Chapter LXVI: Part 2 (27)

=Solution of Potas′sa.= _Syn._ SOLUTION OF HYDRATE OF POTASSA, LIQUOR OF POTASSA, POTASH WATER, CAUSTIC P. W.; LIQUOR POTASSÆ (B. P., Ph. L.), AQUA POTASSÆ (Ph. E.), POTASSÆ CAUSTICÆ LIQUOR (Ph. D.), AQUA KALI PURI†, LIXIVIUM SAPONARUM†, AQUA KALI CAUSTICUM†, LIXIVIUM CAUSTICUM†, L. _Prep._ 1. (Ph. L.) Lime (recently burnt), 8 oz.; boiling distilled water, 1 gall.; sprinkle a little of the water on the lime in an earthen vessel, and, when it is slaked and fallen to powder, add of carbonate of potassa 15 oz., dissolved in the remainder of the water; bung down, and shake frequently, until the mixture is cold, then allow the whole to settle, and decant the clear supernatant portion into perfectly clean and well-stoppered green-glass bottles. Sp. gr. 1·063. It contains 6·7% of pure potassa.

2. (Ph. E.) Carbonate of potassa (dry), 4 oz.; quicklime, 2 oz.; water, 45 fl. oz.; boiling briskly for a few minutes after each addition of the milk of lime; to yield at least 35 fl. oz., by decantation, after 24 hours’ repose in a deep, narrow, glass vessel. Sp. gr. 1·072.

3. (Ph. D.) Pure carbonate of potassa, 1 lb.; distilled water, 1 gall.; dissolve, heat the solution to the boiling point in a clean iron vessel, gradually add to it of fresh quicklime, 10 oz., previously slaked with water, 7 fl. oz., and continue the ebullition for 10 minutes, with constant stirring; next allow it to cool out of contact with the air, and, when perfectly clear, decant it by means of a syphon, and bottle it as before. Sp. gr. 1·068.

4. (B. P.) Carbonate of potash, 2; slaked lime, 1-1/2; distilled water, 20; dissolve the carbonate of potash in the water, and having heated the solution to the boiling point in a clean iron vessel, gradually mix the slaked lime, and continue the ebullition for 10 minutes with constant stirring; decant the clear liquid.——_Dose_, 15 to 60 minims 3 times a day in beer, milk, or _Mistura Amygdalæ_.

5. (Wöhler.) Nitrate of potassa, 1 part, is mixed, in alternate layers, with clippings of sheet copper, 2 or 3 parts, and then heated to moderate redness for about 1/2 an hour in a copper or iron crucible; when cold, the potassa is washed out with distilled water, and the solution, after repose in a closed vessel, decanted as before. Not a trace of copper can be detected in the liquid. The clippings may be again used if mixed with a little fresh metallic copper.

6. (Wholesale.) From carbonate of potash (kali), 1 lb., and quicklime, 1/2 lb., to each gall. of water.

7. (BRANDISH’S ALKALINE SOLUTION; LIQUOR POTASSÆ BRANDISHII.) From American pearlashes, 6 lbs.; quicklime and wood ashes (from the ash), of each 2 lbs.; boiling water, 6 galls. (old meas.); to each gall. of the clear product is added 12 or 15 drops of oil of juniper. This ‘solution’ is much asked for in trade. Ordinary liquor of potassa is generally sold for it.

_Pur._ “Nothing, or scarcely anything, is thrown down from this solution on the addition of lime water; and when it has been first saturated by nitric acid, no precipitate falls on the addition of carbonate of soda, chloride of barium, or nitrate of silver. What is thrown down by bichloride of platinum is yellowish.” (Ph. L.)

_Uses, &c._ Liquor of potassa is antacid, diuretic, resolvent, and lithontriptic.——_Dose_, 10 to 30 or 40 drops, in any bland diluent (not acidulous); in heartburn, gout, calculi, indurations, scrofula, lepra, psoriasis, &c.

_Obs._ Quicklime fails to abstract the carbonic acid from the alkaline carbonates in solutions much stronger than those above referred to. Weaker solutions may, however, be easily concentrated by evaporation in iron vessels. See POTASSIUM, HYDRATE OF, and _below_.

=Solution of Potas′sa (Effervescing).= _Syn._ LIQUOR POTASSÆ EFFERVESCENS (B. P.); EFFERVESCING POTASH WATER, SUPERCARBONATE OF POTASSA W.; AQUA POTASSÆ EFFERVESCENS (Ph. E.), A. P. SUPERCARBONATIS, L. _Prep._ (Ph. L. & E.) Bicarbonate of potash, 1 dr.; distilled water, 1 pint; dissolve, force in carbonic acid gas in excess, and keep it in a well-stoppered bottle. Resembles soda water, but sits better on the stomach. It is almost specific in the early stages of scurvy.

(B. P.) Dissolve 30 gr. of bicarbonate of potash in one pint of distilled water, filter, pass in washed carbonic acid (obtained by the action of sulphuric acid on chalk) up to a pressure of 7 atmospheres. Keep in bottles closely secured.

_Obs._ An excellent substitute for this preparation is to pour a bottle of soda water into a tumbler containing 20 gr. of powdered bicarbonate of potash, and to drink it immediately.

=Solution of Potas′sio-tar′trate of An′timony.= _Syn._ SOLUTIO ANTIMONII POTASSIO-TARTRATIS, ANTIMONII TARTARIZATI LIQUOR (Ph. D.), L. _Prep._ (Ph. D.) Tartarised antimony, 1 dr.; rectified spirit, 7 fl. oz.; distilled water, 1 pint; dissolve. Strength, doses, and uses, similar to those of antimonial wine (which _see_), than which it keeps better.

=Solution, Prophylac′tic.= See HAHNEMANN’S SOLUTION.

=Solution of Protonitrate of Mercury.= _Syn._ LIQUOR HYDRARGYRI NITRICI (PROTO-NITRATIS) (G. Ph.). _Prep._ Protonitrate of mercury, 1 oz.; distilled water, 9 oz.; nitric acid (1·185), 46 gr. Filter.——_Dose_, 1 to 5 drops.

=Solution of Sesquicar′bonate of Ammonia.= See SOLUTION OF CARBONATE OF AMMONIA.

=Solution of Sil′icate of Potas′sa.= See SOLUTION OF FLINTS.

=Solution of So′da.= _Syn._ SOLUTION OF HYDRATE OF SODA, LIQUOR OF SODA, CAUSTIC SODA WATER; LIQUOR SODÆ (B. P., Ph. L.), SODÆ CAUSTICÆ LIQUOR (Ph. D.), L. _Prep._ 1. (Ph. L.) Carbonate of soda, (cryst.), 32 oz.; lime, 9 oz.; boiling distilled water, 1 gall.; proceed as for solution of potassa. “In 100 gr. are contained 1 gr. of (pure) soda.” (Ph. L.) Sp. gr. 1·061.

