146 HISTORICAL ACCOUNT OF THE VETERINARY DEPARTMENT OF 



Twenty -eighth Session, 1850-51. 



Mr Burn Murdoch of Gartincaber, who succeeded Mr 

 Fergusson of Woodhill iu 1834, resigned the Chairmanship 

 of the Veterinary Committee in 1850. By his unremitting 

 attention he materially assisted in obtaining for the Veterinary 

 College the position which it occupied at this time. The 

 efficiency of its public examinations, and the value of the 

 Society's certificate were much enhanced by the assiduous 

 and admirable manner in which Mr Murdoch, at great labour 

 to himself, annually presided over these examinations. At the 

 General Meeting in January 1851, the thanks of the Society 

 were most cordially voted to Mr Burn Murdoch for his valuable 

 services during a period of sixteen years. At the same time 

 Mr Goodsir, professor of anatomy, was elected Chairman, with 

 the heartiest approval of the Society. 



Juries Bill. — In 1851 a Bill was introduced into the House 

 of Lords by Lord Beaumont, exempting veterinary surgeons 

 from service on juries, but restricting the privilege to members 

 of the Eoyal College of Veterinary Surgeons. The Society 

 applied for an extension in favour of veterinary surgeons 

 educated in Edinburgh and holding the Society's certificate. 

 The real promoters of the Bill were the Eoyal College of 

 Veterinary Surgeons, and they abandoned the measure rather 

 than permit its provisions to be extended to the Society's 

 graduates. 



In reporting on the course for 1850-51, Professor Goodsir 

 said that the College had been in such an efficient state hitherto 

 that he had very little to mention in reference to it. The 

 lectures had been conducted as usual ; and if they might judge 

 by the progress made by those students who came forward for 

 certificates, the success of the College, under its different 

 teachers, had been very great. He had some experience in the 

 examination of students, and he must say that he had not been 

 in the habit of meeting with more satisfactory progress among 

 the members of his own profession. He had on this year's 

 examination of the Veterinary College, which took place on the 

 21st and 22d April, ventured on a slight change in the arrange- 

 ment. Hitherto the plan adopted was to examine one student 

 at a time ; but this season they had three students under 

 ■examination in three different departments at thp same time — 

 lirst, in anatomy and physiology; secondly, in chemistry and 

 therapeutics ; and lastly, the three students were examined by 

 experienced veterinary surgeons. The number of students 

 under examination this session was somewhat less than on the 



