scription writing, Part II is devoted to comments on the best drugs and preparations of the Pharmacopoeia, and Part III is devoted to a description of the activities, uses, and the best methods of administration of the valuable drugs.

OFFICIAL DRUGS AND PREPARATIONS

The National Pure Food and Drug Law recognizes the United States Pharmacopoeia and the National Formulary as standards for drugs, their preparations and their doses.

The Ninth Revision of the United States Pharmacopoeia is the last volume issued of this book, and is naturally the best ever issued, but owing to commercial desire and to the desire of Government drug officials for standards for everything used in medicine, whether medicinally useful or not, and also from the desire of many physicians who wish a supposed standard for drugs and preparations that have no action and cannot be standardized, the book is altogether too large and contains too many drugs and preparations for an up-to-date physician, who wishes standards of only the best drugs.

The National Formulary is a book primarily produced to offer certified formulas for many really useful proprietary mixtures, so that any druggist could reproduce these preparations. It consists largely of multiple mixtures (mostly out of date) and of mixtures left over from the United States Pharmacopoeia after house-cleaning.

The contention of the United States Bureau of Chemistry that a standard was needed for all drugs, whether useful or not, in the last revision of the United States Pharmacopoeia was not valid, as a standard can always be found in the volume of the United States Pharmacopoeia in which the drug was last mentioned.

It is always best to individualize a patient and to write a prescription for one or more drugs especially for him. However, many Pharmacopoeial, some National Formulary, and some proprietary mixtures are elegant methods of combining or administering drugs, and in proper cases should be used.

A valuable useful book is entitled "New and Nonofficial Remedies." This book is revised and published annually by

the American Medical Association. It describes all new drugs and preparations that are found to be as represented and that are not advertised to "cure" or "guaranteed to help," but that really have good therapeutic uses.

UNITED STATES PHARMACOPŒIA

The first National Pharmacopoeia of the United States was developed by a convention which met in Washington, in 1820. The second edition appeared in 1828, and from 1830 there have been decennial conventions of representatives from the professions of medicine and pharmacy, with delegates from state medical societies, medical and pharmaceutical colleges, and from the army, navy and marine hospital service of the United States. At these conventions, held in Washington, are appointed revision committees whose labors develop the decennial editions of the Pharmacopoeia.

The last, now official, is the ninth revision, and the one representing the standard from which the physician's prescription will be filled, unless he otherwise orders. This ninth revision was prepared by a committee of fifty, appointed by the delegates at the convention held in Washington in 1910. This book did not appear or become standard until 1916, and will be standard until the tenth revision appears some years subsequent to the meeting of the Pharmacopoeial Convention, which was held in Washington, in May, 1920.

This book contains 778 drugs, substances and preparations, very, very many of which are of no value to the modern practitioner.

The drugs and preparations appear alphabetically under their Latin and English titles. The average doses are given in both the metric and the apothecaries systems. The United States Pharmacopoeia has for three revisions urged the use of the metric or decimal system, but only a small minority of the physicians of the United States have adopted this system of weights and measures.

A drug or preparation described in the United States Pharmacopoeia is termed "official." The ninth revision of this book recognizes the following types of preparations:

Aceta (Vinegars) are solutions of the active principles of drugs in dilute acetic acid. One is official.

Aquae (Waters) are solutions of volatile substances in water. Seventeen are official.

Cerata (Cerates) are semisolid preparations made with 30 per cent. of white wax and 70 per cent. of benzoinated lard. They do not melt when applied to the skin. Four are official.

Collodia (Collodions) are liquid preparations for external use having collodion as a base. Three are official.

Decocta (Decoctions) are liquid preparations made by boiling vegetable substances in water. Unless otherwise ordered, decoctions are made to represent 5 per cent. strength of the drug. None is official.

Elixira (Elixirs )are sweet, aromatic, alcoholic preparations containing small amounts of medicinal substances. Two are official.

Emplastra (Plasters) are preparations for application to the skin and are adhesive at the body temperature. Seven are

official.

Emulsa (Emulsions) are liquid preparations in which oily substances are suspended in water by the aid of a gummy or albuminous substance. Four are official.

