Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1889-06-12
DRUGS AND CHEMICALS.
A Reporters Interesting Talk with
an Apothecary.
How to Test the Purity of Medicines-An
Acid Procured from Ants and q
Tincture Furnished by the
Ubiquitous CocRroach.

store, Is there any liability of the ingredi-
ents being impure or worthless, thereby
rendering the prescription ineffectiveii,
asked Cleveland Plain Dealer reporter Of
local druggist.
Certainly" he replied. 81 wouldn't care
TO say that you could go to any drug store
and have prescription filed with pure
drugs, but viii say that there is no neces-
slty for drug store to be stocked with Inn.
pure drugs. There is a test for all medi-
clnes, and II druggists were only careful In
testing their goods before Offering them To
the public, great many more physicians,
prescriptions would do the patients some
good"
AS no less matter than human life itself
depends on the efficiency of drugs used in
ooctors' pres criptons, it was thought worth
while to inquire into the matter O little
farther
"Wel, how can druggist know his drugs
are purep
"All drugs" replied the apothecary, "are
derived from either the animal, vegetable
or mineral kingdoms. Those derived from
the vegetable kingdom may be purchased
by the druggist in their original form and
pulverized, ground or reduced to another
form by his own hands. This Is the only
way OF positively knowing whether the
arucle Is unadulterated or not, for In DOW
der form 1t Is an easy matter for some
worthless substance to be mixed in without
any apparent change Here is q piece of
virginia snake root 1t looks very much
like pink root, which is poisonous. l take
this piece OF Virginia snake root, slice Off a
tnln cross section, soak 1t in glycerine and
water and put it under microscope. II It
Is the genuine article l will see that the
pitn Is at the edge of the root, with sprays
frfNNr =
root with the pith near the edge. Here is a
seneca root. Treated in the same wav it
shows q lot of wood bundles with q
triangular sectional hollow. Only the
Dark OF 1t Is useful. Aconite comes in
the form OF root, and it is very poisonous.
Under the microscope you will see in the
center the form OF q star, with little spot
at each point. Black snake root ia marlred
with perfect maltese GROSS. By pur.
chasing medicines in this form druggist
can easily tell whether he has the genuine
article or not. Dandelion is often counter.
feited by chickory. Dandelion root has a
yellow center with rings of milk ducts
around 1t, while chickory has yellow pith
with milk ducts radiating from It.
''Yes, we have calls for some very odd
remedies. have been asked for dog fat
cat fat, rabbit fat, skunk oil, snake oil
spirits OF ants and the like queer medi.
cines, mostly by old Germans who had
neard OF them from some old granny in the
fatherland. Spirits of antsa You didn,t
know that the Industrious insect contained
a valuable medicinal property, chr Well.
they do; 1t is formic acid. Formerly
formic acid used to be obtained entirelv
from ants, but now it is obtained better bv
chemical means. If you want to find the
iormlc acld In ants lay piece of litmus
paper on the ground and let them crawl
across 1t. The paper is blue and formfo
acid turns 1t red. As the ants crawl
across it they viii leave red trail behind
them.
'There's cockroach on your Sleeves
brought 1t from the office, / suppose,
replied the reporter; 1--WE are overrun with
them"
"Gather them up and make tincture of
blatta of them," the chemist suggested.
"Tincture of blatta OF cockroachesr,
Certainly. Excellent remedy for kidney
troubles. 1t is now obtained more easily
oy other means, but the frisky cockroach
nrst gave 1t to the world. The active
principle OF the cockroach is anti-hydropian
In crystalline form, and it was discovered
In 1875. Tell you how tincture of blatta
was nrst obtained. Cockroaches were
caught, put in bottle, and after they wera
dead they were digested in alcohol, which
extracted their medicinal properties. Yes.
the medicine was taken internally for
kidney troubles. Oh, you get a good many
disagreeable things served up as medicine.
Look at that" said the druggist, point
ing to bottle filled with very dark fluid.
Ihat IS cod-lver oil. 1t is made from pu-
trlned COD Hvers and other decomposed
MYERS which 1t would have made you sick to
smell OF. That went down many q poor fell
lows throat. Some years ago there was 40
much OF 1t on the market that it had TO be
got rid of some way, and so druggists sold
It for lnlernal use in preference to getting
pure cod-liver oil. Now it is used only for
purposes, and pure cod-liver oil
Is sold. 1t is q clear amber color. and a
remedy for consumption.
You know what that is ~ setting a bottle
of small reddish globules before the re-
porter. "All that remains of lot of poor
little cochineal bugs from Mexico From 1t
carmine Is made. The poor bugs little
thought as they frolcked on their native
cactus that some day they would be giving
color to fair ladies' cheeks.
~ made some gold the other day. Wish
you could have seen it. 1t is an interesting
process. 1t is what is called old mosaic
zold, and Is made by amagamating tin with
mercury, adding salimoniac and sulphur
ma heating to redness in q crucible for
'hrec hours until white fumes cease to be
evolved. 1t Is the kind Of gold used for
decorating picture frames
Just glance at that prescription. Can
Tou read itf''
The prescription was an unintellieible
'crawl to the uninitiated.
'That doctor writes the worst of any Of
'ur customers. We have to learn to read
hem, though. Yes, sometimes get stuck
IN prescription. For instance, here Is
me that says acid hydro. dill Now that
nay mean either dilute bydrocyanic acid,
n dilute hydrochloric acid One is for the
stomach and the other is a nerve sedative
n such a case have to telephone to the
ioctor and find out which he means before
can fill the prescription.
but the funniest notes one gets are
rom people who sesld their children after
Medicine. Here H. one boy handed TO me
'nd said he want ed ten cents worth Of it. 1t
eads 'garibaldigaset,' and is meant for car
'olic acid. Please admit to bearer a bottle
II pain killer We receive hundred. 80