400 
THE PHARMACEUTICAL JOURNAL AND TRANSACTIONS. [November 16, 1872, 
chases £5 or £10 of Whelpton’s at a time for this purpose. 
This sale seems to me to defraud the Revenue, since every 
2s. 9d. box so opened would, if sold in 7 \d. boxes, produce 
9 d. instead of 3d. duty ; and were the sale I describe stopped, 
a far greater number than six 7 \d. boxes would be sold in 
place of each 2s. 9 d. It also seriously affects the sale by 
chemists in the neighbourhood, and they naturally ash, 
“ What can be done to alter this state of things ? ” 
W. H. T. 
Totter dom, Bristol, Nov. 3rd, 1872. 
Specimens of Commercial Morality. 
Sir,—In your issue forNovember 9th appears a letter headed 
“Specimen of Commercial Morality,” and signed £ B. New¬ 
ham and Co.’ With the difference in weight between the 
invoice and real weights I am not now concerned, but I 
think your correspondents are not aware of the “ doctoring ” 
sponge undergoes before reaching the English market. Per¬ 
haps, like myself, your correspondents assumed the 
sand contained in the sponge was derived from the 
bottom of the ocean. Some years since, however, I 
met with a naval officer who had been for some 
years on the Mediterranean Station. He had watched the 
sponge fishery closely, and I gathered from him that the 
value of sponge on the spot where collected had immensely 
increased. A sponge that ten or fifteen years ago might have 
been purchased on the spot for a shilling, could not now be 
purchased for less than five shillings. But as regards the 
sand, he informed me that the pieces of sponge when pro¬ 
cured by the sponge divers were placed separately around 
their little gardens and were watered daily (once or twice), 
according to the humidity of the atmosphere, with water in 
which fine sand was suspended, the sponge, acting as a filter, 
retained the sand, while the water soaked away. This pro¬ 
cess was repeated till the sponge would retain no more 
sand. It was then carefully packed in cases for the English 
market. It is reasonable, therefore, that as your corre¬ 
spondents observe, the bottom of the case should contain a 
large quantity of sand. The shaking in transit would natu¬ 
rally produce this result. 
Your correspondents probably purchased sponge in origi¬ 
nal cases, and we all know how large is the quantity of 
sand in them. Many respectable houses now send out 
sponge free from sand (at greatly increased prices), and I 
think it is a fair question for the consideration of the re¬ 
tailer whether such a system is not to his advantage. If I 
have been misled in.my information as to the source of the 
sand, perhaps some of your correspondents will kindly put 
me right. 
W. Judd, E.C.S. 
Leamington, Nov. 12 th. 1872. 
W. Cathcart.—Everlasting Chlorine. —The sulphuric acid 
is added upon the assumption that it causes a concentration 
of the other acids, as will be seen by the following, which has 
been kindly furnished to us by the exhibitor, Mr. Septimus 
Piesse, of 'New Bond Street:—“ One of the. actions of con¬ 
centrated mixed nitric and hydrochloric acids is to evolve 
chlorine. The addition of sulphuric, by absorbing the water 
originally with the acids, and also that produced by their de¬ 
composition, keeps the acids in a perpetual state of concen¬ 
tration, under which condition they alone act when cold. 
Theoretically the action is thus— 
2HC1 + 2HN0 3 =2HO + 2NOa + Cl; 
but this does not represent entirely the reaction which occurs; 
for at times, unless the temperature be kept down, oxides of 
chlorine, etc., come over; the addition, therefore, of the sul¬ 
phuric acid to the nitro-muriatic acid must be very gradual. 
The everlasting chlorine, as exhibited, was made by mixing 
the acids of commerce, 
Hydrochloric Acid.2 parts. 
Nitric Acid.2 „ 
Sulphuric Acid.1 „ 
The first addition of the sulphuric acid to the other acids 
merely causes evolution of hydrochloric acid. This arises from 
the sulphuric taking away water at point of contact. Further 
addition of the acid soon, however, changes the colour of the 
liquid, and Cl is evolved quite regularly, sparkling like cham¬ 
pagne after the first effervescence is over.” Your other ques¬ 
tion we are unable to answer. 
