352         Changes  in  United  States  Pharmacopeia.    {Am-  J™r-*^Tm- 
wise  exert  some  therapeutic  action  by  stimulating  the  absorption  of 
the  digitalis.  Complaint  has  already  been  made  that  the  infusion 
made  by  the  new  formula,  without  the  alcohol,  very  soon  spoils. 
Our  experience  with  the  other  digitalis  galenicals  proves  that  the 
glucosides  of  this  drug  are  readily  hydrolyzed  even  in  a  menstruum 
of  diluted  alcohol,  and  to  avoid  rapid  deterioration  in  the  tincture 
and  fluidextract,  the  Pharmacopeia  has  increased  the  alcoholic  con- 
tent of  these  preparations.  Yet  on  theoretical  grounds,  not  sub- 
stantiated by  either  practical  experiment  or  therapeutic  testing, 
the  alcohol  was  stricken  from  the  infusion,  one  of  the  most  impor- 
tant of  diuretic  and  cardiac  remedies. 
Ammonia  liniment  is  directed  to  be  made  by  agitating  I  volume 
of  ammonia  water  with  3  volumes  of  sesame  oil  and  this  simple 
procedure  yields  a  perfect  preparation.  The  U.  S.  P.  VIII  patriot- 
ically endeavored  to  utilize  in  this  formula  an  American  product, 
cotton-seed  oil,  and  in  order  to  saponify  this  added  oleic  acid  and 
alcohol,  thus  presenting  a  wasteful  and  ridiculous  formula. 
In  mucilage  of  acacia,  the  Eight  Revision  directed  the  use  of  33 
per  cent,  of  lime  water  in  order  to  overcome  the  natural  acidity  of 
acacia.  The  lime  water  content  at  times  created  incompatibility  as, 
for  example,  when  the  mucilage  of  acacia  was  directed  to  be  used 
to  suspend  calomel.  The  revision  rightly  omits  the  lime  water  and 
directs  that  this  mucilage  should  be  frequently  made  and  not  dis- 
pensed if  it  has  deteriorated. 
In  oleate  of  mercury,  the  use  of  alcohol  in  place  of  water  will 
shorten  the  time  required  and  diminish  the  danger  of  reduction  of 
the  mercury. 
The  change  made  in  the  formula  for  soft  soap,  cotton  seed  oil 
being  directed  in  place  of  linseed  oil,  has  likewise  been  directed  by 
economic  reasons  rather  than  by  scientific.  The  new  formula  is  de- 
fective and  the  product  is  deficient  in  that  very  necessary  property 
of  a  soap,  namely,  detergency. 
In  the  mint  spirits,  the  respective  peppermint  or  spearmint,  used 
for  coloring  and  clarifying,  is  first  washed  with  water  which  re- 
moves the  brown  and  yellow  colorings  as  well  as  much  extraneous 
dirt  and  the  resulting  spirit  is  more  uniformly  of  a  bright  green 
color. 
The  acid  content  of  syrup  of  hydriodic  acid  was  slightly  in- 
creased so  as  to  make  the  official  syrup  not  below  the  strength 
claimed  for  some  of  the  proprietary  syrups. 
