¥eptJembef,hil™*}    British  Pharmaceutical  Conference.  503 
that  dilute  acetic  acid  was  supplied  iu  fourteen  cases  where  white  wine  vinegar 
was  called  for. 
CONDENSED  MILK. 
By  Alfred  H.  Allen. 
The  commercial  brands  were  divided  into  three  classes,  those  made  by  con- 
centrating milk  to  one-third  of  its  original  volume  and  usually  adding  a  pre- 
servative, those  treated  with  cane  sugar — about  40  per  cent.—  after  concentra- 
tion, and  those  treated  in  a  special  manner  with  a  view  to  approximate  human 
milk.  Complete  analytical  data  regarding  various  brands  led  to  the  conclusion 
that  much  of  the  sweetened  milk  is  unfit  for  ordinary  purposes  unless  largely 
diluted,  when  it  becomes  much  weaker  than  pure  milk.  The  author  also  con- 
demned the  statement  often  made  on  labels  that  for  infants'  use  the  preparation 
should  be  diluted  with  from  6  to  14  parts  of  water,  as  the  observation  of  such 
directions  could  not  fail  to  lead  to  serious  results. 
NOTES  ON  POTASSA  SULPHURATA.— COTTONSEED  OIL. — THE 
PRONUNCIATION  OF  PHARMACOGNOSY. 
By  W.  Elborne. 
The  author  showed  that  the  green  and  dark  green  varieties  of  sulphurated 
potash  were  prepared  from  the  lower  grades  of  commercial  carbonate  of  potash, 
and  when  dissolved  in  water  afford  a  dark,  turbid  solution  ;  sample  prepared 
from  purer  carbonates  (90  per  cent.  K2CO;>)  yielded  a  product  of  a  dull  yellow 
or  greenish-yellow  color,  freely  soluble  in  water  without  turbidity.  The  latter 
was  suggested  as  an  addition  to  the  Pharmacopoeia,  and,  furthermore,  that  its 
solubility  in  rectified  spirit  might  be  restored  to  75  per  cent. 
Cottonseed  oil  was  condemned  as  a  substitute  for  olive  oil  in  ointments,  lini- 
ments and  like  preparations,  on  the  authority  of  a  therapeutist  who  had  found 
it  to  produce  irritant  effects. 
The  opinion  was  expressed  that  pharmacognosy  should  be  pronounced  with 
the  "  g  "  silent,  and  the  accent  on  either  the  first  or  second  "  o." 
FORMALDEHYDE  AS  AN  ANTISEPTIC. 
By  F.  C.  J.  Bird. 
The  statement  that  formaldehyde  may  be  added  to  certain  liquids  as  a  pre- 
servative and  subsequently  driven  off  by  the  application  of  heat  was  proven  to 
be  erroneous.  The  author  found,  after  a  number  of  experiments,  that  aqueous 
liquids  retained  this  substance  with  the  greatest  pertinacity,  and  that  it  was 
almost  impossible  to  remove  the  last  traces.  Infusions  appeared  to  keep  better 
when  a  tuft  of  cotton  moistened  with  the  antiseptic  was  suspended  in  the 
bottle,  than  when  it  was  added  direct  to  the  contents.  The  former  method  was 
thought  to  have  the  further  advantage  of  less  formaldehyde  being  retained. 
The  author  saw  no  objection  to  its  use  as  a  preservative  when  employed' in  this 
manner. 
NOTES  ON  PYROXYLON  B.  P. 
By  Charles  T.  Tyrer. 
It  was  found  that  most  of  the  formulae  given  in  text-books  for  making 
pyroxvlon  were  either  unreliable  or  were  wanting  in  precision.    These  objec- 
tions were  sought  to  be  overcome  by  experiments  described  in  detail  in  the 
paper.    The  IT.  S.  P.  formula  yielded  a  better  product  than  the  B.  P.  process. 
