120 
He further suggests the substitution in the pharmacopoeia of pun- 
tied asafeticla or asafetida resin, made by extracting the commercial 
drug with purified wood alcohol or alcohol, recovering the alcohol 
and evaporating the resin to extract consistence. Such a purified 
resin, he believes, would be of full strength and of uniform quality, 
and moreover would permit of smaller dosage, which is a great ad- 
vantage in pills, tablets, etc. — Bull. Pharm., Detroit, 1905, v. 19, p. 
361. 
An editorial points out that the alcohol soluble content of the drug 
has been reduced to 50 per cent, but matters are evened up by placing 
a 10 per cent limit of ash. This will bar fully 50 per cent of what 
now passes the customs on a 60 per cent alcohol soluble content. — r 
Drug. Topics, 1905, v. 20, p. 211. 
Lloyd, John Uri, says: 
Whilst this is not a favorite eclectic remedy it is used somewhat by certain 
physicians of the eclectic school. Be it said that, owing mainly to the mixture 
of sand and pebbles and other foreign substances, this drug is seldom if ever 
obtained in a condition to conform to all of the pharma c-opceial requirements. 
It is a much abused remedial agent. — Pharm. Review, 1905, v. 23, p. 298. 
Gane, E., is reported as finding asafetida containing 45 per cent of 
sand. 
Patch, Edgar L., reports finding asafetida containing 62, 62.5, and 
73.3 per cent of material insoluble in alcohol. — Proc. Am. Pharm. 
Ass., 1905, v. 53, p. 183. 
Moore, Russell W., in discussing the quality of asafetida offered 
at the port of Xew York, says that tabulated results with two sets of 
samples tested in 1890 and 1900 show that in 1890 only 3.66 per cent 
of the samples examined were of the requisite purity, while in 1900 
this had been increased to 14 per cent. — Proc. Am. Pharm. Ass., 1905, 
v. 53, p. 265. 
The report of the revisors of the Vienna pharmacies (Zeitschr. d. 
oesterr. Apoth-Ver.) points out that the residual ash of asafetida was 
found to vary from 20 to 30 per cent in eight samples, over 50 per 
cent in five samples, and over 60 per cent in two additional samples 
in place of the 10 per cent allowed by the pharmacopoeia. — Pharm. 
Prax., 1905, v. 4, p. 37. 
The report of the Belgian inspectors asserts that samples were 
found which contained as high as 75 per cent of ash. — Bull. soc. roy. 
Pharm. Bruxelles, 1905, v. 49. p. 307. 
Gehe & Co. report that the importations of asafetida into London 
have increased from 608 cases in 1903 to 1,039 cases in 1904. The 
greater portion of this, however, was of inferior variety and there 
was comparatively little of the better quality of drug available.- — 
Handels Ber., Gehe & Co., 1905, p. 12. 
