attend the Natural Philosophy Lectures now given by the Provost, and whose names have never been entered in the College, shall enter the same, and pay the usual sum of Twenty Shillings Matriculation Money.
“2. Every student on taking the Degree of Bachelor of Physic shall pay not less than one Guinea to each Professor he has studied under in the College, from the time of his entering the Medical Classes; and likewise the usual Fees for the seal to his Diploma, and for the increase of the Library.
“3. Each Medical Student who shall pay one Dollar for the use of the Library (exclusive of the Fee of Commencements) shall have his name entered, and have the free use of the Books belonging to the Medical Library of the College during his continuance of the same and attendance of lectures under the Medical Professors.”
The price of tickets for a single course, i.e., to each professor, was determined not to exceed six pistoles ($20), and after two courses the students had the privilege of attending gratis.
The next event in the order of time is an important one in the history of the medical school. The bestowal of the first medical honors by the institution, and the first in America, in itself constitutes an epoch. Under the regulations that had been adopted this event took place on June 21st, 1768.
The question as to which medical school, that of Philadelphia or that of New York, the honor of priority is to be awarded in the bestowal of degrees has been a mooted one. Dr. Hosack claims the distinction for New York, and comments in the following language with reference to it: “Dr. Sewall, in his excellent Introductory Lecture, delivered at the opening of the Medical School of Columbian College, District of Columbia, also[1] is in error in his statement relative to the first medical degrees conferred in the colonies, now the United States. In the discourse referred to he dates the first medical degrees as conferred at the Commencement held in Philadelphia on June, 1771, whereas the doctorate had been previously conferred in the month of May of the preceding year in the
- ↑ The word “also” has reference to a mistake of Dr. Miller in his Retrospect of the Eighteenth Century, who stated that no degrees in medicine were conferred by King’s College, New York, previously to the Revolution.
