Am,iay;iSrm'}     Preparation  of  Compressed  Tablets.  217 
protection  against  adhesion  to  the  dies.  In  the  manufacture  of 
refined  naphthalin  into  tablets,  the  material  will  stick  to  the  dies  if 
something  is  not  used  to  prevent.  As  naphthalin  is  not  soluble  in 
water,  water  should  be  used  to  dampen,  and  this  is  effectual  against 
adhesion. 
In  making  tablet  triturates,  you  will  find  sugar  of  milk  alone 
makes  the  tablets  too  brittle  ;  to  correct  this,  add  about  one  part  in 
8  of  cane  sugar  as  the  base,  dampen  with  alcohol  and  make  up 
damp,  unless  they  contain  extracts;  in  that  case  you  would  have  to 
make  up  dry  and  use  talc  to  prevent  sticking.  The  talc  should 
always  be  stirred  in  after  the  material  has  been  granulated  and 
dried.  Where  talc  is  objectionable,  white  cosmoline  or  albolin  can 
be  used  pretty  freely,  if  you  have  a  machine  that  will  feed  a  damp 
and  sluggish  material.  By  putting  the  tablets  into  some  absorbent 
powder  after  they  are  made  and  applying  heat,  most  of  it  will 
disappear. 
Learn  the  nature  of  each  article  that  you  wish  to  compress,  and 
take  advantage  of  your  knowledge  of  the  solubility  in  different 
menstrua,  and  when  the  contrary  nature  of  the  different  articles  in 
a  combination  precludes  the  use  of  this  knowledge,  fall  back  upon 
such  correctives  as  experience  and  your  own  thoughts  suggest  to 
meet  the  particular  case.  In  making  up  compounds,  reduce  all  to 
a  fine  powder  as  far  as  practicable  ;  in  this  way  you  will  make  more 
regular  granulations  and  finer  looking  tablets.  Take  the  familiar 
brown  mixture:  Gum  and  licorice,  each  2  lbs.;  opium,  219  grs.; 
benzoic  acid,  219  grs.;  camphor,  140  grs.;  oil  of  anise,  219  grs.;  tar- 
tar emetic,  1 10  grs.;  nitrate  of  potash,  1,750  grs.;  sugar,  sufficient  for 
10  lbs.  If  these  be  thoroughly  mixed  and  ground  to  a  fine  powder, 
put  into  a  wide  receiver,  and  hang  a  wet  sponge  to  the  under  side 
of  a  lid  ;  the  material  will  absorb  enough  moisture  to  dampen  during 
one  night ;  next  morning  run  through  a  No.  XXX  sieve  and  dry  ; 
on  account  of  the  extracts  and  sugar  you  cannot  do  without  talc 
or  lycopodium  to  prevent  sticking.  If  you  prefer,  you  can  use 
diluted  alcohol  and  dampen  with  a  hand  atomizer. 
In  filling  prescriptions  of  small  quantities,  there  is  often  no  need 
of  elaborate  work  in  granulating ;  sometimes,  when  not  incompati- 
ble powdered  soap  rubbed  up.with  the  articles  ordered  prepares  them 
to  be  run  through  a  sieve  ;  simply  dampening  with  ether,  puts  a 
powder  into  a  granular  condition.    And  where  running  out  a 
