WZ 100 P9638M 1874 56111740R NLM 052^607 M NATIONAL LIBRARY OF MEDICINE NLM052968074 RETURN TO NATIONAL LIBRARY OF MEDICINE BEFORE LAST DATE SHOWN t 'JUN 171981' OK PROF. WM. PROCTER, JR. READ BEFORE A MEETING OF THE COLLEGE SEPTEMBER 28, 1874. 'cl&. (X^c^/ ny 7^2; MEMOIR OF Prof. WILLIAM PROCTER, Jr., LATE PROFESSOR OF PHARMACY IN THE PHILADELPHIA COLLEGE OF PHARMACY. READ BEFORE A MEETING OF THE COLLEGE SEPTEMBER 28th, 1874. PHILADELPHIA: MERRrHEW & SON, PRINTERS, 135 NORTH THrRD STREET. 1874. joo MEMOIR OF Prof. WILLIAM PROCTER, Jr. The paternal ancestry of William Procter, Jr., can be traced by the family records to the County of York, England. Thomas Proc- ter, who appears to have been the great-great-grandfather of the subject of our memoir, was an officer in the army of Oliver Cromwell. His descendants were converts to the doctrines of George Fox, and at an early period are recorded as members of the religious Society of Friends. Isaac Procter, the father of William Procter, Jr., was a man of exemplary worth; and we deem it interesting, as a prelude to the memoir of the son, to give a short sketch of the life of so worthy a sire. The father of Isaac Procter resided in the city of York ; he was a man in humble circumstances, but always maintained a high character for sterling worth and integrity ; his family connections were highly respectable, and their acquaintance was among those more favored in temporal circumstances; among these was Lindley Murray (the grammarian). Isaac Procter, after such home instruction as his parents were able to give him, was sent to Ackworth School for one or two years, and afterwards he learned the trade of a carpenter. After a great fire in London, he went to that city for employment. While there, it is recorded of him, " that his best suit of clothes was stolen from his chamber closet a few weeks after his arrival—no small loss to one 4 MEMOIR OF WILLIAM PROCTER, JR. whose means were so limited. It was months before he could, with the utmost economy, replace them, and yet he conscientiously con- tinued to attend the religious meetings of Friends, without reference to his appearance. It was full six months before a single individual shook hands with him, or took the least notice of him ; so keenly did he feel his isolated state, that he then firmly resolved that should he ever be placed in a situation of influence, no one attending the meet- ing to which he belonged should have the like experience ; a resolu- tion fully carried out, as many can testify.'' He continued to live in London two or three years, when he returned to York. Soon after, a minister of the religious Society of Friends from America mak- ing his home at the house of Lindley Murray, encouraged him to emigrate to America and come to Philadelphia in furtherance of his business pursuits. His mind appears to have been previously turned to a contemplation of this movement, and the advice given him de- cided the matter. Investing his savings in clothes and books, receiving many testimonials of kindness from relatives and friends, and letters of introduction, he bade farewell to family and home and embarked at London. The ship William Penn, in which he came as a passenger, arrived in the Delaware in September, 1793. The yellow fever was then prevailing in Philadelphia, and the ship was not allowed to come up to the city. The passengers were landed at Gloucester, on the Jersey shore, after which the ship proceeded to New York to discharge her cargo. Isaac Procter, with two companions, having left their trunks on the ship, proceeded on foot overland towards New York. An inland quarantine was at that time maintained to prevent the spread of the fever from Philadelphia. On arriving at Haddonfield, they received the following passport : Gloucester County, \ State of New Jersey, J ' Personally came before me, the subscriber, one of the Justices of the Peace for the county aforesaid, Isaac Procter, housecarpenter ; Thomas Finlinson' MEMOIR OF WILLIAM PROCTER, JR. 5 printer; and Joseph Crowder, bookbinder; who came passengers in the ship William Penn from London, and bound to Philadelphia ; but, on hearing of the malignant fever which at present rages in that city, the said ship came to anchor in the river Delaware, opposite the town of Gloucester, in the county aforesaid, from whence the above-named persons were, on the 27th ultimo, landed at the said town of Gloucester, and have not been at Philadelphia ; and being desirous of travelling through this State to the city of New York, in order to settle themselves in their lawful vocation ; and requiring my pass for that purpose, I therefore recommend the said Isaac Procter, Thomas Finlinson, and Joseph Crowder to the notice and safe protection of the inhabitants of this State, in the prosecution of their said intended journey. Given under my hand and seal, at Haddonfield, in the county of Gloucester aforesaid, the fourteenth day of October, in the year of our Lord, one thousand seven hundred and ninety-three, (1793.) (Signed), SAM'L KENARD. j seal, j The travellers crossed the Delaware above the city, and proceeded to Germantown, thence to Morrisville, stopping on the first day of the week to attend Friends meeting at Fallsington. After meeting, they were invited to dine with one of the Friends, and on this occa- sion, Isaac Procter met with the lady who afterwards became his wife. On their pedestrian journey, several certificates were given to them, commending them to the notice of Friends. One, a circular letter from John Pemberton and Samuel Emlen, Jr., and one which we transcribe as follows : " I recommend the bearer hereof, Isaac Procter, to the friendly notice of such persons as he may fall in with in the course "of his journey to New York, he being lately arrived from London, and not having been in the city of Philadelphia, or in any infected place, may safely be suffered to pass without interruption. „ „,.,.,.,. "(Signed), NICHOLAS WALN, " Walnviile, 6 miles from Philadelphia, (on high ground, and in a pure air,) Tenth mo. 2d, 1793." On the same paper is written a recommendation to the like effect, signed by Robert Wain, dated at Frankford, 3d October, 1793. 6 MEMOIR OF WILLIAM PROCTER, JR. On arriving in New York, they delivered their letters of intro- duction and soon found employment. In a short time, however, the yellow fever appeared in that city, and by its devastations, caused such alarm, that all who could, left the city. One of the young men who boarded in the same house with him was taken with the fever; the mistress of the house was unwilling to remain, and on ascertaining that Isaac Procter would not leave the sick man, she showed him where to find articles which might be needed in the house, and took her departure. In the treatment of yellow fever at that time, warm drink only was allowed to the patient this sufferer had been asking for cold water, which was strictly pro- hibited. " One evening, his medical attendant announced that he could not live longer than till morning. After the doctor's depar- ture, the patient called Isaac Procter, and said, * I heard every word the doctor said—I cannot live many hours—and now attend to my dying request: let me have as much cold water as I want.' ' Can thee drink a quart ? ' was asked. 