ANNALSOF THE

ROYAL COLLEGE OF SURGEONSOF ENGLAND

Editor:SIR CECIL WAKELEY, Bt., K.B.E., C.B., LL.D., M.Ch., D.Sc., F.R.C.S., F.R.S.E., F.F.R.

Volume 18 MARCH 1956

Published by

THE ROYAL COLLEGE OF SURGEONS OF ENGLANDLINCOLN'S INN FIELDS LONDON, W.C.2

Annual Subscription - - 30/- post free

No. 3

HUNTERIAN LECTURE

MOSHER, H. P. (1921) Laryngoscope 31, 284.MUNRO, A. (1783) Medical essays and observations 15, 279.OHM (1920) Klin. Mbl. Augenheilk. 64, 848.OPPENHEIMER, B. S., et al. (1953) Science 118, 304.PAUFIQUE, L. (1950) Bull. Soc. Ophtal. France 3, 113.PAPST, W. (1953) Klin. Mbl. Augenheilk. 123, 58.PELLATHY, B. (1932) Orv. Hetil 76, 233.PLATNER, J. Z. (1724) Defistula lachrymale. Leipzig.POULARD, A. (1923) Traite d'Ophtalmologie 1, 665. Paris. Masson.ROCHAT, F. (1919) Ber. Nederl. Oogheelk. Gez. 14, Dec. 1429.ROCHAT, G. F. (1948) Personal communication.ROEMER, P. (1912) Textbook of ophthalmology 2, 426. New York. Rebman.SAVORY, M. (1954) Personal communication.SCHARF, J. (1950) V. Graefes Arch. Ophthal. 156, 678.SCOTT, G. I. (1949) Trans. Ophthal Soc. U.K. 69, 477.SHARP, H. A. (1953) Brit. J. Ophthal. 38, 310.SPINELLI, F. (1933) Klin. Mbl. Augenheilk. 91, 202.STROBELL, H. (1922) Klin. Mbl. Augenheilk. 69, 465.SUMMERSKILL, W. H. (1947) The nature and incidence of epiphora. B.M.A. Prize Essay.

(1949) Trans. Ophthal. Soc. U.K. 69, 494.(1954) Personal communication.

TARTUFFEREI, V. (1883) Elschnigs Augentartzliche Operations lehre. p. 1531.TESTUT, L. (1949) Traite d'Anatomie humaine. p. 731. Paris. Doin.THOMAS, CH. (1951) Bull. Soc. Ophtal. France. Feb., p. 1.TIKHOMIROV, P. V. (1935) Sovet. Vest. Qftal. 7, 452.TILLE, H. (1934) Bull. Soc. Ophtal. Paris 46, 247.TOTH, Z. (1933) Klin. Mbl. Augenheilk. 91, 391.TOTI, A. (1904) Clin. mod. 33, 385.TRAQUAIR, H. M. (1932) Trans. Ophthal Soc. U.K. 52, 149.

-- (1941) Arch. Ophthal. (Chicago) 26, 165.TURNER, F. C. (1941) J. Net. Cancer Inst. 2, 81.TYRRELL, T. M. (1948) Modern trends in ophthalmology 2, 377.VALIERE-VIALEIX, R. A. (1954) Bull. med. (Paris) 66, 53.VILLARD, H. (1921) Ann. Oculist. (Paris) 158, 443.

- (1921) Bull Soc. Ophtal. Paris 34, 92.WEEKERS, L. (1932) Bull. Soc. belge. Ophtal. 65, 69.WEST, J. M. (1913) Arch. Laryng. Rhin. (Berl.) 27, 504.WEVE, H. (1951-55) Personal communication.

and SONNEN, A. (1919) Ber. Nederl. Oogheelk. GeZ. 14, Dec. 1499.-- (1937) Klin. Mbl. Alugenheilk. 98, 198.

WOOLHOUSE, J. T. (c. 1725) Letter to Royal Society.

ROYAL COLLEGE OF SURGEONS OF ENGLAND CLUB

Facilities for Dinners.Many medical societies and hospital medical staff associations now

hold their dinners at the College. These take place in the new GreatHall. At the moment it is possible to cater for any number of guests upto three hundred.

The cost of the dinner varies with the menu and wines chosen. The foodis prepared by the College catering staff, and a wide range of the very bestwines is available.

All enquiries should be addressed to Mr. W. F. Davis, Deputy Secretary,at the College, HOLborn 3474.

