Apothecary
the name formerly given in England and Ireland to members of an inferior branch of the medical profession. The apothecary was in Enggiven in England and Ireland to mem- APOTHECARY, the name formerly ciety of London; in Ireland, a licentiate bers of an inferior branch of the medical to a comparatively recent period, however, no inconsiderable proportion of those who practiced as apothecaries, at any rate in England, were persons practhose who practiced as apothecaries, at any rate in England, were persons pracwhich he sold drugs and made up medi- cal prescriptions, in this respect competwhich he sold drugs and made up mediapothecary frequently kept a shop in he was entitled to attend sick persons, ing with the chemist and druggist. But and prescribe for them; and though it was the almost universal practice of apothecaries to charge their patients only for medicines supplied, they had the ances, but could not charge for both. The term apothecary has been long in disuse.
Anciently, the apothecaries were not surgeons being, in like manner, undistin- guishable from the barbers) and it was surgeons being, in like manner, undistinguishable from the barbers); and it was I., that these bodies were formed into two distinct corporations. A statute of I., that these bodies were formed into tice as an apothecary, or act as an as- 1815 enacted that no person should pracsistant to an apothecary, in any part of England or Wales, unless he had been examined by a court of examiners, and England or Wales, unless he had been had received therefrom a certificate. An act of 1874 amended the act of 1815, and gave the Apothecaries' Society power to co-operate with other medical licensing bodies in granting licenses.