April, 1882. 
THE CHEMIST AND DRUGGIST. 
93 
A compendium of Modern Pharmacy and Druggists' For- 
mulary , containing the recent methods of manufacturing 
and preparing elixirs, tinctures, fluid extracts, &c., &c. , and 
miscellaneous information indispensable to the pharmacist. 
Second edition. By Walter B. Kilner, pharmaceutist, Spring- 
field, Illinois. H. W. Bokker, printer, 1881. 
This work, which we have upon our table, has evidently been 
compiled with great care and much earnest labour; although 
written more particularly for the American pharmacist, it 
contains a mass of information, and a very large number of 
formulas, which will be found useful to British and Australian 
pharmacists. The author says in his preface, “Many of the 
working formulas have been kindly donated by eminently 
successful pharmaceutical chemists of great learning and wide 
experience.” Many works have been published making great 
pretensions to accuracy, but have been found, although costly, 
unreliable. We do not think that the same criticism can be 
applied to this work. 
In Chapter II., devoted to the comparison of the metric and 
United States measures, very simple rules are given for con- 
verting one denomination into the other, and we are glad to 
see that our American cousins are gradually preparing the way 
for the adoption of the metric system . Elixirs would seem to 
be great favourites in the United States. These compounds 
are very numerous, but the basis is the simple elixir, a sort of 
flavoured sugared spirit, and are doubtless of German origin. 
The formulas for these preparations are, as “ the sands upon the 
sea-shore, innumerable but our author has carefully selected 
the best. We notice one elixir of eucalyptus globulus contain- 
ing 2 oz. of the leaves to the pint, associated with cherry bark 
and liquorice. The therapeutical value of eucalyptus leaves 
is now well understood, and is lower than a few years ago, but 
in a compound containing cherry bark, it would be somewhat 
difficult to test its medicinal action and value. There are 
302 formulas for elixirs, many of which have appeared from 
time to time in the various pharmaceutical journals. It ought 
to be borne in mind by readers that nearly all the quantities 
given are in Troy weight. In concluding our notice of this 
work we cannot do better than quote the compiler’s remarks 
in the preface to the second edition. “ It is not the aim or 
intention of the author to supply the place of the United States 
Pharmacopoeia, or text book of like character, but to furnish 
a work of ready reference, and compilation of unofficial 
formulas, as well as those of an official character, from the 
cream of the drug and medical publications of the world, that 
will be of use to the profession.” We have observed one or 
two typographical errors, such as “ startling ” for “starting” 
(page 5), and “ correct ” for “correctly ” (page 14). The book 
is well printed on good paper, and strongly bound. 
INTERLOPERS. 
One would have supposed the Pharmacy Act of Victoria 
encompassed the calling of a chemist and druggist sufficiently 
to guard it against all interlopers, but it appears such is not 
the case, and their representatives, be they the Board of Phar- 
macy or the Pharmaceutic Society, will have to be on the 
alert if they wish to keep the coast clear against the invasion 
of their rights and privileges. 
Representations have been made to the Board of Pharmacy 
on one or two occasions that shopkeepers of various denomi- 
nations have set portions of their premises apart for the sale 
of drugs, under the superintendence of some impecunious 
chemist (who, very likely, for some reason or other, cannot 
trade in the usual way), and thus not only doing an injury 
to the regular authorised pharmacist, but opens the door for 
a perversion of trade. 
If once such a deviation is allowed, then away must go all 
that we have been contending for during the last quarter of 
a century, and the Act becomes null and void. It was bad 
enough for the Pharmacy Board to be compelled, by the pro- 
visions of the Act, to register as pharmacists all those who 
before its passing had any pretentions to the sale of medi- 
cines, the which has in many instances legalised charlatans 
to keep an open shop. The Pharmacy Act, to a certain ex- 
tent, actually broke down under such circumstances ; and it 
is to be regretted the board were compelled to admit, as it 
were, to holy orders, such as were never intended. 
