Charitable Aid Board.

Thames Star, Volume XLII, Issue 10686, 15 August 1905, Page 4

Charitable Aid Board.

J The ordinary monthly meeting _of | the Thames and Coromandel United | Charitable1 Aid Board was Eeld last night. There were present: Messrs Thos. Killgour (chairman), G. S. Clark; G. Comer, Taylor, Tresize, Hornibrooke, and J. El Banks (secretary), ■ Apologies were received for the unavoidable absence of Messi-s Harrison and Slteadman. The minutes of the last meeting were read and confirmed, and th© outward correspondence read and approved. The report of the General Purposes Committee was received, and the further expenditure of the District Home be referred to the committee with power to act. The Homes superintendent reported that the number of men in the Home was 28, women 2, two men being admitted during the month. The Visiting Committee reported as under: —"The conduct r f the District Home during the past month has been satisfactory. The contracts for the alterations aad renovation of the : l Men's Home, and providing* bath-i room, and lavatory accommodationy are ' now almost completed, and your architect, Mil- Currie, who- has paid . several visits of inspection! to the i works daring the month, has reported to your secretary his thorough satisfaction with, the progress made. The drainage works authorised by your Board are also being satisfactorily carried out by the contractor, Mr Pratt, vnder the supervision of Mr Currie, and the work is now well advanced. Your committee begs to point out that no provision was made in the present contract for making the required alteration in the lavatory accommodation! at the Women's Home in order to connect the closets with the general sewage system being laid down, and recommends" that your committee be empowered to have the omissions'rectified and the necessary connection, made. Your Committee desires to be instructed with regard to furnishing the new sitting . room provided for the male inmates, and also with reference, to other matters requiring attention; enumerated below. The furniture required for the sitting room is as follows: Two tables^ Bft x 3ft 6in, one book case, ■ two dozea chairs, linoleum, wire window blinds, lamps, two door mats and a strip of cocoanut matting, also four verandah seats. The bath-rooms: re- , quire fitting witih a. fixed seat in each ' room, towel rollers, clothes hooks, and a square of wood lattice work to stand in front of each, bath. Your . committee also gave instructions to have some of the ward windows frost- j ed part of length. Mortuary: This \ room require* better ventilation, and j a table and stretcher are also necessary. Isolation Ward: Lavatory accommodation should be provided for j this ward so that the drainage may j be provided for im the general scheme j now being constructed. Your committee also recommends that the I name of the institution be suitably placed on, the buildings, and that a 2>lacard for th© purposei of recording the names of donors to the institution be framed and placed in some convenient position in accordance with the by-laws, and that the bequest from the late Richard Bertram, Esq., be inscribed thereon. Old Age Pensions : Your committee desires to remind the Board that the increase granted by Parliament in the amount of the old age pensionsl will commenco on the Ist September, and requests an expression, of the Board's opinion as to the manner in which your secretary should deal with the pension, instalments in the future with regard to the charge for maintenance of pensioners who are inmates of the liv stitufion. ■ -Hitherto the full monthly pension instalment has been 30s, and the sum of -is has been returned to the pensioner; thus 26s per mouth has been* received on account, of the cost- of maintenance. For the future the1 full monthly instalment will be £2 3s id. The charge for maintenance at the District Home, in accordance by the by-law of the institution is Is pei- day, consequently your secretary, will be a"He to make the full charge of Is per day against th© pension instalper day against the pension instalment. The, immediate effect of the increase of pensions wilL undoubtedly be an exodus of most of the pensioners from the District Home, and as the increasel will, enable most of the pensioners to provide comfartably foi' themselves, thei-e is no reason why they should remain in the institution. The maintenance chavge of Is per day about covers the cost of living at the District, Home, but the whole cost of maintenance, including salaries and the up-kee'p of the institution! amounts more .nearly to 10s ' Gd per inmate per week, and it thus becomes a, question, whether those pensioners who may still find it necessary to enter the- District, Home should nob be charged the full cost of their maintenance. Before recommending any change, however, your committee^ would like to obtain further -information regarding the provisions of the Act, and with regard to the action other Boards intend to take on this question-. The accounts presented to you this month amount, as per list herewith, to the sum of £263 19s Bd. Th© accounts have been duly examined and found correct, and your committee- recomi mends that they be passed for pay- ; ment." J Considerable discussion took place !on the subject of the cost of msiinj tcuau.ee at the District Home, and I the opinion: was expressed by Sir , Clark that inmates should in future : be charged the full cost of mainten- ■ ance and that the by-law should be alj tered after due^ consideration to enj able thi& to be doruev '—,■■ ■ j Mf Clark proposed,' and Mir Horni- . brooke seconded, that Messrs Stead- ' ruajk Harrison, and Grace be -granted three nidtr'.'hs l£4v?' of absence. :"-- Messrs Clark, Horilibroo&ej and j Comei- were appointed a Visiting Committee.