3  8  8   Contributions  from  the  School  of  Pharmacy,  etc.  {Am^™r;  ?$m' 
to  contain  6*0  per  cent,  of  the  alkaloid  sanguinarina.  The  last  named 
method  was  devised  as  simpler  than  Schiel's,  and  is  as  follows  :  0*500 
gram  of  the  resinoid  is  exhausted  with  ether,  till  the  washings  give  no 
precipitate  with  phosphomolybdic  acid,  and  the  solution  fully  precipi- 
tated by  this  reagent.  The  phosphomolybdate  precipitate  is  then 
digested  with  solution  of  potassa,  the  mixture  exhausted  with  chloro- 
form, and  the  chloroform  solution  evaporated — to  weigh  the  residue  as 
alkaloid. 
Sanguinarina  No.  3  contained  magnesia.  It  was  of  lighter  color  than 
Nos.  I  and  2. 
Leptandrin,  Nos.  1  and  4,  each  gave  marked  qualitative  evidences  of 
an  alkaloid,  and  No.  2  gave  slight  results  for  the  same.  These  evi- 
dences consisted  of  precipitates  (in  acidulated  water  solution  of  the 
extracted  material)  by  potassium  mercuric  iodide,  phosphomolybdic  acid, 
metatungstic  acid  and  other  general  precipitants  of  alkaloids  ;  a  brown 
color  with  Frcehde's  reagent,  but  no  color  with  sulphuric  acid,  and  with 
nitric  acid  a  slight  yellow  color  not  affected  by  stannous  chloride.  Pre- 
paratory to  these  tests  for  an  alkaloid,  the  "  resinoids  "  were  treated 
with  acidulated  water,  and  the  filtered  solution  treated  with  ammonia 
and  exhausted  with  chloroform,  and  the  chloroform  solution  evaporated 
to  a  solid. 
Leptandrin  No.  1  contained  traces  of  a  lead  salt,  and  No.  2  con- 
tained 18  per  cent,  of  magnesia.  No.  3  was  in  dark  colored  vitreous 
fragments  ;  the  others  pulverulent  and  of  lighter  color. 
Two  manufactures  of  resinoid  Aconitin  were  examined.  No.  1  gave 
of  the  alkaloid  aconitia,  by  Mayer's  volumetric  method,  3*34  per  cent.; 
by  the  gravimetric  determination  (described  below)  4*17  per  cent.  No. 
2  gave,  volumetrically,  4*16  p.  c,  gravimetrically,  4-34  p.  c.  For 
these  determinations,  the  resinoids  were  extracted  by  acidulated  water. 
Owing  to  the  imperfect  subsidence  of  the  precipitate  in  Mayer's 
method,  it  was  sought  to  find  the  gravimetric  value  of  the  precipitate  of 
aconitia  by  potassium  mercuric  iodide  solution.  A  sample  believed  to  be 
pure  alkaloid  was  obtained,  and  O'loo  gram  dissolved,  and  treated  with 
an  excess  of  the  reagent,  gave  a  precipitate,  which,  when  dry,  weighed 
(in  three  trials  very  nearly)  o*  170*  gram.  This  value  was  used  in  ob- 
taining the  gravimetric  results  above  stated. 
Aconitin  No.  1  contained  11  p.  c.  of  magnesium  carbonate,  and  No. 
