847 
THE VETERINARIAN, NOVEMBER 1, 1870. 
Ne quid falsi dicere audeat, ne quid veri non audeat. — C icero. 
THE OPENING OF THE SESSION AT THE ROYAL 
VETERINARY COLLEGE. 
A goodly number of practitioners, second sessioners, 
and newly entered candidates for membership, filled the 
theatre of the college on the opening day ; albeit we missed 
some old familiar faces which we have been accustomed to 
see at these gatherings. Professor Tuson delivered the inau- 
gural address ; and at the commencement referred to the ma- 
triculation examination, which for the first time was conducted 
by an independent educational body, the College of Preceptors. 
Dr. G. A. J acobs, the Dean of the college, presided over the 
examination, which included questions in English grammar 
and parsing, also reading aloud, writing from dictation, and 
arithmetic. Forty-five candidates presented themselves at 
the first meetingof theboard,and of these forty-one passed, and 
four failed to satisfy the examiners ; at two subsequent meet- 
ings fourteen candidates were examined, and twelve passed. 
It is understood, we believe, that a candidate who fails 
to obtain admission to one college will not be received at 
either of the others until he has submitted to the required 
test, and acquitted himself in a satisfactory manner. So 
far the principle of testing the qualification of the candidate 
previously to his commencing a course of scientific study 
may be said to be established on a proper basis, and all 
necessary changes in the method of applying the test can 
hereafter be carried into effect without difficulty. There 
remains something to be done, however, before the final test 
will be considered complete — the much-talked-of practical 
examination. We gather from the last report of the pro- 
ceedings the of Council of the Royal College of Veterinary 
Surgeons, that this important desideratum will be carried 
into effect as soon as the necessary arrangements can be 
made. Thus, step by step we are advancing, slowly perhaps, 
but surely, and always with a definite object in view. 
The lecturer in one portion of his address touched upon 
a very delicate point, when he spoke of the degradation 
