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great inconvenience to those gentlemen, for the sake of ob-taining their opinions.The House of Commons has also appointed a Special Com-

mittee to inquire into the general question of medical reform,during which time the proceedings in Parliament, in referenceto the Medical Registration Bill, will, of course, be sus-

pended.The fact of the sitting of this Committee removes every

emergency such as you assume to exist; but it may be pre-sumed, that if this Registration Bill were vigorously pushedin Parliament, and there were a chance of its injurious pro-visions being enacted into a law, the Council of the Institutewould take some decisive steps in the manner you desire.In reference to your second question, I can assure you that

the by-laws have been the subject of frequent consideration,and are nearly prepared for publication.

I have no doubt that but a short time will elapse beforethey are submitted to the members, and in a state to beacted on.

I trust that you will find this explanation satisfactory toyou; and am, Sir, your most obedient servant,To M. K. O’Shea, Esq., Lambeth. GEORGE Ross, Secretary.

SELECTIONS FROM THE PETITIONSIN FAVOUR OF THE MEDICAL REGISTRATION AND MEDICAL LAW

AMENDMENT BILL, AND AGAINST THE CONDUCT OF THE COR-

PORATIONS IN OPPOSING THE MEASURE.

To the Honourable the Commons of Great Britain and Ireland,in Parliament assembled,—

The humble petition of Henry William Sandell, residingat Potton, Bedfordshire, member of the Royal Collegeof Surgeons of England, showeth,-

That your petitioner is of opinion, that the Medical Regis-tration and Medical Law Amendment Bill, now before yourhonourable House, will, if enacted into a law, prove not onlya boon to the profession, but to the public at large, and willgreatly tend to arrest that tampering with human life, whichrecent events have so painfully testified, resulting from theunlimited practice of unqualified persons. Your petitioner isalso of opinion, that the opposition emanating from theLondon Medical and Surgical Corporations, to the aforenamedmeasure, is not prompted by any wish to serve or exalt theprofession, but to perpetuate to themselves that monopolizingand tyrannical power which they have invariably wielded tothe benefit of their own selfish and exclusive interests. Yourpetitioner, therefore, confidently looks to your honourableHouse for protection, and fervently hopes that the said Billwill be passed into a law in the present session of Parliament.

And your petitioner, as in duty bound, will ever pray.HENRY WILLIAM SANDELL.

yo the Honourable the Commons of the United Kingdom of GreatBritain and Ireland, in Parliament assembled.

The petition of the Governor and Company of the

Apothecaries’ Hall of Ireland, humbly showeth,-That your petitioners view with satisfaction a Bill intro-

duced into your honourable House " for the Registration ofLegally Qualified Medical Practitioners, and for Amendingthe Law Relating to the Practice of Medicine in GreatBritain and Ireland." That your petitioners look forward tothat Bill, if carried out into law, as the base from which ageneral system of medical reform, calculated to prove benen-cial to the profession, and advantageous to the public, mayproceed, your petitioners attributing the failure of all at-

tempts hitherto made to legislate for the medical professionto the want of an enlarged foundation, such as the presentBill proposes to lay. Your petitioners therefore pray thatit will be the pleasure of your honourable House to pass theBill into a, law in the present session of Parliament.And your petitioners will, as in duty bound, ever pray,

(Signed,) CHARLES H. LEET, M.D.,Dublin, June 12th, 1847. Sec. to the Company.

(Sealed with the seal of the Company.)

