in the opposite manner. Grains har- 

 vested when fully mature have very thin husks and their bran contains more aleurone and 

 fat than when they are harvested too soon. Thickness of husk (outer as well as the inner 

 layer) varies with the kind of grain. It is very thick in rice of poor quality and very thin 

 in that of good quality. Grains of better quality produce less bran, which, however, is rich 

 in aleurone and fat. The husks of rice grown in mountainous regions are not significantly 

 thicker than those from lowland rice. The embryo is especially thin in upland rice. Upland 

 bran contains just as much aleurone and fat as does that of good-grade lowland rice. The 

 husk of mucilaginous rice is, on the whole, much thicker than that of ordinary rice. The 

 seed-coat of red rice consists of a layer of large cells, about 7-9 micra thick and filled with red 

 pigment. The whole husk is much thicker here than in the case of white rice. — M. H. Chow. 



