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students in the university. The course for the diplomairi public health has been suspended until after the war.The university caters not only for undergraduateinstruction but for higher study and research. r

ANDERSON COLLEGE and ST. MUNGO’S COLLEGE haveseparate foundations from Glasgow University. AndersonCollege receives about 700 students a year; courses are

given in all preclinical subjects, and clinical training is .given at all the hospitals open to university students.The course prepares candidates for the examinations ofall the licensing boards and for the university examina-tions of London, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Durham,provided the matriculation requirements of each are met.Particulars of courses may be had from the Dean,Anderson College of Medicine, Dunbarton Road, Glasgow.St. Mungo’s College is the medical school of GlasgowRoyaL Infirmary, in the grounds of which it stands. Ittakes 300 students, preclinical courses being given in thecollege and clinical training in the wards of the infirmaryand the special hospitals of the city. Students are pre-pared for the examinations of the licensing boards andfor the examinations of the universities, provided matri-culation requirements are met. Further informationmay be had from the Dean, St. Mungo’s College MedicalSchool, 86, Castle Street, Glasgow.At ST. ANDREWS UNIVERSITY everything continues

as usual except that in response to the governmentappeal the date of qualification for students graduatingin 1944 has been expedited. The June examinationhas been advanced to March and the December examina-tion to September, and a full teaching term-the Lammasterm-beginning this year on July 12, has been intro-duced. This is not an unmixed advantage, becausemost of the students used to do resident clinical clerk-ships, or some other,work which they did not ordinarilyundertake in term-time, during the last long vacation,and of course this outside experience is now lost. Never-theless some still manage to help with special work, forexample with the regional blood transfusion services,’so that the regular staff can take some time off withoutcutting down the work of the unit. Applicants foradmission to the medical school exceeded 270 this year,the 65 places allowed under the quota. The dean suggeststhat some of the surplus medical applicants might goover to dentistry ; many more dental surgeons areneeded, and there are vacancies for both men andwomen in the dental schools. The difficulties of ascanty staff are increased by the continual growth ofnew duties. The standard of work among the studentshas not suffered, however, as examination results show.

Despite the fact that Northern Ireland is not includedin the conscription, the main difficulty of QuEEN’8UNIVERSITY OF BELFAST has been the absence of manyyounger members of the staff on war service ; nor havethe students been behindhand in joining the ForcesTlfe older teachers, including some of those who hadretired, have taken on the extra work. The number ofstudents admitted to the faculty of medicine is limitedto 100 in any one year ; the course normally covers sixyears, but while the war lasts the course can be com-pleted in five years and six months. The dental schoolis working as usual. Full information may be had fromthe Secretary, Queen’s University, Belfast.At TRINITY COLLEGE, the UNIVERSITY OF DUBLIN,

in the spring of this year students who had completedtheir course except for three months hospital work wereallowed to sit for their finals. Each of the five whoqualified, under this dispensation, had a particularlygood record. Nevertheless the university has decidednot to allow students who have not completed theirhospital attendance to sit in future, partly because sofew gain from the relaxation and partly because theatmosphere of haste and excitement among the studentsis not conducive to the best work. A scheme has beendrawn up during the year under which future medicalstudents will be examined for tuberculosis by miniatureradiography and skin tests ; this will be compulsory.Students will be examined in their premedical year, andradiographed again at the beginning of their clinicalwork and in the final year. For the past two yearspremedical students have taken an intelligence test (grouptest 33 of the National Institute of Industrial Psycho-

logy). These tests will be continued and later theresults will be compared with the progress of the studentthrough the medical school. All the ordinary depart-ments of the school are working as usual, though the *

numbers of students’ are fewer and there has been anincrease in the proportion of women students. Thedental school is unaffected.

The SCHOOLS OF SURGERY, including Carmichael andLedwich Schools, are attached by charter to the ROYALCOLLEGE OF SURGEONS IN IRELAND. They are carriedon within the college buildings at St. Stephen’s Green,and are supervised by the council of the college. Lecturesand courses may be attended by medical students whoare otherwise unconnected ’with the college, and womenstudents are admitted. Particulars of the courses may beobtained from the Registrar, Royal College of Surgeons inIreland, Dublin.

