SCAMMONIUM. 4il 



mass, it is of a chesnvit-brown, but in small fragments it is seen to be 

 very pale yelloAvish-brown and transparent, Avith the freshly fractured 

 surface vitreous and shining. "When powdered it is of a very light 

 buff. Rubbed with the moistened iino-er it forms a white emulsion. 

 Treated with ether it yields 88 to 90 per cent, of soluble matter, and a 

 nearly colourless residuum. This scammony, as well as the pure juice 

 in the shell, is very liable to become mouldy ; but besides this, it throws 

 out, if long kept, a white, mammillated, crystalline efflorescence, the 

 nature of Avhich we have not been able to determine. But if scammony 

 is kept quite dry, neither mouldiness nor efflorescence makes its 

 appearance. 



The ordinary fine scammony of commerce, known as Virgin Scara- 

 raony, is also in large flat pieces or irregular flattened lumps and frag- 

 ments, which in mass have a dark-grey or blackish hue. Viewed in 

 thin fragments, it is seen to be translucent and of a yellowish-brown. 

 It is very easily broken, exhibits a shining fracture, gives an ashy grey 

 powder, and has a peculiar cheesy odour. Some of the pieces have a 

 porous, bubbly structure, indicative of fermentation ; the more solid 

 often show the efflorescence already mentioned. Scammony has not 

 nmch taste, but leaves an acrid sensation in the throat. 



Chemical Composition — Scammony owes its active properties as 

 a medicine to a resin shown (1860) by Spirgatis to be identical with 

 that found in the root of the Mexican Jpomce'a orizahensis, known in 

 commerce as Male Jalap: this resin called Ja?cy>Mi will be described in 

 the next article. Tlie other constituents of pure scammony arc not well 

 known. One of them is the substance which, as already stated, makes 

 its appearance as small masses of cauliflower crystals on the surface of 

 pure scammony, when the latter is kept in air not perfectly dry. 



Whether the odour observable in commercial scammony is due to a 

 volatile fatty acid developed by fermentation, is a question still to be 

 investigated. 



Commerce— The export of scammony from Smyrna amounted in 

 1871 to 278 cases, valued at £8320 ; in 1872 to 185 cases, value £6100. 

 According to a report of Consul Skene on the trade of Northern Syria, 

 /37 cases of scammony were exported from the province of AJeppo m 

 1 872,— six-sevenths of the quantity being for England. In 18/.i 



Aleppo exported by way of Alexandretta to England 46,o00 kilo- 

 grammes of scammony root and 900 kilogrammes of the resm, the 

 latter being valued at 3G,000 francs (£1444). 



An establishment at Brussa, founded by Delia Sudda, ot Con-stanti- 

 nf^ple, is stated to export since 1870 a very good scammony resm 

 extracted by alcohol.- 



Uses-Employed as an active cathartic, often in combination with 

 colocynth and calomel 



Adulteration-Scannnony is very of ten imported in an adulterated 

 state, but the adulteration is so clumsily efi-ected, and is so eas^ dis- 

 coverable by simple tests, or even by ocular examination, that diuggistvS 

 nave but little excuse for accepting a bad article 



We have already named the substances used in the sophistication of 



' Preseiited to Parliament, July 1873. '- Drageiulorrs JahnsUrkht, 1876. 15S. 



