202  Pharmacy  Laws  and  Legislation.  {AmAp0rUii,'i9oiarmr 
Prior  to  the  last  session  of  the  legislature,  New  York  was  afflicted 
with  four  distinct  pharmacy  laws,  one  for  Erie  County,  one  for 
Kings  County,  one  for  New  York  City,  and  one  for  the  remainder 
of  the  State.  After  many  futile  efforts,  the  pharmacists  of  that 
State  succeeded  in  procuring  the  enactment  of  a  statute  covering 
the  entire  State,  and  repealing  the  old  ones. 
It  was  not  to  be  expected  that  a  measure  which  attempted  to  re- 
concile so  many  conflicting  interests  could  be  permanently  satisfac- 
tory, nor  indeed  was  this  the  result.  The  present  measure,  while 
in  many  respects  an  improvement  over  the  old  condition  of  four 
separate  laws  and  boards  of  pharmacy,  still  leaves  much  to  be 
desired,  and  the  present  agitation  must  be  expected  to  continue 
until  either  an  entirely  new  measure  has  .been  enacted  or  until  the" 
present  law  has  been  amended  into  a  more  satisfactory  shape. 
Among  the  more  important  of  the  measures  introduced  up  to 
date  are  the  following : 
The  Donnelly  Bill  seeks  to  amend  the  law  so  as  to  permit  all 
licensed  druggists  of  the  eastern  section  to  participate  in  the  elec- 
tion of  the  members  of  the  board  for  that  section,  and  also  provides 
that  registered  assistants  may  become  licensed  druggists  upon  fil- 
ing an  affidavit  as  to  the  possession  of  the  necessary  experience  ; 
that  the  surplus  left  after  paying  the  expenses  of  the  board  shall  be 
paid  into  the  State  Treasury ;  authorizes  the  State  Controller  to 
examine  the  books  of  the  board,  etc. 
The  Costello  Bill  aims  to  amend  the  law  by  extending  the  lists 
of  drugs  which  may  be  sold  by  country  merchants,  and  requires  the 
board  of  pharmacy  to  issue  permits  to  compound  medicines,  fill 
prescriptions  and  sell  poisons,  to  such  retail  dealers  in  general 
merchandise  as  shall  satisfy  the  Board  of  Pharmacy  as  to  their 
competency  for  such  purposes. 
The  Weeks  Bill  makes  it  "  a  misdemeanor  for  any  person,  firm  or 
corporation  to  sell  or  offer  for  sale  any  adulterated  or  altered  drug, 
medicine,  pharmaceutical  preparation  or  chemical  substance, " 
under  a  penalty  of  not  less  than  $25  nor  more  than  $100  for  each 
offence.  The  bill  is  said  to  be  specially  aimed  at  the  sellers  of 
adulterated  borax. 
The  Bell  Bill  is  supposed  to  be  aimed  at  Christian  scientists, 
osteopaths  and  similar  fakirs,  and  enlarges  the  definition  of  what 
shall  be  considered  as  the  practice  of  medicine,  so  that  "  Any  per- 
