Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
Dec.,  1888. 
8ome  Indian  Food  Plants. 
595 
Petroleum  ether  extracted  from  the  nearly  dry  berries  a  small  quantity 
of  fat,  with  a  considerable  amount  of  red  coloring  matter,  which  color 
was  further  almost  completely  extracted  by  ether  and  alcohol,  the  lat- 
ter solvent  taking  out  some  acid.  As  the  fat,  doubtless,  comes  from 
the  seeds,  it  probably  exerts  but  little  influence  on  the  value  of  the  ber- 
ries as  a  food.  The  acidity  was  found  to  be  due  to  citric  and  malic 
acids.  The  amount  of  acid  was  estimated  by  expressing  10  grams  of 
the  fruit,  and  neutralizing  the  juice  with  normal  sodium  hydrate  solu- 
tion. Whether  calculated  for  citric  or  malic  acid,  the  results  would 
differ  very  slightly,  so  the  percentage  as  malic  acid  was  found  to  be 
2-45. 
Moisture  and  ash  were  determined  in  the  usual  way,  and  found  to  be 
for  the  former,  71*28  per  cent.,  and  the  latter,  '45  per  cent.  Nitrogen 
was  determined  by  combustion  with  soda  lime,  which  indicated  '14 
per  cent,  of  albumenoids. 
Sugar  was  determined,  both  before  and  after  boiling  with  acid,  by 
the  gravimetric  method  with  Fehling's  solution,  and  there  was  found 
2*45  per  cent,  cane  sugar  and  3*02  per  cent,  grape  sugar. 
The  aqueous  solution  of  the  berries  precipitated  by  alcohol  indicated 
•42  percent,  mucilage  and  pectin. 
A  pleasant  acidulous  jelly  was  also  made  which,  in  almost  every 
particular,  resembled  that  from  currants. 
A  comparison  of  the  following  results  with  the  constituents  of  cur- 
rants, as  given  by  Blythe  (Composition  and  Analysis  of  Foods,  page 
133),  may  be  of  interest : 
Buffalo  Berries.  Currants. 
Water   71-28  84-77 
Nitrogenous  Substances   -14  0'51 
Free  Acid  ^   2-45  2-X5 
Total  Sugar   5-47  6-38 
Other  Non-nitrogenous  substances  (Pectin,  etc.)   '42  0-90 
Undetermined   1979  4*57 
Ash   -45  0-72 
10000  100-00 
Treatment  of  Warts.— Children  often  suffer  from  unsightly  warts  on 
the  hands,  which  cannot  be  removed  by  caustic.  G.  B.  PuUin,  of  Sidmouth 
{Bristol  Medical  Journal),  recommends  in  such  cases  the  administration  of 
two  or  three  minims  of  liq.  arsenicalis  twice  a  day.  In  a  week  or  ten  days, 
he  says,  the  warts  will  disappear. 