'I will try ! ' was the answer. A quart mug was filled at the pump, and this, with nearly a tumblerful more, was disposed of. The pillows were then arranged, several blankets piled on, and the nurse sat down to watch the effect of the new pre- scription. In a short time the patient was sleeping, the first sleep for many nights. In the morning, the doctor came, not expecting to find him alive; he was still sleeping, the fever gone, and his bed wet with perspiration. < What have you been doing ? ' was asked. ' Giving him cold water,' was the reply. « Well, you have saved his life; and if he does not die from prostration, may recover.' Light nourishment was ordered, which Isaac Procter had to prepare, and slowly strength was gained and health restored." The fever still continuing in the city, and business prostrated, Isaac Procter sought employment in the country. The following winter he returned to New York, and was advised by John Murray and other friends to go to Baltimore and engage in the hardware business, his knowledge of tools and acquaintance with manufactures in Manchester it was thought would favor such an undertaking. He MEMOIR OF WILLIAM PROCTER, JR. 7 accordingly ordered from England a stock needful for commencing business, and opened store on Market street, Baltimore, nearly op- posite the Indian Queen Hotel, at the corner of Market and Hanover streets, a store Vfhich for many years was one of the most noted in the place. On leaving New York, a letter of introduction to Joseph Townsend, merchant in Baltimore, was given to him by Edmund Prior, from which we extract the following: " I have not known of any young man or Friend who has left us with whom Friends in general have parted with more affection and regret than with him. Thou wilt find him, I am persuaded, very deserving, and one who is possessed of such a manly and upright principle as will not allow him to take any little or mean advantage of any person whatever. His religious and guarded conduct has hitherto been very conspicuous with us, and I feel no apprehension that his leaving us will in any degree lessen it. The sympathy and friendly notice of his friends may strengthen and encourage him, in which I hope thine will not be wanting." During the first year of business he became much discouraged by the difficulty of collecting his accounts ; he was encouraged by his friends in New York to persevere, and to sell only for cash. Busi- ness prospering, he sent to England for his brother William and sister Sarah. His sister resided in the family of Edmund Prior, in New York, and William was placed at Burlington Boarding School, and subsequently was taken into the store of his brother. On the 3d of Eleventh month, 1799, Isaac Procter was married to Rebecca Farquhar, at the Meeting-house at Fallsington, Pa., where he first met her six years previously. The first letter addressed to her on the subject of their union is in possession of the family, and no one can read it without remarking its originality and candor, and the earnest desire of the writer that she whom he had chosen to share his portion in life should know all he could tell her regarding himself and prospects before making her decision. Isaac Procter continued to reside in Baltimore to the time of his decease (by yellow fever) on the 7th day of Seventh month, 18^0. 8 MEMOIR OF WILLIAM PROCTER, JR. William Procter, Jr., (the junior being added to distinguish hrm from his uncle William) was the ninth and youngest child of Isaac and Rebecca Procter. He was born in the city of Baltimore on the 3d of Fifth month, 1817. When a little over three years of age he lost his father ; unexpected claims were made upon the estate, which, although considered by the family unjust, were not resisted, and in consequence William was deprived of the liberal education which would have befitted a mind so well calculated to receive generous in- struction, and would have given additional lustre to his mature years. A companion of his boyhood* writes : " We were boys together from six to ten years of age at a Friends' school in Baltimore, taught by a lady of rare gifts and attainments. He was studious, gentle and companionable, and greatly beloved by his teachers and class- mates. His powers of observation were very early developed, and, as a child, nothing escaped his notice; he would interest other boys in stones that he would pick up in the streets, or in general subjects that would arrest his own mind. Mineralogy was his especial delight and study at this early age ; while other boys would spend their weekly holiday in play, he would start early, with a lunch in his pocket and a steel hammer in his hand, and spend the whole day with a companion in the ' quarries ' north of the eity, or in the ' deep cuts ' of the iron district, or at the 'Bare Hills.' The boys at school were always interested in his specimens, and many a young mineral- ogist received his taste and first lessons from this young teacher. My mind is full of pleasant and affectionate memories of him, for he was one of the brightest, purest and best boys I ever knew." The husband of his eldest sister being disqualified by sickness from attending to his business—that of a cooper—William was at an early age taken from school to look after the affairs of his sister and in the cooper shop he acquired a knowledge of tools and a dexterity in the use of them which served him many a useful turn in after life. Through an intimacy existing between his mother and Tabitha Turnpenny of Philadelphia he visited thai city with her, and became * Francis T. King of Baltimore. MEMOIR OF WILLIAM PROCTER, JR. 9 acquainted with Joseph Turnpenny, who was then learning the drug business with the late Henry M. Zollickoffer at the corner of Sixth and Pine streets. Visiting the store with his friend, he found subjects congenial to his taste, and his mind was soon turned to a de- termination to make that business his choice for the ocoupation of life. In 1831, at the age of fourteen, he entered the store of Henry M. Zollickoffer as an apprentice; after being duly installed, and looking through the store at the various objects calculated to attract the atten- tion of a novice, his youthful fancy was struck with the adaptation of a large pewter