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AN INTERNATIONAL MONUMENT TO HANS WILHELM MEYER.
The Monument to Hans Wilhelm Meyer, executed by Runeberg and Bissen, erected in Copenhagen byrinternational subscription, and unveiled on Oct. 25th, 1898.
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Meyer succeeded in removing this mass by operation, withthe result that the deafness was materially improved, thevoice became natural, and the idiotic expression of the]face disappeared. Gratifying as this result was in itself-it was, however, only then that Meyer’s real merit com-menced. Schopenhauer has truly said that not he isfinder of a thing who lifts it from the ground and
drops it again, but he who takes it up and recognisingits value keeps it. If Meyer had regarded his experiencein the light of a mere pathological curiosity, again years.and years might have passed before the importance, ofthe subject was realised. But with the true instinct of thescientific observer who develops what is ultimately to become.an important truth from small beginnings Meyer did not dropthe clue which a casual observation had placed in his hands.He began studying the subject in all its bearings ; he.examined the masses he had removed with regard to their.structure, and finding them to be glandular in charactergave them the name of "adenoid vegetations"; he investi-gated the results which obstruction of the space betweenthe nose and throat exercises upon respiration hearing,.articulation, facial expression, and general mental and
bodily development; he examined 2000 Copenhagen school-,children with regard to the frequency of this affection ;he made himself the apostle of his own teaching byproclaiming it, not only in his own country, but alsoin scientific publications abroad. In one word, to suchan extent did he realise -the true significance of his dis-covery that he left to his successors merely the addition ofmore or less important details, whilst the foundation of thedifice erected by him has remained unchanged from the timeof his own first publication on the subject. Nevertheless itcannot be said that this teaching at first made very rapidheadway. When in 1881 he introduced a discussion on thesubject at the International Medical Congress of London itcame almost-I well remember-as a novelty to many of his.audience, although that was mainly composed of specialists,and it was only in the next decade that the true importanceof the subject was realised throughout the world. It was at.first not easy to convince the bulk of the medical profes-sion, the parents of the mostly juvenile patients, and the-schoolmasters that a discovery had been made which, likefew others in medicine, was of the utmost practical import-.ance concerning the development of a healthy mind in ahealthy body of the rising generation, and it needed the irre-futable proof of the surprising improvement seen in the sub-jects of successful operations to make this conviction a uni-versal one. But truth, though slowly, ever forces its onwardway, and when Meyer three years ago closed his eyes he hadthe satisfaction of knowing that the value of his discoveryhad at last been universally recognised. Already thenthe number of those who through the timely removalof the obstructing glands had been saved from lifelong.deafness or from the lasting results of obstructed nasal
- respiration amounted to many thousands, and the benefits.achieved through Meyer’s merits will continue to accrue,In future times to hundreds of thousands and to millions.The proposition made immediately after his death to erect astatue to him at Copenhagen under these circumstances metwith the most sympathetic reception; committees were’formed in almost every country in which scientific medicineis established ; in Great Britain the movement was particu-1arly favoured by the patronage which Her Royal Highnessthe Princess of Wales, herself a daughter of the RoyalDanish House, most graciously extended to it ; physicians,surgeons, specialists, general practitioners, gratefui patients,.and former patients showed themselves anxious to contributetheir mite towards a truly international monument ofgratitude of his contemporaries towards the deceased greatbenefactor of the human race, and the result we see to-daybefore us in the shape of this beautiful and touching monu-ment, which will carry the names of the artists, Messrs.Bissen and Runeberg, to every quarter of the globe. It- is true that in the general chorus of approbation a few’dissentient voices have been heard. " What, after all," it hasbeen said, "has been Meyer’s extraordinary merit? He puthis finger up behind a patient’s palate and found an obstruc-tion, which he removed, and which turned out to occur morefrequently than could at first have been supposed." Verytrue; but need I remind my audience that the same speciousargument has been used against the claims of ChristopherColumbus ? America had been there all the time, only wait-ing, as it were, for the bold sailor who dared to go westwards- mltil he struck a new continent. But Columbus did it.
