432 
EDITORS REPLY TO MR. C. CLARK. 
At this time M. St. Bel came to England. He had been 
educated at the veterinary school at Lyons. He had a compe¬ 
tent knowledge of the improved principles of veterinary science; 
and it w r as determined to establish in Great Britain under him, 
as professor, u a society and an institution for the improvement 
of the veterinary art. , Many eminent medical men, and among 
them Crawford, Cline, and Hunter, regarding such an institution 
as intimately connected, not only with the interest and wealth of 
the country at large, but the advancement of human surgery, 
conti lbuted not only the influence of their great names, but the 
aid of their splendid talents to the accomplishment of the plan; 
w hile various patriotic noblemen presented the most munificent 
donations. Ihe Duke of Northumberland gave 500 guineas. 
bo aiose the Veterinary College ; if we know the meaning of 
terms, “ a national institution /’—not private,—not for indivi¬ 
dual benefit and gain, but for the honour and advantage of the 
country: not “ a few private gentlemen who club together to 
get their work done cheap.”—No !— such was not the feeling of 
the patnotic and venerated founders of the school, at which we 
received the rudiments of veterinary lore, and to whose cause and 
welfare w*e acknowledge ourselves to be indissolubly bound 
such are not the feelings of the present governors of the College, 
sadly and lamentably as they have been misled. 
The school being established, it was necessary that there should 
be adequate means of communicating that instruction it professed 
to give. If the anatomy of domestic quadrupeds was to be learn¬ 
ed, there must be subjects to dissect; if the treatment of their 
diseases was taught, there must be patients on which to practise; 
and it was to procure a sufficient number of subjects and pa¬ 
tients, and not u to get their w r ork done cheap,” that certain 
advantages were offered to subscribers:—advantages which do in¬ 
deed materially interfere with the interest of the private practi¬ 
tioner, but to which he will submit without a murmur, if the 
“ national ” object of the institution be secured. 
The Veterinary College became yet more a “ national institu¬ 
tion/’ when large sums for its support ware repeatedly granted 
by Parliament, and granted on consideration of the “ national ” 
benefit it was calculated to produce: and still more did it be¬ 
come “ a national institution ” w'hen it w r as acknowdedged by the 
Government of the country as the veterinary school; and wdien a 
diploma from that school was to be obtained ere any veterinarian 
could be admitted into the cavalry service. 
These are our reasons for ‘‘ styling” the Veterinary College 
“ a national institution Its object was u national'’ —its plan 
was wise, and, ii well conducted, it would become a public good. 
