[February 8, lfc73. 
G38 THE PHARMACEUTICAL JOURNAL AND TRANSACTIONS. 
PHARMACEUTICAL MEETING. 
Wednesday , February 5th, 1873. 
Mil. A. F. HASELDEN, F.L S., PRESIDENT, IN THE CHAIR. 
Ixio following donations to the Library and Museum 
were announced, and the thanks of the Society were 
voted to the donors :— 
‘ Calendar of the Rayal College of Surgeons of Eng¬ 
land, 1872,’ from the College; ‘Catalogue of Scientific 
Papers (1800-1863), Yol. vi.,’ from the Royal Society of 
London; Signal Service Weather Maps and Meteoro¬ 
logical Records of November 22nd, 1872, three issues, 
from the U.S. AYar Department; ‘ De la Rage en 
Algerie, par Dr. C. Roucher, ‘ Essai sur un Arbre 
du genre Pinus,’ par P. Dive, and ‘ Les Champignons 
de la Charente-Inferieure,’ par J. Mousnier, from Dr. 
Soubeiran; ‘Year-Book of Pharmacy and Transactions 
of the British Pharmaceutical Conference, 1872,’ from 
Mr. R. Brcmridge ; ‘ Sur la situation actuelle du 
Bureau des Longitudes,’ par M. Faye; A report of 
Microscopical and Physiological Researches into the 
nature of the agent or agents producing Cholera,’ by 
T. R. Lewis, M.B., and D. D. Cunningham, M.B.; ‘ On 
a Haematozoon inhabiting Human Blood : its relation 
to Chyluria and other Diseases,’ by T. R. Lewis, M.B. ; 
* The Telegraphic Journal for November, No. i. ; ’ 
‘ Sessional Proceedings of the National Association for 
the Promotion of Social Science,’ Yol. vi., Nos. 1-2; ‘The 
Ancient Physician’s Legacy to his Country,’ by Thomas 
Dover, M.B., second edition, 1732, from Mr. Daniel 
Hanbury; ‘ Specimens of Egyptian Tamarinds, of the 
rind of the Bergamot Fruit, and of the roots of the Jalap 
Plant, showing the formation of the tubercules,’ from 
Mr. Daniel Hanbury; specimen of ‘ Guaiacol, and spe¬ 
cimen of Theine obtained from Guarana,’ from Messrs. 
Hopkins and AYilliams; ‘ Sulphocarbolate of Calcium, 
in very perfect Crystals,’ from Mr. De AYitte; ‘ Arse- 
nious Acid with Crystals formed upon its Surface,’ 
from Bissoc Arsenic Works, Cornwall, from Mr. R. H. 
Martin; ‘ Eucalyptus Oil,’ from Mes 3 r 3 . Felton, Grim- 
wade and Co.; ‘ Native Borate of Lime from Singapore,’ 
from Mr. J. Collins. 
I he President, in announcing the contributions to 
the Library, called attention to a very old book which 
h.ad been presented by Mr. Hanbury, and which was by 
Thomas Dover, the originator of “ Dover s Powder.” 
The book contained a curious recipe for the prepara¬ 
tion of that powder. 
Professor Attfield exhibited some syrup of iodide of 
iron containing iodide of lead. The specimen had been 
sent by Mr.. Rimington, of Bradford, who believed it to 
be quite unique. Specimens of syrup of iodide of iron 
had, probably, been brought before the Society as often as 
any preparation, but they had never had one like that 
then shown, which was truly a “ golden syrup,” full of 
spangles of golden lustre. These spangles were iodide 
of lead. Mr. Rimington stated in a letter that the 
iodine he had been supplied with contained lead, the 
iodine probably having been sublimed on to a leaden 
surface.. Professor Attfield had sometimes found lead 
mechanically mixed with iron filings. If Mr. Riming¬ 
ton had made his syrup from iron filings, that fact might 
account for the presence of lead; being made from iron 
wire, however, the lead was clearly traceable to the 
iodine, added to which, Mr. Rimmington had detected 
lead in the iodine. 