In the three colleges of the NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OFIRELAND—University Colleges of Dublin, Cork andGalway-the war has caused no great changes. Adiploma in child health has lately been introduced inUniversity College, Dublin, but the course is still underconsideration ; numbers have been maintained, and theextension of the anatomy and physiology courses tocover six terms instead of three, as in the old curriculum,has been found to be a great improvement. There aredental schools at Dublin and Cork but not at Galway.Regulations governing medical and dental examinationsand courses are unchanged and may be obtained fromthe Registrar, National University of Ireland, 49, MerrionSquare, Dublin.

Degrees and DiplomasEXAMINING BOARDS

English, Scottish and Irish Conjoint BoardsThe Examining Board in England of the Royal College

of Physicians of London and the Royal College of Surgeonsof England examines candidates for the qualifyingdiplomas of MRCS, LRCP. Candidates satisfying theboard’s regulations in regard to the preliminary exam-ination in general education, are eligible for admission tothe premedical examination in chemistry, physics andbiology, and are required to complete the professionalcurriculum subsequently at a recognised medical school.As an emergency measure the length of the course hasbeen reduced from 57 to 54 months and candidates arenow admissible to the last subject of the final examinationafter 30 months of clinical study instead of 33. Theregulation permitting a candidate to. enter for one partof the final after 24 months of clinical study is not affected.Some other war-time concessions have been authorisedin the regulations : for example, clinical study may beundertaken at any hospital provided the dean of thecandidate’s school is satisfied as to the instruction avail-able and signs the certificate of study. Other modifica-tions will be found in the Emergency Regulations whichhave been published and are to remain in force untilthe beginning of the academic year following the termina-tion of the war. Copies of these regulations, and acalendar showing the dates of examinations, may beobtained, free of charge, from the secretary to the Exam-ining Board in England, the Examination Hall, QueenSquare, London, W.C.1.

The Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh,the RoyalCollege of Surgeons of Edinburgh, and the Royal Facultyof Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow have an arrange-ment by which, after one series of examinations, held inEdinburgh, or Glasgow, or both, the student mayobtain the diplomas—designated by the letters LRCPE,LRCSE, LRFPSG-,of all three bodies. Candidatesmay work for the examination of the Scottish Con-joint Board at any of the recognised medical schoolsof Great Britain and Ireland. In 1938 the TripleQualification committee of management adopted thesuggestions of the General Medical Council for an

extended medical curriculum, under which the coursewas to consist of a year of premedical work followed bya five-year medical course; but the committee havereverted to the 1937 regulations as a temporary warmeasure. Under these, the course lasts only five

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years and includes, in addition to the pre-registrationexamination, four professional examinations : the pre-medical examination (biology, chemistry and physics) ;the second examination in anatomy and embryology,physiology, biochemistry and biophysics ; the third inpathology and bacteriology, and pharmacology ; andthe final in medicine, surgery, midwifery, forensicmedicine and public health. Details may be had fromthe registrar, 18, Nicolson Street, Edinburgh.The Conjoint Board of the Royal College of Physicians

of Ireland and Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland acceptcandidates for the LRCPI and LM, LRCSI and LM from,most of the recognised medical schools at home and abroad.During the year 1943, 2 years of clinical work are beingaccepted from entrants to the licentiate examinationsinstead of 3. There have been no other changes in theregulations since the outbreak of war. Full details canbe obtained from the registrar, Royal College of Surgeonsin Ireland, Dublin.

Apothecaries’ LicencesThe Society of Apothecaries of London grants the

LMSSA Lond. to candidates who pass in the primaryexamination (which is held quarterly) and the finalexamination. Final - examinations -are held monthlyexcept in September. The minimum period of studyis normally 5 years, but as a war-time measure candidateswill be allowed to sit for the primary examination inanatomy and physiology after 46 weeks’ study, providedthat this covers a period’ of not less than 15 months ;that is to say, the candidate can sit after four termswork instead of five, and this will save him a term onthe whole course. The four parts of the final examina-tion may be taken together or in any order. Furtherinformation may be obtained from the registrar,Apothecaries’ Hall, Black Friars Lane, E.C.4.The Apothecaries’ Hall of Ireland grants the LAH

Dubl. to students who pass the three professionalexaminations. No changes have been made in the regu-lations, which can be obtained from the registrar,95, Merrion Square, Dublin.

r UNIVERSITY DEGREES

Bachelor of Medicine and SurgeryAll the universities in the United Kingdom offer

baccalaureate degrees in medicine and surgery, conferredon the results of examination.

HIGHER QUALIFICATIONSThose who have graduated in medicine and surgery are

at liberty to seek higher qualifications if they wish.