The naso-pharyngeal cavity had been there waiting for its
explorer ever since man in his present shape has been in exist-ence ; pathological obstruction of this cavity has been as oldas the records of the sculptor’s art allow us to go back. Inthe last paper on the subject, which Meyer wrote a few monthsbefore his death, he showed that the facial expression of someGreek statues and busts which have come down to our timesleft no doubt that the originals had been suffering from"adenoid vegetations" ; mediaeval portraits of historical
personages prove the same fact. Any physician might haveconceived the idea of investigating the subject as Meyer didin 1868, but it was left to Meyer to do it, and having done soto realise the importance of his discovery whereby he becamewithout exaggeration a true benefactor of the human race.That is why we are assembled here to-day ; that is why wedo honour to his memory. Gentlemen, the country ofDenmark has been rich in producing men of eminencein almost all branches of human activity. If in manyinstances the nature of their distinction is better knownto their own compatriots than to the world at large thisis but natural and is an experience which is repeatedin every country under the sun. There are some Danes,however, whose names are household words throughout thecivilised world, whose reputation is not a local but auniversal one, and who, whilst their countrymen may bejustly proud of them, belong, as it were, to mankind at large.Need I mention the names of Tycho Brahe, of BertelThorwaldsen, of Hans Christian Oersted, of Hans ChristianAndersen, and of Niels Gade ? To those great names I thinkmay be reverently added the name of Hans Wilhelm Meyer,one of the greatest benefactors to mankind medicine hasknown. Mr. Mayor, in the name of the subscribers to thismonument, who have gladly contributed towards this ex-
ternal sign of gratitude erected in memory of your greatcompatriot, I have the honour to deliver the monument ofHans Wilhelm Meyer to the safe keeping of the municipalityof Copenhagen.Towards the end of Sir Felix Semon’s speech the veil was
withdrawn and the monument exposed to public view. It isconsidered - one of the finest monuments in Copenhagen andloses nothing by its site, one of the new boulevards close tothe Deaf and Dumb Asylum. The monument itself consistsof a bronze bust of Hans Wilhelm Meyer on an oblongpedestal of polished brown granite with the followinginscription :-
In front. On back.
Laegen Dette Mindesmaerke reistes
HANS WILHELM MEYER. i Aaret 1898 ved Bidrag fra
Fredericia, 25 Oktob., 1824. Danmark og Udlandet. (This
Venetzia, 3 Juni, 1895. . monument has been erected byVenetzIa, 3 Jum, 1895. contributions from Denmarkand foreign countries.)
On the pedestal are written the names of those countrieswhich have subscribed to the monument: ‘ Australia,Austria, Batavia, Belgica, Britannia, Civitates fcederat93Americans septentrionales, Dania, Gallia, Germania, Hel-vetia, Hispania, Hungaria, Italia, Norvegia, Polonia, Russia."The pedestal rests on several steps of roughly-hewn granite,mounting which is seen a most beautiful female figure(bronze), more than life-size, representing the Goddess ofMedicine, who whilst she rests her left hand upon the staffof lEsculapius with her right offers the palm of glory toDr. Meyer. The beautiful monument does full justice to thegenius of the Finnish sculptor Runeberg, who made the bustof Meyer, and of the Danish sculptor Professor Bissen, whodesigned the female figure.The MAYOR of COPENHAGEN thanked Sir Felix Semon in
the following speech : Sir Felix Semon has just inauguratedand unveiled this monument and presented it to the munici-pality of Copenhagen. As a member of the municipality I havebeen commissioned to accept this beautiful monument, dueto the united energies of the sculptors Runeberg and Bissen,which has been erected in honour of the renowned Danishphysician, Dr. Hans Wilhelm Meyer. His great discoveryon the subject of ear and throat disease has been generallyacknowledged amongst his colleagues, not only in his owncountry, but, as we have just heard from Sir Felix Semon,perhaps even more so far beyond its boundaries, and themonument is a proof in itself. It may well be said that theproof of the value of a medical discovery lies in its practicaluse in curing disease, and in this respect Dr. Meyer’sdiscovery has stood its ground, for the method he discoveredand indicated has cured many people, or at any rate relievedtheir sufferings. Dr. Meyer’s method has been followed and
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perhaps improved upon by many medical men at home andabroad-several of the most prominent of these we have thehonour to see here amongst us-and we hope that their ener-getic work may succeed in still further perfecting whatDr. Meyer had begun ; but one thing I think is certain,that not only now but also in the far future laryngologistsand otologists will look up to Dr. Meyer as the pioneer andtheir master in this question, the man with the clear brainwho saw and explained the connexion of causalities. Thisplace which the Danish Committee and the municipalityhave chosen is, we may also say, in a state of development,but in a short time it will be one of the finest parts of ourcity, so that the beautiful monument will be even betterplaced than at present. With these few words, in the nameof the municipality of Copenhagen I accept this monumentin memorial of Dr. Hans Wilhelm Meyer and promise tokeep it and guard it.
