112 



THE ALUMNI JOURNAL. 



process given on p. 200; though nitrous 

 acid passes into nitric acid by contact 

 with water, this reaction does not occur 

 in the presence of an excess of nitric 

 acid. Few remedies have a more gen- 

 eral and widespread reputation than this; 

 it is now frequently prescribed, more 

 than eighty years after its virtues were 

 originally discovered." 



The nitrous acid used is known in com- 

 merce as fuming nitrous acid or fuming 

 nitric acid. It is really nitric acid hold- 

 ing in solution nitrous acid fumes, which 

 latter maybe wholly removed by boiling, 

 or largely by simple and continued ex- 

 posure to air; so that the commercial 

 product varies considerably in strength 

 of absolute nitrous acid. 



Remington's Pharmacy (188.5), P- 1027, 

 specifies nitrous acid in the formula for 

 this mixture, as does also the National 

 Dispensatory of 1884 (p. 75) and 1894 

 (p. 76). Hope's Camphor Mixture is 

 still largely used, at least with us, in 

 summer dj^senteries, and if Mr. Hope's 

 contention as to the necessity of using 

 only nitroiis acid. 7iever nitric, is correct, 

 then the National Formulary decidedly 

 errs in following the formula of Ellis and 

 specifying the latter. 



The objection sometimes raised as to 

 the difficulty of securing good fuming 

 nitrous acid can be met. The pharma- 

 cist can easily make his own nitrous 

 acid, extemporaneously, from sodium 

 nitrite and nitric acid, using quantities 

 sufficient to yield the amount of acid in 

 the formula, which is small. Messrs. 

 Rosengarten & Sons state that sodium 

 nitrite of the new official strength (97. 6 

 per cent.) is readily obtainable. 



Medicated Waters. — In the making of 



medicated waters — save those prepared 



by distillation or direct solution — the 



new Pharmacopoeia directs precipitated 

 calcium phosphate as the distributing 



medium in about the same proportion as 



that directed ior magnesium carbonate 

 in the 1870 issue. As was pointed out 

 by the writer ten years ago (A. J. P., 

 1884, p, 75), in advocating the use of 

 precipitated calcium phosphate for this 

 purpose, it is essential, in order to pro- 

 perly distribute the oil. that the lime 

 compound be used in double the quantity 

 of magnesium carbonate usually em- 

 ployed, on account of its much less bulk. 

 The official quantity of the lime com- 

 pound should be 8 gm. to 1,000 cc. of 

 the medicated water, and not 4 gm., as 

 directed. 



It is best to add, as the Pharmacopoeia 

 directs, a// the water to the admixed lime 

 compound and oil before filtration. The 

 practice of some pharmacists adding only 

 a part of the water, throwing on a filter 

 and then adding further water, from time 

 to time, to the contents of the filter until 



the required amount has filtered through, 

 cannot result in as strong a solution as 



if the oil had been brought in intimate 



contact with all the water at once. 



There is one detail whereby the official 

 process can be greatly improved, and 

 that is by using in place of the distilled 

 water, hot, boiled v^^S-^x, i. e., water boiled 

 and cooled to a point just short of boil- 

 ing. In following this practice, the 

 writer adds the water to the admixed 

 lime compound and oil, places it in a 

 proper vessel, covers tightly and filters 

 after it has stood for some hours, prefer- 

 ably over night. 



The use of hot, boiled water has a 

 number of very decided advantages. 

 These are a maximum solution of the oil 

 and an increased permanenc}' of the 

 water. Boiled water is far more germ- 

 proof than the usual distilled water of 

 commerce, which is believed to be, in 

 some cases at least, simply condensed 

 steam- waste. 



Criticism may be made against the use 

 of nearly boiling w^ter for making aro- 



