The Express.
London, England, 1868-09-29 00:00:00

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FEMALE MEDICAL SOCIETY.

Yesterday the fifth session of this society was
inaugurated at the Mule Hall, Store-street, in an admi-
rable adduce to the students by Dr. Ito: a, a gentleman
well known in the medical profe-sion from his connection
as (ditor with the Method Omilar.

The chair was occupied by Dr. BUCILANAN, peat master
of the Satiety of Apothecalks, who came up from Bir-
rninkLam to preside on the occasion, thus showing the
deep interest which he, one of the elders of the prole-radon,
takes in this movement of mini ~Local progress and sani-
tary minim. Be said that what. del dinerence of opinion
theme might be about the propriety of making ladies sur-
geons and rhysicians, there could be no doubt whatever
uren that of transferring to them ti at bnuach of practice
Wh;ch had been from the earliest times in their hands,
atel which was still so, although those of them who
enderteek it were for the most part ignorant and inexpe-
rienced. He knew of one distrxt in which there occurred
dining a fixed period about 2,M) births, and
of them more than 1,600 had been attended by
women. He was rejoiced to find that this so-
ciety was zealously labouring to supply the country
with a clan of surenor midwives, and it was a favourable
index of the bopularity of the movement that there had
been as many as "al students enrolled in the clas.-ea of the
society, and that several of those who had pmseet the pre-
scribed examinations were now in lucrative private prac-
tice. Be Lad liimtelf been more than sixty years engaged
in the study and practice of medicine, and his experience
of the rotestion led him to think that females ought to
have the care of thorediseases which were peculiar to their
men ECX amid to children.

Dr. Rods then addressed the meeting, and congratn-
lan d the ladies who had joined the society on the
coinage which they displayed in giving a practical proof
of the honesty of their convictions. it made him feel
that they wire those to whom he could speak with bold-
ness in regard to the profession on which they were enter-
ing, and, indeed, unless he did so there would be very
little use in his addressing them at an. lu the tint place,
he wished to impress upon them the dignity and
iniperrance of the science of medicine, and the
difficulties which stood .in the way of its
growth and progress. Still, they were not to be
frightened by those difficulties, nor were they to run from
one book to another for their elucidation and solution. He
denied that books were any aid t o such studies, and whoever
relied on them only swallowed so much unripe green
food, which, instead of siding, obstructed his or her
nit ntal digestion. The book of nature, however, was a
volume which would never tire them—which would never
lead them astray,. and that they would have ample op-
joitunity of studying in connection with their obstetric
jractiee at the British Lying-in Hospital in Endell-street.
ILe science of medicine, notwithstanding its admitted
grandeur and imlortauce, was one at which every pre-
sumptuous person thought he had a right to hurl some
missile or other, and hence it was that there were so
ninny ready to charge it with shortcomings; but, how-
ever true might be these accusations, they were easily
explained. 'the discoveries of medical science tollowed
those in the other scieniiii—for instance, it was a know-
liu.ge of nuiltinical action which led Harvey to the dis-
cc very of the circulation of the blood, and therefore, unless
the other ten r 003 advanced, that of medicine could nut
do so. the had been, in fact. kept a praioner

by the *isler ecienceri, and it waii only now ehe wai begin-
ning to cutrge firm the 1;leouly iu which ebe had
Lt.o iticulte.attd. tild as wit:. the healing iut, rt was a

rttuuge thing that mtdiciue as a bcience w.O wail 111 it+
inumt y iu this eptutry. it coututenetul iu ltit9, when
Lathy LIACI td the euettlatiAtut the hi,xxl. 't'i,-• reAt

