ON AN ANTIDOTE FOR PRUSSIC ACID, ETC. 
275 
Dr. BALANCE SHEET. Cr. 
1864-5. £. s. d. 
To Balance in hand . 4 10 7 
_ ,, 33 Members’ Subscriptions . 16 10 0 
„ 37 Associates . 4 12 6 
1864-5. £. s. d. 
By Printing, Stationery, etc. 6 4 3 
,, Rent of Library . 8 0 0 
,, Collector’s Commission. 1 0 0 
„ Lecture Room. 15 0 
,, Gratuity to Porter.. 0 5 0 
,, Reprints from Pharmaceutical 
Journal. 1 17 0 
,, ‘ Chemist and Druggist ’ . 0 5 0 
,, Taufield—Binding . 0 15 0 
,, Postage. 1 0 11 
,, Balance .... 5 0 11 
£25 13 1 
Examined and found correct. 
J. BILBROUGH, 
J. BILB ROUGH, "l Auditors 
J. C. REINHARDT, f^ uauors - 
The adoption of the Report and Treasurer’s Account was moved by Mr. Atkinson, 
seconded by Mr. Smeeton, and carried. 
The following officers were elected as the Committee for the ensuing year:—Presi¬ 
dent, Mr. Haigh ; Treasurer, Mr. Land; Secretary, Mr. Yewdall; Librarian, Mr. Thomp¬ 
son ; Committee, Messrs. Reynolds, Smeeton, Stead, B. Taylor, S. Taylor, and Ward; 
Auditors, Messrs. Bilbrough and Reinhardt. 
The thanks of the meeting were offered to the retiring officers. 
Mr. Reynolds, F.C.S., then gave a resume of the proceedings of the British Pharma¬ 
ceutical Conference at Birmingham, with illustrations of some of the papers. A general 
discussion followed. 
ORIGINAL AND EXTRACTED ARTICLES. 
SUPPLEMENT TO PAPER ON AN ANTIDOTE AT ONCE EOR 
PRUSSIC ACID, ANTIMONY, AND ARSENIC. 
BY MESSRS. T. AND H. SMITH. 
In addition to and completion of our late remarks, in this Journal, on Sol. 
Ferri Perchloridi as an antidotal agent in poisoning by either prussic acid, anti¬ 
mony, or arsenic, it occurred to ns, while our manuscript was in the compositors’ 
hands, that the question may be asked—what effect would the not unlikely oc¬ 
currence of free acid in the stomach have on the action of the prussic acid anti¬ 
dote when its use may be indicated? If the amount of acid could be known, the 
answer would be easy, viz. the corresponding quantity of an alkali given in ad¬ 
vance would prevent an} r interference with the desired action ; blit a quantity 
of alkali so great would be required to meet the most extreme case that the 
remedy might itself have an injurious action, or might form a soluble yellow 
prussiate which, although not poisonous, would be a less desirable product than 
the insoluble and inert Prussian blue. It therefore suggested itself to our minds 
that caustic magnesia might be a more desirable agent in such a case. A single 
trial showed that every difficul ty is removed by the use of that substance, and 
that it does not interfere with the action of the antidote. 
Ninety grains of calcined magnesia were made into a smooth cream with a 
little water ; two drachms of muriatic acid were then added, and the acid 
was instantly neutralized, yet leaving a large excess of magnesia. 100 minims 
of medicinal prussic acid were now added, and on now preparing to add the 
alkaline solution to form a cyanide, before the addition of the iron solution, it 
occurred to us that the excess of magnesia itself might form the cyanide neces¬ 
sary to the formation of the Prussian blue. Resolving, therefore, to put the 
