AMERICAN  OPIUM. — USE  OF  OXALATE  OF  IRON  IN  MEDICINE.  77 
will  quickly  show  condensed  globules  of  mercury,  and  all  that 
would  be  required  to  separate  the  metal  from  gangue,  is  simply 
retorting  it. — Proc.  Am.  Pliarm.  Association,  1867. 
AMERICAN  OPIUM. 
By  E.  S.  Wayne. 
The  specimen  herewith  sent  was  obtained  from  the  white 
poppy  by  Dr.  H.  Black,  of  Bolivar,  Tenn.,  who  for  several  years 
past  has  turned  his  attention  to  the  culture  of  the  same,  and  the 
collection  of  opium  from  it.  The  specimen  is  of  this  year's 
growth.  The  quantity  made  by  him  this  year  was  but  small,  ill 
health  preventing  his  attending  to  it.  He  says  that,  in  collect- 
ing it,  he  incises  the  capsule  with  a  shallow  cutting  instrument, 
that  merely  cuts  through  the  outer  skin,  for  should  it  be  cut 
completely  through,  the  opium  falls  into  the  cavity  of  it,  and 
is  lost.  The  incisions  are  made  early  in  the  morning,  and  the 
accumulated  opium  scraped  in  the  evening.  I  have  tested  the 
opium  as  to  its  morphia  value  by  Dr.  Riegel's  method,  a  modifi- 
cation of  Guillermond's.  The  obtained  morphia  was  washed  with 
water  to  remove  adhering  meconate  of  ammonia,  and  with  ether 
to  remove  narcotin.  The  yield  of  morphia  by  this  process  I 
found  to  be  10-2  per  cent.  The  morphia  in  the  box  with  speci- 
men is  the  yield  ;  it  has  been  re-crystallized. — Proc.  American 
Pharm.  Association,  1867. 
ON  THE  USE  OF  OXALATE  OF  IRON  IN  MEDICINE. 
By  G.  G.  C.  Simms. 
It  occurred  to  me,  after  having  decided  to  attend  this  meet- 
ing, that  I  might  present  something  here  worthy  the  notice  of 
this  learned  body.  I  was  aware  that  a  chemical,  in  daily  use  in 
the  District  of  Columbia,  and  with  which  the  pharmaceutists  and 
physicians  of  Washington  are  as  familiar  as  with  any  other  article 
of  the  Materia  Medica,  was  not  to  be  found  in  any  of  our  text 
books  or  treatises  on  chemistry  or  medicine. 
I  had  thought  that,  in  presenting  here  a  sample  of  Oxalate  of 
Iron,  I  would  be  introducing  something  new  to  the  profession,  as 
well  as  something  which  would  redound  to  the  credit  of  one  of 
our  able,  but  over-modest  chemists. 
