The Evening Star FRIDAY, JUNE 19, 1903.

Evening Star, Issue 12982, 19 June 1908, Page 4

The Evening Star FRIDAY, JUNE 19, 1903.

Titkre may be room for difference of opinion respecting some of Cli.rlt.ble Aid the decisions recorded by an* noipltain. the Conference held in Wellington last week on the subject of charitable aid and hospital reform ; but, be this as it may, the delegates are to be heartily complimented on tho way in which they went about their work. Considering their number—more than 150 —the business-like character of the proceedings was quite remarkable, though no doubt the Conference were at an advantage in having to deal with specific proposals submitted by the Government. Thanks are also due to Dr Valintine, the Inspector-' General, for the tactful and generallv capable manner in which he presided over the discussions. Tho draft Ministerial Bill came through the ordeal of critical examination with fair success, and there is no reason to suppose that Mr Fowlds will adopt an attitude of stubborn resistance towards the amendments suggested by the Conference, though it is just possible that when the measure is brought down Parliament may feel bound to arrest certain centralising tendencies on the part of the Minister and his adviser the InspectorGeneral. The Conference were virtually unanimous in approving the fundamental proposal of the Government—that charitable aid, hospital management, and allied matters shall be controlled in each district by a single Board. The mischievous friction caused by dual control has furnished so many striking object-lessons during the last few years that it would have been strange indeed if the present system had not been generally denounced by the delegates. Of course, under the proposed system, different branches of the work of administration will have to be delegated to Special Committees, and it has been hinted that some of the old difficulties will reappear under the new conditions, but we do not think that there is any substantial ground for this misgiving. There can be no deadlock between the Board and the Committees, for the sufficient reason that the Board will be supreme. As regards the mode of election to be adopted, the Conference decided in favor of the present indirect method. The majority was narrow, However, and we shall not be surprised if the Government overlook this particular recommendation. Mr Gallaway opines that "the Government''suggestion " that the members of the Board shall be || elected by the persons for the time being "entitled to elect members of a local || authority will be the basis in the new "Bill." Eventually, we havo no doubt, the parliamentary roll will be applied to all these issues, and the objection of expense (mentioned at the Conference) cannot be regarded as conclusive or even relevant; but perhaps the time is not quite ripe for this radical reform, and meanwhile direct representation Of the ratepayers would be an appreciable advance on the present system. We are very glad to notice that the Conference passed a strong recommendation in respect to the necessity of " earmarking" special funds (including interest), so that there shall be no danger of bequests and donations and collections being diverted from the purposes for which they were intended. Local circumstances have caused this subject to be rather a sore one in Dunedin of late, and though public opinion has obviated the possibility of further local misapplication of.special funds, the mischief might easily arise elsewhere some time or other if the law were to continue silent. To quote Dr Batchelor:

It was pointed oat that unless people were assured that the monev would be devoted to the purpose for which it was given or collected, these sources of income would be much reduced—in fact, that private charity of this kind would be killed. The delegates who took up this position called attention to the liberal contributions in the way of Hospital Saturday collections and "so forth, . arguing therefrom that the people were quite willing to give to special objects that were properly safeguarded. It is right to say that Mr Fowlds had not entirely neglected this matter, but a clause in the draft Bill authorised the use of interest earned by accumulating special funds for maintenance'" purposes, and the Conference rightly objected to the slightest diversion of an unwarrantable kind. We thoroughly approve of the suggestion that in hospitals where the honorary medical staff numbers not less than six the doctors shall have the right of electing one of themselves as an ex-officio member of the Board: indeed, we have more than once shown that there is ample justification for such a reform; but it must be admitted that the election of the honorary medical staff by the local branches of the Medical Association is a very different matter. To be candid, we view this proposal with considerable misgivings, and shall be rather surprised if it finds a place in the Government BUI. The medical profession, with all its admirable characteristics, is not free from the influence of jealousy and cliquism, and we understand that prominent practitioners occasionally have (or think that they have) reason "to hold aloof from the Association. Hospital Trustees have not always displayed the best judgment in selecting honorary staffs, and it is notorious that personal and otherwise irrelevant considerations have now and then prevailed; but reformers must be quite sure that they do not jump from the frying pan into the fire. The question of a reduction in the Government subsidv for charitable aid requires careful considera. tion. The objection recorded by the Conference is npt surprising, and we cannot help thinking that there was a note of exaggeration in some of Dr Valintine's remarks concerning the present conditions t\f outdoor relief; but,, as Mr Tapley pointed out on Monday, the import of the matter would be appreciably qualified by an intention on the part of the Government to take over the entire control of indigent

children. "The lessened income and the "lessened expenditure would about balance "each other. . . . The meaning of the■ "resolution is that the Conference were "not prepared to accept the reduction on "a mere promise." It may be said generally that Mr Fowlds's task must have been facilitated and simplified by the discussions and decisions of the Conference, and we hope that an effort will be made to put the Government Bill on the Statute Book before Parliament is prorogued. As wo hare often said, there is no good reason why the third session should be a barren one, and we cannot too strongly deprecate the notion (evidently prevalent in some quarters) that the paid representatives of the people cannot be expected to devote themselves to serious legislative work during the next two or three months. The reform of tho law relating to hospitals and charitable aid might well be numbered among the achievements of the present Parliament.