August 3, 1372.] 
THE PHARMACEUTICAL JOURNAL AND TRANSACTIONS. 
99 
■scheme he advocates, for reasons amongst others lately given 
by Mr. Reynolds, will be found in practice to work well. I 
earnestly hope, however, that it will be decided that any help 
that is given by the Society will be given only to those who 
entered before the passing of the Act. 
To do otherwise, I cannot but think would defeat the very 
object we have in view, and instead of raising would tend to 
lower our already very low standard by holding out induce¬ 
ments to boys and young men of deficient education to join 
our body. 
It is not by being able to call ourselves members (by ex¬ 
amination if you will) of the Pharmaceutical Society that we 
shall gain the confidence and respect of the public, but by 
showing that we are men of an education at all events a little 
higher than that ot the mere huckster, and onlj'- so shall w r e 
be able to attract boys of a better class into our ranks. 
It seems to me, and every one is invited to give his opinion, 
that what we have to do is to make the Preliminary examina¬ 
tion a really effectual bar to the entrance of the ill-educated. 
By taking care that only those who have had a fair general 
education are admitted, we may rely upon it we shall hear no 
more about difficulties in passing the Minor and Major; and 
instead of offering premiums for ignorance, the plethora of 
money at “ The Square ” may be much better expended by 
establishing scholarships available for three to six months 
in the laboratory for those who pass the best Preliminary 
examination. 
Charles Erin. 
Bath, July 30 th, 1872. 
Sir,—At the risk of being considered hard-headed, a 
characteristic common to north-countrymen, I am induced to 
address to you a few more remarks on the subject of Pro¬ 
vincial Pharmaceutical Education. In my last letter, I 
endeavoured to show by the Society’s Charter, and by the 
Acts of Parliament which they have been instrumental in 
passing, that it is their duty “ to promote an uniform system 
of education of those practising pharmacy.” I think I have 
satisfactorily made out my case. 
It is now my object to endeavour to prove that the Society 
has not attempted to promote or to provide a uniform system 
of education adapted to the requirements of the country 
members of the trade. It is now nearly thirty years since 
their charter of incorporation was granted to them for this 
purpose. With the exception of a few donations, amounting 
in the aggregate to a very small sum, they have never 
attempted anything of the kind, until the meeting of the 
Council on November 2nd, 1870, when the scheme proposed by 
Mr. Richard Reynolds was adopted in principle by the Council. 
Had this been faithfully carried out, there was much in it 
that was well calculated to effect the object in view. Had the 
Council of that day had sincerely at heart the success of this 
object, the result would have been very different from what 
it has been. But the Committee to which this scheme was 
referred so mutilated and mangled it, and utterly destroyed 
ita usefulness, that its author did not know his own scheme 
again. They produced one in the place of it, soulless, use¬ 
less, and impracticable; the paternity of which no person 
has ever owned, and nobody ever will. Those who read it, 
cannot come to any other conclusion than that it was admir¬ 
ably adapted to defeat the object it had in view, and it at 
the same time conclusively proves that the Committee of 
that day were utterly incapable of grasping and dealing 
with so important a question. 
The country members of the trade are thoroughly roused 
• cn this subject. They will never rest until assistance is given 
for the instruction of their apprentices and assistants, in all 
those subjects on which they are required to pass examina¬ 
tions. They will no longer tolerate the useless waste of money 
•by allowing the surplus income, amounting to about £2000, 
to be annually invested in the Three per Cents, for the benefit 
of posterity. A luminary in our town council once asked, 
*“ what has posterity done for us that we should have so much 
regard for them?” The age for endowments is quickly 
passing away. What is the use of saving for posterity that 
Avhich is absolutely required for ourselves ? I have a strong 
impression that posterity will be able to hold its own quite as 
well, and perhaps better than ourselves. In my next letter, 
if time permit me, I will endeavour to show why the Council 
should assist provincial pharmaceutical education, and how 
.they can do it. 
