560 
THE PHARMACEUTICAL JOURNAL AND TRANSACTIONS. 
L January 11,1873. 
fcrapittaxt 
*** No notice cm be taken of anonymous communica¬ 
tions. Whatever is intended for insertion must be authenti¬ 
cated by the name and address of the writer ; not necessarily 
for publication, but as a guarantee of good faith. 
Milk Testing. 
Sir,—Mr. Southwell questions the accuracy of my state¬ 
ment, that cows’ milk has a slightly alkaline reaction. It is 
a matter of very little practical moment, but if he will 
examine milk directly it is drawn from the cow, he will find 
I am correct. 
Pereira (4th Edition ‘ Materia Medica,’ p. 814, vol. ii. part 
ii.) says, “ when recently drawn from the animal, milk is 
slightly alkaline.” 
Fownes (‘Chemistry,’ 9th Edition, p. 728) says, “milk is a 
slightly alkaline liquid;” and again (p. 728) “In a fresh 
state, and taken from a healthy animal, milk is always feebly 
alkaline.” 
All the other authorities I have referred to say the same ; 
and, indeed, considering the composition of milk, I do not see 
how it can be otherwise. 
Of course no one would attempt to estimate the total solids 
in milk, without first making sure of the absence of such 
substances as starch and chalk; however, as I have said before, 
they are really never to be met with. 
Yogel’s lactoscope affords a good rough-and-ready way of 
estimating the value of any given sample, but we have 
already too many of such rough methods, and I think no one 
would venture to rely upon the lactoscope alone to give a 
decided opinion in a Court of law as to whether milk was 
adulterated or not. 
In the table at the end of his letter, does Mr. Southwell 
intend us to infer that milk, having a specific gravity of 1027, 
must necessarily be mixed with 10 per cent, of water ? I need 
hardly point out that this is very far from being the case. A 
milk containing a large amount of cream, which is lighter 
than water, may have asp. gr. even lower than 1027, and yet 
be a better and richer milk than one having a sp. gr. of 1031. 
Next to obtaining the total solids, perhaps the estimation 
of the milk sugar in the whey, as recommended by Mr. J. P. 
Brown, is the most satisfactory way of detecting adulteration 
by water. I have not found though, that titration with a 
standard solution of copper gives such accurate results, as 
determining the milk sugar directly by weight. 
We must remember, too, that although milk sugar varies 
perhaps less than any other constituted of milk taken by 
itself, still it varies considerably. 
Messrs. Henry and Chevalier found that with cows fed on 
grass, the quantity of milk sugar per cent, was 4 - 77, when 
the same cows were fed on carrots the milk sugar rose to 5’30, 
and when fed on beet, to 5’95 per cent., a difference from first 
to last of about 20 per cent. 
Charles Ekin. 
Hath, .Dec. 26th, 1872. 
Payment oe Local Secretaries. 
Sir,—Mr. Sutton asks for some further expression of 
opinion on the subject of remuneration to local secretaries 
for their services in the Preliminary examinations. 
In responding to his request, I think there is no remunera¬ 
tion needed or desired; it is quite competent for every local 
secretary to deduct payments out of pocket from the sum he 
remits annually to Bloomsbury Square. These deductions 
■would be exceedingly small, and during the twenty-five years 
I have been secretary, I do not recollect having made a charge 
for these trifling payments, but, on the contrary, have consi¬ 
dered the honour of the appointment more than an equiva¬ 
lent. 
While I am writing these lines five candidates for honour 
in the Preliminary examination are in my presence work¬ 
ing on their papers. Three hours spent in this superin¬ 
tendence may not be always convenient, but 'the time may 
always be profitably employed; and as the Council receive no 
remuneration for the time devoted to the interests of the 
Society (the country members receiving a railway pas?), why 
should any be given to local secretaries ? 
Should anything be done in this matter the railway pass is 
in my opinion the best suggestion. 
Nathaniel Smith. 
Cheltenham, January 6th, 1873. 
The Subscription por Mrs. Stockman. 
