THE BENEVOLENT INSTITION.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 6307, 29 April 1882, Page 2

THE BENEVOLENT INSTITION.

A special meeting of the subscribers and lifegovernors of the Benevolent Institution was held yesterday afternoon, in Farley's Hall, for the purpose of deciding what steps should be taken with regard to the charges recently mada against the management. Some 40 gentlemen were present. - . Mr R, B. Martin, the president of the ills''itutiou, explained the reasons tiiat actuated the Committee in, convening the present meeting. He had received letters from the Rev. C. J- .fjyng and Mr Hardy, resetting-their inability to attend, and the former gentleman also expressed the hope that an inquiry would be determined upon. He might mention that a letter had appeared in one of the papers calling m question the legality of convening such a meeting without H days' notice • but such a course was, he held, within the power of the Committee upon such special business a3 the present. He himself, had no intention of being identified with any proceedings that might now be taken, and. he would therefore vacate the chair, and leave thorn to elect a chairman from amongst their number. Bishop Nevill was then unanimously voted to the chair.

yen. Archdeacon Edwards would move"the following resolution:—" That in the opinion of tliis meeting it. is ' advisable that the Government be requested to appoint a Royal Commission \vith .full power to investigate all matters in relation to the management of the Benevolent Institution." He might say that one or two other proposals Had been made, amongst them one that the present meeting should appoint, a committee for the investigation, and another that the Committee of the institution should act. In his opinion there were objections .to both these courses, as they would not satisfy those interested in the welfare of the institution, and if such committee were appointed they would not have power to oblige persons who could and ought to give evidence to do so. The present state of affairs was most unsatisfactory. It* was a matter for great regret that persons should be going about interviewing newspaper editors and buttonholing people, and telling them all sorts of things which might be true and might be false. Why should they not go to the Committee and tell them what they prof eased to know ? They would have to do so if a commission were appointed, and such commission would be final» Before sitting down he would, refer to one point that had been mooted—viz., that the manager should have leave of ■ absence during the investigation. That did not commend itself to him, for several reasons, chiefly that it seemed unfair one man should be singled out in that way for temporary retirement. ■• Charges had been made against many persons more or less directly and why should they be left unnoticed ? Mr J. L. Gilliks would second the motion pro forma, on the understanding that ha did not commit himself as to the course that should be pursued. He came there to listen to the views of all parties, and to bow to"* their collective wisdom. He would, however, take advantage of the opportunity to state certain facts which would be of service in enabling the meeting to form a correct opinion as to the charges that had been made. Some three or four years ago he was led" to take a special interest in the institution, although he had previously felt concerned in its successful working. He found then that there were a great many connected with'it who betrayed an inclination to turn their position to what he must term undesirable purposes. Some time after, when necessity arose for further pecuniary aid to the institution, he with others undertook the promotion of what was known as the third carnival. ■ After that a gentleman met mm and made pertain charges, which were at that time limited to allegations of neglect or improper, food, and did not contain an approach to; any of the gross accusations, that had since been levelled. He might state that the names then mentioned were substantially the same that had since been paraded before the.public in connection with these later' accusations. It did not-appear to. him that the moment when they .were endeavouring to raise funds for the needs of the institution was an appropriate one to raise any scandal, and he consequently asked the gentleman to deku- the matter and bring it forward subsequently if investigation was needed/Although, however, he afterwards frequently met and spoke to this gentleman ..he still did not receive any particulars of the charges. He might, had he chosen, have let the matter end there, or have created great excitement by making it public in print. He did not do so, however, but made up his .mind to ' take some means of his ownto ascertain whether the charges were well founded or not.; He did take a variety of means of satisfying himself such as afterwards impressed air Quin himself with surprise onlearningabout them. Amongst