AmAuJcS;  1909™' }       Pharmacists  and  Pharmacopoeia,  391 
It  is  not  too  broad  an  assertion  to  state  that  the  pharmacist  is  in 
the  Pharmacopceial  convention  and  on  the  Committee  on  Revision 
because  his  special  training  and  knowledge  are  necessary  to  the 
success  of  the  work,  and  his  brother,  the  practitioner  of  medicine, 
early  recognized  this  and  sought  his  co-operation.  In  1841,  William 
Procter,  Jr.,  was  engaged  as  secretary  of  the  Committee  on  Revision 
and  in  their  behalf  made  numerous  experiments  on  the  preparation 
of  such  chemical  products  as  ether  and  Hoffman's  anodyne.  The 
following  is  a  copy  of  an  original  autograph  letter  which  is  now 
preserved  in  the  archives  of  the  Philadelphia  College  of  Pharmacy : 
"  April  3d,  i860. 
"  My  Dear  Mr.  Procter  :— 
"  I  send  you  herewith  most  cheerfully  my  check  for  $100,  which 
I  consider  but  a  small  compensation  for  the  services  rendered  by 
you  to  the  committee  of  the  Col.  of  Physicians  in  revising  the 
Pharmacopoeia. 
"  Very  truly  yours, 
"  Geo.  B.  Wood." 
It  must  be  constantly  borne  in  mind  that  the  Pharmacopoeia  is 
largely  a  book  of  formulas,  and  that  the  methods  of  manipulation 
and  proper  combination  of  drugs  are  important  to  the  success  of 
the  preparations,  and  hence  the  skill  acquired  by  the  pharmacist  in 
the  practice  of  his  art  is  necessary  in  the  framing  of  correct  processes 
and  directions  for  manufacture  of  the  medicines. 
The  Pharmacopoeia  reflects  the  progress  of  medicine  and  of 
medicinal  sciences  along  certain  lines  only  and  its  scope  precludes 
the  recognition  of  advances  in  other  directions  either  entirely  or 
nearly  so.  To  illustrate,  it  can  only  incidentally  recognize  advances 
in  therapeutics,  pharmacology,  surgery,  electropathy,  etc.,  by  intro- 
ducing the  formulas  for  such  remedies  as  may  become  useful  from 
such  progress.  On  the  contrary,  progress  in  pharmacognosy  and 
the  chemistry  of  drugs  and  medicines  come  within  its  proper  field 
and  must  be  accorded  ample  consideration,  and  it  is  noteworthy  that 
in  the  recent  revisions  they  have  claimed  marked  attention  and  have 
enhanced  the  value  of  the  book  as  well  as  materially  increased  its 
size  and  altered  its  character.  Here  again,  we  are  confronted  by 
the  fact  that  these  are  in  the  domain  of  pharmaceutical  study  and 
application  and  naturally  account  for  the  prominence  and  influence 
