.ffelkal 
1866—’67. ADDRESSES 
DELIVERED AT THE 
EIGHTEENTH ANNUAL COMMENCEMENT 
OF THE 
MEDICAL DEPARTMENT 
OF 
GEORGETOWN COLLEGE, 
JOHNSON ELIOT, M. D., 
DEAN OF THE FACULTY, AND PROFESSOR OF PRINCIPLES AND PRACTICE 
OF SURGERY, 
AND 
WILLIAM C. TILDEN, M. D. 
MARCH 5, 1807. 
WITH A CATALOGUE OF JHE. FACULTY AND STUDENTS. 
WASHINGTON: 
W. H. MOORE, PRINTER, 484 ELEVENTH STREET, BET. E & F. 
1867. Washington, D. C., March 6, 1867. 
Dear Sir: We have the honor to address you in behalf of our fellow-students to 
request, for publication, a copy of your very able address to the graduates at the 
Eighteenth Annual Commencement of the Medical Department of Georgetown Col- 
lege. We are, dear sir, very respectfully, 
M. E. N. HOWELL, 
C. V. N. CALLAN, 
H. H. McINTYRE, 
Committee. 
Johnson Eliot, M. D., Dean of Faculty and 
Professor of Principles and Practice of Surgery, 
Medical Department of Georgetown College. 
Washington, D. C., March 7, 1867. 
Gentlemen : Your favor of yesterday, asking for a copy of my address to the Medical 
Graduating Class of Georgetown College, is received. It affords me pleasure to 
comply with your request. I enclose a copy of it, with my sincere thanks for the 
compliment. With high respect, your ob’t serv’t, 
JOHNSON ELIOT. 
Messrs. M. E. N. Howell, C. V. N. Callan, H. H. McIntyre, Committee. 
Washington, D. C., March 6, 1867. 
Dear Sir : Representing our class-mates, we would respectfully request, for publi- 
cation, a copy of the valedictory address delivered by you at the Eighteenth Annual 
Commencement of the Medical Department of Georgetown College. 
Very respectfully, 
M. E. N. HOWELL, 
C. V. N. CALLAN, 
h. h. McIntyre, 
Committee. 
William C. Tilden, M. D. 
Washington, D. C., March 7, 1867. 
Gentlemen : In compliance with your request of the 6th instant, I have the plea- 
sure herewith to transmit to you the desired copy of my address. 
Very respectfully, your ob’t serv’t, 
W. C. TILDEN, M. D. 
Messrs. Howell, Callan, McIntyre, Committee. ADDRESS. 
Gentlemen of the Graduating Class of 1867 : 
In compliance with the wishes of my colleagues, I appear before you 
this evening to extend to you their congratulations and address you a few 
parting words. 
The occasion is one of the deepest interest to you ; possibly one of the 
most interesting, if not the most important event in the whole course of 
your lives. You are present this evening to receive the honors won by 
years of study and application, and to be publicly acknowledged worthy 
to enter as members—one of the most useful and honorable of the profes- 
sions. 
The present hour has long been anticipated by you, and the hope of 
being one of the successful candidates for the honor just conferred, has 
often stimulated you to renewed efforts when overcome by fatigue from 
study and application. 
Eighteen years ago, the department from which you have just received 
your honors, was founded under the auspices of the lamented Doctor 
Ryder, the then able and accomplished President of Georgetown College ; 
under his care and guardianship and his successors in office, the Institu- 
tion, from a very humble beginning, surrounded by unforeseen and unan- 
ticipated difficulties, has steadily advanced in prosperity and popularity. 
Every obstacle, in the course of its progress, has been happily surmounted ; 
and we are pleased to announce to you this evening that the department 
now maintains an enviable position among medical institutions. 
Since the opening of the school, we have given to the profession many 
excellent and skillful physicians ,who are distinguished alike for their pro- 
fessional eminence and their high social position. 
We refer with pleasure and pride to the roll of our Alumni. And it is 
gratifying to us, and should be equally so to you, to know that the Insti- 
tution is, to-day, represented by them in every portion of the civilized 
world. 
The military and naval services have had their share ; and not a few 
have therein given their lives in the cause of humanity. The curriculum 
through which you have just passed, has been one of unusual severity, 
and you have fully complied with the requirements of the Faculty in every 
particular and to their entire satisfaction, and they now proclaim you 
worthy and qualified members of the medical profession. 
They cannot but cherish the hope that you will, in your future course, 
reflect honors both upon the Medical Faculty «f the College and the fra- 
ternity at large. 
It may not be inappropriate on this occasion to take a cursory view of 
the existing status of the profession which you have selected for your 
future vocation. We may say truly that at no era has the science of med- 
icine ranked so high in the estimation of the learned and scientifi .—v, iu 4 
time has its followers and supporters been more encouraged by its pro- 
gress—at no period has its value been more fully appreciated as a means 
of alleviating human suffering than the present. 
