.. 160 min.

10 Cc.

Glycerini Aquae

2 fl. ozs.

60 Cc.

.......

q. s. ad 8 fl. ozs. 240 Cc.

Asbestos Chemical Covering for Glassware.-A patent has been issued in Germany for a method, of covering the exterior of beakers, flasks, combustion tubes, evaporating dishes, etc., with a layer of asbestos, which is said to be thoroughly satisfactory in preventing the glass from breaking when suddenly heated or cooled, and also protects it from mechanical accidents, adding very materially to the life of the articles which are coated with it.

To Blacken Brass.-A German technical journal (Bayer. Ind. u. Gewbl.) recommends that the object to be treated be immersed in a saturated solution of copper sulphate to which a solution of ammonium carbonate has been gradually added until the precipitate produced at first has entirely disappeared. Heat the solution and plunge the article into it from time to time until it is as dark as desired. Then polish and coat with negative varnish or with a solution of shellac.

Fluid Extract of Liquorice.—In a paper read before the Edinburgh branch of the Pharmaceutical Society, by Peter Boa, some interesting comparisons are made upon the United States and British pharmacopoeial methods of manufacture of fluid extract of liquorice. He concludes (Pharm. Journ., 1898, p. 188) that percolation of a coarse powder with water is the best method of extracting the liquorice and that ammonia should be added to the percolate in sufficient quantity to render the percolate slightly alkaline, thus preventing the deposit of glycyrrhizin which occurs in the acid aqueous percolate. He also recommends that the quantity of spirits added be slightly increased.

Note on the Assay of Opium.-B. S. Proctor has prepared a modification of the B.P. method of opium assay, doing away with the washing of the liquid in the flask with ether. To this end (Chemist and Druggist, 1898, p. 20) the opium is extracted and the mixed alkaloids are precipitated in the manner indicated in the B.P.; the precipitate is collected on a previously dried and tared filter, washed first with a saturated aqueous morphine solution, then once with distilled water, and dried at 100° C. to constant weight. The narcotine is removed from the morphine by washing with petroleum benzine until a drop leaves only a negligible residue upon evaporation. The residue on the filter, after a second drying, is weighed as morphine. The process can, of course, be applied to preparations of opium as well as to the drug itself.

Resin of Podophyllum.-Edgar J. Millard calls attention (Pharm. Journ., 1898, p 304) to the fact that English manufacturers are supplying a resin obtained from Indian podophyllum (P. emodi) under the title of podophyllum

resin, British Pharmacopoeia, and offers the following as the best means of detection: "To 0.4 Gm. of the resin in a testtube add 3 Cc. of diluted alcohol (sp. gr. 0.92) and 0.5 Cc. of solution of potash B.P.; shake by rotating the test-tube. In the case of the Indian resin, the mixture assumes in a few seconds a semisolid gelatinous mass, so that the testtube can be safely inverted. If this does not occur quickly, the mixture should be heated until it just begins to boil, and when cold it will be found to have gelatinized. The official resin similarly treated gives a dark fluid that shows no signs of gelatinizing even after standing for days."

A New Test for Bile Pigments.Gluzinski was led (Wien. klin. Woch., December 30, 1897) by the examination of livers hardened in formalin to devise a new test for bile. This consists in boiling for a few minutes with formalin when an emerald-green color results, which turns to an amethyst-violet on the addition of a few drops of hydrochloric acid.

Gluzinski finds that the reaction is given by bile pigments but not by bile salts. The violet color is taken up by chloroform, which, if the pigment originally present in the fluid was biliverdin, gives two absorption bands in the green, the other bile pigments giving no bands under similar circumstances. By this means the author was enabled to show that a sample of icteric urine contained biliverdin. With regard to the delicacy of the test, a certain urine gave it. and also Gmelin's reaction; on tenfold dilution the latter failed, but the former (the new test) persisted until dilution had been carried to the extent of 140 to 150 times.

The Use of Agar-agar.-Gallois recommends the use of agar-agar (Journ. de Med., March 10, 1898) in certain inflammatory infections of the skin, more particularly erysipelas. The formula employed by him is a 1 per cent solution in water, to which is added 0.1 per cent perchcloride of mercury and tartaric acid. The patient applies the substance directly to the part affected, by rubbing, by which means it is spread out as a thin coating which dries fairly rapidly and which can be renewed several times a day if necessary. The great advantage of this method is its cleanliness; it gives to the skin a sensation of freshness, and owing to its elasticity it does not cause contraction in the same way as gelatine. It is not necessary to warm the solution, a proceeding which is essential in the case of gelatine. The coating which it forms on the skin prevents friction, and can when necessary be removed by simple washing. Agar is cheap, and there is no doubt that it can be used as a useful vehicle for other substances to be applied to the skin.

