- Email: [email protected]
FINAL NOTE OF MR. HILL.
419
A considerable improvement has been prosufferer, as it is deprived of one more essay subject on which there has been more posed in the certificate system by one of your idle theorising than perhaps any connected professors, and one which, if carried out, on a
with medicine : I believe, however, it is not according to precedent to return such documents. As my letter deals only in matters of opinion,and states no facts which might require to be substantiated, I do not think it necessary to designate myself otherwise than as
A GRADUATE OF THE METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY.
UNIVERSITY OF EDINBURGH. TO THE DEAN OF THE FACULTY OF MEDICINE.
SIR,-Understanding that the senatus of the university have it in contemplation to issue certain fresh regulations, I take the opportunity of thus publicly addressing you on a few topics which especially require their consideration. The severity of its examinations being the test of the real value and worth of a diploma, and believing with Dr. M. Hall that the M.D. from the University of Edinburgh has heretofore been 11 the best medical degree ;" seeing, further, that the University of London is rising into a most powerful rival, I would suggest to you that with the march of improvement you also should advance and keep up with the state of the times in these reforming days. Degrees being only honorary, you may depend upon it that the better you keep yours worth hal:ing, the more respectable will it be ; and its graduates, consequently, will take and retain a higher rank, and eventually make such a degree the most sought after. If the supposed honoui- of adding M.D. to his name were all that was wanted by a candidate, he might find " celebrated continental universities" (celebrated, no doubt, but for what?) which habitually prostitute themselves, and which, for the money, would grant their degree to any ass or empiric ; but, let me ask, what honour can a man feel in being a graduate of an university, which he is ashamed to own? what honour can he feel in his name being enrolled where there is scarcely one respectable name to keep his company? How can his conscience (nzens sibi conscia recti) feel otherwise than that instead of honour his name is positively dis-
graced by the addition. You have a prejudice to strive against-a deeply-rooted one, too, in the minds of the people, and one which, I am sorry to say, some
who know better have not the candour
will somewhat abate the nuisance and loss of time to the student, occasioned by having to attend some of the antiquated lecturers. As for myself, when attending your university, I thoroughly made up my mind not to attend your lectures on the practice of medicine as at present given, and consequently went to another school, where I found a most talented lecturer at University College on the subject; and often in my mind the advantage derived from the latter has been contrasted with the loss of time and the great disadvantage of attending Dr. Home. Your regulations require attendance on above a dozen courses of lectures, and Mr. Syme proposes to admit any four of these to be attended extra-academically, at the option of the student. Would it not be more ad. visable to follow the example of the London University, viz., to require attendance on J’ewer, but, at the same time, to examine on all the subjects as heretofore ? For the present I remain, Sir, your obedient servant,
JoHN BULL, M.D. Edinb. JOHN
FINAL NOTE OF MR. HILL. To the Editor qf THE LANCET. Cookson has now declared that his object is to silence Mr. Hill. At this you will not be surprised, holding as you do my unpublished portrait of Dr. Cookson, who may rest assured that I do not intend to be silent under unjust aspersions upon a noble institution, to whose high character I have the happiness to feel that I have helped to contribute. Dr. Cookson will not be convinced that the Lincoln Asylum is innocent of his charge of murder, notwithstanding his own admission at the board, as follows :the gravamen of the charge "Then, perhaps, is gone." 11 I admit that no murder has taken place." "Any injury committed was not the cause of death." It appears, however, that now, as in the days of Hudibras, " A man convinced against his will, is of the same opinion still." " Quousque tandem abutere patientia nostra." I am, Sir, your faithful and obedient servant, R. GARDINER HILL.
SIR,-Dr.
If
Lincoln, June 12, 1842. P.S.-I beg to call the attention of your readers to the excellent form of a table published in the last annual report of the Lancaster Asylum, showing the per-centage of recoveries and mortality in that institution, in each year from its commencement. I would suggest an addition of the per-centage, calculated upon the years collectively. The
acknowledge to be unjust as regards Scotch degrees; they will not draw the line between the respectable and the worthless : St. Andrew’s and Aberdeen-according to the principle of dealing with corrupt Parlia- terms "porridge" and 11 scouse," occurring mentary boroughs-certainly ought to have in the diet table, are unsatisfactory, as is the been disfranchised long ago. omission of a statement of the accounts. to
2 D 2
A considerable improvement has been prosufferer, as it is deprived of one more essay subject on which there has been more posed in the certificate system by one of your idle theorising than perhaps any connected professors, and one which, if carried out, on a
with medicine : I believe, however, it is not according to precedent to return such documents. As my letter deals only in matters of opinion,and states no facts which might require to be substantiated, I do not think it necessary to designate myself otherwise than as
A GRADUATE OF THE METROPOLITAN UNIVERSITY.
