AmApOriirf*]908arua'}    American  Pharmaceutical  Association.  193 
He  emphasized  the  fact  that  each  particular  lot  of  vanilla  must 
be  treated  with  a  specially  selected  menstruum  designed  to  extract 
the  virtues  of  that  particular  variety  of  bean. 
Dr.  Stearns  also  called  attention  to  the  fact  that  extract  manufac- 
turers were  being  unnecessarily  harassed  by  the  Bureau  of  Chemistry 
on  the  one  hand,  and  the  Internal  Revenue  Department  on  the  other, 
and  that  the  decisions  of  these  two  departments  of  the  Federal 
Government  did  not  always  coincide. 
Mr.  Collins,  taking  up  some  of  the  thoughts  suggested  by  Dr. 
Stearns,  expressed  the  belief  that  a  lower  percentage  of  alcohol  in 
flavoring  extracts  would  generally  be  preferable,  particularly  in 
extract  of  vanilla.  His  experiments  with  this  preparation  led  him 
to  believe  that  an  extract  containing  not  more  than  25  per  cent,  of 
alcohol  would  be  preferable,  in  every  respect,  to  a  preparation  con- 
taining a  higher  percentage  of  alcohol. 
He  also  called  attention  to  the  fact  that  the  term  extractive  is  but 
a  relative  one,  and  that  it  is  quite  impossible  to  determine  what  is 
meant  by  "  extractive  from  10  grammes  of  vanilla." 
Professor  Remington  expressed  his  appreciation  of  the  information 
that  had  been  offered,  and  said  that  he  was  in  favor  of  having  two 
standards  for  products  of  this  kind,  one  for  drugs  and  druggists  and 
another  for  substances  to  be  used  as  food  products. 
Professor  Kimberly  related  some  personal  experiences  that  he  had 
had  as  chemist  to  the  food  commissioner  of  North  Dakota. 
Referring  to  the  one-time  widespread  use  of  wood  alcohol,  he 
said  that,  in  1902,  out  of  ten  samples  of  lemon  extract  that  were 
examined,  no  less  than  five  contained  methyl  alcohol. 
Lemon  was  perhaps  the  most  frequently  sophisticated  of  all  of 
the  flavoring  extracts,  and  in  North  Dakota,  in  1902,  only  two  of 
the  specimens  that  were  examined  were  found  to  be  true  to  label. 
Professor  Kimberly  believes  that  the  establishing  of  standards  for 
flavoring  extracts  is  possible,  and  that  the  acceptance  of  compara- 
tively high  standards  by  the  manufacturers  of  such  products  would 
be  of  great  advantage  in  bringing  about  a  desirable  reform  in  this 
trade. 
Dr.  Horn  asserted  that  it  was  his  belief  that  the  manufacturers  of 
extracts  are  ready  and  willing  to  supply  the  demands  of  the  people, 
and  that  the  government  authorities  should  content  themselves 
with  insisting  that  the  people  get  what  they  really  want.  He 
