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pauper mind,) and let it be his duty to superintend the burialof all bodies, the relatives of which are unable to afford thenecessary cost. Let a clause in the Act make the delivery ofall such bodies, whether in poorhouse, hospital, or prison, com-pulsory, and not, as at present, at the caprice of the severalboards of guardians, who do not scruple to incur great expensein doing that which they had much better leave undone. Itmay be objected that this is hard upon the friends and rela-tives ; but private interests must give way to public good, andby far the greater number of the paupers have no real relativesor friends to follow them, even if they were allowed to do so.I would suggest that the Inspector of Burials should give aformal receipt for each body, which, if drawn up in a properform, would go far to tranquillize the scruples of any sorrowingrelative.The Inspector would thus have a large supply of bodies,

which should be distributed amongst the schools in the propor-tion of the number of students; and should the supply morethan equal the demand, (as it would possibly in the summer,)let the surplus be buried in the ordinary way.

This plan would relieve the several parishes of all theirburials, and would place the whole thing in the hands of aGovernment officer, who would effectually prevent such dis-

graceful occurrences as those at Newington. It would be ne-

cessary that the parishes should contribute towards the ex-penses, and this would be easily arranged, as the sum wouldprobably be considerably less than the cost of the funeralsunder the present system. The Inspector would, of course,employ undertakers at a contract price, and would be enabledto supply the schools at a price considerably lower than at thepresent time, and the undertakers, being thus the servants ofthe Inspector, would not be able to raise their price capri-ciously as at the present time.

If the several lecturers and demonstrators of anatomy wouldjoin and pull together, something might be done; but as longas one or two stand aloof, things will continue in their presentmiserable condition. I am, Sir, yours obediently,

January, 1858. DEMONSTRATOR.

MILITARY AND NAVAL SURGEONS.

T o the Editor of THE LANCET.

SIR,-The examination for the naval medical officer beingneither competitive nor public, and the pay or entry beingIs. lld. per diem less than that for the army medical officer,independently of the cost of a field case of amputating instru-ments to be provided by the naval assistant-surgeon, and aquarterly deduction for a "Supplemental Fund," seldom ofany earthly advantage to him, may I ask if it be the case thatrejected army medical candidates are accepted for the navyin consequence of the difficulty of obtaining medical men torisk life and limb at the price-with a prospect of spendinga fourth of their span on 5s. per diem, half-pay (!) not counting?For the sake of our blue-jackets, officers and men, for our

fathers, our brothers, and our sons, isolated from the consulta-tions, from the " wisdom of many heads," in the hour of sick-ness and of wounds, may it be a duty worthy of THE LANCETto set aright the public on this point.

I am, Sir, yours &c.,January, 1857. A SUBSCRIBER.

P.S.-Were you to advocate, in your plain-speaking, inde-pendent journal, the necessity of giving as good terms of payand retirement to naval medical officers (whose duties, by theway, are most responsible on individuals mostly isolated) as tothose of the sister service, and were you to recommend con-tinuous full-pay time, and impress upon the profession the ad-vantage of a competitive entry examination, you would confera great public boon on all parties.

THE EDUCATION OF MEDICAL STUDENTS.To the Editor of THE LANCET.

SIR,-There are rumours afloat at the present time of im-portant changes about to take place in medical and surgicalexaminations; more especially are we told that the patresconscripti of Lincoln’s-inn-fields are laying down an entirelynew system of testing candidates for their diploma-a systemwhich is to turn out surgeons altogether superior to those ofthe past.

Will you give me leave, Sir, to suggest through the mediumof your journal, that, as a preliminary step, the Council of theCollege of Surgeons should make a corresponding change in the

means which students enjoy of educating themselves in thosbranches in which they are to be examined.What I refer to is this: the system of dissection at presen

in this country is, I have no hesitation in saying, nothing mornor less than a farce. The supply of subjects in this metropolis is so utterly inadequate that to suppose men learn operative surgery or even anatomy in the dissecting room is simplyabsurd. What, I ask, is the use of multiplying examinationsand of examining on the dead body or the like, when there arahsolntely no means of gaining such knowledge or experienceWhat would be the result ? Precisely what the College mosdeprecates-the multiplication of grinders, books of plates, &cAt any time it is a hard thing that a student should be hevvilimulcted for subjects, in addition to the fees which he is told badvertisement will comprehend the whole of his medical education; but, under the existing state of things, be he ever Sl

wealthy and diligent, subjects he cannot get. The rich an(

hard-working fare the same as the poor and idle. The Councimay plan out new modes of examination; doubtless they wilhave as much success as other reforming bodies, who now wishthey had their old systems back again. Sir, the name of examination stinks in the nostrils of the public. Supply an(demand are correlative terms. Educate your student to ;

higher point, and then give him a harder examination. Whatin the name of common sense, is the use of raising the standar(when, within the last twelve months, once, if not oftener

eight men out of twelve have been rejected by the Collegeexaminers in one evening ? Let the Council bestir themselvesand provide a proper supply of subjects ; and when men havelearnt to operate and dissect, let them be examined thereupon

I am, Sir, your obedient servant,Jan. 1858. COMMON SENSE.

Medical News.APOTHECARIES’ HALL. - Names of gentlemen who

passed their examination in the science and practice of Medi.cine, and received certificates to practise, on

Thursday, December 31st, 1857.ROBERTS, D. LLOYD, Manchester.

Thursday, January 14th, 1858.DEVAROUX, DANIEL, Bromyard, Hereford.FINCH, WILLIAM CORBIN, Salisbury.PRITCHETT, HENRY, York.

BENE,FICENCE.-Mr. Denton, of Lincoln’s-inn-fields,who died a few weeks since, has bequeathed X500 to St. Luke’sHospital for Lunatics.-Miss E. Kemp, of Newcastle-upon-Trent, has bequeathed the following sums to the charities ofthat town:- £ 100 to the Female Penitentiary Dispensary;£100 to the Benefit Society for Married Women in their Con-finement; and X50 to the Indigent Sick Society.-The late SirCharles Mansfield Clarke, Bart., has bequeathed X200 to St.George’s Hospital, to found a prize for students educated inthat institution, to be called " the prize of Sir Charles Mans-field Clarke, Bart., for Good Conduct"; to the Army MedicalBenevolent Society, £500; the Society for the Relief of theWidows and Orphans of Medical Men, £500; the RoyalMedical Benevolent College, £50; the Asylum for Idiots, £50;the St. Alban’s Medical Club, .6100; and other sums to societiesnot strictly medical.’ APPOINTMENT.—Dr. J. G. Westmacott has been electedMedical Officer of the Paddington Provident Dispensary, inthe room of Mr. J. W. Howard, resigned.

THE PREMATURE DECAY OF TEETH AMONGST THEAMERICANS.—A great deal of discussion has occurred lately onthis subject amongst our Transatlantic brethren. The factappears to be generally admitted. The question raised is,how is it to be accounted for ? The dentists have, of course,entered vigorously into the discussion of this question. Thegeneral questions raised appear to be condensed in the follow-ing extract, which we take from the Scientific A merican:-" Our opinion as to the cause of the early decay of Americanteeth is still that it is principally due to our climate and to theuse of saleratus. We know persons, members of families, bywhom the use of cream of tartar and saleratus is carefullyavoided, and their teeth are as bad as those of persons who douse this article in their daily food. There can be little doubtthat decayed teeth do not proceed from one cause but many.These are trifling in themselves, but, when added up, make alarge sum. If we must instance these causes, we should give