THE WHITE POPPY.

1283

"Sr,

' c °tin a

0r Phia a ’ a ^ ie cautious addition of weak acetic acid, which dissolves the

. I'en' atld ’ u ."^ esst he acid be greatly in excess, does not dissolve the narcotina.

j ai ^ A°r ma WaS ^ rst discovered, it was said to be the stimulant principle of* do'tf j , "^ a ffendie states a grain of it, dissolved in olive oil, produced the death11 ace bc n . tvve »ty-four hours, while twenty-four times this quantity was given, dissolvedh tp d impunity. Orfila, at one time, declared it was inert, then that it

•h as m ° r P hia > an d subsequently that its operation was remarkable and peculiar,j'tliout « er ^ S dla *’ * n a solid state, it is inert; for 129 grains may be given, at one dose,h 1 little any obvious effect. The truth is, I believe, that narcotina possesses

f Sed an a ^y it f i and I presume, therefore, that the first experimenters with it era-

e ru ple s wi VjP Ure substance. Dr. Roots gave gradually increased doses of it, up to at^Ploy’itj ["it. the least injury. The bitterness of its sulphuric solution led him ton'“'t h a " l " UermiUen ts, as a substitute for disulphate of quina. More recently at-tf' V| ‘‘. P o'-T' drawn t0 it in India , by Dr. O’Shaughnessy (Brit, and For. Med. Rev.

•atertajj. as an Indian indigenous substitute for quina; and nearly 200 casesSop ^ARr eiU and rem ' ttent fevers, treated by it with success, have been published.

H ’ t;r VsMr R (N ar ceim ).—So called from Apsi), stupor. It is a white, inodorous1 ntetalp ' Zed * n ^ngr* line, silky needles, with a slightly hitter, and even some-Sfl°. J l c > taste. It dissolves in 230 parts of boiling water, or 375 parts of waterCf 'ine h USeS at a ^ out 198°, and at a higher temperature is decomposed.

Il, aces 1 Ti, SCVera ^ vcr -’ striking properties by which it is distinguished from other9a S die si 1 f .first °i these deserving of notice is the action of mineral acids on it.It] die cl I’ luric, nitric, ami muriatic acids, so diluted with water that they cannot- • ■- fj? e . n ^ ar .Y composition of narceine, give this substance a fine light-blue co-

on coming in contact with it. This alteration of colour does notH U| " i Ui)a' jf ,ei| d an any change in the elementary composition of narceine, since, bya "'ate ' ac,ds with ammonia, the narceine is precipitated unchanged. Whentig adier* ,* S a< ided, the blue colour disappears.

^d^ine) Taiarkable trait of narceine is, that it forms a bluish compound ( iodide of^Ute to .r iadine: heat and alkalies destroy the colour. So that iodine is not an(. f iie C |,^y tor starch.

tli 0VVl) s u i. racters noiv mentioned are sufficient to distinguish narceine from all otheriNaichS 8 ' „ Iu addition, I may add, that it does not form a blue colour withv t, c ein e ° nde * ron i as morphia does.

jj^lablg c T as a l drst supposed to be a vegetable alkali; but as it does not affectv'ple. < Jd )Ur s, nor combine with nor saturate acids, it is now regarded as a neutralp t "o graj 1 a , rceine ' s composed of C 28 H 20 N O 12 .

P u cii)g. ns “ave been several times thrown into the jugular vein of a dog, withouts op | J'”' 7 a PP re ciabIe effect. It is presumed, therefore, to be inert.

I lst 'y-—3o called from pdtsav, apoppy. It is a white, crystalline, odourlessc,,| ta ls are . > which at first is scarcely perceptible, is afterwards sensibly acrid. The^"^dess p Slx l s 'ded prisms, with dihedral summits. It fuses at 194°, and becomes aAii(j f’^ts 'of D1 P‘d fluid. At a higher temperature it may be distilled. It dissolves inPto 1,1 e tlier C< | . water, or in eighteen parts of boiling water. It is soluble in alcoholRr^d'es. ' p. Is distinguished f iom morphia and codeia by its not possessing alkaline(if sol u j,-v 0,n . ni0|, phia it is further distinguished by its greater fusibility, itstv,] q | !, y in water, and its not becoming blue on the addition of sesquichtoridetcj^Hess. jp, 5 . uric acid dissolves meconine, the solution being limpid andtill w sm a l| ' ” Cat a PPdcd, the liquid becomes dark. If the quantity of sulphuric

fo f ’ r| he g as ^ lri proportion to that of meconine, the liquid assumes a green colour. If>tal s e h; l | f sc d over fused meconine, the latter becomes blood-red, and on coolingc d| 5 'd th e fi f “ e compound thus formed is composed of chlorine and some organichit >>le(: hloi rS . e removed by oxide of silver, a white acid is obtained, which CouerbeH7 oi6 >, b / the action of nitric acid on meconine we obtainaci ( | ° H \x aci ^-> composed of one atom of meconine and half an atom of bypo-4 ^5 04 ^ e conine is remarkable for not containing' nitrogen. Its composition

b"ti ^ •

in water, and injected into the jugular vein of a dog, produced no7 I? it to h 6Ct ’ .farther experiments, however, are required before we can positivelyis a ' uer 4 , f a:i * ner t substance.

dcoli'l'hite, c A (P ar <imorphia).—Sc> called from Thebes , an ancient city of Egypt . It■>>i(| ','P anq’ e y st adine, fusible solid, having an acrid, styptic taste, very soluble in,s s ( j ly es . ler » hut hardly at all soluble in water. It possesses alkaline properties.°Pa 1 kal'* " ea ^ ac *^ s - From these solutions it is precipitated by alkalies. An1 cannot dissolve it, unless, indeed, the alkaline solution be very conceit-