268 
Editorials. 
Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
May,  1890. 
acquire  this  knowledge  intends,  when  out  of  the  reach  of  her  fostering  care,  to 
misuse  it,  to  throw  away  great  opportunities,  and  to  bring  disgrace  to  her 
escutcheon. 
An  old  English  poet  has  said  : 
Knowledge,  when  Wisdom  is  too  weak  to  guide  her, 
Is  like  a  headstrong  horse,  that  throws  the  rider. 
And  now  we  send  you  forth  on  your  mission  with  confidence  and  trust,  in 
the  full  belief  that  you  are  thoroughly  instructed  in  your  life's  calling  ;  you 
will  separate  to-night  and  will  soon  realize  to  the  full,  the  sweetness  and  power 
of  that  place  in  your  hearts  so  dear  to  all  of  you,  "  home."  Some  of  the  faces 
of  your  class-mates  that  are  so  happy  to-night  and  that  you  have  learned  to  love, 
you  will  never  see  again,  the  scene  of  your  life's  work  will  probably  be  thou- 
sands of  miles  from  that  of  your  friend  who  has  stood  by  you  shoulder  to 
shoulder  in  your  labors  in  this  city  of  Brotherly  Love  ;  but  it  makes  no  differ- 
ence how  far  you  may  be  separated  from  those  who  know  you  and  care  for  you, 
nor  how  great  your  trials  may  be  ;  there  still  lives  one,  whose  watchful  care 
never  tires,  whose  heart  will  ever  beat  in  sympathy  with  yours  in  your  earnest 
aspirations  for  light,  and  in  parting  with  her  loyal  children  to-night,  she  bids 
you  one  and  all  to  ever  cherish  the  memory,  the  precepts,  the  example  of  the 
Philadelphia  College  of  Pharmacy.  Farewell. 
As  usual  the  Commencement  exercises  were  interspersed  with  music,  and 
closed  with  the  distribution  of  the  floral  and  other  presents  sent  by  friends  for 
a  number  of  the  graduates.  We  are  pleased  to  note  the  fact  that  this  custom 
of  the  public  distribution  of  friendly  presents  continues  on  its  rapidly-declining 
scale,  and  it  appears  to  us  that  the  time  is  near  at  hand  when  the  example  set 
by  other  institutions  should  be  followed,  of  confining  such  distribution  to  the 
green-room. 
EDITORIALS. 
The  present  number  of  the  Journal  contains  64  (instead  of  48)  pages,  to 
make  room  for  an  account  of  the  exercises  connected  with  the  annual  exami- 
nations and  commencement.  The  amount  of  original  papers  and  of  other 
matters,  which  should  not  appear  later  than  the  May  number,  is  such  that  we 
have  been  compelled  to  defer,  until  June,  the  publication  of  several  papers,  of 
chemical  notes,  abstracts  and  of  Association  notices. 
Standardization. — During  the  past  few  years  the  editor  has  made  no  com- 
ments on  the  discussion  upon  this  subject  as  carried  on  by  medical  and 
pharmaceutical  journals,  in  the  hope  that  some  positive  proofs  might  be  forth- 
coming demonstrating  the  asserted  superiority  of  standardized  preparations  of 
vegetable  drugs  over  such  made  in  the  customary  way  from  the  same  drugs 
well  authenticated  according  to  the  Pharmacopoeia.  Such  proof  has  not  been 
produced,  nor  has  it  been  shown  that  standardized  preparations  vary  less  in 
the  percentage  of  the  leading  therapeutically  active  constituent  than  does  the 
properly  selected  drug.  In  another  place  we  show  the  reason  wThy,  in  certain 
cases,  the  Pharmacopoeia  had  to  adopt  processes  of  assay,  and  to  what  extent 
they  had  to  be  carried  in  order  to  produce  entirely  trustworthy  results.  The 
propositions  thus  far  made  for  the  extension  of  the  principle  introduced  into 
the  Pharmacopoeia  thirty  years  ago,  lack,  in  our  view,  those  features  of  exact- 
ness which  are  observed  in  the  processes  adopted  in  the  last  edition,  though  it 
