n6 
Applied  Pharmacognosy. 
/  Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
\     March,  1914. 
All  liquids  are  best  handled  by  allowing  them  to  flow  from  one 
vessel  to  another  by  gravity  or  by  means  of  pumps  to  produce  both 
pressure  and  vacuum  as  may  be  required. 
Ofttimes  it  is  necessary  to  carry  out  a  number  of  experiments 
to  determine  the  best  combination  of  alcohol  and  water,  and  some- 
times with  glycerin  or  acid  added,  to  extract  the  desirable  con- 
stituents. 
In  the  making  of  pills  and  tablets,  excipients  or  the  proper  liquid 
for  granulating  the  ingredients  are  to  be  considered.  This  requires 
a  knowledge  of  the  properties  of  the  ingredients.  In  making  tablets 
the  ingredients  may  be  granulated  by  adding  water,  alcohol,  ether, 
chloroform,  petroleum  benzin,  other  volatile  liquids  or  combina- 
tions of  these. 
Many  formulas  that  are  official  in  the  U.  S.  P.  or  N.  F.  are 
practical  for  small  quantities  or  immediate  use  but  for  large  quan- 
tities and  indefinite  future  use  are  not  always  satisfactory.  The 
U.  S.  P.  permits  modification  of  the  methods  providing  the  finished 
products  do  not  differ  in  their  properties.  Therefore,  even  in  the 
official  preparations,  we  have  numerous  problems  for  investigation. 
Elixir  Iron,  Quinine  and  Strychnine  Phosphates  U.  S.  P.  is  a 
splendid  example  of  the  manufacturers'  problems  and  for  that  matter 
the  retail  druggist  also.  Every  issue  of  the  various  drug  Journals 
brings  forth  some  new  suggestion  until  it  seems  every  one  must  have 
a  different  method  for  making  it. 
Elixirs  or  similar  preparations  are  very  popular  as  a  means  for 
administering  most  any  drug  and  I  might  say  whether  it  has  merits 
or  not.  They  are  often  very  troublesome  to  make.  Prior  to  the 
Food  and  Drugs  Act  and  even  now,  in  some  few  cases  everything 
seemed  to  be  sacrificed  for  elegance  in  appearance,  color,  flavor,  etc., 
and  the  ingredients  claimed  to  be  present  were  conspicuous  by  their 
abscence  excepting  in  the  very  imposing  gun-shot  formula  upon  the 
label. 
The  pharmacist  in  filling  a  prescription  can  excuse  his  or  the 
physician's  unintended  precipitating  mixtures  by  putting  on  a 
"  shake  well  "  label  but  not  so  with  the  pharmaceutical  manufacturer. 
Only  clear  non-precipitating  preparations  can  be  sent  out,  and  there 
must  not  be  any  changing  in  color  and  ofttimes  druggists  expect 
them  to  stand  storage  in  zero  temperature  and  serve  for  a  window 
display  in  a  window  subject  to  the  sun's  rays  throughout  the  day. 
We  must,  therefore,  consider  the  solubility,  stability,  incom- 