UNIVERSITY OF EDINBURGH. TO THE DEAN OF THE FACULTY OF MEDICINE.
SIR,-Understanding that the senatus of the university have it in contemplation to issue certain fresh regulations, I take the opportunity of thus publicly addressing you on a few topics which especially require their consideration. The severity of its examinations being the test of the real value and worth of a diploma, and believing with Dr. M. Hall that the M.D. from the University of Edinburgh has heretofore been 11 the best medical degree ;" seeing, further, that the University of London is rising into a most powerful rival, I would suggest to you that with the march of improvement you also should advance and keep up with the state of the times in these reforming days. Degrees being only honorary, you may depend upon it that the better you keep yours worth hal:ing, the more respectable will it be ; and its graduates, consequently, will take and retain a higher rank, and eventually make such a degree the most sought after. If the supposed honoui- of adding M.D. to his name were all that was wanted by a candidate, he might find " celebrated continental universities" (celebrated, no doubt, but for what?) which habitually prostitute themselves, and which, for the money, would grant their degree to any ass or empiric ; but, let me ask, what honour can a man feel in being a graduate of an university, which he is ashamed to own? what honour can he feel in his name being enrolled where there is scarcely one respectable name to keep his company? How can his conscience (nzens sibi conscia recti) feel otherwise than that instead of honour his name is positively dis-
graced by the addition. You have a prejudice to strive against-a deeply-rooted one, too, in the minds of the people, and one which, I am sorry to say, some
who know better have not the candour
will somewhat abate the nuisance and loss of time to the student, occasioned by having to attend some of the antiquated lecturers. As for myself, when attending your university, I thoroughly made up my mind not to attend your lectures on the practice of medicine as at present given, and consequently went to another school, where I found a most talented lecturer at University College on the subject; and often in my mind the advantage derived from the latter has been contrasted with the loss of time and the great disadvantage of attending Dr. Home. Your regulations require attendance on above a dozen courses of lectures, and Mr. Syme proposes to admit any four of these to be attended extra-academically, at the option of the student. Would it not be more ad. visable to follow the example of the London University, viz., to require attendance on J’ewer, but, at the same time, to examine on all the subjects as heretofore ? For the present I remain, Sir, your obedient servant,
JoHN BULL, M.D. Edinb. JOHN
FINAL NOTE OF MR. HILL. To the Editor qf THE LANCET. Cookson has now declared that his object is to silence Mr. Hill. At this you will not be surprised, holding as you do my unpublished portrait of Dr. Cookson, who may rest assured that I do not intend to be silent under unjust aspersions upon a noble institution, to whose high character I have the happiness to feel that I have helped to contribute. Dr. Cookson will not be convinced that the Lincoln Asylum is innocent of his charge of murder, notwithstanding his own admission at the board, as follows :the gravamen of the charge "Then, perhaps, is gone." 11 I admit that no murder has taken place." "Any injury committed was not the cause of death." It appears, however, that now, as in the days of Hudibras, " A man convinced against his will, is of the same opinion still." " Quousque tandem abutere patientia nostra." I am, Sir, your faithful and obedient servant, R. GARDINER HILL.
SIR,-Dr.
If
Lincoln, June 12, 1842. P.S.-I beg to call the attention of your readers to the excellent form of a table published in the last annual report of the Lancaster Asylum, showing the per-centage of recoveries and mortality in that institution, in each year from its commencement. I would suggest an addition of the per-centage, calculated upon the years collectively. The
acknowledge to be unjust as regards Scotch degrees; they will not draw the line between the respectable and the worthless : St. Andrew’s and Aberdeen-according to the principle of dealing with corrupt Parlia- terms "porridge" and 11 scouse," occurring mentary boroughs-certainly ought to have in the diet table, are unsatisfactory, as is the been disfranchised long ago. omission of a statement of the accounts. to
2 D 2