Am.  Jour.  Pharuu.  ) 
November,  1908.  J 
N.  W.  D.  A.  Convention. 
515 
NOTES  ON  THE  CONVENTION  OF  THE  NATIONAL 
WHOLESALE  DRUGGISTS'  ASSOCIATION. 
By  Clarence  M.  Kline. 
I  have  been  requested  to  say  a  few  words  at  this  meeting  in 
regard  to  the  recent  convention  of  the  N.  W.  D.  A.  at  Atlantic  City. 
It  is  understood,  of  course,  that  many  of  the  matters  there  dis- 
cussed are  purely  commercial,  and,  therefore,  would  prove  of  little 
interest  to  this  audience. 
However,  the  jobber  is  finding  it  more  and  more  to  his  advantage 
to  acquire  an  intimate  knowledge  of  the  more  strictly  technical  side 
of  his  business.  If  he  does  not  possess  the  knowledge  himself,  he 
must  constantly  consult  some  one  who  has  such  knowledge,  in  order 
to  comply  with  the  modern  conditions  of  the  drug  trade.  He  can 
no  longer  be  satisfied  with  market  quotations  only,  but  must  under- 
stand scientific  standards  and  usages  and  how  to  apply  them  in 
the  marketing  of  his  goods.  These  conditions  tend  to  make  the 
jobber  listen  with  deep  interest  to  the  reports  of  committees  on 
scientific  matters.  Thus,  two  years  ago,  after  the  Food  and  Drugs 
Act  had  been  passed,  the  National  Wholesale  Druggists'  Association 
appointed  a  committee  on  "  Standards  and  Tests  of  the  U.  S.  P.  and 
National  Formulary  "  to  cooperate  with  other  committees,  and  to 
offer  assistance  to  the  Revision  Committee  of  the  LT,  S.  Pharmaco- 
poeia. This  committee,  under  the  able  leadership  of  Mr.  Thomas 
F.  Main,  immediately  set  to  work,  and  by  searching  the  files  of 
those  houses  who  had  been  performing  analytical  work,  was  able  to 
furnish  the  Revision  Committee  with  figures  which,  undoubtedly, 
were  of  considerable  assistance  to  that  committee  in  adopting  revised 
standards,  which  you  will  remember  they  did,  either  immediately 
before  or  immediately  after  the  law  went  into  effect.  This  com- 
mittee was  continued  during  the  last  year  and  submitted  a  report 
containing  many  items  of  interest. 
In  the  report  of  the  committee  at  the  previous  annual  meeting  in 
Denver,  they  made  the  following  recommendation :  "  We  also  recom- 
mend that  the  committee  bring  to  the  attention  of  the  Trustees  of 
the  U.  S.  Pharmacopoeia,  without  delay,  the  necessity  of  the  estab- 
lishment of  a  Pharmacopceial  Research  Laboratory."  This  recom- 
mendation, apparently,  did  not  bring  any  decisive  action.  There 
was,  however,  brought  to  the  attention  of  the  committee  the  fact 
