84 
THE CHEMIST AND DEUGGIST OF AUSTEALASIA 
April 1, 1887. 
have it on excellent authority that this system is, or was till a 
few months ago, adopted by the examiners of the Pharmaceu- 
tical Society of Great Britain. It puts the colonial examina- 
tions on a very different comparative footing, and will have 
to be considered in all discussions of reciprocity with Great 
Britain. 
The difficulties involved in keeping Phar- 
PiiAP.iucEUTicAL maceutical Registers accurate, are well 
Eegistratioxs. illustrated by a return of the Registrar- 
General of New Zealand. During 1886, 
the deaths of only two chemists were reported to him. This 
is about one in 120, or 8'5 per thousand, which must be little 
more than half the death rate on a class of males ranging in 
age from 25 upwards. The Pharmaceutical Register of New 
Zealand for 1887 contains 321 names. As a matter of fact, 
eight of the chemists mentioned in the New Zealand list are 
dead, 31 have removed, leaving no trace of their whereabouts, 
and 11 have migrated to other colonies. 
NOTES ON AUSTRALIAN PLANTS, 
By Baron Von Mueller, K.C.M.G., M. A Ph.D., F.R.S. 
(Contiiuied.) 
SWAINSONA BeASLEYANA. 
Robust; leaves soft-hairy; stipules broad, acutely lobed ; 
leaflets many, ovate or elliptical; peduncles longer than the 
leaves, glabrous ; flowers in each raceme several, rather 
large, not very crowded ; pedicels considerably shorter than 
the calyx, somewhat exceeding the lanceolar bracts, short, 
hairy; bracteoles minute; calyx appressed-hairy, the semi- 
lanceolar pointed lobes about as long as the tube; petals 
glabrous, the upper bearing two membranous truncate short 
plates above the narrow base ; lower petals nearly as long as 
the upper or somewhat shorter, blunt, not twisted ; lateral 
petals only about half as long as the upper, broadish, straight • 
anthers almost linear; style softly cilate-bearded along the 
inner side , fiuit almost straight, narrowly oblitiue-ellipsoid, 
hardly stipitate, scantily soft-hairy, glabrescent. 
In the vicinity of Lake Austin, Henry King and Thomas 
Beasley. Vestiture greyish ; leaflets one-third to two-third 
inch long; stipules large, much jagged. Peduncles attaining 
nearly a foot in length. Calyces from hardly quarter to rather 
more than one-third inch in length ; upper petal from scarcely 
half to about two-third inch long, bliieish when dry ; lower 
petals rather variable in length. Style dilated towards the 
base, slightly jointed below the summit. Bruit only seen in a 
young state, then already several times longer than the calyx. 
Ovules numerous. 
Dilfeis from S. Greyana in long and less close indument in 
generally smaller leaflets, in larger and indented stipules, in 
shortei laceines with smaller flowers, in the comparatively 
longer lodes of the calyces, in broader lateral petals, in the 
not exserted stipes of the fruit ; the latter also likely will 
prove very difl’erent in a ripe state. From S. colutoides it is 
distinguished in well develojied vestiture, incised stipules, 
longer peduncles, narrower calyx-lobes, much narrower, hardly 
curved and not conspicuously stipitate fruits. From S. 
phacifolia it is chiefly separated by laxer indument, broader 
leaflets, longer racemes with larger flowers, callous upper 
petal, proportionate shortness of lateral petals and thinner 
style. 
Pharmacists in various parts of Australia, with the appli- 
ances readily at their command, should avail themselves of 
the many opportunities afforded them, to study the properties 
of any Swainsonas near them, several of the species beiim 
known to possess toxic properties. ° 
Swainsona Burkittii occurs on the Murrumbidgee (K. H. 
Bennett) ; S. Burkei, on the Gascoyne- River (Hon. John 
(Tietkens); Soligophylla, on the 
Lachlan-River (Tucker), on the Mulligan-River (Cornish), near 
the Leopold-Eange (A. Porrest) ; S. luteola, on the Dh'son 
“^A™^'V®i':f\(Thozet); S. campylantha, on the 
1 eake-River (Chandler), between the Lachlan and Darling- 
River (Tucker) ; S. phacifolia, at Euola (Batt) ; at Mount 
Kingston (J. M Stuart); S. miorophylla, at Alice-Springs 
’ at Macdonnell-Range (Rev. J. Schwarz); 
at the Mulhgan-River (Cornish) ; S. laxa, on the Upper 
Barcoo (Dr. Poulton), on Spencer’s Gulf (Tepper) ; S. colu- 
toides, near Fraser’s Range (Demjister). S. procumbens and 
S. Murrayana are illustrated in Dr. Wawra’s botanic volume of 
of the travels of their R. H. the Princes of Saxe-Coburg (1883). 
