Am.  Jour.  Pharm.) 
January,  1897.  J 
Petrolatum  vs.  Vaseline. 
25 
Patent  No.  56,179,  dated  July  10,  1866,  to  same,  for  heating 
bone-black  by  dry  steam  or  otherwise,  previous  to  using  the  same 
for  filtering  hydrocarbon  oils. 
Patent  No.  127,568,  dated  June  4,  1872,  to  same,  for  the  name 
vaseline. 
In  the  latter,  the  claim  made  by  the  patentee  is  as  follows : 
I  have  invented  a  new  and  useful  product  from  petroleum,  which  I  have 
named  Vaseline,  and  I  do  hereby  declare  that  the  following  is  a  full,  clear  and 
exact  description  thereof,  which  will  enable  those  skilled  in  the  art  to  make 
and  use  the  same. 
The  substance  from  which  vaseline  is  made  is  the  residuum  of  petroleum  left 
in  the  still  after  the  greater  part  of  the  petroleum  has  been  distilled  off.  Vas- 
eline is  the  product  of  the  filtration  of  the  said  residuum  through  bone-black, 
and  varies  in  color  as  it  comes  from  the  filter.  First  it  is  pure  white  at  the  be- 
ginning of  the  operation,  soon  changing  to  a  light  straw,  and  then  a  deep 
claret  at  the  close  of  the  operation. 
Vaseline  is  a  thick,  oily,  pasty  substance,  is  semi-solid  in  appearance,  unob- 
jectionable in  odor,  becomes  liquid  at  temperature  varying  from  850  to  no°  F. 
It  will  not  saponify,  does  not  crystallize,  and  does  not  contain  paraffine. 
Vaseline  is  especially  useful  in  currying,  stuffing  and  oi|ing  all  kinds  of 
leather.  It  is  also  a  good  lubricator,  and  may  be  used  to  great  advantage  on 
all  kinds  of  machinery.  It  is  also  an  excellent  substance  for  glycerine-cream 
for  chapped  hands. 
When  we  compare  the  above  with  the  description  of  petrolatum 
of  the  U.  S.  P.,  we  must  come  to  the  conclusion  that  the  pharma- 
copceial  committee  is  grossly  misrepresented,  and  that  pharmacy  is 
unjustly  charged  with  piracy. 
The  Pharmacopoeia  says  of  petrolatum  : 
A  mixture  of  hydrocarbons,  chiefly  of  the  marsh-gas  series,  obtained  by  dis- 
tilling off  the  lighter  and  more  volatile  portions  from  petroleum,  and  purifying 
the  residue  when  it  has  the  desired  melting  point.  A  fat-like  mass  of  about  the 
consistency  of  an  ointment,  varying  from  white  to  yellowish,  or  yellow,  more 
or  less  fluorescent  when  yellow,  especially  after  being  melted,  transparent  in 
thin  layers,  completely  amorphous,  and  without  odor  and  taste,  or  giving  off, 
when  heated,  a  faint  odor  of  petroleum. 
An  unusually  large  fasciated  stem  of  meadow  thistle  (Cnicus  altissimus, 
Willd.)  was  sent  to  the  museum  of  Purdue  Universit)'  a  short  time  ago  from 
northern  Indiana.  When  dry,  it  measured  12  inches  broad  at  the  top  and  3 
inches  at  the  base.  The  thickness  of  this  greatly  flattened  stem  was  normal, 
that  is,  less  than  one-fourth  inch.  It  was  covered  evenly  with  normal  leaves, 
and  bore  a  score  or  more  of  immature  flower  heads  sessile  along  the  upper 
edge.  It  stood  3  feet  high.  The  interest  in  it  lies  in  the  size  and  perfect 
wedge  form,  as  fasciated  stems  are  usually  irregularly  developed. — Botanical 
Gazette,  November,  1896. 
