When strychnine is evaporated with some potassium hydroxide to dryness and the residue moistened with a solution of stannous chloride a light blue color is developed.

Brucine does not give this reaction.

With potassium persulphate or ammonium persulphate and hydrochloric acid strychnine gives no reaction whatever in the cold but on warming the liquid assumes a yellow color. Brucine with the same reagents gives a beautiful red color in the cold and the color disappears only upon prolonged standing.

The last reaction can be used to distinguish between strychnine and brucine. Chem. Ztg. 1904, 28, 977.

Thebenine. R. Pschorr and C. Massaciu have investigated the constitution of thebenine obtained by the action of aqueous hydrochloric acid upon thebaine or codeinone (See this Review 1904, Prog. Alkal. Chem.). As thebenine contains CH2 less than thebaine and is a secondary base while thebaine is a tertiary base Freund (Ber. Dtsch. Chem. Ges. 3, 1357; 32, 168) explains the conversion of thebaine into thebenine by assuming that in the reaction with hydrochloric acid one CH3O group of thebaine is saponified, i. e., replaced by an OH group and that the oxazine ring present in thebaine (I) is changed to a furfurane ring in thebenine.

Literary.

Books Reviewed.

THE PHARMACOPEIA OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. Eighth decennial revision. By authority of the United States Pharmacopoeial Convention held at Washington, A. D. 1900. Revised by the Committee of Revision and published by the Board of Trustees. Official from September 1st, 1905. Philadelphia. Agents P. Blakiston's Son & Company.* One vol., pp. IXXV, 692. $2.50.

The new Pharmacopoeia has at last made its appearance. A sigh of relief has been breathed, not only by the members of the Revision Committee, but by all those who have been wondering "How long, O Lord, how long?" A little more patience and thousands, yea some tens of thousands of copies will have been distributed, and every one can satisfy his curiosity that has been put to so severe a strain by these long years of waiting.

To attempt a review of a book, that has required so much time and the thought and labor of so many men, in the compass of an ordinary book review is out of the question. Pharmaceutical journals of this country will soon be deluged with criticisms and commentaries.

That the present method of revision cannot give satisfaction is apparent, most of all to those entrusted with the task. Work done mostly by correspondence, often by members a thousand miles apart has its insurmountable difficulties in spite of rapid mail service, telegraph and telephone.

What is needed is a central research laboratory to which the subcommittees may be delegated for certain periods. With a proper

* Sub-Agents:

New York, E. R. Pelton, 19 East Sixteenth Str.

Chicago, The E. H. Colgrove Company. 65 Randolph Str.

St. Louis, C. V. Mosley, 2313 Washington Ave.

San Francisco, Pagot. Upham & Co., 100 Battery St.

succession prearranged, such a laboratory need not be large, but should be supplied with everything necessary for research, especially a good working library. Work that has required several years, with its almost inevitable misunderstanding at the very end, might be done in almost as many months.

Another need is greater publicity in order that the bulk of the criticism may be brought out before the book is published rather than after.

Let us hope that the new Pharmacopoeia may soon be found, not only in every pharmacy, but in every physician's office as well. Such a sale would result in the collection of a fund that might enable the next revision to be conducted along lines more in keeping with modern tendencies.

E. K.

THE DETECTION OF POISONS AND STRONG DRUGS INCLUDING THE QUANTITATIVE ESTIMATION OF MEDICINAL PRINCIPLES IN CERTAIN CRUDE MATERIALS, by Dr. Wilhelm Autenrieth, Professor in the University of Freiburg, translated from the third enlarged edition by William H. Warren, Ph. D., Professor in Washington University, St. Louis. P. Blakiston's Son & Co., Philadelphia. Pp. 222. Net Price $1.50.

The purpose of this book is to provide students of medicine and pharmacy with a concise laboratory guide to toxicological analysis, and to furnish them with a means of testing for many common organic drugs which are strong therapeutic agents although not usually classed as poisons, such as quinine, phenacetine, salicylic acid, sulphonal, etc.

The book also contains a chapter on the Quantitative Estimation of Alkaloids and other Drugs in Crude Materials."