syringe as an hydraulic engine ; picking up a syringe, he repaired to the street, accompanied by a fellow apprentice, similarly equipped, and, drawing their supply of ammunition from the gutter, they discharged the contents of their weapons at each other. William then returned to the store, laid away his syringe, and took from the shelf a copy of Henry's Chemistry, remarking, "This is just what I like." He was now fairly entered in the arena where the boy was to grow up to manhood and lay the foundation on which depended the superstructure of his after life. His father was taken from him when he was three years old, but the blessing of a loving mother, whose heart yearned toward her child, separated from her at a period in life when impressions are so readily made and with such difficulty effaced, attended him, and her words of council and advice were well heeded by a dutiful son. Soon after his apprenticeship, she writes to him— Seventh month 6th, 1831—"I must tell my dear William how re- joiced I was to receive his very nice letter, not a single blot or mis- take in it; continue, my dear boy, to be thus particular in everything thee does (I mean to do everything well), and I have little doubt thee will succeed in giving satisfaction to all with whom thee may have to do. Let it be thy study to endeavor to please (thy employer) not only when in the store about thy every-day business, but in everything. There are many ways of gaining the affection of those we are with by being kind and obliging to all, and if thee can lend a hand of help in any way, no matter how small the act is, never be backward, but with cheerful alacrity be always ready ; this will cost thee very little, 10 MEMOIR OF WILLIAM PROCTER, JR. and by a kind and courteous deportment in the store and out of it, thou wilt gain the love and good will of all around thee. True politeness, my son, is a lovely accomplishment, but above all, never, never equivocate to screen thyself from censure, but if thou shouldst get into any difficulty be open and candid. Let honesty and integrity be visible in all thy actions, and thus, my son, I think, thou wilt never want a friend in man, and thou wilt have a friend in thy Heavenly Father, who can, and will, if thou love Him as thou ought? do more for thee than all the world beside. Therefore, my dear boy, ' seek him now in the days of thy youth ;' it is never too early to begin. There is another point on which I wish to remark—that of keeping everything thee may ever know relative to thy master's business entirely within thy own breast, sometimes by tattling or telling little matters to others it has often been a cause of a great deal of mis- chief and uneasiness, if not unhappiness; therefore thou wilt be guarded on this subject, never trust even thy own dear friends with anything relative to thy employer's business which thou might suppose he would not be willing for everybody to know; and always stand open to reproof, I have no doubt, if necessary, it will be administered in meekness and in love." The letter from which we have made this abstract, so replete with wisdom, is found among the letters which he preserved of that period. Those who have been favored with an intimate acquaintance with William Procter, Jr., can testify that the goodly counsels of a Chris- tian mother were received into good ground, and brought forth goodly fruit. From 1831 to 1836, he was quietly pursuing his duties as an ap- prentice, residing in the family of Henry M. Zollickoffer, his em- ployer, endearing himself to all by his cheerfulness, brightness and alacrity in all his duties. In 1836, he commenced a diary. In one of the early entries of this year, we find he records the death of his mother, at the age of sixty-three years. He says, «I have indeed lost another and only parent, who has watched over me with truly parental care and tenderness. All my hopes of repaying her unceas- MEMOIR OF WILLIAM PROCTER, JR. 11 ing kindness are now at an end, and all my dreams of pleasure about the days when I should become a corner-stone to her, have vanished forever." In March, 1837, he passed a successful examination as a candidate for the diploma of the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy. The sub- ject of his thesis was "Lobelia Inflata," a paper of great merit, in which he demonstrates the presence of an alkaloid, lobelina, on which the medical activity of the plant depends. In May, 1840, he was elected a resident member of the College, and from that period we find the volumes of the American Journal of Pharmacy containing many contributions from his pen ; of these, we shall have occasion to speak, in reviewing his life as an author and investigator. Continuing unostentatiously in his position at Sixth and Pine streets, we find his mind keenly sensible to the deficiencies of his early education, and striving, by a diligent course of study and read- ing, to acquire a knowledge of the subjects kindred to his profession. His habit was to rise early, and devote the morning hours to his self- culture. Turner's Chemistry, Ure's Dictionary and Dalton's Chemistry appear to have been text-books which he carefully perused. His custom was to keep notes of his reading, and indicate by signs whether a particular subject had been pursued to the satisfaction of his mind, or whether farther examination was desirable. His read- ing was attended with experiments in pneumatic chemistry, and an examination of the properties of the elementary substances. Elec- tricity, galvanism and electro-magnetism were attractive branches to him, at the time when Davy and Faraday were opening the portals which lead to a knowledge of these once mysterious agents of nature. He attended lectures given by Drs. Hare, Mitchell and Bache, in the winter of 1840, and expressed his gratification with Dr. Hare's ex- periments on electricity, and the solidification of carbonic acid, by Dr. Mitchell. He writes in his diary, " I obtained a piece of solid carbonic acid, and, returning home, repeated Dr. Mitchell's experi- ments on freezing mercury, my thermometer, after falling to —40°, 12 MEMOIR OF WILLIAM PROCTER, JR. suddenly contracted, and was frozen." He also constructed an electro-magnet, and was pleased to find it capable of supporting a one-fourth pound weight. A table blowpipe was also a piece of his mechanism, to enable him to construct apparatus of glass. Alluding to the lectures of Dr. Bache, he records, " Dr. Bache deserves the greatest credit for the considerate manner in which he discharges his duty to his students." Nine years had now passed since he entered the store as an ap- prentice, and he was in his twenty-third year; an offer made to him to enter into a chemical works in Baltimore was declined, and his engagement with Henry