holder) sends to a pharmacist for a supply of the drugs a messenger who is not authorized to be in possession, the drugs may only be delivered to the messenger if he produces a signed authority from the licensed or authorized person, and the pharmacist is satisfied that the authority is genuine.

Postal Transmission of Dangerous Drugs

Under the Convention of Madrid, which came into force on January 1, 1922, "it is forbidden to send by post opium, morphine, cocaine, and other drugs." But this prohibition applies to Letter Post only. Dangerous drugs intended for legitimate medicinal purposes may be sent by foreign Insured Box or Parcel Post, provided that the country of destination permits their importation. The restrictions applying to letter post are not imposed on the Inland Postal Service, provided that both wholesalers and retailers conform strictly to all the Regulations under the Dangerous Drugs Acts.

(9) EXEMPTIONS.

The Regulations do not apply to the following preparations, which may be sold by the pharmacist. All of these, however, are Part I. Poisons and must be treated accordingly

NOTE. In reply to questions as to whether the exemption granted to the above preparations also applies to admixtures of them with other substances, the Home Secretary has given the following ruling :"The exemption may be regarded as covering preparations which contain the same active drugs and in the same proportions as the preparations mentioned in the schedule, and differ from the preparations mentioned in the schedule solely by the addition of an inert substance or substances required to render the medicament suitably coherent or by the substitution of one or more such inert substances for another or others." From this ruling it may be gathered that the exemption will apply to the three Powders mentioned in the above schedule, when these are made into pills or tablets with an inert excipient.

In concrete cases submitted to the Home Office, it has been ruled that (a) a pill containing Pulv. Ipecac. Co. combined with codeine and extracts of aconite and belladonna in such a proportion that the percentage of anhydrous morphine was not under 02 per cent. is not exempted; (b) the same ruling applies to a mixed powder containing equal parts of Pulv. Ipecac. Co. and aspirin, and to one consisting of aspirin, phenacetin, and Pulv. Ipecac. Co., in which 25 per cent. of the latter is present; but on the ground that it is an addition of an inert substance, an ointment of equal parts of Ung. Gallæ c. Opic and Vaseline is exempt.

(10) SPECIAL AUTHORIZATIONS.

To the specially authorized persons mentioned below the pharmacist may sell the particular preparation or preparations mentioned in each

case.

Laudanum to Farmers and Stockowners.

Laudanum for use solely in the treatment of animals may be sold to farmers and stockowners who hold an authorization from the chief officer of police for the area in which they carry on business. Conditions regulating sale and possession appear on the certificate, which must be produced each time the laudanum is purchased by the farmer or stockowner. Not more than 32 fluid ounces can be supplied on each order, and the laudanum must be kept under lock and key.

Cocaine in Castor Oil to Factory Occupiers.

A preparation for the treatment of injury to the eyes, consisting of not more than 1 part of COCAINE IN 200 OF CASTOR OIL, with not less than 1 part in 3,000 of mercuric chloride, may be sold to the occupier of a factory or workshop to which the Factory and Workshop Act, 1901, applies.

Preparations of Opium to Midwives.

PREPARATIONS CONTAINING OPIUM may be sold to certified practising midwives for use in their profession or employment.

Sales to British and Foreign Vessels.

Sales may be made by retail (but not by wholesale without licence) to (a) a merchant ship not carrying a ship's surgeon, the master of the ship being deemed to be a person authorized to be in possession of such quantities of the drugs so far as is necessary to comply with the requirements of the Merchant Shipping Acts; (b) to a foreign ship in any port in Great Britain, on a certificate from the Medical Officer of Health of the port, that the master is authorized to purchase and be in possession of such quantities of the drugs not to exceed what is required for the use of the ship until it next reaches its home port; (c) Tinct. Chlorof. et Morph. Co., B.P., and Tinct. Opii, B.P., only, to the skippers of British fishing vessels who are entered in the Fishing Boats Register.

The Home Office has made a Regulation (Sept. 10, 1923) empowering Port Medical Officers to issue certificates to masters of foreign ships authorizing them to obtain, within certain limits, preparations containing a dangerous drug which are required to complete the necessary medical equipment of the ship. These certificates when presented are to be treated by the supplying chemist in a similar way to prescriptions given by a doctor to his patient. But in this case, instead of entering the order as a prescription in the prescription book, an entry need only be made in the Dangerous Drugs Register, the order being stamped, dated and retained for the prescribed period.

HOSPITALS AND INSTITUTIONS.

In a special Order dated August 15, 1921, the Home Secretary exempted hospitals, infirmaries, asylums, etc., from the operation of the Regulations, provided that certain specified conditions were complied with, the main points of which are here set out:

Hospitals with Dispensers.

In Hospitals, &c., in which the drugs are dispensed by a qualified medical practitioner or by a pharmacist or (in the case of a Poor Law Institution) by a dispenser holding the qualifications recognized by the Minister of Health whose appointment as dispenser has been approved by the Minister, the following conditions must be observed:

(a) Supplies. All orders for supplies of the drugs must be signed by one of the medical practitioners attached to the hospital, or by the pharmacist. The person responsible for dispensing medicines must receive and have charge of all supplies of the drugs, and must enter in the drug ledger particulars of all supplies received, as shown in the Register-heading under (7). A separate record must be kept in respect of each of the drugs. It should be noted that in reply to an inquirer, the Home Office stated that the hospital pharmacist's authority to be in possession of, and to supply, drugs is limited to the practice of his employment as a dispenser to the hospital, and does not cover the supply (by sale or otherwise) of drugs to members of the medical staff for use in their private practice.

