Am.  Jour.  Pharm.  \ 
June  1, 1873.  j 
Editorial, 
283 
quantity  of  the  latter  should  be  tested  ;  if  the  rotation  is  powerfully  to  the  left, 
the  bark  is  valuable  for  the  manufacture  of  quinia ;  a  slight  left  or  a  right  rota- 
tion, however,  shows  the  bark  to  be  unsuitable. 
tSiritortai  Department. 
The  General  Index  to  the  American  Journal  of  Pharmacy. — In  another 
place  we  publish  a  review  of  this  work,  which  has  been  compiled  by  Mr.  Hans 
M.  Wilder,  and  is  now  ready  for  distribution.  The  value  of  such  a  work  is 
readily  seen  by  those  who  frequently,  or  even  occasionally,  have  to  consult  the 
"Journal"  in  search  of  information  on  new  and  old  medicinal  substances,  on 
scientific  facts,  practical  details,  formulas,  historical  and  other  notices  refer- 
ring to  pharmaceutical  matters,  either  directly  or  indirectly.  Scattered  through 
43  volumes  (including  the  preliminary  volume),  which  have  been  published 
during  a  period  of  45  years,  the  information  is  now  made  available  to  its  full 
extent  by  consulting  this  General  Index,  which  will  prove  to  be  of  great  value 
not  only  to  those  possessing  complete  sets  of  the  "Journal,"  but  to  all  seeking 
information  on  pharmaceutical  subjects,  and  particularly  on  American  phar- 
macy. The  readiness  with  which  the  "  Journal "  can  now  be  consulted  will 
•doubtless  induce  some  of  our  readers  to  complete  their  sets  as  far  as  possible  ; 
while  those  who  are  interested  in  special  subjects  may  procure  single  numbers, 
at  50  cents  each,  or  complete  volumes,  as  far  as  the  stock  on  hand  will  permit. 
Information  on  this  point  can  be  obtained  from  the  notices  of  the  Kusiness 
Editor  and  the  Publishing  Committee  contained  in  the  back  part  of  the 
volume. 
The  price  of  the  General  Index  has  been  fixed  by  the  Publishing  Committee 
at  $3  per  volume  in  paper  cover,  and  at  $3*50  per  volume  bound  in  cloth  ;  to 
be  obtained  on  remittance  of  the  amount  to  the  Business  Editor,  H.  H.  Wolle, 
145  N.  10th  street.  Great  care  has  been  bestowed  upon  the  preparation  of  the 
manuscript  and  the  proof-reading,  to  render  the  work  as  nearly  free  from  errors 
as  possible;  and  a  portion  of  the  labor  having  been  performed  gratuitously, 
the  Committee  was  enabled  to  put  the  price  as  low  as  stated  above,  at  which 
figures  by  far  the  largest  portion  of  the  edition  will  have  to  be  sold  to  reimburse 
the  College  merely  for  the  cash  expenses  incurred  in  getting  out  this  useful  and 
much  needed  Index. 
The  Dangerous  Properties  of  Mixtures  of  Chlorate  of  Potassium  and 
Tannin,  to  which  we  referred  in  our  last  number,  are  further  illustrated  by  the 
following  communication  from  Mr.  G.  Macdonald,  now  of  Kalamazoo,  Mich., 
whose  suggestion  to  dispense  the  dry  articles  not  mixed,  but  in  separate  papers, 
we  heartily  commend  to  the  notice  of  both  physicians  and  pharmacists  : 
Chlorate  of  potassium  and  tannin  came  very  near  having  another  victim  in 
Oairo,  111.,  about  three  months  ago.  The  explosion  was  so  violent  as  not  merely 
to  break  the  mortar  (a  strong  wedgewood  one),  but  to  shiver  it  into  innumerable 
fragments;  in  fact,  the  bottom  of  the  mortar  was  ground  almost  into  fine  pow- 
der. The  materials  had  been  loosely  mixed  some  time  before,  and  had  become 
very  dry.    A  small  quantity — perhaps  20  grains — were  put  into  the  mortar, 
