TINCTURES, ELIXIRS, iSc.

with llieir inert or useless parts. Water, however, being the propetmenstruum of the gummy, saline, and saccharine parts of medicinal sub-stances, it will be necessary, in the preparation of several tinctures, tomake use of a weak spirit, or a composition of rectified spirit and water.

Aromatic Tincture.—Infuse two ounces of Jamaica pepper in twopints of brandy, without heat, for a few days; then strain oft' the tinc-ture.—This simple tincture will sufficiently answer all the intentions ofthe more costly preparations of this kind. It is rather too hot to be takenby itself; but it is very proper for mixing with such medicines as mightotherwise prove too cold for the stomach.

Compound Tincture of the Cinchona.—Take of Peruvian bark, twoounces; Seville orange-peel and cinnamon, of each half an ounce. Letthe bark be powdered, and the other ingredients bruised; then infusethe whole in a pint and a half of brandy, for five or six days, in a closevessel; afterwards strain off the tincture.—This tincture is not only bene-ficial iii intermitting fevers, but also in the slow, nervous, and putrid kinds,especially towards their decline.—The dose is from one drachm to threeor four, every fifth or sixth hour. It may be given in any suitable liquor,and occasionally sharpened with a few drops of the vitriolic acid.

Volatile Tincture of Asafoetida.—Infuse two ounces of asafoetida inone pint of compound spirit of ammonia, for eight days, in a close bot-tle, frequently shaking it; then strain the tincture.—This medicine isbeneficial in hysteric disorders, especially when attended with lowness ofspirits and faintings. A tea-spoonful of it may be taken in a glass ofwine, or a cupful of pennyroyal tea.

Tincture of Fox-Glove.—Take of the dried leaves of fox-glove, oneounce; spirit of wine, eight ounces. Digest for seven days, and straitthrough paper.—This tincture is a very powerful medicine, and containsthe virtues of the fox-glove, easily manageable, under the direction ofpersons possessing medical skill and experience.—It has been said b\some, that it is almost a specific in scarlet fever; but it has been chieflyused as a sedative, to diminish the force of the circulation of the blooain haemoptysis, and often with remarkable success. It has been also saidto cure phthisis pulmonalis. It has, doubtless, been of much service insome cases of that nature; but subsequent experience has not confirmedthe hopes that were excited by its first trials in consumptive disordersLike every other form in which the fox-glove is given, it ought to be ex-hibited in very small doses at first, such as ten to twenty drops to adultsand very cautiously increased, in some cases, to nearly double thatnumber. If, previous to the use of the fox-glove, there is any pain ir<the chest, or an haemoptysis; if the pulse is hard, the respiration difficult,and the patient not advanced in life, venesection will be necessary. Ablister should be applied to the side, between the shoulders, or over tinsternum, in the course of the mediastinum, and the bowels gently eva-cuated by some of the neutral salts; for they retard the circulation, anadiminish the irritability of the heart, by their action on the stomach.These being premised, Dr. Rand recommends the tincture of fox-gloveto be administered to consumptive patients in doses of twelve drops threeor four times a-day, increasing each dose one drop, till the number ofpulsations of the artery is diminished to fifty or sixty, and continued atthat number till the disease, is removed. Should the medicine have a