MINUTES OF THE PHARMACEUTICAL MEETINGS. 307 
November 3d, 1845. 
Professor Bridges in the Chair. 
The minutes of the last meeting were read and adopted. 
William Procter, Jr., presented to the College, on behalf 
of Dr. Bridges, its American editor, a copy of Fownes' 
Manual of Chemistry. 
Specimens of the copper ore from Copper Harbor, Lake 
Superior were also presented. 
The committee appointed at the last meeting on the sub- 
ject of opium, reported : 
That they had submitted the opium referred to them to a 
careful examination, with the view of ascertaining the per- 
centage of morphia it contained. One hundred grains 
when treated by the process of Dr. Staples, was found to 
yield three grains of the first crystals. By treating these 
with ether, the quantity was reduced to 2.65 grains which 
is about one fourth of the per centage contained in the best 
Smyrna opium. 
An aqueous infusion of this opium gave evidence of the 
presence of meconic acid by adding a persalt of iron. 
All the committee have been able to ascertain in reference 
to the introduction of the drug is, that it was sent on from 
Boston and advertised for sale at Comly's auction store, 
and was there sold, the most of it, with a destination for 
Baltimore. The cases were small, tin inside, and contained 
but about forty pounds each. The masses were much of 
the size and shape of ordinary opium, but quite dry, hard, 
and possessed of but little of the true opium odor. The 
masses had no rumex seeds adhering to their surfaces, 
and altogether possessed the aspect of opium that had been 
disintegrated by water, and the residue afterwards worked 
up into masses with the addition of some other matter. 
William Procter, Jr., ~) 
Joseph Turnpenny, > Committee. 
John H. Ecky, ) 
The report was adopted. 
