September 24,1870.] THE PHARMACEUTICAL JOURNAL AND TRANSACTIONS. 
247 
♦ 
SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 24 , 1870 . 
THE BRITISH ASSOCIATION. 
The Parliament of Science that has been holding 
its annual session at Liverpool during the last week 
will by tills time have been prorogued, and the op¬ 
portunity it affords for communicating an impulse to 
scientific research, or for giving a scientific direction 
to various practical affairs, will have passed by for 
the present. There has been no lack of interesting 
topics for discussion in the several sections, while 
the addresses have been perhaps more than usually 
attractive, both as regards their subject-matter, and 
by reason of their authorship. Professor Huxley’s 
historical review of the ideas connected with the 
doctrines of spontaneous generation could scarcely 
have been so successful in other hands than his; and 
the task of treating upon the imagination as an in¬ 
strument of scientific research, could scarcely have 
been entrusted to any one more fitted to do justice to 
this theme than Professor Tyndall. The elucidation 
of scientific principles connected with ship-building, 
and the discussion of savage conditions of our ances¬ 
try, could not have been dealt with more appropri¬ 
ately than at the hands of Rankine and Lubbock. 
The proximity of Liverpool to the smoky districts 
of St. Helen’s and Widnes, the chief seats of the 
Lancashire chemical trade, was a sufficient reason 
for the presence of a large number of chemists at 
this meeting, and for the preponderance of papers re¬ 
lating to chemical manufactures. These papers 
have in several instances given rise to valuable 
discussions, besides being in themselves of great 
interest. 
But that feature of the Association meeting which 
is probably at once the most beneficial and pleasant, 
viz. the excursions, has this year been especially de¬ 
veloped in the chemical section of the Association 
and the Conference meeting. Last week the mem¬ 
bers of the Pharmaceutical Conference paid a visit 
to the Chemical Works at Widnes and Runcorn, 
where they inspected several new methods, and 
were afterwards very hospitably entertained by the 
Liverpool Chemists at Halton Castle. Two days 
after, the chemical section of the British Association 
made an excursion to St. Helen’s, and, on Thursday, 
there was another excursion to Widnes. There 
were, on these occasions, so many interesting opera¬ 
tions to be seen, that we are compelled to defer at¬ 
tempting any description of them for the present. 
But at the same time we cannot omit calling atten¬ 
tion to the advantages resulting from these excur¬ 
sions. Apart from the mere instruction they afford, 
there is no pltase of the proceedings of the Associa¬ 
tion or the Conference which is more calculated to pro¬ 
mote good feeling amongst pharmaceutists through¬ 
out the country, by rubbing down individual aspe¬ 
rities that have often no other ground for existence 
than what Professor Tyndall would call an unscien¬ 
tific use of the imagination. They also afford a 
stimulus to thought and an incentive to exertion, 
which probably could not be obtained in any other way 
so effectually or so agreeably. We have here spoken 
of the Conference together -with the British Associa¬ 
tion, for the two are intimately related; and the 
founders as well as the supporters of the Association, 
should regard with pride and satisfaction such a 
realization of their objects as is presented by the 
British Pharmaceutical Conference. 
THE SCHOOL OF PHARMACY. 
Now that the scientific meetings in the provinces 
are nearly over, attention will naturally be directed to 
the addresses to students at the opening of the various 
schools in London. To pharmacists the most inter¬ 
esting of these will doubtless be that to be delivered 
at the commencement of the session in Bloomsbury 
Square. Mr. Schacht has been chosen by the Coun¬ 
cil tliis year to deliver the inaugural address on the 
occasion of the opening of the session, when the 
prizes and certificates awarded to the successful 
students of the past session mil be distributed. He 
is well known for his efforts in favour of improved 
pharmaceutical education, and as one of those who 
were first to avail themselves of the educational ad¬ 
vantages provided by the Society some twenty-five 
years ago, his words of advice will have great weight. 
The Council, in inviting the attendance of gentle¬ 
men connected with the Society, has been pleased to 
extend the invitation to ladies. We hope that a 
hearty response will be made, and that a very suc¬ 
cessful meeting will be the result. 
A letter was read before the Chemical section of 
the British Association, which had been addressed 
to it on behalf of the Council of the Herman Che¬ 
mical Society of Berlin by Professors C. A. Martius 
and A. W. Hofmann. The letter pointed out the 
great urgency for promptly doing something to coun¬ 
teract the effects of the overcrowding of the sick 
and wounded in the hospitals, and asked the co-ope¬ 
ration of the section in obtaining from chemical 
manufacturers donations of the following disinfec¬ 
tants :—liquid residues of the manufacture of chlo¬ 
rine, chloride of lime, green vitriol, permanganate of 
potash, and carbolic acid (crude and purified). 
Communications on the subject are to be addressed 
to Professor Hofmann, care of Dr. Wichelhaus, 33, 
G-eorgens Strasse, Berlin. 
We think it right, in connection with tliis subject, 
to refer to the paper we extracted last week from our 
contemporary the Practitioner, showing the relative 
o 3 
