200  Standard  Extract  of  Nux  Vomica.        {  ^aJXiSS™' 
pose.  In  case  of  a  necessity  arising  for  obtaining  nux  vomica  seeds 
in  fine  powder  it  should  be  noted  that  we  have  in  a  previous  paper 
given  a  method  for  easily  effecting  this  (Phar.  Jour.,  [3],  xiii.,  1053). 
Commercial  specimens  of  nux  vomica  contain,  on  an  average,  3  per 
cent,  of  total  alkaloid.  The  seeds  having  been  obtained  in  a  fine  state 
of  division  they  are  extracted  by  percolation  with  a  definite  volume  of 
alcohol  of  specified  strength.  The  percolate  is  then  measured  and  the 
quantity  of  total  alkaloid  is  estimated  in  a  given  volume  of  it.  The 
volume  of  this  percolate,  which  contains  a  quantity  of  alkaloid  corre- 
sponding to  the  percentage  of  alkaloid  which  should  be  present  in  the 
extract  is  then  taken  and  evaporated  to  a  definite  weight.  We  have 
fixed  15  per  cent,  as  the  quantity  of  total  alkaloid  which  shall  be  con- 
tained in  the  standard  extract  of  nux  vomica ;  this  decision  is  based 
upon  a  careful  consideration  of  the  results  of  our  analysis  of  the 
extracts  of  nux  vomica  which  are  now  used  in  medicine,  which  results 
were  communicated  at  the  last  meeting  of  this  Society. 
It  will  be  necessary  now  to  consider  some  important  practical  ques- 
tions connected  with  the  actual  preparation  of  the  extract.  It  cannot, 
in  the  first  instance,  be  too  strongly  insisted  that  the  seeds  should  be  in 
a  very  fine  and  uniform  state  of  division,  for  unless  this  is  the  case, 
thorough  and  uniform  extraction  is  impossible.  In  the  extraction  of 
the  seeds  we  recommend  the  employment  of  a  dilute  alcohol,  made  by 
adding  25  volumes  of  water  to  100  volumes  of  rectified  spirit,  for  we 
have  previously  shown  that  alcohol  of  this  strength  has  the  highest 
solvent  power  for  the  alkaloidal  salts  which  are  contained  in  nux 
vomica.  Extract  of  nux  vomica  is  usually  made  by  boiling  the  nux 
vomica  with  alcohol  until  exhausted  ;  but  it  seemed  to  u^  that  if  the 
nux  vomica  could  be  exhausted  with  a  comparatively  small  quantity 
of  spirit  without  the  aid  of  heat  there  would  be  a  distinct  advantage, 
especially  in  the  manufacture  upon  the  small  scale.  Experiments 
were  therefore  made  in  this  direction.  Thirty  grams  of  nux  vomica 
in  impalpable  powder  were  packed  in  a  stoppered  percolator,  mixed 
with  60  cubic  centimetres  of  alcohol  (100:25),  and  allowed  to  macerate 
for  twelve  hours.  Percolation  was  then  commenced,  and  when  it  had 
ceased  an  additional  60  cubic  centimetres  of  the  alcohol  were  poured 
upon  the  marc.  When  this  had  ceased  to  pass  through  the  percolate 
measured  80  cubic  centimetres.  Sixteen  cubic  centimetres  were 
analyzed  by  the  process  which  has  been  previously  described  (Pharm. 
Jour.  [3],  xiv.  441),  and  it  was  found  that  the  80  cubic  centimetres  of 