2. (Ph. D.) Carbonate of soda (cryst.), 2 lbs.; fresh-burned lime, 10 oz.; water, 1 gall. 7 fl. oz.; as liquor of potassa. Sp. gr. 1·056.

3. (B. P.) Carbonate of soda, 7; slaked lime, 3; distilled water, 40; dissolve the carbonate in the water, boil in a clean iron vessel, gradually mixing the lime, and stirring constantly for ten minutes; decant into a green-glass bottle, with air-tight stopper. Sp. gr. 1·047.——_Dose_, 1/2 to 1 dr.

=Solution of Soda (Effervescing).= _Syn._ SODA WATER; LIQUOR SODÆ EFFERVESCENS, AQUA S. E. (Ph. E.), A. S. SUPERCARBONATIS, SODÆ CARBONATIS AQUA ACIDULA, L. _Prep._ (Ph. E.) Bicarbonate of soda, 1 dr.; distilled water, 1 pint; dissolve, and force carbonic acid gas into the solution under pressure. Used as an antacid and grateful stimulant, often proving gently laxative. The soda water of the shops cannot be substituted for this preparation, as, in opposition to its name, it is usually made without soda. (B. P.) Half the strength.

=Solution, Sol′dering.= _Prep._ Dissolve zinc in hydrochloric acid nearly to saturation, add 1-5th part of powdered sal ammoniac, and simmer for 5 minutes. Used to make solder flow easily and take well; applied with a feather. See SOLDERING.

=Solution, Speci′fic (Frank’s).= _Syn._ SPECIFIC SOLUTION OF COPAIBA; LIQUOR COPAIBÆ ALKALINA, L. _Prep._ Take of balsam of copaiba, 2 parts; liquor of potassa (Ph. L.), 3 parts; water, 7 parts; boil the mixture for 2 or 3 minutes, put it into a separator, and allow it to stand for 5 or 6 days; then draw it off from the bottom, avoiding the upper stratum of oil, and to the clear liquid add of sweet spirit of nitre (perfectly free from acid), 1 part; should it turn foul or milky, a very little liquor of potassa will usually brighten it; if not, place it in a clean separator, and let it stand, closely covered, for a few days, and then draw it off from the bottom as before, when it will be perfectly transparent, without filtering. Some persons add the sweet spirit of nitre whilst the solution is still warm, mix it in as rapidly as possible, and immediately cork or fasten up the vessel. This is a good way when the article is wanted in a hurry, but is objectionable from the loss of spirit thereby occasioned, and the danger, without care, of bursting the separator.

_Obs._ A receipt for this article, upon the authority of Battley, has been going the round of the pharmaceutical works for many years. It is as follows:——Take 12 oz. of balsam of copaiba, and 6 oz, of calcined magnesia; rub together, add a pint of proof spirit, filter, and then add 1/2 oz. of sweet spirits of nitre. (‘Gray’s Supplement.’) The product of this formula, utterly unlike ‘Frank’s Specific Solution,’ is a colourless tincture, scarcely flavoured with copaiba, and holding very little of the active matter of the balsam in solution, owing to the compound formed with the magnesia being insoluble in spirit. Such is the affinity of this earth for copaiba (copaibic acid), that it will even take it from caustic potassa. See COPAIBA, and its preparations.

=Solution of Strychnia.= _Syn._ LIQUOR STRYCHNIÆ (B. P.). _Prep._ Strychnia, in crystals, 4 gr.; dilute hydrochloric acid 6 minims; rectified spirit, 2 dr.; distilled water, 6 dr.; mix the hydrochloric acid with 4 dr. of the water, and dissolve the strychnia in it by means of heat; then add the spirit and the remainder of the water.——_Dose_, 4 to 10 minims.

=Solution of Subac′etate of Lead.= _Syn._ LIQUOR OF SUBACETATE OF LEAD, L. OF DIACETATE OF L.†, GOULARD’S EXTRACT; LIQUOR PLUMBI, L. PLUMBI DIACETATIS (Ph. L.), PLUMBI DIACETATIS SOLUTIO (Ph. E.), PLUMBI SUBACETATIS LIQUOR (Ph. D.), L. _Prep._ 1. (Ph. L.) Acetate of lead, 27 oz.; litharge, in fine powder, 16 oz.; water, 3 quarts; boil for 1/2 an hour, constantly stirring, and then add enough distilled water to make the whole measure 3 quarts; lastly, filter, if required, and keep it in a closed vessel. The proportions, ordered in the Ph. E. are similar. Sp. gr. 1·260.

2. (Ph. D.) Acetate of lead, 6 oz.; litharge, 4 oz.; distilled water, 1 quart; boil, &c., as before; to produce 1 quart. Sp. gr. 1·066. (B. P.) the same.

3. (Wholesale.) From finely powdered litharge, 32 lbs.; distilled vinegar, 32 galls.; boil in a perfectly bright copper pan for 2 hours, cool, add water to make up 32 galls., again simmer for 1 minute, cover up the vessel, and in an hour decant the clear portion. Common trade strength. (See _below_.)

=Solution of Subacetate of Lead (Dilute).= _Syn._ GOULARD, GOULARD’S LOTION, GOULARD’S WATER; LIQUOR PLUMBI DIACETATIS DILUTUS (Ph. L.), PLUMBI SUBACETATIS LIQUOR COMPOSITUS (Ph. D.), L. _Prep._ 1. (Ph. L.) Liquor of diacetate of lead, 1-1/2 fl. dr.; proof-spirit, 2 fl. dr.; distilled water, 1 pint; mix.

2. (Ph. D.) Solution of subacetate of lead and proof spirit, of each 2 fl. oz.; distilled water, 1/2 gall.; mix, filter, and preserve it in a well-stoppered bottle.

3. (B. P.) Solution of subacetate of lead, 2 fl. dr.; rectified spirit, 2 fl. dr.; distilled water, 19-1/2 oz. Filter through paper.

_Obs._ Both the above preparations were formerly made with common vinegar, and hence were coloured, but those of the Pharm. are white. If wanted coloured, a little spirit colouring may be added. The stronger liquor is only used diluted; and the dilute solution is now seldom prepared by the wholesale druggist. The last (diluted solution) is employed as a sedative, refrigerant, and astringent wash, in various affections. Both are poisonous. For the antidotes, see LEAD.

=Solution of Sulphate of Atropia.= _Syn._ LIQUOR ATROPIÆ SULPHATIS (B. P.). _Prep._ Sulphate of atropia, 4 gr.; distilled water, 1 oz.; dissolve.——_Dose_, 1 to 2 minims.

=Solution of Sulphate of Copper.= _Syn._ LIQUOR CUPRI SULPHATIS COMPOSITUS, AQUA STYPTICA. (Ph. L. 1746). Sulphate of copper, 3 oz.; alum, 3 oz.; sulphuric acid, 2 oz.; (by wt.), water, 24 oz. For external use.

