IO 
HELEN ABBOTT MICHAEL 
eminent in their profession. I may mention Dr. Grace Wolcott 
and Dr. Lena Ingraham. 
I formed a warm friendship at that time with a student 
who entered the college with myself. She was Eda Wilhelmi of 
New Philadelphia, Ohio. She later married Dr. McLane, and 
took her degree in Cleveland, Ohio. She practiced medicine 
in New Philadelphia with her husband, but subsequently gave 
up medicine for literature, for which she had always a strong 
bent. 
We were inseparable companions and pursued our studies 
together. The lectures which troubled us the most to under¬ 
stand were those given by Dr. Frances Emily White on Physi¬ 
ology. She followed the plan to introduce her class to a general 
review of Biology and Morphology based on the principles of 
evolution and a great deal of Herbert Spencer. To one who 
had been from childhood associated with thoughts of Art, the 
languages, and literature, shrouded in a mantle of Catholic 
orthodoxy and mysticism, these lectures were puzzling in the 
extreme. I found myself, out of college hours, devouring all the 
works I could find on subjects to elucidate Dr. White’s lectures. 
I was no different from the rest of the beginners, who found 
these lectures difficult to grasp, but I was assured that on reach¬ 
ing my second year what then seemed obscure would become 
very plain. I owe an eternal debt of gratitude to Dr. White 
for the difficulties she had me encounter during these first 
weeks at college. Her lectures and the private teaching which 
I had from her later were most stimulating and full of enlight¬ 
enment. I passed the first year’s examinations in chemistry, 
anatomy, and physiology with a record of one hundred in 
each branch. 
The summer following my first year at the Medical Col¬ 
lege was full of interest. I spent a great portion of the time in 
chemistry, geological expeditions, and delving more deeply 
into books on biological subjects. I made the acquaintance, at 
this time, of Professor Edward D. Cope. The versatility of 
his »mind attracted me, and his interest in all general subjects, 
such as music, the stage, literature, metaphysics, and philo¬ 
sophical speculation, was the basis of a congenial friendship 
