St Louis College of Pharmacy - Prescripto Yearbook (St Louis, MO)

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Pug: Ninety Dnfscmnro Detroit and Parke, Davis of Co. The word date may bring to the mind of different individuals different ideas. To the persons in their late 'teens and early twenties it may bring thoughts of a pleasant evening spent with a boy or girl as the case may be. To the grocer or the fruit merchant it may bring thoughts of something which they sell that is good to eat. To the historian it will bring to mind a variety of numbers as 1492- 1776-18l2, etc., all of which have their own signihcance. A Taking the latter mentioned type of date into consideration, who is there of the Seniors of 1930-31 and the Juniors of the same year that cannot mention a variety of things of importance that happened in May, 1931? First and fore- most for the higher tories of Parke, Davis K Co. occupy six city blocks and cover fifteen acres. C1355 will be TCIDC111- bered the date of their graduation. Surpassed only by this, is that journey of intermingled education and fun-namely, the trip to Detroit. Located on the Detroit Riverfront. the Research and Manufacturing Labora- It was on May 11, 1931, that a group of students from St. Louis College of Pharmacy, relaxing from the strain of final examinations gathered at Union Station to depart at 11 :55 p. m. Everyone was in a jovial mood and prepared for a good time. After the lights of good ole! St. Louis were left behind, everyone looked for some type of amuse- ment. No one was disappointed. The Omega Phi Society did its part in supplying decks of cards, cigarettes and candy. Throughout the night and the next day up to the time we arrived in Detroit, there was not a dull moment. Decatur, Illinois, will not be forgotten by one certain party who was trying to help a friend in distress. As Amos or Andy would say, 1 disremember the exact time of our arrival but I believe it was between two and three in the afternoon, Detroit time. Upon arrival, we were immediately escorted to the Fort Shelby Hotel, one of the best in Detroit. The finest part of the Parke, Davis program was a banquet in the dining room of the hotel. It was not really a banquet in the true sense of the word, but merely a meal and a very fine one. Only one or two speeches were made. One strange incident happened that evening. YV hen asked who wanted to go to a show, no one stated that such was his or her intentions. However, a canvass of theatres that evening would have accounted for every member of our party with few exceptions. Early on Wfednesday morning we were taken to the Parke, Davis Cafeteria for breakfast. After doing justice to what was placed before us, the inspection of the laboratories and manufacturing equipment of Parke, Davis 8: Co., one of the world's largest manufacturers of pharmaceuticals, began. Crude drugs are re- ceived from all parts of the world and the finished products are exported to all nations. fs -no 32? X

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Duescliillnro In their laboratories experiments of variety almost too numerous to mention are being carried out. Most important of which are tests for purity of crude drugs and their preparations and tests for potency of the vaccines and the antitoxms. Their manufacturing processes are on a vast scale. Ingredients being meas- ured in pounds and gallons in place of grams and cubic centimetersg mixing and polishing machines, large enough to crawl into, are running almost constantly from morn till nightg tablet machines side by side, turning out hundreds of tablets per minute whiz on. Crude drugs being received by the barrel and hundred-weight, none of which are used as ingredients in manufacturing until they are laboratory tested. XVC were taken to the cafeteria and served a very tasty and substantial lunch- eon. Wfith a pleased feeling, as one can feel only after digesting such good food, the group was taken to that portion of the plant overlooking the Detroit river, where a camera man risked his machine in taking our pictures. Climbing aboard the busses, we proceeded to the northern section or the city and to that portion of Parke, Davis at which the vaccines and antitoxins go through the preliminary steps of manufacture. Here we saw many things with which we were familiar only through reading or through lectures by Dr. VVarner. Return- ing to the hotel, we had about three hours to ourselves until the banquet began, which was held at the Stat- ler Hotel. Again the dinner was superb with entertainment of high quality. The time passed only too fast. assi ffbiti ine- rtia . rm T Parkedale Farm, a property of 700 acres, is situated near the town of Rochester, abolut thirty miles distant from Detroit. Here the work oflbio- logical production is carried on and extensive drug-plant cultivation practiced. The rest of the time was spent in various ways. There were trips to Canada and Belle Isle, which is somewhat similar to our Forest Park Highlands. The questioning that one goes through on entering VVindsor, Canada, is interesting. It even reached the stage of excitement with one V .V.-ask him! With a few more shows and trips the time for our departure to Home. Sweet Home came. On Thursday at 11 o'clock we left. The return trip was uneventful 'but the having of fun did not cease. All arrived home safely. Qi Ji CJ Page Nf71Cfy'O71E