ROYAL COLLEGE OF VETERINARY SURGEONS. 
511 
assist the young men, and not to shirk the responsibility of 
taking them as pupils before they came to College. It was 
the duty of the profession to afford every facility to those who 
wished to acquire a practical knowledge of the veterinary 
art, and to render the expense attending its acquisition as 
little as possible. The College authorities were prepared to 
exert themselves in every way for the benefit of the students. 
It was a great matter that the Council had resolved to have 
practical examinations ; still he was sorry to say that he saw 
a number of difficulties in the way of its being carried out in 
the effective manner in which it ought to be. He trusted, 
however, that the Council would have wisdom sufficient to 
overcome every obstacle. 
Mr. Hunting thought the Council had performed an almost 
Herculean task in bringing about a unanimity between the 
three schools. He thought it desirable that some opportu- 
nity should be given to members to discuss other matters 
besides those alluded to in the report, such as the expiration 
of the lease of the buildings. He could not regard the prac- 
tical examination as a substitute for an apprenticeship clause. 
In some cases a candidate's answers were considered wrong, 
because they did not coincide with some peculiar theories 
held by the examiner. For three years this question had 
been asked at the examining board : — “ Give the changes in 
the lungs during respiration ?" and to his knowledge three 
men had answered it in this way : — “ The blood in passing 
through the lungs gives up carbonic acid and takes in 
oxygen." The question next put was, “ Where does this 
oxygen come from and the carbonic acid?" The answer 
given was to the effect that the oxygen was derived from the 
air, and the carbonic acid passed from the blood. In each 
case the candidate was contradicted, and was told that the 
oxygen combined with the carbon of the blood in the lungs. 
This took place at the anatomy table. 
Mr. Wilkinson . — Was it at my table? 
Mr. Hunting. — No. 
The President endorsed Professor Spooner's views as to its 
being the duty of the profession to assist the Colleges in 
affording opportunities to students for' acquiring a practical 
knowledge of their duties. He himself had apprentices to 
teach them practical knowledge, and it was the duty of every 
practitioner to do all he could in the same direction. He 
made this announcement thus publicly to this Annual Meeting 
of the profession, and through it to the profession in general, 
to call their attention to the great importance of receiving and 
teaching youths the practical knowledge of their profession. 