The development which medicine and its collateral brandies have un- 
dergone within the last half century, has been sufficient to satisfy the most 
progressive of its advocates. If we examine the medical science of the 
past, we are startled by the inaccuracies and errors it contained, and which 
were received as orthodox by the teachers of the time. The early prac- 
titioners of medicine necessarily possessed but a very superficial know- 
ledge of, and paid but little attention to, some of the branches which we 
now consider altogether vital. The science of Anatomy was, by them, 
very imperfectly studied. They sought no further in their dissections 
than the general outline of the human structure, they confined themselves 
simply to the description of the different viscera and the tracing of the 
principal arteries and veins. 
To be skillful in the practice of medicine and surgery, we must be ac- 
complished anatomists. The importance of an exact knowledge of this 
science is granted by every intelligent person, and a medical man, igno- 
rant of the human structure, cannot be relied upon at the bedside. The 
science of Anatomy familiarizes the physician with the structure and loca- 
tion of the different organs and the relation which they bear to each other. 
It affords him additional confidence in forming his diagnosis, and sustains 
him in the subsequent treatment. 
To the efficiency of the surgeon it is as essential as the compass is to 
the mariner. It teaches him to explore in tissues of the highest vitality 
and in positions beyond the reach of vision, where the slightest puncture 
ignorantly or unskillfully made might lead to incalculable suffering and 
even to death. 
With the many and vital advantages arising from the pursuit of Anato- 
my, we may ask why is popular prejudice so stubbornly fixed in opposi- 
tion to its cultivation? All grades of society unite in opposing those who 
zealously cultivate it as a science, and are emulous to do all in their power 
to prevent its prosecution. The law, in many instances, interferes and 
throws obstacles in the way of its pursuit, and even the valuable privilege 
of making autopsies is often denied us. The friends of the deceased are 
not aware of the wrong they inflict upon themselves and the community 
in denying to the physician the only unquestionable means of ascertaining 
the cause of death. 
If autopsies were permitted with less reserve in private practice, we feel 
confident that our skill in the treatment of disease would be greatly in- 
creased. 
But the physician bides his time. Educated humanity will ultimately 
give him all possible facilities for the pursuit of every branch of medicine ; 
and then the advanced generation will look upon us as groping in imperfect 
light, and award all credit to results attained under such difficulties. 
Histology, almost unknown to the early physicians, offers us an extensive 
field in unveiling the minute structure of animal organization, and from it 
we learn many valuable lessons. It is now classed as one of the interesting 
subjects of medical study and is carefully taught to the student, whose med- 
ical education is not considered complete without a familiarity with it. By 
the assistance of the microscope, this branch of science has been brought to 
a very high degree of perfection, and we are now able with certainty to de- 
scribe the most minute structures of the most delicate organs and tissues. 5 
Pathology, or the study of diseased tissues, has within a short period ad- 
vanced with astonishing rapidity. Through it we become acquainted with 
the structural changes which tissues undergo in disease. It is indeed the 
very key to disease. Without a knowledge of the pathological condition of 
suffering organs and tissues, the physician is a mere routinist in the practice 
of his profession. 
Many of the essential changes that medicine has undergone within the 
last few years are the result of the labors of the pathological anatomist. 
Pathology enables us to unmask the most obscure aed intricate forms of dis- 
ease, and thus greatly assist in forming our diagnosis and prognosis. 
Through this valuable knowledge we are enabled to recognize changes of 
structure by the objective symptoms, and thus trace step by step the en- 
croachments of disease. 
You should permit no opportunity to escape without endeavoring to add 
to your knowledge of this subject. 
To enable you to become worthy practitioners of medicine, you must 
carefully note every change in the condition of the sufferer, observe every 
variation of symptom closely, and if death becomes the victor, let the revela- 
tions at the autopsy sustain your diagnosis. 
Make frequent post-mortems; make them carefully, and with the proper 
feeling. Examine every structure and compare its departure from health 
with the normal condition ; note attentively all the morbid changes with the 
scientific means at your disposal. By this course of practice you amass facts, 
and thus extend your sphere of usefulness. 
To accomplish this, you may say that it will occupy more time than can 
be spared from other professional pursuits. It is very true that much time 
will be thus consumed, but I assure you that it will not be lost. If you 
will but correctly estimate the high responsibility that rests upon you as 
medical men, and at the same time reflect upon the distress and suffering 
that ignorance inflicts upon the confiding, you will be convinced that the time 
thus consumed in investigating„the philosophy of disease is not unprofitably 
spent. Science demands much sacrifice from her followers, and if we ac- 
cept the position she assigns us, we must in return for the honor thus con- 
ferred, be always ready to respond to her call. 
You, gentlemen, who are about entering upon the practice of medicine, 
possess advantages from the researches of the Physiologist vastly superior to 
those who have preceded you. 
Lef us examine some of the instructive and important additions to medi- 
cal science as disclosed by him. Until recently the history of the functions 
of the nervous system was almost a closed volume, and our knowledge of 
this beautiful system was very imperfect, until the Physiologist lifted the 
veil that concealed the wonderful operations of nature. With every step we 
accompany him in his career, we discover additional cause for admiration. 
