ON  AMERICAN  PHARMACY. 
213 
promise  between  interest  and  duty.  He  may  neutralize  his 
actions  with  Q.  S.  of  words,  but  the  compound  formed  proves  a 
feeble  antidote  to  quackery,  and  certainly  can  not  be  labelled 
consistency. 
That  this  is  the  position  of  the  great  majority  of  druggists,  in 
regard  to  quackery,  is  well  known ;  I  believe  it  is  mainly  the 
result  of  our  past  neglect  to  avail  ourselves  of  the  advantages 
within  our  reach,  and  may  be  entirely  obviated,  and  the  profes- 
sion of  pharmacy  raised  to  its  true  dignity  and  importance  by 
uniform  and  well  directed  efforts  in  the  future. 
Druggists  everywhere  enjoy  the  most  intimate  relationship  with 
the  public.  Acquainted  by  study  and  long  familiarity  with  those 
potent  agents  provided  by  nature  for  the  relief  of  pain  and  cure 
of  disease,  they  share  with  the  physician  a  peculiar  and  distin- 
guished place  in  the  confidence  of  those  with  whom  they  come  in 
contact,  in  the  line  of  their  business.  They  may,  to  a  great  extent, 
give  direction  to  the  current  of  popular  favor,  and  if  possessed  of 
the  requisite  knowledge  and  capacity  to  ascertain  the  constituents 
of  the  various  nostrums  they  are  called  upon  to  supply,  they 
may  not  only  strip  these  of  their  false  pretensions,  but  from  the 
resources  of  the  pharmaceutic  art,  may  supply  equally  valuable 
standard  remedies.  It  is,  indeed,  one  of  the  duties  our  profession 
owes  to  the  public,  to  supply  every  legitimate  want,  without  even 
the  apparent  necessity  of  a  recourse  to  the  productions  of  the 
empiric. 
The  relations  of  the  druggist  with  the  physician,  if  properly 
maintained,  would  be  found  to  give  him  an  immense  advantage 
in  his  warfare  with  quackery ;  so  long  as  he  pursues  his  calling 
with  a  just  regard  to  the  rights  and  interests  of  the  medical  pro- 
fession and  the  public,  and  lends  the  weight  of  his  influence  against 
the  common  enemy,  he  will  have  the  active  support  of  all  wise 
and  liberal  physicians.  In  strengthening  the  hands  of  these,  he 
will  be  rearing  for  himself  the  strongest  defence  against  the 
destructive  competition  of  the  unprincipled  quack. 
The  intelligent  and  honest  pharmaceutist,  in  the  pursuit  of  his 
legitimate  business,  will  always  enjoy  the  esteem  of  the  community, 
while  the  quack  is  held  in  disrepute  by  a  large  class  of  the  wiser 
and  more  conservative  people ;  success  even  in  imposture,  may 
draw  with  it  the  plaudits  of  the  fickle  crowd,  who  regard  money 
