JULY 7, 1899. ] 
Preventive medicine is a term of recent 
currency. We have come to think more 
about it in consequence of the growth of our - 
knowledge of disease-germs, which has led 
to the hope that we can control germs, so as 
to prevent or at least greatly diminish the 
danger of infections. Moreover, serum- 
therapy, the anti-toxin treatment and the 
discovery of the influence of the thyroid and 
suprarenal extracts have made us familiar 
with the conception that profound influences 
may be exerted by quantitatively slight 
changes in the chemical conditions within 
the body. Here are two illustrations of 
ways in which disease may be impeded. It 
is a field which might be considered a part 
of that of hygiene, but itis logically distinct. 
To stop disease is not the same as preserv- 
ing health. Now, we are all agreed that 
prevention is a rapidly increasing part of 
medical practice, and, since many diseases, 
like tuberculosis, typhoid fever or the bu- 
bonic plague, are spread by animals, it fol- 
lows that we must look upon the study of 
diseases of animals as an integral and in- 
dispensable portion of preventive medicine. 
A hospital is as necessary for the observa- 
tion and treatment of sick animals as of 
sick men. 
Most of us, I am sure, anticipate in the 
near future a magnificent development of 
preventive medicine. One of the best means 
to promote the fulfilment of these anticipa- 
tions is to bring the veterinary hospital into 
close and intimate union with the medical 
School. 
The veterinary profession, like the med- 
ical, is raising its standards rapidly, and we 
ean only wish success to these efforts, for 
not only does the case of sick animals re- 
quire the highest skill, but also the advance 
of veterinary science calls for the best scien- 
tific ability. If veterinary schools are 
brought, by means of their hospitals, into 
close touch with medical schools it will 
hasten the elevation of the veterinary pro- 
SCIENCE. 9 
fession, and will bring nearer the time we 
all shall say that the veterinary school is as 
worthy a place in the university organiza- 
tion as is the medical school. When that 
time comes, as the foundations of medicine 
will be broad and wisely laid, so will the 
superstructure be stable. 
As for the fear, which I heard expressed 
at a recent medical meeting, that doctors 
are destroying their own means of liveli- 
hood, because preventive medicine is limit- 
ing the supply of diseases to be cured, I 
may say that fear has not limited the 
eagerness of physicians to increase preven- 
tion. On the other hand, there is the con- 
soling hypothesis that there are likely to 
remain many diseases, especially those 
which are difficult to identify and to treat 
and also those of sporadic occurrence, which 
will keep practitioners busy in the future. 
As the time is passing away when a large 
part of active practice consisted in cases of 
typhoid, diphtheria and other preventable 
diseases, rarer forms of illness will be more 
thoroughly studied, and, as they will require 
a higher skill, the future physician will 
seek a better training than we can offer to- 
day. Thus one of the indirect results of 
the advance of preventive medicine is to 
raise the standard of medical education. 
I have said enough to indicate the far- 
reaching consequences of the conviction, 
which I hold and hope you hold, that the 
comparative method of biology is to direct 
the development of medical practice. The 
adoption of the comparative method will 
revolutionize both medical teaching and 
the organization of our medical schools. 
We must now turn our attention to cer- 
tain other questions of medical education. 
During the past year there has been going 
on a very widespread discussion in this 
country over the curriculum for medical 
students, and the prospect of consequent 
improvement is encouraging. I cannot 
venture upon attempting more than the 
