134 
Biographical  Sketches. 
(  Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
I      March,  1903. 
of  scientific  progress,  he  was  also  a  scientist,  who  had  at  heart  the 
development  and  advance  of  the  human  family. 
The  concluding  year  of  Mr.  Taylor's  life  included  periods  of  great 
physical  suffering  and  mental  privation ;  his  eyesight  failed  him, 
depriving  him  of  one  of  his  most  cherished  pastimes — that  of  read- 
ing. He  left  behind  him  an  unsullied  record  for  constant  and  unre- 
mitting devotion  to  the  best  interests  of  his  chosen  profession. 
MAURICE  W.  ALEXANDER. 
The  largest  class  that  had  ever  graduated  from  the  Philadelphia 
College  of  Pharmacy,  up  to  that  time,  gathered  at  Musical  Fund 
Hall,  on  April  18,  1854.  According  to  the  reporter  of  those  days 
this  class  had  the  degree  of  Graduate  in  Pharmacy  conferred  on 
them  by  the  then  presiding  officer  of  the  College,  Henry  C.  Blair, 
Esq.  The  ceremony  was  gone  through  with  in  the  presence  of  a 
large  and  respectable  audience,  and  was  followed  by  a  valedictory 
address  by  Prof.  Robert  P.  Thomas. 
Among  the  names  of  the  twenty-six  graduates  we  find  a  number 
that  have  become  well  known  in  the  pharmaceutical  world,  their 
respective  bearers  having  attained  a  considerable  degree  of  success 
in  their  chosen  profession. 
The  first  name  on  the  class  roster  is  that  of  Maurice  W.  Alex- 
ander, who  had  chosen  as  the  subject  of  his  thesis  one  of  the  less- 
known  plants  belonging  to  the  Labiatae — "  Melissa." 
After  graduating  from  the  Philadelphia  College  of  Pharmacy,  Mr. 
Alexander  went  to  St.  Louis,  Mo.,  where  he  soon  established  him- 
self as  the  proprietor  of  one  of  the  best-known  and  most  successful 
retail  pharmacies. 
Mr.  Alexander  took  an  active  interest  in  all  attempts  to  improve 
the  status  of  the  retail  pharmacist,  as  is  evidenced  from  his  active 
interest  in  both  the  National  as  well  as  State  Pharmaceutical  Asso- 
ciations. He  was  also,  for  several  years,  a  member  of  the  State 
Board  of  Pharmacy  of  Missouri. 
Mr.  Alexander  was  particularly  well  known  as  an  active  member 
of  the  American  Pharmaceutical  Association.  He  joined  that  body 
at  the  St.  Louis  meeting  in  1 871 ,  and  for  nearly  thirty  years  was 
one  of  the  most  regular  attendants  at  its  annual  gatherings.  His 
wide  experience  gave  him  an  opportunity  of  contributing  much 
valuable  advice,  particularly  in  connection  with  the  administration 
of  the  business  affairs  of  the  Association. 
