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It would be perfectly voluntary on the part of the chemists and druggists to apply for memberships, and in order to do that they must pass through the door of the Major Examination. It was also open to them to become Associates of the Society; but it was proposed to throw open the Benevolent Fund to the entire trade, whether belonging to the Society or not.

Mr. SMITH, of Great Howard Street, said, it was not his intention, when he entered the meeting, to offer any observations on the Bill, but as criticism had been invited he would say a word or two in reference to it. A bill, it appeared, was about to be presented to the House of Commons for the purpose of protecting the trade generally. That he believed to be a good provision, and one very much needed; but as a member of the United Society of Chemists and Druggists he deprecated such an attempt to rule the majority; and the manner in which it was attempted would, in his opinion, prove entirely futile. The Pharmaceutical Society numbered, he believed, about 3000, and the number of chemists and druggists in Great Britain was 30,000.

Dr. EDWARDS said, the Registrar General's returns only gave about 6500 in the trade altogether.

Mr. MERCER said he believed that the number of chemists and druggists was from 6000 to 7000, and that a great number of the members of the United Society of Chemists and Druggists belonged also to the Pharmaceutical Society.

Mr. SMITH continued remarking that he could not see why chemists and druggists should be registered as chemists and druggists, and not have the same privileges as the Pharmaceutical Society. Why not extend the hand of fellowship at once? Dr. Edwards had said, unity was strength, and so it was. He (Mr. Smith) was of that opinion too, and unless united action was taken by the Pharmaceutical Society and the United Society of Chemists and Druggists, their bill would never be passed. He would ask one question, Was it intended that all chemists and druggists who did not enter their names on the register should be debarred from practising as chemists and druggists? Was it intended that it should be retrospective?

Dr. EDWARDS: The registration will be compulsory.

Mr. SMITH: Then in my opinion-and I think the same opinion will be held by a great many chemists and druggists-such registration is not consistent with British law and British equity.

Dr. EDWARDS said a similar provision was proposed by the United Society of Chemists and Druggists.

Mr. SMITH said, yes, but he believed the United Society of Chemists and Druggists did not even intend to exclude apprentices from the rights and privileges of being chemists and druggists. In his opinion, no Act could come into operation within five years, and apprentices in business had a right, he thought, to similar privileges. He hoped the Pharmaceutical Society would extend their hands as freely and frankly as possible in order to do that which had been wanted for years to protect the public and protect the trade generally.

The CHAIRMAN wished to know in what way Mr. Smith wished the Pharmaceutical Society to extend the hand of fellowship?

Mr. SMITH replied, to extend it to all chemists and druggists who were not members of the Pharmaceutical Society, and who were, to a great extent, as well educated and as well qualified as many who were now registered pharmaceutists. There were many pharmaceutists who were not so by examination, but through a privilege which was given some years ago to "outsiders," who were admitted on paying a fee of £5. Such privileges were taken advantage of; and therefore, so long as there had not been a compulsory examination in every instance, he thought it would be an act of injustice to "outsiders now to compel men to pass on examination who had been in business perhaps for many years-men perhaps of the same amount of practical experience as those registered as pharmaceutists. He thought it was a narrow way of doing it; it was not sufficiently generous. If the "outsiders" wanted to come forward and join the Society, he saw no reason why they should be deprived of the designation of pharmaceutists.

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Dr. EDWARDS: That is to go back twenty years, and make a fresh start.

Mr. MERCER, in moving a vote of thanks to the Chairman, said he was only sorry that gentleman's duties had not been more arduous. He (Mr. Mercer) should certainly like to have heard the different clauses of the Bill criticized more closely than they had

