The Denver Jewish news. [volume] (Denver, Colo.) 1915-1925, 1920-09-08
Jews Prominent in the
American Medical Field
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tion of the Jews in the medical science,
here as everywhere else, especially in
Germuy. is beyond measurement. This,
inspite of the Instructions of the anti
Semitic authorities and officials who
direct and supervise medical education
and research.
The Jew has succeed in reach
ing very high plane in the medical
profession, as we shall attempt to show
in second article.
IL.
To properly recount the Jewish
achievements in American medicine is
by no means an easy matter. What
available data there is of the present
day achievements. excluding the hist
oric and chronological aspects from our
considcra ton, is hopelessly out of date.
The account in the American Jewish
Yeak Book (19O4), and an article in
the Jewish Encyclopaedia, are both at
least sixteen years behind the times.
The investigator in this field of re-
search labors under enormous difficult
ties. If he examines the literature of
| each branch of medicine huge task-
he is obviously confronted with the
problem of sitting the Jewish names
| from the non-.Iewish.
Having found the names by this
laborious process, how is he going to
obtain the biographical data necessary
,,f mud
their works. The undertaking is ire
mendous. Whoever is bold enough to
attempt it. must possess vast knowl-
edge of medicine and of the men re-
| sponsibe for its remarkable growth in
modern times.
Often the name does not tell the
story at all. From the mere sound Of
names, who would suspect that some
| of the very pillars of modern medical
research men. like Unna. Henle. Remak.
Weigert, Vidal. Pick, Pribram, Half
kline (the English baeteriologist) +,
BaginSky, Politzer. Hagen, Senator,
Schwalbc, Ludwig Meyer, Fleeschcl,
| Mauthner. our own Hays, the ophthal-
mologist, were Jews? Certainly their
names do not sound Jewish. Yet, all
these names appear in the article by
DIR. Hanemnn Ga Gcntilc) in the
Jewish encyclopedia.
Hiss and Zinsser's standard book on
hacteriology--a science in which Jews
so outstandmgly collaboratc-gives at
least eighty obviously Jewish names in
its list of authors. Among these may
he mentioned the European Jews,
Friednnder, the discOverer of the
pneumobacillus: Weichselbaum. tho
discoverer of the bacillus of meningi-
tbs: Ehrlich. Haffkine. Hayen. Nessen,
Oppenheimer. Marmoret. and tile
American, Sternberg.
Mathews excellent textbook on
physiological chemistry, another science
enriched by Jewish genius, has drawn
on at least ninety more Jewish names.
Comprehensive information in regard
to these is often nowhere obtainable
unless n personal appeal he made to the
men in question, II thing thinkable
only for Il pretentious study, n great
historical work. Many of the finest
TlOtz. the discoverer of the typhus
bacillus: the very eminent physiOlOgi-
cal chemist of the Rockefeller Institute
who came from Germany, Levene, the
physiological chemist, Kahn of New
York City. are unknown to who's Who
in America" We can, therefore. merely
attempt to sketch. as far is within our
reach. only a few of the outstanding
| Jewish personalities in American
medicine with whose work even the
casual layman must to some extent be
familiar.
To begin with here is the dean of
American medicine. the recently de
ceased Abraham jacob. Like many
of the foremost American Jewish doc
tors he came from Germany. having
been born in Wcstphalia in 1880. He
pursued his studies in both medicine
and law at Grcifswald. G6ttingen and
Bonn.
Youthful ardor. Jewish idealism. and
the new democratic spirit drew him
early into the liberal camp. The great
upheaval of 1SIS found him vigorously
siding with the cause of the revolu-
ton. He was apprchended and was
held at Berlin and Cologne from 1851
to 1853. When released, he came to
New York in 1858 diSsociating himself
now from politics, he plunged heart
and soul into his medical study, and
like IA great many Jcws-perhaps be
cause as a race we love children so
much-hc devoted himself to the study