and--
2207·7 / 88 = 25·1 gal. (nearly).
That is, 25-1/10 gal. of such spirit would contain 100 lbs. of absolute
alcohol.
By removing the decimal point one place to the _right_, we have the equiv.
measure of 1000 lbs. By removing it one, two, or three places to the
_left_, we have it respectively for 10 lbs., 1 lb., and 1/10 lb.; from
which the equiv. for all other weights may be easily obtained.
By reversing the above operation, the measure of alcohol corresponding to
any given weight of spirit, at any strength, may also be easily found.
The weight of 1 gal. of absolute alcohol being 7·938 lbs.; that of 1 gal.
of proof spirit, 9·2 lbs,; and that of the 'alcohol' in 1 gal. of proof
spirit, 4·53 lbs.; the weight of any number of gallons or volumes of
either, and their equivalents, may be easily found. Thus:--
gallons of alc. × 7·938 = lbs. weight of alc.
" pf. sp. × 9·2 = lbs. w. of pf. spt.
and--
gallons of alc. × 16·121 = lbs. weight of pf. spt.
" pf. spt. × 4·53 = content in lbs. weight of alc.
In these cases a knowledge of the first four rules of decimal fractions is
necessary, or, at least, advantageous; as the Excise officers carry their
calculations to two figures of decimals, or 1/100ths. Their plan is to
reject the third decimal figure when less than 5; but to carry 1 to the
next figure on the left hand, when it exceeds 5. Thus, 5·432 is set down
as only 5·43; but 5·437 is written 5·44. In the delicate chemical
processes of the laboratory, even greater accuracy is observed.
Formerly, spirit was said to be 1 to 3, 1 to 4, &c., over-proof, by which
it was meant that 1 gal. of water added to 3 or 4 gals. of such spirit
would reduce it to 'proof.' On the other hand, 1 in 5, or 1 in 8,
under-proof, meant that the 5 or 8 gals., as the case might be, contained
1 gal. of water, and the remainder represented the quantity of 'proof
spirit.' This method of calculation has now long given way to the
'centigrade system,' which not only admits of greater accuracy, but is
quite as simple. It should be adopted by every spirit-dealer in England,
from being that which is employed by the Revenue officers, whose 'surveys'
it is absolutely necessary that the trader should understand, in order
that his own estimation of his stock and his business calculations should
correspond with theirs.
Several other methods of alcoholometry, besides those already noticed,
have been adopted at various times, but the majority of them possess so
little accuracy as to be quite inapplicable to the purposes of trade, and
of the laboratory. Thus, the strength was at one time estimated by what
was called the 'proof.' A little of the spirit was poured upon a small
quantity of gunpowder, contained in a spoon or saucer, so as just to
moisten it, and was then inflamed. If at the end of the combustion the
gunpowder took fire, the spirit was held to be 'above proof,' if it only
languidly fizzed away, or slowly burnt, the spirit was said to be 'proof,'
but if the gunpowder failed to ignite, the spirit was esteemed 'below
proof.' Hence arose the terms 'proof' and 'proof spirit,' which have since
been adopted by Act of Parliament. Another method was that of dropping oil
into the spirit; if the oil floated, the spirit was considered to be
'under proof,' if it sunk, it was rated as 'proof' or 'over-proof.' The
'gunpowder test' is quite fallacious; for, if a certain quantity of a
spirit is capable of firing the gunpowder, a little excess of a spirit 20%
or 25% stronger will often fail to do so, so much water being formed as to
prevent the ignition. The 'PREUVE D'HOLLAND' test, of the French, or the
'BEAD,' is still frequently employed by persons unacquainted with the use
of the hydrometer. It consists in shaking the spirit in a phial, and
observing the size, number, and duration of the bubbles or beads, as they
are called. The larger and more numerous these are, and the more rapidly
they break and disappear, the stronger the spirit is presumed to be. This
method is unreliable, as the presence of sugar or acid, even in minute
quantities, will sometimes give to a weak sample the appearance of one
many degrees stronger. LOVI'S BEADS are also often employed to ascertain
approximately the strength of spirit, when a hydrometer is not at hand.
The insufficiency of most of the methods of alcoholometry here referred
to, throws us back on the Revenue System (Sykes' hydrometer), or on the
specific gravity for unsweetened spirits. For sweetened spirits, as
cordials, wines, beers, &c., there are none of the tests which give such
accurate results as the distillation test, previously described as the
Revenue Method.
The spirituous liquors of commerce being sold by measure, and not by
weight, the methods of alcoholometry which give the results, per cent., by
volume, are those we have chiefly explained. In the laboratory, the method
by weight is that most generally employed in delicate processes and in
analyses. By weight, the per-centage of alcohol remains the same for all
temperatures, for the same sample; whilst by volume, the per-centage
varies with the temperature of the liquid. This variation explains the
cause of many of the sudden apparent decreases and increases, which occur
in large stocks of spirits. Persons purchasing spirits during very warm
weather, and paying for them according to their apparent quantity and
strength, lose considerably by selling the same spirit when the weather
becomes colder, without being conscious of such loss from the hydrometer.
The reason of this is obvious, for, whilst the relative proportions of the
alcohol to the water continue the same, the sp. gr. and the volume alter
with the temperature; the latter being increased by warmth, and decreased
by cold, in exact opposition to the former. Accuracy requires, in all
cases, that a spirituous liquor should be tested for its strength at the
temperature at which it was measured; and measured at the same temperature
at which its strength was determined.
A consideration of these facts has led some of the great houses to
introduce the system of weighing their spirits, instead of measuring them,
the weight of an imperial gallon at 60° Fahr. being taken as the standard
gallon. This is the method adopted by the Inland Revenue, at all
distilleries, for assessing the duty, and will be readily understood by
the following example:--
Cwts. qrs. lbs.
Gross weight of full cask = 13 2 27
Tare = 2 2 5
------------
Net weight of spirit = 11 0 22
or 1254 lbs. Let us suppose the hydrometer indication to be 43·0, the
weight per imperial gallon would be 8·903 lbs. (see Table VI), and 1254 ÷
8·903 = 140 gallons.
TABLE VI.--_Table for determining the Weight per Gallon
of Spirits by Sykes' Hydrometer._
A = Indication on Sykes' Hydrometer.
B = Weight per Gallon.
