Many of the following corrections are due to the method of preparation first adopted. Only since the employment of a stenographer has very little been copied. Material found in libraries where no ink is allowed must be recopied, but at the libraries of the New York Hospital and of the Surgeon-General’s office in Washington ink is permitted, and we must express our acknowledgments of the uniform courtesy and valuable assistance shown at these libraries. That the work is not complete no one knows better than the editor; much material, to which we have references, cannot be obtained in this country, nor from abroad by orders; and it is impossible for an individual to employ clerks in foreign libraries. Each succeeding volume will, however, be more complete, especially in valuable and unlooked-for additions to our knowledge of American drugs from early American journals and monographs. We desire to renew our obligations to Dr. Hughes for his contributions, and to Dr. Dunham for his priceless and numerous verifications, many of them new to the profession; we expect that Dr. Lippe will hereafter continue his contributions to the work. Dr. Hering continues to send the editor critical notes, and several colleagues have very kindly pointed out errors.

We can but feel that this work will place the science of Therapeutics on a firmer and more reliable basis, that it will increase our knowledge of drug-action, and promote the cure of the sick; we only desire that it may be perfect, and to that end let every error be made as public as possible.