1 88  Gleanings  from  the  German  Journals.  {^a^SS"**" 
GLEANINGS  FROM  THE  GERMAN  JOURNALS. 
By  Frank  X.  Moerk,  Ph.G. 
The  adulterations  of  powdered  mace  generally  consist  in  the  addi- 
tion of  Bombay  mace  or  of  other  vegetable  material  (leguminous 
fruits)  colored  with  turmeric.  The  presence  of  the  latter  is  revealed 
by  the  finding  of  starch  cells  under  the  microscope,  pure  mace  not 
containing  starch.  Bombay  mace  may  be  detected  by  boiling  the 
suspected  sample  with  alcohol  and  filtering  through  a  white  filter  • 
in  the  case  of  pure  mace  the  filter  is  stained  a  faint  yellow,  but  in 
the  presence  of  Bombay  mace  the  filter,  especially  the  edge,  is 
colored  red;  if  the  quantity  of  the  adulterant  is  very  small  the 
coloration  shows  only  after  drying  the  filter.  Another  and  more 
delicate  test  is  to  add  Goulard's  extract  to  the  alcoholic  filtrate  ; 
with  pure  mace  only  a  white  turbidity  is  occasioned,  but  in  the 
presence  of  Bombay  mace  a  red  turbidity  or  precipitate,  dependent 
upon  the  quantity,  is  obtained.  Turmeric  will  give  a  similar  reaction, 
but  the  following  test  will  decide  upon  the  presence  of  turmeric  or 
Bombay  mace  ;  a  strip  of  filtering  paper  is  saturated  with  the  alco- 
holic solution,  the  excess  of  liquid  removed  by  pressing  between 
filtering  paper  and  the  strip  drawn  through  a  cold  saturated  solu- 
tion of  boric  acid ;  if  the  adulterant  was  Bombay  mace  the  paper 
remains  unchanged  while  in  the  presence  of  turmeric  the  paper 
changes  to  orange  or  even  brown.  The  addition  now  of  a  drop  of 
potassium  hydrate  solution  to  the  strip  causes  a  blue  colored  ring, 
if  turmeric  is  present,  or  a  red  ring  in  presence  of  Bombay  mace. — 
Dr.  Hefelmann,  Pharm.  Ztg.,  1891,  122. 
Styracol,  the  cinnamic  ether  of  guaiacol,  is  the  successor  of 
benzosol  (Am.  Journ.  Pharm.,  1890,  444)  as  a  remedy  for  phthisis. 
It  is  claimed  that  styracol  is  readily  decomposed,  when  taken  inter- 
nally, into  cinnamic  acid  and  guaiacol,  the  latter  being  the  remedial 
agent.  The  new  compound  is  made  by  mixing  equal  molecules  of 
guaiacol  and  cinnamyl  chloride,  allowing  to  stand  for  two  hours 
and  then  warming  upon  a  water-bath ;  extracted  with  boiling  alco- 
hol, the  styracol  separates,  on  cooling,  in  long  needles  which,  puri- 
fied by  recrystallization  from  alcohol,  melt  at  1 300  C.  This  substance 
is  not  likely  to  be  more  successful  than  benzosol  because,  as  Sahli 
has  proven,  guaiacol  acts  directly  upon  the  stomach ;  whereas  benzosol 
is  only  decomposed  into  its  components — guaiacol  and  benzoic  acid 
— in  the  intestines. — Dr.  A.  Haas,  Sudd.  Apoth.  Ztg.,  1891,  55. 
