almond. For these official preparations and all official uses the oil of bitter-almond containing the hydrocyanic acid must be used; otherwise the products are destitute of the medicinal action they are supposed to represent; but the official oil containing hydrocyanic acid should not be used in making extracts that may be employed in flavoring cold jellies and creams with poisonous effect. E. L. Patch.

Oil of Camphor.

This is not official. Various products are described under this name. Formerly it was easy to obtain the heavy oil of camphor containing a notable amount of safrol. At the present time this is not in the market. The so-called Japanese is sold as light oil of camphor with a sp. gr. at 25° centigrade of about 0.8736. It has a turpentine odor and little safrol odor. A sample submitted by one of the leading houses as pure light oil of camphor had a sp. gr. at 250 centigrade of 0.8716 and seemed to contain very little safrol.

Oil of Cassia.

This can be found assaying the full amount of cinnamic aldehyde, but the natural oil from all the sources at our command, contained lead, coming from the lead container in which it is imported. The double-distilled oil, having sp. gr. at 25° centigrade of 1.0508, yielding 90 per cent. of cinnamic aldehyde, is of good color, fine odor, and is free from all metals. This is the only product found to answer these requirements. E. L. Patch.

Two out of three samples showed resin present. Usual assay 67 per cent. to 75 per cent. of cinnamic aldehyde. Pa. Ph. Assoc.

Oil of Clove.

4 lots assayed 86 per cent., 85 per cent., 83 per cent., 86 per cent. of eugenol. Pharmacopoeial standard 80 per cent. E. L. Patch.

Ethereal Oil.

The U. S. P. should have a sp. gr. of 0.905 at 25° centigrade. This product is entirely different from any of the oils of wine in the market which are sold to the pharmacist as ethereal oil. The pharmacist purchasing these so-called ethereal oils and making his compound spirit of ether by the pharmacopoeial formula, is marketing a deficient product in every case. It bears no resemblance to that made by using the official ethereal oil. Compound spirit of ether, marketed by many of our wholesale manufacturing chemists as U. S. P., does not bear any resemblance to the official product. It is sold at a price which will not pay for the ethereal oil alone. E. L. Patch.

Oil of Eucalyptus.

4 samples assayed 36.3 per cent. to 63.56 per cent. cineol. 2 were oil of eucalyptus amygdalina, and not globulosus. Pa. Ph. Assoc.

Out of many samples 2 assayed below 50 per cent. cineol; one 22.5 per cent.; another 43.6 per cent. C. E. Vanderkleed.

This oil is adulterated with 12 to 20 per cent. of castor oil. Chemist and Druggist.

Select oil obtained, having sp. gr. of 0.916 at 25° centigrade, assayed 65 per cent. cineol. E. L. Patch.

Oil of Lavender.

3 lots had a sp. gr. of 0.870 to 0.890, and were not up to the U. S. P. limit of solubility. E. H. Gane.

Oil of Origanum, Commercial.

Varies greatly. Lot No. 1, sp. gr. 0.872, odor good, nearly colorless.

2, sp. gr. 0.874, reddish color, fair odor.

3, sp. gr. 0.873, odor good, nearly colorless.

4, sp. gr. 0.899, tarry odor, dark color.

5, sp. gr. o.874, tarry odor, dark color. E. L. Patch.

Olive Gil.

12 samples all pure. Report of Ill. Food Com.

13 samples. 2 contained small amounts of cottonseed oil; one a very large amount. Pa. Ph. Assoc.

6 samples contained cottonseed oil; 3 samples peanut oil. E. H. Gane.

64 samples. 31 were pure, 28 contained cottonseed oil, and 5 sesame oil. C. H. La Wall.

Sample 1, sp gr., 0.911; iodine number, 77.7; saponification number, 185; nitric acid test, o.k. This lot was condemned by three retail druggists as not answering the pharmacopoeial tests. It was stated that a professor in one of our colleges informed his class that the only pure olive oil obtainable was that obtained in bottles of a wholesale grocer. They appear to have been condemned by this nitric acid test. Investigation showed that some of the operators used full strength nitric acid, sp. gr. 1.403, or 68 per cent., which will brown pure olive oil. They did not notice that the Pharmacopoeia calls for 61 per cent. acid, having a gravity of 1.37; nor were they particular to use equal volumes as directed. They used a large excess of the acid.

2 samples that were complained of as impure by the pharmacopoeial nitric acid test, were submitted to the Drug Laboratory at Washington, and pronounced pure. 4 other samples had sp. gr. 0.906, iodine number, 80.05.

Sp. gr. at 250 centigrade, 0.6959; yellow color, 7.43 per cent. menthyl acetate, 39.91 per cent. total menthol.

