6l2 
Pharmaceutical  Meeting. 
/Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
X  December,  1902. 
it  is  based  upon  the  quality  as  determined  by  the  tea-tasters  in  this 
country.  The  tea-tasters  become  quite  expert  and  the  prices  as  set 
by  them  are  quite  uniform  for  the  same  grades  of  tea.  Mr.  Kebler 
said  some  experts  could  tell  oil  of  wintergreen  from  methyl  salicylate, 
while  a  chemist  could  not  do  this  trom  analytical  figures.  Mr. 
Boring  said  that  he  recently  rejected  a  lot  of  beeswax  on  appear- 
ance alone,  which  he  subsequently  ascertained  contained  about  80 
per  cent,  of  paraffin. 
Professor  C.  B.  Lowe  was  the  next  speaker,  and  described  some 
of  the  detail  methods  which  he  employs  in  the  conduct  of  his  store. 
In  the  discussion  that  followed,  Mr.  Poley  recommended  the  use  of 
a  sailor's  needle  for  removing  corks,  and  said  that  the  convex  side 
should  be  placed  next  to  the  cork.  Mr.  Matusow  said  that  a  den- 
tist's instrument  is  also  useful  for  this  purpose,  and  Mr.  Leedom  said 
that  he  found  a  shoemaker's  awl  useful. 
In  regard  to  the  filtering  of  solutions  to  be  dispensed,  Professor 
Remington  said  that  it  was  a  mistake  to  use  filter  paper  at  all  times ; 
it  took  frequently  considerable  time  to  do  this,  and  a  small  strainer 
answered  the  purpose  better  in  many  instances.  Mr.  Leedom  sug- 
gested that  simply  filtering  through  cotton  was  convenient ;  and  Mr. 
Wilbert  and  Mr.  Boring  both  stated  that  foreign  objects,  such  as 
pieces  of  cork,  might  be  removed  from  solutions  by  the  use  of  a 
toothpick. 
Mr.  Poley  said  that  in  the  dispensing  of  solutions  for  the  eye,  the 
patient  should  be  cautioned  against  the  use  of  droppers  that  had 
previously  been  used.  Mr.  Boring  exhibited  a  large  bottle  which 
had  contained  collodion  solution  of  salicylic  acid  and  upon  the  sides 
of  which  the  salicylic  acid  had  beautifully  crystallized  out. 
Mr.  Lyman  F.  Kebler  read  a  paper  on  the  "  Distribution  of 
Arsenic." 
In  the  discussion  of  this  paper,  Dr.  LefTmann  said  that  it  illustrated 
the  saying  that  everything  exists  in  everything.  He  said  that  Pro- 
fessor Crookes  had  found  yttrium,  one  of  the  rare  metals,  widely 
distributed,  although  in  small  quantities.  Referring  to  the  presence 
of  arsenic  in  chemicals,  he  said  that  since  its  interference  in  the  new 
contact  method  for  the  manufacture  of  sulphuric  acid  had  been 
eliminated,  we  would  be  relieved  of  the  danger  of  arsenic  from  iron 
pyrites.    He  also  said  that  perfect  purity  practically  does  not  exist. 
H.  K. 
