HEALTH INTERESTS.

Star (Christchurch), Volume LXVI, Issue 20476, 30 November 1934, Page 4

HEALTH INTERESTS.

Branch of Royal Sanitary Institute Formed. The inaugural meeting of the Canterbury Centre of the recently-formed New Zealand branch of the Royal Sanitary Institute was held in the City Council Chambers last evening. Dr T. Fletcher Telford, convener of the meeting, was in the chair. Dr Telford briefly explained the aims of the Royal Sanitary Institute. In 1875 interest in public health matters had quickened in Britain and in that year Dublin University instituted a course in State medicine. The following year saw the foundation of the Royal Sanitary Institute. Important changes had last year taken place in New Zealand. A branch of the Royal Sanitary Institute had been established, and the New Zealand Sanitary Inspectors’ Association had approached the New Zealand Branch | of the Royal Sanitary Institute and suggested amalgamation. After many parleys the members of the Sanitary Inspectors’ Association 'had decid ed by an overwhelming majority in favour of amalgamation. Public Interest. The object of the institute was to provide an opportunity for doctors, engineers, and other qualified men to meet and discuss problems of public health and to encourage the public to take an interest in these matters. It was proposed to hold annual meetings in different centres and if all the members worked together Dr Telford was sure that it would be possible to improve on present standards. Mr A. R. Galbraith (city engineer) corroborated all that Dr Telford had said and added that it was now necessary for all interested in the public health to study, in addition to the problems of industrial hygiene, the problems of industrial psychology and physiology. Provisional Officers. Provisional officers to act until next year were elected as follows: —Dr T. F. Telford (chairman), Mr M. Kershaw (honorary secretary), committee, Messrs A. R. Galbraith (representing municipal engineers), V. R. J. Ilean (representing architects), J. W. Huggins and 11. K. Whittington and Dr A. B. Pearson (representing medical men). A tablet recently excavated in Northern Mesopotamia proves that the story of the expulsion of Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden was known in the East nearly 6000 years ago.