A B A B A B A B A B
0 8·145 8 8·509 6 8·878 4 9·264 2 9·667
2 8·157 21 8·512 8 8·881 6 9·267 4 9·671
4 8·161 2 8·516 42 8·885 8 9·271 6 9·674
6 8·164 4 8·519 2 8·889 63 9·275 8 9·678
8 8·168 6 8·523 4 8·892 2 9·279 84 9·682
1 8·171 8 8·526 6 8·896 4 9·283 2 9·686
2 8·174 22 8·530 8 8·899 6 9·286 4 9·690
4 8·178 2 8·533 43 8·903 8 9·290 6 9·694
6 8·181 4 8·537 2 8·907 64 9·294 8 9·698
8 8·185 6 8·540 4 8·911 2 9·298 85 9·702
2 8·188 8 8·544 6 8·914 4 9·302 2 9·706
2 8·191 23 8·547 8 8·918 6 9·305 4 9·710
4 8·195 2 8·551 44 8·922 8 9·309 6 9·714
6 8·198 4 8·554 2 8·926 65 9·313 8 9·718
8 8·202 6 8·558 4 8·929 2 9·317 86 9·722
3 8·205 8 8·561 6 8·933 4 9·321 2 9·726
2 8·208 24 8·565 8 8·936 6 9·324 4 9·730
4 8·212 2 8·568 45 8·940 8 9·328 6 9·733
6 8·215 4 8·572 2 8·944 66 9·332 8 9·737
8 8·219 6 8·575 4 8·947 2 9·336 87 9·741
4 8·222 8 8·579 6 8·951 4 9·340 2 9·745
2 8·225 25 8·582 8 8·954 6 9·344 4 9·749
4 8·229 2 8·586 46 8·958 8 9·348 6 9·753
6 8·232 4 8·589 2 8·962 67 9·352 8 9·757
8 8·236 6 8·593 4 8·965 2 9·356 88 9·761
5 8·239 8 8·596 6 8·969 4 9·360 2 9·765
2 8·242 26 8·600 8 8·972 6 9·363 4 9·769
4 8·245 2 8·603 47 8·976 8 9·367 6 9·773
6 8·249 4 8·607 2 8·980 68 9·371 8 9·777
8 8·252 6 8·610 4 8·984 2 9·375 89 9·781
6 8·255 8 8·614 6 8·987 4 9·379 2 9·785
2 8·258 27 8·617 8 8·991 6 9·382 4 9·789
4 8·262 2 8·620 48 8·995 8 9·386 6 9·792
6 8·265 4 8·624 2 8·999 69 9·390 8 9·796
8 8·269 6 8·628 4 9·002 2 9·394 90 9·800
7 8·272 8 8·631 6 9·006 4 9·398 2 9·804
2 8·275 28 8·635 8 9·009 6 9·401 4 9·808
4 8·279 2 8·639 49 9·013 8 9·405 6 9·812
6 8·282 4 8·642 2 9·017 70 9·409 8 9·816
8 8·286 6 8·646 4 9·021 2 9·413 91 9·820
8 8·289 8 8·649 6 9·024 4 9·417 2 9·824
2 8·292 29 8·653 8 9·028 6 9·420 4 9·828
4 8·296 2 8·656 50 9·032 8 9·424 6 9·832
6 8·299 4 8·660 2 9·036 71 9·428 8 9·836
8 8·303 6 8·663 4 9·039 2 9·432 92 9·840
9 8·306 8 8·667 6 9·043 4 9·436 2 9·844
2 8·309 30 8·670 8 9·046 6 9·440 4 9·848
4 8·313 2 8·674 51 9·050 8 9·444 6 9·852
6 8·316 4 8·677 2 9·054 72 9·448 8 9·856
8 8·320 6 8·681 4 9·058 2 9·452 93 9·860
10 8·323 8 8·684 6 9·061 4 9·456 2 9·864
2 8·326 31 8·688 8 9·065 6 9·459 4 9·868
4 8·330 2 8·692 52 9·069 8 9·463 6 9·872
6 8·333 4 8·695 2 9·073 73 9·467 8 9·876
8 8·337 6 8·699 4 9·076 2 9·471 94 9·880
11 8·340 8 8·702 6 9·080 4 9·475 2 9·884
2 8·343 32 8·706 8 9·083 6 9·479 4 9·888
4 8·347 2 8·709 53 9·087 8 9·483 6 9·892
6 8·350 4 8·713 2 9·091 74 9·487 8 9·896
8 8·354 6 8·716 4 9·095 2 9·491 95 9·900
12 8·357 8 8·720 6 9·098 4 9·495 2 9·904
2 8·361 33 8·723 8 9·102 6 9·498 4 9·908
4 8·364 2 8·727 54 9·106 8 9·502 6 9·913
6 8·368 4 8·730 2 9·110 75 9·506 8 9·917
8 8·371 6 8·734 4 9·114 2 9·510 96 9·921
13 8·375 8 8·737 6 9·117 4 9·514 2 9·925
2 8·378 34 8·741 8 9·121 6 9·517 4 9·929
4 8·382 2 8·745 55 9·125 8 9·521 6 9·934
6 8·385 4 8·748 2 9·129 76 9·525 8 9·938
8 8·389 6 8·752 4 9·132 2 9·529 97 9·942
14 8·392 8 8·755 6 9·136 4 9·533 2 9·946
2 8·395 35 8·759 8 9·139 6 9·537 4 9·950
4 8·399 2 8·763 56 9·143 8 9·541 6 9·955
6 8·402 4 8·766 2 9·147 77 9·545 8 9·959
8 8·406 6 8·770 4 9·151 2 9·549 98 9·963
15 8·409 8 8·773 6 9·154 4 9·553 2 9·967
2 8·412 36 8·777 8 9·158 6 9·557 4 9·972
4 8·416 2 8·781 57 9·162 8 9·561 6 9·976
6 8·419 4 8·784 2 9·166 78 9·565 8 9·981
8 8·423 6 8·788 4 9·170 2 9·569 99 9·985
16 8·426 8 8·791 6 9·173 4 9·573 2 9·989
2 8·429 37 8·795 8 9·177 6 9·576 4 9·994
4 8·433 2 8·799 58 9·181 8 9·580 6 9·998
6 8·436 4 8·802 2 9·185 79 9·584 8 10·003
8 8·440 6 8·806 4 9·189 2 9·588 100 10·007
17 8·443 8 8·809 6 9·192 4 9·592
2 8·446 38 8·813 8 9·196 6 9·596
4 8·450 2 8·817 59 9·200 8 9·600
6 8·453 4 8·820 2 9·204 80 9·604
8 8·457 6 8·824 4 9·207 2 9·608
18 8·460 8 8·827 6 9·211 4 9·612
2 8·464 39 8·831 8 9·214 6 9·615
4 8·467 2 8·835 60 9·218 8 9·619
6 8·471 4 8·838 2 9·222 81 9·623
8 8·474 6 8·842 4 9·226 2 9·627
19 8·478 8 8·845 6 9·229 4 9·631
2 8·481 40 8·849 8 9·233 6 9·635
4 8·485 2 8·853 61 9·237 8 9·639
6 8·488 4 8·856 2 9·241 82 9·643
8 8·492 6 8·860 4 9·245 2 9·647
20 8·495 8 8·863 6 9·248 4 9·651
2 8·498 41 8·867 8 9·252 6 9·655
4 8·502 2 8·871 62 9·256 8 9·659
6 8·505 4 8·874 2 9·260 83 9·663
[asterism] For further information in connection with _Alchoholometry_ see
ALCOHOL, BEER, BREWING, DISTILLATION, EBULLIOSCOPE, HYDROMETER,
HYDROMETRY, LIQUEURS, MALT-LIQUORS, ORGANIC SUBSTANCES, SACCHARINE,
SPECIFIC GRAVITY, SPIRIT, SUGAR, SYRUPS, TINCTURES, WINE, WORT, &c. &c.
=ALCOHOL; EFFECTS OF ALCOHOLISM.= Without entering into the controversy as
to whether the moderate consumption of alcohol, or its total disuse, is
the more conducive to personal health and comfort--whether, as Dr Anstie
and others have asserted it acts, when prudently taken, as a food--or
whether, as other medical authorities contend, even its moderate use is a
disturbing factor in the human economy--there need be no qualification of
the assertion, that when the drinking of spirituous liquids of any kind is
indulged in to excess, the habit, if persisted in, must sooner or later
terminate in impaired health, serious disease, and premature death.
A powerful array of facts could be brought in support of this statement.
For instance, in NELSON'S statistics we find it mentioned that--
A temperate person's | An intemperate person's
chance of living is-- | chance of living is--
|
At 20 = 44·2 years. | At 20 = 15·6 years.
" 30 = 36·5 " | " 30 = 13·8 "
" 40 = 28·8 " | " 40 = 11·6 "
" 50 = 21·25 " | " 50 = 10·8 "
" 60 = 14·285 " | " 60 = 8·9 "
The average duration of life after the commencement of habits of
intemperance is--
Among mechanics, working and labouring men 18 years.
" traders, dealers, and merchants 17 "
" professional men and gentlemen 15 "
" females 14 "
Again, Dr Dickinson, writing "on the morbid effects of alcohol in persons
who trade in liquor," gave the results of an examination of 149 traders in
liquor, as compared with 149 persons of various trades. The general
results were diseases of the liver much more common in those who dealt in
alcoholic drinks. In the lungs tubercle affected sixty-one persons of the
alcoholic, forty-four of the non-alcoholic.
Tubercle in the brain, liver, kidneys, spleen, bowels, mesenteric glands,
and peritoneum were twice as common in the alcoholic as in the
non-alcoholic. The verdict, therefore, is unavoidable that alcohol (in
excess) engenders tubercle in the brain, inflammations, atrophy,
hæmorrhages; in the heart and vessels atheroma, hypertrophy, and other
affections, were all more common in the alcoholic than in the
non-alcoholic series. The evidence in kidney disease did not appear so
conclusive, but some forms of kidney disease appear to be increased. The
author sums up thus:--"Alcohol causes fatty infiltration and fibroid
encroachment; it engenders tubercle, encourages suppuration, and retards
healing; it produces untimely atheroma, invites hæmorrhage, and
anticipates age. The most constant fatty change, replacement by oil of the
material of epithelial cells and muscular fibres, though probably nearly
universal, is most noticeable in the liver, the heart, and the kidney."
