20  Acidum  Phosphoricum  Dilutum.  {iLm'^\^m' 
motive  power  which  is  furnished  at  a  minimum  of  expense  by  the 
waste  product  (condensed  steam)  which  would  be  utilized  for  no  other 
purpose. 
A  note  here  regarding  the  practical  working  of  the  first  process  by 
the  pharmacist.  The  case  in  point  is  this  :  We  had  occasion  some 
time  ago  to  drop  into  the  store  of  a  gentleman  well  known  for  his 
pharmaceutical  attainments,  and  who  makes  it  an  item  of  especial  pride 
that  "  he  prepares  his  dilute  phosphoric  acid  from  phosphorus  direct." 
Well,  at  the  time  of  our  call  we  beheld  the  "  youngest  apprentice," 
we  judged  from  the  exceedingly  crude  methods  of  manipulation  he 
practised,  at  work  on  the  officinal  process  in  question.  To  say  "  he 
took  no  note  of  time  "  is  inapplicable,  but  that  "  he  took  no  note  of 
temperature  "  certainly  is,  for  his  chief  design  seemed  to  be  to  burn  the 
largest  amount  of  phosphorus  in  the  shortest  possible  time — the  phos- 
phorus being  mostly  on  [fire,  and  dense  clouds  of  phosphoric  anhydrid 
issuing  from  the  mouth  of  the  funnel  escaped  up  the  chimney  besides 
clouding  the  atmosphere  of  the  store.  Upon  our  modestly  offering  the 
suggestion  that  the  proper  place  for  the  anhydrid  was  in  the  capsule 
instead  of  the  atmosphere,  the  proprietor  rather  curtly  informed  us  that 
iC  Oh,  he  (the  youngest  apprentice  before  referred  to)  knows  all  about 
it ;  he's  made  it  before." 
These  are  the  facts  ;  the  commentary  is  that  if  an  educated  pharma- 
cist is  unable  to  prepare  phosphoric  acid  by  this  process  without  losing 
50  per  cent,  of  the  anhydrid,  the  acid  thereby  being  proportionately 
reduced  in  strength,  then  the  process  is  not  a  proper  one  to  be  left  in 
the  hands  of  druggists  generally  for  the  manufacture  of  this  preparation. 
The  second  process  of  the  "  Pharmacopoeia "  is  unsuitable,  and 
should  not,  on  any  account,  be  followed,  because  of  the  fact  that  all 
the  metaphosphoric  acid  of  the  market  is  contaminated  with  quan- 
tities varying  from  15  to  35,  or  more,  per  cent,  of  sodic  phosphate, 
which  is  added  to  the  pure  metaphosphoric  acid  by  the  German  manu- 
facturers for  the  purpose  of  causing  it  to  concrete  into  those  beauti- 
fully transparent,  solid  masses,  in  which  shape  it  is  more  easily 
handled  commercially. 
The  objections  to  this  process  then  are  very  grave  ones,  viz.  :  that 
the  metaphosphoric  acid  is  largely  contaminated  with  sodic  orthophos- 
phate  which,  upon  heating,  is  converted  into  pyrophosphate,  and  the 
resulting  acid  formed  by  following  the  "  Pharmacopoeia  "  process  is  not 
