Am*May?i9eh8arm*}     Adulterations  of  Drugs  and  Chemicals.  223 
bastrings,  calcium  oxalate  crystals,  starch  grains,  etc.,  except  one 
sample,  the  wood-fibres  of  which  had  a  peculiar  color  and  there 
were  not  many  crystals  of  calcium  oxalate  visible.  We  made  a 
fluid  extract  of  each  of  the  samples  and  found  by  our  results  that 
the  suspicion  we  put  on  the  one  sample  was  well-founded.  Instead 
of  about  40  per  cent,  or  more  extractive  it  ran  not  quite  20  per 
cent. 
Prof.  Henry  Kraemer  outlined  some  months  ago,  in  one  of  these 
meetings,  that  many  more  microscopic  tests  of  powdered  drugs 
should  be  made  than  is  done  at  the  present  time.  That  Professor 
Kraemer  was  right  in  this  is  proven  in  this  case  here.  The  sample 
seen  with  the  naked  eye  looked  not  suspicious  at  all  and  had  a  fairly 
good  taste;  but  looks  and  taste  often  fool  us.  The  root  was  evi- 
dently partly  exhausted,  dried  again  and  then  pulverized,  adding 
some  coloring  matter  and  perhaps  a  small  amount  of  saccharine. 
We  could  not  prove  this  positively,  the  sample  was  very  small  and 
not  enough  of  it  was  left  to  make  additional  tests.  The  fact  is,  that 
the  microscope  gave  the  first  clue  in  finding  out  that  there  was 
something  wrong  with  the  powdered  root. 
ERGOT, 
as  we  all  know,  is  impossible  to  be  adulterated  itself.  The  bulk  is 
sometimes  loaded  with  small  stones,  grains,  etc.,  but  this,  I  think, 
is  mostly  not  done  on  purpose.  Old  stock  is  often  brightened  with 
oil.  All  this  is  not  so  bad  if  the  drug  assays  high  enough  in  total 
alkaloid  or  so-called  "  cornutine  of  Keller "  as  outlined  by  that 
author  in  1894.  Recent  researches  of  Barger  and  Dale,  of  London, 
on  the  chemistry  of  ergot,  point  to  the  fact  that  its  activity  lies 
largely  in  an  alkaloid-like  body  which  they  call  ergotoxin  or  hydro- 
ergotinin,  thus  substantiating  Professor  Lyons'  belief  that  an  assay 
based  upon  the  determination  of  alkaloid  unquestionably  has  value. 
The  worst  is  that  most  samples  in  the  market  are  worm-eaten,  some 
are  really  alive  with  vermin.  A  good  ergot  should  assay  at  least 
0-15  per  cent.  "  cornutine."  We  had  some  samples  lately  tor  assay 
which  ran  only  0-03  per  cent.,  one  assayed  only  0016  per  cent.  Of 
the  last  sample  10  pounds  at  least  would  therefore  be  necessary  to 
make  1  pint  of  a  fair  fluidextract  containing  015  per  cent.  "  cornu- 
tine." I  think  it  would  not  pay  very  well  to  use  such  a  drug  for 
manufacturing. 
