1920-21.] Obituary Notices. 189 
always was in giving testimonials of this nature, such an encomium proves 
better than almost any other how greatly Fraser’s work had impressed 
the minds of these Continental leaders whose opinions were worth 
consideration. 
His accession to the chair brought increased responsibilities in con- 
nection with his duties at the Royal Infirmary, where, as a clinical 
professor, he now took charge of wards with the status of a full physician. 
But, in spite of the extra labours thus thrown upon him, we find a 
continuous succession of papers on subjects of the utmost scientific and 
clinical value rapidly succeeding one another in the following years. The 
subjects of some of these researches had already occupied his attention 
before he returned as a professor to Edinburgh. Amongst these a series 
of papers on Strophanthus and other digitalis bodies was specially note- 
worthy, and the subject was only laid aside from time to time with a view 
to returning to it later. Thus his paper, published in early days, on the 
Kombe arrow poison was followed by a long series of communications on 
the various varieties of Strophanthus and their selective actions, many of 
which appeared in the Transactions of the Royal Society. This series of 
papers was recognised by the awarding to him of the Keith Prize by the 
Royal Society of Edinburgh for the period 1891-93. During this time 
he also wrote on various other arrow poisons, on snake venom, and the 
anti- venomous properties of bile. 
Whilst carrying on all this research, as well as the ordinary duties of 
lecturing systematically on materia medica, Professor Fraser developed 
great powers as a clinical teacher, and many of the students who knew 
comparatively little of his laboratory research work felt that his teaching 
in the wards, whilst he was still in full vigour, was an inspiration. The 
scrupulous care with which he established the clinical facts of each case 
he examined, the clear logic of his deductions, and the reasoned lines of 
treatment did much to impress upon his hearers the conviction that 
clinical medicine could almost be raised to the level of an exact science. 
Three qualities he possessed in notable degree : accurate observation, clear- 
ness of vision which refused to be drawn away by side issues, and an 
indomitable will which triumphed to the end over ill-health and bodily 
weakness. His intimate knowledge of materia medica found the fullest 
scope in combating disease in the wards under his charge, and whilst, to 
the mere research worker, there may have seemed to be a lack of applica- 
tion of his researches to clinical uses, those who were privileged to be his 
students were able to contradict that impression by their daily experience 
in the wards. As a clinical teacher he has left as a legacy to the school 
