TUITION IN MASSAGE.

Auckland Star, Volume XLIX, Issue 63, 14 March 1918, Page 6

TUITION IN MASSAGE.

SISTER MAYSIE'S DEFENCE. The case in which Mary Baird (Mr. Stanton). Ie claiming from Sister Maysie (Mr. McConnell) £13 13/ fees and £100 X damages for alleged misrepresentation ! and loss in respect of courses in mas- ; seuse work, for which she received alleg- : . edly valueless certificates, was continued . in the Magistrate's Court yesterday ■ afternoon, before Mr. E. C. Cutten, S.M. Mr. Stanton was granted permission to ,_ amend his pleading by the deletion of . the word " Swedish" preceding the words " school of massage " in the claim. Mr. McConnell opened the case for the defence by elaborating Sister Maysie's i lengthy experience as a nurise and mas--5 seuse. Her name was really Barkle, her / husband being now on active service. - She was a niece of the late Dr. 3ar- - nardo. . Sister Maysie, unable to find s authority to conduct a school of massage • in Auckland, was told that a certain : Swedish school was advertised in Duni edin papers- She got into touch with t this institution, and was informed that ' she could be registered at a fee renewf able yearly. The school -was represented to ie recognised by all the doctors in New t Zealand. She sent £5 5/, but got no - reply, and concluded, quite reasonably, t that, that she was registered. She was advised to issue the certificates, and did so. Defendant would deny the allegations of the plaintiff. Sister Maysie was not out of business, and was still receiv- * ing patients from doctors all over the country. Sister Maysie 'did not know ' anything about registration until the question was raised by the Auckland Hospital authorities. 1 EVIDENCE OF DEFENDANT. » Sister Maysie (Barkle), after giving - details of her experience in nursing and i massage, said she had conducted schools iof massage at Melbourne and ; Sydney prior to coming to ssew - Zealand in. 1914. When her hus- - m.'md went to the war she wanted f something to do, and, after making in- - quiry,' found there was no legislation - i dealing with masseurs. In an Otago -; paper she found an advertisement from ' J the " Swedish School of Massage." She ! wrote to the address given, gave her ex- | perience, and got her papers back. She ; j understood she was registered because ' she had sent £5 5/ to the school men--1 tioned. She then opened a business in :' Karangahape Koad. She wrote another i letter to the Swedish School,* asking j whether she should issue the certificates "lor would the school do that. She reI ceived' a reply stating that she should j issue certificates herself. She always I told pupils she was certificated by the ( J Swedish School of Massage, and she never t j told anybody that she was certificated by ( j the Dunedin school of massage under the . J Otago Hospital Board, which she did not I 1 know existed. She did not say that ehe [ ! was authorised by the latter school to \ . J teach mareage for certificates. She had i told the' pupib at the examination that lif the papers were neat would like Jto send them to the Swedish School in I Dunedin. r i The. case was adjourned till Friday r ! afternoon.