The Birmingham age-herald., 1915-07-09
ARE NOT UNANIMOUS IN
 THE|ROWN DEFENSE
pr. J. D. Heacock. Member of College, Realizes Neces- sity of Upsetting Present
 Dynasty in Association

While the sole defenders of the meth- cds of the Medical Association of Ala oama are the counselors of the asst Viation. the counsclors themselves are rot unanimous. some of them. as a natter Of fact are so honestly con- N'need that the mes fods pursued are ineffectlVe and danEsTous that they h1ve joined the "rragrcssives.s who are seeking to worL remedial innova. tons
 nr. J. D. Heacock of Birmingham a counselor, realizes the need of over turning the counselor dynasty and Of putting the election of state health officers in the hands ot the members of the assooiation-not the bosses.
 There Is no stronger evidence" he said, that there Is something funda mentally wrong than the fact that the counselors are always ol the defensive. am counselor myself but am not bound by any fictitious obligations to stand in the way of progress, In tho way of those movements which will revert to the good of all the people
 When methods pursued by an, or eanization are wise and salutary ana democratic, it is not necessary for such orgsnization to defend perpetunllv those methods. When the methods are unwise and their salutary effect highly questionable, it Is necessary that they he defended. That the 'standpatters of the medical association are forever on the defensive is sufficient proof that they themselves are aware of the weak ness of their case.
 "rhe object of the 'progressives is not to destroy the association as d scientific body. If that were the ob- 1ect no local doctor would be a party to the programme on foot. We are anxious, however. to take out of the hands of 100 men, elected for life and not amenahle to any constituency, the all important obligation of conserving the public health, We would make the election Of the health officer the duty or all the members of the association nS expressed through their representa- tives in convention. And we would net restrict the election of health officer to 100 counselors but would make Ii possible for Alabama to acquire the services of the most expert sanitarlan in America.
 'Dr. w. H. Sanders, state health of- ficer. in his most recent defense, gave Is one of his reasons why the counsel. ors should be retained in power the fact that each of them pays Into the treasury of the association s1O per annnm, money used in publishing the volumes containing the minutes of the conventions. Were 1t possible to oh- tain money from no other source, the policy of the association should be dis continued, But adequate money could be raised each year through the levy ing of annual dues of sl against eaca of the 2000 members of the assoeia ton; and the argument of the state health officer appears spacious. indeed,
 "The general public, which has been deeply aroused regarding the situation- should be apprised of the fact that the progressives are not inVelghing against the association as scientific body, but against the method of tho association in permitting the health de- partment of the state to become body surrounded. supported and sustained ny an atmosphere of politics, We want nothing save the welfare of the sta te and the people of the state. Alabama has not progressed in the art of con serving and protecting the health of its people. It is this situation which we would improve"