Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
June,  1893. 
Epiphegus  Virginiana. 
A  quantity  of  the  drug  was  collected  in  August,  in  the  vicinity 
of  Philadelphia,  and  a  portion  was  submitted  to  chemical  examina- 
tion, as  follows : 
A  weighed  quantity  dried  at  uo°  was  found  to  contain  7-08  per 
cent,  of  moisture.  This  on  ignition  yielded  16-91  per  cent,  of  ash. 
Preliminary  tests  for  starch  and  tannin  were  made  in  a  decoction  of 
the  drug,  a  blue  color  with  iodine  was  obtained,  indicating  starch, 
and  a  dark  green  color  with  ferric  chloride  and  a  precipitate  with 
gelatin  indicating  tannin. 
Fifty  grams  of  the  drug  in  fine  powder,  yielded  to  petroleum 
ether  048  per  cent,  of  a  solid  orange-yellow  substance,  which  by 
recrystallization  from  hot  absolute  alcohol  several  times,  was 
obtained  in  nearly  white  crystals.  A  larger  quantity  was  prepared 
from  another  portion  of  the  drug,  and  it  was  found  to  be  a  crystalline 
fat,  melting  at  a  low  temperature  and  saponifying  with  solution  of 
potassium  hydrate. 
After  treatment  with  petroleum  ether,  the  remaining  drug  was 
extracted  with  stronger  ether,  which  solvent  extracted  0-31  per 
cent,  of  a  resinous  substance.  Gallic  acid  was  not  detected  in  this 
portion,  and  it  was  found  to  consist  chiefly  of  resin. 
Absolute  alcohol  was  next  applied  to  the  residual  drug,  and 
extracted  9-32  per  cent.  This  extract  was  soluble  in  water,  and 
when  so  dissolved  and  acidified,  petroleum  ether  extracted  a  crystal- 
line body  which  did  not  reduce  Fehling's  solution,  but  did  redden 
litmus  paper,  and  otherwise  gave  evidence  of  being  an  organic 
acid.  From  this  same  acidified  solution,  after  removal  of  the 
organic  acid,  ether  and  chloroform  extracted  a  body  which  gave  all 
the  reactions  of  a  glucoside.  After  removal  of  these  substances, 
the  solution  was  made  alkaline,  and  agitated  with  petroleum  ether, 
ether  and  chloroform,  the  last,  only,  extracted  a  body,  which,  when 
purified,  gave  many  of  the  alkaloidal  reactions.  An  attempt  to 
obtain  larger  quantities  of  these  substances  from  the  commercial 
drug  failed,  owing  to  the  fact  that  the  drug,  as  obtained  in  the 
market,  had  deteriorated  ;  and  instead  of  absolute  alcohol  extract- 
ing a  substance  soluble  in  water,  this  extract  was  found  to  be 
resinous,  and  did  not  indicate  any  glucoside  or  alkaloid,  and  but 
small  quantities  of  organic  acid.  It  was  afterwards  found  that  this 
commercial  drug  was  more  than  a  year  old. 