Sp. gr. 0.8975, yellow color; 60 per cent. total menthol.

Lot 3. 9.27 per cent. menthyl acetate;
Lot 4. 8.56 per cent. menthyl acetate;
Lot 5. 35 per cent. total menthol.

52.73 per cent. total menthol.
24.86 per cent. total menthol.

Lot 6. 45 per cent. total menthol. E. L. Patch.

Sp. gr. 8.876; optical rotation, -10°; ester, 4.4 per cent.; total menthol, 30.42 per cent.; contained 50 per cent. of turpentine. The U. S. P. requirements of not less than 8 per cent. of ester are too rigid, and exclude the finest grades of oil that contain 4 per cent, to 6 per cent. Presumably the object of the test is to exclude the Japanese oil, which runs from 3 per cent. to 6 per cent., but it also excludes the finest Mitcham and Saxon oils, and some of our fine redistilled oils. E. H. Gane. Oil of Rosemary.

The pharmacopoeial requirements are too high as evidenced by the fact that no oil of U. S. P. standard is obtainable in the New York market.

No. 1. 2.6 per cent. ester, 8 per cent. total borneol.

One lot adulterated with oil of turpentine. C. E. Vanderkleed.

Oil of Sandal.

10 samples purchased in the open market, representing the leading American and European producers, all assayed over 90 per cent, santalol. J. M. Francis.

8 lots all U. S. P. I lot sp. gr. at 25° centigrade 0.979, 96.1 per cent. santalol. E. L. Patch.

Oil of Sassafras.

Much of that in the market is spurious and consists wholly or largely of camphor oil. As oil of sassafras owes its virtues almost wholly to safrol it would be advisable to purchase safrol direct and use it instead of the oil. J. M. Francis.

This advice is likely to make trouble for the pharmacist. If he sells safrol as oil of sassafras and so lables it, he is liable under the Pure Food and Drug Law. Oil of sassafras has rotation of +4° under the specified condition. Safrol is optically inactive. E. L. Patch.

Oil of Thyme.

The U. S. P. statement that this oil is colorless would seem to exclude the finest grade of thyme oil which is always highly colored, and puts a premium on the white oil of thyme of notorious fame.

Of samples from importing houses only one was up to the U. S. P. standard.
Sample No. 1. sp. gr. o.886 phenol 121⁄2 per cent.

Varies in physical properties. The Pharmacopoeia indicates the light oil of tar. Considerable of the heavy oil of tar, sp. gr. 1.04 and over, very thick and dark-colored, is marketed in place of the light oil. E. L. Patch.

Oil of Turpentine.

There is being marketed a product distilled from sawdust, pine chips, pine roots and other refuse of saw-mills. When crude it has the characteristic pyroligneous odor. Its qualities when refined are not well known. J. M. Francis.

Pancreatin.

Market samples by the new pharmacopoeial test converted ten times weight of starch, 15 times, 25 times, 20 times, 25 times, 221⁄2 times. E. L. Patch.

I lot converted between 1 and 2 parts of starch. C. E. Vanderkleed.

Black Pepper.

93 samples examined. 33 were adulterated with shell, olive stone fiber, starch, cocoanut shell. 5th Report Ill. Food Com.

Elixir Lactated Pepsin.

A popular brand contained no lactic acid, only 0.2 per cent. of hydrochloric acid, had no pepsin power, 10 Cc. exerted no appreciable action on 10 grams of egg albumen. E. L. Patch.

White Pepper.

41 samples examined. 10 adulterated with one or more of the following adulterants -shell, olive-stone, corn-starch, wheat-flour, cocoanut shell, buckwheat. 5th Report Ill. Food Com.

Petrolatum.

"Yellowish to light amber in color, melting-point 45° to 48° centigrade, completely volatilized without characteristic odor, neutral, no fixed oils or fats separated by saponification with alkali process. I volume melted, mixed with 2 volumes of sulphuric acid in a test-tube, kept for 15 minutes in hot water, occasionally agitated, the acid should not acquire a deeper tint than brown nor lose its transparency." A pharmacist cannot find a product that will meet these requirements. In applying the test with sulphuric acid the temperature should be indicated. One man will

consider 50° centigrade as hot, and another the boiling-point, so that different operators do not apply this test alike. The requirements for the white petrolatum are the same as for amber, except as to color. Amber petrolatum cannot be had with the U. S. P. limits of fusing-point, but not one of many samples of amber, pale amber and pearl-white, would stand the sulphuric acid test. The Standard

Oil Company state that they do not produce a product that will. 3 samples of American white petrolatum were obtained that met the requirements for fusingpoint, but the acid layer was decidedly brown in every case, and was transparent in only one case. The Russian grades are better in color, and 5 samples all stood the acid test, but the fusing-point ranged from 33° to 37. E. L. Patch. Phenacetin.

