Autobiographic Sketch

AUTOBIOGRAPHIC SKETCH* IRVINE McQUARRIE, M.D. One of my convictions is that every person should have a purpose— that one should make a constant effort to better human welfare. The conscious purpose ofmy life has been twofold: to prod the frontiers ofmedical science until they yield a little—my own work in this area has been largely centered on the riddles of metabolism—and to share with odiers such knowledge as I have, with die frequently voiced hope that they too will share their knowledge. In science, as in all life, hoarding is useless. Only by sharing what we learn is the body ofknowledge increased. It is in this spirit ofsharing that I agreed to write some autobiographical notes for PERSPECTIVES IN BIOLOGY AND MEDICINE. It is only fair to warn the reader that these reminiscences may disclose some proselytizing. Very little of my life has been devoted to private practice, almost all of it to teaching and research. For me, teaching is almost a religion, so it is with fervor that I bear witness to the rewards of the scholarly way of life. I hope that some of the young men wrestling with a decision whether to teach and do research or to take up the practice of medicine may sense some of die satisfactions of die former and will make this die principal purpose in their lives. I do not in the least deprecate the practice of medicine. That is one of * Dr. McQuarrie worked intermittently between 1958 and i960 on this briefpersonal account ofhis life although he was handicapped by cataracts and surgery to remove them. It was unfinished when he died September 9, 1961. Themanuscript was completed by Mrs. McQuarrie, with thekind assistance ofDr. George Whipple, University of Rochester School ofMedicine and Dentistry; Dr. John M. Adams, University ofCalifornia Medical Center, Los Angeles; Dr. Arild E. Hansen, Children 's Hospital ofthe East Bay, Oakland, California; Dr. Robert A. Good, University ofMinnesota Medical School; Professor Herbert M. Evans, University ofCalifornia School ofMedicine, Berkeley; and several others among his many friends and students. The words are substantially Dr. McQuarrie's, however. Through the generosity ofRoss Laboratories, Columbus, Ohio, reprints ofthis sketch are being made available to the University of Minnesota Medical School, Department of Pediatrics, for distribution .—Ed. 6l die prime reasons for studying medicine. It is die private physician who bears the responsibility for care ofdie patient, who is on call around the clock, who gives comfort and hope at die bedside, and who is largely responsible for the public image of "die doctor." Behind him, however, molding his career, are the men who taught him to be a doctor. We need diese men. We need teachers, first-rate ones, if we are to have first-rate practicing physicians. Much of my pay over the years has been the thrill of working with young people—seeing diem progress toward dieir degrees, helping them get dieir internships, seeing some ofthem succeed in private practice and seeing odiers turn to teaching and research, many of them reaching the very pinnacle ofsuccess. Relationships with diese inspiring and inspirable personalities have brought deeply satisfying rewards.* Unlike Dr. George H. Whipple, whose autobiography appeared in perspectives in die Spring of 1959, 1 did not always want to be a doctor. I was born in Silver Reef, Utah, April 20, 1891. My father was a metallurgist and supervised the town's silver mill. Silver had been booming for several years, but by 1893 the great financial panic was in full swing, the mine closed down, diere was another ghost town in the U.S.A., and people and records were moved elsewhere. Father moved his family to St. George, Utah, and became foreman of a copper mine in which he had some shares. His responsibility for developing mining property in the area necessitated frequent visits to the mines, and he often took me with him. I grew to love these jaunts. We talked about the trees and animals in the country, geology, and a great deal about philosophy. He made these discussions thoroughly interesting and applicable to life and perhaps initiated a sense ofvalues which gave some direction to decisions which would have...