EDITORIAL. 
93 
Table  of  capacity  measure. 
Table  of  weights. 
Minim. 
grs. 
8  minims 
make 
1  morsel. 
1  mite, 
0.464 
8  morsels 
<( 
1  ligule. 
8  mites 
1  grain. 
3.712 
8  ligules 
it 
1  cup. 
8  grains 
1  scrap,  or  5; 
Av.  £  oz. 
29.696 
8  cups 
t< 
1  gill. 
8  acraps 
1  dram, 
&  18.824 
8  gills 
a 
1  pint. 
8  drams 
1  ounce, 
4  a 
150.595 
8  pints 
it 
1  gallon. 
8  ounces 
1  libra  or  lb, 
2  ib  2  " 
329.760 
8  gallons 
8  modiuses 
it 
1  modius. 
8  libras 
1  stone, 
17  "  6  « 
13.080 
a 
1  butt. 
8  stones 
Ipondus  or  wt. 
139"  0  " 
104.700 
8  butts 
a 
1  cord. 
8  pond's. 
1  load, 
1112"  1  " 
400.000 
8  cords 
it 
1  vat. 
8  loads 
1  ton, 
8896  "  15  " 
138. 
8  tons 
1  keel, 
71175  "  10  " 
220. 
"We  must  here  leave  the  report,  and  whilst  granting  the  superior  ad- 
vantages arising  in  practice  from  an  octaval  enumeration,  we  look  upon 
the  views  of  the  report  as  involving  changes  so  radical  as  to  wholly  prevent 
their  adoption  in  practice.  We  suggest  to  our  readers  to  recur  to  the  sub- 
ject as  presented  in  full  in  the  Proceedings  of  the  Association  and  give  it  a 
careful  perusal. 
The  Report  on  the  Revision  of  the  Pharmacopoeia  is  not  the  document 
that  should  have  issued  from  the  Association  just  prior  to  the  decennial 
revision.  It  is  not  positive  and  definite  enough,  and  does  not  come  with 
that  authority  which  should  characterize  the  action  of  the  second  annual 
committee  of  a  national  body  ;  nevertheless  it  contains  many  valuable 
suggestions,  and  we  recommend  it  to  the  attention  of  the  revising  com- 
mittees. 
The  Report  on  Home  Adulterations  has  been  already  given  in  full  to  our 
readers  in  the  November  number;  as  also  the  special  report  on  Fluid  Ex 
tracts  which  follows  it. 
Of  the  other  special  reports  and  papers,  the  more  important  are, 
Dr.  Battey's  report  on  Sorghum  saccharatum. 
J.  M.  Maisch  on  the  active  principle  of  Cornus  Florida. 
J.  M.  Maisch  on  the  behaviour  of  essential  oils  to  iodine  and  bromine. 
Dr.  Squibb  on  the  officinal  preparations  of  metallic  mercury. 
F.  F.  Mayer  on  iodide  of  iron,  and  the  tests  for  iodine. 
Dr.  W.  H.  Pile  on  the  specific  gravity  of  water  at  different  temperatures. 
Henry  A.  Tilden  on  the  therapeutic  value  of  foreign  and  indigenous 
medicinal  plants.  The  last  is  a  paper  worthy  of  the  attention  of  pharma- 
ceutists, and  chemists.  The  first  part  is  directed  to  the  influence  of  cul- 
ture on  the  composition  of  Belladonna,  Hyoscyamus,  Aconite,  Conium  and 
Digitalis,  taken  in  connection  with  the  use  of  ordinary  manure,  guano, 
nitrate  of  potassa,  and  nitrate  of  soda.  The  analyses  in  connection  with 
the  experiments  on  culture  are  sufficiently  definite  as  regards  the  inorganic- 
constituents  ;  but  in  relation  to  the  alkaloids,  nothing  can  be  learned  from 
them,  inasmuch  as  the  "  alkaline  substance  "  was  not  pure,  as  much  as 
20  to  25  per  cent,  of  it  being  obtained  from  the  plant.    As  the  whole  value 
