372 
Alkaloidal  Estimations. 
f  Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
\      August,  1905. 
be  made,  and  where  and  how  the  book  itself  may  be  improved  so 
as  to  make  it,  as  it  rightfully  should  be,  the  accepted  and  acknowl- 
edged authority  on  all  matters  pertaining  to  drugs  and  preparations 
that  are  generally  accepted  and  widely  used  in  the  treatment  of 
disease. 
ALKALOIDAL  ESTIMATIONS  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 
PHARMACOPCEIA,  EIGHTH  REVISION. 
By  W.  A.  Puckner. 
The  United  States  Pharmacopoeia  of  1890  prescribed  standards  for 
three  alkaloid  bearing  drugs,  cinchona,  nux  vomica  and  opium,  and 
for  six  preparations  therefrom,  namely,  extract,  fluid  extract  and 
tincture  of  nux  vomica,  and  extract,  tincture  and  deodorized  tincture 
of  opium.  The  eighth  decennial  revision  of  the  United  States  Phar- 
macopoeia directs  alkaloidal  estimations  for  twenty-one  drugs :  aco- 
nite, belladonna  leaves,  belladonna  root,  cinchona,  red  cinchona, 
coca,  colchicum  seed,  conium,  guarana,  hydrastis,  hyoscyamus, 
ipecac,  nux  vomica,  opium,  deodorized  opium,  granulated  opium, 
physostigma,  pilocarpus,  scopola  and  stramonium.  Further,  the 
estimation  of  alkaloid  in  thirty-four  preparations  of  these  drugs  is 
directed ;  namely,  belladonna  plaster,  extracts  of  belladonna  leaves, 
colchicum  corm,  hyoscyamus,  nux  vomica,  opium,  physostigma, 
scopola  and  stramonium,  fluid  extracts  of  aconite,  belladonna  root, 
cinchona,  coca,  colchicum  seed,  conium,  guarana,  hydrastis,  hyoscy- 
amus, nux  vomica,  opium,  deodorized  opium,  physostigma  and 
stramonium.  Truly,  a  victory  for  the  advocates  of  alkaloidal 
assays  !  The  advanced  position  which  the  revision  committee  has 
taken  in  respect  to  standardization  of  alkaloidal  drugs  and  their 
preparations  is  shown  by  a  glance  at  the  German  Pharmacopoeia, 
which  went  into  effect  January  1,  1901,  and  the  British  Pharmaco- 
poeia of  1898.  The  latter  directs  the  valuation  of  the  preparations 
of  belladonna,  cinchona,  ipecac,  nux  vomica  and  opium  only,  twelve 
altogether.  It  requires  but  two  drugs,  red  cinchona  bark  and  opium, 
to  be  assayed ;  evidently  considering  such  assays  superfluous  when 
the  preparations  of  the  drugs,  the  form  in  which  they  are  adminis- 
tered, must  be  assayed  when  finished.  The  German  Pharmacopoeia 
prescribes  methods  of  valuation  for  six  drugs,  aconite,  cinchona, 
ipecac,  nux  vomica,  opium  and  pomegranate,  and  for  the  prepara- 
