158 
THE CHEMIST AND DRUGGIST OF AUSTRALASIA. June 1, 1887. 
yet, a Pharmacy Act, and there is no law to prevent anyone 
commencing in business there as a chemist and druggist. It 
is the intention of the Pharmaceutical Society of South Aus- 
tralia to bring a Pharmacy Bill before Parliament at an early 
date, which Bill may become law this year, or it may not be 
passed for a year or two ; but, whenever it does become law, 
all chemists who are then in business will have to be registered 
as chemists, so that by aeceptiiig the South Australian certifi- 
cate now, we lay ourselves open to have to register everyone 
who may start in business there before their proposed Act 
becomes law. I am afraid, if New South Wales thus opens 
her doors to all comers, she will find that the other colonies 
will not reciprocate with her, for, by so doing, they would 
have to register men, through New South Wales, who, if they 
applied direct to them, would not be accepted. 
While Mr. D. Clarke, of Maryborough, was on a visit to 
Brisbane, he proposed that a deputation of chemists should 
wait on the Minister for Lands, to obtain his sanction for the 
setting apart of a small space, in the Botanical Gardens, for 
cultivating ifiants, Ac., of interest to chemists. The Minister 
of Lands received the deputation very graciously, and 
promised to do all that lay in his power to carry out the 
wishes of the chemists. 
There has been nothing done as yet with regard to intro- 
ducing a Poisons Bill into Parliament next session. I hope 
to be able to record some move in that direction next month ; 
we must be up and doing ; it is no use imitating Mr. Micawber 
and “waiting for something to turn up.” 
An Impostor Cauoht.— A man named F. M. Waller, aUaa 
Pr. Lamb, alias William Lamb, alias Frank Gordon, was 
arrested on April 24 at Cockatoo, thirty miles from Taroom. 
Among other things, he had represented himself as a doctor, 
and wrote out a prescription and signed it F. M. Waller, 
M.B. This was brought to Rockhampton by the recipient to 
be made up, and it was found to be correct save in one 
particular, where 3oz. of one drug was prescribed instead of 
3 drachms. Upon being arrested he took advantage of the 
constable’s back being turned for a moment, and swallowed 
the contents of a small bottle, exclaiming that he had done 
it, and no human skill could restore him. Senior-constable 
Glacken, however, obtained a bottle of salad oil, and poured 
half the contents down his throat. It produced the desired 
effect, and after a couple of hours he got all right. He had 
a relapse, but eventually recovered. The drug he used 
toned out to be cotton chloral, with possibly a mixture of 
morphia. 
Poisoning Case. — Henry W. Thomas, residing in Clay- 
street, New Farm, Brisbane, died on April 27 from narcotic 
poisoning. On April 26 he left his work, feeling ill, 
and between 10 and 11 called at the shop of Mr. Fitzgibbon, 
chemist, Ann-street, Valley. Thomas told Mr. Fitzgibbon 
that he was unwell, and asked him to serve him with some 
seidlitz powders and a vermifuge on credit. Mr. Fitzgibbon 
instructed his assistant to supply Thomas with the medicine, 
and then left for town. After the assistant had made up the 
powders and other medicine, Thomas was about to take 
them away, when he turned and in an off-hand manner 
said, “ You may as well let me have 2oz. of laudanum.” The 
assistant complied with his request, and Thomas left the 
shop for his residence. It is stated that shortly after his 
arrival at home he went to bed, and his subsequent condition 
was such as to cause his wife to feel alarmed. Dr. Campbell 
was sent for, and shortly afterwards Drs. Kesteven and Purcell 
were also called in, but at 1 o’clock next morning the patient 
died. Dr. Kesteven declined to give a certificate as to the 
cause of death, and subsequently held a 2 >ost-mortem exami- 
nation. It is supposed that deceased died from an overdose 
of laudanum. 
Oil of Lemon Case. — On April 22, H. A. Taylor sued R. 
D. Neilson for damages, £35, for supplying oil of lemon of 
unmarketable quality. Mr. Mansfield, instructed by Messrs. 
Chambers, Bruce, and M‘Nab, for the plaintiff, and Mr. T. J. 
Byrnes, instructed by Messrs. Roberts and Roberts, for defen- 
dant. Defendant sold plaintiff a case of oil of lemon, which, 
upon being opened, was found to be an inferior article, 
unmarketable and unfit for use. The plaintiff bought the 
article for use in the manufacture of lemonade, but did not 
use any of the oil for six months afterwards. Upon opening 
it, he found it cloudy and with a large sediment, known 
chemically as citroptene, and, by using it, a quantity of 
lemonade, valued at £5, was spoiled. He subsequently tried 
to sell the oil to Mr. Primrose, of the Helidon Spa Water 
Company, who, however, returned it as being of inferior 
quality, and unfit for use at his works. The defence was that 
the oil was of good quality, and guaranteed when delivered. 
