^o/embCTfim'}    Recent  Literature  Relating  to  Pharmacy.  541 
been  isolated  by  Adrian  and  Trillat  from  the  digitalin  obtained  from 
Digitalis  lutea.  The  authors  believe  it  to  be  different  from  the 
digito-flavone  of  Fleischer.  The  green  and  red  pigments  of  Amanita 
muscaria  have  been  subjected  to  a  chemical  examination  by  A.  B. 
Griffiths.  A.  Nestler  believes  that  the  change  in  color  on  ripening 
of  juniper  berries  is  due  to  the  presence  of  a  fungus. 
The  investigations  of  Charabot  on  the  formation  of  lavender  oil 
seem  to  indicate  that  the  oil  in  flower  buds  and  mature  flower  is 
richer  in  esters,  whereas  in  the  withered  flowers  the  alcohols  pre- 
ponderate. The  origin  of  the  oil  cells  in  Cinnamomum  cassia  has 
been  described  in  Festschrift  f.  Schwendener \  1899.  According  to 
G.  Spampani,  the  oil  in  olive  is  produced  especially  in  the  cells  of 
the  mesocarp  during  the  activity  of  the  protoplasm  and  not  on  ac- 
count of  the  degeneration  of  the  latter.  The  paper  of  van  Rom- 
burgh  in  Ann.  Jard.  Bot.  Buitenzorg,  1899,  shows  further  the 
widespread  distribution  of  methyl  salicylate  and  hydrocyanic  acid 
in  the  vegetable  kingdom. 
The  malic  acid  in  the  berries  of  Hippophce  rhamnoides  is  identical 
with  the  acid  in  Pyrus  aucuparia.  Greshoff  has  investigated  Pisang 
wax,  the  product  of  an  unknown  plant  of  Lower  India.  The  carbo- 
hydrates of  tragacanth  have  been  reinvestigated  by  Widstoc  and 
Tollens.  Xylose  was  obtained  from  the  white  and  arabinose  from 
the  brown  varieties,  respectively.  Dulcite,  and  not  mannite,  has 
been  found  by  Hoehnel  in  Euonymus  atropurpureus.  The  same 
carbohydrate  is  present  in  E.  Europaeus. 
According  to  J.  Griiss,  the  enzyme  in  Penicillium  glaucum  acts  less 
powerfully  on  starch  or  reserve  cellulose,  but  more  energetically  on 
cane  sugar,  than  malt  diastase.  Seminase,  the  ferment  of  legumin- 
ous seeds  possessing  a  horny  albumen,  differs  from  malt  diastase  in 
that  its  action  is  less  active  on  starch,  but  more  active  on  albumen  of 
the  locust  bean  than  diastase.  An  enzyme  (hadromose)  has  been 
found  by  Marshall  Ward  in  the  fungi  (Pleurotus  pulmonarius  and 
Merulius  lachrymans)  which  destroy  the  liquefied  cells  of  timbers. 
COMMERCE  AND  STATISTICS  OF  DRUGS. 
At  one  of  the  meetings  of  the  Pharmaceutical  Society  in  London 
Mr.  Holmes  read  a  paper  on  "  The  Commerce  of  Drugs,"  in  which 
he  treats  more  especially  of  strophanthus,  aconite  root,  Pareira 
brava,  scammony,  saffron  and  pilocarpus.    This,  with  the  interest- 
