AMERICAN  PHARMACEUTICAL  ASSOCIATION.  507 
Specimen  No.  2,  is  an  Oil,  principally  Linseed,  which  was  sold  for  true 
"  English  oil  of  sweet  almonds."  The  physical  characteristics  and  the  tem- 
perature required  for  congelation,  serve  to  detect  this  fraud.  Linseed  oil 
remains  fluid  at  zero,  while  true  oil,  almonds  congeals  above  that  tempe- 
rature. 
t  Specimen  No.  3  is  false  Oil  of  Bitter  Almonds.  This  was  purchased  with 
the  label  of  a  well  known  English  house  upon  it,  and  was  sold  as  "  true  es- 
sential Oil  of  Bitter  Almonds."  It  is  the  article  known  as  ''Essence  de  Mir- 
ban,"  or  Nitro-Benzole,  and  may  be  detected  very  easily. 
When  a  mixture  of  1  volume  true  essential  oil  almonds,  2  volumes  of  al- 
cohol, and  1  volume  of  very  weak  solution  of  potassa,  mixed  well  together, 
is  allowed  to  stand,  it  is  converted  into  benzoic  acid  in  from  24  to  48 
hours. 
The  fictitious  oil  (nitro  benzole)  is  not  capable  of  undergoing  this  change. 
Specimen  No.  4,  is  fictitious  Tapioca.  This  article  purports  to  be  the  fecu- 
la  of  Jatropha  manihot,  or  cassava.  It  is  not,  however,  what  it  appears,  and 
is  proved  to  be,  by  microscopical  examination,  entirely  a  fictitious  article, 
made  from  potato  starch,  and  does  not  contain  one  particle  of  real  Tapioca. 
This  article  is  made  in  Liverpool  England,  and  imported  into  New  York. 
Your  committee  cannot  refrain  from  recommending  the  use  of  the  micro- 
scope as  being  a  very  valuable  aid  to  the  Pharmaceutist.  By  this  instru- 
ment is  he  enabled  to  detect  at  once,  frauds  which  perhaps  might  be  pre- 
viously unsuspected,  particularly  in  articles  of  food,  as  in  the  instance  just 
brought  to  your  notice. 
Specimen  No.  5  is  Melambo  or  Matias  Bark. — This  bark  is  largelyused 
for  grinding  with  all  kinds  of  spices.  For  a  further  description,  we  refer  to 
Prof.  Procter's  Journal  of  Pharmacy,  vol.  29th,  pp.  103  and  215.  where  the 
nature^ and  characteristics  of  this  bark  are  very  fully  set  forth  by  Messrs. 
Edward  Parrish  and  Frank  B.  Dancy.  Your  committee  are  not  aware  of 
other  uses,  to  any  extent,  to  which  this  bark  is  put,  except  for  adulterating 
spices. 
The  next  articles  to  be  considered  are 
ADULTERATIONS. 
Specimen  No.  1. — This  is  an  adulterated  article  of  cubebs  with  the  false 
berry  used  for  the  purpose.  These  cubebs  were  purchased  as  a  select  and 
superior  article;  the  fraud  existing  in  them  was  not  discovered  for  some 
time.  The  false  berry  is  readily  distinguished,  however,  as  it  is  bi-lobed, 
while  the  cubeb  is  a  single  lobed  berry.  There  exists  in  the  lot  of  cubebs 
from  which  these  were  taken  15  per  cent,  of  false  berries  by  weight;  they 
are  heavier  than  the  cubebs,  and  are,  on  that  account,  easily  added  in  suffi- 
cient amount  to  vitiate  the  quality  of  the  drug  without  attracting  notice. — 
Your  committee  have  endeavored  without  success  to  ascertain  the  name  of 
this  false  berry;  it  appears  to  be  inert  and  worthless,  not  possessed  of  any 
deleterious  property  other  than  that  of  reducing  the  strength  of  the  pow- 
dered cubebs,  which,  in  the  amount  present  in  sample  under  consideration, 
it  does  quite  perceptibly. 
Specimen  No.  2  is  French  Lycopodium,  which  is  adulterated  with  the 
starch  of  some  species  of  lentil,  apparently.  The  microscope  reveals  this 
adulteration  at  once,  which  otherwise  might  not  be  suspected.  If  treated 
with  water  and  solution  of  iodine,  the  presence  of  starch  may  also  be  de- 
tected. This  drug  is  often  adulterated  with  starch,  pulv.  gypsum,  and  even 
box-wood  powder.  By  separating  with  water  the  heavier  adulterations,  they 
oan  be  examined  and  recognized,  the  wood  powder  can  be  separated  by 
means  of  a  sieve. 
The  specimen  under  examination  is  part  of  a  lot  purchased  in  one  pound 
30 
