104 
PRACTICAL  NOTES  ON  PHARMACY. 
and  evaporated  to  eight  fl.  ounces,  and  then  added  to  the  reserved 
half  pint,  and  a  fluid  extract  of  ipecacuanha  is  obtained,  of  which 
two  fluid  ounces  represents  one  ounce  (troy)  of  root. 
Eight  fluid  ounces  of  fluid  extract  of  ipecacuanha  are  .added  to 
four  pints  of  simple  syrup  ;  the  mixture  is  evaporated  to  three 
pints,  four  pints  of  simple  syrup  and  one  pint  of  water  are  added, 
making  the  whole  measure  one  gallon  of  syrup  of  ipecacuanha.  If, 
on  the  addition  of  the  four  pints  of  simple  syrup,  the  mixture  should 
not  be  perfectly  clear,  it  maybe  rendered  so  by  mixing  with  water 
the  white  of  one  egg,  adding  it  to  the  syrup,  boiling  for  a  few 
minutes  and  straining.  As  thus  prepared  syrup  of  ipecacuanha  con- 
tains very  little,  if  any  alcohol,  it  possesses  the  medicinal  virtues 
of  the  drug,  and  I  have  never  known  it  to  ferment.  I  have  also 
prepared  this  syrup  very  successfully  in  the  manner  described  for 
syrups  of  ginger  and  tolu,  in  this  paper. 
Syrup  of  Seneka  and  Compound  Syrup  of  Squill  or  Hive  Syrup, 
according  to  the  experience  of  most  persons,  change  very  soon  as 
ordinarily  prepared.  But  when  made  by  displacement  according 
to  the  second  formulas  for  them  in  the  Pharmacopoeia,  they  keep 
much  better.  When,  however,  the  menstruum  directed  in  that  work 
is  used, the  liquid  should  be  boiled  and  the  coagulated  albumen  sepa- 
rated before  the  evaporation,  because  the  increased  density  of  the 
liquid,  after  the  evaporation,  renders  filtering  difficult.  The  object 
of  the  Pharmacopoeia  in  giving  this  direction  is  to  secure  the  re- 
moval of  all  the  albumen  :  this  is  done  much  more  expeditiously 
by  first  boiling  the  liquid  obtained  by  displacement,  straining 
through  a  felt  or  Canton  flannel  bag,  evaporating  to  one  half  and 
filtering  through  paper. 
But  since  gum  is  a  constituent  of  both  squill  and  seneka,  and, 
by  the  processes  of  the  Pharmacopoeia,  remains  in  the  above  men- 
tioned syrups,  the  tendency  of  which  is  to  render  them  liable  to  fer- 
ment, and  as  the  separation  of  the  albumen  of  the  seneka  is  attended 
with  some  trouble,  and  as  the  displacement  process  requires  much 
time,  when  water  containing  only  sufficient  alcohol  to  prevent  decom- 
position of  the  ingredients  during  the  time  occupied  in  displacing 
this  menstruum,  is  used,  I  think  alcohol  (.835),  which  obviates  all 
these  objections,  should  be  employed  as  the  menstruum.  Alcohol 
is  an  excellent,  perhaps  the  best  solvent  of  these  drugs,  does  not 
dissolve  the  albumen,  or  other  fermentable  substances  in  them. 
