CHRISTCHURCH.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 97, 17 January 1908, Page 5

CHRISTCHURCH.

' January Is. The. "Press'' points out that if the;GovernnVQht' estimates of ...last year's wheat amount drwheat In' hand oil October. 14 last, were correct wo should now beentircly without bread-supplies. According to' tho estimato of tho yield the apparent surplus oh February 28 next' should be ( 4 , bushels.. By. the .''department's, figures showing the surplus on October 14 there only sufficient :wheat. and .flour W last, till December.'26, but we .are now in tho second week in January and with.six or seven weeks'to go before tho new wheat will be available for .milling, and yet we . find, that miller? are not afraid that' supplies, of wheat wilj run out.'.' The position reveils tho.fact that extretrie care 'is' necessary in the compilation of."'the'agricultural statistics while Tvo arc running o:i such 'a bare ."margin* .in oar. .wheat .supplies,'arid if :a' better method could ;be, devised ;fpr collecting the inforriiation. tlio. department would be wise in adopting v'it."-' ; - _ 'There' was close oiv 79,000 tons of shipping in •Lytt'eltori on .Tuesday', of which the warships, contributed 20,600. tans, ■. arid Shaw Sarill's' steamers' 24,700. tons. v Old 'Age Pensioners. . - ''vV, r.- : . -t)ic'riieeting: of- .the; Samaritan. Home Trustees' the Chairman raised-the question of a'separato account -being kept' of' the poVtion of- old age pensioners'- .pensions ' which was not-; fjeducteil: far . He . rcnynded the board thtiv the magistrate'had said : tnat, after, deducting-,75: 63. ■ perVweok' for maintenance, the residue, 2s. 6d. should: W'.keßt'.shtl handed to ."tHe pensidrier.'. The matron was called.in and stated that £1 7s. wispier im>nth - was deducted for maintenance, , ■- 'yd.-- was -put .by, and '4s.' .was "'handed' to-each; pensioner.' Tho lis. lOd. was spent in '.buying clothes and', (wots, for- the pen-' »wner, ;.but 'ij'o separate accounts' wero kept though receipts.ivero got.;. Jt- was decided ttat- 'separate accounts • should ■' bo keot 'in' futuro.' *. . •• 1 Tho .Hospital. ■'. What the, '.'-Times-terms tho rather high-' landed action of the secretary of, tho Chrfst-' sburch Hospital Board in demanding deposit of ±10;from'.'» recent arrival' from: iueldand ,oii-.his admission to the hospital te Melting some interest. It seems that an, Wderly. man, who had just conio from Auckland,' was, taken ill a' fow davs. ago, 'and' being unable to remain' with his friends,- he ; applied for admission to the- hospital. A friend fwho mado application'for his admis-' •'.on was astonished to.hear that lie must pav : *, deposit-.of £10. ; ' TKe deposit' was 1 paid, and tne,patient was admitted.- treated, and discharged. ;Later his deposit, ■ lei's the aniounti diio,tp,the institution-for- his"treatment, was' returned. Ho was-enthusiastic in bis praise: Sector" and the nursos .had; ioDlccn after him, but. ho' was anxious to know why he had been compelled to make #■ • deposit'as he had Jieemquite-unable to hear • ot any. other case of the'.kind'.' Mr.' Jfilltr the .secretary of tho Hospital •. Board; told reporter that experience, had shown him that lf- such a patient; declinwl to pay for his ! treatment; it. was practically impossible to' recover tho.amount from the Hospital Board of the district from which he came. The conclusion was arrived at quito independent of. personal Learning that a deposit' was asked for in Dunndin, he requested one tins instance, intending, of course, not to cnforco payment if the jiaticnt was unable to find tho money. Tho obtaining of remuneration for esses coming from other districts had in tho past been extremely . difficult. Owing to the wording of tho Act it had notyet been possible to rccover from the sistOT body, as a break in, the journev of the patient was held to invalidato lh« clause. Tho request for the deposit in this instance was his endeavour to guarantee that tho Board would in this caso bo paid. Mr G. Payling, a member of the Board, on hearing the explanation, said that for some time past tho Board has been vigorously protesting against tho non-payment of 1 charges by visiting patients, which'was par- ! ticularly unfair and annoying, considering that tho hospital was none too large for local requirements.