AmMa°rch,  f9Joi.rm- }  Pharmaceutical  Meeting.  1 5  7 
In  discussing  this  paper  Professor  Lowe  referred  to  the  history  of 
mastic,  stating  that  it  was  of  great  interest,  and,  to  a  large  extent, 
that  of  the  island  of  Scio,  from  which  the  drug  comes. 
He  said  that  in  the  fourteenth  century  a  Genoese  family  by  the 
name  of  Laccaria  obtained  a  concession  from  one  of  the  Greek  em- 
perors (to  whom  the  island  was  then  tributary),  and  settled  there, 
being  joined  by  many  of  the  nobles  of  Genoa,  who  relinquished 
their  family  names,  taking  the  general  name  of  Ginstiniani,  and 
forming  a  society  called  the  Mano.  This  company,  which  was 
somewhat  like  the  former  East  India  Company,  taking  advantage  of 
the  weakness  of  the  emperor,  declared  themselves  independent  and 
governed  the  island  to  suit  themselves,  making  their  own  laws, 
coining  their  own  money  and  fighting  their  own  battles.  The  isl- 
and was  held  by  this  company  with  somewhat  varying  fortunes  for 
some  250  years,  when  it  was  conquered  by  the  Turks,  who  hold  it  to 
this  day. 
When  under  the  control  of  the  Mano,  the  annual  revenue  from 
mastic  amounted  to  the  large  sum  (for  those  days)  of  about  $69,000. 
Mr.  Ke,bler  submitted  a  sample  of  the  drug  which  he  said  was 
whiter  than  the  specimens  accompanying  the  paper.  He  said  the 
statement  in  the  U.  S.  P.  about  it  being  brittle  will  not  hold.  He 
further  remarked  that  he  did  not  attach  as  much  importance  to 
the  acid  number  as  is  ordinarily  done,  but  still  he  was  in  favor  of 
using  every  available  method. 
In  speaking  of  th^  use  of  mastic  in  medicine,  Jos.  W.  England 
said  that  mastic  was  used  in  connection  with  aloin  in  the  Lady 
Webster  pill,  to  retard  the  action  of  the  aloin  until  it  reaches  the 
intestines. 
Mr.  Kebler  remarked,  in  connection  with  the  subject  of  indicators, 
that  distilled  water  frequently  gives  an  alkaline  indication  with 
cochineal,  and  on  this  account  causes  a  variation  in  the  assay  figures 
in  titrating  for  alkaloids. 
The  same  speaker  then  called  attention  to  the  impurity  of  the 
gum  arabic  on  the  market,  and  said  that  he  had  a  great  deal  of 
difficulty  in  obtaining  a  pure  article.  Aqueous  solutions  of  samples 
which  he  had  examined  had  a  reducing  action  on  Fehling's  solution. 
He  said  that,  of  course,  it  is  admitted  that  inferior  grades  do  this, 
that  is,  they  contain  some  sugar  which  reduces  the  copper  solution. 
Mr.  Lamar  exhibited  an  ebulliscope,  an  instrument  of  French 