Alcohol also seems to be the cause of special diseases, besides those more
common and generally known ones, delirium tremens, alcoholism, &c. Of
these we may mention one recorded by M. GALEZOWSKI, a peculiar affection
of the eyes, which the doctor found very prevalent during the siege of
Paris in 1870-1. In the five months of the siege fifty patients were
affected by it, whilst during the twelve months preceding the siege only
nineteen were to be found. Dr GALOWSKI ascribed the malady to the habit of
taking alcoholic drinks in the morning fasting. A peculiar kind of palsy
has also been referred to alcoholic poisoning.
The following table, compiled by Dr Joseph Williams, lends support to the
fact that an indulgence in alcohol is either the cause of insanity, or
that it tends to its increase:
Proportion
Total caused by
admission. intemperance.
Charenton 855 134
Bicêtre and Salpêtrière 2012 414
Bordeaux 156 20
Turin, 1830-31 158 17
" 1831-36 390 76
Gard 209 4
United States 551 146
Palermo 189 9
Caen 60 16
Dundee 14 4
M. Parchappe 167 46
M. Batten 288 54
---- ---
5019 940
Commenting on these figures, Mr Walter Blyth remarks, "There may be
another explanation of the fact that many mad people have been great
drinkers. A large proportion of those subject to insanity are driven by
their morbid minds to drink; so that it may be that insanity causes drink,
and not drink causes insanity."
Many medical writers who are no advocates for the total abandonment of
alcohol limit its consumption, in healthy people, to one or two fluid
ounces a day, in the form of wine, beer, or spirits and water; two fluid
ounces is, we believe, the quantity apportioned daily to every able-bodied
seaman in the Royal Navy. Any slight habitual departure from this
standard--even when the evidences of excess are not perceptible to
others--all authority, historical, pathological, and physiological (unless
it be given as a medicine), shows to be injurious. The researches of
Anstie, Parkes, and Count Wollowicz, appear to prove that any quantity of
alcohol exceeding an ounce and a half taken by an adult showed itself in
the urine, a circumstance which these writers look upon as tending to show
that the system has taken more alcohol than can be used in the body
itself. In slight doses the action of alcohol is to produce a sedative
effect upon the nerves, to redden slightly the lining membrane of the
stomach, and to stimulate the secretion of the gastric juice.
Thus, in small doses alcohol may, and doubtless does, promote appetite. In
excess, however, all these effects are turned to evil, and then ensue an
inflammatory condition of the stomach, compression of the gland ducts from
thickening of the tissue around them, excessive mucous secretion, and
great loss of appetite. When carried into the circulation it greatly
increases the force of the heart's action, and at the same time paralyses,
as it were, the restraining nervous supply to the arteries and small
vessels, so that they can no longer oppose themselves to the
blood-current, but dilate. This action in a small degree, occurring in
persons of a weak and languid circulation, is no doubt beneficial; on the
other hand, when in excess, it is most dangerous, and is a cause of the
greater part of the diseases of the heart and great vessels.
"There appears to be a slight fall of temperature with moderate doses of
alcohol, a very decided fall with excessive doses; the muscular and
nervous systems are transitorily stimulated, and may do more work when
small doses are given in cases of fatigue, but in other cases there is a
marked torpor of the nervous and a want of co-ordination of the muscular
system."--BLYTH.
Notwithstanding the researches of Percy, Strauch, Masing, Lallemand,
Duroy, Parkes, Dupré, Anstie, Thudichum, and others, there is still a
considerable divergence of opinion as to how alcohol is eliminated from
the body. By some of the authorities just named it is affirmed to be
eliminated as aldehyd, by others as carbonic acid; as to the latter, the
experiments of Dr E. Smith show that the carbonic acid is decreased when
brandy and gin are drunk, and increased by rum.
The only probable supposition, which facts support, tends to show that the
alcohol is turned into acetic acid in the body, some of which unites with
potash and other bases, and some is destroyed. All are pretty well agreed
that in the form of spirits alcohol as a food is valueless, but that in
the form of beer and wine it is possessed of a slight dietetic power,
naturally varying with the amount and nature of the different substances
held in solution in these beverages.
The imports of spirits into this country, in the seven years from 1850 to
1857, amounted to 70,740,980 gallons; whilst the imports in the seven
years following, viz. from 1857 to 1864, were 78,016,071 gallons, showing
an increase of 7,305,091 gallons. The population has, however, increased
in the time, and a deduction on that account, as well as correction on one
or two other heads, are required; still, that there is an increase is
indisputable.
As respects France, a considerable increase in the consumption of spirits
has taken place of late years, as the following table by M. Husson will
illustrate:
_The Mean Consumption of Spirits for each Inhabitant._
Litres. Litres.
From 1825 to 1830 8·96 yearly. ·024 daily.
" 1831 " 1835 8·74 " ·023 "
" 1836 " 1840 10·15 " ·026 "
" 1841 " 1845 11·14 " ·031 "
" 1846 " 1850 11·03 " ·030 "
" 1851 " 1854 14·25 " ·039 "
In the United States, during the period from 1807 to 1828, the average was
27 litres for every inhabitant, which is even greater than the highest of
the two sets of figures just quoted.
The demoralisation of the French army during the late Franco-Prussian war
has been also unanimously ascribed to the excessive consumption of
spirituous liquids.
The following results of an inquiry instituted in 1870 by the
Massachusetts Board of Health into the comparative sobriety of different
nations are gathered from an able paper which appeared in the 'Medical
Times and Gazette' of April 15th, 1872, by Dr Druitt, in which he dissects
and summarises the results in question. Dr Druitt writes:
"Highest in the scale of temperance come the Turks and Arabs; next the
Iberians, Levantines, Greeks, and Latin races; lower down the Japanese,
Scandinavians, Belgians, and the Irish Celt; lowest of all the so-called
Anglo-Saxon of either continent."
Professor Levi contributes to our knowledge on this subject by giving the
following statistics:--In 1860 the committals for drunkenness in England
and Wales were 88,000, and in 1870 134,000, an increase of 50 per cent.
In Manchester the increase from 1860 to 1870 was 375 per cent., or
computed according to the increase of population 35·3 per cent. In London
drunkenness is in the proportion of 5·43 per 1000, in Leeds 7·40, in
Manchester 31·13, and in Liverpool 42·82. It must, however, be remembered
that these figures are based on mere committals, which greatly depend on
the activity of the police, and the noisy or quiet character of the
drunkard.
We quote the following from Dr Blyth's work on 'Hygiene,' without,
however, attempting either to endorse or controvert what he says on the
subject.
"_Whether is Alcohol necessary or not._ All experience, both at home and
abroad, shows by facts that cannot be disputed that a person can do quite
as hard work without alcohol as with it; and probably as the limits
between moderation and excess are easily passed, and as the generality of
mankind, even without intending it, err on the latter side, the result is
that a comparison between total abstainers and even temperate men
generally terminates in favour of the former. It would appear that total
abstainers live longer, are better citizens, and can do more work than the
rest of mankind. The figures of the "United Kingdom Temperance and General
Provident Institution" go far to prove the above. This insurance society
is divided into two sections. One section consists of abstainers, the
other of persons selected as not known to be intemperate. The claims for
five years anticipated in the temperance section were £100,446, but the
actual claims were only £72,676. In the general section of the anticipated
claims were £196,352; the actual claims no less than £330,297. In war the
march of 2000 miles in his War of Independence by Cornwallis and his
troops (1783), the Maroon war of Jamaica, the 400 miles' march of an
English army across the Desert from Komer, on the Red Sea, a march of 1000
miles in the Kaffir war, experiences at sieges, in action, in hot,
temperate, and cold climates, where abstinence was either forced through
circumstances or followed, shows to every unprejudiced mind that soldiers
endure more fatigue, are healthier, and fight better, without stimulants
than with them; and this fact is endorsed by every commander of the
present day.