been, for it would not be possible for any persons to draw up a Bill which would satisfy every one interested in it; and in this Bill there were very wide interests to be considered. There were the opinions of the Home Secretary, representing the Government; there were the interests of the medical profession, the interests of the founders and members of the Pharmaceutical Society, and the interests generally of the body of chemists and druggists. For his own part, he thought the framers had been very successful in keeping in view the interests of all those various bodies; and if there was one class of persons treated more liberally and generously by the framers of this Bill than another, it was the class of chemists and druggists outside the Pharmaceutical Society. Mr. Smith, the gentleman who spoke last, has raised an objection which had been raised over and over again, but which he (Mr. Mercer) did not think had any foundation at all, namely, that the chemists and druggists were going to be "governed," and therefore that they ought to have a voice in the selection of the body governing them. They were not going to be governed at all; the principle of the Bill was to retain for the chemists and druggists all the privileges and rights which they at present enjoyed, and in addition to give them a little protection, because no one could come into the trade after a certain date who had not passed an examination, and that, while it protected the public, must also act as a protection to those chemists and druggists who were already in business. They had a very good precedent, as had been referred to by Dr. Edwards, in the apothecaries, and no doubt that would be followed in the present instance. The apothecaries then in business had their rights and privileges maintained, and from that day down to the present the apothecaries had been gradually improving in their position (as he had not the least doubt the chemists and druggists would improve in their position) until now as had been before remarked, they had raised themselves to the higher branches of the medical profession, and were now joined with them in the Medical Council. He hoped that, on a future occasion, if they had an opportunity-and he hoped they would have an opportunity-the gentlemen opposed to the Bill would really bring forward the most forcible objections they possibly could, press those objections, and put them in a tangible form, so that they might agree upon a Bill which would meet the views of all, and tend to elevate the position of the chemists and druggists to that at present occupied by the members of the Pharmaceutical Society.

Mr. CHARLES JONES, of Birkenhead, briefly seconded the motion, which was carried by acclamation.

The CHAIRMAN, in acknowledging the compliment, said, with regard to the Bill and the conflicting interests between the chemists and druggist and the Pharmaceutical Society, he thought, before any Bill, was passed, through the House of Commons, all interests would be so far argued and sifted and tested and tried, that there would be no interest that would be omitted. He did not think the chemists and druggists, as a body, would have anything to find fault with in a Bill that passed the House of Commons. The meeting then separated.

DRUGGI

MEETING OF THE CHEMISTS AND DRUGGISTS IN NOTTINGHAM.

A General Meeting of the chemists and druggists of this town was held at the Maypole Hotel, on Thursday evening, the 5th of January,-Mr. Charles Welsh in the chair, to consider the proposed Amended Pharmacy Act for regulating the qualifications of chemists and druggists.

The CHAIRMAN called upon the Local Secretary, Mr. I. H. Atherton, to introduce the Bill.

The SECRETARY, before proceeding to explain the Bill, read the communication which he had received from the President. The Bill was afterwards read and freely discussed, when the following resolutions were unanimously adopted :-

1st. That in the opinion of this meeting, the proposed Amended Pharmacy Bill for regulating the qualifications of chemists in this country is admirably adapted to meet the requirements of the trade, and is essential to public safety. Proposed by Mr. Shepperley, seconded by Mr. Burton.

2nd. That this meeting fully appreciates the great efforts of the Council of the Pharmaceutical Society to obtain legislation on this matter, and pledges itself to aid by all

possible means the exertions of the executive in the passing of the Bill through Parliament. Proposed by Mr. Fitzhugh, seconded by Mr. Squire.

3rd. That the Local Secretary be requested to forward a copy of these resolutions at the proper time to the members in Parliament for the town and county of Nottingham, and to request their support to the proposed Bill. Proposed by Mr. W. H. Parker, seconded by Mr. F. White.

After a discussion on the Juries Exemption Bill, the following suggestion was adopted, and Mr. Atherton was requested to forward the same:-"That this meeting further desires to suggest to the Council of the Society the desirability of extending the exemption from juries to all registered chemists and druggists, as well as to members of the Pharmaceutical Society."

After a vote of thanks to the Chairman, the meeting separated.

The following letter relating to the above was received from the Local Secretary :

TO THE EDITOR OF THE PHARMACEUTICAL JOURNAL.

Sir,-In the present critical position of Pharmaceutical legislation, it is highly important that the opinion of the trade (Pharmaceutical and non-Pharmaceutical) on the proposed Amended Pharmacy Bill, should be fully understood and properly represented; so that the Executive in London may be able to prosecute their arduous undertaking with success.

