540  American  Pharmaceutical  Association.     { A^vJembef.ti907!1* 
to  secure  correct  information  on  matters  relating  to  pharmacy;  but, 
unless  pharmacists  are  in  position  to  furnish  accurate  and  satisfactory 
information,  they  will  discredit,  not  alone  themselves,  but  also  the 
other  members  of  their  craft.  To  meet  the  legitimate  requirements 
of  physicians  for  information  and  assistance,  pharmacists  must  be 
aroused  and  made  to  take  a  more  active  part  in  the  professional 
side  of  their  calling. 
Dr.  Wood,  in  answer  to  an  inquiry,  said  that  while  it  must  be 
admitted  that,  theoretically,  the  manufacturer  has  certain  advantages 
in  the  making  of  preparations  that  are,  or  are  said  to  be,  physiolog- 
ically tested,  practically  this  advantage  was  not  so  important.  The 
claims  that  are  made  by  manufacturers  are  not  infrequently  based 
on  false  premises  or  incomplete  data,  and  in  some  cases  at  least  have 
been  proven  to  be  incorrect.  He  believed  that  any  apparent  advan- 
tage that  the  manufacturer  possessed  at  the  present  time  could 
readily  be  overcome  by  intelligent  and  concerted  action  on  the  part 
of  pharmacists. 
Professor  Remington  advised  pharmacists  to  adhere  strictly  to  the 
official  formulae.  There  is  danger  of  being  penalized,  in  addition  to 
discrediting  the  whole  movement  for  popularizing  official  prepara- 
tions. 
Dr.  F.  E.  Stewart  pointed  out  that  the  pharmacist  cannot  shirk 
responsibility  in  the  dispensing  of  prescriptions;  he  must  satisfy 
himself  of  the  genuineness  and  the  efficiency  of  the  substances  he 
dispenses,  regardless  of  whether  he  makes  them  himself  or  not. 
Mr.  Wilbert  pointed  out  the  need  for  post-graduate  work  for 
pharmacists,  and  incidentally  referred  to  several  incidents  that  had 
come  to  his  attention  recently  that  appeared  to  him  to  indicate  that 
the  average  pharmacist  is  not  so  well  informed  on  the  properties  of 
the  substances  that  he  is  dispensing  as  he  really  should  be. 
Dr.  John  V.  Shoemaker  expressed  himself  as  being  pleased  at 
having  attended  the  meeting  of  the  Philadelphia  Branch,  and  while 
he  was  sorry  to  say  that  it  was  the  first  meeting  that  he  had  attended, 
he  assured  the  members  that  it  would  not  be  the  last.  He  was 
particularly  gratified  to  note  the  intense  interest  and  earnestness 
that  had  been  manifested  by  the  pharmacists  present  in  the  discus- 
sion of  the  problems  involved  in  the  advancement  of  the  professional 
side  of  their  calling,  and  assured  his  hearers  that  their  efforts  would 
certainly  be  rewarded. 
