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THE VETERINARY MEDICAL ACT. 
and distinguished by the name or title of Veterinary Surgeons; and in the said charter 
were contained certain regulations for the conduct and management of the affairs of the 
said corporation: 
And whereas to encourage the progress of the veterinary art it is expedient that such 
of her Majesty’s subjects as may from time to time require veterinary medical aid should 
be enabled to distinguish the members of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons from 
others who have not passed the examination requisite for entitling them to become 
members of the said College, and who are not members thereof: 
Be it enacted by the Queen’s most excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and 
consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament 
assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows: 
1. This Act may for all purposes be cited as “The Veterinary Medical Act, 1866.” 
2. This shall take effect from the first day of October , One thousand eight hundred 
and sixty-six. 
3. Any person, not being a member of the said Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons, 
who shall after the time appointed for this Act coming into operation take or use the 
name or title of Veterinary Surgeon, or who shall falsely represent himself to be a mem¬ 
ber of the said College, or who shall use any other name or title with intent to lead, or 
whereby the public may be led to believe that he is a member of the said Royal College 
of Veterinary Surgeons, shall, upon a summary conviction for any and every such 
offence, pay a sum not exceeding five pounds nor less than two pounds. 
4. Provided nevertheless, that this Act shall not affect any person who shall have 
assumed the name or title of Veterinary Surgeon prior to six months previous to the passing 
of this Act. 
5. Penalties under this Act may be recovered before two justices in manner directed 
by an Act passed in the Session holden in the eleventh and twelfth years of the reign of 
her Majesty Queen Victoria, chapter forty-three, intituled “An Act to facilitate the 
Performance of the Duties of Justices of the Peace out of Sessions within England and 
Wales with respect to summary Convictions and Orders,” or any Act amending the 
same; and in Scotland by summary complaint before the sheriff, sheriff substitute, or 
two justices, or in burghs before the magistrates, in manner provided by “ The Sum¬ 
mary Procedure Act, 1864.” 
Mr. Holland moved the second reading of this Bill. The object of this Bill was to 
prevent unqualified persons from holding out to the public that they were members of 
the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons when, in point of fact, they were not. There 
were at present 1244 persons practising as veterinary surgeons under the assumption 
that they had obtained diplomas. There were 1189 farriers who were acting as such 
who had no diplomas. Altogether there were 2433 persons practising without any 
diploma against 1144 regularly qualified practitioners. It was essential that an improved 
status should be given to veterinary surgeons, and he felt that a simple Bill requiring 
that every veterinary surgeon should be, bond fide , a member of the Royal College of 
Veterinary Surgeons Avoula be of great value at the present time. He proposed that 
any person who fraudulently held out to the public that he was a veterinary surgeon 
should be liable, on summary conviction, to a penalty of not exceeding £5, and not less 
than £2. The Bill, however, was not to affect persons who should have assumed the 
title six months previous to the passing of the Bill. 
Sir J. Jervoise was at a loss to understand why a man should be prevented from as¬ 
suming the title of veterinary surgeon. He suggested that when in Committee some 
alteration should be made in its provisions, to make them apply to those who held them¬ 
selves out as members of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons. 
Mr. Newdegate said he believed this Bill would be acceptable as a means of promoting 
the education of the profession. He had been many years one of the governors of the 
Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons, and he could assure the House that great ex¬ 
ertions had been made by the College to raise the scale of education for veterinary 
surgeons, and no obstacle had interposed to render their attempts ineffectual to a certain 
degree more than that the education after it was completed brought with it no distinc¬ 
tion, because the uneducated as well as the educated appeared before the public with 
equal claims, so far as appearances were concerned. During the recent visitation of the 
