iMay 18, 1872.J 
THE PHARMACEUTICAL JOURNAL AND TRANSACTIONS. 
931 
*ire pleased to be able to say tliat such, premises have 
been obtained, and are now being arranged ; and they 
'believe that this will be a great benefit, not only 
to members, but also to associates and apprentices 
who go to Edinburgh to study and pass their examina¬ 
tions. 
The Conversazione held last May at the South Iven- 
sngton Museum, by permission of the Lords Commis- 
. signers of the Council of Education, afforded great gratifi¬ 
cation ; and your Council have made arrangements for 
a similar one on the evening of the day upon which the 
-annual meeting is held. 
The Council feel pleasure in congratulating the mem¬ 
bers of the Pharmaceutical Conference on its steady 
increase in favour and importance, and on its “ Year 
Book,” which affords an excellent record of all important 
farts relating to the pharmacy of the year; and, 
-although officially unconnected with the Pharmaceutical 
■ Society, there can be no doubt that the two bodies should 
be in strict unison, as their objects are similar, and 
most of the active spirits of the Conference belong also 
^0 the Society. 
In the sad disaster which befell Chicago, the College 
-of Pharmacy there established was destroyed. It is 
.-gratifying to reflect that the pharmacists of England 
were reckoned upon—and not in vain—to assist their 
unfortunate fellow r -labourers ; the appeal has been well 
responded to, in contributions both of books and 
•money. 
The emphatic condemnation of compulsory “ Poison 
Regulations ” by a very large majority of the trade, 
• and the active steps taken by your Council and others to 
give weight and effect to the voice of the country in 
reference thereto, produced the desired result, and 
induced the Government to withdraw their Bill for 
imposing upon chemists and druggists further restrictious 
in the keeping and sale of poisons. This projected mea- 
-sure was an object of frequent and anxious deliberation 
with your Council, who cannot close this Report with¬ 
out expressing their feeling of satisfaction that the 
oxcitement and antagonism of the first few weeks of 
their official existence steadily and speedily disappeared 
on the withdrawal of Mr. Foster’s Bill which had pro- 
woked it, leaving them to pursue uninterruptedly the 
business, and they hope, advance the true interests of the 
•Society. 
The following registers were placed before the meet¬ 
ing :— 
O 
Register of Members, Associates and Apprentices 
of the Society. 
Register of Pharmaceutical Chemists 
Register of Assistants. 
Register of Apprentices or Students. 
Under the Pharmacy Act, 1852. 
Register of Chemists and Druggists. 
Under the Pharmacy Act, 1868. 
Mr. Wilkinson (Manchester) said : Mr. Chairman and 
^gentlemen, I have the honour of being asked this morn- 
•ing to move the adoption of the Report, and I wish that 
it had fallen into abler hands. I have come here quite 
unprepared to do anything of the kind. I will not call 
your attention to the various paragraphs of the Report, 
because I think there are a good many gentlemen here 
who have got something to say upon some of them; at 
• all events I do not wish to take it out of their hands. 
I find that the finances are in a very satisfactory con¬ 
dition; that we have a balance in the treasurer’s hands 
of £700. I find the Benevolent Fund is also in a satis¬ 
factory condition. The first paragraph is very satis¬ 
factory ; that we have received from various sources 
£600 or £700 more than we received last year, and we 
hope that such a course will continue. I leave it to 
gentlemen who are prepared to speak upon the subject, 
and simply move, 
“ That the Report of the Council now read be re¬ 
ceived and adopted, and printed in the Journal 
and Transactions of the Society.” 
Mr. Atkins (Salisbury) : Mr. Chairman and gentle¬ 
men, I rise to second the motion. I can say with Mr. 
Wilkinson that I am entirely unprepared to speak upon 
this occasion, having only just been requested to 
second the adoption of the Report. I, however, can say 
that I do so with a very great deal of pleasure. I think 
the Report, whatever exceptions may be taken to parts, 
—I have no exception myself to take to it—is an ad¬ 
mirable one, and should be a source of entire and deep 
satisfaction to us who take an interest in the well-being 
of pharmacy. There are gentlemen who, no doubt, will 
speak upon points w T hich they have made specially their 
study, and I will only say one word with regard to a 
topic upon which I have been making some investigation, 
namely, the question of provincial education, or rather 
apprenticeship. However admirable the work which 
the Society is doing, and it is doing a very great work, 
and doing it well, I cannot say I that think the figures in 
respect to the examinations are at all satisfactory. I 
think that the failures in the Preliminary examinations 
are a source of very considerable anxiety. It is a source 
I may say of very considerable depression to those who un¬ 
fortunately attempting the ordeal fail, and to those who 
are parents and guardians of such as do fail. I think it 
would be most unwise on our part as a body to relax 
or lower the standard of Preliminary Examinations, but 
I must be allowed to repeat now that which I have 
written—the absolute importance of the Preliminary 
examinations or their equivalents being passed before 
apprenticeship commences. I hold it is not our duty; 
we are not called upon to investigate, to instruct, to 
analyse the results of a classical or liberal education; 
and surely the Preliminary examination is placed I may 
say so low, that we cannot speak of the education as a 
liberal one or a classical one which fails to pass that 
limit. Provincial education is a great subject. I was 
struck, Sir, with the discretion, prudence and thoughtful¬ 
ness of your own remarks. They quite echo my own 
feelings. Something, doubtless, will be done, and no 
doubt by the incoming Council it will be maturely con¬ 
sidered. However, I cannot but feel the force of 
another remark you made, that we are now passing 
through a transition period. The question of provincial 
education will ultimately determine itself, and that 
most satisfactorily w r hen we, as a body, throughout the 
kingdom, are ourselves thoroughly educated. I do not 
refer for one moment to a liberal or classical education, 
but I refer to technical education. No doubt, when 
the coming generation has become a thoroughly educated 
body, we shall be perfectly able to take care of the 
interests of our apprentices. But until that is done, 
there is a work indeed to be done by associated effort, 
and I hope the Council will give that matter their very 
grave consideration. I feel very deeply indeed the 
present position of our apprentices. I think it must be 
a very great regret that you find in provincial towns five 
or six or even more apprentices who have not passed the 
Preliminary examinations who are just going out ot 
their time as assistants. There are absolutely assistants 
upon assistants in our provincial towns who have not 
passed that examination. I say they are only piling 
up difficulty upon difficulty, and there must be a weed- 
ing-out process by-and-by. I have great pleasure in 
seconding the adoption of the Report. 
Mr. Atkinson Pickering (Hull): Mr. Chairman and 
Gentlemen,—This is the first time I have had the plea¬ 
sure of attending the Annual Meeting of the Society, 
and I wish to put before the members of the Council the 