To the Honourable the Commons of Great Britain and Ireland, iin Parliament assembled. I

The humble petition of William Price Evans, residing atMile End, near Swansea, member of the Royal Collegeof Surgeons of England, showeth,-

That your petitioner views with interest the proceedings ofyour honourable House, in relation to " A Bill for the Regis-tration of Qualified Medical Practitioners, and for Amending

the Law relating to the Practice of Medicine in Great Britainand Ireland," and earnestly prays that this Bill may withoutdelay be passed into a law. Past history shows that irre-sponsible power has been corrupt and tyrannical, and presenthistory proves that it is a great curse. Your petitioner, there-fore, views the opposition of the London Medical Corporationswith feelings rather of scorn than regret, they are " followingtheir vocation,"-working out their own damnation with fearand trembling. When the whole mass of the professionunites to petition for a Bill so well adapted as the present, tosecure not only its own interests, but what is of even greaterimportance, the best interests of the community, it is inevit-able, that close and irresponsible Corporations should com-bine to oppose it; their craft is in danger: but your petitionerearnestly prays that their cunning may not deceive yourhonourable House, and thus prevent the passing of a Bill,without which, all sanatory regulations must prove lessefficient.

And your petitioner, as in duty bound, will ever pray.WILLIAIVI PRICE EVANS.

To the Honourable the Commons of Great Britain and Ireland,in Parliament assembled.

The humble petition of Edward Arundel Verity, Clerk,L.D.C., Incumbent of All Saints, Habergham, in theparish of Whalley, dio. Chester, county of Lancaster,humbly showeth,-

That your petititioner has carefully examined the provisionsof a Bill now before a select committee of your honourableHouse, intituled " A Bill for the Registration of QualifiedMedical Practitioners, and for Amending the Law relating tothe Practice of Medicine in Great Britain and Ireland;" andyour petitioner anxiously hopes the said Bill may be passedinto a law in the present session of Parliament. That yourpetitioner has deeply deplored the want of an efficient systemof registration of qualified medical practitioners, by which thepublic can more easily distinguish the regularly educated frommere pretenders to the science of medicine. That your peti-tioner, in the discharge of his daily pastoral duties, has wit-nessed too evidently the sad effects and consequences arisingfrom the fraudulent and dangerous practices of designing men,who, without the smallest amount of medical knowledge, arein the habit of imposing on the public, and otherwise endan-gering the lives of her Majesty’s subjects. That the saidignorant pretenders oftentimes assume the characters andtitles of legally qualified medical men, and thereby deceivethe public, to their great injury, as also to the detriment of ahighly useful and honourable profession. That your petitionertherefore hails, with much satisfaction, the measure nowbefore your honourable House, insomuch as provision istherein made to restrain the false assumption of professionaltitles, as well as to punish the nefarious proceedings of un-qualified pretenders; and cannot but view with surprise andregret the fact that so excellently adapted a measure as thepresent should meet with the slightest opposition from theColleges of Physicians, Surgeons, and Apothecaries’ Hall,London, as it is considered more especially their province andduty to support every measure calculated to uphold andrespect the interests and welfare of those gentlemen who, atgreat sacrifice of time and money, have legally qualified them-selves for their profession.And your petitioner, as in duty bound, will ever pray, &c.

EDWARD ARUNDEL VERITY.

To the Honourable the Commons of the United Kingdom of GreatBritain and Ireland, in Parliament assembled.

The humble petition of the undersigned graduates inmedicine, extra-licentiates of the Royal College ofPhysicians of England, residing in the borough ofBristol, showeth,-

That your petitioners have observed, with much satisfaction,the introduction into your honourable House of a Bill for theRegistration of Legally Qualified Practitioners in Medicineand Surgery, which Bill, in the opinion of your petitioners, iscalculated to be of essential service to the medical professionand the public: to the former, by affording protection to itslegal members, and discouraging illegal practitioners; and tothe public, by protecting them from the evils which arise fromthe practice of medicine and surgery by persons who have notreceived the necessary medical education. Your petitionerstherefore pray your honourable House to pass the said Billduring the present session of Parliament.

And your petitioners, as in duty bound, will ever pray.GEORGE ROGERS JOHN STAUNTONE. J. STAPLES H. A. P. ROBERTSON.

