82 
THE CHEMIST AND DRUGGIST. 
March, 1881. 
the position during the last three years.” The vote was then 
put and carried unanimously, and Mr. Blackett briefly replied. 
Vice-President. — Mr. William Johnson proposed Mr. John 
T. Thomas as vice-president ; the motion was seconded and 
carried unanimously, Mr. Thomas duly returning thanks. 
Treasurer. — The office of treasurer was next on the list, and 
in proposing Mr. H. Gamble for that office, Mr. Blackett said 
ail the members must feel grateful to Mr. Gamble for the 
very efficient manner in which he had conserved the funds of 
the society. The motion was seconded by Mr. Bowen. Before 
the motion was put, Mr. Gamble said he desired to say a few 
words. He had now been treasurer for three years, and he 
thought that it might be desirable to allow some one else 
to take the position. 
Mr. Bowen said he believed the office of treasurer was one 
that should not be shifted from one person to another, Mr. 
Gamble had filled the position so ably that he trusted he 
would reconsider the matter and continue to act. Several 
other members followed Mr. Bowen, and urged Mr. Gamble to 
reconsider his decision. 
Mr. Gamble said he had no wish to complicate the affairs 
of the society, and as it appeared to be the wish of the council, 
he would accept the office. 
Secretary. — In proposing Mr. H. Shillinglaw as honorary 
secretary, Mr. Blackett said that it was unnecessary for him 
to refer to the very good service Mr. Shillinglaw had rendered 
to the society ; it was known to them all. 
Mr. Bowen seconded the motion, and in doing so said it 
gave him pleasure to fully endorse all Mr. Blackett had said 
of the admirable manner in which the duties had been carried 
out. 
Mr. Shillinglaw said he was in hopes that the council would 
not have again asked him to accept the position of secretary. 
There were many young members who, no doubt, would be 
glad to take the duties, with advantage to the society. He 
had held the position for three years, and he was pleased to 
find his efforts had been so highly appreciated. Still he 
thought a change was desirable ; but sooner than see the 
interests of the society suffer, he would continue the duties for 
another year. 
The motion was then put and carried unanimously. 
Correspondence. — A further letter was read from the presi- 
dent of the Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain in refer- 
ence to the conference to be held in London in August next. 
The following letter was also received from Mr. Rivers 
Langton, resigning his position as one of the representatives 
of Victoria at the conference : — 
“ 16 Vaughan’s Chambers, 48 Queen-street, 
“ Melbourne, 31st March, 1881. 
“ Dear Sir — I must ask you to thank, on my behalf, the pre- 
sident and members of the council of the Pharmaceutical 
Society of Victoria for the great honour they have done me in 
nominating me as one of their representatives at the Pharma- 
ceutical Conference, to be held in London in August next, and 
to express to them my high appreciation of the compliment 
paid me. I am, however, to my great regret, compelled to 
forego the honour, as I find my business engagements will not 
permit of so speedy a return to London as I had at first anti- 
cipated. Under these circumstances I find it will be impos- 
sible for me to take any part in the approaching conference. 
I am exceedingly sorry I shall not have the opportunity of 
telling the chemists of Great Britain of the great and bound- 
less resources of your colony, and the large influence on 
pharmacy they must have in the future ; but on my return to 
London I shall be happy in any way I possibly can to recipro- 
cate the kindness shown me by the chemists of Australia dur- 
ing my visit to the colonies. — Believe me, very faithfully 
yours, “ Rivers Langton. 
“ H. Shillinglaw, Esq.” 
A communication was also read from Mr. R. J. Fulwood, 
Carlton, in reference to the recent election of the council 
complaining that he had received no proxy paper. The 
secretary was requested to refer Mr. Fulwood to Rule 21. 
New Member. — Mr. Edward Gilbert Quorn, South Australia, 
was nominated. 
Donations.— From Graves Aickin, Esq., Auckland, Trans- 
I i actions and Proceedings of the New Zealand Institute ; The 
Government of New South Wales, per Baron Ferd. von 
Miieller, K.C.M.G., Select Extra-Tropical Plants (New South 
Wales edition). No. 4 and 8, 1858 and 1860 ; Transactions of 
the Pharmaceutical Society of Victoria , from J. C. Jones, 
Esq.; The Australian Medical Journal. The following publi- 
cations have also been received : — The Boston Journal of 
Chemistry , the American Journal of Pharmacy , the New 
York Druggists' Circular , Messrs. Langton, Edden, Hicks and 
Clark’s bi-monthly circular, the Chicago Pharmacist , the 
Pharmaceutical Journal. 
Financial and general business brought the meeting to a 
close. 
THE PHARMACEUTICAL SOCIETY OF NEW SOUTH 
WALES. 
The monthly meeting of the Pharmaceutical Council was 
held on the 1st March, at the society’s rooms, Phillip-street ; 
Mr. Senior, president, in the chair. There were also present 
Messrs. Row, Pratt, Guise, and Watt. The following were 
duly elected members of the society Messrs. H. W. 
Challinor, A. H. Melville, F. Wright, J. J. O’Reilly, A. 
Macleod, J. A. Rose, and H. H. Parsons. The secretary 
reported that the examiners (Messrs. Senior, Larmer, and 
Watt) had granted a certificate to Mr. A. J. Newling, of 
Yass, who had passed a very satisfactory examination. The 
examination of three others was postponed. The indentures 
of F. J. Thomas (to J. L. Barnett, of Inverell) were 
registered, and he was admitted as an associate. The usual 
correspondence was read, several accounts were passed, and 
the meeting closed. 
SANDHURST. 
SCHOOL OF MINES, SANDHURST. 
Under recent regulations of the Education Department 
examinations were held last Christmas in science subjects, 
the candidate for the Government certificate of qualification 
being teachers in State-schools. Amongst the students in 
chemistry, under Mr. E. L. Mark’s tuition, five teachers have 
most successfully passed, and this is gratifying, seeing that 
Mr. Marks has for over seven years held the position of lecturer 
on chemistry in Sandhurst, and that under his guidance such 
excellent results are possible. The papers set included sub- 
jects ranging over all included in Roscoe's Elements as far 
as organic chemistry. 
Scientific Summary. 
We cannot present to our readers anything very remarkable. 
There would seem to be a lull in discovery, but as the Inter- 
national Pharmaceutical Congress will meet in August, in all 
probability many workers are reserving their results. 
Dr. Squibb, at a meeting of the King’s County Pharmaceu- 
tical Society, drew attention to the varying quality of nux 
vomica seeds. The manufacturers of strychnia, it appears, buy 
up the best. Only the large silky seeds should be selected for 
making tincture and extract. While on this subject it is 
worth notice that according to some recent experiments by L. 
J. Morris and others, the active principle colchicia exists only 
in the skin of the seed, and that it is a waste of time to 
powder colchicum seeds. 
In Dr. Wallace’s paper in the Chemical News of 11th Feb- 
ruary he alludes to Dr. Anderson’s patent for the precipitation 
of the solid matter in sewage, in which sulphate of alumnia 
and lime are employed together with the best possible results. 