M. Zollickoffer renewed. His leisure time was now divided between literary and scientific pursuits. His vacations, in occasional journeys for recreation and improvement. One note- book gives an account of a trip to Washington, and the country bor- dering the upper Potomac; another was to Ohio, returning by Niagara Falls ; another by sea to Boston. In 1841, he accepted the position as secretary to the committee on revision of the Pharmacopoeia, and made numerous experiments for the committee ; chief of which were on the production of ether, and Hoffman's anodyne. His first experiments on ether, he records as failures; but says, " I have got on the track to obtain a good article of Hoffman's anodyne." The years 1842 and 1843, continued his engagement at Sixth and Pine streets. His leisure hours were improved by continuing his study of chemisty, taking up also botany, and learning the French language. General literature received considerable attention from him during this period. The Life of Washington, Johnson's Life, Alison's History of Europe, and moral philosophy, are recorded as forming part of his reading. In 1812, he made a journey through central Pennsylvania to Pittsburgh, continuing westward as far as Cleveland. He returned by the way of the lakes to Niagara, then through the lake district of New York, and home, by the way of Elmira and Williamsport. In February, 1844, he purchased the property at the southwest MEMOIR OF WILLIAM PROCTER, JR. 13 corner of Ninth and Lombard streets, and commenced making alter- ations to render it suitable for a store. We cannot do better than give his own recorded words at this im- portant period, when about to embark in life on his own account: " I am about to leave* Sixth and Pine streets, after so long a residence. What singular events occur ! Little did such a prospect appear prob- able some years ago. Steadiness and calmness of mind, how impor- tant to the proper appreciation of life ! This I daily become more convinced of, and find cause to note the want of it in my own case. Reflection steadily and calmly directed to moral and intellectual im- provement, with all the rigor of justice, and all the affection of mercy, how few can truly govern themselves ! I have made little progress in this all-important power, and have too frequent cause to regret acts of indiscretion and weakness." On the 12th of May, 1844, he opened store, and was behind his own counter. Long accustomed to the routine of an old-established business, the uncertainty of success in his new position, and the trials which assail the mind while waiting for some indication of prosperity, he did not escape. Three months after opening his store, he writes, "It has been a time of singular discomfort to me, the anxiety in- cident to opening a new store, and the much time unemployed has been very burdensome. I need more faith and confidence in the course of events." A circular issued on opening his store, bearing date Fifth month 13th, 1844, is before us; it says, " in reference to that important branch of the business, embracing the compounding of medicines and physicians' precriptions, he believes that a regular education at the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy, and twelve years' experience in one of the first establishments of this city, will enable him to give satisfaction." The names of Drs. Wood, Bache, Jackson, Mutter, Hartshorne, Meigs, Harris, Butter, and Henry M. Zollickoffer are given as references. The neighborhood of Ninth and Lombard streets, at that time, would not have presented many attractive prospects to the generality 14 MEMOIR OF WILLIAM PROCTER, JR. of beginners, so well qualified as William Procter, Jr., for the higher branches of pharmacy. The square on the south side of Pine street, between Eighth and Ninth streets, was then an open lot. South street was the boundary of the city proper, and beyond this limit, for a long time, the acts of unrestrained " rings " of lawless associations, presented but little inducement to a settlement in that part of the city of the well-to-do citizen. Quietly, however, William Procter, Jr., pursued his course, attend- ing to his own business, and abiding his time. The unemployed time he speaks of, was far from being misspent; his active habits and in- quiring mind were not content with waiting for the routine of counter- work. His attention was directed to the improvement of many of the formulae of the Pharmacopoeia, devising new preparations, and original investigation on many subjects, where more light was want- ing. As time passed on, the vacant lot was occupied by first-class residences, on Pine and on Ninth streets. A consolidated police force, under the vigorous rule of Marshall Keyser, restored order in the dis- tricts, and the business at Ninth and Lombard streets began to assume proportions more befitting to the capacity of the proprietor of the store. A widowed sister lived with him as a companion and housekeeper, and her daughter, in the early years of womanhoood, beloved by all who knew her, added an attraction to the little circle, which will long be remembered by those who had familiar intercourse with the family at that time. The clouds which obscured the horizon of his field of action had dispersed, and left him no longer to doubt the progress of the future. His spirits were buoyant, and his energy seemed almost beyond the capacity of his physical power, which, at that period, caused apprehension to many of his friends. Closely occupied during the day in the affairs of his business, he was always ready in the evenings to enjoy the society of his friends. Practical in his habits of conversation, a close and correct observer well informed in all the branches of science which were allied to his profession, he was a pleasant and profitable companion. Naturally MEMOIR OF WILLIAM PROCTER, JR. 15 retiring, and somewhat reticent with strangers, he appeared to them grave and not susceptible to lively emotions; but to those who know where lay the secret spring which unlocked this exterior, the inner man was found with all the freshness of boyhood, and, with almost child-like confidence, his real life was spread before them. There was no subject which enlisted his attention so much as the advancement of Pharmacy. The minds of many of the members of the College of Pharmacy had long foreshadowed the time when lec- tures on this subject would be added to the curiculum of the College. In 1845, the subject assumed a definite shape, by a memorial, which was presented at a meeting of the College, held in September of that year, signed by William Procter, Jr., A. J. Duhamel and Edward Parrish. The memorial was accompanied by the following resolu- tion, " that a committee of nine be appointed to consider the