Am.  Jour.  Pliarm.) 
Jan.,  1885.  J 
Persian  Opium. 
37 
the  contract  depending  on  the  non-varying  proportion  of  morphia  in 
the  exported  article. 
The  average  price  of  the  opium  of  Persia,  in  its  crude  state,  is  now 
four  dollars  and  seventy-seven  cents  per  kilogram.  To  72  kilograms 
of  opium  are  added  6  kilograms  of  linseed  oil.  The  mixture  is  then 
subjected  to  a  manipulation  which  reduces  the  77  to  66  kilograms. 
These  66  kilograms  are  divided  into  one  hundred  balls,  forming  a 
Persian  package.  A  specified  number  of  the  balls  of  opium  make  a 
case.  The  cost  of  packing,  freight,  and  other  incidental  expenses  bring 
the  average  price  of  a  case  of  Persian  opium,  such  as  is  prepared  for 
-export,  up  to  three  hundred  and  sixty-six  dollars  and  sixty-six  cents. 
The  excise  duties  vary  at  different  centres  of  the  trade,  but  5  per  cent. 
ad  valorem  is  the  uniform  rate  according  to  the  treaty  of  Turkomont- 
chai  on  all  goods  exported  to  Europe  or  America,  and,  I  may  add,  on 
all  goods  imported  from  those  countries  into  Persia. 
It  is  stated  that  two  thousand  cases  of  opium,  valued  at  732,000 
■dollars,  are  now  exported  from  Bushire  to  England,  besides  what  finds 
its  way  to  China  and  other  quarters  from  the  other  districts  of  Persia. 
There  is  no  doubt  that  if  sufficient  encouragement  were  offered,  espe- 
cially by  the  establishment  of  agencies  at  Ispahan  or  Teheran,  or  by 
making  permanent  contracts,  the  product  could  be  easily  increased  and 
the  i^urity  of  the  exported  article  improved.  Indeed  the  opium  mer- 
chants of  Ispahan  have  already  made  overtures  for  the  American  trade, 
and  are  prepared  to  make  contracts  for  a  term  of  years. 
It  is  proper  to  state  inquiries  made  of  practising  physicians  at  Teheran, 
including  an  American  physician,  elicit  the  highest  opinions  in  favor 
of  the  opium  of  Persia  as  regards  the  character  and  quantity  of  mor- 
phia it  produces  when  unadulterated. — Phar.  Jour,  and  Trans.,  Novem- 
ber 29,  1884,  p.  430. 
Tooth  Paste. — Dr.  A;  W.  Harlan  of  Chicago,  recommends  the 
following:  Take  of  Precip.  chalk,  powdered  orris  root,  aa  5ij,  vvhite 
castile  soap,  powdered  borax,  aa  ^ss,  powdered  myrrh,  3u,  honey  and 
glycerin,  q.  s.  to  make  a  soft  paste.  Color  rose  pink.  Perfume  to 
suit.  To  be  used  before  retiring  and  after  breakfast,  on  a  brush  not 
dipped  in  water  and  not  too  stiff. — Dental  Cosmos,  September,  1884. 