163

THE DIAGNOSIS AND TREATMENT OF INTRA-AURICULAR SEPTAL DEFECTS

both cases, attempts were made to repair the defect, but the technicalresults were unsuccessful, and neither of the patients survived.

Consequently, we have been able to perform surgical closure of theatrial septal defect with our method in only nineteen truly operable cases(in connection with the lecture a film was shown demonstrating theoperative technique).We had two deaths in this group. One was a 49-year-old woman

with advanced cardiac incompetence; she died of acute heart failurea few hours after the operation. In the other case, the fatal outcomewas due to a technical error. The needle used to introduce the suturethrough the atrium had taken up a small piece of the aortic wall. Evidently,the thread had finally cut through the wall, and a small arteriovenousfistula developed between the aorta and the right atrium. After a fewweeks this led to right-sided heart failure and death.

Thus, seventeen patients survived. In one of them, a follow-upexamination showed either that a recurrence had taken place, or thatthe anatomic conditions had been misjudged at operation, so that thedefect had never been more than very incompletely closed.

In the remaining cases, the results-also in those cases in which wehave been able to make a follow-up examination-have been satisfactory.In my opinion, this technique is the simplest and the least dangerousof those hitherto described. Moreover, it permits closure even of verylarge defects that cannot be repaired by other means. The method hasbeen tried in several other hospitals, among them at Ravdin's clinic inPhiladelphia, and the results have been good.

MONTHLY DINNERS

Monthly dinners are held in the College on the Wednesday before thesecond Thursday of each month. The following are entitled to attend withtheir guests: all diplomates and students of the College and members ofthe Associations linked to the College through the Joint Secretariat.It is not necessarily intended that guests should be members of the medicalprofession.The next three dinners will be held at 7 p.m. on April 11, May 9, and

June 13.

The cost is £1 lOs. Od., which includes cocktails before dinner and wineat the table. Applications for tickets, accompanied by a cheque for theappropriate amount, must be sent to the Deputy Secretary at least aweek before the date of the dinner. Cheques should be made payable to"Royal College of Surgeons of England." The dress is lounge suit.

177

E. W. RICHES

in cases of extensive tumours of low malignancy. It is sometimes theonly surgical treatment offering any hope of success.The operation cannot be abandoned until it has been shown that the

newer methods of radiotherapy are more effective.My best thanks are due to my registrars for compiling records, to

Dr. A. C. Thackray and Mr. F. Masina for pathological reports, toMr. M. Turney for photographs, and to Mr. T. E. Cowan, RecordsOfficer, for checking and producing the tables and charts.

REFERENCESALBARRAN, J. (1897) Aliii. Mal. Org. gen.-lrilt. 15. 785.ASCHNER, P. W. (1928) J. Amer. med. Ass. 91, 1697.BRODERS, A. C. (1922) Ann. Surg. 75, 574.BRUNSCHWIG, A. (1948) Cantcer, 1, 177.COFFEY, R. C. (1909) Anti. Surg. 50, 1238.

(1911) J. Amer. med. Ass. 56, 397.(1931) Brit. J. Urol. 3, 353.(1933) Amer. J. Surg. 20, 254.

CORDONNIER, J. J. (1950) J. Urol. 63, 276.DE GIRONCOLI, F. (1955) Urologia (Treviso) 22, 69.DUKES, C., and MASINA, F. (1949) Brit. J. Urol. 21, 273.FENWICK, E. H. (1908) Brit. med. J. 2, 23.FRANKSSON, C. (1950) Acta Chir. Scanid., Suppl. 151.HIGGINS, C. C. (1952) Cong. Soc. int. Urol. 9, Tr-a,,s. 1, 12X9.HOGGE, A. (1898) Ann. Soc. med.-chir. Liege 37, 12.JACOBS, A., and STIRLING, W. B. (1952) Brit. J. Urol. 24, 259.JEWETT, H. J., and STRONG, G. H. (1946) J. Urol. 55, 366.

(1952) J. Urol. 67, 672.(1954) Cong. Soc. int. Urol. 9, Trans. 2, 105.

LEADBETTER, W. F. (1951) J. Urol. 65, 818.- and COOPER, J. F. (1950) J. UIot. 63, 242.

