Concluding Remarks. For mending broken CHINA, EARTHENWARE, GLASS, and WOOD, the preparations generally used are the cements described above as Armenian, Botany Bay, Cheese, Chinese, Curd, Egg, Extemporaneous, Glass, Glue, Hensler’s, Hœnle’s, Mahogany, and Parabolic. For SPAR, MARBLE, and similar materials, the Alabaster cement is specially adapted; the Egg and Parabolic cements will, however, answer the same purpose. For CLOTH, LEATHER, PAPER, CARD, and LIGHT FANCY WORK, the most suitable cements are the Elastic, Chinese, Flour, French, and Japanese. The cements adapted for CHEMICAL and ELECTRICAL APPARATUS, and for SEALING BOTTLES, are also termed Bottle, Brimstone, Cap, Chemical, Electrical, Laboratory, Maissiat’s, and Varley’s. The BUILDING and HYDRAULIC CEMENTS are described under the heads Architectural, Beale’s, Bruyere’s, Fireproof, Gad’s, Gibbs’, Hamelin’s, Hydraulic, Keene’s, Oxychloride, Parker’s, Pew’s, Portland, Roman, Water, and Waterproof. The cements used for METAL-WORK, &c., in different trades, are noticed under the heads Coppersmiths’, Cutlers’, Engineers’, Grinders’, Iron, Letter-fixing, Opticians’, Plumbers’, Seal-engravers’, Steam-boiler, Steam-pipe, and Turner’s. See Glue, Lute, Mortar, Tooth-cement, &c.
CEMENTA′TION. The process of imbedding a substance in, or covering it with, some powder or composition capable of acting on it when heated, and in this state exposing it to a red heat. Iron is converted into steel, and glass into Réaumur’s porcelain, by cementation.
CEN′TAURIN. Syn. Centaurin′a. The bitter extractive matter of Erythæa centaurium, or common centaury. Combined with hydrochloric acid, it has been highly recommended as a febrifuge.
CER′ASIN. Syn. Prun′ine. The insoluble portion of cherry-tree gum. It is identical with bassorin. Dr John applies the term to all those gums which, like tragacanth, swell, but do not dissolve in water. See Bassorin.
CE′RATE. Syn. Cera′tum, L. A thick species of ointment containing wax. Cerates are intermediate in consistence between ointments and plasters; but are less frequently employed than either of those preparations. The medicinal ingredients which enter into the cerates are very numerous; indeed, almost every kind of medicine capable of exercising a topical effect may be prescribed in this form.
It is a general custom with the druggists to use a less quantity of wax for their cerates than that which is necessary to give them a proper consistence, and in many cases it is omitted altogether, and its place supplied by hard suet, or stearine, and frequently by common resin. Lard is also very generally substituted for olive oil. Indeed, in no class of pharmaceutical preparations are the instructions of practitioners and the colleges more commonly disregarded. The operation of melting the ingredients should be performed in a water bath or steam bath, and the liquid mass should be assiduously stirred until cold.
All the medicated cerates may be prepared by adding the active ingredients, in the form of fine powder, soft extract, solution, &c., as the case may be, to either simple cerate or
spermaceti cerate, in the proportions indicated under the head of “Doses” appended to every article of importance noticed in this work. The mixture, which must be complete, may be effected by working the articles together on a marble or glass slab or tile, or, still better, by trituration in a clean wedgwood mortar. In some cases the simple cerate is melted by a gentle heat, and the whole stirred or triturated until nearly solid; in others, digestion with heat is employed.
Cerate. Syn. Sim′ple cerate, Simple dres′sing; Ceratum (Ph. L.), C. sim′plex (Ph. L. 1824). Prep. (Ph. L.) Yellow wax, 20 oz.; melt by a gentle heat; add olive oil, 1 pint; and stir until it begins to solidify.
Used as a simple emollient dressing. The corresponding preparations of the other colleges will be found noticed under Ointments. The ceratum simplex of the Ph. E. is SPERMACETI CERATE.