332 
Detection  of  Aloes. 
/Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
1     July  1,  1874. 
The  Volatile  Oil  of  Cochlearia  officinalis  was  found  by  A.  W.  Hof- 
mann  to  be  the  mustard  oil  of  the  butylic  series,  having  the  compo- 
sition C5H9NC  =  C4H9,  CS,  N.  It  was  obtained  synthetically,  not 
from  the  normal,  but  from  the  secondary  butylic  alcohol  (methyl-ethyl- 
oarbinol),  and  had  then  the  characteristic  odor  of  the  plant,  a  specific 
gravity  of  -944  at  12°,  and  a  boiling-point  of  159-5°  C.  (ol9°  F.) — 
Ibid.,  508-514. 
A  Very  Active  Preparation  of  Ergot,  which  is  particularly  adapted 
for  subcutaneous  injection,  is  suggested  by  Dr.  Wernich,  of  Berlin, 
who  proposes  to  exhaust  the  ergot  with  ether,  strong  alcohol,  and 
finally  with  water ;  the  infusion  is  then  dialyzed  through  parchment 
paper,  and  the  solution  evaporated;  this  extract,  after  acidulation 
with  sulphuric  acid,  was  mostly  soluble  in  alcohol,  and  when  again 
carefully  neutralized  by  soda,  yielded  to  weak  alcohol  all  its  active 
properties.  Subcutaneously  injected,  the  author  obtained  good  results 
promptly,  and  the  inconveniences  attending  the  hypodermic  use  were 
slight  and  disappeared  rapidly. — Apothekerzeitung,  1874,  No.  17. 
ON  THE  DETECTION  OF  ALOES  AND  OTHER  BITTER  DRUGS. 
By  0.  Bach  * 
The  difficulty  of  analyzing  many  nostrums  has  induced  the  author 
to  make  a  series  of  experiments  and  to  study  particularly  the  ana- 
lytical relations  of  the  bitter  principles  of  aloes,  colocynth,  worm- 
wood, gentian,  agaric,  scammony  and  jalap  resin.  The  active  princi- 
ples of  the  first  four  are  soluble  in  water ;  of  the  others,  those  of 
agaric  and  scammony  dissolve  in  ether,  jalap  resin  remaining  insolu- 
ble in  both  menstrua. 
An  aqueous  solution  of  aloes  yields  with  sugar  of  lead  a  volumi- 
nous yellow  precipitate,  with  mercurous  nitrate,  after  some  time,  a  pul- 
verulent dirty-colored  precipitate.  The  aqueous  infusion  of  colocynth 
yields  with  mercurous  nitrate  a  flocculent,  afterwards  gray  precipi- 
tate, conglomerating  on  boiling;  dissolved  in  nitric  acid  and  treated 
with  ammonia,  the  filtrate  is  golden-yellow,  and  after  evaporation  to 
dryness,  insoluble  in  acetic  acid,  but  colored  bright-red  with  concen- 
trated sulphuric  acid  at  a  moderate  heat,  and  cherry-red  with 
Froehde's  test  (cone,  sulphuric  acid,  1  c.c. ;  molybdate  of  sodium. 
*  Condensed  from  "Journal  fiir  praktische  Chernie,"  1874,  p.  188-193. 