The Pharmacy of Cantharides.*

BY PROFESSOR H. G. GREENISH, F. I. C.,
F. L. S, AND HAROLD WILSON.
(Concluded from page 225).
Determination of Free Cantharidin.

This is accomplished in the same way as the determination of total cantharidin, with the exception that the drug is not moistened with the acetic acid mixture before extraction, and no acetic acid being present, the washing of the chloroformic solution with water becomes unnecessary.

Determination of Combined Cantharidin.

The proportion of combined cantharidin present has been determined by difference between cantharidin yielded in determining total cantharidin and that obtained in determining free cantharidin.

We have found by experiment that no cantharidin is lost in filtering the solution obtained by shaking the chloroformic solution of cantharidin with milk of lime and salt solution; at least, when the quantity of cantharidin present is small, as it always is where this process has been employed by us. A test experiment showed that 100 Cc. of the filtered liquid contained .027 Gr. of cantharidin in solution of 15° C. From these figures it will be seen that if a large quantity of cantharidin be present a correspondingly large quantity of milk of lime must be employed.

We have also checked the method employed for recovering cantharidin from its solution in fat by an experiment with a known weight of cantharidin dissolved in fat free from cantharidin; the whole of the cantharidin was recovered.

Although the process is somewhat lengthy we have the satisfaction of knowing that loss of cantharidin has been carefully guarded against.

That cantharides vary considerably in the proportion of cantharidin they contain is so well known that although we have examined several samples we quote only the two above as good commercial specimens, showing a considerable difference in the amount of combined canthar

idin they contain. We chose sample 2 for making the official preparations, with the view of determining, in possible, the action of the menstrua on the combined as distinct from the free cantharidin. Assay of Official Preparations of Cantharides. LIQUOR EPISPASTICUS.

Preparation. Five ounces of powdered . cantharides from sample 2 were moistened in a mortar with 3 fluid ounces of acetic ether, packed in a cylindrical glass percolator, and allowed to stand for twenty

Read at an Evening Meeting of the Pharmaceutical Society, on Tuesday, March 8th, and printed in the Pharmaceutical Journal.

four hours. The mortar was then rinsed with acetic ether, which was poured on the packed drug, and percolation allowed to proceed until exactly a pint had been collected.

Assay.-Eighty Cc. (equivalent to 20 Gms. of cantharides) were measured off and allowed to evaporate. From the residue, consisting principally of fat and cantharidin, the latter was separated by removing the fat with petroleum spirit, and then washing with alcohol; to the residue of pure cantharidin thus obtained was then added that recovered from petroleum spirit and alcoholic washings, as detailed in our assay process.

As our assay of this sample of cantharides showed that 20 Gms. contained .136 Gr. of cantharidin, it is evident that acetic ether dissolves both free and combined cantharidin.

The marc was assayed and found to have been completely exhausted.

The free acid usually present in commercial acetic ether probably liberates the combined cantharidin, which then passes into solution.

The excess of 5 Mg. in the cantharidin found over that calculated is probably due to adhering impurity, which acetic ether brings into solution, and from which the cantharidin can only with difficulty be separated.

TINCTURA CANTHARIDIS. Preparation. One ounce of powdered cantharides from sample 2 was macerated for seven days with 4 pints of proof spirit with occasional agitation.

The tincture was filtered off into a tared vessel as completely as possible, and weighed 2055.5 Gms. The filter paper containing the whole of the marc was weighed whilst wet, allowed to dry spontaneously, and again weighed. Loss by drying or weight of tincture dried on marc = 51 Gms.

Assay of Tincture.-20 Cc. of 10 per cent solution of potash were added to fix the cantharidin, the spirit was distilled off, and the solution evaporated to about half a pint. It was then strained into a separator through glass wool, acidified with hydrochloric acid, and shaken out with chloroform.

From this chloroformic solution the cantharidin was recovered as detailed in our assay process.

Cantharidin extracted ....

0.171 Gms.

cantharidin was then determined first in the strained liquid and subsequently in the marc.

