Du Mez—The Galenical Oleoresins. 
931 
The United States Pharmacopoeia of 1890, directed, that, in 
the preparation of all of the official oleoresins, the drug be com¬ 
pletely exhausted by percolation with ether. The following 
directions for the preparation of the oleoresin of cubeb are 
typical of the methods given: 
li Cubeb, in No. 30 powder, 500 Gm.; ether a sufficient quantity. 
11 Put the cubeb into a cylindrical glass percolator provided with a stop¬ 
cock, and arranged with a cover and receptacle suitable for volatile liquids. 
Press the drug firmly and percolate slowly with ether, added in sue- 
sive portions, until the drug is exhausted. Eecover the greater part 
of the ether, etc. ” 
The next edition of the United States Pharmacopoeia (1900) 
contained a number of changes with respect to the methods of 
preparing this class of galenicals. Two new T solvents were in¬ 
troduced, namely, acetone and alcohol; the method of procedure 
was modified in the case of the oleoresin of capsicum, and an 
ordinary percolator was directed to be used in the preparation 
of the oleoresin of cubeb. The following is a general state¬ 
ment of the manner in which the oleoresins of aspidium, ginger, 
lupulin and pepper were directed to be extracted. 
Introduce the powdered drug (degree of fineness specified) into a cylin¬ 
drical glass percolator, provided with a stop-cock, and arranged with a cover 
and receptacle suitable for volatile liquids. Pack the powder firmly, and 
percolate slowly with acetone, added in successive portions, until the drug 
is exhausted. 
The method of extracting the cubeb was stated as follows: 
Introduce the powdered cubeb (degree of fineness specified) into a 
cylindrical glass percolator, pack the powder firmly, and percolate slowly 
with alcohol, added in successive portions, until the cubeb is exhausted. 
The method described for the extraction of capsicum was 
similar in all respects to the first of the methods given above, 
except that percolation was directed to be discontinued when 
eight hundred cubic centimeters of percolate had been obtained. 
The above changes, except in the case of the oleoresin of 
cubeb 1 ) must be attributed to the work of Beringer, an account 
of which was published in 1892. Not only did he advocate 
the use of acetone in these preparations, but he also pointed out 
1 It will be recalled that Procter in 1866 suggested the use of alcohol in 
preparing the oleoresin of cubeb. See table 3, page 922. 
