BOTANY  IN  ITS  BEARINGS  ON  PHARMACY,  ETC. 
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without  melting  between  the  fingers, — say  in  winter  from  five  to 
ten  minutes,  and  in  summer  from  fifteen  to  twenty  minutes. 
When  properly  made,  suppositories  should  have  no  depression 
in  their  base,  as  it  is  almost  an  infallible  indication  that  the  mix- 
ture has  not  been  sufficiently  cooled  before  being  poured  into  the 
mould.  This  depression  is  caused  by  the  shrinking  of  the  mass 
upon  cooling. 
The  modus  operandi  proposed  in  this  paper  for  the  manufacture 
of  suppositories,  is  such  as  I  have  adopted  and  thoroughly  tested 
for  the  last  six  or  seven  years,  with  unvarying  success  ;  and  the 
general  directions  with  regard  to  manipulation  will  apply  to  most 
substances  ;  but  there  are  others,  such  as  the  gum-resins,  oleo- 
resins,  oils,  balsams,  &c,  which  will  require  special  preparatory 
treatment  before  they  can  be  readily  made  into  suppositories, 
which  will  sometimes  test  not  only  the  skill  and  ingenuity,  but 
the  patience  of  the  pharmacist  to  no  small  degree.  These  I  pro- 
pose to  make  the  subject  of  another  essay. 
Philadelphia,  April,  1868. 
BOTANY  IN  ITS  BEARINGS  ON  PHARMACY. — BOTANICAL 
GARDENS. 
By  the  Editor. 
This  is  the  season  for  botanical  studies,  nature  is  rapidly  putting  on 
her  garb  of  beauty  after  a  long  winter  of  unusual  severity,  and  we  are 
pleased  to  observe  that  several  courses  of  Lectures  on  botany  have  been 
announced.  It  is  curious  that  this  science,  so  important  to  the  pharma- 
ceutist, should  be  so  difficult  to  engraft  on  his  attention.  After  more 
than  forty  years  existence  our  College  of  Pharmacy  has  not  been  able 
to  establish  a  permanent  botanical  chair,  and  this  apathy  is  largely  due 
to  the  want  of  an  instructional  garden  where  teachers  might  resort  with 
their  classes.  At  this  time  Prof.  Maisch  is  giving  a  gratuitous  course  to 
the  students  of  the  College,  with  weekly  excursions,  and  it  is  to  be  hoped 
that  ere  long  botany  will  become  as  much  a  part  of  the  curriculum  as 
chemistry.  Philadelphia  needs  a  botanical  garden  and  arboretum, 
under  the  direction  of  the  Academy  of  Natural  Sciences. 
Thirty-five  years  ago  the  garden  of  "  good  old  John  Bartram,  the 
King's  Botanist,"  was  in  existence  on  the  right  bank  of  the  Schuyl- 
kill, below  Gray's  Ferry  (Philada.) ;  and  many  a  time,  when  an  appren- 
tice, have  we  walked  there  to  gather  information,  and  to  enjoy  the  shady 
avenues  of  that  most  interesting  spot,  hallowed  as  it  was  by  the  numerous 
evidences  of  his  industry,  ingenuity  and  perseverance,  and  by  the  noble 