LUND, H. (1902) Lancet, 2, 1624.McDONALD, J. R., and THOMPSON, G. J. (1948) J. Urol. 60, 435.MARSHALL, V. F. (1952) J. Urol. 68, 714.

and WHITMORE, W. F., JR. (1949) C(alicer 2, 424.MASINA, F. (1955) Personal communication.MILLIN, T., and MASINA, F. (1949) Brit. J. Urol. 21, 108.NESBIT, R. M. (1948) Univ. Hosp. Bull. Ann Arbor. 14, 45.PAWLIK, K. (1891) Wien. med. Wschr. 41, 1814.PYRAH, L. N. (1954) Ann. Roy. Coll. Surg. Enigl. 14, 169.RICHES, E. W. (1949) Brit. J. Urol. 21, 51.

(1952) Proc. Roy. Soc. Med. 45, 191.ROBINSON, J. 0. (1955) Proc. Roy. Soc. Med. 48, 538.ROBSON, A. W. M. (1902) Brit. med. J. 2, 1519.SIMON, J. (1852) Lancet, 2, 568.STILES, H. J. (1911) Surg. Gynec. Obstet. 13, 127.TUFFIER, T. (1897) Ann. Mal. Org. gen.-urin. 15, 130.TURNER, G. GREY (1929) Brit. J. Surg. 17, 114.VERHOOGEN, J., and DE GRAEUWE, A. (1908-9) Folia iirol., Lp:. 3, 629.WARD, B. J. (1936) Proc. Roy. Soc. Med. 30, 137.WATSON, F. S. (1905) Antn. Surg. 42, 805.WRIGHT, A. DICKSON (1954) Trans. Med. Soc. Lolnd. 70, 210.

DONATIONSRestoration and Development Fund:-

£100 Os. Od. 2nd International Congress of Neuropathology(September, 1955).

General Funds.£50 Os. Od. Legacy under the will of the late Lord Austin.

200

ADMISSION TO THE HONORARY FELLOWSHIP OFPROFESSOR SIR WALTER MERCER OF EDINBURGH

SIR REGINALD WATSON-JONES delisvered the following citation whenpresenting Professor Sir Walter Mercer to the President on the occasionof his admission to the Honorary Fellowship at the meeting of Councilon 9th February

dO.dd

Conferment of the Honorary Fellowship by the President on Professor Sir WalterMercer, President of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh.

Mr. President-I have the honour to present to you a distinguished surgeon, a leaderof surgery, a great man and good friend-Walter Mercer-to receive the HonoraryFellowship of the Royal College of Surgeons of England. This Fellowship is guardedso jealously by the College and by the terms of its Charter that a new award can bemade only after the demise of a former Honorary Fellow and at the time that Councildecided by unanimous vote that it should be conferred upon Walter Mercer no otherHonorary Fellowship was available to any surgeon throughout the world. Neverthelessthe decision was taken by this Council very promptly, with unanimity and with warmenthusiasm. Why was this so?

In the first place we recognise him as one of the few men who can still be acknowledgedfaithfully as a general surgeon. His skilful technique has been applied to the surgicalproblems of the upper abdomen and lower abdomen, the gastro-intestinal tract andurogenitary tract, the chest, lungs and the heart, the brain and the spinal cord, andbones and joints. Let this be noted however that he never dibbled and dabbled faintlyand ineffectually in every region all at the same time. For some years his main surgicalpractice was concentrated upon the surgical problems of the abdomen. Then he engagedmainly in thoracic surgery; then in cerebral surgery ; and finally at the request, almostthe demand, of the University of Edinburgh accepted the Chair of Orthopaedic Surgeryso that now as Professor and Regional Director of Orthopaedics his practice andteaching is concentrated on this branch of general surgery.We are also proud to have Walter Mercer as an Honorary Fellow of this College

because for four years he has been President of our sister college, the Royal College ofSurgeons of Edinburgh. In this presidency he has revivified that ancient College and withbrilliant success has given a blood transfusion that has surmounted every ' negativefactor." He has looked back to old traditions, for example restoring the dignifiedattendance at all their important meetings of the Chaplain of the College; and, at thesame time. has looked forward so that his Royal College is not just an examining forumbut is now an academic centre to train in the basic sciences of surgery as well as in thepractice of surgery.

20116-2

We like to remember too that Walter Mercer and his wife Maisie are host and hostessto every surgeon who goes to Edinburgh. It is with warm regard that I recall that Ihave never arrived in Edinburgh on the overnight sleeper without being met on thestation platform at seven o'clock in the morning by Mercer himself and then givena bath and breakfast. Indeed these welcomes have been so great that Mercer's house-keeper always knows me as the man who sings in the bath.