Few branches of science so fully impress us with the evidence of wisdom in 
in the “ Architect Divine.” Even the brain has not escaped the search- 
ing scrutiny of the Physiologist; and, if he has failed to enlighten the 
metaphysician in his investigation of the nature and development of the 
mind ; he has at least made him familiar with the function of the organs 
through which it operates. To the Physiologist, we are often compelled to 
resort for interpretations of changes in the animal economy, and to reconcile 
paradoxes that daily intrude upon our observations. With what persistent 
patience he has investigated the process of digestion and secretion, and how 
lucid has he rendered these abstruse phenomena. Digestion was an enigma, 6 
but now, divested of much of its mystery, stands an evidence of his assiduity 
and skill. 
Fully to appreciate the progress of this engrossing study, we have but to 
contrast its present with its former condition. 
There is another collateral branch of medicine to which I must be per- 
mitted to call your attention, and to enjoin upon you its special consideration. 
We refer to Chemistry, both organic and inorganic. A superficial knowl- 
edge of Chemistry is presumed to be an element in every liberal education ; 
but to the physician an intimate acquaintance with it is particularily requir- 
ed and forms an essential part of his medical education. The Chemist dis- 
covers and prepares for us many of the active medicines that are so highly 
prized in the treatment of disease, and we rely upon him for all the valuable 
proximate principles. 
lie has presented us with Quinia, Morphia, Strychnia, and many other 
principles equally valuable. Nothing in nature escapes his curious investi- 
gation. He demands tribute from'the animal, vegetable, and mineral king- 
doms, and draws from each valuable contributions for the service of man. 
It is true that he offers us many poisonous compounds, but he at the same 
time kindly presents us with antidotes to neutralize their destructive and 
deadly influences. 
We pay more attention now to Physiological and Pathological Chemistry 
than formerly, and from these studies we receive many valuable suggestions. 
The first develops to us the normal or healthy condition of the solids and 
fluids of the body, while the latter indicates their abnormal or unhealthy 
condition. 
We have thus given you the elementary studies upon which our profes- 
sion is based, and with a full comprehension of these our science becomes 
simple enough; but without a thorough knowledge of them, unintelligible. 
Our profession is undergoing remarkable changes at this period, both in 
the character of the remedies used and in the mode of their administration. 
New light has been thrown upon etiology of disease. Syrntomatology has 
been more closely observed, diagnosis simplified, and the result has been 
abatement of suffering and a lessening of the rate of mortality. 
The late war has added much to our knowledge of medicine and surgery. 
It brought out the ablest medical talent in the country and placed enquiring 
men in positions to observe and investigate the diseases incident to each 
section of the country. 
When the facts and experience thus gathered, are properly collated and 
tabulated, they will furnish one of the best and most instructive medical 
histories that has ever been given to the world. 
A few remarks on the subject of Specialism in medicine will not be inap- 
propriate here. 
The Specialist is one who devotes himself exclusively to the investigation 
and treatment of a particular disease or class of diseases. He concentrates 
his whole ability and industry on one point, to the exclusion of all others; 
he thus attains a more correct knowledge of the diseases of the organs which 
he specially treats than one who bestows but a general attention to them. 
With a more intimate acquaintance with their Anatomy and Physiology, he 
is better prepared to estimate the changes in their condition from health to 
disease, and, with increased experience, he necessarily brings greater skill in 
their management. 
A strong prejudice exists in the profession against Specialism in medicine 
and surgery. We are too apt to class the Specialist with the Empiric. 7 
This prejudice has doubtless arisen from the fact that often, ignorant 
and unscrupulous persons embark in the treatment of special disease, and 
failing to redeem their promises of relief, it has resulted in casting an 
odium over the whole system of practice. A more liberal period is ap- 
proaching, and it will not be long, we trust, before specialism in medi- 
cine and surgery, will not only be recommended, but adopted as a necessity. 
The specialist is better sustained in England, France and Germany, than 
elsewhere. In these countries they have their Oculist, who devotes his 
attention to affections of the eye; their Aurist, who gives particular 
investigations to the diseases incident to the ear; their Dermatologist, who 
bestows his attention to the diseases affecting the integumentary system, 
and their Orthopedist, to the overcoming- of deformities. 
Medicine embraces an extensive field for thought and labor, too much 
so for one mind to compass every department of it; hence, the necessity 
of a division of labor and a concentration of talent in individual branches. 
Some of you, gentlemen, may discover in the commencement of your 
medical career, that you possess talent for some particular branch of 
medicine or surgery. If so, encourage it, develop and adopt it. 
The facilities for a practical medical education at the establishment of 
our college, were extremely limited, and we experienced great want of 
clinical practice and teaching. This no longer exists ; ample means are 
now afforded to the student for acquiring a practical medical education. 
