The Medical School of Edinburgh. [March 1 , 



i)8 



pomoeria of the academy, but it is not 

 to be imagined that the students are 

 enclosed within these inviolable boun- 

 daries. The students encamp with the 

 citizens, none reside wilhinthe college 

 buildings, and they only repair to the 

 university courts, as the boys to a day- 

 school, to hear lectures: neither is 

 there any effort to keep up strict disci- 

 pline, yet the real excellence of the 

 instruction secures a pretty regular 

 attendance. 



It would certainly be possiI)le to 

 imagine a circle of medical sciences 

 more nearly perfect than Edinburgh 

 can yield; but, I conceive, it would be 

 no easy task to find a more complete 

 course of medical instruction actually 

 exemplified in any school in Europe. 

 No age is disqualified for entering, but 

 the age of twenty-one is necessary to 

 graduation. No narrow sectarian 

 subscriptions are required upon matri- 

 culating, which is accomplished by 

 paying ten shillings, and the enrolling 

 of the name. The laws of the senate 

 impose upon candidates for doctorship 

 a residence of three years in their own 

 or some other university, and that dur- 

 ing this period he should have at- 

 tended upon the chairs of anatomy 

 and surgery, of chemistry, of materia 

 medica and pharmacy, of theory of 

 medicine, and of practice of medicine, 

 each six montiis : upon the chair of 

 botany three months ; and, upon the 

 clinical lectures, either two three- 

 montlis', or one six-months' course. 

 Upon these subjects they will receive 

 no ticket but that of a college profes- 

 sor, not regarding the certificates of 

 private lecturers, or professors by 

 courtesy, as equivalent in any degree. 

 The clinical, or bedside, medicine 

 implies a regular visiting of the infir- 

 mary, in which there are good opportu- 

 nities of seeing medical practice. 



These classes must be attended ; but 

 no pupil of the college would think of 

 missing the opportunity of listening to 

 the unrivalled obstetrical prelections 

 of Dr. Hamilton, though not necessary 

 to graduation ; nor would he overlook 

 the excellent course of medical juris- 

 prudence, or state-medicine, as it has 

 been called in England. 



Besides the authorized profes- 

 sional teachers, Edinburgh is also 

 rich in excellent private lecturers ; 

 and, though their tickets are not, 

 as to graduating, on a level with 

 those of the professors, still is there 

 «o vile jealous domineering desire 



to prevent the college pupils from 

 attending them also. Dr. Barclay's 

 course of anatomy was rich in re- 

 search. Mr. Fyfe's practical chemis- 

 try very improving. Dr. Thompson's 

 course of lectures on practice of physic 

 was expected anxiously. Dr. Saun- 

 ders, on that subject, gave forth many 

 ingeniously singular opinions. Private 

 dispensaries afforded much profitable 

 employment ; and, to those who wished 

 to combine other sciences with medi- 

 cine. Professor Leslie's Natural Philo- 

 sophy, Professor Jameson's Natural 

 History, Dr. Brown's Belles Lettres, 

 and Professor Wilson's Moral Phi- 

 losophy, offered a copious fund of 

 knowledge. Two large societies of 

 students, the Royal Medical and 

 the Royal Physical Societies, held 

 frequent debates upon medical and 

 literary subjects ; and those who 

 were more disposed to enter upon an 

 humbler arena of scientific disputa- 

 tion might find a great variety of 

 more ephemeral medical and philoso- 

 phical associations. They who at- 

 tended diligently to these studies 

 would find three years rapidly elapse. 

 Before the 24th of March of the third 

 session, an Inaugural Dissertation, in 

 Latin, behoved to make its appearance 

 on the table of the Dean of the Faculty. 

 Some of these theses have done great 

 credit to the diligence and learning of 

 the young authors. Others, having no 

 taste for the crambe bis coda of Latin 

 grammars and dictionaries, pronounced 

 the requisition a bore, and had re- 

 course to private hands for a smart 

 snug little essay of about twenty pages 

 of words, conveying nothing, or no- 

 thing that has not been known for cen- 

 turies. The professors did not admire 

 such supposititious productions; but it 

 was difficult of detection, and still 

 more of prevention. 



The delivery of a thesis is only pre- 

 paratory to the more alarming affair of 

 submitting to the examination of the 

 six professors, who severally and re- 

 spectively interrogate the candidate 

 for graduation on the subjects required 

 by the Statuta Solennia. This is in the 

 Latin language ; and, to men of ner- 

 vous temperament, sufficiently formi- 

 dable. I happen to know that one un- 

 fortunate young man fell from his 

 chair, and nearly or quite fainted on 

 or about the first question. Every 

 effort is made to allay the trepidation 

 of the candidate, and to ascertain, by 

 a fair and candid enquiry, the true 

 amount 



