170 
Quinium  Salts. 
/  Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
\      April,  1883. 
of  them  before  going  into  sohition  change  from  the  sandy  to  the  pasty 
condition,  which  process  in  some  of  them  progresses  very  slowly. 
It  is  the  writer's  opinion  that  the  pyrophosphates  in  general  are 
superfluous  and  comparatively  valueless.  They  should  be  discarded 
in  the  exclusive  favor  of  the  orthophosphates.  Pharmacists  who 
prepare  these  salts  for  themselves  are  also  advised,  instead  of  scaling 
them,  to  evaporate  and  dry  them,  at  a  moderate  heat,  in  large,  shallow 
capsules.  The  salts  are ,  then  obtained  as  sandy  grains.  The  writer 
particularly  recommends  the  trihydrous  sodioferric  citrophosphate 
already  treated  above.  It  can  be  very  easily  prepared  by  the  follow- 
ing formula : 
Ferric  citrate,  .  .  •;-  .    544  parts. 
Disodic  j)hosphate,  in  transparent  crystals,  358  ** 
Hydrosodic  carbonate,  .  .  .     84  " 
Water,  .....  1,200  " 
Place  the  ferric  citrate,  sodio-carbonate  and  water  into  a  spacious 
capsule ;  then  apply  heat,  and  when  eflervescence  ceases,  add  the  sodic 
phosphate ;  stir  until  all  the  salts  have  dissolved,  and  evaporate  the 
solution,  at  a  moderate  heat,  to  a  syrupy  consistence,  and  spread  it  on 
glass  plates,  to  dry  the  salt  in  scales. 
QUINIUM  SALTS. 
By  B.  Rother. 
The  quinium  salts  found  in  the  general  market,  excepting  the  ordi- 
nary sulphate,  are  very  much  less  in  demand  than  this  great  staple 
salt.  It  is  questionable  whether  any  decided  advantage  attaches  to  the 
acid  radicle  which  happens  to  be  in  combination  with  the  quinic  radicle 
in  all  other  cases  than  where  it  is  itself  possessed  of  an  inherent  potency. 
The  degree  of  solubility  and  diffusibility  may  render  some  effect,  but 
for  general  purposes  one  salt,  if  sufliciently  soluble,  is  perhaps  as  good 
as  another.  The  salt  which  appeared  earliest  in  the  field  of  supply,  all 
other  things  equal,  became  the  dominant  form.  Had  the  chloride^ 
instead  of  the  sulphate,  been  first  presented,  its  introduction  would  have 
followed  as  a  matter  of  course.  It  is,  indeed,  to  be  regretted  that  this* 
was  not  the  case,  since  the  chloride  has  more  specially  valuable  quali- 
ties than  are  possessed  by  any  other  quinic  salt.  It  firstly  contains  a 
greater  per  centage  of  quinine ;  secondly,  it  is  more  soluble  in  either 
alcohol  or  water  than  any  other  normal  quinium  salt;  and  thirdly, 
although  incomparably  more  soluble  than  the  normal  sulphate,  it  is 
