THE HOSPITAL PORTER.

King Country Chronicle, Volume XXVII, Issue 4396, 23 May 1933, Page 5

THE HOSPITAL PORTER.

(To the Editor). Sir, —As a ratepayer I have been interested in the matter of the dismissal of the Hospital porter. In these days one does not like to see any addition to the ranks of the unemployed, so the matter was looked into a little more carefully than usual by 'certain responsible people interested in unemployment. Your correspondent, Mr. O'Connell, in fairness to the Hospital Board and those in charge of the local hospital, might have made enquiries before he rushed into print. If he enquires, he will learn, as I have done, that this case was well considered by the Hospital Board and that the decision is a right one, otherwise our local representatives would not have allowed the matter to go forward. It would be most difficult for Mr. O'Connell to know where to lau'nch this attack, but if he showed a little practical interest in the unemployment problems he would not have written his letter. What single thing has he done to make him the Champion of the Unemployed? Our policemen are on duty for 24 hours. Mr. Davey is supposed to be on for 12 hours but he does not work for 12 hours per day, a'nd his pay, £3 Bs, would naturally be the net amount after unemployment tax reduction. He also gets his milk and telephone free. Regarding the working bees of the Friendly Societies, those who were there would not make any claim as extravagant as Mr. O'Connell does for them. They would remember that the Operatic Society gave £SO and that much other money was spent on this work, which was not laid out by the porter. Mr. O'Connell has been '•''gleaning." Had he been fair and go'ne the right way in his enquiries and made sure of his statements, this letter would not have been necessary. Now, sir, certain happenings have shown that a resident porter would have been of very great assistance at the hospital. How would any of us like to have our people in the hospital at the mercy of someone who became suddenly violent, without a man on the place to help? What would we think if the telephone system broke down and there was no man to send for a doctor in the early hours of the morning? This was foreseen when the place was built, and there are quarters for a single man to occupy. What a childish thing to write, "a single man of unproved ability." Surely Mr. O'Connell must know that there are plenty of good single men, and that one cannot say their ability is unproved until it is tried. The unfounded statements made in your correspondent's usual manner create trouble —for those that make them, so I suggest that Mr. O'Connell' had better make a few enquiries and then correct the mistakes he has written. —I am, etc., O.' M. T. CONN.