101 
manthum / bikhaconitine, the alkaloid of Aconitum spicatum. — J. 
Chem. Soc., Lond., 1905, v. 87, part 2, pp. 1620-1636. 
Cash and Dunstan (Proc. Roy. Soc., 1905, v. 76, pp. 468-490) 
report a pharmacologic study of the action of indaconitine and 
bikhaconitine. — Abstr. in Biochem. Centralbl., 1905-6, v. 4, p. 594. 
Reiehard, C. (Pharm. Zentralh., 1905, v. 46, pp. 479^86), discusses 
the reactions for aconitine and recommends a modification of the 
phosphoric acid test. — Pharm. Ztg., Berlin, 1905, v. 50, p. 562. 
Alvarez (Bull. Commercial, 1905) describes an efficient method for 
the detection of aconite. He adds bromine, nitric acid, and alcoholic 
solution of potassium hydroxide to the substance to be tested, and 
when cool treats the resulting red-brown mass, which varies in depth 
of color, according to the amount of aconitine present, with 5 or 6 
drops of a 10 per cent solution of copper sulphate; an intense green 
color results. — Am. Druggist, N. Y., 1905, v. 47, p. 98. 
ACONITUM. 
True, Rodney H., reports that aconite has been successfully grown 
in the testing garden of the U. S. Department of Agriculture. — Proc. 
Am. Pharm. Ass., 1905, v. 53, p. 274. 
An editorial objects to the requirement that aconite root should 
yield 0.50 per cent of total alkaloids by the U. S. P., VIII, method of 
assay, and points out that much more research is needed before a 
satisfactory assay of aconite is possible. “ No assay is worth any- 
thing that does not determine the aconitine.” — Drug Topics, 1905, 
v. 20, p. 210. 
Dohme, A. R. L., says aconite is now running much higher in aconi- 
tine than it did formerly, i. e., 0.80 per cent, in place of 0.50 per cent 
as required by the pharmacopoeia. The average content for the past 
seven j^ears varied from 0.55 per cent aconitine in 1899 to 0.92 per 
cent in 1902. — Apothecary, Boston, 1905, v. 17, p. 942. 
Maben, Thomas, discusses standardization in the U. S. P., VIII, 
pointing out that some of the standards are surprisingly high, and 
that when the dose of aconitine and the dose of fluid extract of aconite 
are compared the surprise is not lessened. 
The average dose of aconitine is grain ; that of the fluid extract 1 minim, 
equal to jfo grain. According to notions of dosage in this country this would 
be excessive, while that of the tincture is still worse, the dose being 10 minims, 
equal to aTe grain aconitine. If any departure from the natural standard 
should ever be legitimate, I think aconite would have been a suitable case. — 
Pharm. J. Lond., 1905, v. 21, p. 140. 
Caeser and Loretz outline a method for assay that provides for the 
extraction of the powdered drug with ether, using a 15 per cent solu- 
tion of sodium hydrate as alkali. The ethereal solution is then treated 
with successive portions of 1 per cent hydrochloric acid ; it is then 
