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ON  COMPOUND  SYRUP  OF  SQUILL. 
at  the  same  time,  to  get  possession  of  all  the  active  principles 
of  the  root.  The  following  method  has  proved  the  most  effectual 
in  overcoming  the  difficulty  spoken  of,  and  at  the  same  time  yields 
a  beautiful,  active  and  certain  preparation. 
As  soon  as  one  lot  is  prepared  I  immediately  put  another  one 
under  way,  as  follows  : 
The  seneka  and  squills,  (of  each  8  oz.,)  are  bruised  to  a  coarse 
powder,  and  macerated  with  one  gallon  of  diluted  alcohol  (alcohol 
1  part,  water  2),  until  my  stock  of  syrup  is  nearly  out,  (sometimes 
standing  two  or  three  months,)  and  then  pressed  or  transferred  to 
a  percolator  and  displaced.  The  tincture  is  then  evaporated  until  I 
am  satisfied  there  is  no  more  spirit  left.  I  then  filter,  when  cold, 
to  get  rid  of  the  albumen  and  resinous  matter,  and  then  add  the 
sugar  (7  lbs.  troy)  and  evaporate  (without  boiling)  to  the  proper 
quantity,  (6  pints),  strain  if  necessary,  and  add  the  tartar  emetic 
(96  grs.).  Any  one  pursuing  this  plan  I  think  will  obtain  a  syrup 
that  will  prove  satisfactory  to  himself  as  well  as  to  his  customers. 
Although  speaking  of  hive  syrup,  the  reader  will  excuse  me  if 
I  take  the  occasion  to  hint  at  a  few  things  which  may  be  of  some 
use  to  a  few,  simple  and  common  as  they  may  be  to  many.  In 
the  first  place  I  would  suggest  as  important,  to  facilitate  the 
operation  of  filtering  the  above  tincture,  as  well  as  many  other 
things  in  our  line,  that  every  pharmaceutist  should  have  two  or 
three  filters  of  felt,  prepared  expressly  for  filtering.  Those  I  have 
are  French,  but  I  presume  they  can  be  prepared  in  any  of  the 
cities.  No  one  can  appreciate  the  advantage  of  them  without  trial. 
My  smallest  size  will  filter  three  gallons  of  laudanum  in  less  than 
an  hour.  Percolators  are  another  important  article  of  furniture 
to  a  pharmaceutist,  and  as  they  are  not  easily  obtained  by  persons 
al  a  distance  from  the  cities,  I  will  suggest  a  form  (and  which  any 
one  can  obtain  without  trouble)  that  I  use,  and  am  well  satisfied 
with.  From  a  lot  of  pint,  quart,  or  any  other  size  packing  bottles, 
I  select  the  thickest  one  among  them,  and  fill  it  with  cold  water 
nearly  to  the  point  where  I  wish  it  broken,  and  then  holding  it  in 
a  bucket  to  prevent  the^acid  from  flying,  pour  in  sufficient  strong 
oil  of  vitriol,  (about  an  equal  measure,)  observing  to  hold  the  bottle 
vertical,  when  the  bottom  immediately  falls,  generally  presenting 
a  smooth  fracture  on  a  line  with  the  surface  of  the  inner  liquid. 
Then  with  a  common  file  smooth  off  all  the  sharp  edges.    I  find 
