268 
Mistura  Assafcetidce. 
(  Am.  Jour.  Pharm 
|    June  1, 1874. 
quality  of  assafoetida,  and  at  the  same  time  as  the  foregoing.  This, 
also,  assumed  a  faint  reddish  tint,  but  remained  sweet  for  several 
weeks. 
The  concentrated  mixture  also  became  oxidized,  and  assumed  the 
red  color  of  the  former,  after  standing  about  the  same  length  of 
time. 
Another  lot  was  prepared,  using  one-half  the  quantity  of  glycerin 
employed  in  the  former,  and  adding  instead  another  part  of  water, 
using  the  same  mode  of  preparation  as  before. 
About  the  same  time  some  selected  tears  were  reduced  to  powder 
by  the  process  recommended  by  Mr.  S.  B.  Proctor,  namely,  by  soft- 
ening the  gum  resin  in  a  vessel,  by  means  of  a  water-bath,  and  incor- 
porating with  it,  by  stirring,  six  per  cent,  of  magnesia,  and  reducing 
it  to  powder.  This,  when  mixed  with  water,  gradually  changed  from 
white  to  green,  the  color  continuing  to  deepen  and  change,  until,  at 
the  end  of  ten  or  twelve  hours,  it  was  a  blue  black.  The  idea  of  this 
preparation  was  to  obtain  a  powder  of  pure  assafoetida,  with  which 
the  mixture  could  be  made  by  shaking  in  a  bottle,  without  needing  to 
resort  to  the  mortar,  and,  as  the  powder  prepared  in  this  manner  was 
recommended  not  to  agglutinate  in  the  manner  of  the  ordinary  pow- 
der, could  be  kept  on  hand  as  wanted,  and  a  mixture  formed  with 
very  little  inconvenience  ;  but  my  experience  with  it  cannot  recom- 
mend it. 
Finding  the  last  mixture  with  glycerin  tending  to  spoil,  I  mixed 
with  it  a  small  portion  of  diluted  acetic  acid.  This  appeared  to  im- 
mediately arrest  oxidation,  and  the  mixture  remained  in  a  compara- 
tively good  condition  for  some  time.  This  suggested  the  idea  of  using 
the  following  formula,  which,  so  far  as  my  researches  and  present 
knowledge  go,  has  proved  successful : 
R.    Assafoetidae  (finest  tears),        .  '        .    240  grs. 
Sacchari  Albi,  .  .  .90  grs. 
Acidi  Acetici  Diluti,  .  .  .  f^i, 
Aquae  Fluv.,   .  .  -  .  f^iij. 
The  assafoetida,  after  having  been  rubbed  uniformly  fine,  was  mixed 
with  the  sugar,  and  the  two  well  rubbed  together.  Sufficient  wTater 
was  added  to  bring  it  to  a  paste,  and  the  remainder  of  the  water 
added  in  successive  portions,  until  the  soluble  matter  was  all  taken 
up,  each  portion  being  carefully  decanted.  To  this  was  added  the 
diluted  acetic  acid,  the  whole  well  shaken  together,  and  kept  pro- 
