THE PHARMACEUTICAL JOURNAL AND TRANSACTIONS. 
LJanuary 4, 187?. 
5‘)0 
Before it will be possible, however, to organize 
any thorough system of education, it will be neces¬ 
sary that there should be a more intimate connection 
between the Pharmaceutical Society and the trade 
generally. It is essential that the Society should be¬ 
come more strictly speaking representative than has 
been the case. This idea is embodied in the wish 
recently expressed at Glasgow by Mr. Betty, that 
the numbers of the Society would so increase that 
ere long at the Council election the last elected 
should receive more votes than those who stood 
highest at the late election. 
But although this representative character of the 
Society is consistent with the spirit of the age, and 
eminently to be desired now that the Council is the 
executive in whom is vested the control of matters 
relating to all chemists and druggists, whether 
members or not, still the attainment of this character 
must be a work of time since the necessity for keep¬ 
ing in view the advancement of pharmacy must not 
be overlooked. We trust that the growth of the So¬ 
ciety will never be merely in numbers, but that 
every accession to its ranks will be accompanied by 
a corresponding development of that earnest desire 
for improvement which led to the foundation of the 
Society when it was good for pharmacy that the 
few should rule rather than the many. We have 
indeed more than once expressed surprise that so 
many should still remain “ outsiders;” but while we 
hear it seriously asked what a member of the Society 
can have for liis subscription besides a Journal that 
might be borrowed, it is scarcely possible to avoid 
either the thought that representation might at pre¬ 
sent involve “levelling-down,” or the hope that the 
selection of the Society’s Executive may never be 
determined by a mob under the guidance of a few 
active demagogues. 
As closely connected with the important subject of 
pharmaceutical education, we must also refer to the 
discussion on the examinations conducted by the 
Society for the purpose of ascertaining whether 
persons are qualified to perform the functions cf a 
chemist and druggist, and fit to be registered as 
such. Early in the year, Mr. Siebold, in a lecture 
delivered before the Manchester Chemists and 
Druggists’ Association, criticized somewhat severely 
the system adopted in carrying on these examina¬ 
tions, and his assertion that competent men were 
rejected attracted considerable notice. It seemed 
to be the general opinion that Mr. Siebold had been 
too sweeping in bis statements, and likewise that 
some of the alterations suggested by him would not 
be improvements. The subsequent report of Dr. 
Greenhow, the Government visitor, did not bear out 
Mr. Siebold’s views ; and as regards the Minor 
examination, it was then stated that the failures— 
amounting to about one-tliird of the candidates 
—were obviously due either to defective early edu¬ 
cation, or to ignorance of the elements of chemistry, 
and inability to recognize the commonest drugs. 
Moreover it was suggested that, since three years 
had elapsed from the passing of the Pharmacy Act, 
it was time to commence a gradual raising of the 
standard of competence. 
The large proportion of failures at the Prelimi¬ 
nary examination in this, as in former years, still 
continues to furnish evidence of the low standard of 
education in the class from which apprentices have 
hitherto been drawn. At the commencement of the 
year we were able to illustrate the truth of this by 
showing that, in 1870, 220 out of 741 candidates 
failed; but that b} r the end of 1871, 120 out of 
the 220 had succeeded in passing upon presenting 
themselves a second time. It is satisfactory to 
note that there has been a great development ot 
opinion in favour of the rule that a lad must pass 
this examination before he is received as an ap¬ 
prentice. This is a very promising feature, and we 
trust that ere long it may be generally recog¬ 
nized as indispensable. It is to be hoped, too, that 
with a superior class of apprentices, the kind of 
service to be required from them will be more gene¬ 
rally consistent with the requirements of subse¬ 
quent steps in their career than is sometimes the- 
case, so that the disputes which we must refer to 
as certainly an unpleasant feature in our year’s, 
history will disappear from our legal reports, and 
that consistently with the suggestions of the Presi¬ 
dent in his paper on “ Pharmacy in the Labora¬ 
tory,” and of Professor Bedwood in his speech at 
the Crystal Palace, there may be some gradual pro¬ 
gress towards every druggist’s shop being a fit school 
for apprentices to acquire a sound practical know¬ 
ledge of the subjects essential for them. 
At the Brighton meeting of the Pharmaceutical 
Conference attention was again directed to the exa¬ 
minations by Professor Attfield, who strongly 
urged the adoption of more stringent measures to 
meet the evils of “ cram,” and to prevent unqualified 
persons from passing the ordeal of examination, 
while Mr. Schweitzer advocated the plan of making 
the Minor examination compulsory for assistants,, 
and the Major compulsory for all those in business' 
for themselves or as managers. 
Meanwhile, the Board of Examiners had not been 
unmindful of the necessity for progress, or of the- 
propriety of gradually advancing the standard of 
competence originally adopted on the passing of the- 
Pharmacy Act as barely sufficient to guarantee the 
safety of the public. As the result of its delibe¬ 
rations, a statement of amended regulations was 
submitted to the Council at the December meeting. 
These regulations were then discussed and adopted, 
October, 1874, being fixed as the time for their 
coming into force. The chief object they aim 
at is to ensure more thoroughly the practical skill 
of candidates in accordance with the opinion 
put forward in the reports of the Government 
