CITRATE  OP  IRON  AND  STRYCHNIA. 
23 
process  is  involved  Prof.  Procter's  suggestion  for  the  development 
of  the  hydrocyanic  acid  of  the  bark,  by  the  reaction  between  the 
emulsin  of  the  almonds  and  the  alcoholic  extract,  and  thus  we  are 
enabled  to  obtain  a  concentrated  medicine  of  the  valuable  wild 
cherry.  Each  pastil  contains  the  equivalent  of  seven  and  a  half 
grains  of  the  wild  cherry  bark,  one-half  grain  of  squill  and  tolu, 
equal,  or  more,  to  the  proportion  contained  by  the  ordinary 
syrup  of  tolu.  A  simple  pastil  may  be  prepared  by  omitting  the 
squill  and  tolu. 
Wm.  R.  Warner, 
Phila.  Nov.  2,  1858.  2d  and  Girard  Avenue. 
CITRATE  OF  IRON  AND  STRYCHNIA. 
By  the  Editor.  j 
At  a  former  page  of  this  Journal,  we  suggested  a  formula  for 
citrate  of  iron  and  strychnia,  in  which  the  proportion  of  strych- 
nia was  to  the  citrate  of  iron  as  one  to  forty-eight.  Since 
then,  Messrs.  Rosengarten  &  Sons  have  been  supplying  this 
empyrically  constituted  salt  to  the  trade.  In  appearance  this 
salt  is  the  same  as  the  citrate  of  iron,  but  in  taste,  beside  the  pe- 
culiar, slightly  ferruginous  taste  of  that  salt,  is  a  moderate  bit- 
terness, due  to  the  strychnia,  not,  however,  so  decided  as  one 
would  be  led  to  suppose.  One  reason  for  again  alluding  to  this 
subject,  is  to  bring  forward  the  following  letter  from  a  sub- 
scriber, and  to  suggest,  that  in  a  preparation  containing  strych- 
nia there  should  be  no  variation  of  strength,  as  made  by  one 
manufacturer  and  another.  Our  readers  will  perceive  that 
Mr.  Heinitsh  makes  the  salt  of  just  one-half  the  strychnia 
strength,  on  the  ground  that  a  larger  proportional  dose  of  iron 
is  considered  more  desirable  in  the  cases  to  which  the  salt  is 
applied,  which  would  make  the  dose  of  one-sixteenth  of  a  grain 
of  strychnia  in  about  six  grains  of  the  salt.  We  should  be  pleased 
to  hear  the  opinions  of  our  medical  cotemporaries  on  this  thera- 
peutic point,  that  it  may  decide  the  course  of  apothecaries  who 
may  be  called  on  to  prepare  the  salt.  The  remarks  of  Mr. 
Heinitsh  corroborate  those  of  Dr.  O'Connor,  in  the  paper  to 
which  our  first  notice  was  appended. 