pro- priety of creating a new professorship, the occupant of which should be called the professor of theoretical and practical pharmacy." After an animated discussion (as the minutes inform), the resolu- tion was adopted, Daniel B. Smith, then President of the College, acting as chairman of the committee. At a special meeting of the College, held in April, 1846, the com- mittee made an able and exhaustive report on the subject, and it was resolved " that the report of the committee be referred to the Board of Trustees, with instructions to take the necessary measures for establishing the new professorship." A special meeting of the Board of Trustees was called in June, and William Procter, Jr., was unani- mously elected Professor of Pharmacy. In October, 1847, he delivered his Introductory Address to the class, which was published by request of the College. This address will be found in Vol. XIX of the American Journal of Pharmacy, and will well repay any student of pharmacy for a careful perusal of it. The following extract which we make has not lost any of the timely words of warning then uttered. He says : " Some individuals enter the lists of pharmacy under delusive impressions, or are placed there by guardians who are equally misguided, illy prepared by 16 MEMOIR OF WILLIAM PROCTER, JR. education or endowments for so responsible a vocation. It is a sa spectacle to behold such giving their early years and youthful ener- gies to a profession not suited to their tastes or inclinations—pur- suing it, perhaps, until, on the threshold of manhood (when), they find themselves about to be cast upon the ocean of society in a vessel with whose qualities and powers they are too slightly familiar to enable them to cope with the difficulties which assail them. Many who are unsuccessful as apothecaries might have arisen to respecta- bility and competence in other pursuits more harmonious with their inclinations or natural gifts. It too often happens with these that, repelled by ill success from their legitimate calling, they are induced to bow before the image of empyricism in the hope of a golden reward, and prostitute that knowledge that they never should have acquired to the invention of nostrums, and forcing them into notice." At the commencement of the course of Lectures on Pharmacy, there was some misgiving, in the minds of some students, whether they would find an equivalent for their time, and the money-cost of the course. Such, however, soon found that there was a science and method in the dull routine of even the mortar and the spatula which they had not dreamed of, and, by the time the course had ended, they discovered a necessity for the exercise of mental as well as manual dex- terity behind the counter, if they purposed encountering an examina- tion on their fitness to prepare and dispense pharmaceutical products. In the preparation of his lectures no amount of labor was too great to deter him from bringing before his class practical illustrations of his subjects; oral instruction he deemed very imperfect in his branch, unaccompanied by full demonstrations. This necessitated the expen- diture of time and personal exertion, which few could realize who were not conversant with his habits of thoroughness and conscien- tiousness in the discharge of his duty as a teacher. During several years of his professorship his health was not strong, but his active mind rose above his bodily infirmities, and made the physical subser- vient to the determined will which animated him. While aware of the necessity of taking care of himself, the severities of winter rarely MEMOIR OF WILLIAM PROCTER, JR. 17 prevented his being found at his post at the appointed time. He commanded the respect, and, we may say, the affections of his class, and his opinions had a weight of authority with them which has rarely been disturbed by after experience. In 1846, William Procter, Jr., was associated with Prof. Joseph Car- son as co-editor of the American Journal of Pharmacy ; for two years previous he had assisted Prof. Carson in its editorial management. In 1850, Prof. Carson resigned from his position, and Prof. Procter assumed the sole editorial charge. In 1853 the Journal was enlarged by the issue of six numbers annually in place of four. In 1871 the issue of the Journal was made monthly. Prof. Procter inaugurated the monthly issue, and after editing the April number resigned his position, and was succeeded by Prof. John M. Maisch. He had contem- plated a relinquishment of his editorial duties for some time, and in a written communication to the College, some months previously, had advocated a monthly issue of the Journal, and requested to be relieved from the editorship as early as the College could find a suitable suc- cessor. For twenty years the Journal had been under his management in its editorial department, and how successfully that management was conducted, the volumes issued during that period are the best testi- mony. The original matter from his pen, and his judicious selections, gave to it a value and standing among American pharmacists, and made it the most complete history extant of the progress of pharmaceutical science in the United States. As an editor, he was just to all con- tributors, pleasant in criticism, never indulging in the personal or sarcastic, ever ready to expose fraud and empyricism, loving truth and sometimes proclaiming it when it was a disagreeable duty. After resigning the editorship, his time was so much occupied by his busi- ness that his name does not appear as a contributor direct to the Journal; in April, 1871, we have an article from his pen "On Phar- maceutical Titles"—the last of the long series. The General Index of the Journal exhibits seven columns, numbering some 550 items, under his name, exclusive of extracts and editorials. We think it 2 1* MEMOIR OF WILLIAM PROCTER, JR. iL.iv be safely said, without disparagement to any of his predecessors in the editorial management of the Journal, that the College was for- tunate in placing the Journal in his hands. No man of the time could have been placed on the outlook commanding the horizon of pharma- ceutical literature, whose heart was more thoroughly engaged in the vurk, and who was gifted with quicker perceptions, or better judg- ment. His name will ever be associated with the progress of phar- macy in the United States, and the twenty volumes of the Journal which bear his name as editor, will remain a monument to his genius and zeal. In October, 1849, Wm. Procter, Jr., was married, at Mount Holly, N. J., to Margaretta, daughter of Amos and Elizabeth Bullock. During this year was issued from the press his American edition of Mohr and Redwood's Practical Pharmacy. This voluminous work was enriched by additions from his