I will not speak of his war service of which we all know except to remind you thathe was regimental medical officer to Winston Churchill.

Mercer's recreations are recorded as including curling, reading, shooting, golf andpostal history. To a Scotsman curling just comes natural, so perhaps we should acceptthat. Because he is a great reader he is also a great writer. I need not remind you ofhis important publications and of his Chairmanship of the Editorial Board of the BritishJournal of Bone and Joint Surgery. He is not as good a shot as he was; he can stillalign a bone but I am not so sure as to his aligning of a gun. He is now a golfingwidower because his wife's handicap is much less than his. He is also a fishing widowerbecause again she so excels him that he has to ghilly for her. But on the other hand hiswife is a " stamp widow " his being so expert a philatelist. But I know of no happierpair than Walter and Maisie Mercer, and their family.

But Mr. President I must klt at once-yesterday his achievements received Royalrecognition and with the AccdMiade of Knighthood we must now refer to Sir Walterand Lady Mercer. Thus by reason of his contribution to general surgery, to orthopaedicsurgery in Edinburgh where'he is Professor, and the Journal of Bone and Joint Surgeryof which he is Chairman, because of the very great distinction with which he has heldthe Presidency of the Royal College of Surgeons of Fdinburgh for four years, andbecause of the warm friendship which has been enjoyed not only by us but by manyyoung surgeons throughout the British Commonwealth of Nations and the worldI present to you Professor Sir Walter Mercer.

GIFTS OF CHAIRS AND TABLESGrateful acknowledgment is made of the following gifts:-

CHAIRS FOR THE GREAT HALLALFRED M. ABRAHAMS F. S. WARNER (3) (2 in memory of H. C.RUPERT S. CORBETT (to commemorate Malleson and E. B. Dowsett)Fred Coller) FRANKIS EVANS

MRS. LOYAL DAVIS (to commemorate DONALD BARLOWDr. Loyal Davis) MEDICAL COMMITTEE of The Hospital for

S. R. TAITZ Sick Children, Gt. Ormond St. (inmemory of Charles Donald)

TABLES FOR THE LIBRARY EXTENSIONMISS GWENDOLINE SMITH (2) (in memory H. JACKSON BURROWS (in memory of his

of her uncle Wilfrid Gostling) father Harold Burrows)E. H. R. ALTOUNYAN (in memory of his MISS JOAN WADGE (in memory of her

father A. A. Altounyan) father and brother F. Collett Wadgeand H. Collett Wadge)

We now have sufficient tables for the Library Annexe, for which we are very grateful,but further gifts of small tables for the College would be greatly appreciated(£18 5s. Od. each).

METAL-FRAMED CHAIRS FOR THE GREAT HALLF. AUSTIN HENLEY A. T. S. PAUL (in memory of his fatherNORMAN GIBBON S. C. Paul)JR. Y. KHWAJA (2) (H. Y. Khwaja and GEOFFREY MIZBAH

Z. H. Khwaja) AA .HNJ. C. LEEDHAM-GREEN (in memory of his

father Charles Leedham-Green) H. FLINT (in memory of W. E. Springford)WILLIAM A. BAKER (in memory of D. ROBERT H. V. HAFNER

MacTavish Baker) CHARLES D. HALSTEADERIC A. FRAYWORTH C.NUTNMRAF. G. KERGIN (2) (F. G. Kergin and

R. NAUNTON MORGANSuzanne Kergin) R. A. C. OWEN (2) (in memory of his

T. G. I. JAMES (2) (in memory of Elizabeth father Robert Cecil Owen)James and E. T. James) H. A. KIDD

202

CHARTER DAY DINNERAT THE ROYAL COLLEGE OF SURGEONS IN IRELANDConferring of Honorary Fellowship on Sir Clement Price Thomas, K.C.V.O.

ON SATURDAY, 11th February, 1956, was celebrated the 172nd anniversaryof the foundation of the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland underCharter of George III. Before the annual Charter Day Dinner held inthe College that evening, Mr. Ian Fraser, D.S.O., President of the College,received the Fellows and their guests, 238 in number, in the Board Roomto witness a very pleasant ceremony-that of the admission of Sir ClementPrice Thomas, K.C.V.O., as an Honorary Fellow of the College, whowas presented by Mr. William Doolin, Secretary to Council, in thefollowing terms:Mr. President and Members of Council:

It is my happy privilege to present to you, Sir, and to the Members of your CouncilSir Clement Price Thomas, K.C.V.O., of Wales and England, surgeon to theWestminster and Brompton Hospitals, President of the Association of Surgeons ofGreat Britain and Ireland, Consultant Adviser to the R.A.M.C., to the R.A.F., and tothe British Ministry of Health.