The excess and abuse of spirits, as before remarked, lost the French their
military prestige in the Franco-German war. In very hot and very cold
climates the Indian observers and the Arctic explorers all unite in
condemning its (that is, the use of alcohol) use in the slightest excess,
or even in moderate doses. It does not warm the body in cold climates, and
the reaction that follows the exciting of the circulation is followed by a
dangerous depression; whilst in hot it combines with the climate, and
quickly produces disease."
=ALCOHOLIC DRINKS, EFFECTS OF.= In addition to the serious injury to
health caused by an excessive or imprudent indulgence in spirituous
stimulants (see previous article), even a moderate and not injudicious use
of them may often be attended with very disagreeable consequences--a more
or less mild or modified form of poisoning, in fact--if the beverages
themselves are, as very frequently happens, contaminated, either
accidentally or intentionally, with certain objectionable ingredients.
These ingredients are described under the articles BEER, WINES, and the
various SPIRITS, such as GIN, BRANDY, ABSINTHE, &c. Of spirit drinking it
may be observed, that this dangerous practice is intensified by what is to
be feared is the too prevalent custom of taking them undiluted, or "neat,"
as it is termed. There is no doubt that they constitute the very worst
form of alcoholic drinks, and shorten the lives of those who indulge in
them to excess more summarily than any other intoxicating potion. The
greatest and most ineradicable drunkards are almost always found to be
spirit drinkers.
Liebig remarked that less bread was consumed in families where beer was
drunk, and there seems to be little doubt that the different species of
beer, including porter and ale, when pure and free from adulteration,
act, although in a small degree, as food. Probably there are some who will
agree with, whilst others will dissent from, Benjamin Franklin, who said
"there was more sustenance in a penny loaf than in a gallon of beer." The
starchy extractive matters of the beer no doubt perform the same function
in the animal economy that sugar does. It is well known that those who
drink freely of beer mostly become corpulent, as witness the portly forms
of draymen. The hop contained in the beer has doubtless tonic and
stomachic qualities. We can speak with less certainty about the free acids
contained in malt fluids. It is very certain that some people cannot drink
a glass of beer without experiencing rheumatic pains in the joints, which
effect is generally ascribed to the acidity of the beer; but which is
really supposed to be due to the decreased elimination of urea and
pulmonary carbonic acid from the system caused by the alcohol of the beer.
The heavy low-priced beers occasion drunkenness of a peculiarly violent
and savage kind, a fact which strongly favours the inference that this
form of intoxication is due to some toxic agent, used as an adulterant. Of
wines, the clarets and subacid wines are undoubtedly antiscorbutic in
properties, and light wines as beverages are preferable to the stronger.
Port, sherry, beer, stout, and ale are almost universally condemned in
cases where there is a tendency to gout. The light clarets and Rhine wines
are far more desirable beverages when this is the case, and the German
wines are said to be valuable drinks in many lithic affections. It seems
probable that the ethers and the vegetable salts, together with the sugar
contained in wines, perform the most important part in the human economy.
It has been proposed to introduce the red subacid wines as drinks for our
sailors, because of their antiscorbutic qualities. Some of the alcoholic
drinks prepared in India frequently cause temporary madness.
=ALCOHOLISM.= ALCOHOL; EFFECTS OF ALCOHOLISM.
=AL'COHOLS.= In _chemistry_, a term applied to compounds possessing a
composition, formulæ, and chemical properties similar to those of ordinary
alcohol. They form a series presenting an unmistakable symmetry, and
differ from one another by well-marked gradations, as shown below:--
Methyl-alcohol (_wood spirit_). CH_{4}O
Ethyl-alcohol (_ordinary alcohol_) C_{2}H_{6}O
Amyl-alcohol (_füsel-oil_) C_{5}H_{12}O
Capryl-alcohol C_{8}H_{18}O
Cetyl-alcohol C_{16}H_{34}O
&c., &c.
=Alcohols.= In _commerce_, pure spirits of a greater strength than about
58 o. p. (sp. gr. 8335), or containing more than about 85% by WEIGHT, or
90% by VOLUME, of pure alcohol, are commonly so called.
=Alcohols.= In _perfumery_, rectified spirit of wine, or commercial
alcohol, holding essential oils or other odorous matters in solution.
=Alcohols.= In _Fr. pharmacy_, alcoholic tinctures and essences.
=ALCOOLATIFS= (alcoölatifs). [F.] _Syn_. ALCOHOLATI'VA, L. In _Fr.
pharmacy_, alcoholic solutions of liniments, embrocations, &c., whether
made by distillation, maceration, or solution.
=ALCOOLATS= (alcoölats). [Fr.] In _Fr. pharmacy_, spirits; applied by
Béral, Henry and Guibourt, and others, to medicated distilled spirits.
=ALCOOLATURES= (alcoölatures). [Fr.] _Syn._ ALCOHOLATU''RA, L. In. _Fr.
pharmacy_, alcoholic tinctures, elixirs, &c. M. Béral confines the term to
vegetable juices preserved by alcohol.
=ALCOOLES= (alcooölés). [Fr.] Tinctures; the 'teintures alcoholiques' of
the Fr. Codex.
=ALCOOLIQUES= (alcoöliques). [Fr.] _Syn._ ALCOHOL'ICA, L. In _Fr.
pharmacy_, alcoholic or spirituous solutions. (Béral.)
=AL'CORNINE= (-n[)i]n). [Eng., Fr.] _Syn._ ALCOR'NOCINE (-s[)i]n);
ALCOR'NEUM, ALCORNI'NA, L. A crystallisable substance, apparently
intermediate between fat and wax, discovered by Biltz, in alcornoco bark.
=ALCORNO'CO.= _Syn._ A.-BARK; ALCORNOQUE, Fr.; ALKORNOC, A.-RIND, Ger. The
bark of an unknown tree of South America. It is astringent and bitter, and
has been highly extolled as a specific in phthisis; but appears to possess
little medicinal virtue. The bark of the young branches of the cork tree
(_quercus suber_), used in tanning, is also sometimes called
alcornoco-bark; but possesses none of the characters of the former
article.
=AL'DECAY.= The galls on the leaves of _myrobalanus chebula_ (Gaertn.), a
forest-tree of Bengal. Equal to the best oak-galls.
=AL'DEHYD= (-h[=i]d). [_al_-(cohol)-_dehyd_ (rogenatus).] C_{2}H_{4}O.
Syn. HYDRATED OXIDE OF ACETYLE; HYDRATE OF OTHYLE*; HYDROXIDE OF O.*
Literally, dehydrogenated alcohol. In _chemistry_, a peculiar ethereal
liquid, first obtained in a pure form by Liebig, from alcohol. It is
produced under various circumstances, particularly during the destructive
distillation of certain organic matters, and in several processes of
oxidation. The following are the most convenient methods of preparing
it:--
_Prep._ 1. (Liebig.) Sulphuric acid, 3 parts; is diluted with water, 2
parts; and as soon as the mixture has cooled, alcohol of 80%, 2 parts, is
added; and, subsequently, peroxide of manganese (in fine powder), 3 parts.
The whole, after agitation, is then distilled at a very gentle heat, from
a spacious retort into a receiver surrounded with ice, the connection
between the two being perfectly air-tight. The process is continued until
frothing commences, or the distillate becomes acid which generally occurs
when about one third (3 parts) has passed over. The distillate is next
agitated in a retort, with about its own weight of fused chloride of
calcium, in powder; after which about one half only is drawn over at a
very gentle heat (85° to 90° Fahr.), by means of a water bath. This
rectification is repeated in a precisely similar way. The last distillate
is ANHYDROUS ALDEHYD only slightly contaminated with foreign matters.
2. (Liebig.) Aldehyd-ammonia, 2 parts, is dissolved in an equal weight of
distilled water; and, after being placed in a retort, sulphuric acid, 2 or
3 parts, previously diluted with rather more than its own weight of
distilled water, and allowed to cool, is added. The whole is now
distilled, by means of a water bath, into a receiver surrounded with ice,
or (preferably) a freezing-mixture, the temperature of the bath at first
being very low, and the operation being stopped as soon, or rather before
the water begins to boil. The distillate is then placed in a retort
connected with a well-cooled receiver, as before; and after all the joints
are made perfectly tight, powdered fused chloride of calcium, in weight
equal to that of the liquid in the retort, is added through the
tubulature. The heat produced by the hydration of the chloride causes the
distillation to commence, after which it is carried on, by means of a
water bath, at a temperature ranging from 80° to 82° Fahr. This
rectification being very carefully repeated, the last distillate is PURE
ANHYDROUS ALDEHYD.
