fall. Diphtheritic deposits upon the mucous lining of the genitals; slight endometritis.

6th.-Rise from the sixth to eighth day; duration from two to eight days; then a sudden fall; softening and detachment of thrombus in the uterine cavity; general condition scarcely disturbed.

7th.-Rapid and considerable rise of temperature right after labor, as on the first and second day, with long duration and without essential fall. Malignant diseases, terminating either fatally or with slow and exhausting convalescence; endometritis, peritonitis, perimetritis, phlebitis, etc., always, with various and serious complications, with extensive and destructive collections of pus and sanies.

In this manner the author succeeded in demonstrating the intimate connection between a rise in the temperature and disease in the puerperal state.

ECLECTIC DEPARTMENT.

"Carpere et colligere."

ART. I FEMALE DOCTORS-AMENDMENTS PROPOSED TO THE CONSTITUTION OF THE AMERICAN MEDICAL ASSOCIATION— VIEWS OF THE ADVOCATES FOR AND AGAINST THE MOVEMENT-SPIRITED DISCUSSIONS.

For several years the subject of admitting representatives from Female Medical Colleges as delegates to the American Medical Association has been a matter of serious consideration, and on Thursday, May 4th, it was again brought up by an amendment proposed by Dr. Hartshorne, of Philadelphia, at the last annual session. Following is a report of the discussion which followed:

IN FAVOR OF ADOPTION.

Dr. Harding, of Indiana, moved the adoption of this resolution amending the Constitution, viz.: "Nothing in this Constitution shall be so construed as to prevent delegates from colleges in which women are taught and graduated in medicine, and hospitals in which medical women graduates attend, from being received into this Association."

The President: That is proposed as an amendment to the Constitution?

Dr. Harding: Certainly. It requires the action of this Body, however, to make it an amendment. It has been laid. over for one year.

I have but a word or two to say in relation to this question, a question which is at issue before the country and before this Association. It has been termed a vexed question. It has been before the Association the last year, the year before, and the year before that, and it is a question that is growing in importance and magnitude. For one, as a member of this Association, I am anxious to see this vexed question determined and settled, and I think this Association owes it to itself to meet, fairly and squarely an issue of this kind.

For myself I can see no good reason, if female practitioners: of medicine are graduated under as high a standard of requirements as male members of the profession, why they should not. be regarded as legally and in fact members of the medical profession.

There is one view of the question that occurs to. my mind, which I would like to present and urge upon this Association, and that is, that the sphere of female influence and usefulness is widening and expanding throughout American Society. We all realize that, and it is an aspect of the female character and its usefulness, I think, which is not to be regretted, and in my estimation not to be repressed, and the cold shoulder is not to be turned to it; on the contrary, in its proper and legitimate sphere it should receive the encouragement and the God-speed

of us all; not specially or particularly in the department of medicine, but in everything else.

However we may regard that question, it is an issue before the country, and before this Association. We have ignored it and thrust it aside year by year, and now it becomes us, in a dignified and manly spirit, to meet this question, which is on trial before the tribunal of this Association, and before the country. The idea I wished to suggest to the Society is this: That the widening and extending influence of females in this country, its increasing intelligence and influence cannot be readily thrust aside. There are female applicants for place and for recognition in the regular medical institutions of the country, and that influence we cannot suppress if we would; but if it is shut out, or thrust out from the avenues and thoroughfares of legitimate medicine, it will go to that ism or that pathy, and the best interests of the science of medicine will be injured by our want of liberality by which we refuse to receive females seeking admission, legitimately and legally, into the ranks of the regular profession. If we thrust them aside, we drive them into homoeopathy, into irregular medicine, into emipricism. Let us meet the question like men, in a spirit of liberality and chivalry.

ARGUMENT AGAINST THE AMENDMENT.

Professor N. S. Davis, of Illinois: I hope the question will not be taken until the Association is sure that it understands the full bearings of the adoption of this amendment. I have no personal, or, at least, no strong personal predilections as to how this question shall be settled, so that we understand fully the full meaning, scope, and final result that may follow from the adoption of the amendment.

The amendment is worded so as to state that the Constitution and By-Laws shall not be construed to prevent any college or any hospital that permits females to attend lectures, or graduates from female colleges to attend them under instruction, from being admitted as members of this Body. Now, this

question comes before us from an institution in Philadelphia, but there are many others besides those females in Philadelphia. There are hospitals in which female physicians are operating. There is a hospital in Chicago in which females hold the same relations, and there is a college in New York devoted exclusively to the education of females in medicine. There is another in Philadelphia, and another in Chicago, and I do not know how many more. I speak of these simply that we may comprehend what we are doing. The meaning of that resolution, if adopted, is that those institutions are all eligible to send delegates to this Body, to meet with us here. So far, those institutions which have sent delegates here have not sent females, but men, male representatives, men unexceptionable in their character, men against whom, so far as they are concerned, no fault that I know of can be alleged; but it must be remembered, if we adopt that amendment, it opens the door by which any institution can at any time, instead of sending us a male delegate, send us any female members of their Faculties to sit with us in this Body, and it would undoubtedly result before another year, or at least before two years rolled around, and very likely at our next session, that some of those institutions would send female delegates to participate in our proceedings. I am not saying that they should not do so. I am only stating what would be the legitimate result, so that we can vote understandingly.

Now, Mr. President, let every one consider fairly and fully whether the time has come or not that we, as the great representative Body of this profession in our country, are ready by deliberate action to open the door and welcome the female portion of the community, not only into our profession, but into all the professions? Is the time come? Do we desire it ever to come? Is there any difference in the sexes? Were they designed for any different spheres? Are we to heed that law plainly imprinted upon the human race, or are we, as a Body, to yield to the popular breeze of the times, and say it must come, and therefore we will yield to it? Now, I make no

comparison between the sexes; I claim that there is no comparison to be made. The female in her proper sphere is just as far superior to man, as man in his sphere is superior to woman. [Applause.] You, sir, and I, can no more do properly the work that God designed for woman than she can do the work designed for you and me to do. [Applause.]

RESULT OF THIS SPIRIT.

What will be the result of yielding to this spirit? The result will not only be in one direction, that we are to open the occupation for women to come up, as they term it-though it is not up in my estimate at all, but it is looked upon as coming up by some to give her the right to come into the profession, but we are to break down the barriers, we are to destroy that which God has imprinted upon our race as the distinction between male and female in the operations of this world. It is not merely that she is to come into the circle of lawyers and into the profession of medicine, but she is to go into the pulpit, the rostrum, and on to the platform; and there is another direction in which she must come in, and that is, she must come in the direction of the school, the spade, and every avocation of life. The great distinctive feature, impressed upon civilization by the religion given to us, by our Christian character, has tended at every step to lift woman, to bring her from the position of slavery and degradation that barbarism put upon her, · to that lofty pinnacle where, with reverence, we bow in homage to her, in that condition whereby with her influence she makes her impress upon the youth of our land. Let her remain in that sphere; let her make that impress; let her status and her mission in the world be held sacred; let no man anywhere say aught against her ability or her dignity in regard to her mission, but do not let us yield to popular clamor about woman's rights, or man's rights, or anybody else's rights, and by so doing stultify the laws of the universe. [Applause.]

Now, Mr. President, these are, plainly, my sentiments. I said, in rising, that I had no strong predilections in the matter. I am not prejudiced, because I have lectured to women in the