606 
INTRODUCTORY ADDRESS. 
habits, review your acquaintances, put on the whole armour 
of good resolution, and be examples of self-restraint to those 
who are around you, and who are younger than yourselves. 
We, your teachers, shall often have the opportunity of 
knowing whether this our affectionate advice is followed, or 
not. The lecture-room has a voice, and a physiognomy, 
which shows unmistakeably what the habits of its occupants 
during the previous twenty-four hours have been. If, before 
the lecturer appears in his place, the room is filled with noisy 
bluster — if practical jokes and uproar are used as preparations 
for learning — if whispering and tittering and secret com- 
munications prevail during the lecture, or drowsiness super- 
vene — these will all be unmistakeable evidences of a fault 
somewhere ; and, I fear, we shall not be far wrong in sur- 
mising that these things have had their origin in a want of 
proper sobriety at a time when you were left to yourselves. 
We could wish indeed that the reverse of all this should be 
the case — that quiet gentlemanly conduct should mark your 
deportment throughout; that the better-regulated spirits 
among you, who I believe are the great majority, should dis- 
countenance anything objectionable on the part of the rest; 
that abstinence should rule your course through the earlier 
parts of the day, and temperance through the whole day ; 
that you should prepare your minds and bodies by sedateness 
for the instruction of the lecture; that attention should 
characterise your demeanour and encourage the labours of 
your professors. Make it a point of honour to come in a 
proper mode and spirit, so as to show that you respect 
us, and indeed that you respect yourselves ; and thus to 
cancel even a suspicion that intemperance has a votary 
among you. 
You are about to belong to a liberal profession; but you 
will bear in mind that it is just as liberal only as you make 
it, and no more so. Veterinary medicine may be said to 
have a fair standing in this country. It embraces among its 
members many skilful, and respectable men ; but it does 
not appear at court nor in high circles, and but seldom 
in Acts of Parliament. You have therefore the prestige of 
your own name and fame committed to your hands. This 
should be a great incentive to you to work steadily on- 
wards and to be jealous of your every action ; because you 
have no social standard to appeal to, short of your own 
respectability. 
It has been said, that the rocks which we are apt to split 
upon, generally exist in pairs, although apparently the very 
opposite of each other : and I may say that I have noticed. 
