A letter to the ... Lord Provost, magistrates, and council, patrons of the University of Edinburgh, on the present state of practical chemistry : with remarks on ... a pamphlet by Dr Anderson / by D. B. Reid.

Date:
1834
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: A letter to the ... Lord Provost, magistrates, and council, patrons of the University of Edinburgh, on the present state of practical chemistry : with remarks on ... a pamphlet by Dr Anderson / by D. B. Reid. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh. The original may be consulted at the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh.

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    alone with all my Practical Pupils, I have, during the last Ses- sion, made the trial with several, and seen enough to convince me that an improvement of the utmost importance may be ef- fected in the system of teaching Chemistry. In making this attempt I had numerous difficulties to contend with ; and I had no sooner announced my Course, than some gentlemen thought proper, in the most overbearing and dictatorial manner, to object to my allowing Students wIiq paid me L 3, 3s. for the Practical Course, attending my Lectures for L. 1, Is. Had they, instead of assuming a tone of dictation, while utterly ig- norant of the experiment I was then making, or of the objects which I had in view, communicated with me in a more civil manner, I would have gladly gone a great way rather than have done any thing to displease them ; but from the tone of their statements to the Students, I told them that I would not. in any way retract, but should hold by my plan to the last, till it had received the most thorough and scrutinizing investigation. A combination was then entered into against me, and one of the gentlemen told me openly, that he as well as many others would do every thing in their power against me. A report at the same time was industriously circulated, that my tickets would not qualify, so that numbers of students did not take tickets, who otherwise would have done so. Placards also were daily distributed, announcing practical courses and lec- tures at a lower price than what I charged. With respect to the charge I made for my lectures to those attending the Prac- tical Course, nothing could be more preposterous than that any individuals should have taken up such a subject. Many Teachers have been in the habit of giving tickets to one class at a reduced rate to Students who attended others. Thus, in the University, Dr Monro, when he lectured on Surgery, gave a ticket to his Surgical Class for nothing to those who paid the fee of the Anatomy Class. I am prepared with a whole list of Private Lecturers who have, one way or another, followed out a similar course, in holding out inducements to Students to at- tend their Classes. The fact, indeed, as it is openly adver- tised, is too notorious to be questioned. Thirdly, Dr Anderson states that I issued an invitation of