Ajanuairy  i909m"}     Philadelphia  College  of  Pharmacy.  51 
experience  and  ability.  The  chemists  should  be  the  best,  then  the 
article  should  be  branded  with  Governmental  test.  As  it  is  now, 
they  will  not  give  their  analysis,  whether  above  or  below  the  U.  S. 
Pharmacopoeia.  If  their  test  is  worth  anything,  why  not  stand  back 
of  it  and  say  what  it  is  and  label  the  importations  accordingly  ? 
"  I  believe  that  when  the  Government  chemist  finds  a  drug  some- 
what below  the  views  of  the  compiler  of  the  Pharmacopoeia,  it  should 
not  be  sent  back,  at  great  expense  to  the  importer,  but  marked  as 
above  indicated  and  then  the  importer  should  sign  a  bond  that  he 
will  sell  it  at  such  and  such  a  per  cent,  of  strength,  U.  S.  Analysis, 
for  the  reason  that  it  is  not  fair  for  certain  chemists,  connected  with 
the  Pharmacopoeia,  who  most  likely  made  their  analysis  years  ago 
from  picked  samples,  to  say  that  all  Belladonna  and  all  Henbane, 
etc.,  must  grow  and  produce  the  same  alkaloidal  strength  as  the 
samples  they  tested. 
"  Our  Heavenly  Father  does  not  grow  plants,  medicinal  or  other- 
wise, to  suit  man. 
"  I  believe  that  the  Government  should  carry  their  inspection 
further  and  say  that '  the  manufacturing  chemist  must  make  his 
extracts,  pills,  etc.,  come  up  to  the  standard  of  the  U.  S.  Pharma- 
copoeia. There  is  where  strength  can  be  standardized  (and  there 
should  be  a  standard)  by  the  manufacturer  using  more  or  less  crude 
drugs  to  make  up  to  the  standard. 
"  If  this  were  done,  crude  drugs  would  be  sold  entirely  upon  their 
merits — poor  goods  would  bring  low  prices — high  grade  goods  full 
value,  and  importers  would  be  free  from  the  annoyances  they  are 
now  subjected  to  and  the  sick  would  obtain  standardized  medicines." 
Messrs.  Hance  Brothers  and  White,  also  of  Philadelphia,  sent  a 
letter,  in  which  they  expressed  themselves  as  being  heartily  in  favor 
of  the  preamble  and  resolutions  offered  by  Mr.  England. 
After  the  presentation  of  the  foregoing  communications,  Mr. 
Beringer  read  a  paper  in  which  he  proposed  .a  draft  for  a  new  act 
governing  importations  (see  page  31). 
Mr.  Mahlon  N.  Kline,  Chairman  of  the  Committee  on  Legislation 
of  the  N.  W.  D.  A.,  in  opening  the  general  discussion  said  that  in 
his  opinion  the  paper  by  Mr.  Gesell  covered  the  question  from  the 
standpoint  of  the  importer  very  well.  He  claimed  that  the  importer 
is  the  important  factor,  for  the  reason  that  if  drugs  are  properly 
imported  their  entrance  into  interstate  commerce  is  protected  by 
the  Food  and  Drugs  Act.   He  agreed  with  Dr.  Roberts  in  the  state- 
