xi POLITICAL LIFE 273 



me to be one of the sweetest women I ever saw, into 

 the drawing-room, whither he desired us to follow them. 

 However, remembering that my wife and daughter 

 were sitting in the carriage, I thought it was best to 

 make our exit. Nothing could exceed the politeness 

 and kindness of the present Lord Tennyson and his 

 wife. On driving home poor Will came in for a good 

 deal of chaff on the outcome of his visit and introduction 

 to the great poet. 



Another legislative measure which I endeavoured 

 to promote was a Bill for the better sanitation of 

 dwelling-houses, schools, colleges, hospitals, work- 

 shops, hotels, lodging-houses, and other buildings. I 

 was aided in this by Dr. Farquharson, Sir Guyer 

 Hunter, and Dr. Cameron, and our object was to 

 establish a complete system of sanitary registration, 

 especially with regard to the sanitary arrangements 

 and drains of each house, and it was proposed that 

 after the ist of January, 1890, no such building should 

 be used unless it had received a sanitary certificate. 

 It appeared to me that this was a very necessary piece 

 of legislation, but, like many proposals of the kind, it 

 went by the board. 



In 1888 I was entrusted with a Bill for the amend- 

 ment of the Pharmacy Acts. This had for its object 

 to secure that those who compound prescriptions are 

 fully qualified, but this was opposed on the ground 

 that it tends to create an unnecessary monopoly, and 

 also came to nothing. In connection with this I asked 

 the Vice- President of the Committee of the Council 

 of Education whether the statement reported to have 

 been made at an inquest held at Lewisham on 

 June 2oth, that the son of a chemist and druggist 

 had dispensed eight grains of strychnine in one dose 

 of medicine instead of -g^th part of a grain, was 



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