USA > Alabama > Memorial record of Alabama. A concise account of the state's political, military, professional and industrial progress, together with the personal memoirs of many of its people. Volume II pt 1 > Part 14
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While the medical law remained, from 1823 to 1877, almost without change, there were many changes in the number of the examining boards. In 1827, the Cahaba board was moved to Selma. In 1830, the number of boards in the state was reduced to four-one at Huntsville, one at Tuscaloosa, and one at Selma, and one at Claiborne -- the original Mobile board having been allowed to die through neglect. Subsequently the following boards were created in the years mentioned: Mobile. 1531; Montgomery, 1835; Demopolis, 1835; Irwinton, Barbour county, 1837; Jacksonville, then in Benton county, 1841; Florence, 1841; Eufaula, 1844; Chambers county, 1844 -; Suggsville. Clarke county, 1845; Talladega, 1845; Crawford. Russell county, 1846; Cherokee county. 1854: Choctaw county, 1854; Jackson county. 1854; Russell county, the first Russell county board having been allowed to lapse. 1-55; Shelby county, 1555: Autauga county, 1858; Pike county, 1858; Perry county. 1858; Coffee county. 1860; Franklin county, 1860; Cherokee county, 1860; St. Clair county, 1561; Washington and Choctaw counties, one joint board, 1866: Marshall county. 1867; Jef- ferson county. 1867; Hale county, 1867; Elmore county, 1867; Lee county, 1867; Lawrence county, 1870.
. By the act of 1823, the members of the boards were elected by the joint vote of the two houses of the general assembly. This seems to have proved troublesome and the general practice was adopted, that the gen- eral assembly should designate the members to compose the boards at the time of their organization. while all subsequent vacancies in any board were to be filled by the remaining members. There were a few ex- ceptions to this plan, however. In 1539 the South Alabama Medical society at Selma was chartered, and was authorized to make examinations in conformity to the law governing other boards. A few years later the name of this society was changed to the Alabama State Medical society. The privileges of this charter were forfeited by neglect: aud in 1-67 they
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were renewed and the name changed to the Selma Medical society. In 1841, the Medical society of the city of Mobile was chartered for ten years, with authority to elect a board of medical examiners. with the usual powers. This charter was renewed in 1832, for twenty years; and again in 1866. for fifty years. In 1866 the Medical and Surgical society of Montgomery was chartered for fifty years, and authorized to elect a board of examiners, to act under the general law. In 1844 the election of the members of the Barbour county board was delegated to the grad- uated physicians of the county. Finally, in the code of 1867. all existing boards are continued; and it is provided that, for the future. county boards of medical examiners may be at any time created by the action of the county commissioners, and the probate judges.
While this process of evolution was going on in legislation affecting the regular profession. several acts were passed in the interest of the irreg- ular doctors of the state. As we have already seen, the law of 1823 was amended in 1832, so as not to apply to the so-called Thompsonians. The botanic system, into which the Thompsonians gradually developed, had not then been invented. In 1934. however, a law was enacted authorizing the courts of county commissioners of the several counties to create boards of botanic physicians, of not less than three nor more than seven members, to examine all who desired to practice the botanic system of medicine, and to fix the fees that might be charged for such practice. This scheme did not work well. for one reason-because botanic physi- cians were not numerous enough in most of the counties to furnish mem- bers to constitute the boards. So, in 1856, this law was rescinded and a new law passed, creating a single state board for the examination of botanic physicians. So far as is known to the writer of this sketch, the members of this state board never met for organiziation and never issued any licenses to practice. In 1860 a board of botanic physicians was created in Blount county, but this board, also, seems never to have organ- ized.
In 1852 there was organized. or at least chartered. in the city of Mont- gomery, the Alabama Homeopathic society, which was authorized to ap- point annually a board of three members to examine all non-graduates who desired to practice homeopathy-graduates of medical colleges and licentiates of other Alabama boards. to be exempt from such examina- tion. The rules for this board were in all details the same as those pro- vided for the control of the regular boards.
THE STATE MEDICAL ASSOCIATION.
