168 
Syriipus  Pruni  Vwginiance. 
/Am  Jour.  Pharm. 
\      April,  1885. 
form.  It  has  a  very  strong  and  rather  unpleasant  odor,  and  its  taste  is 
exceedingly  bitter.  A  farther  point  of  interest  concerning  this  extract 
is,  that  when  it  is  being  drawn  from  the  storing  boiler  into  large  cans, 
quite  frequently  small  white  crystals  are  seen,  but  it  is  impossible 
almost  to  separate  them.  The  extract  without  purification,  so  as  to 
free  it  entirely  from  the  gasoline,  could  not  be  used  internally  as  it 
creates  nausea,  but  is  quite  frequently  mixed  with  sugar  and  formed 
into  cakes  in  which  condition  it  is  used  to  some  extent. 
In  conclusion,  the  writer  would  extend  his  thanks  to  W.  A.  Law- 
rence, Superintendent  of  the  works,  through  whose  kindness  he  obtained 
the  process  of  manufacture  as  given  above. 
SYRUPUS  PRUNI  VIKGINIAN.^. 
By  J.  George  Engler,  Ph.G. 
From  an  Inaugural  Essay. 
The  bark  from  which  this  syrup  is  made  is  obtained  from  Prunus 
serotina,  and  collected  in  autumn.  On  the  recent  shoots  it  is  green  or 
olive  brown,  polished,  and  has  minute  orange  dots;  afterwards  it 
becomes  darker  and  on  the  small  trunks  and  larger  branches  is  of  a 
reddish  or  purplish  brown,  with  scattered,  oblong,  horizontal  dots 
characteristic  of  the  cherry.  Old  trunks  have  a  scaly  bark  not  unlike 
some  of  the  pines. 
The  wild  cherry  tree  rarely  attains  a  height  of  more  than  forty  or 
fifty  feet  in  Massachusetts.  According  to  Dr.  Richardson  it  grows  as 
far  north  as  the  Great  Slave  Lake,  in  latitude  62°,  but  only  attains 
the  height  of  about  five  feet.  In  Maine  it  rises  to  about  thirty  feet, 
being  seldom  more  than  a  foot  in  diameter.  In  western  New  York  it 
grows  to  a  great  height  and  a  large  size,  but  along  the  Ohio  river  it  is 
seen  in  its  perfection,  for  it  is  found  from  twelve  to  sixteen  feet  in 
circumference  and  from  eighty  to  one  hundred  feet  high.  The  trunk 
is  of  uniform  size  and  undivided  to  the  height  of  about  twenty-five 
feet.  The  wood  is  of  a  light  red  color,  growing  darker  with  age,  and 
its  medullary  rays  are  very  numerous  and  more  closely  arranged  than 
those  of  most  other  woods.    It  is  especially  valuable  in  cabinet  work 
