800 
THE PHARMACEUTICAL JOURNAL AND TRANSACTIONS. 
[March SO, 1872; 
elation by the students was marked by the award of a testi¬ 
monial. Surely the great body of chemists do not wish that, 
the labours of these highly-gifted gentlemen should be valued 
at “nil.” Either the lectures, demonstrations and practical 
instruction must be gratuitous or remunerated; if the former, 
the question occurs, should it be so, whilst a Society exists, 
established and maintained for the express purpose of educa¬ 
tion ; a Society too, which, be it remembered, is greatly sup¬ 
ported by the provinces, and whose cotfers are filled to over¬ 
flowing ? A school, verily, is connected with the Society, but 
it is almost useless; nay, I may say, practically it is so for 
the provinces, because the expenses, incidental and other¬ 
wise, connected with attendance in London, arc such as to 
form a barrier to the majority of those who are apprenticed 
in the country. The School in Bloomsbury Square may and 
does, I have no doubt, answer admirably for the metropolis ; 
but is it suitable to meet the wants of the provinces ? We in 
the provinces answer, No! Is it advisable that our country 
students should be called upon to spend unnecessary time 
and money in London, when they ought to be able during 
their apprenticeships, and at as small cost as their compeers 
in London, to obtain such instruction as shall enable them to 
pass, at least, their Minor examination? We answer again, 
that it is unnecessary, and to put it in mild language, “ it is 
most inadvisable.” If it is inadvisable, it must be manifest 
to your numerous and interested readers, that they must have 
instructors elsewhere than at Bloomsbury Square. I do not 
for a moment mean to imply that it is not possible to pass 
the examinations without such aids, but I do assert that if 
necessary at Bloomsbury Square, they are necessary else¬ 
where ; the question of all then is, how are these instructors 
and instruction to be provided ? Already there exists more 
than a dozen local associations, by many of which praise¬ 
worthy efforts have been, and are being, made to assist 
those of their members, and non-members too, to attain the 
desirable instruction ; but this much must be patent to your 
readers, that it has cost these associations, and those whose 
interest has been enlisted by them, great sums of money, 
self-sacrifice, and much self-abnegation. Ought it to be ex¬ 
pected, and is it not highly improbable that this can con¬ 
tinue long? Many of these associations are beginning to 
suffer from the burden they have undertaken. Is it not 
within the province, nay, is it not the duty of the parent 
society, to grant two or three hundred pounds annually to 
assist provincial education, giving the kind of aid each 
of these associations stands in need of? 
Sheffield, March 1 9th, 1872. J. P. 
Compulsory Pharmaceutical Education. 
Sir,—That all great changes require to be gradually and 
carefully made is as true an axiom in pharmaceutical legisla¬ 
tion as in any other. 
We cannot do with mere class legislation, however accept¬ 
able it may be to the upper two hundred of the pharmaceu¬ 
tical body. 
What maybe all very well as regards our favoured brethren 
who are comfortably settled in very stylish neighbourhoods 
in London or the provinces, will certainly not apply to the by 
far larger numbers scattered throughout the length and 
breadth of the land. 
Now, these outlying districts and smaller places must have 
their wants supplied; and if this is not done exactly after the 
West End pattern, the want is, perhaps, met in a manner 
far better suited to the requirements of the locality. 
I am inclined to think that the following lines from one of 
our great poets are not inapplicable altogether to pharma¬ 
ceutical ethics:—- 
“ Order is Heaven’s first law; and this confess’d, 
Some are, and must be, greater than the rest, 
More rich, more wise; but who infers from hence 
That such are happier shocks all common sense.” 
Having no pet plans of my own to propose, and yet con¬ 
scientiously believing that much which has been written is 
far-fetched and untenable, I would desire to place a few ad¬ 
mitted principles before you, which must not be lost sight of 
in any regulations as to education or examination that it 
may be thought desirable to carry out. 
It may then be at once conceded that under no circum¬ 
stances whatever should a youth be taken as apprentice who 
has not had a pretty good plain education, with some little 
knowledge of Latin. In fact, he ought either to have passed 
his Preliminary examination (or some examination equiva¬ 
lent to it) before leaving school, or at any rate show his 
ability to do so. 