THE INTERCOLONIAL PHARMACEUTICAL CON- 
FERENCE. 
We have received from the National College of Pharmacy, 
Washington, District of Columbia, U.S.A., the following in- 
teresting correspondence which explains itself. 
The Conference resolved that Boards of Ifliarmacy in Aus- 
tralasia . should exchange examination papsrs. We suggest 
that this proposition should be extended to all English speak- 
ing bodies granting certifleates of qualification to practise 
pharmacy. We shall be glad to find that some or all of the 
Boards take this question up, and will give all the help 
we can in supplying addresses and other information : — 
National College of Pharmacy, 
Washington, D.C., January 21, 1887. 
To the Editor of The GliemUt and BrngijUt of Amtvalasia. 
Sir, — Your communication of November 3, 1836, and copy 
of journal came duly to hand, and was submitted by me to 
Board of Trustees of this College at their December meeting, 
being received, was referred by them to the committee on 
Pharmaceutical Education for their action. At the January 
meeting of the Board the enclosed reply was submitted by 
above committee, a copy of which I am instructed to forward 
to you. — Truly yours, 
R. L. ELIOT, 
Sec. N.C.P. 
“ Washington, D.C., January 12, 1887. 
“ To the Board of Trustees National College of Pharmacy. 
“ On the communication from The Chemist and Dnifjffist of 
Australasia, yoiiv committee beg leave to submit the following 
remarks It is not our intention, nor is it practicable at this 
time to do more than give expression in a general way, to our 
views on the subject. We acknowledge our jfleasure at learn- 
ing of the very successful meeting, the first of the Intercolonial 
Pharmaceutical Conference at Melbourne. The action of the 
Conference in unanimously adopting resolutions seeking the 
mutual recognition by the Boards of Pharmacy of Australasia 
of the certificates of registration of each of them, exhibits a 
spirit which pharmaceutical bodies here and elsewhere may 
with profit imitate. We gather from tlie discussions of the 
Conference the information that our brothers of Australasia 
are much nearer a uniform standard of examination by their 
Pharmacy Boards tlian we of the United States are. It is 
this condition of uniformity in connection with a spirit of 
liberality that has made the main object of the Conference 
possible. As yet more than half of our States are without 
pharmacy laws, and pharmacists of those States are strug- 
gling for that legal recognition, and statutes that must pre- 
cede other important benefits. In some of the States that 
have pharmacy laws there is a provision in the statute recog- 
nising the certificates of other States. In none of the laws is 
such recognition prohibited, and we may, therefore, assume it 
to be a matter within the discretion of the Boards. 
“ Some effort has already been made here to secure the 
mutual recognition' by the State Boards of Pharmacy of each 
others certificates by meetings held at the time of the annual 
meetings of the American Pharmaceutical Association of such 
members of Pharmacy Boards as happen to be present. The 
making a uniform standard of examination has been very 
fully discussed, and its desirability conceded, but no satisfac- 
tory method has yet been proposed for executing it. So that 
this act of comity just adopted by the Conference at Mel- 
bourne appears to be in the distant future for us. We com- 
mend the action of the Australasian Boards of PJiarmacy in 
admitting as qualified pharmacists all graduates of reputable 
Colleges of Pharmacy. We believe that if this course should 
be adopted by the Pharmacy Boards generally of all the Eng- 
lish speaking people it would have great weight at the proper 
time in procuring the like general acceptance of the Board 
certificates. Certainly this would be the case if the Board 
examinations is made equal to that of the College, as it should 
be. ‘ Let each pound sterling contain the proper proportion 
of gold,’ and it will pass current whether stamped by College 
or Board. — Respectfully submitted.” 
(Signed), 
W. G. THOMPSON, 
G. G. C. SIMMS. 
