Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1884-09-07

SIS it common for patrons to change
from one dentist to another in Englandp'
ssNot at all. They never leave dentist,
doctor, or solicitor who serves them prop
erly and satisfactorily. They appear to
feel depth of gratitude beyond estima-
ton in pounds, shillings and pence, and
besides, it is not considered respectable
to change about and go from one dentist
to another"
SHOPPING FOR DENTISTRY.
500 you find Americans prone to change
in this wayg'
sit seems many of them try a new man
every time they want anything done. l
have some occasional patients who come
to me about once in six or seven years; In
the interim they have visited every dentist
IN town, and leave my hands to go on their
rounds again."
''Why do you work for themF'
"Why notf'' said the Doctor, briskly;
''they can't help it. 1t is a
result of the typical restlessness,
one of the peculiar elements in
the American character, and may be
classed with experimenting or drawing
for prizes in lottery. They simply con-
tinue to try their luck. and never think
what they are doing; for the most part,
they have to pay dearly enough, ! do not
mean in money alone, for their fancies.
But there is an element in our society,
hardly, or not at all, known in England.
/ refer to that shopping class who go from
one professional man to another, trying to
get each one to name price which they
use to beat down the estimate of the next
dentist"
"This is not done among the better
classes ?o
sob no; the better classes of our COM
munity will compare favorably with
- = 4
trouble here is only with a certain class,
who really have no position in society
and do not possess the knowledge or the
mOdesty which should restrain them"
but if person cOnsults you, he pays
your fee for the consultation, does he
nOt?'
sob, yes, of course; all respectable
persons who take up professional mans
time are willing to pay for it, even when
they after all engage some one else to do
the work. There is, however, a lower
class which think it so much made to
dodge such fee; and many persons are
simply scandaliZed at the idea of charges
being made for simple consultation with
out actual work, as if we could not have
been occupied during the time they
waste"
PROFESSIONAL COMPETITION.
'DO dentists underbid each other?"
''That is delicate question. First-class
dentists do not, any more than good physi-
clans. Each one charges what he knows
his services to be worth, no more. no less.
If his prices happen to be lower than some
one else's tits because he does a lower grade
of work, and he knows it. A dollar buys
but 100 cents worth of work, as of any
thing else, and it cannot be made to buy
more. 1t is thought that if a man were
mean enough to underbid another in Or
der to get job, he would also be mean
enough to make his work correspond with
the price, very much as in the scamp
ing of cheap work in buildings. Some
dentists there are who try to secure work
by counting, for example, only a portion
of the cavities in the teeth that actual
~ require filling, thereby conveying the
impression that whichever dentist
counted them before was trying to make
big bill; others hold out such induce
ments as doing a part Of the work for
nothing in order TO get the rest of the job.
Such practice is unworthy to be classed
as professional; it belongs to the pound
of tea with a Chrome business. OF course
l do not wish to be understood as indi-
eating any person or locality by these re-
marks; my intention is simply to repro
bate abuses that spring from the over
multiplication of dentists in this country
and which are hardly known in those
European countries where the number of
operators bears due proportion to the
population"
Chow many dentists are there in the
United States"
"There are in this country about $4,000.
Great Britain and Ireland have only
5000 registered dentists, 1900 of which
are qualified practitioners. The $500 I'M
qualified were practicing when the law
regulating those matters was passed.
oil Nd ,%y-s,,
have an aggregate number about equal to
that of Great Britain. 1t will thus be
seen that America has more dentists than
all the rest of the world"