657

To the Honourable the Commons of Great Britain and Ireland, Iin Parliament assembled.The humble petition of the undersigned practitioners in

medicine, &c., showeth,-That your petitioners are deeply convinced that the

Medical Registration and Medical Law Amendment Bill,"brought forward by the honourable member for Finsbury,would prove of much advantage to the members at large ofthe medical profession, and be of essential service to the

public; and your petitioners, therefore, earnestly hope that noopposition brought forward by the Colleges of Physicians andSurgeons, or by any other incorporated bodies, seeking todefend privileges in their possession, for the benefit of a few,unmindful of the whole body of the profession, and also, ofthe public good, may be allowed to obstruct the passing ofthe aforenamed Bill during the present session of Parlia-ment.And your petitioners, as in duty bound, will ever pray.

THOMAS KEEN, King’s-road, Chelsea; JOHN PARRSCATLIFF, 48, Sloane-square, Chelsea; W. BATTEN,74, Westbourne-street, Pimlico; W. M. NEALE, 8,Sloane-square, Chelsea; WILLIAM MARTYN, 14,Brompton-row; S. J. BOULTER, 11, King’s-roadEast, Chelsea; TnoMAS BLANCHARD, 79, Warwick-square, Pimlico; CHARLES WHITiNG, 58, UpperEbury-street, Pimlico.

Correspondence.A WORD IN REPLY TO MR. BECK.

(SEE PAGE 615.). To the Editor of THE LANCET.

SIR,—Mr. Snow Beck has at last fulminated. What awretched production! Five columns-one thought! Muchmisrepresentation and misreasoning thereon. Of a truth, itis very gelatinous. There is a oneness about it certainly.It is consistent, but soft.

It would be well if Mr. Beck would try to understand thething he writes about before he takes his " pen in hand."Who ever now uses the phrase, cerebro-spinal system ?Who ever supposes that the contraction of the uterus " is

caused by the reflex action of the spinal cord" alone ?Who, besides Mr. Beck, would talk of the reflex functions

being " annihilated," the respiration, the action of thesphincters, &c., continuing all the time ?The cerebro-spinal system is now demonstrably shown to

be two distinct systems.The contractions of the uterus, like that of the cesophagus,

are demonstrably twofold, the result, 1, of reflex action; 2, ofmuscular irritability, besides certain auxiliary forces arisingfrom the influence of emotion and volition on the muscles ofexpiration, the glottis being partially or entirely closed.

It would seem that Mr. Beck is as much at sea in his phy-siology as in his anatomy; both are of a gelatinous character.

If these remarks appear severe, let it be remembered thatthe occasion calls for severity. Mr. Beck should first learnthe a, b, c, of his subject. He may then be permitted toattempt the x, y, z. But not till then.-Yours, &c.,June, 1847. SCALPEL.

LUNATICS CHARGEABLE TO THE PARISH OFST. MARYLEBONE, MIDDLESEX.

A DOCUMENT has this week passed through the press, underthe name of a Report (the Auditors of Accounts) of the Parishof St. Marylebone, containing the following particulars, (ne-cessarily abridged, for convenience, as regards our own space,)which, not being otherwise generally accessible to the public,we insert in this place :-The majority of lunatics becoming chargeable to the parish

of St. Marylebone were heretofore sent to the county asylumat Hanwell, but, four years since, it was found, thoughcapable of containing above 1000 pauper lunatics, that asylumwas far from adequate to meet the increased demands of thecounty, and many cases were therefore sent to the differentlicensed houses, in and near London, at an increased charge tothe parish; but soon the licensed houses also became full, andthat frequently caused serious delay before patients couldbe received-by the patient not having the advantages ofcurative treatment in the early stages of the disease. As aremedy for these evils, the directors and guardians of St.

Marylebone availed themselves of the Acts 8 & 9 Vic. cap.100 & 126, passed in August, 1845, and applied to the Commis-sioners in Lunacy to grant a licence for the reception of luna-tics in certain wards of the workhouse, rendered suitable for thepurpose; the licence was accordingly granted for 50 femalesand 35 males. The date of the last licence is November, 1846,extending to thirteen months ensuing.An analysis of the lunatics in reference to the county asylum,

the licensed houses, and the licensed wards of the workhouse,establishes the fact that great relief must have been affordedto the county by the course pursued, important benefits to thepatients, and great satisfaction to their relatives.