Doctor of Medicine and Master of SurgeryGraduates holding a bachelor’s degrees can take the

degree of Doctor of Medicine or Master of Surgery. Allthe universities in Great Britain and Ireland confer suchdegrees. The requirements vary and can be obtainedfrom the different universities. At the Universityof Durham the degree of Doctor of Surgery (D Ch) isoffered in addition to degree of Master of Surgery (MS).

. Master in the Science of Obstetrics and Master ofMidwifery _

’ The Irish universities grant the degree MAO. TheSociety of Apothecaries of London offers Mastery ofMidwifery (MMSA). The degree is given on the resultsof an examination, held in May and November, the re-quirements for which can be obtained from the registrar,Apothecaries’ Hall, Black Friars Lane, E.C.4.

MEMBERSHIP AND FELLOWSHIP

The Royal College of Physicians of London confers theMembership (MRCP), which is obtained by examination,and the Fellowship (FRCP), which is an honorary distinc-tion. Medical graduates and licentiates of the collegeover the age of 23 are at liberty to enter for the Member-ship examination, details4bf which can be obtained fromthe secretary, Royal College of Physicians, Pall MallEast, London, S.W.I.

Fellows are selected annually, from the ranks ofmembers, by the council of the College. The Royal College of Surgeons of England grants a

Fellowship to those passing the primary and final FRCS

examinations. Under new regulations which becomeeffective from the end of 1943, undergraduates will nolonger be permitted to take the primary examination,which will only be open to members of the College andgraduates in medicine and surgery of universities andmedical colleges recognised by the council. Subjectsof the primary examination will be anatomy (includingnormal histology), applied physiology and the principlesof pathology. No candidate will be admitted to thefinal examination unless he can produce evidence ofhaving been engaged in acquiring professional knowledgefor not less than 2 years after taking a recognised medicalqualification, Dates of examination have beenrearranged so that candidates who pass the primaryexamination can proceed at once to the final if they areeligible. Copies of the new regulations and full parti-culars may be obtained from the director of examina-tions, the Examination Hall, Queen Square, London,W.C.I.

Medical graduates who have been registered, or eligiblefor registration, for at least three years, may apply forexamination for Membership of the Royal College ofObstetricians and Gynaecologists (MRCOG). Particularsof the regulations may be obtained from the secretary,Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists, 58,Queen Anne Street, London, W.I.

. The Fellowship (FRCOG) is granted to Memberswho are judged to have advanced the science and art ofobstetrics and gynaecology.

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Graduates may become Members of the Royal Collegeof Physicians of Edinburgh (MRCPE) on passing anexamination, particulars of which may be obtained fromthe secretary, 9, Queen Street, Edinburgh 2.The Fellows are selected annually from among the

Members by the council of the college, and receive thedegree of FRCPE.

Fellowship of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edin-burgh (FRCSE)- is granted to medical graduates whopass the required examination ; particulars of theregulations may be obtained from the clerk of theCollege, Surgeons Hall, 18, Nicolson Street, Edinburgh.The Royal Faculty of Physicians and Surgeons of

Glasgow grants, after examination, a Fellowship regis-trable by the GMC as an additional qualification (RFPSG). ).Admission is by examination and subsequent election.The candidate, who must be a licentiate of the facultyor a graduate in medicine of a university or medicalcollege approved by the faculty, may be examined eitherin medicine or surgery, as he chooses.

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A candidate presenting evidence of having practiseda specialty for at least 7 years may be examined in thatspecial subject if the council of the faculty approves.A candidate may also submit original published work,and if this is of sufficient merit he may be excused partof the examination. Details may,, be sought from thesecretary of the Royal Faculty of Physicians and Sur-geons, 242, St. Vincent Street, Glasgow, C2.

Membership of the Royal College of Physicians ofIreland (MRCPI) is granted on the result of an

examination, the details of which may be obtainedfrom the registrar of the College, 6, Kildare Street,Dublin.

Fellows are elected by ballot, and receive the degree ofFRCPI.Graduates seeking the Fellowship of the Royal College

of Surgeons in Ireland (FRCSI) must pass in twoexaminations, a primary in anatomy and physiology anda final in surgery. Further particulars may be obtainedfrom the registrar, the Royal College of Surgeons inIreland, Dublin.

