680

Clement’s case, we feel bound to add that the thanks of theprofession are due to him for his defence of the case of thecontractors under the Act of 1853. He has unquestionablymade out a point for legal decision.

REPRESENTATION OF EDINBURGH ANDST. ANDREWS UNIVERSITIES.

A MEETING of the General Councils of the Universities of

Edinburgh and St. Andrews, was held in the Queen-streetHall, Edinburgh, on Tuesday afternoon, the 17th inst. Prof.

Christison, Vice-chancellor of the University of Edinburgh forelection purposes, presided. On the platform were PrincipalSir Alexander Grant, Edinburgh, Principal Tulloch, St. An-drews, and most of the Edinburgh and a few of the St.Andrews professors. The body of the hall was crowded withelectors.The CHAIRMAN having read the writ for the election,Professor SYME, who on rising was loudly cheered, proposed

Dr. Lyon Play fair. He avoided political topics, but alludedto Dr. Playfair’s well-known literary and scientific character,the number of Royal and Parliamentary commissions on whichhe had been asked to serve, the great influence which hehad acquired, and his thorough knowledge of Universitymatters. At the conclusion of his speech he denounced inemphatic terms the conduct of the Courant newspaper in

endeavouring to rouse against Dr. Playfair the prejudices ofthe medical electors by representing that Dr. Playfair was nota medical man. Disgraceful conduct! which the committeefor Mr. Swinton had condoned by publishing and circulatingthese objectionable articles. He showed that Dr. Playfairhad received a full medical education, but had not graduated,from’ a determination to devote himself to science ; he hadalways associated with medical men, and had been for tenyears a member of the Aberdeen Faculty in the University.He proposed Dr. Playfair amid loud cheers.

Principal TULLOCH (of St. Andrews) seconded the nomina-tion. He supported Dr. Playtair because he was a Liberal ;he supported his views on the Irish Church ; showed what hewas likely to do for education, considering what he had

already done, and also for opening up the English univer-sities. He also was loudly cheered.

Sir JOHN McNEILL proposed Mr. Campbell Swinton. Hecongratulated the University on obtaining representation, ad-vocated Mr. Swinton’s claims from his long-continued effortsfor the good of the University, and his Conservative politics,and deprecated the destruction of the Irish Church.He was seconded by Professor SHAIRP (of St. Andrews) in

a thorough Tory speech. He made several bitter allusions toMr. Gladstone, which were received with storms of hisses onthe one side, and cheers on the other. The indignation of themeeting reached a climax when he alluded to the Justice-General, saying, " whom I am glad to think is soon to be yourChancellor." This ill-judged and impertinent assumption wasreceived with a storm of groans and hisses, shouts of laughter,and great confusion, and nearly ten minutes elapsed beforethe orator recovered presence of mind enough to resume hisspeech.No show of hands was taken, and the poll was appointed to

take place. -

THE MEDICAL TEACHERS’ ASSOCIATION.

THIS important Association held its first annual meeting onMonday last, when the election of officers took place, Sir W.Jenner, tBart., replacing Mr. Simon as President, and Mr.Campbell De Morgan with Professor Allen Miller being electedVice-presidents. The main business of the evening was thecliscussion of the report of the Council of the Association onMedical Education, which we epitomised and remarked uponin THE LANCET of the 31st of October. The discussion was

necessarily of a somewhat desultory character, and does notrequire a detailed report. Dr. Sibson, who had evidently verycarefully considered the report, objected to any suggestionbeing put forth by the Association that " free studentship " Was in any way applicable to the study of medicine, and main-

tained that proper clinical instruction could only be obtainedfrom regular teachers in proper clinical wards. This view wassupported, and the paragraph in question was expunged. Ob-jection was also taken to the clause epitomising the variouscourses of lectures, &c., required of medical students, and itwas proposed to omit it ; but a majority thought it should beretained, as giving information not generally known, and theclause was adopted subject to such alterations as the recentregulations of the College of Surgeons, delegating the signingof schedules to one recognised officer, rendered necessary.A long and warm discussion ensued upon the clause (5) in

which the Council expressed a strong opinion of the futility ofthe present certificate system, of which the omission wasmoved by Mr. Gascoyen, on the ground that it did not apply tomany London schools, where attendance was registered; andthe sentence was at length amended so as to state that certi.ficates "may mean little or nothing else than that the studenthas paid such fees as have entitled him to attend the coursesin question "-a statement not far from the truth, as we haveevery reason to believe. The case of systematic lectures versusprivate reading and study was another subject which engrossedconsiderable attention. Dr. Sibson, Dr. Salter, Mr. Heath,and others upheld lectures when accompanied by frequent ex.aminations as giving something which mere reading could not

supply, and the meeting, bearing in mind probably that " faithcometh by hearing," supported the view that lectures couldnot be done away with, and expunged the paragraph in whichthe proposition, not very flattering to lecturers, was enunciated,that a student might "get his systematic view of Surgery orMateria Medica by reading text-books of these subjects ratherthan by having (so to speak) the same text-books read to himby lecturers."The adjournment of the debate for a fortnight took place

at this point, and we therefore reserve our comments until theconsideration of the report is concluded. The business of theevening was brought to a close by the proposal of a vote ofthanks to the retiring President, Mr. Simon, which was movedby Mr. Charles Hawkins (who commented upon the advantagesof a discussion such as had taken place), and was carried byacclamation.

MEDICINE AT THE COLLEGE OF SURGEONS.

THE examination for the diploma of the College of Surgeonswhich has been held during the past week is remarkable asbeing the first at which the candidates were required either toproduce some evidence of having passed a medical examina-tion, or to submit to a special examination in Medicine. Dr.Peacock and Dr. Wilks put the following paper before thecandidates, who were given from 3.30 to 5 o’clock on Saturdayto answer it, at the conclusion of the written examination inSurgery, which was curtailed by one hour.

"1. What are the symptoms by which typhoid fever ischiefly characterised? What are the appearances detected inthe body after death from typhoid ? What are the chief dis-tinctions between typhoid and typhus ? ’?

"2. What are the symptoms and signs which characterisethe different stages of pneumonia ? ’? How would you distin-guish the disease from pleurisy and from bronchitis ?

" 3. What is the mode of preparation, and the chemicalcomposition, of hydrargyri subchloridum, ferri sulphas, andacidum hydrocyanicum dilutum (British Pharmacopoeia, 1867) ?What is the composition and the proportion of the more im-portant ingredient in the following preparations (B. P. 1867);and for what purposes, and in what doses, would you employthem ? - Pilula saponis composita ; Pulvis cretaa aromaticuscum opio; Liquor morphiae acetatis; Liquor arsenicalis; Vinumantimoniale."

These questions would afford a very fair test of a candidate’sknowledge, and they were supplemented by a vivâ-voce exami-nation of a quarter of an hour’s length on the evening thateach candidate presented himself for the surgical vivd-voceexamination. The two examiners sat together in the innerlibrary, and each conducted the examination alternately,giving attention both to the diagnosis and treatment of dis-ease, and to the uses and proportions of the various drugs.Thanks to the introduction of an examination in the appli-

cation of splints and bandages, and the mapping out of the