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·OSLER·L BRARY·NEWSL TTER· Osler Library of the History of Medicine, McGill University, Montréal (Québec) Canada

NUMBER 109 · 2008

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IN THIS ISSUE MONTREAL, MEDICINEAND WILLIAM LESLIE LOGIE:MCGILL’S FIRST GRADUATE ANDCANADA’S FIRST MEDICALGRADUATE. 175TH ANNIVERSARY,1833–2008

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by David S. Crawford, EmeritusLibrarian, McGill University.

M ay 24th 2008 is animportant anniversaryin the history of

McGill University, its Faculty ofMedicine, and medical educationin Canada. On that day, 175years ago, William Logie,McGill’s first graduate andCanada’s first medical graduate,received his degree.1 To ap-preciate the significance of thisachievement, one needs to reviewthe state of medical educationand “medical politics” inMontreal in 1833.

Between 1820 and 1840, muchwas changing in Montreal,including many aspects ofmedical education and licensure.Major events included thegranting of a Royal Charter toMcGill College in 1821, and theopening of the Montreal GeneralHospital (MGH) in the sameyear.2 There was considerabledemand for a medical school tobe established in the BritishNorth American colonies,because the only way to get amedical qualification at that timewas to study in either Europe orthe United States. Going to

IN THIS ISSUE, DAVID S.Crawford, Emeritus Librarian,who now has more time todevote to the history of medicine,celebrates the 175th anniversaryof McGill University’s firstgraduate and the first medicalgraduate in Canada, WilliamLogie. As he explains, the processwas anything but smooth andultimately involved an appeal tothe Court of King’s Bench.(David Crawford’s activity inmedical history actually beganwell before his retirement.Among other activities, he wasresponsible for producing our on-line Canadian Health Obituariesdata-base, a hugely popularresource for the obituaries fromCanadian medical journals from1833-2000, http://www.mcgill.ca/osler-library/collections/links/biographies/)

Our display area continues toattract attention. We highlight aseminar and exhibition on JohannCaspar Lavater and the traditionof physiognomy, prepared by

Professor Nikola von Merveldt ofthe Département de Littérature etde Langues Modernes, Universitéde Montréal. The event beganwith an interdisciplinary seminarwith guest speaker Professor JohnB. Lyon of the University ofPittsburgh. This delightfulexhibition will remain in placeuntil mid-June when anotherguest curator, Dr. Allister Neherof the Humanities Department ofDawson College, will present anexhibition entitled, Anatomy andthe Representation of Knowledge, afascinating topic that focuses onEuropean anatomical prints fromour collections from the 16th tothe 19th century.

A regular contributor, Dr. CharlesRoland, Hannah Professor of theHistory of Medicine Emeritus,McMaster University inaugurateswhat will become a regularcolumn entitled, Roland’s CanadianMedical History Miniatures. In eachissue, he will present a miniaturehistory of some of Canada’s well-known and less well-knownmedical figures and events.

Finally, we note here, the passingof Barbara Tunis, nursinghistorian and the charming andintrepid researcher, who, 25 yearsago, did the spadework thatresulted in just about everythingthat we now know about WilliamLogie. �

BarbaraTunis andEdwardBensley haveexplored bothLogie’s lifeand career,and medicallicensure inLowerCanada ingreat depth.

References 1and 12 areessentialreading.

Going toEurope wascostly andquitedangerous,while goingto the UnitedStates couldexposestudents torevolutionaryideas.

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Europe was costly and quitedangerous, while going to theUnited States could exposestudents to revolutionary ideas.To quote Archibald Hall, “OnOctober 20th, 1822, a meetingof the medical officers of thehospital was held, consisting ofW. Robertson, W. Caldwell, A.F.Holmes, J. Stephenson, and H.P.Loedel, for the purpose of takinginto consideration the ex-pediency of establishing amedical school in this city.”3 Thisschool, the Montreal MedicalInstitution (MMI), was foundedin 1823, though Hall reports thatthe first (twenty-five) studentswere actually enrolled in the1824/25 session.

William Robertson andWilliam Caldwell had attendedlectures at the University ofEdinburgh but had not graduatedfrom there. (Robertson acquireda degree in 1832 — honoris causafrom the University of Vermont.Caldwell acquired his degree in1817, by attestation, fromMarischal College, Aberdeen).Andrew Fernando Holmes andJohn Stephenson were bothgraduates of the University ofEdinburgh (their graduationtheses are in the Osler Library),and Henry-Pierre Loedel re-ceived his degree in England.4

The opening of the MMI wasnot greeted with enthusiasm byall sectors of the communitybecause it had decided to requirea knowledge of Latin and Englishbut not French. Certainly thefrancophone community did notfind this satisfactory, andfrequently expressed its dis-content over the policy. In 1825,at a farewell dinner with hisQuebec City medical colleaguesbefore moving to England, Pierrede Sales Laterrière said:

