394: THE MEANS OF PREVENTION. 



its duties by the State with reference to the medical schools. If a 

 young man is a graduate of a certain high-grade public school, and 

 applies to a merchant for a position, with his certificate of gradua- 

 tion, the latter, if at all posted, is able at once to form an approxi- 

 mate idea of the degree of education the youth has acquired, and of 

 his fitness for the position he has to offer him. On the contrary, if 

 a young graduate of a medical school settles in one's neighborhood, 

 and hangs up his sign as an " M. D.," how much do we know ? 

 Absolutely nothing, save that we may generally assume he has a di- 

 ploma. But until we see it, until we find out, not only from what 

 city he came, but frequently from which school in said city, and 

 not until we have ourselves investigated into the character and re- 

 sponsibility of said school, do we know whether the " M. D." of the 

 young man is worth more than the tin it is painted upon. The 

 State takes no responsibiKty in the matter. She is absolutely neg- 

 lectful of her duties. Many of the fifty-nine medical schools in this 

 country deserve no other destiny than to be immediately closed by 

 law as common nuisances — ^i. e., producers of unqualified vampires, 

 destined to prey upon an innocent and trusting community. This 

 neglect of the higher education on the part of the State, and leaving 

 it entirely to the charity and public spirit of the community, is a 

 great mistake, and one which tends largely to the detriment of the 

 development of science in this country. It is one of the greatest 

 evils of a popular form of government that no great improvement 

 or reform can ever take place until the people have first become in 

 a measure educated up to it. This retards all movements, unless 

 they are so essentially practical that the results by which the public 

 are to be benefited " stare them in the face." The rewards of science, 

 however, are only developed slowly, and by the labor of countless 

 workers. In monarchical or parental forms of government the above 

 is not the case. As soon as the government sees that a certain thing 

 is necessary to the welfare of the nation, it does it, irrespective of pub- 

 lic opinion, which is invariably slow to see the reasons for changes, 

 especially when the benefits follow slowly. With reference to their 

 medical institutions, there is scarcely a Continental country from 

 which we could not learn an immense deal. The governments are, 

 in this thing at least, true to the interests of the people, when they 

 control the schools and regulate strictly the quality and quantity of 

 education of each graduate. With us, as is well known, the contrary 

 is the case — " the more the merrier," seems to be the motto of our 

 States with reference to the establishment of medical schools ; and 

 imtil public opinion itself demands a change, we may be sure none 



