church when they were taxed to support that church, but that was not the meaning of equal rights. For these and other reasons, which we have not space to give, the minority favored the passage of the amendment.

The majority report did not attempt to controvert the statements of the petitioners, but rather appeared to wish not to discuss them, and gave in substance as a reason for the adverse report that "it would violate the charters of the hospitals for the State to dictate to them by whom and in what way their internal affairs should be conducted; and that the attempt to bring together in them the conflicting views and practice of rival medical schools and denominations would produce endless confusion and strife and the ruin of the hospitals.”

As a sort of salvo, probably, or to make a diversion which would favor their own interests, they proposed the following resolution:

Resolved, That the sum of ten thousand dollars be, and it is hereby appropriated from the treasury of this State for the support and maintenance of a State hospital that may be hereafter founded by the Connecticut Homeopathic Medical Society and the Connecticut Reform Medical Association; provided, that said hospital shall be at all times open to the practice of physicians of whatever school of practice the patients therein may desire.

STATE BOARDS.

Every town and city, so far as I know, have their boards of health, and should have, and they are sufficient for all practical purposes. But I believe State boards are unnecessary, unless it be for the purpose of protecting the Old School in monopoly and shielding many in quackery, besides the appropriation of thousands of dollars of the people's money, to be used at the discretion of such boards. Is it best to enact laws to bolster up a class of bigots at the people's expense? Will not the people employ whom they please, and is it not best to submit to their doing so with a good grace? It is often said, and truly, that medical tramps humbug the people out of their money; but have all the medical tramps and charlatans that ever existed humbugged them out of their lives, as well as their money, as have the so-called Regulars? When we consult the interests of the people and show them that their interests are our interests, that we study by all means to cure them of their ills, and suc

ceed better than renegades, there will be little trouble from medical tramps. We have no apology to offer for, or sympathy with such, nor do we know why we should have any special regard for the arrogance, intolerance, bigotry and ignorance of the self-assumed Regulars. We shall be in favor of any legislation that consults the interests and wants of the people, and that in their judgment is for their good-a law that imposes the same tests of qualification on all physicians, that demands an equal amount of medical education, without regard to where obtained, and which recognizes all thus qualified, regardless of any Molly Maguire code of ethics. We are partisans of liberty. We do not ask toleration; such a boon is a stigma upon any deserving man We demand the protection of the law in doing right. Nor do we propose to abandon our demands till the laws of our country, its usages, benefits and privileges, shall be ours with impartiality.

DELAWARE.-No report; no State organization.

FLORIDA. No report; no State organization.

GEORGIA. No report; has a State society.

ILLINOIS.-No report; has an efficient State society.

INDIANA.

The fifteenth annual meeting of the Indiana Eclectic Medical Association was held at Indianapolis May 14 and 15 Nineteen new members were received. Doctors Nelson G. Smith, W. H. Kendrick and Walter Underwood read papers on Legislation, after which a resolution was adopted recommending medical colleges to elevate the standard of qualifications for graduation.

The annual address was delivered on the 14th by the President, Wm. F Curryer, of Thorntown.

Papers on Animal Heat, by Dr. McCabe; Human Responsibility, by Dr. G. W. Fickerill, and others, were read, discussed and ordered to be printed.

The Association ordered the publication of an Annual Report, to be edited by the Secretary.

The following officers were elected for the ensuing year: President, J. B. Shultz, M. D., of Logansport; Vice-Presidents, S. S. Boots, M, D., of Greenfield, G. W. Lambert, M. D., of Urbana;

Secretary, G. W. Pickerill, M. D., of Indianapolis; Corresponding Secretary, C. H. Abbott, M. D., of Indianapolis; Treasurer, W. H. Kendrick, M. D., of Indianapolis.

Fifteen delegates were appointed to the National E. M. Associ- ' ation. The Association will meet at Indianapolis next time, on Wednesday, May 12, 1880.

IOWA.

BY O. H. P. SHOEMAKER, M. D., Avoca.

The status of Eclectic Medicine in Iowa 'has been presented to the Association to the year 1876. It therefore only devolves on me to report from that time to the present. I attended the tenth annual meeting of our State society, which was held at Des Moines, 1877; the eleventh, held at Marshalltown, 1878, and the twelfth, held at Des Moines, June 4 and 5, 1879. The attendance has been fair and the meetings have been interesting and profitable. The clinics have been good and the discussions sometimes animated, but not acrimonious.

