TRENTHAM CAMP INQUIRY

Dominion, Volume 8, Issue 2530, 3 August 1915, Page 6

TRENTHAM CAMP INQUIRY

MEN'S HUTMENTS - EVIDENCE OF AN ARCHITECT LINING NEEDED? . NEW ASPECT OP VENTILATION QUESTION The Trentham Camp Commission; consisting of His Honour Mr. Justicc Hosking, Dr. A. A. Martin, and Mr. W. Ferguson, heard further evidence yesterday. During tho day the Commission visited Berhampore Hospital.

George Hobb, architect, gave evidence respecting tho huts. He said that he had had seventeen years' experienco in New Zealand, South Africa, and Europe as an architect, and had studied tho principles of town-planning and tho planning of sanitoria and hospitals at Home and in the colonies. Ho had had experience of galvanised iron huts in Now Zealand, Natal, Zululand, and Transvaal, both lined and unliiied, military, types and others. He had slept in huts of. all types, had designed huts for coolies, had seen tho huts used by'the'troops'at "Tin Town," Ladysmith, those used at the military camp at Maritzburg, in tho native.compounds' on the Rand, the outpost'huts of tho Natal Police, huts in Zululand, bush huts in New Zealand, and tho canvas huts used at the Boer concentration camp at Maritzburg. From his experience and observation of iron huts ho could say that the use of iron was not economical because it intensified tho temperature of the atmosphere, and to render the liuts comfortable and health}' it w?s necessary to lino them with some material which was a non-conductor of heat and cold, such as wood, asbestos, or canvas. Unlined, unwarmed iron huts, oven if well ventilated, were very uncomfortable in sunny weather, and in his opinion dangerous and unhealthy in cold weather, and, when the ventilation was defective, the huts became as ovens in hot weather, and as refrigerators in cold weather. In huts constructed of wood or canvas, tho temperature of the air inside was more in equilibrium with that outside owing to the comparatively small degree of conductivity of those materials, Breathing chill air would,, undoubtedly, give rise to respiratory troubles. It would be. impossible to maintain the internal air of an unwarmed and unliued iron liut at the saine temperature as_ the external air, owing to the radiation caused by the iron.

Military Huts In Ladysmlth. The huts erected for tho Boer refugees at Maritzburg were of canvas and wood, as the result of . the experience gained in "Tin Town," Ladysmith, when many cases of chest trouble wero caused by the chilling effects from tho use of bare iron walls. The temporary AYar Office hospitals in England were lined and ceiled with asbestos sheets. Ho believed the hut 3 for tho troops were made of wood, or iron. . Bushmen and navvies, Mr. Robb continued, would not sleep in unlined, tinwaimed iron huts; they preferred the canvas or- wood hut, or tent. Of the hundreds employed at the rail-head north of Gisborne, 110110 would use bare iron for sleeping huts, though they used iron liuts for cooking and storage purposes. The military liuts at Ladysmith were of various sizes, unlined and lined, with wood floors on piles, ventilators high up, 110 special outlet, and unwarmed. The floor space per man was that allowed by the Army Council Regulations—sixty square feet. They were abandoned as unhealthy. The Boer Refugee 'Concentration Camp huts at Maritzburg were constructed of canvas on wood frames, wooden floor on. piles, iron lean-to roof, with felt under. Each hut was about 30ft. by 12ft. by ■ 9ft., in two compartments, and accommodated.not more than four people in <;ach. . hi the Indian huts at the sugar' plantations sixty square feet of floor ■space was allowed for each mail. The liuts at the military camp at Maritz-; burg wero made in accord with the Army Council Regulations, and were lined and ceiled with wood, and had efficient ventilation. Tho compounds on the Rand were sometimes lined, and all were artificially warmed during the cold weather. The ventilation, also, was good. The floors' were sometimes of wood, and in <ithor cases ho had seen ant-heap-floors. The Natal Mounted Police liuts were lined and warmed when neccssary. Tho police on outpost duty preferred the shelter of bushmen's caves or 1 tents to tho risks of sleeping in unlined iron huts in cold or frosty weather.