Assay.-I. Strained Liquid: It being impossible to shake out cantharidin by means of chloroform from an aqueous infusion of cantharides, on account of its emulsifying properties, the following method was adopted:

The infusion was made alkaline with solution of potash and evaporated to dry

ness

on a water bath, adding asbestos wool towards the end of the process. This wool on which the extract had dried was then packed in a Soxhlet extractor, acidified with glacial acetic acid, and extracted with chloroform. The chloroformic solution was placed in a separator with water and the aqueous layer nearly neutralized with solution of potash. After vigorous shaking the chloroformic layer was run. off into a large separator and shaken with a large quantity of milk of lime and salt solution. The aqueous solution was filtered off, acidified with hydrochloric acid, and treated with chloroform in the usual

manner.

Cantharidin extracted ......... 0.079 Gms.

II.

Marc with Liquid Dried on.-This was assayed by the method for total cantharidin, previously described.

Cantharidin found .... ..... 0.051 Gms. Now by calculation the 10.4 Gms. of infusion retained by the marc contained .009 Gm. The result is therefore as follows:

Cantharidin extracted by water..0.088 Gm. Cantharidin left in flies 0.042 Gm. 0.130 Gm.

As 20 Gms. of sample 2 cantharides contain .136 Gm. of cantharidin, a loss of

.006 Gm. has been incurred in the assays.

Considering the exceedingly small extent to which cantharidin in the free state is soluble in water, these results are somewhat surprising.

Possibly here the cantharidin passes into solution as an ammonium salt, as when solution of potash is added to the infusion during estimation ammonia gas is given off. It would be interesting to know if any appreciable quantity of cantharidin is actually dissolved in the free state by the water, or brought into solution by other bodies dissolved, but the importance of the subject from the point of view of this paper did not warrant us in so great an expenditure of time as the settling of this point would entail.

That the cantharidin is actually in solution we have proved by filtering the solution through kaolin, and then estimating, when results have been obtained identical with those given in the above determination.

EMPLASTRUM CANTHARIDIS.

Preparation. Four ounces of powdered cantharides from sample 2 wefe taken, and with them exactly 12 ounces of the official plaster were prepared.

Assay.-A quantity of this plaster was melted over a water-bath and poured on to a filter supported in a hot water funnel, the mixture of filtered fats, etc., being collected in a tared flask.

It will be seen that 1 Gm. of the filtered plaster contains about 1 Mg. of cantharidin.

Now, 40 Gms. of filtered plaster correspond to 20 Gms. of powdered cantharides; by calculating from the above assay we find that of the .136 Gm. of cantharidin present in 20 Gms. of flies, .040 Gm. is dissolved and .096 Gm. undissolved. The residue was not assayed, for the assay is extremely difficult, the wax and resin being particularly troublesome.

con

Judging from analogy with the ointment, we may say with a fair degree of certainty that no combined cantharidin is extracted, but that is a matter of relatively small importance when we sider the small proportion of total cantharidin which passes into solution. It must also be observed that by keeping the plaster melted at the raised temperature necessary for filtration, facilities must be given for even more cantharidin to pass into solution than would be the case in preparing the plaster by the official process; the proportion of cantharidin is therefore probably above rather than below that of the present official plaster.

UNGUENTUM CANTHARIDIS.

20 Gms. of cantharides in No. 40 powder from sample 2 were macerated with 100 Gms. (120 Cc.) of olive oil for twelve hours with occasional stirring. The mixture was then subjected to the temperature of a water bath for 15 minutes with constant stirring, placed in calico and pressed.

0.119

0.136

0.017

Cantharidin present in 20 grammes
of flies used
Error

In this preparation it will be seen that nearly two-thirds of the free cantharidin has been extracted by the oil, or nearly half a milligramme to each gramme of oil, whilst the combined cantharidin has not been extracted at all.

ACETUM CANTHARIDIS.

We have found the official method for making this preparation quite impracticable. The heating with acetic acid, to which the cantharides are subjected, results in the production of a magma which resists all attempts at percolation. By pressure we succeeded in obtaining a certain amount of liquid, but we were unsuccessful in our attempts at assay. The liquid pressed out possessed in a remarkable degree the property of emulsifying chloroform; the substance possessing this property could not be removed by precipitation with alcohol; direct evaporation would probably lead to loss of cantharidin, and we could not devise any means of getting rid of the acetic acid without losing cantharidin. We, therefore, abandoned any further attempts at this assay. There is one official preparation of cantharides with which we have not dealt, viz., charta epispastica. Blistering paper made by the official process has proved so unsatisfactory that its existence will probpresent Pharmacopoeia. No one could ably not be prolonged beyond that of the consider the formula to be or ever to have been in harmony with our knowledge of the active constituent of the drug. Should such a preparation be required by the medical profession, there would be no difficulty in devising a suitable formula based upon the results of our work.

