The Nelson Evening Mail. WEDNESDAY, APRIL 24, 1867. LAYING OF THE FIRST STONE OF THE NEW HOSPITAL.

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume II, Issue 94, 24 April 1867, Page 2

The Nelson Evening Mail. WEDNESDAY, APRIL 24, 1867. LAYING OF THE FIRST STONE OF THE NEW HOSPITAL.

This ceremony took place yesterday afternoon, in the presence of a numerous assemblage, including many ladies, at the spct on the Waimea-road, beyond the Lunatic Asylum, selected as the site of the new Hospital. His Excellency the Governor arrived on the ground shortly after _ o'clock, attended by the Hon. . Major Richardson, the Aide-de-Camp, and Private Secretary ; and was received by his Honor the Superintendent, with the members of the Executive, the clergy, and other personages invited to be present at the ceremony. The band of the Volunteers, which had been stationed near the enclosed platform, having played the National Anthem, the Superintendent read the following address to the Governor : — To his Excellency Sir George Grey, Knight, Commander of the Most Honorable Order of the Bath, Governor and Commander-in-Chief in .and over her Majesty's Colony of New Zealand and its Dependencies, and ViceAdmiral of the same, &c, Sec, Sec May it please your Excellency — It is a source of much gratification to me as well as to the inhabitants of this province, that your Excellency has consented to assist by your presence and countenance to-day at the foundation of our new Hospital.* The large increase in our population consequent upon the late important discoveries of gold-fields upon the West Coast, renders greatly enlarged accommodation for the sick absolutely necessary, the more especially when the constant exposure and the risk of accident to which the avocation of the miner subjects him, are taken into consideration. Care has been taken in designing the new building to follow tbe most approved mode of construction, so that the patients may have fresh air in abundance, and be supplied with ample attendance and every convenience which their condition requires. Your Excellency, I am assured, will heartily join me in congratulating the people of Nelson upon the improved state of the finances of the province, which enables them to make so satisfactory a provision for the relief of their suffering fellow-citizens. (Signed) Oswald Curtis, Superintendent. The Governor was pleased to make the following reply : — Your, Honoe — It is with great pleasure that I find that one of the first acts of your administration of the affairs of this province, is to aid in providing increased accommodation for "the sick and suffering ; and I gladly give such assistance as I can in the promotion of so wise and good an undertaking, by availing myself of the opportunity you have so kindly afforded me of taking a share in forwarding a work with which I consider it a privilege to be in any way connected. That the care which has been taken in designing the new hospital, and in supplying all things requisite for the recovery or comfort of the sick, and that the benevolence which has led the inhabitants of the Province of Nelson so munificently to provide for the relief of the suffering, may be rewarded by this building answering all the charitable desires of its founders, and remaining for many years a blessing to the inhabitants of this part of New Zealand, is my earnest wish and prayer. G. Grey. The plans and description of the Hospital having been submitted to the Governor's inspection, and explained by the Provincial Engineer, as Architect, at the request of the Superintendent, his Excellency signified his approval of the same, and the trowel and mallet were then laid on the table, together with two bottles, one of which contained a specimen of every coin of the present reign from a soverieng down Jo a farthing, and a parchment scroll, bearing the following record of the event : — This Document was written on the occasion of laying the Foundation Stone of the Nelson Hospital, on the Twenty -third day of April, in the Year of our Lord, One thousand eight hundred and sixty-seven. The ceremony was performed by His Excellency Sir George Grey, X.C.8., Governor and Commander-in-Chief of the Islands of New Zealand, whose signature is hereunto affixed, with those of other persons who were present on the occasion. G. Grey, Governor. Oswald Curtis, Superintendent. A. Greenfield, Provincial Secretary. Henry Adams, Provincial Solicitor. B. Walmsley, Sheriff. J. Poynter, Provincial Treasurer. J. W. Barnicoat, Speaker of Council, John Blackett, Provincial Engineer. Thos. Brunner, Chief Surveyor. S. A. Cusack, 1 Geo. Williams, \ Medical Officers. F. L. Vickerman, ) James Barton, Hospital Attendant. &c, &c, Sec

The otlier bottle contained copies of the Examiner aud Colonist of that day, and of the Evening Mail of the preceding day. The architect, after explaining the contents of the bottles to the Governor, and obtaining his signature, with that of the Superintendent and Executive Council, and of other personages on the ground, deposited them in the cavity of the foundation stone, aud then presented his Excellency with the trowel and mallet in readiness for the ceremony. Mr. Henry, the contractor for the foundatoins, then covered the cavity with a slab of slate, aud spread mortar ou the lower stone, the Governor completing the operation iv very busiuess-like fashion. The stone was then lowered, adjusted, and tapped with the mallet by the Governor, aud the tackle was released and loosened, the Governor at the same time declaring the foundation stone "to be well and truly laid." The Rev. G. H. Johnstone then delivered an appropriate prayer, invoking the blessing of the Almighty on the institution, and the ceremony concluded with the National Anthem. The Governor, with his suite, having entered their carriages and left for town, the rest of the assemblage then dispersed.