^^'■Feh^mt^'}        Advantage  of  Preliminary  Examination.  73 
this  institution  was  to  afford  a  theoretical  knowledge  of  pharmacy  as  a 
science,  and  to  inculcate  a  better  comprehension  of  its  collateral 
branches  of  botany  and  chemistry,  which  latter,  particularly,  the  too 
limited  (at  most)  term  of  apprenticeship  failed  to  afford. 
We  here  assert  without  fear  of  reasonable  contradiction  that  it  never 
was  the  intent  and  purpose  of  this  institution  in  its  foundation,  or  sub- 
sequent course,  to  assert  the  prerogative  or  office  of  imparting  full  and 
Gom'plete  instruction  in  a  vocation  which  includes  mechanical  scope,  nor 
to  arrogate  to  itself  any  broad  scheme  of  education  which  should  pro- 
fess to  supercede  that  practical  information  which  the  shop  only  and 
no  other  means  could  properly  supply. 
It  has  been  the  expressed  conviction  of  the  most  eminent  men  in  the 
profession  since  the  early  history  of  pharmacy  in  this  country  that  the 
art,  or  the  rudimentary  branches,  without  which  no  deep  foundation 
of  requisite  knowledge  can  be  had,  could  be  better  acquired  in  the  work 
shop,  implement  in  hand,  with  tutoring  oversight  than  by  any  theo- 
retical instruction  away  from  familiar  surroundings,  and  that  the 
mechanical  principles  involved  in  the  various  operations  to  be  per- 
formed, can  only  be  impressed  and  comprehended  by  renewed  and  re- 
peated familiarity  with  the  processes  themselves.  This  seemed  to  apply 
with  greater  force  to  pharmacy  than  to  any  other  of  the  higher  occupa- 
tions, because  its  work  is  not  only  scientific  but  mechanical,  and  with 
manual  dexterity  must  go  a  certain  amount  of  reasoning  power,  and 
the  combined  working  and  thinking  were  calculated  to  make  a  deep 
and  lasting  impression  upon  the  expanding  mind,  which  no  amount  of 
didatic  or  superficial  teaching  could  equal. 
To  quote  too  freely  in  illustration  of  what  we  present  would  be  to 
impose  too  much  upon  your  time,  but  we  desire  at  this  point  to  refer 
to  the  general  remarks  on  this  subject  in  the  syllabus  of  study  pre- 
pared for  students  by  William  Procter,  under  the  auspices  of  the 
American  Pharmaceutical  Association,  printed  in  the  Proc.  of  1858, 
also  to  the  article  of  Edward  Parrish,  published  in  the  proceedings  of 
the  American  Pharmaceutical  Association  of  1872,  On  the  prelimi- 
nary education  of  apprentices these  two  articles  from  the  pens  of 
honored  authors,  now  deceased,  seem  like  legacies  left  for  our  benefit, 
and  will  well  repay  perusal  by  those  interested  in  this  subject.^ 
1  We  agree  with  the  author  that  the  papers  alluded  to  should  be  regarded  as  legacies 
from  men  who  were  eminent  as  pharmacists  and  as  teachers  of  pharmacy.  Prof.  Proc- 
ter's views  on  the  preliminary  education  of  apprentices  are  given  in  the  foot-note  on 
page  66,  those  of  Prof.  Parrish  in  the  paper  mentioned  above,  which  was  the  last  one 
