In another column wil! be found set out the details of the case of Dr. Teng of Kuling, in the light of the latest available information on the subject. The Persecution of this Chinese Mmedieal man has already been the subject of articles in the Press. Briefly it may be stated that having been called ito attend the wife of a local oficial, Dr. Teng gave the fortunate lady the usual treatment but his skill availed nothing and she died, husband then proceeded to visit on the doctor all the tyranny of a local despot and although on more than one occasion high overamant personages, ineludin the end, President' Chiang Kai-shek himself, i tervened to ensure fair play for! the doctor, the fury of the ignorant but locally' powerful official found vent in harassment which already has resulted in the imprisonment of the doctor for two months, his sentence to pay a heavy fine and the prospect of further loss amounting to virtual professional and fina' cial ruin, This can be gathered from the plain unvarnished account appearing to-day else-' where. It will be noted that Dr. Teng possesses excellent qualifications and a long-established reputation for medical skill and. devotion to his profession. He highly esteemed by the Board of the hospital which he has administered and by the people of Kuling, The law applying to such a ease in countries is clear; where, after medical treatment, a patient dies, the only ground on which legal action can be brought against the doctor is that of gross negligence amounting to culpable failure to exercise ordinal professional skill, Everyone Imows that such "actions are exceedingly rare for, owing to the traditions of the' profession to which Dr, Teng belongs, the causes for them so seldom are apparent. Taking the facts of the case at Kuling as they stand, such action would lie agai Dr. Teng. The lady's illness was correctly diagnosed, the proper treatment promptly applied. That she died was bably due either to the special _Malignance of the disease or to the fact that the doctor was called in too late. It is established Deyong question that in cases of diphtheria, anti-toxin injection invariably successful provided it can be given early enough. Whatever difference there may Be between Chinese and Western Jaw it may be assumed that the former does not permit in such case the exercise of the per-Gonal malevolence of the. ve-Jatives of the deceased. Even therefore if' Dr. Teng were negligent by the canons of his country's laws he has yet been the victim of terrible tyranny.
The Chinese Government by the actions of their the Minister of Health and his colleagues have shown a praiseworthy desire to right the wrong. They have not been successful. The suggestion that they should take steps for the investigation of the whole matter, away from Jocal prejudices," seems to be sound, If the China Medical 'Association would take it up Dr. Teng might yet obtain some redress. 'There' is herein. a very. important consideration which, no doubt, has not been overlooked at Nanking. The Government are anxious to encourage the spread of medical education. 'They, must realize that failure to deal adequately with such a barbaro.s onslaught modern medicine tends' definitely to retard development of that policy. It is also the desire of the Government, in the light of their declared readiness to ensure the. proper administration of the law, to establish the fact that the' Courts can function without fear or favour. This has no little bearing on the discussion of the plans for the abolition of extra-territoriality. The work of foreign medical men and women in China has been of the utmost value to the people of the country. It would be difficult to view with equanimity the possibility of that work being Jeopardized by the intrusion of such a gross violation of ordinary principles of justice as has been 80 vividly perpetrated in Kiukiang. There are consequently valid reasons for further attention to this matter by Nanking—apart altogether from the fact that the wishes of the Government have been flagrantly flouted, First of all there is the genuine solicitude which any national Government should feel for the welfare of the people who rely on the services of competent Chinese and foreign doctors and secondly there is the need for asserting the adequacy of the administration to ensure evenhanded justice in the discharge by the Courts of their day to day duties. Moved by these considerations it is to be hoped that the Government will not relax the interest which they have taken in Dr. Teng's ease,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.