THE PHARMACEUTICAL JOURNAL AND TRANSACTIONS. [December 10, is?a 
464 
procured from a respectable wholesale house. It 
was received in a stoppered bottle covered with 3 T el- 
iow paper, on the label of which were the words 
“ Solut. setheris nitros. 1 part added to 7 parts of 
sp. vini rect. (50 per cent.) forms the sp. setlieris ni- 
trosi of the British Pharmacopoeia.” Thus, its pre¬ 
tensions were very explicit indeed, informing you of 
the strength your spirit ought to be, and also exactly 
defining what the mixture would be when made. 
Now, as the label contained no special precaution 
for keeping and storing this solution, I was rather 
doubtful of its assertions, for a solution of this 
strength ought to contain 80 per cent, of C 2 H 5 N 0 2 ; 
and as C 2 H 5 N 0 2 boils at about (55° F., this solution 
must be very dangerous to store, especially in sum¬ 
mer, and unless some special precautions were adopt¬ 
ed ; but I soon found there were no fears to be enter¬ 
tained on this account. The sp. gr. was found to be 
•857, and the separation by the CaCl test about 3 per 
cent., thus corresponding to 11 per cent, of C 2 PI 5 N 0 2 
instead of 80, or 1 per cent, above the strength of 
f-pirit aetli. nit. of the B. P. Now, as tliis article is 
usually charged from os. to Gs. per lb., you will see 
how large a price we sometimes pay for our credu¬ 
lity. We ought not to allow ourselves to be im¬ 
posed upon in this manner. The process of the 
Pharmacopoeia is neither expensive nor difficult, and 
I strongly advocate making this and other prepara¬ 
tions for ourselves, or, when this is not practicable, 
to subject them to strict examination before taking 
into stock. I have great suspicions of many of these 
concentrated preparations, and doubt not that could 
they all be examined with the same facility as this 
one, many would be found very deficient. 
PATENT MEDICINE LICENCES. 
The amount of duty received on these in 1801 was 
.£5384 and in 1809 A6842. The Act now in force 
concerning them is the 52 George III. c. 150, which, 
sifter giving a schedule of medicines liable to the duty, 
proceeds to enact generally that it shall apply to 
“ all other pills, powders, lozenges, tinctures, etc. to 
he used or applied externally or internally as medi¬ 
caments for the prevention, cure or relief of any dis¬ 
order or complaint incident to, or in anywise affect¬ 
ing the human body, wherein the person making, 
preparing, uttering, vending or exposing the same 
to sale hath, or claims to have, any exclusive 
right or title to the making or preparing the same, 
or which now are, or shall be prepared, uttered, 
vended or exposed to sale under the authority of any 
letters patent under the great seal, or which now are 
or shall be by any public notice or advertisement, or 
by any written or printed papers or handbills, or by 
any label or words written or printed, affixed to or 
delivered with any packet, box, bottle, phial or other 
enclosure containing the same, held out or recom¬ 
mended to the public by the makers, vendors or pro¬ 
prietors thereof as nostrums or proprietary medi¬ 
cines, or as specifics, or as beneficial to the preven¬ 
tion or cure or relief of any distemper, malady, 
ailment, disorder, or complaint incident to or in any¬ 
wise affecting the human body.” 
Artificial mineral waters were named among the 
articles included in the schedule, but they were ex¬ 
empted by the 3 & 4 Will. IV. c. 97. 
The duty on the licence is in London and Edin- j 
burgh A2, in other cities, boroughs and corporate 
towns 106*., and elsewhere os. The stamp duty on 
the packet, box, etc. in which the medicines are sold 
is ad valorem , and ranges from 1 Id. to AT. The 
labels bearing the stamp are prepared at the Excise 
Office, by an ingenious machine invented by Con¬ 
greve, the proprietors of the medicines paying for 
that portion of the die which contains their names 
and addresses. These labels are issued by the Re¬ 
gistrar of Licences at his office. 
It has been lately found that imitations of the 
labels are made in large quantities on the Continent 
to cover spurious preparations in foreign markets, 
and some few specimens have appeared in this coun¬ 
try. The number of persons who took out medicine 
licences in 1809 was 11,422 in England and 849 in 
Scotland. The increase in five years in the number 
of medicine licences granted has been 1349. The 
amount of duty received on patent medicines in 
1809 was AGO,860, being almost an increase of cent, 
per cent, in the last fifteen years. 
THE REACTION OF POTASSIC IODIDE WITH THE 
OFFICINAL TRISNITRATE OF BISMUTH. 
BY W. BATHURST WOODMAN, M.D., AND 
C. MEYMOTT TIDY, M.B. 
Aii out-patient attending at the London Hospital was 
taking the bismuth mixture of its Pharmacopoeia, when 
it was thought advisable to add iodide of potassium to 
the previous prescription. When she came the following 
time, she appeared much alarmed at a red precipitate in 
the mixture, which she supposed to be “ red lead ” pur¬ 
posely put in by some neighbour, the sediment having 
been almost colourless when she reached home. As no 
mention is made in the ordinary text-books of materia 
medica of the decomposition which takes place, although 
it is doubtless well known to metallurgists, it occurred 
to the authors to examine the reaction a little more 
closely. The change takes place slowly, and appears to 
consist in the formation of an iodide of bismuth, potassic 
nitrate remaining in solution. This iodide of bismuth is 
a dark-red substance of cubic form, and seems to he a 
simple iodide, which is almost insoluble both in water 
and in excess of potassic iodide. Some of its properties 
are curious. It is a very insoluble substance; for, in ad¬ 
dition to what is mentioned above, we may add that 
saturated solutions of chloride of ammonium, chloride of 
sodium, ferrocyanide of potassium, and corrosive subli¬ 
mate, do not dissolve it in any appreciable proportions. 
Acetic acid dissolves it slightly, without effervescence. 
On boiling with liquor potassae or ammonia, the hydrated 
oxide of bismuth (HBi0 4 ) is produced, which is inso¬ 
luble in excess of either reagent. On treating this iodide 
with strong nitric acid, there was active effervescence; 
fumes of iodine being given off, a blackish, metallic-look¬ 
ing substance being left, entirely soluble in spirit, which 
proved to be pure iodine. Acid nitrate of bismuth re¬ 
mained in solution, which was not precipitated by a 
small quantity of water, or until neutralized. With hy¬ 
drochloric or sulphuric acid there was no effervescence, 
but iodine was again precipitated ; with the latter some 
iodic acid was formed. Oxalic acid also decomposed the 
salt, setting free the iodine ; the action being somewhat 
slower than it was in the case of the mineral acids. 
A few trials of it in doses of 5 to 20 grains appear to 
indicate that it is not an energetic therapeutic agent, 
which is probably to he ascribed to its comparative inso¬ 
lubility .—British Medical Journal. 
