50 
LIQUOR  OPII  COMPOSITUS. 
ters,  all  the  resinous  matter,  much  of  the  narcotin,  and  in  short 
everything  not  soluble  in  water.  But  the  gummy  mucilaginous 
matter  and  nearly  all  the  coloring  matter  is  soluble  in  water, 
and  forms  a  large  and  embarrassing  portion  of  the  watery  ex- 
tract. All  the  gummy  matter  and  much  of  the  coloring  matter 
are  insoluble  in  strong  alcohol,  and  these  constitute  the  black 
tarry  matter  precipitated  when  the  watery  extract  is  diluted  and 
poured  into  the  alcohol.  This  is  the  putrescible,  fermentable 
portion  of  the  extract,  and  its  proportion  varies  greatly  with 
the  quality  of  the  opium,  being  rarely  less  than  10  or  11  per 
cent,  and  rarely  greater  than  18  per  cent.  This  tarry  precipi- 
tate contains  a  small  proportion  of  the  useful  alkaloids,  entan- 
gled and  carried  down  Avith  it,  and  the  larger  the  proportion  of 
this  tarry  matter  the  more  of  the  useful  alkaloids  it  will  contain. 
In  one  instance  it  was  found  to  contain  0-6  per  cent,  of  the  weight 
of  the  original  opium  of  morphia.  If  the  precipitation  be  well 
managed,  however,  and  particularly  if  time  be  valuable,  the 
tarry  matter  does  not  contain  enough  alkaloids  to  repay  the  ex- 
traction until  this  residue  saved  from  several  operations  shall 
have  accumulated.  But  whether  worked  singly  or  accifmulated 
they  are  dissolved  in  a  little  w^ater  by  warming,  the  solution  di- 
luted with  cold  water  until  a  filtered  portion  is  no  longer  made 
turbid  by  farther  dilution.  The  solution  is  then  filtered  oif  and 
the  filtrate  evaporated  on  a  water  bath  to  the  consistence  of  a 
very  thin  extract.  About  ten  times  its  volume  of  stronger  alco- 
hol is  then  added  gradually,  heated  to  boiling,  set  aside  over 
night  to  again  precipitate  the  now  clean  tarry  matter,  and  then 
the  alcoholic  solution  is  poured  off  clear,  and  added  to  the 
larger  portion  of  clear  alcoholic  solution  poured  off  from  the  first 
precipitation. 
The  alcoholic  solution  is  then  put  into  a  small  tared  still  and, 
by  means  of  a  water  bath,  distilled  until  the  alcohol  is  all  over. 
By  a  good  distillatory  apparatus  about  four-fifths  of  the  alcohol 
is  thus  recovered  in  a  more  dilute  condition  than  when  taken. 
This,  by  shaking  with  about  one-eighth  of  its  weight  of  powdered 
quick  lime  and  redistilling,  is  again  fit  for  the  same  use. 
To  the  extract  of  opium  in  the  tared  still,  after  distilling  off 
the  alcohol,  add  suJQScient  water  to  make  up  the  weight  to  1543 
