Ar^oc°tu,ril6arm"}  Analysis  of  Phlox  Carolina.  479 
the  separation  of  the  volatile  oil,  will  also  be  investigated.  One  of 
these  substances  called  diosmin,  differs  completely  from  the  diosmin  of 
Brandes,  but  may,  perhaps,  be  identical  with  the  diosmin  of  Landerer, 
although  obtained  by  a  new  method  of  extraction. 
AN  ANALYSIS  OF  THE  UNDER-GROUND  PORTION 
OF  PHLOX  CAROLINA. 
By  Henry  Teimble. 
Read  before  the  American>Pharmaceutical  Association  in  Providence,  R.  I. 
This  investigation  was  undertaken  by  Mr.  S.  M.  HarringtoD,  a  stu- 
dent in  the  laboratory  of  the  Phila.  Coll.  of  Pharmacy,  but  after  doing 
some  of  the  preliminary  work  he  had  to  relinquish  it,  and  with  his 
permission  I  began  the  investigation  anew. 
The  scheme  proposed  by  Dragendorff  was  used  as  the  basis  of  the 
work,  and  I  wish  to  state,  in  connection  with  this,  that  considerable 
objection  has  been  offered  to  this  method  of  plant  analysis,  as  being  too 
mechanical  and  only  the  blind  following  of  another's  plan.  I  reply 
that,  when  there  is  any  reasonable  ground  for  such  criticism,  it  is  the 
fault  of  the  chemist  doing  the  work  and  not  of  the  method.  A  scheme 
of  some  kind  is  obviously  necessary,  and  immensely  better  than  a 
fragmentary  examination  for  an  alkaloid,  glucoside,  or  some  other  new 
compound,  without  first  determining  all  the  important  constituents. 
The  method  of  Dragendorff  has  been  found  to  be  the  most  satisfactory 
of  a  number  that  have  been  offered,  and  the  results  will  always  show 
originality  if  that  faculty  has  been  exersised.  The  objection  is  as 
absurd  as  to  question  the  analysis  of  a  mineral  by  the  use  of  hydro- 
chloric acid,  sulphuretted  hydrogen  and  the  other  group  reagents. 
The  following  summary  of  results  will  afterwards  be  taken  up  in 
detail: 
Moisture,.   7.82  percent. 
Ash,  1670 
Camphor  with  red  coloring,   TOO 
Kesin,   -44 
Tannin,  -.   1-82 
Glucose,   -27 
Saccharose,   78 
Undetermined,   7'09 
Sol.  in  petroleum  spirit. 
"   "  stronger  ether. 
Soluble  in  absolute  alco- 
hol, 9*96  per  cent. 