Summary.

Our results, showing the action of the various menstrua upon the cantharidin contained in 20 Gms. of cantharides, may be tabulated as follows:

The following table shows the weight (or volume) containing 1 part of cantharidin:

The castor oil and resin have been added to replace the natural fat of the cantharides; such an addition is necessary to aid the absorption of cantharidin by the skin. The resin renders the oil sufficiently viscid and adhesive to prevent it from easily leaving the spot upon which it has been painted.

COLLODIUM VESICANS.

Pvroxylin
1 part.
Blisterin Liquid (as above) 40 fluid parts
Dissolve.

This preparation has been tested, and it has been found that when applied to the arm it raises a blister in about eight hours.

6 Pharmaceutical Journal [3], xiv., p. 169.

Cantharidin
Chloroform

Yellow wax Prepared suet.. Resin

1 part.

a sufficiency. in equal propor

tions 999 parts. Dissolve the cantharidin in a small quantity of the chloroform by the aid of heat, and add to the other ingredients previously melted together on a water bath, and stir well. Continue the application of heat till the chloroform is dissipated, and stir till cold.

This yields an excellent preparation, easy to spread and separating well from the blister produced. We have tried it on the arm, and find that it blisters well in from five to six hours. Dieterich recommends 1 in 289, but we consider that unnecessarily strong.

EMPLASTRUM CALEFACIENS.

Dissolve the cantharidin in a small quantity of chloroform by the aid of heat and add the olive oil; now add this mixture to the resin plaster previously melted on a water bath and stir well. Continue the application of heat till the chloroform is dissipated.

On trial this plaster has been found to cause redness of the skin, but no blister.

These formulae possess two great advantages over those at present official, viz., the definite strength of the product, the ease with which they can be prepared. They make but little demand upon the time or skill of the pharmacist, and yet we venture to think they are not wanting in elegance or efficacy. They indirectly place at the disposal of pharmacy commercial drugs that are at present excluded, and yet are more active than the official. Chinese, as well as other blistering beetles, might be utilized as a source of cantharidin. The definition of this substance would be attended with little difficulty, for its physical, chemical, and physiological characters are well marked.

We regret that our experiments were commenced too late to be of service to those till recently engaged in compiling a new edition of the Pharmacopoeia. We

think, however, that it is not too soon to commence work on its successor. We also think it extremely desirable that suggested formulae should be offered for free criticism before they are made official, and we bring forward these suggestions, in a spirit of constructive criticism, for the first Pharmacopoeia of the next century.

A Marvelous Chinese Drug. Henry Seton Merriman describes in his novel, "With Edged Tools," the adventures of two Britishers, who set out in search of a marvelous plant growing wild in the interior of Africa. "Simiacine" is the name given to the shrub, a hatful of which we are given to understand is worth a thousand pounds. Those who have read the novel have been filled with curiosity as to the nature of so costly a drug-a curiosity which bids fair to be satisfied in a measure by a recent discovery of Dr. Augustine Henry, the eminent botanist, well known for his work on the flora of Southern China.

Writing to a relative in New York under date of January 19, 1898, Dr. Henry says:

"I have been successful in finding the botanical source of San-ch'i, the most famous drug in China, worth several dollars an ounce of rhizome.

"The drug is considered to be invaluable in all cases of wounds, contusions, etc., and as a tonic.

"Curiously enough it is, like ginseng, a species of Panax. I have not yet had time to determine whether or not it is a new species (there are but four distinct species, all very close).

"The mode of collecting the plant is very curious."

In the novel the discoverer of "Simiacine" explains the name and properties of the drug as follows:

The scientific chaps called it simiacine, because of an old legend which, like all those things, has a grain of truth in it. The legend is, that the monkeys first found out the properties of the leaf, and it is because they live on it that they are so strong, Do you know that a gor illa's arm is not half so thick as yours, and yet he would take you and snap your backbone across his knee; he would bend a gun-barrel as you would bend a cane, merely by the turn of his wrist? That is simiacine. He can hang on to a tree with one leg and tackle a leopard with his bare hands-that's simiacine. At home, in England and in Germany, they are only just beginning to find out its properties; it seems that it can bring a man back to life when he is more than half dead. There is no knowing what children that are brought up on it will turn out to be; it may double the power of the human brain-some think it will.

