AMNovURi,m4RM*}  Reviews  and  Bibliographical  Notices.  543 
have  gentlemanly  agents,  who  visit  the  four  corners  of  the  earth.  They  come 
into  his  store,  with  their  little  satchels,  their  regalia  cigars,  and  a  bland  smile. 
They  tell  him  they  will  send  him  this  or  that  on  commission,  freight  paid,  and 
will  call  in  a  year  for  settlement,  or  perhaps  in  six  months.  He  concludes  to 
try  it,  the  temptation  is  great.  The  bill  comes,  the  packages  are  handsomely 
done  up,  and  the  profits  remunerative,  and  it  gives  his  store  a  handsome,  full 
appearance. 
"  Now,  just  at  this  juncture,  comes  a  little  affair  that  requires  notice  :  There 
are  two  kinds  of  customers  who  come  into  a  store.  One  asks  for  a  specific 
article,  pays  for  it,  takes  it  and  leaves.  This  is  legitimate,  and  no  druggist  is 
to  be  blamed  for  it. 
"  But  another  class  comes  in,  and  asks,  '  Have  you  got  anything  good  for  a 
cold  ?  '  or,  '  Have  you  got  a  good  liniment  for  rheumatism  ?  '  The  farthest  an 
honest  druggist  will  go  in  his  answer  is  to  say,  '  Here  is  an  article  I  sell  a  good 
deal  of,'  or,  '  Here  is  an  article  which  has  a  good  reputation  '  ;  but  he  is  not 
justifiable  or  excusable  in  answering,  '  Yes,  sir  ;  here  is  an  article  that  1  will 
warrant,'  or,  'Here  is  an  article  that  will  cure  your  cold,'  for  when  he  does 
so  he  tells  a  falsehood,  guarantees  a  preparation  he  knows  not  the  ingredients 
of,  and  in  this  case  greatly  prostitutes  his  profession  for  the  sake  of  a  few  dol- 
lars or  cents. 
11  But  for  science  to  say  that,  in  keeping  them  in  his  store  and  selling  them, 
he  degrades  his  profession,  is  making  a  statement  that  to  swallow  will  choke 
common  sense  to  death,  and  throw  good  business  principles  into  an  apoplectic  fit. 
"  No  person  is  more  aware,  Mr.  Editor,  of  the  immense  advantages  of  scien- 
tific researches  into  pharmacy  than  I  am,  nor  is  any  one  more  grateful  than  I 
of  the  value  of  just  such  journals  as  the  American  Journal  of  Pharmacy  ;  but 
the  war  against  patent  medicines  will  never  be  a  success  until  poor  pharmacists 
cease  to  need  money  to  buy  bread  and  butter  with. 
"  I  believe  in  the  elevation  of  the  profession  of  pharmacy,  and  in  the  diffu- 
sion of  knowledge,  for  it  brings  not  only  relief  to  suffering  humanity,  but  prac- 
tical benefit  to  the  business  man. 
"  Take  one  instance  :  I  was  struck  with  the  formula  for  Effervescing  Solution 
of  Tartrate  of  Sodium,  published  in  Am.  Jour,  of  Phar.,  July,  1873,  p.  289,  and 
tried  it.  At  first  I  found  it  hard  to  introduce  it,  and  had  to  take  the  first  bot- 
tle of  it  myself  (though,  to  tell  the  truth,  I  did  not  need  it),  but  now  it  has 
driven  citrate  of  magnesia,  in  solution,  out  of  the  market,  and  we  have  a  large 
and  increasing  sale  of  it.  Such  things  as  these  are  of  direct  benefit  to  drug- 
gists as  well  as  to  the  people." 
KEVIEWS  AND  BIBLIOGKAPHICAL  NOTICES. 
Clinical  Lectures  on  Diseases  of  the  Nervous  System.  By  William  A.  Ham- 
mond, M.  D.,  Professor  of  Diseases  of  the  Mind  and  Nervous  System  in  the 
University  of  the  City  of  New  York,  etc.  Reported,  edited,  and  the  histories 
of  the  cases  prepared,  with  notes,  by  T.  M.  B.  Cross,  M.  D.,  Clinical  Lec- 
turer on  Diseases  of  the  Mind  and  Nervous  System,  etc.  New  York:  D. 
Appleton  &  Co.    1874.    8vo,  pp.  291. 
These  lectures  were  delivered  at  the  New  York  State  Hospital  for  Diseases 
of  the  Nervous  System,  and  at  the  Bellevue  Hospital  Medical  College  ;  and  as 
they  were  intended  especially  for  the  benefit  of  students,  the  chief  aim  of  Prof. 
Hammond  has  been  to  preseut  practical  views,  fully  illustrated  by  cases,  with 
the  results  derived  from  treatment,  as  far  as  that  was  possible,  and  to  confine 
himself  to  a  full  consideration  of  the  symptoms,  the  causes  and  the  treatment 
of  each  affection,  particularly  in  their  relation  to  the  cases.  The  Editor  has 
carefully  prepared  the  history  of  the  cases,  and  while  the  volume  lays  no  claim 
to  being  exhaustive,  it  will  be  found  to  treat,  in  the  manner  indicated  above 