own pen. The work never went through a second edition, attributed in a great measure to the cost of proper illustration, which the publishers were not willing to incur, and without which much of the value of the work would have been lost In October, 1851, there was assembled in the City of New York a convention of pharmaceutists, in pursuance of a call made by the New York College of Pharmacy, for the purpose of considering the law relating to the inspection of drugs at the Custom House, and to fix upon some standard which would enable inspectors to act with uniformity and discernment. The Philadelphia College of Pharmacy was represented by Chas. Ellis, Wm. Procter, Jr., and Alfred B. Taylor. This convention was impressed with the advantages which would be derived by the pharmacists of the United States from an association national in character, where, by personal intercourse and exchange of experience, the practice of pharmacy throughout our widely extended country would be more harmonized and the general standard of education elevated. It was therefore " resolved that a convention be called, consisting of three delegates from each incorpo- rated and unincorporated pharmaceutical society, to meet in Philadel- phia on the first Wednesday in October, 1852." MEMOIR OF WILLIAM PROCTER, JR 19 This convention assembled in the old College building, in Zane street (now Filbert street), and here was inaugurated the American Pharmaceutical Association, the President of the College, Daniel B. Smith, acting as its first presiding officer. From the time of its inception William Procter, Jr., enlisted all his activity in promoting its welfare, and his name will be found in all its Proceedings down to the meeting in Richmond, Va., in 1873. In 1852 he was a member of its first executive committee ; in 1853 was chairman of a committee appointed to prepare an address to the pharmaceutists of the United States on the subject of pharmaceutical instruction. In 1853 he was a member of the committee appointed to prepare a paper on the standard of quality for drugs, together with appro- priate tests for detecting adulteration. This committee was contin- ued until the year 1856. In 1856 he was chairman of the first committee on the progress <»f pharmacy, all previous reports on this subject having been made by him in his capacity of corresponding secretary. In the same year he was appointed chairman of a committee to report a syllabus of a course of study appropriate to students of pharmacy. This committee was continued until the year 1858, when he made the report published in the volume of the Proceedings of the Association of that year. He was corresponding secretary from 1852 to 1857, first vice-president in 1859-60, and was elected president at the session of the Associa- tion which convened in Philadelphia in 1862. In 1866 he was ap pointed one of the delegates to represent the Association at the International Pharmaceutical Congress to assemble in Paris in the following year. He was absent from the annual meetings of the Association but once (while in Europe), and contributed largely to the interest of ;^s Proceedings by answers to queries which he had accepted, and by his volunteer papers. Prof. Procter had a taste for rural occupations, and in 1855 he purchased property at Mt. Holly, with a view to afford him scope for the enjoyment of this taste, as well as for the recreation and change 20 MEMOIR OF WILLIAM PROCTER, JR. which his health demanded. Additions were made from time to time to the original purchase, until he had a small farm of about sixty acres under his control. A cottage on the place afforded himself and family a summer retreat, and the cultivation of choice fruit engaged his personal attention. Many happy days were here passed ; escaped from the routine of shop and desk, the exhilaration of out-door exer- cise seemed to infuse renewed activity of mind, and to call back the hilarity of early years, before the sterner realities of life had drawn a curtain between the man and the exterior world. In 1859 he lost his wife, and in 1864 was married to Catharine, daughter of Robert and Sally Parry. In 1866 he resigned the chair of Pharmacy, and was succeeded by Prof. J. M. Maisch; an intercharge of professorships was after- wards effected between Profs. Maisch and Parrish, Prof. Parrish tak- ing the chair of Pharmacy and Prof. Maisch that of Materia Medica. Many years of close attention to his varied and assiduous duties rendered a season of relaxation and change necessary. In the sum- mer of 1867 he determined to take a trip to Europe. Leaving New York by steamer in April, he landed at Queenstown, and after a hasty run through Ireland he crossed over to England, and proceeded to London. In the fortieth volume of the American Journal of Phar- macy is published his notes of travel, containing much interesting information to the intelligent pharmacist; this narrative leaves him at Rome. It was his intention to have continued it, as many pages of manuscript show; but his natural diffidence has precluded the readers of the Journal from many interesting observations by an ob- serving traveller. The practical did not alone engross his attention; he had an appreciation for natural scenery, and a mind which was moved by the historical associations of the classic lands through which he journeyed. Of Rome he writes : " How useless to attempt to tell its story, to depict even what the transient traveller, the week's sojourner has seen and witnessed of this grand central point of the nations, this stage on which the shifting scenes of more than a score of centuries have been enacted, leaving their marks indelibly im- MEMOIR OF WILLIAM PROCTER, JR. 21 pressed. To an American, where all is of yesterday, these foot-prints of national existence, extending unbroken back to the night of time, produce a profound impression, and afford an ample subject for med- itation, but not for description." Leaving Rome, he proceeded by way of Florence and Padua to Ven- ice. Of Padua he writes, " Its university and medical school are yet celebrated; we had no opportunity to ascertain whether the apothecary who served Romeo has a representative there, but we doubt not such is the case. We have seen several in Italy whose shops presented a 'beggarly' account of empty boxes." From Venice we follow him into Switzerland and to many of the cities of Germany, as far east- ward as Berlin and Dresden; thence into Holland and Belgium. From Brussels he crossed over to England and visited Manchester, Liverpool, Glasgow, Edinburgh and the Scottish Highlands. Return- ing to London, he again crossed the channel to attend the Pharma- ceutical Congress which assembled in Paris, to which he was a del- egate from the American Pharmaceutical