El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1910-01-15

IS BEING REVISED
using it's influence in some particulars.
1t is true that certain government
bureaus have heretofore taken part in
these matters, but it was more the ac-
( ton of the individuals than of the gov
eminent itself
The present pharmacopoeia is the
first to be recognized by the govern
ment, recognition coming through a
provision that il shall be the standard
in the dispensing of drugs in the
various branches of the government
service
Worth Thousands 10 Some
Some idea of what a revision means
to some men may be gathered from the
fact that the chairman of the committee
for the 1900 revision declared he had
| been offered thousands of dollars for
the change of only two words in the
report of the committee. The tests that
are laid out for the ascertainment Of
the degree of purity of given lot Of
drug form is matter of vital i'm
portance to the dealer in these COM
modities.
Some insist that drugs shall be chem
icalIy pure while others declare they
need only be pure incidentally. Those
who favor the latter idea say that to
guarantee absolute chemical purity is 70
add much cost to a drug which would
] be just as good from the physicians
standpoint if incidentally pure
| The history of the pharmacOpoeia in
! the United States begins early The
! first step for national pharmacopoeia
was taken in 1917. and was initiated by
DR.. Lynn Spalding of New York He
suggested that the United States be d.
vided into districts and that each OF
these districts make a pharmacopoeia
! of its own. and that after this was done
all these be brought together andshar-
monized at a national convention COM
posed of accredited delegates.
New Drugs Entered.
Some new drugs will be entered for
the first time in the 1910 revision, and
some obsolete and obsOlescent ones viii
F.! be dropped. Some names will be
changed and the amount Of the aver
age dose will be changed to correspond
with the changes of strength of some OF
the standards Last time acidum car
bolicum, the prevailing technical name
for carbolic acid was changed to phenol,
the latter name more correctly desig-
mating the drug. Choral became
chloralum hydratum.
Patent medicines will not be listed
as usual, and preparations from secret
formulas viii find no place, although
many physicians are ANXIOUS that some
Of these preparations should be in
cluded.
Who Shall Control.
There has been some conflict Of op5n-
ion between the physicians and the
pharmacists as 70 who should dominate
the convention. The pharmacists claim
that they know more about drugs than
the physician. that it is practically their
whole life study, while with the physi-
clan it is but one of tine many phases
of his work
The physician answers that he is re-
sponsible to his patient when medicine
is administered upon his prescription,
and that therefore his profession ought
to dominate the convention At least
one medical journal expects to see the
pharmacists in control unless the' physi-
clans bestir themselves and secure
proper recognition
AduIterated Imports.
The great need Of standardized drugs
is shown by the unusual prevalence OF
adulterants in those which are import
ed. Uncle Sam has been on the watch
out at the various custom houses for
years. especially since the pure food
ana drugs act was passed.
Sometimes the importers are COM
peeled TO deport consignnents. and later
they will turn up elsewhere. Often
they are reimDorted through another
port where entry is easier An instance
of this may be cited which shows not
only the tricks of the trade but the re-
sourceful watchfulness of the authori- !
ties A consignment Of beiladonna was
received. Upon examination it was !
found by the custom officials and the /
drug inspectors to be adulterated with /
poke root and scopOla. 1t was ordered I
deported.
Later some belladonna showed up in !
the drug stores which was similarly |
1t was found to contain /
exactly the same amount Of poke root. 4
This might happen and still give no |
definite proof that ii was part of the I
depOrted shipment; but when it was
found that il had also the same per
centage of scopola as the deported con-
signment. it was clear clue. and the
inspectors traced it back and found
their conclusions true in every particu-
lar.
Another scheme Detected.
In another case 2 Wholesale druggist
received a shipment Of five tons of 4
olive pits The inspection service want-
ed to know what they were for and
was told that they were to serve as a
filler for chicken food. The inspectors
knew that manufacturing druggists
made no chicken food and his drugs
were watched when they got into the
harket They were found to be adul-
terated with olive pits
The more highly poisonous a drug the
higher its price and the greater the
temptation to adulteration-
1t is said that the foreign gatherers or
raw drugs are absolutely Indifferent TO
The dangers to which their dishonesty
nay expose the public. and that they
viii go even to the length of complete
when opportunity affords
Ind these unexpected strikes of hidden
veins crossing ,the exploration tunnel |
ire most encouraging and augur We'll (
or a big body of ore being struck IN ]