Mr. AYilliams said that on more than one occasion he 
had found his syrup contaminated with iodide of lead, 
and he once had more than 150 pounds weight thus 
spoiled.. He separated it by sulphuretted hydrogen 
after dilution. In each of the cases he had met with, the 
lead was entirely derived from the iron filings, and not 
from the iodine. He had used portions of the same 
iodine with pure filings, and found his syrup free from 
lead. 
Mr. Umney said that he had seen the same impurity in 
syrup of iodide of iron, but it occurred only when the syrup 
was prepared from rough iodine. He had checked this, 
observation by the use of different qualities .of iron, an! 
had found the lead in the syrup even when iron wire 
had been used. AYhen resublimed iodine was used, 
iodide of lead did not occur. 
Morocco Drugs. 
A paper on “ Some Drugs collected in Morocco” which 
is printed at p. 621, was read by Dr. Arthur Leared, and 
gave rise to the following discussion :—■ 
The President, after expressing the thanks of the 
Society to the author for his interesting, instructive, 
and, he might say, amusing paper, remarked that 
orange-flower water was generally imported in copper 
vessels containing nine or ten gallons each, but not 
made in the costly style of the vessel which Dr. 
Leared had just exhibited. 
Mr. Hanbury said that Dr. Leared had referred to a 
seed extremely like that of Feyanum Harmala, but black 
instead of brown. Feyanum Harmala was a plant well 
known in the East, and its seeds possessed a remarkable 
property of affording, when digested in spirit, a green 
fluorescent solution. AVith regard to orris root, which, 
they were told, had lately come into the market from 
Morocco, he had the other day observed the curious fact- 
that at the beginning of the present century price currents 
always used to contain both Florentine orris root and 
Barbary orris root. The Barbary orris root was entirely 
derived from Iris yermanica , the common blue flag of our 
gardens. AYith regard to cumin we were told that it was 
used by the Jews in their bread, and also for flavouring' 
pickled tunny fish. In the middle ages it was much used 
in Europe as a spice and a condiment. Dr. Leared had 
drawn attention to the remarkable fact of caraways 
being brought from Morocco. He (Mr. Hanbury) con¬ 
fessed that when he was shown Morocco caraway seeds 
in London some time ago, he hardly knew how to believe 
his eye3, for the caraway was essentially a northern plant, 
dwelling in Scandinavia and the colder parts of Europe. 
On looking, however, at Jackson’s ‘Morocco,’ a work 
published at the beginning of the present century, he 
found that the author distinctly mentioned caraway seeds 
as an export of Morocco, and upon his (Mr. Hanbury’s) 
sowing some of the Morocco caraway seeds last spring, he 
obtained a plant exceedingly like that of Europe. As 
to grains of paradise, it might be true, as stated by 
the people of Morocco, that their drug came from 
Europe, but it was a very curious fact that at Tripoli 
and the towns on the northern coast of Africa grains of 
paradise were still brought by caravans coming from 
Soudan and Timbuctoo, and from the tropical parts of 
Africa east of Sierra Leone. They were so brought in 
the middle ages, and shipped to the ports of Italy; and 
as they came from an unknown and remote region, and 
were much esteemed, they acquired their present name, 
the people supposing that no place but Paradise could 
produce anything so delightful. In subsequent times, 
when there was direct trade between AYestern Africa and 
Europe, grains of paradise were an article of very large 
import, being brought direct even to England and France. 
They were once in common use as a condiment for human 
food. 
Professor Bentley said that Mr. Hanbury had anti¬ 
cipated some of the remarks he had intended to make. 
He must say that, although he had come to the meeting 
tearing that the paper, being technical, would bo unin¬ 
teresting, he had found it quite the contrary, and had 
listened to it with great gain. Researches such as those 
of Dr. Leared were the only means by which they could 
get any historical knowledge of old remedies, or form 
an acquaintance with new ones. As to orris root, it was 
very interesting to find that it came in such large quan¬ 
tities from Mogador, in Morocco. Dr. Leared had re¬ 
ferred to only one species of zizyphus though there were 
several species known by the common name of jujube ; 
