PHARMACEUTICAL  NOTICES. 
249 
I  gave  plasters  made  of  the  results  of  my  experiments,  to  test 
their  quality  and  virtues ;  but  I  regret  that  I  have  been  unable 
to  report  them  in  consequence  of  their  not  having  had  cases 
where  the  application  of  the  arnica  plaster  was  called  for,  or 
would  have  been  judicious. 
Philadelphia,  January,  1865. 
PHARMACEUTICAL  NOTICES.  . 
By  George  A.  Gross. 
» 
Tinctura  Opii. 
Owing  to  the  greatly  increased  price  of  alcohol,  it  occurred  to 
me  that  a  preparation  of  opium,  containing  all  the  desirable  pro- 
perties of  the  drug,  and  containing  only  half  as  much  alcohol  as 
the  officinal  tincture,  or  just  sufficient  to  act  as  a  preservative 
agent,  would  be  desirable  to  the  pharmaceutist. 
With  this  view,  Oij.  tr.  opii  were  prepared  in  the  following 
manner:  The  opium  was  first  grated  fine,  put  into  a  vessel, 
hot  water  poured  over  it,  and  allowed  to  macerate  for  twelve 
hours.  It  was  then  transferred  to  a  percolator  and  treated 
with  water  until  Oiss.  had  passed.  The  percolation  was  neces- 
sarily very  slow.  After  this  quantity  of  liquor  was  obtained, 
half  a  pint  of  alcohol,  sp.  gr.  -835,  was  added,  and  the  whole 
filtered.  The  result  was  a  clear  tincture,  not  quite  as  dark  colored 
as  the  officinal,  but  possessing  all  the  desirable  qualities  of  that 
preparation. 
The  dregs  were  carefully  tested  for  morphia,  &c.;  but  no  traces 
could  be  discovered. 
It  is  thought  a  tincture  made  in  this  way  would  be  preferable 
to  one  made  by  the  officinal  formula,  as  it  contains  none  of  that 
disagreeable  resino-extractive  which  is  dissolved  out  of  the  opium 
by  the  alcohol,  and  which  is  of  no  value  in  the  preparation,  but 
rather  an  objection  to  it.  This  tincture  would  also  be  less  stimu- 
lating, as  it  contains  less  alcohol,  although,  as  the  dose  is  so  small, 
this  circumstance  would  not  be  of  much  importance  alone,  but 
combining  this  fact  with  the  absence  of  the  resin,  (which  renders 
the  officinal  tincture  so  extremely  disagreeable,  the  taste  being 
retained  in  the  mouth  long  after  it  has  been  taken),  the  conclusion 
