A^ctJ0°bUer, Pi9air9m'  )  Detection  of  Cocaine,  Heroine  and  Veronal     66 1 
quantity  present  in  the  whole  organ  may  be  calculated.  The  same 
remark  naturally  applies  to  the  urine  when  a  portion  only  has  been 
reserved  for  analysis. 
The  various  organs  and  fluids  are  weighed,  and  the  former  re- 
duced to  a  suitable  state  of  subdivision.  This  is  best  effected,  after 
a  little  preliminary  dissection,  by  passing  the  material  twice  through 
a  mincing  machine,  when  aliquot  portions  can  be  taken  for  analysis. 
At  this  stage  it  should  not  be  forgotten  that,  although  medical  evi- 
dence may  have  suggested  death  from  a  narcotic,  the  analyst  in 
most  cases  must  satisfy  himself  that  no  other  poison  is  present. 
A  weighed  portion  of  the  material,  acidulated  with  tartaric  acid, 
should  in  the  first  place  be  distilled  in  a  current  of  steam  and  the 
distillate  reserved  for  examination  with  a  view  to  the  detection  of 
volatile  poisons — e.g.,  chloral,  chloroform,  etc. 
A  further  weighed  quantity  of  viscera,  rendered  acid  with  acetic 
acid,  is  warmed  with  double  its  volume  of  alcohol  (90  to  95  per 
cent.),  allowed  to  stand  for  some  hours,  the  alcohol  decanted,  and 
the  residue  again  extracted  with  the  same  solvent.  The  various 
portions  of  alcohol  are  mixed  and  filtered  through  cloth,  using  the 
filter  pump  if  necessary,  concentrated,  and  again  filtered — this  time 
through  paper.  If  the  solution  be  still  too  deeply  colored,  lead  ace- 
tate may  be  used  as  a  clearing  agent,  the  liquid  being  again  raised 
to  the  boiling-point,  filtered,  and  the  lead  removed  by  hydrogen 
sulphide.  The  filtrate,  after  concentration  to  small  bulk  at  a  low 
temperature,  is  reserved  for  the  extraction  of  alkaloids,  veronal,  etc. 
The  urine,  rendered  faintly  acid  with  acetic  acid,  is  raised  to  the 
boiling-point,  allowed  to  simmer,  small  portions  of  finely  powdered 
lead  acetate  being  added  from  time  to  time  until  precipitation  ceases. 
After  filtration  and  removal  of  the  lead  by  hydrogen  sulphide  the 
liquid  is  concentrated  to  small  bulk  and  reserved  for  examination 
as  before. 
Each  of  the  various  concentrations  acidulated  with  acetic  acid 
is  extracted  in  a  separate  funnel  with  successive  small  quantities  of 
ether.  The  various  portions  of  solvent  are  mixed,  the  ether  evapo- 
rated, the  residue,  if  any,  dried  in  the  water-oven,  weighed  and  ex- 
amined for  veronal,  sulphonal,  trional,  etc. 
The  aqueous  solution,  after  the  ethereal  extraction  just  described, 
is  rendered  alkaline  with  ammonia  and  shaken  with  chloroform,  this 
operation  being  repeated  three  times,  the  various  portions  of  the 
