WHY WRITTEN IN LATIN.

Waikato Argus, Volume VI, Issue 382, 14 January 1899, Page 1 (Supplement)

WHY WRITTEN IN LATIN.

" Why does a doctor use the Latin language to write h : s perscription ? is a question I am frequently asked," remarked a physician to the writer. "Many people, I know, think that it is merely done in order that the uninitiated may not penetrate the secrets of the profession, while others put it down as a p:ece of professional * bunkum.'

'■Of course neither of these explanations is correct, hut there are several reasons why Latin has, and always will be, used for this purpose. In the first place, Latin has an exactitude which does not characterise modern tongues, and, moreover, being a dead language, is not liable, as they are, to constaut alteration. Thus it follows that a prescription written 100 years ago would be perfectly intelligible to a chemist to day. "Another reason may be that many of the drugs in frequent use bear Latin names which have no English equivalent, so that it would be impossible to render them in that tongue. Undoubtedly the most important argument In favour of Latin is the absolute necessity that all prescriptions shall be written in a language which medical and scienti6c men, all over the world, are acquainted with. This condition Latin fulfils, and thus a prescription written by an English doctor can be made up by any chemist, no matter what part of the world he may be a native of, or what country he may be practising in. So now you understand why it is."