Glass bottle with a label and a glass stopper.
Label says "Sweet Spirit of Nitre." "Sweet spirit of nitre" is the old name for ethyl nitrite. The chemical compound ethyl nitrite is an alkyl nitrite. It may be prepared from ethanol. It was sold as an over-the-counter cough remedy in the USA until 1980, when it was banned by the FDA. Bond's Companion to the Medicine Chest, pre-1862, p. 41-2: “Spirit of Nitre. A tea-spoonful of sweet spirit of nitre, mixed in a tumblerful of water, with a lump of sugar, forms an excellent drink, to quench thirst and produce a gentle moisture on the skin of fevers; it is also a powerful diuretic, and is often very serviceable in gravelly complaints, stranguries, and other affections of the kidneys; it may also be used an antispasmodic and refrigerant; it is an excellent domestic medicine, and the best proof of its efficiency is its popularity. As an anti-spasmodic, it may be usefully administered in hysteria, and hypochondriasis, taken in camphor julep; but it is generally employed as an adjunct to more powerful remedies.”