INVERCARGILL HOSPITAL.

Southland Times, Issue 1132, 29 March 1869, Page 2

INVERCARGILL HOSPITAL.

. .*. GENERAL MEETING OP SUBSCRIBERS. [The annual meeting of subscribers to tho above Institution, was held in the Provincial Council Chamber, on Thursday evening, 25th inst. The extremely boisterous character of the weather rendered it likely in the early part of tho evening, th>t a postponement would require to be made, but shortly sifter the advertised hour a sufficient number of subscribers had collected to enable business to be gona on with. -■ {The Rev A. H. StdboTvas called on to preside, a4d having tal^en; the ichair, .stated the object of the meeting— to receive the Committees' report for the past year, and elect new office bearers.

The' lion. Secretary, Mr G. S. Crouch, then read the report for 1868 as foUows : — The Committee of Management of the Invercargill Hospital, in submitting the second Annual Report to the subscribers and public gonerally, congratulate them upon the satisfactory position of the Institution. They would at the outset^ as the question may be asked, why the report should have been delayed F state that an amended Hospital Ordinance has been passed, fixing tho annual meeting in March instead of January. This report is, however, for the twelve months, ending the 31 st December 1868 only. The Committee finding some improvements might be made in the original Ordinance, suggested alterations to the Government, by whom they were approved, and an Amended Ordinance in accordance therewith was. brought into the Council, passed and reoeivod the Governor's assent. The principal alterations were the one referred to. and the hour and day for adjourned general or special meetings. The chief necessity for the first was the fact of the annual meetings being held in the same month that persons could qualify themselves either to vote or become Members of Committee, thereby greatly restricting the number of eligible candidates. During the year nearly half the Members of Committee, elected' in January, 1868, resigned. Ml- G. Lumsden, the late President, left the colony for Europe in September last. The warm support he had given, and the energy he had displayed in tho working of the Institution from tho time of its being placed in the hands of the public made his resignation a great loss to the Committee. A vote of thanks was unanimously carried at a Committee meeting., and a copy of the resolution was presented to him prior to his embarkation.- The resignation of the Treasurer, John M'Pherson, Esq., also left a vacancy which was hard to fill up, the duties having been ably and satisfactorily performed. The Committee tender their thanks to that gentleman for those services cheerfully and faithfully rendered. The repairs to the walls of the building mentioned in the last report, as very necessary, have been attended to by the Government. The parapet (unsuitable for this climate) has been removed, and the roof extended, rendering the walls perfectly dry, and much improving the appearance of the building. The expenditure for the year, amounted to £991 15s Bd, £18 4a 4d of which was incurred in the previous year, leaving the actual cost of the establishment, £973 lis 4d. The number of patients has exceeded that of the previous year. Tb« following is the return for the past twelve months: — In-patients ... ... ... ... 76 Out door patients ... ... ... 148 Deaths ... 6 Number of patients in the Hospital on the 31st Dec. 1868 8 Daily average of in-door patients ..- 9.25 Number of patients in the Hospital 25th March, 1869 3 In the month of April the institution was very fuU, and the expenditure entailed amounted to three times the Government subsidy for that period. The Committee have had brought forcibly before their notice the need of some establishment in the nature of a Benevolent Asylum. They have been induced, almost compelled, by feelings of common humanity, to admit many patients, who, while requiring medical treatment, could well have been treated as outdoor patients were they not thoroughly destitute ; others again could have been discharged earlier but from the same cause. The Committee have been divided in opinion as to the liability of employers to pay Hospital Fees for their servants. . They have found some persons, possessed of means to'pay, so shamefully dishonorable as to state they were paupers, desiring to bo treated as such, while others not only willingly paid the fees but expressed their gratitude for the attention and kindness, received by them during their stay in the institution. The Committee have felt fully justified in defraying the passage money of patients wishful to go to their friends, who could support them. They have also continued to advertise all moneys received by the Treasurer, and consider the cost as'moncy well expended. The Committee have been in correspondence with the Colonial Secretary in reference, to obtaining a subsidy from the General Government towards the maintenance of native patients, of whom the Hospital has scarcely ever been without at least, one as an inmate. Tho last communication from the Native Secretary was more favorable towards the application than some of the former letters. ' The Committee felt it necessary to wait upon the Government some few months since to solicit an increased subsidy, as the expenditure was pressing in an unfair proportion upon the , charitable public. The Government willingly acceded to the request, and for the last five months have paid at the rate of £600 per annum, instead of £400, and the present Executive have placed the same amount on the estimates for the current year. The Committee have sent subscription lists to ' most of the runholders, a few of whom have already sent in the various sums collected by them. The amount placed at the disposal of the Committee, as will be seen by the Treasurer's balance sheet, was a balance in hand of £38 18s 9d, and £939 17s lid received during the year, being ' Government subsidy £466 13s 4d, and £473 4s 7d public subscriptions, showing a degree of liberality wjich the Committee have taken as an assurance of the public confidence placed in them. The funds at the disposal of the Committee have always been adequate to pay accounts, or for any expenditure • they have deemed necessary for the success of the institution. In conclusion the Committee cannot too warmly express their thanks, and their opinion that the gratitude of the public generaUy are due, to the two honorary medical gentlemen for their valuable services. Without their cordial cooperation the labors of the Committee would have been rendered in a great measure unavaUing. The following is a statement showing the attendance of each member at the Committee meetings: —List of attendance from 30th January to 31st December, 1868 : —Dr Menzies attended two out of fifty committee meetings held ; Mr G. Lumsden, twenty-eight out of thirty-two ; Mr ' J. M'Pherson, -twenty-three out of fifty; Mr G. S. Crouch, forty-nine out of fifty ; Mr T. Watson, twenty out of fifty ; Mr J. Hare, twenty-three out of Mr T. M. Clerko, eleven out of

