232 
THE PHARMACEUTICAL JOURNAL AND TRANSACTIONS. [September 17, 1870. 
to secure the success of the present meeting. The ex¬ 
hibition of objects connected with Pharmacy has been 
entirely organized by the resident members. The thanks 
of the meeting will doubtless he fully expressed to the 
Local Committee when, at the close of the sittings, the 
members will have had opportunities of noticing the 
extent to which the desire for their comfort and pleasure 
have been thoughtfully and completely anticipated. 
On the motion of Mr. Sumner, seconded by Mr. J. 
Shaw, the Report and an accompanying Balance Sheet 
were adopted. 
The following gentlemen were in attendance as dele¬ 
gates from various societies:— 
Bristol Pharmaceutical Association. —The President, 
Mr. Stoddart. 
Nottingham ami Notts Chemists' Association. —Messrs. 
J. H. Atherton, J. Rayner. 
Edinburgh Branch of the Pharmaceutical Society .— 
Messrs. H. C. Baildon, George Blanshard, D. Brown, 
jun., and J. Mackay. 
Manchester Chemists and Druggists' Association .— 
Messrs. W. J. Brown, W. J. Halliday, J. T. Slugg, 
F. B. Benger and R. Hampson; Members of Council 
who may be present. 
London Chemists' Association. —Mr. W. Martindale. 
Ashton and Dukinfield Chemists' Association. —Messrs. 
Jabez Waterhouse and W. Bostock. 
Scarborough Chemists' Association. —Mr. J. Whitfield. 
Leeds Chemists' Association. —Messrs. R. M. Atkinson 
and R. Reynolds. 
Bradford Chemists' Association. —Dr. Parkinson, Ph.D. 
Sunderland Chemists’ Association. —The Hon. Sec., Mr. 
J. J. Nicholson. 
Bath Chemists' Association. —The Treasurer and Mr. 
C. Ekin. 
Brighton Chemists' Association. —Mr. Savage. 
New castle-on-Tyne Chemical Society. —Mr. H. B. Brady. 
On the motion of Mr. Baildon, seconded by Mr. 
Evans, the following foreign members of the Conference 
were elected:—Mr. Carlos Murray, of Buenos Ayres : 
Senhor Joaquim Correa de Mello, of Campinas, Brazil; 
and Professor Soubeiran, of Paris. The number of 
foreign members, which by the rules of the Conference, 
is limited to twenty, is now ten. 
The President then delivered the following 
Introductory Address. 
Gentlemen,—It has now become an annual custom to 
commence our Conference meetings with an introductory 
address, the principal object of which is to briefly recall 
to our memories some of the most prominent observations 
or discoveries that have taken place during the previous 
year. Nor is the custom less instructive than interest¬ 
ing, for all who are in the habit of reading from month 
to month the labours of others know full well the value 
of such occasional reviews. 
The prosperous career of the Pharmaceutical Con¬ 
ference is fully apparent in this our seventh meeting, 
which promises to fairly rival any of the former ones, 
both in number of visitors and interest of papers. 
The number of new members is so unprecedented as to 
call for special notice as a great subject for congratula¬ 
tion. No fewer than 900 having been added to our list 
since the last meeting is a plain and unmistakable proof 
that the institution of the Society has not been in vain. 
Indeed, if any evidence were necessary to prove the ap¬ 
preciation of our annual gatherings, it would be most 
abundantly afforded by the good people of Liverpool, 
who have left nothing undone to make our visit success¬ 
ful, and ourselves at home. 
I feel assured that it is not only the wish of your 
Council, but of all the members, that our various visits 
throughout the kingdom should be productive of good, 
by planting a seed or two of the tree of knowledge, which 
by a little careful training and judicious culture after 
our departure, may in after years yield the fruit of in¬ 
creased intelligence. 
It appears to me that the fundamental idea of the Con¬ 
ference is the furtherance of Pharmacy proper, by di¬ 
recting- attention to the proper means of scientific educa¬ 
tion, or judicious training, and the advancement of our 
status as a profession. 
Nowhere in the kingdom is there a better spirit for 
improvement or stronger ambition for advance shown., 
than by the inhabitants of this part of her Majesty’s 
dominions. I would therefore appeal to their experience 
whether or no the cultivation of the mind in scientific 
pursuits be not an exquisite source of pleasurable enjoy¬ 
ment and actual profit. It may be some curious reaction 
to be unravelled, some puzzling phenomenon to be ex¬ 
plained, or the most profitable method of conducting 
an operation to be found, which, to the intelligent mind, 
furnishes a zest for exploration that must be felt to be 
properly understood. 
What pleasure is there so innocent or so enthusiastic 
as the mutual examination of perhaps a common object 
under the microscope, or unfolding the nature of a sub¬ 
stance with the subtle art of chemistry F 
I do not for one moment believe that such works are 
only for the anchoret or the recluse; nay, a spirit of 
enduring and cordial fellowship is created, by the glo¬ 
rious relish of meeting a kindred spirit, to whom you can 
show a treasure, or with whom you can have an hour’s 
chat. 
In every age the pursuit of knowledge has been the 
theme of song and verse. The very nature of a man 
possessing a “mens sana in corpore sano” forces him to 
appreciate all that is beautiful, and fills him with an 
insatiable desire to discover the cause of the many 
wonders that are continually taking place around him. 
“Not a tree, 
A plant, or leaf, or blossom, but contain 
A folio volume. We may read, and read, 
And read again, and still find something new,— 
Something to please, and something to instruct.” 
That horrid, but perhaps necessary cry, cui bono ? must 
sometimes be met, and surely past experience can satisfy 
the most mercenary spirit, and show that the so-called 
hobby of a philosopher, foolish as it may seem, fre¬ 
quently gives birth to results that must startle the most 
cold-hearted utilitarian. 
I cannot endorse the assertion of Adam Smith that a 
philosopher is a person “whose trade is to do nothing 
and speculate in everything.” Where would be our 
telegraph if Faraday and Oersted had not studied the 
properties of an electrified wire P Or the wonderful cal¬ 
culations of astronomy if Newton had let the fall of an 
apple pass by unheeded ? To the student nothing should 
be considered too trifling or unimportant. 
But it is to the improvement of our own particular 
profession of pharmacy that I wish to call your atten¬ 
tion, hoping, as I do most sincerely, to enlist your 
interest. 
We live and have our being in complete subjection to 
Nature’s laws. How foolish, then, to remain without 
learning what those laws require, so that we may have 
them with us and not against us! 
Pharmacy, of all pursuits, is the one most dependent 
on the proper use of these laws. The pharmaceutist 
must make the most he can of the numerous animal, ve¬ 
getable and mineral substances with which he has to do, 
and to carry on his operations with the view of produc¬ 
ing the best results. I am convinced that the most pro¬ 
sperous and happy of our body are those that bear these 
things in mind, and who look upon mental cultivation 
as a delight, and not as a necessary but disagreeable 
task. 
Probably of all occupations for procuring the means 
of subsistence none surpasses our own in the small 
return for the large amount of work done. Truly the 
