Am.  Jour.  Pharm. ) 
Oct.,  1885.  i 
Commercial  Spanish  Saffron. 
■expansion  of  the  flower-lieads.  when  tliey  are  of  a  bright  orange 
yellow  color,  and  on  drying  aeqnire  a  red  tint.  The  thin  cylindrical 
tube  of  these  florets  is  from  8  to  12  Mm.  (J  to  |  inch)  lon^,  and  is 
•above  divided  into  five  linear-lanceolate  lobes  6  or  8  Mm.  (J  or  J 
inch)  in  length  ;  of  about  the  same  length  is  the  yellow  tube  of  the 
anthers,  from  which  two  short  lobes  of  the  stigma  and  a  portion  of  the 
yellow  top  of  the  style  projects  about  2  to  6  Mm.  (^-^  to  J  inch) ;  this 
portion  of  the  style  is  cylindrical  and  like  the  outside  of  the  terminal 
lobes,  finely  hairy,  while  the  long  lower  portion  of  the  style  is  filiform, 
:smooth  and  of  an  orange  red  color. 
A  few  weeks  ago,  on  learning  of  a  recent  importation  of  Valencia 
•saffron,  application  was  made  to  the  importer  for  samples,  which  were 
obligingly  furnished.  Each  of  the  two  samples  weighed  30  grains, 
and  since  both  were  of  very  good  appearance,  entirely  free  from  mine- 
ral additions,  and  had  only  moderate  portions  of  the  styles  present, 
they  were  carefully  searched  for  all  other  im])urities  present.  In  No. 
14  were  found  two  stamens  and  two  corolla  shreds  not  dyed,  while 
from  No.  15  were  obtained  three  stamens  of  their  natural  color,  and 
the  following  substances  dyed  with  Brazil  wood,  namely  one  corolla 
lube,  two  corolla  shreds  and  two  calendula  florets.  The  weight  of 
these  latter  impurities  is  quite  insignificant — less  than  one  grain — and 
their  presence  in  the  samples  may  probably  be  accounted  for  by  acci- 
dent rather  than  design,  although  in  lots  of  several  hundred  weights 
of  saflron,  the  addition  of  two  or  three  per  cent,  of  material  of  no 
value  would  yield  a  snug  profit,  for  which  the  purchaser  did  not  con- 
tract to  pay.  This  remark  applies  also  to  samples  Nos.  1  to  4, 
described  above. 
Before  referring  to  the  different  admixtures  and  adulterations,  I  may 
be  permitted  to  state  as  the  result  of  this  investigation,  my  conviction 
that  while  Spanish  (Valencia)  saffron  of  fair  quality  can  readily  be 
•obtained  in  our  market,  a  large  proportion  of  it  (Alicante  saffron)  is 
more  or  less  heavily  adulterated;  at  the  same  time  it  should  be 
remarked  that  not  one  of  the  samples  is  as  good  as  it  should  be.  There 
are  upon  the  table  three  specimens  of  absolutely  pure  saflron,  consist- 
ing solely  of  the  stigmas  without  a  trace  of  the  yellow  style,  and  of 
which  one  came  to  this  country  from  Germany  in  1871  as  a  special 
sample,  another  was  raised  in  Lancaster  county.  Pa.,  about  the  year 
1868,  and  the  third  was  produced  in  Lebanon  county.  Pa.,  in  1882. 
It  is  to  be  regretted  that  the  home  product  cannot  be  procured  in  suffi- 
