490 
EDITORIAL. 
reorganize  the  Pharmaceutical  Society  as  an  educational  Institution,  and 
granting  it  powers,  which,  though  not  so  ample  as  would  have  most  effectu- 
ally served  the  cause  of  reform,  yet  greatly  adding  to  its  efficiency  and 
dignity.  "But  Mr.  Bell's  health  had  long  been  declining;  his  naturally 
active  disposition,  and  the  enthusiasm  with  which  he  engaged  in  many 
public  pursuits,  caused  him  to  overtax  his  physical  powers,  and  thus  was 
laid  the  foundation  of  a  distressing  complaint,  which  deprived  him  of  his 
voice,  and  rendered  the  act  of  deglutition  a  source  of  extreme  suffering. 
Throughout  life  he  had  manifested  a  remarkable  disregard  of  his  own  per- 
sonal ease  and  comfort,  especially  when  business  of  importance  claimed 
his  attention,  and  this,  which  almost  amounted  to  a  reckless  neglect  of  the 
requirements  of  nature,  continued  long  after  the  commencement  and  no 
doubt  contributed  to  the  aggravation  of  his  illness."  "  In  disposition  he 
was  most  kind  and  generous.  Though  he  was  never  married,  he  had  rela- 
tives towards  whom  he  acted  the  part  of  a  father,  and  the  number  of  those 
is  not  few  who  have  cause,  gratefully,  to  remember  his  unostentatious 
benevolence." 
When  viewed  as  a  scientific  man  Mr.  Bell  does  not  rank  as  high  as  some 
of  his  Pharmaceutical  contemporaries.  So  far  as  we  are  aware,  he  has  left 
nothing  on  record  that  that  exhibits  a  practical  familiarity  with  chemical 
science  as  a  pursuit.  Nevertheless,  in  all  that  is  considered  requisite  in 
practical  pharmacy — judgment  of  drugs — medical  botany — the  details  of 
the  English  pharmaceutical  laboratory,  and  especially  in  that  varied  know- 
required  in  conducting  a  large  dispensing  establishment  he  was  perfectly 
familiar.  His  position  as  editor  of  the  Pharmaceutical  Journal  for  so  long 
a  period  made  him  acquainted  with  scientific  literature,  and  brought  him 
in  contact  with  the  best  minds  in  the  profession.  Added  to  this  he  appears 
to  have  given  his  time  and  attention  to  the  profession  at  large  in  the  form 
of  unremitting  endeavors  to  advance  their  interests  as  a  body.  No  amount 
of  labor  was  too  much  for  him  in  that  direction,  and  with  his  multitudin- 
ous engagements  in  this  and  other  connections  he  could  give  but  little 
time  to  abstract  science.  In  one  of  his  letters  to  us,  dated  March  4,  1856, 
he  says  ;  "  I  believe  I  must  plead  guilty  to  having  too  many  irons  in  the 
fire,  as  I  am  on  several  committees  of  hospitals,  dispensaries  and  other 
institutions,  besides  parochial  boards,  and  occasionally  a  dash  at  politics 
(chiefly  medical  politics,  or  matters  bearing  on  that  class  of  subjects.) 
In  the  midst  of  this  accumulation  of  occupations,  I  occasionally  find  that 
I  have  neglected  something  or  delayed  answering  a  letter,  or  only  half 
done  it;  the  principal  reason  being  that  there  is  only  six  days  in  the  week 
(besides  Sunday,)  and  only  17  hours  in  each  day  (besides  horae  somni.") 
Perhaps  Mr.  Bell's  most  distinguishing  trait  of  mind  was  a  practical 
good  sense  in  dealing  with  the  pleasures,  the  duties  and  the  difficulties  of 
life.  It  never  forsook  him,  and  at  the  last  moment,  when  all  that  he  felt 
so  deeply  interested  in,  and  had  so  much  cause  to  wish  to  continue  among, 
was  fading  from  his  view,  he  calmly  selected  a  spot  for  his  last  resting 
place,  beside  the  grave  of  the  late  Dr.  Golding  Bird,  and  quietly  passed 
away  without  a  murmur. 
