104 
A. S. HEATH. 
convey to the masters or mistresses disease germs which do not 
affect themselves. They go from person to person, from house 
to house, from animal to animal in their social visitations. 
These two species of domestic animals have been known to 
spread measles, small-pox, diphtheria, scarlatina, and from the 
stable glanders, and from rats, tapeworms and vermin. Fowls 
are liable to transmit diphtheria ; and Nocard isolated a bacillus 
from a fatal infection to man from a parrot, which also infected 
other domestic animals. This parrot infection in France is said 
to have become fatally infectious both to animals and to mankind. 
The hygienic moral of these suggestions plainly indicates 
that physicians should become more familiar with diseases of 
domestic animals, and those of fowls and house birds and pets. 
And especially as veterinarians do not come in such intimate re¬ 
lation to our family households. For this purpose of home 
protection, every physician should take a course in a veterinary 
college to become familiar with animal diseases. And veter¬ 
inarians should in like manner take a course of instruction in 
human medicine. But, better still would be a union of both 
schools of human and comparative medicine, so that both M.D. 
and V.S. should be compulsory to both practitioners. If human 
practitioners need a more complete education, the better educa¬ 
tion of veterinarians is much more urgently demanded. This 
is not my first recommendation of this more extended plan of 
medical education. Four years since I offered a resolution to 
admit veterinarians to our medical societies. The resolution is 
laid on the table for further consideration at any time. I have 
often invited veterinary friends to accompany me to the meet¬ 
ings of county medical societies, and have always found them 
courteously treated by my professional brethren. When profes¬ 
sional men of both branches, thus become mutually better edu¬ 
cated, the Boards of Health will be composed of men better 
qualified to protect the public health. By this method infec¬ 
tious diseases will be better known, sooner diagnosed, and more 
promptly curtailed of their pathogenic tendencies to fatal inflic¬ 
tions upon both man and our domestic animals. 