of tI coduly was, as regards se:manic lottlgTV:,, a COW.
Otte blank. us the people were too muds en,,m,ed in
poldasi to think of anything else; but eat ly iu the l&h
ventidy J0..0 Bunter laid the foundation of the doctrine of
LI nniiram syttt 111 of orgurrinrtiuu, and Bell, lkale, and
others Lad uiscoveied the different kinds of nerves dis-
tif.guiduil between the motor nerves and the a uncut
turves, and made char several important physiological
facts which were before their time hidden in obscurity.
It wus into a knowledge of this Facuce the female
Ilvdical l'ociety wi-bed to int:educe the women of this
country—timt, by training up a staff of qualified
midwives; and, secondly, by bringing a knowledge
of the laws of health home to every woman in the coun-
t. y. That should be made a subjimt of pliUlaily education
throughout the country ; for if toe usotheis of Great Bri-
tain were properly educated in regard to sanitary princi-
ples, that urnieuse mortsility which preemie,' among in-
fants would be wrested. L ntil the tune of the revival of
. .

letters there were none other but female obstatiicians
throughout Etucqw; but at that time the surgeom', ;meet-
ing that natural piuturitiou was a surgical operation, took
the Inactive of midwifery into their own hand-. Thu
women, however, did not quietly surrender it. On the
contrary, licensed sometimes by the bnhops, sometime; by
ticehyskians, they still continued to practise; anti, as
Dr. Buchanan had told them, even now the greattwt num-
ber of bilths took place under the plebes:onel saperin-
tendence of women. Hence the necessity of educating a
class of women in midwifery, not as a specialty. but as
connected with anatomy and physiohigy—a body su whom
the 1 &bents and the public at large would Lave the
utrinst ceufidence when they saw them steed on as high
a professional positon as the aecouclieur surgemus of the
preii ut day. This sat a blanch of medical science for
which, fit in their womanly sympathies, they wine pecu-
-1 arty adapted, and to theta too might be relegated the
care of all diseases peculiar to tletir own sex and to
ebildien. It was, however, said that they had neither the
mental ability nor the physical strength which the
rrojej-
siert required, but every pipe of history informed them
that in the nice of high intellects women hail won, and
continued to win, the most glorious distinctions. The
ale practitioners ought to be a honied of their jea:ouey.
The inurement amid do them no possildo hariu, and they
should recollect it was an opening for the widows and
daughters of their profsiinuil brethren to earn ho-
nourable and honest livelihood.
On the motion of Dr. Mu FUMY, the thanks of the meeting
were given to Dr. Rote for his instructive lecture; end
on the motion of Dr. Honest* a similar complimeut was
pad to the chairman, and the preceislings tenuinateil.

TIIE 13AL1.it OBEY PROPERTY.—Tho ,V Tien
announces that Mr. Charles Moore, M.P. for Tipperary,
has become owner of Ilellyeohey, having agreed to pay
Mr. Scully his original purehme money of the property,
and • liberal amount iu addition thereto, by way of cetn-
pcmatien for any recent increase in the value of the land.
THE SUTIVIIED FENIAN RAIDS AT CORK.—A
man was arrested on Friday in Killarney by the police of
that town. Ile is suspected from his desenption to be the
Ann rican officer, who, on last Sunday night, mode the
raid nu the residence of Mrs. Justice, of Mountjustice,
Mill-street, and carried away one gun. Ile is so.aehow
I,uuwu in Killarney as Captain Moriarty. On being
• starched by his captors, i H one of his pockets was found
beautifully-laced green cap, of American military fashion.
A that time after being taken to the Bridewell, he made
tw,, n'ineet successful attempts to scale one of the walls of
the Nlidewell yard. but was prevented by the police, who
subseeuently handcuffed him. It is believed that persona
will—if they have not already arrived in Killarney—coma
fu m Milbaireet to see if they can identify the prisoner ma
the pence who attacked Yountjustioe-house.—ar*
licreht.
Yuan= and Co., Belfast, are the largest
hele. re of Whisky b the world. Their Old Irish Whielq le Teem
-
owl td br the sweet metreiloa in preference to Meath Brandy.
nuri. led In reale sad wee foe borne use orespertanien. gouts-
bolo e a sentiestion to Messrs. Dumills and Co., Belfast ; or n,
it. ,:r.+. rt.boiklings, Stria, Landon, W.C.--(Advertlesznent.