Observations on the preparation of soporific medicines from garden lettuce, the Lactuca sativa of Linnaeus / by Andrew Duncan.

  • Duncan, Andrew, 1744-1828.
Date:
[1812?]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Observations on the preparation of soporific medicines from garden lettuce, the Lactuca sativa of Linnaeus / by Andrew Duncan. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by The University of Glasgow Library. The original may be consulted at The University of Glasgow Library.

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    Horticultural Society, a short account of a me- thod of preparing a soporific medicine from this plant. That account so far engaged the atten- tion of the Society, that they proposed a Prize Medal as an honorary reward, for the best method of preparing a soporofic medicine from the inspissated zvhite juice of the common garden let- tuce. I am happy to learn that some ingenious men, have not been neglectful of this subject and I would fain hope, that even our inconsiderable premium may lead to an honourable and useful competition. Among others, I have myself made farther trials with this vegetable, and I now pre- sent to the Society specimens of five different preparations of lettuce, all of which, may, I think, be usefully employed in the practice of medicine. Of the method of preparing the first, second, and third of these, viz. 1. the Spirituous Solution, or tincture of the dried juice ; 2. The Extract, which 1 formerly styled Lactucarium, and which is prepared by the evaporation of that solution or tincture ; and, 3. The Tincture of the Lactuca- fium, which is prepared by dissolving that sub- stance in diluted spirit of wine, I have nothing to a4d to what I formerly related to the Society. 1 may however observe, that, from repeated trials, I have found all of them to be useful soporifics. But the preparation of these requires much time,