Through the liberality of our citizens and the Government, hospitals have 
been established within the last few years which are now open to medical 
gentlemen. The medical museum attached to the office of the Surgeon- 
General, U. S. A., is open to all. In it are accumulated preparations of 
every variety and shade of injury that man can sustain. All the remarkable 
and interesting cases of wounds and injuries which occurred during the war, 
and all the remarkable morbid specimens from our numerous hospitals are 
here arranged for inspection and study. It is indeed the most valuable col- 
lection in the world, and attracts to this city medical gentlemen from all 
parts of the country. 
Thus it will be readily perceived that you have enjoyed unusual advan- 
tages for attaining a medical education ; facilities which the great mass of 
the profession have never enjoyed. 
We therefore hope, and the public have a right to expect that, as you 
advance in years, in practice, in skill and education, you will do something 
to promote the healing art, and in coming time let indebted humanity in- 
scribe your names on the roll of fame. 
With the honorable testimonials you have received this evening, you ac- 
cept a heavy responsibility. As physicians you will have confided to your 
care the dearest of human possessions—health and life ! Confidence thus 
entrusted is sacred. In your intercourse with your patients be candid, gen- 
erous, and kind. Conscientiously seek to relieve their sufferings, without 
regard to station or wealth, and, should you receive no other reward, that 
of knowing you have faithfully discharged your duty will be ample recom- 
pense. 
In your associations with your professional brethren, you must be lib- 
eral and forbearing, and be governed always by the strictest sense of 
honor in your transactions with them. Let no envious or unkind ex- 
pressions disturb the harmony which should exist among us. Experience 
has taught me, that much of a professional man’s success depends on the 
happy associations he enjoys with the members of his profession. 8 
Your Alma Mater, satisfied of your worthiness and qualifications, has 
placed her seal upon your Diplomas, and she has enrolled your names 
upon the list of her distinguished sons. She now bids you go forth in 
your work of usefulness and humanity. 
The respectful attention you have uniformly extended to the members 
of the Faculty during the Collegiate term, is fully appreciated by them. 
Nothing has arisen during our entire College association, to mar in the 
slightest degree, the harmony and good feeling that should exist among 
gentlemen. 
In parting, you carry with you the kindest wishes of the Faculty for 
your happiness in life, and professional prosperity, and we trust in return 
you will ever remember kindly, those who have had the pleasant duty of 
assisting you in your studies. VALEDICTOEY. 
Gentlemen of the Junior Class : 
It has fallen to my lot to inaugurate a custom which, though common in many other 
institutions, is new in the one of which you are members. Deeply sensible of the re- 
sponsibility which rests upon me as the representative of my class, as well as of Jthe 
honor which the bestowal of their confidence confers, I have proceeded to the task 
with considerable timidity. It may not be improper to remark that the leisure re- 
quired for a production of polish commensurate with the dignity of these surround- 
ings, can hardly coexist with activity in professional study superadded to the ordinary 
affairs of business. If in taking leave of you, who have thus far been our 
companions in study, but a single word of mine shall strike a responsive chord in your 
own habits of thought, my object will not have been unattained, nor my ambition 
wholly unsatisfied. Permit me to direct your attention to a few thoughts suggested 
by this anniversary and by the profession common to us both, premising that 
within the limits of a miniature address neither technical nor amplified discourse is 
practicable. 
As an individual enters upon the duties of a profession to which he pledges the 
energies of a life, the inquiries are naturally made—in what esteem is this calling held 
among men ? Are the elements of its nobility inherent, or does its rank depend upon 
the fortuitous regard of the multitude? The importance of these questions will read- 
ily appear. An ordinary respect for an occupation is by no means sufficient to se- 
cure the full and perfect performance of its duties. An enthusiasm, almost simula- 
ting inspiration, is counted among the secrets of all great success. This characteristic 
in our love for medicine will be sought by all; and as it is dependent in no slight 
degree upon our appreciation both of the underlying truths of the art, its wonderful 
historic descent, the possibilities of its future, and its inborn dignity, I venture to offer 
a few words which may, however imperfectly, illustrate some of these. 
It is not true that the worth of any branch of human industry is wholly measured 
by the popular acceptance of its fruits. Just as there is within each of us a certain 
divinum quid of whose existence the world may or may not be aware, so of the great 
occupations of life—they contain essentials which vivify and individualize. Each 
embodies a special class of notions or ideas which belong not to any particular science, 
but to the nature of the necessities which gave them birth. Much that we reverence 
in the profession of our choice lies in its antiquity and the quality of its aims, as well 
as in the more substantial results of modern knowledge. If, besides, we can conceive 
of it as constituting in the abstract an index of human progress—a measure of devel- 
opment—the altitude of our estimate may be increased. 
The first fear was that of death. In endeavoring to avoid it by the intelligent em- 
ployment of natural means, men elevated an instinct into a philosophy. The advent 
of the first physician marked an epoch in development which is far from unimportant. 
Before the conception of the idea which prompted his efforts, mental activity had 
comprised but the vaguest inference from outward conditions. In that intellectual 
chaos which must have existed during the formative period of mind, the import of 
suffering and death could not have been understood. The former was perhaps a cu- 
riosity; the latter but a disappearance from which no argument could then proceed. 
