Am.  Jour.  Pharm. ) 
March,  1906.  / 
Professor  John  Att field,  F.R.S. 
109 
Thus,  he  described  pharmacy  as  "  a  mosaic  of  arts  and  sciences,  of 
the  chief  details  of  which  the  Pharmacopoeia  is  an  index  or  cata- 
logue." This  address,  which  deserves  reprinting  into  various  lan- 
guages for  the  benefit  of  students  of  pharmacy  in  all  countries, 
concluded  with  a  paragraph  of  caution  and  of  encouragement.  "  If 
this  short  address  should  meet  the  eye  of  any  pupil  in  pharmacy 
who  thinks  that  the  calling  will  not  pay  for  such  effort  as  is  here 
shadowed  forth,  let  him  be  confirmed  in  his  idea.  The  effort  will 
never  repay  him.  Let  him  quit  the  calling.  He  has  already  lost 
enough  time  and  money  in  following  it;  he  will  lose  more  if  he,  re- 
main. To  the  pupil  whose  heart  is  in  his  work,  and  who  believes 
that  such  endeavors  will  bring  a  commensurate  reward,  to  him 
due  reward  will  come.  Future  success  in  pharmacy  will  lie  with 
those  best  educated.  In  conclusion,  I  will  only  add  that  the  most 
accomplished  pharmacist  owes  most  to  the  Pharmacopoeia,  and  con- 
siders himself  bound  according  to  his  opportunities  to  do  his  best  to 
maintain  its  value.  A  true  student  of  the  Pharmacopoeia,  he  never 
ceases  to  be  its  student.  But  his  attitude  towards  it  of  thorough 
loyalty  ever  merges  into  one  of  good  and  intelligent  scepticism :  an 
attitude  which  provokes  sound  experimental  research  and  results  in 
improved  processes  and  products." 
Reverting  to  the  Imperial  Pharmacopoeia,  the  Medical  Council 
adopted  his  suggestion  to  extend  the  Pharmacopoeia  so  that  it 
might  be  of  use  to  the  Colonies  and  India.  The  work  of  imperial- 
izing  the  Pharmacopoeia  proved  heavy,  as  some  seventy  dependen- 
cies had  to  be  communicated  with.  It  was  felt  that  in  many 
colonies  there  were  indigenous  drugs  that  might  be  used  in  the 
place  of  those  official  in  the  British  Pharmacopoeia,  and  so  save  the 
cost  of  importing.  The  wisdom  of  this  step  has  quite  recently  been 
accentuated  by  the  researches  of  Dunstan  and  Cash,  who  have  shown 
that  indaconitine  and  bikhaconitine,  derived  from  Indian  aconites, 
may  be  used  instead  of  the  aconitine  from  A.  napellus.  Profes- 
sor's Attfield's  work  on  the  Pharmacopoeia  was  officially  appre- 
ciated. On  May  31,  1898,  the  General  Medical  Council,  on  motion 
from  the  chair,  passed  a  vote  of  thanks  "  to  the  editor,  Dr.  Attfield, 
for  all  that  he  has  done  to  make  the  Pharmacopoeia  complete  and 
accurate."  The  Lancet,  commenting  on  this  graceful  act,  said  :  "  The 
whole  profession  will  endorse  the  special  vote  of  thanks  awarded  by 
the  Council  to  Dr.  Attfield." 
