802 
THE PHARMACEUTICAL JOURNAL AND TRANSACTIONS. 
[April 12, 1873 
it occurs in the wood and hark of Quassia amara, L., 
and Tiercena excelsa , Lindl., and perhaps also in the 
hark of Simaruba amara , Heyne. Winckler ex¬ 
tracted the wood with alcohol of 80 per cent., eva¬ 
porated, dissolved the residue in water, filtered, again 
evaporated, and extracted with a small quantity of 
absolute alcohol, again evaporated the extract almost 
to dryness, dissolved it in hot water, and decolorized 
the filtered solution hy animal charcoal at a gentle 
temperature. Wiggers extracted the wood with boil¬ 
ing water, agitated the concentrated solution with 
lime, filtered, evaporated almost to dryness, boiled 
the residue with alcohol of 80 to 90 per cent., again 
dried, dissolved in a small quantity of absolute alco¬ 
hol, precipitated the brown colouring substance from 
the solution by ether, repeated this treatment until, 
on drying, an almost colourless residue remained, 
and poured the alcohol-ether solution into water, 
when the quassin immediately crystallized out. 
When crystallized according to Wiggers’s method 
from alcohol-ether, or from hot water or hot weak 
alcohol, quassin forms white, semitransparent, shin¬ 
ing columns, persistent in air, without any smell, with 
an extremely bitter taste, and neutral reaction. It 
melts with a little more difficulty than colophonium, 
and hardens into a transparent yellow mass. At 12°C. 
it requires for solution 222 parts of water, dissolves 
readily in alcohol, but very slowly in ether. When 
strongly heated in air, quassin burns like a resin. 
Cold moderately concentrated nitric acid changes it, 
on heating, into oxalic acid ; cold concentrated sul¬ 
phuric acid dissolves it without colour, and water 
precipitates it apparently unchanged; tannic acid 
precipitates it from solution in alcohol in thick, 
white flakes. We still want a series of exact physio¬ 
logical experiments on the poisonous action of "this 
substance on other animals besides flies and other 
insects. The usual statement with reference to quas¬ 
sin is, that Hartl observed that an application of 
•06 to T2 gram to a wound in the case of a rabbit 
caused faintness and want of appetite, and death 
ultimately in 30-36 hours ; an alcoholic solution was 
here employed. With other experimenters, palsy re¬ 
sulted, but ultimate recovery. If the seeds of Sim aba 
Cedron, Planch., which are used on the Magdalena 
river in South America as a remedy against inter¬ 
mittent fever, rheumatism, and poison, are heated 
with ether so as to remove the fat, and then extracted 
with alcohol, there shoot out of the solution on eva¬ 
poration silky glancing needles of ceclrin (composition 
not given), with a taste as bitter as strychnine. In 
large doses, this substance is poisonous. 
(To le continued.) 
SOLUTIONS TOR HYPODERMIC 
INJECTIONS.* 
EY M. CONSTANTIN PAUL. 
In the early period of the employment of the 
subcutaneous method of administering medicines, 
the substances most ordinarily so used were mor¬ 
phia and atropia,'—or rather the hydrochlorate of 
morphia and the sulphate of atropia,—which were 
dissolved simply in water. These solutions, once 
prepared, sometimes remained on hand a considerable 
* Abstracted from papers in ‘ L’Union Pharmacentique/ 
vol. xiv. p. 48, and the ‘ Repertoire de Pharmacie In s 
vol. i. p. 91. L J ’ 
time, in consequence of the small quantity used at 
each operation, but it was soon noticed that they 
easily underwent change. Dr. Bourdon found that a 
solution of hydrochlorate of morphia, which had been 
kept for some time, had lost so much of its activity 
that he was able to inj ect equal to four centigrams of 
the hydrochlorate without producing the physiological 
effects to be expected from such a dose. The solution 
was therefore analysed by M. Delpech who found that 
it had lost one half of its proportion of morphia. In 
point of fact, the solution had become turbid through 
a confervoid growth, necessitating filtration. In a 
solution of sulphate of quinine also the growth had 
appeared, and M. Delpech found that a portion of the 
salt had disappeared. Dr. Bourdon attributed the 
weakening of the solutions to two causes :—(1) that 
the confervoid filaments act a similar part to threads 
placed in supersaturated solutions in influencing the 
formation of crystals, and this especially, as these 
solutions are usually concentrated and so predisposed 
to crystallization ; (2) that the confervoid growth has 
the property of decomposing to a certain extent the 
medicaments under such circumstances. M. Gubler 
has recognized the confervse present in a sulphate of 
atropia solution as belonging to the genera Leptcmitus 
and Hygrococis. 
Since water, distilled and undistilled, proved a bad 
medium for preserving solutions intended for hy¬ 
podermic injection, it became necessary to seek 
a liquid less liable to change, and Messrs. Gubler and 
Delpech tried the distilled eucalyptus water. This 
preparation could be preserved much longer, but did 
not give complete satisfaction. The author has 
employed a liquid prepared by M. Adrian, consisting 
of— 
Water.85 parts 
Alcohol.10 „ 
Glycerine.5 „ 
This liquid he has found to be not more irritating 
than simple water, and capable of being kept for a 
moderate time, but still it permits the development 
of the confervas. It is also necessary to remark that 
this vegetation shows itself with a variable intensity, 
according to the salt used, even when the vehicle is 
the same. 
The solution which changes most readily is that 
containing hydrochlorate of narceia ; a layer of con- 
fervee develops on the surface, causing the formation of 
very small crystals appearing like a powder. The same 
solution acidified by hydrochloric acid precipitates 
fine crystalline needles, but the confervae are not 
developed. The solution next in order of stability 
is that of bisulphate of quinine, in the lower part of 
which float large flocks of mould. Then follow the 
solutions of sulphate of atropia and hydrochlorate of 
morphia, which only develop a small proportion. 
Acetate of aconitia is scarcely altered. Solutions of 
hydrochlorate of quinine, sulphovinate of quinine, 
sulphate of strychnia, and nitrate of veratria remain 
without change. 
Digitaline dissolved in alcohol is perfectly pre¬ 
served, as is also sulphate of morphia dissolved in 
glycerine. . The author, therefore, adopts by preference 
glycerine as a solvent, as being a neutral liquid and 
easily preserved without change. He also considers 
it to be of all the liquids that which approaches 
nearest in composition to the subcutaneous cellular 
tissue. 
Experience has proved to M. Paul that it is neces¬ 
sary to use great precision in apportioning the 