Since the opening of the county asylum in 1831, there havebeen sent there by St. Marylebone, 255 patients: of these,106died, 58 discharged, 1 escaped, 90 remaining on 31st December1846-namely, 43 males and 47 females; total, 255. Of the90, 74 are lunatics and 16 idiots; 22 are dangerous to them-selves or others, and 68 harmless; 78 are deemed incurable,and 12 doubtful as to cure.The weekly rate of maintenance, as fixed from time to time

by the visiting justices of the county asylum, has varied perweek for each lunatic from 5s. 3d. in 1837 (the lowest year; in1833 the amount was 9s. per week each patient) to 10s. 7d.(in 1840); the charge at present is 9s. 0½d.The total paid by the parish to the county asylum for main-

tenance from 1831 to 1846, has amounted to .820,191.The licensed houses to which lunatics have been sent from

the parish, are, Hoxton House (Sir J. Miles’s); PeckhamHouse (P. Armstrong’s); Grove House, Bow (E. Byas’s); Beth-nal Green Asylum, (Warburton’s.)

Since July, 1831, there have been 294 cases sent to the abovelicensed houses: of these, 56 died, 105 were discharged, cured,21 partially recovered, 87 were transferred to the countyasylum, 23 were transferred to the licensed wards of the work-house, 2 remaining; total, 294. The charge to the end of1844, was 9s. per week, and afterwards advanced to 10s. andlls. per week, for each patient.

Since the opening of the licensed wards of the workhouse inMarch, 1846, 96 patients have been admitted: of these, 8 died,18 discharged, cured, 4 discharged, relieved, 66 remaining on31st December-41 females, 25 males; total, 96.

Independently of the above, there are 51 harmless lunaticsand idiots in the workhouse, not subject to the restraint of thelicensed wards of the establishment, so that the pauper lunaticsand idiots chargeable to the parish, on 31st December, 1846,were as follow :-In the county asylum, 90; in privateasylums, 2; in the licensed wards of the workhouse, 66; inthe other wards, 51-84 males, 125 females-total, 209.The magistrates of Middlesex are at present advertising for

a site on which to erect a second county asylum, for chroniclunatics, with a view to the more speedy reception of cases inthe early stages of disease in the present asylum. When thenew asylum is erected, in all probability the licence for thewards of the workhouse will be withdrawn, and the parish willbe compelled to transfer their lunatic patients to such asylum,unless, meantime, the authorities obtain an Act of Incorpora-tion, by which the parish might be placed in the same positionas a borough with a recorder, under the provisions of theLunacy Acts, 9 & 10 Vic. cap. 126, and have an asylum of itsown. Among the considerations in favour of such measureare these:That not a moment would be lost in bringing cases under

remedial treatment in the early stages of disease; thereby in-creasing the probability of cure.That the control over the discharge of the patients would

be vested in the parochial authorities; whereas at present,when admitted into the county asylum, the discharge of pa-tients depends on the sanction of the visiting justices.The probability, founded on the opinion of the commissioners

in lunacy, that cures would be more frequent, by admittingbetter classification in an establishment for 200, than in onefor 1000.

THE AGE OF MANUALS.

To the Editor of THE LANCET.

SIR,—It was by no means my intention to criticise any oneof the Manuals with which our students are supplied. My ob-ject is to oppose the system of Manuals; and I do so for thereasons which I have alleged-viz., because such bookscannot raise, but must, if trusted to,-as they are, in fact, bymany,-degrade the professional mind, and keep it low.Manual reading is a sort of cramming, and all knowledge so

acquired speedily evaporates. Manual reading can onlysupply facts. It can infuse into the mind no spirit of philo-