26 
July, 1882. 
THE CHEMIST AND DRUGGIST. 
Acacia adnata. — Branchlets slightly angular, short-downy ; 
phyllods small, glabrous, oblique-rhomboid, mucronate-pointed, 
3-4-nerved, with broad adnate base sessile, the anterior side 
produced into a blunt angle with a minute gland ; stipules 
bristly ; pedunoles axillary, solitary, bearing a single globular 
flower-head, finally twice or thrice as long as the phyllode ; 
pods broad-linear, compressed, glabrous, straight along the 
sutures ; seeds very small, rhomboid or ovate-roundish, black, 
not shining ; their areoles very minute ; strophiole cymbiform, 
not much shorter than the seed, parallel to the valves, longer 
than the straight capillary funicle. — Near the Irwin River ; 
F. v. M. — Already the broad adnate base of the phyllods dis- 
tinguishes this from every species of the small group, to which 
the allied A. deltoidea belongs. Flowers unknown. 
Acacia Gilesiana. — Glabrous ; branchlets slightly angular ; 
phyllods straight, pale, thickly filiform, not compressed, rigid, 
acute, not mucronate, traversed by several exceedingly fine 
longitudinal nerves ; stipules obliterated ; racemes short, 
axillary and terminal, bearing 2-4 flower-heads ; pods rather 
broad, compressed, wavy along the sutures ; seeds ovate, 
placed longitudinally. — Near Mount Eba ; E. Giles. — Foliage 
more like that of many Hakeas than that of any Acacia ; as a 
species nearest to A. rigens. Flowers and ripe fruits unknown. 
Acacia sessilicejjs . — Branchlets not angular, at first silky ; 
phyllods thinly filiform not or slightly compressed, longitudi- 
nally streaked and faintly furrowed, pointed but not mucronate ; 
stipules obliterated ; flower-heads axillary, generally solitary ; 
lower bracts ovate-lanceolate, forming a minute involucre ; 
sepals spatulate-linear, at first high-connate ; corolla not 
streaked, about half as long as the calyx ; pods rather broad, 
moderately compressed, almost circularly twisted, very thinly 
silky, slightly wavy along the outer suture ; seeds placed 
longitudinally, rather large, clasped at the base by the short 
strophiole ; funicle yellowish. — Near the Finke River ; Rev. H. 
Kempe. — Allied to A. rigens. Ripe fruit unknown. 
Acacia Kempeana. — Arborescent; branchlets faintly angular; 
phyllods rather short, falcate-oblong, blunt, between the few 
slightly prominent longitudinal nerves closely subtle-streaked ; 
stipules and gland obliterated ; spikes axillary, generally 
solitary, short-stalked, much shorter than the phyllods ; 
flowers glabrous, nearly three times as long as the very thin 
but rhomboid-laminulated bracts; calyx short- toothed, nearly 
three times shorter than the unstreaked corolla ; pods rather 
short, flat, oblique-oblong, smooth, rounded-blunt at the sum- 
mit and base, suddenly short-stalked ; valves almost mem- 
branous ; seeds placed transversely, shining-black, three 
times shorter than the width of the valves ; strophiole extend- 
ing not beyond the basal portion of the seed, cvmbous- 
cupular ; funicle twisted beneath the strophiole.— Between 
Youldeh and Ouldabinna, Jess. Young ; near the Finke River, 
Rev. H. Kempe ; between the Warrego and Maranoa, Barton. 
— Nearest to A. aneura. 
Acacia cibaria. — Branchlets not angular, slightly silky ; 
phyllods rather long, thick, rigid, broadly linear, very finely 
many-nerved, of greyish hue, curved-apiculated ; stipules 
and gland obliterated ; spikes axillary, solitary, short-stalked, 
not elongated ; flowers slightly short-hairy ; bracts rhomboid 
towards the summit, very thin towards the base, surpassed in 
length by the flowers ; sepals narrow, free, hardly half as long 
as the unstreaked corolla ; pods straight, cylindrical, longi- 
tudinally streaked ; seeds placed lengthwise, oblong, their 
two areoles minute ; strophiole very short, cupular, occupying 
only the basal portion of the seed ; funicle closely twisted 
beneath the strophiole. — Between the Darling River and 
Barcoo, Dr. Beckler ; near the Murchison River, Ch. Gray ; 
near the Gascoyne River, Oliver Jones. — A tall shrub or small 
tree, allied to A. aneura in foliage, but very different as regards 
fruit. The aborigines use the seeds very largely for food, 
wherever this species occurs. The fruits from near Shark Bay 
are much larger and the seeds brownish, not black. It is the 
“ Wonuy” of the natives. 
|EepI ant JRagistcrial. 
