REMOVE YOUR DEAD.

NZ Truth, Issue 106, 29 June 1907, Page 4

REMOVE YOUR DEAD.

HOW it IS DONE IN CHRISTCHURCH.

And Equalled In Wellington.

A Matter for f he Health Authorities.

Tae slovenly, stupid criminal manmer m which the authorities act now and again is '%■ matter for bitter reprobation. They act m such a silly, ' careless way as to lead one to i»fer that they, are \entirely without brains, or hav^. so damned little as to be not -worth mentioning. A matter that has come toder the notice of "Truth" downxat Christchurcb points that way, aWall events. Here we have sanitary officials perambulating the colony ift the interests of the public health,; and have local health officers and Offices, and the institution of prosecutions for one thing and another, and the making of great efforts t6 demonstrate to .everybody that the department is .earning its salary, individually and collectively ,, yet on? dirty case m the Cathedral City puts them m the pale. The morgue m Manchester Street is oftener used than that of any other city m the colony, and many bodies - h-jve perforce «to be taken there. There is one vehicle more m requisition than any other ; m fact, its" proprietor is usually rung up, and he sends it along* whenever there is occasion for. its'services. And SOME VILE SMELLING- CAR- ' CASES have frequently to be carted along m it— bodies of men and women who 'have been found dead m their rooms, where they have been lying for days without discovery ; also , the drowned person who has been picked up! in' a state of decomposition ; to say nothing of these who have died suddenly and who decompose -quickly, and accident rases— jnanigjled I bodies ' which present a fearsome, sight, and smear the vehicle with blood, which" has to be cleaned up. It is understood) that for each of these trips the - police pay five bob. Bat why don't they have a special vehicle of their own ? , Why should this particular cart be also used for everyday purposes— carrying general goods, or viands for the table « or anything^ of that sort. ; things that, would readily absorb the deadly mir crobes that are likely- to *permeate^ the cart and perhaps Cause illness or death. It sounds like . a scandalous state of things, and it is so ; ' further, this is vouched for, or it wouldn't be printed. The stench arising from many of the carcases that are taken to that morgue is absolutely sickening, as anybody who has anything to dq with their handling and burial will immediately admit. The odour' is left behind m the vehicle; m which i>hey travelled, and no'mattier how it is i scrubbed' out subsequently the evident fact remains that ■it shouldn'ti be utilised for carting, round the ( necessaries of life 6r anything else whatever. It isn't a nice question to dilate upon, but the matter will have ,- to be attended to light away, or we v/ill demand once again the reason why. This •question is only a varilaot of _ the one relating to the conveyance, of ipfected persons to hospitals, but it is a far more serious one, and ' it is a wonder that the dunderheaded people concerned haven't noted the matter and remedied it long ago, for the. system has been m existence m Christchurch for years. It isn't a pleasant duty HANDLING DEAD BODIES, and many a man employed by "the "firm mentioned has chucked up \ his job instanter on being told to Bar-' ness up and go and fetch a corpse. Somebody has to > handle the cadavers, and men who are not so squeamish can always be found to dp it; but . that's not the point m the case. The police should either ■■_ secure a suitable vehicle of their own, or the, Health Department should compel them to do so m the interests of the public at large. It is a disgraceful state of things, but few people know that it exists.' Not alone is this state of affairs confined to Christchurch. . Here m Wellington it is just as bad if not worse, .and whoever is the responsible authority here had better read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest, and: take the necessary precautions against any continuance of this and othfer matters mentioned;;. The morgue m Wellington is, ; !used. as \ as much as .. Christchurch !,< at ' anytime, but that of course is not ■worth bragging about. Nevertheless, the fact- remains /that here m Wellington one man is generally employed for the removal of the dead and whether it is because he is engaged m this work that he has earned THE SOBRIQUET OP "DIRTY JOE" ' is, of course, a matter others arc Capable' of saying. At any rate, Joe, dirty or clean, drives an express, and has been driving an express for years ; and during those years the number of human carcases carted . m Joe's, express' is considerable. The cadavers have been m all stages of decomposition, and the said express is srt.dom m a Clean state, . which would seem to imply that the cart is never washed. In addition to removing dead-'uns, the same express is employed by a number of dairymen to cart milk from Te Aro; to their respective dairies, and this is just where the authorities must take a hand. Why on earth the police cannot employ a special vehicle for the purpose of removing the dead is like a lot of other things the police do and' do not do, it is incomprehensible. Now that attention has been drawn to the matter, something m the way of a change might be accomplished, otherwise more will be heard of the matter. '\