104 A 
THE PHARMACEUTICAL JOURNAL AND TRANSACTIONS. 
[June 22, 1872. 
of other articles, such as tea, cinchona and cotton. He 
was for a long time superintendent of the cotton plan¬ 
tations at Coimbator, and published various memoirs on 
the subject of cotton. Dr. Wight retired finally from 
India in 1853, and, since that period, has been working 
at the Indian Flora as much as his health would allow ; 
and by his notes and materials largely assisting others 
working in the same field. Dr. Wight was married in 
1838, and leaves a widow, four sons and a daughter. In 
presence of so much work accomplished, as shown in 
this slight sketch of one of the ablest Indian botanists 
that ever lived, and remembering the labours of Rox¬ 
burgh, Griffith, Royle and others, one is tempted to us3 
the phrase, “ There were giants in those days.” 
*** 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. 
The Preliminary Examination. 
Sir,—If your correspondent, “One who has known the 
Drug Trade more than Forty Years,” has not misunderstood 
the nature of my argument, he certainly is mistaken as to 
facts. 
The youth in question ought to have been able to pass the 
Preliminary, but certainly was not. So far, however, from 
his having gone back and being less fitted for the examina¬ 
tion than when he left school, such is very far from the case. 
I think your correspondent cannot fairly deduce any such 
inference from a careful perusal of my letter. 
In one respect we both agree as to the desirability of taking 
no youth as apprentice who is not able to pass his Preliminary. 
But seeing the desirability of a thing, and making oneself a 
martyr to au idea, are quite two different questions. I for 
one do hope, however, for “ the good time coming,” and will 
do my best to help it on. 
As we all ought to have the well-being of the rising genera¬ 
tion of chemists and druggists at heart, it might be generally 
useful if your correspondent would inform us how many 
apprentices he has had who were able at the end of their time 
to pass the Minor examination, and the method adopted in 
their instruction. 
ONE WHO HAS KNOWN TUB DRUG TRADE 
Moke than Thirty Years. 
The Possibility of Effort. 
Sir,—I always read Mr. Ince’s communications to the 
Journal with pleasure, and often with profit, and I can fully 
appreciate the feeling of weariness with which he took up his 
pen for the twentieth time, to reply to an inquiring student 
in last week’s Journal, and it may possibly scarcely become 
me to remind him of the many examples of love, patience, 
and kindness inculcated in the volume he often so felicitously 
quotes, and of the necessity, in teaching youth, of giving fine 
upon line and precept upon precept. 
The inquiry made of Mr. Ince by the young man is one 
that a great many others would like to see answered, for most 
assuredly in many corners of the country, a large number are 
in a complete fog; and excellent as Mr. Ince’s reply is, I fear 
it conveyed but little comfort to the inquirer. 
Now to every young man whose conscience is at all dis- 
lurbed by the momentous question of, What shall I do to 
prepare myself for these examinations ? I would say, Have you 
passed the Preliminary examination ? or are you prepared to 
do so? If you are not so prepared, then your duty is 
plain and direct; and the less you let your attention be occu¬ 
pied by any other subject, the better. 
The Preliminary examination embraces three subjects; 
Latin, English and arithmetic. Now it should be borne in 
mind that a good knowledge of these is the key that enables 
a student to uubar the door to all the rest that he has to learn. 
The more thoroughly he is master of these, the more easily he 
will grapple with the other subjects. 
If the Preliminary has been passed, then those subjects 
required for the Minor and Major, viz. Chemistry, Botany, 
and Materia Medica, may be commenced ,• and an attentive 
student may make some progress by merely studying the 
elementary parts of the text-books generally made use of. 
(I am assuming the absence of a competent teacher.) But 
what he will be able to study most profitably is the Pharma¬ 
copoeia and Materia Medica. It is necessary to almost know 
the Pharmacopoeia off by heart. If one who has passed either 
of the examinations be within reach, he would be able to 
give good advice “How to do it,” much better than pages of 
written matter. 
The mistake too often made by young men is, that because- 
they feel it impossible to grasp the knowledge necessary for 
the examinations in a short period of perhaps six months,, 
that it is quite useless to make the attempt; but true know¬ 
ledge is of slower growth than this, and it is only by a long- 
contemplation of any subject that knowledge becomes im¬ 
bibed. Having by reading and study got some of the leading 
principles of those sciences and branches of knowledge re¬ 
quired for an examination, the student is then in a favourable 
condition to receive instruction from a teacher or professor, 
and may then make good progress, and his stay in school or 
college will be very much shortened, and his task made agree¬ 
able, because now he begins to see things clearly, which before- 
he saw but dimly and darkly. 
To those who live in small country towns where no lectures 
can be delivered, and where there is no aid at hand, I would, 
say, do what you can during your apprenticeship by reading 
those elementary books used as text-books, and which can be 
purchased for a few shillings. Let your whole aim and object 
be directed during this period to this one point, of preparing 
for a systematic study, and submitting to an examination, and 
let your mind glow with the imagination of the pride and 
satisfaction you will feel when it is accomplished. 
Shade of Paracelsus. 
The Preliminary Examination. — T. P. has favoured us 
with a communication relative to the failure of so many 
young men to pass their examinations. He says that from 
the town in which he resides, containing 120,000 inhabitants, 
and upwards, of sixty chemists and druggists, employing a 
large number of apprentices, etc., many have presented them¬ 
selves for examination during the last twelve mouths, but 
only two or three have succeeded. The want of sulficient 
preparation from which this arises, he attributes partly to the 
long hours of business, and also to the fact that after a long 
day’s work, employers, otherwise willing, are unfitted and 
unable to assist their employes in their studies. T. B. con¬ 
siders that a remedy might be found in the appropriation of 
portion of the Pharmaceutical Society’s funds to the assistance 
of pharmaceutical education in the provinces. He suggests- 
that an instructor should be nominated by the Society, iu 
each large town, to whom students might go, upon certain 
payments, and that an additional sum should be given to 
such instructor for each of his pupils that passes an examina¬ 
tion successfully. 
W. PL. also writes concerning the same subject. He is not 
surprised that the Board of Examiners should be dissatisfied, 
but he is that so many candidates should fail. He does not 
think the time allowed for the last Preliminary examination 
insufficient, or the questions unsuitable, the examination 
being meant for a test to prevent unsuitable persons from 
passing, who would be unable to succeed in future more 
difficult examinations. He thinks it would be a sad thing for 
young men to be drawn into the business by the simplicity of 
the Preliminary when their capabilities were altogether in¬ 
sufficient for the Minor. W. H. is of opinion that legislation 
to the effect that no apprenticeship to a chemist and druggist 
or pharmaceutical chemist, should be legal before the appli¬ 
cant for apprenticeship is registered as a student of the 
Pharmaceutical Society, would be a great boon to the student. 
“A Medical Student.” —(1.) We believe that Duncan’s 
preparation is a weak solution of chloroform in spirit, made 
direct from alcohol and chlorinated lime. Its strength is 
about the same as the B. P. preparation, buc it has a mild 
odour and flavour. (2.) In the best houses it is now custo¬ 
mary to put in sp. chloroformi. 
“ A Student.” —No. 
Midland Counties Chemists' Association. —The Report of 
the Annual Meeting of this Association was received just a3 
this number was going to press. 
Communications, Letters, etc., have been received from 
Mr. Gr. Broom, Mr. J. Kirkland, “ Nemo,” “One who will 
attend,” J. Johnson,” “Shade of Common Sense,” Gr. T., 
Gr. H. 
