Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
May,  1879. 
Reviews,  etc. 
287 
as  novelties  in  the  list  of  manufacturers,  and  mostly  with  doubtful  or  not  suffi- 
ciently established  claims,  but  there  are  several  of  the  preparations,  which  we  miss, 
as  having  sufficient  confidence  of  the  medical  profession  to  be  frequently  prescribed 
and  for  which  one  naturally  would  look  in  a  book  of  reference,  like  the  one  under  con- 
sideration, as  e.g.,  fluid  extracts  of  Triticum  repens,  Viburnum  prunifolium,  Hamame- 
lis,  Oenothera,  Grindelia,  of  some  of  which,  however,  brief  mention  is  made  under  the 
head  of  the  respective  crude  drugs.  To  the  formulas  of  the  tinctures  and  other 
galenical  preparations  are  invariably  added  those  of  the  G.Ph.,  and  often  those  of 
Fr.  Codex,  with  comparison  of  strength  of  the  more  heroic  remedies. 
Under  the  heading  Liquores,  we  find  inserted,  whenever  of  importance,  the  tables 
showing  relation  between  Sp.  Gr.  and  per  cent,  of  dissolved  matter  in  the  solution. 
Chemical  formulae  are  stated  in  the  new  notation.  This  is  as  it  should  be,  inconvenient 
as  it  will  appear  to  those  of  the  older  school.  Those  who  have  not  followed  the 
conflict  of  theories  going  on  in  later  years  must  find  it  difficult  to  familiarize  them- 
selves with  the  new  aspect  under  which  old  facts  present  themselves.  For  the  younger 
generation,  accustomed  to  view  them  in  the  light  of  the  prevailing  theories,  the 
retention  of  the  old  formulas,  the  rationale  of  which  to  the  majority  could  have 
none  but  historical  interest,  would  have  been  a  constant  source  of  vexation. 
In  chemicals,  under  the  head  of  tests,  close  attention  has  been  given  to  the 
methods  for  the  detection  of  impurities  and  estimation  of  adulterations.  Under 
phosphoric  acid  we  miss  Hager's  test  for  the  detection  of  arsenic  and  phosphorous 
acid,  which  recommends  itself  by  its  readiness  and  simplicity. 
In  turning  our  attention  to  the  articles  connected  with  the  chemistry  of  the  alkaloids, 
we  find  a  striking  example  of  the  success  achieved  in  presenting  comprehensive  and 
often  complicated  subjects  in  a  manner  at  once  concise  and  exhaustive,  and  fully  in 
accordance  with  the  advanced  state  of  science.  In  support  of  this  we  need  only  to 
point  to  the  articles :  Cinchona,  with  the  latest  methods  for  assay  of  the  cinchona 
barks;  opium,  with  its  valuable  contribution  under  the  heading  Morphometry;  or 
any  of  those  treating  of  the  various  cinchona  alkaloids.  Of  omissions  we  noticed 
but  few.  We  miss  quinias  hydrobromas  and  quinise  hypophosphis  as  articles  not 
unfrequently  prescribed.  Considering  that  the  completion  of  such  a  comprehensive 
compendium  as  this  work  has  involved  years  of  labor,  and  that  the  multitude  of 
subjects  within  its  compass  had  to  be  gathered  from  fields  of  unlimited  extent,  fields 
where  new  seeds  are  daily  sown,  bringing  forth  constantly  new  harvests  of  facts 
affecting  the  interests  of  pharmacy,  it  is  only  to  be  wondered  at  that  the  number 
of  omissions  to  which  a  close  criticism  might  point  is  so  small. 
The  work  closes  with  an  appendix  containing  tables  of  weights  and  measures, 
tables  showing  the  relation  between  apothecaries'  weights  and  their  equivalents  in  the 
metric  system — this  last  subject  having  particular  attention  bestowed  upon  it — com- 
parisons of  scales  of  the  different  hydrometeis,  alcoholometers  and  thermometers; 
the  list  of  leading  reagents  will  be  found  of  particular  interest,  as  also  as  a  new 
feature  to  the  American  pharmacist,  the  addition  of  volumetric  test  solutions 
expressed  in  the  values  of  the  metric  system.  A  complete  general  index  directs  the 
student  to  10,400  references.  The  therapeutical  index  will  be  regarded  as  a  conve- 
nience to  the  practitioner. 
