April 1,1871.] 
THE PHARMACEUTICAL JOURNAL AND TRANSACTIONS. 
7S5 
taste, their smaller size, and by having externally 
a striped or reticulated appearance. Their colour 
for the most part is 
darker; in some spe¬ 
cimens it is blackish. 
One cormus is ovate 
cordate; 1 inch in 
height or length, f of 
an inch broad, and 
about of an inch 
thick, grooved or hol¬ 
lowed on one side, 
convex on the other; 
of a brownish yellow 
colour, semi-trans¬ 
parent, has a horny 
appearance, and is 
marked by longitu¬ 
dinal stripes, indicating a laminated structure. A 
second is opaque, amylaceous, reticulated exter¬ 
nally, white internally, less flattened, and of a re¬ 
markable shape, the concave or hollow side of the 
cormus being continued half an inch below the 
mark for the attachment of the root fibres. The 
other cormi are of the size and shape of a large 
orange-pip, but flattened or grooved on one side; 
some of them are worm-eaten, and one is blackish- 
brown externals.” 
Whatever these specimens may have been, the 
description does not agree with the Soorinjan tulkh 
received from Bombay: the conns are larger than 
those of Soorinjan shereen, are split, and laid open, 
yellowish, more horny, quite bitter to the taste, and 
the starch is simple, elliptical or oblong, sometimes 
ovate, and nearly of the 
same size as the gra¬ 
nules of Trap a bispii- 
nosa, but there is no in¬ 
dication of hilum, crack, 
or fissure of any kind. 
The starch does not 
therefore bear the 
slightest resemblance 
to that of Colcliicum 
autumnale, or that of 
the tasteless lienno- 
dactyls, so that, al- 
Fig. 3.—Starch-granules of the though I have not the 
Bitter Hermodactyls. slightest doubt that the 
Fig. 2.—Starch-granules of 
Trapa bispinosa. 
tasteless hermodactyls are correctly referred to a 
species of Colcliicum , and probably Colcliicum va¬ 
riegation, I do not believe that the Soorinjan tulkh 
of the bazaars of Bombay are the produce of a spe¬ 
cies of Colcliicum at all. It is clear that they are 
entirely distinct from Soorinjan shereen. 
I have no doubt whatever that there are two de¬ 
finite vegetable products known in India under the 
name of hermodactyls, and that they are the produce 
of very different plants and should be treated as dis¬ 
tinct drugs. The character of the starch is quite 
sufficient to justify this conclusion. At present I am 
without any evidence as to the place of production, 
or the plant which yields the Soorinjan tulkh, but it 
is probably the most active drug of the two, since the 
tasteless hermodactyls seem to be about as starchy, 
tasteless, and inert, as fragments of dried potato. 
From the figures above given it will be observed 
that the starch of the bitter hermodactyls is nearly 
of the same size as in the Singhara nuts, but with¬ 
out the characteristic fissure ; and that the starch of 
the tasteless hermodactyls is nearly identical with 
that of Colcliicum autumnale. These facts, revealed 
by the microscope, again partly revive the question, 
What are hermodactyls?” or, at least, if we as¬ 
sume that the source of tasteless hermodactyls is 
settled, the inquiry assumes the more definite shape, 
“ What is the source of bitter hermodactyls ? ” 
THE DIGESTIVE POWER OF COMMERCIAL 
PEPSINS. 
BY J. S. HAWLEY, M.D. 
The following remarks upon an article entitled “ Li¬ 
quid Pepsin and Saccharated Pepsin,” wRich has been 
leprinted in this Journal* from the American Journal of 
Pharmacy, appear in the March number of that iour- 
nal:— 
In a recent number of your journal an article appeared 
by E. Scheffer, of Louisville, Ky., which not only im¬ 
peaches my veracity, but is likely to do me serious harm 
pecuniarily. 
This article contains an account of an experiment to 
test the digestive power of several varieties of pepsin, 
among others one made by the author of the article and 
one made by myself. 
Of Mr. Scheffer’s pepsin I have no knowledge, and am 
not disposed at present to question his statements con¬ 
cerning it. But in respect to the other varieties, I have 
made frequent tests of their strength, some of wdiich I 
have published. To vindicate the truth of my statements 
I have performed a digestive test, following the method 
pursued by Mr. Scheffer, and wdll thank you to do me 
the justice to give it a place in your journal. In d<oing 
this, I wish it to he understood that no unfavourable re¬ 
flections are intended towards Mr. Scheffer. On the 
contrary, his article hears intrinsic evidence of candour 
and scientific accuracy. It is my belief that he unfortu¬ 
nately procured a damaged sample of my pepsin, as he 
admits he did of Boudault’s on a former occasion. 
My ohly object in this communication is to set myself 
right before the professions of medicine and pharmacy. 
In this test the same varieties of pepsin are used, and 
the same method pursued, as by Mr. Scheffer, except 
drying the residue, wRich has been done to secure greater 
accuracy of result. 
In each of four suitable bottles were placed sixty 
grains of coagulated albumen (white of egg), one fluid 
ounce of water, five drops of muriatic acid, and five 
grains of Boudault’s, Grimault’s, Houghton’s, and Haw¬ 
ley’s pepsin respectively. 
These were kept in the same water-bath, at a tempe¬ 
rature of 98° to 102° F., and frequently agitated during 
the space of four hours. At the end of this time the un¬ 
digested portions w 7 ere removed and drained or moisture. 
The following appearances w r ere presented by the 
residua respectively:— 
That digested in Houghton’s pepsin appeared un¬ 
altered in form, colour and quantity, and soon became 
dry as before digestion. 
That digested in Grimault’s had lost something of its 
opacity, the angles were rounded, the quantity sensibly 
diminished, and presented an appearance of increased 
softness and moisture. 
That digested in Boudault’s possessed a slightly trans¬ 
lucent appearance, the angles of the remaining pieces 
entirely destroyed and the quantity decidedly diminished, 
wet and inclined to remain so. 
That digested in Hawley’s pepsin had become nearly 
translucent and amorphous, the quantity much more 
diminished than the last and very wet, evidently consi¬ 
derable peptone adhering to the undigested portion. 
These residua, together with sixty grains of coagu¬ 
lated albumen, which had been subjected to no cliges- 
* Pdabji. Joitkx. ante, p. G66. 
