xxxvi 
Notes  and  News. 
(Am.  Jour.  Pharm„ 
1   December,  1899. 
ciaris  and  the  general  public,  all  of  whom  have  in  the  past  suffered  from 
these  fraudulent  practices  of  a  certain  class  of  druggists." 
In  this  connection  we  would  refer  to  an  editorial  in  this  Journal  in  April, 
1897,  in  which  the  opinion  was  given  that  a  pharmacist  "has  no  right  to  sub- 
stitute his  own  or  anybody  else's  preparation  for  the  one  specified,  even  if  he 
is  sure  that  the  substitute  is  as  good  or  as  he  may  think  better.'* 
Perfection  in  Mechanics. — Thomas  S.  Wiegand,  in  speaking  of  a  recent 
visit  which  he  made  to  the  Philadelphia  Mint,  said  that  he  was  shown  a  wonder- 
ful assay  balance,  recently  constructed  for  the  use  of  the  chief  assayer,  by 
Henry  Troemner,  of  Philadelphia,  which  is  a  triumph  of  the  scale  maker's  art. 
It  easily  indicates  the  one  two-hundredth  part  of  a  milligramme.  This,  if  stated! 
in  Troy  weight,  would  equal  about  the  one  thirteen-thousandth  of  a  Troy 
grain,  making  it  probably  the  most  sensitive  scale  in  America.  Its  general 
construction  is  of  the  highest  order  of  mechanism.  All  the  working 'parts 
are  set  with  agate  bearings  ;  the  beam  is  made  of  pure  aluminum  and  colored 
a  jet  black,  while  the  divisions  and  markings  are  filled  with  white  enamel. 
This  is  done  to  relieve  the  eye  in  the  reading  of  same,  making  that  operation 
one  of  ease  and  comfort,  as  the  reflection  of  any  polish  is  thus  totally 
obviated. 
Injections  oe  Piperazin  (each  consisting  of  8  minims  of  distilled  water 
and  five-sixths  of  a  grain  of  piperazin)  have  been  successfully  employed  by 
Giofredi  (Gazetta  degli  Ospedali,  August  20,  1899)  to  remove  a  uratic  deposit 
from  the  tendon-sheath  of  the  peroneus  longus.  The  author  expresses  the 
opinion  that  gouty  joints  might  be  as  successfully  treated  in  a  similar  way,  if 
strict  antiseptic  precautions  were  used. — Phil.  Med.  Journal,  October  28, 
1899. 
Ljouid  Air  as  a  Drink. — M.  D'Arsonval  had  offered  a  guest  some  liquid 
air  mixed  with  champagne,  and  he,  without  waiting  till  the  champagne 
thawed,  swallowed  the  whole  glassful,  containing  about  15  c.c.  of  liquid  air. 
After  a  few  moments,  his  stomach  was  acutely  distended,  but  a  sudden  violent 
expulsion  of  food  and  gas  relieved  this  condition. — Scientific  Amer.,  1898, 
p.  218. 
Nitrates  in  Plant  Tissues. — Berthelot  has  conceived  the  idea  that  plants 
have  the  power  of  producing  nitrates  in  their  own  tissues.  This  assumption,  if 
proved,  would  furnish  an  entirely  new  departure  in  vegetable  physiology. — 
Chcm.  and  Drug.,  1899,  p.  678. 
Detection  of  Caramel  in  Spirits  and  Vinegar. — C.  A.  Cramptonaud  F. 
D.  Simons  (Jo?ir.  Amer.  Chcm.  Soc,  1899,  p.  355)  find  that  Fuller's  earth  may 
be  used  in  detecting  caramel  in  spirits  and  vinegar,  owing  to  the  fact  that  Ful- 
ler's earth  removes  a  greater  percentage  of  coloring  from  the  artificially  colored 
samples  than  from  those  naturally  colored  from  the  wooden  containers. 
Defensive  Reaction  of  The  Organism. — Soulier  attributes  the  agglutina- 
tion reaction  to  the  general  plan  of  defense  of  the  organism  against  infections 
and  considers  intravascular  injections  the  promptest  means  to  place  the  medi- 
cinal agent  at  once  where  it  will  most  effectually  sustain  the  elements  of  the  or- 
ganism in  their  struggle. — Progrcs.  Med.,  X,  30 ;  Jour.  Am.  Med.  Assoc., 
1899,  P-  Il83- 