=Solution of Sulphate of Indigo.= _Syn._ LIQUOR INDIGO SULPHATIS. _Prep._ Digest 1 part of powdered indigo in 10 of sulphuric acid; when dissolved dilute it with water. Used as a test.

=Solution of Sulphate of Mor′phia.= _Syn._ LIQUOR MORPHIÆ SULPHATIS, L. _Prep._ From sulphate of morphia, as the solution of the acetate or hydrochlorate. The uses, doses, &c., are the same.

=Solution of Sulphate of Zinc (Compound).= See SOLUTION OF ALUM, COMPOUND.

=Solution of Sul′phuret of Potassium.= _Syn._ SOLUTION OF HYDROSULPHATE OF POTASSA; SOLUTIO POTASSII SULPHURETI, LIQUOR POTASSÆ HYDROSULPHATIS, AQUA POTASSÆ SULPHURETI (Ph. D.), L. _Prep._ Take of washed sublimed sulphur, 1 part; water of caustic potassa, 11 parts: mix, boil for 10 minutes, filter, and keep the solution in well-closed bottles. Sp. gr. 1·117. The product is a mixed solution of hydrosulphate and hyposulphate of potassa.——_Dose_, 10 to 60 drops, diluted in water; and, externally, made into a lotion; in itch, and several other eruptive diseases.

=Solution of Tartrate of Magnesia.= _Syn._ LIQUOR MAGNESIÆ TARTRATIS. (Airat.) _Prep._ Tartaric acid, 15-1/4 oz. troy; distilled water, 20 pints; fresh calcined magnesia, diffused in 16 oz. of distilled water, 3 oz. troy and 1 dr.——_Dose._ As a purgative, 15 oz.

=Solution of Veratria.= _Syn._ SOLUTIO VERATRIÆ. _Prep._ Veratrine, 1 gr.; distilled water, 2-1/2 oz. Dr Turnbull’s solution, for external use, is——veratria, 1 scruple; rectified spirit, 2 oz.

=Solution, Swan’s.= _Syn._ SOLUTIO SODÆ HYPOPHOSPHITIS. _Prep._ Mr. Squire says this contains 3 gr. of the salt in a drachm.

=SOL′VENT.= _Syn._ MENSTRUUM, L. The liquid in which any substance is dissolved. The substance dissolved is, occasionally, called the ‘solvend.’ (Kirwan.)

=Solvent, Glazier’s.= _Syn._ GLAZIER’S PICKLE. From soft soap dissolved in thrice its weight of strong soapers’ lye; or, from freshly slaked lime made into a thin paste or cream with twice its weight of pearlash dissolved in a little water. Very caustic. Used to soften old putty, and to remove old paint.

=SOMNAMBULISM.= Children are most subjected to sleep-walking. When adults are affected with it the cause may generally be traced to mental exhaustion, over-excitement, or emotional feeling. The most preferable method of awakening a somnambulist, if this be desirable, is by dashing cold water on the face. It is well to occasionally administer an aperient, and also to rectify any errors of diet, if necessary, and to remove by the exercise of judicious and kindly advice, and change of scene undue excitement or morbid feeling.

The other precautions, such as securing the feet, &c., during sleep, guarding the exits of the bed-chamber, are so obvious as to need no further allusion to.

=SOOT.= _Syn._ FULIGO. Wood soot was formerly officinal, and reputed vermifuge and antiseptic. The soot from pit-coal contains, besides empyreumatic matter, sulphate of ammonia; hence it is valuable as a manure, when not too freely applied. It is also employed by gardeners to kill insects.

=SOPORIF′ICS.= Hypnotics (which _see_).

=SORBITE.= A crystalline saccharine substance resembling mannite, obtained by Boussingault from the berries of the mountain ash. It was obtained from the liquid containing the undecomposed saccharine matter remaining after the juice of the berries had been subjected to fermentation.

=SOU′JEE.= _Syn._ SOOJEE. A species of semolina. Semoletta (_semola rarita_) is a still smaller variety of pearled wheat, separated from the others by means of a sieve. ‘Baster’s soojee’ is said to be a mixture of ordinary wheat flour and sugar.

=SOUR KROUT.= See SAUER-KROUT.

=SOUP.= A strong decoction of flesh, properly seasoned with salts, spices, &c., for the table. The different tastes of people require more or less of the flavour of spices, salt, garlic, butter, &c., which can, therefore, never be ordered by general rules. If the cook has not a good taste, and attention to that of his or her employers, not all the ingredients which nature and art can furnish will give an exquisite flavour to the dishes. The proper articles should be always at hand, and must be proportioned until the true zest be obtained. A variety of flavours may be given to different dishes served at the same time, or even to the same soup, by varying the condiments and spices. At a Parisian restaurant one cauldron is made to produce almost every imaginable variety of soup.

=Soup, Cabbage, Cheap.= Wash a large cabbage and cut it into narrow strips, throwing them into 1/2 a gallon of boiling water, containing 2 oz. of butter. Let it boil for an hour and a half; then add half a pint of milk and flavour with pepper and salt. Serve when hot.

=Soup, Carrot.= INGREDIENTS REQUIRED.——4 quarts of liquor in which a leg of mutton or beef has been boiled, a few beef bones, 6 large carrots, 2 large onions, 1 turnip, seasoning of salt and pepper to taste, 3 lumps of sugar, and cayenne.

_Mode._ Put the liquor, bones, onions, turnips, pepper and salt into a stewpan, and simmer for 3 hours. Scrape and cut the carrots thin, strain the soup on them, and stew them till soft enough to pulp through a hair sieve or coarse cloth; then boil the pulp with the soup, which should be of the consistency of pea soup. Add cayenne. Pulp only the red part of the carrot, and make this soup the day before it is wanted.

_Time._——4-1/2 hours. Seasonable from October to March. Sufficient for 8 persons.

=Soup, Celery.= INGREDIENTS.——9 heads of celery, 1 teaspoonful of salt, nutmeg to taste, 1 lump of sugar, 1/2 pint of strong stock, a pint of cream, and 2 quarts of boiling water.

_Mode._——Cut the celery into small pieces; throw it into the water, seasoned with the nutmeg, salt and sugar. Boil it till sufficiently tender; pass it through a sieve, add the stock and simmer it for half an hour. Now put in the cream, bring it to the boiling point, and serve immediately.

_Time._——1 hour.

=Soup, Giblet.= Scald and carefully clean 3 or 4 sets of goose or duck giblets; let them stew well, a pound or two of gravy beef, scrag of mutton, or the bone of a knuckle of veal, an ox-tail, or some shanks of mutton, with 3 onions, a large bunch of sweet herbs, a teaspoonful of white pepper, and a large spoonful of salt. Add 5 pints of water and simmer till the gizzards (which must be each in four pieces) are quite tender; skim nicely, and add a 1/4 pint of cream, 2 teaspoonfuls of mushroom powder, and 1 oz. of butter mixed with a dessert-spoonful of flour. Let it boil a few minutes, and serve with the giblets. Instead of cream, two glasses of sherry or Madeira, a large spoonful of ketchup, and some cayenne may be used for the seasoning. Add salt when the soup is in the tureen.