_Prop., &c._ Limpid, colourless, ethereal, neutral, inflammable; mixes in
all proportions with alcohol, ether, and water; odour peculiar,
penetrating, and, when strong, exceedingly suffocating, the vapour, in
quantity, producing spasmodic contraction of the thorax; boils at 72°
Fahr. (70°--Ure, 5th ed.); sp. gr. ·790 at 60°, and ·800 at 32° Fahr.; sp.
gr. of vapour, 1·532; by exposure to air it is gradually converted into
acetic acid, and speedily so under the influence of platinum-black; heated
with caustic potash, a brown substance resembling resin (ALDEHYD-RESIN) is
formed; gently heated with protoxide of silver, or its solutions, metallic
silver is deposited on the inner surface of the vessel, in a uniform and
brilliant film, whilst ALDEHYDATE OF SILVER remains in solution; heated
with hydrocyanic acid it yields ALANINE. By age, even in close vessels, it
passes into one or more isomeric compounds (ELALDEHYDE; METALDEHYDE), with
change of properties. Aldehyde for experiments should, therefore, be
always recently prepared; and it must be kept in a well-stopped bottle, in
a very cold place, and preferably in ice.
_Obs._ Aldehyd is important for its assumed position in the acetyl-series,
and the part which it plays in the process of acetification, &c. The word
is now also commonly employed, by chemists, as a generic term for any
organic substance which, by assimilating two atoms of hydrogen, yields, or
would yield, a compound having the composition or properties of an
alcohol; or which, by taking up one atom of oxygen, yields an acid. Many
of the essential oils (as those of almonds, cinnamon, and cumin) are
composed principally of bodies which may thus be called aldehyds. One of
the most valuable properties of these substances, is their strong tendency
to combine with the bisulphites of ammonium, potassium, and sodium; and by
which they may be separated from complex mixtures.
=AL'DEHYD-AMMO'NIA= (-h[)i]d-). An ammonia-compound of aldehyd, discovered
by Döbereiner and Liebig.
_Prep._ (Liebig.) Aldehyd (of process No. 1, above) is mixed with an equal
volume of ether,[16] in a flask surrounded with ice, or (what is better) a
freezing-mixture; and is then saturated with dry gaseous ammonia. The
crystals which soon form, after being washed with ether, and dried by
means of bibulous paper and a short exposure to the air, are pure aldehyd
ammonia.
[Footnote 16: Some authorities recommend the use of twice this quantity of
ether.]
_Prop., &c._ It smells like a mixture of turpentine and ammonia; melts at
165° to 170°; volatilises, unchanged, at 212° Fahr.; decomposed by
exposure to the air; very soluble in water; soluble in alcohol, and more
or less so in most other menstrua, except ether; acids decompose it. With
sulphuretted hydrogen it forms thialdine.--_Use._ Chiefly to make pure
aldehyd (which _see_).
=AL'DER= (awl'-). _Syn._ AL'DER-TREE; AL'NUS ([)a]l-), L.; A. GLUTINO'SA
(Gaertn.); BETU'LA ALNUS, Linn.; AUNE, AULNE, Fr.; ERLE, Ger. A well-known
English tree, chiefly growing in moist grounds near rivers. Its wood is
used for hurdles, for various articles of turnery and furniture, and when
converted into charcoal, for making gunpowder; it possesses considerable
durability under water; but is otherwise of little value. Bark and leaves
very astringent, and reputed vulnerary; decoction used as a gargle in sore
throat, and, in double the dose of cinchona, as a febrifuge in agues; bark
and sap used in dyeing and tanning. The following belong to different nat.
orders and genera to the preceding:--
=Alder, Black.= _Syn._ WIN'TER-BERRY; PRI'NOS VERTICILLA'TUS, Linn. A tree
growing in the United States of America. Bark febrifuge, tonic, and
astringent; berries tonic and emetic. (Bigelow.) It has been much
recommended in dropsies, diarrh[oe]a, intermittents, &c. _Dose_ (of the
dried bark), 1/2 to 1 dr., 3 or 4 times a day.
=Alder-tree, Black.= _Syn._ BERRY-BEARING ALDER-TREE; RHAM'NUS FRAN'GULA,
Linn. A large shrub found in the woods and thickets of England, &c. Wood,
BLACK DOG'WOOD; bark, bitter, emetic, purgative; used to dye yellow;
root-bark, a drastic purgative; berries, purgative, emetic; unripe berries
yield SAP-GREEN; charcoal of the wood esteemed the best for gunpowder.
=ALE.= _Syn._ BARLEY WINE*; AILE, Fr.; WEISS-BIER, Ger.; AEL, EALE, Sax.;
CEREVIS'IA ALBA, C. LUPULA'TA, A'LA*, AL'LA*, L. Pale-coloured beer,
prepared from lightly dried malt, by the ordinary process of brewing. The
ale of the modern brewer is manufactured in several varieties, which are
determined by the wants of the consumer, and the particular market for
which it is intended. Thus, the finer kinds of Burton, East India,
Bavarian, and other like ales, having undergone a thorough fermentation,
contain only a small quantity of undecomposed sugar and gum, varying from
1 to 5 per cent. Some of these are highly 'hopped,' or 'bittered,' the
further to promote their preservation during transit and change of
temperature. Mild or sweet ales, on the contrary, are less attenuated by
lengthened fermentation, and abound in saccharine and gummy matter. They
are, therefore, more nutritious, though less intoxicating, than those
previously referred to.
In brewing the finer kinds of ale, pale malt and the best East Kent hops
of the current season's growth, are always employed; and when it is
desired to produce a liquor possessing little colour, very great attention
is paid to their selection. With the same object, the boiling is conducted
with more than the usual precautions, and the fermentation is carried on
at a somewhat lower temperature than that commonly allowed for other
varieties of beer. For ordinary ale, intended for immediate use, the malt
may be all pale; but, if the liquor be brewed for keeping, and in warm
weather, when a slight colour is not objectionable, one fifth, or even one
fourth of 'amber malt' may be advantageously employed. From 4-1/2 lbs. to
6 lbs. of hops is the quantity commonly used to the quarter of malt, for
'ordinary ales,' and 7 lbs. to 10 lbs. for 'keeping ales.' The
proportions, however, must greatly depend on the intended quality and
description of the brewing, and the period that will be allowed for its
maturation.
The stronger varieties of ale usually contain from 6 to 8% of 'absolute
alcohol,' ordinary strong ale, 4-1/2 to 6%; mild ale, 3 to 4%; and table
ale, 1% to 1-1/2%; (each by volume); together with some undecomposed
saccharine, gummy, and extractive matter, the bitter and narcotic
principles of the hop, some acetic acid formed by the oxidation of the
alcohol, and very small and variable quantities of mineral and saline
matter. For the adulterants of ale, see PORTER. See BEER, BREWING,
FERMENTATION, MALT-LIQUORS, &c.
=Ale, Dev'onshire White.= A liquor once generally drunk, and still in
demand, in the neighbourhood of Kingsbridge and Modbury, Devon.
_Prep._ Ordinary ale-wort (preferably pale) sufficient to produce 1
barrel, is slowly boiled with about 3 handfuls of hops, and 12 to 14 lbs.
of crushed groats, until the whole of the soluble matter of the latter is
extracted. The resulting liquor, after being run through a coarse
strainer, and become lukewarm, is fermented with 2 or 3 pints of yeast;
and, as soon as the fermentation is at its height, is either closely
bunged up for 'draught,' or is at once put into strong stoneware bottles,
which are then well corked and wired.
_Obs._ White ale is said to be very feeding, though apt to prove laxative
to those unaccustomed to its use. It is drunk in a state of effervescence
or lively fermentation; the glass or cup containing it being kept in
constant motion, when removed from the mouth, until the whole is consumed,
in order that the thicker portion may not subside to the bottom.
