20 
PHARMACEUTICAL 
GLEANINGS. 
lard,  is  triturated  with  35  ounces  of  mercury  for  a  few  minutes, 
and  the  remainder  of  the  lard  added.  The  mercury  is  reduced 
to  extreme  division  in  a  very  short  time.  What  effect  the  nitrate 
has  in  modifying  the  action  of  the  ointment  is  not  explained  by 
the  author.— -{Pharm.  Jour.) 
Bin  oxide  of  lead.  Wohler  states,  [Ann.  der  Chem.)  that  bin- 
oxide  of  lead  can  be  readily  procured  by  mixing  four  parts  of 
crystallized  acetate  of  lead,  and  three  parts  of  crystallized  car- 
bonate of  soda  in  water,  and  passing  chlorine  into  the  mixed 
carbonate  of  lead  and  acetate  of  soda,  until  both  salts  are  decom- 
posed with  the  formation  of  bin  oxide  of  lead  and  chloride  of 
potassium.  These  proportions  yield  two  and  a  half  parts  of  the 
bin  oxide. — {Pharm.  Jour.) 
A?ihydrous  Persulphate  of  Iron.  Mr.  Peter  II art >  of  Man- 
chester, England,  has  discovered  a  crystallized  anhydrous  ter- 
sulphate  of  sesqui  oxide  of  iron,  in  the  platinum  retorts  in  which 
oil  of  vitriol  is  concentrated.  He  traces  it  to  the  iron  rods 
coated  with  lead,  which  support  the  covers  to  the  preparatory 
evaporators.  These  rods  occasionally  become  exposed,  and  the 
acid  fumes  act  on  them  and  cause  the  formation  of  a  salt  of  iron, 
which  drops  into  the  acid,  and  is  dissolved  to  separate  from  it  in 
the  last  process  of  concentration  ;  several  careful  analyses  proved 
it  to  be  quite  pure.  This  salt  has  a  pinkish  white  color,  and  is 
slowly  soluble  in  water — [Annals  of  Pharmacy.) 
Artificial  preparation  of  Oil  of  Cinnamon.  M.  Strecker,  some 
years  ago,  ascertained  that  Sty  r one ,  the  oily  liquid  obtained  by 
distilling  purified  storax  with  potash,  was  the  alcohol  of  cinnamic 
acid.  He  has  recently  proved  that,  when  styrone  is  treated  with 
platina  black,  as  in  making  common  aldehyde,  the  product  is 
pure  oil  of  cinnamon,  which  is  the  aldehyd  of  cinnamic  acid. 
The  following  equation  represents  the  reaction  :  styrone,  C18  H10 
(X,  by  absorbing  0,  becomes  C18  H8  02  -f  2 HO  (Comptes 
Mendus.) 
Henbane  Segars.  Dr.  Seifert,  of  Yienna,  has  personally  ex- 
perienced benefit  from  the  use  of  segars  medicated  with  hyoscya- 
mus  leaves,  in  some  affections  of  the  chest.  He  directs  them  to 
be  made  from  tobacco  leaves  previously  deprived  of  their  acrid 
principle,  and  in  making  each  segar,  from  five  to  eight  grains 
of  powdered  henbane  leaves  is  introduced.  He  has  prescribed 
from  4  to  8  such  segars  daily. — {Annals  of  Pharm.) 
