564  Gleanings  from  the  German  Journals.  {AmNov.a889arm' 
a  5  per  cent,  aqueous  solution  is  hardly  recognizable  by  the  odor. 
—Pharm.  Centrathalle,  1889,  535. 
Somnal,  a  new  hypnotic,  is  made  by  union  of  chloral,  alcohol  and 
urethane,  has  the  formula  C#H12C]303N,  differing  in  formula  from 
chloral-urethane  by  containing  C2H4  additional.  It  melts  at  42°  and 
does  not  react  with  silver  nitrate  and  is  not  acted  upon  by  acids.  It 
is  administered  according  to  the  following  prescription  :  Somnal  10*0, 
distilled  water  45 "0,  solution  of  licorice  or  raspberry  syrup  20*0,  in 
tablespoonful  doses  (containing  2  grams).  One-half  hour  after  its 
administration  a  sound  sleep  lasting  from  six  to  eight  hours  is  pro- 
duced, without  the  objectionable  after-effects  of  chloral  hydrate  or 
urethane. — Pharm.  Ztg.,  1889,  611. 
Adulterations  of  beeswax  with  paraffin,  ceresin  or  ozokerite  can  be 
easily  determined  by  subjecting  the  sample  to  the  influence  of  heat. 
In  a  small  porcelain  capsule  of  about  5  cm.  diameter  and  1  to  2  cm. 
depth,  two  grams  of  the  wax,  previously  cut  into  shavings  and  dried 
by  exposure  to  air,  are  placed  and  heated  over  a  small  flame  ;  when 
vapors  are  evolved  a  beaker  of  same  diameter  as  capsule  and  of  \  to  § 
liter  capacity  is  held  over  the  capsule  and  completely  filled  with  the 
vapor,  when  it  is  corked  and  set  aside  for  condensation  j  a  second 
beaker  is  filled  in  the  same  manner  and  then  the  flame  is  removed. 
The  condensation  of  the  vapor  requires  about  one  hour  and  when 
completed  the  deposit  of  one  beaker  is  dissolved  in  3  cc.  chloroform 
and  poured  into  the  second  beaker,  rinsing  the  first  beaker  with  a 
small  additional  quantity  of  chloroform.  With  the  chloroform  solu- 
tion of  the  sublimate  the  following  tests  are  made  :  1.  One  to  one  and 
a  half  cc.  are  evaporated  in  a  test-tube  and,  after  adding  4  cc.  solution 
of  sodium  hydrate,  heated  to  the  boiling  point ;  after  cooling,  the 
paraffin  will  float  upon  the  colorless  lye.  2.  Several  drops  are 
allowed  to  evaporate  spontaneously  upon  an  object  glass  and  the  resi- 
due examined  microscopically ;  paraffin  has  the  appearance  of  raised 
stars  with  curved  or  serpent-like  rays.  In  this  distillation  the  first 
portion  of  the  vapor  always  consists  of  the  paraffin,  pure  beeswax 
only  producing  volatile  matter  on  heating  to  300-320°C. ;  the  subli- 
mate from  beeswax  is  always  colored,  the  chloroform  solution  being 
decidedly  colored,  the  soda  lye  is  colored  and  also  turbid  ;  under  the 
microscope  the  chloroform  residue  presents  a  wavy  appearance  without 
the  stars.  For  a  quantitative  determination  the  results  are  only 
approximate,  instead  of  25  per  cent,  there  were  obtained  in  three 