“The rapid improvements which have butlately taken place in the MedicalProfession in Canada, and for which the

country is indebted to the many sacrificesincurred by heads of families to procureMedical Education to their children outof its limits, ought to impress on thepublic, and particularly our Legislature,the indispensible (sic) necessity of someMedical School being established amongus, where the student might acquire inhis native country, that Anatomical andpractical knowledge which is the onlyfundamental basis of Medical Science,and which have to this day, beenacquired at such an enormous expense,as must have in some instances precludedentry in the Profession, to many whomight have become its ornaments, andcontributed to its advancement. I amaware that new establishments have beenerected, but which do not appear toanswer the purposes intended, nor to meetthe views and approbation of theLegislature.”5

In January 1827, the Journal deMédecine du Québec / Quebec MedicalJournal returned to the subjectand commented:

“Four Medical Gentlemen, viz: Drs.Caldwell, Robertson, Stephenson andHolmes, have, since a few years, beenengaged in giving lectures on variousdepartments of Medical Science, and thesuccess they have encountered, is a

flattering testimony of theirqualifications to the task. We must,however, deplore that some defectcomplained of by the great majority ofthe Profession in Montreal, should havegiven rise to a spirit of division, whichwe fear is to be referred to politicaldissentions kept up by nationalprejudices.”6

The authorities were certainlyaware of this issue and CharlesOgden, the Solicitor-General ofLower Canada, commenting tothe Governor, Lord Aylmer, onthe proposed Statutes of McGillCollege in 1831, noted, “I inclineto think that this evil [fran-cophone students needing to goabroad to obtain a medicaldegree] would be aggravated ifthe restriction [of language] weresuffered to exist.”7 However, hissuggestion to lift the restrictionon French was not accepted.

As today, medical educationwas linked with medicallicensure, which in Quebecbegan on 30 April 1788, whenthe governor, Lord Dorchester,proclaimed “An Act or Ordinanceto prevent persons practicingphysic and surgery within theProvince of Quebec, or

When the establishment of the Montreal GeneralHospital was being discussed in 1819, one of itsfiercest opponents was the Member of the Legislature

for Huntingdon, Michael O’Sullivan. He recommended expandingHôtel Dieu hospital instead, and also foresaw the opening of amedical school connected to the proposed hospital – which healso opposed. Indeed, as he had predicted, the opening of theMontreal General Hospital led directly to the creation of amedical school.

O’Sullivan had a reasonable point of view but an unreasonableway of expressing it, which led to his famous duel with WilliamCaldwell, one of the founders of the MGH and the MMI.*

* Bensley, E.H and Tunis, B.R. The Caldwell - O’Sullivan duel: a prelude to thefounding of the Montreal General Hospital. Canadian Medical AssociationJournal, 1969 June 21; 100(23): 1092–1095. (A digitised version is freelyavailable at PubMed Central; see http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/picrender.fcgi?artid=1946046& blobtype=pdf)

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Papineauwas one ofthose whohad accusedRobertson ofindirectlycausing threedeaths duringthe 1832riots.

Midwifery in the towns ofQuebec or Montreal, withoutLicence.”8 This Act createdBoards of Medical Examiners inboth Quebec City and Montreal;all Board members were ap-pointed by the Governor. By1822, the Montreal Board hadonly three active members:Henry Loedel (father of Henry-Pierre), Daniel Arnoldi (formerteacher and partner of AndrewHolmes), and William Robertson(one of the founders of the MGHand the MMI).9

In 1823, at the rather self-serving suggestion of the medicalofficers of the MGH, the Go-vernor, Lord Dalhousie, modifiedthe composition of the MontrealBoard, ruling that in future thisBoard was to consist of “personsholding diplomas or testimonialsfrom Medical Institutions inGreat Britain, of those who areat present Medical Officers of theMontreal General Hospital.”10

Drs. Robertson, Stephenson,Caldwell, Holmes and H-PLoedel were appointed, while theappointments of all formermembers were terminated.11 Toquote Tunis, “This created anuneasy situation in the pro-fession. But more serious was thefact that those who alreadyconducted the only medicalschool in Montreal or Quebecwere now the sole possessors ofthe power to license prac-titioners.”12

It was also seen as a blatantlyanglo-centric move, since theMGH regulations (Chapter 8,Article 3) stated that one had topossess a degree or professionalqualification from a university orcollege “within the Britishdominions” in order to be grantedan appointment at the MGH —which excluded physicians whohad obtained their medicaldegrees in the USA or Europe(many francophone studentspreferred to study medicine in

France). Dissatisfaction with themedical registration Act of 1788had been widespread prior to1823 (efforts had been made torepeal it in 1820 and 1822) butnow both Drs. Arnoldi andLoedel Sr. (whose appointmentsto the Montreal Board had justbeen terminated) joined thechorus of complaints andpetitions. Finally, in 1831, the1788 Act was repealed and a newAct passed by the legislature inQuebec: “An Act to repeal acertain Act or Ordinance thereinmentioned, and to provideeffectual Regulations coveringthe Practice of Physic, Surgeryand Midwifery.”13

