Willard Huntington Wright

“ In the field of medicine and biology the Encyclopædia Britannica reveals so narrow and obvious a partisanship that there has already been no little resentment on the part of American scientists. This country is surpassed by none in biological chemistry; and our fame in surgery and medical experimentation is world-wide. Among the ranks of our scientists stand men of such great importance and high achievement that no adequate history of biology or medicine could be written without giving vital consideration to them. ”

“ Yet the Britannica fails almost completely in revealing their significance. Many of our great experimenters — men who have made important original contributions to science and who have pushed forward the boundaries of human knowledge — receive no mention whatever; and many of our surgeons and physicians whose researches have marked epochs in the history of medicine meet with a similar fate. ”

“ Thus far in this chapter I have called attention only to the neglect of American scientists. It must not be implied, however, that America alone suffers from the Britannica's insular prejudice. No nation, save England, is treated with that justice and comprehensiveness upon which the Encyclopædia's advertising has so constantly insisted. ”