As new faculties budded and shot out into branches, the phenomena of existence as- 
sumed relations to reason. 
Step by step we can trace the process of growth which resulted in the birth of a 
new energy—that of self-help. Abject submission to the mysterious and invisible 10 
was gradually supplanted by a dim recognition of the reality of natural law. From 
an instinct held in common with other animals, were evolved by degrees the propor- 
tions of the first art. It is true that the first attempts to gain dominion over disease 
were feeble, but their significance remains. In the exchange of intuitive remedial 
applications for rational methods of procedure, half the tie which bound man to the 
brute creation was severed. Then the growth of those mental endowments which we 
term emotional was partially replaced by the development of sterner attributes. 
Imagination had given to the world Gods; the first increments of reason later intro- 
duced the physician. The idea which he personified was, in its relation to mankind, 
emphatically that of self-reliance in distinction from dependence, and as such, was an 
expanding, invigorating agency. The supposition is not unjustifiable that through 
this avenue came the first tendency toward philosophy, for medicine afterward ex- 
hibited the fact that human destiny is immediately ruled by other law than the direct 
fiat of Deity. Such an extension of the domain of thought was of consequence, not 
only as an indication of latent power, but as forming the very basis of all further 
analytical process. The attempt to control intangible forces, their nature being com- 
prehended, is in itself an evidence of rational existence ; and this sign we gather from 
the inception of the healing art. 
Did time permit, it would be profitable to follow somewhat in detail its devious yet 
majestic course, thence to the present day, for it has movedpassibus aequis with general 
progress, bearing a closer relation to the social conditions of different periods than 
any other act or science. In that “veined humanity” which pervades its being, all 
pursuits, all necessities, and all circumstances of life are so bound up, that it is im- 
possible to separate them. I5nt these lessons belong to the historian whose space is 
unlimited. From the beginnings already sketched, is derived the noble structure to 
whose completeness we hope to add. Down through the centuries with slow and 
difficult steps, the infant art advanced, now gathering strength and honor, now re- 
viled and misunderstood ; now a distinct profession, anon absorbed by the greedy 
cunning of dominant orders ; at times favored by the great, at others outlawed and 
forbidden; often fainting from inanition, but more frequently half-strangled by the 
officious zeal of would-be reformers ; until to-day we contemplate, not alone an art, 
but a science, infinite in extent, immortal in destiny. Chemistry, built upon the ac- 
cidents of that ignoble chimera—alchemy, has within the past century widened the 
horizon of medical philosophy until it comprehends almost the whole range of learn- 
ing. This science, which includes in its vast embrace the substrata of so many others, 
is the main source of those numerous discoveries which so enlighten the practice of 
the present time. 
For the future of medicine, the last fifty years contain an augury full of strength 
and promise. From the eminence upon which we stand, glimpses of a yet more 
extended prospect may be caught, though we may not be able definitely to describe 
its features, or to measure a reach which appears illimitable. The science has become 
a grand centre of discovery. Hardly a resultant from a logical series in any depart- 
ment of inquiry but forms a feature of this colossus which spans all time. That 
natural horror of suffering and death, which all men—save perhaps the well 
nourished cynic—own, formed the germ from which sprang the stately trunk and 
luxuriant foliage of exact truth ; while by the aid of modern appliances, we now gather 
the fruit thus abundantly matured, and apply it to the healing of the nations. 
It is possible that, in years to come, the wildest stretches of our fancy will be sur- 
passed by the triumphs yet to be achieved. But speculation will aid nothing in the 
discharge of our duties. It must content us to know that medicine will ever be 
what it has been,—a comforter of woe, an asylum for the terror-stricken, a mountain 
of strength to the weak, and “a very present help in trouble ; ” that the genius which ani- 
mates its body will as in time past be the sum of benevolence, ot enthusiasm, and of 
all unselfish zeal; and thpt its disciples will be honored as among the most earnest 
of earth’s workers. 
However perfectly we may understand the grandeur of this bequest of the ages, 
it is a satisfaction to perceive that the world also does not lack appreciation either of 
its spirit or its results. It is, indeed, the fashion of a certain class to look with 
serene eyes to that ecstatic existence in which the spiritual shall replace the dull 
condition of mortality; and to feign an ignorance of mere, physical needs in the con- 
templation of bodies which are to be woven with the sunlight and winged with the 
lightning. But the majority of men are not gifted with imaginations so predominant 
as to close their ears to the terrible cries of human anguish. In the true physician, 
they recognize a high priest of suffering whose generous ardor (units no sacrifice 11 
Which may mitigate the evils, or smooth the asperities of this life. His inspiration, 
they admit to be born of infinite love; his zeal to be fed by the fire of every noble 
emotion of which the heart is capable. To him belong the bravery of compassion— 
the endurance of unstinted devotion—and the delicacy of often-wounded sensibilities. 