This 1831 Act retainedseparate Boards in Montreal andQuebec City but completelychanged the situation by callingfor the medical practitionersthemselves to select the members

of both Boards. At the initialelection meeting for theMontreal Board, the foursurviving members of the 1823Board (Robertson, Stephenson,Caldwell, and Holmes; H-PLoedel had died in 1825) werenot elected — in fact, all hadbeen nominated and secondedbut were defeated by a “decidedmajority.”14

The new Montreal Boardconsisted of twelve members,with Daniel Arnoldi (from thepre-1823 Board) as Chairman.Not only was the new Boarddifferent in composition, it wasalso different in its political views,and included several supportersof Louis-Joseph Papineau, leaderof the Reform Party. Papineauwas one of those who hadaccused Robertson of indirectlycausing three deaths during the1832 riots.

I t is worth commenting briefly on the impact of local politics.The fact that the participants knew each other is notsurprising in a city with a population of about 20,000 and

probably not over 60 physicians. It was a very inbred communitywhere personal and political differences could easily influenceprofessional actions.

Until 1833, Montreal was under the control of appointed localmagistrates rather than a mayor and council. In 1832 an electionriot occurred: William Robertson, one of the magistrates onduty, read the Riot Act and was accused of ordering the troopsto fire into the crowd and of allowing them to shelter in theFaculty’s lecture rooms (whose windows were “shivered toatoms”.)** After an enquiry, both Robertson and the troops wereexonerated but in October 1832 the Courant noted, “We believethat the feelings of some individuals in this city, relative to themedical school, are not to be considered as altogetherunconnected to this outrage.”***

Montreal’s first City Council, elected in June 1833, includedRobert Nelson, whose brother Wolfred was vice-chair of theBoard of Medical Examiners. Both Nelson brothers weremembers of the 1831 Board, and Wolfred presided at themeeting at which Logie’s candidacy was rejected. In 1848, bothWolfred Nelson and Daniel Arnoldi were awarded honorarydegrees by the McGill Faculty of Medicine — clearly an effort to“mend some fences.”

** Tunis, B.R. Medical licensing in Lower Canada: the dispute over Canada’s firstmedical degree. Canadian Historical Review.1974, Dec; 55 (4): 489-504.*** Canadian Courant and Montreal Advertiser, 1832, Oct. 10.

In 1833 asnow, McGillhad nobuildingsuitable for aconvocation;the ceremonytook place atthe Museumof theNaturalHistorySociety on StJames Street,attended bymembers ofthe clergy(bothProtestantand RomanCatholic), theLegislatureand the Bar.

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Meanwhile, the MontrealMedical Institution had beentraining students, but was unableto get authorisation from theGovernor to grant degrees. Incontrast, McGill College hadreceived a Royal Charter in 1821that allowed it to grant degrees,but was involved in a legaldispute with James McGill’sestate and had neither money norstudents. For legal reasons, theCollege had appointed fiveprofessors in 1823 including aprofessor of medicine, ThomasFargues (yet another Edinburghgraduate), who lived in QuebecCity and never taught inMontreal.15 The solution for bothinstitutions was clear: in 1828 theMMI suggested that its membersshould be appointed professors ofthe College. Though initiallyonly one of them could hold thetitle of Professor, pendingchanges to the Statutes, thissuggestion was approved by theGovernors of McGill at theirmeeting of June 29, 1829, when“the Members of the MontrealMedical Institution were en-grafted upon the College as itsmedical faculty.”16 DoctorsCaldwell, Robertson, Holmesand Stephenson became theMedical Faculty of the Universityof McGill College. Stephensonwas both Secretary of the MMIand Registrar of McGill, whileRobertson became the head ofthe Faculty.

The students who had beenenrolled in the MMI thus becamestudents of the new Faculty, andon May 24, 1833, William LeslieLogie became its first graduate,awarded the degree of Doctor inMedicine and Surgery. In fact,Logie was McGill’s first graduatein any subject, and was the firstperson to receive a medicaldegree in Canada.17

Logie was born in late 1810 orearly 1811, in or near Montreal.He enrolled at the MMI in 1828

and became a student of McGillCollege when the MMI becamethe Faculty of Medicine in 1829.He seems to have been both agood and a popular student,apprenticed to Dr WilliamRobertson during his studies, andinvited to dinner by his fellowstudents at “Mr Rasco’s splendidestablishment at Varennes” (asuburb of Montreal) just after hegraduated. 18

Then as now, a degree alonewas not enough; medicalgraduates also had to be licensed

LOGIE’S GRADUATION THESIS “MEDICAL INAUGURAL DISSERTATIONon Cynanche trachaealis” (croup). The Latin quotation («and it blocked theways which brought her life and breath») is from Ovid’s Metamorphoses.(Book 2 Line 828.) Unfortunately most of McGill’s early medical theseswere lost in a fire in the early 20th century and no original copy of this thesishas been found in Canada — the Osler Library has a photocopy. Originalsare held at the US National Library of Medicine, the Wellcome Library andthe libraries of the University of Edinburgh and the Royal College ofSurgeons. The Early Canadiana Online project has recently made adigitised version available; see reference 17.