The Faculty of Radiologists offers a Fellowship(FFR) to medical graduates of five years standing whohave spent at least one year in general clinical work atan approved hospital, have practised radiology exclusivelyfor three years and have held a radiological diploma for atleast two years. Candidates are required to pass anexamination and submit a thesis. Candidates who holdhigher medical or surgical qualifications may be exemptedfrom the examinations in general medicine, generalsurgery or pathology. Full particulars may be obtainedfrom the warden, the Faculty of Radiologists, 32,Welbeck Street, London, W.I.

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SPECIAL DEGREES AND DIPLOMAS

The regulations for the following diplomas can be ob-tained by applying to the examining bodies concerned.

Public Health

A diploma in public health (DPH) is granted by theEnglish and Scottish Conjoint Boards and, usually, bv allthe universities of the United Kingdom except Oxford,Cambridge and Sheffield. Durham, in addition to thediploma, offers the degree of bachelor of hygiene tomedical graduates of any approved university whoattend courses for part I of the examination at Durham ;the degree of doctor of hygiene is conferred on thoseholding the B Hy who submit an approved thesis andpass in an oral examination.

Courses for the DPH are at present suspended, however,at all universities except the three colleges of the Univer-sity of Ireland, at Dublin, Cork and Galway. The RoyalInstitute of Public Health and Hygiene normally holdsa course, and in the coming session it will be held asusual for any candidates who are eligible for enrolmentunder war-time requirements; but advertisements ofthe course are not being issued at present.Psychological MedicineThe Universities of London, Durham, Leeds, Man-

, chester, Edinburgh, Belfast, Dublin (Trinity College),Ireland (National University) and the English and IrishConjoint Boards normally offer diplomas in psychologicalmedicine. The University of London also grants a

diploma in psychology, taken chiefly by social workers,the course for which is still being held at the LondonSchool of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. The coursesfor the diplomas of Durham, Leeds, Manchester andBelfast Universities are at present suspended, and atEdinburgh no regular courses have been given recentlyand future courses will depend on the demand and onthe sta,ff available. A DPM course is held annually atthe Maudsley Hospital in the early months of the year ;information may be obtained from the honorarydirector of the Medical School, Central PathologicalLaboratory, West Park, Epsom, Surrey.RadiologyThe -Faculty of Radiologists grants a fellowship

(FFR) which has already been mentioned. The Cam-bridge diploma has been given up. The Universities ofLondon, Liverpool and Edinburgh and the EnglishConjoint grant the DMR. Courses for the diploma atLiverpool University are at present suspended, and ithas not yet been decided whether-the London Universitycourse will be held in the session 1943-44, but theEdinburgh course has been held as usual and will be

, continued.

Tropical MedicineLiverpool University grants a diploma in ’tropical

medicine (DTM) and tropical hygiene (DTH) but no’furthercourses will be held at Liverpool while the war lasts.The University of Edinburgh and the English ConjointBoard normally grant a diploma in tropical medicineand hygiene (DTM&H). No regular courses for theEdinburgh diploma have been held recently, and futurecourses will depend on the demand and on the staffavailable. Examinations for the English ConjointDTM&H have been cancelled until further notice.

Gynaecology and ObstetricsThe Royal College of -Obstetricians and Gynaecologists

grants a diploma (DRCOG) to practitioners who have hadspecial postgraduate experience in obstetrics. TheUniversity of Dublin also offers a diploma (DGO) forwhich a course is held at Trinity College and the Rotunda

- Hospital. The degree of MMSA granted by the Societyof Apothecaries of London has already been mentioned.

OphthalmologyThree examining bodies issue diplomas in ophthal-

mology-the University of Oxford (granting the DO), theEnglish and Irish Conjoint Boards (granting the DOMS).Laryngology and OtologyThe English Conjoint Board offers a diploma (DLO)

for those who have made a special study of the ear, nose,pharynx and larynx.

AnaestheticsThe English Conjoint Board offers a diploma in

anaesthetics (f9A).’ Candidates must have special experi-ence in giving anaesthetics. The Irish Conjoint Boardhas also established a diploma in anaesthetics, the firstexamination for which was held last December.

Child Health .

University College, Dublin, has recently introduceda diploma in child health ; the course is still underconsideration, and at present the only eligible candidatesare medical graduates of the National University ofIreland. Diplomas in child health (DCH) are alsogranted by the English and Irish Conjoint Boards.

Tuberculous DiseasesThe University of Wales normally grants a diploma

in tuberculous diseases (TDD) but courses and examina-tions are at present suspended.

Bacteriology .