In his theory, all useful deductions from the various branches of philosophical re- 
search are harmoniously blended; while in practice the highest skill, the nicest judg- 
ment, and the strictest fidelity to principle are rendered necessary. It is fitting, 
therefore, that he should be made the recipient of the most sacred confidences ; and 
that in his keeping should repose one of the great seals of human safety. 
My words to-night must fail to express the feelings with which we part from scenes 
endeared to us by long custom. Emotion has a hidden language of its own, which 
it is as difficult to emphrase, as to fix the full dimensions of a thought in 
forms of speech. We are now to exchange friendships which we have tried, and 
associations of proven congeniality, for other companionships and new surroundings. 
Believe me, gentlemen, we ask no better fortune in these respects than has attended 
our relations With you. Your intercourse with us, both as a class and as individuals, 
has been marked by unfailing courtesy and manliness—two qualities, permit me to 
Say, which are peerless in the vocabulary of human excellences. For these, and 
other pleasant memories of the years now past, we thank you, and in return, tender 
our hope that your experience may be similar to our own. 
But a few months Will elapse before you will stand in our places prepared to as- 
sume the responsibilities of a most august vocation. Behind you will lie a vision of 
student days in which all dreamy and delightful shapes will blend to a retrospective of 
peace and harmony; before you will appear but a cloud enwrapping the untried 
realities of the future. The pleasures of your present life ; the reflex happiness of this 
period of acquirement and assimilation, will hardly be found unmixed among the 
various adventures of after years. Students, indeed, we shall always be, a degree in 
medicine constituting but a passport to greater privileges and deeper mysteries ; but 
so considerable a change in methods of study must be accompanied by a corre- 
sponding difference in habits of mind. The essence of theory, now so captivating 
when contemplated in the abstract, will then have crystallized in the myriad forms 
ever given by that inexorable re-agent, practical utility. The real will then supersede 
it. opposite, and will quickly surround you with an atmosphere far more substantial than 
ihe respirable intoxicating fether fthich you now breathe. It will be curious to note 
hereafter your progress through the different grades of subjective phenomena. How 
the pictures held up by perception to consciousness, will gradually lose the indistinct 
outlines they once possessed, as, with the cooling of young blood, they touch the 
infinite less. How that spherical aberration always given by the too highly refrac- 
tive media of youth, will be corrected as the somewhat sombre curtain of mature 
age closes about that luminous centre—the heart. How shadowy forms will slip by 
degcpes into sharp-lined shapes as human relations become defined by experience. 
How labor unselfish and concentrated, Will eventuate in refreshment to the mind at 
first wearied by it; and how strength will follow the proper use of strength. 
Quaint Sir Thomas Browne says :—“The world that I regard is myself; it is the 
microcosm of mine own frame that I cast mine eye on ; for the other, I use it but 
like my globe, and turn it round sometimes for my recreation • * * * * there is 
surely a piece of divinity in us, something that was before the elements and owes no 
homage to the sun.” This sublime conclusion following as a result of introspection, 
furnishes a hint not unworthy the rare philosophy of the writer. 
The profession which you have chosen as a means of development, is among the 
most laborious. Its duties are exacting ; its demands upon time and strength are in- 
cessant. But do not forget that the fabled Three spin no brighter threads 
than those which mark the lives of true distyples of Hygeia. Her rosy, match- 
less grace proffers attractions superior to those of any earthly mistress ; while 
her favor is subject to no law of change. Upon none will the riches of eternal bliss 
be more profusely bestowed than upon him whose constant motto has been : “ homines 
ad deos nulla proprius accedunt, quam. salutem hominibus dando.'' 
While congratulating you upon so fortunate a choice of occupation, I should fail in 
my duty did I forget to remind you of the solemnity of its obligations, and to charge 
you in all candor and fraternal feeling, to honor the profession rather than to derive 
honor from it. Without the exercise of great watchfulness, the awful trusts com _ 12 
mitted to you will be betrayed through long familiarity with their presence. See to 
it then, that through no mortal weakness you slip away from that high ideal which 
should ever be present with you. If you are resolute and wise, the remainder of your 
novitiate will be as profitable as your after-career shall be noble and honorable. If 
your spirit is generous, your aims aspiring, and your principles broad and deep, undue 
disappointment will never mar your enjoyment of professional life ; and at its close 
the united voices of those who knew you will proclaim of each, “ in him we were made 
acquaint with virtue.” That such may be your mind, your action, and your success is 
our hearty wish ; and in these poor utterances, I now bid you farewell. 
Gentlemen of the Faculty: 
I am certain that the conviction uppermost in the minds of my classmates, as I 
turn to address you, may be well expressed in that saying of Horace : 
“ nihil est ab omne parte beatum.” 
