106 
Tincture  of  Nux  Vomica. 
f  Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
t  March  1,  1871. 
with  the  date,  &c.,  and  then  dropped  upon  it  some  melted  beeswax, 
one  drop  of  which  is  sufficient  to  attach  the  crust  to  one  side  of  the- 
disc  of  cork  which  suspends  it,  clear  of  the  glass  at  the  bottom,  under 
a  stratum  of  mercury  which  may  be  subsequently  introduced  until  the 
tube  is  filled ;  but  one  inch  of  mercury  I  prefer,  although  much  less 
may  answer,  provided  the  cork  is  covered  therewith  ;  especially  if  (by 
the  mouth)  the  pressure  of  the  atmosphere  is  partly  removed  (sucked 
out)  from  its  surface  momentarily,  as  this  is  more  than  equivalent  to- 
the  effect  that  would  otherwise  result  if  even  twenty  (20)  inches  of  mer- 
cury were  imposed.  In  other  words,  the  vaccine  is  enclosed  in  a  quasi 
Torricellian  vacuum  ;  and,  moreover,  any  air  on  its  surface  is  ex- 
panded and  escapes  above  the  stratum  of  mercury.  Upon  this  prin- 
ciple, delicate  anatomical  preparations  may  be  kept  during  the  sum- 
mer months  in  their  original  perfection,  provided  eremecausis  has  not 
commenced. 
Port  Fenn,  Delaware,  June  9th,  1870. 
TINCTURE  OF  NUX  VOMICA. 
By  J.  B.  Moore. 
The  tough  and  corneous  character  of  nux  vomica,  and  the  obstacle 
this  offers  to  the  solution  of  its  active  constituents,  render  it  one  of 
the  most  difficult  substances  in  the  Materia  Medica  to  exhaust  with  a 
limited  quantity  of  menstruum.  It  is,  therefore,  important  that  the 
greatest  care  be  exercised  in  the  preparation  of  the  tincture  and  all 
the  pharmaceutical  preparations  of  the  drug. 
The  U.  S.  Pharmacopoeia  directs  fi^ie  powder.  No.  60,  to  be  em- 
ployed in  making  the  tincture,  and  gives  the  following  directions  for 
its  preparation  : — "  Mix  the  powder  with  a  pint  of  alcohol,  and  digest 
for  twenty-four  hours,  in  a  close  vessel,  with  a  gentle  heat ;  then 
transfer  the  mixture  to  a  cylindrical  percolator,  and  gradually  pour 
alcohol  upon  it  until  two  pints  of  tincture  are  obtained." 
Having,  in  common  with  many  of  my  brethren  in  the  profession, 
had  frequent  difficulty  in  thoroughly  exhausting  the  drug  and  obtain- 
ing a  satisfactory  preparation  when  complying  with  the  above  direc- 
tions, I  was  induced  about  two  years  ago  to  institute  a  series  of 
experiments,  with  the  view  of  so  amending  the  officinal  formula  and 
process  that  a  more  uniform  and  reliable  tincture  might  be  made^ 
and,  after  many  experiments  with  various  modes  of  manipulation. 
