^"jlr^'iSr"' }  Preparations  of  Ergot.  13 
all  the  scleromucin  had  been  precipitated  when  the  alcoholic  strength 
had  reached  65  per  cent.,  and  that  no  further  precipitation  took  place 
to  any  great  extent,  till  the  sclerotic  acid  is  thrown  down,  which  does 
not  commence  till  the  alcoholic  strength  reaches  80  per  cent.  The 
large  yield  of  ergotin  obtained  by  Mr.  Diehl  by  the  method  of  the  Phar. 
(jrer.  is  accounted  for  by  the  fact  that  the  alcoholic  strength  did  not 
exceed  30  per  cent.,  and  the  preparation  contained  therefore  all  the 
scleromucin  and  a  great  proportion  of  oil  and  resinous  matter,  which 
are  not  precipitated  till  the  alcoholic  strength  reaches  40  per  cent.  The 
presence  of  oil  was  also  shown  by  the  fluidity  of  the  preparation  and 
the  resinous  matter  by  its  color.  An  ergotin  of  firm  pilular  consist- 
ence cannot  be  obtained  by  these  methods  unless  the  ergot  is  previously 
extracted  with  benzin  and,  still  better,  subsequently  with  strong  alcohoL 
The  extraction  of  oil  and  resin  (?)  is  not  advocated  on  the  ground  alone 
of  rendering  the  ergot  more  readily  extracted  by  water,  although  free 
from  oil,  the  drug  is  more  readily  disintegrated  as  it  lacks  that  horny 
surface,  but  more  on  account  of  that  the  ergotin  will  be  more  concen- 
trated and  of  better  consistence. 
Sclerotic  Acid. — In  preparing  some  sclerotic  acid,  an  opportunity 
presented  itself  to  determine  whether  the  purified  ergot  was  more  readily 
exhausted  with  water  than  the  crude  drug.  Ten  pounds  of  purified 
ergot  was  macerated  and  expressed  with  three  times  its  weight  of  water 
in  three  equal  portions,  the  liquid  concentrated  to  five  pounds  and 
alcohol  added  to  bring  the  mixture  to  50  per  cent,  and  filtered.  The 
filtrate  was  concentrated  to  a  syrup  in  consistence  and  alcohol  added  to 
make  the  liquid  of  85  per  cent,  alcoholic  strength.  The  sclerotic  acid 
was  quickly  precipitated  and  obtained  quite  pure  after  washing  with 
85  per  cent,  alcohol.  It  was  of  a  slate  color,  but  soon  turned  brown. 
Ten  pounds  of  crude  ergot  in  coarse  powder  was  macerated  for  twelve 
hours  with  water,  packed  in  a  percolator  and  eight  pints  of  percolate 
obtained,  again  macerated  and  a  second  similar  quantity  of  liquid 
received,  alternate  maceration  and  percolation  was  enforced  till 
the  drug  was  exhausted,  which  was  scarcely  accomplished  when 
thirty-two  pints  of  fluid  had  been  recovered.  When  the  orifice 
was  opened  after  the  second  maceration  quite  an  explosion  took  place, 
indicating  the  formation  of  carbonic  acid  gas  and  the  process  must 
therefore  be  watched.  The  liquids  obtained  were  treated  in  the  same 
manner  as  above,  nearly  twenty-five  per  cent,  of  matter  being  precipi- 
tated and  rejected  ;  when  the  alcoholic  strength  reached  eighty-five  per 
