Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
June,  1886. 
}  Pharmaceutical  Notes  from  Purdue  University.  291 
No.  of 
Reaction  for 
Per  cent,  of 
sample. 
free  iodine. 
ferrous  iodide. 
1 
None. 
6-01 
% 
Slight. 
5-16 
3 
Distinct. 
5-08 
4 
None. 
4-37 
5 
None. 
4-04 
6 
Slight. 
4-26 
7 
None. 
8-26 
8 
None. 
8'48 
9 
Slight. 
8-42 
10 
None. 
8'30 
11 
Very  slight. 
10-24 
12 
None. 
6-94 
13 
None. 
1010 
-  Mean  value,  4*82  per  cent. 
\  Mean  value,  8-44  per  cent. 
Nos.  7  and  13  were  of  a  transparent  pale  green:  the  rest  were 
•either  colorless  or  contained  free  iodine.  The  U.  8.  P.  requires  10 
per  cent,  of  ferrous  iodide;  and  the  data  in  the  table  speak  for  them- 
selves. 
XIV.    Tinctura  Nucis  Vomicae. — by  e.  j.  yeager. 
Variations  in  strength  of  the  crude  drug  and  of  extractive  have 
been  clearly  shown  by  Dunstan  &  Short,  A.  B.  Lyons  and  Dragen- 
dorff,  so  that  assays  of  total  alkaloid  instead  of  extractive,  are 
recommended. 
The  general  plan  for  separating  the  alkaloids  is  as  follows  :  A  con- 
venient quantity  of  tincture  or  percolate  is  evaporated  nearly  to  dry- 
ness, treated  with  dilute  sulphuric  acid,  and  shaken  with  chloroform 
or  a  mixture  of  chloroform  and  ether,  to  remove  a  part  of  the  ex- 
tractive. After  separation  of  the  chloroform,  the  acid  solution  is 
washed  with  successive  portions  of  chloroform  or  the  mixture ;  it  is  then 
made  alkaline  with  ammonium  hydrate  and  treated  with  successive 
portions  of  chloroform  or  chloroform  and  ether,  to  dissolve  out  the 
free  alkaloids,  to  be  evaporated,  dried  and  weighed  in  a  tared  capsule. 
Dunstan  &  Short  use  chloroform  throughout  the  whole  process ;  but 
Dr.  A.  B.  Lyons  (Druggists'  Circular,  Dec,  1885)  uses  ether  for  the 
first  two  washings  of  the  acid  liquid,  and  one  volume  of  chloroform 
with  three  of  ether  for  a  third  washing ;  he  also  treats  the  alkaline 
liquid  twice  with  this  mixture  to  extract  the  alkaloids. 
The  method  of  Dunstan  &  Short  was  tested  (with  smaller  portions 
of  material  and  more  frequent  washing)  by  comparative  experiments 
