3o  Act  of  1848;  Importation  Regulations,  {A^nZy^m' 
crude  state,  and  who  may  be  willing  to  assume  the  responsibility  for 
the  quality  or  purity  of  these  products.  The  result  is  that  we  have 
to  pay  a  much  higher  price  for  this  merchandise  which  we  cannot 
now  secure  at  first  hands,  and  accordingly  the  retail  druggists  and 
consumers  in  this  country  have  to  pay  more  for  their  requirements 
of  these  products. 
In  order  to  overcome  this  difficulty  the  Secretary  of  the  Treasury 
should  be  requested  to  issue  a  regulation  which  will  permit  the 
importer  of  crude  drugs  in  bulk  packages,  not  intended  for  sale  to 
the  consumer  in  the  state  in  which  they  are  imported,  to  make  a 
declaration  at  the  time  of  entry  declaring  the  standard  of  strength, 
quality  and  purity  of  the  merchandise  which  he  desires  to  bring  into 
the  United  States.  Importers  could  readily  carry  out  such  a  regula- 
tion, as  they  can  obtain  without  difficulty  samples  by  mail  represent- 
ing the  merchandise  which  is  in  transit.  They  can  make  an  examina- 
tion of  the  merchandise  themselves  before  arrival  and  before  the 
goods  enter  the  United  States.  This  procedure  is  also  attended  with 
less  expense  than  the  present  method,  as  all  manufacturers  maintain 
analytical  laboratories  and  have  the  facilities  for  carrying  out  chem- 
ical research,  while  when  these  examinations  are  made  abroad  an 
additional  expense  is  incurred  by  the  importer  and  yet  he  has  no 
guarantee  or  assurance  that  the  test  carried  out  at  his  expense  is 
correct  and  reliable.  If  this  plan  is  carried  out  American  importers 
of  crude  drugs  will  be  enabled  to  obtain  their  supplies  from  first 
hands  as  heretofore,  and  prevent  a  considerable  rise  in  price  of  many 
of  the  most  important  drugs  used  by  the  retail  drug  trade  and  the 
manufacturers  of  medicinal  preparations.  Many  of  the  drugs  which 
require  an  assay  under  the  Food  and  Drugs  Act  have  advanced  in 
price,  not  because  of  any  scarcity  of  supplies  abroad,  but  because  of 
the  difficulty  the  importers  meet  in  buying  them  from  collectors  and 
first  hands  at  the  lowest  price;  many  American  firms  have  entirely 
ceased  importing  drugs  which  require  an  assay,  as  they  find  it  diffi- 
cult and  unremunerative  to  comply  with  present  conditions. 
