318 UMBELLIFER^. 



Bombay market, which is not always to be met with in Bombay, and 

 even there is only used by wealthy people as a condiment. It is not 

 exported to Europe. The best sort shipped to Europe is the Anguzeh- 

 l-Lari, coming from Laristan by way of Afghanistan and the Bolan 

 Pass to Bombay. It shows agglutinated tears, or when freshly im- 

 ported, it forms a clammy yet hard yellowish-grey mass, in which 

 opaque, white or yellowish milky tears, sometimes an inch or two long, 

 are more or less abundant. 



Sometimes asafoetida is imported as a fluid honey-like mass, ap- 

 parently pure. We presume that such is that of the first gathering, 

 which Kampfer says is called milk. The drug is often adulterated 

 with earthy matter which renders it very ponderous ; it must be 

 granted that an addition of such matters may often be necessary in 

 order to enable the drug to be transported. This earthy or ston}'^ 

 asafoetida constitutes at Bombay a distinct article of commerce under 

 the name of Hingra. 



By exposure to air, asafoetida acquires a bright pink and then a 

 brown hue. The perfectly pure tears display when fractured a con- 

 choidal surface, which changes from milky white to purplish pink in 

 the course of some hours. If a tear is touched with nitric acid sp. gr. 

 1'2, it assumes for a short time a fine green colour. 



When asafoetida is rubbed in a mortar with oil of vitriol, then diluted 

 with water and neutralized, the slightly coloured solution exhibits a 

 bluish fluorescence. The same will be observed, to some extent, if tears 

 of the drug are immersed in water and a little ammonia is added. The 

 tears of asafoetida when warmed become adhesive, but by cold are 

 rendered so brittle that they may be powdered. With water they 

 easily form a white emulsion. 



The drug has a powerful and persistent alliaceous odour and a 

 bitter acrid alliaceous taste. 



Chemical Composition — Asafoetida consists of resin, gum and 

 essential oil, in varying proportions, but the resin generally amounting 

 to more than one half 



As to the oil, we have repeatedly obtained from 6 to 9 per cent, by 

 distilling it from common copper stills. It is light yellow, has a re- 

 pulsive, very pungent odour of asafoetida, tastes at first mild, then 

 irritating, but does not stimulate like oil of mustard when applied to 

 the skin. It is neutral, but after exposure to the air acquires an acid 

 reaction and different odour ; it evolves sulphuretted hydrogen. In the 

 fresh state, the oil is free from oxygen ; it begins to boil at 135° to 140° 

 C, but with continued evolution of hydrogen sulphide, so that we did 

 not succeed in preparing it of constant composition, the amount of 

 sulphur varying from 20 to 25 per cent. We found it to have a sp. gr. of 

 0-951 at 25°, and a strong dextrogyrate power. If one drop of it is 

 allowed to float on water it assumes a fine violet hue by vapours of 

 bromine. 



The essential oil of asafoetida submitted to fractional distillation 

 yielded us, at 300°, a considerable proportion of a most heautifully blue 

 coloured oil. By very cautiously oxidizing the crude oil, we obtained 

 a small amount of extremely deliquescent crystals of a sulphonic acid. 

 Sodium or potassium decomposes the oil with evolution of gas, forming 



