144 
Pliarmaceutical  Notes. 
j  Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
I     Mar.,  1888. 
Ammonia  Liniment,  U.  S.,  1880,  is  ordered  to  be  made  by  mixing 
30  parts  of  water  of  ammonia  and  70  parts  of  cotton- seed  oil.  If  these 
directions  are  followed,  and  the  cotton-seed  oil  employed  is  the  same 
as  that  which  is  in  general  nse  in  this  city,  a  very  unsatisfactory  pre- 
paration will  be  made,  on  account  of  the  oil  not  readily  uniting  with 
the  ammonia.  In  some  instances  I  have  known  this  mixture  to  be 
repeatedly  shaken  several  times  daily  for  a  week,  and  yet  to  completely 
separate  after  standing  ten  minutes.  This  difficulty  can  be  overcome 
by  the  addition  of  1 5  per  cent,  of  olive  oil  that  has  been  exposed  to  the 
air  and  become  slightly  rancid.  This  should  be  mixed  with  the  cotton- 
seed oil,  previous  to  the  ammonia  being  added.  It  is  probable  that  the 
water  of  ammonia  would  unite  with  the  cotton-seed  oil  that  had  become 
rancid  through  exposure  through  atmospheric  influences. 
The  Ttvo  Extracts  of  Aconite. — The  extract  of  aconite  now  officinal, 
being  prepared  from  aconite  root  is  a  much  stronger  preparation  than 
that  which  was  officinal  in  the  Pharmacopoeia  of  1870,  the  latter  hav- 
ing been  made  from  the  leaves.  The  extract  of  the  root  is  at  least  three 
times  as  strong  as  the  last-named.  The  dose  of  that  made  from  the 
root  as  given  in  the  dispensatories  is  from  one-sixth  to  one-fourth 
grain,  whilst  that  of  the  preparation  from  the  leaves  is  from  one-half  to 
one  grain.  It  is  unfortunate,  too,  that  the  officinal  titles  of  the  two 
extracts  are  identical.  Under  these  circumstances  there  will  be  liabilr 
ity  of  serious  errors,  if  not  fatal  mistakes  being  made,  from  the  fact  that 
some  physicians,  not  taking  into  consideration  that  Extractum  Aconiti 
now  represents  a  preparation  so  much  stronger  than  what  it  did  pre^ 
vious  to  the  appearance  of  the  present  Pharmacopoeia,  continue  to  pre- 
scribe it  in  the  same  dose  as  formerly,  and  unless  the  druggist  to  whose 
care  the  prescription,  containing  this  article,  called  the  attention  of  the 
prescriber  to  the  change  made,  or  if  this  was  not  possible,  dispensed 
the  extract  of  the  leaves,  very  unpleasant  results  might  occur. 
Tinctures  of  Nux  Vomica  and  Ignatia,  according  to  the  formulas 
given  in  the  new  Pharmacopoeia  (1880),  are  directed  to  be  prepared 
in  such  manner  that  they  shall  contain  respectively  2  per  cent,  of 
extract  in  the  first-named  tincture,  and  1  per  cent,  in  the  last.  This 
appears  to  be  a  wise  regulation  and  a  step  towards  exactness  of  produc- 
tion, so  much  desired  by  progressive  pharmacists.  It  might  have  been 
desirable,  if  such  a  plan  had  also  been  adopted  in  verifying  the  strength 
of  other  tinctures,  such  as  tinctures  of  aconite  root,  cannabis  indica, 
and  gelsemium. 
