MEDICAL REFORM
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262 money has been voted annually for their destruction. In the settled districts it is no uncommon thing to find extensive tracts of country teeming with thistles of the most luxuriant growth, and proportionately reproductive; and, certainly, if any new land be opfned within a considerable circle of these localities, thistles will almost surely make their appearance. But in the far interior of Australia such " evidence of sponta- neous generation" no longer exists. I have travelled through the entire extent of three of the Australian colonies, but I never saw, nor ever heard, of thistles growing in any locality whither the seed could not have been conveyed. The other three propositions upon which Mr. Alison founds his belief, prove nothing more than that the flora of a place is that to which the circumatances of soil and climate are best adapted. It is no logical inference that if A and B represent the vegetation upon a piece of land not suited to the produc- tion of D, therefore the germs of D do not exist. Apart from all other evidence, an opposite conclusion is more reasonable, from the fact that D makes its appearance as a consequence of the requisi e alteration in the soil. But it will be of little avail to enter further into the question Upon the basis of Mr. Alison’s letter. If that gentleman will study the subject more deeply, I think he will modify or alter his opinions. I am, Sir, yours obediently, I am, Sir, yours obediently, August, 1863. RICHARD LEE, B.A., M. R. C. S. RICHARD LEE, B.A., M.R.C.S. MEDICAL REFORM. To the Editor of THE LANCET. SIR,-Dr. Hearne, of Southampton, has advanced some very good arguments in favour of medical reform, but unfortunately there is a black sheep-and a very black one too-in the flock. Dr. Hearne recommends that pauper patients shall be allowed to take their orders to any one of those surgeons who may agree to attend the poor at a fixed rate. This provision is introduced in order that the pauper patient shall never be neglected. The object is good in the extreme ; the argument bad beyond measure. Indeed the poor would run greater risk than ever of being neglected ; while the natural fickleness and dissatisfaction of ignorant people would create an overwhelm- ing mass of confusion and discord. To prove it :- When several surgeons each get a portion of the work hitherto done by one man, the pecuniary value must of a truth be greatly diminished. The necessity therefore of retaining such appointment (?) will not be so urgent, while in a corre- sponding degree the general unflagging exertion will be re- laxed. A man who would considerably inconvenience himself for seventy or a hundred pounds a year would not always do so for twenty pounds, and that uncertain and variable. Each surgeon, too, would feel less weight on his own shoulders and more on his neighbour’s; so that if he were called up in the night to visit a patient residing some miles away he might not be " at home;" his neighbouring fellow-worker might be out also ; in short, all the doctors might be out, and the patients might die for want of help, as others have died before. Well, who could blame these surgeons? They cannot help being out; are not expected to find substitutes ; and accidents will happen, do what we may to prevent them. Again. While men who by hard work have won for them- selves a fair income care little about their parish " dividend," others who are struggling hard with life at the very foot of the hill, or who through misconduct have cast themselves from their eminence, will by clap-trap means endeavour to win the goodwill of the poor and the " consideration" attached to it. We all know the excessive gullibility of the British public generally, and of course cannot expect to find the lower orders better than their betters. Undoubtedly they are worse; there- fore the greatest quack and the least honourable man will be the most likely to receive their suffrage. Medical orders for port wine and beef-tea will be strewed about by the dozen. Gin will be administered in large doses to old women, and a more deadly cordial to little children; and the cry will go up from Babel, "Was there ever such a benevolent man !" So the jobbery will go on, till it shall have gone too far for the forbearance and long-suffering meekness of Englishmen ; then there will be an exposure, a collapse, and a reform. Believe me, the poor man wants a guide and a protector; if left to himself he will come to grief. £ And there can be no better guarantee of a surgeon’s respectability than his election by a board of guardians ; no sn,fer provision against his careless- ness than a needful salary, with a chance of losing it; and no surer way of injuring the pauper, and of promoting ill-will amongst the mass of people who come under the Poor-law regulations, than by placiug the surgeon in this equivocal posi. tion, and by giving to the panper this new and unbridled freedom. I am, Sir, yours obediently, August, 1863. NEMO MORTALIUM. THE ZOOLOGICAL MUSEUM OF THE ARMY MEDICAL DEPARTMENT. NEMO MORTALIUM. , To the Editor of THE LANCET. ! SiR, -As several letters relative to the transfer of this museum have appeared in a non-professional journal, I have thought the following particulars, which I have ascertained from an authorized source, may be of interest; and as they are more likely to reach medical officers abroad through your columns than by means of a daily newspaper, I beg to request the favour of your inserting them. The history of the contemplated transfer appears to be the following :-When the head quarters of the Army Medical Staff were removed from Fort Pitt to Netley, the several museums, libraries, &c., were of course removed also, they being no longer of use to the head quarters of the medical staff there, and the Government buildings, which had been lent for their reception, being required for other purposes. The Royal Victoria Hos- pital had not been originally designed for the reception of these collections, and as the accommodation required for the more