THE RECENT PROSECUTIONS UNDER THE POISONS 
ACT. 
The prosecution of Mr. A. J. Wade, chemist, of Emerald 
Hill, and his assistant, for illegally selling poisons, “ points a 
moral,” and should be inwardly digested by all druggists 
who are either in business for themselves or assisting others. 
In fact, the development of the Pharmacy Act chiefly depends 
upon druggists themselves as to whether it should be a means, 
of elevating the trade, or allowing it to remain as of yore. 
Most pharmacists will, I venture to say, incline towards 
doing what the Act was intended to produce. It is astonish- 
ing, however, to find persons openly setting it at defiance, 
and engaging those to assist who are not legally competent, 
thus not only rendering themselves liable to penalties, but 
producing other unpleasant consequences not easily forgotten.. 
It is also astonishing to find what an amount of penalties an 
unregistered chemist acting as an assistant renders himself also 
liable, and subjects his employer ; although the latter (if not 
imposed upon), knowing the consequences, is more to blame 
than the former — for in the eyes of the law every employer 
is supposed to know who or who are not registered. Possibly 
chemists in general are not aware that a complete registry for 
each preceding year is published annually, and can be pur- 
chased from the registrar for one shilling. The case in point 
was one of the most flagrant, and showed that the derelict did 
not even know the rudiments of his business ; for long before 
the selling of poisons became penal every druggist, for hia 
conscience’ sake, labelled the article “ poison.” This was 
even neglected ; and whether the strychnine was coloured or 
not report does not say. Evidently the purchaser was not 
known, and the sale of it was unregistered. Without know- 
ing whether the strychnine was coloured or not, the seller ren- 
dered himself liable to four penalties, besides that of his 
employer. 
The prosecution, it is to be hoped, will have the effect of 
making druggists more careful as to the class of assistants 
they employ ; for without this care it is impossible for the 
Board of Pharmacy to carry out the provisions of the Act. 
In the prosecution of Mr. Perkins, of Ballarat, referred to in 
our last, it is consoling to find the proceedings were not insti- 
tuted by the board, but that they originated with the police, 
who were entirely answerable for their failure; and it also 
accounts for the absence of an advocate or a solicitor to con- 
duct the case ; for, without doubt, it would be far better not to 
prosecute at all than to lose a case for the want of getting it 
up properly, as in the latter case it rather stimulates than 
prevents others to rebel. J. H. 
PROSECUTION UNDER THE SALE AND USE OF 
POISONS ACT. 
At the Emerald Hill Police Court on the 20th June, before 
Messrs. Foote, Stead, Mouatt, and Twentyman, J.P.’s, a 
young man named John Digby, in the employment of Mr. 
A. J. Wade, a pharmaceutical chemist, carrying on business in 
Clarendon-street, Emerald Hill, was charged, under the third 
section of the Sale and Use of Poisons Act, 1876, in that he, 
not being a duly qualified chemist, did sell a poison to one 
James Lee, on the 12th inst. Mr. D. Wilkie appeared to 
represent the Pharmacy Board and the police, and Mr. Daley 
for the defendant. In opening his case, Mr. Wilkie referred to 
the number of accidents which had recently occurred through 
the careless sale of poisons. The first witness was Alexander 
Thomas Waugh, who deposed that he had been with the 
deceased Lee on the evening before his death, and had seen 
him enter the shop of Mr. Wade. About two o’clock in the 
morning he was awakened by the cries of deceased, who was 
in convulsions. At the inquest it was found that he had died 
of poisoning by strychnine. Senior Constable Rogers deposed 
that on the morning of the 13th inst. he went to a house in 
Chester-street, and, on making a search, found the wrapper 
produced, on which the word “poison” was printed, and 
“strychnine” written underneath. Witness made inquiries, 
and learned from Digby that on the previous day a man had 
come into the shop and asked for sixpence worth of strychnine 
to poison rats. Digby did not like to serve him, as Mr. Wade 
was temporarily absent from the shop. In a short time the 
man called again, and was served with the article. Witness 
found no entry of the sale in the poison -book. There was also 
no name on the label. Digby afterwards proceeded with wit- 
ness to the house in Chester-street, and identified the dead 
man as the person to whom he had sold the poison. Defendant 
acknowledged the handwriting on the wrapper to be his. This 
closed the case for the prosecution. Mr. Daly contended that 
Digby was not responsible for the sale, having made it on 
behalf of his employer. It was pointed out, however, that by 
section 10 the assistant was made as liable as the master, and 
that if the assistant made the sale he was held to be the seller. 
Mr. Wade testified that the defendant was his junior assistant. 