Diplomas in bacteriology are ordinarily granted by theUniversities of London and Manchester. The course forthe London University examination would normally behld at the London School of Hygiene and TropicalMedicine, but has been suspended during the war. AtManchester both the course and the examination havebeen suspended.Clinical PathologyThe University of London normally offers a diploma

in clinical pathology (DCP), for which a year’s course ofstudy is required. Though the course is not officiallysuspended no candidates have so far registered for itin the coming session.

DENTAL DEGREES AND DIPLOMAS

There are schools of dentistry at the universities ofLondon, Durham, Birmingham, Liverpool, Manchester,Leeds, Sheffield, Bristol, St. Andrews, Belfast andDublin ; and at university colleges of Dublin and Corkin the University of Ireland. Leeds grants a diploma(LDS), a baccalaureate degree (B Ch D) and a master-ship (M Ch D). London grants a BDS and preparesstudents for the LDS of the Royal College of Surgeons.The University Colleges of Dublin and Cork grant aBDS and an MDS, and Trinity College, Dublin, offers aB Dent Sc and an M Dent Sc. All the other universitiesmentioned offer LDS, BDS and MDS degrees; St.Andrews offers a diploma in public dentistry (DPD)in addition.

Licences in dentistry are also granted by the RoyalColleges of Surgeons of England and Edinburgh, theRoyal Faculty of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow,and the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland.

Candidates for the LDS of the Royal College ofSurgeons of England are required to pass a preliminaryexamination in general education, and either the pre-medical examination in chemistry, physics and biologyconducted by the Examining Board in England, or anexamination accepted by the board as exempting fromthis examination. The course lasts four years and mustbe taken at recognised dental schools and hospitals,but candidates who have completed not less than 6months dental mechanics under a competent dentalpractitioner may be exempted from 3 of the 20 monthsinstruction in this subject at the dental school. Regula-tions and a calendar showing the dates of the examinationmay be obtained from the director of examinations,Examination Hall, Queen Square, London, W.C.l.Candidates seeking the LDS of the Royal Facultyof Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow must pass apreliminary examination in general education and anotherin scientific subjects (physics, chemistry and biology).The professional course lasts four years and must betaken at a recognised dental school. There are threeprofessional examinations, the first in human anatomyand physiology, the second in dental metallurgy andin dental mechanics, and the final, part I, in principles ofmedicine, surgery and therapeutics, general pathologyand bacteriology ; part II in dental anatomy, phy-siology, surgery, materia medica, orthodontics, radiology,pathology and bacteriology and operative dental surgery.

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In addition to the LDS the Royal Faculty offers ahigher dental diploma (HDD) to registered dentistswho have practised for at least 12 months and who passan examination in dental anatomy and physiology,dental surgery, and dental pathology and bacteriology.Information about both examinations may be soughtfrom the secretary to the Faculty, 242, St. Vincent Street,Glasgow, 02.The course for the LDS of the Royal College of Surgeons

in Ireland lasts for 5 years, and up to the end of thefifth term lectures and examinations are the same asthose for medical students taking the examinations ofthe Irish Conjoint Board. In the sixth term dentalstudents attend a dental hospital for an introductorycourse in dental mechanics, and in their third year theytake the same course and examination in pathology asthe medical students, and attend lectures and clinicalcourses at a general hospital in medicine and surgery,sitting for an examination in these subjects which ofcourse differs from that of the medical students. Theirfourth and fifth years are spent entirely in the dentalhospital. Details may’be obtained from the registrar,Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, Dublin.

REGISTRATION

No-one is a legally qualified medical practitioner unlesshis name appears on the Medical Register kept by theGeneral Council of Medical Education and Registrationof the United Kingdom. The council is a standardisingbody, ensuring that there is a definite minimum ofmedical education and examination requirements and itis responsible for discipline within the profession. Anyapplication to be admitted to a school of medicineon beginning the medical curriculum proper should beaddressed to the dean or other appropriate authorityof the school to which the applicant desires to beadmitted.The number of students admitted to British medical

schools during 1941-42 was 2310. The entry for1942-43 is estimated at about 2430. The quota imposedon admissions to medical schools is likely to maintainnumbers at about the same level while the war lasts.The names of 3556 doctors were added to the registerin the year ended Dec. 31, 1942, 911 of these beingplaced on the temporary list.