Although this book cannot be regarded as a treatise on Toxicology, it is a book of great merit, and it would seem to be a necessity in every druggist's library. In it are given plainly, though briefly, methods of testing a large number of principles of drugs which are daily dispensed by druggists, and of which every intelligent druggist wishes to have at hand a means of determining within reasonable limits their therapeutic value. For this purpose the book under consideration is worthy of high commendation. It ought to find a large patronage in American drug-stores.

The publishers have done their work well. Good paper, good print, and good binding make of the book a very neat volume.

W. W. Daniells.

ARBEITEN AUS DEM PHARMACEUTISCHEN INSTITUT DER UNIVERSITÄT BERLIN. Herausgegeben von Dr. H. Thoms, Professor und Leiter des Pharmazeutischen Instituts der Universität Berlin. Zweiter Band umfassend die Arbeiten des Jahres 1904. Ein Bd., pp. XII, 391, mit Textfiguren, 1 lithographierten Karte und 2 Tafeln. Verlag von Julius Springer, Berlin. 1905. M. 7.00.

During the first half of the nineteenth century, the condition of chemical instruction in Berlin left much to be desired and Liebig did not hesitate to inform the world that the capital of Prussia was not doing its duty in this respect. With the advent of A. W. v. Hofmann this defect was remedied and one new chemical laboratory after another was erected, culminating in the recent completion of the new edifice under Professor Fischer's directorship.

Pharmacy at the German capital had to wait half a century longer before the wishes of many an "Apotheker" of the fatherland were to be realized. However, the new Pharmaceutical Institute at Dahlem, next to the Botanical Garden of the University, is not only an accomplished fact, but there is also a full professor in charge of the new institute; and, what is more to him, the growth in the number of students has been considerable since the half-hearted policy of pharmaceutical instruction has been abandoned by the government.

Of the increase in the number of students from 109 to 180 during the academic year 1904, a good share of the increase is due to the new instructional regulations. While the apprenticeship has not yet been abolished, the time of probation of the assistant has been reduced from three years to one, whereas the obligatory period of study at the university has been increased from three semesters to four. Though the force of tradition still manifests itself in this regulation, the step in advance is a very satisfactory one.

In his duties, the Director has been assisted by a Privatdocent; by four assistants who have completed their studies by taking the degree of Doctor of Philosophy; by five assistants without a degree:

by three private assistants, all Ph. D's.; by three volontary assistants, also Ph. D's.; by an assistant for the examination of new remedies, secret remedies and specialties, supported in part by the German Apothecaries Society; and by eight persons in the capacity of janitors, engineer, fireman, etc.

The enumeration of the above is necessary to understand how it was possible to accomplish all of the research, published in the volume before us, in addition to the instructional duties demanded of the Director and his staff. While many of the papers have previously been published in the journals, others have not. They all stand as a lasting monument to the achievements of the new Pharmaceutical Institute at Berlin and are in a convenient form for reference by other investigators. That the Institute may prosper and become more and more a credit to scientific pharmacy the world over is the wish, not only of the writer, but of every one who loves pharmacy. E. K.

PROGRESS IN PHARMACY AND THERAPEUTICS.

Fourth Series. Bro

chure, pp. 91. Lehn & Fink, New York. 1905. $0.50. The well-known jobbing firm has for some years past published quarterly reports on the progress in pharmacy and therapeutics in the "Notes on New Remedies." These met with such favor that a demand arose for their republication in more convenient form. The firm allowed itself to be persuaded to issue the first series of six quarterly reports as a separate pamphlet early in 1900. The pamphlet bearing the date May, 1905, is the fourth of its kind.

While containing other information, these brochures are of value to the pharmaceutical practitioner primarily because of the data concerning new remedies which they contain. An index enables ready reference so that these publications acquire a cumulative value as time goes on.

The fourth edition also contains a special feature worth mentioning, viz. an article on "The growth and preparation of English herbs and drugs," a description of the drug farm of Messrs. Stafford Allen & Sons at Bedfordshire by Messrs. Helbing and Passmore. This article is enhanced by four fine halftone plates of Digitalis purpurea, Atropa belladonna, Aconitum napellus, and Datura stramonium. E. K.