538 
PURITY  OF  YELLOW  BEESWAX. 
with  successive  small  portions  of  alcohol,  filtering,  and  evaporat- 
ing on  a  water-bath,  a  residue  was  obtained  weighing  10-54 
grains.  It  was  brittle  and,  when  heated,  gave  an  unmistakable 
smell  of  rosin.  Pure  wax  yields  24  per  cent",  to  cold  alcohol, 
and  rosin  is  not  entirely  soluble,  but  one  of  these  about  balances 
the  other. 
No  starch  was  found  in  any  of  the  samples,  and  they  were  all 
perfectly  soluble  in  turpentine. 
Specimens. 
Solidifying 
Soluble  in 
Paraffin. 
Alcohol. 
151-5 
2-4p.c. 
none 
Crude  wax,  Gambia 
152-5 
3-10 
not  tested 
a  n 
No.  1  
154-0 
2-40 
a 
11  li 
No.  2  
1530 
3-60 
li 
U  it 
No.  3  
147-5 
a 
U  U 
No.  4  
147-0 
a 
((  u 
No.  5  
146-0 
none 
Purchased  samples, 
No.  1  
153-5 
l-8p.c. 
not  tested 
.(  11 
No.  2  
153-0 
2-28 
a 
11  11 
No.  3  
152-0 
3-18 
a 
U  11 
No.  4  
152-0 
2-34 
a 
il  u 
No.  5  
150-5 
5-20 
a 
a  a 
147-0 
a 
U  (( 
No.  7  
145-0 
none 
a  a 
No.  8  
139-0 
13-30 
a  u 
No.  9  
137-5 
36-60 
SamDles  sent  for  analysis.  No.  1  
142-0 
42-60 
a  a 
No.  2  
140-0 
43-36 
a  a 
No.  3  
135-0 
56-50 
(<  a 
No.  4  
134-0 
56-00 
These  results  show  that  the  degree  given  in  the  P.  B.  of  140° 
F.  is  too  low ;  pure  yellow  wax  melts  at  151*5°  F.,  and  no  sam- 
ple, not  containing  paraffin,  has  a  melting-point  below  145°.  I 
think  that  150°  should  be  the  standard,  for  samples  containing 
more  than  40  per  cent,  of  paraffine  may  be  made  to  agree  with 
the  Pharmacopoeia  standard,  if  a  paraffin  with  a  sufficiently  high 
fusing  point  be  selected.  The  question  may  seem  an  unimportant 
one,  but  a  difference  of  16°  in  the  fusing-point  of  two  samples 
of  wax  must  considerably  affect  the  quality  of  ointment  made 
from  them,  especially  in  hot  weather. 
The  effect  of  the  application  of  paraffin  to  the  skin,  though 
probably  not  injurious,  is  not  sufficiently  known  to  render  its 
