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SCIENTIFIC AND APPLIED PHARMACOGNOSY 



2. Curasao Aloes. Orange to blackish-brown opaque masses, 

 translucent in thin pieces; fracture uneven, waxy, somewhat resin- 

 ous, occasionally exhibiting microscopical crystals of aloin; odor 

 distinct, unpleasant; taste nauseous, bitter. The powder is dark 

 reddish-brown and gives an immediate deep reddish color with cold 

 nitric acid or with solutions of the alkalies. 



About 60 per cent of Curasao Aloes is soluble in cold water. 

 It is almost completely soluble in 60 per cent alcohol or boiling 

 water; on cooling the solution made with boiling water there sep- 

 arates from 40 to 60 per cent of " resin of aloes," which is similar to 



FIG. 35. Special containers used in the shipment of aloes, the one on the left 

 being a gourd and is still commonly used; the other two being sewed up 

 monkey-skins which are now only occasionally seen in the market. 



that of Socotrine aloes. About 66.6 per cent is soluble in chloroform 

 and not less than 10 per cent in ether. It contains less than 8 per 

 cent of moisture and yields from 1.5 to 4 per cent of ash. 



Barbadoes Aloes is a hepatic variety of Curacao Aloes, which 

 is not obtained at the present time from Barbadoes, but from the 

 Dutch* West Indies. It occurs in dark brown, dull, opaque masses, 

 giving a yellow powder that is colored red with nitric acid. About 



