AmMa0rch,rmm'}  Pharmaceutical  Meeting.  15 1 
for  the  nineteenth  century.  He  wished  to  know  how  the  leather  prepared  ac- 
cording to  these  various  new  processes  compared  in  durability  to  that  prepared 
with  tannic  acid. 
Replying,  Professor  Sadtler  said  that  sole  leather  is  still  made  by  the  use  of 
tannin,  as  it  is  desirable  to  have  the  leather  built  up  slowly.  He  remarked  also 
that  45,000,000  goat  skins  alone  are  imported  into  this  country  annually,  and 
that  when  we  consider  the  magnitude  of  the  tanning  industry,  it  soon  becomes 
apparent  that  an  economy  of  time  and  expense  becomes  of  prime  importance. 
A  distinction  which  Dr.  Dolley  noted  was  that  the  heavy  leathers  are  sold  by 
weight.  The  phlobaphene  or  coloring  matter  of  the  vegetable  tanning  material 
is  taken  up  by  the  skins,  so  that  in  the  leather  sold  by  weight  a  certain  pro- 
portion of  the  weight  is  vegetable  substance. 
W.  B.  Ridenour  read  a  paper  on  "Soluble  Ferric  Pyrophosphate."  (See 
page  125.) 
Mr.  J.  W.  England  commended  Mr.  Ridenour's  work  very  highly.  He  was 
especially  interested  in  the  reference  made  to  possible  reversion  of  pyrophos- 
phate to  phosphate,  when  the  former  is  in  solution  in  the  presence  of  free 
acids,  and  thought  that  this  factor  with  that  of  oxidation  might  explain,  per- 
haps, the  variability  in  composition  of  commercial  scaled  iron  pyrophosphate, 
and  the  proneness  to  change  of  the  triple  elixir  of  iron,  quinine  and  strych- 
nine, made  with  the  soluble  ferric  pyrophosphate.  He  said  that  many  of 
the  triple  elixirs  of  commerce,  so  far  as  the  iron  constituent  was  concerned,  were 
made  with  soluble  phosphate  of  iron  or  citro-chloride  of  iron.  Such  products, 
he  thought,  did  not  give  as  good  clinical  results  as  did  the  elixir  made  with  the 
soluble  iron  pyrophosphate,  though  they  were  less  prone  to  change  in  compo- 
sition. A  perfect  formula  for  making  triple  elixir  from  the  sol.  iron  pyro.  had 
not,  so  far  as  he  knew,  yet  been  devised. 
A  paper  on  "Crocus  and  Some  of  Its  Adulterants,"  which  was  illustrated  by 
specimens,  paintings  and  drawings,  was  presented  by  William  S.  Weakley, 
assistant  in  the  Botanical  Laboratory  of  the  College  (see  page  119). 
A  feature  of  the  meeting  was  an  exhibition  of  a  variety  of  interesting  and 
valuable  specimens.  Prof.  F.  G.  Ryan  called  attention  to  quite  a  collection  of 
specimens  of  crude  opium,  which  showed  how  opium  is  put  up  in  different 
countries.  The  collection  also  contained  some  "  false  "  opiums  and  adulterants 
of  opiums.  The  exhibition  was  made  through  the  courtesy  of  Messrs.  Gilpin, 
Ivangdon  &  Co.  Professor  Remington  also  remarked  upon  the  special  interest 
of  the  specimens  and  exhibited  some  adulterants  of  opium  which  he  had  pro- 
cured for  his  cabinet. 
In  this  connection,  Mr.  F.  W.  K.  Stedem  remarked  upon  the  peculiar  red 
color  of  some  deodorized  tincture  of  opium  which  he  had  made  from  opium 
which  had  the  proper  assay  value. 
Professor  Remington  said  that  the  red  poppy  is  ver}'  common  in  European 
countries,  but  that  the  flowers  of  the  plant  yielding  official  opium  are  white. 
Prof.  F.  X.  Moerk  called  attention  to  a  collection  of  representative  samples 
of  the  fertilizer  industry,  which  were  obtained  from  Baugh  &  Sons  Co.,  of 
Philadelphia,  through  Mr.  Geyer,  one  of  our  graduates,  and  which  he  said  may 
be  briefly  mentioned  in  the  order  of  their  valuable  constituents. 
Potassium  Salts :  Kainite,  with  samples  of  potassium  sulphate  and  magnes- 
ium sulphate,  obtained  from  the  same  ;  Potassium  chloride  from  either  Sylvite 
