430 
United  States  Pharmacopoeia. 
(Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
1  September,  1908. 
Serpentaria  and  of  Texas  Serpentaria ;  but  under  Aloes  only  one 
general  description  is  given  and  that  one  rather  meagre.  There 
should  certainly  be  a  concise  description  of  each  commercial  variety 
of  aloes,  and  as  a  test  distinguishing  Curacao  Aloes  from  Socotrine, 
and  the  absence  of  this  variety  as  an  adulterant  in  the  latter  the  so- 
called  cupraloin  reaction  might  be  given.  This  test  is  stated  in  the 
British  Pharmaceutical  Codex  as  follows  :  "If  10  c.c.  of  an  aqueous 
solution  of  aloes  i  to  iooo  be  mixed  with  i  c.c.  of  a  5  per  cent, 
solution  of  copper  sulphate  and  1  c.c.  of  saturated  solution  of  sodium 
chloride  and  a  few  drops  of  diluted  hydrocyanic  acid  added,  a  fine, 
deep,  persistent  claret  color  is  rapidly  developed  due  to  isobarbaloin 
contained  only  in  Curacao  Aloes. 
Veratrum  is  another  instance  where  the  present  revision  in  the 
opinion  of  the  writer  has  erred  in  placing  two  drugs  entering  com- 
merce from  two  different  hemispheres  under  one  title.  While  recog- 
nizing that  the  American  Hellebore  and  the  European  or  White 
Hellebore  are  yielded  by  two  distinct  species  of  Veratrum,  the  offi- 
cial title  and  description  cover  both  and  the  use  of  either  or  mixture 
of  the  two  is  thus  sanctioned.  This  is  particularly  unfortunate,  as  it 
is  pretty  certain  that  the  chemical  constituents  are  not  identical  and 
many  able  physicians  recognize  a  difference  in  the  therapeutic  action. 
As  we  have  no  assay  process  given  for  Veratrum  or  its  preparations 
the  poorest  specimen  of  white  hellebore  imported  for  use  as  an 
insecticide  can  be  substituted  for  the  best  grade  of  the  American 
drug  or  admixed  therewith.  If  the  two  plants  grew  together  and 
the  drugs  were  collected  mixed  as  in  the  case  of  Viburnum  Pruni- 
folium  where  V.  prunifolium  L.  and  V.  Lentago  L.  are  thus  collected, 
there  would  be  some  justification  for  such  indefiniteness  in  the 
U.S. P.    But  in  the  case  of  Veratrum  this  does  not  occur. 
Apocynum. — The  official  definition  of  this  drug  is  "  The  dried 
rhizome  of  Apocynum  cannabinum  Linne,  or  of  closely  allied  species 
of  Apocynum  (Fam.  Apocynacece)!'  This  is  entirely  too  broad  and 
would  admit  the  common  adulterant  the  rhizome  of  Apocynum 
androsaemifoliumi  which  is  a  closely  allied  species.  The  definition 
should  be  restricted  to  the  rhizome  of  Apocynum  cannabinum,  or  to 
such  additional  species  or  varieties  or  hybrids  as  can  be  named. 
Cascara  Sagrada. — The  efforts  to  popularize  the  official  titles 
Rhamnus  Purshiana  and  Fluidextractum  Rhamni  Purshianae  that 
have  been  made  through  two  revisions  of  our  Pharmacopoeia  have 