Although the crown of success in study has, this hour, rewarded our labors, we own 
a sentiment akin to sadness as the moment arrives which severs our connection with 
you. Those feelings of satisfaction which attend the completion of an arduous course 
of study, are tempered with regret that we must lose the benefits of your counsel and 
learning. For so many months you have guided our footsteps with judgment and dis- 
cretion. For so many months you have with unwearying patience and interest, en- 
deavored to give a proper direction to our aspirations, and due proportions to our 
acquirements. With no niggardly hand you have dispensed to us from the rich stores 
of long experience facts and principles, which, by the necessary industry, we shall use 
creditably to ourselves and to the profession. While affording us a comprehensive 
and exact foundation of medical knowledge, you have wisely added those precepts 
which pertain to the conduct and character of the physician, thus leaving no part of 
a teacher’s duty unfinished. You have taught us to be generous in our estimate of 
innovations, yet not too easily shaken in adherence to generally accepted theories. 
In sometimes exceeding the usual curriculum of study, you have manifested a solici- 
tude for the improvement of your pupils, which at once reflects and bestows honor. 
In fine, we can now regret nothing, save the loss of opportunities so excellent. 
The poor requital, which in these expressions you now receive, is no criterion, either 
of our indebtedness, or of the character of your efforts. In our recollection of you 
individually, we shall not fail to be reminded of those noble words “ majore fama 
quam emolumento docuit; ” nor to discharge the obligation which their application 
imposes upon us. We shall adhere to the injunction of Hippocrates to “ honor as our 
father the master who has taught us the art of healing; and to convince him of our 
gratitude by endeavoring to minister to all his necessities.” 
In conclusion, I desire without hyperbole, to express on behalf of the class now 
graduated, their profound sense of your kindness, your earnestness, and your most 
profitable instruction; and, with the hope that you may long adorn the positions 
which you so ably fill, to bid you a respectful adieu. CiATAJLOGTTE 
OF THE 
FACULTY ANI) STUDENTS 
OF THE 
fMica! jltpartnttttt of &e$tgttowu MUge. 
1866-67. 
FACULTY. 
NOBLE YOUNG, M. D., President, 
Professor of Principles and Practice of Medicine. 
FLODOARDO HOWARD, M. D., Treasurer, 
Professor of Obstetrics and Diseases of Women and Children. 
JOHNSON ELIOT, M. D., Dean, 
Professor of Principles and Practice of Surgery. 
JAMES E. MORGAN, M. D., 
Professor of Materia Medica and Therapeutics. 
THOMAS ANTISELL, M. D., 
Professor of Military Surgery, Physiology, and Physiological Chemistry. 
MONTGOMERY JOHNS, M. D., 
Professor of General, Microscopic, and Descriptive Anatomy. 
SILAS L. LOOMIS, M. D., 
Professor of Chemistry and Toxicology. 
D. R. HAGNER, M. D., 
Clinical Professor of Medicine. 
J. H. THOMPSON, M. D., 
Clinical Professor of Surgical Diseases of Women. 
R. REYBURN, M. D., 
Clinical Professor of Surgery. 
W. EVANS, M. D., Demonstrator of Anatomy.  
Name. 
Residence. 
Thesis. 
Alexander, Walter 0... 
Babcock, B. Benj 
Washington, D. C 
Windham, Pa 
Catamenia. 
Diabetes Mellitus. 
Pathology of Inflammat'n 
Intermittent Fever. 
Pneumogastric Nerve. 
Digestion. 
Opium. 
7'yphus Epidemic. 
Scorbutus. 
Perspiration. 
Pneumonitis. 
Dietetics 
Boughter, J. Frazer,... 
Blake, George W 
Brennan, P. H 
Philadelphia, Pa 
Hagerstown, Md 
New Castle, Pa 
Breck, Samuel 
Bridgewater, Mass.. 
Caldwell, S. W 
Philadelphia, Pa 
Choate, Rufus 
Washington, D. C 
Clark, J. Nelson 
Conant, Thomas 
French, R. D. DeL.... 
Hale, William 
Mechanicsburg, Pa.. .. 
E. Bridgewater, Mass., 
New York City, N. Y. 
44 44 44 
Howard, Robertson.... 
Howe, Frank T 
Washington, D. C 
Boston, Mass 
Arsenici. 
Puerperal Peritonitis. 
Typhoid lever. 
Aneurism. 
Huntoon, Andrew J.... 
Jamison, Albion B 
Plymouth, N. H 
Bloomsbury, Pa 
Daniel S 
Philadelphia, Pa 
Alcohol. 
Lyon, William B 
Glade Mills, Pa 
Hospital Gangrene. 
Acute Rheumatism. 
Local Anasthetics. 
Amputations. 
Anaesthesia. 
Pathology of Asthma. 
Outlines of a Medical Life. 
Typhoid Fever. 
Peritonitis. 
Malcom, Granville 
McChesney, Chas. E. 
McNally, Valentine.... 
Nicodemus, W. J. L.... 
O’Conner, Jos. T 
Owen, Fred. Wooster.. 
Piercp, Albert S 
Philadelphia, Pa 
Newark, N. J 
Mansfield, Conn 
Hagerstown, Md 
Philadelphia, Pa 
Brooklyn, N. Y 
Kirksville, Mo 
Rains, B. Raleigh 
Bolivar, Mo 
Rauterburg, L. E 
Roys, Chase 
Washington, D. C 
Malone, New York.... 
