THE UNIVERSITY OF CALCUTTA,

The

University of Calcutta is empowered by grant a License in Medicine and Surgery and two degrees in medicine, namely, the M.B. and M.D. As originally constituted, the regulations established the University Entrance Examination as the preliminary test of general

law to

for

education

the L.M.S. ;

Examination of the the

University

Bachelor of Arts

M.D.

Under these

of

rules,

very

First

for

the

M.B.,

University

Arts and for

the great

majority License, a few sought for more ambitious studied M.B., and a in whom 5 of 7 number, few?only

of medical students of the

the

succeeded?aspired circumstances,

the

to

the M.D.

the L.M.S.

Under these

fulfilled the

its pur-, successful

diploma stamping qualified under the sanction of The law to practise the medical profession. M.B. signalized a comparatively few men of higher general education and greater talent as

a

pose candidate

as

and ambition. The M.D. has been so rare and difficult of attainment, that the fortunate possessors of the distinction have been held in very

peculiar honour. The system of license and degrees, therefore, worked well and in accord-

THE INDIAN MEDICAL GAZETTE.

148

ance

with the intention for which it had

established.

As

time

wore

it

on,

mainly

the

to

and

the students.

majority of ingly proposed the

It

in

L.M.S. should be

of

accord-

was

the year 1874 that preliminary education for

of

standard

of

imperfect knowledge generally defective education

due

English

L.M.S.

of prothis was

very large, and fessors and teachers indicated that

was

found

w?\s

rejections for the the experience

that the number of

been

the the

and that the First Arts

raised, Examination, in place of the Entrance, should be the portal to the license as well as to the degree. This was after careful discussion in the Medical Faculty and Syndicate sanctioned by the Senate, and the regulations were altered accordingly. The effect of the change was to abolish the

difference which had exist-

principal

ed between the

examinations ; for the

two

course

of study and scheme of examination for the have been almost

identical,

have been conducted of the

by means of

course

of

time and

same

are

compelled

Comparative Anatomy Botany,

tion in the former

only

the

place questions.

examiners and

same

Candidates for M.B. course

at

and

are

and

subjected These

subject.

attend

to

second

a

examina-

to

are

that the

exception for

required

really

the

proportion

the

M.B. is

of marks

somewhat

higher.

The natural result has been that since rule

into

when the

new

majority

of students have

degree, cally deserted

force,

the

great

and

threatens

to

become obso-

the last five years only 19 students for the first Licentiate exami-

lete.

During

have

appeared

nation,

came

1878,

gone in for the that the license has been practi-

and

and 71 for the second

jority being dregs 2nd.

a

differences between the two examinations

with the

have

two

and the examinations

undergone The

the

1st

M.B.

and

corresponding figures during

years, 1873-77,

Licentiate,

of former

(the great year), while

were

252 ; 1st

120

ma-

173 the

the five

Licentiate, 712; M.B., 55 ; 2nd M.B., 1st

2nd 20.

In the year 1881 an effort was made to raise the standard for M. B. It was proposed to make a

knowledge

of Latin

compulsory and

to

raise

proportion of marks necessary for passing. The latter proposal was accepted by the Syudi-

the

1886.

[May,

cate, but the former, though carried by a large majority in the Medical Faculty, was rejected

by the Senate, on knowledge of Latin for

medical

a

exist in

to

the

this occasion M.

L.

remain

at

initiated by to

examination M.

the

present.

This would

and

M.B.

of

the

examination

being more the degree

proposal and

was

Coat.es

for

obviously the license

easy and practical, and that for erudite and searching. The more

was

submitted

sub-committee

a

to

examinations for

the L.M.S.

permit

the

for

Dr.

by

proposal entirely separate

to

standard

movement

made

a

institute

B.

The

On

has been

policy adopted

S-, allowing as

threatens it,

which

lower the standard of

recently from the

L.M.S.

the

rescue

not

for the

Bengal

Another efiort has

extinction

practical

that facilities did

and schools in

colleges

been made

not

and

man,

of Latin.

study

ground that a absolutely necessary

the double was

the Medical

to

was

appointed

Faculty, to

consi-

The sub-committee decided to

der the matter.

recommend the lowering of the standard of examination for L.M.S., and the holding of a separate examination the standard Chemical

try; (2)

on

different date.

a

for

recommendations

detailed

The

for it

included?(1)

Physics

from the

the restriction of

Histology, Physiology of Materia Medica (3) plants ;

"

"

of

of Chemis-

subject Botany to

and

tomy,

lowering

the elimination the

"

Ana-

of

flowering

to

the

drugs "

contained in the British

Pharmacopoeia: (4) of Practical Chemistry to the testing of urine and urinary deposits ; (5) of Ophthalmic "

"

Surgery cornea

to

the

and iris

"diseases of the

(6)

conjunctiva

the elimination of the sub-

jects of conception, generation, and the physiology of the foetus from Midwifery; (7) of the subjects of birth, inheritance, legitimacy, paternity, hermaphoditism, impotence, insanity, and life insurance from Medical

(8)

a

prohibition

of the

Jurisprudence;

use

of the

and

microscope

in both the first and second examinations. These recommendations were accepted by the aud were strenuously Faculty Syndicate.

They

medical member of the Senate,

opposed by

a

who had

had

not

them in the

an

opportunity

Faculty,

but

were

of

discussiug

carried

at a

ENTERIC FEVER IN BRITISH REGIMENTS.

1886.]

Mat,

meeting of the Senate by a majority of one.

held

on

the 17th of

April

We have

ing

a very strong opinion that in lowerthe standard of examination for L. M. S. to

the extent and in the been

the

done,

serious mistake.

microscope

as a

manner

in which that has

University has committed a In prohibiting the use of the means of testing the knowledge

of examinees, it has, in effect, declared that a student need not know the use of the instrument, and may learn

without, its aid.

A

Physiology position

and

Pathology

of this sort is in

these

days simply ridiculous, and a medical practitioner who cannot use the microscope is unfitted to practise his profession. It may be urged that the use of the microscope will still be

doubt

No

taught.

students will

concern

with the instrument if examined

on

native

themselves very little they are not liable to be

all the

remaining proposals

objectionable, excepting, perhaps, of

but

This is the worst feature of the

it.

scheme ; but

it will ;

and Botany. The License Surgery will, if these changes

Chemistry

Medicine and

are

the limitation in are

by incorporation in the regulations, be degraded, and it is very doubtful whether students will seek to obtain a qualification which is inferior to the corresponding diplomas of Great Britain, in larger numbers than at present. One argument urged in favour carried into effect

of the who

change

was

practised be

Unless it

can

standard

was,

the number of failed students

unqualified practitioners.

as

clearly

as

shown that the

compared

with

previous others, un-

reasonably high, and the examinations as hitherto conducted unreasonably difficult, (and we have good reason to believe that this is not the case,) the lowering of the standard to the level of the capacity of the rejected is hardly a dignified or

useful

departure

in

university administration.

149