The Medical Association of the state of Alabama was organized by a convention of the physicians of the state which met at Mobile in 1847, and on the 1st day of December thereof. This convention was called at the instance of Dr. A. G. Mabry, of Selma, for the purpose of getting a move-
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ment on foot to secure the establishment of a state hospital for the in- sane. The permanent officers of the convention were as follows:
President-W. B. Johnson, M. D., of Perry county: First Vice-Presi- dent-R. L. Fearn, M. D .. of Mobile: Second Vice-President-A. G. Mabry, M. D., of Selma; Secretaries-George F. Pollard. M. D., of Montgomery. and W. B. Crawford, M. D., of Mobile; Treasurer-George A. Ketchum, M. D., of Mobile.
Just what was done in furtherance of the enterprise to establish a hospital has not come to the knowledge of the present writer. But in the course of the session a committee of seven, consisting of Drs. P. H. Lewis (chairman, Morgan, Barnes, Miller, Gaines, Ketchum and Woodcock-was appointed to draft a plan for the organization of a state medical association. On the 4th day of December and of the session, the report of the committee on organization was adopted, and the conten- tion resolved itself into the Medical Association of the State of Alabama. The officers of the convention were continued as officers of the association for one year.
The session of 1848 was held in Selma. beginning on the 8th day of March. Dr. W. B. Johnson presided. Apparantly no account of its pro- ceedings has been preserved.
In 1849 the association held two sessions. The first session was held in Wetumpka on the 6th and 7th days of March. Dr. A. G. Mabry, the president. was absent, and the chair was taken by Dr. Samuel D. Holt, who was second-vice president. and who was elected president. The minutes of this meeting, not the medical papers, were printed in a thin pamphlet. The second session was held in Montgomery, including, in the time, the 13th day of December. The presumption is that Dr. Holt presided. The medical papers read at these two sessions were published -at least several of them-in the New Orleans Medical Journal.
The session of 1850 was held in Mobile, beginning on the 10th of De- cember and continuing three days. Dr. A. Lopez was the presiding officer. The proceedings of this meeting, including the medical papers, were published in a pamphlet of 150 pages, the first volume issued by the association. Amongst other things, and in continuation of the effort to secure the establishment of a hospital for the insane. a committee, con- sisting of Dr. A. Lopez, S. Holt. W. H. Anderson. H. V. Wooten, W. O. Baldwin. and William Bolling, was appointed to prepare a memorial to the general assembly urging the construction of such an institution, and, as was specified in the resolution. to aid Miss Dix in her efforts in the same direction. In 1-51 the association met. on the sth day of December. in Montgomery. Dr. Charles E. Lavender had been elected president. but died before the time came for the meeting, and Dr. William O. Baldwin, the first vice-president, acted in his place.
The session of 1-52 was held in Selma, beginning on the 13th of De- cember. Dr. William Bolling, the elected president, was absent, and the
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first vice-president, Dr. A. G. Mabry. presided. Dr. A. Lopez, who had been appointed by the governor to visit the various insane asylums in the United States, reported that he had performed that duty during the past summer, that the plans he had submitted had been approved by the commissioners, and that the projected building would soon be in course of erection. The treasurer reported the association between $800 and $900 in debt, and not a dollar in the treasury.
The association was to hold a session in Montgomery in December, 1853. For some reason, perhaps on account of the wide prevalence of yellow fever during that fall. this session was postponed until the 10th, 11th and 12th of January, 1854, so that no meeting at all was held in 1853.
This session of 1854 was held under the presidency of Dr. A. Denney, in Montgomery. The treasurer again emphasized the want of money, and stated that at least $1,000 was due from delinquent members.
In 1855 the association met in Mobile. February 5, 6 and 7, under the presidency of Dr. L. H. Anderson. The treasurer reported more than half the members delinquent of dues. At this session it was decided to make Mobile the permanent place of meeting. and to make the time of meeting the first Monday in March of each year. It was also agreed that an effort should be made to provide a permanent hall for the meetings of the association. and for a pathological museum, medical library, etc .; and with a view to disseminating information of the aims and objects of the association, it was ordered that 1,500 copies of the transactions of this meeting should be printed for distribution amongst the physicians, editors, and other intelligent citizens of the state. Dr. Taylor, the annual orator, took as his theme the eligibility of Mobile as the site for a school of medicine. Dr. T. W. Mason. of Wetumpka, was elected president for the ensuing year. According to information believed to be reliable, the expenses of this session, especially the expense of printing and distribu- ting 1,500 copies of the proceedings, utterly bankrupted the treasury of the association, and a considerable balance had to be paid by individual members of the publishing committee. The sums thus advanced were never repaid to the advancers.
