Oxford eagle. (Oxford, Lafayette Co., Miss.) 1876-current, 1921-04-28
DOING
MUCH RESEARCH
Professor Faser Gives Out Statement.
To Explore Amazon Valley For New
Drug Plants.

| Prof. II. M. Faser, dean of the
School of Pharmacy of the Univer-
sity, in conversation with the editor
of The Mississippian some days ago,
stated that very few people realize
i$he vast amount of research work
that is done by the pharmacists Of
/ this country. The following explains
some Of the things that have been
done and are now being done:
Some years ago Sir A. Conan Doyle,
! in describing the romantic and peril
Gus adventures Of one Of his charac
/ ters in the little known, upper por
! lions of the Amazon River valley stat
ed that he penetrated to the regions .
that had been reached before by only I
one white man, an intrepid botanist
employed by a Detroit manufacturer J.
/ to scour the country in search of new
\ drug plants. The botanist referred to
was H. H. Rusby, now dean Of the
/ Columbia University College Of Phar- .
macy, and that he was successful in
! his search is proven by the fact that .
cocillana and several drugs that he .
discovered have since come into wide
use by physicians. At the same time .
or on later trips Dr.. Rusty discovered
vast forests Of cinchona trees, from
which quinine is obtained, and traced /
/ the source of cocoa and several other
/ important drug plants.
Recently the doctor learned from
travellers in Northwestern Brazil OF /
some very interesting medicines en- |
aoyed BY the natives there and, de-
sirous Of learning more concerning !
them. has arranged-this time with
Philadelphia manufactured to lead !
an expedition into this the last eX-
panse of unknown country" IN the |
world. in the hope Of securing some OF |
the material and Of making a com
plete study Of it, medicinal properties
II At the same time a careful study will !
be made of certain endemic diseases !
Of the tropics and curative measures
will be sought, also, the doctor pro-
poses to secure and analyZe small
quantities Of the various arrow poi
sons uses By the natives Specimens
of the many varieties Of poisonous
snakes which abound in the country
will be secured and forwarded to mu-
seums here; representative of the
federal department of entomology will
accompany the party to study the in
sects; and even the different kinds
of fishes viii be collected and eX-
amined.
/ The main object of the expedition,
which will leave New York about May-
Il, however, will be in connection with
medicinal plants. The comrlete study,
which cannot be attempted in the field
will occupy the attention of many
specialists. Dr.. Rusty himself will I'M
dertake their botanical classification
and specimens will be sent to this
country for further study. Their mi
croscopial structure will be determin-
ed by c. w. Ballard of the Columbia |
University School Of Pharmacy; Her
bert w. Youngken, Of the Philadelpfia !
College Of Pharmacy; and by Albert |
Schneider and f. L. NeWcomb. Of the |
pharmacy schools of the universities
of Nebraska and Minnesota H. " |
Army, of Columbia; c. B. Jordan, of |
Purdue: and l. T. Sayre and /. D. |
Havenhil of Kansas, will study their .
chemical properties. Physicians con- \
nected with Yale, Harvard, the Uni
versity OF Pennsylvania and Johns !
Hopkins will determine their physio-
logical and medicinal properties.
It is apparent that this expedition
which is purely pharmaceutical one,
may add to the physicians armamen-
tarium a number Of new drugs of
great value in the treatment of di-
Isease. Certainly its success will add
to the laurels of American Pharma-
cy.-The Mississippian.