VETERINARY SCIENCE IN AMERICA. 
11 
veterinary profession in America without noting that the 
newness of the profession prevents it from embracing those 
unqualified practitioners who have a good education, pro¬ 
fessional and general, a good general practice, and are uni¬ 
versally respected. These gentlemen have a vested interest 
in veterinary surgery ; when there was no means of obtain¬ 
ing a qualification at home they studied scientifically, and 
the verdict of success is their claim to professional status. 
In an early stage of our professional existence in this country 
we had such men to deal with ; they were admitted to con¬ 
sultations, they sent their sons to College, and are now prac¬ 
tically extinct. We believe the American Veterinary Medical 
Association has some members of this stamp; many cer¬ 
tainly are in the army. It has been suggested that a power 
of granting honorary licentiateships of veterinary medicine 
should be vested in the hands of veterinary associations, 
subject to supervision. We may hint that if such be granted 
it should be but temporary, as, after some years, it would be 
liable to abuse. In various states action has been taken in 
this matter, notably the “Act to incorporate State and 
Judicial District Veterinary Surgeons, for the purpose of 
improving the Practice of Veterinary Medicine in New York 
State/’ which was drawn up by the New York veterinary 
surgeons, and in which the idea oflicentiateship was broached 
(1878). Again, the Society for Preventing Cruelty to Ani¬ 
mals in the same State brought forward an “ Act to regulate 
the Practice of Veterinary Medicine and Surgery in New 
York State/’ in the same year. This was pigeon-holed, and 
no more heard of. It suggested that there should be organised 
a Board of State examiners and censors in veterinary medi¬ 
cine and surgery, to consist of five members, of whom three 
must be graduates of a duly incorporated veterinary college 
or veterinary department of a medical college or university, 
the other two physicians or surgeons, duly licensed, and 
members of some county veterinary society. The Board 
to meet at least three times annually, and three to form 
a quorum. 
We have now seen that in America there are qualified 
practitioners, with the following diplomas: 
D.V.S.—Doctor of Veterinary Surgery, given at American 
Veterinary College, New York, and Columbia Veterinary 
College, New York. 
B.V.S.—Bachelor of Veterinary Science, given at Cornell 
University. 
D.V.M. — Doctor of Veterinary Medicine, given at 
Cornell University. 
