ON  A  NEW  SOURCE  OF  KINO. 
239 
gives  approximately  the  organic  admixtures.  The  saline  residue, 
converted  into  chlorine  compounds,  indicates  the  per-centage  of 
alkalies;  in  that  from  soda  soaps,  58  parts  are  equal  to  31  soda  ; 
and  in  potash  soaps,  74  chloride  of  potassium  are  equal  to  47  pot- 
ash. The  sum  of  these  constituents  (in  centigrammes)  deducted 
from  100  gives  the  per-centage  of  water. — Chem.  Gazette  Feb.  1, 
1853. 
ON  A  NEW  SOURCE  OF  KINO. 
By  Robert  Christison,  M.  D.,  V.  P.  R.  S.  E. 
Professor  of  Materia  Medicain  the  University  of  Edinburgh. 
In  a  letter  of  the  20th  of  last  July,  from  a  merchant  of  Moul- 
mein, Mr.  R.  S.  Begbie,  son  of  Dr.  Begbie  of  this  city,  I  was  in- 
formed that  a  species  of  kino — which  seemed  to  him  to  present 
the  physical  properties  of  the  commercial  variety  of  that  drug  in 
the  English  home  market,  and  which  had  been  ascertained  by  a 
medical  friend  at  Moulmein  to  possess  also  its  medicinal  virtues — 
might  be  largely  obtained  from  a  tree  abounding  in  the  adjacent 
provinces.  Mr.  Begbie  added,  that  he  believed  "  a  small  quan- 
tity had  been  sent  some  years  ago  to  England ;  but  as  an  article 
of  export  generally  it  has  not  yet  been  shipped."  This  notice  was 
accompanied  by  a  small  specimen,  which  is  now  produced,  and 
which  is  large  enough  to  allow  of  its  principal  properties  being 
accurately  ascertained. 
As  the  inquiries  I  have  made  lead  me  to  suppose  that  the  ar- 
ticle in  question  is  of  a  very  fine  kind,  and  that  the  fact  of  its 
production  near  Moulmein,  and  probably  over  a  considerable 
part  of  the  neighboring  province  of  Pegue,  is  not  hitherto  known 
in  Europe,  I  beg  to  present  to  the  Pharmaceutical  Society  the 
following  description  of  it,  and  the  reasons  which  induce  me  to 
think  that  it  is  obtained  from  the  identical  tree  which  yields  in 
Malabar  the  present  commercial  kino  of  European  trade. 
The  small  portion  sent  by  Mr.  Begbie  consists  partly  of  little 
angular  fragments  ;  but  there  are  several  larger  masses  which 
are  portions  of  cylinders,  about  half  an  inch  in  diameter,  appa- 
rently moulded  by  collecting  the  juice  in  reeds.  These  have  ex- 
ternally a  grayish,  striated  surface,  most  unlike  that  of  the 
broken  fragments  of  commercial  kino.  They  are  easily  frangible; 
