Am.  -lour  Pharm. 
Oct.,  1884. 
The  p  and  the  P. 
531 
THE  p  AND  THE  P. 
By  J.  Winchell  Forbes. 
By  which  is  indicated  the  relative  importance  of  the  pharmacist  and  the 
public.  Which  is  which,  depends.  In  point  of  number,  of  course  it  is 
the  public  with  a  P,  but  in  relation  to  ourselves,  the  introductory  letter  of 
our  profession,  like  the  famous  gourd  vine,  grows  clean  out  of  sight, 
when  we  stand  individually  in  the  focus  of  our  mental  microscopes,  at  the 
same  time,  dualizing  our  existence,  and  occupying  a  position  at  the  eye- 
piece. 
The  application  of  time  and  study  to  the  details  of  a  given  art  or  science, 
inevitably  leads  to  more  or  less  idealization  of  those  details,  and,  no  matter 
how  primary  they  may  be  in  reality,  a  more  or  less  exaggerated  estimate  of 
their  importance. 
In  fact,  the  more  purely  practical  and  devoid  of  real  scientific  nature 
they  are,  the  greater  the  exaggeration,  and  we  find  a  more  thorough  esprit 
de  co?ps  among  the  lower  grades  of  mere  artisans  than  among  those  in  whose 
work  mental  processes  and  scientific  considerations  enter  as  a  portion  of 
the  details.  To  the  journeyman  tailor  or  shoemaker  his  guild  is  the  object 
of  a  species  of  worship,  and,  as  a  rule,  his  own  individual  existence  is  as 
an  unit  of  the  aggregation.  His  affection  is  centered  upon  his  trade,  not 
upon  himself.  His  possible  acquirements  in  that  trade  are  self-limited, 
mechanical  dexterity  cannot  transcend  the  point  of  practical  perfection, 
and,  as  hundreds  of  his  fellow-workmen  reach  that  point  as  well  as  him- 
self, he  is  constantly  brought  face  to  face  with  the  fact  that  he  is  not  emi- 
nently superior  to  his  associates. 
The  moment  that  he  outsteps  the  conventional  ruts,  and,  introducing  a 
mental  element,  becomes  an  originator,  the  first  blow  is  struck  at  the  supre- 
macy of  the  guild  over  the  individual,  and  the  greater  the  proportion  of 
mental  action,  the  stronger  the  feeling  of  individuality,  and  the  less  dis- 
posed is  he  to  be  content  with  a  degree  of  personal  importance  that  is  a 
common  quantity  for  all  units  of  the  aggregation  forming  his  guild. 
It  is  rarely  that  foremen  are  found  among  the  strikers. 
Intelligent  appreciation  of  a  well-made  piece  of  machinery,  or  any  result 
of  purely  mechanical  processes,  is  possible  to  the  most  rudimentary  orga- 
nizations ;  no  knowledge  whatever  is  required  of  the  details  of  production, 
or  even  of  the  utility  of  the  result. 
The  contemplation  of  a  complicated  piece  of  machinery  will  give  plea- 
sure, even  when  the  observer  cannot  tell  whether  its  mission  is  to  grind 
wheat  or  make  pins.  The  coloring,  grouping  and  general  execution  of  a 
painting  is  capable  of  eliciting  commendation  from  persons  having  no 
practical  knowledge  of  drawing,  color-mixing  or  any  point  that  underlies 
the  success  of  the  artist.  Appreciation  in  such  cases  is  the  result  of  imme- 
diate perception,  involving  neither  past  nor  present  mental  effort. 
The  results  obtained  by  labor  in  arts  and  sciences  that  are  distinct  and 
wholly  apart  from  the  environments  of  every-day  life  cannot  meet  with 
appreciation  by  immediate  perception,  and  are  therefore  unintelligible  to 
the  ordinary  individual.  . 
