Cooley's Cyclopaedia of Practical Receipts Volume Ii Part 249

To make highly transparent syrups, the sugar should be in a single lump, and, by preference, taken from the bottom or broad end of the loaf, as, when taken from the smaller end, or if it be powdered or bruised, the syrup will be more or less cloudy.

Syrups are judged, by the laboratory man, to be sufficiently boiled when some taken up in a spoon, pours out like oil, or a drop cooled on the thumb-nail gives a proper 'thread' when touched. When a thin skin appears on blowing upon the syrup, it is judged, by the same party, to be completely saturated. These rude tests often lead to errors, which might be easily prevented by employing the proper proportions, or determining the sp. gr.

A fluid ounce of SATURATED SYRUP weighs 577-1/2 gr.; a gallon weighs 13-1/5 lbs. (avoir.); its sp. gr. is 1319 to 1321, or 35 of Baume's aerometer; its boiling-point is 221 Fahr., and its density at the temperature of 212 is 1260 to 1261, or 30 Baume. The syrups prepared with the juices of fruits, or which contain much extractive matter, as those of sarsaparilla, poppies, &c., mark about 2 or 3 more on Baume's scale than the other syrups.

In most pharmaceutical works directions are given to completely saturate the water with sugar. Our own experience, which is extensive, leads us to disapprove of such a practice, since we find that, under all ordinary circ.u.mstances, a syrup with a very slight excess of water keeps better than one fully saturated. In the latter case a portion of sugar generally crystallises out on standing, and thus, by abstracting sugar from the remainder of the syrup, so weakens it, that it rapidly ferments and spoils. This change proceeds at a rapidity proportionate to the temperature. Saturated syrup kept in a vessel that is frequently uncorked or exposed to the air soon loses sufficient water, by evaporation from its surface, to cause the formation of minute crystals of sugar, which, falling to the bottom of the vessel, continue to increase in size at the expense of the sugar in the solution. We have seen a single 6-gallon stone bottle, in which syrup has been kept for some time, the inside of which, when broken, has been found to be entirely cased with sugar candy, amounting in weight to 16 or 18 lbs. On the other hand, syrups containing too much water also rapidly ferment, and become acescent; but of the two this is the less evil, and may be more easily prevented. The proportions of sugar and water given above will form an excellent syrup, provided care be taken that an undue quant.i.ty be not lost by evaporation.

The decimal part of the number denoting the sp. gr. of a syrup, multiplied by 26, gives the number of pounds of sugar it contains per gallon, very nearly. (Ure.)

In boiling syrups, if they appear likely to boil over, a little oil, or rubbing the edges of the pan with soap, will prevent it.

Syrups may be decoloured by agitation with, or filtration through, recently burnt animal charcoal. Medicated syrups should not, however, be treated in this way.

The preservation of syrups, as well as of all other saccharine solutions, is best promoted by keeping them in a moderately cool, but not a very cold, place. "Let syrups be kept in vessels well closed, and in a situation where the temperature never rises above 55 Fahr." (Ph. L.) They are better kept in smaller rather than in large bottles, as the longer a bottle lasts the more frequently it will be opened, and, consequently, the more it will be exposed to the air. By bottling syrups whilst boiling hot, and immediately corking down and tying the bottles over with bladder perfectly air-tight, they may be preserved, even at a summer heat, for years, without fermenting or losing their transparency.

The 'candying,' or crystallisation, of syrup, unless it be oversaturated with sugar, may be prevented by the addition of a little acetic or citric acid (2 or 3 dr. per gall.).

The fermentation of syrups may be effectually prevented by the addition of a little sulphite of pota.s.sa or of limes. Chlorate of pota.s.sa has been proposed for this purpose by Dr Macculloch, on theoretical grounds. M.

Chereau recommends the addition of some (about 3 to 4%) sugar of milk, with the same intention. Dr Durand a.s.serts that by adding about 1 fl. dr.

of 'Hofmann's anodyne' to each pint of syrup, the accession of fermentation may not only be prevented, but arrested when it occurs, fermenting syrups may be immediately restored by exposing the vessel containing them to the temperature of boiling water. The addition of a little spirit is ordered in the new 'London Pharmacopia.'

