354 
THE PHARMACEUTICAL JOURNAL AND TRANSACTIONS. 
[November 2 , 1872. 
Dr. Squibb said every man was a law to himself, 
■and no man could lay down absolute laws to which all 
could be expected to conform. The physician was a law 
to himself, and if he chose to order things of a certain 
manufacture because he had confidence in their charac¬ 
ter, he had a right to do so. If the pharmacist thinks 
he can produce an article as good or better than that 
■specified, let him show it to the physician and per¬ 
suade him to use it, but otherwise he should give the 
kind ordered. 
Mr. Procter said, to him the case was very plain; 
the prescription designated a certain article of a certain 
make; the pharmacist’s duty was to give that and no 
other ; adhere to the prescription or decline to prepare 
it. 
A special session was held on Thursday afternoon.. 
A volunteer paper by Mr. B. Lillard, of Nashville, 
Tenn., on the “ Culture of the Poppy and Production 
of Opium in Tennessee,” stated that imported seed was 
planted in the spring of 1871 with good success, 
large and vigorous plants being the result, while the 
flowers and capsules were unusually large. The seed is 
sown about the same time as oats, in soil prepared as 
for cotton. It is planted in drills, the young plants are 
thinned out to from four to six inches apart, and cultivated 
similarly to cotton. Soon after the flowers drop off 
(this year it occurred in June), the capsules are cut 
horizontally on one side, early in the morning. (The 
knife used resembles a cupping lancet.) The milky 
exudation coagulates rapidly—becoming first pale red, 
and then a rich brown soft mass. The next morning it 
is scraped off and dried in the sun, and the following morn¬ 
ing the other side of the capsule is similarly scarified. 
Great care must be taken that the knife does not pene¬ 
trate the capsule, destroying the production not only of 
the opium, but also of the seed. By this process a 
yield of opium was obtained averaging from thirty to 
fifty pounds per acre. 
The opium shown with the paper was of a smooth 
texture, tenacious, firm, dark brown colour, rich odour 
(resembling the odour of Egyptian opium). 
An analysis of the opium gave 17 per cent, of mois¬ 
ture, 11 per cent, of insoluble matter, and 10 per cent, 
of alkaloids. 
Mr. George C. Close sent a paper on “Japan 
Wax,” in which he stated that it presents no advan¬ 
tages over beeswax for pharmaceutical purposes. 
Professor Maisch read an exhaustive paper on the 
<i Cantharis in all its Species,” with especial reference to 
the vesicating properties of the Chinese variety lately 
introduced. Having examined them for the purpose of 
determining the amount of cantharidin they yield, he 
compared it with the published results of those who 
have examined the ordinary cantharis in use, and states 
that the yield in his experiments were two and a half 
times greater than the previous records, and nearly 
twice (1*78) as much as the best yield heretofore re¬ 
corded. He has not finished his examinations, but ex¬ 
pects to report further next year. 
A paper by Professor Edward Parrish, on the preli¬ 
minary education for young men who expect to qualify 
themselves for the business of druggist and pharmacist, 
and what preliminary examination, if any, should be 
required by the Colleges of Pharmacy, was read by Mr. 
William Procter, jun. This paper was one of exceeding 
interest, especially at this time, owing to the agitation 
<of this question, both in the United States and abroad. 
It is felt to be a fact patent to all, that there is much 
room for improvement in many of the pharmaceutists 
of the present age, while many of the young men who 
are aspirants for the calling are unfit for it. The true 
remedy is preliminary education, and sooner or later the 
colleges of pharmacy must compel a preliminary exa¬ 
mination before admitting students to their lectures. 
A paper by Charles W. Grassly, of Chicago, Ill., on 
il Seidlitz Powders,” and how far those in the market 
agree in quantity and quality with the formula of the 
U. S. P., was read by W. Procter, jun. The paper 
created no little merriment by some of its personal allu¬ 
sions and sarcastic remarks, and disclosed the fact that 
(in many cases intentionally—in most cases from want 
of proper care), nearly all the samples of seidlitz pow¬ 
ders examined, fall below the weight of the U. S. P. 
standard. It was stated that in the majority of stores 
the powders are put up by measures which are inaccu¬ 
rate, or soon become so. Even with the most careful per¬ 
sons, it is impossible to fill these measures uniformly, 
and if the measures were originally correct, they soon, 
by attrition, wear away and lose their accuracy. 
Weighing, and giving just weight, was, therefore, the 
only remedy. Another source of error in measuring is, 
that various lots of seidlitz mixture may vary a little, 
owing either to fineness of powder, moisture, or com¬ 
pactness of the powder. No ingredients were found as 
adulterants. It was stated in the discussion that in 
London many years ago, under the name of “Im¬ 
proved Seidlitz Powders,” it was customary with cer¬ 
tain stores to add one grain of tartar emetic to each box 
of powders, and that in a very few stores in this coun¬ 
try the same practice was observed. 
Dr. Squibb read an exceedingly interesting volunteer 
paper on “A Modified Process of Percolation,” which 
had been perfected by his son. Without an illustration 
it would be useless to attempt to explain it in the brief 
space at our command. We can only state the perco¬ 
lator is simply a jar of glass, conical-shaped, and sup¬ 
ported by a foot, without any opening at the lower ex- 
;remity. The material having been previously brought 
to the proper state of fineness, is moistened and placed 
in the percolator, which has been previously prepared 
as follows: a glass tube a little longer than the interior 
height of the percolator, and about half an inch internal 
diameter, has tied over the lower end a piece of filter¬ 
ing paper and muslin cloth. A glass tube of l-16th inch 
internal diameter of sufficient length is bent twice at 
right angles, having one leg as long as the larger tube, 
a connecting length a little longer than the upper dia¬ 
meter of the percolator, and the other leg is to be long 
enough to bend up the lower end about half an inch or 
so, and leave the two legs of the siphon thus formed 
of an equal length, so that it forms a self-supplying 
siphon. The plain leg of the siphon has a narrow 
piece of india-rubber tubing around it at the lower 
end, so that it will fit quite loosely in the larger tube; 
while near the upper part of the same leg, rubber tubing 
has been slipped upon it to keep it firmly in its place 
when in use. The material being now within the jar, it 
may be covered with the menstruum, when the denser 
liquid which percolates the mass will filter through the 
paper and cloth into the interior of the larger glas3 
tube, and finally find its level. When maceration has 
been continued long enough, the siphon tube is intro¬ 
duced, and the flow is induced by suction. As soon as 
the flow is established, the siphon is raised in the tube 
nearly to the upper portion of the liquid, and after the 
first few minutes the flow should only be by drops. 
At the fifth Session, held on Friday morning, it having 
been reported that an album containing one hundred and 
forty-four portraits of members of the Association had 
been obtained, a resolution was passed authorizing the 
Secretary to take charge of it, and also the album pre¬ 
sented by Mr. H. B. Brady on behalf of the British 
Pharmaceutical Conference. Directions were also given 
that they should be produced at future meetings for in¬ 
spection. 
Several papers were read. Amongst others one by 
Dr. E. R. Squibb on Aloes, in which he discussed 
briefly the characteristics of the several varieties of 
this drug, and insisted that the socotrine variety 
alone should be used in the medication of the human 
family. Allusion was made to the impurities, acci¬ 
dental and otherwise, and a choice specimen of ani- 
