Am.  Jour.  Pharm.  * 
.April,  1914.  I 
Current  Literature. 
187 
The  assays  were  made  by  the  modified  Scoville  method,  which 
they  consider  to  be  a  very  practical  and  reliable  method. 
"Samples  of  0.01  (1/100)  and  0.02  (1/50)  grain  hypodermic 
tablets,  which  were  assayed  on  April  12,  191 2,  having  been  made 
some  time  previous,  were  set  aside  on  a  laboratory  shelf  in  ordinary 
cork  stoppered  glass  tubes  of  100  each.  These  tablets  were  assayed 
by  the  modified  Scoville  method  on  November  12,  19 13,  with  the 
results  as  shown  in  the  following  table : 
April  12,  1912.  November  12,  1913- 
0.02  grain  0.0150  grain  0.0149  grain 
0.01  grain  0.0061  grain  0.0057  grain 
''These  tablets  while  they  were  deficient  in  nitroglycerin  when 
made  show  practically  no  loss  during  a  period  of  19  months. 
"  A  10  per  cent,  solution  of  nitroglycerin  (strength  was  not  con- 
firmed by  analysis)  was  mixed  with  sugar  of  milk  to  give  a  nitro- 
glycerin content  of  5  per  cent.  This  mixture  upon  analysis  was 
found  to  contain  4.13  per  cent,  of  nitroglycerin.  A  quantity  of 
hypodermic  tablets  was  made  up  from  this  mixture  using  the  theo- 
retical amount  based  upon  the  above  analysis  to  give  a  tablet  assay- 
ing 0.01  grain.  The  tablets  upon  assaying  were  found  to  contain 
0.0102  grain  nitroglycerin.  These  tablets  were  handmade  while 
a  lot  of  tablet  triturates,  which  were  made  from  a  granulation  on  p. 
machine  using  the  same  quantities  as  above,  assayed  0.0093  grain 
nitroglycerin. 
"  Two  bottles  each  containing  about  100  of  0.02  grain  tablet 
triturates,  made  in  1907,  were  set  aside  in  a  closet,  one  of  the  bot- 
tles being  corked  and  the  other  having  only  a  piece  of  muslin  over 
the  mouth  of  the  bottle  to  exclude  dust.  These  tablets  were  assayed 
in  November,  1913,  by  the  modified  Scoville  method  after  having 
been  stored  as  stated  above  for  six  years  with  the  following  results : 
Tablets  in  stoppered  bottle   0.0130  grain 
Tablets  in  unstoppered  bottle    0.0040  grain 
"  In  all  probability  these  tablets  would  not  have  assayed,  by  the 
modified  Scoville  method,  much  over  0.015  grain  when  made.  (Com- 
pare assay  tablets  in  first  experiment  April  12,  19 12.) 
What  Is  Soap? 
Certain  resolutions  passed  at  a  recent  meeting  of  the  Ohio  State 
Pharmaceutical  Association  regarding  the  description  of  soap  cer- 