In making the above additions to syrup, care must be had not to mix incompatible substances. Thus, in general the two methods referred to cannot be practised together.

Syrup is, perhaps, the worst possible form of medicine, owing to the difficulty of accurately saturating it with active medicinals, and its liability to change. Few persons think that "sweetness renders a nauseous drug more palatable." See also Squire's 'Companion to the British Pharmacopia.'

=Syrup of Ac'etate of Mor'phia.= _Syn._ SYRUPUS MORPHIae ACETATIS, L.

_Prep._ (Ph. D.) Solution of acetate of morphia, 1 fl. oz.; simple syrup, 15 fl. oz.; mix. Each fl. oz. contains 1/4 gr. of acetate.--_Dose_, 1/2 to 2 teaspoonfuls.

=Syrup of Al'mond.= _Syn._ BARLEY SYRUP, ORGEAT; SYRUPUS AMYGDALae, L.; SIROP D'ORGEAT, Fr. _Prep._ 1. Sweet almonds, 1 lb.; bitter almonds, 1 oz.; blanch, beat them to a smooth paste, and make an emulsion with barley water, 1 quart; strain, to each pint add of sugar, 2 lbs., and a table-spoonful or two of orange-flower water; put the mixture into small bottles, and preserve it in a cool place. Some persons add a little brandy.

2. (Ph. Bor.) Sweet almonds, 8 oz.; bitter almonds, 2 oz.; blanch them, after cold maceration, then beat them in a marble mortar, with a wooden pestle, to a paste, adding, gradually, of water, 16 fl. oz.; orange-flower water, 3 fl. oz.; after straining through flannel, dissolve 3 lbs. of sugar in each pint of the emulsion. An agreeable pectoral and demulcent.

=Syrup of Aniseed.= _Syn._ SYRUPUS ANISI. _Prep._ Infuse 1/2 oz. of bruised aniseed in 4 oz. of hot water, strain, and add 2 dr. of sugar.

=Syrup, Antis...o...b..tic.= _Syn._ SYRUPUS ANTIs...o...b..TICUS (P. Cod.) _Prep._ Scurvy-gra.s.s, watercresses, horseradish, all fresh, of each 10 oz.; buckbean, 1 oz.; bitter orange peel, 2 oz.; cinnamon, 1/2 oz.; white wine, 40 oz. (by weight); macerate 2 days and distil off 10 oz. (by weight); then add to the distillate, sugar, 25 oz.; strain the residue left in the retort, decant and make into a syrup with another 25 oz. of sugar; clarify with white of egg, and when cold, add to it the former syrup.--_Dose_, 4 dr.

=Syrup of Balsam of Peru.= _Syn._ SYRUPUS BALSAMI PERUVIANI. (Ph. G.) _Prep._ Balsam of Peru, 1 oz.; boiling water, 11 oz.; digest with frequent agitation till cold, and form 10 oz. of the filtered liquid into a syrup, with 18 oz. of sugar.

=Syrup of Bark.= _Syn._ SYRUPUS CINCHONae. (P. Cod.) _Prep._ Calisaya bark, 1 oz.; percolate, with 10 oz. of proof spirits (996), and then with water, so as to yield 10 oz. of liquid; distil off spirit, filter, and add 10 oz. of sugar; reduce by a gentle heat, so as to obtain 15-1/4 oz. (by weight) of product.

=Syrup of Bark, Vinous.= _Syn._ SYRUPUS CINCHONae VINOSUS. (P. Cod.) _Prep._ Soft extract of bark, 1 oz.; white wine, 2 pints 3 oz.; dissolve, filter, add 3-1/2 lbs. of white sugar, and dissolve by a water bath.

=Syrup of Belladonna.= _Syn._ SYRUPUS BELLADONNae. (P. Cod.) Tincture of belladonna (P. Cod), 3/4 oz. (by weight); syrup, 10 oz. (by weight).

=Syrup, Boyle's.= See SYRUP, SYMPHYTIC.

=Syrup of Buck'thorn.= _Syn._ SYRUPUS RHAMNI (B. P., Ph. L. & E.), S.

