24 
Aconitine. 
Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
Jan.,  1886. 
in  various  liver  affections.  The  plant,  which  is  also  indigenous  to 
North  and  South  America,  is  supposed  to  have  the  properties  of  the 
Asiatic  pennywort,  H.  asiatica,  Lin. 
Lippia  origanoides,  Kunth  (Verbenacese)  is  used  in  Mexico  in  place 
of  origanum. 
•  Oreja  de  burro,  Echeverria  coccinea,  De  Cand.;  Crassulacese ;  in 
the  mountains  surrounding  the  Mexican  valley.  The  fresh  leaves  are 
emollient.  E.  pulverulent^,  De  Cand,  which  is  quite  common  in 
gardens,  has  the  same  properties. 
ACONITINE. 
By  K.  F.  Mandelin. 
A  sample  of  japaconitine,  obtained  from  Merck,  was  found  by  the 
author  to  agree  exactly  in  its  chemical  and  physiological  behavior 
with  aconitine.  From  this,  the  author  infers  that  the  two  substances 
are  identical,  and  he  considers  that  the  chief  point  of  difference  in- 
sisted upon  by  Wright  and  Luff,  that  japaconitine  gives  no  apoderi- 
vative,  is  not  to  be  relied  on,  as  it  rests  on  the  estimation  of  a  very 
small  quantity  of  water.  Langgaard's  figures  of  the  comparative 
toxic  powers  of  japaconitine  and  aconitine  are  also  no  criterion,  as 
the  dosis  lethalis  he  quotes  for  the  latter  is  much  too  high,  while  the 
figures  he  gives  for  the  former  agree  in  the  main  with  those  obtained 
by  the  author  for  aconitine. 
The  author  has  also  been  usable  to  detect  any  difference  between 
pseuda^onine  and  aconine;  the  differences  observed  by  Wright  and 
Luff  he  attributes  to  the  presence  of  undecomposed  pseudaconitine  in 
the  preparation  of  pseudaconine.  The  aconitines  are  thus  analogous 
to  the  tropines. 
The  old  tests  for  aconitine  are  described  by  the  author  as  worth- 
less. Pure  aconitine  should  give  a  colorless  solution  in  concentrated 
sulphuric  acid,  which  should  not  be  darkened  by  the  addition  of  a 
few  drops  of  strong  sugar  solution.  This  substance  is  also  precipi- 
tated in  very  dilute  solutions  by  mercuric  bromide,  picric  acid,  and 
other  reagents,  whilst  aconine  is  only  thrown  down  in  stronger 
solutions.  Pseudaconitine  may  be  recognized  by  its  yielding  proto- 
catechuic  acid  when  treated  with  potash,  by  its  reaction  with  fuming 
nitric  acid  and  alcoholic  potash,  and  by  its  behavior  with  sulpho- 
vanadic  acid.  Evaporated  on  .a  watch-glass,  with  a  little  fuming 
nitric  acid,  a  yellow  residue  is  obtained,  which  gives  a  purple-red 
