238 
THE PHARMACEUTICAL JOURNAL AND TRANSACTIONS. [September 16,1871. 
room filled with plasters and other preparations for in¬ 
ternal and external application. 
Passing through the most ancient times, the author 
gets to the early history of pharmacy in France, where 
we meet with a curious obligation the pharmacists of 
the thirteenth century had to take ; it consists of a con¬ 
fession to live and to dio in the true faith, to love, 
honour and respect his parents and former masters, and 
a long list of special items, clearly illustrating the phar¬ 
macist’s position to the general public and to the medical 
profession. 
The first pharmaceutical corporation was established 
in Bruges, 1297 ; at the commencement of the fourteenth 
century they had a large meeting room, a chapel, a cor¬ 
poration seal, and bye-laws ; they enjoyed the exclusive 
privilege of vending medicines, and members of high and 
distinguished families were proud to join them and hold 
office. 
The first regular shop was opened at Paris in 1336, at 
London in 1345, and in Nuremberg in 1404. In 1497 
the first law referring to the inspection of pharmacies 
was published. 
It is surprising to find how very early proper regula¬ 
tion and inspection was recognized in France; a law, 
dated 1352, prescribed that the head of the pharmaceu¬ 
tical corporation, assisted by two masters in medicine, 
chosen by the dean of the 'medical faculty, and by two 
pharmacists appointed by the Provost, should twice a 
year inspect every business in Paris and suburbs, viz. at 
Easter and at All Saints; and this inspection was looked 
upon as so important, that the members elected for the 
business had to sw r ear to be guided in this work only by 
the spirit of the regulation, without favour or malice to 
any one, and to act for the public good and the welfare 
of human nature. 
The pharmacists themselves had also to take solemn 
oath as to the manner in which they carried on their 
business, the concluding sentence of which was that 
they will do nothing against justice or morality of the 
craft, be it from avidity of gain, from particular malice, 
or any other cause whatever. 
The author not unjustly observes that the laws passed 
from time to time in respect to a certain branch of in¬ 
dustry, often give the best idea of its development, and 
for this reason he has collected all the laws respecting 
French pharmacy from 1312 to 1777, the year of the 
foundation of the College of Pharmacy, and thence down 
to the most recent times, and many stringent and salu¬ 
tary regulations are there to be found. 
With true southern liveliness the author describes the 
invention of the enema apparatus, which he looks upon 
as an epoch in pharmacy as important as the discovery 
of America in the history of human civilization. The 
glory of the invention of this instrument, so beneficial to 
suffering mankind, belongs to an Italian, Gatenaria, 
whose name ought to find a modest place together 
with Columbus, Galileo, Gioja and other eminent and 
illustrious Italians; he was compatriot of Columbus 
and Professor at Pavia, where he died in 1496, after 
having spent several years in the perfection of his in¬ 
strument. 
The enema apparatus may be justly named the queen 
of the world, as it has reigned without a rival for 300 
years over the whole Continent, besides Brazil and 
America. The enema came into use soon after the in¬ 
vention of the apparatus itself. Bouvard, physician to 
Louis XIII., applied 220 enemas to this monarch in the 
course of six months ; in the first years of Louis XIV., 
it became the fashion of the day; ladies took three 
or four a day to keep a fresh complexion and the dandies 
used as many for a white skin. Enemas were perfumed 
with orange, angelica, bergamot and roses; and Mr. 
Kernot exclaims enthusiastically, “Oh! setomassequesta 
moda ” (oh. that this fashion would return!) 
The medical profession first hailed the invention with 
delight, but soon found tho application infra dig., and 
handed it over to the pharmacist; but shameful invec¬ 
tives, sarcasms and epigrams hurled at those who exer¬ 
cised the humble duty of applying the apparatus, made- 
them at last resign it to barbers and hospital atten¬ 
dants. 
Asa specimen of these epigrams the author gives the 
epitaph on a tombstone of an ancient pharmacist:— 
“ Ci git qui pour un quart d’($cu 
S’agenouillait devant uu cu.” 
But to return to some of the ancient French laws. A 
decree of Parliament, dated August 3rd, 1536, ordered, 
under a fine of 100 marks silver, of corporeal punish¬ 
ment and eventually the gallows, strict adhesion to cer¬ 
tain rules laid down 1514 ; these rules referred to proper 
inspection, to the preparation of remedies and their quid- 
pro quo. This expression, for the first time officially 
used in this decree, had the honour of passing into all 
languages, and its original meaning was as follows :—A 
great many substances employed by the pharmacists came 
from foreign parts, and, as it often was difficult or im¬ 
possible to obtain them, it became necessary to substitute- 
others somewhat similar in their action; hence qui pro 
quo , quod or quale pro quo, originally meant the substitu¬ 
tion of a drug easily obtainable in place of another scarce 
one. 
The same decree ordained that two medical men and 
four pharmacists, good, honourable, well-established and 
experienced men, after having taken a legal and binding- 
oath, should twice a year, during Lent and in August, 
inspect the drugs, which the pharmacists were bound to- 
expose on a table from six in the morning to six at 
night, and within twenty-four hours after their arrival 
in Paris; and if the drugs were found to be spurious, or 
of inferior quality, they were to be put in a bag, taken, 
before the Provost, and then to bo burnt before the 
offender’s house. The inspectors had on the same day 
to send to the police a report of their examination, and 
to practically demonstrate before the provost the eifi- 
cacy or otherwise of the drug. 
The interesting account of the French laws is followed 
by a history of embalming, and by a curious record of 
poets who sang and wrote the praise of pharmacy, of 
whom we can notice only one or two English writers.. 
In 1665 a remarkable work was published by Dr~ 
Steward, entitled ‘ The Urinal of Physic,’ with an 
appendix on the abuses of medical men. and phar¬ 
macists. 
During tho reign of William III. Samuel Garth pub¬ 
lished a satirical epic named ‘ The Dispensary.’ Fie had 
opened in York a business under the name of dispensary, 
in which he supplied the poorer classes at very low 
prices; this gave rise to so much animosity against 
him on the part of the other pharmacists who had 
combined against him, that he finally was obliged to- 
close his business, when he revenged himself with the 
poem. 
In 1569 a book was published in London under the- 
title ‘ The Secrets of Alexander,’ coming not exactly 
under the description of pharmaceutical poetry, but con¬ 
taining many excellent remedies for various diseases, 
wounds and accidents; prescriptions to preserve eternal 
youth and to stave off old age. A very simple cure of 
the plague is as follows:—“ Procure a branch of the rue, 
of the nut and of the fig-tree ; eat them all three, and 
you will be cured.” Among much nonsense and preju¬ 
dice of the times is found much good advice. There- 
are excellent receipts for perfumed oils and waters, 
which might be followed with advantage at the present 
time. 
The second part, dealing with the state of pharmacy 
in different countries, must form the subject of a separate 
article, as the accounts of pharmacy in China and other- 
foreign countries will, we believe, be read with great 
interest. 
