.November 26 , 1870.] 
THE PHARMACEUTICAL JOURNAL AND TRANSACTIONS. 
425 
water, so tliat the actual reaction is somewhat as 
follows:— 
GNH 4 C1 + 3 CaC0 3 
_ n f2NH 4 HC0 3 |NH 4 NH 2 COJ 
= 3CaCl 2 + j2NH 3 H 2 0 ) 
Perhaps the safest and simplest course is to regard 
it as a compound of carbonic anhydride, ammonia 
and water (NH 3 ) 4 (C0 2 ) 3 (H 2 0) 2 . 
AivnroNii Bromidum. —Usually made by first di¬ 
gesting together iron wire, bromine and water, so as 
to obtain a solution of ferric bromide, and then de¬ 
composing this by a sufficient quantity of solution 
of carbonate of ammonia. On filtering off the ferric 
hydrate and evaporating down the solution, a crys¬ 
talline mass is obtained. Or it may be obtained by 
decomposing calcic bromide by carbonate of am¬ 
monia. The iodide of ammonium is prepared in a 
similar manner. .... 
[§ A solution of the bromide in water, mixed with 
mucilage of starch and a drop of an aqueous solution 
of bromine or of chlorine, does not exhibit any blue 
colour.] This test shows the absence of iodide; 
should any part of that salt be present iodine would 
be liberated, 2NH 4 I + Br 2 or Cl 2 =2NH 4 Br or 
2NH 4 C1 + I 2 , and this would form with starch the 
characteristic blue compound. 
Ammon ii Chloridum is formed by neutralizing 
the ammoniacal liquors obtained in gas-making with 
hydrochloric acid and evaporating till the solution 
crystallizes. The salt is purified by sublimation. 
The ammonia which exists in these liquors in the 
form of carbonate, sulphide, cyanide, etc., is the re¬ 
sult of the decomposition at a high temperature of 
the nitrogenous constituents of the coal. Chloride 
of ammonium generally contains a little iron and 
traces of tarry matters; frequently, too, the chlo¬ 
rides of volatile alkaloids (compound ammonias) are 
present in minute quantity. 
CITRATE OF IRON AND QUININE. 
In the Practitioner for October the following table is 
given, showing the results of analyses of six specimens 
of citrate of iron and quinine purchased in London. 
According to the British Pharmacopoeia, this prepara¬ 
tion should contain 20 per cent, of ferric oxide and 16 
per cent, of quinine. 
No. I.—A. Cooper, Abingdon Terrace, Kensington.— 
Olive-green scales. 
No. II.—W. Lambert Kiddle, 34, Tavistock Place.— 
Dark olive-green scales. 
No. III.—W. J. Jones, 3, Newland Terrace, Kensing¬ 
ton.—Very small olive-green scales. 
No. IV.—Burgoyne, Burbidges and Co—Pale yellow¬ 
ish-green scales. 
No. V.—Glover and Co., 19, Goodge Street, W.— 
Golden-brown scales. 
No. VI.—Knowles, 33, Seymour Street, Euston Square. 
Golden-brown scales. 
Ferric oxide. 
Quinine. 
cent 
B.I 
. 
. . 20 per 
cent. . 
. . 16 per 
No. 
I. 
. . 19-3 
99 • 
. . 175 
99 
No. 
II. 
. . 20-2 
jy • 
. . 16-2 
99 
No. 
III. 
. . 21-4 
99 • 
. . 154 
99 
No. 
IV. 
. . 21-3 
99 * 
. . 7T 
99 
No. 
V. 
. . 20-9 
99 * 
. . 4-2 
99 
No. 
VI. 
. . 20-4 
99 * 
. . 4T 
99 
CUCUMBER OINTMENT. 
Mr. Luther E. Sale, of Huntsville, Alabama, publishes 
in the Chicago Pharmacist the following as a simple for¬ 
mula for making cucumber ointment:— 
Take of Oil of Sweet Almonds, seven fluid ounces. 
Spermaceti, eighteen drachms. 
"White Wax, five drachms. 
Glycerine, one fluid ounce. 
Green Cucumbers, 4 lb. 
Cut the cucumbers in small pieces, mash them in a 
Wedge wood mortar, let them macerate in their own 
liquor for twelve hours, express and strain ; melt the 
almond oil, spermaceti and wax together by means of a 
water-bath; add the strained liquor, stirring constantly, 
so as to incorporate the whole together. Set aside in a 
cool place (an ice chest preferred) till it becomes hard, 
then beat wdth a wooden spoon to separate the watery 
portion of the cucumbers from the ointment; pour off 
the liquor thus obtained, and mix the glycerine with the 
ointment without the aid of heat by working it with the 
hands until it becomes thoroughly incorporated. Put 
up in four-ounce jars, cover with a layer of rose-water, 
and set aside in a cool place. The ointment prepared in 
this way will keep sweet and nice for twelve months. 
DETECTION OF ADULTERATIONS IN COPAIVA 
BALSAM. 
EY DR. H. HAGER. 
The author has met with copaiva balsam adulterated 
with oil of sassafras. The adulteration is detected in the 
following manner: 1 c.c. balsam and 2 c.c. concentrated 
sulphuric acid are mixed ; after the mixture has cooled, 
20 c.c. alcohol are added, the mixture is heated to boiling, 
and then set aside. If the balsam be pure, after the ad¬ 
dition of the alcohol, a milky grey yellowish or pale red¬ 
dish yellow liquid is obtained, which on boiling becomes 
yellow, clear and transparent, a resinous compound 
settling to the bottom. If adulterated with oil of sassa¬ 
fras, the addition of alcohol produces a dark brown-red 
colour, becoming after boiling much darker, with a tint 
of violet, similar to the juice of black cherries. 
Oil of turpentine, which is probably rarely used as an 
adulterant, is readily detected by heating slightly two to 
four drops of the balsam, dropped upon bibulous paper, 
in such a manner that no visible vapours are eyoh ed. 
Oil of turpentine evaporates first and is recognized b\ 
its odour. # . , f 
This test is unreliable if Venice turpentine is used toi 
adulteration. The author invites experiments with the 
following test, which has given him reliable results; 5 
or 6 drops of water and 5 to 7 c.c. balsam are mixed m 
an evaporating-dish with sufficient levigated litharge to 
form a thick semi-liquid mass. At a temperature of 20 
to 25° C. (68° to 70° F.), a well-marked turpentine odour 
is given off, if the balsam contains but 10 per cent. 
Venice turpentine, and even 5 per cent, may be still 
recognized. . u 
An approximate quantitative estimation of the adulte¬ 
rant may be made as follows : 5 grams balsam, 8 to 10 
drops water, and 15 grams litharge are heated for a 
quarter of an hour in a sand-bath, then for several hours m 
a water-bath. After cooling, the hard mass is rubbed to 
powder and boiled with benzin, the liquid evaporated 
and the residue macerated with 90 per cent, alcohol for 
several hours. The alcoholic filtrate evaporated to dry¬ 
ness, leaves about 0-2 to 0-3 resin, which when boiled with 
solution of potash, yields a filtrate which is not or scarcely 
tinned by sulphide of ammonium. In the presence of 
turpentine, however, this last residue contains about 
three-fourths of the resin of the adulteration, and yie ds 
with "potash a liquid in which sulphide of ammonium 
produces a bulky brown-black precipitate, lhe lead 
