February 18,1871.] THE PHARMACEUTICAL JOURNAL AND TRANSACTIONS. 
GG1 
BRISTOL PHARMACOLOGY. 
BY W. W. STODDART, F.C.S., F.G.S. 
(Continued from pag e 003.) 
Nat. Order. Crucifers. 
Tliis Order of plants is a remarkable group, botli 
for chemical and botanical characteristics. 
They all contain nitrogen and sulphur in large 
quantities, and when decaying give off most offensive 
odours. In certain conditions all form peculiar com¬ 
pounds of sulphocyanic acid with peculiar radicals; 
nevertheless, none are poisonous, and a great num¬ 
ber are used for food. 
The floral type is peculiarly cruciform, the calyx 
having four sepals, and the corolla four petals. With 
a few exceptions the crucifers produce a bivalved pod 
or siliqua, which is usually two-celled. 
The plants of this Order are easily distinguished 
l> 3 r the tetradynamous stamens, or while numbering 
six, four are long and two short. 
Cochlearia Armoracia (Linn.). 
This well-known auxiliary to the roast beef of old 
England is found wild on the banks of the river 
Avon, between Bristol and Keynsliam, and also at 
Stapleton, near the Frome. 
It is distinguished from all the other species of 
Cochlearia bv the elongated form and large size of 
the leaves. As before mentioned, its long tapering 
root has been mistaken for that of the aconite, but 
may easily be recognized by its light colour and 
pungent odour. The fresh root is the only part of 
the plant used in the B. P., as an ingredient in the 
Sp. Armor. Co. 
What is usually termed the root includes not only 
the root proper, but also the rhizome or underground 
stem, for the latter produces buds, and multiplies 
with great rapidity beneath the surface of the ground. 
To the chemist, horseradish is exceedingly in¬ 
teresting, because it contains 4 per cent, of a power¬ 
fully pungent oil, which is generally regarded as a 
salt of the radical allyl (C 3 H 5 ), although Hofmann 
has- stated it to be the salt of another radical, butyl 
or tetryl (C 4 H # ). By most authors, however, the oil 
of horseradish is considered as the sulpliocyanate of 
allyl (C S H S CNS). 
It is a very singular fact that the cruciferous 
plants produce compounds of sulphur and allyl that 
are so well known in the genus Allium, plants so dis¬ 
similar in habit and construction as to be in both 
exogenous and endogenous divisions of the vegetable 
kingdom. 
In every part of the world the garlic flavour seems 
to be a favourite. The Israelites of old regretted 
the loss of their leeks and onions. The Englishman 
likes the addition of a shallot, mustard, or horse¬ 
radish to his beefsteak. The Spaniard selects the 
onion, and the Asiatic assafoetida. 
Even the Brazilian has chosen the petiveria and 
sequieria, both of which have an alliaceous flavour. 
The whole of these owe their smell and taste to 
allyl, which in the onion tribe exists as a sulphide. 
For the purpose of experimentally examining the 
oil of horseradish, the author scraped three ounces 
of the fresh root, and placed it in a glass retort with 
three ounces of distilled water; a distillate was ob¬ 
tained, containing about half a drachm of a yellow¬ 
ish oil, which smelt strongly of horseradish, irritated 
the eyes, and was so extremely pungent that the 
Third Series, No. 34. 
tongue was nearly blistered. The product was then 
placed in a small retort with chloride of calcium, 
and again distilled at a Ioav temperature. About 
half a drachm of a nearly colourless oil was obtained, 
perfectly soluble in alcohol. The addition of am¬ 
monia immediately threw down crystals of tliiosin- 
namine. So strong was the odour of the oil, that 
it could be detected all over the house. The oil is 
heavier than water, thus differing from the oil of 
garlic, which is lighter, and is not acted upon by 
alkalies. 
8 inapis nigra (Linn.). 
This plant occurs very commonly throughout the 
district on liedgebanks, and waste places. In Ben- 
tham’s ‘ English Flora’ the mustard plant is de¬ 
scribed as Brassica, following the classification of 
Boissier. 
Sinapis nigra is distinguished from S. alba by 
being nearly smooth. The pod is without the long 
flattened beak. It is the most plentiful source of 
flour of mustard, although both species are used. 
The seeds of 8. nigra are much more pungent than 
those of 8. alba, and differ entirely in chemical 
composition. 
In manufacturing flour of mustard, the seeds, after 
being crushed and pounded in mortars, are subjected 
to several siftings. Four qualities are supplied to 
the trade, viz. seconds, fine, superfine, and double 
superfine,—the last being the purest, but seldom 
kept by the grocer. No article is more adulterated 
or lowered than flour of mustard, and seldom at the 
dinner table can this condiment be had with even a 
moderately pungent taste. Some of the witnesses 
before the Parliamentary Committee plainly stated 
that the adulterants used were flour of wheat, tur¬ 
meric, capsicum, black pepper, potato starch, plaster 
of Paris, charlock, pea flour, radish, rape, linseed 
meal and yellow ochre ! ! ! In short, if the micro- 
scopist wants a little experience in the detection of 
adulterants, he cannot do better than get a few 
samples of so-called mustard. 
The most valuable constituents of black mustard 
seeds are the fixed oil, myrosin, and myronate of 
potassium. 
When subjected to pressure, the seeds yield about 
23 per cent, of a yellowish-hrown oil, which does not 
easily turn rancid, and has a sp. gr. ‘910. It is 
soluble in four parts of ether and 1000 parts of 
alcohol. Generally the oil is obtained from the 
dressings of the mustard seeds. 
The most important product is the essential oil 
mentioned in the Pharmacopoeia, and which, singu¬ 
larly enough, does not exist in the seeds at all, but 
is produced by the action of water on the myrosin 
and myronate of potassium. 
Myrosin is a nitrogenous ferment, and performs 
the part in mustard that synaptase does in the 
almond. It may be easily prepared by exhausting 
with cold water, evaporating to the consistence of a 
syrup, and precipitating by alcohol. Like albumen 
myrosin is coagulable by heat. 
Myronate of potassium (K, C 10 H lg NS 2 O 10 ), when 
crystallized from water, appears as anhydrous 
rhombic prisms, but when from alcohol as very beau¬ 
tiful little tufts radiating from the centre. To obtain 
tliis salt, the seeds arc exhausted with twice their 
weight of alcohol. The pressed residue is then 
mixed with three times its weight of cold water, and 
left for twenty-four hours, pressed and filtered, lhe 
