464 
Progress  in  Pharmacy. 
1  Am.  Jour.  Than 
\     October,  1913. 
glass  stoppers  do  not  avail,  a  small  quantity  of  ether  poured  on  the 
neck  of  the  bottle  so  that  the  ether  may  penetrate  as  much  as 
possible  between  the  stopper  and  the  neck,  then  warming  the 
outer  side  of  the  neck  with  warm  water,  will  frequently  loosen  the 
stopper. 
Diuretic  Drugs. — Christian,  Henry  A.  (/.  Am.  Med.  Assoc., 
1913,  v.  61,  p.  267),  reports  some  experimental  work  to  determine 
the  value  of  diuretic  drugs  in  acute  experimental  nephritis.  The 
results,  while  too  limited  to  be  conclusive,  are  suggestive  and  in- 
dicate the  need  of  careful  reexamination  of  the  effects  of  various 
diuretics  in  nephritis  with  the  methods  now  available  for  testing 
renal  function. 
Nitrogen,  Determination  of. — Rosenbloom,  Jacob.  (/.  Am. 
Med.  Assoc.,  1913,  v.  61,  pp.  87-88).  A  method  for  the  estimation 
of  total  nitrogen  and  ammonia  nitrogen  in  urine.  The  method  de- 
pends on  the  fact  that  when  a  neutral  solution  of  an  ammonium 
salt  is  treated  with  formaldehyde,  combination  occurs  with  the  for- 
mation of  hexamethylenetetramine  and  the  liberation  of  a  cor- 
responding amount  of  acid  which  can  be  titrated  with,  tenth-normal 
sodium  hydroxide. 
Ash  and  Moisture  Constants  of  Pozvdered  Vegetable  Drugs. — 
Thurston  and  Thurston.  (/.  Am.  Pharm.  Assoc.,  .1913,  v.  2,  pp. 
474-476).  A  report  in  the  form  of  a  table  giving  the  water  con- 
tent, ash  content,  and  the  nature  of  the  ash  found  in  a  number 
of  the  official  and  unofficial  drugs. 
The  Valuation  of  Chocolate. — Kuhl,  Hugo.  (Suedd.  Apoth. 
Ztg.,  1913,  v.  53,  pp.  214-216).  For  the  chemical  determination 
of  adulterations  in  chocolate  it  is  necessary  to  determine  the  ash 
content,  the  fat  content,  the  nature  of  the  fat  and  the  sugar 
content.  Corn  starch  can  be  recognized  by  means  of  the  microscope, 
as  can  powdered  cacao  nibs. 
Salicylic  Acid. — Hewlett,  A.  W.  (/.  Am.  Med.  Assoc.,  1913,  v. 
61,  pp.  319-321),  reports  on  the  clinical  effects  of  "natural"  and 
"  synthetic "  sodium  salicylate.  The  variations  in  action  shown 
by  the  tabulated  statistics  of  the  comprehensive  report  are  sur- 
prisingly small.  Allowing  for  statistical  error,  one  must  conclude 
that  natural  and  synthetic  sodium  salicylate  are  indistinguishable 
so  far  as  their  therapeutic  and  toxic  effects  on  patients  are  con- 
cerned. 
Methyl  Alcohol. — Editorial.    (/.  Am.  M.  Assoc.,  1913,  v.  61, 