Another session was held in 1856: but the writer has not been able to get any account of it. Presumably, Dr. Mason presided. The financial collapse consequent on the large expenditures of the previous year seems to have caused the collapse of the association. and it passes out of history for the next twelve years. It has been difficult to get details of the history of the association before the war. except for the five years covered by the published volumes of proceedings. From these volumes a few general facts and conclusions may be gathered.
The nominal membership during this ante bellum time was about 150. Doctors who were not present at the meetings were elected to member- ship, and their hames. once on the roll. were kept there indefinitely.
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even though many of them made no formal acceptance of the doubtful honor, never attended the meetings, and never paid their dnes. It is probable that the bona fide paying membership never at any time exceeded 100, and that on the average it fell considerably below that number. There were many things that stood in the way of the prosperity of the association beside the bad financial management, but that is of itself sufficient to account for its temporary failure. The members were drawn, almost exclusively, from the black belt of the state-that is to say, from the central and southern parts of the state-and largely from the three cities of Mobile, Montgomery and Selma. Only about a dozen of these old members now survive. Amongst these may be mentioned Dr. George A. Ketchum of Mobile; Dr. Henry Backus of Montevallo; Dr. Andrew Bowie of Benton: Dr. Nathan Bozeman of New York; Dr. P. N. Cilley of Lowndesboro: Dr. C. A. Edwards of Prattville: Dr. J. M. Langhorn of Uniontown. and Dr. R. D. Webb of Birmingham. The restriction of the membership to such small territorial limits was due to circumstances easily understood. There were no railroads in those days, and travel, except on the navigable rivers. was slow, inconvenient, and expensive. And so it naturally happened that very few doctors attended the meetings of the association, except such as lived in easy reach of steamboat transportation. A comparatively large number of these were men of much distinction, and this not simply and solely as practitioners of medicine: but they were, also, men of considerable scholarship, and citizens of high standing and large social and public influence. It was the fashion in those days for the sons of the best families to study medicine, and so it came about that the doctors of the black belt in Alabama, before the war, were accomplished gentlemen as well as skillful physicians. The names of some of them may be fitly mentioned here: J. C. Nott. George A. Ketchum, W. II. Anderson, F. A. Ross, E. P. Gaines, of Mobile: A. G. Mabry, C. D. Parke, W. P. Reese of Selma: J. Marion Sims. S. Ames. W. M. Bolling. William O. Baldwin, N. Bozeman of Montgomery: L. H. Anderson. R. D Webb of Suinter, and many more of equal worth. The medical papers and addresses of those days had their characteristic merits. They are elaborate and full of quotations from medical books.' They are written in good Enlgish; they show abundant evidences of scholarly training, and are ornamented with abundant quotations from the Latin classics, and from the standard English poets. In the five volumes of the proceedings there are long reports on the medical botany of the counties; on the prevailing dis- cases of the counties, and on medical and surgical subjects which were then of current interest.
THE STATE ASSOCIATION AFTER THE WAR.
During the war, and for three years after the close of the war, the association held no meetings. On the third and fourth ; days of March,
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1868, in response to a call issued by the Selina Medical society, a meet- ing was held in Selma for the purpose of reorganization. Only six of the old ante bellum members were in attendance. namely: Dr. H. Backus, Dr. C. J. Clark. Dr. A. G. Mabry. Dr. A. J. Reese, Dr. W. P. Reese, and Dr. F. A. Ross. Of gentlemen not before on the roll of members there were present. Drs. B. H. Riggs. Charles F. Force, John A. Mckinnon, G. W. Kyser and L. E. Locke of Dallas county; Drs. Thomas C. Osborn, F. M. Peterson, and Jacob Huggins of Hale counties: Drs. R. F. Michel, W. C. Jackson and H. S. Howard of Montgomery county ; Drs. J. L. Gilmore and Jerome Cochran of Mobile county. and Dr. E. D. McDaniel of Wilcox county. In other words, the assemblage was composed of twenty phy- sicians, representing five different counties. A temporary organization was effected by calling Dr. F. A. Ross, of Mobile, to the chair, and Dr. Jerome Cochran. of the same place, to the secretary's table; after which Dr. A. G. Mabry offered the following resolution :
Resolved, That we, the members of the Medical Association of the state of Alabama here assembled. do revive and re-establish said associa- tion, and invite the physicians present who are not members to join us in so doing and to become members of the association.