For the larger part of the above culinary preparations we are indebted to the excellent cooking manuals of Miss Acton and Mrs Beeton.

=Soup, a Good Family.= INGREDIENTS.——Remains of a cold tongue, 2 lbs. of shin of beef, any cold pieces of meat or beef bones, 2 turnips, 2 carrots, 2 onions, 1 parsnip, 1 head of celery, 4 quarts of water, 1/2 teacupful of rice, salt and pepper to taste.

_Mode._——Put all the ingredients in a stewpan, and simmer gently for 4 hours, or until all the goodness is drawn from the meat. Strain off the soup and let it stand till cold. The kernels and soft part of the tongue must be saved. When the soup is wanted for use, skim off all the fat, put in the kernels and soft parts of the tongue, slice in a small quantity of fresh carrot, turnip, and onion; stew till the vegetables are tender, and serve with toasted bread.

_Time._——5 hours. Seasonable at any time. Sufficient for 8 persons.

=Soup, Gravy.= INGREDIENTS.——4 lbs. of shin of beef, a piece of the knuckle of veal weighing 4 lbs., a few pieces of trimmings of meat or poultry, 3 slices of nicely flavoured lean ham, 1/4 lb. of butter, 2 onions, 4 carrots, 1 turnip, nearly a head of celery, 1 blade of mace, 6 cloves, a bunch of savoury herbs, seasoning of salt and pepper to taste, 3 lumps of sugar, 5 quarts of boiling soft water. It can be flavoured with ketchup, Leamington sauce, or Harvey’s sauce and a little soy.

_Mode._——Slightly brown the meat and ham in the butter, but do not let them burn. When this done, pour to it the water, put in the salt, and as the scum rises take it off; when no more appears, add all the other ingredients, and let the soup simmer slowly by the fire for 6 hours without stirring it any more from the bottom; take it off, and pass it through a sieve. When perfectly cold and settled all the fat should be removed, leaving the sediment untouched, which serves nicely for thick gravies, hashes, &c. The flavourings should be added when the soup is heated for table.

_Time._——7 hours. Seasonable all the year. Sufficient for 12 persons.

=Soup, Green Pea.= INGREDIENTS.——3 pints of green peas, 1/4 lb. of butter, 2 or 3 thin slices of ham, 4 onions sliced, 4 shredded lettuces, the crumb of 2 French rolls, 2 handfuls of spinach, 1 lump of sugar, 2 quarts of medium stock.

_Mode._——Put the butter, ham, 1 quart of the peas, onions and lettuces, to a pint of stock and simmer for an hour; then add the remainder of the stock, with the crumb of the French rolls, and boil for another hour. Now boil the spinach, squeeze it very dry, and rub it, with the soup, through a sieve, to give the preparation a good colour. Have ready a pint of young peas boiled; add them to the soup, put in the sugar, give one boil, and serve.

_Time._——2-1/2 hours. Seasonable from June to the end of August. Sufficient for six persons.

⁂ It will be well to add, if the peas are not quite young, a little more sugar; where economy is essential, water may be used instead of stock for this soup, boiling in it likewise the peashells, and using rather a larger quantity of vegetables.

=Soup, Hare.= Cut down a hare into joints, and put it into a soup-pot or large stewpan, with about a pound of lean ham, in thick slices, 3 moderately sized mild onions, 3 blades of mace, a faggot of thyme, sweet marjoram and parsley, with about 3 quarts of good beef stock. Let it stew very gently for full three hours from the time of its first beginning to boil, and more if the hare be old. Strain the soup, and pound together very fine, the slices of ham and all the flesh of the back, legs, and shoulders of the hare, and put this meat into a stewpan with the liquor, in which it was boiled, the crumb of two French rolls, and half a pint of port wine. Set it on the stove to simmer twenty minutes; then rub it through a sieve, place it again on the stove till very hot, but do not let it boil; season it with salt and cayenne, and send it to table directly.

INGREDIENTS.——Hare, 1; ham, 12 to 16 oz.; onions, 3 to 6; mace, 3 blades; faggot of savoury herbs; beef stock, 3 quarts; 2 hours. Crumb of 2 rolls; port wine, 1/2 pint; little salt and cayenne; 20 minutes.

=Soup, Hare, a less Expensive.= Pour on two pounds of neck or shin of beef, and a hare well washed and carved into joints, one gallon of cold water, and when it boils and has been thoroughly skimmed, add 1-1/2 oz. of salt, 2 onions, 1 large head of celery, 3 moderate-sized carrots, a tablespoonful black peppercorns, and 6 cloves.

Let these stew gently for 3 hours, or longer, should the hare not be perfectly tender. Then take up the principal joints, cut the meat from them, mince, and pound it to fine paste, with the crumb of 2 penny rolls (or 2 oz. of crumb of household bread), which has been soaked in a little of the boiling soup, and then pressed very dry in a cloth; strain, and mix smoothly with it the stock from the remainder of the hare; pass the soup through a strainer, season it with cayenne, and serve it when at the point of boiling; if not sufficiently thick, add to it a tablespoonful of arrow-root, moistened with a little broth, and let the soup simmer for an instant afterwards. Two or 3 glasses of port wine, and 2 dozen of small forcemeat balls may be added to this soup with good effect.

INGREDIENTS.——Beef, 2 lbs.; hare, 1; water, 1 gall.; salt, 1-1/2 oz.; onions, 2; celery, 1 head; carrots, 3; bunch of savoury herbs; peppercorns, 1 teaspoonful; cloves, 6; 3 hours or more. Bread, 2 oz.; cayenne, arrow-root (if needed) 1 tablespoonful.

=Soup, Haricot Bean.= Take a quart of haricot beans and let them soak all night in cold water. Then pour on them 2-1/2 pints of cold water, add 1 onion, and put on the fire, and when the liquid begins to boil, let them continue to boil for 3 hours. Then remove from the fire and strain through a wire sieve, after which return to the saucepan, and season with pepper and salt; next add 2 oz. of butter and a little milk. Then just boil up, and serve. An economical and nutritious soup for the poor.

=Soup, Julienne.= INGREDIENTS.——1/2 pint carrots, 1/2 pint of turnips, 1/2 pint of onions, 2 or 3 leeks, 1/2 head of celery, 1 lettuce, a little sorrel and chervil, if liked, 2 oz. butter, 2 quarts of medium stock.

_Mode._——Cut the vegetables into strips about 1-1/4 in. long, and be particular they are all the same size, or some will be hard, whilst the others will be done to a pulp. Cut the lettuce, sorrel, and chervil into larger pieces; fry the carrots in the butter, and pour the stock boiling to them. When this is done, add all the other vegetables thereto, and stew gently for nearly an hour. Skim off all the fat, pour the soup over thin slices of bread cut round, about the size of a shilling, and serve.