Sir,—May I trespass once more on your kindness by ask¬ 
ing you to announce on behalf of Mrs. Stockman and 
family:— 
Alien Smith, Sale, 2 7s., and J. J., Aberdare, 10s. 61. The 
total sum subscribed is £185. 4<s. 8 d. This has been the means- 
of placing the widow in a hosiery and haberdashery busi¬ 
ness. She and her family return their best thanks to the 
subscribers for their generous kindness. 
Allow me also to thank you most sincerely for your kind¬ 
ness in allowing the acknowledgments of subscriptions to 
appear gratuitously in the Pharm. Journal. 
Charles Mum by 
Gosport , January 2nd, 1873. 
J. Smith, M.D. —(1) We are unable to give you the 
formula. (2) The formula for Pommade de la Comtesse, as- 
given by Dorvault (L’Officine) is as follows 
“Noix de galle .30 - 0 
Noix de cypres.300 
Ecorce de grenade.30’0 
Sumac.30-0 
Mastic.30’0 
Onguent rosat. 590 - 0 
La Pharmacopoeia Hispanica remplace la pommade rosat par 
de la cire jaune et de 1’huile de myrte.” (3) We believe the 
article is a specialty of Messrs. Gosnell. (1) We have been 
unable to obtain the information. 
“Inquirer.” —We believe that no separate returns have 
yet been made. See ante, p. 347. 
“ Spes.” —The subject has already been discussed and a. 
remedy suggested (see ante, p. 419). We therefore refrain 
from printing your letter, which would be only adding to the- 
amount of “ talk ” upon the subject deprecated by you. 
“ Chemicus .”—Blaine’s ‘Veterinary Art.’ 
“ Hyoscyamus.” — Valentin’s ‘Inorganic Chemistry,’ or 
Eresenius’ Works on analysis. 
J. J. 31. (Manchester).—Bentham’s ‘Handbook of British 
Botany,’ or Hooker’s ‘ Students’ Eiora of the British Islands.’ 
J. Davidson. —For a description of the manufacture of 
oxalic acid on the large scale, see Ure’s ‘ Dictionary of the 
Arts,’ Iiichardson and Watts’s ‘ Chemical Technology vol. i.; 
Watts’s Dictionary, vol. iv. 
W. J. —There is no such law in force as that described by 
you. 
J. A. Clarke— The report was received too late for inser¬ 
tion this week. The lecture shall be attended to. 
The following journals have been received :—The ‘ British 
Medical Journal,’ January 4; the ‘Medical Times and; 
Gazette,’ January 4 ; the ‘Lancet,’ January 4; the ‘Medical 
Press and Circular,’ January 4; ‘Nature,’ January 4; the 
‘Chemical News,’ January 4; ‘English Mechanic,’ January 
4; ‘ Gardeners’ Chronicle,’ January 4: the ‘ Grocer,’ January 
4; the‘Journal of the Society of Arts,’January 4; ‘Gro¬ 
cery News,’January 4; the ‘Scientific American,’January 
4; ‘L’Union Pharmaceutique’ for December; ‘Journal de 
Pharmacie et de Chimie ’ for December; ‘Repertoire de- 
Pharmacie’for December ; ‘ Moniteur Scientifique-Quesne- 
ville ’ for January’; the ‘Doctor’ for January; ‘Food, 
Water, and Air’ for January; ‘British Journal of Dental 
Science’ for January; ‘Practitioner’ for January; ‘Ame¬ 
rican Chemist’ for December; ‘Medical Record’ January 
8; ‘Journal of Applied Scion eo’ for January; ‘ Irish Hos¬ 
pital Gazette’ January 1; ‘ Students’ Journal 7 January 4. 
Communications, Letters, etc., have been received from 
Messrs. W. R. Jones, Pattison, T. M. Sioae, F. Coles, C. Hal 1 , 
W. Proctor, G. Brown, P. Vincent (Paris), E. Gallois (Paris), 
M. C. Cooke, II. Smith, “ Plumule,” “ Jlyoscyamus,” “ Spes,” 
and J. J. M. 
