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EDITORIAL. 
NEW EMPIRIC NURSERIES. 
A new era seems to have dawned in the history of American 
veterinary science, or, probably, not entirely a new era, but rather 
a new “ boom ” seems to have started in the establishment of vet¬ 
erinary departments in universities and agricultural colleges. 
Not less than three new chairs of veterinary science have recently 
been established in Ohio, Missouri, and Michigan. 
While we shall always be glad to see any new ideas inaugu¬ 
rated which seem likely to promote the advancement of veterin¬ 
ary science, we fear that the creation of the professorship of 
veterinary science is now too much on the increase, and that, 
instead of doing a good work, the result of these appointments 
will mean the revival of an element which all lovers of the pro¬ 
fession have been trying to put down, and that is— quackery. 
Our American people are prompt to believe that they can 
learn everything and do it in shorter time than any other people 
in the world, and this is emphatically the case when it relates to 
veterinary medicine or the care of our animals. Where is the 
dean of any of our veterinary colleges who has not received 
many letters from parties who “ knew it all , and merely wanted 
to polish off and get a diploma in the shortest time possible .” 
What, then, is likely to be the result of this half-and-half 
veterinary education ? We regret that in the newly appointed 
departments the names of such good men as those given should 
have lent themselves to encourage such an error. One man ap¬ 
pointed to fill up all the departments of veterinary medicine, 
commits, we believe, a great wrong to himself and to his profes¬ 
sion. It is not our desire to say that agricultural colleges or uni¬ 
versities ought not to have veterinary departments attached to 
their curriculum. Far from us be such an idea, for there are in 
our profession many links uniting us to the agricultural interest, 
and those links the veterinarian alone is able to teach them. But 
this is all the professor of veterinary science of an agricul¬ 
tural school ought to do. If he goes beyond that, if he intends 
to give a thorough veterinary education by himself alone, he cer¬ 
tainly undertakes a labor that no one man is able to perform. 
