62 
bushby's  pill  machine. 
Heat  is  developed  while  dissolving  the  conia,  and  white  vapors 
are  evolved  at  first,  which,  even  when  the  mixture  is  made  in  a 
well  corked  bottle,  will  sometimes  escape  partially. 
Some  of  the  crystals  obtained  by  the  evaporation  of  the  mix-  ^ 
ture  were  exposed  for  several  weeks  in  an  open  capsula.  They 
became  alternately  wet  and  dry,  according  to  the  state  of  the 
weather.    From  this  I  infer  that  they  are  hygrometric  but  not 
deliquescent. 
I  swallowed  half  a  grain  of  the  crystals  which  had  been  so 
exposed  (dissolved  in  water),  without  apparent  effect.  I  then 
took  one  grain,  which  produced  the  characteristic  effects  of 
the  conia  to  such  an  unpleasant  degree  that  I  should  be  loth 
to  repeat  the  dose.  I  am  far  less  susceptible  to  the  action  of 
conia  than  many  persons.  This  seems  to  show  that  the  salt  will 
retain  its  medicinal  properties  after  several  weeks'  exposure. 
I  did  not  succeed  in  obtaining  a  crystallizable  salt  with  sul- 
phuric, citric  or  oxalic  acids. 
The  conia  used  was  made  by  Merck.  This  appears  to  be  the 
only  kind  in  market.  Its  quality  is  not  uniform,  as  in  some 
instances  it  will  not  all  dissolve  in  the  dilute  acid,  but  an  oily 
residue  is  left. 
I  presume  the  muriate  of  conia  might  be  made  directly  from 
the  fresh  plant  or  fruit  at  less  expense  than  the  conia,  and  have 
no  doubt  but  that  it  would  be  far  more  convenient  and  reliable 
for  medicinal  use  than  the  latter, 
I  do  not  claim  to  have  exhausted  the  subject  of  the  query,  and 
shall  be  very  glad  if  some  member  who  has  more  skill,  more 
apparatus  and  more  money  will  take  it  up  and  investigate  it 
more  thoroughly  than  I  have  done. 
1  present  a  sample  of  muriate  of  conia,  probably  not  quite 
pure,  but  sufficiently  so  for  practical  purposes. 
— Proc,  Amer.  Pharm,  Assoc. ^  1868. 
BUSHBY'S  PILL  MACHINE. 
One  of  the  most  important  inventions  directly  affecting  che- 
mists and  druggists  which  has  come  before  us  for  a  long  time,  is 
that  which  is  here  represented.    The  wearying  work  of  pill-mak- 