_Time._——1-1/2 hour. Seasonable all the year. Sufficient for 7 or 8 persons.

⁂ In summer, green peas, as asparagus tops, French beans, &c., can be added. When the vegetables are very strong, instead of frying them in butter at first, they should be blanched, and afterwards simmered in the stock.

=Soup, Macaroni.= Throw 4 oz. of fine, fresh, mellow Naples macaroni into a pan of fast-boiling water, with about 1 oz. of fresh butter, and a small onion stuck with 3 or 4 cloves (the onion must be omitted for white soups). When it has swelled to its full size, and become tender, drain it well, cut it into half-inch lengths, and slip it into a couple of quarts of clear gravy soup; let it simmer for a few minutes, when it will be ready for table. Observe that the macaroni should be boiled quite tender; but it should by no means be allowed to burst, nor to become pulpy. Serve grated Parmesan cheese with it.

INGREDIENTS.——Macaroni, 4 oz.; butter, 1 oz.; 1 small onion; 5 cloves; 3/4 hour, or more. In soup 5 to 10 minutes.

=Soup, Mock Turtle.= INGREDIENTS.——Half a calf’s head, 1/4 lb. butter, 1/4 lb. lean ham, 2 tablespoonfuls of minced parsley, a little minced lemon thyme, sweet marjoram, basil, 2 onions, a few chopped mushrooms (when obtainable), 2 shalots, 2 tablespoonfuls of flour, 2 glasses of madeira or sherry, forcemeat balls, cayenne, salt and mace to taste, the juice of one lemon and 1 Seville orange, 1 dessert-spoonful of pounded sugar, 3 quarts of best strong stock.

_Mode._——Scald the head with the skin on, remove the brain, tie the head up in a cloth, and let it boil for an hour. Then take the meat from the bones, cut it into small square pieces, and throw them into cold water. Now take the meat, put it into a stewpan, and cover it with stock; let it boil gently for an hour, or rather more, if not quite tender, and set it on one side. Melt the butter in another stewpan, and add the ham, cut small, with the herbs, parsley, onions, shalots, mushrooms, and nearly a pint of stock; let these simmer slowly, for 2 hours, and then dredge in as much flour as will dry up the butter. Fill up with the remainder of the stock, add the wine, let it stew gently for 10 minutes, rub it through a sieve, and put it to the calf’s head; season with cayenne, and, if required, a little salt; add the juice of the orange and lemon; and when liked, 1/4 teaspoonful of pounded mace, and the sugar. Put in the forcemeat balls, simmer 5 minutes, and serve very hot.

_Time._——4-1/2 hours. Seasonable in winter. Sufficient for 10 persons.

⁂ The bones of the head should be well stewed in the liquor it was first boiled in, and will make good white stock, flavoured with vegetables.

=Soup, Ox-tail.= A very inexpensive and nutritious soup may be made of ox-tails, but it will be insipid without the addition of a little ham, knuckle of bacon, or a pound or two of other meat.

Wash and soak 3 tails, pour on them a gallon of cold water, let them be brought gradually to boil, throw in 1-1/2 oz. of salt, and clear off the scum carefully as soon as it forms upon the surface; when it ceases to rise, add four moderate-sized carrots, from 2 to 4 onions, according to the taste, a large faggot of savoury herbs, a head of celery, a couple of turnips, 6 or 8 cloves, and 1/2 a teaspoonful of peppercorns. Stew these gently from 3 to 3-1/2 hours, if the tails be very large; lift them out, strain the liquor, and skim off all the fat; divide the tails into joints, and put them into a couple of quarts or rather more of the stock; stir in when these begin to boil, a thickening of arrow-root or rice flour, mixed with as much cayenne and salt as may be required to flavour the soup well, and serve it very hot.

INGREDIENTS.——Ox tails, 3; water, 1 gall.; salt 1-1/2 oz.; carrots, 4; onions, 2 to 4; turnips, 2; celery, 1 head; cloves, 8; peppercorns, 1/2 teaspoonful; faggot of savoury herbs; 3 to 3-1/2 hours. For a richer soup, 5 to 6 hours.

=Soup, Ordinary Pea.= Wash well a quart of good split peas, and float off such as remain on the surface of the water; soak them for one night, and boil them with a bit of soda the size of a filbert, in just sufficient water to allow them to break to a mash. Put them into from 3 to 4 quarts of good beef broth, and stew them in it gently for an hour; then work the whole through a sieve, heat afresh as much as may be required for table, season it with salt, or cayenne, or common pepper, clear it perfectly from scum, and send it to table with fried or toasted bread. Celery sliced and stewed in it will be found a great improvement.

INGREDIENTS.——Peas, 1 quart; soaked one night, boiled in 2 quarts or rather more of water, 2 to 2-1/2 hours. Beef broth, 3 to 4 quarts; 1 hour. Salt and cayenne or pepper, as needed; 3 minutes.

=Soup, Portable.= _Syn._ GLAZE. From skin of beef, or other like part; the soup being gently simmered until reduced to the consistence of a thin syrup, and then poured into small upright jelly-pots, with covers, or, upon flat dishes, to lie about 1/4 inch deep. The latter, when set, is divided into pieces, which are dried. Used to make extemporaneous soup and glazes. A similar article, prepared on the large scale, now generally forms part of every ship’s stores.

=Soup, Potato.= Mash to a smooth paste, 3 lbs. of good mealy potatoes, which have been steamed, or boiled very dry; mix with them, by degrees, 2 quarts of boiling broth, pass the soup through a strainer, set it again on the fire, add pepper and salt, and let it boil for five minutes. Take off entirely the black scum that will rise upon it, and serve it very hot, with fried or toasted bread. Where the flavour is approved, 2 oz. of onions minced and fried a light brown, may be added to the soup, and stewed in it for 10 minutes before it is sent to the table.

INGREDIENTS.——Potatoes, 3 lbs.; broth, 2 quarts; 5 minutes. (With onions, 2 oz.) 10 minutes.

=Soup, Spanish Onion.= Peel two large Spanish onions and cut them into rings; fry them with a little dripping in a stewpan. When the onions have browned, add 2-1/2 pints of boiling water, and let them boil for two hours and a half; add pepper and salt to flavour, and a little vinegar. Thicken with oatmeal or bread crumbs (oatmeal is the more nourishing); let the mixture boil for another half hour, and serve. A good cheap wholesome soup.

=Soup, Turnip, Cheap.= Wash and wipe the turnips, pare and weigh them; allow 1-1/2 lb. for every quart of soup, cut them in slices about 1/4 inch thick. Melt 4 oz. of butter in a clean stewpan, and put in the turnips before it begins to boil; stew them gently 3/4 hour, taking care that they shall not brown, then have the proper quantity of soup ready boiling, pour it on them and let them simmer in it for 3/4 hour. Pulp the whole through a coarse sieve or soup strainer, put it again on the fire, keep it stirred until it has boiled three or four minutes, take off the scum, add salt or pepper if required, and serve it very hot.