Having this object in view, on receipt of the valuable letter from the President, directed to the local secretaries, I deemed it advisable to convene a general meeting of the trade in Nottingham, so that the proposed Bill might be properly discussed. I have great pleasure in saying that in every way we were successful, upwards of twenty of the leading chemists of the town attended, including many of the so-called members of the United Society, and their local secretary. Resolutions, expressing the unanimous approval of all present to the proposed Bill, were adopted by the meeting, which further pledged itself to support, in every possible way, the efforts of the Council to obtain the required legislation.

I have since obtained the signatures of all the chemists in the town (with one exception) to the requisition to the Council,-18 Pharmaceutical Chemists, 38 Chemists and Druggists, and 12 Assistants, in all 68 unanimous in favour of the Bill. This of course is satisfactory; but the gratification is greater from the fact that in every instance the signatures were given most willingly. During my canvass I was pleased to hear the Society so well spoken of, and not in one instance was any other project urged in opposition to their acknowledged liberal measure.

Before closing this short note, might I suggest to the local secretaries in different parts of the country, that the success of this and other schemes depends upon their individual exertions? I think it will be found that where the local officer is apathetic and lukewarm in its interests, there the Society languishes. But on the other hand, where he is willing (and surely there are such in every town) to look after its interests, there will the Pharmaceutical Society, with its noble aspirations, be appreciated and retain its supremacy. I am, dear Sir, yours faithfully,

J. H. ATHERTON, Local Secretary.

Nottingham, January 6, 1865.

MEETING OF CHEMISTS AND DRUGGISTS AT SOUTHAMPTON. At a meeting of the Chemists and Druggists, convened by circular sent to every one carrying on business under that designation in Southampton, Mr. W. B. RANDALL in

the chair, the several clauses of the Pharmacy Bill were read and discussed, when it was unanimously resolved, upon the motion of Mr. SMITH, seconded by Mr. JOHNS,-" That this meeting, having discussed the various clauses of the Pharmacy Bill, heartily approves of the same, and urges upon the Council to take such steps as shall secure its being passed into a law."

A vote of thanks to the Chairman concluded the meeting.

EDWARD PALK, Local Secretary.
January 21, 1865.

My dear Sir,-I hasten to send you the result of our meeting, held last evening, at which there was a very full discussion of the clauses of the Bill, and every clause received the unanimous approval of the meeting, except the first, and that was carried with only one dissentient. The whole body of chemists and druggists are much indebted to the Pharmaceutical Council for their indefatigable and untiring exertions to improve the character and raise the standard of those carrying on business under that designation, and I trust they will be rewarded by a successful issue to their exertions by securing the passing of this Bill through the Legislature. I will get the signatures to President and Council, and send off to-night.

I am, my dear Sir, yours truly,

Mr. Bremridge, 17, Bloomsbury Square.

EDWARD PALK, Local Secretary.

ORIGINAL AND EXTRACTED ARTICLES.

NOTES ON CONESSINE, ALIAS WRIGHTINE.
BY R. HAINES, M.B.,

PROFESSOR OF MATERIA MEDICA, GRANT COLLEGE, BOMBAY.

I observe in the last volume of the Pharmaceutical Journal,' at page 493, a paper by Dr. Stenhouse on a new alkaloid, Wrightine, discovered in the seeds of the Wrightia antidysenterica. The following extract will show that the observation is not so new as it has been supposed, though the small circulation of the publication from which the extract is taken, and the brevity of the notice itself, render this a matter of very little surprise:

"Dr. Haines read a short paper on a new vegetable alkaloid, extracted from the bark of the Wrightia antidysenterica, the Khooda' of the bazars. The alkaloid is resinous and uncrystallizable, of a powerfully bitter and somewhat acrid taste, insoluble in water, but very soluble in alcohol, ether, and chloroform. It exists in very minute proportion in the bark, only one part being procurable from one thousand parts of dry bark; it is supposed that the seeds contain it in much larger quantities. A specimen of the pure alkaloid was exhibited, and its alkaline nature shown by experiment. The writer proposed to give it the name of Nereine, from the former name of the plant which yields it, Nerium antidysentericum. It is believed that this is the first alkaloid which has been extracted from the generally acrid and poisonous family the Apocyneæ, to which the plant belongs." (From the Transactions of the Medical and Physical Society of Bombay,' new series, vol. iv., Appendix of Proceedings, p. xxviii. Meeting of 2nd October, 1858.)

