November 30,1872.] THE PHARMACEUTICAL JOURNAL AND TRANSACTIONS. 
437 
the Society in the principal centres of the country, it 
■would recognize the teaching powers in many localities, 
and would tend to cement and foster that kindly feeling 
which is ali’eady springing up in connection with mem¬ 
bers of the medical profession. As to the examinations, 
he was content with them as they were, though he did 
wonder sometimes that while the Preliminary examina¬ 
tion fee at the universities of Edinburgh and Glasgow 
was 10s. 6ci., it was with us £2. 2s.; and in the knowledge 
of this he did feel that when a parent presented himself 
offering his boy as an apprentice the first demand made 
was this examination fee. He thought a change might 
he made here with advantage, for he agreed with Mr. 
-Gilmour in the necessity of a good education, and with 
Mr. Ainslie in a compulsory term of apprenticeship. Mr. 
Mackay could tell them that the Minor examination was 
originally intended as the assistants’ examination, and 
he had no doubt the time would come when it would be 
held exclusively as such. 
Mr. Mackay, in reply, said that the late hour pre¬ 
vented his answering, as he felt quite prepared to do, 
.some of the remarks which had been made. He felt 
much gratified, however, that the opening of the Society’s 
new rooms had been inaugurated by a discussion on 
such an important subject. He could not help stating 
in regard to the £2. 2s. fee for Preliminary examination, 
and to which exception had been taken by more than 
•one speaker, that so long as the existing fees re¬ 
mained, there could be no better division than £2. 2s. for 
the first, and £3. 3s. for the second examination, thus 
making up the aggregate five guinea payment for the 
Minor examination, because before the classical exami¬ 
nation was insisted upon, candidates passing the Minor 
paid at once the lump sum of £5. 5s. One word is also 
necessary to explain that the Minor examination was 
originally intended only for assistants and not for 
masters, but the Privy Council insisted that the Minor 
should form the test for qualification to admit to the 
position of chemist and druggist, and thus enable the 
party who passed to be placed on the Government 
Register. 
A vote of thanks was awarded to Mr. Mackay for 
having so ably brought the subject of pharmaceutical 
education before the meeting, and giving an opportunity 
for free discussion in connection with it. 
The following donations to the museum and library 
were then laid on the table :— 
Specimen of leaves of Ficus lasiophylla , Singapore, by 
Mr. Baildon; specimen of hairy down from the leaves, 
of Ficus lasiophylla , Singapore, by Mr. Baildon; speci¬ 
men of chemically pure bromide of potassium in large 
■crystals (French manufacture), by Mr. Baildon; spe¬ 
cimen of Pengawar-djambi or Pulu, Ccbotium, Schci- 
diarum , by Mr. Baildon ; specimen of Bassia nuts the fruit 
of Bassia latifolia, by Mr. Harry Hyne; Pharmacopoeia 
Germanica, Berolini, 1872, by Mr. H. C. Baildon; the 
* Pharmacist,’ from America; 4 The Year Book of Phar¬ 
macy,’ from the Conference ; 4 Ashworth’s Binder and 
Pharmaceutical Journal,’ from the Society; bound volume 
cf Journal, 1871-72 ; five volumes of ‘The Proceedings 
-of the Royal Society,’ by Mr. John Mackay; five 
volumes of the Journal of the Chemical Society, by 
Mr. John Mackay. 
*• The Secretary then intimated the arrangements which 
had been made by the Council hi regard to the use of 
the room as follows :— 
On and after Monday the 25tli of November, arrange¬ 
ments have been made whereby the museum and 
library will be made available to all connected with the 
society, during the day from 10 a.m. till 4 p.m., and in 
the evening from 6 till 10. On Saturdays the hours 
will be from 10 till 3. 
Any one wishing to examine the specimens in the case 
may have an opportunity of doing so by applying for the 
key of the cases to the party in charge of the rooms. 
Books will be given out and taken back at any time 
during the hours above named, but in the meantime no 
volume will be given out unless by order from the Secre¬ 
tary, to whom application must be made. 
The council hope that ere long the library and museum 
will both be considerably enlarged. In the meantime 
they have set aside one of the Society’s rooms as a reading- 
room, open to all, and on the table of which will be found 
constantly lying the following weekly and monthly 
publications:—The ‘ Lancet,’ Pharmaceutical Journal,’ 
4 Chemist and Druggist,’ 4 Chemical News,’ 4 British 
Medical Journal,’ ‘Scientific Journal,’ ‘Nature,’ and the 
4 Food Journal.’ 
A vote of thanks to the President closed the proceed¬ 
ings. 
fnrtanal fransattwras. 
BRISTOL PHARMACEUTICAL ASSOCIATION. 
The monthly evening meeting for November was 
held on Friday, the 15th; Mr. Stroud, vice-president, 
in the chair. 
After a few introductory remarks from the Chairman, 
Mr. Giles read a paper upon the 44 Syrups of Phos¬ 
phates,” in which he referred to the difficulties some¬ 
times experienced of obtaining a satisfactory and per¬ 
manent solution of the phosphates of which the syrups were 
composed, and of avoiding a tendency to discoloration. 
Specimens of syrup of phosphate of iron and syrup of 
phosphates of iron, quinine and strychnia were exhi¬ 
bited, which had been kept for upwards of a year with¬ 
out material deposit or discoloration. He, considered 
that these inconveniences might be avoided by the fol¬ 
lowing simple precautions, viz.:—To accomplish the 
process with the greatest possible rapidity of manipu¬ 
lation, to exclude every source of impurity, and to dis¬ 
solve the sugar without heat. With this object distilled 
water should be used copiously for washing the precipi¬ 
tates, which should then be dried by strong pressure, 
and the purest loaf sugar (in the state of rough powder) 
should be used for completing the syrup. If likely to 
be kept long, the syrup should be bottled in sizes con¬ 
venient for use. In the preparation of syrupus phos- 
phatis comp., Professor Parrish’s published formula was 
stated to produce a syrup harsh to the taste and objec¬ 
tionable to patients, particularly to children, for whom 
it is largely employed. This appeared to be overcome 
in the American manufactured syrup by the substitu¬ 
tion of a sensible proportion of hydrochloric acid for its 
equivalent of phosphoric, which equally well retains 
the phosphates in solution, and gives a soft saline taste 
to the product. The presence of arsenic in phosphoric 
acid, to an extent capable of communicating irritating 
properties to phosphatic syrups, was also stated. The 
author was indebted for this information to the careful 
observation of Mr. Randall, of Southampton. The 
arsenic probably finds its way into phosphorus in con¬ 
sequence of pyritic sulphuric acid (which is commonly 
contaminated with arsenic) being employed by the 
phosphorus manufacturers on account of its cheapness. 
Mr. Stoddart exhibited two samples of British brandy 
which he had prepared, one from rags and the other 
from Iceland moss. They appeared to be exceedingly 
good imitations of the veritable Cognac and to have a 
large percentage of alcohol. 
Mr. Stoddart then availed himself of the opportunity 
for showing his method of percolation, because so many 
had doubted its applicability to those substances that 
contained much resin. A large glass cylindrical tube 
was placed upon the table, containing powdered ginger 
in the course of percolation. The “ dark skin-deep ring 
of resin was seen plainly as it gradually descended, from 
the spirit being displaced by a column ol water. 
Mr. Schacht exhibited in action a piece of apparatus 
