Am.  Jour.  Pharm.  j 
March,  19 19.  J 
Editorial. 
137 
published  in  the  November,  1918,  issue  of  the  American  Journal 
of  Pharmacy. 
The  previously  announced  position  of  the  then  Surgeon-Gen- 
eral Gorgas  "  that  the  needs  of  the  Army  for  pharmacists  would  be 
satisfactorily  met  through  the  draft,"  is  repeated  in  this  official  state- 
ment and  was  reflected  in  the  actions  of  the  Committee  on  Educa- 
tion and  Special  Training.  The  decision  of  the  committee  to  include 
in  the  S.  A.  T.  C.  the  "  limited  number  of  students  in  those  phar- 
macy schools  in  institutions  which  already  had  S.  A.  T.  C.  units  " 
and  "  on  the  basis  that  this  training  would  also  prepare  them  for 
service  as  chemists  and  in  other  useful  capacities,"  indicates  that  the 
acceptance  of  such  pharmacy  students  was  incidental  and  that  the 
real  object  was  "  service  as  chemists  and  in  other  useful  capacities." 
In  no  way  can  this  be  construed  as  a  direct  and  distinct  recognition 
of  pharmacy  and  the  language  of  this  offiical  statement  bears  out 
fully  our  characterization  of  "  quasi." 
The  statements  made  in  certain  articles  that  have  appeared  in 
the  pharmaceutical  journals  such  as  these:  "pharmacy  had  thus 
been  recognized  by  the  government  as  a  profession,"  "thisis  a  very 
satisfactory  recognition  of  professional  pharmacy,"  "  here,  at 
least,  pharmacy  came  into  its  own  and  received  the  same  recogni- 
tion as  was  accorded  to  the  other  professions,"  and  "  the  War  De- 
partment recognized  the  need  of  establishing  a  pharmacy  unit  in 
the  S.  A.  T.  C.  in  order  to  train  men  for  army  and  civil  life,"  are 
unfortunately  for  pharmacy  not  verified  by  the  facts.  The  state- 
ment made  in  person  to  the  writer  by  an  official  in  the  Department- 
was  that  if  pharmacists  were,  really,  the  need  the  first  consideration 
would  have  been  given  to  schools  that  were  not  included  in  the 
S.  A.  T.  C. 
Furthermore,  this  official  statement  refutes  the  claim  that  "the 
federal  government  has  set  a  standard  for  pharmacy."  In  dulcet 
tones  this  theme  has  been  harped  upon  and  spread  widecast  by  those 
whose  desires  it  would  appear  had  obtunded  alike  their  view  of  the 
true  situation  and  their  sense  of  propriety.  The  object  of  the  S.  A. 
T.  C.  was  to  furnish  the  many  thousands  of  officers  that  would  be 
needed  for  the  army  contemplated,  and  this  should  have  been  well 
known  to  all.  The  body  blow  to  these  sentimental  strains  is  now 
administered  by  the  positive  assertion  in  this  letter  that :  "  It  was 
strictly  a  war  measure,  and  not  an  attempt  by  the  government  to 
standardize  education.    Any  effect  this  plan  may  have  had  on  the 
