March 23, 1872.] 
THE PHARMACEUTICAL JOURNAL AND TRANSACTIONS. 
773 
was one more used perhaps in modern pharmacy than 
any other, viz. water. They were all very much in¬ 
debted to Mr. Slugg for the pains he had taken in the 
arrangement of his paper. 
Mr. F. B. Benger said those who were interested in 
the subject Mr. Slugg had brought before them, and 
were willing to turn from the pharmacy to the pharma¬ 
cists of the Bible, would find an interesting paper on the 
“ Dignity of Ancient Pharmacy,” by M. Donovan, in 
the Pharm. Jouiin. for October, 1862, not only did pro¬ 
fessional physicians practise pharmacy, but emperors, 
prophets and apostles occupied themselves with amateur 
dispensing,—among others, Solomon, David and Agrippa, 
were versed in the materia medica of the age ; and the 
p>rophet Esdras, while an exile in Babylon, invented a 
celebrated medicine containing a hundred and ninety 
ingredients. 
A cordial vote of thanks, proposed by Mr. Fisher, se¬ 
conded by Mr. Peatson, was carried with acclamation. 
The Chairman then read a letter addressed to the 
President of the association, by Mr. W. Y. Radley, of 
Sheffield, on the subject of provincial education and the 
aid which might be looked for from the funds of the 
Pharmaceutical Society. After some discussion the con¬ 
sideration of the subject was referred to the Council of 
the Association. 
Mr. Siebold announced his intention of delivering, 
during the summer, a gratuitous course of lectures on 
“ Analytical Chemistry,” admitting only those students 
who had shown their interest in self-improvement by 
attending previous classes. 
SHEFFIELD PHARMACEUTICAL AND 
CHEMICAL ASSOCIATION. 
The Education of Chemists’ Assistants. 
A Special Meeting of the chemists and druggists of 
Sheffield and neighbourhood was held on Friday night, 
March 15, in the rooms of the Music Hall, to consider 
the attitude of the Council of the Pharmaceutical Society 
towards institutions for pharmaceutical education in the 
provinces, and further to consider the correspondence 
that had been passing between the Sheffield Council and 
the Council at Bloomsbury Square; Mr. W. Y. Radley, 
President of the Sheffield Association, occupied the chair, 
and there was a fair attendance. 
The Chairman said the subject of the education of 
chemists’ assistants in the provinces—that they might 
be enabled to pass the strict examinations required by 
the Pharmacy Act—was one of great importance, and it 
was in order that the assistants might be supported that 
the Sheffield and kindred associations had been formed. 
At the annual meeting in May, of the Pharmaceutical 
Society, in London, he ventured to suggest that the 
Parent Society ought to render pecuniary aid to local 
associations. He felt convinced that local associations 
unaided were unable to furnish that amount of sci¬ 
entific knowledge to the assistants which seemed to 
be absolutely necessary under the altered state of cir¬ 
cumstances. As there were handsome funds in the 
hands of the Association in London, he, for one, thought 
that the provinces had claims upon them. The Sheffield 
Association had, last year, to take £15 from a fund which 
was subscribed for other purposes, in order to augment 
the sums paid by the young men to the lecturers. The 
society did not begrudge the expenditure if the funds 
were equal to it, but it was impossible that the same thing 
could be done again. The subject seemed to him to be 
of so much importance that he had written to ten or a 
dozen of the chairmen of other of the northern country 
associations, inviting them to lay the matter before their 
members. The three ways in which he proposed the sub¬ 
ject could be treated, were :—(1) To make a united repre¬ 
sentation of their opinions, either by letter or deputation 
to the Council; (2) to jointly select and send men to the 
Council as representatives who would support their 
views ; and (3) to hold a meeting of delegates from all 
the associations in the Midland and Northern Counties 
in a central town, such as Leeds or Manchester, to dis¬ 
cuss the matter. This representation had had effect, and 
several of the provincial associations had already taken 
the matter in hand. 
Several resolutions had been received and delegates 
appointed; and in other cases most favourable replies 
had also been received from the Presidents of the Asso¬ 
ciations communicated with. 
Mr. Job Preston, Honorary Secretary, then road the 
voluminous .correspondence that had taken place be¬ 
tween the Sheffield Association and the Council of the 
Pharmaceutical Society, from which it appeared that the 
correspondence had extended over a lengthened period 
of time. In the course of the correspondence allusion 
was made to the fact, that, in the session of 1870-71, 
the Sheffield Association had arranged a very complete 
course of classes for the study of chemistry, botany and 
materia medica, being of opinion that they could receive 
help from the parent institution. On the 30th Novem¬ 
ber of that year they applied for a grant of £21, and re¬ 
ceived a reply from the Council in London stating that, 
while they were willing to give assistance to enlarge the 
library or purchase diagrams, money could not be granted 
for augmenting lecturers’ fees. The request was re¬ 
peated in September, 1871, but with the same unsatis¬ 
factory result. Another request was made in October of 
the same year for the exact deficit, which was shown to 
result from the engagements entered into with the 
lecturers, on the faith of receiving help, the sum amount¬ 
ing to £13. 10 s. ] this likewise met with a refusal. 
Fifteen guineas was the difference between the amount 
realized by students’ fees and the sum guaranteed to the 
lecturers, and, as stated by the Chairman, the local asso¬ 
ciation had to pay the money. 
Other letters were read which pointed out that, unless- 
provincial associations were liberally dealt with in this 
matter, great evil must result. 
The Secretary then read out a few items from tho 
financial statement of the Pharmaceutical Society, page 
945, of May 27, 1871, Journal. The correspondence- 
entered into between Mr. Radley and Presidents of other 
associations was then read, after which,— 
Mr. G-. B. Cocking, Yice-president, in proposing the 
first resolution, intimated his entire concurrence with 
the spirit in which it had been framed ; he said he had 
done his share in the formation and establishment of the 
association, the primary object of which had been to pro¬ 
vide the means of imparting a sound scientific education 
to the associates. The necessary appliances had been 
provided, viz. comfortable and convenient class-rooms, a 
small but select library, materia medica and other speci¬ 
mens, microscope, etc., but, owing to the inertness of a 
majority of the masters and the limited number of asso¬ 
ciates who had attended the classes, the fees paid to the 
teachers had to be very considerably supplemented from 
the private purses of the members of the Council or from 
the general fund of the association. The ordinary ex¬ 
penditure being equal to the income, he had reluctantly 
come to the conclusion that the educational department • 
must be given up, unless an annual grant could be ob¬ 
tained from the Council of the Pharmaceutical Society, 
and the associates must be left either to their own re¬ 
sources for qbtaining their education, or to rely upon a 
few months’ “cram,” to enable them to pass the examina¬ 
tions requisite for entitling them to add “ P.C.” to their 
names. He did not wonder at the inertness of the em¬ 
ployers. The “ Pharmacy Act, 1868,” so far as Shei- 
field was concerned, was all but a dead letter,—unre¬ 
gistered persons were allowed to sell poisons, and re¬ 
gistered chemists and others were allowed to sell diluted 
and adulterated drugs. He retailed “ sp. etheris nitrosi,” 
of Pharmacopoeia strength, at 4 d. tho ounce ; but had, 
recently, several times been annoyed by customers 
