266 Scientijic Inlelligence s [Jan;, 



It may be as well advert, briefly to the history of the rise and pro- 

 gress of the Medical School, and to explain its nature and objects, be- 

 cause manyof onr distant readers may not fully comprehend these points, 

 and those in Europe, unconnected with India, may be at a loss to under- 

 stand to what kind of establishment we allude. For the information 

 of the latter, then, we may premise, that there are two classes of subor- 

 dinate officials attached to the Medical Service of India : namely, — 

 Apothecaries, divided into two grades, who are warrant officers ; these 

 are Europeans by birth, or descendants of Europeans, nearly the whole 

 being of the class denominated Indo Britons by our Government, but 

 generally adopting the appellation of East-Indians themselves and 

 Dressers, also divided into two grades, chosen entirely from the Na- 

 tives, who, in the service, rank with private soldiers. In former 

 days, these received no preparatory education but generally at- 

 tended the regimental and other hospitals, as volunteers, to acquire 

 information. In l'^35, Government determined that there should be a 

 school for the instruction of candidates for the service at the General 

 Hospital of Madras, and the medical officers of that establishment, 

 Dr. Mortimer and Mr. Harding, were appointed Superirjtendents, or 

 Professors. Very great credit is due to those gentlemen for the per^ 

 severing industry with which they have advanced the school from its 

 first small beginnings to the palmy state in which it now flourishes. 

 At first the pupils were instructed in narrow limits within the house 

 assigned as the residence of the medical officers. The fruits of the in- 

 struction communicated in that insufficient and unworthy place were 

 soon so palpable and so important,that the Government determined on 

 the erection of a fitting structure for the purpose; and the building 

 adjoining the Hospital, the first public examination in which we pro- 

 pose to give some account of, has within the last few months been 

 completed. It is but justice to the late Governor of Madras, Sir Fre- 

 derick Adam, to say, that the establishment of a school of instruction 

 in Medicine was a favourite object with hiui, and that to his energy and 

 determination in the matter is mainly attributable the successful con- 

 summation which we now see. The hands of the rulers of the minor 

 Presidencies are restrained from doing good, by the financial restric- 

 tions imposed on them : however, with economy and some manage- 

 ment, the expenditure was kept within the prescribed limits, and our 

 Medical School now rears its dome on high. At present the pupils 

 entirely consist of individuals of the before mentioned description. As 

 essential to their admission a good acquaintance with the English Ian- 