IN THE COMMON ROOMwhere deans and students meet

MEDICAL education in the present day is constantlybeing criticised on one particular score-namely, thatstudents are taught on rarities and that those whobecome general practitioners are poorly equipped totreat the minor ailments and the chronic disorders whichform so large a part of general practice. This criticismis well founded and in my opinion there are only twoways of meeting it. First, the extension of teachinghospitals enabling them to take their share in the treat-ment of the chronic sick ; this can only be done byincreased accommodation or by a functional union ofteaching hospitals with municipal hospitals and publicassistance institutions. I have recently in the courseof a hospital survey seen the conditions under which thechronic sick are treated and which are sometimes adisgrace to our country. If acute hospitals made pro-vision for chronic sick, or if admissions were made tochronic sick institutions via a general-and particularlya teaching-hospital, not only might quite appreciablenumbers be saved from the ranks of the chronic sick, butstudents could receive instruction in their care whichwould be valuable to them in private and in institutionalpractice. Secondly, I think the student should visitsick people in their own homes either as a sort of appren-tice to a general practitioner (who for this purposemight be on the staff of a teaching school as a teacherin domiciliary medicine and surgery) or by being attachedfor this purpose to a health centre.

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A bee in my bonnet-the problem of selecting medicalstudents. I gather from a number of quarters that theimportance of an interview is being stressed more andmore. Yet when I have challenged several proponentsas to the criteria which they will employ to decide at

the interview whether a youth or maiden of 18 will bea good doctor, I have so far failed to get any satisfactoryanswer. I plump for a competitive examination, pro-vided the range of subjects from which the candidatecan choose any four or five is sufficiently wide. By thismeans you can provide a test of certain qualities whichare reasonably important for the doctor of the future-viz., intellectual prowess, memory and capacity for work ;and you can measure these qualities with a fair degreeof accuracy. Interviews, on the other hand, can benothing more than impressions, incapable of beingmeasured one against the other, and bringing still inanother variable-the attitude of the interviewers. rknow of course that it has been alleged with regard towine that the human brain and the human stomach arethe only analysts which never make mistakes. But Iam just a little doubtful about the capacity of inter-viewing bodies as connoisseurs of the budding doctor.And I am slightly suspicious of the interview as a weaponof prejudice.

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The work of students in the STC goes on, but it ishard on the more senior men, and also on those in thesecond year who have to do the full infantry training.I myself think that too much is being asked of them,especially in view of the severe penalty of failure-dereservation.

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The student in Aberdeen during war-time leads arigorous existence. Not only does he do his share offire-watching. He must also.serve in the STC duringthe whole period of 5 years. The first two years arespent in purely infantry training, the last three in themedical unit. By the end of the 4th year he possessesInfantry B and Medical B certificates and during the5th year receives additional instruction in the militaryaspects of clinical problems, including a special coursein tropical hygiene. You will probably agree that themen are making every endeavour to equip themselvesto meet their responsibilities, as medical officers in theServices. Even the women, though of course there is

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no compulsion in their case, have asked for and obtaineda good deal of instruction in the medical side of militarymatters, which should be useful to them when theyjoin the forces. You will also understand why some ofour students feel a trifle sore when they learn that manyof their fellows in the South escape all military trainingonce the stage of clinical instruction is reached. Butthey don’t grumble very much. The North-East haslong been known as the home of an efficient and fightingrace.

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It was not an easy job for us students to collateopinions on ’the Beveridge plan. We were all tooconscious of the fact that we have had practically noexperience of any sort of medical service, and our care-fully considered and enthusiastic proposals-whatevertheir nature-were inevitably met with " That’s allvery well in theory ...",from one venerable memberof the profession or another. But we have got to liveour lives in a system whose structure is being decidednow, and we feel it is our duty, rather than our right,to study, and express an opinion on, that structure.Having no responsibilities and being not yet fixed ina method of working few of us can have any axes togrind. Occasionally one of our elders has ground his axeall over us when we have asked for guidance and we havesometimes tried to reproduce the sparks at our meetings;but reheated sparks seldom do more than smoulder.Our small voice is, perhaps, unique among all the roar-ings of the Great on this subject. We have littleexperience, but correspondingly little prejudice. Weare vitally affected by the future, and are still youngenough and daft enough to hope and work for one thatis better than the present. If we later become wiserand more cynical, we need not repent of our presentdeliberations.Our Beveridge subcommittee had borne in mind the

increasing emphasis on preventive medicine and positivehealth ; and this necessitated examining the wholereport and not merely the more directly medical para-graphs. We cannot say that social conditions are notour business, for the importance of cleanliness, sunshineand freedom from anxiety can be easily demonstrated.