THE CODEX AND THE BRITISH PHARMACOPEIA. 
67 
the pharmaceutist, but being in this part of the Codex and not in the Materia 
Medica, excepting only the iodide of potassium, there are no descriptive notes 
or tests as in the P. B. 
CHAPTER Till. 
CYANIDES. 
There are four cyanides in this chapter, viz. cyanide of potassium, or potassic 
cyanide, Prussian blu^ or ferroso-ferric cyanide, cyanide of zinc, or zincic 
cyanide, and cyanide of mercury, or mercuric cyanide. 
From the last of these the medicinal prussic acid of the Codex is ordered to be 
prepared; beyond that they do not very much interest the pharmaceutist. 
CHAPTER IX. 
SULPHATES, SULPHITES, HYPOSULPHITES. 
These consist of the sulphate and subsulphate of mercury, sulphate of iron, 
sulphate of zinc, sulphate of cadmium, sulphate of manganese, solution of bibasic 
sulphate of alum, dried sulphate of alum and potash, commonly called burnt 
alum, purified sulphate of soda, or Glauber’s salts, ammoniated sulphate of 
copper, sulphite of lime, and hyposulphite of soda. I think I may pass these 
without comment, as they are not particularly interesting to the pharmaceutist; 
sulphate of cadmium is perhaps the greatest stranger, but as there are no com¬ 
pound preparations of it, it must be here simply as a chemical product. The re¬ 
vised edition of the P. B. enumerates iodide of cadmium, and an ointment of it 
amongst its novelties. It states that iodide of cadmium may be formed by 
direct combination of iodine and cadmium in the presence of water. 
CHAPTER X. 
NITRATES. 
Nitrate of mercury in crystals, acid nitrate of mercury in solution, nitrate of 
silver in crystals, nitrate of silver in sticks, or pierre infernale, alias lapis infer- 
nalis, and subnitrate of bismuth, make up the contents of this chapter. These 
nitrates are identical with those of the P. B., with the exception of nitrate of 
mercury in crystals, which is not in P. B. In the directions for preparing 
nitrate of silver, it is stated in the Codex that, if only money silver or jewellery 
were at the disposal of the operator, pure nitrate of silver could be made from 
them. After removing the first nitrate from the crystallizations, set aside the 
last mother-liquor, the crystals then deposited should be washed with a little 
nitric acid, then redissolved in water and set aside to crystallize as before, they 
would then be quite free from copper. 
CHAPTER XI. 
HYPOCHLORITES. 
There are only two hypochlorites, the one liquid hypochlorite of lime, syno¬ 
nymous with our liquor calcis chloratse, and prepared in a similar way; the 
other is— 
106. Hypochlorite de Soude Liquide*. 
Chlorure de Soude. Liqueur de Labarraque. Hypochloris Sodicus Aqua 
Solutus. 
Solution of Chlorinated Soda. 
This is to be prepared by decomposing a mixture of dry chlorinated lime in 
water with a solution of carbonate of soda. The P. B. directs chlorine to be 
passed into a solution of carbonate of soda. 
f 2 
