Transcription: Richmond Feb[ruar]y 21st 1859 Dear Sir The undersigned, the Committee to whose judgement were referred the Essays accompany -ing your letter of the inst, beg leave to state that they have carefully read and discussed them. They entertain a common opinion that all these productions are defective; while, in expressing such an opinion they do not conceive it necessary to detail the reasons upon which it is based. If left to themselves therefore to decide, They would not assign the premium to any one of them. Should circumstances however, in regard to which they can only have a conjectual knowledge, induce your Faculty to act differently, they unhesitatingly concur in the further opinion that the Essay upon Typhoid Fever by Scalpel, is the most creditable one of the five submitted to their inspection. Should the premium be awarded to this Essay, they venture to express the wish that the author may be dissuaded from publishing it; they are unwilling that it should be given to the Public under the sanction of their recommendation. Very Respect[full]y Your Obdt. Servts Ro[bert] W. Haxall J[ohn] A. Cunningham Fred[erick] Marx To/ Dr Levin S[mith] Joynes Dean of the Faculty of Med[ical] College of Va