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278 DENTAL MEDICINE.

action may be induced by applying it to an exposed surface. In
moderate laxative doses the stools are not liquid and but slightly
altered in character. It is commonly administered in small doses
in combination with nux vomica.
Therapeutic Uses.—Aloes is very efficient in constipation de-
pendent on weakness of the muscular layer of the large intestine.
It is also employed in jaundice, atonic dyspepsia, hemorrhoids
without active pelvic congestion, amenorrhoea dependent upon
anaemia, menorrhagia in debilitated conditions, gonorrhoea, ca-
tarrh of uterus, etc.
Dose.—Of Aloe purificata^ gr. j to v ; Extractum aloes aquosum
gr. ss to iij ; Tinctura Aloes, foss to ij ; Tinctura Aloes Myrrhae,
5ss to 5ij > Vinum Aloes 5j to 5ss.
ALUMEN—ALUM.
Formula.—Common potash alum : Al2(S04)3, K2SO424H2O.
Ammonium Alum : Al2(N 11^)2(804)4, 24H2O.
Source.— It is found native in Italy, in the neighborhood of
volcanoes, and is the mineral from which the metal aluminum is
obtained.
Derivation.—Alum is also obtained from aluminous slate,
shale or schist, by the process of roasting and exposure to the
air.
Alum is a white, slightly efflorescent salt, which crystallizes in
regular octahedrons. It possesses an astringent, acid, and sweet-
ish taste. It is insoluble in alcohol, but dissolves in from four-
teen to fifteen times its weight in cold, and three-fourths of its
weight in boiling water.
Medical Properties and Action.—Alum is astringent and styptic,
and is employed both externally and internally. When taken
internally, it is absorbed into the system, and has been detected
in the liver, spleen and urine. Excessive doses cause vomiting,
griping, purging, and inflammation of the gastro-enteric mucous
membrane. Powdered alum, in doses of a teaspoonful, is an
efficient emetic. It coagulates albumen and causes an abundant
flow of saliva, coagulating the albumen of the saliva and buccal
mucus in whitish, membranous flakes.