Amjine!'i893arm'}  Minutes  of  the  Pharmaceutical  Meeting.  315 
the  editor.  And  it  is  a  source  of  congratulation  that  in  spite  of  this  and  the 
interruption  arising  from  the  building  operations  of  the  College,  original 
papers  have  been  presented  at  nearly  every  meeting.  Our  Pharmaceutical 
Meetings  continue  to  be  an  index  of  the  advance  in  pharmacy. 
It  is  a  matter  of  regret  to  the  committee  that  the  circle  of  contributors  is  not 
more  extended,  and  they  would  take  this  opportunity  of  again  impressing 
upon  each  graduate  of  our  College  that  our  Alma  Mater  expects  and  invites 
them  to  participate  in  her  institutions.  The  pharmaceutical  meetings  and  the 
American  Journal  of  Pharmacy  are  two  of  her  oldest  and  most  valuable  insti- 
tutions. 
Contribute  here  your  observations,  experiments  and  difficulties.  Write  to 
any  member  of  the  committee.  George  M.  Beringer, 
J.  W.  England, 
Henry  Trimbee, 
Ceement  B.  Lowe, 
WlEEIAM  MdNTYRE. 
The  report  was  accepted,  and  F.  X.  Moerk  moved  a  vote  of  thanks  to  the 
committee  for  the  efficient  manner  in  which  they  have  discharged  their  duties. 
This  was  unanimously  passed  and  the  committee  discharged. 
A  paper  upon  a  proximate  principle  of  Phytolacca  was  read  by  Prof.  Trimble. 
Prof.  Maisch  thought  that  this  principle  was  apparently  purer  than  others 
which  had  been  previously  isolated  as  the  active  principle  of  poke  root ;  but 
that  physiological  experiments  were  needed  to  ascertain  its  claim  to  that  dis- 
tinction. Modern  researches,  largely  carried  on  under  the  supervision  of 
Professor  Kobert,  had  shown  that  many  of  the  saponin-like  compounds,  as 
formerly  prepared,  could  be  separated  into  two  or  three  distinct  principles, 
differing  in  their  poisonous  properties  and  in  their  power  of  destroying  the  red 
blood  corpuscles. 
A  paper  upon  the  comparative  value  of  different  brands  of  hydrogen  peroxide, 
by  Richard  L.  Lloyd,  was  read  by  Mr.  Moerk.  Referring  to  the  term  fresh 
used  in  the  paper,  Professor  Maisch  thought  that  it  was  applied  in  a  commer- 
cial sense,  meaning  recently  procured  in  the  market ;  also  that  a  solution  of 
hydrogen  peroxide  was  so  prone  to  decomposition  according  to  its  concentra- 
tion, and  under  the  influence  of  temperature,  contact  with  certain  bodies  and 
other  conditions  that  many  manufacturers  declined  preparing  it  on  a  large 
scale  of  a  guaranteed  strength.  Dr.  Squibb  preferred  to  furnish  the  carefully 
adjusted  materials  for  preparing  the  solution  as  needed,  giving  minute  direc- 
tions to  insure  success.  Mr.  Moerk  stated  that  a  neutral  solution  is  less  per- 
manent than  one  slightly  acid  ;  but  that  it  is  certainly  a  mistake  for  manufac- 
turers to  state  on  their  labels  that  it  is  entirely  permanent. 
Dr.  C.  B.  Lowe  exhibited  specimens  of  Sepia  officinalis,  the  male  and 
female  cuttlefish,  procured  from  the  eastern  Mediterranean,  and  gave  some 
account  of  the  habits  and  uses  of  this  cephalopod. 
Professor  Maisch  called  attention  to  the  fact  that  the  so-called  feet  of  cepha- 
lopods  were  tentacles  used  by  the  animals  for  various  purposes,  and  that  their 
construction  was  peculiar.  The  size  attained  by  different  species  of  cepha- 
lopods  was  also  alluded  to. 
Dr.  Lowe  also  called  attention  to  WebVs  ice  shaver  and  crusher  as  being  a 
very  successful  and  convenient  device  offered  in  the  market  for  this  purpose. 
