44 ESSENTIALS OF VETERINARY LAW 
as a science and as an art. As a natural conse- 
quence its regulation by law became apparent long 
before a similar restriction was required in the 
practice of the arts upon these lower animals. 
If in the past these veterinarians were looked 
upon as a lower rank of men, it was because there 
was generally little attempt at making their prac- 
tice really scientific. The blacksmith who became 
‘‘knowing with horses,’’ and the dairy man who 
had considerable experience, were therefore con- 
sulted by their neighbors in time of need. As a 
rule they were men of very limited education, and 
so soon as they really attempted to make a special 
study of the subject they abandoned the treatment 
of animals for the treatment of men. Some of 
them, during their transition period, maintained 
two offices. In one locality they were known as 
‘‘hoss doctors,’’ while in the other they attempted 
to be known as ‘‘doctors of medicine,’’ but as soon 
as possible the first practice was dropped for the 
“‘more respectable’’ one. The result was that 
when the medical profession was already filled 
with members striving for a living, that of the 
veterinarian lacked competent practitioners. In 
the medical ranks it became apparent that the 
good of all concerned demanded that the practice 
be so restricted as to exclude the most incompetent 
pretenders, and laws were accordingly passed, and 
disappointed practitioners thus excluded tested 
the provisions in the courts. It is only recently 
that it has been possible to draw the lines between 
the self-made pretenders in veterinary practice 
and the conscientious students of the science. 
While most of the points have been decided with 