Extracta (Extracts) are solid, semisolid, or dry fine powders intended mostly for internal medication. Twenty-five semisolid and two powdered extracts are official.

Fluidextracta (Fluidextracts) are concentrated liquid preparations made of such strength that I mil (cubic centimeter) represents the medicinal properties of 1 gram of the drug. Forty-nine are official.

Glycerita (Glycerites) are mixtures of medicinal substances with glycerin. Five are official.

Infusa (Infusions) are weak liquid preparations made by treating a drug with hot water but not boiling the mixture. Unless otherwise ordered, they represent 5 per cent. strength of the drug. Two are official.

Linimenta (Liniments) are mostly liquid preparations for external use. Eight are official.

Liquores (Liquors) are solutions of non-volatile substances in water. Twenty-five are official.

Massæ (Masses) are semisolid preparations of the consistency to roll into pills. Two are official.

Mella (Honeys) are thick liquid preparations with honey as a base. Three are official.

Misturæ (Mixtures) are liquid preparations containing substances held in suspension in water. Two are official.

Mucilagines (Mucilages) are solutions of gum in water, used as demulcents or to suspend insoluble substances or oils in mixtures. Two are official.

Oleata (Oleates) are combinations of medicinal substances with oleic acid. One is official.

Oleoresina (Oleoresins) are extracts containing a volatile oil and a resin. Six are official.

Olea (Oils) are either volatile or fixed. Thirty-eight are official.

Pilulæ (Pills) are small round solid preparations of drugs for internal administration. Seven are official.

Pulveres (Powders) are finely powdered preparations of two or more drugs. Seven are official.

Resinæ (Resins) are solid preparations.

Three are official. Spiritus (Spirits) are strong solutions of volatile substances in alcohol. Fifteen are official.

Suppositoria (Suppositories) are medicated preparations for insertion into the different orifices of the body. The vehicles used in their preparation are cacao butter, glycerinated gelatin, or sodium stearate. A suppository for the rectum should weigh about 2 grams; a suppository, or bougie, for the urethra should weigh from 2 to 4 grams; and a vaginal suppository should weigh from 4 to 10 grams. One is official.

Syrupi (Syrups) are concentrated solutions of sugar in water medicated with one or more drugs. Twenty-two are official.

Tincturæ (Tinctures) are solutions of non-volatile substances in alcohol. 100 mils of a tincture of a potent drug should represent 10 grams of the drug. Tinctures of weaker, nonpotent drugs vary in strength. Fifty-four are official.

Triturationes (Triturates) are solid preparations made with sugar of milk. One is official.

Trochisci (Troches) are medicated lozenges for solution in the mouth. Five are official.

Unguenta (Ointments) are semisolid preparations made with 20 per cent. of white wax and 80 per cent. of benzoinated lard. Twenty are official.

LATIN

There has been a slowly progressive change from prescriptions written entirely in correct Latin, to abbreviated Latin, to part Latin and part English, to incorrect Latin and abbreviated English, until now it seems advisable to advocate that the whole prescription be written in good English with the use of the abbreviations of the Latin titles of drugs as authorized by the United States Pharmacopoeia and the use of such technical abbreviations as seem advisable. It would also seem well to write the names of the common simple drugs and preparations in English rather than in their high sounding mysterious Latin titles; for instance, to write peppermint water instead of aqua mentha piperitæ. The patient knows that the taste is that of peppermint, hence the camouflage is absurd.

The decision to advise that prescriptions be written in English has been arrived at because Latin is not now an entrance requirement in most medical schools, and incorrect Latin is an abomination. Also the physician should do his part in completing the laying of the ghost of mystery. Education and public health instruction have removed much of the mystery of disease and, hence, most of the belief in mysterious means of prevention and of cure, and the physician should do the rest. Most nostrums and most irregular methods for the cure of disease thrive only by their appeal to the long inherited belief in mystery and magic. Therefore it is urged that we inaugurate the plan of writing prescriptions simply, as well as writing simple prescriptions. The age of multiple mixtures of one or two useful drugs befogged by many useless and unnecessary ingredients is passing. Let the exit of such unscientific combinations be hastened. On the other hand, more time and thought should be given to determining the most efficient