2 
FANCY  AND  FASHION  IN  PHARMACY. 
ten  deaurentur  pilulw,  meaning,  let  the  pills  be  gilt,  and  might 
not  be  satisfied  with  a  less  splendid  surface  than  that  of  the 
gilded  pill. 
With  us,  the  demand  has  become  quite  frequent  of  late  for 
silver  and  gold  coated  pills,  several  eminent  practitioners  pre- 
scribing this  elegant  finish,  and  we  have  acquired  some  ex- 
perience in  the  manipulation. 
The  above  represents  an  apparatus  we  have  had  turned  to 
order  from  hard  wood  for  use  in  this  process.  In  rolling  the 
pills,  care  is  taken  to  use  no  dusting  powder  of  any  kind,  and 
to  have  them  moderately  damp,  otherwise  we  moisten  them  with 
a  little  syrup,  and  then  introduce  them  into  the  hollow  sphere 
along  with  the  requisite  quantity  of  silver  or  gold  leaf ;  a  rapid 
motion  is  now  given  to  the  globe,  and  in  a  few  seconds  the  pills 
are  removed  with  a  clear  and  bright  coating.  One  dozen  pills 
of  average  size,  require  one  sheet  of  foil,  and  larger  numbers  in 
the  same  proportion.  Some  difficulty  is  experienced  in  giving 
a  handsome  coating  to  pills  of  Quevenne's  Metallic  Iron,  on  ac- 
count of  their  black  color  ;  this  can  only  be  obviated  by  the  use 
of  a  larger  proportion  of  foil,  which  may  be  objectionable  as  in- 
terfering with  their  solubility  notwithstanding  its  extreme 
tenuity. 
The  taste  of  the  pills  is  of  course  disguised  in  proportion  to 
the  completeness  of  the  coating  ;  in  dispensing,  no  powder  is 
necessary,  the  tendency  to  adhere  to  each  other  being  ob- 
viated. 
Some  of  the  old  recipes  direct  to  use  a  gallipot  laid  against 
the  palm  of  the  hand,  for  coating  pills  with  the  foil.  We  have 
found  two  porcelain  capsules  fitted  to  each  other,  the  opening 
at  the  lips  being  covered  by  the  thumb,  to  serve  a  very  good 
purpose ;  but  there  is  a  decided  saving  in  the  use  of  an  appara- 
tus as  above  figured,  any  portion  of  the  foil  not  adhering  to  one 
charge  of  pills  will  be  ready  for  the  next,  besides  the  advantage 
which  is  gained  by  the  leverage  of  the  handle. 
