396 



On opium. 



Neither of the above folutions poffefled to any confide- 

 rable degree the peculiar Imell or tafte oi opium ; probably 

 from the large proportion of aikohol. The rejin was preci- 

 pitated from the folutions in aikohol, by the addition of 

 water. That of the lettuce appeared to me wb'ilcrxhAw the 

 other; but not fo copious: the opium tafte, &c. was more 

 evident in the water. Its rehn was more evident by ftandi- 

 ing fome days. 



LETTUCE OPIUM. 



Experiment "J. 



Aiiguft 19th. I put 20 grains of 

 the /ettuce opium into the vial A. and 

 added to it one ounce of a mixture of 

 equal parts of aikohol and rain water. 

 On the 29th, after repeated agitation 

 I filtered it and found that 124- grains 

 had been taken up, as 7 4 remained 

 on the filtre after waftiing and drying. 

 The folution eminently poflefled the 

 fmell and tafte of laudanum ; and was 

 pf an higher colour than that of the 

 following experiment. 



COMMON OPIUM. 



Experiment 8. 



The fame day, I put a fimilar 

 quantity oi common opium into the vial 

 B. and added tlie fame quantity of the 

 mixture of the aikohol and water. By 

 filtration on the 29th, feven grains 

 were left upon the filtre ; or 1 3 grains 

 were fufpended in the folution. 



This difference I regard as proceed- 

 ing from a fmall allowance not being 

 made in the weight of the opium of the 

 kttuce, which had not dried tho- 

 roughly ; and hence not containing as 

 much foliJ matter in tlie vshole maf"s. 



The mafs left on the filtre A. was of a move g/mnny feel 

 than that of B. and not of fo high a colour ; the fmell or 

 tafte of opium was not very evident in either of them. 



With the folutions of experiments 3 and 4, 1 proceeded 

 now to make the follov/ing. 



LETTUCE OPIUM. 



COMMON OPIUM. 



Experiment g. 



To a folution of fugar of lead, I 

 added 30 drops of the aqueous folu- 

 tion of the opiiwi laSucne; a copious 

 bro\VTi coloured precipitate inftantly 

 formed. The ofium fmell was evi- 

 dent. 



Experiment io. 



A fimilar effeift took place with the: 

 acetite of lead, and the aqueous IoIut 

 tion of common opium. The precipi- 

 tate was not as dark as tlie former;, 

 the opium fmell was evident. 



Ei.rERlMENT- 



