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Research.  iAm-Joul-  pharm- 
<-      March,  1917 
1  Although  dependence  must  still  be  placed  upon  natural  sources 
for  many  invaluable  medicinal  agents,  such  as  morphine,  quinine, 
strychnine,  and  other  familiar  representatives  of  the  group  of  alka- 
loids, in  several  instances  the  determination  of  the  ultimate  constitu- 
tion of  important  vegetable  compounds  has  made  it  possible  to  pre- 
pare them  synthetically,  thus  frequently  giving  rise  to  large  and 
prosperous  branches  of  industry.  In  briefly  citing  a  few  well- 
known  examples  of  such  achievements,  it  may  be  mentioned  that 
synthetic  methyl  salicylate,  although  first  produced  on  a  manufactur- 
ing scale  but  a  comparatively  few  years  ago,  has  now  displaced  to  a 
large  extent  the  natural  oils  of  wintergreen  and  sweet  birch,  of 
which  it  forms  the  chief  constituent,  while  the  salicylic  acid  em- 
ployed in  the  process  of  manufacture  is  also  an  artificial  product. 
Vanillin  and  coumarin,  which  represent  the  aromatic  principles  of 
the  vanilla  bean  and  tonka  bean  respectively,  are  now  rarely  ob- 
tained from  these  natural  sources,  but  almost  entirely  by  synthetic 
methods.  Artificial  indigo  is  now  produced  to  the  extent  of  several 
million  pounds  per  annum,  and  is  actively  competing  with  the  natural 
product,  but  for  various  reasons  it  has  not  completely  displaced  it. 
On  the  other  hand,  alizarin  has  long  since  ceased  to  be  obtained 
from  the  root  of  Rubia  tinctoria  L.,  or  Dyers'  madder,  being  now 
prepared  from  anthracene,  a  constituent  of  coal  tar. 
It  will  be  evident  from  the  brief  account  of  recent  phytochemical 
research  that  I  have  now  been  able  to  present  that  it  is  not  restricted 
in  its  scope  to  the  isolation  of  definite  organic  compounds  and  their 
characterization,  although  this  may  be  considered  of  primary  im- 
portance. Its  higher  aim  would  be  to  determine  the  constitution  of 
these  compounds,  and,  if  possible,  the  means  for  their  synthetic 
production.  A  wide  and  most  attractive  field  of  scientific  investiga- 
tion is  thus  afforded,  in  which  the  opportunities  for  development  are 
practically  unlimited. 
In  conclusion,  the  hope  may  be  expressed  that  the  newly  estab- 
lished phytochemical  laboratory  of  the  Bureau  of  Chemistry  may 
render  useful  service,  both  in  promoting  the  knowledge  of  plant 
constituents  and  in  extending  the  applications  of  the  knowledge  per- 
taining thereto. 
Phytochemicae  Laboratory, 
Bureau  of  Chemistry. 
