444 ANIMAL DRUGS 



618 b. CERA ALBA. WHITE WAX. BLEACHED WAX. The yellow 

 wax is bleached by exposing an extended surface to the light and 

 atmospheric influence. This is done in various ways. Bleaching 

 may be accomplished by chemical means, such as by the use of chlo- 

 rine gas, etc. A white, shining, inodorous, insipid solid, fusing at 

 about 65C. (149?.). For Tests see U.S.P. 



USES. As an ingredient in cerates, ointments, plasters, etc. 



619. OVUM. Gallinaceum, N. F. Fresh hen's egg. 



SOURCE. The egg of the common domesticated hen (probably from India 

 originally) is well known as an article of food throughout the country. 



DESCRIPTION. A thin, calcareous shell incloses an albuminous sub- 

 stance known as white of egg, which in turn incloses the vitellus or yolk. 



CONSTITUENTS. The three parts of an egg are entirely separate and dis- 

 tinctive in composition. 



(a) Testa Ovi, Egg-shell. Almost pure calcium carbonate (90 to 97 per 

 cent.), the remainder being made up of magnesium and calcium phosphates, 

 together with about equal quantities of organic matter. 



(6) Albumen Ovi, White of Egg. -Made up mostly of a solution of albumen 

 and water (albumen 15 per cent., water about 85 per cent.), with slight traces of 

 fat and sugar, as well as KC1 and NaCl, which are the chief components of the 

 ash. Ovi Albumen Recens, N.F. Fresh egg albumen. 



(c) Vitellus, U.S.P. 1890. Egg Yolk, or Yelk. Compounded of water 

 (about 52 per cent.), fat (30 per cent.), vitellin (16 per cent.), and inorganic 

 salts (1.5 per cent.), such as chloride of sodium, sulphates and phosphates of 

 magnesium, etc., together with coloring matter and traces of lactic acid and 

 sugar. Ovi Vitellum Recens, N.F. Fresh egg yolk. 



ACTION AND USES. Shell sometimes used as antacid. The white, besides 

 its nutriment, is valuable as an antidote when corrosive sublimate, sulphate of 

 copper, or other metallic poisons have been taken into the stomach. The yolk 

 is even more nutritious than the white, having a greater amount of digestible 

 solids. It is used in preparing emulsions of oils and applied as a dressing for 

 burns. 



620. MOSCHUS. MUSK 

 MUSK 



The dried secretion from the preputial follicles of Mos'chus moschif'erus Linn6 



(Fam. Moschidae). 



SOURCE. Musk is obtained from a small bag or sac attached to the pre- 

 puce of the male Musk deer, Mos'chus moschif'erus, a species of horn- 

 less deer found in Central Asia from Thibet to China. The musk-sac 

 is somewhat oval and about 50 mm. (2 in.) in diameter, containing 

 in the mucous lining a number of delicate glands which secrete the 

 musk. 



DESCRIPTION. A granular substance of a brownish or reddish-black 

 color, having a very strong, peculiar, and penetrating odor. The 

 granules are irregular in size, and have a smooth, oil appearance and 

 a bitter taste. The color of the fresh article is considerably lighter 



