600 
Materia  Medica  Notes. 
Am.  Jour.  Pliarm., 
Dec,  1885. 
The  oil  obtained  per  acre  varies  between  three  aud  twenty-six 
pounds,  the  average  being  about  sixteen  pounds ;  new  mint  generally 
yields  a  few  pounds  more  than  the  old,  the  quality  of  the  oil  being 
the  same.  The  principal  weed  growing  in  mint  fields  is  Erigeron 
canadense,  Lin.;  the  large  growers  remove  it  carefully  from  the  field, 
and  plants  which  are  overlooked  are  separated  from  the  cut  mint, 
which  is  smaller.  Erechthites  hieracifolia,  Raf.^  grows  only  in  new 
clearings.  Both  these  weeds  are  sometimes  distilled  separately,  and 
the  oils  are  occasionally  used  for  adulterating  oil  of  peppermint ;  oil 
of  turpentine  is  also  used  for  the  same  purpose.  Oil  of  peppermint, 
when  pure,  is  said  to  be  rather  slowly  absorbed  if  dropped  upon  blot- 
ting pa2>er,  while  it  is  at  once  absorbed  if  adulterated  with  any  one  of 
the  three  oils  mentioned. 
Assays  of  Cinchona  Barhs. — Henry  Brandner,  Jr.,  Ph.G.,  obtained 
by  the  pharmacopoeial  process  the  following  amounts  of  total  alka- 
loids.   Bark  represented  to  be 
Cineli.  succi rubra  contained  7"78  per  cent,  moisture  and  yielded  3  50  per  cent,  alkaloids. 
♦*     Calisaya,  flat,    "        8*02      "  "  "  2-14 
quills,"        7-63      "  "  "  2-572  " 
The  test  for  quinine,  as  directed  by  the  Pharmacopoeia,  gave  nega- 
tive results,  and  the  solutions  of  the  alkaloids  yielded  no  characteristic 
color  with  chlorine  water  and  ammonia,  nor  with  chlorine  water, 
potassium  ferrocyanide  and  ammonia.  The  nature  of  the  alkaloids 
was  not  ascertained. 
Ailanthus  glandulosa,  Desfontaines. — Fred.  Horace  Davis,  Ph.G., 
has  subjected  the  bark  of  this  tree  to  proximate  analysis ;  it  is  not 
stated  whether  the  bark  of  the  branches  or  of  the  trunk  was  used  for 
the  purpose. 
By  exsiccation  at  100°C.,  the  air  dry  bark  lost  7  per  cent,  of  mois- 
ture, and  on  incineration  yielded  5*92  per  cent,  of  ash ;  of  the  latter 
25*8  per  cent,  was  soluble  in  water  (potassium  and  sodium  chloride 
and  phosphate),  and  the  insoluble  portion  contained  cahdum,  magne- 
sium and  iron  as  carbonate,  sulphate  and  phosphate.  The  bark  was 
successively  treated  with  petroleum  beuzin,  ether,  alcohol,  cold  water, 
boiling  water  and  dilute  acid  ;  fixed  oil,  chlorophyll,  resin,  wax,  sugar, 
tannin,  albumen,  gum,  starch,  pectin,  oxalic  acid  and  probably  another 
crystallizable  organic  acid,  soluble  in  alcohol,  were  obtained.  Distil- 
lation with  water  yielded  a  trace  of  volatile  oil.  Alkaloids  and  glu- 
cosides  could  not  be  detected. 