The resolution was unanimously adopted, and all the physicians in the hall signed the roll and paid the initiation fee of $1. Dr. A. G. Mabry was elected president. The only medical paper read at this meeting was one by Dr. Henry Backus, on the unity of disease. The principal work of the session was the amendment of the original constitution, the pur- pose in mind being to make the association a more distinctly representa- tive body than it had formerly been. The effect of the changes made was to recognize two classes of members, namely: (1) Delegates duly accredited from the local medical societies, medical colleges. and public hospitals of the state: and (2) Permanent members, consisting of all such delegates as chose to pay the annual dues and so to keep up their connection with the association. A per capita assessement of $5 was made to constitute a fund out of which to defray current expenses. The next session was held in Mobile, March 2d. 3d, 4th, 1869. There was an at- tendance of forty. representing ten counties. From such small beginnings sprang the great association which has slowly grown to be the pride of all the people of Alabama-the most perfectly organized and the most influential medical association in the United States.
It does not seem expedient to enter into the details of the successive annual sessions of the association since the war: but rather to indicate in a general way the course of the evolution which has made it what it is. Beyond all question the greatest event in its history is the adoption, in 1873, of the new plan of organization which is embodied in what is com- monly spoken of as the new constitution. The writer will therefore give the history of this new constitution somewhat in detail in other sections of this sketch.
At the time of the adoption of the new constitution about half of the
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counties of the state were nominally organized; but it was several years. before that many accepted charters and came into full fellowship. Since 1888, there has been a chartered society in every county of the state, sixty-six in number, and the whole state is now completely organized. That is to say, we have sixty-six county societies, sixty-six county boards of health, and sixty-six county boards of medical examiners.
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Eleven hundred doctors, or about two-thirds of all the doctors in the state, constitute at this time the aggregate membership of the associa- tion-1,100 of the best men in the profession-and the number is con- stantly increasing. The doctors who are not members are as a rule in entire harmony with the association, and with the objects it has been organized to accomplish. Since the reorganization of the association in 1873, it has illustrated its influence in the counsels of the state by secur- ing the enactment by the general assembly of a number of beneficent laws, as follows:
(1) In 1875, a law to constitute the state medical association. the state board of health with general control of the county boards, the county medical societies being invested with the functions of county boards of health.
(2) In 1877, a law to regulate the practice of medicine in the state.
(3) In 1879, a law to make an annual appropriation of $3,000 for the uses of the state board of health.
(4) In 1881, a law providing for the collection of vital statistics, and creating county health officers.
(5) In 1887. a law to regulate the practice of quarantine in Alabama, with an annual appropriation of $5,000.
. (6) Also, in 1587, a law for the protection of the traveling public against accidents caused by color blindness and defective vision.
All of these enactments will be treated of at greater length in subse- quent sections of this history. Beginning with 1866, the first session after the war. annual sessions of the association have been held in the years and places and with presiding officers as follows: Selma. 1868. A. G. Mabry: Mobile. 1869. A. G. Mabry; Montgomery, 1870, R. F. Michel; Mobile, 1871. F. A. Ross: Huntsville, 1872. T. C. Osborn; Tuscaloosa. 1873, G. E. Kumpe, Selma; 1874, G. A. Ketchum; Montgomery, 1875, J. S. Weatherly; Mobile, 1876, J. J. Dement; Birmingham, 1877, E. D. Mc- Daniel: Eufaula. 1878, Peter Bryce: Selma. 1579. R. D. Webb: Hunts- ville, 1880, E. P. Gaines: Montgomery, 1981. W. H. Anderson: Mobile. 1882, J. B. Gaston: Birmingham, 1583, C. D. Parke: Selma, 1884. M. H. Jordan; Greenville, 1885. B. H. Riggs; Anniston. 1886. F. M. Peterson; Tuscaloosa. 1557, S. D. Seelye: Montgomery, 1888. E. H. Sholl: Mobile, 1889, M. C. Baldridge: Birmingham. 1890. C. H. Franklin: Huntsville, 1891, W. H. Sanders; Montgomery. 1892. B. J. Baldwin; Selma, 1893, J. T. Searcy.
