PREPARATION,  PROPERTIES  AND  COMPOSITION  OF  EMETIA.  307 
aqueous  solution  of  the  alcoholic  extract  of  each  drug  with 
nitrate  of  potassa. 
Nitrate  of  Emetia. 
100  parts  of  Brazil  Ipecac  yielded  1*350  parts 
100    "     "  New  Grenada  Ipecac       "     1-082  " 
It  results  from  these  researches  that  whilst  the  Brazil  Ipecac 
is  a  little  richer  in  alkaloid  it  appears  also  to  contain  more  of 
the  resinoid  odorous  matter  and  more  of  the  brown  coloring 
matter.    As  regards  the  proportion  of  ligneous  fibre  in  each, 
100  parts  of  Brazil  Ipecac  gave  18*75  parts. 
100  "  "  New  Grenada  "  "  20*01  " 
In  conclusion,  the  author  is  of  the  opinion  that,  though  allied 
in  composition  and  properties,  the  pharmaceutist  should  not  use 
them  indiscriminately,  but  should  prefer  the  Brazilian  variety, 
but  if  the  time  should  arrive  when  the  latter  should  become  ex- 
hausted, the  New  Grenada  variety  will  offer  a  valuable  succeda- 
neum.    [See  continuation  on  Emetia,  following.] 
ON  THE  PREPARATION,  PROPERTIES  AND  COMPOSITION 
OF  EMETIA. 
By  M.  J.  Lefort. 
In  this  essay,  which  is  a  sequel  to  that  on  Ipecacuanhas,  at 
page  305,  the  author  gives  a  sketch  of  the  chemical  history  of 
this  alkaloid,  and  especially  notices  the  process  of  M.  Leprat 
(1853),  who  bases  his  method  on  that  of  Babourdin  for  atropia 
by  potassa  and  chloroform.  By  a  modification  of  this  process 
the  author  proceeded  as  follows : 
Ipecacuanha  powder  was  exhausted  by  percolation,  first  with 
alcohol  86°  and  then  with  alcohol  56°  (centesimal) ;  the  tinctures 
united  are  thrown  into  a  distillatory  apparatus  to  recover  the 
alcohol,  the  residue  being  concentrated  in  a  water  bath  to  a 
syrupy  consistence. 
This  residue,  which  contains  the  emetia  in  combination  with  a 
peculiar  organic  acid,  ipecacuanhic  acid — which  M.  Willick  has 
investigated  (Jour,  de  Pharm.  t.  xx,  p.  276,  1851) — is  thrown 
into  a  flask,  with  glass  stopper,  adding  2  parts  of  caustic 
potassa,  dissolved  in  a  little  water,  for  each  100  parts  of  the 
powder  employed,  and  then  as  much  chloroform  as  equals  in  vol 
