4 
Am-^ilSfrm'}    Minutes  of  the  Pharmaceutical  Meeting.  635 
lie  judged  that  the  acid  was  from  animal  sources,  but  he  could  not  speak 
positively. 
Some  samples  of  saffron  were  brought  to  the  attention  of  the  meeting,  and 
in  a  paper  read  by  Mr.  Beringer  one  sample  was  described  as  being  adulterated 
with  a  kind  of  grass,  stained  with  some  coloring-matter,  most  probably  a  coal 
oil  color,  and  weighted  with  sulphate  of  calcium,  and  the  other  sample  to  be 
adulterated  with  sulphate  of  sodium.  Professor  Maisch  said  these  examina- 
tions showed  that  those  who  followed  the  trade  of  adulterating  this  drug  were 
choosing  new  substances  for  sophistication;  that  while  the  inorganic  salts 
could  be  detected  by  incinerating  the  drug  and  testing  the  ash,  if  ammonia 
salts  should  be  used  they  would  be  volatilized  and  therefore  not  so  easily 
detected.  Professor  Maisch  went  on  to  say  that  he  thought  if  the  dealers  who 
purchased  it  at  first  hands  from  the  producers  were  willing  to  pay  a  sufficient 
price  the  true  saffron  could  be  had  without  difficulty;  that  the  saffron  pro- 
duced for  home  use  only  in  Pennsylvania  in  Lancaster  and  Lebanon  counties 
is  equal  to  any  and  that  any  surplus  not  needed  by  the  producers  was  sold  for 
its  weight  in  silver. 
Mr.  Isaac  Cohen,  one  of  our  graduates,  presented  to  the  meeting  some  samples 
of  extract  of  beef  prepared  by  Armour  &  Co.,  of  Chicago.  Their  claim  is  that  it 
contains  all  the  albuminoids  of  beef  with  the  nutrient  properties  unimpaired, 
that  no  chemicals  are  added,  save  a  portion  of  chloride  of  sodium,  to  render  it 
permanent.  Professor  Trimble  inquired  whether  the  extract  was  soluble  in 
wine  so  as  to  be  suitable  for  making  the  beef,  wine  and  iron  of  pharmacy. 
The  reply  was  that  it  was  suitable  for  that  purpose  if  a  weak  sherry  was  used ; 
that  it  had  been  used  in  Cincinnati  in  the  hospitals  there  with  satisfaction. 
Mr.  Boring  wanted  to  know  if  the  process  was  secret,  whether  the  apothecary 
could  make  it  himself  in  his  store.  It  was  stated  in  reply  that  the  manufac- 
ture was  not  secret,  but  that  the  process  was  not  suitable  to  the  facilities  of  a 
drug  store,  as  it  needed  vacuum  apparatus  and  must  be  performed  on  a  large 
scale  to  be  economically  done. 
Mr.  Mclntyre  inquired  if  any  one  could  say  whether  the  commercial  pills  re- 
quiring aconite  extract  were  made  with  extract  of  aconite  root  or  leaves.  The  reply 
wasthat  the  dose  generally  would  indicate  which,  but  in  the  case  of  Gross'  neu- 
ralgic pill,  which  was  mentioned,  that  the  English  extract  of  aconite  leaf  was 
used.  This  qu;jry  lead  to  discussion,  which  showed  how  it  was  that  aconitine 
was  dismissed  from  the  pharmacopoeia,  as  the  crystalline  alkaloid  was  so 
much  stronger  than  the  amorphous,  that  the  doses  formerly  employed  of  amor- 
phous aconitine  would  be  positively  dangerous  if  the  crystalline  alkalo'd  were 
used. 
Professor  Maisch  stated  this  was  also  true  of  digitalin. 
The  registrar  stated  that  a  paper  upon  the  division  of  powders  in  prescrip- 
tions was  published  in  the  August  number  of  the  American  Journal  of  Phar- 
macy, and  a  tile  was  described  for  facilitating  the  work.  Mr.  J.  S.  Mack,  of 
Slatington,  a  member  of  the  present  class,  made  a  couple  of  them  of  slate,  with 
the  divisions  and  figures  enamelled  on  them  ;  these  tiles  were  exhibited  to  the 
meeting. 
On  motion  adjourned. 
THOS.  S.  WIEGAND, 
Registrar. 