Association. At the close of the Congress he proceded to Liverpool and sailed for home in September. The business at Ninth and Lombard streets increased with the progress of the city in that direction, and rendered necessary more ample accommodations. The first enlargement of his store was made in the winter of 1861, brought about at that time by an accident. He was distilling ether from a preparation, and having his attention called away, the water in the condensing apparatus became warm and al- lowed ether vapor to escape into the store ; mingling with the close atmosphere of the room, an explosive mixture was in time formed and ingnited by the gas lamp under the still. The explosion forced the glass of the bulk windows into the street, but did no injury to the interior arrangements of the store, or to those engaged in it. Again, in 1870 more room was found necessary, and the whole of the remain- ing portion of the first floor was thrown into the store. In making these alterations, convenience for dispensing and proper arrangements for storage of articles was the first consideration, but little attention was 9* 22 MEMOIR OF WILLIAM PROCTER, JR. given to the modern drawing-room style of some of our pharmaceutical establishments. In 1847, Quevenre's Iron was introduced and becoming popular, Mr. Procter devoted considerable attention to its manufacture, and pro- duced an article which gained a high reputation in the market. The manufacture having been taken up by others possessing more room and greater conveniences, he, after a few years, abandoned it. When pepsin came into use, the varying qualities in the market induced him to make experiments on its production; he devoted con- siderable attention to it, and, during the last year of his life, he was quite extensively engaged in its manufacture. The subject of pepsin closed the last lecture which he delivered to the class. In 1872 the Chair of Pharmacy became vacant by occasion of the death of Prof. Edward Parrish. The season for the opening of the course of lectures was so near at hand that the Trustees of the Col- lege turned their minds instinctively towards William Procter, Jr. as the man to relieve them from embarrassment. The Trustees were well aware that he had an earnest desire for retirement, and can- vassed well the field for one who could, at so short a notice, take up, the course on practical pharmacy. At the request of the Board of Trustees of the College he consented to fill the chair, and delivered the course of lectures in the winter of 1872-73. It was known to his friends that the position was intended by him to be but temporary and that he contemplated retiring at the close of the following session. The lectures for 1873-74 progressed as far as February 9th, and but a few more remained to finish up the work which he intended should terminate his professorship. On the evening of February 9th he delivered his usual lecture, and on returning home expressed the great satisfaction which the attention of the class had given him. At late hour he retired in apparent usual health; shortly after falling asleep, a disturbance in respiration aroused the attention of members of the family and before medical assistance could be called life had ceased. MEMOIR OF WILLIAM PROCTER, JR. 23 As a veteran soldier steps forward to close the ranks where the shaft of death has struck, so he was not found wanting in his devotion to the cause which had enlisted the energies of his life, and as a vet- eran he has fallen with all his armor on. He died aged 56 years and 9 months, leaving a widow, and two children by his first wife. May they perpetuate the qualities which made their father's name respected by all who knew him. In person, William Procter, Jr., was of medium stature, with dark hair and black eyes, bespeaking an active, earnest mind. For many years after he commenced business his health was delicate and fears were entertained that he labored under pulmonary difficulties, such, however, proved not to have been the case, and the symptoms were probably connected with the incipient stages of disease of the heart which finally terminated his life. Up to the time of his European tour he kept his face cleanly shaved, but while absent he allowed his whiskers and moustache to grow, and continued that custom during the remainder of his life. Those who knew him with a smooth face would hardly recognize the William Procter, Jr., of after years. His motions were quick and evidenced the energy with which he was endowed. In manner he was unostentatious and retiring, but when he felt himself known and understood he was genial and playful. He was an observer rather than a talker, but possessed the ability of expressing himself in clear and pleasant language. As a lecturer he chose the didactic to the exclusion of the ornate style of speaking. The jewels of his character were integrity, sincerity and a just sense of duty to his fellows. Educated in the religious belief of the Society of Friends, and holding their views during his life, he made no profession of sectarianism, but had an extended charity for the views of those who differed from him. Although he rarely alluded to religious subjects, those possessing his confidence were aware that the Bible had not been overlooked among his books. He was happy in the use of his pen, and his essays are marked by clearness of expres- sion and a carefulness of detail, which leave no room to doubt the 24 MEMOIR OF WILLIAM PROCTER, JR. meaning of the writer. His investigations evidence a faithfulness in research and a completeness which has made his name an authority. William Procter, Jr., became a member of the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy in 1810 ; in the succeeding year he was elected to its Board of Trustees, and held that position during his life. In 1855 he was made Corresponding Secretary of the College, and continued to serve as such for twelve years. In 1867 he was elected first Vice- President of the College. His interest in the affairs of the College continued unabated during the thirty years of his connection with it; so closely was he identified with its progress, that its history during that period is almost a narrative of his life. He served on all committees appointed for the decennial revision of the Pharmacopoeia for the past thirty years, and his services were engaged in assisting Doctors Wood and Bache, in several of the later editions of the United States Dispensatory. A complete review of the published essays of Prof. Procter would occupy too much space for this memoir, and we can only allude to a few of them. His thesis in 1837 on Lobelia inflata, in which he demonstrates the presence in the plant of an alkaloid, describes the salts formed by union of the principal