362  Editorial.  {^iS^wST^ 
EDITORIAL. 
THE  IMPERIAL  PHARMACOPOEIA. 
Last  February,  in  a  paper  before  the  Pharmaceutical  Society  of  Great  Britain, 
Professor  Attfield  proposed  that  the  next  British  Pharmacopoeia  should  be  so 
framed  as  to  include  all  the  English  Colonies,  and  in  that  event  it  should  be 
known  as  the  "Imperial  Pharmacopoeia."  This  suggestion  appears  to  have 
teen  acceptable  to  the  Society. 
Sufficient  time  has  now  elapsed  for  us  to  observe  the  nature  of  the  reception 
which  has  been  accorded  to  the  proposition,  by  Canadians,  as  well  as  by  our 
own  countrymen. 
We  regret  that  there  is  a  disposition  on  the  part  of  some  to  take  a  narrow 
view,  in  which  so-called  national  pride  (or  better,  selfishness)  is  most  promi- 
nent, rather  than  to  treat  the  subject  strictly  on  its  merits. 
In  considering  this  question,  no  political  issues  should  for  a  moment  be 
entertained.  It  matters  little  to  the  pharmacists  of  the  United  States,  whether 
our  Pharmacopoeia  is  used  in  Canada  or  not ;  but  to  the  Canadian  pharmacist, 
the  announcement  that  he  is  to  have  a  Canadian  Pharmacopoeia,  cannot  but  be 
acceptable.  He  will  then  be  somewhat  relieved  of  the  difficulty  he  has  hereto- 
fore experienced  in  having  a  legal  standard,  to  which  he  could  scarcely  conform 
in  every  case. 
Professor  Attfield  stated  that  the  United  States  Pharmacopoeia  is  a  strong 
competitor.  Just  how  a  standard  is  to  be  created,  which  will  serve  for  England 
and  all  her  colonies,  is  not  clear,  but  we  have  no  doubt  that  British  brains  and 
ingenuity  will  accomplish  the  desired  result. 
The  chief  satisfaction  we  shall  derive  from  the  change  will  be  in  having  the 
Canadian  Pharmacopoeia  as  a  connecting  link  between  our  own  standard  and 
that  of  Great  Britain,  by  which  all  will  tend  to  approach  one  system  in  weights 
and  measures,  as  well  as  in  strength  of  preparations. 
Let  us  then,  not  become  excited  by  such  sentiments  as  the  following,  which 
recently  appeared  in  the  Western  Druggist :  "  The  acknowledged  superiority 
of  the  U.  S.  Pharmacopoeia,  1890,  to  any  foreign  pharmacopoeia,  and  the  favor 
the  adoption  of  the  metric  system  will  receive  from  the  French  Canadians, 
suggests  that  in  a  few  years  the  majority  of  Canadian  pharmacists  will  be 
pharmaceutically  annexed  to  the  United  States  through  the  use  of  the  U.  S. 
Pharmacopoeia  " 
These  effusions  would  sound  fairly  well  in  an  after-dinner  speech,  but  in  cold 
type  they  become  ridiculous.  It  is  doubtful  if  any  notice  should  have  been 
taken  of  these  remarks,  but  the  Chemist  and  Druggist  has  seen  fit  to  make  a 
neat  reply  under  the  title  of  "The  Spread- Eagle  Pharmacopoeia."  We  are 
therein  informed  that  Canadians  themselves  will  have  a  hand  in  compiling  this 
Pharmacopoeia,  and  that  it  will  be  made  official  in  Canada  when  it  is  published. 
This  is  a  gentle  way  of  reminding  us  to  mind  our  own  business,  and  we  will  do 
-well  to  give  heed  to  the  advice. 
LEGISLATION  TO  GOVERN  THE  SALE  OF  PATENT  MEDICINES. 
The  title  of  Mr.  Redsecker's  paper  (p.  333),  "The  Cutter  and  the  Remedy,' 
may  appear  rather  unprofessional,  but,  on  reading  beyond  the  title,  it  will  be 
seen  that  if  the  suggestions  there  offered  are  carried  out,  the  patent  medicine 
