218 
Substitute  for  Beeswax. 
Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
May,  1899. 
peculiar  nature  of  the  ointments,  many  efforts  have  been  made  to 
introduce  products  which  would  add  to  the  permanency  of  their 
keeping  qualities. 
Of  recent  years  Japan  wax  is  an  important  article  of  commerce, 
and  it  was  while  examining  a  lot  of  several  carloads  some  time  ago 
that  the  thought  occurred  to  me,  why  cannot  it  be  used  pharma- 
ceuticaily  ? 
My  experience  in  examining  Japan  wax  has  been  that  in  no  case 
have  I  found  any  that  was  adulterated.  A  case  of  adulteration  with 
starch  was  reported  by  La  Wall  (Amer.  Jour.  Pharm.,  November, 
1896),  but  this  can  be  so  easily  detected  by  the  simple  iodine  test, 
.that  parties  who  seek  for  pecuniary  gains  by  pursuing  such  methods 
have  yet  to  discover  an  adulterant  that  is  not  easily  detected,  and 
at  the  same  time  cheaper  than  Japan  wax,  whereby  they  can  suc- 
cessfully accomplish  their  purpose. 
On  the  other  hand,  I  have  found  beeswax  to  be  very  often  adul- 
terated. In  some  cases  the  amount  of  foreign  matter  is  so  small, 
that  I  am  led  to  believe  it  is  due  to  the  careless  manner  in  which  it 
is  prepared  for  market.  The  worst  case  of  adulteration  that  I  en- 
countered was  one  which  was  labelled  Pure  Country  Beeswax,  and 
upon  examination  proved  to  contain  about  25  per  cent. of  pure  bees- 
wax,  the  balance  being  paraffin  and  stearic  acid.  Recently  an- 
other sample  was  examined  which  contained  about  50  per  cent,  of 
tallow,  having  a  melting-point  of  about  500  C. 
Druggists  not  infrequently  purchase  their  supply  of  beeswax 
from  the  producer,  and  not  having  the  time  and  facilities  for  ex- 
amining it  as  to  its  purity,  make  their  ointments  and  cerates  from 
the  same,  unconscious  that  probably  they  have  been  buying  tallow, 
paraffin,  etc.,  at  an  advanced  price. 
Another  item  in  favor  of  Japan  wax  is  its  cost,  it  being  worth 
about  one-fourth  as  much  as  pure  beeswax.  This  is  of  great  im- 
portance to  the  average  druggist,  and  one  that  should  not  be  over- 
looked. Japan  wax  has  a  melting-point  of  about  53°  C,  but,  notwith- 
standing this  fact,  it  is  more  firm  and  less  plastic  than  beeswax, 
hence  a  much  less  quantity  is  required  to  give  an  ointment  or  a 
cerate  the  desired  consistence.  In  some  cases  I  have  found  that 
40  per  cent,  less  Japan  wax  than  beeswax  can  be  used,  and  yet  the 
product  will  have  a  consistence  conforming  to  the  U  S. P.  require- 
ments. 
About  a  year  ago  I  made  a  few  of  the  official  ointments  that  are 
