^sS^™"}       Powder  for  producing  Ozone.  407 
(remained.  Its  solution  in  water  was  precipitated  by  subacetate  of  lead, 
and  after  removing  the  excess  of  lead  by  sulphuretted  hydrogen, 
Trommer's  test  indicated  in  the  filtrate  the  presence  of  glucose. 
The  precipitate  on  being  suspended  in  warm  water  and  treated  with 
sulphuretted  hydrogen,  yielded,  on  evaporating  the  water,  a  yellow  mass, 
having  a  peculiar,  not  unpleasant,  bitter  taste. 
The  exhausted  powder  yielded  to  cold  water  some  albumen,  sepa- 
rable by  heat,  and  gummy  matter,  precipitated  by  alcohol,  and  the  solu- 
tion of  which  formed  a  jelly  with  ferric  chloride  (aqueous  solution  ? 
Editor).   Hot  water  dissolved  mainly  starch  from  the  exhausted  powder. 
On  distilling  the  fresh  rhizome  with  water,  an  opalescent  distillate, 
of  a  peculiar  odor,  was  obtained,  from  which  a  white  camphoraceous 
substance  separated,  scaly  in  appearance,  of  a  faint  odor,  nearly  taste- 
less and  soluble  in  alcohol. 
POWDER  FOR  PRODUCING  OZONE. 
BY  JOHN  L.  DAVIS. 
w  In  order  to  produce  artificial  ozone,  Mr.  Lender  makes  use  of  equal 
iparts  of  peroxide  of  manganese,  permanganate  of  potassium  and  oxalic 
acid.  When  this  mixture  is  placed  in  contact  with  water,  ozone  is 
quickly  generated.  For  a  room  of  medium  size,  two  teaspoonfuls  of 
this  powder,  placed  in  a  dish  and  occasionally  diluted  with  water,  would 
be  sufficient.  The  ozone  develops  itself  ;  it  disinfects  the  surrounding 
air  without  producing  cough." 
The  attention  of  the  writer  was  called  to  the  above  article  as  it 
appeared  in  the  "  Philadelphia  Medical  and  Surgical  Journal,"  under 
date  of  May  20th,  1876.  For  the  purpose  intended,  it  is  certainly  one 
of  the  best  of  the  published  formulas,  but  on  account  of  the  danger 
attending  its  manipulation,  should  be  used  with  extreme  caution.  A 
prescription  with  these  proportions  was  taken  to  an  apothecary,  who 
inadvertantly  used  a  mortar  in  mixing  it,  with  the  result  of  an  imme- 
diate explosion  ;  which  would  have  been  attended  with  disastrous  con- 
sequences except  for  the  smallness  of  the  quantity  employed. 
In  mixing  these  ingredients,  trituration  should  not  be  used  at  all,  but 
they  should  be  cautiously  mixed  with  a  spatula  in  small  quantities  ;  and 
even  then,  if  they  should  have  been  reduced  to  a  fine  powder  they 
cannot  be  mixed  without  danger,  as  the  mixture  is  liable  to  explode  at 
.the  moment  of  contact. 
