158 
Aromatic  Elixir. 
Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
April,  1904. 
tenable  for  cholesterol,  as  well  as  its  iso-  and  para-form  {Jour.  Am. 
Chem.  Soc.y  21,  p.  766),  has  been  isolated  in  the  vegetable  oils. 
The  complexity  of  the  molecule,  the  difficulty  in  obtaining  them 
in  quantities  and  the  inactivity  toward  other  substances,  are  some  of 
the  causes  of  our  meagre  knowledge  of  the  cholesterols.  From  ex- 
aminations of  a  number  of  vegetable  and  animal  oils,  there  seems 
little  doubt  but  these  four  or  five  forms  represent  only  a  small  por- 
tion of  the  group. 
Both  of  the  substances  obtained  from  the  above  oils,  according  to 
analyses,  are  mon-atomic  alcohols,  but  with  a  higher  molecular 
weight  than  cholesterol.  The  unsaponifiable  substance  above  ob- 
tained is  at  present  under  examination.  The  purified  substance 
obtained  after  repeated  crystallizations  had  a  melting  point  of  63-5°  C. 
to  640  C.  Like  cholesterol,  it  does  not  readily  react  with  other 
reagents,  but  enough  has  been  done  to  indicate  that  both  of  these 
substances,  although  of  a  more  complex  nature,  belong  to  the 
cholesterol  group. 
Chemical  Laboratory,  University  of  Minnesota. 
AROMATIC  ELIXIR. 
By  Wilbur  Scovh,i,e. 
Ten  years  ago  the  interests  of  pharmacists  in  elixirs  was  centred 
mainly  in  the  question,  What  is  the  best  flavor  for  an  elixir  for  gen- 
eral use  ?  Our  drug  journals  offered  prizes  for  elixir  formulas,  and 
the  formulas  offered  differed  mostly  in  the  character  of  the  flavor. 
To-day  an  orange  flavor  is  generally  adopted  as,  all  things  con- 
sidered, the  best  adapted  for  a  basal  elixir.  No  flavor  blends  so 
well  with  all  kinds  of  medicaments,  or  covers  disagreeable  tastes  to 
better  advantage.  Seldom  is  there  heard  a  demand  for  any  other 
fundamental  flavor. 
As  a  type  of  an  orange  elixir,  the  aromatic  elixir  of  the  Pharma- 
copoeia stands  at  the  head  of  published  formulas.  It  is  a  well-blended 
mixture  which  contains  just  enough  aromatics  to  bring  up  the  softer 
orange.  But  as  compared  with  some  commercial  elixirs  it  lacks 
power  and  freshness.  Many  pharmacists  seek  to  supply  this  lack 
by  the  addition  of  other  aromatic  oils  in  liberal  quantity,  and  thus 
lose  the  chief  characteristic  of  the  original  flavor.  These  highly 
aromatic   combinations   are   not  wholly  satisfactory,  since  they 