His many and responsible duties on the far shores of our Irish Sea notwithstanding,he is no stranger in this country. I might even dare suggest that he possesses a longerand a more intimate acquaintance with our countryside than the majority of his colleaguesnow living in London. In 1915, while yet a student at Cardiff, as a lad scarce out ofhis teens, he had volunteered for service in the First World War. Posted to the R.A.M.C.he was stationed for a period at Limerick, and there by Shannon's banks he made ahost of friendships which have persisted to the present day. After Limerick, he sawactive service at Salonika and Gallipoli-where now lie so many Irish dead-and latei'n Palestine.

Recalled to continue his studies at home, from Cardiff he won an Entrance Scholar-ship to the Medical School of the Westminster Hospital. Qualifying as a Member in1921, two years later he passed brilliantly the examination for the Fellowship of theEnglish College. During those years he had passed through every resident appointmentat the Hospital, from junior houseman to a three years' tenure of the post of SurgicalRegistrar, and there he has remained ever since, to the great benefit of the Hospitaland its Medical School.My acquaintance with Sir Clement does not go back to those formative days of his

youth. But from one of his former teachers I have been given this graphic picture:" I remember him very well as a young house surgeon. Always on the spot.

Whenever I went down to do an emergencv at night, he was sure to be there-notto be in the limelight, but standing quietly to one side, anxious to see and heareverything. His thirst for information and experience was insatiable; he wasone of those students who are at once the joy and the terror of their teachers: thosewho think for themselves-who come to you saying: ' I don't understand, Sir.You said such and such, but, as I understand things, that couldn't be so.' "

To-day, he is the teacher-a dynamic trainer of young surgeons. It was an axiomof Theodor Kocher, who trained many surgeons of European and American distinction,that one can obtain spiritual satisfaction from one's profession only by making oneselfmaster of every aspect of one branch of it. By stern examination of conscience, and bystrict self-discipline, Sir Clement, having asked himself all the questions, now knowsnearly all the answers. He has fulfilled to the letter Osler's three pre-requisites for theman whom one would choose to be the head of a department in a teaching hospital:that he shall care the sick; that he shall teach the nurse and student ; that he shall makehis individual contribution to the common pool of our scientific knowledge. All thesethings Price Thomas has done, and done them well.What like is the man, behind the surgeon and the teacher ? Two qualities I know him

to possess which have endeared him at every stage of his career to those who have methim: his unfailing good humour and his amazing modesty, both attributes the external,visible insignia of his innate goodness. ' All other knowledge," declared that gentlest

205

CHARTER DAY DINNER IN IRELAND

of philosophers, Michel de Montaigne, " is prejudicial to him who has not la sciencede la bonte." And by that single, simple word, bonte, Montaigne means kindness, con-sideration for others: it is the philanthropie of the Hippocratic aphorism. It hasafforded him the heaven-sent gift of inspiring faith and confidence in patients gravelyill under his care. That quality the poorest and lowliest of his patients at Westminsteror at Brompton have learned to be his, given to them in fullest measure, as later theworld was to learn he had given it in his devoted attention to his Sovereign.He is a romantic and individual personality-one who works and plays " with sun-

shine in his veins." As a golfer, he is an indifferent performer; as a motorist he has hadone historic crash. But, watching him in the theatre one may observe the completesubservience of the personal to the impersonal: stern self-discipline has taught him tosuppress his gay, impulsive nature to the demands of his patient's situation. There oneis watching the embodiment of all one's ideals of the classical surgeon-discipline,restraint, concentration-combining to provide an elegance of execution with the rarerpower of swift improvisation when the occasion demands. There his students mayexperience the same aesthetic pleasure as they would enjoy, say, in watching a Huttonat the wicket at Lord's. In each arena, one is watching a master-craftsman execute aperfect technique. And, as head of his department, his captaincy, like Hutton's, hasbeen dynamic.