It is quite possible that news of the marvelous Chinese drug had reached the author of "With Edged Tools," who utilized his knowledge in the manner customary to authors, by changing the habitat of the drug from China to Africa, and altering the description of the plant in a few minor particulars.

That Microbe of Baldness.

An ingenious Frenchman of a commercial turn of mind, has created a sensation by proclaiming himself the discoverer of a microbe which is alleged to be the cause of baldness. In spite of the resignation which people under forty affect when the hair thins to a perceptible degree there is unquestionably a very lively and general desire to preserve the capillary thatch.

No better proof thereof can be required, according to the Medical Press, than the

eagerness with which the victims of premature calvities give a trial to every new compound vaunted as a sure specific against the depilatory process. Now, certain forms of baldness, especially of the local kind, are undoubtedly due to the ravages of microbes or fungi, but the usual form of baldness is determined by a readjustment of the peripheral circulation, in virtue whereof the scalp, or certain parts thereof, no longer receive the normal supply of blood. It is a curious fact that the incidence of this retrograde process is greatly influenced by hereditary proclivities. In some families the baldness proceeds from before backwards, the forehead becoming higher and higher until, so to speak, it reaches the back of the head. Others again, and these are probably the great majority, appear to grow through their hair, the denuded pate making its appearance at the apex of the human oval. Thence it extends anteroposteriorly, until the top of the head resembles a wide and glistening stream with rushy margins, the long straggling rushes being carefully drawn along or over the vacant territory for the purpose of rendering the nakedness of the land more conspicuous. To talk of a microbe of baldness in connection with this general process is obviously ridiculous, and would not be worth refuting or even alluding to were it not for the fact that a number of lay journals of standing have lent their columns to the subject, foremost among which we may mention the Contemporary Review. All this is part of an ingenious scheme of advertisement, and the references ought properly to have been relegated to the columns ad hoc. Remedies for baldness are at least as numerous as cures for phthisis, and the efficacy of the one is about on a par with that of the other.

Australian Perfumes.

Although the Australian colonies are rich in plants yielding delicious perfumes and valuable essential oils, little or nothing has been done, it is stated, to utilize the advantages thus afforded. Systematic flower farming is still in its experimental stages, and there exists an almost untouched field of great extent for those possessing the necessary capital and experience in the manufacture of perfumery and essential oils. In New South Wales the garden flowers of Europe and Asia, especially those emitting the richest fragrance, are found growing in unsurpassed luxuriance, many being obtainable nearly all the year round, whilst they are easily reared. Among the native perfume-yielding plants which remain unutilized are several varieties of acacia, including a few which furnish scented wood. The Acacia farnesiana grows plentifully in many parts of New South Wales; and another species of acacia, familiarly known as the "Golden Wattle," is equally useful as a perfume plant; as is also the native laurel, or mock orange. Among the plants from which sweet-scented and other oils may be obtained are the native sassafras, peppermint, bloodwood, blue gum, mountain ash, white gum, ironbark, woolly butt, spotted gum, tallow-wood, messmate, red gum, poplar, box, ridge myrtle, tea-tree, native peppermint, dogwood, and turmeric. The trees known by the various names are, of course, not always identical with those with which we usually associate the names in this country.— Pharm. Jour., 325.

PAMPHLETS RECEIVED.

PROCEEDINGS of the North Dakota State Pharmaceutical Association, at its Twelfth Annual Meeting, held at Fargo, August 24, 1897. Secretary, W. S. Parker, Lisbon.

PROCEEDINGS of the Iowa Pharmaceutical Association, held at Waterloo, Ia., June 9, 10 and 11, 1897. A. H. Miles, secretary, Des Moines. REPORT OF PROCEEDINGS of the Illinois Pharmaceutical Association at its eighteenth annual meeting, held at Champaign, June 2, 3, 1897, with the constitution and by-laws and the State Pharmacy law. Frank Fleury, secretary, Springfield.

AN EPHEMERIS OF MATERIA MEDICA, Pharmacy, Therapeutics and Collateral Information, by Edward R. Squibb, M.D.; Edward H. Squibb, S.B., M.D.; Charles F. Squibb, A.B. Vol. V, No. 1, Brooklyn, N. Y.; pp. 1,927-2,100.

This pamphlet, published by an American pharmaceutical firm, is chiefly remarkable for the absence of any references to American medical or pharmaceutical literature. The editors appear to rely chiefly for their information upon foreign sources and a conspicuous example is found in the credit extended to L. C. Urban, of Milwaukee, for his formula for tasteless extract of cascara, in which he is quoted as "An English pharmacist."

sary.

