DOMINION NEWS.

Clutha Leader, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 90, 31 May 1912, Page 6

DOMINION NEWS.

FIGHTING CONSUMPTION. DUNEDIN, May 29. At the ceremony to-day an connection' with, the opening of balconies at Dunedin Hospital for the benefit of chronic consumptives the chairman of the Hospital Board (Mr J. H. Walker) mentioned that the total cost (about £1900) had been met by public subscriptions collected by the Hospital Saturday Association, assisted by Government subsidy. Dr Valintine (Inspector-General ot Hospitals) said that the provision now made for these chronic cases was only a temporary measure and as soon as the Board- had funds a separate ward for tiie tratment of advanced cases would be erected. He also said that at a recent conference on the Local Government Bill it was stated that the Department had not gone as far as it might have gone in the way of affording facilities for consumptive patients. It was urged that the campaign which had been suggested by the Department and which had been adopted by the Boards had not been pressed on with suf ftcdent. vigor, but nevertheless ho maintained that a great deal had been done with regard to the treatment of this particularly unfortunate class of case during the last 10 years, and although it was oa-rly yet to say that those efforts had brought about any tangible result he was glad to be able to say that the death-rate from consumption and tubercular diseases generally had materially decreased during the last decade. Some boards had not taken up the campaign against consumption with the vigor which the Department hoped they would have taken it up. This could not be said of the Otago Board, which had established quite a modern sanatorium at Palmers ton for the treatment of the disease in the early stages. It was to be regretted that the Board did not got those cases early enough to be able to hold out to patients the best possible results, but it must be admitted that the sanatorium was doing exceedingly good work. It was certainly very much to be regretted that they could not get these cases earlier. If they could get them earlier they could give patients much more hope of being permanently cured. .

A MENTAL HOSPITAL CASE. AUCKLAND, May 29. An inquest was held at the Auckland Mental Hospital this morning on the body of a female patient who died under somewhat unusual circumstances on Monday night, only three hours after her admission.

The evidence showed that the deceased was a married woman, 39 years of age, the wife of a farmer at Matangi, near Hamilton, and had been committed to the institution by Mr F. 0. B. Loughnan, of Hamilton. Dr Benttie, medical superintendent of the asylum, who had madei a postmortem examination, gave the cause of death as anaemia with general exhaustion and consequent heart failure. He found evidences of a recent miscarriage, to which he traced deceased's mental condition.

The coroner read an extract from the certificate of Dr Going, one of the doctors who had pronounced on the deceased's mental condition. It ran: "In my opinion she is in quite an unfit state to be moved to the Mental Hospital at Avondale It is too far." In reference to this the witness said that in the face of the certificate he personally would not have advised the patient's removal unless local circumstances, of which lie knew, compelled liiin to do so. By this he meant that there might have been less risk in •taking the patient a long distance than in keeping her in a place where skilled attention, accommodation and nursing might not be available. After the writing of the certificate the doctors might hare found it necessary to send the patient to a mental hospital. She was maniacal and could not have been accommodated at Hamilton Hospital without danger to other patients. In his opinion, said Dr Beattie, all central hospitals such as Waihi Hospital should have a ward where incipient mental cases could be treated for a limited period. The present patient belonged to a class which should not be branded as insane.

The jury brought in a verdict in accordance with the medical testimony, adding by direction of the coroner a clause stating that the evidence available was not sufficient to enable them to determine whether anyone was to blame in connection with the death or not. They also added a rider calling the attention of the Minister in charge of Hospitals to Dr Beattie's suggestion regarding mental wards at hospitals.

THE HIGH COMMISSIONER. WELLINGTON, May 29. Tiro 'New Zealand Times' is in a position to state t-Trnat the Government has offered Sir William Hall-Jones a further extension for three months of his aippointment as High Commissioner, which expires on Thursday. This Sir William has refused, and the position of High Commissioner will be vacant on Saturday. Mr Falliser, secretary to the High Commissioner, will carry on pending the appointment of a successor to Mr Hall-Jones.

EUROPEAN AND MAORI. OAWERA, May 29. An interesting function took place at Xormaiyby to-day, when the Prime Minister (Hon. T. Mackenzie) in the presence of a large gathering of veterans and military settlers unveiled a cairn in Waipi Cemetery and a monument in Victoria Park, erected in memory of soldiers who fell in the Maori war. Addresses appropriate to the occasion were made by Mr Mackenzie, the promoters of the movement, and ministers of religion, the keynote of which, was the desirableness of the .still further cementing together of the two ra/oe®. Mr Mackenzie assured those presnt that nothing would be lacking oil his part to,bring about so desirable, a consummation.