Am,  Jour.  Fharm. 
May,  1885. 
Gleanings  in  Materia  3Iedica. 
249 
and  in  the  dose  of  a  drachm  acts  as  a  very  mild  laxative.  The  Indian 
Pharmacopoeia  mentions  the  drng  as  combinino;  mild  pnrgative  with 
carminative  and  tonic  properties. — Phar.  Jour,  and  Trans.,  Dec.  20, 
1884,  p.  483. 
Chinese  Rhubarb. — Mr.  Wm.  Elborne,  Assistant  Lecturer  on  Mate- 
ria Medica,  Owens  College,  states  that  Chinese  or  East  Indian  rhubarb 
consists  of  two  varieties,  of  which  one  possesses  the  characteristic 
white  lattice-worked  venation  with  a  red  grained  fracture,  while  the 
other  possesses  a  longitudinal  ramification  of  white  veins  with  a  black 
grained  fracture.  The  first  variety  is  referred  by  the  author  to  Rheum 
palmatum,  var.  tanguticum,  from  which  plant,  the  author  believes,  also 
the  highly  esteemed  extinct  Russian  and  Turkey  varieties  w^re  obtained. 
The  second  variety  is  yielded  by  Rh.  officinale,  and  agrees  in  all  essen- 
tial characters  with  the  roots  from  this  species  cultivated  by  Rufus 
Usher,  of  Bodicote. — Phar.  Jour,  and  Trans.,  Dec.  20,  1884,  p.  497. 
Homoquinine  and.  eupreine. — The  researches  of  O.  Hesse  and  of  B. 
H.  Paul  and  A.  J.  Cownley  (see  "  Amer.  Jour.  Phar.,'^  1884,  pp.  515 
and  575),  have  been  supplemented  by  others  made  by  the  same 
authr^rs. 
O.  Hesse  (Annalen,  vol.  206,  p.  240),  corroborates  the  observation 
of  Paul  and  Cownley  that  homoquinine  on  being  treated  with  caustic 
soda  is  split  into  quinine  and  eupreine,  yielding  approximately  52  per 
cent,  of  the  former  and  48  per  cent,  of  the  latter  alkaloid.  Cupreine 
crystallizes  from  ether  in  colorless  concentrically  grouped  small  prisms, 
melts  at  191°  C,  dissolves  in  dilute  sulphuric  acid  without  fluorescence 
and  this  solution  gives  with  chlorine  and  excess  of  ammonia  the  green 
color  like  quinine  but  less  intense.  The  neutral  sulphate  crystallizes 
in  delicate  prisms  sparingly  soluble  in  cold  water,  and  the  chlorhydrate 
forms  small  needles.  The  alkaloid  combines  also  with  bases,  the 
sodium  compound  crystallizing  in  colorless  satiny  scales.  Homo- 
quinine is  a  compound  of  the  latter  class  and  is  obtained  by  crystal- 
lizing from  ether  a  mixture  in  proper  proportion  of  quinine  and 
cupreine.  The  composition  of  the  new  alkaloid  is  being  investigated 
by  the  author. 
Paul  and  Cownley  ("  Phar.  Jour,  and  Trans.,"  November  22,  1884, 
p.  401),  obtained  from  homoquinine  62  37  per  cent,  of  cupreine  and 
37*63  of  quinine,  and  succeeded  likewise  in  ])reparing  homoquinine 
synthetically  by  crystallizing  the  mixed  alkaloids  from  ether,  quinine 
if  used  in  excess,  remaining  in  solution.    A  number  of  salts  prepared 
