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Show favor, but by virtue of hard work, persistent per-sistent effort and proved ability. And they have not yet received nearly all that their work ought to have gained for them. The popular prejudice against women wo-men physicians is still very strong. You know that yourself." "Yes," I admitted, "I know numbers of people whose aversion to the idea of a woman doctor is so strong that they would always prefer any young and untried un-tried man physician to a successful woman wo-man of Tecognized ability and reputation." reputa-tion." V ... ' ' FCBUO opinion. : "And as long as that is the case," said , Dr. Blaokwell, "we oan't feel very complacent com-placent about the change in publio opinion, opin-ion, i The admission of women to medical med-ical societies has come about so slowly, too. ' I think the first was when I was admitted to the old Journal association, then the County Medical society, twenty-five twenty-five years ago or more, when Dr. Isaao Taylor was president. Now women are admitted, I think, into nearly if not quite all the county associations and to most of the medical societies. But it is only very recently that the doors have been opened for them in those of Bostoc and Philadelphia., WOMEN WICLffi Borne of the Difficulties the Female Allopaths Allo-paths and Homoepatho Have ' to Encounter., , x , ,. . THE PREJUDICE AGAINST THEM. Their Male Brethren Don't Like to Have . Them Interfere With Their . ' Business, ' ; " ' ' f "No, I do not think there has been a ry rapid change in publio sentiment in fsTor of women physicians," said Dr. Emily Blaokwell, as she talked with me about the difficulties which she and her ister, Dr. Elizabeth Black-well, had to contend with when they established themselves in New York' nearly forty Tears ago. "The change has not been a rapid one; It has been rery slow, very reluctant, and it is yet far from complete. "Yes, we did have trouble, much of it, In establishing ourseWee here. My sister, sis-ter, Dr. Elizabeth Black well, preceded me by several years. She spent two or three years reading under the direction of physicians and then1 applied for admission ad-mission to the medical colleges in New York, Boston and Philadelphia. But her application was denied in every instance on the ground that there was no precedent prece-dent for such an action and that it would be an improper innovation upon established estab-lished custom. ' But at last a medical ehool at Geneva, in this state, admitted her, and she took her degree there in 1849 the first degree in medicine granted grant-ed 'to any woman in the United States. She continued her studies in Paris and London, and after I had received my degree de-gree from the school in Cleveland we came here to New York. SOCIAL OSTRACISM. "Did we meet with much opposition? Well, we found it impossible to rent an office, so strong was the opposition to the idea of women practicing medicine. We bad to buy a house in order to get any place in which to open an office. "But there was never any unpleasant personal experience. There was social ostracism, of course, and that was very unpleasant, and for a long time none but a few men physicians would hold consultations con-sultations with us. From the beginning a few eminent men, foremost among whom was Dr. Willard Parker, rose above the prevailing prejudice and con-. con-. suited with us and advised us just as wjth any young, physician. For the most part, however, the men physicians refused re-fused to recognize us, fought against us, and a large number of the medical societies so-cieties threatened to expel any member who consulted with a woman physician," "And yet you say, Dr. Blackwell, that all the change which has come about since publio sentiment was like that has not been a rapid one? Rather is it not wonderful that it has been so great?" "No," and Dr. Black well's strong, kind-Jy kind-Jy face, framed in its soft, white hair, look a more positive expression; "no, Jbere is so much more that ought to come Ibout that what has been seems almost irrjall in comparison. What women have rained has been not bv .erace of oonular "Publio hospitals are not open to wo men physicians. They cannot hold pc sitiona in them, they cannot study as in terns, they cannot attend the clinics hek in connection with thom, they are de barred from all of the many and important import-ant benofits that men physicians gain from these large public institutions. In private hospitals, particularly those founded or supported partly or entirely by women, they have all of these advantages, ad-vantages, but their exclusion from the others is not only a handicap upon the advanced work which they might accomplish ac-complish if Uioy had the opportunity, but it is the result and the proof of that large body of hostile publio Bentiment which still exists against them. "This opportunity for . advanced .work in medicine is the tiling which I would most like to see women gain. They have done a little, it is true written a few books and articles which have attracted attention, done a little original work in extending the bounds of medical knowledge. knowl-edge. But they could and would do much more if they had the necessary opportunities opportu-nities for such work. What they most need now is to be able to prosecute postgraduate post-graduate studies in medicine. There are many who have the ability and the desire to do this, and when larger opportunities have been granted them they will be able to help in the work of extending the boundaries of medical science and throwing throw-ing light upon its dark corners." "But do you not think all this will come about in time?" "Yes, certainly, all in good time, We cannot expect the world to change very rapidly, after all. It is going on more rapidly now, since so many avenues have been opened for the higher education of women. These movements are all linked together, of course, and each shares in whatever advance another makes. The change has been as rapid and as general as could be expected, although it has been ro slow, and all the rest that we wish for will come in time," New York Herald. . Tito Historio Monitors. There are now thirteen monitors lying idle, the original cost of which was nearly near-ly $7,000,000. In their present condition they are not only useless, but a source of expense, and Rear Admiral Jouett favors a plan for converting them into floating batteries for coast and harbor defense, which could be done at an estimated cost of 11,000,000. Chicago IJerald. |