io       Four  Things  Every  Druggist  Should  Know.  {A^££fiw7.m" 
its  terms  and  the  spirit  of  its  purpose,  that  is,  in  harmony  with  the 
ethical  principles  of  pharmacy  and  medicine.  We  shall  do  all  we 
can  to  conserve  these  principles  in  the  drug  trade  as  it  passes  from 
State  to  State,  having  in  view  the  noble  purposes  of  the  two  great 
professions  interested,  namely,  the  preparation  of  pure  remedies 
and  the  alleviation  of  suffering  and  the  treatment  of  diseases.  To 
this  end  we  shall  labor  to  see  that  the  drugs  which  shall  pass  from 
State  to  State  are  pure  and  up  to  the  standard  of  strength  required, 
and  that  the  proprietary  remedies  bear  the  legend  which  the  law 
requires  and  that  their  labels  be  free  from  any  statement,  design  or 
device  which  is  false  and  misleading  in  any  particular.  If  this  last 
can  be  secured  in  the  spirit  of  the  act  it  seems  to  me  it  will  put  an 
end  forever  to  the  disgraceful  condition  in  which  our  country  now 
finds  itself,  flooded,  as  it  is,  with  remedies  for  the  laity,  advertised 
falsely  and  reaching,  through  the  public  press,  every  home  and 
hamlet  of  our  country. 
FOUR  THINGS  EVERY  DRUGGIST  SHOULD  KNOW 
ABOUT  HIS  BUSINESS.1 
By  Harry  B.  Mason. 
There  are  four  things  which  every  druggist,  as  a  commercial  man, 
should  know  about  his  business,  but,  vital  as  they  are,  I  fear  the 
majority  of  druggists  are  in  ignorance  of  them. 
THE  FOUR  ESSENTIALS. 
(1)  Every  druggist  should  know  his  percentage  expense  of  doing 
business. 
(2)  He  should  know  his  average  gross  profit,  estimated  on  the 
total  volume  of  sales. 
(3)  He  should  know  whether  certain  important  lines  or  depart- 
ments, like  those  involving  cigars,  candy  and  soda,  are  making  or 
losing  money  for  him,  and,  if  they  are  making  money,  how  much. 
(4)  He  should  know  for  a  certainty  what  his  total  annual  earnings 
are  from  the  entire  business. 
Now  why  is  it  necessary  to  know  these  four  things  ?  Because 
1  Read  before  the  Philadelphia  College  of  Pharmacy,  December  18,  1906. 
