The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1910-06-12
SANDERS REPLIES TO
ATTACK ON COLLEGE
Defends Mobile Medical Col
lege Against Criticism
EQUIPMENT rs COMPLETE
Alabama Health officer Says Criticisms
of New York Man Are DyspeptIc
in Character, Unjust and
Misleading

Montgomery, June 11.-(Special)-Dr
w. H. Sanders, in an interview for The
Age-Herald this evening, replies to the
criticisms of the Mobile Medical col
lege, made by Samuel Flexner of the
Carnegie foundation. New York, calling
them dyspeptio in character, unjust and
misleading. He says that any fair
minded man must, after an inspection
find the equipment complete and adequate
The laboratories are superbly lighted AMI
well supplied with the facilities for teach
ing The use of goats for dissecting is
most modern and up-to-date adoption
and has great advantages over the old
method of teaching anatomy with hui
man bodies only.
Mr.. Flexner, who has been on an In
spection of the colleges all over the
United States, and is looking into the
medical schools particularly, says of the
Mobile school, which is a part of the
state university:
1.-THE laboratory equipment is practical
ly limited to inorganic chemistry, ele-
anatomy taught by first dissecting the
goat, then the human cadaver. 1t pos.
sesses few old books, but no funds
with which to add to them and a small
museum. mostly composed of Anticipated
wax or papier-mache models"
In answering. DR.. Sanders says:
Yes; I have read the criticisms of Mr.
Flexner of the Carnegie foundation on
the medical department of the University
of Alabama at Mobile, and without hes
itation pronounce them unjust and high
ly misleading.
I'm fact. any fair-minded teacher OF
medicine in this or any other country
would, undoubtedly, after fair inspec-
ton of the equipments and facilities OF
the college, pronounce them complete and
adequate. The laboratories of anatomy
and bacteriology are superbly lighted and
supplied with all the facilities for teach
ing these subjects. Indeed, I doubt
whether they are materially surpassed
by any similar laboratories in this OF
any other country. Mr.. Flexner's fling
az the fact that students are required
then Of human beings betrays a woeful
lack Of appreciation of this course in
teaching anatomy to students. It pos
sesses great advantages which no one
who reflects, much less observes the work
as 1t proceeds. would for a moment deny.
In word. it is a very material i'm
provement over the old method Of teach
ing anatomy by the use of human bodie.
only.
seVx> -
order, having been in late years so ar
ranged as to admit of this being done.
THE laboratories of chemistry and ply
siology, while quite complete, could b,
improved. but their inadequacy by NJ
means reaches the proportion which Mr.
Flexner gives them.
HE further complains that the librar,
contains "a few old books The collection
of books in the library is perhaps no
so largo as in the libraries of some o.
the colleges of the world. but there are
some very valuable books in the library
which can be and are used in teaching
which books cannot be and are not sur
passed In the world.
I'm this connection 1t may be said that
medical students must devote practically
all of their time to the study of theiI
textbooks, and If they had q library
of thousands and thousands of books al
their disposal they would not be able
to utilize them. Medical libraries must
be used by medical men after gradua
ton and after they have entered into
practice.
He further says that the college has
a small museum, mostly composed OF
artiquated wax or papier-mache models
This is a very unjust criticism. In
the first place. the museum cannot be
called a small one. 1t Is true many OF
the preparations are old. but they arc
copied from nature and can never be
improved until nature herself improves.
'"The entire criticism is thoroughly dy1
peptic in character. and, as already said
unjust and misleading"