.282 
Reviews. 
Am.  Jour.  Pharm. 
May,  1892. 
pharmacopoeia  of  the  United  States"  is  a  fine  not  exceeding  $500  and  for- 
feiture to  the  commonwealth  of  all  articles  so  adulterated. 
On  April  2 2d  three  apothecaries  had  a  second  hearing  before  Magistrate 
Pole  on  the  charge  of  havine;  sold  "Rough  on  Rats,"  a  poisonous  article,  con- 
sisting largely  of  arsenic,  without  complying  with  section  10  of  the  pharmacy 
law,  which  requires  that  each  package  of  poison  shall  be  distinctly  labeled  ; 
that  the  seller  shall  satisfy  himself,  before  delivering  the  poison,  as  to  its  use 
for  legitimate  purposes  ;  and  that  the  sales  of  deadly  poisons  (destructive  to 
life  in  doses  of  five  grains)  shall  be  registered  in  a  poison  book.  We  believe 
that  most  retailers  have,  heretofore,  sold  the  article  in  question,  without  any 
special  precaution,  or  merely  labeling  each  package  with  the  word  "  poison," 
under  the  belief  that  a  proprietary  article  was  not  subject  to  the  poison  regula- 
tions of  the  pharmacy  law.  The  language  of  section  6  is  somewhat  ambiguous, 
but  upon  close  scrutiny  it  will  be  seen  to  provide  that  "  nothing  contained  in 
the  act  shall  in  any  manner  whatever  interfere  .  .  .  with  the  making  and  deal- 
ing in  proprietary  remedies  popularly  called  patent  medicines,  nor  prevent 
storekeepers  from  dealing  in  and  selling  the  commonly  used  medicines  and 
poisons  if  such  medicines  and  poisons  conform  in  all  respects  to  the  require- 
ments of  section  nine,  provided  the  provisions  of  section  ten  are  fully  complied 
with."  The  italicized  words  evidently  exclude  vermin  poisons,  which  are  not 
"remedies"  or  "medicines"  in  the  sense  here  used,  and  bring  them  under 
the  regulatio  is  made  for  "  poisons."  The  Magistrate  took  the  common  sense 
view  that  no  violation  of  the  law  had  been  intended  and  discharged  the 
defendants  upon  promising  to  comply  with  its  provisions  for  the  sale  of 
poisons. 
Correction. — A  clerical  error,  which  was  overlooked  in  proof-reading,  occurs 
in  the  paper  on  Polygala  alba,  in  our  last  number,  p.  181,  line  16  from  top  ;  4  to 
^6  inches  =  20-30  cm.,  should  read  4  to  6  inches  —  10-15  cm. 
REVIEWS  AND  BIBLIOGRAPHICAL  NOTICES. 
Monograph  of  the  Grasses  of  the  United  States  and  British  America.  By 
Dr.  Geo.  Vasey,  Botanist,  Department  of  Agriculture.  Published  by  authority 
of  the  Secretary  of  Agriculture.  Washington:  Government  Printing  Office. 
1892.    8vo.    Pp.  xiv  and  89. 
This  constitutes  the  first  part  of  volume  iii  of  the  Contributions  from  the 
U.  S.  National  Herbarium,  and  comprises  the  tribes  of  Maydeae,  Andropogonese, 
Zoysise,  Panicese,  Oryzese,  Phalarideae  and  Agrostideae  of  the  important  order 
■of  Graminese.  The  monograph  is  a  very  praiseworthy  undertaking,  and  the 
care  bestowed  upon  its  preparation  is  clearly  evidenced  ;  yet  the  author  thinks 
that  "  many  changes  or  modifications  will  be  needed  whenever  it  is  possible  to 
examine  the  original  specimens  "  (particularly  those  of  the  Pacific  Coast  and 
of  the  southwestern  boundary). 
Preliminary  List  of  the  Mosses  of  Lancaster  County,  Pa.  By  John  K.  Small. 
8vo.  Pp.  8. 
Tne  list  comprises  about  150  species,  and  is  a  valuable  contribution  to 
botanical  literature. 
