622  Reviews  and  Bibliographical  Notices.  {AmB™T/im&Tm' 
•drugs  are  considered,  Dr.  Lyons'  work  aims  at  the  valuation  of  potent  drugs 
and  their  galenical  preparations.  In  this  respect  it  follows  in  the  wake  of 
Dragendorff's  "  Werthbestimmung"  (see  Am.  Jour.  Phar.,  1875,  p.  92),  and 
its  author  acknowledges  himself  indebted  for  many  of  the  processes  offered 
by  him,  to  the  labors  of  Prof.  Dragendorff,  as  well  as  to  those  of  Dr.  Squibb, 
.and  of  others  who  have  worked  in  this  direction  on  special  subjects. 
The  work  is,  with  few  exceptions,  confined  to  vegetable  drugs,  and  it  is 
but  natural  that  the  large  majority  of  these  should  be  such  which  owe  their 
medicinal  properties  to  one  or  more  alkaloids,  inasmuch  as  the  recognition 
and  accurate  estimation  of  these  compounds  have  been  more  thoroughly 
studied,  than  the  determination  of  other  groups  of  organic  bodies.  In  ad- 
dition to  such  drugs  we  find  considered  digitalis,  elaterium,  podophyllum 
and  rhubarb,  the  solvents  alcohol  and  glycerin,  the  ethers  amyl  nitrite  and 
ethyl  nitrite,  and  the  proteids  pepsin  and  peptone. 
The  introductory  part  treats  of  the  apparatus,  reagents,  methods  of  assay 
and  proximate  analysis,  and  special  methods  for  separating  alkaloids.  This 
is  followed  by  the  chemical  valuation  of  the  different  drugs,  and  an  appen- 
dix is  added  giving  in  tabular  form  the  results  of  assays  of  aconite,  bella- 
donna, cinchona  and  other  important  articles. 
Extensive  study  and  practice  of  the  processes  discussed  are  noticed  upon 
•every  page ;  and  the  author  is  thereby  enabled  to  offer  a  great  many 
valuable  suggestions  and  modifications,  which  will  be  of  great  advantage  to 
those  who  may  have  to  perform  such  analyses  without  having  the  time  to 
give  to  the  lengthy  comparative  investigations,  that  the  author  has  been  en- 
abled to  carry  on.  The  directions  are  precise,  so  that  they  can  be  readily 
followed  by  those  devoting  the  necessary  care  to  such  manipulations, 
though  they  are  naturally  in  nearly  all  cases  so  delicate,  that  only  those 
having  considerable  experience  in  analytical  work  can  hope  to  reach  trust- 
worthy results.  The  attentive  student  will  find  the  practical  hints  and  expla- 
nations of  great  service  in  his  studies. 
In  heartily  recommending  the  work  for  its  intrinsic  worth  and  usefulness, 
its  neat  external  and  internal  appearance  deserves  to  be  noticed,  as  well  as 
the  small  number  of  typographical  errors  observed  by  us ;  through  over- 
sight the  name  of  the  author  of  a  process  for  crystallized  digitalin,  on  pages 
-89  and  90,  is  repeatedly  spelled  Nativalle. 
First  Annual  Report  of  the  State  Board  of  Health  and  Vital  Statistics  of  the  Com- 
monwealth of  Pennsylvania.  Harrisburg :  E.  K.  Meyers,  State  Printer,  1886. 
8vo,  pp.  361. 
The  State  Board  of  Health  was  created  by  an  act  of  Legislature  approved 
June  3,  1885,  and  organized  July  2,  following.  The  annual  report  must  be 
transmitted  to  the  Governor  during  the  first  week  in  December ;  the  report 
before  us,  therefore,  covers  a  period  of  five  months  only.  Much  of  the 
time  was  necessarily  occupied  with  the  initial  measures  for  carrying  out  the 
