THE PHARMACEUTICAL JOURNAL AND TRANSACTIONS. [February 17, 1872. 
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the Liverpool Polytechnic Society, the New York Druggists’ 
Circular , and Diary of the Chemist and Druggist. 
The President called attention to the contribution 
to the Chicago Fund, which was still open, and invited 
the members who had it in their power, to co-operate in 
its behalf. 
Mr. Abraham explained the nature and object of a 
series of lectures on elementary botany, by Dr. Carter, 
nt the Royal Institution, originated by the Liverpool 
Field Naturalists’ Club, and which the associates of the 
Association were invited to join. Mr. Abraham then 
.made a few observations on the preparation of liquor 
potassm, promising to complete a short paper on the 
subject, and read it at a subsequent meeting. 
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CHEMICAL SOCIETY. 
At the Meeting of this Society, on Thursday, February 
1st, Dr. Fr.ank.land, F.R.S., President, in the chair, 
when the ordinary business of the Society had been 
transacted, a “ Note on the Crystalline Principle of Bar-, 
hadoes Aloes” was read by the author, Dr. W. A. Tilden, 
in which he described a new derivative of aloin. This 
is chloralo'in, which crystallizes from boiling water in 
yellow silky needles, bearing considerable resemblance 
to the corresponding bromine compound bromalo'in. 
Dr. C. R. A. Wright then read an elaborate paper on 
“ The Relations between the Atomic Hypothesis and the 
"Condensed Symbolic Expression of Chemical Facts and 
Changes known as Dissected (Structural) Formulae,” in 
the first part of which he showed the possibility of ex¬ 
pressing chemical facts without reference to the atomic 
theory, and in the second examined how far these facts 
could be accounted for by the atomic hypothesis. 
A long and very interesting discussion ensued, in which 
some of the speakers advocated the employment of the 
atomic theory to a greater, or less extent, as promoting 
the progress of chemical science, whilst others desired 
its abolition. 
SOCIETY OF ARTS. 
At the Meeting of this Society on Wednesday evening 
last, a paper on “ The Study of Economic Botany ; its 
Claims Educationally and Commercially Considered,” 
was read by Mr. James Collins. The paper commenced 
by pointing out the importance of the study of economic 
botany and its practical utility as forming the very 
groundwork and foundation of commerce and manufac¬ 
ture, and, consequently, of national prosperity. Hence, an 
acquaintance with the science would enable a person to 
"take a more important place in the world’s workshop, and 
would better fit him for the counting-house, the market, 
the shop or the home, either in this country or abroad. 
I he author therefore recommended that in schools two 
•or three hours each week should be devoted to elemen- 
itaiy lessons on the best-known and most commonly used 
vegetable products, and that these lessons should be sup¬ 
plemented by collections of specimens, and, where possi¬ 
ble, visits to local museums. Some remarks then followed 
xipon the proper objects to be kept in view in the forma¬ 
tion of museums. 
.The commercial importance of this subject was next 
more particularly referred to, and it was stated that 
partly from the lack of suitable knowledge no systematic 
•efforts were made by our merchants as a"whole to search 
the earth for its treasures. Such attempts as are made 
by colonists and others to introduce to the market sub¬ 
stances which they think would prove useful are gene¬ 
rally rendered futile from the want of ability on the part 
of the collector to forward such specimens as could be 
recognized; or, if recognized, they were often found to be 
obtained from two or three different botanical sources. 
It was suggested that a good trade or commercial mu¬ 
seum would, be of great value to merchants and manufac¬ 
turers, where they might have opportunities of judging 
whether in some cases such substances could be utilized 
by them. 
The cultivation of economic plants not at present under 
cultivation was then alluded to, and their acclimatization 
in localities where the various elements of success were 
more under control than in their native habitat. It was 
stated that we could not depend upon spontaneous forest 
growth for a regular supply of any product in consider¬ 
able demand, and this was illustrated by a description of 
the destruction of caoutchouc-trees which goes on under 
the present system of collection. On the other hand, the 
valuable results arising from a scientific cultivation were 
illustrated by reference to the cinchona group. Mr. 
Collins urged that much good might be done by the 
constitution of a new society or a section of an existing 
one which would take steps to promote a proper investi¬ 
gation of this important branch of the science of botany. 
He suggested also as a probable source of much valuable 
information, the systematic examination of the numerous 
collections which have been madp by travellers and not 
utilized. 
PHILADELPHIA COLLEGE OF PHARMACY. 
At the Meeting of the Philadelphia College of Phar¬ 
macy, on January 16 th, Professor Maisch exhibited the 
seed of Myristica fataa, or male nutmeg, which he stated 
was occasionally found in the shops on the Continent, 
generally worm-eaten, in three conditions—kernel, ker¬ 
nel and shell, and kernel, seed-shell and mace. The 
flavour of the kernel and mace is greatly inferior to that 
©f the true nutmeg and mace. He did not know to 
what use they were applied unless it were that of adul¬ 
teration. 
The Professor then exhibited a specimen of Peruvian 
bark and a very large cone of Finns Lambertiana. The 
Peruvian bark, he stated, had been sent to Philadelphia, 
by a New York house, for Calisaya, but possessed none 
of its characters, having a coarsely fibrous liber, covered 
with a thick, soft cork. A similar, if not the same 
article, had been sent, also from New York, to that city 
as red bark. 
A conversation then followed between Messrs. Procter 
and Maisch in regard to the cinchonas. Prof. Maisch 
stated that Mr. Broughton and Mr. Howard had found 
an unusually large percentage of alkaloids in barks from 
cinchona-trees cultivated in India, proving that careful 
cultivation increases the percentage of alkaloids. 
Prof. Procter asked the question, whether the per¬ 
centage of alkaloids in the younger and _ older bark of 
cinchona-trees growing in South America had ever been 
ascertained ? 
Prof. Maisch replied that Prof. Ivarsten, who had 
spent about ten years in Venezuela, was perhaps the 
only one who had examined, on the spot, South Ame¬ 
rican cinchona bark from well-authenticated species, 
and found that the percentage of alkaloids increased as 
the young bark became older. 
The Californian pine cone had been sent by Mr. Wen- 
zell, of San Francisco, who recently read a paper before 
the Californian Pharmaceutical Society on the hydro¬ 
carbon obtained from another species, the volatile oil of 
which - appears to be extensively used in California for 
various purposes. 
Prof. Bridges then spoke of the bicarbonate of soda 
presented to the College from the Pennsylvania Salt 
Works, at Natrona (on exhibition at the last meeting), 
and stated that he had examined one specimen, and that 
several others were in course of examination by one of 
the students in the practical laboratory connected with 
