Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
Nov.  1, 1872. 
}   Gleanings  from  the  European  Journals.  489 
culture,  and  that  perhaps  for  similar  reasons,  Aubergier's  experi- 
ments on  a  more  extended  scale  had  to  be  discontinued. — N.  Jahrb. 
f.  Pharm.,  1872,  Aug.,  65,  66. 
The  Separation  of  Magnesia  from  Potassa  and  Soda  is  effected  by 
Th.  Scheerer  by  evaporating  the  chlorides  with  oxalate  of  ammonia 
to  dryness  and  heating  to  faint  redness.  On  treating  the  residue 
with  water,  the  carbonates  of  potassa  and  soda  are  dissolved,  while 
magnesia  remains  behind  as  carbonate.  Carbonate  of  ammonia  can- 
not be  substituted  for  the  oxalate. — Ibid.,  p.  94,  from  Jour.f  pr.  Oh. 
Test  for  Genuine  Raspberry  Syrup. — The  New  German  Pharma- 
copoeia directs  to  mix  the  syrup  with  half  its  volume  of  nitric  acid, 
which  must  not  change  the  color  to  yellow.  Dr.  Hager  observes  that 
the  artificial  syrups  colored  with  anilin  are  instantly  colored  yellow 
on  being  mixed  with  the  acid,  while  genuine  syrup  of  raspberries  at 
first  retains  its  color,  but  gradually  turns  yellow.  If  the  yellow  color 
appears  in  a  few  minutes  the  syrup  was  made  of  diluted  raspberry 
juice. — Pharm.  Centr.  Halle,  1872,  No.  37. 
Preparation  of  Ferricyanide  of  Potassium. — A  solution  of  the  ferro- 
cyanide  is  mixed  with  a  little  more  muriatic  acid  than  is  necessary  for 
its  chlorine  to  oxidize  the  former.  A  clear  solution  of  chlorinated 
lime  is  then  added  until  ferric  chloride  proves  the  absence  of  ferro- 
cyanide.  If  the  chlorinated  lime  had  been  previously  assayed,  the 
necessary  quantity  may  be  calculated.  The  free  acid  is  neutralized 
with  chalk  and  the  clear  liquid  evaporated  to  crystallization.  The 
first  crystals,  after  having  been  washed  with  a  little  distilled  water, 
are  perfectly  pure.  The  product  of  subsequent  crystallizations 
usualy  shows  traces  of  lime,  which  are  removed  by  recrystallizing 
once. — Ibid.,  Bay.  Ind.  u.  Grew.  Bl. 
Estimation  of  Qoffeina  in  Tea. — E.  Lieventhal  exhausts  finely 
powdered  tea  leaves  with  boiling  chloroform  in  a  flask  provided  with 
a  perforated  cork  and  a  straight  glass  tube  several  feet  long,  to  con- 
dense the  vapors  of  chloroform.  When  cool  the  contents  of  the  re- 
tort are  thrown  upon  a  filter,  which  is  washed  with  chloroform  until 
the  filtrate  passes  colorless.  The  chloroform  is  then  distilled  off  by 
means  of  a  water-bath,  and  the  residue  repeatedly  boiled  with  distilled 
water.    The  filtrate,  after  evaporation,  leaves  the  coffeina  in  a  crys- 
