m.  Jour.  Pbarm.") 
January,  1902.  J 
Sugar-Coated  Pills. 
33 
division  of  powerful  chemicals  is  more  readily  and  accurately 
reached  through  the  processes  and  facilities  specially  invented  and 
used  for  the  purpose. 
Thus  we  have  the  ready  prepared,  sugar-coated  pill  of  to-day  as 
properly  made;  and  notwithstanding  the  fact  that  the  "  old  reliable 
has  been  assailed  by  coatings  of  other  descriptions  and  preparations 
of  other  shapes,  we  believe  it  is  destined  to  outlive  in  average  pop- 
ularity  any  and  all  of  its  competitors. 
SUGAR-COATED  PILLS. 
By  Thomas  S.  Wiegand. 
This  subject  may  be  considered  stale  by  some,  as  sugar-coated 
pills  have  been  before  the  public  for  so  many  years ;  the  first  of 
these  that  acquired  much  repute  in  this  country  were  those  imported 
from  France  and  made  by  Garnier  Lamoreau  &  Co.  some  fifty-five 
or  sixty  years  ago,  and  were  very  beautiful  specimens  of  the  con- 
fectioners' skill ;  but  very  many  physicians  of  high  standing  and 
excellent  judgment  ignored  them  entirely,  as  the  result  of  their 
experience  induced  them  to  think  the  process  ol  sugar  coating 
'  baked"  them  so  thoroughly  that  they  were  nearly  insoluble. 
Knowing  this  objection  it  early  became  a  problem  with  me  to  remove 
any  cause  of  complaint  arising  from  this  coating  process  by  excluding 
all  heat  from  them  while  being  coated,  and  the  method  of  doing  it 
was  simply  to  drive  a  current  of  cold  air  into  the  pan  while  the 
pills  were  being  covered  with  the  sugar ;  another  reason,  and  a 
better  one  in  my  judgment,  why  some  sugar-coated  pills  were  not  so 
active  was  to  be  found  in  the  fact  that  many  of  them  contained  less 
than  half  the  quantity  of  the  medicinal  agent  they  purported  to 
have — thus,  in  one  instance,  five  5-grain  blue  pills  weighed  with 
their  sugar  coating  little  over  15  grains,  while  their  medicinal  com- 
ponent should  have  weighed  25  grains  and  the  sugar  coating  would 
add  almost  as  much  more  to  their  weight. 
That  sugar-coated  pills  should  be  objected  to  when  properly  made 
is  to  my  mind  altogether  unreasonable  ;  but  it  must  be  remembered 
that,  like  all  other  remedies,  the  purity  and  activity  of  the  materials 
used  in  their  composition  must  be  the  first  consideration ;  yet  the 
unscrupulous  manufacturer  has  the  opportunity  of  hiding  very  poor 
drugs  under  a  very  handsome  coating  of  sugar  flavored  with  some 
