526  British  Pharmaceutical  Conference.  { 
( Am.  Tour.  Pharm. 
Oct.,  1890 
point  was  shown  by  the  fact  that  the  time  taken  by  ten  grams  each  of  six  sam- 
ples of  English  make  and  two  of  German  to  convert  an  equal  weight  of  starch 
at  a  temperature  of  ioo°  F.  ranged  from  four  minutes  to  upwards  of  two  hours. 
Mr.  Umney  then  described  a  process  for  liquid  extract  of  malt  yielding  a  pro- 
duct said  to  give  an  average  indication  of  diastasic  strength  equal  to  a  semi- 
solid extract,  being  capable  of  convicting  its  own  weight  of  starch  in  six  min- 
utes. This  liquid  extract  was  further  affirmed  to  be  elegant  in  appearance, 
exceedingly  palatable,  and  not  prone  to  fermentation,  solidification  or  any  of 
the  changes  to  which  the  semi-solid  extract  is  liable.  In  the  second  paper, 
Mr.  D.  B.  Dott  discussed  the  merits  of  methods  followed  in  the  estimation  of 
the  diastasic  value  of  malt  extract,  and  expressed  preference  for  a  modification 
of  that  suggested  by  Duggan.  This  consists  in  digesting  5  cc.  of  a  5  per  cent, 
solution  of  the  extract  for  half  an  hour  with  400  cc.  of  a  liquid  containing  2 
percent,  of  arrowroot  at  a  temperature  of  55s  C,  adding  10  cc.  of  a  10  per 
cent,  solution  of  soda  to  stop  the  action,  and  diluting  the  mixture  to  measure 
500  cc.  This  is  then  tested  as  to  its  reducing  power  on  Fehling's  solution  and 
the  result  corrected  by  deducting  the  equivalent  of  the  malt  extract  itself.  Mr. 
Dott  considers  that  under  these  conditions  a  good  extract  of  malt  may  be 
expected  to  produce  from  starch  not  less  than  three  times  its  weight  of  sugar, 
calculated  on  the  basis  that  each  10  cc.  of  Fehling's  solution  is  equal  to  0*0807 
gram  of  maltose . 
Buchu. — Mr.  C.  J.  S.  Thompson  dealt  with  the  comparative  medicinal  values 
of  the  three  kinds  of  buchu  leaves  that  are  official  in  the  British  Pharmacopoeia. 
The  investigation  was  undertaken  in  consequence  of  an  observation  that  an 
infusion  prepared  from  leaves  of  Barosma  serratifolia  was  not  so  active  or 
effectual  as  others  prepared  from  leaves  of  B.  betulina  and  B.  crenulata.  This 
appears  to  have  been  confirmed  by  a  comparative  examination  of  leaves  of  the 
three  species.  The  therapeutic  properties  of  the  leaves  are  said  by  Spica  to 
reside  in  the  volatile  oil  and  a  bitter  resin.  The  microscope  showed  that  the 
oil-cells  in  the  underpart  of  the  leaf  were  closer  together  and  much  larger  in 
•the  B.  crenulata  and  B.  betulina  leaves  than  in  those  from  B.  serratifolia. 
Upon  distillation  B.  betulina  leaves  yielded  an  average  of  1*45  per  cent,  of 
volatile  oil,  which  developed  after  a  time  a  strong  peppermint  odor  ;  B.  crenu- 
lata leaves  also  yielded  1  "6  per  cent,  of  the  oil,  while  B.  serratifolia  leaves 
gave  barely  1  per  cent.  As  to  the  resin,  upon  being  exhausted  with  ether,  the 
B.  betulina  leaves  gave  up  4*25  of  dark  olive-green  resinous  matter,  slightly 
soluble  in  water,  more  so  in  alcohol  and  freely  in  chloroform,  aromatic,  but 
bitter  to  the  taste,  and  having  the  characteristic  odor  of  buchu.  B.  crenulata 
leaves  treated  in  a  like  manner  gave  375  per  cent,  of  resinous  matter,  similar 
in  color  and  taste.  B.  serratifolia  leaves  gave  3*45  per  cent,  of  resin,  but 
different  from  the  other  products  in  color  and  taste.  The  mucilage  precipi- 
tated from  a  fresh  infusion  of  B.  serratifolia  leaves  was  also  less  in  quantity 
than  that  from  an  infusion  from  either  of  the  other  species,  and  from  the  gen- 
eral inferiority  of  this  kind,  Mr.  Thompson  suggests  that  it  should  no  longer 
be  employed  in  making  the  officinal  preparations. 
Syrup  of  Hypophosphite  of  Iron. — Mr.  John  Macintyre  showed  the  instabil- 
ity of  the  syrup  made  according  to  the  B.P.C.  formulary,  samples  having  been 
returned  to  the  author  with  the  complaint  that  they  had  become  milky.  He 