The Trentham Huts. By request, 111 1 . Robb said, he visited Trentham Oamp on July 23 of this year.. There had been heavy rain for several days previously. Tho approach road to the camp was inches deep in mud. The condition of the ground was verybad, and pools of water and mud were everywhere, even under some of the buildings. There was an absence of any effective surface drainage. In some cases the spaces around tho huts and Ground tho Headquarters Staff building were crudely metalled with boulders oE various sizes, apparently dumped down on unprepared ground. Some of the soak-pits were partly full of water and silt, and evidently they were not dug sufficiently, deep to allow the water to get away! Tho huts wero arranged in square blocks. There was ample space between the blocks, but only eighteen feet between the huts. A block of eight rows of huts occupied 43,000 square feet, including the spaces between tho huts, which gave about 53 squaro feet per lioad. Each hut was about 140 ft. by 22ft., by 9ft., with unliued galvanised corrugated iron sides, and iron roof with patent felt Tho floor level was about eighteen inches above the ground. The huts wcro divided by a wooden partition. The witness deemed the site of the camp to bo too flat. A gentle slope with a northerly aspect would be preferable. to ensure drainage. Tho soil and sub-soil were porous, though the continual traffic must consolidate the surfaco soil, and prevent the surface water from soaking, away. Fine sand and earthy matter in the sub-soil might become clogged with solid matter from tho drains,' and things become like tho Campagna, near Home. • Tho presence of water and mud on the surface, unless drained away, was bound to create damp and unhealthy conditions. .A system of surface-drainage, roads, and paths should bo undertaken at once. The huts were erected too close together to allow of sufficient ail- space and ventilation, and they were wrongly placed, with their major axes miming west-north-westandioast-soutli-east, instead of north and south, which would allow the sun to warm and purify the air between tIK-ni. Tho huts should have been placed en echelon, with a space of at least forty feet between the rows. The hospital ward was rightly placcd in relation to the sun. The huts should have been planned to accommodate fewer men to avoid the serious risks mentioned in the Army Council Regulations, which concern hygiene. To accommodate fifty men in each hut meant less than 3 feet spacing, which was almost direct personal contact. Sixty square feet floor space mid 800 uubie fe«jt air space was ,v;bsu .ventilation was officiant.

anil it should bo arranged to give as much air space as possible whej-o it was needed —at the sides of the building.

Question of Sufficient Ventilation. There was no moans of drying clothes in the huts or elsewhere, and ho found tho blankets and clothing in the huts damp and cold. This could hardly conduco to healthy conditions, and must seriously impair the resistance to diseaso' or infection of those who used them. Some system of warming, which , would both warm and dry the huts and tho clothes and assist tho ventilation, would promote and maintain the general health of the men. To expose tliem to dangerous and weakening conditions was not the way to prepare them for tho hardships of a campaign. Sleeping on the floor of a hut was not comfortable or healthy. Damp would arise from the wet ground underneath, and tho colder air, being the heavier, would descend to the floor. Any dust would bo swept on to the sleepers' faces. It would have been more hygienic to liavo provided separate mess rooms between each hut, where tho food cupboards, also, could have been placed. The ventilation of the lmts was very faulty except for stormy weather, when they would become too draughty. The principle of eaves ventilation was sound enough when there were outlets in the highest point of the roof, or when the ceiling level was not much above the inlets. Tho Army Council recommended eaves or ridgo ventilation, but the former applied to buildings ceiled at tho plato level, or with outlets in the ridge. To be efficient the ventilation . should bo automatic and constant. Fresh air inlets of sufficient diameter to admit 3000 cubic feet per hour per head at or near the breathing line were required, as well as outlets of at least tho same diameter placed in the highest point of the ceiling or roof. As-the huts are at present arranged, it is very difficult to get an adequate supply of fresh air in calm or mild weather. Owing to the overhang of the eaves there is not a constant or sufficient outlet for' foul air. Tho exhaled hreath of the men ascends to the open roof space, where it is chilled and descends again to •be rebreathed.

Next to overcrowding, the gravest fault in the design of the huts was the use of iron on the walls without insido lining. Timber, canvas, or asbestos •sheets on wood frames would have been cheaper than iron at the present prices, anil, possessing less conductivity than iron, would have preserved a more equal temperature in the huts. In South Africa, iron was used exclusively, owing to tho other materials (except canvas) being unobtainable or too expensive, but it was recognised that it was unsatisfactory. The Use of Bare Iron. Bare iron huts were dangerous, cruel, ond unhealthy, because the iron..intensified tho temperature of tho outside atmosphere. Tho. draughts complained of in the huts were frequently the cold waves radiated from the iron on to the men's bodies, and (owing, to the position in which they lay) oil to the most vulnerable parts—tho head and chest. Ho could speak from personal experience of tho chilling and devitalising results of sleeping in an unlined, uiiwarmcd, bare iron hut during cold and frosty weather, and the coldest part of tho night usually coincided with tho' time when the vitality of the body was at its lowest.

The huts, Mr. ■ Robb advised, should be lined and ceilcd across at the level of tho collar tie, and outlets provided for tho escape of foul air. It was doubtful wjiethor the ventilation could be improved whilo tho huts lay so closo together, unless mechanical means wcro employed. It would facilitate the admission of i'resli air, if some of tho sashes were "hung at the sido and opened outward to catch any current of air that might pass down between, the huts.

