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treasurer the sum of £7 10s. for contingent expenses; that each member pay annually to the library the sum of £2 10s.; that students pay a fee of 10s.; and that the profession in the town be notified of the existence of a Library, and that every member of it may avail himself of its advantages by paying the annual fee of £1 1s. At present no fee is demanded from the student, and its exclusive sources of maintenance and enlargement are the matriculation and graduation fees. I have only to say that the Library was the late Dr. Holmes' especial care and pleasure, and its present condition is mainly, if not entirely, due to the self-denying exertions of that most estimable friend and colleague.

In 1828 I began the study of medicine, and at the session of 1831-32 I was a student of three years' standing. The latter year was a memorable one for Canada, and especially for the city of Montreal. The population of this town was that year 30,000, when the epidemic of Asiatic cholera broke out, and carried off in less than three months 3000 of the inhabitants. During that memorable summer, both students and physicians, all worked hard both by night and by day. During the day, in conjunction with a fellow student of the name of Logie, the first graduate of this University in 1833, I had charge of and attended the Cholera sheds, two long wooden buildings at Point St. Charles, while we alternately slept every week at Dr. Robertson's house to do his night work, as he was so hard wrought with professional duty during the day, that he was glad to seek and obtain as much repose at night as possible. I never can forget the still quietude of the town, when called out during the night to visit for the doctor some new and unfortunate case. Nothing broke the calm serenity of the summer night, while walking or riding through the streets, except the occasional clatter of the feet of some man running for professional aid, or the pitiful cry of another labouring under the disease, and calling for assistance. The arduous duty of that summer proved too much for the constitution of Dr. Caldwell, and I heard in Edinburgh, to which place I had gone that autumn to complete my studies, of his decease from typhus or typhoid fever. Dr. Racey, a young physician, filled up the vacancy; but his connection with the Faculty ceased in 1836, when he returned to Quebec, his native place, and Dr. Campbell and myself were associated with some alteration of the chairs—the former lecturing on Surgery, and myself on Materia Medica, doing, in fact, that session Dr. Holmes' duty, so far as that branch was concerned. Repeated alterations have taken place in the composition of the Faculty since that period of time, the object of them all having been the gradual extension of the curriculum, with a proportionate augmentation of the staff, so that from the original five who composed it, the number has

now increased to nine or ten, the object of this increase having been to develop more thoroughly each branch of medical study, and to harmonize the system of instruction here more intimately with that of the schools in Great Britain.

The next important circumstance connected with the College was its formal opening in 1843, and a pamphlet now before me contains the address of Dr. Bethune, Principal, on the occasion. The organization of the College appears now to have been completed, with the exception of the Faculty of Law. Among other matters, he observed that " a Professorship has been established in the Faculty of Medicine, with a competent number of lectureships in its various branches, and the Governors entertain a strong hope of being enabled shortly to establish a professorship in the Faculty of Law. In the Arts, professorships of Classical Literature, and of Mathematics and Natural Philosophy, have been established; and to all these appointments have been made, with the exception of Mathematics and Natural Philosophy." A professorship was also established in Divinity, which gave rise to a vast deal of acrimonious discussion, and was one, among other causes, which led to an amendment of the charter in 1852, with the abolition of the Divinity chair. These are matters, however, with which we have nothing to do. I will only, in conclusion of this division of our subject, say that, with the exception of some three years, at the time of the rebellion in 1837, the sessions of our faculty have been regularly held. Commencing in 1825 with twenty-five students, it was not until the year 1844 that the number became increased to fifty. Since then its numbers have steadily progressed, and the matriculation register of this year exhibits the large number of 181, while the number of graduates settled over the Province, and in foreign countries, some of whom are practising with distinguished success, is upwards of 400. I need not say that the success which attended our efforts created great opposition. I have already alluded to the French School of Medicine, established simultaneonsly with the foundation of this School, and which continued in operation for many years, but it was succeeded, if I remember rightly, after a temporary suspension, by the present one, which was founded in 1843, and incorporated by an Act of the Provincial Parliament in 1845. This was succeeded by the Incorporation of the St. Lawrence School of Medicine in 1851; but the latter, in the course of a few years, was discontinued, from the want of support, and soon "paled its ineffectual fire."

The last subject which I desire to notice in regard to the past history of our Faculty is the relative position of this School of Medicine and the French School of Medicine; and I am the more anxious to notice it, as

the facts connected with it have been a good deal misrepresented. I must notice the restless activity of the members of the French School, who regularly every session of the Legislature, since its Incorporation in 1845, had applied for the power of granting diplomas, a measure which, in the interests of the Profession, we felt it our duty to oppose—as experience has universally demonstrated this fact, that, in accordance with the number of Institutions possessing the power of granting degrees or diplomas, so has the profession degenerated; while another very powerful argument against the delegation of any such power consisted in the fact that the same privilege could not have been justly withheld from every other school of medicine existing and to exist. In order to put an end to the wrangling, which was continually going on, in the year 1847 an alliance was entered into between the two Schools, by which the School of Medicine became virtually the French Department of the Faculty of Medicine of McGill College. The terms of the agreement were embodied in a paper, copies of which were mutually interchanged; and I will take the liberty of quoting certain portions of it.