=Ales, Med'icated.= _Syn._ BRYT'OLES; BRUTOLÉS, Fr.; CEREVIS'IÆ MEDICA'TÆ,
L. In _pharmacy_, ale prepared by macerating medicinal substances in it,
either at the ordinary temperature of the atmosphere, or when heated;
infusions and decoctions, in which ale or beer is employed as the
menstruum. The old dispensatories enumerate several medicated ales; such
as CEREVISIA OXYDOR'CICA, for the eyes; C. ANTI-ARTHRIT'ICA, for the gout;
C. CEPHAL'ICA, for the head; C. EPILEP'TICA, against epilepsy; &c.
Preparations of this kind are now seldom ordered by the faculty, and their
use is chiefly confined to the practice of empirics, and to domestic
medicine. Bark, rue, savine, antiscorbutic plants, aromatic bitters, and
stomachics, are the substances most commonly administered in this way. Ale
in which wormwood, gentian, orange-peel, and the like, have been steeped,
taken warm early in the morning, is much esteemed as a restorative tonic
by drunkards and dyspeptics. See BEER, PURL, &c.
=ALE'BERRY.= A beverage made by boiling ale with spice, sugar, and
bread-sops; the last commonly toasted. A domestic remedy for a cold.
=ALE'GILL= (_g_ hard). Ale or beer flavoured or medicated by infusing the
leaves of ground ivy in it; pectoral, stomachic, and nervine.
=ALE'WIFE.= The _clupea serrata_, an American species of herring. Its
proper name is a'loof, although the established pronunciation and common
orthography is ale-wife.
[Illustration]
=ALEM'BIC.= _Syn._ MOORS'HEAD[dagger]; ALEM'BICUS, L.; ALAMBIC, Fr.;
DESTILLIRKOLBEN, Ger. An old form of distillatory vessel usually made of
glass or earthenware, but sometimes of metal. The body (_a_) which holds
the liquid for distillation is called the CU'CURBIT; the upper part (_b_)
the HEAD or CAP'ITOL; (_c_) is the RECEIVER. It is still employed in the
laboratory, in the distillation of articles that are apt to spurt over
into the neck of the common retort, and thus vitiate the product.
=ALEUROM'ETER.= _Syn._ ALEUROMÈTRE, Fr. An instrument for determining the
quantity and quality of gluten in wheat-flour, invented by M. Boland. It
essentially consists of a hollow copper cylinder, about 6 inches long, and
3/4 of an inch internal diameter. This tube has two principal parts; the
one, about 2 inches long, is closed at the lower end, forming a kind of
cup, into which the gluten is placed; it screws into the remainder of the
cylinder. The cup being charged with a sample of gluten, and the upper
part of the cylinder being screwed on, it is exposed in an oven, or
(preferably) in an oil bath, to a temperature of 350 to 380° Fahr.[17]
From the length of the tube the gluten occupies in swelling, as measured
by a graduated scale, its quality is determined. The 'crude gluten' of
good wheat-flour augments to four or five times its original volume, when
thus treated; but that from bad flour does not swell, becomes viscid and
semi-fluid, and generally gives off a disagreeable odour; whilst that of
good flour merely suggests the smell of hot and highly baked bread.
[Footnote 17: Mr Mitchell recommends the heat to be 420°; whilst Dr
Masprett gives 284° Fahr. as the proper temperature; but of these the
first is too high, and the other too low. About 210 gr. are also ordered
to be taken for examination; but the exact quantity is immaterial. (See
Mitchell's 'Falsification of Food.')]
=AL'GA.= (-g[)a]). [L.] Sea-weed. A common name of grass-wrack ('zostera
marina'--Linn.), though not one of the algæ.
=AL'GÆ.= ([)a]l'-j[=e]). [L. pl.] _Syn._ AL'GALS; ALGÆ (DC.), AL'GALES
(Lindl.), L.; ALGUES, VARECH, Fr.; ALGE, MEERGRASS, SEEGRASS, Ger.
Sea-weeds. In _botany_, an order of Thallogens living in water or very
moist places, nourished throughout their whole surface by the medium in
which they live, having no distinct axis of vegetation, and propagated by
zoöspores, coloured spores, or tetraspores. Linnæus defines them--"plants,
the roots, leaves, and stems of which are all in one." The algæ consist
either of simple vesicles lying in mucus, or of articulated filaments, or
of lobed fronds formed of uniform cellular tissue. Those that vegetate in
salt water are popularly called SEA-WEEDS (fu'ci, L.) and LA'VER (ulvæ,
L.); those found in fresh water CONFER'VÆ. One of their divisions (the
_Zoöspermeæ_) comprehends the lowest known forms of vegetable life, being
merely adhering cells, emitting, at maturity, seeds or sporules having a
distinct animal motion. In _Oscillatorias_, the whole plant twists and
writhes spontaneously; and _Zymenas_ actually copulate like animals. Some
of the Algæ possess great beauty. In the lower grades the colour is green;
in the higher, red or purple.
_Prop., Uses, &c._ None of the Algæ are poisonous. Several are nutritious,
emollient, and demulcent, from containing mucilage (carrageenin), starch,
sugar (mannite), and a little albumen; and are hence used as esculents.
The ash from the dried weed varies in different varieties from 9% to fully
25%; and contains variable quantities of potassa, soda, lime, magnesia,
iron, manganese, and silica, with sulphuric acid, phosphoric acid,
chlorine, and a little iodine and bromine. (Schweitzer; Forchhammer;
Gödechens.) Sea-weeds, their charcoal, and their ashes, have been long
regarded as alterative and resolvent; and anti-phthisic virtues have been
attributed to them by Laennec and others. They were formerly much given in
scrofulous affections and glandular enlargements; but their use is now
almost superseded by that of iodine and its preparations. Dr Stenhouse has
proposed some of the algæ as furnishing an economical source of mannite.
The sea algæ are used for manure; their ashes form KELP.
The following table, showing the results of several analyses of different
kinds of algæ, and illustrating the very large amount of nitrogen
contained in them, is from Mr Walter Blyth's excellent dictionary of
'Hygiene and Public Health.'
-----------------------------+--------+-----------+-----------+------------
| | | Per cent. | Protein
Kinds of Algæ. | Water. |Dry matter.|Nitrogen in|contained in
| | |dry matter.|dry matter.
-----------------------------+--------+-----------+-----------+------------
_Chondrus crispus_, | 17·92 | 82·08 | 1·534 | 9·587
bleached, from Bewlay | | | |
Evans. | | | |
_Chondrus crispus_, | 21·47 | 78·53 | 2·142 | 13·387
unbleached, Ballycastle. | | | |
_Gigastina mamillosa_, | 21·55 | 78·45 | 2·198 | 13·737
Ballycastle. | | | |
_Chondrus crispus_, | 19·79 | 80·21 | 1·485 | 9·281
bleached, second | | | |
experiment. | | | |
_Chondrus crispus_, | 19·96 | 80·04 | 2·510 | 15·687
unbleached second | | | |
experiment. | | | |
_Laminaria digitata_, or | 21·38 | 78·62 | 1·588 | 9·925
dulse tangle. | | | |
_Rhodomenia palmata._ | 16·56 | 83·44 | 3·465 | 21·656
_Porphyra laciniata._ | 17·41 | 82·59 | 4·650 | 29·062
_Iridæa edulis._ | 19·61 | 80·39 | 3·088 | 19·300
_Alaria esculenta._ | 17·91 | 80·09 | 2·424 | 15·150
-----------------------------+--------+-----------+-----------+------------
From the above, we learn the important fact that the sea-weeds found on
our coasts are amongst the most nutritious of vegetable substances, and
that they, when dry, are even richer in nitrogenous matter than either
oatmeal or Indian corn in the same state. The following are the chief
varieties of algæ which are used as food by the dwellers on our coasts as
well as on the continent:--PORPHYRA LACINIATA and VULGARIS, called _laver_
in England, _stoke_ in Ireland, and _slouk_ in Scotland. CHONDRUS CRISPUS,
called _carrageen_ or _Irish moss_, and also _pearl-moss_, and _sea-moss._
LAMINARIA DIGITATA, known as the _sea-girdle_ in England, _tangle_ in
Scotland, and _red-ware_ in the Orkneys; and LAMINARIA SACCHARINA, ALARIA
ESCULENTA, or _bladder-lock_, called also _henware_, and _honey-ware_ by
the Scotch. ULVA LATISSIMA or GREEN LAVER--RHODOMENIA PALMATA or _dulse_
of Scotland. Under the name of "marine sauce" the LAVER was esteemed a
luxury in London, where it may now occasionally be met with in the shops
of provision merchants. The employment of the CHONDRUS CRISPUS or
_Carrageen_ in the form of an aliment for consumptive and weakly persons,
would seem from the analysis of it given above to be fully justified. In
preparing the algæ for food, they must be soaked in water to remove the
saline matter, and where they are possessed of a bitter flavour this may
be removed by adding a little carbonate of soda to the water. They should
then be stewed in water or milk till they are tender. The best flavourings
are pepper and vinegar. See JELLY.
