ON  ANACAHUITE  WOOD. 
lOT 
ON  ANACAHUITE  WOOD. 
By  Jno.  M.  Maisch. 
Some  time  in  August  or  September  last,  the  New  York 
Criminalzeitung"  published  a  correspondence  from  Berlin, 
Germany,  which  contained  a  statement  to  the  eiFect  that  the 
Prussian  consul  at  Tampico,  Mexico,  had  notified  his  govern- 
ment of  a  wood,  which  is  called  there  anacahuite,  and  is  ex. 
tensively  employed  with  the  most  beneficial  results  in  tubercu- 
lar consumption.  This  report  was  considered  by  the  government 
of  Prussia  of  sufficient  importance  to  determine  on  testing  its 
efficacy  in  the  Charite,  the  celebrated  hospital  in  Berlin.  The 
wood,  it  is  asserted,  is  rare  in  Mexico,  and  the  agents  of  Prussia 
have  seized  upon  it  to  such  an  extent,  that  it  is  now  difficult  for 
others  to  obtain. 
A  subsequent  correspondence  of  the  above  mentioned  paper, 
dated  Berlin,  Oct.  5th,  1860,  stated  that  the  experiments  with 
the  anacahuite  wood  had,  as  yet,  not  led  to  a  satisfactory  re- 
sult, but  that  they  were  to  be  continued,  because  it  was  hardly 
to  be  expected  that  the  consul  should  have  made  such  positive 
assertions  without  being  satisfied  of  their  correctness  ;  it  was 
added  that  guaiac  wood,  had,  by  some  druggists  in  Germany, 
been  fraudulently  sold  instead  of  anacahuite. 
The  Criminalzeitung"  of  February  1st,  publishes  a  paper  by 
Dr.  Krog,  of  New  York,  formerly  of  Berlin,  which  appears  to 
be  of  so  much  interest  as  to  warrant  its  translation  for  the 
American  Journal  of  Pharmacy. 
"  During  the  summer  of  the  past  year,  when  the  above  wood 
was  first  brought  to  Europe,  the  writer  has  had  the  opportunity 
to  observe  its  effects  in  the  Berlin  Charite,  and  to  satisfy  him- 
self of  the  unusually  favorable  results.  The  first  experiments 
did  not  prove  to  be  so  effectual  as  was  expected,  and  it  was  sup- 
posed that  a  part,  at  least,  of  the  alleged  excellent  success  in 
Mexico  must  be  ascribed  to  its  climate ;  but  subsequently  it 
became  evident  that  this  difference  was  to  be  accounted  for  by 
the  mode  of  preparing  the  wood.  A  simple  infusion  is  not  suf- 
ficient to  extract  the  active  principles  ;  even  heating  to  boiling 
will  not  entirely  accomplish  the  object,  which  is  attained  only 
