264  Samples  of  Cream  of  Tartar.  {^j^iSfT' 
particularly  the  orders  Solanaceoe,  Plumbaginacese,  Labiatae,  Verben- 
aceas  and  Composite. 
For  the  student  of  materia  medica,  botany,  etc.,  these  gardens  offer 
advantages  unequalled  in  this  country,  being  greatly  superior  to  the 
Government  Botanical  Gardens  at  Washington,  and  should  be  highly 
appreciated  by  the  embryo  druggists  in  attendance  upon  the  lectures 
of  the  St.  Louis  College  of  Pharmacy.  Should  they  profit  by  the 
suggestions  thrown  out  from  time  to  time  by  the  eminent  botanist  of 
this  city,  Dr.  Engelmann,  we  may  hope  for  valuable  contributions  to 
the  materia  medica  of  the  Western  States.  In  conclusion,  I  hope  all 
our  Eastern  pharmacists  visiting  here  may  find  much  pleasure  and 
profit  intellectually  in  a  visit  to  Shaw's  Gardens. 
St  Louis,  Fifth  month  18th,  1874. 
EXAMINATION  OF  FOUR  SAMPLES  OF  CREAM  OF  TARTAR. 
By  Thomas  0.  Hilton,  G.  P. 
Abtract  from  an  Inaugural  Essay. 
Two  of  the  samples  were  obtained  from  drug  stores,  Nos.  3  and  4 
from  groceries,  all  being  recommended  as  perfectly  pure.  None  an- 
swered the  pharmacopoeia  test  of  being  completely  soluble  in  hot 
solution  of  potassa.* 
The  samples  were  analyzed  by  being  treated  with  excess  of  ammo- 
nia, boiled,  cooled  and  filtered  ;  the  undissolved  portion  was  treated 
with  dilute  hydrochloric  acid  and  any  insoluble  portion  was  removed 
by  filtration. 
The  ammoniacal  solution  of  No.  1  contained  potassium,  little  cal- 
cium, and  tartaric  acid ;  the  muriatic  acid  solution  contained  calcium 
and  tartaric  acid. 
In  the  ammoniacal  solution  of  No.  2  was  found  calcium,  magnesium, 
potassium  and  tartaric  acid ;  in  the  muriatic  acid  solution,  calcium, 
*  This  test  appears  to  us  as  hypercritical,  since  cream  of  tartar  cannot  be 
completely  purified  from  tartrate  of  calcium  by  recrystallization,  and  its  puri- 
fication by  acids  involves  considerable  trouble  and  loss.  The  British  Pharma- 
copoeia very  properly  admits  a  small  quantity  of  the  calcium  compound, 
w^ich  does  not  appreciably  interfere  with  the  medicinal  properties.  If 
an  absolutely  pure  cream  of  tartar  is  considered  necessary,  a  formula  for  its 
preparation  from  the  commercially  pure  article  should  be  given. — Editor  Am. 
Jo  urn.  Pharm, 