INGREDIENTS.——Turnips, 3 lbs.; butter, 4 oz.; 3/4 hour. Soup, 2 quarts; 3/4 hour. Last time, 3 minutes.

=Soup, Vermicelli.= Drop very lightly and by degrees 6 oz. of vermicelli, broken rather small, into 3 quarts of boiling bouillon, or clear gravy soup; let it simmer for half an hour over a gentle fire, and stir it often.

INGREDIENTS.——Bouillon or gravy soup, 3 quarts, vermicelli, 6 oz.; 30 minutes. Or soup, 3 quarts; vermicelli, 4 oz.; blanched in boiling water, 5 minutes; stewed in soup 10 to 15 minutes.

=SOUR′ING.= See MALT LIQUORS and WINES.

=SOY.= Genuine soy is a species of thick black sauce, imported from China. _Prep._ Take of the seeds of _Soja hispida_ (white haricots or kidney beans may be used for them), 1 gall.; boil them in water, q. s., until soft, add of bruised wheat, 1 gall., and keep the mixture in a warm place for 24 hours; then add of common salt, 1 gall.; water, 2 gall.; put the whole into a stone jar, and bung it up loosely for two or three months, shaking it very frequently during the whole time; lastly press out the liquor and bottle it; the residuum may be treated afresh with water and salt, for soy of an inferior quality.

_Obs._ The soy of the shops is, in nine cases out of ten, a spurious article made in this country, by simply saturating molasses or treacle with common salt. A better and a really wholesome imitation is made as follows:——Malt syrup, 1 gall. (or, 13-1/2 lbs.); treacle, 5 lbs.; salt, 4-1/4 lbs.; mushroom juice, 1 quart; mix, with a gentle heat, and stir until the union is complete; in a fortnight decant the clear portion.

=SPAN′ISH FLIES.= See CANTHARIDES.

=SPAR′ADRAP.= _Syn._ SPARADRAPUM, L. Originally a cerecloth; now applied to spread plasters; as SPARADRAPUM COMMUNE, common strapping or adhesive plaster; S. VESICATORIUM, blistering plaster or tissue, &c.

The following are in occasional demand by the pharmacist:——

=Sparadrap, Opium.= _Syn._ SPARADRAPUM OPII (M. Schœufelle.) _Prep._ On a piece of black sarcenet of a close and strong texture, properly stretched; spread with a brush, 3 layers of extract of opium, softened with water, to the consistence of treacle, and mixed with a sixth part of powdered gum. Keep the plaster dry.

=Sparadrap, Thapsian.= _Syn._ SPARADRAPUM THAPSIÆ. (P. Cod.) _Prep._ Yellow wax, 4-1/4 oz.; resin, 1-1/2 oz.; Burgundy pitch, 1-1/2 oz.; boiled turpentine, 1-1/2 oz.; Swiss turpentine, 1/2 oz.; glycerin, 1/2 oz.; honey, 1/2 oz.; resin of thapsia, 3/4 oz. Melt the first five substances together and strain through linen. Keep them liquefied and add the glycerin, the honey, and the resin. When well mixed, and of a proper consistence, spread on strips of linen cloth.

=Sparadrap, Wax.= SPARADRAPUM CUM CERA, TOILE DE MAI. (P. Cod.) _Prep._ White wax, 8 oz.; (by wt.), oil of almonds, 4 oz.; (by wt.), Swiss turpentine, 1 oz. Melt together and dip into it strips of linen cloth, which are to be passed between wooden rollers, to remove the superfluous plaster. Spread on paper it forms waxed paper.

=SPARTE′INE.= _Syn._ SPARTEINA, L. A volatile oily liquid, possessing basic properties, obtained from _Spartium scoparium_, or broom. It is highly poisonous, and resembles conine and nicotine in its general properties.

=SPASMS.= _Syn._ CRAMP; SPASMUS, L. An involuntary contraction of the muscles, generally of the extremities, accompanied with pain more or less severe. Spasms are distinguished into clonic spasms or convulsions, in which the contractions and relaxations are alternate, as in epilepsy; and into tonic spasms, in which there is continued rigidity, as in locked-jaw. That form which commonly attacks the muscles of the legs and feet, especially after great exertion or exposure to cold, is commonly called cramp. The best treatment for this is immediately to stand upright, and to well rub the part with the hand. The application of strong stimulants, as spirits of ammonia, or of anodynes, as opiate liniments, has been recommended. When spasm or cramp occurs in the stomach, a teaspoonful of sal volatile in water, or a teaspoonful of good brandy, may be swallowed immediately. When cramp comes or during cold bathing, the limb should be thrown out as suddenly and violently as possible, which will generally remove it, care being also taken not to become flurried or frightened, as presence of mind is very essential to personal safety on such an occasion. A common cause of spasm is indigestion, and the use of acescent liquors; these should, therefore, be avoided, and bitters and absorbents had recourse to. See ANTISPASMODICS, and the names of the principal spasmodic diseases.

=SPEAR′MINT.= See MINT.

=SPE′CIES.= (In pharmacy.) Mixtures of dried plants, or parts of plants, in a divided state, which, for convenience, are kept mixed for use. The dry ingredients of pills, conserves, electuaries, mixtures, &c., that do not keep well when made up, or which are in little demand, may be economically and conveniently preserved in this state. The word, thus applied, is obsolete out of the pharmaceutical laboratory.

=Species, Anthelmin′tic.= _Syn._ SPECIES ANTHELMINTICÆ, L. The dried flowering tops of tansy and wormwood, and the flowers of chamomile, equal parts; mix, and keep them in a close vessel. (P. Cod.)

=Species, Aperitive.= See SPECIES, DIURETIC (_below_).

=Species, Aromat′ic.= _Syn._ AROMATIC POWDER; SPECIES AROMATICÆ, L. _Prep._ (Ph. Bor.) Leaves of balm and curled-leaf mint (_Mentha crispa_), of each 4 oz.; lavender flowers, 2 oz.; cloves, 1 oz.; dry them by a gentle heat, and then powder them.

=Species, Astrin′gent.= _Syn._ SPECIES ASTRINGENTES, L. The roots of bistort and tormentil, and bark of pomegranate, equal parts. (P. Cod.)

=Species, Bechicæ.= (P. Cod.) 1. Leaves of Canadian maidenhair, ground ivy, hartstongue, speedwell, hyssop tops and poppy capsules, (freed from seed), of each equal parts. Cut and mix. 2. Dried flowers of mallow, catsfoot, coltsfoot and petals of red poppy, of each 1 oz. Mix. The Fructûs Bechici are:——Dates (stored) 1 oz.; jujubes, 1 oz.; figs, 1 oz.; raisins, 1 oz.

