•474 
THE PHARMACEUTICAL JOURNAL AND TRANSACTIONS; [December 9,1871. 
the spelling is faulty, and the commonest rules of syntax 
;are disregarded. 
How can this he altered ? Two classes have to he 
considered, those already in the business and those about 
to enter it. Of the former there are three divisions, viz. 
those apprentices of one, two, three, or four years’ stand¬ 
ing, those who were apprentices when the Act was 
passed and have since become assistants, and those assis¬ 
tants who neglected registering at the time proper to 
-qualify them for passing the Modified examination. 
Where elementary education has been neglected the case 
is difficult; where good, a little systematic persevering 
«tudy will recover much that has been lost. In either 
case, they should work with hearty goodwill at the 
.grammar and medical Latin, with which, from their 
business experience, many of these candidates, under or¬ 
dinary circumstances, should be well acquainted. For 
apprentices of any number of years’ standing, the early 
•education being good, a little perseverance should set all 
xight; but for those who never have been properly edu¬ 
cated, there can be but one course—go to school as soon 
as possible. But how is this to be accomplished ? Em¬ 
ployers must aid in this good, this essential work. They 
can materially assist, and in this way: let some time, 
cither morning or evening, be devoted to study ; do not 
aay there is no time, but make it. 
In every town are to be found teachers obtainable at 
-a moderate cost quite equal to the task. Those gentle¬ 
men who, knowing what was passing respecting phar¬ 
maceutical education and examinations during the last 
ten years, yet took apprentices without reference to the 
amount of education they had received, should help in 
this great work. 
It has been clearly shown that Latin is the first desi¬ 
deratum ; let its study be raised to a proper standard, 
and English will soon follow in the same direction. 
But, let what may be done, it must be with a will and 
determination to conquer, and that can only be accom¬ 
plished by industry, attention and perseverance. 
Tlius far concerning the apprentices and assistants above 
alluded to who are actually in the business, having regular 
business duties to perform, who must, if they are to com¬ 
mence business as chemists and druggists , pass the Prelimi¬ 
nary examination, and after that, in due course, the Minor. 
For them a certain amount of sympathy is felt, and for 
them masters are solicited to give, as they most conve¬ 
niently can, time for study and help in carrying it 
through. 
There is the other class which claims at the present time 
.some attention,—the class of future apprentices. 
It has lately been put forward that the Preliminary 
shoidd be passed before indentures of apprenticeship are 
•signed; be it so. The Board is of opinion that this point 
cannot be too strongly impressed upon parents who may 
be desirous of placing their sons as apprentices to che¬ 
mists and druggists or pharmacists, nor upon those gen¬ 
tlemen who undertake the responsibility of having ap¬ 
prentices, for, whatever may have been in the past, it is 
clear that in the future they should pass either the Pre¬ 
liminary of the Pharmaceutical Society or the Local 
Examination of one of the Universities or other approved 
examining body before indentures are signed; this ac¬ 
complished, a source of anxiety, alike to pupils, parents 
end masters, would be successfully dealt with, and the 
.-apprentice would he able to devote mind and body in 
acquiring a just and proper knowledge of the business, 
and becoming in every respect a better and more service¬ 
able apprentice to his master, who, at the same time, 
would feel that he was instructing one in whose educa¬ 
tional attainments he could place confidence. 
In drawing up this report—setting forth the candi- 
•dates’ weak points and suggesting a possible way of over¬ 
coming their difficulties—but one spirit has pervaded the 
Board and induced it to take this course,—an honest de¬ 
sire to help those who evidently stand in need of it, and 
-at the same time draw attention to that which is most 
desirable for the future. Although th? Board looks upon 
the number of failures as large, it is believed that other 
Examining Boards experience the same results ; but the 
Board is most desirous of seeing a reduction in the num¬ 
ber of failures. 
It is recommended to present candidates that they 
should read attentively the remarks made for their 
guidance which have already been published in the 
Pharmaceutical Journal, Third Series, No. 50, p. 991. 
Air. Carr said he had been much pleased, on recently 
trying to negotiate an apprenticeship for a young man 
in whom he took an interest, to find that his pass¬ 
ing the Preliminary examination was insisted upon before 
the indentures were signed. He hoped this would be¬ 
come general. 
Mr. Woolley said he had no doubt that this report 
would be of great national benefit, in pointing out the 
deficiencies which existed in education at the present 
day ; but he regretted that the Report had not gone also 
into the question of the Modified examination. 
Mr. Brown was glad Mr. Woolley had called atten¬ 
tion to this matter, which he thought was an important 
omission from an otherwise able and very instructive 
report. 
A long discussion followed, in which Messrs. Stod- 
dart, Smith, Groves, Atherton, Savage, Edwards, 
Sandford, Reynolds, and the President took part; 
and it was ultimately understood that if Mr. Brown, or 
any other gentlemen, would furnish data to work upon, 
the President would endeavour to draw up a special 
report on the Modified examination. 
It was then resolved that the Report should be pub¬ 
lished in the Pharmaceutical Journal, and that a se¬ 
parate copy should be sent to each Member of Council 
and Local Secretary. 
Resolved—That the following having passed the Minor 
Examination be elected Associates of the Society:— 
Anderson, Alexander .Elgin. 
Breckon, Hugh Scott.Whitby. 
Bryden, John ..Edinburgh. 
Druce, George Claridge.Northampton. 
Hanbury, Frederick Janson .... London. 
Hyne, Harry.Bristol. 
Mason, Jonathan.. .Workington. 
Peel, Alfred .Manchester. 
Walsh, Albert .Richmond,Surrey. 
Warner, George Henry Q.March. 
Wooldridge, George .Birmingham. 
Three persons, having paid their subscriptions for the 
present year, and a nominal fine of one shilling, were 
restored to membership. 
Resolved—That the following having been duly regis¬ 
tered as Pharmaceutical Chemists, be respectively 
granted a diploma stamped with the seal of the 
Society:— 
Hughes, James...Swansea. 
Peters, David .Llandilo. 
Resolved—That a copy of the Journal be sent regu¬ 
larly as published to the Leicester Chemists’ As¬ 
sistants and Apprentices Association. 
EXAMINATIONS IN EDINBUHGH. 
November 28 th, 1871. 
Present—Messrs. Aitken, Buchanan, Gilmour, Kemp 
and Young. 
MINOR EXAMINATION. 
Seven candidates presented themselves; Jive failed, the 
following two passed, and were declared qualified to be 
registered as 
