Am.  Jour,  Pharm. ) 
March,  1911.  / 
Progress  in  Pharmacy. 
133 
in  this  country.  A  number  of  papers  on  the  chemical  and  pharma- 
ceutical properties  of  this  substance  have  appeared  in  the  current 
journals  and  the  information  necessary  for  preparing  the  material 
for  injection  is  available  from  the  literature  accompanying  the 
package. 
A  report  on  the  chemical  properties  of  salvarsan,  by  W.  A. 
Puckner  and  W.  S.  Hilpert  (/.  Am.  M.  Ass.,  191 1,  v.  55,  p.  2314), 
contains  the  following  popular  description  of  its  behavior :  "  Sal- 
varsan is  an  arsenic  compound  containing  that  metal  in  a  low  state 
of  oxidation  and  the  product  is,  therefore,  a  powerful  reducing 
agent  and  is  decomposed  by  bodies  which  are  oxidizers,  including 
air.  Being  a  weak  base  its  hydrochloride,  when  dissolved  in  water, 
is  largely  decomposed  by  the  latter  (hydrolyzed)  and  hence  gives  a 
solution  having  an  acid  reaction.  A  solution  of  salvarsan  is  there- 
fore acid  and  will  remain  so  until  for  every  molecule  of  salvarsan 
there  have  been  added  two  molecules  of  sodium  hydroxide  or  a 
similar  monovalent  base." 
William  Allen  Pusey,  in  a  discussion  of  the  situation  regarding 
salvarsan,  asserts  that  indications  are  very  strong  that  we  are  on  the 
verge  of  a  period  of  indiscriminate  and  reckless  use  of  this  remedy 
that  will  result  in  disappointment  and  damage  to  many  patients. 
He  further  points  out  that  this  drug  does  not  absolutely  cure  syphilis 
and  that  in  the  hands  of  careless  or  incompetent  practitioners  it  is 
likely  to  do  much  harm. — /.  Am.  M.  Ass.,  191 1,  v.  51,  pp.  1 18-120. 
A  recent  number  of  N.  A.  R.  D.  Notes  (February  2,  191 1,  p. 
998),  calls  attention  to  an  advertisement  from  the  Chicago  Sunday 
Examiner  of  January  23,  191 1,  in  which  salvarsan  ("606")  is 
being  indirectly  exploited  to  the  laity.  Needless  to  say  advertise- 
ments of  this  type  are  destined  to  do  an  untold  amount  of  harm. 
JoHA  is  the  name  applied  to  an  oil  solution  of  salvarsan  that 
is  said  by  its  promoters  to  be  quite  stable.  It  is  being  marketed  in 
Germany,  in  ampoulles  containing  the  equivalent  of  0.4  and  1.2 
Gm.  of  salvarsan. — Pharm.  Zentralh.,  191 1,  v.  52,  p.  21. 
Adalin  is  the  name  given  to  brom-diethyl-acetyl  urea.  This 
substance  occurs  as  a  colorless,  nearly  tasteless  powder  that  is  only 
sparingly  soluble  in  cold  water  but  freely  soluble  in  alcohol.  Adalin 
is  being  recommended  as  a  bromide  and  is  given  in  doses  of  from  0.3 
to  i.o  Gm.  three  times  a  day. — Pharm.  Post,  191 1,  v.  44,  p.  84. 
Am  POT.  is  said  to  be  a  preparation  of  mineral  fats  that  is  per- 
manent and  has  the  property  of  absorbing  upwards  of  30  per  cent, 
of  water. — Pharm.  Zentralh.,  191 1,  v.  52,  p.  52. 
