514  British  Pharmaceutical  Conference.  {Xm-oX%i&Tm' 
retained  when  the  decoction  is  concentrated,  and  the  deposit  is  not  redissolved 
upon  the  addition  of  rectified  spirit  as  ordered  in  the  official  formula.  He  con- 
cludes, therefore,  that  an  aqueous  liquid  extract  does  not  represent  the  full 
activity  of  the  bark.  On  the  other  hand,  he  states  that  proof  spirit  exhausts 
the  bark  completely,  and  throws  down  no  deposit  of  therapeutic  value,  a  proof 
spirit  liquid  extract  being  more  powerful  as  a  laxative  and  an  aperient  than 
one  made  by  the  official  method.  Further,  from  some  observations  made 
upon  the  therapeutic  action  of  liquid  and  solid  extracts  of  samples  of  cascara 
sagrada  collected  in  the  spring  of  1888,  1889  and  1890,  and  in  the  summer 
of  1890,  it  appeared  that  bark  collected  in  late  summer  is  in  no  way  inferior 
to  that  gathered  in  the  spring,  and  that  the  older  the  bark  the  more  benign  is 
its  action.  The  bark  from  South  Oregon  seems  also  to  be  preferable  to  that 
collected  in  North  Oregon. 
Mr.  S.  M.  Burroughs  then  read  a  short  note  on  a  preparation  of  castor  oil 
and  malt  extract,  flavored  with  essential  oil,  in  which  the  flavor  of  castor  oil 
is  hardly  perceptible.  It  is  made  by  rubbing  up  malt  extract  in  a  warm  mortar 
until  moderately  liquefied  and  then  triturating  with  it  an  equal  volume  of  castor 
oil  and  flavoring  according  to  taste.  Mr.  Burroughs  was  undecided  as  to 
whether  the  preparation  is  a  solution  or  an  emulsion,  but  on  the  addition  of 
water  it  forms  a  milky  emulsion. 
The  next  paper  read,  on  the  Opium  used  in  Medicine,  by  Mr.  E.  M. 
Holmes,  contained  a  suggestion  that  appears  to  be  worthy  the  consideration 
of  the  Indian  Government.  It  is  well  known  that,  apart  from  the  efforts  that 
are  being  made  to  persuade  the  Indian  Government  to  discontinue  the  cultiva- 
tion of  opium  for  introduction  into  China,  there  is  a  probability  that  the  Indian 
industry  will  soon  be  largely  affected  by  the  increased  production  of  opium  in 
China  for  home  consumption.  Mr.  Holmes  points  out  that  the  opium  used  in 
Great  Britain  and  her  colonies  for  medicinal  purposes  is  now  almost  exclusively 
obtained  from  Turkey.  He  thinks  that  an  opium  containing  the  requisite  pro- 
portion of  morphine  could  be  produced  in  the  hilly  districts  of  India,  and  in 
view  of  the  probable  partial  collapse  of  the  trade  in  the  drug  with  China,  he 
suggests  that  attention  should  be  paid  in  India  to  the  production  of  a  medicinal 
opium  that  should  compete  in  appearance  and  strength  with  Turkey  opium  in 
the  British  and  colonial  markets. 
In  a  report  upon  Medicated  Lozenges,  B.  P.,  Mr.  Davis  gave  the  results  of 
analyses  of  samples  of  the  thirteen  official  lozenges  obtained  from  six  "  leading 
manufacturers."  In  respect  to  weight  it  was  found  that  the  lozenges  of  the 
various  makers  differed  from  one  another  very  materially,  and,  not  only  so, 
but  that  lozenges  from  the  same  makers,  and  even  in  the  same  parcels,  varied 
to  the  extent  of  two  grains.  As  to  the  quantity  of  active  ingredient,  when  the 
average  quantity  in  half  a  pound  of  lozenges  was  taken  the  result  was  satisfac- 
tory in  some  few  cases  and  very  unsatisfactory  in  others  ;  but  when  individual 
lozenges  were  taken  deficiency  or  excess  of  active  ingredient  became  apparent. 
Tables  were  appended  to  the  paper  showing  the  weights  of  the  lozenges  and 
the  quantities  of  the  active  ingredient  found.  Referring  to  the  gum  employed 
in  making  the  lozenge,  the  author  stated  that  three  out  of  the  six  sets  of  samples 
contained  no  gum  acacia,  but  either  tragacanth,  or  tragacanth  and  dextrin.  In 
two  others  a  mixture  of  acacia  and  tragacanth  had  been  employed,  whilst  in  the 
sixth  some  of  the  acacia  had  been  replaced  by  dextrin.    Mr.  Davis  is  not  satis- 