Frederick Mann, cordial maker, gave evidence that the only 
use he could suggest for the oil was to burn in the engine fire, 
it was useless for making syrup. Mr. Primrose, of the Helidon 
Spa, gave similar evidence. Mr. R. D. Neilson, the defen- 
dant, deposed that the oil in question was a direct import 
from Italy, and was of the best quality. The oil, when 
delivered to plaintiff, was of good quality and in good order. 
Professor Pepper deposed that he analysed the oil, and found 
it to be of an excellent quality, and contain all qualities of a 
first-class fresh oil of lemon. The sp. gr. was *853, the 
standard for oil of lemons being *850, and a sample purchased 
from a respectable chemist having the sp. gr. *8565.^ One 
part of the oil dissolved in seven parts of alcohol, leaving a 
little insoluble resinous matter, the check sample referred to 
yielding similar results. The boiling point was 349 deg. F., 
the usual temperature for good oil of lemon. There was a 
small percentage of alcohol in the oil, probably added to 
preserve the fragrance. Several other witnesses were called, 
and the plaintiff was nonsuited. 
Mr. a. Mead, chemist, of Warwick, has gone to the Glenelg 
reefs in order to make assays of the quartz found in the pros- 
pecting claim and in other parts of the ground. Mr. Mead 
purposes making a prolonged stay in the district, and has 
taken with him a complete assaying plant, so as to give the 
stone a thorough test on the ground. This is good work for 
a chemist to be doing. 
Mr, a. T. Hill, who has practised as a chemist for four 
years at Surat, took poison during a fit of temporary insanity 
and died from the effects. 
Mr. D. Clarke, of Maryborough, has just received from 
England, a certificate and medal for his exhibit of Eucalyp- 
tus extracts and preqtarations in the late Colonial and Indian 
Exhibition. 
Mr. H. Sapsford, of Maryborough, has recently set up in 
his chemist shop an elegant parlour fountain. The standis of 
ornamental cast iron, nickel plated, and on the top is placed a 
large glass of water, up the centre of which is a tube and 
a nozzle that sends a pretty jet a considerable distance into 
the air. The necessary power is supplied by an ingenious 
hot-air force pump placed beneath the stand, the heat coming 
from a gas jet. Other embellishments have been added which 
have received favourable notice from the local press. 
The First Australian Quicksilver. — Dan Mactaggart, of 
Maryborough, has recently given the following information on 
this subject Cinnabar, the ore of quicksilver, was first dis- 
covered in Australia at Cudgegong, in New South Wales, but, 
beyond hearing that an English Company expended large 
sums of money in endeavouring to get a permanent lode, I 
know little about it. Cinnabar was first found in Queensland 
by Edward Godfrey, a shepherd on Kilkivan run, about 20th 
September, 1872. He reported his discovery to Messrs. Bray, 
Bloodworth, Th^mne and myself, and we immediately took 
steps to test the ore. An old musket barrel with the nipple 
stopped up by a horse shoe nail, and bent in the middle, did 
service for our retort. We pounded up some of the ore„ 
placed the breach of the barrel in the forge fire, the muzzle in 
a basin of water, and, after “ firing up” for a time, we suc- 
ceeded in producing about 2oz. of pure quicksilver. I believe 
I am right in claiming therefore to have assisted in extracting 
“the first quicksilver from the soil of Queensland.”^ We im- 
mediately applied for and secured the land where this ore was 
obtained, the selection being still known as the “ Prospec- 
tors.” Since that time quicksilver has been reduced from the 
ore of that and other properties. The Kilkivan Quartz Crush- 
ing Company, during 1876, purchased all the quicksilver they 
required to start their battery from Messrs. Hester, and I 
believe over a ton of Kilkivan quicksilver was sold in Gympie. 
The Queensland Quicksilver Estate Limited has recently sent 
home the first flask of quicksilver from its mine. The com- 
pany fully anticipate that within a year they will be able to 
execute orders to the extent of 190,000 flasks. Mr. Tancred 
is the manager. 
The following was recently presented to a Victorian chemist 
to be dispensed ; — “ For distemper in dogs. Get two^ grains 
of palamel and two grains of tartar of matick. Give the 
palamel first, and for two hours tie the dog up so as to get no 
water, and then give him the tartar of matick. After he or 
she throws up, give him a dose of castoroil.” 