in order to practice. In thisregard, Logie had two problemsto contend with: firstly, the Actof 1831 was rather unclear aboutthe exact requirements forlicencing; and secondly, many ofthe recently elected members ofthe Montreal Board of MedicalExaminers were very opposed, forseveral reasons, to McGill’s newFaculty of Medicine. Article 5 ofthe Act of 1831 stipulated thatto be licenced, one required a“regular and continued ap-prenticeship of at least five years,

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He woulddoubtlesshave beenlicenced if hehad agreed tobe examinedby the Board,but he refusedthis option,also stronglyopposed byMcGill,…

with some licenced Physician orSurgeon . . . or in some MedicalSchool or Institution teachingpublicly,” but Article 6 allowedfor applicants to be licenced ifthey held a degree, diploma orlicense which had been obtained“after a course of Medical study,performed in such University,College or Medical Institution, inconformity to the rules therof,and after five years’ study at least,and not otherwise.”13 Though theMMI and McGill were clearlyconnected, Logie had technicallyattended two institutions. TheBoard chose to be difficult, hadsome precedent on its side19, andrejected Logie’s application for alicense.

He would doubtless have beenlicenced if he had agreed to beexamined by the Board, but herefused this option, also stronglyopposed by McGill, whichwanted to ensure that it alonecould determine its graduates’eligibility to practice. If graduatesof other universities, such asEdinburgh, could be licencedwithout further examination,then those from McGill shouldbe treated in the same way.Logie’s application for a licencewas heard in July 1833 and LaMinerve reported, “M Logieprésenta un Diplôme de M.D. del’Université du Collège McGill.Ce Diplôme fut rejeté unaniment.En ayant été informé, on lui offritd’examiner, ce qu’il refuse.”20

Logie decided to appeal to theCourt of King’s Bench in October1833; in October 1834, theCourt ruled that the Board shouldhave accepted his McGill degreeas satisfactory for the issuing of alicence to practice. In May 1835,after a few months of foot-dragging, the Board recogni-sed (by licencing PatrickMcNaughton, one of the three1834 McGill graduates) thatMcGill’s medical degrees met thelicencing conditions. Though

THIS DRAFT OF WILLIAM LOGIE’S DEGREE CERTIFICATE IS IN THEhand of Dr William Robertson, then head of the Medical Faculty — the termDean was not used at this time. This document and drafts of two additionalcertificates dated two months earlier signed by J. Stephenson, Registrar ofthe Faculty, and Robertson, who was also Logie’s apprentice master, werepresented to the Faculty of Medicine by Dr Robertson’s grandson, MrAngus Hooper. They are in the Osler Library of the History of Medicine atMcGill.

Note that this certificate states, “We therefore admit him to be a Graduateof this University — and authorise him accordingly to practice medicineand surgery” (my emphasis). Interestingly, the 1841 degree certificate forTerrence Sparham, Charles Decelles and Samuel MacMurray —reproduced in Hanaway and Cruess2 — states “…that their Literary andProfessional qualifications render them fit and qualified to be admitted tothe Degree of Doctor in Medicine and Surgery”. Stephenson and Holmes,who both signed this certificate, seem to admit that permission to practicewas not actually theirs to bestow.

None of thismattered toLogie, as hehad becomenot onlyCanada’s firstmedicalgraduate butalso its firstmedicalexport!

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LETTERS PATENT OF 18 JANUARY 1831 RE-APPOINTING CALDWELL, HOLMES, ROBERTSON ANDStephenson as the Medical Board of Montreal under the Act of 1788. This act was repealed when the 1831 Actwas assented to on March 31 so these were short-lived appointments. A new Board was elected in July 1831 andnone of these MGH/McGill physicians were elected. These Letters Patent were donated to the Osler Library in1969 by Elliott Frosst.

commanded by the Court togrant a certificate, the Boardnever explicitly issued a licenceto William Logie.

None of this mattered to Logie,as he had become not onlyCanada’s first medical graduatebut also its first medical export!It is unknown whether hisdecision to move was directlyconnected to his difficulty inobtaining a licence but, whateverthe motivation, he moved to theUnited States in late 1833 orearly 1834, becoming a licencedmedical practitioner in the Stateof Louisiana in January 1834. Hereturned to Montreal to marryFrances Matilda Ford in De-cember 1834, but never practicedin his native country. He died in

New York City on October 4,1879, following what may havebeen a nervous breakdown, andwas buried in Geneva, New York,where he had previouslypracticed.