The name Nereïne being liable to cause confusion, now that an alkaloid or alkaloids have been found in the Oleanders, I had since proposed to myself, and now propose, to give to the alkaloid of Wrightia the name of Conessine, from the Hindustani name of the bark. I altogether rejected the name Wrightine, as too uncouth.

The paper itself was not published in the Transactions. I was in hopes to be able to make a full investigation of the new alkaloid, and to publish the results in a complete state, and my object at the time was merely to record the fact of the discovery, to exhibit a pure specimen of the alkaloid, and to demonstrate its nature in presence of the Society. Unfortunately, the demands made by public duty are here so numerous and exacting, that I have been unable thoroughly to fulfil my intention; but the publication of Dr. Stenhouse's paper obliges me, in justice to myself, to give as they are the results of my experiments, which were made at irregular intervals, and under circumstances far from favourable to accuracy, chiefly in the month of December, 1858.

The Wrightia antidysenterica is a small forest-tree, tolerably abundant over all Western India. It grows here and there on the hills on this and the neighbouring islands, but most abundantly in the Southern Konkan, and in the Sawunt Warree and Goa territories. The part of the tree on which I operated was the bark, which is of a reddish-brown colour, but lighter towards the wood, and loose and spongy in texture. It was coarsely powdered, thoroughly moistened with hydrochloric acid diluted with six parts of water, and after twentyfour hours, packed in a percolator and exhausted with cold water. The liquid was precipitated by an excess of ammonia, and the precipitate washed, dried, and exhausted with alcohol. After filtration, the alcohol was distilled off, the syrupy residue mixed with acetate of lead and a little ammonia, evaporated to dryness at a gentle heat, and exhausted with ether. The ethereal solution had a pale yellow colour, and on evaporation left the alkaloid as a tough, brownishyellow, semitransparent, resinoid mass. Various attempts to crystallize it were made, but without the least success. Its taste and that of its salts was extremely bitter, conjoined with a distinct kind of acridity. After being thoroughly dried in vacuo over sulphuric acid, it was gradually heated in a testtube placed in an oil-bath. At 71° C. it became soft, like wax; at 100° it was thoroughly melted; at 110° a few bubbles, either of water or spirit vapour, were given off; at 177° it acquired a dark brown colour; and at 205° it boiled up and became decomposed.

The solution in hydrochloric acid gave with bichloride of platinum a loose flocculent precipitate, rather fawn-coloured than yellow. After thorough washing and drying, this precipitate yielded in two trials 25-26 and 25.06 per cent. of metallic platinum: mean 25.16; giving as the equivalent of the alkaloid, taking the formula of the platinum salt as x, HCI,Pt Cl,, 186.4. Some of the platinum precipitate having been left at rest in the mother-liquor for several days, a number of dark orange-coloured bodies were observed to be dispersed through the pulpy mass, and partly settled at the bottom of the vessel. On close inspection, these were found not to be crystals, but globular, semitransparent masses of the size of pins' heads. They increased considerably in number, but not in size, by standing. As it appeared probable that these contained the platinum salt in a purer state than the bulk of the precipitate, they were separated by decantation, dried, powdered, dried again, and ignited.

I.-7445 gm. left 1835 platinum = 24.65 per cent.
II.-5415 gm. left 1330 platinum

=24.56 per cent.

Mean, 24.605

This gives 196 as the equivalent of the alkaloid.

I.-308 gm. pure alkaloid, burnt with oxide of copper only, gave carbonic acid 8843, and water 310.

II.-506 gm. platinum salt, equal to 2465 alkaloid, burnt with oxide of copper mixed with one-fifth chromate of lead, gave 6985 carbonic acid, and .264 water.

III.-346 gm. platinum salt, equal to 1686 alkaloid, burnt with soda-lime

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