Historical address : delivered before the Medical Society of the County of Albany in the state of New-York, November 11, 1856, being its semi-centennial anniversary meeting / by Sylvester D. Willard.

  • Willard, Sylvester David, 1825-1865.
Date:
1857
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Historical address : delivered before the Medical Society of the County of Albany in the state of New-York, November 11, 1856, being its semi-centennial anniversary meeting / by Sylvester D. Willard. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the National Library of Medicine (U.S.), through the Medical Heritage Library. The original may be consulted at the National Library of Medicine (U.S.)

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    or surgery. The law of 1844, modifying the law of 1836, does not abolish this penalty, as has frequently, though erroneously, been supposed. But the power given to medical colleges evidently supersedes it, by allowing them to grant licenses for the whole State, and which are not affected by any other consideration. Now, it was the object of this society, from the time of its organi- zation, to draw wide the lines of distinction between the licensed and unlicensed practitioner. It frowned upon every man in the profession who did not regard the law and make application to enrol his name with it. It held the spirit of executing the law to the very letter, and of inflicting its full penalty upon any who did not immediately comply with its requisitions. Such a policy established for the people a medical police; but it was an extreme policy, and led to frequent and annoying suits in law, causing no small expense to the society as well as trouble to special com- mittees. Some of these suits dragged their way to aweary ter- mination. The plan of eradicating empiricism by a resort to legal measures against it, at length assumed the appearance of profes- sional tyranny and persecution. In medicine, as in politics, men are not so easily and favorably won by such ultra measures, and the society was always further from the accomplishment of its real purpose, when these suits were terminated, than when they began, although some, and I am not sure but all of them were de- cided in its favor. Besides, the prosecution of these suits was disagreeable and undignified. At one time our society required that all physicians practising in the city and county, even though they had been graduated at medical colleges in other States, or a foreign university, should not be admitted to fellowship until they had submitted to an ex- amination before the Board of Censors; a requirement which was not likely to be either promptly or cheerfully complied with;and yet the physician who resisted such a demand was considered un- licensed, and in the eye of the law is so regarded at the present day. Another topic upon which a difference of opinion was always likely to be exercised, was the non observance of Medical Ethics. In other—and perhaps in days when the members of our society were less amiable than now, violations of professional civilities did occur. These violations led to complaints, investigating committees, reports, and other measures, not calculated to heal personal animosities, or promote the interests of the society. When the law of 1844 was passed, which abolished certain distinctions between educated and uneducated physicians, the society appointed a committee to take into consideration the