“Methyl.” —We have no doubt the word applies to the 
spirit as well as to any preparation containing the spirit; but 
if you have a licence for keeping methylated spirit, and do 
not use such spirit for any of the purposes prohibited by the 
Act, we do not suppose that using it for binning would be 
interfered with. Ask the supervisor of your district to write 
to the Inland Revenue authorities. 
“ Verbum.” —1. The word is accented parent or pat ent by 
various authorities; some give both. We are not prepared 
to say which is the more correct. 2. Iodi'dum. 
A. G. M .—Numberless recipes for the articles mentioned 
have been given in former numbers of this Journal, where 
you will find a mine of information upon these and similar 
points. 
W. B. —No certificates are given to Associates. 
“ Elementarius.” —There is no limitation as to age at 
present. 
A. J. Eayson .—A person who has once passed the Minor 
examination may at any subsequent time carry on the busi¬ 
ness of chemist and druggist. 
A. B. Baniell. —We should recommend you to ascer¬ 
tain with certainty if there be any silver at all in the lead in 
question, for if the chloride precipitate is entirely soluble in 
water, it is pretty clear that silver is not present. 
“Juno.” —Phosphorus may be administered dissolved in 
ether ; or, still better, in oil. See Pereira’s £ Materia Medica.’ 
<£ Verus.”—( 1) According to £ Storer,’ 1 part of phosphorus 
is soluble in 320 parts of cold alcohol, sp. gr. - 799. (2) 
The same authority gives the solubility of acetate ot morphia 
in cold water as 1 part in 17. 
B. Modlen. —We know of no such work as that described 
by you. 
M. B. S.— Mix the spirit of chloroform gradually with the 
bulk of the water and shake after each addition ; the mixture 
will then be formed free from any separation of chloroform. 
“Kino.” —We are unable to give an opinion. You should 
apply to the Inland Revenue authorities. 
“An Apprentice.” —Huxley’s ‘Lessons on Elementary 
Physiology ’ (Macmillan), or Carpenter’s «Principles of Phy¬ 
siology ’ (Churchills). 
E. Adams. —According to the strict letter of the law, any 
medicine advertised as a remedy for the relief or cure of any 
disorder is liable to stamp duty. But the Commissioners in¬ 
terpret this provision with some leniency. With respect to 
the labels forwarded, you had better apply to the Secretary of 
Inland Revenue at Somerset House. See an article in the 
Pharm. Journ. [1] xiv. 145, and the Calendar of the Phar¬ 
maceutical Society. 
Co-operative Stores. — ££ Disappointed ” sends an account 
of his experience resulting from taking an engagement at a 
co-operative stores, which he offers as a “ warning.” Having 
left the stores after a short stay, he applied with good cre¬ 
dentials for a situation at a West-End house, where, upon his 
replying to a question as to the name of his last employer, he 
was simply shown the door. The same result has followed 
forty-three other applications, with the slight variation that 
in one case “ the person raised his foot and literally kicked 
me out of his premises.” “ Disappointed ” appears to think 
that having repented of his false step, and been somewhat 
severely punished, it is time that he were forgiven. Perhaps 
some of our readers will think so too. 
Sunday Closing.—We have received a communication from 
“An Assistant” who appears to have misunderstood the 
purport of our remarks on p. 348, since he writes, “ According 
to your view, where a dispensing trade is done, the assistant 
must be in waiting to dispense any prescription that may turn 
up. Now, it is this confinement which is the obnoxious 
thing. It matters very little whether the door be opened or 
closed as long as I am confined to the place.’’ We do not 
think that what we wrote is open to this construction. Our state¬ 
ment that it was intended to have “ some one in attendance 
capable of dispensing or selling medicines” refers to an un¬ 
doubted necessity, but does not imply that the person must al¬ 
ways,, be the assistant. Arrangements would have to be modified 
according to the circumstances of each establishment; and 
in some localities it would perhaps be practicable to limit 
the Sunday dispensing to one or two establishments, each 
taking its turn. _ 
Communications, Letters, etc., have been received from 
Mr. P. L. Simmonds, Mr. MacDowell, Mr. W. L. Jones, 
Mr. A. W. Smith, Mr. D. Hanbury, Mr. Gr. Dudgeon, Mr. 
Marshall, Mr. Morris, Mr. Lindley, Mr. O. A. Reade, Mr. 
Clifford, T. C. H., ££ Verbum,” “Nil Desperandum, 
“ Spongia Usta.” 