The third clause states "that the students of the School of Medicine shall be entitled to become candidates for graduation at McGill College, fulfilling only the requirements necessary to bring them within the class of students of the University, which are, first, matriculation during one session, and, second, during that session, having taken out any two of the six-months courses required by the curriculum, which together form an annus medicus.

The fourth clause states that "the examination of the students of the School of Medicine for the degree shall be conducted by the Lecturers in that School, but shall be held within the College, and in the presence of the Medical Faculty, and generally be in accordance with the statutes of the Medical Faculty.

"Fifth. The students of the School of Medicine thus obtaining the privilege of becoming candidates for the Degree, the School of Medicine will cease to grant certificates of qualification."

[I should here remark, parenthetically, that the School was in the habit of going through the farce of examining such students as presented themselves to the Lecturers, granting them a regular Diploma, pocketing a fee for it, and this without the slightest legal authority.]

The sixth, seventh and eighth clauses relate to the mutual enjoyment or use of the respective libraries; that the class fees should be the same in both Schools; and that the graduation fees accruing from their students should be paid over to the School of Medicine, for the sole use of its library.

During the three years in which this arrangement was in operation, fourteen of the students of the School of Medicine availed themselves of its advantages-advantages superior to any which it could have obtained from the Legislature. In 1850 the Members of the School virtually annulled the agreement with the Faculty in again renewing their agitation for an alteration of their Act of Incorporation, so as to enable them to issue certificates of qualification. On the 26th August, 1850, at a meeting of the Faculty, the following minute will at once explain the proceedings:-" The question of the late proceedings of the School of Medicine, as regards their attempt to procure an alteration of their Act of Incorporation, by which the agreement between it and the Medical Faculty was virtually annulled, was then considered; and the Secretary was directed to write to the Secretary of the School of Medicine, informing him that, in consequence of the School having virtually withdrawn from their engagement, especially in reference to their granting a certificate, the Faculty will no longer continue to them the privilege of examining their students seeking graduation, nor of receiving the graduation fee as formerly; but that no abridgment of the privileges of the students ·will take place." Upon the strength of this resolution, whatever the Lecturers of that School may say, the student enjoys the same privilege now that he had before the breach of faith took place. All that was done by us was to withdraw from an alliance with parties who could keep no faith with us; but as it would have been unjust to punish the students for what was no act of their commission, their relationship with the University has been ever since maintained by the Faculty, although not one since 1850 has taken advantage of this opportunity, doubtless from some misconception or misrepresentation, one of which actually occurs in the answer of Dr. Meilleur in the "Report of the Special Committee on the Laws relative to the practice of Physic, Surgery and Midwifery in Lower Canada," dated October, 1852. Dr. Meilleur's report concludes with "an extract from the registers of the Montreal School of Medicine and Surgery." I will merely quote as much as suits my present object and to save time:--" A certain number (fourteen) were examined by the Professors of the said School, and the rest by those of McGill College' (not one was examined by any Lecturer of the College, although one, and sometimes two of them were present, and who were usually indifferent to the proceedings), " in pursuance of an arrangement entered into between the School and McGill College, but which arrangement was broken by McGill College, since the request made in 1851 to the Legislature by the School of Medicine and Surgery, in order to obtain the right of granting to its pupils a certificate which the Provincial Board would be bound

to receive without requiring the possessor to submit to further examination." This extract from the register of the school was signed by Drs. Munro and Boyer, and is a thorough condemnation; but it told only a part of the truth, by no means the whole truth; and I feel assured that if the students of that school only knew the privileges to which they are even now entitled, quite a number during the last sixteen years would have availed themselves of them. Such then, gentlemen, is the last relationship of the Medical Faculty to the School of Medicine, a school which has now effected an affiliation with Victoria College. For what purpose? To obtain for its students a collegiate honour, one which they could have obtained at any time from our own University at a less expense than by a visit to Cobourg.

Such, gentlemen, is a sketch of the past history of the faculty of Medicine of this University. It is chequered at the best, and exhibits a protracted struggle in favour of the Profession, with whose best interests it has been always identified. The present class, as well as those of preceding years, attests in the most marked manner that its labours are appreciated. As Professors, the present members of the Faculty pretend to nothing more than a faithful delineation of those branches of medical science which have been severally committed to their trust; and if our College has enjoyed a name second to that of none in British America, or even on this Continent, it is simply attributable to the fact, that its Professors have done their duty--a fact moreover demonstrated by the numbers present this day.

But what shall I say of the present and future of the Faculty? No change whatever has been made in the curriculum for the degree, except. as regards the classical attainments of the candidates for it. This again is a move in the right direction: one which I have long wished to see. There can be no doubt of the truth of the saying, that the more highly educated a young man is before commencing the study of Medicine, the better prepared his mind will be to profit by the lectures. Of this there can be no doubt. The General Council of Medical Education and Registration of Great Britain required a few years ago a severe test on the part of a candidate, and the Upper Canada Act, passed during the last session of the Legislature, has adopted very nearly the same scheme. To these we have been compelled to conform. Among the requirements is a knowledge of the Greek language. I must confess that none can compare with this one in beauty or sublimity. Its study is most seductive; and when I remark that by far the greater por tion of our medical terms are Anglicised compounds from its words, its importance to an educated physician can scarcely be overrated. In fact,

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