AMERICAN  PHARMACEUTICAL  ASSOCIATION.  499 
masses  undergoes  decomposition.  Question — What  are  the  conditions  and 
substances  favorable  to  this  change,  and  how  should  it  be  avoided  ? 
Accepted  by  Ambrose  Smith,  of  Philada. 
18.  What  is  the  most  eligible  process  for  obtaining  polygalic  acid  from 
senega,  in  what  proportion  does  it  exist,  and  what  are  the  forms  of  pre- 
scribing it  most  to  be  desired  as  a  substitute  for  the  preparations  of  se- 
nega ?  Accepted  by  William  Procter,  Jr.,  of  Philada. 
19.  The  bark  of  Larix  Europoea  has  recently  attracted  some  attention  in 
Ireland  and  England,  as  an  astringent  remedy  to  allay  the  chronic  dis- 
charges from  mucous  surfaces  of  the  alimentary  and  urinary  organs.  Ques- 
tion— Does  the  bark  of  Larix  Americana  possess  this  property,  and  if  so,  to 
what  may  it  be  attributed? 
Referred  to  Henry  T.  Cummings}  M.  D.f  of  Portland,  Maine. 
20.  The  history  and  statistics  in  regard  to  the  collection  and  curing  of 
carragheen,  or  Irish  moss,  on  the  coast  of  New  England,  and  is  it  produced 
by  the  same  plant  as  the  Irish  drug  ? 
Accepted  by  Augustus  P.  Melzar,  of  Boston. 
21.  The  culture  of  Crocus  sativus  in  this  country ;  to  what  extent  is  it 
cultivated  for  the  purpose  of  obtaining  saffron  ?  How  does  the  same  com- 
pare with  that  of  foreign  production,  and  what  are  the  inducements  and 
the  obstacles  to  the  culture  of  the  saffron  plant  ? 
Accepted  by  Frederick  L.  John,  of  Philada. 
22.  Dr.  Garrod,  in  a  paper  read  before  the  College  of  Physicians  at  Lon- 
don, asserts  that  liquor  potassae  destroys  the  medicinal  power  of  the  alka- 
loids of  belladonna  and  hyoscyamus.  Question — Is  this  assertion  corro- 
borated by  other  investigators,  and  if  so,  in  what  manner  does  the  alkali 
act?  Accepted  by  B.  H.  Stabler,  M.  D.,  of  Alexandria. 
23.  Statistics  of  the  manufacture  of  fine  chemicals,  on  the  large  scale,  in 
England  for  exportation  to  the  United  States. 
Accepted  by  Henry  Haviland,  of  New  York. 
24.  The  drug  trade  of  the  United  States ;  its  past,  present,  and  future. 
Accepted  by  C.  B.  Guthrie,  M.  D.,  of  New  York. 
25.  It  is  well  known  that  cantharidin,  a  neutral  substance,  insoluble  in 
water,  is,  in  its  natural  state,  quite  soluble  in  that  fluid ;  so  that  water  by 
decoction  will  wholly  remove  that  principle  from  Spanish  flies.  This  solu- 
bility is  attributed  to  a  yellow  substance  existing  in  the  insect.  Question — 
What  is  the  nature  of  this  yellow  matter,  and  in  what  way  does  it  influence 
the  solubility  of  cantharidin  ? 
Referred  to  John  M.  Maisch,  of  Philada. 
26.  It  is  a  well  known  fact  that  the  odor  of  Vanilla,  like  that  of  tobacco, 