I have sought, Sir, to portray to you the man as I have come to know him. To haveenjoyed his company has been at once a joy and a refreshment, wherefore now I askyou, by virtue of the high office which you hold, to admit him of our company anHonorary Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland.The President then declared his pleasure in admitting Sir Clement to

the Honorary Fellowship, and the new Fellow having signed the Roll,the President, with Sir Harry Platt, President of the Royal College ofSurgeons of England at his side, headed the procession to the large Hallof the College in which the dinner was held. After dinner, the toast of" The Guests " was proposed by the Vice-President, Mr. A. B. Clery,and was responded to by Sir Clement. The toast of the " Royal Collegeof Surgeons in Ireland " was proposed by Sir Harry, who, in sympathisingwith his Irish colleagues over the day's setback at Twickenham, assuredthem that the future prospects of the College must be their main consola-tion. To this, Mr. Fraser replied in similar happy vein.

INCREASE IN SUBSCRIPTIONTHE EDITORIAL COMMITTEE regrets to have to inform readers of the Annalsthat owing to considerable increases in production and distribution costsit has been found necessary to raise the annual subscription to £2 witheffect from 1st July 1956. Individual copies will cost 3s. 6d. each.Subscribers who pay by banker's order will shortly receive a new formfor completion and it would be much appreciated if they would returnthis without delay to the Editorial Office in Lincoln's Inn Fields,London, W.C.2.

ANATOMICAL MUSEUMTHE SPECIAL DISPLAY for the month of March consists of a selection ofspecimens showing the nervous system of the invertebrata.

206

PAST PRESIDENTS6. BENJAMIN TRAVERS

BENJAMIN TRAVERS, SURGEON to St. Thomas's Hospital and to MoorfieldsOphthalmic Hospital, was President of the College in 1847 and againin 1856. He was a Member of Council from 1830 until his death on6th March 1858 at the age of 74, for he was born in April 1783. Hisfather was a sugar broker in the City, and on leaving school he enteredhis father's office. But in 1800 he was articled as a pupil to Astley Cooper,with whom he remained in close association, and from whom he learntthe Hunterian tradition of scientific surgery. He did not, however, acquirehis master's brilliance as an operator, but made his mark by his scientificability as a pathologist and a teacher.

In 1807 he began to practise at New Court, St. Swithin's Lane. He wasappointed Demonstrator of Anatomy at Guy's Hospital, and, his father'saffairs having become embarrassed, he was fortunate enough to be electedby a single vote in 1809 to the lucrative office of Surgeon to the East IndiaCompany's warehouses and brigade.On the death of John Cunningham Saunders in 1810, Travers was

appointed to succeed him as Surgeon to the London Infirmary forDiseases of the Eye, now the Moorfields Ophthalmic Hospital. He heldthe post single-handed for four years, and so developed its resourcesthat William Lawrence was appointed to assist him in 1814. Togetherthey raised ophthalmic surgery from the region of quackery into arespectable branch of medicine. Travers, indeed, met with some oppositionto his ophthalmic work, but he is justly described as the first generalsurgeon in England to devote himself specially to the treatment of diseaseof the eye.He became a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1813, and on 1st May 1815

was elected Surgeon to St. Thomas's Hospital in the place of John Birch,who had died. He held office until 28th July, 1841, when he resigned,and his place was taken by John Flint South, his son Benjamin beingappointed Assistant Surgeon on the same day. In 1816 he took SirAstley Cooper's house, 3, New Broad Street, acquiring a considerableshare of his city practice, when Cooper removed to Spring Gardens.He also lectured on surgery at St. Thomas's Hospital with Cooper. Asevere attack of palpitation of the heart caused him to resign the lectureshipin 1819, but he resumed it again in 1834 in association with FredericTyrrell. He was President of the Hunterian Society in 1827 and in thesame year was elected President of the Royal Medico-Chirurgical Society,now the Royal Society of Medicine.At the Royal College of Surgeons Travers was Hunterian Orator in

1838, a Member of the Court of Examiners from 1841 to 1858, and oneof the original Fellows in 1843. On the formation of the medical establish-ment of Queen Victoria he was appointed a Surgeon Extraordinary,

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PAST PRESIDENTS

afterwards becoming a Surgeon in Ordinary to the Prince Consort. Hewas appointed Serjeant Surgeon in 1857.

Travers married three times and had a large family. His eldest son,Benjamin Travers, junior, distinguished himself as a surgeon. Traverswas a man of strong personality, admired and liked by his pupils andpatients. His writings, influential in their day, on surgical pathologywere outmoded by the rise of bacteriology. The College possesses twoportraits of him: a marble bust by William Behnes and an oil-paintingby C. R. Leslie, R.A.

