90 



C. U. C. P. ALUMNI JOURNAL 



Starch in Dextrin. — J. E. E., New 

 York, wishes to know whether the pres- 

 ence of starch in dextrin is objectionable 

 from a legal standpoint. 



We note that dextrin is to be included 

 in Part II of the forthcoming edition of 

 the National Formulary and when that 

 work appears, dextrin, so labelled with- 

 out qualifications, will have to comply 

 widi the standards set by that work. We 

 notice that the monograph of the Formu- 

 lary permits the presence of unconverted 

 starcb. If, however, the starch present 

 is not tliat from which dextrin is or- 

 dinarily prepared (say arrowroot starch) 

 tbe presence of such starch granules 

 would be strong presumptive evidence of 

 "adulteration" of dextrin in question. 



And here comes a very curious point. 

 In making library paste and similar ad- 

 hesives a dextrin containing added starch 

 yields a better product than does a pure 

 sample ; so we are confronted by the 

 condition that an "adulterated" dextrin 

 is better for this purpose than is a strictly 

 legal product. Of course the difficulty 

 is obviated by labelling such starchy 

 dextrin "White dextrin, technical," or by 

 tbe use of similar wording. 



"Alizarin-fixer."— M. M. G., New 

 York. — We presume that the title just 

 given is intended fOr Turkey red oil 

 which is used largely as a mordant in 

 alizarin dyeing. This is an oil prepared 

 by the treatment of castor oil with sul- 

 ])huric acid; the resulting sulpho- 

 ricinolic acid being used in the alizarin 

 process in the form of its ammonium 

 salts. For details, our querist is referred 

 to Sadtler's "Industrial Organic Chem- 

 istry." 



Spiritus Balsamicus. — Dr. Joseph 

 Weinstein kindly calls our attention to 

 the fact that the recipe we gave for 

 "spiritus balsamicus" on page 14 of the 

 Journal for January is not the recipe 

 for that preparation as it is used in 

 Russia and he is good enough to furnish 

 the Russian recipe, as follows : 

 Oil of lemon 

 Oil of bergamot 

 Oil of cloves 

 Oil of rosemary 

 Oil of orange flowers 

 Oil of thyme of each i part 

 Balsam of Peru 4 parts 



Alcohol 240 parts 



In furnishing the recipe we intention- 

 ally picked out the simplest recipe avail- 

 able, the one found in Graa's "Manual 

 of International Pharmacy," since we 

 knew that there were several recipes for 

 this preparation and that when we were 

 selecting, the simplest would be the most 

 practical for American needs. The situa- 

 tion is similar to that obtaining with 

 Friar's Balsam in this country, for which 

 most druggists dispense compound tinc- 

 ture of benzoin, U. S. P. ; while the 

 National Formulary gives a more complex 

 recipe for the preparation; and while the 

 original Friar's balsam was still morecom- 

 plex than the preparation obtained by 

 the Formulary recipe. Similar confusion 

 exists concerning Hoffmann red drops. 



Most timely, therefore, is Dr. Wein- 

 stein's friendly criticism and in order to 

 bring out the full facts we reprint on next 

 page, from Hirsch's "Universal Pharma- 

 kopoe" the following summary of the 

 recipes for "spiritus balsamicus" found 

 in six pharmacopoeias. It will be noted 

 that in each case the mixture is to be 

 macerated from one to six days after 

 which it is to be distilled. 



