An.  Jour.  Pharm. 
April.  1898. 
Minutes. 
219 
In  discussing  the  subject  of  the  paper,  Professor  Trimble  remarked  upon  the 
value  of  the  solutions  of  eucalyptus  gum  for  cleansing  the  teeth,  and  also  upon 
their  antiseptic  and  healing  properties. 
The  chairman  spoke  in  particular  of  the  virtues  of  eucalyptus  red  gum  as  a 
local  astringent. 
The  subject  was  continued  by  Dr.  Lowe,  who  spoke  of  the  efficiency  of  red 
gum  tablets  for  relieving  slight  irritation  of  the  throat. 
The  next  paper  was  on  the  subject  of  "  Formaldehyde,"  by  Geo.  h.  Taylor, 
of  New  York  (see  page  195).  In  this  the  author  considered  the  principles  in- 
volved in  the  manufacture  of  formaldehyde  from  methyl  alcohol,  and  then 
described  apparatus  which  he  himself  designed  for  the  manufacture  of  the 
solution  on  a  commercial  scale.  He  also  exhibited  and  described  apparatus 
designed  for  disinfecting  apartments,  the  gas  being  generated  from  the  com- 
mercial solution. 
A  question  arose  as  to  whether  a  person  would  be  injured  by  remaining  in 
a  room  undergoing  disinfection,  to  which  Mr.  Tavlor  replied  that,  under  the 
best  conditions  for  disinfection,  the  atmosphere  of  the  room  would  be  unbearable. 
A  paper  by  William  Iv.  Cliffe,  on  "Gray's  Glycerin  Tonic  Compound,"  aroused 
considerable  discussion  on  the  question  pertaining  to  the  sale  of  proprietary 
articles.  Those  taking  part  in  it  were  Messrs.  Stedem  and  Boring  and  Profes- 
sor Ryan. 
J.  W.  Bngland  read  a  note  on  a  useful  form  of  filter.  It  is  made  as  follows : 
(1)  Take  a  circular  sheet  of  filtering  paper  and  fold  upon  itself  (following 
the  first  step  of  the  older  plan  of  plain  cone  filter),  (2)  open  and  infold  at  right 
angles  to  first  fold  ;  (3)  open  and  take  left  and  right  sides  of  base  of  half  circle 
and  infold,  forming  a  four-cornered  star.  Then  press  the  corners  of  the  star 
upon  each  other,  so  that  there  are  formed  two  outer  quarter  sections  of  the 
sheet  of  filter  paper,  with  two  inner  one- eighth  sections  ;  open  and  use.  The 
filter  is  only  of  value  for  the  collection  and  ready  washing  of  small  quantities 
of  precipitates.  F.  G.  Ryan  stated  that  the  filter  had  some  advantages,  and 
was  first  recommended,  he  thought,  by  the  late  Professor  Bedford,  in  a  paper  in 
his  journal,  some  few  years  ago. 
An  interesting  part  of  the  programme  was  a  talk  on  quite  a  collection  of 
spring  flowers  and  plants  by  Prof.  Henry  Kraemer.  Calling  attention  to  a 
specimen  of  skunk  cabbage,  he  said  that  the  flowers  are  of  biological  interest  on 
account  of  the  structure.  This  he  illustrated  by  diagram,  and  said  that  self- 
fertilization  did  not  seem  possible.  Besides  slugs,  he  believed  that  a  kind  of 
beetle  is  also  instrumental  in  the  fertilization  of  the  flower.  A  peculiarity  of 
the  roots  is  the  spiral  structure  of  the  older  ones.  Among  the  other  specimens 
exhibited  were  iris,  which  Prof.  Kraemer  believed  should  be  gathered  at  this 
season  of  the  year  ;  ground  ivy,  sassafras,  which  he  thinks  should  also  be  gath- 
ered in  the  spring,  pussy  willow,  poplar,  alder,  silver  maple,  white  birch, 
chickweed,  yarrow  and  elder;  the  latter  apparently  produces  stolens  like  the 
strawberry,  and  thus  may  form  quite  a  hedge. 
He  also  called  attention  to  a  specimen  of  custard  apple  which  had  been 
grown  from  seeds  sent  to  Mr.  Howard  B.  French  from  Samoa. 
In  talking  of  plants  Prof.  Kraemer  prefers  the  common  names  as  being  less 
confusing. 
