188 HISTORICAL ACCOUNT OF THE VETERINARY DEPARTMENT OF 



At the general meeting of the Society in June 1876, it was 

 reported that on the 24th May a deputation from it had waited 

 on the Lord President at the Privy Council Office, for the ^^i^r- 

 pose of asking that a Charter should be granted to the Society, 

 by which their powers of granting certificates might be extended 

 to that of diplomas. The Earl of Dalkeith introduced the depu- 

 tation, and after various I'emarks by several members, the Duke 

 of Eichmond said the Memorial should receive his earnest atten- 

 tion. 



The result of that application was reported to the general 

 meeting in January 1877, by Captain Tod of Howden intimating 

 that the prayer of the Society's petition had been refused. The 

 letter from the Privy Council Office is in the following terms : — 



" Privy Council Office, I2th December- 1876. 

 " My Lord, — I am dii-ected by the Lord President of the Council to inform 

 yon that the Lords of the Council have given their careful consideration to 

 the petition of the Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland, praying 

 for the grant of supplemental Charter ; and I am instructed to state that 

 their Lordships have felt it their duty to advise Her Majesty not to comply 

 with the prayer of the petitioners. — I have the honour to be, my Lord, your 

 Lordship's obedient servant, (Signed) C. L. Peel. 



" The Earl of Strathmore, Vice-President, 

 Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland." 



On the Duke of Buccleuch beino; informed at the same meeting 

 that no reasons had been cfiven for the unfavourable decision. His 

 Grace said it was perhaps nothing more than jealousy on the part 

 of the Veterinary College in London that anything better than 

 itself should be tolerated. 



It has since come to the knowledge of the Society that, as on 

 former occasions, the Society's petition was opposed by the Eoyal 

 College of Veterinary Surgeons ; and in the report by the Council 

 laid before their annual meeting on the 7th May 1877, and pub- 

 lished in the "Veterinarian" for June 1877, a new light was thrown 

 on the nature and extent of that opposition. In the report re- 

 ferred to there is a letter addressed by Major-General Sir 

 Frederick Fitzwygram to the Duke of Eichmond and Gordon, 

 President of the Privy Council, from which it appears that the 

 Council of the Eoyal College addressed circulars to (1) those 

 members holding the certificate of the Society, in addition to 

 that of the diploma of the Eoyal College ; (2) those who were 

 educated in Scottish schools, but who hold only the diploma of 

 the Eoyal College ; and (3) those practising in Scotland. The 

 result, as given in Sir Frederick's letter, was that under the second 

 head all objected to the Society's application, while out of 319 

 replies received under the first and third heads, only three per- 

 sons were in favour of the Society's application. Among those 

 who objected were the Principals of the three Scottish schools. 