I have attended every meeting since 1869, and I can notice a gradual and stable growth of the society. The members are generally well informed and up with the progress of the times.

They all take one and some as high as six medical journals. I see no lack of firmness in the faith of Eclectic principles, but an increase of zeal in the cause of reform.

The members are satisfied with the choice they have made and report an honorable and lucrative practice.

The society has slowly increased in membership, and I attribute it, in a great measure, to the revision of our constitution two years ago, which only admits graduates to membership. We have some fifty members. There were upwards of thirty present at the last meeting.

While we have a printed Constitution and By-Laws, we have never had our proceedings published in book form. Steps, however, have been taken in that direction. At the last meeting I was appointed to prepare and have them published, and I believe there are funds on hand to defray the expense of the printing.

As to the number of Eclectic physicians in the State, I can learn of some two hundred and fifty, and with the number of Eclectic medical journals sent to the State I am inclined to believe that it is approximately correct,

Twenty-six students from Iowa have matriculated at two of the Eclectic colleges. I purposed giving the exact number, but not being at home since attending the State Society I could not turn to my journals, I relied on the colleges furnishing the report, and only two complied with my request.

As to the standing of the physicians, they will compare with those of the other schools.

There is plenty of room for intelligent and educated Eclectic physicians in our State.

The success of our Eclectic physicians has popularized the practice in different sections of the State, many of the Eclectics have the head and heart in the work, and labor for the best interests of their patients. They are ever watchful and vigilant, and seek every opportunity to increase their store of knowledge; some are original and progressive thinkers, and are successful in diagnosis and treatment of cases, and especially in endemic diseases, securing an excessively large practice, to the discomfort of their rivals.

The State University still has its medical department. The Homeopathists have two chairs.

Our society appointed a committee to memorialize the Legislature at its last session; being one of that committee I had petitions from my own and two adjacent counties, and in obtaining signatures only two persons refused to sign. The committee had petitions from a great many counties read in the House and Senate, and had a bill introduced in the Senate asking for two Eclectic chairs in the medical department of the University.

The bill was lost on third reading. I spent two days conferring with the most influential members of the Assembly and setting forth our claims, and they all expressed themselves, and assured us the request should be granted if the other schools were represented, but that they were in favor of discontinuing the medical department, as the funds of the State were insufficient to maintain it. Upon that ground our bill was lost, and subsequently, by some fine lobbying on behalf of the medical department, they succeeded in killing off another department of the University, and by its funds, with a small appropriation, had the department continued.

My opinion is that the department will exist unless the Eclectics keep up a strife for chairs or for its discontinuance.

The latter is undoubtedly the best for the interests of Eclectic physicians and for the people; yet I trust the day will not be far distant when the State will cease to teach one system of medicine to the exclusion of the only true scientific system, which is the Eclectic.

KANSAS.

BY J. MILTON WELCH, M. D., OF LA CYGNE.

The Eclectic Medical Association of the State of Kansas was organized on the 11th day of February, 1871. With but little to encourage an active participation by the Eclectic physicians of the State; still there were a few self-sacrificing men who yearly met at Topeka, and these kept it alive. Even these few gave a varying attendance at its meetings. Under these circumstances it was not incorporated till the 15th day of February, 1879. At this time there was a "Bill to Regulate the Practice of Medicine in the State of Kansas" pending in the Legislature. The incorporation was consummated just twelve days prior to the time at which the Governor affixed his signature to this bill.

The charter members of the association were, in 1871, as follows: Geo. H. Field, M. D., Dan'l B Crouse, M. D., Caleb D. Ward, M. D., Ansel M. Eidson, M. D., M. Summerfield, M. D., Noah Simmons, M. D., S. E. Morton, M. D., John M. Mahe, M. D., C. W. Gapen, M. D., Daniel Surber, M. D.

Although the membership was small, the association decided to incur the expense of having a number of copies of their constitution, by-laws and code of ethics printed for distribution among its members and others who might wish to know something of its working. It also had devised and printed a very handsome certificate of membership.

The association meets annually, at Topeka, on the second Tuesday of February. As our Legislature meets biennially, the association is in session at the same time every second year, and thus can, by its numbers and influence modify in a measure, as it did during our recent Legislature, any legislation that might discriminate against Eclecticism.

While the annual attendance has heretofore varied much in numbers, and the interest manifested by its members been of the peculiar periodicity common to all new countries, the