November 30, ]872.] THE PHARMACEUTICAL JOURNAL AND TRANSACTIONS. 
439 
Dram&rags cf StienMc Varieties. 
CHEMICAL SOCIETY. 
Thursday, Nov. 21st, 1S72; Di\ Frankland, F.R.S., 
president, in the chair. 
When the preliminary business of the meeting had 
been transacted, a paper “ On the Standardizing of Acids,” 
by W. N. Hartley, F.C.S., was read by the Secretary. 
The author finds it convenient to prepare the solution 
for rapidly standardizing acids by dissolving a known 
weight of metallic sodium in alcohol, and diluting the 
solution with water; it is then ready for use. The 
second communication “On Anthrafiavic Acid” was 
read by the author, Mr. W. H. Perkin, F.R.S., in which 
he gave the results of the continuation of his investiga¬ 
tions on this acid, including an account of two new deri¬ 
vatives, diacetyl-anthrafiavic acid and dibenzoyl-anthr aJla- 
ric acid. 
An animated discussion on some theoretical points 
indirectly connected with this memoir ensued, and the 
meeting finally adjourned until Thursday, December 5th, 
when there will be two papers by Professor C. Rammels- 
berg “ On the reducing Power of Phosphorous and Hypo- 
phosphorous Acids and their Salts,” and “ On Hypophos- 
phites also one by Professor A. H. Church, on “New 
Analyses of some Mineral Arsenites and Phosphates.” 
Mhraterjr anti 
Conviction under the Adulteration Act. 
On Tuesday, Nov. 19th, two cases were heard by Mr. 
Rafilos at the Liverpool Borough Police-Court, in which 
jjrcceedings were taken under the new Act for the pre¬ 
vention of adulteration of food, drugs, etc. 
William Smith, cowkeeper, was charged with selling 
adulterated milk. An inspector in the service of the 
Health Committee said that on the 7th instant he bought 
a pennyworth of milk from the defendant, and subse¬ 
quently gave it to Dr. Brown, public analyst. 
Dr. Brown stated that he analysed the sample, and 
found it to contain less than half the quantity of cream 
found in the poorest cow’s milk ; it had been adulterated 
by adding 30 per cent, of water. Milk naturally con¬ 
tained from 85 to 8S per cent, of water, and to the milk 
he analysed other 30 per cent, of water had been added. 
For the defence it was stated that, if the milk was 
.•adulterated, it was adulterated before it came into de¬ 
fendant’s possession. 
The magistrate said that, by an Act recently passed, 
any person selling adulterated food, whether aware or 
not that it was adulterated, was liable to a penalty not 
exceeding £20; and the person who caused it to be 
adulterated to a penalty not exceeding £50. This being 
the first case under the new Act, he was not inclined to 
inflict a heavy penalty, but future infringements of the 
law would be severely treated. He would in this case 
inflict a penalty of 40s. and costs. 
Edward Elkin, cowkeeper, was summoned under simi¬ 
lar circumstances. 
Dr. Brown deposed that the sample sent to him of the 
.milk sold by the defendant contained only half the 
average quantity of cream, and had been adulterated by 
adding 10 per cent, of water. 
The defendant made a similar defence, and the magis¬ 
trate inflicted a penalty of 20s. and costs. 
Suspected Poisoning. 
An inquest has been held before Dr. Lankester upon 
the body of Hannah Harwood, who was found dead in 
bed some time since, and a suspicion of murder existed 
against a man who lived with her, and who cut his throat 
at the time. 
The Coroner said the woman’s body had been ex¬ 
amined, and although there was something strange in 
the man’s behaviour, there was nothing on th<T wo¬ 
man’s body to indicate that she had been injured or 
poisoned. 
.A juryman said since the adjournment a bottle con¬ 
taining laudanum had been found in the room. The 
bottle was then produced; it was a two-drachm bottle, 
labelled “ Laudanum—poison.” 
A witness said she found the bottle on the Saturday 
following the day the inquest was opened, in the room 
where deceased lived. She believed neither the man nor 
the woman were in the habit of taking laudanum. It 
appeared to be new, as the label was perfectly clean 
when she found it. 
To another witness who went to see the man at the 
hospital, he said that he took it himself; that he went 
to three shops and got one pennyworth at each, and took 
it the day he attempted to commit suicide. 
Dr. Stone said the bottle could not contain sufficient 
laudanum to cause the death of a human being. He 
had found no traces of laudanum in the stomach of 
the deceased when making the post-mortem examination, 
and had no reason to believe she was injured or poisoned. 
A verdict was recorded that the deceased died from 
heart disease, accelerated by habits of intemperance.— 
Echo. 
Suicide of a Chemist. 
An inquest has been held at Buxton on the bohy of 
Mr. John Acton, chemist and druggist. From the evi¬ 
dence adduced, it appeared that the deceased had been 
suffering for some time past from depression of mind, 
but nothing to cause any alarm to the family. He got 
up at his usual hour on Sunday morning and came down¬ 
stairs, but when breakfast was ready he was not to be 
found. His wife went in search of him and found him 
partly on the bed and partly on the floor in his bedroom. 
She procured assistance, but examination showed he was 
quite dead. A bottle of prussic acid was afterwards 
found in the room and an empty tumbler glass, which 
had evidently contained the poison. The jury found 
“ That the deceased had committed suicide by taking 
prussic acid whilst in an unsound state of mind.” 
Mr. Acton was seventy-three years of age, and had 
been in the trade for fifty-five years, first at Sheffield, 
but for the last sixteen years at Buxton. For some years 
he had been exceedingly eccentric, but not so as to cause 
any alarm to his friends. 
Notice has been received of the death of the follow¬ 
ing :— 
On the 6th of November, Mr. Richard Thomas Stipp¬ 
ling Bray, chemist and druggist, of Pembroke Street, 
Devonport. Aged 33 years. 
On the 17th of November, Mr. John Acton, chemist 
and druggist, of Buxton, Derbyshire. Aged 73 years. 
On the 13th of November, Mr. Joseph Philpotts, 
chemist and druggist, of Newnham. Aged 70 years. 
BOOKS RECEIVED. 
A Manual of Elementary Chemistry, Theoretical 
and Practical. By George Fownes, F.R.S. Eleventh 
edition, revised and corrected by Henry Watts, B.A., 
F.R.S. London: J. and A. Churchill. 1873. From 
the publishers. 
Introduction to Inorganic Chemistry. With 82 
engravings on Wood. By Wm. George Valentin, 
F.C.S. London; J. and A. Churchill, 1872. From 
the publishers. 
