\iUer;i5iom'}  Cardiac  Stimulants  and  Depressants.  465 
This  table  serves  to  demonstrate  the  necessity  for  physiologic 
control  of  the  chemical  assay  for  gelsemium  and  the  worthlessness 
of  the  latter  unless  accompanied  and  checked  by  the  physiologic 
test.  Just  contrary  to  the  results  obtained  with  aconite,  the  tinc- 
tures of  gelsemium  are  much  more  toxic  than  the  fluidextracts,  on 
the  basis  of  equivalent  amounts  of  total  alkaloid.  This  is  probably 
due  to  a  higher  proportion  of  highly  active  gelseminine  being  taken 
up  by  the  prolonged  percolation  which  occurs  in  the  preparation 
of  the  tincture. 
Veratrum. — The  chemical  results,  expressing  total  alkaloids, 
in  the  following  table  were  obtained  by  the  following  method: 
The  fluidextract,  10  c.c,  or  the  tincture,  100  c.c,  is  evaporated 
on  purified  oak  sawdust,  and  the  dried  mixture  macerated  with  a 
mixture  of  ether,  80  c.c,  chloroform,  20  c.c,  and  ammonia  water, 
10  per  cent. — 10  c.c.  An  aliquot  part  of  the  ethereal  extract  is 
shaken  out  with  5  per  cent,  acetic  acid,  rendered  alkaline  with 
ammonia,  shaken  out  with  chloroform,  evaporated,  dried,  and 
weighed. 
In  the  case  of  the  solid  extract,  2  or  3  grammes  are  dissolved 
in  50  per  cent,  alcohol,  filtered  onto  purified  oak  sawdust,  and 
finished  like  the  fluidextract  and  tincture. 
Chem.  Assay  Phys.  Assay,  Min.    Per  cent.  Alkaloids 
No.    Preparation  Gramme  Alkaloid        Lethal  Dose  for     ?alc. f  r°m  a  Letha] 
in  100  c.c.  2So  Gm.  Pigs      Do8^££c'  of 
1  Tincture   0.1  0.5    c.c.  0.100 
2  Tincture   0.102  0.5     c.c.  0.102 
3  Tincture   0.078  0.75  c.c.  0.117 
4  Solid  extract    4.0    per  cent.  0.015  Gm.  0.120 
5  Fluidextract    1.0  0.05  c.c.  0.100 
6  Fluidextract   I-I45  0.065  c.c.  0.149 
Average   0.115 
Except  for  No.  6  in  the  above  table,  the  lethal  dose  of  which 
is  abnormally  high  in  comparison  with  the  chemical  assay,  the 
activity  of  preparations  of  veratrum  seems  to  agree  quite  closely 
with  the  percentage  of  total  alkaloids.  The  chemical  assay  of 
veratrum  appears  therefore  to  possess  undoubted  value. 
It  is  the  intention  of  the  authors  to  continue  the  tabulation  of 
comparative  results  of  physiologic  and  chemical  assay  of  these 
drugs,  as  well  as  to  start  similar  series  of  comparisons  on  conium, 
physostigma,  and  lobelia. 
Eesearch  Laboratories  of 
H.  K.  Mulford  Company. 
