Anatolian  Licorice  Root. 
Am  Jour.  Pharm. 
June.  1895. 
amount  was  again  obtained.  The  crystalline  residue  obtained 
upon  the  evaporation  of  the  water  solution  had  a  distinctly 
acid  reaction,  and  a  peculiarly  sour  or  acid-like  taste.  The  residue 
was  treated  with  absolute  alcohol,  in  which  it  was  soluble.  A  few 
drops  of  the  alcoholic  solution  were  placed  on  a  clean  watch  crystal, 
and  allowed  to  evaporate  spontaneously. 
The  watch  crystal  was  examined  with  the  compound  microscope, 
by  the  aid  of  which  the  fern-shaped  crystals  already  described  were 
rendered  very  distinct.  Another  portion  of  the  crystalline  residue 
was  treated  with  a  small  amount  of  distilled  water.  A  few  drops  of 
this  solution  were  transferred  to  a  clean  watch  crystal,  and  there 
allowed  to  evaporate.  Upon  examining  the  residue  left  in  this  case 
with  the  compound  microscope,  long,  acicular  crystals,  which  inter- 
laced, were  observed.  The  yield  from  a  kilo  of  the  Anatolian  lico- 
rice root  was  not  sufficient  for  further  investigation. 
Three  kilos  of  the  Persian  variety  were  manipulated  in  the  same 
manner,  in  order  to  detect  the  principle  and  isolate  it  in  larger 
quantity.  Crystals  of  the  same  character  were  obtained  from  this 
variety  also,  and  at  the  same  stage  of  the  process,  but  the  small 
amount  so  obtainable,  as  also  the  limited  time  at  the  author's  dis- 
posal, precluded  their  further  investigation. 
Moisture  and  Ash. — To  determine  the  comparative  amounts  of 
moisture  and  ash  contained,  estimations  were  made  on  four  varieties 
of  licorice  root. 
A  weighed  quantity  of  each  variety  was  dried  to  a  constant 
weight  in  an  air-bath  at  a  temperature  of  no0  C.  The  loss  in 
weight  was  taken  as  moisture. 
To  ascertain  the  amount  of  ash,  the  dried  residue  from  the  mois- 
ture determination  was  incinerated  until  the  organic  matter  was  con- 
sumed and  no  further  loss  in  weight  was  experienced.  The  results 
were  as  follows  : 
The  figures  given  in  the  foregoing  table  for  Anatolian  licorice 
represent  the  moisture  and  ash  of  the  root  that  was  submitted  to 
the  proximate  analysis  described  in  this  paper. 
Moisture.  Ash. 
Anatolian  .... 
Persian  
Turkish  (Russian) 
Spanish  
7'53  8-84 
7 '49  5  "43 
6-31  5-04 
6-8i  4-65 
