Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
Sept..  1888. 
Bismuth  Suhnitrate. 
445 
The  U.  S.  P.  describes  oil  of  cloveSj  as  well  as  the  oils  of  bay  and 
pimenta,  as  slightly  acid.  The  German  Pharmacopoeia  states,  "  oil  of 
cloves  does  not  redden  litmus/^  The  following  delicate  reaction  served 
to  show  the  distinct  acidity  of  these  three  oils.  Ten  drops  of  the  oil 
was  thoroughly  shaken  with  half  a  flaidounce  of  boiling,  distilled 
water,  and  when  cold,  filtered  through  a  moistened  filter.  To  one 
drachm  of  this  filtrate  was  added,  drop  by  drop,  a  small  quantity  of 
a  very  weak  solution  of  phenolphtalein,  made  by  adding  4  drops  of 
one  per  cent,  solution  of  phenolphtalein  to  a  half  fluidounce  of  water, 
and  reddening  by  adding  a  couple  of  drops  of  liquor  potassse.  Each 
fluid  drachm  of  the  aqueous  solution  of  the  oil  was  found  sufficient  to 
decolorize  from  3  to  6  drops  of  this  reagent,  the  color  being  again 
produced  on  adding  a  drop  or  two  of  very  dilute  solution  of  potassium 
hydrate. 
BISMUTH  SUBNITRATE. 
By  Feank  X.  MoERK,  Ph.  G. 
In  calculating  a  formula  conforming  to  suggestions  made  in  the  last 
number  of  this  journal  it  was  found  that  the  figures  relating  to  the 
U.  S.  P.  (1870)  formula,  represented  parts  in  one  and  not  parts  in 
one  hundred,  hence,  the  conclusions  based  on  these  figures  are 
erroneous. 
The  conditions  necessary  to  produce  a  compound  of  the  formula 
Bi  ONO3  were  ascertained  by  making  a  number  of  preparations, 
preceded,  however,  by  some  experiments  showing  the  effect  of  NH^ 
in  neutral,  acid  and  alkaline  solutions  upon  a  subnitrate  of  bis- 
muth containing  11 '71  per  cent,  oxide.  The  strength  of  the  NH^ 
NO3  solutions  varied  from  10  per  cent,  to  0*2  per  cent. 
In  neutral  solutions,  there  was  no  abstraction  of  acid  noticeable,  by 
reaction  with  litmus  or  by  addition  of  NH^OH  to  filtrate,  in  the  cold ;  on 
warming  all  of  the  solutions  reacted  with  litmus  and  NH^OH,  the 
more  dilute  the  solution,  the  stronger  the  reaction.  Dilute  nitric  acid, 
even  in  very  minute  quantities  gave  acid  reaction  and  filtrate  on  ad- 
dition of  NH4OH  became  cloudy,  indicating  that  oxide  or  hydrate 
did  exist  with  an  acid  nitrate,  and,  that  the  base  and  the  acid  salt  did 
not  react  on  each  other. 
Dilute  ammonia  water  produced  with  the  stronger  ammonium  ni- 
trate solutions,  an  alkaline  reaction  not  disappearing,  even  after  stand- 
ing several  hours. 
