S. /. M elfter 135 



ical profession o£ the United States alone should have joined the 

 Medical Brotherhood shows that we Struck the right chord. This 

 group of medical men and women, the vast majority of whom surely 

 have more or less idealism, represent about 10 per cent. of the medi- 

 cal profession of this country. Moreover, there can be no doubt that 

 the Appeal issued by the committee exerted a morally favorable in- 

 fluence upon many members of the profession who did not join the 

 Medical Brotherhood; and there is great probability that a good 

 many will join it when the war approaches its end. 



In this connection we may call attention to the most encouraging 

 fact that the medical Journals of our country act in a most exemplary 

 manner with relation to the war. None of the Journals, at least none 

 known to us, has indulged in offensive discussions of the various 

 belligerent nations or made disparaging comments on the behavior 

 of the medical members of these nations. The subject of the present 

 war has been handled by the medical Journals with rare good sense 

 and tact. In a general way, the same may be claimed for the utter- 

 ances of the members of the medical profession when made in lay 

 gatherings or publications, although here the unavoidable small frac- 

 tion of exceptions has not been lacking. The Medical Brotherhood 

 has had occasion to remonstrate in tvvo instances, in one with com- 

 plete and in the other with partial success. 



From the point of view of the scientific investigator, who is not 

 afraid of Utopian ideals which may give him the direction for his 

 work, but who works for his goal by small and practicable steps, we 

 may claim for the movement of the Medical Brotherhood that it has 

 a definite object, "an uplift," that it is not Utopian in its direction, 

 that it was undertaken at the right time — when the medical mind was 

 in a State of fermentation, in statu nascendi — and, best of all, that 

 the movement has already attained a gratifying success : it has 

 aroused the moral, humane, spirit in a great many members of the 

 profession in this country as well as in other neutral countries. 



We have no quarrel with those of our colleagues who do not 

 wish to join the Brotherhood, because, as they say, they can not 

 remain neutral in this war. No matter with which party one sides, 

 and what his wishes may be, we do not question the moral nature 

 of his motives. But we wish to make the following two remarks : 