His Honour said that Mr. Robb had made an exceedingly valuable contribution to tho Commission.

Mr. Robb remarked that lie thought that the principle of consumptives' huts might have been followed at Treutham. ' >

Mr.- Ferguson said that the huts at Trentliam were designed by-the man who designed the 'consumptive wards, and he based the design of tho former on his experience of the latter. Mr. Robb answered that the Trentliam liuts would be death-traps for consumptives, because thero was no sunshine, no fresh air, and no ventilation. "Dp I understand," ho added, "that there are consumptives' huts m New Zealand of that .type? I-should hope not!" ■' - More About Berhampore. Sister Alice Faram, who was stationed for' some time at Berhampore Hospital, said that she remembered the cases of tho late Private Pollard, and the late Private Fordham. His Honour asked witness's- opinion as to whether there were better facilities in the Wellington Hospital than at Berhampore'for men in their condition.

Witness: I don't think so. We had ail the facilities, and I remember Private Fordham said lie was quite satisfied that he could not get better attentions, when it was suggested to him that ho might like to go to the Wellington Hospital. ' .... His Honour: As to the cooking, it is suggested that- it was done in the kitchen just at tlie . back of the -lavatory. . , Witness: That is nob correct. His Honour: Where did you get your water from? Witness: There was a water-supply in the main building. Mr. Ferguson: Then, it is not true that all your water had to be carried Tip? . Witness: Decidedly not-. 'IV Dr. Martin: No doubt, Wellington Hospital would have been a better place tlian Berhampore to treat pneumonia. Dr Martin: Then why wasn't Private Pollard sent there? Why was an exception mado in his case? Witness: I don't know. Dr. Martin: Private Fordham was asked if he would Jike to go to the Wellington Hospital? "Witness: Yes. : Dr. Martin: Is that a usual thing to ask » patient? Witness: No; the doctor usually decides. , \"'i Dr. Martin: On what day were you told to .burn the temperature charts at Berhampore? ' ' Witness: After .all the pationts nad le Mr. Ferguson: Who gave that instruction? . Witness: I rather think it was Ser-geant-Major Gentry. Dr. Martin: A sergeant-major g?ve tho instruction! His Honour: You didn't consult tho medical side? .

The Sample Hut, Lieutenant P. 0. Gentry was called later in the day. Ho was asked: "If it is said that you gavo orders for books and charts to be burned, would you say that jvas correct?" . ■ He answered: "Books, sir, but not charts. Charts were never mentioned. ... It was reading matter the- books in the ward." Mr Ferguson remarked that an. instruction regarding books might have conveyed a- wide meaning to the nurses —tlioy might have taken it to includo temperature books. 1 _ • • Private Henry, H. Bothamley, of the Sixth Reinforcements, stated that on ,Tune 14 he went into hospital with a sore throat and a temperature of 104. When ho 'reported sick ho was, notwithstanding his high temperature, allowed to walk back to the lines for his belongings. I.n hospital, lie was satislied with what the doctors did for him, but gavo instances of inattention on the part of orderlies. The Rev. D. C. Bates said that Colonel Gibbon had remarked to him tlmt there had been no sickness in tho sajpjjle hut. Mr. jtliai kj,

reflected upon this fact, and attributed tho absencc of sickness in that particular building to its better ventilation. Dustin and Co., the canteen caterers, sent a letter to the Commission (in view of certain evidence, suggesting a shortago of soap for purchase at the canteen), stating that they had nover had less than a week's supply of soap on hand.

•Percy Morgan, State Geologist, was questioned as to the camp drainage. He said that tho drainage would reach tho Hutt River. Privato Charles William Henderson, A Company, First Battalion, Trentham Regiment, complained that when' ho went into camp on May 29 he had to stand foi; hours in occasional rain before ho got his kit. Ho bad to stand in tho mud, when "tho weather was freezing, till 11 o'clock at night, others waited till midnight, and some till 2 o'clock nest morning. . There, was delay before ho got his first pair of boots, and he waited a month and more for some of his clothing. ' He had not got his extra boots yet. ' men he was sick, there was an insufficiency of beds and tho tents wero holding twice as many as they wero mado for. He had no complaint of inattention by tho doctors, and, if they got a good orderly on duty, tho attention was satisfactory. Various necessary things were Unready when the Trcntham's were ordered into camp.

Mr. Skerrett: Can you give any idea of tho percentage which cscaped sickness? . Private Henderson: Only two or three in our hut didn't have to go oil sick parade. Dr. J. S. Maclaurin, Stato Analj'St, stated tliat an analysis of air samples from Trentham huts showed that most of tho indications were that tho ventilation was good, but there were some indications which were not very good. Generally, the indications wero fair. The Commission will resume at 10.15 a.m. to-day.