But as there can be no gradations in that examination, it 
appears to me it would be both impolitic and unjust either to 
make it more stringent, or to add to the subjects for exami¬ 
nation botany or any other study. 
As to botany itself, many 3 r ears’ experience has not only 
convinced me as to the desirableness of endeavouring to pro¬ 
mote a taste for it amongst my apprentices, but I have found 
some take to this who did not seem attracted by any other 
branch of study. 
Still, however desirable a knowledge of botany may be,— 
and even if it be wisdom to commence its study whilst at 
school,—I must contend that it should not be introduced 
into the Preliminary. 
Then, as to the Minor examination, tins should include- 
and require no higher standard of knowledge than is justly 
to be expected of the candidate to enable him rightly to dis¬ 
charge the duties of his position, having due regard to the- 
safety and well-being of the public. 
The Major examination is quite another matter, and here 
a very high standard of attainment should be required. 
Now, it appears to me that nearly all who have written 
upon pharmaceutical education make the mistake at start¬ 
ing, of supposing that it is both possible and advisable to- 
make the next generation of chemists and druggists thoroughly 
scientific individuals. I deny the possibility, and do not be¬ 
lieve in the advisability, even if practicable. 
Is the drug trade, throughout all its various ramifications- 
and surroundings, of that superlative excellence that men of 
ordinary ability are to be entirely excluded from its ranks ? 
Is there anything so specially remunerative either in the- 
salaries of its assistants or the earnings of the majority of the 
principals, as to attract from the rising generation all its 
talent and all its intellect ? I trow not. 
All honour, I say, to those youths who are determined to 
pursue knowledge and to reach as high a position as possible. 
This is what all ought to aim at, and for such there will be no- 
real difficulties whether the facilities placed in their way be- 
few or many. 
During the time I was hospital dispenser, I had many stu¬ 
dents in my department. I have also trained many appren¬ 
tices, and experience has fully convinced me that the sort 
of practical knowledge which a youth acquires (or may ac¬ 
quire if he will) during his apprenticeship, is a far greater- 
amount than some of your correspondents seem to fancy 
(even under the most unfavourable circumstances). 
And here, again, I may remark that the duties an appren¬ 
tice may have to perform will pretty much depend upon the- 
sort of business where he is apprenticed, and upon the amount 
of premium he has paid; all of which is pretty well understood 
beforehand; and this sort of thing cannot be revolutionized 
all at once. It is likely to continue for many years yet, do as 
you maj T . If cured at all, it will be by working its own cure. 
Great and laudable efforts are being made throughout the 
length and breadth of the land to encourage and assist young 
men in acquiring pharmaceutical knowledge, but the general 
verdict is this, that so far from the classes formed becoming a 
difficulty, on account of the numbers entering, the difficulty 
has been to keep them going, on account of the few who avail 
themselves of the advantages they offer. 
I have no plan to offer; ho system to propose; my object 
in these remarks has entirely been to point out some neces¬ 
sary conclusions, which most of the writers in the Journal 
(starting from their own standpoint) seem to have ignored, 
but which, nevertheless, can never be lost sight of in that 
which is more or less to affect the far greater proportion of 
the members of a very important calling. 
One who has known the Drug Trade 
MORE THAN THIRTY YEARS. 
Wentivorth L. Scott .—The report of the proceedings of 
the Midland Counties Chemists’ Association was furnished 
;o us by the Secretary of the Association, and we must refer 
you to him for any correction of it that may be requisite. 
Q. AT.—The sp. ehloroformi of the B.P. will mix perfectly 
with the water and acid. 
“ Cuprum.” —(1.) Cu ,/ (NH 4 ) 2 (S0 4 ) 2 • 6H 2 0. (2.) No ; it 
remains the same. 
Communications, Letters, etc., have been received from 
Mr. G. Cocking, Mr. Slugg, Dr. Brown, Dr. Schmidt, Mr. 
T. W. Holdsworth, Mr. J. S. Robinson, F. E. S. 