important amongst them-viz., the pathological museum, to- gether with the library, and various rooms belonging to the Army Medical School-absorbed all the space that could possibly be spared from the wards of the hospital, it became a question what was to be done with the zoological collection, which re- quired very extensive room. It was felt that the collection ought to be kept together,-there was no Government accom. modation available for it,-and it was not likely that the me- dical officers would subscribe the very large sum which would be required to erect a building for it. The collection was in the way in the hospital, and could not be longer allowed to re- main there. Under these circumstances the professors of the Army Medical School were ordered to give their opinion on the best manner of providing for the safe keeping of the collection. They sent in a report offering various suggestions to the Director- General ; and it is understood that after consulting with the heads of the three branches of the Medical Department in his office, who represent the body of the army medical officers, it was determined to ascertain if the Hartley Institution at Southampton would receive and house the collection on cer- tain terms, these terms giving the army medical officers almost the same advantages as if the collection were in a building of their own. The communications on the subject have only passed through a hrst stage, and it is understood that a cir- cular from the Director-General’s office will in due time give full information to the army medical officers who are so widely scattered in all parts of the world.-I am, Sir, yours &c., August, 1863. A STAFF SURGEON. MAGENDIE AND BELL. To the Editor of THE LANCET. SIR,-Your leading article on Vivisection in France in last week’s LANCET says, quoting Dr. Latour, that Magendie claimed Sir Charles Bell’s theory as his own. In the spring of 1S33, when a student, I spent a few months ; in Paris. I was intimate with a young Jaw-student named : Catoire, who was an obstinate Anglophobist. Thus he would say, "11 me semble que votre langue est un peu barbare," ! although he did not know a word of it. Well, this young man ’ was accompanying me one evening to one of Magendie’s lec- tures. As we walked together, our conversation naturally , turned upon the subject of medicine:- ! CATOIRE.--Il me semble que vos medecins Anglais ne sont que petits enfans a côtê de nos medecins Français. ! WEST.-Cest bien possible; mais qu’est-ce qui a decouvert la circulation du sang ? CATOIRE.-C’était un Anglais, ce me semble. ’ WEST.-Eh, bien! cela vaut quelque chose, n’est-ce pas ? ! Qu’estce qui a decouvert la vaccination ? CATOIRE.-C’était un Anglais aussi. And so on. . Arrived at Magendie’s little lecture-room, we sat down side
Transcript of MEDICAL REFORM
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money has been voted annually for their destruction. In thesettled districts it is no uncommon thing to find extensivetracts of country teeming with thistles of the most luxuriantgrowth, and proportionately reproductive; and, certainly, ifany new land be opfned within a considerable circle of theselocalities, thistles will almost surely make their appearance.But in the far interior of Australia such " evidence of sponta-neous generation" no longer exists. I have travelled throughthe entire extent of three of the Australian colonies, but I neversaw, nor ever heard, of thistles growing in any locality whitherthe seed could not have been conveyed.The other three propositions upon which Mr. Alison founds
his belief, prove nothing more than that the flora of a place isthat to which the circumatances of soil and climate are bestadapted. It is no logical inference that if A and B representthe vegetation upon a piece of land not suited to the produc-tion of D, therefore the germs of D do not exist. Apart fromall other evidence, an opposite conclusion is more reasonable,from the fact that D makes its appearance as a consequence ofthe requisi e alteration in the soil.But it will be of little avail to enter further into the question
Upon the basis of Mr. Alison’s letter. If that gentleman willstudy the subject more deeply, I think he will modify or alterhis opinions.
I am, Sir, yours obediently,I am, Sir, yours obediently,August, 1863. RICHARD LEE, B.A., M. R. C. S.RICHARD LEE, B.A., M.R.C.S.
MEDICAL REFORM.
To the Editor of THE LANCET.SIR,-Dr. Hearne, of Southampton, has advanced some very
good arguments in favour of medical reform, but unfortunatelythere is a black sheep-and a very black one too-in the flock.
Dr. Hearne recommends that pauper patients shall be allowedto take their orders to any one of those surgeons who mayagree to attend the poor at a fixed rate. This provision isintroduced in order that the pauper patient shall never beneglected. The object is good in the extreme ; the argumentbad beyond measure. Indeed the poor would run greater riskthan ever of being neglected ; while the natural fickleness anddissatisfaction of ignorant people would create an overwhelm-ing mass of confusion and discord. To prove it :-When several surgeons each get a portion of the work
hitherto done by one man, the pecuniary value must of a truthbe greatly diminished. The necessity therefore of retainingsuch appointment (?) will not be so urgent, while in a corre-sponding degree the general unflagging exertion will be re-
laxed. A man who would considerably inconvenience himselffor seventy or a hundred pounds a year would not always doso for twenty pounds, and that uncertain and variable. Eachsurgeon, too, would feel less weight on his own shoulders andmore on his neighbour’s; so that if he were called up in thenight to visit a patient residing some miles away he might notbe " at home;" his neighbouring fellow-worker might be outalso ; in short, all the doctors might be out, and the patientsmight die for want of help, as others have died before. Well,who could blame these surgeons? They cannot help being out; are not expected to find substitutes ; and accidents will happen,do what we may to prevent them.
