The American Medical Association and the United States pharmacopoeia / a reprint of the pamphlets of H.C. Wood, Alfred B. Taylor, the Philadelphia County Medical Society, and the National College of Pharmacy ; with a rejoinder addressed to the professions of medicine and pharmacy of the United States, by Edward R. Squibb.

  • E. R. Squibb
Date:
1877
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: The American Medical Association and the United States pharmacopoeia / a reprint of the pamphlets of H.C. Wood, Alfred B. Taylor, the Philadelphia County Medical Society, and the National College of Pharmacy ; with a rejoinder addressed to the professions of medicine and pharmacy of the United States, by Edward R. Squibb. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by The Royal College of Surgeons of England. The original may be consulted at The Royal College of Surgeons of England.

    46/159 (page 46)
    The title shall 1x5 THE PnAmiACOPCEIA OP TUB Uotted Statkh of Avekica. Ri'vlnlon. LISCED BY AmiORm- OP THE AMERICAN MEDICAL ASSOCIATION. Revised 18—. Publlaheil 18-. PLACE OF PI BLICATION. rriiUAiiiui'* IvnuxT. And no other matter shall appear on the title page. On the second page, or reverse of the title page, the notification of copyright shall be placed. The third page shall be occupied by the title of the Council, the name and address of each member of the Council and of the Actuary, and any brief notice the Council may liave to publish in regard to its olllcial duties. On the fiftli ]>age the preface shall be conunenced, this to be followed by a table of contents. That pharuiacopceia is the best which is of most use to the average physician .and pliarmacist on the day in which it is used; not of most use in that high degree of conservatism which rejects idl that has not drifted into universal application, nor of most use in catering to the common appetite for novelty and polypharniac}-; but in equally guarding against both extremes. A pbannacopwia for the present and future should not only embrace the es- tablish< d materia medica, but jiractically tlie whole materia midica. It should not onl^' be a standard of (luality. composition and strength of tlie old, but also a standard of knowledge for tliat wiiich is new in advancing the art of medicine. Its object should not be original research, but to examine and I'pitcmize and re- cord tlic results of current research in a form adapted to current use, and to separate tlic good from tlie bad. Such a plan embraces fully the PharmacoixBia of the past, but adds to it an element which the progress and fertility of the age has now come to demand. The Piiarmacopcvia should no longer be of the character of a catalogue, dic- tionarj', and formulary. It should aim at a clear and complete separation and identification of that grade or quality of each substance which, only, is to be used in medicine ; and as the sole authorized standard of a large profession, involving an important |>ublic interest, the greatest accuracy of observation and expression sliould lie attained. No testini<ni\' sliould be accepted without close scrutiny, nor anj- tnistwortliy information lie disregarded. In striving for its general object of grcatt st practical utility to the greatest numl)er of jiersons, it must necessjirily dl'al with a great variety of substances, simple and compound, old and new, well-known and little known, permanent and ephemeral. Such dilTerences naturally fend to divide these substances into two classes, requiring verj- different treatment. Fimt, Those which have attained to an established character and common use llirough prolonged experience, and which, from the universality of their application, are of primary importance ; and, Second, Those of more recent origin, and not established character, of which