When the Council on Pharmacy and Chemistry referred the matter of the discolored specimens of procain to the Rector Chemical Company for explanation, the firm wrote that for a short time for some unexplainable reason its procain had been slightly yellowish in color, but that every batch had been carefully tested and found to answer all chemical requirements. The firm stated that the product which it had sent out for some time past had been white and yielded a colorless solution.
To a like inquiry from the Council the Abbott Laboratories replied that the five samples which were found discolored were products manufactured by the Rector Chemical Company and represented goods which it had purchased to assist in filling delayed orders, because the firm had found itself unable to keep pace with the demand on account of delay in securing needed apparatus. The firm submitted protocols to show that the procain made by it, by Rector and by Metz were of equal toxicity.
In the accompanying table the results of the examination are given. For comparison the findings for the specimens examined previously are included.
| Brand | Date Received | Color | Melting Point, C. | Ash % |
| Procain (Abbott), from Committee on Synthetic Drugs | 12/21/17 | White | 154–155 | None |
| Procain (Abbott), submitted to Council P. and C | 1/29/18 | White | 153.5–154.5 | None |
| Procain (Abbott), Gen. Pur. Off. U. S. Army | 8/31/18 | White | 152.5–153.5 | None |
| Procain (Abbott), Gen. Pur. Off. U. S. Army, No. 89999 | 9/30/18 | Slight brownish tint | 153.5–154.5 | None |
| Procain (Abbott), Gen. Pur. Off. U. S. Army, No. 89998 | 9/30/18 | Slight brownish tint | 153–154.5 | 0.005 |
| Procain (Abbott), Gen. Pur. Off. U. S. Army, No. 89997 | 10/ 8/18 | Slight brownish tint | 153–154 | None |
| Procain (Abbott), Gen. Pur. Off. U. S. Army, No. 89996 | 11/ 4/18 | Slight brownish tint | 153.5–154.5 | None |
| Procain (Abbott), Gen. Pur. Off. U. S. Army, No. 810995 | 11/ 4/18 | Slight brownish tint | 153.5–154.5 | None |
| Procain (Farbwerke Hoechst Co.), submitted to Council | 10/24/17 | White | 153–154 | None |
| Procain (Farbwerke Hoechst Co.), submitted to Council | 12/10/17 | White | 153–154.5 | None |
| Procain (Farbwerke Hoechst Co.), submitted to Council, market spec. “A56” | 8/ 9/18 | White | 153.5–154.5 | None |
| Procain (Farbwerke Hoechst Co.), submitted to Council, market spec. “A57” | 9/ 9/18 | White | 153.5–154.5 | None |
| Procain (H. A. Metz Lab.), market spec. “A63” | 8/23/18 | White | 153–154 | None |
| Procain (H. A. Metz Lab.), market spec. “A67” | 9/23/18 | White | 153–154 | 0.018 |
| Procain (Rector), from Com. on Synthetic Drugs | 12/18/17 | White | 153–154.5 | None |
| Procain (Rector), market spec. | 8/20/18 | Slight brownish tint | 153–155 | None |
| Procain (Rector), market spec. | 8/23/18 | Slight brownish tint | 153–155 | None |
| Procain (Rector), market spec. | 8/23/18 | Slight brownish tint | 153–154.5 | None |
So far as the evidence goes, there was nothing to indicate that the yellowish or brownish colored specimens of procain were seriously impure. On the contrary, the compliance with the chemical and toxicologic tests indicated that the color was due to an insignificant trace of some colored substance produced in the manufacturing process. In view of this, the Council considered the use of the discolored product to be justified in the present emergency, although it urged that the future supply of procain should be free from color and also comply to the tests of purity. It made this request in the interest of the medical and dental professions, which use the drug, and also in a desire that in the manufacture of synthetic drugs, the United States should occupy a high place.—(From The Journal A. M. A., Jan. 11, 1919, with additions.)
DETERIORATION OF SODIUM HYPOCHLORITE SOLUTIONS (“Chlorinated Soda” Solutions)
The following note on two hypochlorite solutions is published as a slight addition to the inconclusive available information concerning the rate of deterioration of solutions containing sodium hypochlorite:
Hyclorite.—This is a solution of chlorinated soda, 100 gm. of which is said to contain sodium hypochlorite 4.05 gm., sodium chlorid 3.20 gm., calcium hydroxid 0.25 gm., inert ingredients 0.92 gm. It is declared to contain, when placed on the market, not less than 3.85 per cent. of available chlorin, and to deteriorate at the rate of about 12 per cent. per year. In order that the available chlorin content at the time of use may be judged, the date of bottling is stamped on each package. The solution is prepared by decomposing chlorinated lime suspended in water with sodium carbonate and adding to the solution obtained a freshly prepared solution of electrolyzed sodium chlorid. The composition and keeping qualities of hyclorite were reported on by this laboratory (Ann. Rep. Chem. Lab., A. M. A. 9:123, 1916). Hyclorite is fully described in New and Nonofficial Remedies, 1918, p. 153.