ncS.mr-}  The  1913  Meeting  of  Amer.  Phar.  Asso.  4/5 
presented  this  year,  but  was  discussed  at  quite  some  length  by  Dr. 
A.  B.  Hitchins  in  a  lecture  before  the  Section  on  Pharmacopoeias 
and  Formularies.  This  communication  and  the  discussion  that  fol- 
lowed emphasized  the  impracticability  of  outlining  a  reliable  pro- 
cedure for  sterilizing  articles  of  any  kind  without  adequate 
bacteriologic  control.  The  nature  and  extent  of  this  control  is  of 
course  dependent  on  the  uses  to  which  an  article  is  to  be  put  and 
the  only  really  safe  authoritative  direction  for  sterilization  is  one 
similar  to  the  one  now  embodied  in  the  new  German  Pharma- 
copoeia which  directs  that:  "The  sterilization  of  receptacles, 
medicines  and  surgical  dressings  is  to  be  done  according  to  the 
rules  of  bacteriologic  technique  with  proper  consideration  of  the 
properties  of  the  articles  .to  be  sterilized." 
The  Section  on  Commercial  Interests  had  a  rather  limited 
programme,  a  greater  portion  of  the  time  of  the  session  being  de- 
voted to  a  lecture  by  Ben  R.  Vardaman  on  the  art  and  science  of 
making  a  sale,  which  was  much  appreciated  by  the  members  present. 
'  Considerable  opposition  on  the  part  of  female  as  well  as  male 
members  of  the  Association  was  evidenced  in  connection  with  the 
newly  created  women's  section  of  the  American  Pharmaceutical 
Association.  It  was  pointed  out  by  several  members  that  the  pur- 
pose of  this  section  could  be  construed  as  discriminating  against 
women  who  have  shown  their  ability  to  cope  with  men  in  all  lines 
of  pharmaceutical  activity  and  are  well  able  to  take  part  in  the 
proceedings  of  the  now  existing  sections  of  the  Association.  The 
large  proportion  of  non-members  of  the  American  Pharmaceutical 
Association  who  took  part  in  the  proceedings  of  the  section  this 
year  also  suggested  to  some  the  desirability  of  renaming  the  section 
and  forming  a  women's  auxiliary  to  the  Association  rather  than  a 
section  devoted  to  professional  representation  on  the  part  of  women 
pharmacists. 
The  following  resolutions,  favorably  reported  on  and  endorsed 
by  the  Committee  on  Resolutions  of  the  House  of  Delegates,  the 
members  of  the  House  of  Delegates,  and  the  members  of  the 
Council  of  the  American  Pharmaceutical  Association,  were  adopted 
by  practically  the  same  persons  acting  as  the  American  Pharma- 
ceutical Association  at  the  concluding  session  on  Saturday,  August 
23d: 
That  the  U.  S.  Department  of  Agriculture  be  urged  to  collect, 
and  maintain  a  collection  of  plants  which  shall  be  used  to  authenti- 
cate the  various  drugs  used  in  pharmacy; 
