AmMJa°i"h,i887rm'}         Gleanings  in  Materia  Medica.  153 
as  a  kind  of  charm  against  piles,  and  the  powdered  white  kernel  is 
thoroughly  triturated  with  lard  into  an  ointment,  which  is  said  to  be 
successfully  applied  against  piles. 
Poisoning  by  the  bark  of  Robinia  Pseudacacia,  L. — Dr.  Z.  T. 
Emery  reports  (N.  Y.  Med.  Jour.,  Jan.  22,  1887)  on  the  poisoning  of 
thirty-two  boys  at  the  Brooklyn  Orphan  Asylum  from  chewing  the 
inner  bark  of  the  locust-tree,  which  they  had  obtained  from  the  yard 
where  fence-posts  had  been  stripped.  In  the  mildest  cases  vomiting 
of  ropy  mucus  was  observed,  together  with  flushed  face,  dryness  of 
throat  and  dilated  pupils.  In  the  severest  cases  large  quantities  of 
ropy  mucus  mixed  with  blood  were  vomited;  the  other  symptoms 
were  retching,  pain  in  the  epigastrium,  debility,  stupor,  extremities 
cold  and  pulseless,  heart's  action  feeble  and  intermittent,  pupils  dilated, 
faces  of  a  dusky  pallor.  These  patients  were  given  bismuth  subcar- 
bonate  and  brandy  by  the  mouth,  and  morphine  hypodermically ; 
sinapisms  were  applied  over  the  stomach  and  bottles  with  hot  water 
along  the  extremities.  The  patients  were  discharged  from  the  hospi- 
tal in  two  days. 
The  stem  bark  has  never  been  examined  chemically.  Asparagin 
has  been  found  in  the  root,  and  the  flowers  contain  the  glucoside 
robinin,  which  yields  quercetin.  The  bark  deserves  investigation  in 
view  of  the  fact  that  a  number  of  woody  leguminous  plants  are 
known  to  contain  poisonous  alkaloids  and  other  more  or  less  active 
principles. 
Qinchonidine  in  Quinine  sulphate. — Dr.  Louis  Schsefer,  of  Mann- 
heim, recommends  the  following  test,  which  depends  upon  the  very 
sparing  solubility  of  quinine  oxalate  in  water  containing  a  slight 
excess  of  potassium  oxalate,  and  upon  the  comparatively  ready  solu- 
bility of  cinchonidine  sulphate  in  the  same  liquid :  Dissolve  2  gm. 
crystallized  quinine  sulphate  in  a  tared  flask  in  55  ccm.  of  boiling 
distilled  water;  add  0*5  gm.  neutral  potassium  oxalate  previously 
dissolved  in  5  ccm.  of  water;  maintain  the  weight  of  the  contents 
of  the  flask  at  62.5  gm. ;  cool  for  half  an  hour  by  placing 
the  flask  in  water  of  20  °C.  and  filter.  On  adding  to  the  fil- 
trate one  drop  of  caustic  soda  solution  (sp.  gr.  1*160),  a  turbidity 
or  a  precipitate  of  cinchonidine  will  take  place,  in  case  one  per 
cent,  or  more  of  cinchonidine  sulphate  was  present  in  the  quinine 
salt;  with  smaller  quantities  of  the  impurity  the  filtrate  will  remain 
clear. 
