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Lyttelton Times, Volume LVII, Issue 6533, 3 February 1882, Page 6

«'Ohristohuroh, Jan. 22, 1882,

" Sir, —I have the honour to acknowledge the receipt of your letter of Deo. 22, and to inform you that after mature consideration, I desire to be relieved of my appointment of Publio Vaccinator. Ido not feel justified in holding any office that I cannot fill efficiently, and I do not see that I can act efficiently as Publio Vaccinator unless I am armed with the authority I sought from Government. Section 164 of the Publio Health Aot provides 'that every child admitted to any school which shall be maintained in whole or in part by grant, or from rates, or any public funds, or by any endowments, whether Colonial, Provincial, Municipal or district, shall be vaccinated by a publio vaccinator, unless suoh child shall have been previously vaooinated.'

"I therefore recommend to the Government, in reply to their circular requesting me to take the necessary steps to vacoinate those children attending publio sohools who had not been previously vaccinated,' that the only safe course for a Publio Vaccinator to follow was to visit the sohools without previous notice, so as to ascertain the names of all those unvaooinated; that the parents or guardians of unvacoinated ohildren should be served with notices calling upon them to have vaooination performed within a specified time, and that failing to comply with the provisions of the Publio Health Act they should be summoned before a magistrate for disobedience of the law.' Since the Government, in reply, tell me that 'as it is not expedient to insist upon examining the ohildren in sohools in direct opposition to the will of the Sohool Committees, the Government regret they are not able to put you in a position to carry out your recommendations,' I consider I should be plaoing myself in a false poeition if I continued to aot any longer as Publio Vaccinator.

" I beg, moreover, to add that I regret that the Government were unable to undertake the responsibility of insisting on the examination of children attending public sohools, qb small-pox has already reached the Colony, and seems to bo approaohing us from several directions. As I have been seriously taken to task in one of the looal newspapers respecting my apparent neglect in this matter, I trust the will make no objections to my publishing this correspondence. " In oonolusion, I beg to say that I shall be willing to aot as Publio Vaooinator until my successor is appointed.—l am, &0., " COTTBTNBT NBDWI1I."