790

ELEMENTS OF MATERIA MEDICA.

Bombolo.

2. Ordinary Crude Camphor ; China Camphor ; Formosa Carnpb ^This is imported from Singapore , Bombay, &c. in square chestswith lead foil, and containing from 1| to If ewts. It is chieflyduced in the island of Formosa, and is brought by the Chin-Chew F jin very large quantities to Canton, whence foreign markets get sU EF e d,(Reeves, Trans. Med. Bot. Soc. for 1828, p. 26 : Gutzlaff andChina Opened, vol. ii- p. 84, 1838). It consists of dirty greyish g 1 .which are smaller than those of Dutch camphor. Its quality va ^sometimes it is wet and impure; hut occasionally it is as fine aSDutch kind. eT ly

Purification. —Crude camphor is refined by sublimation. For ^this process was carried on only at Venice. Afterwards it was suefully practised in Holland. The method at present adopted in -metropolis is as follows:—The vessels in which this sublimatm^1’ig. 167; effected are called bomboloes (bonibola, ^/—y fiofifivXibe). They are made of thin

and weigh about 1 lb. each. Their shape . a iof an oblate spheroid, whose shorter or veaxis is about ten inches, and the longer orzontal axis about twelve inches. They are , lC |enished with a short neck. When filled withcamphor, they are imbedded in the sand'and heated. To the melted camphor, h 1116 ’ fadded, and the heat raised so as to make the liquid boil. The 'condenses on the upper part of the vessel. As the sublimation p r0( l p-the height of the sand around the vessel is diminished. In about -j,eight hours the process is usually completed. The vessels are (removed, and tlieir mouths closed with tow; water is sprinkledthem by watering-pots, by which they are cracked. When quitethe cake of camphor (which weighs about eleven pounds) is remove > ^trimmed by paring and scraping. In this process the lime retainimpurities and a portion of the camphor; hence, to extract thelime is submitted to a strong heat in an iron pot with a head to i >the sublimed product refined by a second sublimation.

Properties. — Refined Camphor (Camphora raffinata ; Campofficin.) is met with in the form of large hemispherical or couvex-cocakes, perforated in the middle. It is translucent, has a cry s j 0 ur,granular nature, a strong, peculiar, not disagreeable, aromatic a -yand an aromatic, bitter, afterwards cooling, taste. It is solid at ortemperatures, soft, and somewhat tough; but may be readily P°,' vby the addition of a few drops of rectified spirit, A crystal ol 11 picamphor in the wood (? camphor of Dryobalanops aromatica, Gscithe collection of Materia Medica at the College of Physicians, a PlC g ,iias a flat octahedron, but its primary form is a right rhombic P^ a t(W. Phillips, in Paris ’s Pharmacologia). It evaporates in the aordinary temperatures; but in closed vessels, exposed to light, su ^and crystallizes on the sides of the bottle. It fuses at 347forms a transparent liquid, which boils at 400° I., and in close ^condenses unchanged. It is combustible in the air, burning withsooty flame. It is lighter than water, its sp. gr. being 0‘98o7- . ^

pieces rotate when thrown on this liquid. Water dissolves a very peportion only of camphor. Alcohol readily dissolves it; but il ' v a