The letters of Mr. Alexander Fiddes, F.R.C.S., Edin. considered and refuted, his misrepresentations exposed, his calumnies and innuendoes set in the light of truth, his various statements in the press and otherwise weighed in the balance and found wanting / by Lewis Quier Bowerbank ; together with documentary letters and papers, tending to expose a professional conspiracy, and to afford the public in the colonies, and in Great Britain, correct judgment as to the controversy now existing on hospital matters.
- Bowerbank, Lewis Q.
- Date:
- 1865
Licence: Public Domain Mark
Credit: The letters of Mr. Alexander Fiddes, F.R.C.S., Edin. considered and refuted, his misrepresentations exposed, his calumnies and innuendoes set in the light of truth, his various statements in the press and otherwise weighed in the balance and found wanting / by Lewis Quier Bowerbank ; together with documentary letters and papers, tending to expose a professional conspiracy, and to afford the public in the colonies, and in Great Britain, correct judgment as to the controversy now existing on hospital matters. Source: Wellcome Collection.
Provider: This material has been provided by King’s College London. The original may be consulted at King’s College London.
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![The article to wliicli Mr. Fiddes refers was an expression of our unbiassed opinion, formed after a careful examination of the evidence given at the coroner's inquest. Believing a great principle of medical ethics to be at stake, we abstained from sitting in judg- ment on the surgical treatment pursued in the management of the case. We considered this a question entirely apart from the main one suggested by the whole story. We are quite ready to acknow- ledge that the treatment of the patient does not receive our entire approval; but any surgical deficiency displayed was only forced into general notice by the fact that it became a party weapon in one of those miserable feuds which more than anything else, injure the pro- fession in the eyes of a keen-sighted public.—Ed. M. T.] To the Editor of the Medical Times and Gazette. Sir,—In your number of the 27th ultimo is a letter signed Alex. Fiddes, in which that gentleman attempts to get rid ot your just strictures on the conduct of himself and a few members of the profession here, by cascing the blame upon me. As regards Bailey's case, I shall say no more than what I have already expressed in my evidence at the Coroner's inquest—the more so as my partner, Dr. Anderson, has furnished you with a true and detailed account of this unfortunate case. For years past, I have done my utmost to reform the gross abuses existing in the public Hospital and Lunatic Asylum of this city, and in doing so, I have had to cross the path of not a few members of the medical profession, aud others (contractors for the supplies of these institutions.) I have thus incurred the displeasure and hatred of a party who have hitherto spared no opportunity to malign my cha- racter and to thwart my proposed improvements, and some of the most prejudiced and virulent of whom appeared, as jurors or wit- nesses at the recent inquest. I have in a great measure succeeded in my object, as may be seen on reference to the recent reports of these institutions, but during the last two years, in my capacity of Chairman of the Board of Visitors of the Public Hospital, I have given great oifcuce to Mr. Alex. Fiddes, one of the Ordinarj'- Medical Officers, who considers that no medical man should be on the Board of Visitors. I have not your journal of the 27th ult., before me, but I will notice a fuw of the charges made against me by Mr. Fiddes, from re- collection . The first is, that I have insulted the members of the profession connected with the hospital. The height and depth of my sinning in this respect has been, on witnessing glaring points of mismanage- ment, to express my opinion '• that such arose from the fact, that of all the medical men connected with this institution, not one had becu previously a llouse-Surgcon in a British or any other hospital, and therefore could not understand the management of such an institu - tion in detail. This, though allowed to be true iu fact, has never- theless been voted insulting by the gentlemen concerned,](https://iiif.wellcomecollection.org/image/b21297733_0025.jp2/full/800%2C/0/default.jpg)
