NOTTINGHAM CHEMISTS 5 ASSOCIATION. 
4.G5 
NOTTINGHAM CHEMISTS’ ASSOCIATION. 
The Fifth General Meeting was held at the Society’s Rooms, Exchange Buildings, on 
Thursday evening, the 3rd of March • Mr. S. Parr, President, in the chair. 
The minutes of the Society were read and confirmed, and the donations to the Library 
announced. After which— 
Mr. J. H. Atherton, F.C.S., read the first of a series of papers on the ‘British Phar¬ 
macopoeia,’ briefly referring to the contentions which had taken place during the last 
thirty years between the three Colleges of Physicians of London, Dublin, and Edinburgh, 
in their efforts to effect a union of the three Pharmacopoeias. The lecturer had to con¬ 
gratulate the members that the difficulties had been set at rest by an Act of Parliament 
conferring on the Medical Council the power and authority to prepare a national Phar¬ 
macopoeia. He also referred to the difficulties and dangers attendant on having three 
different forms for medicines, and three different strengths in England, Ireland, and 
Scotland. This was of danger not only to the patient, but also to the dispenser of me¬ 
dicines. There was one instance he would allude to—namely, the prussic acid, the offi¬ 
cinal strength of which was nearly twice as much on one side of the Tweed as on the 
other. A prescription, ordering that powerful preparation, dispensed in England one 
week, was probably dispensed in Scotland the next. In that case the latter would con¬ 
tain twice as much of the acid as the former, and yet the same directions are given for 
its administration. Mr. Atherton traced the history of the Pharmacopoeia from the first 
one published in London in 1618 to the present time, remarking on the wonderful strides 
that science had made during the last few years. He did not think that the work repre¬ 
sented the state of science in chemistry and pharmacy in Great Britain at the present 
time, and he was quite sure that it did not represent a fourth part of the time and money 
that had been expended in its production. There was a great deal of dissatisfaction ex¬ 
pressed on all sides, and he (Mr. Atherton) could not but say the same. The omission 
of the Posological Table, the absurd changes in some of the preparations, the change of 
the names of some chemical preparations, the hurried manner in which it had evidently 
been completed, and the ridiculous omissions and mistakes, all tended to quite the 
reverse of an increase of respect towards the learned body of men in whose charge the 
compilation of the first ‘British Pharmacopoeia’ was entrusted. The lecturer concluded 
his introductory remarks by referring to the great care and precaution requisite on the 
part of the dispenser of medicine during the next twelve months. He had always two 
things to consider; bearing in mind that after the publication of the Pharmacopoeia, 
every dispensing chemist was bound by law to prepare every prescription written after 
that date with the new preparations. But he must also bear in mind that, comparatively 
speaking, very few of the profession had adopted the new forms, and that numbers had 
never yet referred to the new Pharmacopoeia at all. Under these circumstances, what is 
the dispenser to do ?—were he to act strictly according to the law, he would be acting 
against the wishes of the majority of the profession ; and, on the other hand, were he to 
continue exclusively the use of the old Pharmacopoeia preparations, he would be acting 
contrary to the direct commands of the Medical Council. The times were, in his opinion, 
fraught with difficulties to the chemist. Their most important qualifications were good 
common sense and discrimination : with these, there would be comparatively few dan¬ 
gers ; but without these, errors innumerable must occur. The lecturer then commenced 
a review of the preparations, taken alphabetically, and considered chemically and phar¬ 
maceutically. The next paper would commence with the preparations of antimony, and 
would embrace subjects of more practical interest to the retail chemist than those to 
which he (Mr. Atherton) had taken occasion to allude that evening. 
A vote of thanks was proposed by Mr. Francis (of London), and seconded by Mr. Mar¬ 
shall, 'to Mr. Atherton for his interesting paper, and carried unanimously. 
The Secretary then read a paper on the influence of iron on vegetation, by W. W. 
Fyfe, Esq., honorary member. 
After which a discussion took place as to the different forms in which iron existed in 
the soil, and its influence on vegetation. 
The President said that no doubt the Society felt deeply indebted to Mr. Fyfe for 
his valuable and interesting paper. The treatment of vegetable chlorosis by means 
of the protosalts of iron was a most important discovery, and when more thoroughly 
understood, was capable of effecting considerable improvements in both agricult 
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