620  Ret  news  and  Bibliographical  Notices.  {Am'Dec!ri 
KEVIEWS  AND  BIBLIOGKAPHICAL  NOTICES. 
Die  Wichtigsten  Heilmittel  in  ihrer  Wechs'elnden  Chemischen  Zusammensetzung 
unci  P/iarmakodynamischen  Wirkung  ubersichtlich  dargestellt.  Von  Dr.  P.  C. 
Plugge,  Professor  an  der  Reichsuniversitat  in  Groningen.  Uebersetzt  von 
Edward  Schser,  Professor  der  Pharmacie  am  Eidg.  Polytechnicum  in  Zu- 
rich.   Jena  :  Gustav  Fischer,  1886.  8vo. 
The  most  important  remedies,  considered  in  their  variable  chemical  com- 
position and  pharmaco-dynamic  action.  By  Prof.  Dr.  P.  C.  Plugge.  Trans- 
lated from  the  Dutch  by  Prof.  E.  Schser. 
This  valuable  and  important  work  consists  of  two  parts,  of  which  the 
first,  upon  115  pages,  discusses  the  causes  of  the  differences  observed  in  the 
chemical  composition  of  certain  crude  drugs,  chemicals  and  galenicals. 
Aconite,  belladonna,  calabar  seeds,  cinchona,  colchicum  and  digitalis  may 
be  mentioned  as  examples  of  the  crude  drugs  under  consideration  ;  the 
various  narcotic  extracts,  resin  of  podophyllum,  etc.,  represent  the  pharma- 
ceutical preparations  ;  and  among  the  chemicals  we  find  aconitine,  atropine, 
caffeine,  white  precipitate,  calomel,  chloroform,  digitalin,  iodoform,  spirit 
of  nitrous  ether,  ether,  veratrine  and  others. 
In  the  case  of  crude  drugs,  the  influences  exerted  upon  their  composition 
—as  far  as  known — by,  the  time  of  collection,  habitat  and  cultivation,  botan- 
ical varieties  of  the  typical  species,  allied  species,  part  used,  age  of  the  part 
<\t  collection,  preservation  and  accidental  admixtures,  are  thoroughly  dis- 
cussed, and  the  suggestions  made  by  different  observers  are  carefully  noted. 
Most  of  these  drugs  yield  several  alkaloids  or  glucosides,  either  one  of 
which,  as  a  rule,  does  not  fully  represent  the  medical  properties  of  the  drug. 
These  principles,  as  met  in  commerce,  are  in  many  cases  not  pure,  but 
contain  other  constituents  of  the  drug,  or  some  of  the  derivatives  generated 
in  the  process  of  manufacture,  which  are  sometimes  inert,  or  more  fre- 
quently have  an  action  entirely  different  from  that  of  the  original  or  prin- 
cipal constituent  of  the  plant.  Principles  sold  under  the  same  name,  but 
coming  from  different  laboratories,  have  for  such  reasons  been  found  to 
differ  widely,  and  in  some  cases,  dangerously.  It  was,  therefore,  of  impor- 
tance to  ascertain  the  results  of  the  various  investigations  made  in  this 
direction,  and  including  the  effects  of  air,  moisture  and  chemical  agents; 
and  it  is  not  surprising,  that  in  the  light  of  these  investigations,  the  use  of 
such  principles  as  aconitine  and  digitalin  must  be  regarded  as  fraught  with 
danger,  and  that  prominent  authorities  are  even  inclined  to  discard  the  use 
of  digitalis  and  some  other  drugs  in  favor  of  proximate  principles  obtain- 
able of  reliably  definite  composition. 
Materially  different  effects  must  be  expected  from  chemicals  having  a 
different  composition,  but  recognized  by  the  various  pharmacopoeias  under 
substantially  alike  names,  as,  for  instance,  the  fusible  and  infusible  white 
precipitate;  or  from  such  chemicals  which,  like  calomel,  are  obtained  in 
greatly  differing  degrees  of  division  by  modifications  in  the  process  of  man- 