PROCEEDINGS OF THE COUNCIL IN FEBRUARYAT A MEETING of the Council on the 9th February, Prof. Sir Harry Platt,President, who was in the Chair, conferred the diploma of HonoraryFellowship on Prof. Sir Walter Mercer, President of the Royal Collegeof Surgeons of Edinburgh. A citation in honour of Sir Walter Mercerwas given by Sir Reginald Watson-Jones (see page 201).

It was reported that Viscount Crookshank, P.C., had been elected aTrustee of the Hunterian Collection.

Mr. E. Stanley Lee (Westminster) was re-elected and Mr. R. H. Franklin(Postgraduate Medical School) and Mr. C. D. P. Jones (Sheffield) wereelected Members of the Court of Examiners for a period of three yearsfrom 8th March 1956.

Dr. Cyril Long, B.Sc., D.Phil., F.R.S.E., was appointed SeniorLecturer in Biochemistry.Mr. Felix Ernest Weale, F.R.C.S., was appointed Lecturer in Physiology.Mr. Arthur Lambert Walsh, of Montreal, was elected to the Fellowship

in Dental Surgery.The Hallett Prize was awarded to Dr. T. N. Shanmugalingam (University

of Ceylon) on the result of the recent Primary Fellowship Examination inColombo.Handcock Prizes were awarded to Mr. J. G. Cruickshank (University

College Hospital) and Mr. P. J. Stiles (Guy's).Dr. B. Cohen of Johannesburg was appointed Leverhulme Research

Fellow in Oral Pathology.A Moynihan Lectureship was awarded to Professor Carl Semb, of Oslo.Diplomas of Membership were granted to 95 candidates, of Fellowship

in Dental Surgery to 17 candidates, and of Fellowship in the Faculty ofAnaesthetists to 27 candidates.The following diplomas were granted jointly with the Royal College of

Physicians: Public Health (10) and Industrial Health (4).The Council agreed to resume recognition for the purpose of allowing

Egyptian graduates to enter for the postgraduate diplomas granted jointlywith the Royal College of Physicians and to make this recognitionretrospective to 1st August 1952.

208

The following hospitals were recognised under paragraph 23 of theFellowship regulations:

POSTS RECOGNISEDHOSPITALS

General Casualty Unspecified(all 6 mths.)

HLUDDERSFIELD-Royal Infirmary Third H.S. (6 mths.) Casualty Officer(additional)

LONDON-North Middx. Hospital Thoracic H.S.(additional)

NOTTINGHAM-City Hospital (addi- 2 S.H.O.'s (6 mths.) S.H.O. (Plastic)tional) S.H.O. (Thoracic)

GRANTHAM & KESTEVEN-General Surg. Regr. (6 mths.)Hospital (additional)

BOURNEMOUTH- Royal Victoria Registrar (Orth. &Hospital (additional) Cas.)

NORTH SHIELDS-Preston Hospital Sen. Surg.H.O. (6 niths.)

TYNEMOUTH-Victoria Jubilee In- Fro1 I1st Aigiu-st 1955firmary Sen. Surg. H.S.

SUNDERLAND-Royal Infirmary para 23 (c)Registrar (E.N.T.)

COV'ENTRY AND WARAWICKSHIRE Registrar (6 niths.)Hospital

INDIX-Military Hospital, Poona Surg. Regr. (6 mths.) 3 Cas. Officers3 Resident SurgicalOfficers (6 mths.)

CEI LON-The Kandy Hospital 2 Registrars (6 mths.)2 H.S.'s (6 mths.)

SOL'TH AFRICA-Victoria Hospital, Surg. Regr. (6 mths.)Wvnberg (confirmation)

DELHI-Safdarjang Hospital 4 H.S. (6 mths.) 2 Orth. H.S.'s

RESTORATION AND REBUILDING OF THE COLLEGEIT HAS BEEN agreed between the parties concerned that 31 st December 1956is to be the completion date of the Nuffield College of Surgical Sciences,and work is proceeding well towards that end.

Such few gaps as remained in the external brickwork at the time of thelast report have now been filled in, and the whole of the top roof hasbeen asphalted. Many of the windows on the highest floors have beenglazed, so that it should now be possible to proceed with the interior workwhich in the main part of the building (that facing Lincoln's Inn Fields)is still considerably less well advanced than in the spur block. Interiorbrickwork, mainly partition walls, is nearing completion except on theground floor, many rooms in the spur block are plastered, some of thefloors are screeded ready for linoleum, and washbasins are beginning toappear in the bedrooms. Electrical conduits and other engineering andplumbing services are well advanced. Stone, which has been the causeof some delay, is all on the site and most of it in position, and the shell ofthe building has assumed an aspect of completeness.