others, he would mention two instances. The Mayor of Lawrence, when on a visit to Dun- • edin, talking about the institution, said that there were two children there in whom he took an interest, a.nd ho would'like toknow how they were getting on—having even at that time seen indirect'references to something wrong in the management. He (Mr Gillies") offered to accompany him,, and give him an opportunity of seeing the children in such a way that he could ascertain all particulars of their treatment from themselves, without tha possibility of their being influenced or intimidated. They went there- together. Mr Quinwas away, and having gained the children s confidence, he left his friend to question them as he pleased. He did so, with a result that was perfectly satisfactory in every particular. A second instance was. that of a gentleman who came from the Home!'country and had travelled over the Continent, and was known to take great interest in "these institutions. He alsowas anxious to see an inmate of the institution whom he knew. Tho speaker left, him alone with the man; and he questioned him on every general subject, and also on the charges in connection with which his name.had been mentioned. He again gave frank and satisfactory denials to the allegations! made. In the face of this evidence, and of the fact that these recent charges were started by nearly the same persons as had been concerned m the former ones, he had come to the conclu-i----sion that the case simply afforded another illustration of the'three black crows. Failing to oust Mr" Quin with the slighter" charges, they had.been gradually rolled on, gatheringvolume meanwhile, until perhaps the actual circulators of the reports had schooled themselves to believe them. He quite .felt that a stop must be put to such charges. The fact of them bemg day by day brought before even young people in print.must be most pernicious in its influence. Again, it must be most pernicious to the welfare of our public institutions. It would ultimately lead to the subversion of such institutions from their rightful ends for no man.it-would be found eventually, would place himself in the onerous position that had been assumed by Mr Quin if he were to be subjected to-such attacks. - Nevertheless, if It - seemed well in the_ opinion of the meeting that a Royal Commission should be appointed fcj» would second the resolution, although horei grette.d the prevailing inclination that them appeared to .be to pick holes in ike conduct of trusted officers upon tha slightest breath of provocation. One other point he would: refer to. A letter had appeared- m the Star of Thursday night insinuating that the girl Agnes Johnston had been to Melbourne-to the Exhibition. Now he had good grounds for saying that the girl had never been in" Melbourne at all, and hecharacterised "strongly the insmuation which; the statement was intended to convey. Mr Ross could also assure the meeting- from personal knowledge that such was the casa The girl had actually never,visited Melbourne". There was one pomt on which he.would say a few words, though as a member of the Com. mittee'he did not intend to take part in tha aiscussion of the subject at issue. ■- He referred to the insinuations that had appeared in the papers reflecting on the Committee, One was contained in the latter portion of a letter whicb bore the signature that his Lordship tlie Bishop usually appended to his communications, lowards the close the'writer stated that ■ it seemed to him strange ttoit. such triris as Johnston and Gordon should exhibit such lamentable depravity as was disclosed the presumable reason being that "they wer& allowed to take service with mistresses of notorious character.' Now he could say that in the, case of Mra Dennistoun searohln? m^ qmnes had beeirmade as to the waman/s chaTK« epnr-ff an aPPa™% satisfactory result. The Committee might have beoa deceived, and had they known her antecedents the girl vvould not have been placed there; but they were but men, and not/of course,.infallible. 'He quoted an in which a clergyman, of unfit chan' - racter had been allowed "in error the use of a pulpit.in Dunedin. He would repeat .that whether mistaken or .not, the Committee had acted m good faith. The Chaibman said that with regard to the - letter which he wrote, he had since found that he had made a mistake in thinking that Mrs JJennutoun was the employer of the girl referred to. As his name "had been.referred to he felt himself called upon to address a letter to the Press, and took the opportunity o£ • mentioning a.point that had struck him durivur the trial, but nothing was further froni-W? wishes than that any undeserved slight shnitM be thrown upon any person. It seemo^ to him that some precaution should be ta>en £, thi direction referred to, and he did naufthe t hnt thSn; 0?AIR^ S th°V?ht that this Was scarcelY the point under consideration at present, and that they should first dispose of the motion beiore the meeting. -

