AmjJuT;-iS)2frm-}  Cheap  Drugs.  317 
heating  the  bark  at  1000  C.  for  forty-eight  hours,  this  specification 
seems  no  longer  necessary. 
In  some  drugs  a  sort  of  ripening  process  takes  place  in  the  drying, 
as  in  tobacco  and  vanilla.  In  still  others  a  marked  deteriora- 
tion takes  place  if  they  are  placed  in  heaps  and  allowed  to  fer 
ment,  as  lavender  and  most  other  drugs  yielding  essential  oils. 
Furthermore,  in  the  preparation  of  oil  of  peppermint,  the  yield  of  oil 
is  greater  and  the  quality  superior  if  the  plants  are  allowed  to  dry 
and  are  distilled  immediately  or  soon  after  drying. 
Quite  a  number  of  drugs  are  not  infrequently  observed  in  com- 
merce in  a  moldy  condition,  as  taraxacum,  veratrum  viride,  maranta, 
aconite,  etc.  The  question  as  to  what  influence  this  mold  has  on  the 
quality  of  the  drug  has  not  been  cleared  up.  Some  experiments  that 
are  being  carried  on  at  the  Philadelphia  College  of  Pharmacy  may 
enable  us  to  say  something  about  this  later.  More  than  twenty-five 
years  ago  Dr.  Squibb  called  attention  to  the  fact  that  micro-organisms 
appeared  to  destroy  the  active  principles  in  belladonna,  and  said  that 
"  if  this  be  true  of  aconite,  then  moldiness  would  be  a  cause  of  inert- 
ness, as  it  is  frequently  seen  moldy  on  arriving  here,  though  the  ap- 
pearance of  the  mold  soon  disappears  under  the  skilful  hands  of  an 
energetic  salesman."  It  should  be  stated,  however,  that  a  micro- 
scopic examination  will  soon  decide  the  question  as  to  whether  a 
drug  has  been  moldy  or  not. 
The  U.  S.  Pharmacopoeia  is  very  specific  in  stating  that  certain 
drugs  should  be  carefully  dried,  as  ergot,  cantharides,  etc.  The  Brit- 
ish Pharmacopoeia  in  the  definitions  of  most  of  the  drugs  speaks  of 
them  as  the  dried  drug.  This  is  a  very  important  matter  and  one  de- 
serving of  very  careful  consideration,  particularly  in  the  case  of  seeds, 
fruits  containing  seeds,  and  any  other  product,  as  ergot,  possessing, 
dormant  life.  While  I  have  no  results  to  present,  I  am  inclined  to 
believe  that  there  is  a  marked  difference  in  the  therapeutic  value  of 
drugs  in  which  the  life  is  quickly  destroyed  and  those  in  which  the 
vitality  is  allowed  to  ebb  out  slowly.  Ricinus  seeds  would  be  inter- 
esting material  for  investigation,  the  question  being  whether  the  oil 
obtained  from  a  lot  of  seeds  in  which  80  or  90  per  cent,  are  capable 
of  germinating  is  not  bland  and  agreeable  and  yet  possessed  of  all 
the  purgative  properties  of  the  oil  ordinarily  sold,  as  compared  to 
that  obtained  from  seeds  dried  at  50  or  6o°  C.  Investigations  have 
shown  that  in  fennel  fruits,  which  are  the  richest  in  volatile  oil,  from 
