302 
THE PHARMACEUTICAL JOURNAL AND TRANSACTIONS. 
[October 14,1871. 
Bloomsbury Square, but ratlier form a sort of step¬ 
ping-stone to these examinations. 
Of course, local associations would admit to their 
classes apprentices who had not passed their Pre¬ 
liminary, as well as assistants, or any others, but 
tb ese could not go in for examination so as to count 
for any grant from the parent Society. 
The moral effect of these provincial examinations 
by a London professor, sent directly by the Pharma¬ 
ceutical Society would be immense, but need not be 
dilated upon here. 
The object in having provincial associations affili¬ 
ated to the parent Society is to bind, as completely 
as may be, the whole of the country into one common 
bond of union, to make the Pharmaceutical Society 
what it really ought to be, the point around which 
all provincial associations should rally. There can¬ 
not and must not be any diversity of interests be¬ 
tween London and provincial associations. 
With regard to the requirement that candidates 
should have subscribed two years before being eli¬ 
gible for examination, this is intended as a source 
of support to local efforts; for, without this, a youth 
might subscribe just for one session and carry off 
the prize. It would not be well that this should be 
possible. By this rule a youth would, by way of 
subscription, help to keep up the funds of his asso¬ 
ciation. Local monetary effort must always, to a 
great extent, be depended upon, and should, there¬ 
fore, be encouraged in every legitimate way. 
It may be asked, wdience can come the funds to 
subsidize local associations ? Can the Pharmaceu¬ 
tical Society undertake the task? I think it can. 
The Society is growing in wealth and power, and 
ought to expend some of its surplus moneys in the 
cause of elementary education. If we examine the 
balance sheet of the Society as put before the last 
May meeting, we find that the two professors of 
chemistry and pharmacy and botany and materia 
medica together received £000 for their lectures, 
whilst the fees from pupils amounted to just over 
.£200, thus, apparently, involving a loss of nearly 
£100 per annum to the Society. I have nothing 
but unqualified praise to bestow upon these learned 
gentlemen in regard to their efforts ; but how can 
they “ make bricks without straw” ? As I have pre¬ 
viously said, Bloomsbury Square is not, and cannot 
be ubiquitous. If then these gentlemen were to 
curtail their lectures at Bloomsbury, and for one 
month in the year go on a round of examination, 
their efforts, I firmly believe, would be rewarded 
with triumphant success; and if they were to de¬ 
liver a lecture or two at each centre on some in¬ 
teresting pharmaceutical subject, the result would 
be of incalculable benefit, and most inspiriting to 
local organizations. 
I might expand this paper almost indefinitely, the 
{subject is well worth it; but at present my object is 
solely to state the case sufficiently to make it intel¬ 
ligible. 
I am not sanguine enough to think that so im¬ 
portant and intricate a subject will be settled off¬ 
hand and without much controversial discussion; 
still I hope and believe there is here shadowed forth 
a plan, which, although at present but crudely deve¬ 
loped, has in it the elements of a sound, practical 
and comprehensive sj^stem of provincial education; 
and with this confession of my faith, I leave it in 
the hands of your readers. 
CERTAIN PROPERTIES OF THE TUTU 
PLANT (C0RIARIA RUSCIFQLIA).* 
BY II. G. HUGHES, M.P.S., HOKITIKA. 
(Concluded from page 282.) 
Respecting the efficacy of a mixture of lime and 
water in cases of poisoning, before giving the 
report by Dr. G. H. Aclieson, of this town, it may 
be as well to state that the antidote only was given; 
nothing was administered by way of general treat¬ 
ment besides what results when a mixture of cream 
of lime with water is added to the simple ex¬ 
tract of tutu rendered fluid with a little water. 
The extract was prepared by macerating the young, 
but woody and developed, shoots in water, acidu¬ 
lated with acetic acid, and applying a gentle heat, 
pressing and evaporating to the consistency of an 
extract. These shoots yield extract more poison¬ 
ous than the succulent ones. The handling of 
these wet shoots rather frequently induced vomiting. 
The day the extract was prepared, its mixture with 
lime gave strong ammoniacal vapour. It was very 
poisonous. About half a scruple was given to a cat; 
I was obliged to leave her, and on my return, in 
twenty minutes’ time, found her dead. 
On the second day the reactions were similar. 
On the third day after preparation, the ammonia¬ 
cal vapour was just perceptible, but readily detected 
by fumes of hydrochloric acid; it was but slightly 
poisonous. 
On the fourth day the extract had become much 
thinner, gave no ammoniacal vapour, and was not 
in the least poisonous. 
The extract preserved its original consistency 
until the third day, when it became soft, which con¬ 
dition was much increased by the fourth day. During 
this time the weather was fine; I do not think the 
atmosphere was more humid than usual. Three 
extracts prepared at intervals of five or six days, and 
in succession, behaved in a similar manner. 
When the cream of lime is added to good (poison¬ 
ous) extract, it coagulates or thickens, and appears 
to swell immediately, strong ammoniacal vapour 
being at the same time evolved. Should the extract 
possess fragrancy, owing to some of the fragrant oil 
not being dispelled during the process of preparation, 
it is at once destroyed by the lime. It is important to 
observe that the inert extract on the fourth day after 
preparation retained this odour. From what I have 
seen of its action, it possesses emetic properties onty. 
Recapitulation .—Acetic acid fixes or preserves the 
poisonous property (for a time at least), arresting 
its decomposition. When lime is added to good 
extract (poisonous), strong ammoniacal vapour is 
evolved; but on the fourth day, in the lime mixed 
with it, although possessing the odour of the essen¬ 
tial oil, not the slightest trace of ammonia can be 
detected; the oil also, when destroyed by the lime, 
not giving any ammoniacal vapour, indicates it to 
be of a different composition, and a non-nitrogenous 
oil. The decomposition of the poisonous principle, 
resulting in the evolution of ammonia, shows nitro¬ 
gen to be present in it. The fragrant oil comes 
over at 212° F., the poisonous principle at between 
350° and 400° F. The spontaneous decomposition 
of the extract was carefully watched; there was no 
* Read before the Wellington Philosophical Society, and 
reprinted from the ‘Transactions of the New Zealand Insti¬ 
tute,’ yol. iii. 
