336 STATE AND THE MEDICAL PROFESSION xiii 



The scheme in fact involved a perpetual en- 

 dowment of the " black sheep/' calculated on the 

 maximum of their ill-<j,aine(l profits.* I confess 

 that 1 found myself unable to consent to a plan 

 which, in addition to tlie rewardin^T the evil doors, 

 proposed to take away the privilofijes of a num- 

 ber of examining bodies which confessedly were 

 doing their duty well, for the sake of getting 

 rid of a few who had failed. It was too much 

 like the Chinaman's device of burning down his 

 house to obtain a poor dish of roast pig — uncer- 

 tain whether in the end he might not find a mere 

 mass of cinders. What we do know is that the 

 great majority of the existing licensing bodies 

 have marvellously improved in the course of the 

 last twenty years, and are improving. What we 

 do not know is that the complicated scheme of 

 the divisional boards will ever be got to work 

 at all. 



^ly own belief is that every necessary reform 

 may be alt'ected, without any interference with 

 vested interests, without any unjust interference 



witli the prestige of institutions which have been, 



• 



* The fees to be pniM by cnnrii<lates for n<ltnission to the 

 examinations of the Divisional Board should bo of such an 

 amount as will be siifTicipnt to cover the cost of the exami- 

 nations and the other expenses of the Divisional Board, 

 and (iIko to provide the aum required to roynpennnte the rned- 

 iral nufhorities, or aurh of fhem nft mny he entitled to cowpen- 

 ftatio7i. for <n\y per^iniarii losf^eft thej/ may hereafter sustain 

 hi/ reason of the abolition of their privilege of conferri}ig a 

 licence to practise. Report 50. p. xii. 



