May 18,1872.] 
THE PHARMACEUTICAL JOURNAL AND TRANSACTIONS. 
935 
Societ} r were to establish, in many places a museum, a 
library, rooms for meeting and even apparatus for 
the use of the lecturer, that would be doing great good, 
but I would not make these little circles surround only 
those who are connected with the Society. We must 
never forget that the young pharmacist is, after all, the 
individual who is to foster and increase the position of 
the Society ; and as there must bo a term and course of 
study for these young men, I would be disposed to sug¬ 
gest that under some surveillance, such as that of the 
local secretary or committee, the privilege of free rooms, 
library, use of apparatus, and so on, might be given ; but 
let the lecturer be paid proper fees by those pupils who 
attended. Thus, I think that by admitting all who are 
studying pharmacy this Society would be doing legiti¬ 
mately its business. Even if you were to send down 
to some of these provincial centres comparatively large 
sums of money, and give a gentleman a lecture-room as 
large as this, with all it3 appliances, and open the door 
and say to the young men, Come in to the lecture, my con¬ 
viction is that such gratuitous system would not draw a 
class ; and the reason I say so is, I think, capable 
of proof, and is borne out very much from what 
my friend, Mr. Shaw, of Liverpool, stated at a very 
recent meeting of the Council. He said, “ But although 
there must be from three hundred to four hundred 
apprentices and assistants in the town of Liverpool, 
these lectures have not been attended by more than half- 
a-dozen, while the materia medica lectures were attended 
by two only.” Then Mr. Stoddart, from Bristol, said, 
“ This showed we ought to be rather circumspect in this 
matter, and see that people tried their best to help them¬ 
selves before asking assistance.” Then, passing on from 
Bristol, we come to that most important of all the north 
of England towns — Newcastle; Mr. Brady states, 
“ But where are the eight or nine, (not eighty or ninety) ? 
I have heard more than once of a class not being held 
because only one or two came to it.” I now go to Nor¬ 
wich, and there I find it stated that the attendance has 
been very limited. Then I go on, and come to that most 
important of all manufacturing towns, Bradford. I find 
there that our friends, Messrs. Remington and Bell, have 
issued a circular in which they state, “The Council of 
this Society feel it to be a matter for deep regret that the 
lectures it instituted about three years ago should be dis¬ 
continued for want of support by those they were in¬ 
tended to benefit.” I think I need read no more to give 
a clue to what has caused me to come to the conviction 
that at the present time, at all events, it is not right for 
any Council of this Society to make large grants of 
money to gentlemen who are willing and able to teach. 
What may be the result of this day’s meeting we cannot 
tell. I am sure you, Sir, as well as the other gentlemen 
in this hall, will bo delighted to hear any suggestion, and 
I am equally certain that those gentlemen who are about 
to come on the new Council will pay due respect to 
what may be said, because we all want, to a certain ex¬ 
tent, information upon this important subject. 
Mr. Humfage (London): Mr. Chairman and gentle¬ 
men,—As a very old member of this Society, I feel at 
liberty to stand up and say a few words, and what I 
shall say will be quite of a practical character. I must 
say that when this school of pharmacy was established, 
thirty years ago, it was to meet to a great extent a want, 
one which I had experienced ton or fifteen years pre¬ 
viously. Having had an education in the country, my 
good father, as lac thought, placed me with one of the 
first houses in the country, where he thought I should 
get a scientific education. I learnt well how to wrap 
AVindsor soap, and after a time, Epsom salts. I went to 
this establishment two months on trial: and having 
i t f 7 o 
been two years previously with my father, I was 
anxious to know what I wa3 to learn; and as there 
were four or five apprentices there and one or two 
assistants, I looked about, opened my eyes, made in¬ 
quiries, and I found that young m3n 4 whose parents hid 
paid 2-50 guineas as a premium were leaving that esta¬ 
blishment literally knowing nothing. I said,—This 
won’t do : my father has sent me here under the impres¬ 
sion that I could be made a chemist of; and if I go back 
knowing no more than these, I shall be boxed on the 
ears, or something worse. I therefore at once wrote to my 
father. He said, “ Do as you like ; I leave it with you.” 
I then took the earliest opportunity, in a very respectful 
manner, of saying that I had been deceived ; that I had 
come to that institution under such and such an impres¬ 
sion, and I found those were erroneous. The gentleman 
behaved like a gentleman. He said, “ I did not repre¬ 
sent you would be made a chemist of; your friends 
might.” I said, “AVell, my father has left it to me., 
and yesterday I was thoroughly decided by this 
fact. Your senior apprentice came to me and asked 
me a question so ignorantly that I was disgusted.” I 
left; but I did the wrong thing in leaving, because I 
tumbled into another place not half so respectable, and 
the result was that at the end of my three years I came- 
out little better than I went in. My father came up to 
London with me ; he was very anxious about me. He 
found there was no vacancy at such places as Bell’s or 
Allen’s, and I dropped into another position, but found 
nothing there. AVhen, therefore, I found a move was 
made to found a school where a young man whose 
parents were willing to pay for him could get an educa¬ 
tion which he could not obtain during his apprentice¬ 
ship, and when this institution was established, I felt it 
was the want of the trade. AVhat did it propose to do ? 
Not to grant money to provincial establishments. I say 
that now this school is established, with eminent profes¬ 
sors, a good laboratory, lectures, and every appliance, it 
is absurd to think we can get anything like it elsewhere. 
It has been said very justly that it is not every young 
man who can come to London. Admitted. But I say if 
a young man has served his apprenticeship in the- 
country and he wishes to come and attend these lectures, 
he can come. The last five young men whom I have 
had the pleasure of residing with me did come from the 
country, and, with but one exception, they have passed 
the Minor examination, and two of them passed in. 
honours. Yet they did not come up from the country 
with any large amount, but they wore determined tO' 
help themselves. They did not ask, “How many 
nights can I go out, Sir ?” but “ I want to attend the- 
Society.” They were made of the right sort of stuff;, 
and I say if a young man wants so much time to him¬ 
self he has no right to ask for a full salary. Too many 
want the pudding without paying for it. I say, with a 
clear perception of the facts, that those young men who 
are panting for knowledge in the country can get it. 
Let there be a meeting-room or anything of the sort in 
the country; but let the young; man come to London, 
who knows his Pharmacopoeia fairly, and he has no. diffi¬ 
culty if he will enter into an arrangement with a 
chemist in, or two or three miles from, London. I would 
not give the evenings, but let them have the mornings ; 
that is the time,—say from nine till one. Let them 
attend the Society’s lectures, examine the preparations 
they make, make whatever inquiries they can, and I declare 
there is no difficulty at all for these chemists and drug¬ 
gists from the country passing their examinations and 
being a credit to this Society. The provincial friends 
can assist its being done. Let the young men barter tor 
time. I should not like them to work and slave as Air. 
Pickering did, till he was diminished, he said, even in 
his very growth. A young man with the right stu m 
him need" not fear getting a situation. .Let young men 
do all they can for themselves, and this Society i am 
sure will help them. How can schools be established in. 
the country ? You cannot make a grant to the large 
towns, and leave the smill towns vacant. It is no use 
talking about the Midland Company bringing teem, at 
half fire; it would cest double what it would to come to 
London, where we have this Institution anl all its appli— 
