CORRESPONDENCE.

Timaru Herald, Volume LXXV, Issue 11577, 12 October 1901, Page 3

CORRESPONDENCE.

THE HOSPITAL AND ITS MEDICAL STAFF ARRANGEMENTS. To the Editor of the "Timaru Herald." Sir, —I have read your article in today's issue on the above matter, and regret very much to observe that you and", in your opinion, the public are dissatisfied with the position of matters; and further you are also of opinion, that the Board are indifferent as to what the public think about it. I can assure you that such is not the case; at all events it is not so speaking for myself. It is always gratifying to have the feeling that one has the support and goodwill of the public in the performance of duties on jrablic bodies. I can only say that if you are correct in your view of what the public opinion is, I am. afraid the position is not understood. I am not satisfied with the present position, nor do I think my fellow-members are, but who is responsible for it? I say the medical men of Timaru are, and not the Board. Let me state what the Board requires, and I can hardly believe the demands will., be deemed unreasonable; namely, that a duly qualified medical man shall be /in charge of the hospital and have the sole charge , of it, and that the medical men of the, town will, in consideration of certain privi- i leges and advantages which the institution gives them, provide a honorary visiting and assisting staff. I feel sure that whenever they are willing,to do this the Board, will be glad to recede from their present] position. I mights say, however, that in. my opinion, the Board should' insist that the medical men each gave their assist- ' ance in reasonable periods of rotation, and not, as they have done, leave it to two or three of their number to sit on the Board like the old man of the sea. I have done my best to secure that the hospital shall have a Resident Surgeon in sole charge, and now I am also going to do my best to maintain the position, Achieved. If such a scheme as you have sketched out on behalf of the Timaru doctors, or any other scheme by which they get the medical man in charge of tha hospital, the Board, the nursing staff, and hospital arrangements generally; brought under their control, then I will acknowledge defeat, and I hope gracefully if reluctantly retire from my connection with I the hospital as a member of the governing ' body. In conclusion, I wish to say that the present arrangement with regard to the appointment /of an assistant medical man is at present only considered as temporary, pending the return of Dr Gnbites. In the meantime the plan has the merit of insuring, or practically so, that the hospital cannot, by reason of the action of the outside doctors, be left without the medical assistance it needs. The public may not know that the present Resident Surgeon is under boycott, whether it be in regard to his hospital work or p.ri- , •vate practice. The Board has not created this warfare; on the contrary, it has for a > long time, in order to avoid it, lived in fear and trembling of the Timaru doctors, and a galling sense of compelled submission to them, and I on my part conI fess to a feeling of relief, if not .of satisfaction, from the present position of affairs. The public can rest assured (and notwithstanding your opinion I think it ! knows) that its private interests as well ns that of the hospital are in no way suffering.

I am, etc., J. TALBOT. Temuka, October 10th, 1901.

THE MOUNTED RIELES CAMP.

The Mounted Rifles having got their camp into 'working order, put in some good work yesterday in section and extended drill on foot and mounted. The orders for to-day are to be the same as those of yesterday. , Lieutenant Kirkland Trill be first orderly pfiicer of the day, and , Lieutenant Elwcrthy next for duty, Ser- I geant Williams will be orderly sergeant, and Corporal Matthews orderly corporal. Sergeant-Major Crespin arrived in camp at I 7.30 last evening, and will henceforward . act as staff instructor at the camp. To-morrow morning the. officers and troopers, headed by the Battalion Band, will attend church parade at St. Mary's, and in the afternoon the Band will play at the camp, and afternoon tea will be dispensed to all visitors. On Thursday next, when the camp will be brought to a close with a sportsmeeting, those who attend should pass a veTy snjoyable time. The troopers are in active ; practice every evening, and by the appointed time they should be in very fine form. The sports will start at 2.30 p.m. with i troopers' foot-race of 200 yards. The second event is called the Timaru Race— j Horses competing in it must have been I ridden in at least one annual training, or I it two company parades; to be walked I jne-third of the course and trotted one;hird, the, competitor to then dismount, fire hree rounds of blank ammunition, and gallop lome, taking one hurdle in the course. Lloyd-Lindsay competition Sections of 'our start by gun-fire, jump three feet lurdle, after jumping Nos. 1, 2, and 4 disnount, No. 3 takes charge of the others' lorses and leads them round a flag 30 purds off, the dismounted men fire five rounds of blank each at 200 yards range, ;hen all mount and ride over the remainder >f the course, about three-quarters of a nile, and on the way they jump two more mrdles, dismount and fire five rounds at 500 yards, then remount and form up for nspectioon. In the fourth event, the competitors are to march to a given point, ,ake off hats, coats, boots, and leggings, je marched back 50 yards and from that point race down to their clothes, dress and jo back to ■ starting point, the first man jack 'properly dressed—in his own clothes —to be the winner. No. 6 event is tentpegging, and No. 6 a tug-of-war, in which j Several teams from outside the corps are j ixpected to compete. No. 7is a Novel . ace — a man dismounts, leads his horse one;hird of the course, mounts and trots mother third, and gallops the remaining :hird, jumping three flights of hurdles on ;he way. Then follows the cigar and umjrella race (mounted)— competitors line up, laddies on the ground in front of the jorses; at " saddle up," light cigar and >pen umbrella, mount and gallop to winling post, cigar to be alight and umbrella ;o be in good condition at the finish; disance abont a quarter of a mile. No. 9 Victoria Cross race —competitors to start

from a given point, dismount and rescue a dummy under fire, dummy to be carried in a proper manner back to the starting point over hurdles. Then follows a tug-of-war on horseback, eight men a-side (four teams are now practising for this event). No. 11 is bareback wrestling, boots, spurs and tunics to be removed. The next is the Balaclava melee, four men a-side to fight three minutes, the team having most plumes left at the end to be the winner. The programme will be concluded with a "night alarm" (by sections)—horses to be picketed 50 yards awny, men lyirg down,

with hats, tunics, said boots off, bugle sounds, men get up, dtess, saddle up, and gallop to the winning post. There, will be a section from the Maahonaland Mounted Police, specially imported for the occasion, who will try their best to- show their white brothers how to do it.