232 
BRITISH PHARMACEUTICAL CONFERENCE. 
Hall. Among those present were—Dr. De Vry, of Rotterdam ; Drs. Flem¬ 
ing, Hill, Warden, Solomon, Parkes, Miller, and Hinds, of Birmingham; 
Mr. Bremridge, Secretary of the Pharmaceutical Society, London ; Messrs. 
Selby, Langston Parker, and Davis, surgeons, of Birmingham; most of the 
Officers of the Conference; Mr. A. M. Chance, and other local manufac¬ 
turers ; and ladies and gentlemen to the number of about two hundred. 
Three sides of the large hall were occupied by long tables, in some parts two- 
deep, loaded with articles, chiefly of a character to interest chemists and 
druggists, yet a large number representing the fine and industrial arts ; the 
fourth, by a buffet on a liberal scale. This room, which, from its large size, 
had had during the attendance of the forty to eighty members at the sittings 
of the Conference an aspect of cheerlessness which even the unpleasantly 
powerful solar rays had never entirely dispelled, was now only comfortably 
full. Both it and an adjacent smaller hall, which had been fitted up by the 
local committee as a drawing- and writing-room for the use of the members 
during the week of meeting, were tastefully decorated with flowers. 
Altogether the conversazione was of a most agreeable character. At in¬ 
tervals short lectures, occupying only a few minutes, were delivered, each 
alternating with a musical performance on a six-octave set of musical glasses 
of great purity of tone by Mr. Bird and his son. 
Mr. Thomas Barclay read a brief “Report on the Chemical Manufac¬ 
tures of Birmingham and the District.” The author commenced by referring 
to the articles manufactured by Chance, Brothers, and Co., of Oldbury. He 
called attention to their samples illustrating the manufacture of carbonate of 
soda, their sample of purified soda ash used in the manufacture of plate glass, 
and their sample of bicarbonate of soda prepared especially for pharmaceu¬ 
tical purposes. He then referred to the phosphorus, both amorphous and 
ordinary, the chlorate of potash, and the pure precipitated sulphur of Messrs. 
Albright and Wilsons, of Oldbury. The samples of the common mineral 
acids, shown by Messrs. Shorthouse, of Birmingham, represented an exten¬ 
sive manufacture of the district. The beautiful specimen of Roman vitriol, 
shown by Messrs, Hickling, and the samples of nitrate of strontia and baryta 
from Mr. Winder, also represented the manufactures of Birmingham. The 
large and well-formed crystals of citric acid were from the factory of Messrs. 
J. and E. Sturge, of Birmingham, who owned a plantation in Montserrat 
where they cultivated upwards of three hundred acres of lime-trees, and 
whence they obtained the concentrated lime-juice used in the manufacture. 
Cyanide of potassium was manufactured on a very large scale in Birmingham 
for the use of the electro-metallurgists. The samples exhibited were sent 
by Messrs. Adams. One specimen of grey cyanide was of remarkable 
beauty, and though a crude product was nearly pure, containing 94 per cent, 
of the pure salt. This was obtained by fusing prussiate of potash in a close 
vessel. The pure acids, the acetates of potash, soda, and lead, nitrate and 
phosphate of soda, the iodides and bromides of potassium, ammonium, and 
cadmium, and a variety of other articles were also manufactured in the dis¬ 
trict. Messrs. Clay and Newman, of the Salt Works, Droitwich, had sent 
specimens illustrating their manufacture, including two forms of crystals, one, 
called the “ hopper crystal,” being very curious. In conclusion the author 
remarked that in naming those who had contributed to the collection, he did 
not wish to give them undue prominence, as there were many other well- 
known makers in the district. 
At nine o clock the visitors were invited to pass into a room to listen to 
a lecture— 
“ On the Electric Discharge,” by Dr. J. B. Edwards. Having explained 
and exhibited the ordinary forms of the discharge, Dr. Edwards performed a 