Despite efforts by BarbaraTunis and Edward Bensley,Canada’s first medical graduatehas been virtually ignored in hishomeland. In 1980, Tunispublished a letter in the CanadianMedical Association Journal, drawingattention to the 150th anniversaryof the opening of McGill’smedical faculty. In this she said,“It seems a pity that there is no officialcommemoration of Canada’s first medicalgraduate. This might be a project ofinterest to McGill University, the

medical profession and the country inwhich he was born and educated.”21

Although the CMAJ did offerthe William Logie Prize for anessay on medical ethics between1981 and 1999, neither McGillUniversity nor the country of hisbirth seem to have made mucheffort to commemorate Logie. It’snot too late! �

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTThis article would never havebeen written without the supportof Pamela Miller, who suggestedthe topic, and the extraordinaryediting prowess of DeannaCowan, who polished my proseand checked the references. Mygratitude to both; any remainingerrors are mine alone.

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Notes and references

• Early Canadiana Online: http://www.canadiana.org/ECO/

• PubMed Central: http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/

1. Tunis B.R and Bensley E. H.William Leslie Logie: McGillUniversity’s first graduate andCanada’s first medical graduate.Canadian Medical Association Journal,1971 Dec 4; 105(11):1259-63. Adigitised version of this article isfreely available at PubMed Central.See http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/picrender.fcgi?artid=1931389&blobtype=pdf

2. Hanaway, J and Cruess, R. McGillMedicine: v.1. The first half century,1829-1885. Montreal: McGill-Queen’s University Press, 1996.

3. Hall, A. On the past, present, and futureof the Faculty of Medicine of McGillUniversity: An Introductory Lecturedelivered at the opening of the Session1866-67. Montreal, DawsonBrothers, 1867. This was reprintedin Canada Medical Journal, 1867 Jan;3(7):289-302. A digitised version ofthis article is freely available atEarly Canadiana Online. Searchfor “8_05176_31” and go topp.289-302.

4. Crawford, D S. Edinburgh Uni-versity medical theses at the OslerLibrary. Osler Library Newsletter, 2004;No. 101:1-6. A digitised version ofthe Newsletter is freely availableat the Osler Library website. Seehttp://www.mcgill.ca/files/osler-library/Osnl101.pdf

5. Journal de médecine de Québec = TheQuebec Medical Journal, 1826 Oct;Tome 1:257-261. A digitised versionof this article is freely available atEarly Canadiana Online. Searchfor “8_05171_4” and go to pp.257-261.

6. ibid, 1827 Jan; Tome 2(1):117.A digitised version of this article isfreely available at Early CanadianaOnline. Search for “8_05171_5”and go to page 117.

7. C.R. Ogden to Lord Aylmer, 11November 1831. Civil and ProvincialSecretaries’ Offices, ‘S’ series, RG 4, A1,

Vol. 271:64. Held at Library andArchives Canada.

8. An Act or Ordinance to preventpersons practicing physic andsurgery within the Province ofQuebec, or Midwifery in the townsof Quebec or Montreal, withoutLicence. 1788; 28 Geo III, c8. Adigitised version is available atEarly Canadiana Online. Searchfor “42695” and go to pp.130-133.

9. The senior Loedel was the firstphysician to be registered underthe 1788 Act, and served on theBoard for over 30 years; Arnoldihad been a member since 1812 andRobertson since 1816. (In-formation on Loedel, Arnoldi,Robertson and most of the otherprotagonists of this story, thoughnot Logie himself, appears in theDictionary of Canadian Biography— freely available online.)

10.Canadian Courant and MontrealAdvertiser (Montreal), May 25, 1833and The Gazette (Montreal), May 25,1833.

11. Abbott, M.E. An historical sketchof the Medical Faculty of McGillUniversity. Montreal Medical Journal,1902 Aug; 31(8):561-672. Thislengthy article reprints a series ofletters about the Faculty and itsfounders. A digitised version isfreely available at Early CanadianaOnline. Search for “8_05178_170”and go to pp.561-672.

12. Tunis, B.R. Medical licensing inLower Canada: the dispute overCanada’s first medical degree.Canadian Historical Review, 1974 Dec;55(4):489-504. A digitised version ofthis journal will be available soon.

13. An Act to repeal a certain Act orOrdinance therein mentioned, andto provide effectual Regulationscovering the Practice of Physic,Surgery and Midwifery 1831; 1William IV, c27. A digitised versionis available at Early CanadianaOnline. Search for “9_00926_41”and go to pp.164-179 (subscriptionrequired for this item).

14. Election of members of theMedical Board, 11 July 1831.Heldat Library and Archives Canada.

15. Thomas Fargues graduated fromUniversity of Edinburgh in 1811;his thesis (Dissertatio medicainauguralis de chorea) is in the OslerLibrary.

16. Hanaway, McGill Medicine: v.1, p.16.

17. Logie, William Leslie. Medicalinaugural dissertation on Cynanchetrachealis. Montreal, A.H. Armour,1833. A digitised version of thisthesis is freely available at EarlyCanadiana Online. Search for“9_08208.”