=ALGARO'BA.= _Syn._ CA''ROB-TREE, ST. JOHN'S BREAD; CERATO'NIA SIL'IQUA,
Linn. A leguminous tree of southern Europe, Palestine, and part of Africa.
Pods (ALGAROBA BEANS), used for food, and to improve the voice; they
contain a sweetish, nutritious powder, and are supposed to have been the
'locusts' on which St. John fed in the wilderness; their decoction has
been used as a pectoral in asthma and coughs.
=Algaroba or Algarovil'la.= The astringent pods of prosopis pallida, p.
siliquastrum, and Inga Marthæ (South American trees), bruised and more or
less agglutinated by the extractive exudation of the seed and husks. They
are used in tanning, for which purpose they have been strongly
recommended; indeed that of Chili, and of Santa Martha (New Carthagena),
is said to possess "four times the power of good oak bark" (Ure); and in
dyeing are only inferior to oak-galls.
=ALGONTINE.= A mouth and tooth wash. An aqueous solution of nitrate of
potassium, aromatised with oil of peppermint, tincture of myrrh, and
tincture of cinnamon.
=ALGOPHON= (Bernhard, Salzburg). For pains in decayed teeth. A solution of
ethereal oil of mustard (2 grms.) in spirit of cochlearia (30 grms.),
coloured green by saffron and litmus. (Wittstein.)
=AL'IMENT.= [Eng., Fr.] _Syn._ ALIMEN'TUM, L.; NAHRUNG, SPEISE, Ger. Food;
nutriment; anything which nourishes or supports life.
=ALIMENT'ARY= _Syn._ ALIMENTA''RIUS, L.; ALIMENTAIRE, Fr.; ZUR NAHRUNG
GEHÖRIG, Ger. Pertaining to food or aliment; nutrimental; nourishing.
=Alimentary Canal'.= _Syn._ ALIMENTARY DUCT; CANA'LIS ALIMENTA''RIUS, L.
In _anatomy_, the cavity in the bodies of animals into which the food is
taken for the purpose of being digested; the whole passage or conduit
extending from the mouth to the anus. In some of the lower animals this is
a simple cavity, with only one opening; when the same aperture which
admits the food also gives egress to the excrementitious matter. In others
it is a true canal, with both a mouth and an outlet. Another step, and we
find this canal is divided into a stomach and intestines. In the higher
grades, a mouth, pharynx, and [oe]sophagus precede the stomach. Birds have
one or two sacculi or crops added to the [oe]sophagus. The stomach of the
ruminants consists of four sacs or parts, each of which may be regarded as
a separate stomach; that of the bottle-nose whale contains no less than
seven of such sacs. The part below the stomach, forming the intestines, is
also variously subdivided, complicated, and connected. In man, these
subdivisions are termed--DUODENUM, JEJU'NUM, IL'EUM, CÆ'CUM, CO'LON, and
REC'TUM; the lower end or orifice of the last being called the A'NUS. The
existence of an alimentary canal is said to be the only true
characteristic of an animal. Plants have no common receptacle for their
food, nor canal for carrying away effete matter; but every animal, however
low in the scale of being, possesses an internal cavity which serves it as
a stomach.
=Alimentary Sub'stances.= _Syn._ ALIMENTS; MATE''RIA ALIMENTA''RIA, L.
Substances employed as food.
=ALIMENTA'TION.= [Eng., Fr.] _Syn._ ALIMENTA'TIO, L.; NAHRHAFTIGKEIT, Ger.
The act, process, power, or state of nourishing, or being nourished.
=AL'IZARI.= [Tur., ali-zari.] The commercial name of madder in the Levant.
=ALIZARIN.= C_{10}H_{6}O_{3} . 2H_{2}O. _Syn._ LAZARIC ACID. A red
colouring matter obtained from madder.
_Prep._ 1. Exhaust madder with boiling water, and precipitate the
decoction by sulphuric acid. Wash the precipitate, and, while yet moist,
boil it with a concentrated solution of hydrate of aluminum in
hydrochloric acid, and mix the solution with hydrochloric acid; red flakes
of impure alizarin deposit. Dissolve this precipitate in alcohol or in
dilute ammonia, and treat the solution with hydrate of aluminum. Boil the
aluminum compound thus formed with carbonate of sodium, and, after freeing
it from resinous impurities by digestion with ether, decompose it with hot
hydrochloric acid. Wash the alizarin thus separated, dry it by simple
exposure to air, and purify it by repeated crystallisation out of alcohol.
2. Sublime on a paper an alcoholic extract of madder. This method yields
the purest alizarin.
_Props._ Red prisms; sublimes at 419° F.; odourless, tasteless, and
neutral to test-paper; sparingly soluble in water, even at the boiling
temperature; soluble in alcohol and ether; not decomposed by hydrochloric
acid; dissolved, without decomposition, by strong sulphuric acid; soluble
in solutions of the alkalies and their carbonates; acids precipitate
alizarin from its alkaline solutions in orange-coloured flakes; alumina
decolorises an alcoholic solution of alizarin, forming a red lake.
=ALIZARIN, ARTIFICIAL.= C_{14}H_{8}O_{4}. This colour was first obtained
by Graebe and Liebermann in 1869 from anthrachinon, an oxidation product
of anthracen, this latter being a substance which is formed during the
destructive distillation of coal-tar. These chemists converted anthracen
into antichinon by means of nitric acid.
The crude anthracen is previously purified by treatment with benzoline
(petroleum spirit), aided by heat, and by being subjected to the action of
the centrifugal machine to fusion, and to sublimation.
According to the original method of preparing alizarin, the anthrachinon
was first converted into a dibromide of anthrachinon by treatment with
bromine, and this bromated compound, by further treatment either with
caustic potash or soda at a temperature of 180° to 200° C., converted into
alizarin-potassium (or alizarin-sodium if caustic soda has been used),
from which the alizarin is set free by means of hydrochloric acid.
Alizarin is now procured from anthrachinon by treatment at a temperature
of 260° C., with concentrated sulphuric acid of 1·84 sp. gr., the
anthrachinon being converted into a sulpho-acid; this acid is next
neutralised with carbonate of lime, the fluid decanted from the deposited
sulphate of lime, and carbonate of potash added to it, with the object of
throwing down all the lime. The clear liquid is then evaporated to
dryness, the resulting saline mass is converted into alizarin-potassium by
heating it with caustic potash. From the alizarin-potassium thus obtained
the alizarin is set free by the aid of hydrochloric acid.
In another method the preparation of anthrachinon is avoided, and
anthracen employed directly, by first converting it, by means of sulphuric
acid and heat, into anthracen sulphonic-acid. After having been diluted
with water, the solution of this acid is treated with oxidising agents
(peroxides of manganese, lead, chromic acid, nitric acid), and the acid
fluid is afterwards neutralised with carbonate of lime. When peroxide of
manganese has been used, the manganese is also precipitated as oxide. The
oxidised sulpho-acid having been previously converted into a potassium
salt, the latter being heated with caustic potash, alizarin is obtained.
The details of these two processes will be found set forth in the terms of
the patent taken out by Messrs Caro, Graebe and Liebermann, further on.
