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to go elsewhere. More than fifty years a so the doctors of Indiana were 

 discussing the advisability of establishing a medical college; there were 

 arguments pro and .con. Some believed that if we could not have a good 

 school, we had best have none. Since then many medical colleges have 

 come into existence and continued for variable periods of time. Some 

 "went under" early, others exi)erien('ed the hardships of existence as 

 private institutions. The struggle is still going on. Indiana is behind the 

 times; she is still without a medical school controlled by the State. Every 

 civilized country sooner or later is couipelled to assume control of medical 

 education. 



Tlie art of medicine lias made progress in Indiana, but the science 

 lags behind; so far, our State has made little real addition to the science 

 of medicine. 



Although at the time of the passage of the common school law, only 

 about fifty years ago, the term IToosier was one of reproach, the advent of 

 the schoolmaster and State education soon changed that, and today we 

 take pride in being called Hoosiers — it is becoming a term of honor rather 

 than of reproach, ^^■e•have wholly outgrown our former reputation, and 

 Indiana literary productions are known tlie world over. 



The old medical schools did their work well; it was a pi'actical work; 

 l»ut until the State takes charge of medical education and sets a good 

 standard, little advance in medical science is to be expected. 



Art precedes science everywhere. Our own physicians liave been so 

 busy applying the knowledge alx'eady extant that they have not had time 

 to make original observations, and few have jmblished their observations. 

 But the time will come when our physicians will add to tlie scientitic litera- 

 ture of medicine — the rise of general education and of literature in our 

 State foreshadows it. 



THE ADVENT OF mSEASES. 



The coming in of new diseases can perhaps be best understood in the 

 light of the analogy of the coming in of new weeds. Weeds and diseases 

 can be compared in many ways, but after a time analogies fail and each 

 must be studied separately. Pointing out analogies often leads men to 

 think, and in this light tiiey are justifiable. 



Early BotakiSts and Earia' Weeds — Eaiu.y Physicians and Early 

 Diseases : Of the pl■e^ alence of tlie early weeds of our State we know 



