Wichita eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1886-1890, 1888-08-08
THE VETERINARIAN.
A COMPLAINT AGAINST oUAckS IN
THE PROFESSION.

THE PROFESSION.
Tho ''Horss Doctor u fwsntysdve Years
Ago-Skilful Pracsitionsrs Of New York
City-Their Yearly Inoemes-veterinsry
Co1lexes-Horss Hospitals.
While land was cheap and Il cheap people
were accustomed, and are now in fact, to 70
! gard the death Of stock - q matter Of little
! consequence There was then, say twenty
| i've years ago, from which time the profession
dates it's substantial progress. little demand
in this country for well educated veterina-
riana He was then. perhaps be is now IN
| good many places tho ''horss DOCTOR" or
worse stil, the '>cow doctor" a big fellow
with a rough voice and shAggy ovcrcoat,
who s1nelled of his patients. spit tobacco
juice and "cussed" like q herd driver. Twen-
ty-five years ago in this city there were, ac-
| cording to Dr.. Alexander F. Liautard, the
dean Of the American Veterinary college in
West Fifty-fourth street, only three well
educated veterinary surgeons Now there
are between fifty and sixty skiIful practi-
TONERS hero whose names appear in the bust
ness directory. Bnt the names in the direct
CRY do not give an idea Of tho real number
# men practicing here. And quacks still
flourish, not alone in this city, but all over
the country.
1t does not pay q sldllful veterinarian to
follow his profession in q country town, and
hundreds Of towns, villages and hamlets
throughout the land rejoice In their "horse
and COW doctors" Many Of them are men
Of good common sense and can pull their
patients through, but the largo cities, where
stock is valuable, can't exactly be proud Of
veterinarians Of class that humanitaTians
protest against. An animal cannot fell its
troubles, cannot sue for damages; but II it
could, would it not resent the Offices Of q
doctor" who can scarcely write his own
namea Yet, on good authority, it may be
said that there are such men in the profes-
sion. 1t is said that out Of 8,co0 or 5000
veterinary surgeons in the country only 200
arc educated.
THE oDIUM OF oUAcKs.
Tho profession has long had to bear tho
odium of quacks with much cost +, its..f.
Two years ago the societies showed the legis-
latuze tho necessity Of passing al act for
regulating the practice Of veterinary surgery.
1t was provided that all veterinarians who
had practioed three years prior to the pas
sage Of tho act should be allowed to continue
in practice on filing with the county clerk a
certificate to that effect.
Professor Law employs from fourteen to
sixteen surgeons in the services of the bureau
Of which he is the heed The lowest salary
he pays is 81 ,20o-a year, and that to recent
graduate; while one Of his most capable
assistants gets 80 day and expenses "Look
at my 'Rogues' Gallery" said well known
veterinary surgeon the other day, pointing
to the pictures Of the graduates Of bis col
lege. IAN Of those $50 fellows, except half
dozen, are doing well, making from 81 400
to e, 900 year" Professor Ltautard is an
enthusiast in the future Of bis profession.
''In ten years." said he, with q shrug Of his
shoulders, ''the American veterinarian will
eclipse the world" Why should not the pro-
fessor DO righta He came here twenty-five
years ago from France. Then, in this city,
there were only three properly educated
veterinarians, and now there are between
Hty and sixty. There are now two colleges.
several we'll equipped hospitals, veterinary
societies and veterinary Journalism firmly
established. Besides that, the profession is
respected by tho medical fraternity. One Of
tho colleges here Is sadly overcrowded, and
has sent out an appeal for building fund.
The hospitals are always full and are obliged
to turn away patients at times. The value
Of stock has greatly increased The domestic
animals Of the United States now repre-
sent an aggregate wealth Of upward of
$4,000, 900 900.
There are about six veterinary colleges in
this country, and four Of them. like most
American institutions, owe their success to
their own effortA The European colleges are
subsidized by their governments. Yet France
is said to have only three colleges, Germany
no more than thiscountFy, and England even
less But governmental assistance enables
even Roumania to give students .
five years course; France four, Portu-
gal dve, Russia four, Sweden four,
Holland four, Germany three and one
half and England threa The course re-
quired hero Is only two years, and short
years at that Germany requires about forty
hours Of recitations and lectures a week for
the frst year, and nearly sixty hours the
second ysar
HOSPITALS FOB HoRsEa
Tho hospital systean has made good prog
rsss hare Of late years, but It Is - yet crude
and inadequate, according 70 the opinion Of
q well known veterinarian Who h connected
with hospital Of good standing. There are
not enough hospitals here and the best man.
aged ones arc generally overrun One hos
pital wss opened two years ago With accom-
nodations for SIX horssR Now It can take
care Of thirty horses and a large number Of
dogs Twenty thousand dollars were taken
in at that place last year. The colleges also
have hospitals
The horses are comfortably stalled In tho
hospitals, some OF them having box stalls
Tho other day Q. reporter SAW one ho11e tax
ing electric shocks Tor spinal trouble with -
much eQuanimity a. human being The
sling IS IN interesting appliance. 1t = used
TO support horse that hes Amsd OF strained
itself, or is not strong enough to stand all
the TINA Tho ding Is large enough to give
q horse q good imitation Of hammock
swing, and 1t Is rnthAf Interesting to zee .
dozen horses in thdr stalls ladfy enjoying
the support of their slingA An ingenious
machine is used for securing horses that are
to be operated on. # looks ike . ANAL
'Fhrashing" machine Tho horse Il fastened
10 part Of the machine which hooks like q
let down leaf Of dining tabIa The assist
ants turn . crank and the leaf with tbs hoese
fastened to it slides up to its place % top al
the table and there tho horse is high and dry
and reedy to - operxted on by mon Who un-
derstand their bus.nssz-New York Tfibuna
Press Censorship in Russia
The drastic censorship Of the press in Rus
da is a curious study for Americans. We
have most Of Us seen Russian newspapers
with whole columns blurred out by the CEN
aor Carisle's histories Of Frederick the
Great" and the French Revolution have
only Just been admitted to circulation The