fifty; twenty-seven; Mr R. Tapper, forty-two out of fifty; Mr W. Stuart, one out of twenty.three ; Mr D. L. Matheson, nioe out of sixteen ; Mr W. H. Calder, lour out of sixteen ; Mr J. Colyer, seven but of sixteen. Statement of Receipts and Expenditure on account of the Invercargill Hospital, for the year ending 31s£ Dec, 1868. De.

, Amount paid as Honorarium . . . £80 0 0 „ for Salaries ... 166 7 6 „ Drugs ... 94 11 6 „ Firing ... 91 16 9 „ „ Groceries, &c. 190 8 7 „ Meat 112 511 „ „ Bread ... 51 811 ,' „ „ Milk 37 11 3 „ „ Maintainance, Kepairs, Clothing, and Bedding 92 18 4 „ j, Advertising and Printing ... 24 12 0 „ „ Funerals ... Tr ' 0 „ „ Passage Mom y of Patients ..'. 22 12 0 „ „ Sundry ExperiBoa — Stamps, 17s Sd ; Seeds, 143 6d ; Collecting at Rivertou, £1 as ; Telegram, 4s ; Cartage, 55, • Sweep and 10s ; Foreign Bibles, lis 9d ; Repairs, £5 -9s ; Labor in garden, £15s 16 1 II " £991 15 8

By cash in hand from 1867". t ,^l^B '*8 9 I „ Amount received as per adver-' .^ «^\ ] tised List during the year ""'-j^^ j r 1868... V \<'W/ a „ Public Subscription as per List ' 473/4 7 , „ Goyernuient Subsidy — .eight - " * roouths at- £33 6s. Bd, and. four months at £50 . ... 466,1.3 4 { £930.47 11 , „ Deficit 12 19 0 : £991 15 8 i Gk S, CROUCH, \ Treasurer to the Hospital Committee. • Inveroargill, 7th March, 1868. Mr Crouch intimated that the report, printed in 1 a pamphlet form, containing the complete list of; subscribers and a full financial statement in al ' tabulated form, could be obtained from subscri. ! bers. He showed- : the Bank book, bearing : j a credit balance of £161 3s, against which there were outstanding accounts to the amount of about £15. The funds would also : ' shortly be further increased by the G-o'verriment . • subsidy for the months of February and .March, ' now nearly due. On the motion of Mr Perkins, seconded by Mr , G-ellatly, tlie'report, as read, was adopted. The meeting then proceeded to the election of officers and committee by ballot, with the following result : — Messrs Crouch, Matheson, ■ Hare, Colyer, Tapper, G-ellatly, Lumsden, Reese, and Perkins. The following were elected as. office-bearers : — President, Mr Hare ; Treasurer, Mr Crouch ; Secretary, Mr Perkins. — — — — — — —^ » •