344 
Reviews. 
Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
June,  1896. 
(17)  Iris. — The  rhizomes  of  many  species  of  iris  abound  in  starch,  as  the 
species  that  furnish  the  orris  root  of  commerce,  but  the  rhizomes  of  Iris  versi- 
color and  of  the  Iris  pseudo-acorus  do  not  turn  blue  with  iodine  solution.  What 
is  the  carbohydrate  present  ? 
(18)  Veratrum. — B}^  what  means  may  the  rhizomes  of  Veratrum  album  best 
be  distinguished  from  those  of  Veratrum  viride  f  Some  method  is  desirable 
by  means  of  which  this  may  be  done  easily  and  with  certainty. 
(19)  Aconites. — The  different  aconites  are  very  liable  to  be  confounded.  In 
the  case  of  drugs  so  potent  it  is  exceedingly  important  that  the  structure  of  each 
species  liable  to  be  gathered  or  sold  for  the  official  should  be  carefully  described. 
Some  one  should  undertake  the  task  of  the  thorough  investigation  of  the  mi- 
croscopical structure  of  all  the  species. 
(20)  Pepsin  Test. — A  discussion  of  the  variable  results  obtained  in  the  tests. 
(21 )  Cotton-Seed  Oil. — A  review  of  the  tests  for  its  presence  as  an  adulterant 
in  other  fixed  oils. 
(22)  Cod  Liver  Oil. — Are  the  official  tests  sufficient  to  distinguish  a  pure  cod 
liver  oil  ?  If  not,  what  additional  ones  should  be  adopted  ? 
(23)  Methyl  Acetate. — Write  a  paper  on  the  possible  use  of  methyl  acetate  as 
a  solvent  in  pharmacy. 
(24)  Sodium  Bisulphite.  — The  sodium  bisulphite  of  commerce  is  rarely  found 
more  than  one-fourth  the  strength  required  by  the  U.  S.  Pharmacopoeia.  Is  the 
official  standard  too  high,  or  does  this  saltrapidly  deteriorate  on  keeping  ? 
(25)  Terpeneless  Volatile  Oils  are  now  articles  of  commerce.  Are  they 
liable  to  deteriorate  on  keeping  ?  How  much  stronger  are  they  than  ordinary 
volatile  oils? 
(26)  Lard  Oil. — Lard  oil  appears  to  be  grossly  adulterated.  Is  it  possible  to 
obtain  lard  oil  in  the  open  market  of  the  standard  of  purity  of  the  U.  S.  Phar- 
macopoeia ? 
(27)  Guaiacol. — Commercial  guaiacol  varies  in  purity  from  50  to  90  per  cent., 
according  to  Dr.  Squibb.  Cannot  some  process  be  devised  for  its  assay  and 
purification,  if  necessary? 
REVIEWS  AND  BIBLIOGRAPHICAL  NOTICES. 
Proceedings  of  the  American  Pharmaceutical  Association  at  the 
forty-third  annual  meeting,  held  at  Denver,  Colorado,  August,  1895. 
The  only  important  part  of  this  book,  which  we  have  not  already  reviewed, 
is  the  Annual  -Report  on  the  Progress  of  Pharmacy,  by  Henry  Kraemer.  These 
647  pages  contain  much  valuable  matter;  in  fact,  it  is  the  best  digest  of  phar- 
macy for  one  year  that  has  ever  been  published  in  this  country.  It  will  always 
be  valuable  for  reference,  especially  to  assist  investigators  in  finding  original 
papers  when  it  is  necessary  to  go  back  of  the  abstracts  given.  This  report 
covers  the  period  from  June  30,  1894,  to  July  1,  1895,  and  to  have  been  of  the 
greatest  benefit  to  the  members  it  should  have  reached  them  not  later  than 
October  of  last  year.  It  was  not,  however,  published  until  about  the  first  of 
May,  1896,  so  that  some  of  the  material  contained  in  it  lacks  two  months  of 
being  two  years  old. 
We  are  not  seeking  to  criticize  any  particular  individual  for  this  delay  in 