Mr M, W. Gbeex, M.H.R.,.was glad that cms patter had been brought up, as ho thought, without intending it, he might have done grave-injury to an innocent, or comparatively innocent person. No person's character should be taken away without allowing them an opportunity of defending themselves, and he felt constrained to state his strong opinion as to the satisfactory character of Mil Denn?s toun, if a^earance in the witness-box was to fL^t l>ytWg \ He say that.it had kn,m^ + r M Strange that *** Quin. ha««gknoun the sergeant of police mentioned for so long, sneuld no.t have been aware if there was any truth in statements now made with referencs to him and Mrs Deamstoun. He (Mr Green) had been* told oy a gentleman that Mrs Dennistoun had ueen housekeeper to him for a number of years, and he could give any requisite information as to her character. It seemed1 to him strange that Mr Quin should not have known had the character of this., woman been unsatisfactory; and if so, why had he not given that information fckthe Committee? In the

event of Mr Quin Having' known 'tins," it would certainly place the matter somewhat awkwardly.for him. He would say a few words as to the necessity for an inquiry, and would . hope to •■be ■ given credit simply tor. an interest in the welfare of the institution. : He was impressed with the fact that reports had been circulated aa to a -want of sobriety on the' parfc'of the manager, and also as to the Committee having allowed him to take his own way move than they should have done.—(Cries of tl No ! no"!")." He was, of course, only too willing to- be corrected on that point, but at .the same time could act possibly be charged with any bias on the subject, seeing that ho had previously shown - anx lety to say what he knew in Mr Quin's favour He must now remark that he had lumaelf seeumanifestations in the. secretary of an autocratic spirit which should not have existed. He had heard him say that if a certain iemale mmate, who had gone out without ins permission, was admitted to the institution again, he would leave.- He thought no secretary should have power to say who should and tt iji Uofc come m*° such an institution. • %r i 7 " connected with similar institutions in Melbourne, and had seen no person in the position of a secretary who had ever been permitted to turn an inmate out. If there were cause of complaint, the secretary could report it to the Committee; who visited the institution week by week. Not one man in a, million was ht to have autocratic power; and he thought that in so much having been left to Mr Quin he had been placed in a false position. The holding of "a Royal' Commission was in his opinion very important, as he felt that a thorough investigation was needed before confidence could be ' restored. He was not one that believed all or nearly all the charges that had been made, but he felt that - all should be investigated. One charge—that of intoxication—he knew had no foundation. He was there at the time of the alleged offence and saw not the slightest sign of it himself; and it might be that all the charges Jw c ,as groundless. He - would not say tnat Jie knew the manager'to be unsteady, but he and others knew that too much was , lettm his hands, and that •he had exercised.it to send persons away from the institution. The speaker was the means of sending an aged person there, who understood that she would be able to go out by asking permission, bhe asked permission, and was refused, but went out without it. On her return she was told she would not be allowed in the institution again. *. It was here that he thought the Committee were a little to blame. To leave such power in the hands of the secretary placed both him and them in a false position. It was f° r this/reason he demurred to the remark of the Yen. Archdeacon Edwards, who condemned the proposal; that Mr Quin should leave the institution while the inquiry was progressing. By this means he would have full justice meted put to him, and he was sure that general feeling would be more fully satisfied. ; The Rev. Dr Stuart would say that he had taken a warm interest in the institution, and had hitherto believed it was conducted upon the most satisfactory principles. He ha.d been m_ constant communication with the Committee and Mr Quin, and had believed that they had been carrying on their work excellently Mr Quin was not, of course, infallible and might have spoken or acted ill-advisedly in regard to certain cases of disobedience, but as far as the speaker knew he had acted paternally towards the children, and towards the other inmates in a manner best calculated to ensure their comfort.. Nevertheless, if he had the.ear of Mr Qmn he would rather advise him to take the course suggested, and solicit leave of absence for-a time—to court, in fact the fullest inquiry. He felt sure the result would be to make it plainer that some of the best men obtainable had,been connected with the institution. Whilst careful of the funds committed to them, they had shown kindly consideration for the inmates on all ■occasions. Mr Green did certainly not carry the . speaker 'with him throughout iis remarks. He seemed to touch upon matters that would have been far better left alone, at least until the inquiry took place Mr Green was a minister of the Gospel, and a member of Parliament. His remarks would go abroad, and perhaps be believed by many .in their entirety, without adequate proof. He cad, in thespeaker's opinion, not shown his usual judgment in the speech he made. To advocate an inquiry .was perfectly right, but he would be sorry to make charges against the Committee of having encouraged autocracy One thing was assured, that if Mr Green or anyone else had brought under the notice of • the Committee any hardship or injustice caused by Mr Quin's conduct, such would have been rectified at once. Colonists were riot afraid in such cases to set matters right, and they feared neither managers nor subscribers. He would ■ in the interests of the Committee, whom he respected, and of Mr Quin, whom he could not ; believe guilty, in spite of the reports and charges freely circulated, support an inquiry being held, and such a one as should be thorough and convincing. Mr Tresedeb then made some remarks concerning Mrs Dennistoun and 'Sergeant 0 Keefe, the latter of whom had, he stated been living in another part of the Colony for years; so e that Mr Quin could have known ! nothing of the matter referred to. ■ « j This met with a vehement denial from Mr"! Macgregor.

