ON OPIUM FOUND IN COMMERCE. 
317 
base unites, rather than to sulphuric acid, since comparatively 
less sulphate of morphine is met with, I shall be disposed 
to think that the greater the amount a solution of opium will 
contain of meconic acid, the more morphine it will yield. 
To recapitulate, in a few words, what we have said upon the 
different kinds of opium, it will be seen: 
1st. That the Alexandria or Egyptian opium which attracts 
most, by the appearance of its small and very dry cakes, and 
its clean and shiny fracture, is the worst, giving more nar- 
cotine and less morphine than the others; and consequently 
its extract which is with difficulty deprived of the accompany- 
ing resinous matter, even after repeated washings with water, 
must be inferior in quality. This opium should be rejected 
by apothecaries. 
2d. That the opium of Constantinople is superior, inasmuch 
as it is richer in morphine and gives a more abundant extract, 
which is more active and easier purified. 
3d. That the Smyrna opium should be preferred to the 
other two by apothecaries; for this reason, that it contains 
most morphine, and it naturally follows that its extract should 
have a greater action upon the animal economy. 
An observation that applies to these three kinds, is, that 
each considered separately, still presents different sorts, in 
which the quantity of morphine is variable. You must not 
then rely upon the physical characters alone, but as often as 
possible you must resort to the chemical tests, and make an 
essay of the opium, when you wish to lay in a provision of it. 
In support of this assertion, we will speak of a substance 
sold for opium a short time ago in the Paris market. This 
substance so resembled opium, that several persons, habituated 
to the commerce of drugs, suffered themselves to be deceived. 
To separate the little morphine that could be found in it, I 
was obliged to have recourse to other means than those com- 
monly employed to obtain this substance. The chemical ex- 
amination we have made, ought here to find a place, and per- 
haps will not be without interest. 
VOL, IV, — NO, IV. 11 
