(From dispendo, to distribute, or set in order). Dispensatory. A work treating of the composition of remedies; called also antidotari-um. A dispensatory contains a select number of formulae, established by the authority of the government of each country, that the medicines may be prepared in a manner, not only correct, but active and uniform. The publication of authorized regular dispensatories is not, however, of a very early date; but, from the time of the Arabians, different works of authority have been considered as the directors of apothecaries. About the middle of the fifteenth contury, the standard volumes were a treatise of Avicenna, and another of Serapion on Simples, which still remain; the Antidotarium of Me-sue; another of Nicholas of Salerno, a tract of Simon Januensis de Synonymis; and one of an Arabian author, containing the preparation of simples and chemical remedies, under the name of Liber Servitoris. About the end of the century, a collection was made from these authors by Nicholaus Praepositus of Tours; but chiefly from Mesue and Nicholas of Salerno. This general dispensatory was followed by the Thesaurus Ar-matariorum, the Lumen Apothecariorum,ar\dthel,umin-are Majus, compilations from the same source.

Of these two luminaries of modern pharmacy, Mesue seems to have lived early in the eleventh century, certainly before its end; and Nicholas of Salerno followed him. Under this name, we have, however, three pharmaceutical works. The principal is styled Nicholaus Magnus; from this there is an abridgment, or rather a contraction, styled Nicholaus Parvus; but, in a subsequent era, another Nicholaus called Myrepsus, sometimes Alexandrinus, appeared, whose work is the largest of the three. We have decided ex cathedra on many disputed points of chronology in this short history; but have followed the more probable accounts, though we have not room to assign our reasons.

All these works are, in many parts, confused and complicated. The ingredients of the compositions are numerous and contradictory, and of the greater number it is difficult to ascertain the design. Some remedy was introduced for every complaint, and it was, of course, supposed that the whole would be an universal medicine.

The first dispensatory published by authority was that of Valerius Cordus, in 1542, by the authority of the senate of Nuremberg. It is chiefly taken from the authors above mentioned, with the addition of some chemical remedies, particularly ether. The work itself, now before us, is not scarce; but it is particularly known from the comments and quotation of Hoffman. This work was followed by Wecker, whose Antidotarium Speciale appeared in 1561, a distinct work from the Secreta of the same author, and by Renodaeus, who published his Officina Pharmaceutica seu Antidotarium at Paris, in 1608; but these were the works of individuals.

The next dispensatory by authority was the Pharmacopoeia Bergamensis, 1581; and it was followed by the Pharmacopoeia Augustana, which appeared at Ausburg, in 1601; and, with the notes of Zwelfer, at Rotterdam, in 1653. The former was the reputed parent of every other dispensatory; and it was succeeded by that of London, in 1618, and of Paris, in 1637. In each too much was copied from Nicholas of Salerno; but they are, when we consider the period at which they appeared, respectable collections. It is too common to despise the ancients; but those who have looked into the Pharmacopoeias subsequent to the periods of Nicholaus, will find in them the germs of our most boasted formulae, though overloaded and disguised by the number of ingredients. It would not be an uninteresting work to restore to each author his original idea. The Persian Pharmacopoeia, published in the same century; at Paris, containing the Arabian formulae, will complete this short view of ancient pharmacy.

There were, indeed, many other Dispensatories published in the same century, or even more early; but, in general, copies from those which preceded. We shall add the titles of the works which had the best pretensions to originality. Of these the first and principal is Florentinum Antidotarium, of which we know not the date; but the Latin translation by Clusius, now before us, was published at Antwerp, in 1561; Montagna's Antidotarium, at Venice, 1565; Fioraventi's Secreti Rationali intorno alla Medicina, etc. appeared at Venice in 1600; Poterius's Pharmacopoeia Spagyrica, at Frankfort, 1698; Juncken's Corpus Pharmaceutico-medicum, at Frankfort, in 1697; Lemery's Pharmacopee Uni-verselle, in the following year; and Mynsicht's Armamentarium Medico-chymicum, in 1631. An early Pharmacopoeia, by Bauderon, whose date we cannot at present ascertain, was republished, with remarks, at Lyons, in 1681, by F. Verny.

