Am.  Jour.  Phar  . 
Dec,  1880. 
Practical  Notes. 
601 
passed  through  a  very  fine  sieve  and  may  be  preserved  for  a  long  time 
without  deteriorating.  For  i  gram  of  musk  2  grams  of  this  powder 
are  weighed  out,  mixed  with  5  centigrams  of  powdered  tragacanth,  and 
the  mixture  is  rapidly  emulsionized  by  adding  in  small  portions  the 
requisite  quantity  of  syrup  and  water.  Thus  prepared  the  mixture 
contains  the  musk  in  a  state  of  very  fine  division. — Rep.  de  Phar.^ 
1880,  p.  389. 
Preservation  of  Magendie' s  Solution. — Dr.  H.  M.  Keyes  recommends 
adding  one  grain  of  salicylic  acid  to  tv/o  ounces  of  the  solution.  This 
has  been  successfully  employed  in  Roosevelt  Hospital  for  some  years. 
—Phila.  Med.  Times,  Nov.  6. 
Decomposition  of  Cinnamon  Water. — From  a  water  obtained  by  distil- 
lation from  Chinese  cinnamon  a  considerable  amount  of  cinnamic  acid 
had  crystallized  out  on  exposure,  and  in  order  to  obtain  more  of  the 
acid,  J.  B.  Enz  added  to  this  water  10  drops  each  of  oil  of  Ceylon 
cinnamon  and  of  pure  glycerin.  But  instead  of  cinnamic  acid  there 
appeared  upon  the  surface  of  the  water  colorless  very  refractive  drops  of 
a  benzol-like  odor.  It  seems,  therefore,  that  under  certain  conditions, 
the  cinnamic  acid  of  cinnamon  water  may  be  decomposed  in  the  same 
manner  as  by  distillation  with  excess  of  lime  into  cinnamene  and  ben- 
zol. Whether  this  decomposition  is  due  to  the  presence  of  protein 
compounds  mechanically  carried  over  in  distillation  or  to  other  ciuses 
has  not  been  ascertained. — Archiv  der  Phar..^  October,  p.  287. 
Cod  Liver  Oil  with  Iodoform. — Fonssagrives  recommends  dissolving 
0*25  gram  of  iodoform  in  100  grams  of  cod  liver  oil  and  adding  10 
drops  of  oil  of  anise.  The  dose  is  a  tablespoonful  two  or  three  times 
a  day.  The  oil  of  anise  improves  the  odor  and  taste  of  cod  liver  oil. 
— Phar.  Zeitschr.  f.  RussL,  1880,  p.  562. 
Detection  of  Coloring  Matter  in  Beer. — If  a  dark  colored  beer  is  mixed 
with  twice  its  volume  of  crystallized  (solid)  ammonium  sulphate  and 
thrice  its  volume  of  stronger  alcohol,  the  mixture  will  deposit  a  grey 
precipitate;  if  roasted  malt  was  used  for  the  beer  the  precipitate  will 
be  dark  brown  or  black,  the  supernatant  liquid  being  decolorized  in 
both  cases.  But  in  case  ciramel  has  been  added  to  the  beer  the  above 
reagents  will  produce  a  grey  or  brown  precipitate,  and  the  liquid  will 
retain  a  brown  color. — Phar.  Centralhalle.^  1880,  p.  368,  from  Der  Bier- 
brauer. 
Glossy  Precipitates  of  Metals  on  Glass. — A  hot  solution  of  nitrate  of 
antimony  (prepared  from  tartar  emetic)  is  agitated  in  the  glass  to  be 