Again. While men who by hard work have won for them-selves a fair income care little about their parish " dividend,"others who are struggling hard with life at the very foot of thehill, or who through misconduct have cast themselves fromtheir eminence, will by clap-trap means endeavour to win thegoodwill of the poor and the " consideration" attached to it.We all know the excessive gullibility of the British publicgenerally, and of course cannot expect to find the lower ordersbetter than their betters. Undoubtedly they are worse; there-fore the greatest quack and the least honourable man will bethe most likely to receive their suffrage. Medical orders forport wine and beef-tea will be strewed about by the dozen.Gin will be administered in large doses to old women, and amore deadly cordial to little children; and the cry will go upfrom Babel, "Was there ever such a benevolent man !" Sothe jobbery will go on, till it shall have gone too far for theforbearance and long-suffering meekness of Englishmen ; thenthere will be an exposure, a collapse, and a reform.
Believe me, the poor man wants a guide and a protector; ifleft to himself he will come to grief. £ And there can be nobetter guarantee of a surgeon’s respectability than his electionby a board of guardians ; no sn,fer provision against his careless-ness than a needful salary, with a chance of losing it; and no
surer way of injuring the pauper, and of promoting ill-willamongst the mass of people who come under the Poor-lawregulations, than by placiug the surgeon in this equivocal posi.tion, and by giving to the panper this new and unbridledfreedom. I am, Sir, yours obediently,August, 1863. NEMO MORTALIUM.
THE ZOOLOGICAL MUSEUM OF THE ARMYMEDICAL DEPARTMENT.
NEMO MORTALIUM.
, To the Editor of THE LANCET.
! SiR, -As several letters relative to the transfer of thismuseum have appeared in a non-professional journal, I havethought the following particulars, which I have ascertainedfrom an authorized source, may be of interest; and as theyare more likely to reach medical officers abroad through yourcolumns than by means of a daily newspaper, I beg to requestthe favour of your inserting them.The history of the contemplated transfer appears to be the
following :-When the head quarters of the Army Medical Staffwere removed from Fort Pitt to Netley, the several museums,libraries, &c., were of course removed also, they being no longerof use to the head quarters of the medical staff there, and theGovernment buildings, which had been lent for their reception,being required for other purposes. The Royal Victoria Hos-pital had not been originally designed for the reception of thesecollections, and as the accommodation required for the moreimportant amongst them-viz., the pathological museum, to-gether with the library, and various rooms belonging to theArmy Medical School-absorbed all the space that could possiblybe spared from the wards of the hospital, it became a questionwhat was to be done with the zoological collection, which re-quired very extensive room. It was felt that the collectionought to be kept together,-there was no Government accom.modation available for it,-and it was not likely that the me-dical officers would subscribe the very large sum which wouldbe required to erect a building for it. The collection was inthe way in the hospital, and could not be longer allowed to re-main there. Under these circumstances the professors of theArmy Medical School were ordered to give their opinion on thebest manner of providing for the safe keeping of the collection.They sent in a report offering various suggestions to the Director-General ; and it is understood that after consulting with theheads of the three branches of the Medical Department in hisoffice, who represent the body of the army medical officers, itwas determined to ascertain if the Hartley Institution atSouthampton would receive and house the collection on cer-tain terms, these terms giving the army medical officers almostthe same advantages as if the collection were in a building oftheir own. The communications on the subject have onlypassed through a hrst stage, and it is understood that a cir-cular from the Director-General’s office will in due time givefull information to the army medical officers who are so widelyscattered in all parts of the world.-I am, Sir, yours &c.,August, 1863. A STAFF SURGEON.
MAGENDIE AND BELL.To the Editor of THE LANCET.
SIR,-Your leading article on Vivisection in France in lastweek’s LANCET says, quoting Dr. Latour, that Magendieclaimed Sir Charles Bell’s theory as his own.
In the spring of 1S33, when a student, I spent a few months; in Paris. I was intimate with a young Jaw-student named: Catoire, who was an obstinate Anglophobist. Thus he would
say, "11 me semble que votre langue est un peu barbare,"! although he did not know a word of it. Well, this young man’ was accompanying me one evening to one of Magendie’s lec-
tures. As we walked together, our conversation naturally, turned upon the subject of medicine:-! CATOIRE.--Il me semble que vos medecins Anglais ne sont
que petits enfans a côtê de nos medecins Français.! WEST.-Cest bien possible; mais qu’est-ce qui a decouvert
la circulation du sang ?CATOIRE.-C’était un Anglais, ce me semble.
’ WEST.-Eh, bien! cela vaut quelque chose, n’est-ce pas ?! Qu’estce qui a decouvert la vaccination ?
CATOIRE.-C’était un Anglais aussi.And so on.
. Arrived at Magendie’s little lecture-room, we sat down side
