Am.  Jour.  Pharm.  \ 
March,  1900.  J 
Editorial  Notes  and  Comments, 
143 
longer  any  reasonable  excuse  for  the  further  continuance  of  this 
unjust  and  oppressive  tax ;  that  said  tax,  unlike  nearly  all  other 
taxes  imposed  by  the  Government,  is  not  and  cannot  be  shifted  to 
the  consumer;  that  said  tax,  so  long  as  it  is  collected,  is  and  must 
remain  an  enormous  and  discriminative  burden  upon  the  retail 
druggists,  equivalent  to  an  income  tax  upon  them  many  times 
greater  than  the  general  income  tax,  proposed  by  the  Act  of  1894, 
but  which,  in  a  suit  prosecuted  by  the  financial  interests  of  the 
East,  was  overthrown  by  the  Supreme  Court. 
"  Resolved,  That  we  earnestly  petition  Congress  to  repeal  this 
vexatious  and  harassing  tax.  We  especially  urge  our  Senators 
and  members  from  Illinois  to  use  every  means  in  their  power  to 
secure  its  repeal,  and  we  ask  them  not  to  abate  their  efforts  by 
reason  of  the  specious  arguments  now  being  put  forth  by  the  advo- 
cates of  big  appropriations  against  such  action  at  the  present  ses- 
sion. We  ask  them  to  consider  that  the  first  duty  of  Congress  is 
to  do  justice;  we  ask  them  to  remember  that  the  levying  of  this 
tax  involves  the  grossest  injustice  involved  in  any  tax  now  levied 
by  the  Federal  Government ;  we  ask  them  not  to  forget  that  it 
falls  for  the  most  part  upon  a  class  of  citizens  who  are  already  suf- 
fering under  burdens  and  disabilities  which  render  it  difficult  for 
them  to  make  even  expenses  in  their  business. 
"  Resolved,  That  a  copy  of  these  resolutions  be  transmitted  to 
both  Senators  and  to  each  member  of  Congress  from  Illinois,  with 
the  urgent  request  that  they  do  everything  in  their  power  to 
induce  the  Ways  and  Means  Committee  of  the  House  to  report  for 
passage  at  this  session  a  bill  to  repeal  this  odious,  obnoxious  and 
oppressive  tax." 
ASAFETIDA  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES. 
Owing  to  the  importance  attached  to  the  commercial  purity  of 
asafetida  at  the  present  time  (see  this  Journal,  1900,  p.  97),  the 
editor  of  this  Journal  has  been  in  correspondence  with  some  well- 
known  firms  in  regard  to  the  purity  of  this  drug  in  the  American 
market,  and  the  following  letter  from  Lehn  &  Fink,  of  New  York 
City,  places  the  matter  clearly  before  our  readers : 
"  Dear  Sir  : — We  acknowledge  receipt  of  your  favor  of  the  25th 
ult.,  in  which  you  desire  a  statement  from  us  whether  a  reduction 
of  the  limit  of  purity  as  established  by  the  Pharmacopoeia  for  'Asa- 
fetida '  is  advisable. 
