Am'£yr,'^9tm'}  Minutes  of  the  Pharmaceutical  Meeting.  277 
present  not  to  distill  carbon  disulphide,  as  the  sulphur  would  deposit  in  the  wire 
gauze  and  burn,  from  which  the  vapors  of  the  liquid  would  ignite. 
There  being  no  further  business,  the  meeting  adjourned. 
T.  S.  Wieg and,  Registrar. 
Philadelphia,  April  15th,  1879. 
In  the  absence  of  the  President,  who  has  been  confined  to  the  house  by  serious 
illness,  Mr.  Wm.  Mclntyre  was  called  to  the  chair  The  minutes  of  the  last  meet- 
ing were  read  and  approved. 
Prof.  Maisch  presented  a  copy  of  the  National  Dispensatory  for  the  Library,  and 
for  the  Cabinet  a  remarkably  fine  specimen  of  Angostura  bark,  which  had  been  sent 
to  him  by  Messrs.  Lehn  &  Fink,  of  New  York.  Its  unusually  fine  quality  at  first 
raised  doubts  as  to  its  authenticity,  but  close  inspection  and  microscopic  examina- 
tion proved  it  to  be  genuine;  it  is  in  long  quills  and  curved  pieces,  nearly  all  of 
which  have  the  whitish  soft  and  and  almost  mealy  cork  attached  5  its  appearance 
indicates  that  it  has  been  dried  and  preserved  with  the  utmost  care. 
Prof.  Remington  exhibited  an  improved  distillatory  apparatus  in  full  operation, 
which  was  highly  approved  of  by  those  present  5  a  written  description  of  it  may  be 
found  on  page  225. 
Mr.  H.  C.  Archibald  exhibited  the  improved  apparatus  for  making  suppositories 
without  fusing  the  ingredients  together,  thus  rendering  the  dispensing  of  supposito- 
ries, even  in  warm  weather,  an  easy  matter,  an  inexperienced  person,  even,  being 
able  to  turn  out  a  dozen  suppositories  in  less  than  ten  minutes  It  was  stated  that 
the  apparatus  had  been  tested  by  a  number  of  persons  who  had  given  it  their 
approval.  A  full  description  may  be  found  in  the  April  number  of  the  "  Journal," 
page  184. 
Some  discussion  took  place  as  to  the  best  method  for  preparing  suppositories,  and 
the  usual  difference  of  opinion  was  noticed,  some  members  preferring  to  make  them 
by  fusion,  others  by  the  cold  process.  Mr.  Mclntyre  stated  that  he  had  followed 
Mr.  Archibald's  plan  for  some  years,  using  a  dividing  mould  and  pressing  the  mixed 
material  by  means  of  a  cork,  instead  of  a  plunger. 
At  the  pharmaceutical  meeting  in  February  Prof.  Maisch  alluded  to  what  is  called 
Chinese  rice  paper.  In  further  illustration  of  this  subject,  Dr.  F.  V.  Greene,  U.S.N., 
had  sent  a  specimen  of  Chinese  art,  consisting  of  paintings  upon  this  kind  of  paper; 
accompanying  it  was  a  note  descriptive  of  the  plant,  and  drawings  illustrating  the 
position  of  the  pith  in  the  stem,  the  external  markings  from  the  pressure  of  the 
woody  fibre,  and  the  lenticular  cavities  found  in  the  centre  of  some  specimens. 
Prof.  Maisch  asked  if  any  of  the  members  were  aware  of  the  wood  of  the  root  of 
Nyssa  being  used  to  make  tents  for  surgical  purposes  in  place  of  the  Laminaria  digi- 
tata,  and  exhibited  specimens  of  the  wood  of  the  root  of  Nyssa  uniflora  and  N. 
multiflora,  which  were  sent  by  Messrs.  Wallace  Bros.,  of  Statesville,  N.  C. 
Mr.  Biddle  exhibited  a  specimen  of  leaves  sold  in  large  quantity  as  Jaborandi, 
which  attracted  attention  by  their  odor,  and  examination  showed  them  to  be  laurel 
.leaves  [Laurus  nobilis). 
There  being  no  further  business,  on  motion,  the  meeting  adjourned. 
T.  S.  Wiegand,  Registrar. 
