146 
NOTES  UPON  SOME  SPECIMENS  OF  SCAMMONY. 
cipitated.  It  is  washed  in  fresh  water  and  then  exposed  to  the  sun 
or  placed  over  a  fire  to  evaporate.  This  is  done  to  remove  the 
spirit  remaining  in  the  scammony,  otherwise  it  would  take  some 
months  to  dry. 
The  quantity  of  scammony  annually  sold  in  Smyrna  amounts  to 
about  3000  Turkish  okes,  or  7500  pounds  weight.  Out  of  this 
quantity  seven  cwt.  of  pure  can  be  obtained,  the  remainder  being 
of  different  qualities,  the  quantity  of  resin  that  they  contain  vary- 
ing from  loz.  to  15ozs.  in  every  pound.  If  the  whole  crop  were 
brought  to  market  unadulterated,  it  is  doubtful  if  the  quantity  would 
exceed  3000  pounds  weight. — London  Pharm.  Journal,  Dec-  I8c3. 
NOTES  UPON  SOME  SPECIMENS  OF  SCAMMONY. 
By  Daniel  Hanbury. 
Having  through  the  kindness  of  Sidney  H.  Maltass,  Esq.,  of 
'Smyrna,  received  several  specimens  illustrating  the  foregoing  in- 
teresting paper  on  the  production  of  Scammony,  I  believe  that  a 
short  account  of  them  will  be  not  unacceptable  to  the  readers  of  the 
Pharmaceutical  Journal. 
I  will  premise  it  by  stating  that  Mr.  Maltass  has  resided  at 
Smyrna  for  the  last  eighteen  years,  where,  as  a  matter  of  business 
he  has  had  constant  opportunity  for  becoming  conversant  with  all 
that  relates  to  the  drug  as  met  with  at  that  place  :  indeed,  as  he 
informs  me,  he  has  actually  collected  it  with  his  own  hands  in 
order  to  become  the  more  particularly  acquainted  with  it. 
To  Mr.  Maltass  I  am  indebted  for  specimens  of  the  following, 
viz  : — 
1.  Pure  Scammony  in  shells,  collected  near  Smyrna. 
It  is  remarkably  transparent  even  when  viewed  in  the  shell ;  its 
color  is  a  pale  golden  brown,  scarcely  as  intense  as  that  of  com- 
mon glue,  of  which  its  general  appearance  is  suggestive.  A  white 
emulsion  is  produced  on  rubbing  the  surface  with  a  wetted 
.finger. 
This  scammony  affords  91.1  per  cent,  of  resin  soluble  in  ether.* 
*  In  examining  the  solubility  of  scammony  in  ether,  it  is  needful  to  dry  the 
scammony  until  it  ceases  to  lose  weight,  a  precaution  which  must  of  course 
be  observed  in  weighing  the  residue  also. 