The orators since the war have been as follows: 1869. John Brown' Gaston: 1570, George Augustus Ketchum: 1871, William Henry Ander- son; 1872, Job Sobieski Weatherly; 1-73. Mortimer Harvey Jordan; 1-74,
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Samuel Dibble Seelye: 1875, George Augustus Ketchum: 1976, Richard Fraser Michel: 1877, Edmund Henry Fournier; 187S. Benjamin Hogan Riggs; 1879, William Augustus Michel: 1880, Panl DeLacy Baker: 1881, Milton Columbus Baldridge; 18-2. Peter Bryce; 1883, Edward Henry Sholl; 1884. William Henry Sanders; 1885, James Thomas Searcy; 1856, no oration delivered; 1887, Richard Procter Huger: 1588, Benjamin James Baldwin: 1889, Ruffin Coleman: 1890, Henry Tutwiler Inge: 1891, Edward Powell Riggs: 1892. Benjamin Leon Wyman: 1893, Glen Andrews.
The constitution of 1873 was first foreshadowed in a series of resolu- tions presented to the association at the annual session held in Montgom- ery in 1870. These resolutions were referred to a very able special com- mittee, which after due consideration reported them back to the association, with an expression of opinion to the effect: That while the reforms suggested were very desirable in themselves. they were at the same time. in view of our surroundings, entirely impracticable, and that any effort to push them into execution must necessarily result in failure.
The friends of the new movement. however, were not willing to accept this discouraging opir ion as the final conclusion of their dream of better things; and accordingly the plan to which they had committed them- selves was again presented to the association at the annual session of 1871 in Mobile, this time in the shape of a formal draft of a new consti- tution, which was elaborately discussed, and which was finally disposed of, so far as this session was concerned, by an order to print it in the Transactions, and by the postponment of its further consideration to the next annual session.
The next annual session was held in the city of Huntsville in 1872; and here, again, the new plan of organization was the principal topic of debate. The friends of the movement were quite satisfied that if the vote had been taken here the new constitution would have been approved by a handsome majority. But they appreciated the importance of securing the hearty co-operation of the whole medical profession of the state, in order to carry the new plan into successful operation: and on their motion the further consideration of it was again postponed for another year.
At last, at Tuscaloosa, in 1873, the time came for decisive action. Two whole days were devoted to the discussion of the new constitution. The several sections composing it were separately discussed and sepa- rately voted npon; and after a few unimportant amendments, the whole instrument was adopted as the fundamental law of the association, and by a majority of more than two-thirds of the members present. The leading provisions of this new constitution are as follows:
(1) The officers of the association are: one president. two vice-presi- dents, one secretary. one treasurer, and ten censors. None of these posi- tions are sinecures: every one of them has a considerable amount of work and responsibility to it; and every one of them involves a considerable
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expenditure of both time and money. Every officer is expected to pay all the expenses of his office out of his own individual pocket, with the exception of two, the secretary and the treasurer, who have small salaries.
(2) The president is the active head of the organization. His powers are large and his duties exacting. He must look after all the interests of the association: must see that all the county societies are coming up to the full measure of their obligations; and that all of his subordinates are active and efficient in the discharge of their respective duties. He must appoint annually a body of regular reporters to read essays on pre- scribed subjects at the annual sessions. He must fill temporarily all vacancies that occur in the roll of officers between the sessions of the association. He presents to the association an annual message devoted entirely to business issues and giving a circumstantial account of his administration. In a word, he is the commanding general of the associa- tion.
(3) The two vice-presidents are elected for terms of two years each. one every year. The state is divided between them, one having charge of the northern division, and one of the southern division. They have immediate charge of the county societies; must see that these societies are kept up to a reasonable degree of efficiency: and must make monthly reports of the details of their work to the president. They are the lieu- tenant-generals commanding in the field.
(4) One of the most distinctive features of the organization is the board of censors. This board is composed of ten counselors: the term of service for each one is five years, and two are elected at each annual session to fill vacancies occasioned by expiration of terms. Temporary vacancies are filled by appointment of the president, which appointments hold until the next annual session. when these vacancies, also, are filled by vote of the association. This board is the general executive commit- tee of the association. All business of whatever character, which is pre- sented to the association, is referred to them without debate and without motion, to be by them reported back to the association with their recom- mendations and the reason therefor, after which said business is discussed and voted upon by the association. It is a remarkable fact that from its organization up to this time-some twenty years-no recommendation of the board of censors has ever been overruled by the association. To this board, also, is referred the annual message of the president. the annual reports of the vice-presidents. the annual reports of the secretary, and of the treasurer and the publishing committees, and all reports of special committees. During the intervals between the sessions they attend to all the business of the association, which is, in such matters, bound by their action.
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