(W. O. to H. A. Lafleur)
Dr. William Osler.
No. 1 West Franklin Street
Baltimore, Jan. 12th, 1893.
Dear L.: -
Very glad indeed to have your last note. I have, of course, heard all sorts of rumors about Montreal, but I am too comfortable here to think of any change, and I hope to fill out my twenty years, then crawl back to Montreal or Toronto to worry the boys for a few years. I daresay you would reserve me a chair at your fireside, and we could have many smokes and chats.
We are good deal excited of course about the organization of the school. Miss Garrett has given the $300,000 necessary to complete the half million endowment. We have the cheers of anatomy and pharmacology to fill, and shall need someone in physiological chemistry. We hope to be able to secure Mall in anatomy. The restrictions placed by Miss Garrett as to the preliminary education necessary will limit the number of our students very materially. The matriculation examination of the University is in itself very stiff, and either the preliminary medical course in Arts, or its equivalent must be passed before admission to the Medical School. Welch put it very happily the other day when he said to me that it was lucky we got in as professors; we never would have been able to go in as students.
And busy with the subjects of tuberculosis of the serous membranes, and finishing some work on chorea. The words are very interesting, the usual number of cases of arteriosclerosis, a good many interesting cases of malaria, and an unusual number of typhoids, I am sorry I did not get reprints of my lecture on the bath treatment. I daresay you sought in the Medical News. Our results for the first century cases were really very good.
You must arrange in the spring to pay us a good long visit. Let me know, too, when you think I should write to the members of the Victoria Hospital Board. You should certainly make a strong push to go in there on the staff. Councilman was here for two weeks and Ghriskey for a week, so that the boys are rather demoralized.
I enclose a little slip which will please hand to one of the House Surgeons at the M. G. H. I want very much to find the address of the Farr family of progressive muscular atrophy, which I reported many years ago.
Sincerely Yours,
Wm Osler
P.S. Do you think Shepherd would come here in anatomy? There would be of course no Hospital appointment. He combines surgical & scientific anatomy so well. Mall is the choice of Welch etc. but he has a comfortable berth in Chicago and I doubt if he can come.