2 
International  Conference. 
f  Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
1     January,  1903. 
recently  held  at  Brussels,  which  was  designated  by  the  title  forming 
the  subject  of  this  communication. 
It  will  be  observed,  as  the  title  implies,  that  this  Conference  was 
quite  distinct  in  its  character  from  the  various  pharmaceutical  con- 
gresses that  have  preceded  it,  although  it  was  a  development  of 
them.  It  was  international  not  only  in  name,  but  in  fact,  as  will 
be  seen  by  the  countries  represented,  the  delegates  from  which 
were  appointed  by  their  respective  governments.  Its  chief  and 
most  important  distinction,  however,  was  its  restriction  to  the  con- 
sideration of  plans  for  securing  international  uniformity  in  strength 
of  potent  medicines  only.  As  a  result  of  this  limitation  of  its  scope, 
it  is  believed  to  have  satisfactorily  accomplished  its  task,  and  to 
have  achieved  a  measure  of  success  which  was  not  possible  with 
that  wider  range  of  discussion — involving  such  diverse  topics  as 
pharmaceutical  education  and  titles,  the  regulation  of  the  practice 
of  pharmacy,  and  particularly  the  compilation  of  a  complete  inter- 
national pharmacopoeia — which  had  characterized  and  rendered  inef- 
fective all  preceding  pharmaceutical  congresses. 
The  initiative  for  convening  the  recent  Conference  at  Brussels 
proceeded  from  the  Paris  Congress  in  1 900,  and  was  based  upon  a 
proposition  offered  by  Professor  Tschirch,  of  Berne,  which,  as  finally 
adopted,  was  as  follows  : 
"  To  have  a  comparative  table  prepared  showing  the  differences 
in  strength  of  medicaments  bearing  the  same  name  in  different 
pharmacopoeias.  To  have  this  table  distributed  to  the  pharmaco- 
poeia commissions,  to  the  academies  of  medicine  and  the  pharma- 
ceutical colleges  and  associations  of  the  various  countries,  with  the 
request  to  take  this  matter  into  due.  consideration  at  their  next 
pharmacopoeia  revision,  and  to  adopt,  so  far  as  possible,  a  uniform 
standard  of  strength,  and  where  differences  still  remain,  to  call 
attention  to  such  in  footnotes. 
"  To  ask  the  Belgian  Government  to  arrange  with  other  govern- 
ments a  Conference  in  Brussels,  and  to  ask  all  the  delegates  ap- 
pointed to  such  a  Conference  to  have  their  proposals  ready  to  lay 
before  the  meeting  whenever  this  may  be  called." 
In  accordance  with  this  recommendation,  and  with  a  proposition 
emanating  from  the  Royal  Academy  of  Medicine  of  Belgium,  the 
delegates  appointed  by  the  respective  governments  met  in  Brussels 
on  September  15,  1902.    The  sessions  were  held  in  apartments 
