The record-union., 1895-10-26
PROFESSIONAL SECRECY.
Lawyers and Doctors Keep Secret
SafaIy.

Lawyers and Doctors Keep Secrets
Safely.
Our own opinion is that doctors and
lawyers do keep professional secrets
most rigidly, and that il Is The rarest
thing IN the world for any matter of i'm
portance to leak out. It is curious. but a
fact, that the maintenance of honor in
the matter of condolences, strictly and
regularly conhded, is one of the COM
mouest of virtues. A man may be self
ish, corrupt, cynical, cruel, hard, and in
every way what the world calls "a pretty
bad man." but 1t is ten to one against his
not admitting the obligation upon him to
keep secrets confided to him in the belief
that be Will keep them. A man may be
capable OF killing you TO get your money,
or of doing you out of your whole fortune,
and yet not wanLonly betray your secrets
But though We do not believe that there
is any real need for fear in regard to the
disclosure OF professional secrets, we cam
not disguise from ourselves two facts in
connection with the subject. The first ia
that there is a good deal of uneasiness in
regard TO the want of care III guardin 2
secrets by the two great professions. The
second is that the doctors and lawyers by
their manner of talking do good deal TO
encourage the vague and general dread to
| which we have alluded. The mem bers
of the two professions do not betrsy the
condolences condded to them, but they do
/ sometimes talk in way which might
| lead timid and sensitive people to thin X
that they do. 1t is not unknown to see a
doctor or a lawyer in after-dinner talk
dancing on the edge OF the precipice of
professional secrecy. For man OF strong
nerves the spectacle is interesting and di-
verting.
One knows that the dancer is perfectly
safe, and that in spite of his nearness to
the abyss there is not the slightest fear of
his topping over. he seems to be telling
a great deal, to be perfectly open and
frank about the strange experiences
which he has come across in his practice,
and the odd people who have consulted
him, but In reality he is telling you moth
ing whatever.
1t is all triumph of that sleight of
tongue which Lord Palmerston is said to
have practlced TO perfection. He would
talk to man for an hour on
high politics, and appear to be lettin e
out Cabinet secrets by the bagful, and
/ the listener felt half-flattered, half-horri-
/ fed, at hearing SO many things which
/ ought never to have been told outside the
! big drawing-room in Downing street.
| When, however, the talk was over, and
/ the recipient of the ministerial
condolences tried in cold blood
| to remember the secrets confided. he
/ found to his astonishment that he had
/ heard nothing which was not to be found
in that mornings Times. The con-
/ fidences were all a matter of manner
stage effects, and nothing more.
But though the experienced man OF the
world may realize that this professional
/ dancing on the edge of the precipic is
merely game, and in general perfectly
safe one, the ordinary person is apt to be
made extremely nervous by the display.
He'll be over as sure as fate" is his
thought, and he reflects with horror that
ii these things were said about his case or
the curious clauses in his will, he could
be identified by anyone. And in one case
in thousand accidental Identification
may take place. Everyone remem bers the
venerable chestnut of the Cardinal
who told an admiring circle of ladies' that
the first confession he lever heard was
one of murder, and how his remark
was interrupted by the entry of a
| Prince, who at once proceeded to remind
his old friend the Cardinal: 81 was your
first penltent.n AS a matter of fact con-
fessions are very seldom accidentally be.
trayed in that manner, but people imag-
inc they are and that is enough to make
general professional talk give q sense OF
lnsecurity.-London Spectator.