The framers of the Pharmacy Act also, no doubt, thought 
that every title under which a chemist could trade legally 
had been invoked to prevent false pretences ; but the cunning 
which is inherited specially by persons without knowledge, 
serves them also in this particular, and an evasion of the Act 
is practised by persons calling themselves “ professors.” This 
term has, unfortunately for the public, been omitted both in 
the Medical and Pharmacy Acts, and the consequence is that 
men such as Mr. Fisher (the boncheidist) practice medicine 
under this title. 
SURGEON-DRUGGISTS. 
We were perfectly surprised and equally disgusted to find that 
on one of the metropolitan goldfields the medical men are in 
the habit of making up their own medicines. Out of about a 
dozen surgeons only two are found who give their patients 
prescriptions to be made up by chemists. Each of the others 
have dispensaries and dispensers, and up to a very short 
period some of them also sold drugs and even patent medi- 
cines. Is it, then, to be wondered at if pharmacists resort to 
various means of obtaining a living outside their legitimate 
calling ? The profession of medicine should be above this 
double-dealing, and ignore it, as they are apt to do when they 
hear of a druggist prescribing over his counter. We know of 
one instance where the surgeon receives his fee for consulta- 
tion, hands his patients the prescription with a significant 
indication they can have it made up in the adjoining dis- 
pensary. They then find that another charge is made for the 
medicine, and the prescription is detained unless demanded 
by the patient. Actions like these on the part of medical men 
tend to generate a bitter feeling between the faculty and the 
chemist, which might be easily avoided if a course were 
adopted calculated to cement rather than estrange them ; and 
for the good of both it is hoped that a better understanding 
will be arrived at. We believe that a much better system pre- 
vails in Ireland, where the apothecary is to the physician what 
the solicitor is to the barrister, and the system is found to work 
well. 
ECONOMY OF FUEL, AND SMOKE ABATEMENT. 
( Read by C. R. Blackett , M.L.A . , before the Australasian 
Health Society , 29 th March , 1882.) 
At the present time this question is exciting a considerable 
and increasing interest among intelligent persons ; and I do 
not know any subject of more importance to us in Victoria 
than the economical use of fuel, more particularly coal. In 
England, Professor Jerons has long ago drawn public attention 
to the gradual exhaustion which is going on of the available 
coal supply as a reason for using the utmost care in consump- 
tion ; and in the present day, when the light of scientific 
knowledge is spreading more and more, it is to be hoped that 
the principles involved in the proper and complete combustion 
of fuel will be adopted as much as possible ; and when it is 
universally recognised that an economical use of fuel not only 
adds to the national wealth, but assists to abate the unhealthy 
and disagreeable “ smoke nuisance,” its importance cannot be 
over-estimated. Moreover, as the colony of Victoria, according 
to all the geological knowledge at present possessed, not 
having any very rich or extensive coal seams, and is depen- 
dent upon New South Wales for her supplies, ought to exercise 
a powerful influence over all who take an interest in our indus- 
trial progress. 
This question has its sanitary aspects, and our society, which 
has already done so much to spread the knowledge of the 
applications of exact science to the improvement of the health 
of the community, may do good service by again impressing 
upon the public mind this important matter. 
It may be considered by some that the smoke nuisance 
has not yet assumed a sufficiently aggravated form in our city, 
with its light and bright atmosphere, to cause the necessity 
for any active measures to be taken for its suppression. But, 
although at present the large towns of Victoria are, compared 
with London and other great cities, not greatly suffering, we 
have to remember that in a very few years the evil will greatly 
and rapidly increase, and so the health of the people will be 
affected ; and our public buildings, upon which we are spend- 
ing so much, will also be seriously disfigured and injuriously 
acted upon. Inside buildings the injury to pictures and 
works of art ought also to be taken into consideration, so great 
is the deleterious action of the corrosive gases given off during 
