Chemistry of Opium.
PAPAVER
somniferum.
the Economic Products of India.
7
3
" It afforded e, the crude, dried morphine, which, after twice or three
times repeated recrystallisation, finally furnished f, purified morphine. This
purification of morphine cannot be performed without a loss of morphine;
the real practical percentage of that alkaloid may, therefore, more correctly
be regarded as somewhat superior to the figure f. It would be desirable
to apply a process furnishing the exact percentage; yet there is, as far as
I know, no such method thoroughly satisfactory. I have been struck with
the very large discrepancy, in the Indian opium, of the figures under e and
f, which, I think, is larger than in opium from Asia Minor. Another fact
well worth considering is the usually low percentage of morphine of Indian
opium, narcotine being frequently present to a larger amount. This has
already been pointed out in the Pharmacographia, p . 57. It would appear,
however, that this is of no consequence for the Chinese consumption, yet,
possibly, it will be so some day if the home production of the Chinese fur
-ther increases. Perhaps a more careful preparation of the Indian opium
would at least prove of importance, not so much with regard to the smokers
of the drug as to the possibility of extracting morphine from Indian opium
profitably. It is not needful to point out that this would be highly
desirable."
In the following table is shown the analyses of samples of Patna and
Behar provision opium, Malwa opium and pasewa. These analyses are
interesting, as they indicate the amount of extractive obtained by the action
of cold and hot water on the drug. The amount of extractive as well as
the alkaloidal content varies within narrow limits from year to year. Ana--
lyses of Behar and Patna provision opium, arranged as shown in this
table, are yearly placed before the merchants at the annual inspection of
opium, which takes place before the first sale of the season :—
VARIETY OF OPIUM.
Moisture
at
100°C.
Cold-water
extract on
anhydrous
opium at
1 0 0°C .
Hot-water
extract on
anhydrous
opium at
100° C.
Narco-
tine on
anhy- drous
opium.
M o r p h i a " ẁ P u l a
on anhy-
drous
opium.
m
T o t a l a l k a - l o i d s .
Behar cake No. 1, manufac-
tured 26 th May 1833 . 26.43 64.25
65.54 5.91 3.86
. . .
Benares cake No. 4, manu-
factured 1st January
1883 . . .
29.97 63.8
64.57 5.91 4.58
. . .
Malwa opium, 31st March
1 8 8 3 . . . . 8.56 65.90
68.58 6.81 4.92 11.73
Pasew a from Benares
District, 1886 . . 19.75 66.31
70.46 5.04 3.19 8.23
Pasewa from Benares
District, 1888 . .
22.00 72.05
76.16 4.10
. 8 5
4.95
Regarding the amount of morphia in Malwa opium, according to
Dr. Smyttan, formerly Opium Inspector, Bombay, the best Malwa opium
yields 8 per cent., Flückiger's analysis gives 14.4 per cent. of crude and
6.1 per cent. of purified morphia, a larger yield than that obtained by M r.
Gregory, who only found 4.92 per cent. On the other hand, while
Flückiger found only 4.7 per cent of narcotine, the Opium Factory ana
-lysis affords 6.81 per cent. Flückiger's analysis of Patna garden opium, in
which 8.6 per cent. is given on the content of purified morphia, is an excep
-tional yield of the alkaloid for Bengal opium. The analyses of pasewa
are of special interest as indicating the very wide differences which may
occur in its composition.
MANUFAC- TURE.
Chemistry.