RHAMNNI CATHARTICI, L. _Prep._ 1. (Ph. L.) Juice of Buckthorn, defecated by 3 days' repose, 2 quarts; ginger and allspice, of each (bruised) 6 dr.; macerate the spice in 1 pint of the juice, at a gentle heat, for 4 hours, and filter; boil the remainder of the juice to 1-1/2 pint, mix the liquors, dissolve therein of white sugar, 6 lbs.; and add to the (nearly cold) syrup 6 fl. oz. of rectified spirit. In the Ph. E. the spirit is omitted.

2. (B. P.) Buckthorn juice, 97; ginger, sliced, 1; pimento, bruised, 1; refined sugar, 97; rectified spirit, 8 oz.; evaporate the juice to nearly half (5/8); add the ginger and pimento, digest at a gentle heat for four hours, and strain; when cold add the spirit, let the mixture stand for two days, then decant off the clear liquor, and in this dissolve the sugar at a gentle heat; sp. gr. 132.--_Dose_, 1 dr.

3. (Wholesale.)--_a._ Take of buckthorn juice, 3 gall.; bruised pimento and ginger (sifted from the dust), of each 1/2 lb.; simmer for 15 minutes, strain, and add of sugar, 44 lbs.

_b._ Take of buckthorn juice, 3 galls.; boil to 2 gall.; add of bruised pimento and ginger gruffs (free from dust), of each 3/4 lb.; boil to 1 gall., strain, add mola.s.ses, 72 lbs., and finish the boiling.

_Obs._ Syrup of buckthorn is a brisk but unpleasant cathartic. It is now chiefly used in veterinary practice.--_Dose_, 1/2 fl. oz. to 1 fl. oz.

Should the colour be dull, the addition of a few grains of citric or tartaric acid will brighten it.

=Syrup of Cabbage-tree Bark.= _Syn._ SYRUPUS GEOFFROYae. (Dr Wright.) _Prep._ Decoction of cabbage-tree bark made into a syrup with twice its weight of sugar. Vermifuge.--_Dose_, 1 to 4 tablespoonfuls.

=Syrup of Cahinca.= _Syn._ SYRUPUS CAHINCae. (Soubeiran.) _Prep._ Alcoholic extract of cahinca, 64 gr.; syrup, 16 oz.; dissolve the extract in a little water, and add the solution to the boiling syrup.--_Dose_, 1 oz.

daily.

=Syrup of Cap'illaire.= _Syn._ SYRUP OF MAIDENHAIR; SYRUPUS ADIANTHI, SYRUPUS CAPILLORUM VENERIS, L.; CAPILLAIRE, SIROP DE CAPILLAIRE, Fr.

_Prep._ (P. Cod.) Canadian maidenhair (_Adiantum pedatum_--Linn.), 4 oz.; boiling water, 2-1/2 pints; infuse, strain, add of white sugar, 5 lbs., and pour the boiling clarified syrup over 2 oz. more of maidenhair; re-infuse for 2 hours, and again strain.

_Obs._ Demulcent. Clarified syrup flavoured with orange-flower water or curacoa is now commonly sold for CAPILLAIRE. It is usually 'put up' in small bottles of a peculiar shape, known in the trade as 'capillaires.' It is now chiefly used to sweeten and flavour grog. See CAPILLAIRE.

=Syrup of Car'rageen.= _Syn._ SYRUP OF ICELAND MOSS. _Prep._ Boil h.o.r.ehound, 1 oz., liverwort, 6 dr., in water, 4 pints, for 15 minutes; express and strain; then add carrageen (previously softened with cold water), 6 dr.; again boil for 15 minutes, strain through flannel, and add sugar, 1 lb., to each pint. An agreeable demulcent in coughs.

=Syrup of Castor, Compound.= _Syn._ SYRUPUS CASTORII COMPOSITUS. (Lebron.) _Prep._ Valerian water, 5 oz.; cherry laurel water, 2-1/2 oz.; castor (dissolved in a sufficient quant.i.ty of spirit), 3 dr.; white sugar, 15 oz.

In spasmodic asthma.

