"^Aprntmr}  Doctor  and  the  Apothecary.  149 
• 
Nddler*  gives  a  process  which  he  says  readily  yiehls  the  pure  ni- 
trite ;  it  having  come  but  lately  under  my  notice,  I  am  not  prepared 
to  speak  about  its  merits ;  it  consists  in  distilling  amylo-sulphate  of 
potassa  with  nitrate  of  potassa. 
The  composition  of  the  nitrite  of  oxide  of  amyl  is  CioHijO,  NO3 ; 
it  appears  to  me  that  we  ought  to  discontinue  this  long  name,  as  well 
as  also  nitrite  of  amyl.  Amylo-nitrous  ether  expresses  the  chemical 
relations  of  this  compound,  and  the  similarity  of  names  also  indicates 
its  analogy  to  the  officinal  ethylo  nitrous  ether,  which  may  well  be  con- 
tinued to  be  called  nitrous  ether,  just  like  ethylic  alcohol  and  all  its 
direct  derivatives  are  called  by  their  generic  names  merely — alcohol, 
aldehyde,  ether — without  any  prefix. 
THE  DOCTOR  AND  THE  APOTHECARY. 
By  Wm.  L.  Turner. 
The  relation  to  each  other  of  doctor  and  apothecary  has  been  a 
subject  of  considerable  comment,  generally  assuming  the  character  of 
a  two-sided  question,  the  affirmative  or  negative  of  which  has  de- 
pended mainly  upon  the  sympathies  or  pecuniary  interests  of  those 
who  have  entered  into  the  discussion.  It  occurs  to  mind,  however, 
that  it  is  a  question  differing  somewhat  from  the  one  as  to  "which 
side  of  the  jug  the  handle  should  be  on,"  differing  in  the  fact  that  a 
third  question  is  necessarily  involved.  It  is  no  uncommon  thing,  on 
the  one  hand,  to  hear  urged  against  apothecaries  the  complaint  of 
^'prescribing  over  the  counter,"  as  though  the  pecuniary  interests  of 
physicians  were  the  only  matters  or  interests  with  which  apothecaries 
had  to  deal,  entirely  superseding  their  own  'or  that  of  their  patrons  ; 
while,  on  the  other  hand,  apothecaries  complain  of  physicians  for  pre- 
scribing special  articles  and  special  establishments,  as  though  it  were 
the  paramount  duty  of  physicians  to  see  that  every  one  who  chose 
to  start  a  drug  store  should  be  properly  sustained  and  supported,  en- 
tirely ignoring  the  important  fact  that  those  from  whom  both  derive 
their  support,  and  for  whose  benefit  only  either  becomes  a  useful  ap- 
pendage to  society,  have  rights,  which  not  only  entitle  them  to  some 
consideration  in  determining  this  question,  but  which  both  are  bound 
to  respect ;  for  instance,  it  is  simply  absurd  to  say  that  an  apothecary 
*  Ann.  Chem.  iind  Pharm.  cxvi,  p.  176. 
