Am.  Jour.  Piiarm. 
Sept.,  1890. 
Reviews. 
A77 
Malic  Acid  in  Wine,  with  Critical  Studies  on  the  Organic  Salts  of  Wine,  by  Max 
Schneider  ;  Specific  Gravity  of  Milk  Serum  and  its  Importance  for  the  Detec- 
tion of  Milk  Adulteration,  by  P.  Radulescu  ;  Critical  Studies  on  the  Esti- 
mation of  Coffeine  in  Tea,  by  F.  Vite  ;  the  Drinking  Water  of  the  City  of 
Krlangen,  by  J.  Crone.  The  first  essay  named  is  illustrated  by  thirteen  photo- 
lithographic plates  of  the  microscopic  appearance  of  the  tissues  and  powders 
of  twenty  articles  used  as  substitutes  for  coffee. 
Untersuchung  von  Nahrungs-  und  Genussmitteln,  etc. 
A  reprint  from  the  transactions  of  the  Dorpat  Naturalists'  Society,  giving  a 
brief  account  of  the  examinations  of  articles  of  food,  drink  and  domestic  use, 
which  have  been  carried  on  during  the  past  two  years  under  the  supervision 
of  Professor  Dragendorff. 
Artificial  Anesthesia. — A  manual  of  anaesthetic  agents  and  their  employ- 
ment in  the  treatment  of  disease.  By  Laurence  Turnbull,  M.D.,  Ph.G.,  etc. 
Third  edition,  revised  and  enlarged.  Philadelphia  :  P.  Blakiston,  Son  &  Co. 
1890.    pp.  531.    Price  $2.50. 
The  importance  which  anaesthesia  has  assumed  of  recent  years  is  readily 
observed  in  the  increase  of  size  of  the  present  edition  as  compared  with  the 
preceding  one,  it  being  over  200  pages.  This  increase  is  due  on  the  one  hand 
to  the  careful  revision  of  the  subject  matter  contained  in  the  preceding  edition, 
necessitating  the  re-writing  of  much  of  the  text,  and  incorporating  the  recent 
observations  and  conclusions  in  regard  to  the  older  anaesthetics  ;  but  it  should 
be  remembered  that  since  the  introduction  of  cocoaine  as  a  local  anaesthetic 
a  very  large  number  of  drugs  and  chemical  compounds  have  been  observed  to 
possess  more  or  less  of  anaesthetic  action,  and  to  be  adapted  for  such  purpose 
in  special  cases.  On  looking  over  the  long  list  of  these  agents,  which  are 
treated  of  in  the  volume  before  us,  quite  a  number  will  be  found  to  be  derived 
from  plants  which  have  been  employed  medicinally  for  a  long  time,  and  it  is  to 
be  expected  that  many  others  will  be  discovered  in  the  future,  either  as  natural 
products,  or  as  synthetically  prepared  compounds.  In  all  its  details  the  work 
shows  the  intimate  familiarity  of  the  author  with  its  subject,  and  the  watchful 
care  in  sifting  the  facts.  While  primarily  intended  for  the  surgeon  and 
physician  who  use  anaesthetics,  the  pharmacist  will  likewise  find  in  it  much  of 
especial  usefulness.  The  forty  .cuts  are  mostly  in  illustration  of  apparatus. 
Paper  and  typography  leave  nothing  to  be  desired. 
Report  of  Willis  G.  Tucker,  M.D.,  Ph.D.,  analyst  of  drugs.  Extract  from 
the  tenth  annual  report  of  the  New  York  State  Board  of  Health. 
The  samples  examined  numbered  532,  of  which  233  were  of  good,  and  54  of  fair 
quality  ;  24  were  of  excessive  strength,  130  inferior,  58  fictitious,  and  33  were  not 
as  called  for.  Of  115  samples  of  cream  of  tartar  collected  from  grocery  stores, 
30  only  were  of  good  quality,  while  25  were  more  or  less  adulterated  in  some 
cases  to  the  amount  of  80  per  cent ;  58  were  entirely  fictitious,  and  two  consisted 
of  poor  baking  powder.  Of  49  samples  of  compound  spirit  of  ether  eight  only 
were  of  good  or  fair  quality,  the  balance  consisting  mostly  of  the  final  distillate 
in  the  manufacture  of  ether.  Safflower  was  furnished  17  times,  and  crocus 
martis  once,  when  saffron  was  called  for,  three  samples  being  true  saffron. 
The  31  samples  of  precipitated  sulphur  consisted  in  16  cases  of  lac  sulphur 
with  a  large  proportion  of  calcium  sulphate  ;  in  6  cases  of  washed  sulphur  ; 
