LIVERPOOL CHEMISTS’ ASSOCIATION. 
203 
which they were met by the proprietors of the several works, and for the courteous recep¬ 
tion and explanation of the processes by principals and managers. The excursion was 
agreeably terminated with a dinner at the Garston Hotel. 
Your Council have much pleasure in announcing that they have received, from several 
exhibitors at the late International Exhibition, a large number of specimens of various 
articles of interest to the Society. These are at present in the museum, and will be 
placed on the table at the first general meeting of this session. 
The Librarian, Mr. J. Scoffin, reports a decline in the numbers using the Library 
during the past session, which your Council trusts may have arisen from no other cause 
than the temporary inconvenience attending its removal; but as many valuable proposed 
additions to the Library are now under consideration and will shortly be announced, 
they trust the demand for books will increase. 
Meddlesome legislation in reference to the sale of poisons has been again attempted 
during the past year, but the Act, which has been passed in reference to the sale of 
poisoned wheat, is not likely to affect the general interests of the trade. The proposed 
change in the legal weights and measures of Great Britain is highly important, as affect¬ 
ing the dispensing of medicines, as well as the general convenience of the country. The 
preponderance of opinion, after very careful inquiry, appears to be in favour of the French 
metrical system, already in general use among analytical and manufacturing chemists. 
Any change, however, affecting the weights used in the compounding of medicinal sub¬ 
stances, should be very gradually introduced; and to avoid fatal errors, new values should, 
in all cases, be expressed by new denominators. Your Council look forward to interest¬ 
ing discussions on this subject during the evening meetings of the present session. 
A Pharmaceutical Conference was held at Newcastle, on the occasion of the visit ot 
the British Association to that place. It was attended by gentlemen from various parts 
of the country interested in the progress of pharmaceutical science, and a Society was 
formed, which is to meet annually in one or other of the large towns of the United 
Kingdom, with the object of promoting friendly re-unions and increasing the facilities 
for the cultivation of pharmaceutical science. Your Council anticipate that the new 
Society will be productive of much good. The next meeting will be held at Bath, at 
the time of the meeting of the British Association at that place. 
The Financial Beport will be laid before you by the Treasurer, from which you will 
observe a balance to the credit of the Society amounting to £40. 6s. od., and the judici¬ 
ous appropriation of that sum will engage the early attention of your Council. 
The President, in moving the adoption of the Council’s Report and Treasurer’s 
Financial Statement, congratulated the Society on the highly satisfactory state of the 
finances, and intimated that the Council would devote a portion of the handsome balance 
towards the addition of books to the Library. He explained the cause of the falling off 
in the use made of the Library, to arise from the fact of its removal during the Session, 
and the consequent temporary ignorance of its whereabouts by the members. 
Dr. J. B. Edwards seconded the motion, and in so doing, referred to the Pharma¬ 
ceutical Conference held at Newcastle-on-Tyne, and indicated the great value likelv to 
accrue from these annual gatherings, the object of which was to discuss, and suggest for 
discussion, subjects of the highest interest to pharmacy. lie, at some length, urged the 
importance of pharmaceutical education, and intimated that the Council of the Pharma¬ 
ceutical Society had in contemplation arrangements for the holding of Local Examina¬ 
tions, if a sufficient number of applicants presented themselves in any one district to war¬ 
rant the expense of taking the Board of Examiners into the provinces; and he hoped the 
young men would be eager to avail themselves of the opportunity, and that Liverpool 
would be the first town in which a Local Examination of the Pharmaceutical Society 
should be held. 
The following resolutions were also adopted :—• 
“That the Keport and Financial Statement now read, with the Proceedings of the 
Society during the past Session, and the Bye-Laws and Catalogue of Books in the Library, 
be printed and published.” 
“That the best thanks of the Association be given to those gentlemen who have 
lectured or read papers at the Meetings, and to the donors to the Library and Museum 
during the past Session.” 
fc “ That the thanks of the Association be given to the Officers and other Members of 
the Council, and especially Mr. A. Norman Tate, for their services during the year.” 