18. Canadian Courant, June 12, 1833

19. Of course, Logie’s was not the firstapplication the Board had receivedsince its reconstitution in 1831. Atits first meeting, it had granted alicence to James Robertson (son ofWilliam), on the presentation of his1830 degree from the Universityof Edinburgh, but had refused toissue certificates to two otherstudents, Cyrille Cote andSeraphim Viger, who had startedtheir education at the MMI but hadin fact graduated from theUniversity of Vermont, after threemonths of study.

20. La Minerve, 4 juil. 1833. Tunisreports that this was an almostverbatim extract from the minutesof the Board.

21. Tunis, B.R. Tribute to WilliamLeslie Logie. Canadian MedicalAssociation Journal, 1980 Feb. 9;122(3): 273. A digitised version ofthis journal is freely available atPubMed Central. See http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/picrender.fcgi?artid=1801817&blobtype=pdf.

Early Canadiana Online is digitisingall Canadian journals published up to1920 — most medical titles arealready freely available at http://www.canadiana.org. In addition, theUS National Library of Medicine hasdigitised the complete set of theCanadian Medical Association Journal,now freely available on PubMedCentral, http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/ .

The Dictionary of Canadian Biogra-phy is freely available at http://www.biographi.ca .

Despite effortsby BarbaraTunis andEdwardBensley,Canada’s firstmedicalgraduate hasbeen virtuallyignored in hishomeland.

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True to thespirit of SirWilliamOsler, theevent broughttogetherstudents andscholars fromboth sides ofthe mountainand fromvariousdisciplines.

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READING THE BODY:JOHANNCASPAR LAVATERAND THE TRADITIONOF PHYSIOGNOMY

by Nikola von Merveldt

On March 27, the OslerLibrary hosted ani n t e r d i s c i p l i n a r y

seminar organized by theInteracting with Print researchgroup on Johann Caspar Lavaterand physiognomics. True to thespirit of Sir William Osler, theevent brought together studentsand scholars from both sides ofthe mountain and from variousdisciplines. Based on his recentarticle “The Science of Sciences:Replication and Reproduction inLavater’s Physiognomics,” theinvited speaker John B. Lyon,professor of German atPittsburgh University, showedhow the Swiss pastor used themedium of the illustrated book tore-establish physiognomy as anartful science. Hundreds of plateswith silhouettes of contem-poraries and portraits by greatartists including Holbein andHogarth were to serve both asscientific evidence and asaesthetic arguments for Lavater’spractice of deciphering the divinealphabet imprinted on the humanface.

With more than 800 en-gravings, Lavater’s Essays onPhysiognomy was in fact one of themost lavishly illustrated andcostly works available on the lateeighteenth-century Europeanbook market. The Osler Libraryboasts several editions inGerman, French, and English ofthis landmark in the history ofscience and the history of thebook, among them a mag-nificently restored English three-

Lavater, Caspard. L’Art de Connaitre les Hommes, v. 9 (Paris, 1820) B.O.3180, Plate 586.

Saunders,Richard.SaundersPhysiognomie…(London,[1670-] 1671)B.O. 3917.

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volume folio edition publishedbetween 1789 and 1810 by JohnMurray with engravings byWilliam Blake, and the raresecond German edition from1775-1778, on which JohannWolfgang von Goethe colla-borated.

Given these riches, theInteracting with Print researchgroup put together an exhibitionon Lavater’s work within thecontext of the early history ofphysiognomics and the laterpopularization of physiognomicknowledge through caricatureand parlour games. The exhi-bition “Reading the Body. JohannCaspar Lavater and the Traditionof Physiognomy” shows howmanuscripts and printed texts andespecially images were calledupon to render the body legibleby illustrating the hiddenrelations between humanphysical features, character,moral disposition, animal traits,ethnicity, cosmic order, anddivine providence. Condemnedin Diderot’s and d’Alembert’sEncyclopédie as an “imaginaryscience” and praised by Lavateras the “science of sciences,” thehistory of physiognomy — andits deployment through themedium of the illustrated book —has much to tell us about theintersecting fields of science andart in the eighteenth century andtheir mutual quest for a universallegibility, whether of books,bodies, or images.

The exhibition was curated byNikola von Merveldt (Dépar-tement de littératures et lan-gues modernes, Université deMontréal) and will be on displayuntil mid-June. For moreinformation on the exhibitionand other activities of theInteracting with Print researchgroup, please go to: http://interactingwithprint.mcgill.ca/index.html �

NEW EXHIBITION ATTHE OSLER LIBRARY

by Allister Neher

At the end of June the OslerLibrary will open anexhibition devoted to

anatomical illustrations and howthey convey theoretical content.The exhibition will focus onEuropean anatomical prints fromthe 16th century to the 19th

century, especially in the English-speaking world. The imagesfound in the great anatomicalatlases and treatises of this fertileperiod are often more thanillustrations. Frequently, they arestriking examples of visualthinking and analysis. Thecentral aim of this exhibition willbe to reveal to specialized andnon-specialized viewers some ofthe factors that influence andmediate the representation of thebody.