acids with the alkaloid, and proposed the name lobelina for the active principle. Three years previous, S. Colhoun, M. D., Professor of Materia Medica in Jefferson Medical College, Philadelphia, published in the American Journal of Pharmacy, vol. V, the investigation of an acidified extract from Lobelia, which foreshadowed the presence of an alkaloid, but he did not succeed in isolating the principle. Prof. Procter was aware of Doctor Colhoun's investigation, and refers to it in his supplementary paper, published in 1841—a " casual omis- sion," as he states, in not having done so in his thesis. In Novem- ber, 1850, Mr. William Bastick read a paper before the Pharmaceu- tical Society of Great Britain on Lobelia inflata. He refers to Doc- tor Colhoun's paper, but evidently was not aware of Prof. Procter's researches in 1837 and 1841. Mr. Bastick isolated the alkaloid and describes it, and his name is associated in the books with its dis- MEMOIR OF WILLIAM PROCTER, JR. 25 covery. In January, 1851, Prof. Procter writes to the Editor of the Pharmaceutical Journal, London, as follows : " For some reason, these (my) essays appear to have been entirely overlooked by the press and writers on your side of the Atlantic, and now that the drug is attracting the attention of your medical men, its chemical relations are exciting the curiosity of your pharmaceutists. I should not have taken the trouble to bring their existence to your notice, had I not observed the paper of Mr. Bastick in your Journal for December, in which he states his ignorance of any previous researches having the same tendency as his own." The Pharmaceutical Journal then published Prof. Procter's essay, placing him thirteen years in advance of Mr. Bastick as the discov- erer of lobelina. In the same year with the publication of his thesis, we have " Re- marks on an oil obtained by distillation from wild cherry bark, and evidences of its similarity to oil of bitter almonds." In 1838, a paper "Demonstrating the existence of amygdalin in several species of the genera Prunus and Amygdalus." In 1839, " Observations on dextrin and diastase," and " On Lobelia cardinalis," showing the presence in that plant of an alka- loid differing in some respects from the alkaloid found in Lobelia inflata. In 1840, a paper " On the power of saccharine substances in pro- tecting from decomposition solution of protiodide of iron." In 1841, an essay " Supplementing his thesis on Lobelia inflata, and showing that the alkaloid therein described, represents the plant in medicinal qualities." In 1842, " Observations on the volatile oil of Gfaultheria procum- bens, proving it,to be a hydracid analogous to salicilous acid." A year later, M. August Cahours took up the same subject, and arrived at the same results by a proximate analysis of the oil, but in his paper, published in the Journal de Pharmacie et de Chimie, March, 1843, he makes no allusion to Mr. Procter's previous publication, leaving us uncertain whether he had seen Mr. Procter's paper, or 26 MEMOIR OF WILLIAM PROCTER, JR. whether the investigation made by him was coincident with that of Mr. Procter. In 1843, " On the volatile oil of Betula lenta (sweet birch), and on gaultherin "—a substance playing a part similar to amygdalm and which, by its decomposition, yields an oil identical with oil of gaultheria. In 1847, " On the reduction of oxide of iron by hydrogen." In 1849, " Remarks on the oleo-resinous ethereal extracts, their preparation, and the advantages they offer to the medical prac- titioner." In 1851, among numerous contributions, we have an essay " On the botanical and chemical character of sassy bark (the doom plant), of Western Africa." In 1852, a continuation of the essay on sassy bark, and " Obser- vations on the volatility and solubility of cantharidin, in view of an eligible pharmaceutical treatment of Spanish flies." In 1853, fluid extracts began to attract attention, and in this and the succeeding year he contributed several papers on that subject; also, one "On the pharmacy of the phosphates." In 1858, "An essay on the hypophosphites." In 1859, " On polygalic acid," and " On the existence of nicotina in green tobacco." In the same year, he read before the American Pharmaceutical Association, in Boston, an elaborate essay on fluid extracts, suggesting formulae for their preparation, and presented specimens of over thirty fluid extracts prepared according to his suggested formula. For this essay a copy of Pareira's Materia Medica was voted to him by the Association, as a testimony of its appreciation of his ser- vices. This paper may justly be considered as forming the basis on which many fluid extracts were admitted into the Pharmacopoeia. In 1866, we have an essay " On Liquidambar styraciflua and its balsamic resin," "showing the principle contained in the resin to be cinnamic acid." The papers contributed by Prof. Procter to the American Pharma- MEMOIR OF WILLIAM PROCTER, JR. 27 ceutical Association are numerous, and marked by his usual careful- ness and accuracy of investigation. Of these, his essay "On Ergot " (suggesting the use of acetic acid in its preparation), " On aconite root." " Atropia from American belladonna," " On extract of Can- nabis Indica," " On Sassafras officinale,''1 may be mentioned as not included in the preceding review. In the Proceedings of the Association for 1873 will be found sev- eral able papers from his pen. One, " On suggestions to beginners in pharmacy," should receive attention from all of that class who purpose following in the path which he has trodden before them. In concluding the memoir of Prof. Procter there is brought to our minds one of his last official acts before this College: In September 1873, as Chairman of the Committee on Deceased Members, he read from this desk a memoir of our late associate, Elias Durand; a year has passed ! and upon the remaining members of that committee devolves the duty of presenting a memoir of his life. We need only to sketch the outlines, and the recollections of each one can complete the picture. His name is yet fresh upon the min- utes of our meetings, and as it is read our eyes turn to his accus- tomed place; but while His " written words we linger o'er, Yet in the sua he casts no shade ; No voice is heard, oo sound is made, No step is on the conscious floor." As the deepening shades of night invited to repose after the labors of the day he lay down to rest, and the last page of his life's history was closed! To us is left the remembrance of his earnest, active life, ambitious, not for place or preferment, but for the advancement of the purposes for which this College was founded—that knowledge which elevates the profession and the individual, and confers a lasting benefit upon society. NLM052968074