MINUTES  OF  THE  COLLEGE. 
277 
SUPPLEMENT 
TO  THE 
MINUTES  OF  THE  PHILADELPHIA  COLLEGE  OF  PHARMACY, 
March  31,  1862. 
Report  of  the  Committee  on  the  World's  Fair  Deposit. 
To  the  College:— 
The  Committee  consisting  of  Charles  Ellis,  Thomas  P.  James, 
Prof.  E.  Bridges,  Prof.  Thomas,  Prof.  Procter,  F.  L.  John,  Alfred 
B.  Taylor,  J.  M.  Maisch,  T.  S.  Wiegand,  James  T.  Shinn,  W.  Evans,  Jr., 
Charles  Bullock,  W.  C.  Bakes,  W.  R.  Warner,  John  E.  Carter,  and  the 
undersigned,  appointed  at  the  Semi-annual  Meeting,  in  September  last, 
to  obtain  and  forward  specimens  of  our  indigenous  materia  medica,  &c, 
to  the  International  Exhibition  to  be  held  in  London,  during  the  cur- 
rent year, — 
Report,  that  they  met  soon  after  their  appointment,  and  by  adjournments 
on  ten  different  occasions,  till  the  afternoon  of  the  26th  ult.,  when  they  ad- 
journed sine  die.  Wm,  C.  Bakes  served  the  committee  efficiently  as  Sec- 
retary and  Treasurer,  and  received  its  thanks  at  the  close  of  his  labors. 
Through  the  liberality  of  the  New  England  Class  Company  we  obtained 
the  use  of  a  remarkably  fine  selection  of  their  superior  ware,  embracing 
all  the  necessary  bottles  for  displaying  the  specimens,  on  favorable  terms. 
An  ample  list  of  our  indigenous  and  a  few  important  naturalized  medi- 
cinal plants  being  prepared,  an  experienced  herbalist  was  engaged  to 
collect  such  of  them  growing  in  the  vicinity  as  the  lateness  of  the  season 
would  allow;  others  were  purchased  of  dealers  in  this  city,  a  few  were  con- 
tributed by  William  S.  Merrill,  of  Cincinnati,  and  a  large  number  by 
members  of  the  Committee  ;  making  in  all  a  collection  of  148  specimens 
of  the  vegetable  materia  medica.  These  being  collected,  carefully  dried, 
and  garbled  at  the  College,  were  mounted  and  appropriately  labelled, 
each  with  its  botanical  name  and  one  or  more  synonyms. 
This  agreeable  and  instructive  labor  was  performed  by  several  members 
of  the  Committee  with  great  care  to  avoid  errors  and  to  display  the  dis- 
tinctive characteristics  of  each  specimen.  By  the  use  of  half-gallon  bottles 
of  different  shapes,  some  plants  were  retained  almost  entire,  and  when- 
ever practicable,  leaves  and  seed  vessels  accompanied  specimens  of  the 
other  parts  of  plants. 
Through  the  kindness  of  Frederick  L.  John,  of  the  College,  we  have 
been  furnished  with  an  extensive  Herbarium  of  American  Plants,  which  is 
designed  to  accompany  the  Cabinet  of  Specimens. 
An  incidental  advantage  secured  by  this  undertaking  is  a  large  increase 
of  the  College  Cabinet  from  specimens  collected  by  this  Committee. 
The  Committee  of  revision  engaged  upon  the  new  edition  of  the  Nation- 
al Pharmacopoeia,  responded  to  our  request  for  such  of  the  new  officinal 
formulae  as  would  best  illustrate  the  peculiarities  of  American  Pharmacy, 