Allister Neher of the Huma-nities Department of DawsonCollege will curate theexhibition. Allister has aninterdisciplinary doctorate inPhilosophy and Art History andfor the past five years he has beenbroadening his research programto include the history of

medicine. At the momentAllister’s interests are squarelyfocused on artistic anatomy in theEnglish Enlightenment. It is asubject through which he canbring together all threedisciplines and chart theirinteraction in the creation of themodern idea of the self.

The general theme of theexhibition — factors that influen-ce and mediate the repre-sentation of the body — will beexplored under four sub-headings. The first will concernhow the artistic style of the artisteffects the representation of theanatomical specimen. Thesecond will be about the natureand limits of representational

Cheselden,William.Osteographia…(London, 1733).Cheselden andhis studentsusing a cameraobsura to avoiddistortionscaused byforeshortening.

Bell, Charles,Sir. TheAnatomy andPhilosophy ofExpression asConnected to theFine Arts(London, 1844).Bell instructsartists on thesubtlities andlimits ofexpression.

The generaltheme of theexhibition —factors thatinfluence andmediate therepresentationof the body— will beexploredunder foursub-headings.

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media (woodcut, engraving,lithograph, etc.) and how theydetermine what an image cancommunicate. The third willexamine approaches that havebeen taken to measuring thebody and how they existed intension with artistic canons ofbeauty that governed thedepiction of the human form.The fourth and final sub-headingwill be on representationalstrategies, for instance, how thetask of illustrating a physicalquality — or a structure or asystem — determines whichvisual resources are enlisted andwhy. While the four headings willprovide the basic structure for theorganization of the exhibition,other issues from the history ofart and the history of philosophywill make cameo appearances. �

ROLAND’S CANADIANMEDICAL HISTORYMINIATURES

by Charles Roland

An Early French Surgeon

Jean Demosny (1643-1687)can be seen as representative,if not typical, of the large

numbers of French medicalpractitioners who made their wayto New France in the 17th and 18th

centuries. He was born inNormandy. Nothing is known ofhis early years, nor of his medicaltraining. He enters Canada’shistory in January, 1673, when hemarried Catherine Fol, alsoNormandy-born. Theirs was theonly marriage to be consecratedin Québec City that month.

At this time, Demosny hadonly fourteen years of liferemaining — news of which hewas blissfully unaware — yet heand his wife produced seven

Cowper, William. The Anatomy ofHumane Bodies… (Oxford, 1698).This anatomically and morallyinstructive skeleton, and all the otherengravings in this book, were“borrowed” by Cowper from GovertBidloo’s Anatomia humani corporis of1685, surely the most outrageous caseof plagiarism in the history ofmedicine.

Albinus, Bernhard Siegfried. Tablesof the Skeleton and Muscles of theHuman Body (London, 1749).A complete philosophy of beauty andnature in one picture.

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Dr. AndréTurmel ofQuebec City’sHôpital del’Enfant-Jésusand 24neurosurgeonsand residents

children, two boys and five girls.The oldest child, a son, was JeanJunior, and he also became aphysician.

Most of what we know aboutDemosny and his many medicalcolleagues stems from legalrecords of one kind or another.Marriages, births, and deathswere recorded by the Catholicparishes of New France. Throughthe court system, land dealings,criminal records, court cases ofall kinds, indentures, and similarmatters were recorded and therecords carefully preserved.

Thus we know that Demosnywas surgeon to l’Hôtel Dieu duPrécieux Sang, in Québec, formany years. Indeed, a notesurviving in the hospital recordsstates that Demosny served theinstitution 30 years. If notexaggerated, this means that hemust have begun there in somecapacity at the age of 14, sincehe died at 44. By 1684, Demosnyhad earned the title of“Lieutenant of the King’s FirstSurgeon.”

A contract is extant betweenDemosny and a student, oneIgnace Pellerin. There were nomedical schools in New Franceat that time — nor anywhere inNorth America — so one couldonly obtain medical training viaapprenticeship. Pellerin was 17when the indenture was signed;it was to be in effect for threeyears. Demosny promised “...toshow and teach as best he can,the said art and profession ofsurgery as well as anything elsehe involves himself in, to furnishhim with board, a warm lodging,and a bed, to treat him kindly andhumanely as befitting.”

The student undertook to servehis master in the art of surgery,“and in everything licit andhonest which he might request,”to obey and work for himfaithfully, not absenting himselfnor working elsewhere. A sum of200 livres was Demosny’s fee for

professional ancestors in Canada.However, the kinds of in-formation are limited, andDemosny’s records provide atypical example of theselimitations. We can discover afew things about his personal life,but only in terms of events suchas marriage. Had he been morecontentious we would find morelawsuits and more data. Un-fortunately, we know nothingabout how he practised medicine,nor how his patients and hiscolleagues viewed him. �

SPECIAL VISITS TOTHE OSLER LIBRARY

O n January 19th, Dr.André Turmel ofQuebec City’s Hôpital

de l’Enfant-Jésus held a day longtalk on the history of neuro-surgery at the Osler Library. The24 neurosurgeons and residentswho attended from the Montrealarea and other parts of Quebecalso saw a number of treasures inDr. Turmel’s and the Osler’s col-lections. The event carries onOsler’s particular wish to makehis collection available to hisFrench speaking colleagues.

undertaking this educationaleffort, half of which was paidwhen the indenture was signed,the other half at its successfulcompletion. This document wassigned 4 March 1676.