=Species, Bitter.= _Syn._ THREE BITTER HERBS; SPECIES AMARÆ, HERBÆ AMARÆ, L. The leaves of germander, and dried tops of lesser centaury and wormwood, equal parts. (P. Cod.)

=Species, Carminative.= _Syn._ SPECIES CARMINATIVE. (P. Cod.) _Prep._ Equal parts of aniseeds, caraway seeds, coriander seeds, and fennel seeds.

=Species, Capil′lary.= _Syn._ FIVE CAPILLARY HERBS; HERBÆ QUINQUE CAPILLARES, L. Hartstongue, black maiden hair, white do., golden do., and spleenwort, equal parts. (Ph. L. 1720.)

=Species, Cor′dial.= _Syn._ FOUR CORDIAL FLOWERS; SPECIES CORDIALES, L. The flowers of borage, bugloss, roses, and violets, equal parts. (Ph. L. 1720.)

=Species for Decoction Woods.= _Syn._ SPECIES AD DECOCTUM LIQUORUM. (G. Ph.) _Prep._ Rasped guaiacum wood, 4 oz.; cut burdock root, 2 oz.; ononis root, 2 oz.; cut liquorice, 1 oz; cut sassafras, 1 oz. Mix,

=Species, Diuret′ic.= _Syn._ APERIENT ROOTS, APERITIVE SPECIES; SPECIES DIURETICÆ, L. 1. (FIVE GREATER APERITIVE ROOTS——P. Cod., & Ph. E. 1744.) The dried roots of asparagus, butcher’s broom, parsley, smallage, and sweet fennel, equal parts.

2. (FIVE LESSER APERITIVE ROOTS.) Those of caper, dog-grass, eryngo, madder, and restharrow.

=Species, Emol′lient.= _Syn._ SPECIES EMOLLIENTES, L. 1. (THREE EMOLLIENT MEALS; FARINÆ EMOLLIENTES.) The meal of barley, linseed, and rye, equal parts. (P. Cod.)

2. (FIVE EMOLLIENT HERBS; HERBÆ QUINQUE EMOLLIENTES.)——_a._ The dried leaves of groundsel, common mallow, marshmallow, great mullein, and wall pellitory, equal parts. (P. Cod.)

_b._ The leaves of mallow, marshmallow, French mercury, pellitory of the wall, and violet. (Ph. E. 1744.)

=Species for Ene′mas.= _Syn._ HERBS FOR CLYSTERS; HERBÆ PRO ENEMATE, L. Mallow leaves, 2 parts; chamomile flowers, 1 part.

=Species of the five Herbs.= _Syn._ SPECIES DIETÆ; QUINQUE HERBÆ. FIVE CAPILLARY HERBS. (Ph. L. 1720.) _Prep._ Black and white maidenhair, spleenwort, hartstongue, and golden maidenhair.

=Species for Fomenta′tions.= _Syn._ SPECIES PRO FOTU, HERBÆ PRO FOTU, L. Leaves of southernwood, tops of sea-wormwood, and flowers of chamomile, of each 2 parts; bay leaves, 1 part.

=Species, Hot.= 1. (FOUR GREATER HOT SEEDS.) The seeds of anise, caraway, cumin, and fennel.

2. (FOUR LESSER HOT SEEDS.) The seeds of bishop’s weed, smallage, stone parsley, and wild carrot.

=Species, Lax′ative.= _Syn._ ST GERMAIN LAXATIVE POWDER; SPECIES LAXANTES ST GERMAIN, L. _Prep._ (Ph. Bor.) Senna leaves (exhausted with spirit), 4 oz.; elder flowers, 2-1/2 oz.; aniseed and fennel seed, of each 1-1/4 oz.; reduce them to coarse powder, and, when dispensing, add of powdered cream of tartar, 1 dr., to each 1-1/2 oz. of the mixture.

=Species, Narcotic.= _Syn._ FOUR NARCOTIC HERBS; SPECIES NARCOTICÆ, L. Dried leaves of belladonna, black nightshade, henbane, and thorn-apple, equal parts.

=Species, Purging.= _Syn._ SPECIES PURGANTES. THÉ DE SANTÉ. THÉ DE ST GERMAIN. (P. Cod.) Senna, 12 dr.; elder flowers, 5 dr.; fennel seeds, 3 dr.; aniseed, 5 dr.; cream of tartar, 3 dr. Eighty grains in a cup of boiling water for a dose, said to be very serviceable and largely used in France for habitual constipation.

=Species, Pec′toral.= _Syn._ SPECIES BECHICÆ, SPECIES AD INFUSUM PECTORALES, L, 1. Mallow root, 4 oz.; coltsfoot leaves, 2 oz.; liquorice root, 1-1/2 oz.; aniseed, great mullein flowers and red-poppy flowers, of each 1 oz.; orris root, 1/2 oz. (Ph. Bor.)

=Species, Refri′′gerant.=——1. (FOUR COLD SEEDS.) The seeds of cucumber, gourd, melon, and water-melon.

2. (FOUR LESSER COLD SEEDS.) The seeds of endive, lettuce, purslane, and succory.

=Species, Resol′vent.= _Syn._ FARINÆ RESOLVENTES, L. The meal of the seeds of barley, bean, tare, and white lupin.

=Species, Vulnerary.= _Syn._ SPECIES VULNERARIÆ. THÉ SIUSSE. _Prep._ Leaves and tops of wormwood, betony, bugle, calamint, germander, hyssop, ground ivy, millefoil, origanum, periwinkle, rosemary, self-heat, sage, hartstongue, water-germander, thyme, speedwell, flower of Armea, flower of catsfoot, flower of coltsfoot, of each equal parts. Cut and mixed.

=SPECIF′IC GRAVITY= is the comparative weights of equal bulks of different substances, the assumed standard being 1 and sometimes 1000. This standard is pure distilled water for liquids and solids, and atmospheric air for gaseous bodies and vapours.[178] In England the sp. gr., unless when otherwise expressed, is always taken at 60° Fahr.; but in France it is taken at 32° Fahr. (0° C), or the temperature of melting ice. In the ‘British Pharmacopœia,’ whenever specific gravity is mentioned, the substance spoken of is supposed to be of the temperature of 60° Fahr. In most cases, however, it is sufficient merely to note the temperature, and to apply a correction, depending on the known density of water, or air, at the different degrees of the thermometric scale.

[Footnote 178: By many modern chemists _hydrogen_, the lightest substance in nature, is taken as the standard for the specific gravity of gases and vapours.]

To determine the specific gravity as a solid, we weigh it, first in the air, and then in water. In the latter case it loses, of its weight, a quantity precisely equal to the weight of its own bulk of water; and hence, by comparing this weight with its total weight, we find its specific gravity. The rule is——Divide the total weight by the loss of weight in water; the quotient is the specific gravity.

