434 
THE PHARMACEUTICAL JOURNAL AND TRANSACTIONS. [November 26, 1870. 
white, shining crystals began to make their appearance. 
These increased from day to day, until the mother-liquor 
Rad become syrupy. They were then removed, washed 
with ether, and dried on blotting-paper. Examined 
chemically, they correspond in every respect with Fliicki- 
ger’s description of pseudaconitina. They weighed 43 
grains. 
The syrupy mother-liquor, evaporated to dryness in a 
fared capsule, weighed 130 grains, without reckoning 
w r hat was temporarily lost in the washings. It had the 
appearance of resin, became soft over the water-bath; 
w r hen cold, was brittle and structureless. It was dis¬ 
solved in alcohol, and the solution poured guttatim into 
boiling water kept slightly acidulated with nitric acid. 
It dissolved without residue. The solution was con¬ 
centrated to a thin syrup, and set aside to see whether 
-it would crystallize. It showed no tendency that way, 
in this respect differing from the alkaloid of Aconitmn 
Napellus , so it was diluted with water, and treated with 
■a slight excess of ammonia. The white magma was 
thrown on to a filter, washed a little with water, then 
drained on blotting-paper and dried. It weighed in that 
condition 87 grains. * 
The loss occasioned by precipitation thus amounted to 
Since writing the above, I have had an opportunity of as¬ 
certaining the opinion of Dr. Th. Husemann respecting pseud- 
nconitina and aconitina, expressed in a paper published subse¬ 
quently to that of Dr. Fliickiger in the Neues Jahrbuch der 
Nharmacie. He writes, “ The physiological actions of pseud- 
aconitin a and of aconitina, when applied externally, differ in this 
respect—the former acts similarly to veratria, the latter not so. 
Taken internally,pseudaconitina is given in much smaller doses 
than aconitina and often acts fatally. They both depress the 
action of the heart and lungs, and act similarly but unequally 
on the bowels.” 
Adelheim, however, could perceive only a difference of 
43 grains. This was caused mainly by the solubility 
of aconitina in water. It is stated to dissolve in 150 parts 
of that fluid, but that proportion is much too little for 
the recently precipitated alkaloid and an ammoniacal 
liquor. To avoid loss, therefore, the wash waters and 
absorbent papers must be looked sharply after. 
It is, therefore, probable that the pseudaconitina that 
from time to time has made its appearance in the Euro¬ 
pean markets, under the name of aconitina, has been de¬ 
rived from the Indian aconites, of which it seems to be 
characteristic, as lycoctonin is peculiar to the yellow- 
flowered aconite. The very large proportion of true 
aconitina yielded by Bikh, and the facility of purifying it 
from its crystalline and sparingly soluble concomitant, 
point unmistakably to the future source of the alkaloid, 
and to a large reduction of its present enormous price. 
Note on Calamine. 
BY 11. REYNOLDS, E.C.S. 
It has been supposed that those who desired the genuine 
calamine of pharmacy (prepared carbonate of zinc) could 
obtain such from a manufacturer in Derbyshire. Al¬ 
though this used to be the case, it is so no longer, as the 
calamine issued from the above source is no-w a silicate 
of zinc (the electric calamine of mineralogists) and not a 
carbonate. The maker appears to be satisfied, because 
the mineral contains about 70 per cent, of oxide of zinc, 
and the substitution seems to be the result of difficulty 
in getting the right substance, and not from any fraudu¬ 
lent intention. However, the fact is not a satisfactory 
one, and some other means of supply is desirable. The 
silicate is easily distinguished from true carbonate, inas¬ 
much as it partially dissolves, without effervescence, in 
hydrochloric acid, and then gelatinizes, from the separa¬ 
tion of silica. -- 
The President confirmed the statement of the diffi¬ 
culty in obtaining genuine calamine. He was able, how¬ 
ever, to announce that a recent discovery of this ore had 
been made in the Mendip Hills, which he hoped would 
soon be made available for the purposes of pharmacy. 
Mr. Williams (London) also spoke of the absence of 
genuine English calamine from the market, but said that 
a satisfactory article was imported from Belgium. 
Mr. Wentworth Lascelles Scott, F.C.S., furnished 
a paper on “ The Purification of Ammoniacal Salts from 
Gas Liquor so as to utilize them for Pharmaceutical 
degree, not of kind, between aconitina and pseudaconitina 
derived from Aconitmn ferox . 
Very soon after Turnbull’s discovery of aconitina, and its 
introduction into medical practice, differences in the action of 
alkaloids of various sources were noticed. Some would not 
produce the sensation of numbness, contraction and weight, 
lasting from two to twelve hours, as described by Turnbull ; 
some were stronger than others; some dilated, others expanded 
the pupil. From 5 to 6 milligrams of the stronger kind seem 
to have been the poisonous dose for a cat, whereas the weaker 
kinds were toned down step by step to almost positive in¬ 
ertness. 
Husemann is decidedly of opinion that pseudaconitina ought 
not to be regarded as a mere impurity of aconitina, but rather 
as the true active principle of aconite, and thinks that both al¬ 
kaloids deserve a place in the dispensary as soon as a method 
shall have been devised for preparing them in a state of purity. 
He regards the Indian aconite roots as the most likely 
source of pesudaconitina, although he thinks it probable that 
Aconitum Napellus may possibly contain it in small quantity. 
Morson’s preparation, it is well known, cannot always be 
relied upon. Its topical action is at times much more power¬ 
ful than at other times. The method of extraction adopted 
by him is not known. It is said to be a peculiar one; but 
there is reason for supposing that its success depends mom 
on careful selection of the roots than on any relinement ot 
chemical treatment. 