A common reason for thesurvival of such documents is thatlegal records must be conserved.In Demosny’s case, some of hispatients neglected to pay theiraccounts and eventually thisbecame a matter for the courts tosettle. In 1676, the surgeon feltobligated to sue one family foran outstanding debt of 73 livres.Because repeated requests forpayment were fruitless, thedoctor had two bulls seized thatbelonged to the family. TheSovereign Council declared theseizure illegal, but “sentenced theappealing party to pay theamount claimed.” On anotheroccasion, Demosny seized taxes,rent, and other monies, to cancelone of his bills. Obviously, bill-collecting was an active processin those pre-insurance days.

Demosny was also church-warden in the parish of Notre-Dame de Québec, late in his life.In his accounting, presented afterhis year in office, we find thatpew rentals amounted to morethan 273 livres per year.

Obviously, much informationis available about our early

Becauserepeatedrequests forpayment werefruitless, thedoctor hadtwo bullsseized thatbelonged tothe family.

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The eventcarries onOsler’sparticularwish to makehis collectionavailable tohis Frenchspeakingcolleagues.

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Editorial Committee for the Newsletter: FaithWallis, Editor; Pamela Miller, History ofMedicine Librarian and Assistant Editor;Lily Szczygiel, Editorial Assistant.

Address: Osler Library of the History ofMedicine, McGill University, McIntyreMedical Sciences Building, 3655 PromenadeSir-William-Osler, Montréal, Québec,Canada, H3G 1Y6.Tel: (514) 398-4475 ext. 09873Fax: (514) 398-5747E-mail: osler.library@mcgill.caURL: http://www.mcgill.ca/osler-library/

Legal Deposit 1/2008 ISSN 0085-4557Legal Deposit 1/2008 ISSN 1712-7955

approved by the Board’sCommittee of the Whole.” Dr.Chuck Roland was the invitedspeaker on that occasion.

Recent Publications

Building on Osler’s much-publicized address, “The FixedPeriod”, Dr. Bill Gibson has justpublished a volume, dear to hisheart entitled, Old Endeavour,Scientific and HumanitarianContributions by Physicians Over Age65. It includes 129 biographies ofretired physicians and surgeonsfrom around the world who havesignificantly enriched medical,scientific and social progressfollowing retirement. Infor-mation about ordering this workmay be obtained by writing to:contact@iahm.org or by sendinga fax to the InternationalAssociation for HumanitarianMedicine in Palermo at + 39 091-59-64-04 or by writing to IAHM,Ospedale Civico, chirurgiaPlastica, Via C. Lazzaro, 90127Palermo, Italy.

Dr. Terence Ryan would like toannounce that historian Dr.Alistair Robb-Smith’s papers arenow accessible through Green

Members of The Queen’sUniversity History ofMedicine annual field

trip visited the Osler Library atthe end of an exciting visit toMontreal. Professor Jaclyn Duffina member of our Board ofCurators and Hannah Professorof the History of Medicine atQueen’s kept them busy withvisits to the Oratoire de St.Joseph, the Hopital General desSœurs Grises and the Musée del’Hôtel Dieu. �

NOTES FROM THEOSLER LIBRARY

On Tuesday, the 29th ofApril, the Sir WilliamOs le r E l ementa ry

School in Dundas, Ontario heldits formal Opening Ceremony.(The school opened to pupils, K-8, last autumn.) The name wasselected by a naming committee(students, parents, teachers,Board personnel, and communitymembers), which invitedsuggestions — and received morethan 120! “Based on prede-termined criteria, Sir WilliamOsler was selected and later

College’s web page containingmuch information about SirWilliam Osler. The address is:http://www.green.ox.ac.uk/about-the-college/13-Norham-gardens.html

Following the publication of thebiography of H.Rocke Robertsonentitled, Rocke Robertson, Surgeonand Shepherd of Change, McGill-Queen’s University Press, 2008,by Dick Pound, Stuart Robertsonwrote to inform us that hisbrother Ian had just published abook entitled, While Bullets Fly,Trafford Press, Victoria, about thedevelopment and operation ofthe field surgical unit duringWorld War II. Their father (Dr.H. Rock Robertson) commandedthe No. 2 Canadian Field SurgicalUnit in Sicily in 1943-44. Theconcept behind the field surgicalunit inspired the post-wardevelopment of trauma care andintensive care units in today’shospitals. �

Photo by Professor Jaclyn Duffin of Queen’s University History of Medicinestudents with Pam Miller.