February, 1882. 
THE CHEMIST AND DEUGGIST. 
77 
Australian colonies and Great Britain before making the 
appointments of Professors of Natural History, Physiology, 
and Anatomy. 
Mr. Oliver proposed, and Dr. Badham seconded, a motion to 
the effect that Mr. W. J. Stephens be invited to the position 
of Professor of Natural History, which was carried by a 
majority of three. Dr. Renwick declined to proceed with his 
motion. Mr. Macleay therefore moved that Dr. MacLaurin be 
invited to the position of Professor of Anatomy and Physiology, 
which was also carried. 
The lecturerships, of the value of £200 per annum, are being 
advertised. It is hoped that an efficient staff of lecturers will 
be thus secured for the medical school. 
PHARMACEUTICAL SOCIETY OF NEW SOUTH 
WALES. 
The monthly meeting of the Pharmaceutical Council was 
held at the Medical Board Office, Phillip-street, on Tuesday, 
14th February, at eleven a.m. Present — the president (in the 
chair), and Messrs. Abrahams, Guise, Prat, Row, Larmer, and 
Watt. 
The minutes of last meeting were read and confirmed. 
Mr. George Woodhouse, M. P.S., Victoria, was admitted a 
member of the society, and Mr. W. Withers was admitted an 
associate upon the production of satisfactory credentials. 
Mr. J. G. Woods’s application for registration of indentures 
and examination was granted. 
Mr. J. S. Abraham was appointed as an extra examiner. 
A die was agreed upon for the society’s envelopes and 
papers ; and a motion for granting silver medals to all can- 
didates answering seventy-five per cent, of the questions in 
examinations was postponed until next meeting. The pre- 
sident announced the receipt of valuable works from America 
as additions to the library. 
A NEW PALM FROM QUEENSLAND, 
Defined by Baron Ferd. yon Mueller, K.C.M.G., 
M. & Ph. D., F.R.S. 
For several years it was known through Mr. Eugene Fitzalan, 
that on Mount Elliott, near Port Denison, a palm occurs, 
which differs in the structure of its stem as well as in its less 
elevated habit from Ptychosperma Alexandra and Pt. 
Cunninghami. As this seemingly local palm did not yet stand 
on any phytographic record. I was fortunate to induce Mr. 
Fitzalan, towards the end of last year, to revisit the locality, 
with a view of securing flowers and fruits of this species ; 
these he succeeded to obtain, and he placed this new material 
for elucidation most liberally at my disposal, together with 
notes on the habit of this palm. Thus, I am enabled to offer 
now a diagnosis. 
Ptychosperma Beatrices.— Stem robust, moderately high, its 
basal portion much enlarged, with the annual rings there 
suddenly and considerably impressed ; leaves large, rigid, 
many of them more erect than divergent ; their rachis very 
straight ; their segments numerous, grey underneath, folded 
back towards the base, gradually narrowed into a pointed 
apex, not very much spreading, the terminal segments and 
those nearest to them somewhat convergent at their summit ; 
panicle moderately long, somewhat fascicular, emanating 
from the stem at no very great height, bearing numerous 
crowded slender a#d flexuous spikes ; buds rather pointed, 
hardly oblique ; male flowers mostly in pairs, and often a 
female flower between them ; outer sepals from one-third to 
nearly half the length of the inner sepals ; stamens eight to 
twelve ; anthers linear, longer than the filaments ; fruits rather 
•small, globular-ovate. On Mount Elliott ; Fitzalan. Greatest 
height of the whole plant 40 ft.; stems solitary from the root ; 
leafstalks channelled ; raches of the spikes dark-coloured 
when dry ; flowers evidently smaller than those of Pt. 
Alexandra} and Pt. Cunninghami, but not available at present 
in full development \ fruits in size, form and structure 
similar to those of the two above-mentioned species, but 
rather smaller. 
