PHARMACEUTICAL  GLEANINGS. 
17 
sources,  yet  the  quality  of  the  gum,  as  regards  freedom  from 
extraneous  matter,  and  color,  will  have  to  greatly  improve  be- 
fore it  will  compete  with  the  foreign  gum  as  a  medicinal  agent. 
It  remains  to  be  seen  what  effect  greater  care  in  collection  and 
garbling,  and  in  subsequent  bleaching,  will  have  in  its  improve- 
ment. 
Since  the  above  was  in  print,  my  friend,  E.  Durand,  informs 
me  that  the  Mezquite  tree  of  Dr.  Shumard,  is  probably  either  the 
Strambo  carpa  pubescens  or  screw  pod  mimosa,  (Gray,)  or  the 
Algarobia  glandulosa.  The  former  is  a  small  tree,  from  6  to  12 
feet  in  height ;  the  latter  20  to  30  feet,  and  described  as  being 
abundant  on  the  plains  of  Western  Texas.  They  both  belong 
to  the  Acacia  family,  and  are  armed  with  prickles.  Dr.  Gray 
gives  no  hint  in  reference  to  their  gum-bearing  quality,  which 
may  be  due  to  the  botanical  collections  being  made  at  a  season 
earlier  than  that  stated  by  Dr.  Shumard,  as  favorable  to  the 
exudation  of  the  gum.  (See  Plantse  Wrightianse,  No.  1,  Smith- 
son.  Contrib.  1852.) 
At  page  268  of  Redwood's  Grey's  Supplement,  the  following 
statement  occurs,  which  shows  that  Dr.  Shumard  is  not  the 
original  discoverer  of  this  gum,  nor  of  its  use  instead  of  gum 
arabic. 
"  Prosopis  dulcis  (Kunth,).  Mexico.  Yields  a  gum,  mezquitina 
goma  mezquitina,  which  is  used  instead  of  gum  arabic." 
Now  Dr.  Grey  refers  to  Prosopis  dulcis,  in  his  account  of 
Algarobia  glandulosa,  and  thinks  they  are  not  synonymous ;  yet 
as  some  doubts  seem  to  exist,  the  difference  between  Kunth's 
Prosopis  and  the  Algarobia  may  be  due  to  accidental  causes,  as 
it  is  well  known  that  plants  are  modified  by  growth  in  high  land 
and  along  water  courses.  At  all  events,  in  the  absence  of  any 
clue  to  the  name  of  the  plant  from  Dr.  Shumard,  we  are  justified 
in  referring  it  to  Algarobia  glandulosa  or  Prosopis  dulcis. 
GLEANINGS— PHARMACEUTICAL,  CHEMICAL  AND  MEDICAL. 
Oarbazotio  acid,  [Picric  acid.)  Prof.  Crace  Calvert  at  the 
late  meeting  of  the  British  Association  at  Liverpool,  stated  that 
Dr.  Bell,  of  Manchester,  had  treated  cases  of  intermittent  fever 
most  successfully  with  carbazotic  acid,  and  he  believed  it  to  be 
'  2 