Dr. E. ScHMIEGELOW, the President of the InternationalExecutive Committee, added his thanks to those of theMayor and more especially expressed the gratitude feltby the committee towards the Danish and foreign sub-scribers. As chairman of the original Danish committeehe assured Sir Felix Semon that his countrymen were fullyalive to the great and unusual compliment paid by theentire world to Danish medical science, and, indeed, to thewhole Danish people, in the person of so worthy a repre-sentative as Hans Wilhelm Meyer had been.
In the afternoon Dr. E. Schmiegelow gave a dinner to theforeign representatives, the members of the committee, andmany of the leading men in Danish medical science; andamongst those present were the Mayor of Copenhagen andthe sculptor, Professor Bissen. Letters and telegrams werereceived from the Dutch Oto-laryngological Society and theMedical Society of Amsterdam (Professor Guye, Dr. Voute,and Dr. Burger); Norway (Professor Uchermann) ; Belgium(Dr. Delie) ; England (Dr. Cresswell Baber) ; America (Dr.Bryson Delavan) ; and others.
THE NEW OPERATING THEATRE ATSWANSEA HOSPITAL.
SIR WILLIAM MAC CORMAC, President of the RoyalCollege of Surgeons of England, visited Swansea on Oct. 28thfor the double purpose of opening the new operating theatreat the hospital and delivering an address at the annual
meeting of the Swansea Medical Society. A large companyassembled at the hospital about 3 P.M. and were receivedby the Mayor, Mr. Aeron Thomas, who in a short speechwelcomed Sir William Mac Cormac to the town. Mr. HowelWatkins, speaking on behalf of the board of managementof the hospital, said that for the new theatre the town wasindebted to the public spirit and generosity of Mr. BenjaminEvans, J.P., who had defrayed the expense of putting up anentirely new building for the purpose. Sir WilliamMac Cormac, having opened the theatre with a gold keypresented to him by Mrs. Benjamin Evans, expressed hisadmiration of what Mr. Evans had done for the institutionand made an allusion to the assistance which had beenrendered by the energy and knowledge of his old friend andpupil, Mr. W. F. Brook, senior surgeon to the hospital. Avote of thanks to Mr. and Mrs. Evans for their munificencehaving been proposed by Sir John Llewelyn, M.P., andseconded by Mr. Ebenezer Davies, Mr. Evans replied in agenial speech, thanking Sir William Mac Cormac for beingpresent, eulogising the hospital staff, and describing variousrecent improvements as an evidence of the progressive spiritof the town. Sir William Mac Cormac also read a paper onthe Past and Future of Surgery before the Swansea MedicalSociety, and the same evening he was present at the society’sannual banquet, on which occasion Dr. T. D. Griffiths pre-sided, the other speakers including Chancellor Smith,General Sir James Hills-Johns, the Mayor, and Sir John
Llewelyn, M.P.The operating theatre is an annexe approached from the
lower corridor of the hospital and is built of polled stonewith dressings of Bath stone. The plan consists of two half-circles with a radius of 11 ft., separated by an interval of4ft., thus measuring 26 ft. by 22 ft. It is lighted from adome-shaped roof 20 ft. high in the centre by two top-lights,one of which is continuous with the main side-light, a slab
of plate glass 8 ft. wide extending to a level of 3 ft. from thefloor. The walls are lined throughout with Parian cement,glazed with "Blundell’s petrifying fluid." The floor is.terrazzo and on either side of the north side-light is.raised into two tiers of high steps, each step carryingan iron rail. Thus solid masonry takes the place of the.wooden and iron stands usually provided for spectators. Thetheatre is heated by two sets of low-pressure steam radiatorsstanding in recesses swinging on hinges and situated in frontof four air inlets. The latter are provided with closelyfitting metal boxes, with fronts and backs of wire gauzeenclosing cotton wool, by filtering through which all airentering the theatre is cleared of dust. In the wall at a
