318 
Substitute  for  Alcohol. 
Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
July,  1900. 
three  hours,  giving  an  advantage  to  the  acetic  acid  menstruum  which 
could  hardly  have  been  all  accidental,  and  it  is  therefore  concluded 
that  the  acid  menstruum  is  at  least  equal  in  medicinal  value  to  the 
alcoholic. 
A  useful  comparison  of  the  two  fluid  extracts  of  cascara  was 
more  difficult  on  account  of  the  tendency  of  cascara  to  gripe  unless 
some  corrigent  was  used,  and  such  use  confused  the  experiments. 
By  repeated  preliminary  trials  it  was  found  that  cascara  was  much 
more  active  than  buckthorn,  the  proportion  being  about  0-3  c.c.  of 
cascara  to  give  the  quantitative  results  of  0-5  c.c.  of  buckthorn,  but 
the  results  were  so  different  in  quality  as  to  badly  confuse  the  rela- 
tions. The  best  that  could  be  done  with  cascara  was  to  find  that  a 
dose  of  0-5  c.c.  of  the  U.S.P.  fluid  extract  given  after  the  morning 
and  midday  meals  gave  an  average  of  purgative — not  laxative — 
^effect  and  of  griping,  and  that  the  same  doses  and  similar  manage, 
ment  with  the  acetic  fluid  extract  gave  practically  the  same  results, 
so  that  there  is  no  discoverable  difference  either  in  the  activity  or 
the  harshness  of  the  fluid  extracts  as  made  with  the  different  men- 
strua. 
Whilst  these  experiments  make  no  claim  to  great  accuracy  of 
results,  they  do  fairly  establish  the  conclusion  that  the  acid  men- 
struum is  at  least  fully  equal  to  the  alcoholic,  with  all  the  possible 
differences  in  favor  of  the  acid. 
Incidentally  these  experiments  offer  an  opportunity  for  a  useful 
comparison  of  the  medicinal  effects  of  the  two  officinal  varieties  of 
Rhamnus. 
The  cascara  has  nearly  double  the  activity  of  buckthorn,  the 
equivalent  doses  being  0-3  c.c.  of  cascara  to  0-5  c.c.  of  buckthorn, 
but  in  this  proportion,  and  in  other  proportions  tried,  cascara  gripes 
while  buckthorn  does  not.  The  effect  of  a  good  corrigent  to  pre- 
vent the  griping  is  needed  in  the  use  of  cascara.  Cascara  is  an 
evacuant  and  is  -liable  to  leave  a  lingering  action  on  the  lower 
bowel.  Buckthorn  is  a  mild  laxative,  acting  insensibly  and  leaving 
no  irritability  or  after-action.  It  needs  no  corrigent,  and  is  not  a 
disagreeable  bitter,  as  is  cascara.  Buckthorn  is  not  a  good  purga- 
tive, or  even  a  good  evacuant,  but  is  an  excellent  mild  laxative,  and 
in  effect  is  not  unlike  the  general  effect  of  blue  mass. 
Cascara  is  not  a  therapeutic  duplicate  of  senna,  yet  is  much  like 
