128 
Obituary. 
(Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
I    February,  1898. 
Hayne)  with  purplish-pink  flowers  is  met  with  under  cultivation,  not  only  in 
greenhouses  in  Europe,  but  to  some  extent  as  a  field  crop  in  the  neighborhood 
of  the  Cinchona  Plantations,  in  the  Nilgiris  (Madras)  and  the  Blue  Moun- 
tains, Jamaica,  Tampico  jalap,  on  the  other  hand,  which  has  made  its  appear- 
ance in  trade  of  recent  years  in  considerable  quantity,  is  produced  by  a  differ- 
ent plant  (Iponioea  simulans,  Hanbury).  It  is  stated  to  grow  along  the  moun- 
tain ranges  of  the  Sierra  Gorda,  in  the  neighborhood  of  St.  Luis  de  la  Paz, 
from  which  town  and  the  adjacent  villages  the  roots  are  carried  to  Tampico, 
and  thence  shipped  abroad.  As  Tampico  jalap  was  not  represented  amongst 
the  plants  in  the  Economic  Collections  at  Kew,  an  effort  was  made  to  obtain 
a  few  tubers  through  the  foreign  office,  who  enlisted  the  kind  co-operation  of 
Her  Majesty's  Minister  in  Mexico.  In  November  last,  two  lots  of  tubers  were 
received  in  excellent  condition  from  Her  Majesty's  Consul  at  Vera  Cruz, 
labelled  respectively  "  Tlacolulam  "  and  "  Tonayan,"  and  described  as  having 
been  obtained  from  these  localities  "  in  the  Canton  of  Jalapa,  in  the  State  of 
Vera  Cruz."  The  Tlacolulam  tubers  were  distributed  to  the  botanical  depart- 
ments at  Jamaica  and  the  Nilgiris,  and  to  the  botanic  gardens  at  Oxford,  Cam- 
bridge, Edinburgh,  Glasgow,  Glasnevin  and  Trinity  College,  Dublin.  The 
Tonayan  tubers  (a  small  lot)  were  distributed  to  Jamaica  and  the  Nilgiris 
only.  It  was  at  once  noticed  that  both  these  tubers  were  not  obtained  from 
the  locality  where  Tampico  jalap  is  collected,  and  now  there  is  little  doubt 
that  they  are  ordinary  jalap  (Iponioea  purga).  This  fact  should  be  carefully 
'noted  by  the  recipients.  In  the  meantime  another  effort  is  being  made  to  ob- 
tain the  tubers  of  the  true  Tampico  jalap. — The  Kew  Bulletin. 
OBITUARY. 
Dr.  Campbell  Morfit,  a  distinguished  American  chemist,  died  in  London, 
England,  December  8th. 
Dr.  Morfit  was  born  in  Herculaneum,  Mo.,  on  November  19,  1820.  His  edu- 
cation was  partly  obtained  at  Columbian  University,  Georgetown,  D.  C,  but 
he  left  there  before  graduation  to  take  up  the  study  of  chemistry  in  the  private 
laboratory  of  James  C.  Booth,  in  Philadelphia.  Subsequently  he  engaged  in 
the  manufacture  of  chemicals,  and  in  1854  became  Professor  of  Applied  Chem- 
istry in  the  University  of  Maryland.  In  1858  he  removed  to  New  York,  where 
he  remained  until  1861,  when  he  went  to  London. 
Dr.  Morfit  did  considerable  research  work  while  in  this  country,  but,  after  his 
residence  abroad,  devoted  himself  more  particularly  to  the  improvement  of 
technical  processes.  He  was  a  member  of  various  scientific  societies,  including 
the  Chemical  Society  of  London  and  the  Institute  of  Chemistry.  Besides 
writing  numerous  scientific  papers,  he  was  joint  author  with  James  C.  Booth  of 
a  report  to  the  United  States  Ordnance  Department  on  gun  metal,  in  1858,  from 
investigations  by  him  in  a  laboratory  that  he  established  on  his  own  plan  at 
Pikesville  Arsenal,  Maryland.  He  was  co-editor  with  Dr.  Booth,  of  the  Ency- 
clopedia of  Chemistry.  He  also  published  the  following:  "Chemistry  as 
Applied  to  the  Manufacture  of  Soaps  and  Candles,"  "  Chemical  and  Pharma- 
ceutical Manipulations,"  "Pure  Fertilizers  and  Phosphates,"  "The  Arts  of 
Tanning  and  Curing,"  "Perfumery  :  Its  Use  and  Manufacture,"  "  Oleic  Soaps  " 
and  ( with  Dr.  Booth)  "  Progress  of  Chemical  Arts." 