height of 14ft. is an extracting fan driven by a jetof water in. in diameter capable of displacing 1000cubic feet of air per minute and set in motion byturning a tap. A shallow recess in the wall withembedded glass shelves closed in by glass and enamellediron doors forms the instrument cupboard. Immediatelybehind it is the flue of one of the anaesthetising rooms,the heat from which prevents condensation of moisture.within the cupboard. The theatre is entered through eitherof two anaesthetising rooms, each 12 ft. by 10 ft., which arefloored and lined in a similar way. The work was carried
out by Messrs. Wilson and Moxham, architects, from designsprepared by the surgeons of the hospital.
ROYAL COLLEGE OF PHYSICIANSOF LONDON.
A MEETING of the Comitia was held on Thursday,Oct. 27th, Sir SAMUEL WILKS, Bart., President, being in the-chair.The following gentlemen were admitted as Members:
R. H. Crowley, M.D.Lond.; W. J. Fenton, M.B.Cantab.; andC. H. J. Lockyer, M.B. Lond. Licences were granted to 120gentlemen who had passed the required examinations.The PRESIDENT made some remarks in regard to his duties
outside the College, drawing especial attention to the awardof the Gilbert-Blane Prize for naval surgeons, the candidatesfor which had done much useful work; and to the position ofthe President as one of the trustees for the British Museumand the Tancred Scholarship. Sir Samuel Wilks also referredin glowing terms to the opening of the new medical labora-tories at Liverpool. He considered that day to form theinauguration of a new system in medical teaching, the
practical taking the place of the theoretical. He alsoannounced that the Gilbert-Blane Prize had been awardedto Francis Clay, M.B., C.M. Edin., surgeon to H.M.S. Thrii,.Qh,and to Percy Bassett Smith, M.B., C.M., staff-surgeon to
H.lB1.S. Magdala. The Jenks Scholarship had been gainedby Mr. William Hardy Fleetwood.Communications were received, amongst others, from
1. The Right Hon. A. J. Balfour and others, acknowledgingthe receipt of the declaration of the College respectingvaccination. 2. The Charity Commissioners, in reply tothe College respecting a scheme for the maintenance of theChelsea Physic Garden. A committee was appointed to
consider the scheme, consisting of Dr. Hensley, Dr. LauderBrunton, and Dr. Allchin. 3. The London County Council,asking the guidance of the college in the matter of theNotification of Infectious Puerperal Diseases. The followingwere nominated as a committee to consider the matter ofnomenclature, with power to answer the letter :-Sir J.Williams, Dr. Payne, Dr. Champneys, Dr. Cullingworth, andMr. Clayton. 4. The Society of Arts, respecting the awardof the Swiney Prize to be made in January next. ThePresident, Treasurer, Registrar, and Senior Censor, andDr. Pavy were nominated as representatives of the College.5. Mr. Trimmer, secretary of the Royal College of Surgeons’of England, reporting certain proceedings of the Council ofthat body on August 2nd. 6. The Secretary of State for theColonies, asking the present opinion of the College on thecommunicability of leprosy, in view of the report of theBerlin Conference (1897). The following were requested toact as a Committee to answer the communication : Sir DyceDuckworth, Dr. R. Liveing, Dr. Heron, Dr. Payne,Dr. Head, and Dr. John Anderson. 7. The Seamen’s HospitalSociety, asking the College to nominate a representative on acommittee appointed to organise a School of Tropical
