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narrow-minded ignorance of the true interests of the

patients, and of medical science, which we should scarcelyhave credited on the part of public functionaties in modernAthens, had it not been so clearly proved. It is reallyimpossible to conceive on what grounds so natural a demandas that of Dr. Cormack and one so modestly put, could berejected. As we stated a few weeks back, when discussingthe same subject with reference to the Leicester Infirmary,hospitals have two-fold purposes to serve. Firstly, andprincipally, they are destined to afford relief to the sick

poor who are received within their gates, and secondly,they are called upon to furnish to those who are learningthe symptoms and nature of disease, with a view to treat-ing it out of hospitals, an opportunity of studying on alarge scale, under the eye, and with the assistance of men who are supposed to possess a more than. ordinary amountof information respecting the healing art. This, which wemay call the second obligation of hospitals, ought to befurthered in every possible way; and in none can it be moreadvanced than by encouraging the medical officers in givingclinical instruction to pupils. Dr. Cormack ought to havereceived the warmest thanks and approbation of the mana-gers of the infirmary, instead of being flatly and uncourte-ously denied his request.

THE professional public will be delighted to perceive, by anadvertisement which appears in THE LANCET of this week,that a subscription has been opened for defraying the ex-penses which Mr. WESTLAKE, the surgeon of the ANDOVER

UNION, incurred in prosecuting the inquiry into the dis-

graceful conduct of M’DOUGAL, the governor of the work-house. In return for the public services of MR. WESTLAKE,the guardians have suspended him from his office, and thequestion is now before the Poor-Law Commissioners; but

the rate-payers of the town, in order to show their admira-tion of -LNir. WESTLAKE’S conduct, elected him, on Saturdaylast, by a triumphant majority, into the-town council of theborough. Such a man as Mr. WESTLAKE is an honour to

the profession, and a powerful shield to the afflicted poor.

EXAMINATION OF THE MAD AND FOOLISHMEMORIAL BY THE BRISTOL ASSOCIATIONCOMMITTEE.

AT a meeting of the Committee of the Bristol Association ofSurgeons, held October 2-1th, 1845, a Sub-Committee was ap-pointed to examine a certain Memorial, addressed to Sir JamesGraham, Baronet, purporting to have issued from a meeting ofFellows and Members of the Royal College of Surgeons of Eng-land, held at the Golden Cross, Charing-Cross, London, October9th last. At an adjourned meeting of the Committee, heldOctober 29th, Wm. James, Esq., M. D., surgeon, in the chair,the following Report of the Sub-Committee was unanimouslyadopted.

Report of 5’M&-C’OMMtMee.Your Sub-Committee having given the document their best

consideration, and paid careful attention to each paragraph,beg now to lay the result before your Committee.

1st.—They consider that this paragraph does not merit parti-cular attention, as it merely embraces a notice of the prayer ofthe Bristol Memorial, and is introductory to the remainder.

2d.—This is correct in letter, incorrect in spirit, inasmuch asthe Council of the College, in the manner of appointing theFellows, have exposed themselves to the inference, that theirown re-election would result from the suffrages being given totheir friends.

3d.—Incorrect in fact, as the. present eminent position " ofthe profession of surgery in England" is more to be ascribed tothe collective intelligence and integrity of its members, than’ to any benefits resulting from the government of the Council

of the College, characterized as that has been by many acts ofa worse than doubtful tendency.

4th.—The unjust conduct of the Council must prove to everyhonest mind its complete inaptitude to direct any scientificbody, as its principles have not appeared to be of the sound,orthodox, high character, which from its position we have aright to expect; nor does the Bristol Memorial anywhere ex-press a wish to place the College under the government of HerMajesty’s Ministers, but has only prayed them to grant a sup-plemental Charter, which would have the effect of neutralizingthe recent act of injustice.

5th.-This paragraph requires no comment.6th.—We congratulate the profession that only sixty-eight,

out of upwards of 12,000 Members, or about one in two hundred,have been found weak enough to submit to an examination, afterthe iniquitous proceedings of the Council, and, so far fromagreeing with the conclusions of the Golden Cross gentlemen,inattributing the rejection of the fifteen to their ignorance, weshould rather infer it to be the result of a continued extensionof the same unjust principles which had guided the Council inits previous selections.

7th.-The allusion in this paragraph to ,injustice and breachof good faith," is not based on truth, with reference to the

objects of the Bristol, or, rather, we should say, the Memorialistsfrom all parts of the United Kingdom: but this may veritablybe applied to the degradation intended by the Council for theMembers of the College.8th.-The first part of this paragraph seems to have been

written when the Golden Cross gentlemen had reasoned themselvesinto the belief, that the supposed probable injustice to fifty-three members was to eclipse that actually inflicted on 12,000,and, under this impression, not only approved of the conductof those gentlemen who had truckled to the Council, actedunwisely to themselves and families, and, at least, ungenerouslyto their professional brethren, but also desire further to in-crease the insult, by perpetuating it. The second portion isof the most extraordinary character, inasmuch as it prays forsupport to be given to a quality that does not exist, viz.: thedignity of the Council of the College. Were the prayer that dig-nity should be infused into the proceedings of that body, sofar from objecting, we should have the highest pleasure inacceding to it. GEO. ROGERS; R. DAVIS, M.D.; H. RoBERT-sorr, M. D.; Sub-Committee.The Committee of the Bristol Association of Surgeons feeling

that no public document, however mean and trivial in its cha-racter, tending injuriously to affect the interests of the profes-sion, should be suffered to pass unanswered, have adopted theresolutions on the details of the before mentioned document.By direction of the Committee, HENRY ROBERTSON, M. D.; J.

P. McDONALD, Hon. Sec.

MEDICAL SOCIETY OF LONDON.

MONDAY, OCT. 27, 1845.—DR. THEOPHILUS THOMPSON, PRESIDENT.DR. CLUTTERBUCK made some general remarks on the discussionof the preceding meeting, in which he commented on the dis-crepancy of opinion which appeared to exist, not only withrespect to the nature of purpura, but also with reference to itstreatment. He knew the difficulties of the subject, and hadhimself no specific opinion to offer. He commented on thetreatment pursued in Mr. Dendy’s case, as too active andsevere.

Mr. DENDY explained that he had carefully watched theeffects of the remedies he had employed, and not administeredthem without extreme caution. He urged that mercury didnot exert its specific powers on young children; its actionbeing arrested by its becoming obstructed by the mucus

always present in the bowels of patients at that early periodof life. He had never seen ptyalism under the age of three orfour years. With respect to the employment of arsenic, hehad, in other instances, given as much as in the present case.His experience went to show that arsenic did no good in thescaly eruptions of children, previous to the eighth or ninthyear. The indications to leave off the use of arsenic were veryplain: the child complained of pain in the head, which usuallydrooped on the shoulder; he then stopped with the medicines,administered diaphoretics and purgatives, and then com-

menced with the arsenic again.Mr. Bisiiop had found that, unless the system bore the use

of arsenic for six or eight weeks, that medicine had no effecton the scaly eruptions of children. Larger doses of arsenicwere borne better in proportion as the menstruum was large.

Mr. DENDY had failed with arsenic, even when he had con-tinued it for six or seven weeks.