THE  AMERICAN 
JOURNAL  OF  PHARMACY 
JUNE,  i8gi. 
VOLATILE  OIL  OF  ARISTOLOCHIA  RETICULATA, 
NUTTALL. 
By  Josiah  Comegys  Peacock,  Ph.G. 
From  an  Inaugural  Essay  presented  to  the  Philadelphia  College  of  Pharmacy. 
Literature.  —  Bucholz  (1807),  National  Dispensatory,  (3d  ed., 
page,  1368).  T.  S.  Wiegand,  (Amer.  Jour.  Pharm.,  1845,  page  10). 
J.  A.  Ferguson,  (ibid.,  1887,  page  481).  M.  Spica,  {Gazzetta  di 
Chimica  XVII,  1887,  page  313-316).1 
The  following  abstract  from  the  "Journal  of  the  Chemical  Society," 
explains  the  work  of  the  last  quoted  authority. 
"  On  distilling  the  ethereal  extract  of  the  root  in  a  current  ot 
steam,  a  yellowish  green  oil  is  obtained,  heavier  than  water,  and 
having  an  odor  resembling  that  of  camphor  and  valerian.  This  oil, 
after  treatment  with  potash~is  cooled  by  a  freezing  mixture,  which 
causes  the  separation  of  a  crystalline  stearopten ;  this  melts  at  1980, 
boils  at  2120,  and  is  shown  by  chemical  analysis  and  its  physical 
properties  to  be  borneol.  No  very  definite  product  could  be  obtained 
from  the  oil  from  which  the  borneol  had  thus  been  separated." 
Remarks. — This  work  was  carried  out  in  the  Chemical  Laboratory 
of  the  Philadelphia  College  of  Pharmacy,  under  the  supervision  of 
Prof.  Henry  Trimble,  to  whom  the  author  is  indebted  for  many  val- 
uable suggestions.  It  was  commenced  about  the  middle  of  June, 
1890. 
The  rhizome  and  rootlets  were  used  as  obtained  through  reliable 
1  Of  old  references  may  also  be  mentioned  the  researches  of  Qhevallier  {Jour, 
de  Phar.,  1820)  and  Peschier  (Trommsdorff,  Taschenbuch,  1823). — Editor. 
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