32 DADD'S VETERINARY SURGERY AND MEDICINE. 



ness, many millions of dollars might b* 3 slaved to the Government 

 in a short time. I contend that the condemnation and ruinous 

 sale of sick and lame horses is a wanton waste of property, and 

 it would be just as rational, if rational at al\ to sacrifice, neglect. 

 or abandon sick or disabled soldiers simply ..^cause they are not 

 in fit condition for present duty. 



Importance of Veterinary Education. — The importance cf edu- 

 cating men for the scientific practice of Veterinary Medicine and 

 Surgery is self-evident, and is further illustrated by the daily 

 experience of those persons whom, as a matter of necessity, hav* 

 been obliged to prescribe for the sick and dying of their flocks 

 and herds, at the same time, having no knowledge of those advant- 

 ages which a thorough course of training affords, must necessarily 

 feel that they are groping in comparative darkness, and when a 

 ray of medical light does flit across their path, it often serves to 

 make them better acquainted with their own want of skill. Per- 

 sons thus circumstanced, unable to procure the services of veteri- 

 nary surgeons, in consequence of a scarcity of the "genuine 

 material," are often called upon to assume the responsibilities of 

 medical practitioners ; and they, no doubt, prescribe with good 

 intention and honesty of purpose, but disease and death have the 

 vantage of them, for the disease is not often rightly diagnosed, 

 nor are they acquainted with the means* of securing a favorable 

 issue; and they will hail, as a great blessing, every attempt made 

 for the purpose of diffusing a knowledge of Veterinary Science. 



We all know that there is greater need for scientific qualifica- 

 tion on the part of those who propose to practice on brutes than 

 in the case of a practitioner of human medicine ; and if a special 

 course of study and qualification, obtained under the guidance of 

 competent' teachers at college or elsewhere, be essentially neces- 

 sary in the one case, surely they can not be dispensed with in the 

 other. Now, it is well known that prior to the introduction of a 

 rational system of veterinary medicine in the mother countiy, 

 millions of domestic animals were annually sacrificed at the 

 shrine of ignorance; but science came to the rescue, and now iho 

 disciples of St. Bel, Coleman, their co-workers (the founders cf 

 the science in England), and kindred spirits, can, by aid of their 

 vast materia medica — their anesthetic agents, their scalpel, and 

 other appliances — accomplish unheard of wonders. 