Further comment is unneces

Correspondence.

A Belated Cry for "Shorter Hours." To the Editor:

Sir: I regret, exceedingly, the position the AMERICAN DRUGGIST has taken in re

gard to the early closing movement in New York. The evil results of the long hours, without even the intermission of one rest day in seven, are simply appalling. The breaking down of the physical and mental powers is not the worst, although this is bad enough. The great est evil of all is the utter barrenness of the social and spiritual nature, for the lack of time and opportunities for their cultivation.

Candidly and thoughtfully consider, sir, the present status of the religious element in the drug business? I will venture the assertion that 95 per cent are not in accord with the principles of the Christian religion, that 70 per cent are utterly indifferent, and 50 per cent avowed infidels.

Is it not a fact that the moral status of the drug trade is on the downward grade? How could it very well be otherwise? I assert that no man can continually disregard the laws of God and man with impunity.

In regard to the statements in the DRUGGIST that the drug clerks favor the present condition of things and do not want "shorter hours" and Sunday's rest, I will say that during about 35 years' of service in the retail drug business, I have never yet seen one single person who was not opposed to the long hours and Sunday business. The plan adopted by those favoring a change may not be the best, but it seems to be the only way. For such is the greed of the average proprietor that his consent to any change has never yet been obtained.

Yours very truly,

G. C. GEARN, Central Drug Store, 864 Fifth st., near E, San Deigo, Cal.

My store is never open on Sunday. I am in favor of closing at 6 p. m.

Queries and Answers.

We shall be glad, in this department, to respond to calls for information bearing on pharmacy or any of its allied topics, and cordially invite our friends to make use of this column.

The name and address of the inquirer must accompany the communication, not for publication, but to assure attention, as we make it a rule to pay no regard to anonymous correspondence.

Heat together on a water bath till dissolved.

100

Alum in Bread.-L. C. K.-The following process for determining alum in bread is trustworthy: Incinerate Gms. to a dull gray ash, add equal parts of water and hydrochloric acid and evaporate to dryness to render silica insoluble. and filter, add to the acid filtrate excess Again add hydrochloric acid and water of ammonium acetate when aluminum and plication of gentle heat. iron phosphates are precipitated on apFilter, reacid, add pure soda solution, when ferric dissolve the precipitate in hydrochloric phosphate is precipitated. Filter and wash the filtrate well and precipitate the aluminum phosphate by neutralizing with weigh. acetic acid. Filter off water, dry and

1 oz.

5 ozs. 10 ozs

are

called "essences" or "extracts of chocolate." For the same reason, R. C. W., that a cockroach is called a black beetle, because he is not black and is not a beetle. The so-called chocolate essences are simply powdered cacoa beans freed from the oil by pressure.

Extraction of Sulphur.-Ph. G.-A druggist who signs himself Ph. G. surely ought to know that neither carbon disulphide nor any other solvent will extract sulphur from natural sulphides. This is one of the first things taught to students in chemistry.

Catgut for Ligatures.-W. B. W.The catgut used in the municipal hospitals of the City of New York (see page 197) is of two kinds, as follows:

1. Smooth catgut. This is the best quality of imported smooth banjo and violin strings, put up in boxes containing 30 strings each, and of the following sizes:

Average Lengthing Strain of Average Breakof each String. each String(raw)

Violin D (heaviest)

67 inch.

5 pounds.

8

The first three sizes are those mostly in use. Each string or coil is tied, in two places, with silk, which should be white, not colored, because, if colored, the tint will be more or less transferred to the catgut, when this is boiled with ether or alcohol.

2. Rough catgut. This is the kind imported for clockmakers' and jewelers' use. It is usually in strings of 5 meters in length, of various thickness, and tied with itself. The smaller sizes, 00, 0, 1, 2 and 3, are those most generally in use.

Since the gut, even though boiled in ether, still retains at least as much fat as the amount of ether retained in the interior of the gut can hold in solution, it is best to boil it, in the same flask, after the removal of the ether, with absolute alcohol (completely covered thereby) for one hour. It is preferable always to use absolute alcohol, though the ordinary official alcohol (94% by vol.) may be used if the other is not at hand. Should the percentage strength of the official alcohol fall materially below 94, there is danger of causing the gut to soften, gelatinize, snarl, and become rotten.

NOTE.

A large number of replies to queries are held over from this number to accomodat other matters pressing for space.