The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1841-02-23 00:00:00

believe the expea

:1 what it

several times by the

been ca]

officer, and no answer hiving been returned,
Mr. Forster proceeded to state the uartii

—aving
heard from the captain of the Nunez that considerable sick-
ness had taken place on board the vessel, which had been
detained in the rainy season on the coast of Africa, he made
the inquiries which might be reasonablysexpected. In the
course of the conversation the captain said that his medicine
chest appeared to have- been badly fitted up, and that the
medicines were so adulterated as to be altogether useless.
As the directions issued by the house in which he (Mr. F.)
ith regard to every ship with which they
ere that no expense should be spared in
he gave orders that the medicine chest
of the Nunez should be examined, and Mr. Battley, of Fore-
street, having examined it, the following letter was received
from that gentleman's house:—

was a partner,

were connected, wt
hest,

the medicir

" Cripplegate, Jan. 28, 1841.
" Sir,—Mr. Battley desires me to say that he has exa-
mined the medicines you sent here yesterday, with the fol-
lowing result :—The calomel he finds to be the best of the
medicines which the chest contains, but not perfectly i❑ a
pure state. The Dovis powder, rhubarb, and jalap exceed-
ingly bad, so much so as to be obvious to a casual observer.
With regard to the tinctures, they contain little or no spirit,
and are evidently not made according to the direction which
the College of Physicians lays down. The rest of the medi-
cines and preparations are for the most part very indifferent.
Mr. Battley further desires me to say that Mr. Hanbury, of
the firm of Messrs. Allen, Hanbury, and Co., of Plough-
court, has likewise inspected the medicines, and perfectly
coincides with Mr. Battley in his opinion of them.
I am, sir, for R. Battley, your obedient servant,
__

" EDWARD JowETT."
Upon finding that the medicines supplied for such a place
as the coast of Africa were of such a description, he (Mr.
Forster) determined, for the public safety, to institute an in-
quiry, particularly as Sir Henry Halford, the president of
the College of Physicians, expressed a decided opinion that
something ought to be done with the vendor of such vile me
; and, as the distribution of medicines in merchant,
ships depended upon the captains, he had ascertained tb

e practice of supplying bad medicines to vessels of tais kin
was carried to a most serious extent, more especially at L
verpool.

Alderman Pirie said that the shipping interest was greatly
indebted to Mr. Forster for having come forward upon this
occasion. He wished to know whether the men Atad taken
any of the medicines.

captain James Paddon, of the Nunez, stated that the men
had refused to take any of the medines, and he could not
himself take any of it. He lost all his men on theloyage.
Alderman Pirie : Would they have taken the medicines if
they had been good?—Captain Paddon : No. They would
not have taken anything except salts. They were most ob-
stinate. I tried to take some myself, but I could not. Out
of eleven. all died except myself and three blacks:
Mr. Henry Hennell, of Apothecaries'-hall, was then called.
ed that he had examined the rhubarb and jalap, being.
the medicines principally used on voyages of the kind, and
neither of them possessed any one character of these drugs.
It was impossible to say what the stuff called rhubarb was.
Mr. D. B. Hanbury, of the house of Allen, Hanbury and
Co., Plough-court, stated that the rhubarb and jalap describ-
ed had none of the properties of the real medicines. The
other contents of the medicine-chest were very inferior, . and
the proportion of spirit in the tinctures was, if any, extremely
small.

Alderman Pirie was anxious to know if there was any chec
upon practices such as were thus exposed.

A medical gentleman said that a Censure from the College
of Physicians was the only check, and the visitation was very

unfrequent

Mr: Chandler, druggist, Fore-street : The census, or de-
putation from the College of Physicians, have visited me but
once in eleven years. I know several shops in which they
have never been to examine the medicines

Hanbury looked at the bill of parcels, and said that
at his counter the medicines would be sold at le same price,
and be of the first quality. In furnishing medicine chests
they would be at a lower rate.
Alderman Pirie said that the matter disclosed at the jus-
tice-room was very properly brought forward, and he was
convinced that what had taken place would render great ser-
vice to the public, used, as it would be, by the press.