556 
Editorials. 
Am.  Jour.  I'huim. 
Oct.,  1884. 
left  the  Castle  Hotel  in  four-horsed  breaks  and  other  vehicles  which  pro- 
ceeded along  the  beautifully  wooded  road  to  Battle  Abbey.  Arrived  there, 
a  guide  accompanied  the  party  through  the  different  parts  of  the  Abbey 
and  grounds,  and  his  description  of  the  Battle  of  Hastings  was  kindly  sup- 
plemented and  to  some  extent  contradicted  by  a  lucid  statement  from  Mr. 
Thomas  Horsham  Cole,  a  local  antiquary.  Whilst  the  party  was  passing 
through  the  beautiful  library  the  Duke  of  Cleveland  entered  and  gave  a 
most  courteous  welcome.  From  Battle  the  company  proceded  to  Ashburn- 
ham,  where  they  were  admitted  to  the  rare  privilege  of  seeing  the  famous 
artistic,  literary  and  other  treasures  of  that  mansion,  many  of  them  specially 
associated  with  the  Stewart  kings,  and  of  strolling  through  the  beautiful 
gardens  and  grounds.  Normanhurst  was  next  visited,  but  before  venturing 
upon  tbe  inspection  of  the  wonderful  collection  of  curiosities  accumulated 
there  by  Sir  Thomas  Brassey  and  his  lady,  the  company  lunched  together 
in  the  tennis  court.  After  lingering  about  this  beautiful  spot  till  the  last 
moment,  a  rapid  drive  brought  the  company  back  to  Hastings,  and  within 
half  an  hour  many  of  them  were  traveling  as  fast  as  sttam  would  allow  to 
all  parts  of  the  kingdom. 
We  cannot  conclude  our  account  of  this  meeting  without  testifying  to  the 
excellence  of  the  arrangements,  which  reflected  the  highest  credit  upon  the 
Local  Committee  and  its  energetic  Secretary,  Mr.  Rossiter,  as  well  as  upon 
the  General  Secretaries  of  the  Conference.  Everything  went  well,  with 
thatabsence  of  friction  which  marks  the  forethought  and  care  without  which 
the  management  is  apt  to  come  into  greater  relief.  The  only  drawback  to 
the  meeting  was  the  stunted  dimensions  which  it  assumed  in  respect  to  the 
personal  attendance  indispensable  to  the  social  phase  of  the  Conference. 
Perhaps  if  the  Executive  will,  during  the  coming  year,  turn  a  little  of  the 
attention  which  has  been  lately  somewhat  exclusively  devoted  to  increasing 
the  number  of  members  to  the  multiplication  of  inducements  to  bring  them 
together  once  a  year  an  improvement  may  be  attained  in  this  direction  also, 
Phar.  Jour,  and  Trans.,  Aug.  16,  1884,  p.  123. 
EDITORIAL  DEPARTMENT. 
Poisons  in  Medicines. — The  editorial  on  page  49S  of  our  last  number 
was  written  in  the  early  part  of  August,  and  on  account  of  the  absence  of 
the  editor,  was  not  modified  after  the  inquest  when  under  the  instruction 
of  Deputy  Coroner  Ashbridge  his  jury  censured  the  dispenser  Mr.  C.  W. 
Mengle  who  was  held  to  answer  the  charge  of  involuntary  manslaughter  by 
the  Coroner  of  this  county,  for  causing  the  death  of  Ann  Carroll,  by  negli- 
gence in  omitting  to  place  upon  the  box  containing  one  hundred  strych- 
nine pills  of  1-20  of  a  grain  each  the  label  "  poison,"  in  accordance  with  the 
terms  of  Act  of  Assembly  of  March  31st,  I860,  Section  70.  The  law  upon 
which  Mr.  Mengle  was  held  is  as  follows  : 
"  No  apothecary,  druggist  or  other  person  shall  sell  or  dispose  of,  by  re- 
tail, any  morphia,  strychnia,  arsenic,  prussic  acid  or  corrosive  sublimate, 
except  upon  the  prescription  of  a  physician,  or  on  the  personal  applica- 
