AMFe°bX  i873RM'}  Minutes  of  Pharmaceutical  Meetings.  85 
The  receipts  from  fees  have  barely  been  sufficient  to  meet  the  expenses,  and 
the  Board  regrets  the  inadequacy  of  the  law  to  provide  the  means  for  prose- 
cuting those  who  violate  it.  No  cases  of  fraudulent  adulteration  of  medicines 
have  been  reported,  but  the  sale  of  medicines  has  been  continued  in  some  loca- 
lities by  grocers,  and  copies  of  the  law  have  been  sent  to  all  the  retail  grocers 
whose  names  appear  in  the  business  directory,  to  call  their  attention  to  the 
provisions  restricting  the  sale  of  poisons  and  medicinal  preparations  to  regis- 
tered pharmacists. 
The  act  was  framed  for  the  protection  of  the  public  from  the  dangers  incident 
to  the  dispensing  of  medicines  by  inexperienced  and  incompetent  persons,  and, 
although  bearing  heavily  on  some  apothecaries,  if  its  provisions  are  faithfully 
observed,  it  will,  undoubtedly,  in  time,  confine  responsible  business  to  properly 
educated  pharmacists,  and  materially  lessen  the  risk  of  accident. 
In  September  last  the  Board  was  called  upon  to  mourn  the  loss  by  death  of 
its  esteemed  member,  Edward  Parrish,  whose  talents  and  acquirements  in  his 
profession  made  him  a  most  efficient  officer,  and  whose  generous  impulses  and 
genial  manners  endeared  him  as  a  personal  friend  to  his  fellow-members. 
Although  the  duties  devolving  upon  the  Board  have  been  exceedingly  one- 
rous, they  have  been  cheerfully  and  impartially  performed,  under  the  conviction 
that  they  were  for  the  benefit  of  the  citizens  of  Philadelphia;  and  we  would 
invoke  the  strong  support  of  an  approving  public  opinion,  and  the  cordial  co- 
operation of  yourself  and  the  officers  of  the  law. 
James  N.  Marks,  Charles  L.  Eberle, 
Robert  England,  H.  B.  Lippincott, 
James  T.  Shinn. 
Ititwte  0f  %  f  jjanramtal  Dating*, 
A  pharmaceutical  meeting  was  held  January  21st,  1873,  William  Mclntyre 
in  the  chair. 
The  minutes  of  the  last  meeting  were  read  and  approved,  without  alteration. 
The  Chairman  introduced  to  the  meeting  Dr.  Charles  H.  Thomas. 
Mr.  Remington  presented  samples  of  some  of  the  fluid  extracts  made  accord- 
ing to  the  new  Pharmacopoeia ;  he  had  been  over  nearly  all  of  them,  and  desired 
to  give  his  experience  with  them  for  the  benefit  of  others.  He  found  in  several 
cases  that  the  quantity  of  menstruum  received  for  moistening  the  powder  was 
insufficient  for  this  purpose.  He  commented  on  several  of  the  individual  ex- 
tracts. Rhubarb,  of  which  a  sample  was  presented,  was  beautiful,  and  left 
nothing  to  be  desired,  having  the  characteristic  features  of  the  root.  Buchu 
was  also  of  very  superior  quality,  and  altogether  unexceptional.  Calumba,  so 
very  difficult  to  obtain  clear,  was  spoken  of,  being  almost  always  cloudy  when 
diluted.  Prof.  Maisch  suggested  that  the  precipitate  contains  a  considerable 
amount  of  berberina,  and  that  the  glycerin  recommended  in  this  fluid  extract 
tends  to  prevent  the  precipitation. 
In  the  case  of  colchicum  seed,  Mr.  Remington  did  not  think  the  menstruum 
strong  enough  to  dissolve  the  essential  oil  which  floats  upon  the  preparation, 
and  prefers  the  use  of  strong  alcohol  to  take  up  the  oil. 
