n6         Meeting  of  New  York  Branch  A.  Ph.  A.  { ^bluary^g™' 
JOSEPH  P.  REMINGTON. 
When  a  man  of  the  prominence  of  Joseph  Price  Remington  passes  into 
the  Great  Beyond,  the  impulse  of  those  who  knew  and  loved  him  is  to  pay 
tribute  to  his  worth  and  work.  The  first  is  easy,  because  "  out  of  the  heart 
the  mouth  speaketh  "  and  love  finds  ready  expression ;  the  second  is  difficult, 
because  it  takes  time,  and  a  long  time,  to  properly  estimate  the  full  value  of 
a  life's  work.  It  is  very  much  like  viewing  a  beautiful  painting.  Its  real 
beauty  can  only  be  seen  by  standing  at  a  certain  distance  from  it  and  getting 
the  proper  focus.  So  it  is  with  the  work  of  a  human  soul.  The  future  his- 
torian is  best  qualified  to  sense  human  values ;  the  present-day  observer  is 
too  close,  too  much  influenced  by  the  lights  and  shadows  of  personal  rela- 
tionship. 
Therefore,  I  would  speak  of  the  worth  of  our  departed  friend,  rather 
than  of  his  work  and  it's  dominating  influence  upon  American  pharmacy.  To 
know  him  was  to  love  him.  His  charming  personality,  his  fine  tact,  and  his 
ability  to  make  all  those  who  came  within  the  magic  circle  of  his  influence 
feel  that  here  was  a  man  and  here  a  true  friend — these  were  striking  charac- 
teristics of  him  and  they  all  "  rang  true."  They  did  not  spring  from  motives 
of  policy.  They  came  from  a  soul  reared  in  a  Quaker  atmosphere  full  of 
love  of  humanity.  He  had  his  faults;  we  all  have  ours.  To  use  an  Irishism, 
the  man  who  has  no  faults  is  not  faultless;  he  has  the  fault  of  inertia.  The 
strong,  positive  man  is  intensely  human,  and  being  human,  cannot  be  perfect. 
The  big  thing  is  that  such  a  personality  inspires  others  to  be  kind,  to  be  gen- 
erous, to  be  considerate,  to  be  friendry,  to  be  helpful;  and  what  is  more, 
makes  life  better  worth  the  living  to  countless  thousands,  as  the  influence  of 
such  a  life  spreads  far  and  wide,  like  the  ever-widening  circles  of  a  stream 
into  which  a  stone  is  cast. 
The  outstanding  features  of  Professor  Remington's  personality  were,  it 
seems  to  me,  three  in  number — his  unusual  ability,  his  unusual  force  of  char- 
acter and  his  unusual  courage. 
His  ability  was  inherited  and  acquired.  He  had  a  keenly  retentive  mem- 
ory, and  a  fine,  discriminating  judgment  in  appreciating  the  relative  values 
of  facts.  He  was  exceedingly  painstaking  in  his  consideration  of  details. 
He  had  a  deep  knowledge  of  the  science  of  his  profession  coupled  with  rare 
executive  capacity,  an  unusual  combination  of  scientist  and  executive ;  and 
he  knew,  as  no  other,  the  possibilities  and  limitations  of  every  active  research 
worker  in  American  pharmacy.  He  had  practical  experience  in  all  the 
branches  of  pharmaceutical  practice — the  retail,  wholesale  and  manufacturing, 
and  acquired  thereby  unusual  breadth  of  view. 
His  force  of  character  was  unusual.  Strong  and  positive  in  his  opinions, 
he  was  not  hasty  in  forming  them,  and  was  tolerant  of  the  opinions  of  others, 
and  exceedingly  patient.  His  anxiety  was  to  be  right  in  his  decisions  and  to 
play  fair  with  his  opponents.    He  believed  that  might  may  win  for  the  mo- 
