520  British  Pharmaceutical  Conference.  {Am'^1\^xm% 
the  proposed  Formulary,  some  speakers  wishing  to  limit  it  to  formulae  for  pre- 
parations of  newly  introduced  drugs,  and  others  evidently  desiring  that  it 
should  extend  to  the  class  of  preparations  represented  by  the  illustration 
quoted  by  the  President.  One  argument  that  told  strongly  in  support  of 
the  motion  was  that  it  would  give  pharmacists  an  opportunity  of  proving 
their  capability  of  rendering  assistance  in  pharmacopoeia  construction. 
Eventually  the  resolution  was  passed  nemine  contradicente,  and  then,  in 
order  to  give  it  practical  effect,  Mr.  Williams  moved  the  appointment 
of  a  committee  consisting  of  Messrs.  Greenish,  Groves,  Martindale,  Symes, 
Thresh,  Martin,  Nay  lor,  Maben,  Abraham  and  Reynolds,  with  power  to 
add  to  their  number,  to  prepare  a  Formulary  of  Non-Official  Eemedies 
and  to  report  to  the  Executive  Committee,  the  sum  of  £25  being  placed 
at  the  disposal  of  the  Committee  for  expenses.  This  motion  was  also  car- 
ried. 
Nux  vomica. — The  reading  of  papers  was  then  resumed,  the  next  in  order 
being  a  valuable  communication  by  Mr.  N.  H.  Martin,  of  Newcastle,  in  which  he 
gave  the  results  of  the  examination  of  a  large  number  of  preparations  of  nux 
vomica,  obtained  from  various  sources,  undertaken  with  a  view  to  ascertain  to 
what  extent  the  new  Pharmacopoeia  processes  are  followed  in  making  these 
preparations,  and  whether  the  object  sought  in  fixing  an  official  standard  is  at- 
tained by  these  processes.  Out  of  25  samples  of  tincture  of  nux  vomica  11  were 
separated  as  presenting  evidence  by  their  color  of  having  been  prepared  direct 
from  nux  vomica  seeds ;  the  alkaloidal  strength  of  these  samples  ranged  from 
•119  to  "288  per  cent.,  7  of  them  being  below  the  official  standard.  The  14  sam- 
ples that  appeared  to  have  been  prepared  by  dissolving  the  extract  in  a  mix- 
ture of  spirit  and  water,  ranged  in  alkaloidal  strength  from*] 96  to  "313  per 
cent.,  no  less  than  10  of  them  being  in  excess  of  the  official  strength  and  some 
considerably  so.  Mr.  Martin  is  therefore  of  opinion  that  uniformity  of  alka- 
loidal strength  is  not  attained  by  the  Pharmacopoeia  process,  even  when  it  is 
followed,  and  that  the  tendency  towards  excessive  potency  may  be  attended  by 
danger  and  inconvenience.  Only  4  samples  of  extract  had  been  examined 
which  varied  in  alkaloidal  strength  from  15  per  cent,  of  total  alkaloid  to  16'8. 
But  Mr.  Martin's  principal  objection  is  that  as  there  "  exists  no  relation  between 
the  amount  of  extractive  and  the  amount  of  total  alkaloids  in  any  samples  of 
nux  vomica,"  the  Pharmacopoeia  process  practically  results  in  a  preparation 
which  is  in  such  an  unstable  condition  that  to  call  it  a  standardized  prepara- 
tion misleading.  The  variation  in  the  consistency  of  the  standardized 
extract  was  confirmed  in  the  discussion  that  followed  the  paper,  by  Mr.  Conroy 
and  others. 
Ethyl  nitrite. — Mr.  John  Williams  then  read  a  note  on  the  preservation  of  ethyl 
nitrite, in  which  he  stated  that  in  continuing  his  endeavors  to  prepare  a  solution 
of  ethyl  nitrite  which  would  not  decompose  by  keeping  he  had  found  the  use  of 
glycerin  gave  very  promising  results  in  preventing  the  rapid  decomposition  of 
nitrous  ether  as  well  as  hydrocyanic  acid,  and  he  promised  on  a  future  occasion 
to  report  how  far  his  expectations  were  realized.  He  exhibited  samples 
of  glycero-alcoholic  solutions  containing  17  per  cent,  of  ethyl  nitrite  and  less. 
Upon  pouring  the  stronger  solutions  into  water  more  or  less  violent  effer- 
vescence was  caused  by  the  escape  of  the  gaseous  nitrite,  the  highest  strength 