.Mr Robert Gillies was sorry to take up a posluon antagonistic to the meeting, and felt it more as it was also antagonistic to the judgment of the Jury. He must, however, enter his protest against the whole affair.- One point was in connection with the alleged state of the public mind. -He believed that it was entirely misrepresented, and" that the greatest and moat perfect confidence was felt in the Committee of Management.—(Applause.) Investigations had already been held into these matters; and did they mean to say that they • ■were not conducted on a fair basis ? Then the matter had been before a judge and jury and Mr Quin had been acquitted, and that Brought him to the point. What was it they now wanted to inquire into? Was it into a ehargeof immoral conduct? If so, anyone of experience would know they could never get to the bottom of that. Two parties were implicated in such a case, and if one swore one thing, and one another, what were they to do f In his opinion, the thing was kept alive by a number of people of prurient minds, and by another section of men who liked to face two wayß alternately. They said, "Yes, this person is of good character, and all that, but we would like to know,"&c. He could call to recollection what had been overlooked by most. It was notorious in history that clergy, men had'been the men above all others most subject to such charges as those nowmade The inquiries that had been held had resulted almost invariably in entirely, clearing the men where the evidence had been close, tjui in' 99 cases out of 100 the matter had been sett/le3 ;by putting foot upon the slander and sfeimijujg it I out.—(Applause.) Let them sse wh?,t We character of the man was. If ijvw^e sucji aa to i command confidence, continue" confidence in him; if not, let him go. With reference to these charges of immorality, that was the position that should be taken up. If this was done, and the Press seconded their efforts,.they > ■wouJd soon hear the end of such charges— presuming that it was the secretary's conduct that was in question. If, however it was against the Committee that the Royal Commission wag to be directed, what had they done to render it necessary to bring them before it? Only one shortcoming was referred to by Mr Green, but anyone who knew anything about lhat kind^of complaints would at once look ' lightly on such a charge as he had brought for- i -ward. Were they on this ground to put these ! gentlemen to the trouble, and he might almost aay disgrace, of a Royal Commission of invests gation into their conduct? The speaker, for one would be no party to it.—(Applause.) If the subscribers hid not confidence in them, turn ihem out and put other men in their places • but he himself must say that he had the fullest confidence in the gentlemen now on the Committee. In his opinion }t was a wrong course that they were proposing, and he would move an amendment to the motion did he think there was any chance of it being favourably received; •

After a moment's pause, Mr Gillies, on being requested, proposed the following amendment, which was duly seconded:—" That the Committee, as at present constituted, has the full confidence .of the.meeting, 'which leaves the matter in their hapd*." - 09 Mr_ R^ M. Adams dissented from this. An inquiry had bean pronounced necessary by the Jury, and now the subscribers were asked to contradict this. It was the duty of everyone to endeavour to get to the bottom of the matter, and he hoped that an inquiry would be held, and the Committee come out of it with flying colours, Mr H. J. Walter would support the amendment. The Government had before been applied to appoint a commission, and they had declined; and he would say, if the .present Committee were to resign, the loss would, be with the subscribers. He regretted that so generally-careful a man as Mr Green should haye brought forward matter whjeft he should have withheld. It was, to say the least of it, unparliamentary, , ■ ' ' " Mr J. L. Gillies' said the amendment was not in any way running counter to the recommendation ,of the jurore, who said nothing whatever about a Soyal Commission. If it was thought necessary, the Committee had power to make investigation, or to appoint it to ba made. After hearing hoth resolution and amendment, he folt inclined" to support the iatter. ».'■".'"' The amendment was then put to the meettng.and carried by amajority of one—l 4 voting .for it, and 13 for the motion. The members of the Committee who were present unanimously from voting. ■ •