Adulterated with parachloro-acetanilid. Melting point 1190 to 1200 centigrade. E. H. Gane.

Pinkroot.

Frequently mixed with blue cohosh owing to careless collecting. E. H. Gane. Podophyllin.

3 per cent. insoluble in alcohol; 5 per cent. insoluble in alcohol; 5.6 per cent. insoluble in alcohol; 2.5 per cent. insoluble in alcohol; 5.5 per cent. insoluble in alcohol. I per cent. insoluble in alcohol; 65 per cent. soluble in chloroform; 80 per cent. soluble in ether; 0.4 per cent. ash.

Completely soluble in alcohol. 67 per cent. soluble in chloroform; 75.4 per cent. in ether. E. L. Patch.

This product may be grossly adulterated and meet all the U. S. P. tests. The yellow variety is precipitated by alum. The solubilities do not conform to the U. S. P., and it contains less than 1 per cent. of ash. The brown variety is precipitated with hydrochloric acid, and is nearly of equal merit, with the U. S. P. G. Martin. Potassium Acetate.

No. 1. 2.32 per cent. absolute acetic acid in excess.

No. 2. 0.89 per cent. of chloride with trace of sulphate.

No. 3. 0.26 per cent. of chloride with trace of sulphate.

No. 4. 0.22 per cent. of chloride with trace of sulphate. E. L. Patch.

Potassium Bromide.

23 lots of crystal were of the pharmacopoeial standard; one lot of granular was 24 per cent. only. E. H. Gane.

Potassium Citrate.

0.26 per cent. chloride, 0.42 per cent. of free citric acid. E. L. Patch.

Potassium Cyanide. (Maltese Cross Brand.)

"95 per cent. pure," contained 71.5 per cent. potassium cyanide, 26 per cent. sodium cyanide.

Sample 2, by the chlorides method, gave 74 per cent. potassium cyanide, 18.4 per cent. sodium cyanide. By the potassio-platinic chloride method, 70.3 per cent. potassium cyanide, 21.2 per cent. sodium cyanide. E. L. Patch.

No. 2. Did not show iodate in 5 per cent. solution of U. S. limit, but in a 10 per cent. solution gave test for iodate.

Potassium Sulphate.

One lot had 0.4 per cent. of chloride; another 0.05 per cent. chloride. E. L. Patch. Quinine Alkaloid.

Varied in excess of moisture from 12 per cent. to 22 per cent. E. L. Patch.

Quinine Sulphate.

4 lots did not pass the U. S. P. ammonium test. E. H. Gane.

Saffron.

Only 23 per cent. saffron petals; the balance aniline-dyed petals of magnolia and uncolored foreign matter. N. Y. City Health Dept.

Salts Dried.

Such as sodium sulphate dried, sodium phosphate dried, magnesium sulphate dried, frequently contained dirt and foreign matter, owing to careless drying. E. H. Gane. Sarsaparilla, Mexican.

A bundle weighing 41⁄2 lbs., contained in the center 19 ozs. of dirt. H. Kraemer. Scammony Resin.

"When stirred in porcelain dish with equal weight of sulphuric acid, it should not gradually turn red." Resin freshly prepared from virgin scammony turns red. All the samples examined turned red. The addition of 15 per cent. of common rosin made little difference. Dissolving o.1 of pure resin of scammony from virgin scammony in 5 Cc. of 5 per cent. solution of caustic potassa, using heat, adding hydrochloric acid to acid reaction, the resin is not precipitated and only a very faint cloudiness results. If the resin of scammony contains 5 per cent. of common rosin there is much greater turbidity. If it contains 15 per cent. of common rosin there is a marked turbidity and precipitate. Market samples tested stood this test. Scammony Resin, Imported Product.

Report from chemist in Edinburgh:

Entirely soluble in 90 per cent. alcohol.

Entirely soluble in chloroform.

99.9 per cent. soluble in ether.

The amount of ash present is so small as to be unweighable, and we may therefore describe the resin as practically free from ash.

Report from chemist in this country:

Soluble in alcohol, 99.5 per cent.

Soluble in chloroform, 99.5 per cent.
Soluble in ether, 98.65 per cent.

Ash, .20 per cent.

Acid number, 10.

The acid number represents the number of millegrams of potassium hydroxide which are necessary to neutralize one gram of resin under examination. As scammony

resin has a low acid number, which we found by numerous determinations to be from 10 to 15, and as rosin has a high acid number, 155 to 175, the adulteration of scammony by rosin can readily be determined by the indication of a high acid number, as this would increase in proportion to the amount of rosin present. Scammony Resin, Domestic.