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Tincture  of  Kino. 
J  Am.  Jour.  Pharm.. 
1    Sept,  1, 1873. 
mylammonium  have  been  proven  by  Rabuteau  by  injecting  their  so- 
lutions subcutaneously.  His  results  are,  that  they  paralyze  the  ex- 
tremities of  the  motor  nerves,  and  that  they  act  on  the  muscular 
contractility  and  sensibility  similar  to  curare. — Joum.  de  Pharm.  et 
de  Chim.  1873,  July. 
TINCTURE  OF  KINO. 
By  R.  Rother. 
For  what  object  the  pharmacopoeia  incorporates  such  a  multiplicity 
of  simple  astringents,  is  only  a  parallel  question  that  can  be  advanced; 
on  numerous  other  incomprehensible  and  probably  unanswerable  posi- 
tions held  by  the  pharmacopoeia. 
Whatever  the  special  merits  of  catechu,  kino,  nutgall,  rhatany,,. 
cranesbill,  blackberry,  logwood  and  pomegranate  fruit  rind  may  be,, 
is  easily  summed  up  in  the  individual  belief  of  this  and  that  practi- 
tioner. But  that  any  of  these  bodies  should  have  peculiar  medicinal 
virtues  not  possessed  by  the  others  is  only  a  finely  drawn  hypercritical 
assumption,  based  mainly  on  whimsical  favoritism  at  random  confer- 
red, but  unsupported  by  therapeutical  difference  of  quality,  in  the 
object  of  choice. 
The  tinctures  of  catechu,  kino,  nutgall  and  rhatany  are  officinal,, 
together  with  a  syrup  of  blackberry,  syrup  of  rhatany  and  fluid  ex- 
tracts of  blackberry,  geranium  and  rhatany.  Now  either  of  these 
astringents  is  fully  capable  of  replacing  any  of  the  rest.  They  owe 
their  astringeucy  in  every  case  to  the  presence  of  some  variety  of 
tannin,  the  only  characteristic  property  of  which  is  identical  to  the 
peculiar  astringent  property  of  pure  tannin.  Consequently,  pure 
tannin,  or  nutgall,  its  source,  is  upon  reasonable  supposition  superior 
as  a  pure  vegetable  astringent  to  the  other  often  doubtful  and  fre- 
quently unreliable  substitutes,  in  the  shape  of  catechu,  kino,  etc. 
However,  tincture  of  nutgall  is  not  much  employed  for  internal, 
use,  but  a  syrup  of  nutgall,  not  officinal,  but  much  used  in  many  lo- 
calities, is  highly  prized.  Catechu  is  a  cheap  substance,  and  when, 
of  good  quality,  is  rich  in  tannin  ;  yet  it  is  not  so  popular  as  kino,, 
which,  somewhat  stronger  in  tannin,  though  very  unstable  in  solution,, 
has  heretofore  been  very  expensive,  and  consequently  subject  to* 
adulteration. 
Much  difficulty  is  found  in  preserving  tincture  of  kino  from  gelatin- 
