February 17, 1872.] THE PHARMACEUTICAL JOURNAL AND TRANSACTIONS. 
663 
several hours, and developes into a painful feeling of 
swelling that has no real existence. This effect is 
not so clearly produced by any other known alka¬ 
loid. Veratrine, submitted to the same test, some¬ 
what resembles it, but the effect is less persistent 
and pronounced ; it is, moreover, easily distinguished 
by the violet-r6d colour it gives with sulphuric acid. 
The certain recognition of the presence of aconi¬ 
tine for the purpose of cliemico-legal investigations, 
is very difficult, as many alkaloids comport them¬ 
selves similarly with the reagents. The small quan¬ 
tity, also, causing death, and the great alteration 
that it undergoes in the presence of certain bodies, 
such as ferments, necessitate the avoidance of any 
cause of alteration or decomposition, as imprudent 
manipulation may cause it to disappear entirely. 
The rapidity of the poisoning and the absence of 
organic lesions are indications pointing to vegetable 
poisons, and of great value, especially when the 
symptoms and kind of death can be ascertained with 
precision. For the separation of aconitine, and other 
vegetable alkaloids, from the substances containing 
them, two methods may be adopted, dialysis and 
that known as Stas’s method. When dialysis is ap¬ 
plied to the analysis of a mixture containing a large 
quantity of crystallizable salts and colloids, very 
positive results may be obtained. But, unfortunately, 
in cases of poisoning where the toxic agent has to be 
sought for among a mass of organic matter, its recog¬ 
nition is much more difficult. But it has one advan¬ 
tage, that it can be adopted without prejudice to the 
results of the other method, which may be applied to 
the same matter in the event of dialysis failing to 
furnish sufficient indications. 
When the second method is used, the poison is 
obtained as a scanty coloured residue, very rarely 
possessing the physical characters of the alkaloid. 
After having ascertained its alkalinity, it should be 
dissolved in a little water, acidulated sufficiently to 
make a neutral solution. The most useful tests for 
the presence of aconitine are (1) the double iodide of 
mercury and potassium, giving a white precipitate 
with 1-20,000th part of the alkaloid ; (2) the per- 
iodide of potassium, giving a kermes-brown preci¬ 
pitate ; (3) tannin, giving a white precipitate in¬ 
soluble in the acidulated water ; and (4) phosphoric 
acid, which, properly used, produces a violet colour. 
A part of the solution should be reserved for physio¬ 
logical experiments on animals.* 
In the treatment of recent cases of poisoning by 
aconitine, M. Duquesnel recommends the use of eme¬ 
tics and the administration of periodide of potassium 
or of tannic acid. But where the poison has had 
time to become absorbed, it is necessary to have 
recourse to diffusible internal stimulants, adminis¬ 
tered in a large proportion of fluid, and the applica¬ 
tion of friction to increase warmth and favour per¬ 
spiration, and so promote elimination of the poison. 
Pharmaceutical Preparations of Aconite. 
In the introduction to this section, the author 
states that his investigation had its origin in the 
fact that the new Codex orders the ordinary prepa¬ 
* Of these several chemical tests, the reaction with phos¬ 
phoric acid is really the only distinctive one; and this is so 
uncertain, even in the hands of able experimenters, as M. 
Duquesnel himself acknowledges, that it would be safer to 
say that the physiological test is that which alone ought to 
be relied upon.—E d. I’iiarm. Jourx. 
rations to be made from the leaves, and recommends 
that the much more active preparations from the 
root should not be supplied, except specially ordered. 
He considers that it would have been preferable to 
have suppressed the old untrustworthy preparations 
ol aconite, and by a new pharmacology of this medi¬ 
cament, founded upon scientific principles, to have 
rehabilitated its reputation as a valuable therapeutic 
agent. 
Having obtained what he believed to be the active 
principle of the plant, together with the means of 
verifying its identity and purity, he endeavoured— 
by an analysis of the different preparations employed 
in medicine, based upon the quantity of aconitine 
they contained—to verify or disprove their alleged 
inertness or comparative activity. The results are 
given in a table from which it appears that aqueous 
preparations of the leaves of the aconite, prepared in 
contact with the air at a temperature of about 100° C., 
are nearly inert; that the tinctures and alcoholic ex¬ 
tracts of the leaves are a little more active ; but that 
it is only in the preparations from the root, such as 
the alcoholic tincture, that the active principle is 
found in any considerable quantity: even in these 
last preparations the quantity in 100 grams varies 
from 3 decigrams of the alkaloid to 00 milligrams, or 
sometimes traces only, according to the roots from 
which they are made. These analytical results 
were confirmed by physiological experiment. 
M. Duquesnel therefore proposes to make the fol¬ 
lowing preparations officinal to the exclusion of all 
others. 
Tincture of Aconite Root. —Prepared by reducing 
one part of the root to a fine powder by means of a 
mortar and a covered sieve; macerating it in five 
parts of 90 per cent, alcohol for eight days, with fre¬ 
quent agitation, and then pressing and filtering it. 
Five grams of this tincture would represent one 
gram of the root. This tincture is rather incon¬ 
venient for internal use, in consequence of the prick¬ 
ing and tingling sensation it produces. 
Alcoholic Extract of Aconite Root. —Prepared by 
exhausting the root by 90 per cent, alcohol in three 
successive macerations of three days each, the resi¬ 
due being pressed after each maceration. The 
liquors so obtained, united and filtered, are distilled 
slowly in a water-bath, and evapprated to the con¬ 
sistence of a firm extract, being sheltered as much 
as possible from contact with air, and the tempera¬ 
ture not exceeding 60° C. One kilogram of the root 
will yield from 1(50 to 180 grams of extract. 
This extract, which attracts moisture freely, is of 
a yellow chestnut colour, and has a feeble, but pecu¬ 
liar smell. It acts energetically, and may be given 
in doses of from one to two centigrams (correspond¬ 
ing to two- or four-hundredths of a milligram of crys¬ 
tallized aconitine), or even three centigrams in the 
twenty-four hours. The extract may be made into 
pills containing one centigram. 
Syrup of Aconite Root may be prepared according 
to the following formula:— 
Alcoholic Extract .... 0T0 gram. 
Simple Syrup. 200*00 ,, 
Mix cold. One tablespoonful of this syrup (twenty 
grams) will contain one centigram of the extract. 
For external use the author proposes—(1.) The 
alcoholic extract under the form of an ointment. 
(2.) The pure tincture mixed with oil, or, prefer¬ 
ably, glycerine. 