Hull, July 29 th, 1872. 
[*#* We are at a loss to understand the meaning of Mr. 
Pickering’s remark that the amended scheme to which he 
refers was admirably adapted to defeat the object which it 
had in view, and do not see that his letter contains any 
justification of the charge he has brought against the 
Council. We are glad however to hear, upon Mr. 
Pickering’s authority, that the country members of the trade 
aro thoroughly roused upon this subject. We trust they will 
continue their exertions until there is a satisfactory solution 
of the very difficult question of education, and meanwhile, we 
shall be glad to publish Mr. Pickering’s views as to the 
measures which ought to be taken with that object.— Ed. 
Pharm. Journ.] 
Sir,—You invite opinions upon the scheme for provin¬ 
cial education of druggists’ apprentices. As I under¬ 
stand the motives assigned for the establishment of our So¬ 
ciety, I think that so far as the members are collectively con¬ 
cerned, they are not more competent to form an opinion than 
any other portion of her Majesty’s subjects. All that we, or 
rather the Council which represent us, have to do is to see 
that each candidate for admission to the honour of member¬ 
ship has received a liberal scientific education; and, further, 
that the candidates are able to pass such examination as 
they in their wisdom think fit. But I certainly protest 
strongly against the Pharmaceutical Society paying either 
directly or indirectly any portion of the expenses ot educating 
any present or future apprentices. 
One of the objects of the promoters of the Society was, I 
think, to raise the status of chemists and druggists; and I 
think, and venture to hope that others will think with me, 
that the apprentices to chemists, like pupils to surgeons, etc., 
should pay the expense of their own education; and I would 
further suggest for the consideration of the Council that no 
person other than men who have been in business prior to 
the passing of the Act, should be eligible for examination 
until they had attended a course of lectures at the Pharma¬ 
ceutical Society for twelve months and upwards after their 
pupilship or apprenticeship shall have been completed. The 
Council might in their discretion offer prizes of tree member¬ 
ship to the Society for such pupils receiving certain certifi¬ 
cates to be hereafter arranged ; and all the balance moneys, 
or rather profits, should and ought to be placed to the credit 
of the Benevolent Fund, which, by the bye, should be for 
members and not outsiders, who, in my humble opinion, 
have no claim to its bounty. 
I also strongly object to any distinctive marks in the 
diploma granted by the Society distinguishing between ex¬ 
amined and unexamined members. I contend membership 
should be equal, never forgetting that had it not been for 
the unexamined members the examined would never have 
existed; and after years of toil, expense and trouble, it is 
too bad that the junior members should take advantage of 
their seniors, whose grey hairs they frequently insult, in¬ 
stead of honouring, by remarks in your columns which, 
do not do them credit. If education teaches fop¬ 
pishness and insult to the founders of the Society 
to which they are proud to belong, better, I say, had 
they never received it. I think the Council should 
introduce bye-laws to the effect that all members, by 
paying a certain sum down, in addition to that already sub¬ 
scribed, should be life members, and that no person be here¬ 
after admitted, except as a life member, and that no distinc¬ 
tion should be made between examined and unexamined 
menbers, the latter claiming their right to membership by 
Act of Parliament. Depend upon it, the distinction is invi¬ 
dious, uncalled for, unexpected, and tends to lower rather 
than heighten the moral tone of the Society. I think the 
interest of the public, so much prated about, is not sincerely 
meant, otherwise, we should endeavour to simplify our pre¬ 
scriptions by refusing to make up any which had not the lull 
directions written plainly in English, the drugs and quanti¬ 
ties, as now; it would appear more in consonance with a wish 
to avoid errors than to write in Latin, and then educate up 
to the mark. Besides, the instructions are for the patient, and 
not for the exclusive use of the drug;gist, and physicians should 
also write the quantity of drugs for the whole, and not one 
dose; it would be truthful, and frequently prevent mistakes. 
Atkinson Pickering. 
