WOMEN PHYSICIANS: MEDICAL MISSIONARIES—AN OFFICIAL CALL TO CHINA.
At the graduating exercises of the Woman’s Medical College of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, May 16, the Chinese minister to the United States made a speech in which he presented the opportunities and advantages of medical missionaries, and especially women physicians, in China. For the information of all, and especially of our medical and nurses’ classes, we are glad to present here that part of the minister’s speech:— The question of professional training for women is different from that of higher education. In China it is generally believed that there is one sphere of action for women and another for men in the social economy. The physiological differences of the sexes seem to bear out this view. At any rate the world has acted upon it for ages. I am glad that women in this country have gained such a strong position in the medical profession that they can hardly now be dislodged. In many respects, medicine, of all the professions, seems to be most suited for women, especially certain branches of it, such as obstetrics, gynecology, and the like. Throughout the length and breadth of the Chinese Empire, midwifery is practised only by women. You observe from this that the men in China recognize the principle that some things can be much better done by women, and have the good sense to yield to the necessities of the situation. I wish I could say this much of the men in America, for I am not a little surprised to learn that for all the boast of Anglo-Saxon fairness and chivalry, medical women have had a hard time in fighting their way against strong opposition at every step to public recognition and professional standing. I am sure they would receive a better treatment in China. Anyone who has sufficient skill and knowledge in the art of healing is freely allowed to practise, irrespective of nationality, sex, or creed, so long as he or she can get patients. If the good people of this and other countries had confined themselves to sending only medical missionaries to China, I should think missionary troubles in my country would rarely happen; for this is a kind of philanthropy that even the masses can appreciate. A physician carries with him his own recommendation. Horace Greeley, one of your noted men in journalism, used to advise young men to go west to seek their fortunes. If you were to ask my advice to-day I would say with Horace Greeley, “Go west, young women, and stop not on this side of the Pacific, but rather push on till you gain the further shore.” China has, it is generally estimated, a population of four hundred million, and at least half that number are women. While men physicians are numerous, and the male portion of the community is thus well taken care of, the number of women doctors with the requisite medical training is very small. If, therefore, you should find the profession too crowded in this country, my advice to you is, go to China. There is room enough and work enough in my country for you all.