516 
ON  ACONITE  AND  CHLOROFORM  LINIMENTS. 
Tinct.  Aconiti, 
Chloroform. 
Adep.  Suille,       aa.  gij. 
Tinct.  Sapo.  comp.  gj. 
Aquse.  Ammon.  gij. 
Misce  et  ft.  Lin. 
Uniting  the  aqua  ammonia  and  adeps  to  form  a  liniment 
and  adding  the  tinct.  sapo.  comp.  &c,  seemed  to  be  the  proper 
mode  of  procedure  ;  this,  however,  precipitated  the  lard,  Why 
is  it  ?  The  liniment,  however,  was  handsomely  formed  afterwards 
by  pursuing  the  following  form  : 
Make  a  liniment  of  the  lard  and  water  of  ammonia— triturate 
and  add  the  chloroform — triturate  and  add  the  tincture  of 
aconite, — triturate  and  add  the  comp.  soap  liniment.  I  sought 
an  explanation  from  the  maker  of  the  prescription — he  could  give 
none.  The  chloroform  is  evidently  the  bond  of  union  between 
the  tincture  and  ammoniated  liniment—but  as  regards  the  ra- 
tionale, I  am  in  the  dark.  Respectfully  submitted, 
Baltimore,  Oct.  6th,  1855.  "  LiEftO." 
Note  by  the  Editor.  Aa  our  correspondent  "  Lasno  "  has  requested  a 
te rationale"  of  the  above  experiments,  they  were  repeated  in  several  dif- 
ferent ways  to  enable  us  to  speak  of  them  intelligibly,  although  we  had 
made  analogous  mixtures  before. 
1st.  When  lard  and  solution  of  ammonia  are  triturated  together,  an  imper- 
fect ammonia  soap  results  ;  when  the  camphorated  tincture  of  soap  is  added 
the  latter  abstracts  the  water. and  most  of  the  ammonia,  whilst  the  lard,  but 
slightly  altered,  separates,  owing  to  its  insolubility  as  11  Laeno  "  states.  If 
now  the  fluid  portion  is  poured  off  from  the  fat  and  the  chloroform  added  to 
the  latter,  they  unite  to  form  an  opaiescent  solution,  which  when  added,  with 
the  tincture  of  aconite,  to  the  liquid  in  the  bottle,  forms  a  mixture  by  agita- 
tion, as  capable  of  being  used  as  a  liniment  as  a  mixture  of  chloroform  olive 
oil  and  soap  liniment  would  be,  yet  which  soon  separates  on  standing  into  two 
strata,  the  inferior  being  the  lard  and  chloroform,  whilst  the  superior  con- 
sists of  the  tinctures  and  ammonia. 
2d.  {.Following  the  order  suggested  by  "  Lasno"  as  yielding  a  better 
mixture,  we  found  that  all  worked  well  until  the  tinctures  were  added  to 
the  fatty  mixture,  when  the  separation  took  place  as  in  the  other  instance,  al- 
though not  so  quickly,  but  quite  as  completely.  This  mixture  is  somewhat 
improved  by  gently  heating  the  lard  and  chloroform  till  a  clear  solution  is 
effected,  and  then  adding  the  other  ingredients  previously  mixed  in  a  gradu- 
ated measure  and  agitating. 