The specific gravity of a substance lighter than water may be determined by attaching it to some substance, as a piece of lead, the sp. gr., &c., of which is known. In this way, by deducting the loss in weight of the two substances, when weighed in water, from the loss sustained by the lead alone, when so weighed, we obtain a difference (_a_) which, added to the weight of the substance taken in air (_b_), gives the respective densities. From these the sp. gr. is found by the rule of three:——

(_a_ + _b_) : 1 :: _b_ : _sp. gr._

The specific gravities of substances soluble in water are taken in pure oil of turpentine, rectified spirit, olive oil, or some other liquid, the density of which is exactly known. Sometimes, for rough purposes, the article is covered with a coating of mastic varnish. This last method answers for mercurial pill.

The specific gravity of a substance in fragments, or in powder, may be found by putting a portion (say 100 gr.) into a sp. gr. bottle, filling the latter with distilled water, and then weighing it. The weight of water which it is found to contain, deducted from 1000 (the weight of the bottle when filled with distilled water), gives a difference (_a_) which bears the same relation to the sp. gr. of water (1·000) as the weight of the powder (_b_) put into the bottle does to the required sp. gr. Or——

_a_ : 1·000 :: _b_ : _sp. gr._

The specific gravity of alloys and mixtures, when no condensation has occurred, is equal to the sum of the weights divided by the sum of the volumes, compared to water reckoned as unity; and is not merely the arithmetical mean between the two numbers denoting the two sp. gr., as is frequently taught. See BEADS (Lovi’s), HYDROMETER, MIXTURES (Arithmetic of), &c. For the mode of determining the specific gravity of gases, the reader is referred to the works on chemistry of Miller and Fownes.

The specific gravity of a liquid is found by weighing it in a sp. gr. bottle, glass flask, or other vessel of known capacity, and dividing that weight by the weight of the same bulk of water; the quotient is, as before, the specific gravity. A bottle of the capacity of 1000 water-grains (specific gravity bottle) gives the density of a liquid at once, by simply filling it to the given mark, and then accurately weighing it.

We reprint from the ‘Journal of the Chemical Society’[179] a new method of determining the specific gravity of liquids, which is said by Dr H. Sprengel, the chemist who devised it, to be both expeditious and accurate. Dr Sprengel says:

[Footnote 179: (2) xi, 577.]

“The form of my instrument, as shown in the accompanying fig. 1, is that of an elongated U-tube, the open ends of which terminate in two capillary tubes, which are bent at right angles in opposite directions. The size and weight of this instrument should be adapted to the size and capability of the balance in which it is to be weighed. As our usual balances indicate 1/10 milligram when loaded with 50 grams, the U-tube, when charged with the liquid, should not be heavier than 1000 gr.=(64·799 grams).

The instrument which served for my determinations, mentioned below, had a length of 17·7 cm. (7 inches), and was made of a glass tube, the outer diameter of which was 11 mm. (7/16 of an inch). It need hardly be mentioned that the U-shape is adopted for the sake of presenting a large surface, and so rendering the instrument sensitive to changes of temperature. The point, however, I wish to notice more particularly (for reasons explained below) is the different calibre of the two capillary tubes. The shorter one is a good deal narrower (at least towards the end) than the longer one, the inner diameter of which is about 1/2 mm. The horizontal part of this wider tube is marked near the bend with a delicate line (_b_). This line, and the extremity of the opposite capillary tube (_a_), are the marks which limit the volume of the liquid to be laid.

The filling of the instrument is easily effected by suction, provided that the little bulb apparatus (as represented in fig. 2) has previously been attached to the _narrow_ capillary tube by means of a perforated stopper, _i. e._ a bit of an india-rubber tube tightly fitting the conical tubules of the bulb. On dipping the wider and longer capillary tube into a liquid, suction applied to the open end of the india-rubber tube will produce a partial vacuum in the apparatus, causing the liquid to enter the U-tube. As the partial vacuum maintains itself for some time (on account of the bulb, which acts as an air-chamber), it is not necessary to continue the suction if the end of the india-rubber tube be timely closed by compression between the fingers. When bulb and U-tube have about equal capacity, it is hardly necessary during the filling to repeat the exhaustion more than once.

Without such a bulb the filling of the U-tube through these fine capillary tubes is found somewhat tiresome; the emptying the U-tube is effected by reversing the action, and so compressing the air. After the U-tube has been filled, it is detached from the bulb, placed in water of the standard temperature almost up to the bends of the capillary tubes, left there until it has assumed this temperature, and after a careful adjustment of the volume, is taken out, dried, and weighed.

Particular care must be taken to ensure the correctness of the standard temperature, for a mistake of 0·1° causes the weight of 10 c.c. of water to be estimated either too high or too low by 0·14 milligram, giving rise to an error in the fifth decimal, or making 100,000 parts 100001·4 parts. These determinations have been made in Dupré’s apparatus, which, when furnished with a sensitive thermometer, allows the fluctuations of temperature to be fixed within the limits of 0·01°. If many determinations had to be made, I should avail myself of Scheibler’s (‘Zeitschrift für Analytische Chemie,’ vol. vii, p. 88, 1868) electro-magnetic regulator for maintaining a constant temperature.

A peculiar feature of my instrument is the ease and precision with which the measurement of the liquid can be adjusted at the moment it has taken the standard temperature; for it will be found that the liquid expands and contracts only in the wider capillary tube, viz. in the direction of the least resistance. The narrow capillary tube remains always completely filled. Supposing the liquid reaches beyond the mark _b_, it may be reduced through capillary force by touching the point _a_ with a little roll of filtering paper. Supposing, however, that in so doing too much liquid is abstracted, capillary force will redress the fault if point _a_ be touched with a drop of the liquid under examination; for this gentle force acts instantly through the whole mass of the liquid, causing it to move forward again to or beyond the mark.

As the instrument itself possesses the properties of a delicate thermometer, the time when it has reached the standard temperature of the bath may be learned from the stability of the thread of liquid inside the wider tube. The length of this thread remains constant after the lapse of about _five minutes_.

In wiping the instrument (after its removal from the bath) care should be taken not to touch point _a_, as capillarity might extract some of the liquid; otherwise the handling of the liquid requires no especial precaution.

The capillary tubes need not be closed for the purpose of arresting evaporation, at least that of water. I have learned from the mean of several determinations that the error arising from this source amounts in one hour to 1/20 of a milligram.

In cases where the temperature of the balance-room is high, and the expansion coefficient of the liquid to be examined is considerable, it may be found necessary to put a small cap (bead-shaped and open at both ends) over the extremity of the _wider_ capillary tube, for the purpose of retaining the liquid, which during the time of weighing might otherwise be lost, owing to its expansion. When a cap is used the _wider_ capillary tube need not be longer than the narrow one.[180]

[Footnote 180: This instrument is manufactured by E. Cetti & Co., 11, Brooke Street, Holborn, London.]