730 
THE PHARMACEUTICAL JOURNAL AND TRANSACTIONS. 
[March 11,1871. 
Perhaps it would be exacting to expect tlie regular 
attendance of all tlie Councillors, members of the 
Board of Examiners, and the great majority of me¬ 
tropolitan members, many of whom possess a fund of 
practical knowledge of chemistry and pharmacy which 
will probably die with them, and the exposition of 
which would awaken in many a rising pharmacist’s 
breast a feeling of intense gratitude. But we feel that 
it is incumbent on them to arouse themselves, and re¬ 
member that there is still ample opportunity for 
continuing the educational scheme, commenced in 
1841, on a higher platform, and that a large number 
of assistants, well grounded in theoretical knowledge, 
are still more or less deficient in that sound practical 
knowledge which has made the world-wide repute of 
some of our senior members. 
Let each of our readers then manfully help the 
Society in this matter, by active work and frequent 
attendance, where possible ; it is a duty he owes alike 
to the Society, and, in the elegant language of Mr. 
Schacht, “to our common Mistress Pharmacy.” 
SCIENTIFIC HOBBIES. 
At the risk of being accused of making a trite ob- 
; orvation, we are inclined to repeat at this time what 
lias, in different forms, often been said before, that 
the man who can lift himself out of the routine and 
drudgery of his calling, and look upon it as some¬ 
thing more than the mere means of obtaining a sub¬ 
sistence, will find that in so doing he makes it much 
more tolerable. Moreover, he will secure a sub¬ 
stantial benefit by his increased skill in his craft. 
Of no calling is this more true than of pharmacy, 
lie who only sees a cause for annoyance in the un¬ 
expected turbidity of a mixture, or the unusual ap¬ 
pearance of a drug, knows nothing of the pleasure 
which is experienced in bringing the results of a 
favourite study to assist in unravelling the mystery, 
to say nothing of the additional profit of being able 
to do so. We need only allude to the articles, by 
Mr. Stoddart, on Bristol Pharmacology, which are 
now appearing in the columns of this Journal, as an 
illustration of the way in which thg_ subjects of daily 
business may be used for obtaining a considerable 
amount of healthy recreation. 
In the art of pharmacy there is much that is purely 
scientific, and its followers may well be proud of 
some who are to be found in their ranks. This is 
iall 3 r recognized in the world of science, which is not 
at all disposed to look upon as presumption, the am¬ 
bition of pharmacists to take rank as scientific men, 
nor like another Jove to resent the encroachment 
upon its prerogative— 
“ Maturate fugam, regique koec dicite vestro: 
Non illi imperium polagi, saevumque tridentem, 
Sed milii sorte datum.” 
On the contrary, it has shown itself ready to en¬ 
courage them, and to accord them what honours may 
fairly be their due. 
But many will be ready to say, that there is a long 
step between scientific studies and the weighing out 
of pennyworths of carbonate of soda, or perhaps the 
grinding of paints. This is true; but to such we 
would recommend the consideration of the remarks 
of Dr. Carpenter, in the first of the two lectures 
which have just been delivered by him on the micro¬ 
scope and its revelations. He says, “ I hold it 
“ extremely important that every young man should 
“ learn not only how to work, but how to play. I 
“ think that to find a means of constant and attrac- 
“ tive recreation, and especially one which combines 
“ the double character of quiet work at home, and, 
“ on the other hand, gives a zest and interest to a 
“ walk abroad, is to find that which is one of the 
“ very best appliances that any home can have.” 
Or, again, where he speaks of “ one of the greatest 
“ comforts to any man of busy life, the comfort of 
“ turning to something which forms a quiet occupa- 
“ tion,” as tending more than anything else to dis¬ 
tract one from the cares and fatigues of a busy life. 
This may seem to some far-fetched, but those who 
have tried it know well that there is a considerable 
amount of truth in the proverbial paradox, that “ a 
“ change of work is as good as a rest.” 
The particular study advocated by Dr. Carpenter 
is one in point. Although it might have been ex¬ 
pected by a few that the lectures would have had a 
rather more special bearing upon the application of 
the microscope to the purposes of pharmacy, still all 
who heard or have read them must feel convinced 
that the pharmacist who is a skilled microscopist 
stands upon a vantage ground when compared with 
his unskilled brethren. And this is true of almost 
any study in respect to pharmacy. The man who 
looks beyond the drudgery is in a fair way to lift 
himself above it. He will, besides, experience that 
higher pleasure, so eloquently expressed in the 
address delivered at the opening of our present ses¬ 
sion, when it was asked, “ Is there so great a dif- 
“ ference between a thing of beauty and a thing of 
“ truth, that one is a joy for ever, and the other 
“ may become a weariness in a paltry lifetime ?” 
THE MILK JOURNAL. 
We have already referred to the establishment of 
a laboratory in connection with the Milk Journal. 
From the number of that journal which has just 
issued, it would seem that considerable activity pre¬ 
vails in that quarter, and that a kind of crusade has 
been entered upon against the dishonest milkman. 
Country companies which add to their profits by the 
questionable process of slamming; workhouses sup¬ 
plied with milk consisting half of milk and half 
water; and a whole multitude of private malefac- 