Washington, D. C 
Hemorrhage. 
f Vis Vitalis et Meaica- 
Smith, John E 
\ trix Naturae. 
Addis on's Dis ease. 
Sonnenschmidt, C. W. 
Smith, Harlen S 
4 4 44 
Eddyville, N. Y 
Secretion of Saliva. 
Acute Rheumatism. 
Squier, Algernon M.... 
Thompson, G. S 
Tilden, W. C 
Claremont, N. H 
Sandy Creek, N. Y.... 
Middlebury, Vt 
Asthma. 
Menstruation. 
The Renal Secretion. 
Tree, Charles M 
Trott, Thomas H 
Van Arnnm, J. W 
Washington, D. C 
U (( 
Randolph, Wis 
Rubeola. 
Pneumonitis. 
Management of Labor 
Pneumonia. 
Wolf, John S 
Philadelphia, Pa 
Waddington, N. Y 
Acute Rheumatism. 
Intermittent Fever. 
Waters, D. C 
Costlandville, N. Y.... ■Mntln 
Name. 
Residence. 
Adams, J. Lee 
Washington, D. C. 
Georgetown, D. C. 
Lovell, Maine. 
Fayetteville, N. C. 
Winchester, Va. 
Appleby, J. F. R 
Barker, Frank W 
Bell. Ralph 
Bentley, George A 
Blanchard, Oh as. R 
Washington, D. C. 
(( 44 
Brown, A. R 
Callan, C. V. N 
44 44 
Cheney, J. Edward 
Cheney’s Grove, 111. 
Carrollton, Md. 
Washington, D. C. 
Carlisle, Pa. 
Derry, N. H. 
Lexington, Ky. 
Washington, D. C. 
Manchester, N. H. 
Colby, George A 
Cull, Abner H.i 
Culver. Ira J 
Currier, J. Charles 
Davis, John G 
Dean, Julian W . 
DeMeritt, J. Henry 
Digges. John T 
Port Tobacco, Md. 
Dixon, W. S 
Washington, D. C. 
Chauncey, Ohio. 
Morgantown, West Va. 
Georgetown, D. C. 
Washington, D. C. 
Sandwich, N. H. 
New York City. 
Leavenworth, Kansas. 
New York City. 
Royalton, Vt. 
Georgetown, D. C. 
Strasburg, Pa. 
Pontiac, Mich. 
Washington, D. C. 
Richmond, Ohio. 
Edwards, Robert H 
Fitch, George A 
Forrest, James K 
Foster, J. H 
French, George N 
Gibbon, D. J.. 
Green, J. H 
Hartigan, J. F 
Harvey, Will. F 
Harvey, James P 
Houston, Samuel 
Howell, M. E. N 
Johnson, Dallas 
Johnson, J. G 
Jones, Benj. C 
Pittsburg, Pa. 
Towanda, Pa. 
Waddington, N. Y. 
Omaha, Nebraska. 
Knapp, C. B 
Knight, J. H 
Krumme, II. J. C 
Le Compte, S. B 
New York City. 
Yorkville, 111. 
Littlewood, James B 
Marble, John 0 
Waterville, Maine. 
Mason, John Edwin 
Manchester, N. H. 
McConnellsville, Ohio. 
McConnell, J. C 16 
Name. 
Residence. 
Maynard, J. Foster 
New York City. 
Washington, D. C. 
New York City. 
Randolph, Vt. 
Washington, D. C. 
44 44 
McCormick, J. Darrell 
McCoy, Joseph S 
McIntyre, H. H 
Nalley*, C. F 
Newton, Louis E 
Parkhurst, Chas. B 
New Haven, Conn. 
Phillips, George R 
Washington, D. C. 
Westfield, N. J. 
Bellefontaine, Ohio. 
Pierson, Henry C 
Porter, John W 
Prentiss, Chas. E 
Georgetown, D. C. 
Greenville, Ohio. 
Putnam, Wm. D 
Quimby, H. B 
Lisbon, N. H. 
Washington, D. C. 
Farmington, Conn. 
Sidney, Maine. 
Warrenton, Va. 
Rowland, S. G 
Rowley, B. C 
Sawtelle, H. W 
Simons, H. S 
Skinner, G. A 
Indianapolis, Ind. 
Boston, Mass. 
Washington County, Pa. 
Denver, Colorado. 
Portland, Maine. 
Fulton, New York. 
Albion, New York. 
Tioga, Pennsylvania. 
New Haven, Conn. 
Sladen, J. A 
Sloan, .Tames G 
Stanton, Irving W 
Stearns, S. S 
Stephens, John J 
Stone, George H 
Stone, Jacob D 
Thatcher, John C 
Walter, John, Jr 
Washington, D. C. 
Sanquoit, N. Y. 
Burlington, Vt. 
Washington, D. C. 
Oxford, Ohio. 
Bladensburg, Md. 
Springfield, Mass. 
Wadsworth, T. A 
Ward, Samuel R 
Ward, William 
White, John W 
Wells,' Walter H 
Wellman, Geo. M