THE  AMERICAN 
JOURNAL  OF  PHARMACY 
MARCH,  igo6. 
PROFESSOR  JOHN  ATTFIELD,  F.R.S. 
A  BIOGRAPHICAL  SKETCH. 
By  F.  A.  Upsher  Smith. 
Pharmaceutical  Chemist. 
In  the  following  short  biographical  sketch,  written  at  the  request 
of  the  editor,  an  attempt  is  made  to  outline  the  career  of  one  who 
for  over  forty  years  has  taken  a  leading  part  in  the  efforts  that  have 
been  made  to  promote  the  advancement  of  pharmacy.  To  an 
American  audience  no  apology  is  needed  for  bringing  to  their  notice 
the  name  of  John  Attfield,  an  Englishman,  who  was  paid  the  great 
compliments  of  being  elected  in  1869  a  corresponding  member,  and 
in  1884  an  honorary  member  of  the  Philadelphia  College  of  Phar- 
macy by  whose  authority  the  American  Journal  of  Pharmacy  is 
published.  He  is  now  the  senior  of  the  nine  existing  honorary 
members  of  the  American  Pharmaceutical  Association,  having  been 
elected  in  1871. 
The  task  of  writing  a  biographical  sketch  of  one  who  is  still  liv- 
ing is  not  always  easy,  since  the  publication  of  too  full  details  may 
offend  the  subject  of  the  sketch,  while  the  barest  outline  may  not 
satisfy  the  reader.  In  the  present  case,  there  is  no  difficulty  in 
steering  a  middle  course.  We  have  to  record  the  greater  part  of  a 
busy  life  chiefly  spent  in  investigating,  teaching  and  writing  the 
truths  of  science  as  applied  in  the  domain  of  pharmaceutical  chemis- 
try. The  lapse  of  years  is  usually  necessary  before  the  proper  niche 
in  the  temple  of  fame  is  assigned  to  any  worker.  The  early  biogra- 
pher's task  is  therefore  simplified.  He  needs  simply  to  record  facts, 
leaving  future  generations  to  draw  deductions  therefrom. 
John  Attfield  was  born  on  August  28,  1835,  near  Barnet,  in  the 
County  of  Hertford,  where  his  ancestors  had  lived  for  many  genera- 
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