The Dispensatories in the eighteenth century were too numerous to be particularly mentioned. The "mere muster-roll of names" would fill our page, which may be better employed by a slight discriminated view of the merits of the more modern authorised collections.

Every country of Europe has now its own Pharmacopoeia, established by authority. In the north, the Swedish, the Danish, and the Russian, Dispensatories are respectable and correct collections of well arranged formulae. The Danish merits, on the whole, the preference; though the Swedish is more chemically correct. In our own country, the late edition of the London Pharmacopoeia is elegantly, and on the whole accurately, chemical. Perhaps it is too concise; nor does it al-ways furnish the formulae which extensive practice demands. The first edition appeared in 1618; but we cannot find that it was republished till the year 1746, and again in 1788. The Edinburgh college published their first edition in 1722, and it has been followed by editions in 1736, 1747, 1756, 1775, 1792, and 1803. Their last edition is a very elegant and accurate work. The Dublin college has not published any dispensatory till within these few years, under the auspices of Mr. Kirwan: it is what may be expected from a learned body, in an enlightened age.

In Germany, the Wirtemburgh Dispensatory was for many years the standard of German pharmacy, and the best edition was that of 1771. It was afterwards republished, but without any change; and is still a necessary work for those who study the labours of the former German practitioners: it is particularly referred to in Murray's Apparatus Medicaminum. In the north of Germany it has been superseded by the Berlin Dispensatory, the last edition of which is one of the most complete Pharmacopoeias which we posses: and by the Brunswick Dispensatory of 1777, a very inferior work, abounding in all the useless exuberance of some ancient collections. On the west, in Holland, the Leydcn and Amsterdam Dispensatories direct the practice; but neither has lately been revised.

In the south of Germany, the Fulda Dispensatory is highly esteemed. It is a work of value, and may be perused in every country with advantage. That of Vienna was first printed in 1729, and reprinted in 1765. It has escaped us if any other edition has appeared. Dispensatories have been published at Presburg and Cracow; but they were early works, and of little value.

In France, the first Dispensatory appeared in 1 and we know of no edition since that of Boyer, in 1758. The Pharmacopoeia of Lyons, by Vitet, appeared in 1778, and is a very respectable collection.

The Spanish and Italian Dispensatories are of too little real value to detain us; and we shall close this article with a short enumeration of the principal collections of formulae not authorised by any government.

The first of these, besides Renodaeus and some others formerly mentioned, was Schroeder's Pharmacopoeia, in 4to., published at Leyden, in 1656; Triller's Dispen-satorium Pharmaceuticum Universale, in two volumes, 4to., published at Frankfort, in 1764: the first volume of this work contains the materia medica. A superior collection, however, is the Dispensatorium Universale of Reuss, in two volumes, 8vo., published at Strasburg, in 1791; and Spielman's Pharmacopoeia Generalis, published at the same place in 1783, is a work of value. In our own country, the Dispensatories of Quiucy, of James, and Strother, merit our commendation. The first, improved by Lewis, is still a most valuable pharmaceutical work; but the last improved edition by Dr. Duncan, junior, comprehending the last London, Edinburgh and Dublin Pharmacopoeias, greatly excels every other collection we have seen. It is full, correct, and satisfactory: with all the improvements of modern science, from the best sources, most skilfully condensed-we owe numerous obligations to it in the present work. If it wants any addition, it is of the formulae from some of the best Pharmacopoeias of the continent; and the ad-dition of another volume, with these formulae, has been recommended. At present the deficiency is best supplied by the improved editions of Lewis, or by an excellent work entitled "Thesaurus Medicaminum," attributed, with some reason, to Dr. R. Pearson. An excellent work by Plenck, entitled Pharmacopoeia Chirur-gica, and an admirable little manual under the same title in English, must conclude our list.