Am.  Jour.  Pharm. ) 
April,  1881.  j 
Jafferahad  Aloes. 
175 
The  odor  is  a  characteristic  one,  having  some  resem})lance  to  that  of 
socotrine,  but  less  fragrant,  as  if  it  contained  a  trace  of  Barbadoes 
aloes  and  sandal  wood.  The  taste  of  the  decoction  is  not  so  pleasant 
as  that  of  the  Socotrine  aloes ;  but  the  amount  of  matter  insoluble  in 
water  seems  to  be  equal  in  amount  to  that  of  the  Socotrine  aloes. 
When  submitted  to  the  action  of  nitric  and  sulphuric  acids  no  change 
takes  place  with  the  first  named  reagent,  but  when  the  vapor  of  nitric 
acid  is  passed  over  the  mixture  of  Jafteral)ad  aloes  and  oil  of  vitriol  a 
slight  greenish  tinge  is  developed.  This  hue  is,  however,  quite  differ- 
ent from  the  distinct  blue  color  developed  by  Natal  aloes  when  simi- 
larly treated. 
Dr.  Dymock  has  cultivated  the  Jafferabad  aloes  plant  in  his  garden, 
and  it  flowered  at  the  end  of  last  September.  A  few  of  the  blossoms 
which  he  sent  me  have  been  submitted  to  Mr.  J.  G.  Baker,  of  Kew, 
who  has  recently  paid  considerable  attention  to  this  group  of  plants, 
and  he  considers,  so  far  as  it  possible  to  determine  from  the  flowers 
alone,  that  they  belong  to  Aloe  ohyssinica.  Dr.  Dymock  collected 
some  of  the  aloes  from  the  Jafferabad  plant  in  his  garden  and  found  it 
to  give  the  same  reaction  as  Socotrine  aloes,  and  as  he  obtained  the 
same  results  as  with  the  aloes  imported  from  Jafl'erabad  there  can  be 
little  doubt  that  the  species  of  aloe  cultivated  in  his  garden  is  the 
source  of  the  drug  bearing  that  name. 
A  specimen  of  Mocha  aloes  in  irregular  masses,  which  was  obtained 
in  the  London  drug  market  last  year,  gives  exactly  the  same  faint 
greenish  color  when  mixed  with  strong  sulphuric  acid  and  the  vapor 
of  nitric  acid  is  blown  over  it.  The  powder  is  more  of  a  reddish- 
brown  hue,  like  that  of  catechu,  and  the  odor  slightly  difl'erent.  The 
surface  has  the  pitch-like  appearance  of  Jaflerabad  aloes,  but  it  seems 
to  have  been  prepared  with  less  care,  which  might  account  for  the 
slight  diflerence  in  odor,  and  as  according  to  Dr.  Pereira,  "  Materia 
Medica,"  vol.  i,  p.  102  (4th  ed.),  it  is  imported  from  Muscat,  lower 
down  the  Persian  Gulf,  it  seems  probable  that  it  may  be  yielded  by 
the  same  species  of  aloes.  I  hope  to  receive  specimens  of  the  Jaflera- 
bad aloe  from  Dr.  Dymock  shortly,  when  the  identity  of  the  species 
can  doubtless  be  set  at  rest. 
My  excuse  for  bringing  forward  incomplete  information  at  the  pre- 
sent time  must  be  that  it  seemed  desirable,  while  the  drugs  from  Soco- 
tra,  kindly  presented  by  Professor  Balfour,  were  under  discussion,  to 
mention  an  aloes  which  seemed  so  nearly  related  to  the  Socotrine 
Yariety. — Pharm.  Jour,  and  Trans.,  March  5,  1881. 