=Syrup of Catechu.= _Syn._ SYRUPUS CATECHU. (P. Cod.) _Prep._ Extract catechu, 2-1/2 oz.; syrup, 6 lbs.; dissolve the extract in double its weight of water, and add to the syrup.

=Syrup of Chamomile.= _Syn._ SYRUPUS ANTHEMIDIS. (P. Cod.) _Prep._ Chamomile flowers, dried, 1 lb.; boiling water, 10 lbs.; macerate, strain with expression, and form the infusion into a syrup with twice its weight of sugar.

=Syrup of Chloral Hydrate.= _Syn._ SYRUPUS CHLORALIS HYDRATIS. (B. Ph.) _Prep._ Hydrate of chloral, 80 gr.; distilled water, 4 fl. dr. Syrup to measure, 1 fl. oz.--_Dose_, 1/2 fl. dr. to 2 fl. dr.

=Syrup of Chloride of Lime.= _Syn._ SYRUPUS CHLORIDI CALCIS. (Dr Reid.) _Prep._ Liquid chloride of lime, 1 dr.; mucilage, 2 dr.; syrup of orange peel, 10 dr.

=Syrup of Cinchonine.= _Syn._ SYRUPUS CINCHONINae. (P. Cod.) _Prep._ Sulphate cinchonine, 20 gr.; syrup, 16 oz. (by weight).

=Syrup of Citrate of Caffeine.= _Syn._ SYRUPUS CAFFEINae CITRATIS.

(Hannon.) _Prep._ Citrate of caffeine, 1 scruple; syrup, 1 oz.

=Syrup of Citrate of Iron and Ammonia.= _Syn._ SYRUPUS FERRI ET AMMONIae CITRATIS. (Beral.) _Prep._ Ammonio-citrate of iron, 1/4 oz.; syrup 9-1/2 oz. (by weight); cinnamon water, 1/4 oz.

=Syrup of Citrate of Iron and Quinine.= _Syn._ SYRUPUS FERRI ET QUINIae CITRATIS. A syrup is prepared by Mr Bullock under this name, but its composition has not been made known. Another form is citrate of iron and quinine, 1 oz.; syrup of orange peel, 1 pint. (Beasley.)

=Syrup of Cit'ric Acid.= _Syn._ SYRUPUS ACIDI CITRICI (Ph. D.), L. _Prep._ (Ph. D.) Take of citric acid (in powder) and distilled water, of each, 2-1/2 oz.; dissolve, add the solution, together with tincture of lemon peel, 5 fl. dr., to simple syrup, 3 pints, and mix with agitation. An agreeable refrigerant. Used for sweetening barley water, &c., and for flavouring water to be used as a beverage in fevers and other inflammatory diseases.

=Syrup of Cloves.= _Syn._ SYRUPUS CARYOPHYLLI. (Ph. E.) _Prep._ Clove, July flowers, 1 troy oz.; boiling water, 4 oz.; macerate for 12 hours, strain, and add sugar, 7 oz.; make a syrup. Used for its colour and flavour.

=Syrup of Cochineal.= _Syn._ SRYUPUS COCCINELLae, SYRUPUS COCCI (Ph. L.), L. _Prep._ (Ph. L.) Take of cochineal (bruised), 80 gr.; boiling distilled water, 1 pint; boil for 15 minutes in a closed vessel, strain, and add of sugar, 3 lbs., or twice that of the strained liquor; lastly, when the syrup has cooled, add of rectified spirit, 2-1/2 fl. oz., or 1/2 fl. dr.

to each fl. oz. of syrup. Used as a colouring syrup, and often sold for SYRUP OF CLOVE-PINKS.

=Syrup of Cochineal, Alkaline.= _Syn._ SYRUPUS COCCI ALKALINUS. _Prep._ Cochineal in powder, 2 scruples; carbonate of potash in powder, 4 scruples; triturate, and add boiling distilled water, 16 oz.; strain, and add 4 oz. of sugar candy. A popular domestic remedy for hooping cough.--_Dose._ From a teaspoonful to a tablespoonful, according to the age of the child, 3 or 4 times a day.