(b) Dispensing Prescriptions.-The drugs or medicines containing them may only be dispensed for the use of the individual patient, and in accordance with the prescription of the medical practitioner in charge of the patient. The prescriber must date, sign, or initial the prescription (which may be on the patient's bed-card or casesheet) and must state the name of the patient or the number of the case. A fresh prescription must be given whenever a fresh supply of the drug or medicine is required to be dispensed. (c) Records. The dispenser must at the time of dispensing stamp or mark the prescription to show that it has been dispensed, and must keep a complete record of all cases in which any of the drugs have been dispensed (giving date, name of prescriber, and name of patient or number of case). A separate record for each drug is necessary. Prescriptions must be kept for at least two years. Stock preparations of the drugs for the wards or out-patients' department may only be supplied on the written requisition of the sister-in-charge. Such requisitions must be marked in the dispensary to show that they have been complied with, and must be filed.

Special Exemptions.-Hospitals in which there is a dispenser whose qualifications do not fulfil the requirements set out above may by special order of the Home Secretary be made subject to the above provisions, provided that certain specified conditions are observed.

Other Hospitals.

In smaller hospitals and institutions in which there is no dispenser or pharmacist, one of the medical practitioners attached to or attending the hospital is responsible for ordering or obtaining supplies of the drugs, and the matron or acting matron for receiving and taking charge of them.

OFFENCES.

(1) Acts in contravention of or failure to comply with any Regulations or Orders in Council, made under the Dangerous Drugs Acts of 1920 and 1923; (2) Acts in contravention of or failure to comply with the conditions of any licence issued, or authority granted under or in pursuance of the Acts; (3) The making by any person of any declaration or statement

which is false in any particular, or who knowingly utters, produces, or makes use of any such declaration or statement for the purpose of obtaining, whether for himself or for any other person, the issue, grant, or renewal of any such licence or authority; and (4) who in Great Britain aids, abets, counsels, or procures the commission in any place outside Great Britain of any offence punishable under the provisions of any corresponding law in force in that place, or does any act preparatory to or in furtherance of any act which, if committed in Great Britain, would constitute an offence against the Acts; (5) Attempts to commit an offence against the Acts or solicitation or incitement of another person to commit such an offence, render the person responsible for such acts liable to prosecution as if he had committed an offence under the Acts; (6) In the case of a company convicted of an offence under the Acts, the chairman and every director and every officer concerned in the management of the company is held to be guilty of the like offence, unless on proof that the act constituting the offence took place without his knowledge or consent.

PENALTIES.

In respect of each offence against the Acts or Regulations (a) on conviction on indictment, a fine not exceeding £1,000 or to penal servitude for a period not exceeding ten years, or to both such fine and penal servitude, or (b) on summary conviction, to a fine not exceeding £250 or to imprisonment with or without hard labour for a term not exceeding twelve months, or to both such fine and imprisonment. No person shall, on conviction for any offence of contravening or failing to comply with any Regulation under the Acts relating to the keeping of books or the issuing or dispensing of prescriptions containing drugs to which the Act applies, be sentenced to imprisonment without the option of a fine, or to pay a fine not exceeding £50 if the Court dealing with the case is satisfied that the offence was committed through inadvertence, and was not preparatory to, or committed in the course of, or in connection with the commission, or intended commission of any other offence against the Act; (c) In the event of a pharmacist being convicted of an offence under the Acts or the Regulations the Home Secretary is empowered to withdraw the pharmacist's authorization to manufacture, dispense, or retail the drugs (as set forth in the foregoing paragraphs 2, 3 and 6), provided that, before withdrawing the authorization he consults the Council of the Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain.

SCHOLARSHIPS AND PRIZES

The Council have in trust the administration of the following Scholarships and Prizes, full details concerning which may be obtained on application to the Secretary's Office :

* Jacob Bell Memorial Scholarships. Founded in 1860 to perpetuate the memory of Jacob Bell. Two scholarships of £25 each, with free instruction in the Society's School of Pharmacy, are offered for competition annually in June. Competitors must be registered Student Associates of the Society, and not less than twenty or more than twenty-two years of age. The subjects of examination are English Essay; Latin or French or German; Botany and Pharmacy; Chemistry and Physics (Sound, Light and Heat).

* Manchester Pharmaceutical Association Scholarship. Founded in 1891 by the late Thomas Kay, of Stockport, and offered for competition annually to Student-Associates of the Society (age 20-22), who have served an apprenticeship in Lancashire, Cheshire or the High Peak Division of Derbyshire. The Scholarship is of the value of £34, which must be expended in training fees for the Scholar at an approved School. The subjects of examination are Latin or a Modern Foreign Language; Elementary Chemistry, Botany and Pharmacy; Elementary Physics.

Redwood Scholarship. Founded in 1888 and offered for competition biennially in April to Pharmaceutical Chemists who are members of the Society, and who desire to obtain advanced instruction in Chemistry and Chemical Pharmacology. The Scholar receives a sum of at least £60, and is provided free of cost with a bench, apparatus, and material in the Society's Research Laboratory. The nomination of the Scholar is made by the Education Committee after examination in the subjects of Chemistry and Materia Medica or such other procedure as may be determined on by the Committee. Applications must be sent to the Registrar, 17, Bloomsbury Square, W.C.

Burroughs Scholarship. Founded 1898, and offered for com

* These Scholarships will probably be offered under modified conditions after the competition in June, 1924.