April 27, 1872.] 
THE PHARMACEUTICAL JOURNAL AND TRANSACTIONS. 
879 
ftarosptoa. 
*** No notice can be taken of anonymous communica¬ 
tions. Whatever is intended for insertion must be authenti¬ 
cated by the name and address of the writer ; not necessarily 
for publication , but as a guarantee of good faith. 
Hospital Dispensing. 
Sir,—My attention lias been drawn to your leading article 
of this day’s date on Hospital Dispensing. 
I regret that you were not made acquainted with the real 
facts of the case, as you would then have arrived at a very 
different conclusion with reference to our dispensing depart¬ 
ment. They are as follows :— 
One of our porters obtained from one of our qualified dis¬ 
pensers a supply of cough linctus, as if for himself, he having 
previously derived personal benefit from its use. He was 
allowed to have the medicine—the bottle being duly labelled 
—just as a servant or apprentice in a druggist’s shop would 
be permitted to have medicine for his own use. Unfor¬ 
tunately, his object, good in itself, was productive of evil 
results. He gave it to a friend, by whom it was administered 
to his own child. The ultimate consequence was not there¬ 
fore traceable to the hospital, but to the mistaken kindness 
of the porter and the misplaced faith of the parent of the 
child. 
If you were to pay a visit to this hospital, I should be 
content to abide by your verdict as to our dispensing arrange¬ 
ments, which, looking to the extent of our out-patient de¬ 
partment, are, I believe, as complete as any in London. 
Wm. J. Nixon, 
House Governor and Secretary. 
London Hospital, Whitechapel Road , K. 
April 20th, 1872. 
[*** The hospital seems to have been inadequately repre¬ 
sented at the inquest, w r hen the facts detailed w r ere accurately 
as described in our article, and led to a decided expression 
of opinion from the coroner and jury in condemnation of 
the arrangements so described. We are glad to learn from 
Mr. Nixon that the hospital has a better case than w T as then 
presented. The suggestion, that we should visit and report 
upon the dispensing arrangements, accords with an opinion 
which we have for some time entertained that such an 
inquiry, systematically carried out at all the hospitals, would 
be for the public good. We should not be unwilling to 
undertake it, if proper facilities were afforded.— Ed. Pn. J.] 
Sir,—The following paragraph (which I fear has escaped 
your notice) certainly deserves insertion in the columns of 
your Journal, in order that it may not be lost to the phar¬ 
maceutical world, as illustrating the liberality of the Com¬ 
mittee of the Dover Hospital:— 
“ According to the Kentish Express, the Committee of the 
Dover Hospital have appointed a dispenser at a salary of 5s. 
per week! We pity the patients.”— Medical Times and 
Gazette, April 13th, 1872. 
He has accordingly been nominated, and appears in tho 
published list of candidates who have accepted their nomi¬ 
nation. 
A kind but unknown friend has also, I find, nominated 
me; and though I have been solicited by several of my friends 
to stand, I have been compelled by various considerations to 
decline doing so. 
May I, on this account, advance the request, and ask, 
apart from the personal claims of Mr. Churchill, and of the 
Midland district to a representative, that those who might 
have given their votes to me, had I elected to stand, would 
bestow them upon him. I am sure he will not disappoint 
the confidence of the constituency. 
George Dvmond, 
President of the Midland Counties 
Chemists’ Association. 
Birmingham, April 23rd, 1872. 
Co-operative Dispensing. 
Sir,—I hope the discussion now being carried on as to the 
rights and the wrongs of apprentices may lead to a result of 
practical and permanent benefit to each party interested ; at 
the same time it must be borne in mind that no hard-and-fast 
line can be laid down,—the time allowed and the facilities 
offered for study must necessarily vary, and it would be gross 
impertinence on the part of a London chemist to dictate to a 
provincial, and vice versa. Let it be granted that proper 
facilities should be allowed, the details must depend upon the 
nature and requirements of the special business. But while 
we are trying to help the apprentice, cannot we do something 
to help ourselves ? By so doing we should greatly assist him 
and make the business (we cannot yet call it a profession) 
worth the trouble and expense this high standard of educa¬ 
tion necessitates. No one living in London can fail to recog¬ 
nize the fact that the co-operative system is seriously affecting 
the retail part of a chemist’s business, and unless means are 
taken to secure the dispensing of medicines to the duly quali¬ 
fied chemist, it will not answer the purpose of any one to 
enter the trade. 
I think that agitation in this direction would be a perfectly 
fair and legitimate one for chemists, as a body ; in the course 
of time it must succeed, and the sooner it is set about the 
better. Is it fair or reasonable to insist upon young men 
going through a course of study involving considerable ex¬ 
pense, with the magnificent prospect of standing behind a 
counter and acting as agents for the sale of goods bringing 
no more profit than is obtained by his neighbour the grocer, 
who has at least the advantage of making ten times the re¬ 
turn ? Let the cry of the trade be “ Agitate, agitate, agitate,” 
but also “ Educate, educate, educate.” I believe it is to be 
done, and would meet with the support of the medical pro¬ 
fession. 
Henry Lawrence. 
Kensington, W., April 20th, 1872. 
Provincial Pharmaceutical Education. 
A hospital dispenser (from the responsible office which he 
holds) should be an educated and experienced pharmaceutist, 
one who has expended time and money in qualifying himself 
for the proper fulfilment of his important duties. To obtain 
such a man fair and even liberal remuneration should be 
given. Cases of accidental poisoning in hospitals (such as^ 
that reported in your last week’s Journal) would then be of 
rare occurrence. 
The Committee of the Dover Hospital can set but little 
value upon the lives of their patients when they pay their 
dispenser the paltry salary of £13 per annum. 
F. J. Barrett. 
Wolverhampton, April 22nd, 1872. 
The Election oe Council. 
Sir,—In anticipation of the impending election, I am 
anxious to ask each voter to consider the claims of the 
Midland district, of wdiich Birmingham is the great industrial 
centre, to a representative. It is at present, unrepresented. 
The Council of the Midland Counties Chemists’ Association, 
at a recent meeting, unanimously resolved, on consideration 
of the subject, that Mr. John Churchill, of New Street, 
Dirmingham, should be proposed as a suitable representative. 
Sir,—In reply to the remarks of J. P. (Sheffield), I would 
;tate that at the outset he admits a difficulty in maintaining 
i school in the country—the difficulty of finding qualified 
reachers, who have the leisure to teach—the men who are 
vished for having to attend to their own business. 
J. P. says, “ Either the lectures, etc., must be gratuitous or 
remunerated.” Why” should they be gratuitous ? Does the 
student not have to pay for his instruction before he is bound 
apprentice ? And why should he get teaching gratuitously 
afterwards ? If the Pharmaceutical Society be induced to 
give instruction gratuitously, it would then be like a School 
Board, which has the power of taxing in order to provide in¬ 
struction for those who cannot afford to pay for it. Of course, 
the student must pay for learning “ from highly gifted gen¬ 
tlemen.” 
Again, J. P. states, “ The expenses, incidental or other¬ 
wise, connected with attendance in London are such as to 
form a barrier to the majority of those who are apprenticed 
in the country.” Eorm. a barrier! Why should they P Ought 
any one to expect to acquire first-class instructionjor nothing ? 
Is any one authorized to enter a business without having the 
funds necessary to carry him through ? And should the cof¬ 
fers of the Society, which J. P. says are so full—but which I 
doubt—be opened to assist this needy class ? 
