Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
June,  1921. 
Wood  Distillation. 
445 
mine  do  not  react  to  this  test,  which  therefore  seems  to  be  specific 
for  aconite.  It  is  not  only,  applicable  to  the  pure  alkaloid,  but  also 
applicable  to  powdered  root  of  aconite.  Hence,  if  confirmed,  it  will 
be  of  great  toxicological  importance.  Recently,  in  a  case  of  human 
poisoning  at  Banswada  Nizamaabad,  I  was  able  to  test  this  reaction. 
A  few  black  fragments  found  adherent  to  the  stomach  wall  of  the 
deceased  gave  positive  reaction  to  this  test,  and  the  case  was  con- 
firmed subsequently  by  experiments  on  animals.  The  police  were 
able  to  procure  from  the  house  of  the  culprit  a  brown  powder,  which 
on  examination  was  found  to  be  powdered  root  of  aconite. 
DISCUSSION. 
Mr.  H.  Finnemore  said  that,  apart  from  the  limited  value  of  all 
color  reactions,  this  test  was  not  specific  for  aconitine,  since  it  ap- 
peared to  be  given  by  the  Indian  variety  of  aconite,  which  contained 
pseudoaconitine,  but  not  aconitine. 
WOOD  DISTILLATION. 
Census  Bureau's  Summary  Concerning  the  Industry,  ipip. 
A  preliminary  statement  of  the  general  results  of  the  1919  cen- 
sus of  manufactures  with  reference  to  the  wood  distillation  industry 
has  been  issued  by  William  M.  Steuart,  Director,  Bureau  of  the 
Census,  Department  of  Commerce.  It  consists  of  a  detailed  state- 
ment of  the  quantities  and  values  of  the  various  products  manufac- 
tured, prepared  under  the  direction  of  Mr.  Eugene  F.  Hartley, 
Chief  Statistician  for  Manufactures. 
Reports  were  received  from  116  establishments  engaged  in  the 
distillation  of  wo®d,  and  their  products  for  the  year  were  valued  at 
$32>635,ooo.  At  the  census  of  1914  there  were  101  establishments, 
with  products  valued  at  $10,530,000.  The  value  of  annual  produc- 
tion has  therefore  increased  $22,105,000,  or  209.9  Per  cent- 
In  1919,  44  establishments  were  located  in  Pennsylvania,  21  in 
New  York,  16  in  Michigan,  7  in  Georgia,  6  in  Florida,  4  in  Alabama, 
4  in  Louisiana,  3  in  Wisconsin,  2  in  Mississippi,  2  in  North  Carolina, 
and  1  each  in  Connecticut,  Kentucky,  Missouri,  New  Jersey,  Ten- 
nessee, Texas  and  West  Virginia. 
The  statistics  for  1919  and  1914  are  summarized  in  the  follow- 
