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Show BRUTALITY OF MEDICAL ETHICS. Great Surgeon tBarred from Membership Mem-bership ln(Medfcal Association. tFrom tho NatUmJl Druggist for June, 1W7.) Dr. Augustus Chnrlcs Hcrnays, who died a fow days ago in St. Louis, wns, probably, tho foremost surgeon In tho United States. Ills fnmo was coextensive co-extensive with tho civilized world. Ho was not only an operator of the highest high-est order, but a tireless and exhaustive exhaus-tive worker In "the field of original surgery. Ho performed tho first successful suc-cessful Caosnrlan section In 1889 In St. Louis, and also tho first successful coellotomy for gunBhot wound of tho abdomen and tho first gallstone operation opera-tion In Missouri. A record buld by Dr. Uornays has never boon equaled: Out of olghty-ono successive coses of appendicitis' which necessitated operations, soventy-ono In succession woro with porfectly satlsractory results, re-sults, tho sovonty-second patient falling fall-ing of recovery, but the subsequent nlno cases woro successfully treated. And yet, with such a record, match-Ipsa match-Ipsa as was his skill, varied nnd extensive- as was his learning, wonder ful ns were Titf accomplishments, ho was not consldorcd, by the American Medical Association, as worthy of membership In that organization. No charges wero ovor brought against him which, In tho remotest degree, reflected on his qualifications ns a surgeon; his moral character was novcr tho subject of attack; ho was nover accused of having done anything any-thing unbecoming a man or a gentle man. "Tho head nnd rront or hie or-fending or-fending hnd this extent no morel" Ho dared to think! Ho rctusod to mold his opinions and to govorn his actions by. tfiiy.ntbltrary rules which those whom ho kridw to "bo his Infer lors had set up for his guldancol In othor words, ho could not rogard tho Codo of Kthlcs of tho American Medical Medi-cal Association as being lnsplrod, oi having any binding authority on him whero his judgment told him It was wrong. And so, twenty yoars ago or more, on account of somo trivial Infraction In-fraction of this sacred "Codo," o movement was started t,o oxpol him from tho local association, which was only defeated by his hastily sending In his resignation. As momborshlp in tho A. M. A. Is depondunt upon momborshlp mom-borshlp In tho lo?nl and Stato societies, socie-ties, his nnmo'waa dropped by tho national organization. And so, though ho had snvod thousands thou-sands of lives; though other physicians physi-cians hnd profited by his art; this brilliant surgeon; this great and aila man, Iiob, during all thoso yenra, been an outcast a medical "scab;" not recognized ns "ethical" or worthy of fellowship by that body of physicians bandod together In tho American Medical Med-ical Association! And this Is tho association which, under prctenso of working for tho publlo good. Is, In reality, only Booking to control Congress and tho State Loglslaturos In tho Intorest of theli own solllBh schemes; which is trying to creato a Cublnot position nnd to placo ono of Its membors In that position; po-sition; which 1c endeavoring by Inw to excludo from tho uso of tho mails, all manufacturers of medicines who' do not comply with tho absurd re qulrements that they chooso to sol up; which, In short, la trying to pul upon tho statute books of Stato and nation laws that TfM, In effect, ostab llsh a kind of medical priesthood, to which only their own mombers will be ellglblo with power nnd control ovei tho health and lives of tho people! God holp tho druggists, tho drug manufacturers, physicians not mom bors of their guild, nnd tho peoplo gonernlly, If this association ovor succeeds suc-ceeds In Its undertaking. If it does, It will, after tho fashion of tho lnbor unions, dlctnto a "closod shop," and say to doctors who prefer to bo Independent, Inde-pendent, "You must Join our union or, falling to do so. compel them to got out of tho business. It will Bay what medicines shall bo tnken, and how thoy shall bo made. It will hodgo tho peoplo about with a lot of potty regulations undor pretense- of protecting protect-ing tho public health. In lino, n medl cal bureaucracy will bo established to tyrannlzo over tho peoplo. Lot no man call this a falso alarm. If thoro aru thoso who aro Inclined to do so, lot thorn read tho Journal of tho A. M. A. Lot them scan tho proceedings of tho association, held always behind closed doors, and carefully care-fully edited, as they nro, boforo they are published in its official organ. If thoy will do this thoy will seo that wo aro not trying to create a bugaboo to frighten thol- timid souls. |