i94 
Correspondence. 
(Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
1       April,  1910. 
to  five  days  before  packing  and  percolating.  Of  course  with  such 
drugs  as  zingiberis  this  would  not  be  required,  neither  would  this 
apply  to  mucilaginous  drugs,  where  it  might  release  substances 
that  retard  percolation. 
H.  A.  B.  Dunning,  Baltimore,  presents  the  following  view 
of  the  subject :  In  most  processes  used  for  the  extraction  of  vegetable 
drugs  by  means  of  solvents,  maceration  forms  a  necessary  part, 
but  whether  the  complete  extraction  of  the  drug  should  be  accom- 
plished through  continued  maceration  is  a  doubtful  question. 
While  it  must  be  admitted  that  the  active  constituents  of  vege- 
table drugs  may  be  entirely  extracted  by  maceration,  there  are,  I 
believe,  very  decided  objections  to  this  method,  in  practice.  The 
modus  operandi  in  my  opinion  is  cumbersome,  requiring,  frequently, 
the  introduction  of  comparatively  large  quantities  of  powdered  ma- 
terial into  narrow  necked  bottles,  which  material  subsequent  to 
exhaustion  with  the  menstruum  must  be  removed.  Besides  the 
stock  bottle,  a  stock  container  and  also  a  maceration  vessel  is 
required. 
It  is  a  tedious  method,  requiring  seven  days  and  ofttimes  more 
for  completion,  depending  largely  on  the  attention  given  it. 
It  is  apt  to  be  uncleanly  because,  due  to  the  frequent  agitation 
necessary,  some  of  the  liquid  may  be  allowed  to  escape  from  the 
container  and  run  over  it ;  of  course  the  use  of  a  little  water  would 
obviate  this  objection.  Besides,  when  mixtures  are  poured  from  one 
vessel  to  another  spilling  is  likely  to  result,  not  mentioning  loss. 
The  process  is  also  likely  to  be  inaccurate,  depending  greatly 
upon  the  personality  of  the  operator,  for  if  the  mixture  is  not  fre- 
quently agitated,  extraction  will  be  very  imperfect  in  the  time 
usually  designated ;  particularly  is  this  statement  true  in  regard 
to  drugs  which  have  a  tendency  to  form  "  gummy  "  masses  when 
moistened.  In  this  case  the  final  resort  is  "poking"  with  a  stick; 
sometimes  the  stick  is  poked  on  through  the  bottle  or  other  container. 
Further.  I  am  told  by  some  of  the  older  pharmacists,  who  have  had 
a  more  extensive  experience  with  this  process  than  I,  that  it  is 
all  too  frequently  the  practice  of  some  persons  to  use  a  portion 
of  the  macerating  preparation  before  the  time  allowance  is  complied 
with  and  that  in  many  instances  no  adjustment  is  subsequently 
made. 
The  maceration  processes  of  the  German,  French,  and  English 
Pharmacopoeias  direct  that  the  required  amount  of  drug  be  macer- 
