ACTION  OF  SULPHUR  ON  AMMONIA. 
23 
more  than  two  years  with  one  very  similar  to  that  here  de- 
scribed, enables  me  to  recommend  it  as  being  very  nearly  what 
is  required  by  the  great  majority  of  pharmaceutists.  In  ar- 
ranging its  several  parts,  the  facility  of  cleaning  it  has  been 
regarded  as  very  important,  and  it  is  so  designed  that  any  good 
tinsmith  can  make  it,  while  the  usual  pattern  of  copper  stills 
requires  a  coppersmith  to  execute  them. 
The  whole  apparatus  is  made  of  sheet  copper  thoroughly 
tinned  inside,  the  mouth  of  the  still  being  large  enough  to  ad- 
mit the  hand  being  introduced  to  clean  it;  the  neck  is  made 
with  a  taper,  so  that  it  will  close  tightly,  and  of  sufficient  length 
to  prevent  the  foaming,  which  frequently  occurs,  rendering  the  , 
distillate  impure ;  the  neck  is  continued  up  into  the  head  of  the 
still  a  quarter  of  an  inch  to  prevent  the  condensed  liquor  which 
forms  in  the  head  of  the  still  flowing  back  into  the  still ;  the 
feed  pipe  enables  the  operator  to  continue  the  process  with  less 
interruption  than  would  occur  if  the  head  were  removed  each 
time  a  new  charge  was  added.  As  nearly  all  the  use  of  the 
still  in  the  hands  of  the  apothecary  is  to  recover  alcohol  from 
various  preparations,  it  is  desirable  to  have  a  safe  means  of  ap- 
plying heat :  this  can  be  done  with  great  facility  by  means  of  a 
kettle,  the  diameter  of  which  is  a  little  less  than  the  still  at  the 
shoulder,  so  that  the  still  will  form  a  close  junction  with  it  and 
prevent  the  free  escape  of  steam.  A  still  of  this  kind  and  size 
here  described  can  be  made  for  about  four  and  a  half  dollars, 
the  kettle  for  about  two  dollars  more.  It  is  far  more  economi- 
cal to  have  them  all  made  of  copper  tinned,  as  there  is  very 
little  wear  upon  copper  utensils,  while  the  common,  substitute, 
sheet  tin,  corrodes  so  quickly  that  in  a  short  time  a  greater 
expense  is  incurred  than  would  be  required  for  copper  vessels. 
Proc.  Amer.  Pharm.  Association,  1863. 
ON  THE  ACTION  OF  SULPHUR  ON  AMMONIA. 
By  F.  A.  Fluckiger. 
Grnelin  and  Rose  state  that  pure  sulphur  has  no  action  on 
ammonia ;  Brunner,  however,  has  shown  that  ammonia  water 
dissolves  a  little  sulphur.    Dry  gaseous  ammonia  and  vapors  of 
sulphur,  passed  through  a  red-hot  tube,  yield,  according  to  The- 
