THE ALUMNI JOURNAL. 



33 



Permanganate as an Antidote to KCy. 

 — J. Kossa, (^Vratch, through Nouv. 

 rim., IX., 567) considering that po- 

 tassium permanganate ought, theoreti- 

 cally to act as a chemical antidote to 

 potassium cyanide, by checking the 

 paralysis of the respiratory centres, has 

 performed some experiments, the results 

 of which appear to fully justify his hy- 

 pothesis. Rabbits were shown to be 

 fatally affected in a few minutes by 0,01 

 Gm. of the poison, but if, at the time of 

 administration, 0.5 Gm. of permanganate 

 dissolved in 50 C.c. of water was intro- 

 duced into the stomach, doses up to o.i 

 Gm. failed to cause death. Successful 

 experiments were also performed with 

 acqueous solutions of hydrocyanic acid 

 containing 0.1 percent. It is suggested, 

 therefore, that in cases of cyanide poison- 

 ing, Y^ to Yh litre of a 3 to 5 per cent, 

 solution of permanganate be adminis- 

 tered immediately. — Pharm.Jour. Trans., 

 1894, Feb., 622. . 



Inertness of Quicklime. — V. H. Veley 

 {Jour. Chem. Soc, 1894, i) comes to the 

 conclusion that dry chlorine does not 

 combine with dry lime, at ordinary tem- 

 perature, to form the so-called bleaching 

 powder. No appreciable chemical change 

 is observable between these two sub- 

 stances below a temperature of 300°, 

 when a partial replacement of oxygen 

 by chlorine takes place; under these con- 

 ditions the reaction is analagous to that 

 of baryta and chlorine, not specially 

 dried, and at ordinary temperatures. 



Cacao Alkaloids. — W. E. Kunze 

 {Zeitschr. f. anal. Chem., 1894, i) has 

 examined all of the known methods for 

 estimating and separating the alkaloids 

 of cacao. As a result he gives a new 

 and rational method, which, in his hands, 

 has given a very satisfactory result. He 

 estimates the total alkaloids by precipi- 

 tating them, from a sulphate solution. 



by means of phosphomolybdic acid; the 

 precipitate is then decomposed with 

 baryta-water; the liquid is treated with 

 carbonic acid gas, evaporated on a water- 

 bath and the dried residue extracted with 

 boiling chloroform. The alkaloids are 

 weighed and finally separated by form- 

 ing a silver salt with the theobromine. 

 This latter may be determined either 

 grarimetrically or volumetrically. 



Cinchona is merely mentioned here to 

 call attention to the fact that the term 

 yellow cinchona of previous editions of 

 the U. S. Pharmacopoeia has been 

 dropped by the new one ot 1890, substi- 

 tuting the term cinchona simply as 

 meaning the C. Calisaya, officinalis and 

 hybrids of these. 



The marked improvement, however, 

 in this new edition is shown in the 

 detailed assay process now given for de- 

 termination of the serviceable alkaloids, 

 by which the quality of bark brought 

 into this market should be improved, for 

 all have it in their power now to demand 

 a rich bark if they will simpl}^ take a 

 little trouble to determine exactly what 

 they are buying. — Squibb' s Ephem., Jan., 



1894- 



NEW LITERATURE. 



Bardeleben, P. — Kurzes Repetitormm dej 

 officinellen Pflanzen und Pflanzen-familien zur 

 Vorbereitung zum Gehiilfenexamen und fiir 

 Studirende der Pharmacie und Medicin. 



Beauregard H. — Le Microscope. 



Berg, O. C. and C. F. Schmidt. — Atlas der 

 ofBcinellen Pflanzen. 



Berkenheim, A. — Ueber Menthol. Inaug. 

 Dissertation. Gottingen. 



Bloxani C. L. — Laboratory Teaching ; or, 

 Progressive Exercises in Practical Chemistry. 



Bocquillon Liniotisin. — Formulaire des medi- 

 caments nouveaux et des medications nou- 

 velles pour 1894. 



Bocquillon - Limousin, H. — Formulaire des 

 alcaloides et des glucosides. 



Collin, jS'w^.— Guide Pratique pour la Deter- 

 mination des Poudres Officinales. 

 C ulbreth, D. R. — Pharmaceutical Botany. 



