EDITORIAL. 
560 
tract  of  liquorice,  made  from  the  imported  root.  The  gardens  supplying 
the  plants  for  a  part  of  this  large  production  are  located  around  the  labora- 
tory, in  the  rich  alluvial  bottom,  which,  notwithstanding  its  great  fertility, 
requires  to  be  manured  heavily  for  the  narcotic  plants,  especially  forHyos- 
cyamus  and  Belladonna.  The  Conium,  has  become  so  extensively  natural- 
ized, that  nearly  all  that  is  used,  many  tons  in  amount,  is  of  spontaneous 
growth.  One  of  the  heaviest  items  in  the  list  of  extracts,  is  that  of  Taraxa- 
cum, of  which  root  a  large  amoust  is  cultivated.  Much  of  this  extract  being 
employed  by  nostrum  makers,  for  hepatic  and  some  other  diseases. 
A  branch  of  operations,  recently  entered  upon  by  Mr.  Tilden,  is  the  pre- 
paration, on  a  large  scale,  of  fluid  extracts,  of  which  a  great  variety  are 
made  to  meet  the  demand  occasioned  by  the  extensive  adoption  by  physi- 
cians of  this  form  of  medicine.  The  vaccuum  apparatus,  used  in  the  prepara- 
tion of  solid  extracts,  and  which  was  described  by  us  on  a  former  occasion, 
(see  vol.  xx,  iii.  page, 389)  is  employed  for  concentrating  the  liquids  for  these 
with  the  greatest  advantage,  without  contact  of  air,  and  at  a  low  tempera- 
ture. Notwithstanding  the  numerous  calls  on  his  attention,  by  the  various 
employees  in  the  works  and  gardens,  Mr.  Tilden  found  time  to  render  our 
visit  in  his  interesting  family  extremely  pleasant,  and  to  make  us  acquaint- 
ed with  the  neighborhood,  by  several  excursions  to  the  surrounding  moun- 
tains. 
Whilst  in  the  valley,  we  determined  to  avail  ourselves  of  an  invitation 
from  Mr.  Edward  Fowler,  one  of  the  chief  men  in  the  Shaker  community, 
to  visit  their  laboratory,  drying-room  and  gardens,  and  though  not  so 
fortunate  as  to  find  him  at  home,  the  disappointment  was  compensated  for 
by  the  politeness  of  several  other  members  of  the  Society,  Jonathan  Wood, 
Benjamin  Gates  and  James  Long;  the  two  last  having  charge  of  the 
laboratory  and  herb  department.  The  latter  is  a  building  several  stories 
high,  the  upper  rooms  employed  as  a  store  house.  The  vacuum  apparatus 
formerly  in  this  building,  has  been  removed  to  another,  where  they  have 
provided  a  steam  engine  as  the  source  of  power  for  the  air  pump,  in  lieu  of 
the  old  arrangement  of  a  column  of  falling  water,  which  was  not  found  to 
answer.  The  excess  of  power  is  used  to  drive  their  pugging  mill,  (a  large 
pair  of  stone  chasers)  for  crushing  green  herbs,  previously  to  expressing 
their  juice,  besides  various  powdering  apparatus.  Their  arrangement  for 
displacement  with  alcohol  is  continuous,  the  tincture,  as  it  passes  from  the 
percolator  beneath,  is  conveyed  to  the  evaporators,  and  the  condensed  vapor 
conveyed  by  another  channel  to  the  superior  end  of  the  percolator  to  again 
exert  its  solvent  action,  on  the  principle  of  Mohr's  ether  displacing  ap- 
paratus. The  quality  of  the  extracts  made  here,  has  much  improved  since 
the  introduction  of  the  vacuum  pan,  although  they  yet  unfortunately  adhere 
to  the  old  plan  of  having  two  qualities  of  narcotic  and  some  other  extracts  ; 
one  from  the  expressed  juice,  the  other  by  treating  the  residue  from  the 
press  with  boiling  water  and  evaporating.  This  arises  from  the  demand 
for  low  priced  extracts,  by  parties  using  them  in  nostrums.    It  would  be 
