CORRESPONDENCE.

Auckland Star, Volume XLIV, Issue 278, 21 November 1913, Page 7

CORRESPONDENCE.

CITY SANITATION. iTo the Editor.) .Sir,—lt is very satisfactory to see that the city authorities have passed strict by-laws to cope with the evil-smelling poultry yards. We require the universal use of covered dust bins in conjunction with the above to put down the increase of rats, which is pretty bad in sonic pari- of the city.—l am. , te.. C. SWIFT. COUNSEL AND JUDGE. ,To the Editor.i Sir,—l have read both the report in the "Star*' of what passed between his Honor iir. Justice Edwards a_d Mr. Singer on Tuesday, and the btter'n b fur in your issue of yesterday. 1 was not "present in Court when the incident occurred, and know nothing beyond what I have read, but there are"certain po;nt-s in Mr. Singer- letter to which I think it proper to refer. il) Mr. Singer states that the remarks made by his Honor are, in the opinion of every person who is aware of the actual facts, entirely unjustified. 1 am not aware of the actual facts, and Mr. Singer has not disclosed them, nor has he contradicted or added to the newspaper report. (2) Mr. Singer says it was not until Monday morning that he was in a position definitely to discard his brief. This is probably quite correct. But it is beside the point. According to the newspaper report, the complaint made by bis Honor was not that Mr. Singer bad declined the brief on Monday morning, but that Mr. singer informed the Court that he had written a letter on Friday, intimating that he would not take the brief. (Jl I know nothing .is to other counsel declining the brief, lie may or may not have been entitled to do so, but this has nothing to do with the Judge--1 strictures upon "Mr. Singer's Action. I (-1) Mr. Singer':, attendance on Tuesday mwy have been a courtesy to the Court. If so, it was v very reasonable and proper courtesy. But it did not justify a misstatement to the Court, if a misstatement was made. Surely Mr. Singer should confine himself to showing that no misstatement was made, or that if it was made it was unwitting. (5) Mr. Singer refers to the unpleasantnesses and injustices which have occurred in the past. Obviously this is drawing a herring across the scent. It lies on Mr. Singer Isince he desires to ventilate the matter) to show ;hat there has been an injustice in his case, lie may be able to show tins, but he lutnot done -o- yet. l(i) It wcuilil have been in better taste if Mr. Singer had refrained from referring to the resolution "passed by the Auckland Law Society."' In the first place, no resolutions were passed by that body. In the next place. Mr. Singer should show what lie has failed to show —that his signature of resolutions passed at any meeting bad anything to do with the Judge's action. The first step towards proving this nnii.t be tbe production of proof iliat the Judge was wrong. (7) Mr. Singer repudiates the suggestion that he told a falsehood. Since he has brought the matter into tlie Press, it would be better if he categorieallv denied the facts as tbev appeared in the published report. Let him confine him self to two qui. tions- Were all the fads elicited by the Judge? If ~,. were tinremarks of tin- .lodge warranted? Mr. Singer may have a legitimate grievance, but his letter does not show it. I may -add that T think he should have had an opportunity of reading th- letter to which his was"., reply. Whether or not that would have improved his position. I do not know.-- r am. etc.. 11. DEAX BAMTORD~ Preaident, Auckland Law Society. HOSPITAL FOR CONSUMPTIVES." iTo the IHditor.) Sir,—May 1, through the medium of your columns, back up Dr. FJorence Keller's demand for a consumptives' hospital by telling the following true story? A consumptive son of well-to-do people in England was sent to New Zealand as a last resource. After staving a short time in Auckland lie went to Cambridge. but the Sanatorium there could not deal with his case, as it was deemed too advanced. He therefore returned to Auck land, and drifted from boardinghouse to i boardinghouse. ill and wretched and J lonely, always, like "little Joe," being j''moved on because of his condition. In the last honse to \f_ich he went the proprietress was a humane and kindly woman, and gave up a private apartment to his use, but even then the other boarders murmured, and a friend of mine who saw the poor young man there a few days before his death said it was pathetic to hear him say, "Oh, yes, Mrs. has been very kind: but I'm afraid I'm to get, my marching orders again. 1 see the familiar signs.'' Poor fellow! he got his final "marching orders" very soon after th-(,t from Death. In the face of such evidence, for there must be many such stories and worse, it seems incredible that there should he any doubt as to the necessity for a haven for those poor creatures aflticted with consumption. What an awful thought, that one is only on the earth on sufferance as it were, looked at askance by friend and stranger, a misery to oneself and a conscious menace to one's neighbour. SureJy, surely when money can be forthcoming in thousands to erect buildin .. for the V.M.C.A. and Y.W.C.A. such "a crying need as a consumptives' home must be recognised. All honour to Dr. Florence Keller and others of like altruistic views in their fight for the good of the community, every unit of which is menaced by the presence in its midst ot consumptives.—l am, etc., MAUD PEACOCKE.