THE PHARMACEUTICAL JOURNAL AND TRANSACTIONS. 
[July C, 1872. 
II 
IJwmMngs 0f Smntifi: 
SOCIETY OF BIBLICAL ARCHAEOLOGY. 
At the meeting of this Society, on Tuesday, July 2, a 
paper “ On the Economic Botany of the Bible ” was read 
by Mr. James Collins, Curator of the Museum of the Phar¬ 
maceutical Society. The author began with some remarks 
on the obscurity in which the subject was involved from 
the lapse of time, philological and other difficulties ren¬ 
dering- it in many cases almost impossible to identify the 
substances mentioned with those known to us at the 
^present time. The literature, from that cause and from 
the great interest at all times taken in everything per¬ 
taining- to the Holy Land, is exceedingly voluminous, 
and the various statements very conflicting. Ho then 
treated the subject under the general heads of—1. Food 
plants. 2. Medicinal plants. 3. Textile, dyeing and 
other industrial plants. 4. Plants used in perfumery and 
incense ; and 5. Miscellaneous substances, and conclud¬ 
ing remarks. Under these heads the history, uses, etc., 
of the following substances amongst others was given : 
*—Aloes, Almonds, Balm of Gilead, Bedellium, Calamus, 
Cassia, Cinnamon, Colocynth, Frakincense, Gall, Gal- 
banum, Lign-Aloe, Mannas, Myrrh, Olive Oil, Palm, 
Pomegranate, Ricinus, and Spikenard. The paper was 
abundantly illustrated with specimens of many growing- 
plants, supplied by Messrs. Yietch, and also of the various 
substances mentioned. 
Other papers were also read, “ On the Mazzoroth of 
Job xx'xviii., 32,” by II. Fox Talbot, D.C.L., F.R.S, and 
“ the use of Papyrus among the Accadians,” by the 
Rev. A. H. Sayce, M.A. 
parliament;-!nr mis fate fwmtotp. 
HOUSE OF COMMONS. 
Public Health Bill. 
Thursday , June 21th. 
On the motion for going into Committe on the above 
Bill, 
Mr- Stansfeld proposed to commit the Bill pro forma 
in order to omit some clauses and to insert some amend¬ 
ments. 
The House having resolved itself into Committee, 
Mr. Sclater-Booth asked for an explanation of the 
object of the proposed amendments. 
Mr. Stansfeld suggested that it would be more con¬ 
venient for members to judge of them when the Bill had 
Been reprinted. I he amendments where mainly based 
upon suggestions made by hon. members, or deputations 
which had waited upon him. 
Mr. T. Collins thought an assurance should be given 
That the amendments did not substantially alter the 
■character of the Bill. 
.The Bill then passed through Committee pro forma 
with amendments, and the House resumed. 
Friday , June 28 tli. 
Mr. Rylands asked the President of the Local Govern¬ 
ment Board ii it was the intention of the Government 
to proceed with the Public Health Bill this session, and, 
in that case, if it was proposed to withdraw any of the 
provisions contained in the Bill. 
. ^ r - Stansfeld said it was unquestionably the inten¬ 
tion of the Government to proceed with the Public 
Health Bill. The Bill was committed pro forma last 
■evening for the insertion of certain amendments. He 
had unwillingly come to the conclusion that, consider¬ 
ing the advanced period of the session and the pressure 
■of public business, it was necessary, in the interest of 
the bill itself, to do what was sometimes called throwing 
part of the cargo overboard. He had examined the Bill 
in order to see what sacrifices it was necessary to make 
in order to ensure the passing of the Bill. The House 
would remember that last year they consolidated certain 
departments of the measure with the Central Govern¬ 
ment Bill. The Bill as it stood might be divided into 
three parts, one consisting of provisions organizing the 
local sanitary authorities, followed by the body of the 
Bill giving new powers to and imposing new duties 
upon those authorities; and then came a number of 
miscellaneous clauses, giving facilities for the pro¬ 
ceedings of the local authorities. It appeared to him 
that the best course would be to stop this year with the 
creation and consolidation of the local authorities, and 
to withdraw from the Bill all the clauses relating to 
nuisances, hospitals, river pollutions, and other matters. 
In reply to Mr. Corrance, 
Mr. Stansfeld said it was not possible to fix a day 
for the Committee till the Mines Bill had been disposed 
! of. 
Adulteration of Food, Drugs, etc., Bill. 
Wednesday , July 3rd. 
The House went into Committee on this Bill, but, on 
the motion of Mr. Rylands, progress was immediately 
reported. 
Poisoning ry Cyanide of Potassium taken in 
Mistake for Medicine. 
On Tuesday, June 2oth, an inquest was held at the 
I Queen’s Head, Chelsea, respecting the death of Mr. 
John King. Deceased, who was under medical treat- 
ment, had his medicine bottle in the bar, and on taking 
a dose became suddenly faint and died in two hours. 
It was then found that some cyanide of potassium had 
been put into an empty medicine bottle, and the label, 
“To be taken every four hours,” left upon it. Edward 
Jennings, potman to deceased, said he had been in the 
habit of obtaining twopennyworth of cyanide of potas¬ 
sium about once a month, from Mr. Pasmore, chemist, 
for Mr. Edward King, -who used it for cleaning the 
metal work of the refrigerator in the bar. The mixture, 
up till Tuesday in the previous week, always used to be 
made and kept in a very old dirty bottle, but the regular 
bottle was then broken. Mr. Edward King, being- 
asked by the coroner how the cyanide of potassium 
came into the medicine bottle, said, “ I put it into that 
when the other bottle was broken last week. It was a 
fresh lot that I made up. I took it out of the locker 
I about a quarter after six in the morning, and put it on 
the shelf to clean the refrigerator with, when it got 
cool after breakfast. My father must have come in and 
put his medicine bottle by the side of that, and then 
taken up the poison bottle in a mistake, but he always 
knew that we used the cyanide of potassium three times 
a week, and always on a Saturday. The J ury returned 
a verdict of Accidental Death.— Standard. 
Death from an Overdose of Mor:fiiia. 
On Thursday evening, July 27th, an inquest was held 
at Morecambe by the coroner, Mr. Holden, upon the 
body of Mrs. Elizabeth Townsend, whose death was 
stated to have been caused by an overdose of morphia. 
Mr. Tilly watched the inquiry on behalf of the as¬ 
sistant of Mr. Birkett, chemist and druggist. 
Miss Ann Lester deposed: The deceased was my aunt 
and I lived with her. She has been invalided for some 
years, and for the last three years and a half has been 
attended by Mr. Metcalfe Johnson. He has sometimes 
sent medicine from Lancaster, and occasionally written 
prescriptions. On Tuesday night, about ten minutes 
past seven o’clock, he saw deceased, and about eight we 
received some medicine from Mr. Birkett’s. It consisted 
of a small box of pills and a lotion. A boy brought the 