In contrasting such differences, as are best or only observ- 
able in native localities, Mr. Filzalan remarks, that “ the 
stem of Pt. Alexandra has woody fibres enough to allow 
of its sometimes being used (I might say sacrilegiously) 
for fencing and for. building bush-huts, while stems of 
the new palm remain almost as soft as a cabbage-stalk ; 
and while, contrarily again, the stem of Pt. Cunninghami, 
which is still harder and more durable, than that of 
Pt. Alexandra, will sometimes turn the edge of a toma- 
hawk.” He further notes, that the basal portion of the 
stem is “ much more massive than that of Pt. Alexandras, ” 
and is remarkable “ for the clearly defined steps (at every mark 
of former yearly foliage) half an inch deep or more, all round 
up to three to five feet, when these projections cease, and the 
stem tapers gradually.” He adds, that the leaves stand well 
up, “ taper to the point, not having any curvature towards 
the top,” whereas in Pt. Alexandras and Pt. Cunninghami the 
upper portion of the leaves is curved downward, and their 
segments are more spreading. Irrespective of these discrepan- 
cies, the Beatrice palm “ flowers and fruits already six to eight 
feet from the ground, when evidently still very young,” whereas 
the two sister species “ do not bear fruits at a lesser distance 
from the base of the stem than about 30 feet.” He thinks, that 
“ the butts of the larger individuals might be fairly called 
colossal.” It does not seem, that the differences between the 
Alexandra palm and the Beatrice palm, as pointed out by Mr. 
Fitzalan, arise from mere diversity of places of growth, such 
as very wet soil and dry ground, or cool valleys and sunny 
ridges. Pt. Beatrice shares the paleness of the underside of 
the leaf-segments with Pt. Alexandras, agrees likewise with 
it in the number of stamens, the narrow anthers and short 
filaments, and is thus more removed from Pt. Cunninghami. 
Ipeg&l mil i M&qxbUxwL 
BREACH OF THE PHARMACY ACT. 
Sandhurst Police Court. 
James Egan Wall, chemist, was brought up at the City 
Court on 23rd January, before Messrs. Webster, P.M., Wilton 
and Edwards, Js.P., charged that he, being a registered phar- 
maceutical chemist, did, at Wattle-street, Sandhurst, practice 
surgery upon one Margaret Smith (now deceased), otherwise 
than in accordance with the rights and privileges enjoyed by 
chemists and druggists in their open shops. 
Mr. Kirby, instructed by the police, appeared for the 
prosecution, and Mr. Hornbuckle, instructed by Mr. Rymer, for 
the defence. 
Mr. Kirby stated that the case was brought under section 25 
sub-section 4 of the Pharmacy Act. The evidence against the 
accused was limited to the evidence given at the inquest on 
the young woman by Wall himself. There might, however, be 
an objection to this evidence being admitted. The punishment 
for the offence with which the accused was charged was £10 
and six months’ imprisonment. The case was not of a 
vindictive character. It was purely a Government prosecution. 
Harry William Shillinglaw, registrar of the Pharmacy Board 
of Victoria, produced his appointment, and also the original 
appointment of the board under the hand of the Governor in 
Council. He deposed that on 1st August, 1881, the prisoner was 
a registered pharmaceutical chemist, and that he (witness) 
knew him personally. To Mr. Hornbuckle : The printed 
pharmaceutical register is a copy of the original document. 
Robert Strickland, coroner, deposed, that on the day following 
the death of Margaret Smith (1st August) witness held an 
inquest on the body. The prisoner Wall was present, and gave 
evidence. Witness cautioned him against so doing, as, from 
the facts of the case, he (witness) thought it probable that 
the prisoner might stand in the position of an accused 
person. The depositions (produced) were chose taken on the 
occasion. (Mr. Kirby here put in the depositions as evidence, 
but this was at once objected to by counsel for the defence, 
the grounds being that it was not substantially for the same 
offence as that which was the subject of the enquiry when the 
depositions were taken ; that to make them evidence the charge 
must be substantially identical, or so connected as to create a 
reasonable presumption that the prisoner’s mind at the time 
of the first charge was sufficiently directed to the matter which 
formed the matter of the subsequent charge, and in substantia- 
tion the following cases were quoted : — Reginas. Lewis, Regina 
v. Owen, Regina v. Beeston, in all of which it appeared 
that, to make the depositions admissible on a subsequent 
charge, the offences must be indentical. On the other side, 
Mr. Kirby quoted the case of Regina v. Cooke, as heard in 
1876 on appeal from the Canadian Court. The Bench, 
however, decided that the depositions must be rejected.) 
Dr. H. L. Atkinson gave evidence that he saw the woman. 
Margaret Smith on the day following her death. Made a 