The following method of preparing alizarin from anthracene paranaphthalene
and their homologues is by Girard. The material used is that which distils
between 290° and 360°; it is purified by distillation and pressure, the
portion which passes over, between 300° and 305°, being collected
separately. This mixture is treated with potassium chlorate and
hydrochloric acid, whereby it is converted into tetra-chlorinated
products. These are oxidised either by nitric acid in the water bath, or
by a metallic oxide (red or brown oxide of lead), and sulphuric or acetic
acid. In the first place a mixture of dichloranthraquinine and chloride of
chloroxyanthranyl are obtained. These substances are treated in presence
of a metallic oxide (oxide of zinc, oxide of copper, or litharge), with an
alcoholic solution of sodium acetate. The metallic oxide removes the last
atom of chlorine from the sodium chloroxyanthranilate, and converts it,
like the dichloranthraquinine, into alizarin. The purification is effected
by means of benzine, petroleum, &c., which dissolve out the foreign
matters, and by successive precipitation from the alkaline solutions by
mineral acids. The foreign matters may also be separated by means of a
little alum, when it is necessary to work with neutral potash or soda
salts.
Another method for the preparation of alizarin has been patented by Dale
and Schorlemmer. It is as follows: 1 part of anthracen is boiled with 4 to
10 parts of strong sulphuric acid, then diluted with water, and the
solution neutralised with carbonate of calcium, barium, potassium, or
sodium. The resulting sulphates having been removed by nitration or
crystallisation, the solution is heated to between 180° and 260° with
caustic potash or soda, to which a quantity of potassium nitrate or
chlorate has been added, about equal in weight to the anthracen, as long
as a blue-violet colour is thereby produced. From this product the
alizarin is separated in the usual way by precipitation with an acid.
Several other patents have been taken out for the preparation of
artificial alizarin.
The specification of Messrs Caro, Graebe, and Liebermann, and dated June
25th, 1869, was the first which was taken out in England. We quote it here
because it enters more fully into detail than any of the others.
"Our invention is carried into effect by means of either of the two
processes which we will proceed to describe.
"In the one process we proceed as follows--We take about one part by
weight of anthraquinone and about three parts by weight of sulphuric acid
of about specific gravity of 1·488, and introduce the same into a retort,
which may be made of glass, or porcelain, or of any other material not
easily acted upon by sulphuric acid, and the contents are then to be
heated up to about 260° Centigrade, and the temperature is maintained
until the mixture is found no longer to contain any appreciable quantity
of unaltered anthraquinone. The completion of this operation may be
ascertained or tested by withdrawing a small portion of the product from
time to time, and continuing the operation at the high temperature until
such product upon being diluted with water is found to form a
substantially perfect solution, thereby indicating that the anthraquinone
has become either entirely or in greater part converted into the desired
product. The products thus obtained are then allowed to cool, and are
diluted with water; carbonate of lime is then added in order to neutralise
and remove the excess of sulphuric acid contained in the solution; the
mixture is then filtered, and to the filtrate carbonate of potash, or
carbonate of soda, by preference in solution, is to be added until
carbonate of lime is no longer precipitated; the mixture is then filtered,
and the clear solution is evaporated to dryness, by which means the potash
or soda salts of the sulpho-acids of anthraquinone are obtained, and which
are to be treated in the following manner:--We take about one part by
weight of this product, and from two to three parts by weight of solid
caustic, soda, or potash; water may be added or not, but by preference we
add as much water as is necessary to dissolve the alkali after admixture;
we heat the whole in a suitable vessel, and the heating operation is
continued at a temperature of from about 180° to 260° Centigrade, for
about one hour, or until a portion of the mixture is found upon
withdrawing and testing it to give a solution in water, which being
acidulated with an acid, for example, sulphuric acid, will give a copious
precipitate of the colouring matters. The heating operation having been
found to have been continued for a sufficient time, the resulting products
are then dissolved in water, and we either filter or decant the solution
of the same, from which we precipitate the colouring matters or artificial
alizarin, by means of a mineral or organic acid, such, for example, as
sulphuric or acetic acid. The precipitated colouring matters thus obtained
are collected in a filter or otherwise, and after having been washed may
be employed for the purpose of dyeing and printing, either in the same way
as preparations of madder are now used or otherwise.
"In carrying out our other process we proceed as follows:--We take about
one part by weight of anthracene and about four parts by weight of
sulphuric acid of specific gravity of about 1·848, and the mixture being
contained in a suitable vessel, is heated to a temperature of about 100°
Centigrade, and which temperature is to be maintained for the space of
about three hours; the temperature is then to be raised to about 150°
Centigrade, which temperature is to be maintained for about one hour, or
until a small portion of the product when submitted to the two subsequent
processes hereinafter described is found to produce the desired colouring
matters; we then allow the result obtained by this operation to cool, and
dilute it with water, by preference in the proportion of about three times
its weight. To the solution thus obtained we add for every part of
anthracene by weight which had been employed in the previous operations,
from about two to three parts by weight of peroxide of manganese,
preferring to employ an excess, and we boil the whole strongly for some
time, and in order fully to ensure the desired degree of oxidation the
mixture may be subsequently concentrated, and by preference be evaporated
to dryness, and the heat be continued until a small portion of the
oxidised product, when submitted to the subsequent processes hereinafter
described will produce the desired colouring matters. We then neutralise
and remove the sulphuric acid contained in this mixture, and at the same
time precipitate any oxides of manganese that may be held in solution, by
adding an excess of caustic lime, which we use by preference in the form
of milk of lime, and we add the same until the mixture has an alkaline
reaction. We then filter, and add to the filtrate carbonate of potash or
soda, until there is no further precipitation of carbonate of lime. The
solution is then filtered and evaporated to dryness, and we thus obtain
the potash or soda salts of what we call the sulpho-acids of
anthraquinone.
"In effecting the conversion of the oxidised products thus obtained into
colouring matters, or into what we call artificial alizarin, we proceed as
follows:--We take one part by weight of this product, and from two to
three parts by weight of solid caustic soda or potash, and water may be
added or not, but by preference we add as much water as may be necessary
to dissolve the alkali. After admixture we heat the whole in a suitable
vessel, and continue the heating operation at a temperature of about 180°
to about 260° Centigrade for about one hour, or until a portion of the
mixture is found to give a solution in water, which upon acidulation with
an acid, for example, sulphuric acid, is found to give a copious
precipitate of the colouring matters. The heating operation having been
found to have been continued for a sufficient time, we then dissolve the
product in water, and either filter or decant the solution of the same,
from which we precipitate the colouring matters or artificial alizarin by
means of a mineral or organic acid, such, for example, as sulphuric or
acetic acid. The precipitated colouring matters thus obtained are
collected on a filter or otherwise, and after having been washed may be
employed for the purpose of dyeing and printing, either in the same way as
preparations of madder are now used or otherwise.
"Instead of acting upon anthracen by means of sulphuric acid of the
density before mentioned, fuming sulphuric acid may be employed, but we
prefer to use the ordinary kind before described.
"In order to effect the process of oxidation, before referred to, other
oxidising agents may be used in the place of the oxide of manganese,
before mentioned, such, for example, as perioxide of lead, or chromic,
nitric, or other acids capable of effecting the desired oxidation may be
employed."
Mr W. H. Perkin's patent is similar in principle to that of Messrs Caro,
Graebe, and Liebermann, and is dated only one day later.
The following is an outline of a patent taken out in France in May, 1869,
by MM. Br[oe]nner and Gutzkon, for the manufacture of artificial alizarin.
One part of anthracen is heated with two parts of nitric acid, sp. gr. 1·3
to 1·5. The anthraquinone thus produced is washed and dissolved at a
moderate heat in sulphuric acid. Mercuric nitrate is now added, which
converts the anthraquinone into alizarin, The mass thus formed is
dissolved in an excess of alkali, which precipitates the oxide of mercury,
and retains the colouring matters in solution. The alkaline liquor is
decanted and neutralised with sulphuric acid, and the precipitate thus
formed is washed and collected. If not quite pure the treatment with
alkali must be repeated. (The complete specification of this patent is
published in the 'Moniteur Scientifique,' vol. xi, p. 865.)
In England a large quantity of artificial alizarin is manufactured by the
process of Mr Perkin, and is used as a substitute for madder and madder
extract, in Turkey red dyeing and topical styles. The largest makers of
artificial alizarin on the continent are Messrs Gessert Frères, of
Ebelfort, Messrs Maister, Lucius and Co., of Hæchst, near Frankfort, and
the Badische Anilin und Soda Fabric, Mannheim.
The following recipes for printing with artificial alizarin are extracted
from Mr Crookes' 'Practical Handbook of Dyeing and Calico Printing':