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DIARY FOR MARCH (21st-31st)Wed. 21 2.00 Board of Faculty of Anaesthetists.

3.00 Annual General Meeting of Faculty of Anaesthetists.4.00 DR. K. W. DONALD-Joseph Clover Lecture-The gaseous environ-

ment.*7.15 Anniversary Dinner of Faculty of Anaesthetists.

Thur. 22 3.45 DR. J. STRETTON YOUNG-Erasmus Wilson Demonstration-Someaspects ofmammary gland development in mice.*

Mon. 26 Final Membership Examination begins.Surgery Course begins.

5.00 PROF. ARNOLD SORSBY-Ophthalmology Lecture-Emmetropia andits aberrations.*

5.15 PROF. C. A. WELLS-The place and results of surgery in arterialhypertension.

6.30 MR. N. C. LAKE-The problem of hallux valgus.Tues. 27 5.00 MR. J. D. GRIFFITHs-Arris and Gale Lecture-The surgical anatomy

of the blood supply of the distal colon.*6.15 MR. S. H. WAss-The surgical treatment of ulcerative colitis.

Wed. 28 5.15 MR. C. BUTLER-The principles of treatment of infections of the hand.6.30 PROF. IAN AIRD-Parathyroid tumours.

Fri. 30 Good Friday. College closed.

DIARY FOR APRILTues. 3 College reopens.

5.15 MR. F. W. HOLDSWORTH-Traumatic paraplegia.6.30 MR. C. P. WILSON-Malignant diseases of the upper jaw.

Wed. 4 5.15 PROF. C. G. ROB.-Plastics as arterial substitutes.6.30 MR. T. HOLMES SELLORs-Benign tumours of the chest.

Thur. 5 5.30 MR. T. HOLMES SELLORS-Otolaryngology Lecture-Perforations ofthe air passages and the oesophagus.*

6.30 MR. A. W. BADENOCH-Hydronephrosis.Fri. 6 5.15 MR. N. R. BARRETT Thoracic aneurysm.

6.30 MR. RODNEY SMITH-Carcinoma of the stomach.Mon. 9 5.15 PROF. T. POMFRET KILNER-Treatment of cleft lip and palate de-

formities.6.30 MR. V. H. RIDDELL The management of thyrotoxicosis.

Tues. 10 Primary F.D.S. Examination begins.5.15 MR. 0. S. TUBBS-Surgical treatment of mitral and aortic valve disease.6.30 MR. R. H. 0. B. ROBINSON-The significance of haematuria.

Wed. 11 Second L.D.S. Examination begins.5.15 PROF. DIGBY CHAMBERLAIN-Pancreatitis.6.30 MR. J. SCHOLEFIELD-Carcinoma of the colon.7.00 Monthly Dinner.

Thur. 12 2.00 Quarterly Council.5.00 PROF. L. GILLIS-Hunterian Lecture Amputations in children.*6.15 SIR CLEMENT PRICE THOMAS Carcinoma of the lung.

Fri. 13 5.15 MR. WYLIE McKISSOCK Subarachnoid haemorrhage.6.30 MR. JACKSON BURROWS Some bone dystrophies.

Mon. 16 5.15 MR. HEDLEY ATKINS Carcinoma of the breast.6.30 SIR RUSSELL BROCK-The surgery of some congenital heart lesions.

Tues. 17 5.00 PROF. W. J. W. SHARRARD Hunterian Lecture-The muscle paralysisin poliomyelitis.*

6.15 PROF. W. W. MUSHIN Anaesthetic emergencies.Surgery Course ends.

Thur. 19 D.M.R.D. Examination (Part 11) and D.M.R.T. Examination(Part I) begin.

3.45 Miss J. DOBSON-Arnott Demonstration.*Fri. 20 4.00 PROF. CARL SEMB-Moynihan Lecture-Partial resection of the

kidney.*Tues. 24 Final Fellowship Examination (Ophthalmology and Otolaryngology

begins.3.45 PROF. R. J. LAsT-Arnott Demonstration.*

Thur. 26 D.M.R.T. Examination (Part 11) begins.3.45 DR. B. E. HEARD-Erasmus Wilson Demonstration.*

Mon. 30 Dental Lectures and Clinical Conferences begin.Pharmacology Course begins.

*Not part of courses.210