XXXI 



Dr. Haughton could not help seeing that it stood sadly in need of 

 reform. Although the medical degrees of the University were at 

 that time eagerly sought by young medical aspirants, the school 

 of Trinity College was the last place where they cared to study. 

 Immediately after his graduation, Dr. Haughton threw his whole 

 energies into the improvement of the school, and to attain this 

 end he was not slow to use the influence which he had deserv- 

 edly acquired with the senior members of Trinity College. He 

 was appointed Medical Registrar, and at once proceeded to work. 

 To render the reform effectual it was necessary to grapple with 

 many ancient abuses — a task from which he did not shrink. He 

 was a man of unbounded courage and great pugnacity — to join in a 

 fight was never unwelcome. But these instincts were kept in check 

 by great kindliness of heart, and none of his former antagonists 

 who may have survived him has cause to remember with pain 

 any expression he ever used. The years which followed proved a 

 somewhat stormy period in Dr. Haughton's life, and he had to adopt 

 in certain instances measures which might appear to be harsh, but 

 which were rendered absolutely necessary by the exigencies of the 

 case. One of his leading characteristics was his absolute unselfish- 

 ness, and it may be well to mention in connection with these con- 

 troversies that no one could point to a single act of his which was 

 dictated by self-interest. But he was stern and almost unforgiving 

 with those who, by idleness or otherwise, did damage to the good 

 name of the college he so sincerely loved. When Dr. Haughton 

 took in hand the reform of the School of Physic it was one of the 

 most insignificant of the schools which then existed in Dublin; 

 now it takes the foremost rank, and this change, brought about in 

 little more than thirty years, is largely, if not entirely, due to the 

 sagacious and enlightened manner in which he guided its policy. 



It was during the earlier years of his connexion with the medical 

 school that he commenced a series of observations on the mechanical 

 principles of muscular action. The results of these investigations 

 appeared from time to time in the ' Proceedings of the Royal 

 Society,' and of the ' Royal Irish Academy,' and ultimately took 

 final shape in his book on ' Animal Mechanics,' which was published 

 in 1873. This is probably Dr. Haughton's greatest work. For ten 

 years he laboured at it, and during that time it was his daily practice 

 to spend two hours in the dissecting room in the study of the com- 

 parative anatomy of the muscular system of vertebrates. What may 

 be regarded as being the key-note of the work is struck in the fol- 

 lowing short extract from the preface. He says : — " I have met with 

 numerous instances in the muscular mechanism of vertebrate animals 

 of the application of the principle of least action in Nature; by 

 which I mean that the work to be done is effected by means of the 



