Forty years ago, at the twenty-fourth annual meeting of this Association, my father prefaced his Presidential Address with the words: "I wish to take this opportunity to thank the Association for the honor conferred upon me, and to express to you my appreciation. I know of no higher honor that could come to a surgeon than to preside over such an Association as this." I can think of no better words to express my own feelings on this occasion. To them I would add my thanks to the able officers and the members of the local Committee of Arrangements, who have made my duties easy, and to all the members of the Association who have contributed to the stimulating discussions within the meetings and in small groups.
In preparing my remarks for this occasion, I turned to my father's Presidential Address to reflect on the progress made in the profession