396 
THE VETERINARY PROFESSION. 
rism of the middle ages. The practice of human medicine has, 
however, emerged from its degradation, and vindicated its claim 
to public regard; and the surgeon and physician of honour and 
skill need not succumb to the highest rank of society. 
With the veterinary practitioner, however, it has unfortunately 
been different. You have justly stated in one of your numbers, 
that the practice on the diseases of horses had fallen into the 
hands of those who were distinguished only by their ignorance 
and barbarity. Why—so had the practice on the human being, 
to a certain extent; for the surgeons were barbers, and the barbers 
were surgeons: but when knowledge began to revive, they who 
had influence on public affairs were, in their own persons and 
in the sufferings of those who were dear to them, painfully ad¬ 
monished of the value of the medical profession, and it was soon 
rescued from its undeserved degradation. The brute, however, 
was left to take care of itself, or, rather, was consigned to the 
tender mercies of the lowest of the low. 
At length, (for I will confine myself to my own country), self- 
interest, the most powerful principle of human action, was aroused, 
ft began to be felt and acknowledged that horses and cattle were 
o o 
“ a valuable part of agricultural property,” and which had been 
sadly injured by the almost inconceivable ignorance and brutality 
of those to vvhom the medical care of it was compelled to be com¬ 
mitted ; and the 0diham society took the lead in endeavouring to 
obtain more competent practitioners. 
But what did government do ? Instead of making it a mea¬ 
sure of its own—a national concern—it suffered a joint-stock 
company to be formed; and it confined itself to the occasional 
grant of pecuniary aid. True, that joint-stock company consisted 
of many well-informed and patriotic men, and the regulations by 
which they professed to be guided were highly proper, and were 
evidently calculated to produce a class of practitioners qualified 
to benefit this valuable portion of the public property: but, still 
it was a joint-stock company; and these associations are liable 
to be abused ; and this was abused—grossly abused. The patron¬ 
age and the management soon fell into few hands—the public 
weal was forgotten and scorned, and the only object pursued in 
