804 
TIIE PHARMACEUTICAL JOURNAL AND TRANSACTIONS 
[April 8, 1871. 
being substituted for another, solely through varia¬ 
tion in nomenclature. But I need say nothing fur¬ 
ther on this head; it has already been adverted to 
at the commencement of this paper, and has been 
fully and ably treated, either specially or inciden¬ 
tally, by the following writers on pharmacopoeial 
nomenclature :— 
Pharmaceutical Journal: Jacob Bell, Dr. Paris, 
Dr. Pereira, Yol. II., 1st Ser., pp. 369-374; Mr. E. 
Thompson, Vol. VIII., 1st. Ser., p. 3 ; Mr. A. F. 
Haselden, Vol. I., 2nd Ser., p. 112 ; “ C. W. M.” and 
the well-known initials “ C. W. Q.,” Vol. III., 2nd 
Ser., p. 335 ; Professor Redwood, Vol. VI., 2nd Ser., 
p. 566 ; in Vol. VII., 2nd Ser., “ On the Vegetable 
Drugs,” by Mr. Daniel Hanbury, p. 96 ; Mr. Henry 
Deane, p. 101; Mr. Proctor, p. 381; Mr. T. Lowe, 
p. 409; Mr. J. C. Brough, Vol. VIII., 2nd Ser., 
p. 214; Mr. J. C. Wilson, Vol. IX., 2nd Ser., p. 363. 
Properties of Names. —The names of pharma¬ 
copoeial chemicals should fulfil certain functions or 
possess definite qualities, positive or negative, 
namely,— 
1. The name should, as far as possible and prac¬ 
ticable, indicate composition. This Lavoisierian 
principle is, as I have already shown, one of neces¬ 
sity as well as expediency. 
2. One name should be associated with only one 
substance; but the converse I would by no means 
urge, namely, that one substance should be known 
by only one name, synonyms being useful both from 
a theoretical and a practical point of view. 
3. A name, even if fallen out of use, should not 
be transferred to a substance having properties dif¬ 
ferent from the original substance. 
4. The name of an official chemical substance, 
that is, a name officially recognized in national 
pharmacopoeias, should possess the minimum of in¬ 
stability. This quality is most important. Verbal 
changes of almost any kind are unpopular; changes 
in chemical nomenclature have done much to retard 
the progress of chemistry amongst the people; but 
changes in the names of pharmacopoeial chemicals 
are objectionable in the interests of medical practi¬ 
tioners, their patients and pharmacists. 
The free employment of Latin and Greek nu¬ 
merals in a chemical name was strongly advocated 
by the late Professor Miller. But though highly 
useful in general chemical literature for indicating 
details of composition, the principle is too dependent 
on hypothesis respecting atomic values and weights, 
and too susceptible of disturbance caused by new 
discoveries to possess the element of permanence; 
hence it must be avoided in pharmaceutical che¬ 
mistry. 
5. A pharmacopoeial name should admit of being 
either easily spoken or written, both in the full and 
in the contracted form, in modern languages and in 
Latin. ° 
6. When close resemblance between two salts is 
indicated by identity in all but one of the syllables 
of their names, that syllable should be at the com¬ 
mencement of the names and not at the end, where 
it would be liable to be omitted by a prescriber. 
Indeed, such variations are often indicated with most 
usefulness by a separate word altogether, confusion 
and even mischief being thereby avoided. Thus, for 
calomel and corrosive sublimate the names subchlo¬ 
ride of mercury and perchloride of mercury are 
greatly to be preferred to mercurous chloride and 
mercuric chloride ; for a physician, in -writing a pre¬ 
scription, would contract the former to hydr. subchlor. 
and hydr. perehlor., which are still sufficiently dis¬ 
tinctive, while the others would both be liable to be 
contracted to hyd. chlor., and a patient perhaps be 
killed by corrosive sublimate instead of cured by 
calomel. So green iodide of mercury and red iodide 
of mercury are better than mercurous iodide and 
mercuric iodide , or green sulphate of iron and persul¬ 
phate of iron to ferrous sulphate and ferric sul¬ 
phate ; any greater precision that may be desired 
being given by chemical formulae. 
7. A name should not be changed for mere pur¬ 
pose of euphony, real or fancied; thus, clilorliydric 
for hydrochloric. 
8. Names of pharmacopoeial chemicals should be 
consistent with each other. 
9. The chemical names employed in pharmacy 
should be consistent with those used in other 
branches of applied chemistry, and with the lan¬ 
guage of scientific chemistry and general chemical 
literature. I sa 3 r consistent, certainly not identical. 
For 1 believe the time, has come when, by making a 
few slight alterations in the terminations of a few of 
our chemical names, we shall have a system of phar¬ 
maceutical nomenclature which, while perfectly har¬ 
monious with, is quite independent of, scientific 
chemical nomenclature, and which therefore contains 
greater elements of permanence than any yet adopted. 
These alterations, be it noted, are in the termina¬ 
tions of the names only; hence the contracted 
names almost universally used by physicians and 
pharmacists would in no way be interfered with,— 
an argument which, if somewhat left-handed, must 
be admitted to be one of great strength. 
(To be continued.) 
A DISINFECTING APPARATUS. 
BY A. W. GERRARD. 
Tliis little machine is intended to supersede the 
clumsy and inconvenient method recently proposed 
for the elimination of carbolic acid vapour and sul¬ 
phurous acid gas, by means of heated fire-shovels, 
warming-pans, saucepans, etc. Its parts consist of 
the body, which is about the size of a quart measure, 
its sides being fine wire gauze; it has likewise a lid 
